galaxy vs constellation

[beachfanatic]

what can anyone tell me about the galaxy? i've sailed the summit twice and loved the ship but there is a 10day on the galaxy that is much cheaper

and I am considering it over the constellation. Is the ship old/showing its age.

[C 2 C]

There is a reason for the difference in price. The service and food would be about the same but when I was onboard Galaxy I was disappointed with her condition. It won't ruin your cruise but I think Galaxy needs some TLC. I would sail in Galaxy again but the price would have to entice me. You might also want to check air prices. Galaxy sails out of Puerto Rico in the winter and air fares might be higher..

[RickT]

Hi Beachfanatic, what route are you looking at. We've booked the Galaxy for March 2007. We've previously been on the ship and have been reading that it needs some sprucing up but the price is about half of any other 10 day cruise at that time and we figure it can't be as bad as some people claim.

 

As mentioned, it's a little older and lacks some of the nice things you'll find on the M-class ships but that shouldn't be a problem.

[Queenk2]

I took the Galaxy last summer in the Med -11 day. It was wonderful. As I have been on Connie previously, I was also concerned. NOT A PROBLEM!!!! Depending upon your itinerary, you can be on the ship just for sleeping purposes, if it is at all port intensive. We had a sky suite and the room was in perfect condition. Sure, some of the public areas could use a sprucing up here and there, but NOTHING to detract from the enjoyment of your cruise. Have fun!

Karen

[beachfanatic]

i am looking at march 2007, the 10 day carribean. We made a mistake and went on an older/smaller princess boat this past year and were disappointed. I don't want to make the same mistake. Due to the size of the boat we got all the bad docking/tendering spots which made a difference to our shore excursions.

[RickT]

I'm booked on the March 16th sailing and have no concerns with the ship. Maybe I'm too easy going but I rarely see anything on a ship that is horribly wrong yet I've seen people complaining like their cruise has been ruined.

 

Is it going to be a little worn in areas... sure, but so is my family room.

 

Keep your eyes on this board in case any specific problems get brought to light. Otherwise, book it and enjoy it.

 

Hope to see you on the March 16th sailing. If you book, be sure to visit the Roll Call.

[tom_uk]

I've just been on Galaxy but have never been on a Millenium-class ship so I can't offer a comparison. However I can report on Galaxy. Here goes:

 

a) some things looked a little worn: some of the uphostery in the cabin looked faded, and there was a bit of a stain in the washbasin;

 

b) however, nothing was broken - everything worked perfectly;

 

c) apart from the blurry windows in the Stratosphere Lounge, I didn't see any real signs of wear in the public areas;

 

d) the 'soft' side of things - the service, the catering, etc - were excellent.

 

There is one area in which Galaxy (and Mercury) show that they were designed in an earlier era, and that is in dining choices. Galaxy has the one main restaurant (the Orion restaurant) which is a grand, two-level room with a superb central staircase down which you can process in all your finery, if you want to! (Although if you're dining on the upper level, you'd just have to process back up again...) The only other eating area is the buffet on deck 11. They do arrange a small number of tables for 'informal' evening meals up there (with table service), and there was also a sushi bar in the buffet on most evenings (or perhaps every evening) but these were obviously just areas of the buffet that had been cordoned-off. I believe that the Millenium class ships offer greater dining choices, possibly at an additional cost and I also see that Century's refit has equipped that ship with an extra restaurant, Muranos. These are things that Galaxy (and Mercury) don't really have.

 

I ought to add that we enjoyed Galaxy so much that are very likely to cruise on her again in 2007, as next year's 'Best of the Med' itinerary looks very inviting.

[C 2 C]

a) there was a bit of a stain in the washbasin;

 

I am sure that the stain is designed that way.. It is in the same place whether you are in Mercury, Galaxy or ex Century (pre-makeover)... I can't remember the M-ships.:confused:

 

A stain caused by metal content from water would be under the fawcet... the "stain" is beneath the overflow opening... where no flow occurs.

 

To me it looke like someone attempted to make it look like marble... and failed.:confused:

[elsje]

I just sailed the Galaxy on her 16-day trans atlantic (our first X cruise) and was concerned about her condition as well after reading some negative posts. I was surprised how well she looked. Yes, the windows in the Stratosphere lounge need repair but since we never used it I forgot about it. For the good views we sat out on the deck. Yes there are a few things that could use a touch up.

 

We sailed in 04 and 05 on the Carnival Conquest and she was two years old in 04 (I believe) and I was very surprised how much she deteriorated (spots and worn carpet) when we sailed her again in 05. The Galaxy is 10 years old and to me in much better shape. She also is very classy. We had an incident with our mattress and the cabin steward immediately fixed that problem.

 

I would sail her again ~ good luck on making your decision ~ Els

[tom_uk]

I have just put up some pictures of Galaxy, here:-

 

http://www.*****/travelpage/aspgallery/view_ad.asp?Ad_ID=2512

 

Np pictures of the Portals of Obscurity, I'm afraid (aka the Stratosphere Lounge windows)!

[Queenk2]

Tom, I LOVE your title...portals of Obscurity! LOL!

Karen

[C 2 C]

I

 

No pictures of the Portals of Obscurity, I'm afraid (aka the Stratosphere Lounge windows)!

Here's my picture from our May sailing..

[BaltiGator]

Thanks Queenk2, tom_uk and elsje for the comments, and thanks tom_uk for the great pictures. I can see that the ship has an older, more classic look. I feel much more comfortable now with our decision to book the Galaxy for October 07.

[WooKeef]

Here's my picture from our May sailing..

 

 

Is the majority of the windows "obscured";) in that way? I bet that lounge stays empty. Just wondered sailing on her in 3 month:D

[JLDMED]

No, not all of the windows are fogged up. My estimate would be 25-30%.

[C 2 C]

Is the majority of the windows "obscured";) in that way? I bet that lounge stays empty. Just wondered sailing on her in 3 month:D

 

The lounge is largely empty even though it's one of my favorite places to sit. Since you are on a port-intensive cruise it is not a major problem. My estimate of obscurity is well over 60%. There are two fogged windows for every one you can look through.:(

[tom_uk]

Tom, I LOVE your title...portals of Obscurity! LOL!

 

Modesty & honesty compel me to say that the name was coind by Greydog in his excellent and very amusing review of the Galaxy transatlantic this spring. The whole review is worth reading, but here's one para:

 

"Galaxy Shipboard Condition -- Words that come to mind are past prime, faded, worn, tired, tattered and dog-eared but enough about the passengers. The ship was in decent shape, clean everywhere. The Galaxys carpets were comparable generally to the Hilton Rome Airport. Of course I made an inspection pilgrimage to the Stratosphere Lounge to see the fabled Portals of Obscurity. And yes, many of the portals are aged beyond their years and do obscure the view, almost in a DaVinci code-like pattern. When the sun hits some of these blurry panes I swear I could see panoply of senior religious notables, pre-bloat Elvis, dogs playing poker, Elvis playing poker with dogs, religious notables playing poker, etc. I would sit for hours in the lounge and wonder who was winning. These panes could fetch very lofty bids on eBay and are under-appreciated for their unique individuality."

[elsje]

Modesty & honesty compel me to say that the name was coind by Greydog in his excellent and very amusing review of the Galaxy transatlantic this spring. The whole review is worth reading, but here's one para:

 

"Galaxy Shipboard Condition -- Words that come to mind are past prime, faded, worn, tired, tattered and dog-eared but enough about the passengers. The ship was in decent shape, clean everywhere. The Galaxys carpets were comparable generally to the Hilton Rome Airport. Of course I made an inspection pilgrimage to the Stratosphere Lounge to see the fabled Portals of Obscurity. And yes, many of the portals are aged beyond their years and do obscure the view, almost in a DaVinci code-like pattern. When the sun hits some of these blurry panes I swear I could see panoply of senior religious notables, pre-bloat Elvis, dogs playing poker, Elvis playing poker with dogs, religious notables playing poker, etc. I would sit for hours in the lounge and wonder who was winning. These panes could fetch very lofty bids on eBay and are under-appreciated for their unique individuality."

 

I agree Greydog's wonderful hilarious review is really a must to read ~ what a great writer. I met him and his wife on the ship ~ great people! ~ Els

[crz4ever]

We have sailed twice on the Galaxy with our most recent trip July 05 from Rome. We loved it both times and although a little worn, still a lovely ship with excellent service. We just returned off the Summit in May and I prefer the Thallastherapy pool on the Galaxy. There were a lot more jets and a lot less people using it since you have to pay a fee to use it, around $99 per cruise I think. I wouldn't hesitate to book the Galaxy again.

 

Star Clipper 8/06

Summit 4/06

Royal Clipper 1/06

Galaxy 7/05

Diamond Princess 4/05

Volendam 11/04

Galaxy 3/04