just back from the mercury

[leeuwarden]

:D :D :D

what a fantastic cruise.

We left from san fransisco on the 3 of october for a 10 day sailing to mexico.

this was our first time with Celebrity and we had not sailed on a big ship before. We stopped sailing when princess started with the larger ships.

However we where very impressed that the ship was not crowded at all, and it was fully booked.

 

To start at the beginning with embarcation:\

it was hard, san fransisco's pier 35 is not cruise ship friendly, and if you are driving its even worse to get there, the parking is 2 blocks away with no shuttle bus.

The taxis take up all the spaces at the curb, but once you get through the lines you are welcomed by a glass of champange and escorted to our cabin (8139).

Very roomy cabin with great window, nice bathroom and lots of storage space.

The bedding could be improved, the pillows are foam and i found the bed hard, but of course you could bring your own pillow.

Room service was great, and cabin was always clean. we did not see much of our steward but i think that was policy.

Food was great, at the buffet, diningroom and casual dining, the casual dining was our favorite, being it was less crowded and we had a great view there.

Staff aboard was great, and they did not bother with trying to sell you coctails. Picture taking was kept under control also, we found the pictures expensive.

Overall we rate this cruise excellent.

 

Christina from chico Cal.

<

[Lyn2005]

Thanks for the info, Christina. We are cruising the Mexican Riviera on the Mercury in February but sailing from San Diego.

 

Is there anything that you wished you knew ahead of time or wish you had brought? Likewise, was there anything you brought and wished you hadn't? Any tips would be appreciated.

 

Thanks!

Lyn

[Sky Sweet]

Thanks for the info, Christina. We are cruising the Mexican Riviera on the Mercury in February but sailing from San Diego.

 

Is there anything that you wished you knew ahead of time or wish you had brought? Likewise, was there anything you brought and wished you hadn't? Any tips would be appreciated.

 

Thanks!

Lyn

Lynn...My husband and I will be taking the same cruise in January

 

Christina....What shore excursions did you take and would you recommend them?

[JNLROSE]

Hi again Lyn!

Sky sweet, we are sailing on Nov 26th so I can answer or find out anything you want to know! We've sailed several Celebrity ships, but this will be the 1st time on the Mercury. If there are any specific things you don't get answered before I leave, let me know & I will try to get the answers for you.

[L11]

We took the same cruise last year and loved it. Not sure what you can do about the beds, but the pillow problem is easily fixed. We asked our room steward to bring us 2 feather pillows and we had them that same night.

Linda

[Lyn2005]

Linda, did you have a suite? I wasn't sure if they would bring pillows if you just had a regular room, I thought I read on some thread that they wouldn't.

 

Rosie, I'm sure I'll think of something, all tips are welcome! Once you get back be sure to post your experiences, we'll all be eager to hear about them.

[Live the good life]

Leeuwarden,

Thanks for sharing. Our family of 3 and family and friends will be on the Mercury Mexican Riviera 10 nights X-mas sailing from San Diego...

 

Would like to find out whether there was a guitarist playing Latin/Spanish music at the aft bar (near Sushi/buffet area) everyday after sailway? We had this experience during our Celebrity Millenium Mediteranean cruise, and really enjoyed it!!! How was entertainment? What time were the shows at? and what time did the live band play at the pool area?

 

Also, did you have 2 or 3 formal nights and when were they?

 

How was the condition of the sea? Any roughness at the aft of the ship?

 

JNLROSE, since you will be sailing end of November, if you could let us know about the above topic as well...We have not been back to Puerta Vallarta for 15 years and very excited to bring our daughter for the first time there...

 

L11 or those who have been to the Mexican ports, could you recommend some nice hotels/resorts that will let cruise ship passengers use the pool/beach for free (as long as one buys drink/food) or for a fee ?

 

Kim

[Luvtotrav]

We did the same 10 day cruise out of San Diego last February on the Mercury. It was a great cruise, however, be prepared for the first full sea day to be chilly as well as the last day and a half. That is the only thing we were dissapointed with~the weather and you have no control over it. This is common weather for Februar for this area.

 

Have a super cruise.

From Minnesota

[cruznon]

Live the Good Life,

 

Last Nov in we went to the Krystal Hotel close to dock in Puerto Vallerta--Nice beach, lovely pool. $10 pp BUT you get that back in food or beach bar credit!

 

In Cabo San Lucas we went to the Hacienda Hotel --had lunch (excellent ) by the pool over-looking wonderful beach.

:) :)

[stargazerm31]

Thanks for the info. I can't wait. Paulfredo and our spouses will be on her in 6-days! This will be my 8th cruise on Celebrity and 2nd time on the Mercury. Last time on her was in the fall of 1999 on a Western Caribbean cruise.

 

You are right that Pier 35 is not built for cruisiing.

 

John

[Ine]

We did the same cruise on Mercury 10 days earlier then Leeuwarden, left S. Francisco Sept. 24.

 

We also enjoyed it very much, was our 1st cruise on Mercury, sailed HAL before that.

Meals were excellent with great choice, very friendly staff.

The sea was like a mirror, hardly any waves. We saw whales and dolphins near the ship.

 

PS Leeuwaren how is your dutch?

[JNLROSE]

Stargazer John!

 

I am SO thrilled to see you post here. I have so very much enjoyed your pictures of your cruises! When I sailed Summit, I walked right in & to our room because of your pics!!! I knew exactly what to expect from that ship. We are sailing Mercury on 11/26 in SS 1215. If you're anywhere near, please do the photo thing again---you're GREAT!!! Can't wsit to see your photos again. Have a wonderful cruise.

[leeuwarden]

Pillows: indeed we could get feather pillows, after getting a sore neck we ask for softer pillows.

We did not go to entertainment, except for a couple of movies.

I used the spa speciale that they have on shore days. it was wonderfull.

I brought to many clothes, we seemed to have a lot of formal and semi formal nights, at least 3 of each.

Ine, my dutch is good, we also met a lot of dutch speaking people on the ship.

Has anyone signed up for the cruise critic party? It was great fun!!!!

Do bring some tape, i used it to tape daily to the wall, and we used the hightlighter a lot, also on yur pillow at night the give you a pretty card that looks nice on the wall.

I brougt some silk flowers and a picture of the dogs to personalize the cabin. Our catagory did not get flowers or fruit basket.

 

christina

[Tatka]

Ine, my dutch is good, we also met a lot of dutch speaking people on the ship.christina

I also met a lot of dutch speaking people last year on Century. I think Celebrity is popular over there. (And Netherlands are very popular in my family ;) , we aren't dutch btw, just love Amsterdam, Maastricht etc)

 

It's strange that I met only 1 couple from Netherlands on my August cruise on Holland America. :confused:

[patti2297]

Linda, did you have a suite? I wasn't sure if they would bring pillows if you just had a regular room, I thought I read on some thread that they wouldn't.

I believe you can get the feather pillows no matter what stateroom you have. Just ask your attendant. We had an inside on Century 10/02, and I asked for them. I had them that night.

[Ine]

Originally Posted by leeuwarden

Ine, my dutch is good, we also met a lot of dutch speaking people on the ship.christina

 

<<I also met a lot of dutch speaking people last year on Century. I think Celebrity is popular over there. (And Netherlands are very popular in my family ;) , we aren't dutch btw, just love Amsterdam, Maastricht etc>>

 

I just asked, because as you can see I was born and still live in the netherlands.

Leeuwarden is of course a village in Friesland, so I recognised the name.

We had the Mercury cruise of Sept. 24 to Mexico and enjoyed it very much. Our 1st time with Celebrity, before we sailed with HAL.

This year the sailingdates of Mercury were more convenient to us. I must say HAL and also Celbrity were great, in the future it will be difficult to choose.

[leeuwarden]

thanks INe, we go to holland often as my family lives there, leeuwarden howerver is the capital of friesland and is not a village. :-))

 

We are planning to go on HAL sometime, it just depends on the price and we can drive to sanfran, so that is our port that is the closest to us.

 

christina

[Ine]

Sorry that I called Leeuwarden a village, of course it is a nice and very old town. But compared with American cities it is small.

 

If you have any questions about HAL, let me know

Ine

[MaggieS]

Please help me answer a question for my husband. He thinks the attire on formal nights will be dressed down on a Mexican Riviera cruise. Has anyone found this to be true or is it the same as any other? Thanks

[Lyn2005]

Hi Christina. I posted on another thread that when I got the newest Celebrity brochure, they no longer show a Deluxe Oceanview stateroom anymore, that is the one with a sofa. Since that is what we have booked, I was curious to know if these staterooms still exist. Other than the sofa, I think the regular oceanview is the same thing, at least the same size.

[leeuwarden]

hi lyn, i think we had the same size, we had a little sofa by the window, it was very nice, and we used it a lot, being that we wanted to be really lazy, hahahaha. the staterooms are 172 feet.

 

Maggies, the dress for the formal dinners in mx, my husband wore a dark suit and we saw lots of tuxedo's and formal attire, like white jackets etc. i really enjoyed dressing up for dinner, but if you dont want to, you can go to casual dining.

[MaggieS]

Thanks for the quick response. We don't mind dressing up at all. My husband wears a dark suit, as does yours, and he sometimes wears a tux shirt with it. I don't know where he got the idea that a Mexico cruise would be more casual. It must be something with the aging process. He seems to have a new one every day! :rolleyes: Thanks again.