Century News is Out!

[Andy]

I raised this point earlier... it really is a very important part of the equation. Jewel of the Seas has a cruising speed of 25 knots. Century (as she is now) is 21.5. If she loses a knot with the extra weight (per M.S JAZO), you really start to limit the distances she can reasonably expect to cover. This is especially important in those first and last "get there" and "get back" legs of the trip, and may be why Miami instead of Ft. Lauderdale.

 

Pull out a chart and a ruler, and you can see the options are often quite limited.

 

Theron

 

Hi Theron !

 

Believe me, I am not doubting you... you may very well be correct. However, the ship is also during Europe sailings, and has to cover some distance there, so why would it be able to do it there, and not in the Caribbean ? If time is the issue, let the ship do longer sailings, other than 4/5 night sailings.

 

Let's say you are right though, and the ships speed is slightly reduced. I am sure Celebrity could work out longer itineraries, that would work within her new speed requirements.

 

Also, the distance between Ft Lauderdale and Miami is about 20 miles. I hardly think that would have much to do with the reasoning to put the ship in Miami instead of Ft Lauderdale. I cant see how that distance would change anything dramatically.

[seagulls]

So my worst fears have materialized they are screwing up my favorite ship. Personally, I can't be bothered with 4 or 5 day cruises and I think those extra decks will look awful. Because of the new Celebrity pricing system I have started testing the waters, so to speak. I recently tried Princess which to my suprise was very enjoyable. In January I have an MSC cruise booked and who knows I may even give HAL and Oceania a whirl.

[Andy]

So my worst fears have materialized they are screwing up my favorite ship. Personally, I can't be bothered with 4 or 5 day cruises and I think those extra decks will look awful. Because of the new Celebrity pricing system I have started testing the waters, so to speak. I recently tried Princess which was suprisingly not too bad at all. In January I have an MSC cruise booked and wsho knows I may even give HAL and Oceana a whirl.

 

Hi Seagulls !

 

I do agree with you about the 4/5 night sailings for sure..... but how can you be so sure they are screwing up the ship ? I do feel that Century is a wonderful ship. How can we know, at this point, that this is a bad idea ?

 

I think we should wait to see the final product, before we give up on it. I am going to be optimistic about this. I hope it works out well.

 

With that said, I do hope they do something about the 4/5 night sailings. I think that is a true waste for this ship, and all the nice things that are to come. Longer Caribbean itineraries are the way to go. Please re-think this Celebrity !

[jsea]

I think we should wait to see the final product, before we give up on it.

Agreed. While I am not initially overwhelmed by what the press release details, I await renderings and more info before I'll pass initial judgment. There simply isn't enough in the press release, in my opinion, to say either way. They really aren't adding that many staterooms.

[seagulls]

Host Andy, I will keep an open mind but with all these changes, Celebrity my favorite cruiseline up until now, is on thin ice with me.

[Ericknow32]

Andy, maybe Celebrity is placing the Century there to set the table for a new ship. I dont know.

[SuziClue]

Hi, just noticed that Cruise Critic´s news has posted an item on the plans for Century...not a word about adding new floors!

 

Suzi

[Moeve]

Gee some cruiselines just never learn adding decks is always the worse idea as it changes the stats of a ship completely. She tends to become more unstable - remember the QE2 she was never the same after adding those decks!! Neither the old Vistafjord.......In todays world it is concidered better to lenghthen a ship & reposition & replace the stabilizers. Who knows just adding decks maybe the cheaper now but it is probably rather short sighted for the future.

[sammiedawg]

I contacted an out of state friend after my December sailing on the Century. At that time she predicted 5 day sailings for this ship, stating it was not competing well in the Ft Lauderdale 7 day market. I posted this information before. According to my friend, the benchmarks are strength of advance sails, ACTUAL average per diems and % of cabins dumped at deep discounts to fill the ship. Century was not doing well with these benchmarks when compared to the competition. Ships rarely sail with empty cabins, basic supply and demand principles apply to fill it up. I don't book cruises with this person, she is managing TA of a driving club in another state. She was not dissing Celebrity, RCCL and Celebrity are key accounts. She said Celebrity has a very loyal fan base but other lines are doing much better on the 3 benchmarks. Her agency's feedback on Century was " mixed" compared to the competition.

[AFT_LOVER]

http://www.corporate-ir.net/ireye/ir_site.zhtml?ticker=rcl&script=410&layout=9&item_id=715424

 

 

 

Hi Ernie !

 

I am sure you have the above right. One thing we do know, is the pool will not be moved :) .

 

We should wait for the press release before we ask a million questions. Hopefully, many of them will be answered in the release.

[AFT_LOVER]

They will be added to Millenium & Infinity in 2006.

 

What I don't see anywhere in the press release is that two new decks will be added, or a new Sports Deck. Of course those 24 new suites and cabins have to be added somewhere, so I do think at least one partial deck will be added. Maybe above where the current sky suites are now (both sides along the funnel), or possibly the observation lounge will be turned into the suites and the lounge moved up a deck or two?

 

One thing not mentioned .. Cirque! Hopefully this "amenity" will not find it's way to CENTURY.

 

Ernie

[tbelian]

Hi Eric !

 

The press release is out. Look at the new thread I started. It actually sounds quite nice. Dont worry !

 

Did I, or did I not say that the Century would not be 'stretched'?

[gkm]

Wow, it's going to be interesting to see how this all plays out. She's such a beautiful ship. I hate to see anything changed on her.

 

Garry

[fllady]

I will wait and see and book a cruise when it finally comes down here to Flroida. I figure don't knock it till you try it. How bad can it be, its Celebrity!! Also my DH is happy because he only wants balcony cabins. ;)

[Andy]

I will wait and see and book a cruise when it finally comes down here to Flroida. I figure don't knock it till you try it. How bad can it be, its Celebrity!! Also my DH is happy because he only wants balcony cabins. ;)

 

Hi Jeanne !

 

Thats how I feel as well. I am hopeful, that it will add some very nice items to a great ship. From the posts here, I can see that some are skeptical, and that is to be expected. I like the news though.

 

I do feel that Celebrity knows what it is doing, and hopefully, this will turn out to be a very nice addition. Time will tell.

[benjamins]

From the press release:

 

"Our goal is to modify the Century to be more aligned with our Millennium- class fleet, in order to maximize guest satisfaction and offer every Celebrity guest a consistently extraordinary vacation experience across the fleet," said Hanrahan.

 

It's All About Choices

 

* Like Celebrity's Millennium-class specialty restaurants, Century's new specialty restaurant will present an intimate, elegant dining experience with a menu designed by Celebrity's longtime culinary and wine consultant, Master Chef Michel Roux. The venue, still to be themed, will follow the distinctive style of Celebrity's Millennium-class specialty restaurants, which introduced the industry's first tableside cooking, carving and flambe.

 

First of all, the Century is 70,606 tons. Why does the press release say she is 77,713 tons? That's the size of the Galaxy and Mercury. Unless she's going to be 77,713 tons when the decks are added.

 

It's all about choices. I would say what they are talking about is features, not choice. There's another type of choice that the suits aren't understanding. That choice is to choose Century as a ship that represents the Celebrity of Chandris, the Celebrity that emphasized passenger to crew ratio, excellent food (and what's this nonsense about being the specialty restaurants being the first to offer tableside preparation--the original Celebrity ship, Meridian had this), a desired amount of passengers, a more adult-oriented cruise, teak deck space with access to the rear of the ship rather than balconies, etc. I would really like a choice from features. From all this fluff that the industry calls "choice". My real choice is a ship that has a focus, that has creative activities for people that may not be that varied, that has personnel you can count on. What people loved about the Century was a sense of a classic, timeless design; a sense that whatever crew that was aboard the ship loved serving aboard the ship and loved servicing the passengers; a ship that felt cozy yet grand. Hopefully, if one sails the Century they can avoid the nonsense and go to their ship. Where are they putting the specialty restaurant? What about dance venues? What about places to stare out onto the sea and enjoy the sensation of the sea in peace. That's what Celebrity could be about if they weren't so worried about keeping up with the Joneses.

 

The cruise industry is just another volume-oriented enterprise. I think I'm going to look at MSC and small European lines. Celebrity's suits are going for popularity, the Celebrity of Chandris went for discerning. So, Celebrity will be just another line with ships that have lots of balconies, who doesn't have a specialty restaurant?, who doesn't have spas?, who doesn't have a name chef consultant? With Century class, Celebrity had 3 distinct ships of timeless design and not cookie-cutter. Ships that knew who they were and who they wanted to serve. Now, part of that may be compromised with the "new" Century. A Century, many Celebrity fans--as opposed to generic cruise fans and those more interested in cruise as businesses--were not interested in seeing realized.

[venicecruiser]

Nicely said, Benjamins..........

[eroller]

I have read from a realiable source that NO NEW DECKS will be added to CENTURY. Instead, the new suites will be added to the aft end of the sports deck.

 

A couple other interesting tidbits .... some which I am not fond of:

 

1. The new balconies will be 1.75 mtr deep. Compare that to 1.4 mrt (average) on M-Class. So they will be larger on CENTURY!

 

2. A new teen facility will go into a corner of the aft lounge on Deck 7.

 

3. Sports Bar will transform into the Martini Bar.

 

4. Internet computers increase to 25

 

5. Specialty restaurant added to Deck 5

 

6. Speed will only be reduced by 1/10 of a knot

 

7. A 200-ton sponson will be added to CENTURY's stern for stability *YUCK!*

 

There you have it!

 

Ernie

[Sky Sweet]

Hi Jeanne !

 

Thats how I feel as well. I am hopeful, that it will add some very nice items to a great ship. From the posts here, I can see that some are skeptical, and that is to be expected. I like the news though.

 

I do feel that Celebrity knows what it is doing, and hopefully, this will turn out to be a very nice addition. Time will tell.

 

Century is one of my favorite ships because of its size and understated elegance, and there appears to be a solid market of Celebrity Cruisers who feel the same way. If Celebrity decided to just spruce it up, new carpet, furniture, etc, without making major changes to its structure, I would sail it again in minute, providing that its itinterary was appealing. However, it appears that Celebrity was not thinking of its current client base when they developed its new plans and itineraries, and is trying to compete with Carnival. My greatest fear is that they will be forced to reduce their quality of services on this ship to offset its low fares, and then re-evaluate their crew to passenger ratio on the rest of their fleet.

[Andy]

Century is one of my favorite ships because of its size and understated elegance, and there appears to be a solid market of Celebrity Cruisers who feel the same way. If Celebrity decided to just spruce it up, new carpet, furniture, etc, without making major changes to its structure, I would sail it again in minute, providing that its itinterary was appealing. However, it appears that Celebrity was not thinking of its current client base when they developed its new plans and itineraries, and is trying to compete with Carnival. My greatest fear is that they will be forced to reduce their quality of services on this ship to offset its low fares, and then re-evaluate their crew to passenger ratio on the rest of their fleet.

 

Hi Sky Sweet !

 

Compete with Carnival ? Bite your tongue <smile>. I truly do not think that is the case, but it does make you wonder if that sort of thinking, is swirling in their heads with these new, short sailings.

 

What I DO think, is that they are going to try to make Century more appealing for families. Again, we will have to wait & see.

 

As for your concerns ? I really dont think so. At least I hope not anyway ! If that turns out to be the case, it would be a huge disappointment. Let's hope your fears do not come to reality.

[dkjretired]

Although many of us do not like to see any changes to the Century, I believe we have to look at the alternatives. None of the changes Celebrity makes would please everyone but to leave the ship alone would cause its early demise ala Horizon and probably Zenith very soon. It did not have veranda's and that is what many cruisers want. If no changes were made it would have been in the fleet for maybe five more years. Again, although I agree with much that has been said, what were the alternatives??????

[eroller]

Hi Sky Sweet !

 

Compete with Carnival ? Bite your tongue <smile>. I truly do not think that is the case, but it does make you wonder if that sort of thinking, is swirling in their heads with these new, short sailings.

 

 

 

One thing is for certain ... the beds on Carnival are going to be a lot more comfortable! Carnival is adding luxury bedding/mattresses to the entire fleet. I wish Celebrity would do the same (and maybe they will). Those foam pads (also used on Royal Caribbean) have got to go!!!

 

Ernie

[eroller]

Although many of us do not like to see any changes to the Century, I believe we have to look at the alternatives. None of the changes Celebrity makes would please everyone but to leave the ship alone would cause its early demise ala Horizon and probably Zenith very soon. It did not have veranda's and that is what many cruisers want. If no changes were made it would have been in the fleet for maybe five more years. Again, although I agree with much that has been said, what were the alternatives??????

 

 

I totally agree. I have no problem with updating the fleet to keep it current. Whenever a new ship comes out, it pretty much outdates the older members of the fleet. Royal Caribbean/Celebrity do an excellent job (better than most) of keeping all ships current (and competitive). If CENTURY were not updated, eventually she would find her way out of the fleet to Island Cruises or some other obscure line. This is certainly not what I want. Given the choice of keeping CENTURY with slight modifications (and they are pretty minor), or having her become so outdated that she must transfer out of the fleet .... I'll take the modifications. It's a compromise but life is all about compromise. I actually see most of the changes as a positive.

 

Ernie

[dkjretired]

I totally agree. I have no problem with updating the fleet to keep it current. Whenever a new ship comes out, it pretty much outdates the older members of the fleet. Royal Caribbean/Celebrity do an excellent job (better than most) of keeping all ships current (and competitive). If CENTURY were not updated, eventually she would find her way out of the fleet to Island Cruises or some other obscure line. This is certainly not what I want. Given the choice of keeping CENTURY with slight modifications (and they are pretty minor), or having her become so outdated that she must transfer out of the fleet .... I'll take the modifications. It's a compromise but life is all about compromise. I actually see most of the changes as a positive.

 

Ernie

 

Agree with you, the changes are pretty minor to what they could have done, the only question I wish they would have addressed in the press release was how they are going to do it. We have one poster saying they are adding new decks and another saying they are utilizing existing space.

[Sky Sweet]

Although many of us do not like to see any changes to the Century, I believe we have to look at the alternatives. None of the changes Celebrity makes would please everyone but to leave the ship alone would cause its early demise ala Horizon and probably Zenith very soon. It did not have veranda's and that is what many cruisers want. If no changes were made it would have been in the fleet for maybe five more years. Again, although I agree with much that has been said, what were the alternatives??????

 

I agree that older ships need to be updated, just like older homes do, but there are ways to update without comprimising what makes it special. In my opinion, the proposed plans for Century are comparable to a bad addition on a beautiful classic Tudor Home.