First Time Celebrity Cruisers Back From Alaska on the Millennium

My husband and I were a part of a group of ten extended family members, ranging in age from mid-twenties to 70+, and we experienced our first Celebrity Cruise when we traveled southbound on the Millennium on June 17. Several in our party have cruised in the past, and most of our group had been to Alaska previously. We were all very excited to try Celebrity for the first time. Most of us have sailed on NCL in the past, and my husband and I specifically stated that we would not sail NCL again due to (in our very humble opinion) less than stellar food and service issues that we experienced on two consecutive Alaskan cruises.

We were so worried about trying Celebrity! Would we like it? Would the food in the dining room be edible? Would the staff be able to communicate well with us? And after reading a few negative reviews about the ship, we worried that we would be carted around on a rusting hulk of metal on its way to the scrap yard. Two people in our group had never been on a cruise. My youngest brother had just graduated from college and we wanted to celebrate. My dad just finished three brain surgeries to alleviate his symptoms of Parkinson's Disease. The pressure was on to make this a memorable trip.

Honestly, we had nothing to worry about. If you have an upcoming cruise planned on the Millennium, please don't worry! It is a beautiful ship. The food in the main dining room was delicious. Staff members were attentive, funny and professional. It was, in my opinion, the best cruise I have ever been on.

I am happy to answer any questions. I can give specific insight as to differences between NCL, Princess and Celebrity. We were very active on this trip and I am happy to share my experiences with our excursions. Forgive me if I get too wordy. I have a terrible habit of using ten words when three would suffice. I also took over a thousand pictures and will post a few of my favorites here as well.

Pre-Cruise: My husband and I are in our thirties, and we flew out with my parents who are in their sixties. We flew from Long Beach, CA to Anchorage and stayed two nights at the Hilton Anchorage. It was a very nice hotel, and I would stay there again. We had breakfast there one morning and it was good. We met up with a friend who works for a tour company in Anchorage. She took us out to Matanuska Glacier the day before our cruise. It was incredible!

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We saw people out on the glacier in flip flops or very thin sweaters. If you plan to visit the glacier, I recommend you wear proper footwear and bring at least a lightweight jacket.

After Matanuska we met the rest of our group for dinner at the Glacier Brewhouse. It was a delicious meal! I highly encourage making reservations in advance, though, because the place was packed! It is within walking distance of most places in Downtown Anchorage. It probably took us seven minutes to walk there from the Hilton.

Embarkation Day: We woke up EARLY! We needed to check out and be to the train station before 6 am to check our bags and get our tickets. Again, we were able to walk from the Hilton to the train station easily, even with four large bags between four people. The fact that the sun was shining brightly really helped us get up and get moving. When you arrive at the train station, the porters take your bags, and you won't see them again until they arrive at your stateroom on board. So pack them carefully.

The train was amazing! Here is a shot of our entire group before we boarded.

I called the Alaskan Railroad office after all member of our group had purchased their tickets in order to request to be assigned seats together. This worked out perfectly. It was such a fun experience! Honestly, for most of the train ride to Seward you aren't just sitting in your seat. You can walk to the Dome car or the Cafe car. You can also walk to the ends of the car, to snap photos in the open air.

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You can see that there is plenty of room in the train for carry on bags. The seats are comfortable and recline if you want to try for a snooze. But I wouldn't recommend sleeping. The scenery is amazing!

Thanks for the review, so glad you and your family had a great time! Also pleased you enjoyed Millie, we cruised on her some years ago and have an Asian cruise booked on her next year.

Great photos!

After a wonderful and scenic train ride, we pulled into the train station in Seward. My mom had slipped on the glacier the day before so she needed to take the complimentary bus from the train to the ship. My husband and I stayed with her and my dad, and the rest of the group walked the ten minutes to the ship. Not very many people seemed interested in the bus, and within a few minutes our bus left for the ship with only a dozen or so people on it.

It worked out so that our group ended up getting checked in at about the same time. Celebrity was very efficient and professional. Once we were checked in, we went through a small x-ray scanner and walked right on to the ship. We were greeted with fresh champagne or orange juice and many smiling faces, welcoming us onboard. We made our way to deck 10 to the Oceanview Cafe (the buffet) for lunch. The food was hot and tasty, and our group of ten had no problem finding a place to sit. A waiter was quick with our drink orders and we immediately felt relaxed and taken care of. Our beverage attendant suggested that my husband and I upgrade to the Premium Drink Package so that we could have the Alaskan Beers and full sized martinis. This made sense for us, so we upgraded. No one else in our group did, though, and they certainly were not pressured to.

After everyone had eaten and had a drink, we walked out to the pool area and explored the Solarium. I immediately fell in love with the Solarium and made it a point to return there as often as we could. Also, I discovered that adjacent to the Solarium was a changing room with a wonderful sauna! What a treat! At first I felt like I was trespassing or something, and that someone would discover I was in there and an alarm would sound and I would be ejected. But I asked a staff member and she kindly assured me that it was open to all guests. Both times I went in there, I was alone and it felt so luxurious to lounge in the sauna with a picture perfect view of Alaska floating by! I didn't take pictures of the Solarium or sauna because it felt creepy to take photos of unsuspecting strangers in bathing suits. But if you find yourself on the Millennium, check this space out! Deck 10 forward.

Our rooms were ready prior to 1 PM, so we all went our separate ways to check them out. Husband and I had a lovely balcony room on Deck 8, forward.

Room 8032 on the Millennium. Wonderful room! Excellent location! The bathroom was the most functional we have had on a cruise ship. We also really liked the balcony size and the quality of the furniture on the balcony. Upon entering our room for the first time, the bathroom smelled like mold. After we met our amazing attendant, Rodim, we let him know about the smell. He said he would take care of it, and he did! It was never an issue again!

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Thanks for the review, so glad you and your family had a great time! Also pleased you enjoyed Millie, we cruised on her some years ago and have an Asian cruise booked on her next year.

 

Great photos!

My family and I thought the Millie was wonderful! It was good timing that she had just gone through drydock, I'm sure. I know you can't please everyone, but I often wondered how anyone could be onboard and not enjoying him or herself! We would sail her again in a heartbeat.

Thank you for your review and cannot wait to read and see more! We will be on her in a year..

Thank you again....

Looks like a fantastic trip. Alaska is definitely on the agenda for next year!

Thanks for taking the time to write this and for including such excellent photos.

I'm not so familiar with the Millennium and never tire of Alaska photos so am coming along for the ride.

Keep it coming!

Norris

Thank you so much for posting your review. We were on Millennium for the final 45 days before her trip to drydock and we loved every minute. i would love to see the new additions to her. Looking forward to your next posts. i'm so glad you all had a great time. Did you book another cruise on board?

We were on the May 27th northbound cruise and we too loved Millennium! We also thought it was our best cruise ever and I'm loving looking at your photos - great memories!

We had a six night cruise tour after our cruise and we too stayed at the Hilton in Anchorage, nice hotel and location. We got lucky to have a fabulous water view - I woke up confused as to why the ship wasn't moving as I could see the water and mountains but they weren't moving past - lol. :D

Looking forward to the rest of your review!!!

Thank you so much for posting your review. We were on Millennium for the final 45 days before her trip to drydock and we loved every minute. i would love to see the new additions to her. Looking forward to your next posts. i'm so glad you all had a great time. Did you book another cruise on board?

Hi! Wow! 45 days on the Millie! That sounds amazing! We looked at a few itineraries (such as the 12-day Italy and Greece cruise) but did not book a cruise quite yet. The husband and I are approved and waiting to adopt a newborn, which makes travel plans a little interesting. We need to be able to check in with our agency at least once every 24 hours. If a birth mother contacts us we would potentially need to drop everything to fly to wherever she in the United States. We love to travel and have the means and time to do so, but we hope that the next vacation we plan will be cancelled in order to stay home and care for a little one :)

Thank you so much for the review and photos. I am traveling with a group of 14 family members on August 26 on Millie. Like you, some new to cruising as well. My mom has some recent health issues so this will likely be her last vacation and I want it to be the BEST! This was super helpful.

Looking forward to this cruise!

We were on the May 27th northbound cruise and we too loved Millennium! We also thought it was our best cruise ever and I'm loving looking at your photos - great memories!

 

We had a six night cruise tour after our cruise and we too stayed at the Hilton in Anchorage, nice hotel and location. We got lucky to have a fabulous water view - I woke up confused as to why the ship wasn't moving as I could see the water and mountains but they weren't moving past - lol. :D

 

Looking forward to the rest of your review!!!

It was such a beautiful view! We arrived very late at night and the sky was still light out. In fact, it was like an eternal sunset. The sky kept getting more and more pink and purple. When we finally went to bed shortly after 1 AM there was still light in the sky. It was gorgeous!

Thank you so much for the review and photos. I am traveling with a group of 14 family members on August 26 on Millie. Like you, some new to cruising as well. My mom has some recent health issues so this will likely be her last vacation and I want it to be the BEST! This was super helpful.

 

Looking forward to this cruise!

You will have a blast! Everyone was so kind and willing to accommodate my family members. One member of our group uses a breathing machine at night and needed distilled water. It was delivered to their room promptly. My mom fell and twisted her ankle at Matanuska Glacier. On our day in Juneau she went to the hospital for x-rays and celebrity staff was great about getting her a wheelchair and helping her get to a cab.

It was great to have a large table at dinner, too. I would call to make reservation once on board for your dinners. Unless you already have an assigned eating time. It was a treat to be able to connect with everyone at dinner.

In our opinion, the service on the Millie was above and beyond what we could have hoped for. I am sure you guys will have so much fun!

Here is another view of room 8032.

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You will have a blast! Everyone was so kind and willing to accommodate my family members. One member of our group uses a breathing machine at night and needed distilled water. It was delivered to their room promptly. My mom fell and twisted her ankle at Matanuska Glacier. On our day in Juneau she went to the hospital for x-rays and celebrity staff was great about getting her a wheelchair and helping her get to a cab.

 

It was great to have a large table at dinner, too. I would call to make reservation once on board for your dinners. Unless you already have an assigned eating time. It was a treat to be able to connect with everyone at dinner.

 

In our opinion, the service on the Millie was above and beyond what we could have hoped for. I am sure you guys will have so much fun!

My mom will also require oxygen as well as a scooter which I am arranging now. I've moved her to a wheelchair accessible room (9164) form 9149. Such a relief to hear they are so accommodating. We do have scheduled dining at 6 pm in the MDR.

Any suggestions for something I am missing with accommodations or planning?

My mom will also require oxygen as well as a scooter which I am arranging now. I've moved her to a wheelchair accessible room (9164) form 9149. Such a relief to hear they are so accommodating. We do have scheduled dining at 6 pm in the MDR.

 

Any suggestions for something I am missing with accommodations or planning?

Sounds like you have thought of the important things! I would suggest to make sure you meet your mom's stateroom attendant and, if possible, encourage your mom to call the stateroom attendant if she needs something. My parents can sometimes be shy about asking for things like ice or extra towels. I met my parents' stateroom attendant (Virginia) and told them to let Virginia know if they needed anything at all. We found the stateroom attendants to be extremely happy to do whatever was necessary so that we would enjoy ourselves.

We didn't need to be back on the ship until 7:00 PM so we had planned to head out to Exit Glacier after lunch. We had pre-purchased shuttle tickets for $10 a person (check out www dot exitglaciershuttle dot com to buy tickets and see their schedule). We planned to meet the shuttle at 2:30, but they were late. I called to find out where the shuttle would meet us and they apologized for their tardiness. They finally arrived at 2:55 PM and we were feeling nervous because we needed to catch the 5:00 PM shuttle (last shuttle of the day) back to the ship. We discovered that the culture of Alaska is similar to the culture of Hawaii in that there is a "relax and go with the flow" vibe that locals have.

The shuttle was prompt in picking us up at 5:00 PM, and we had a great time checking out the glacier. Our driver even took us directly back to the ship since it was the last shuttle of the day. So for $10 a person, I would still recommend it. But try to remember that they may not be exactly on time, and this is probably okay. We were on board by 5:20 and in the dining room at 6:00 PM.

Kenai Fjords National Park is beautiful, and the trail to the glacier was well maintained and just rigorous enough to make you really feel that you were hiking rather than strolling. Rangers were present in several places and we felt safe that if a bear made an appearance we would be able to shriek for help and a Ranger would appear to save us.

The first part of the trail is very easy and flat with beautiful views of the glacier and the river. If you continue onwards, it gets more steep and rocky, but the payoff is that you come out to an overlook up nearer the top of the glacier. It gets pretty windy up there! There are markers along the trail to indicate where the glacier was at a certain time. This was a sobering reminder of how fast most glaciers are receding.

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Our first full day of cruising was Hubbard Glacier Day! We had our Cruise Critic Meet and Mingle in the morning at 9:30 and then the Galley Tour after that and then we had lunch in the buffet. We always felt that there were options for activities to enjoy while onboard. We enjoyed how genuine and friendly the officers were. Many of them greeted us all week long when they saw us.

We all agreed to view the glacier from the helipad, so we bundled up, grabbed our cameras and headed to deck 5, all the way forward. Some members of our group had trouble finding the helipad, as you do have to walk through the Celebrity Theater and into a "Crew Only" area to find it. We got there just before 1:30 PM and grabbed a nice spot at the railing on the starboard side. It never felt very crowded and we got amazing pictures from there. We allowed anyone who asked us to step in and get some photos at the rail. Aside from the photos, the experience of being THAT CLOSE to such a GIANT WALL OF ICE was something I will remember for a long, long time.

I recommend that if you plan to go to the helipad, get out there early and dress very warm! If you are early enough to get a spot at the railing, consider allowing others to have a turn to take pictures at the rail. I never experienced anyone elbowing me or trying to push me out of a spot. But, I did overhear some people passive-aggressively grumbling that it would be nice if they could have a turn at the rail. Save the passive-aggressiveness for another time. You are in a beautiful place. Just look for someone who would probably speak your language, smile at their face, and kindly ask if they would swap for a moment so you can get a photo. I can't imagine anyone saying no. Also, try not to get so caught up in taking photos that you forget to look at the glacier with your naked eyes. One last tip, try not to panic! Some people were frantically taking pictures as though the captain might pop a wheelie and peel out of the glacier area, leaving a spray of ice in our wake. I know the urge to get a good picture is strong, but you are seriously in front of the glacier for a good 30 minutes. Enjoy the moment as much as possible.

Though it was cold, it was a clear and gorgeous day. The captain stated that he was able to take us as close as allowable to the glacier. I believe he said we were within a mile from the face of the glacier. My husband and I had been to Glacier Bay and Tracy Arm Fjord, but this experience was more spectacular by far.

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Though the Promenade Deck does not go all the way around the ship, we enjoyed walking out there to admire the scenery.

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On Hubbard Glacier day, all that glacier watching had us hungry by 3 PM. But we were obviously also very tired from all that standing around on deck. What to do? We discovered that through the magic of our television we could order room service! The tv menu clearly told us what was included for free and what would cost us money. We ordered a cheese plate and a plate of cookies, because, well...Vacation. Husband went down to Cellar Masters on Deck 5 and returned with two glasses of red wine.

We used some of our onboard credit to book an excursion through the ship to Mendenhall Glacier. It was $91.50 per couple, and it allowed us to be in a bus on our way to Mendenhall by 10 AM and to get picked up and brought back to the dock by 12:30. Timing was important because six of us were going on another excursion that afternoon and needed to check in at 2:30 PM for that.

The Mendenhall excursion was the only one we booked through the ship. Our bus driver, Tucker, was a sweet college student from Boise who didn't know much about the area and probably needed to work on his spiel a little more. But he got us there safe and picked us up on time. As soon as we were dropped off, our group made a beeline to the the Nugget Falls trail. It is a two mile roundtrip walk, and since we needed to be back in an hour and a half to get to our bus, we walked quickly to Nugget Falls, and then enjoyed our time out on the beach before enjoying a calm walk back to the bus.

I highly recommend walking out the waterfall! You can see the glacier from the beach area and walk right into the waterfall if you want to. We noticed most people stayed near the parking lot and explored the visitor's center. The walk is not steep and is very pretty. This was the third time my husband and I have done this and it is just as beautiful each time.

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I also wanted to mention that my mom was having bad pain in her foot and rib from falling down on Matanuska Glacier. She and my Dad went to a hospital in Juneau and both of them raved about how friendly everyone was. Celebrity staff helped her get into a wheelchair and get to the area where they could catch a cab to the hospital. She got x-rays and was back to the ship by the time the rest of us were back from Mendenhall. I was thankful we were able to avoid having to use the Medical Center on the ship and glad my mom had a good experience.

After meeting up with my mom and dad again, we grabbed a bite at Hanger on the Wharf. I highly recommend it! Great food, awesome local beer, beautiful views of the float planes taking off right in front of the restaurant. Try the crab knuckle sandwich! Yum!

I had booked the Taku Lodge excursion many months before our trip as a gift for my brother's graduation. Unfortunately, my mom was not up for it so we were able to substitute my sister-in-law's mom at the last moment. As I was climbing into the floatplane I was trying to turn my phone to airplane mode and it slipped through my fingers, and in sickening slow motion, it plopped in the gap between the dock and the plane. RIP iPhone. That was quite unfortunate but it did not ruin my day or my trip. So my advice would be to keep your hands free as you enter and exit the plane.

The plane ride was amazing! Flying over glaciers and forests and seeing countless waterfalls was unbelievable. We landed in the water in front of the Taku Lodge and were treated to the most idyllic summer camp looking place I had ever seen. There was a glacier across the water! And trails to walk around! And friendly black labs to greet us and keep the bears away.

There was an open air grill where the salmon was prepared, and once the salmon was cooked and brought inside, a large black bear appeared to double-check that the salmon was gone. It was awesome to see a bear so close! After we ate our yummy meal of salmon, biscuits, cole slaw and beans, we had time to explore the grounds. A word of caution: TAKE BUG REPELLENT with you! The mosquitoes were intense and made it difficult to enjoy a walk in the forest. There was some bug spray there to use, but I feel like a can of OFF! would have done wonders for us.

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We found the food in the Metropolitan Dining Room (main dining room) to be very good, with some dishes venturing into excellence. As others have previously stated, the main dining room is two levels, with Deck 4 being set aside for Select Dining (no set eating time) and Deck 5 reserved for traditional dining with either early or late seating. We contacted CelebrityDining at Celebrity dot com in advance to make reservations for our group of 10. We could not have been more pleased! A large table was waiting for us every night and our wait staff was superb! Drinks were served quickly, food was hot and our server offered his suggestions. There was no judgment detected when several in our party ordered multiple apps and entrees each night. Our server even suggested we all double up on the lobster, which was very tasty!

My husband and I are foodies and enjoy eating good food and drinking good wine. We considered using some of our onboard credit to try the Tuscan Grill, but it didn't seem to be worth the $45 per person and since we had a large group it was nice to eat all our dinners together. We enjoyed our meals, the service and the wine we were poured in the main dining room. We asked our sommelier, Nelson, for his recommendations some nights and other nights we ordered more of what we had been drinking earlier at Celler Masters. We especially enjoyed the Chianti.

We also indulged in the buffet after we had finished our trivia or dancing or nighttime entertainment. The pizza and pasta station was pretty tasty around midnight! Take your snacks out to the very back of deck 10 and enjoy the open air and extremely attentive bar service :)

My sister-in-law's parents had their wedding anniversary on the last night of our cruise, and a complimentary bottle of champagne and cake was presented to them at dinner. The Head Waiter and Pastry Chef joined our waiter and assistant waiter in singing "Happy Anniversary to You!"

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Great photos! Thanks for the review! We just booked our first Alaskan cruise on this ship in 2017. We are no strangers to Celebrity and have even sailed on the Millie, but Alaska is a whole new adventure! This review has me even more excited!

Great photos! Thanks for the review! We just booked our first Alaskan cruise on this ship in 2017. We are no strangers to Celebrity and have even sailed on the Millie, but Alaska is a whole new adventure! This review has me even more excited!

So glad you are enjoying it! This was our third Alaskan cruise so let me know if you have any questions. We had so much fun on all our excursions and ate at some very delicious restaurants off the ship. I am happy to make recommendations!