trcori Posted December 20, 2004 #1 Share Posted December 20, 2004 As usual I'll write a long and wordy review within a week in case anyone wants that much info :) in the meantime, here are a few random thoughts. I mentioned a few in a couple other threads I checked from our one Internet cafe' stop (Soapy's in St. Thomas). Our frame of reference is 5 X cruises in a little over two years, most recently aboard Mercury last April, so what seemed to me like a "change" is at least something since then. Food -- Menu changes! Not a total overhaul but lots of new items, at least in the appetizer and main course categories. (The dreaded -- to me, anyway -- "red cusk congrio" on the last night was nowhere in sight.) Also in the presentation -- the menu has more elegant script and is presented in a heavy padded leatherish binder (my 8-year-old needed both hands to receive it!) -- the desserts are not on the main menu; they are on a separate sheet that is presented at meal's end with a dark-blue paper & cord backing. Our food was better than our last M-class experience (Infinity 8/03) and on par with our Mercury cruise last April. My favorite entree was Washington state lamb shank, and NO, not just because we're from WA :) fave appetizer was the goat cheese/onion tatin. Entertainment -- We got to see the "world premiere" (or at least world shipboard premiere?) of what cruise director Derek Habraken called a brand-new show added to the lineup, "I Love the Nightlife." That was the highlight for me, and I don't even care much for the production shows! Its song and dance medleys were set in six fabled nightlife venues around the world -- Moulin Rouge, Studio 54, "Rat Pack" Vegas, Gilley's, House of Blues, and Havana. Probably because I have fond memories of the disco days, I enjoyed the "Studio 54" section best of all. The non-showroom performers were excellent too -- especially the jazz singer & the string quartet. (Have to unpack the bulletins to get their names.) Ports -- I **knew** I was NOT going to hate Casa de Campo!!!! We took our first-ever ship-booked shore excursion -- the "countryside tour" -- and it was fascinating. We stopped amid a huge cane plantation and watched oxen-drawn carts pull up to get the harvested cane weighed -- and this was NOT an official visitor center like, oh, say, Dole Pineapple in the middle of Oahu -- this was, pull up in the midst of dusty dirty reality. Next stop -- a cockfighting enterprise, where we got to see a highly sanitized demonstration of training. Then a hand-rolled cigar-making "factory" in the heart of La Romana (the city adjacent to the CDC resort), and last but not least, the one stop that could have been omitted since I hate to shop, a little souvenir "plaza" on the outskirts (hub did get some very cheap rum). In PR, we booked a private tour guide to take us to the Arecibo Observatory. Incredible place to go if you are geeks like us -- fascinating scenery too -- I'll be happy to recommend our tour guide if anyone is interested. St. Thomas & Bahamas, we could have lived without -- lots of ships in both places both days -- huge traffic jams near the dock, elbow-to-elbow tourists everywhere we went, we had an OK time at beaches once we got away from the crowds but nothing really to write home about. News -- The Horizon sale/lease/whatever was announced moments before our Cruise Critic party, or so said CD Derek. He also said newbuilds were on the way, most likely (he couched his verbiage, something like "very strong rumors" and "don't quote me but I know you will") a new smallish ship for Bermuda and two 115K-ton ships for ... wherever. Watch Your Wallet -- Some small but noticeable things to up the revenue generation: For us parents, it was noteworthy that only the FIRST formal night "slumber party" was free (used to be both -- at $6/hour for up to three hours, the second one was a nice little freebie) -- no more "same day laundry service on the last day for no extra charge" -- the bingo games were all "one game only" (unless I missed ONE multi-game session somewhere?) -- Before I left, one post'er mentioned "charging for desserts" -- saw what they meant -- definitely after-dinner DRINKS (some with names just LIKE desserts, "creme brulee" etc.) listed on the left side of the dessert menu, with prices. OTOH there are also some new additions that did NOT cost more -- more on that in the forthcoming review. All in all, we had a SPECTACULAR time and are looking ahead now to sailing Mercury in August out of our "backyard" ... I know others who've done this run recently have already posted and answered questions, but I'm always open for questions too ... TR Mercury AK 8/26/05 **** Millennium EC 12/04, Mercury CA-MX 4/04, Infinity AK 8/03, Century WC 3/03, Century EC 9/02 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SisZ Posted December 21, 2004 #2 Share Posted December 21, 2004 Thank you for your positive review! I sometimes get caught up in expectations that I set too high, and then I read somebody's post that says the food is bad, the ship is dirty, and I am sure we are wasting our money! We have never left our kids, never spent this much money on a vacation, never spent a week alone-EVER! So I tend to really have high expectations.. Someone else said the coffee is bad, did you find that to be the case? what is red cusk congrio? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Two@Sea Posted December 21, 2004 #3 Share Posted December 21, 2004 The coffee is not bad... it is much, much, much worse than that! I was on the Millennium 12/5-12/12 and had to buy an insulated mug just so I could put an inch or so of coffee in the bottom, and then fill the rest with hot water, to make it somewhat tolerable. Strangely, the coffee after dinner was great. Why can't they serve the same thing in the morning? I'm ready to take my own small coffee maker next time! Marsha Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SisZ Posted December 21, 2004 #4 Share Posted December 21, 2004 That worries me! I don't drink alcohol, and caffiene is my last vice. I really have to have good coffee! What are my options? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
trcori Posted December 21, 2004 Author #5 Share Posted December 21, 2004 hey, SisZ, don't panic yet. Coffee is clearly very subjective. My husband is more of a coffee nut than me and he reported the coffee was the best of our five X cruises so far. We live in Seattle, strong coffee capital of the world, so that's where our coffee taste buds are coming from. However, if you try the buffet and restaurant coffee and decide you can't stand it -- there is still good news -- the Cova Cafe' has espresso, for an extra charge (unless you are in a suite, in which case it's free). I had a wonderful latte' Sunday morning before disembarking; Cova is also where we go for after-dinner drinks (nice coffee/liqueur concoctions). P.S. The red cusk is some kind of fish. I've actually never tried it -- perhaps it's delightfully delicious -- we can get fish any ol' time here so on board, I usually go for something else. TR Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Robin G Posted December 21, 2004 #6 Share Posted December 21, 2004 trcori: We're taking the Millie to the Med. in August with our 8 yr. old daughter. What was the "kids' room" like? We've been on RC and theirs is awesome. We're hoping for the same on the Millie. Thanks. Robin Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Giorgi-one Posted December 21, 2004 #7 Share Posted December 21, 2004 The coffee is not bad... it is much, much, much worse than that! I was on the Millennium 12/5-12/12 and had to buy an insulated mug just so I could put an inch or so of coffee in the bottom, and then fill the rest with hot water, to make it somewhat tolerable. Strangely, the coffee after dinner was great. Why can't they serve the same thing in the morning? I'm ready to take my own small coffee maker next time! Marsha Did you have morning coffee at the buffet. I believe that they use a syrup mix at the buffet. My guess is that the coffee in the kitchen is brewed in a large coffeemaker. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
goouchjac Posted December 21, 2004 #8 Share Posted December 21, 2004 We also were on the 12/12 Millie, our third time on this ship, have noticed alot of wear and tear and seems like not getting fixed..We travel with our friends, their cabin (cc class) had quite a few problems, nobody came to fix..by the way our opinion, cc class not worth the extra $$$..First off in cc class you are supposed to have "top priority" luggage delivery, ours came up at 6:00PM, we boarded the ship at 12 noon..Flowers were dead, champagne awful, canapes they can keep, bedding was okay, our cabin attendant Elisa was great.. Food not as good, not bad but not like it used to be, by the way the potatoes in the basket are back...The coffee was horrible, tasted like syrup,,last year on the Summit, the coffee was very good...Have to say we were not too happy with this cruise..Agree with Danno when he says the first timers get better attention than us, the loyal cruisers,,have been with X since 1992,,now we are thinking of spending our money on another cruise line..Any questions feel free to ask.:confused: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Faygelah Posted December 21, 2004 #9 Share Posted December 21, 2004 As far as coffee goes, our solution might sound a little anal retentive, but we loved it. On our most recent cruise, the Connie Transatlantic, we brought our French Press coffee pot along with some ground coffee in a Tupperware container. Every morning we requested a pitcher of hot water (at first we requested tea, and threw away the teabags, but we decided that was wasteful) and we had great fresh delicious coffee on our balcony. Bringing our French Press was no more difficult than bringing a bottle of wine or liquor. We're doing it again on our Millie Transatlantic next November. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
trcori Posted December 21, 2004 Author #10 Share Posted December 21, 2004 The Fun Factory on the M-class ships is a HUGE space with video games, a science/arts/crafts room, a storytelling/video-watching area, an indoor ball pit, outdoor climbing (not rock, sorry) structure, outdoor wading pool, outdoor slide ... We have only sailed X so we can't compare to RCL -- but our 8-year-old son loves the X kids' program. I do hope they get rid of the "Shrek" theme nights soon though, getting a little old :) :) :) P.S. If you sail a C-class ship, Century's Fun Factory is small, dark, and inside -- they fixed the problem for the subsequent builds, and Mercury's space is an aft area much like the M-class spaces. P.S. Also the experience will vary depending on when you sail. As I think I mentioned somewhere, our son was one of a relatively FEW kids on board since we sailed BEFORE holiday vacation -- he had practically one-on-one counselor attention -- this week, they are overrun! but we have also participated in a busy time (late August on Infinity, 400 kids) and things went pretty well, he had a good time, etc. They've expanded the hours of availability -- they used to always close noon-2 pm except on port days (extra charge "lunch party") -- now even at sea they stay open those hours, just with a caveat that you have to come get your kid at some point and take him to get some food, then bring him back -- that made our sprout happy!!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Two@Sea Posted December 21, 2004 #11 Share Posted December 21, 2004 trcori, I was raised in Seattle, way back in the 50's. (It was almost a "small town" then. :) ) Left in the late 80's, but still have a son and grandchildren in Renton. As my husband says, "You can take the girl out of Seattle... but you can never get her a decent cup of coffee after that!" The morning buffet coffee was absolutely undrinkable for me. It was ok on the Summit last spring, but horrendous on this trip. There were guys up on the counters fiddling with them all the time, so maybe there was a problem that got fixed by your sailing? Cova mocha kept me sane! Marsha Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
joelmarj Posted December 21, 2004 #12 Share Posted December 21, 2004 Wow - just shows how different experiences can be. I was on the 12/12 sailing with a Concierge Cabin and loved it. Would definitely book it again. The bedding was much better than the standard stuff (loved the comforter and down pillows!). Our flowers were fresh and actually changed mid-trip. Always a fresh rose in the bathroom. My attendant was to rave for. Vali was absolutely wonderful, sweet and ready to do anything any time. We also boarded around 12 and pleasantly surprised that our luggage was already there by 4PM. Agree on the canapes - they were only fair but with early seating, we never really needed them. Champagne was as expected - free. And by the way - quite a bonus getting cabin 9038!!!!! Balcony was great!!!!!:o As for the coffee, it is subjective. In general, it is very strong coffee. To me it tastes more like caribbean coffee which tends to be stronger and richer in flavor. I actually enjoyed it, but agree that it is a very subjective taste. I don't really recall seeing a real "wear and tear" problem. As a matter of fact they were constantly scrubbing carpets and we even comment about how we would have expected them to be worn with such frequency of cleaning. But they look clean and nice. Maybe not brand new looking, but certainly very neat. Our stateroom was in very good condition, clean and neat. Food in general was very good. Not sure I really loved the breadsticks, but they were good. Again, subjective taste, not a complaint. The Olympic restaurant was elegantly presented. Our only comment about that was that it seemed very stiff in service. No one smiled comfortably. It was almost military like and as if one dropped fork and the staff would be relegated to the peeling potatoes! In their attempts to be attentive, it was almost overkill to the point of constant busselling about. We frequently dine in top restaurants throughout NYC and the service is always efficient and elegant without this feeling of such stuffiness and constant movement. Not smooth and seemless, but rushed and hectic. And the restaurant was not even full - maybe 50% full. But again, the food was great, and the staff was pleasant and attentive. The ratio of "senior citizens" was pretty high. IMHO there was about 75% senior citizens. 10% young family type (small/young children), and the remaining 15% in the middle of those two groups. It actually made it quite easy to get loungers every day by the pool. No lounge hog issues, as it seems the seniors were more than happy to be in the shaded areas! :D There seemed to also be a significant number of people who are chronic complainers. Mostly seniors but that would be because of the ratio. The complainers are the ones that would never be made happy anyway. We just shrugged them off and didn't let them affect us one bit. The spa services were very nice. Only following the couples massage did we get the hard sell. In the salon, the girls were sweet and no pressure for any added purchases. Most of the prices were pretty reasonable. My up-do for formal night was only $30. Costs me $50 at home. Manicure was $22 or $26, again very reasonable, especially with a free exotic hand ritual with a Captains Club coupon. Ports were only fair, but we didn't pick this trip for the ports. The nicest was St. Thomas. Megan's Bay is beautiful and peaceful. Shopping is a bit busy on Main St. but very good prices on jewelry. Nassau was sheer lunacy with 7 ships in port. We got back on the ship after 30 minutes of walking. I'm sure though if you book an excursion you are far better off and likely to enjoy yourselves. Again, we were only there for R and R. No preplanned excursions. The shows we saw, yuck. Comedian/juggler - already read all his jokes on this website. Couldn't tolerate Derek - very plastic. But again, we didn't even feel like going to the shows so not a priority and no impact on our enjoyment. Casino was fine. Actually won at craps, though single odds slows down the winning capabilities. :D Our table mates were wonderful. At first we thought it was an odd match, but by the end of the first dinner, we were laughing and non-stop talking. We were the last table out every night. (Sorry to the late seating folks :eek: ) Our waitstaff was pleasant and attentive. Nothing remarkable, but always efficient. The sommilier (?) enjoyed talking wine with us each night, and we shared bottles each night with our table mates. Dinner was absolutely pleasant. Overall, we had a wonderful trip, met incredibly wonderful people. Even gave a bottle of wine to the couple on the balcony next door to us. They were a charming 84 and 87 yr old couple. We laughed with them as we realized they are us in 40 years! My expectations were met and in many cases exceeded. The staff was attentive, most people were enjoyable to be around, and most of all we RELAXED!!!! Now if they could only do something at that constant rocking we had on two occasions! It was fun to watch the seniors finally walking straight as the ship rocked and rolled. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
trcori Posted December 22, 2004 Author #13 Share Posted December 22, 2004 hey there. we agreed about nassau. last time we were there was an abbreviated Century stop and we didn't get off the ship. this time we might as well not have -- my husband wanted to turn back around -- my son and I insisted on going to the beach -- we had to walk half a mile to get to somewhere that we could actually get a cab, it was chaos at the cab area near the dock -- we were not impressed with Cable Beach -- maybe nice other times of the year, the water was full of cut seaweed strands (and not that warm) ... anyway, we had as much fun as we could anyway. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jakedoc Posted December 22, 2004 #14 Share Posted December 22, 2004 I agree that coffee is very subjective. I like strong coffe and usually have no problem with the morning brew onboard Celebrity. I think it might be a tradition to have strong coffee while on the high seas. I remember drinking coffee so strong when I was in the Navy that we had to put salt in our cups just to be able to drink it. Glad to hear you had a good time on your cruise! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dancing Gal Posted December 22, 2004 #15 Share Posted December 22, 2004 no more "same day laundry service on the last day for no extra charge" -- thanks for posting this info! I had just learned this little secret on the "Secrets thread" and was planning to take advantage between cruises in Jan...now, I will look for alternate options. enjoyed your review, as well as joelmarj..I am on Mill. 30-jan. Have planned the stingray excursion with my sister for Nassau...any chance either of you heard any feedback from pax who did this excursion? if so, please share what you heard. Thanks Nancy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
larkwind Posted December 23, 2004 #16 Share Posted December 23, 2004 We cruise to rest-so no opinions on shows, casino, nite life in general. The ship was beautiful...a nice change from the bright decor of a couple other lines. We really enjoyed our housekeeper and wait staff. It helps to have our charming three year old with us, but everyone was nice. Food was fine and if anything isn't right, they'll replace it in a heartbeat. We had aft 1A room#6144--on the penthouse deck tucked back among the suites with a long balcony (two loungers, two deck chairs, small table). Not the teak furniture of the suites, but did have those lovely cushions on the loungers. Did have a bit of sewer smell at night (vent nearby?) Aft was convenient to the Ocean Grill/Cafe and the Fun Factory so we weren't running down hallways very much. Fun Factory report--wow! Can only report about the Shipmates (3-6yo "Shippies"). The staff is nearly all from Canada/UK and they're all super. Again, it helps to have a personable, easy-going kid to give them. They have a great system of check in/out; didn't mind if we walked right in to peek on how he was doing; we could bring him anytime to join whatever they were doing and take him whenever we wanted. The craft, activity room is glassed in so you can walk around the back deck on 11 and look in (at night they can't really see out). Loads of neatly arranged games, toys, books, computer stations, etc. Formal nights' dinnertime was free. All the kids looked as if they were having a nice time. We, too, enjoyed Coki Beach in St Thomas (ended up in a van/cab with bgop!) Nassau was a disaster--got back on the ship and had a beautiful time in the hottub/pool. Best memory--stake out a lounger near the end of T.pool and watch people's faces as they get in..frown and concern changes to utter delight:) Especially go if you get a rocking ship--the wave action in the pool was tremendous and it was hilarious to watch a bunch of 50-ish young people riding the waves! Enjoy! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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