Mercury - Refurbishing Due?

[Lois R]

Hi Lois! Honestly... my statement is not based on any facts, it is simply my personal gut feeling... In any case, it will be at least 2010 or 2011 before anything happens. No extensive drydock has been scheduled for either Mercury or Galaxy through April 2009.

 

Cheers -

Floris

 

Hi Floris~If we had a choice....I would say upgrade Mercury

and Galaxy and keep them in the fleet! But what do I know?:eek:

 

As for Century, even though she is in the 70,000 ton range,

isn't she much bigger than what Azamara's ships are now?

Century still holds over 1800 pax...don't Quest and Journey only

hold 1/2 that amount?

Just wondering if Century is in the same genre as those 2 ships?

[Lois R]

I think you're right, too many know now. :cool:

 

Hi Texed:) 2 more know also...2 of my tablemates on Mercury

tried the waffles as well. I told them they could tell the Waffle Man

they would like their order cooked a bit more well done.

They came out a bit too light the first time.

So....of course he made them a new order without any problems:)

Golden/Dark brown (not burned, just a bit darker).......YUM:D

[bugsy1968]

:D I was just reading this thread and find it very amusing. Maybe I can clear a few things up. Mercury went through a "soft goods" refurbishement this past April at which point they upgraded the bedding, changed carpets in public areas, added the aft cabins, etc. At some point in late 2008/early 2009 it will undergo a complete upgrade similar to what the Century went through recently. I had actuallyt already posted this infor earlier in this thread but for some reason certain people seem to enjoy spewing out misinformation just to confuse people. I work in the travel industry and have these FACTS direct from Celebrity. Have a nice day!

[Lois R]

:D I was just reading this thread and find it very amusing. Maybe I can clear a few things up. Mercury went through a "soft goods" refurbishement this past April at which point they upgraded the bedding, changed carpets in public areas, added the aft cabins, etc. At some point in late 2008/early 2009 it will undergo a complete upgrade similar to what the Century went through recently. I had actuallyt already posted this infor earlier in this thread but for some reason certain people seem to enjoy spewing out misinformation just to confuse people. I work in the travel industry and have these FACTS direct from Celebrity. Have a nice day!

 

Bugsy, hi:) I don't think anyone is giving out misinformation on purpose.

And that is great that you are in the travel industry and you were

told things by Celebrity.

Please let us know when the Press Release is being put out for us

"regular people"...we are in the industry too:D we travel!

When is the 6 week period for each ship happening? That is about how

long Century was out of service.

[florisdekort]

:D I was just reading this thread and find it very amusing. Maybe I can clear a few things up. Mercury went through a "soft goods" refurbishement this past April at which point they upgraded the bedding, changed carpets in public areas, added the aft cabins, etc. At some point in late 2008/early 2009 it will undergo a complete upgrade similar to what the Century went through recently. I had actuallyt already posted this infor earlier in this thread but for some reason certain people seem to enjoy spewing out misinformation just to confuse people. I work in the travel industry and have these FACTS direct from Celebrity. Have a nice day!

 

As there is no hole in Mercury's schedule, your "facts" imply that Celebrity is going to cancel at least 6 weeks of Mercury cruises that are now open for bookings. I find that very hard to believe.

 

Floris

[dkjretired]

:D I was just reading this thread and find it very amusing. Maybe I can clear a few things up. Mercury went through a "soft goods" refurbishement this past April at which point they upgraded the bedding, changed carpets in public areas, added the aft cabins, etc. At some point in late 2008/early 2009 it will undergo a complete upgrade similar to what the Century went through recently. I had actuallyt already posted this infor earlier in this thread but for some reason certain people seem to enjoy spewing out misinformation just to confuse people. I work in the travel industry and have these FACTS direct from Celebrity. Have a nice day!

 

And if we had listened to previous FACTS from Celebrity, the Century would have been stretched like no other ship prior. They have a clear record of not giving out accurate information so any comments you might make would be taken with a grain of salt from those on this board since we have been through it before. I would not call April's drydock a soft goods refurbishement when they did major construction on the ship. Sorry, but we will wait for the press release, have been burned too much in the past.

[avalon1025]

I really enjoyed the Sky Suite I had on the Mercury last month, I was feeling a bit underwhelmed by Celebrity from our last Infinity cruise, but the Mercury had a wonderful feel to her and her crew was great.

 

Now the suite did have a rather run down couch and club chair (old orange fabric with holes and dirt stained arms), the TV was an old Sony TV with VCR (I think I had the same TV in college 18 years ago). The furniture on the veranda was so dirty I put a towel down before sitting (though TBH it was probably clean and just very stained). It would be very easy for Celebrity to fix these things and make the Mercury a really well appointed ship.

 

Also, I have noticed form the Infinity in March, Celebrity does not maintain their ships as well as ships of similar vintage on other lines. I found the exterior areas of the Infinity very worn (varnish chipping off rails, decking worn down to the metal, etc).

[Drew B]

'can be raised' not were and there is still time..and they are, as I stated, enticing more pax to cruise are they not - seems to be a lot of interest now in those aft cabins.

 

You say that like it's a bad thing. Isn't it GOOD to have more cabins that are desirable to the clientele?

 

Glad to hear u found nothing 'uncomfortable' about the furniture in your cabin, other posters have said nothing about comfort - just that furniture & carpets seemed a bit dirty & worn...

 

I got the word "comfort" from YOUR post where you complained that X's upgrades were all about profit rather than pax comfort. I was trying to suggest that I found the ship plenty comfortable, and I didn't feel that upgrades were needed to increase comfort. Just my opinion...

[Modern_Viking]

During a recent X cruise (on Mercury), I noticed that the in-cabin directory had a page on the Celebrity fleet. One relevant section was

 

Century - Refreshed Spring 2006

Galaxy - To be refreshed Spring 2008

Mercury - To be refreshed Spring 2009

 

During a Q&A sesstion, the captain was asked what was in store for the Mercury. He said a design team had already been on-board, but there was still plenty of time for them to make decisions and change their mind before the dry dock. Otherwise, he said he didn't remember what the current plans happened to be.

 

I would guess that spring could be any time in the March-April-May time frame. I do not know the odds of these plans changing, I just know what I read and heard.

[cruisecrasy]

:D I was just reading this thread and find it very amusing. Maybe I can clear a few things up. Mercury went through a "soft goods" refurbishement this past April at which point they upgraded the bedding, changed carpets in public areas, added the aft cabins, etc. At some point in late 2008/early 2009 it will undergo a complete upgrade similar to what the Century went through recently. I had actuallyt already posted this infor earlier in this thread but for some reason certain people seem to enjoy spewing out misinformation just to confuse people. I work in the travel industry and have these FACTS direct from Celebrity. Have a nice day!

 

added the aft verandahs not cabins? Didn't they also upgrade the shopping arcade or is this misinformation? If it is, I apologize for reposting it..Seems to me though, as another poster stated when they add verandahs it becomes more than just a 'soft goods' refurbishment.

Perhaps u cld explain when they had her in dry dock anyway that they didn't change the carpets in the cabins & the furniture at the same time instead of waiting another 2 years?

 

Thanks for posting the time frame that Celebrity had given u, I thought I had read it in an earlier post & is why I used those dates in my posting.

 

Happy cruisin'!

[cruisecrasy]

You say that like it's a bad thing. Isn't it GOOD to have more cabins that are desirable to the clientele?

 

 

 

I got the word "comfort" from YOUR post where you complained that X's upgrades were all about profit rather than pax comfort. I was trying to suggest that I found the ship plenty comfortable, and I didn't feel that upgrades were needed to increase comfort. Just my opinion...

 

It is 'good' to have more desirable cabins especially if u are a shareholder.. I simply state it is beneficial to Celebritys bottom-line.. It is a business after all. They make it more attractive for cruisers, to attract more, to make more $ for the company..and that is why the verandahs were added and no refurbishment was done in the cabins. Those obviously can wait because folks will continue to sail her regardless it seems.

 

It's all just degrees of opinion in the end anyway.

 

Happy cruisin'!

[cruisecrasy]

As there is no hole in Mercury's schedule, your "facts" imply that Celebrity is going to cancel at least 6 weeks of Mercury cruises that are now open for bookings. I find that very hard to believe.

 

Floris

 

Major point made...Will be interesting to see how it plays out - as another poster stated, perhaps some of these ships will disappear from Celebrity hmmm?

[Texed]

Hi Texed:) 2 more know also...2 of my tablemates on Mercury

tried the waffles as well. I told them they could tell the Waffle Man

they would like their order cooked a bit more well done.

They came out a bit too light the first time.

So....of course he made them a new order without any problems:)

Golden/Dark brown (not burned, just a bit darker).......YUM:D

 

Thanks a lot Lois. :cool: :D

[Drew B]

Perhaps u cld explain when they had her in dry dock anyway that they didn't change the carpets in the cabins & the furniture at the same time instead of waiting another 2 years?

 

They don't need to wait for a dry dock to change carpets & furniture. They do it consistantly on a rotating schedule, and they can do it in a couple of hours on changeover day. Some rooms will have nice new carpet and some will have carpet at the end of its functional life.

[cruisecrasy]

They don't need to wait for a dry dock to change carpets & furniture. They do it consistantly on a rotating schedule, and they can do it in a couple of hours on changeover day. Some rooms will have nice new carpet and some will have carpet at the end of its functional life.

 

Thanks for the info - thought because some other cruiselines do it in dry dock when changing the carpets/furniture etc that Celebrity did also.

Curious though, since if they are changing the carpets is it not all at the end of its 'functioning' life? Seems to me if they change it room by room slowly - then some folks are going to be walking on carpets that are well past that stage hmm?

 

Must be a $ thing - no dry dock means no interruption of cruising so no loss of $ correct? This is a convenience thing for Celebrity and any other cruiseline that changes, furniture/carpets etc without dry dock.

 

I still believe that dirty &/or worn items are well past replacing and should be changed immediately - wld u put up with that at a supposed 'decent' hotel - so why on a cruiseship -I wldn't!

 

Happy cruisin'!

[Lois R]

Thanks a lot Lois. :cool: :D

 

My pleasure Texed:D you know we have to share the love

of the waffles......there is plenty of batter for everyone:D

[Lois R]

the boards are acting up again:eek: guess we are supposed to share

that too:rolleyes:

[Drew B]

Dry dock is specifically to fix and maintain those mechanical systems that require taking the ship out of the water. It has absolutely nothing to do with cosmetic or design changes.

 

Curious though, since if they are changing the carpets is it not all at the end of its 'functioning' life? Seems to me if they change it room by room slowly - then some folks are going to be walking on carpets that are well past that stage hmm?

 

I would hope and assume that there is a schedule to it, and they cycle through cabins in the same order so that none of them get substantially older than others. Lets say, for example, that they typically recarpet every 4 years (I just made up that number). Cabins that get recarpeted this week will be due again in Fall 2011. Cabins that get re-carpeted next May will be due again in Spring 2012. Cabins that get re-carpeted in 2009 won't be due again till 2013...

 

I still believe that dirty &/or worn items are well past replacing and should be changed immediately - wld u put up with that at a supposed 'decent' hotel - so why on a cruiseship -I wldn't!

 

I agree. I'm lucky to say that I've never been in a cabin I considered dirty or worn enough to warrant complaint (on Celebrity or any other line). I assume that if they are notified of unacceptable condition of carpet or furniture (either by a guest or a steward), they would do something much sooner than waiting for the next scheduled interval. Also, a lot of the time, they can fix the problem by steam cleaning rather than by re-carpeting/re-upholstering...

[Karynanne]

We were on Mercury in April, and our cabin had been one of the newly added balconies. Not only was the balcony added, but the whole cabin was given new carpeting and bedding soft goods. When we went to our cabin, on the first afternoon, there was a crew still working on carpeting, and finishing up odds and ends in the cabin.

 

On Infinity in Oct. '06, we noticed that large sections of buffet (seating area) were being re-carpeted. They took a few days to complete the process, and it was usually done late in the evening.

[Texed]

My pleasure Texed:D you know we have to share the love

of the waffles......there is plenty of batter for everyone:D

 

You are too nice Lois. Why aren't you selfish like me? :cool:

[cruisecrasy]

Dry dock is specifically to fix and maintain those mechanical systems that require taking the ship out of the water. It has absolutely nothing to do with cosmetic or design changes.

 

 

 

I would hope and assume that there is a schedule to it, and they cycle through cabins in the same order so that none of them get substantially older than others. Lets say, for example, that they typically recarpet every 4 years (I just made up that number). Cabins that get recarpeted this week will be due again in Fall 2011. Cabins that get re-carpeted next May will be due again in Spring 2012. Cabins that get re-carpeted in 2009 won't be due again till 2013...

 

 

 

 

I agree. I'm lucky to say that I've never been in a cabin I considered dirty or worn enough to warrant complaint (on Celebrity or any other line). I assume that if they are notified of unacceptable condition of carpet or furniture (either by a guest or a steward), they would do something much sooner than waiting for the next scheduled interval. Also, a lot of the time, they can fix the problem by steam cleaning rather than by re-carpeting/re-upholstering...

 

 

U make some valid points..

 

My only concern is the fact that other posters have stated and in this thread, that they have experienced wear and dirt - that shld not happen especially if as u say if they can use a steam cleaner. Nothing, however, short of replacement can 'fix' something showing wear & tear. Besides, are the stewards 'blind' - can't they be trained to spot these type of things & inform their superiors of same. Why shld a pax have to complain about it - they shld be able to expect decent, clean surroundings, don't u think? I mean its part of what they are paying for, correct?

 

As I was considering booking, I have been perusing as many pictures of the Mercury's Sky Suites as possible and I can't say I am impressed either with the decor or 'age' of the TV & VCR as pointed out by 'avalon1025'.

It all simply looks worn out and tired. Shame, cause it does reflect on Celebritys reputation..

 

Seems most of the fixup costs have gone into the new balconies & aft cabins & the CC status cabins on the Mercury. Curious 'cause the others are suites so the only conclusion I can draw is most cruisers will put up with this just to travel in a 'suite' so make interest on the money & don't rush to fix them up.

 

Not sure this is the type of cruiseline I want to cruise with & especially not in a Sky Suite.

 

I wish u happy cruisin'!

[Drew B]

If you feel that way based on what you think (from seeing pictures or from any direct experience), then that is very valid. I warn you to be careful about making decisions based on what past passengers say, good or bad. First of all, their standards may be different from yours. Somebody who says great things may be overly easy to please, while somebody who says bad things may be overly picky. Secondly, their experience might not be representative. A person with a good report may have gotten lucky and just happened to sail in the most recently renovated cabin. On the other hand, nearly all of the cabins may be flawless, but you might hear from the one person in a cabin with problems, and take that information too much to heart...

[cruisecrasy]

If you feel that way based on what you think (from seeing pictures or from any direct experience), then that is very valid. I warn you to be careful about making decisions based on what past passengers say, good or bad. First of all, their standards may be different from yours. Somebody who says great things may be overly easy to please, while somebody who says bad things may be overly picky. Secondly, their experience might not be representative. A person with a good report may have gotten lucky and just happened to sail in the most recently renovated cabin. On the other hand, nearly all of the cabins may be flawless, but you might hear from the one person in a cabin with problems, and take that information too much to heart...

 

Valid point and wise observation..

[richsea]

U make some valid points..

 

My only concern is the fact that other posters have stated and in this thread, that they have experienced wear and dirt - that shld not happen especially if as u say if they can use a steam cleaner. Nothing, however, short of replacement can 'fix' something showing wear & tear. Besides, are the stewards 'blind' - can't they be trained to spot these type of things & inform their superiors of same. Why shld a pax have to complain about it - they shld be able to expect decent, clean surroundings, don't u think? I mean its part of what they are paying for, correct?

 

As I was considering booking, I have been perusing as many pictures of the Mercury's Sky Suites as possible and I can't say I am impressed either with the decor or 'age' of the TV & VCR as pointed out by 'avalon1025'.

the It all simply looks worn out and tired. Shame, cause it does reflect on Celebritys reputation..

 

Seems most of the fixup costs have gone into the new balconies & aft cabins & the CC status cabins on the Mercury. Curious 'cause the others are suites so the only conclusion I can draw is most cruisers will put up with this just to travel in a 'suite' so make interest on the money & don't rush to fix them up.

 

Not sure this is the type of cruiseline I want to cruise with & especially not in a Sky Suite.

 

I wish u happy cruisin'!

 

Hi cruisesrasy!

 

Your concerns certainly are valid; if you're not impressed by the photos that you've seen, then perhaps you would be better off trying another ship or even another line which may better satisfy your preferences. It's a lot of $$$ to plunk down when you have negative vibes before you even step on the ship!

 

Whatever ship or cruise line you choose, I hope that you have a great cruise!

[cruisecrasy]

Hi cruisesrasy!

 

Your concerns certainly are valid; if you're not impressed by the photos that you've seen, then perhaps you would be better off trying another ship or even another line which may better satisfy your preferences. It's a lot of $$$ to plunk down when you have negative vibes before you even step on the ship!

 

Whatever ship or cruise line you choose, I hope that you have a great cruise!

 

I concur...it is a lot of $$$ to have negative vibes about..Good to do ones homework before one cruises & knowing your own requirements....

 

I am really disappointed in those suites on the Mercury, having talked to others and been on my favorite cruising site - CC of course - and, as I said, perusing all the photos I can find.

Celebrity has been a 'want to try' for awhile now and this particular itinerary was perfect. Unfortunately this ships Sky Suites aren't for me, but perhaps in the future (especially if/when it has had an upgrade)...I never say never :0)

 

May u also have great cruisin'!!