Any mini reviews from those just off the Mercury

[herewego]

Leaving next Friday so I was hoping to hear from those who just got off her!

 

Anyone?

[2fun]

Hi herewego (and soon you will!)

 

We traveled within a party of 12 - the second X cruise for 8, first for the rest. We had a wonderful time and I will write out more details later. Still getting settled and I can't find the buffet????

 

I just wanted to let you know about the dress code as it has been hammered to death here! I was a bit freaked out about going as we have no actual formal wear and I wasn't about to go out and spend money we didn't have simply for a couple of dinners. Anyway we thought we'd check out fisrt seating and if it was ALL formal, we call and eat in our room. But it wasn't! My DH wore a suit and I one of my nice dresses and we were as dressed u as it got! There were a lot of people not even in suits and ladies in pantsuits and one couple in unning gear!! NOBODY was ever turned away and after the first formal night, the next had less and the informal ones had a lot of guys without jackets! So, don't worry about what is being said - you really don't have to be afraid of someone throwing you out or feeling ill eased! RELAX, wear whar=t you are comfortable in and have fun!

 

The food was really good, the service wonderful and we all had a terrific time. The "staff" entertaners weren't worth watching (IMO) but we enjoyed most of the others.

 

Passengers ranged in age although we saw few kids, but many younger adults.

 

The massages were just ok - I really prefer deep tissuse and NO talking but got a chaterbox :( who never got deep enough for me to get any relief.

 

I love the expresso and sushi and even tried the pizza once which was good too.

 

Need to get busy on laundry - if you have any questions, just ask! I'll be back on later in the day.

[Shipofdreamsgirl]

We also will be leaving next Friday: I was courious if someone could tell me who the Captain, and officers were on the last couple cruises. I have heard they change every 3 months or so. I am also wondering if the Captain changed with this first cruise to Alaska?

On our last cruise with the Mercury the Captain was Anastasios Salessiotis

[Cherlynn]

Has anyone seen or been in the new balconies? I've seen a couple of posts that said they were still working on them. We're assigned to one in Jan 08, but very curious as to how they turned out and how the cabin is arranged. Some of the posts talk about the cabins losing some space for the balcony and that the cabin is long and narrow. I would appreciate any news. Thanks.

 

Cheryl

[TeaBag]

We are not just off Mercury but anxious about her too. Here is what the finished balconies looked like yesterday as she was berthed on the west side of Canada Place where we could get a better look than the last time. It looks like the aft balconies have a table and two chairs rather than lounges. Mercury is berthed stern to stern with the Norwegian Star.

[hydrodriver831]

Thanks for posting the photos. It looks pretty much like I thought it would. We will be sailing on the Mercury in Aug 2007 and have an Aft cabin booked so we were very excited to hear they were adding the balconies. I contacted Celebrity and was told that the interior of the staterooms have not changed with the exception of removing the rear sofa to add the glass door. I also read that the carpeting and cabinets have been replaced along with the bedding. I also understand that they replaced the lower bunk/sofa in the sitting area with a sofa that folds out to a double bed. I guess we will know more in the coming days.

[anyname]

Thanks for the info 2fun - glad to hear the clothes aren't as strick as everyone said! Were there any super GREAT dishes? Guess I am getting my cruise tummy going! LOL

 

Hopefully more people will post - we are all just excited and love to hear how their cruise went!

 

Autumn

[luchcruise]

Leaving next Friday so I was hoping to hear from those who just got off her!

 

Anyone?

Just got back from a SFO-Vancouver trip. Wrote the following for this site. Say Hi to Kathy who sings in the Randevous Lounge.

Just returned from the repositioning Mercury cruise. Two months prior, we did the 8 night Mexican Riveria on The Norwegian Star so both ships were fresh in our minds and we could do some good comparing.

Rooms: Both were balcony rooms---Mercury offered a bigger balcony but rather than the whole wall of floor-to-ceiling windows offered on Norwegian, the Mercury had only a floor to ceiling door--much inferior view and feel. Mercury had much better closet space and storage space and nice extras like robes and a lotion dispenser in the bathroom. Norwegian had in-room coffee pots---that's very important to us.

Room Service: Better on the Mercury with a more extensive menu but I'd give it up for the above-mentioned coffee pot.

Food: I'd give Mercury an 80% and Norwegian a 95%. The breads and desserts on Mercury were pretty ho-hum. Now that I'm home and have stepped on my scale, I'm grateful for that. I loved the free-style dining on Norwegian and the many extra choices of restaurants.

Service: Cabin service was better on Mercury but still good on The Star. On the Star we always had trouble getting ice at the time we wanted it--6 PMish--. We always had it when we didn't need it --first thing in the morning and last thing at night. Waiters and dining room attendants were better on the Mercury--maybe they had to be to make up for the so-so food.

Shows: The Star was good but the shows were outstanding on the Mercury. Mercury's lighting and staging were awesome.

Music: We love to dance and found Norwegian to be woefully lacking in good dance music--they would have had a much better opportunity to sell us drinks if we could have found some place to dance while we drank them. Mercury had lots of good music--dance, chamber, nightclub--we danced till we dropped.

Other thoughts: Norwegian is automatically adding the tips to your room--Celebrity is still giving you the option of passing out tip envelopes. I sure prefer the person-to-person contact and the opportunity to include a few more $$$ and a note of thanks for good service.

Disembarkation: A nightmare on Norwegian. Well done on Mercury.

[Cherlynn]

TeaBag - loved the pics. Thanks so much. It helped alot to see them. We are really looking forward to having the aft cabin.

 

Luchcruise - really enjoyed your comparisions between the 2 lines. It shows you that there's something out there for everyone. Thanks for the info.

 

Cheryl

[herewego]

We were also on that cruise - in september and loved the Star. We enjoyed the alternative dinning so much - it is the reason we choose NCL 75% of the time! And they have wonderful bread - the only time I ever eat them - well a lot of them LOL We have been on 5 NCL ships for many cruises and have yet to be disappointed!

 

What was the dinning attire like in the Mercury? Did you sit at a big table or a smaller one? Again why I prefer the freestyle dinning - sitting where you want, with whom you want, when you want! Not sure how we are going to like going back (last time was 5 years ago) to all the pre-set things - times, tables etc. but we'll give it a chance! I do like the extended room servce menu and may need to try that.

 

No coffee pots? I guess we'll just have to order coffee from room service early mornings!!!

[Kapricorn]

We enjoyed the alternative dinning so much - it is the reason we choose NCL 75% of the time!

 

Alternative dining is great for couples, friends, or newly-met shipboard acquaintances. I enjoyed the variety of restaurants on the Norwegian Star on my cruise of February 21, 2006 - unfortunately as a solo traveler I dined alone nightly on the eight-day cruise. On the Mercury, I get to sit with the same people nightly at assigned tables.

 

What impressed me the most about the Japanese restaurant on the Norwegian Star was that two nights after I had dined there, the hostess greeted me by name as I passed by. What a remarkable memory! I bet that she remembered me because I had mistaken the wasabi herb in my soup as a string of green bean, so I chewed, gulped it, and nearly had a cardiac arrest (my tongue felt on flames and my eyes almost popped out!). After the hostess removed my empty soup bowl, she returned and asked if I had actually ingested the wasabi. Perhaps that's why she remembered my name! :o:)

 

Donald.

[herewego]

OMG that is horrible! It reminds me of when we paid my brother $2 to eat a super hot pepper when he was 10! It was a riot and we couldn't understand why our mom was so angry! LOL

 

My son made frends with the hostess at the sushi restaurant and they still email. I wonder if it was the same one - I'll have to ask him her name. We ate lunch there a few times and one time she was talking about her dog and started to cry - she missed him so much!

 

I never thought about a single diner, I guess that would be hard. I did meet two ladies (sisters) that were traveling alone and they said they would ask for a "big table" each evening and then they would be sat with other passengers. They seemed to enjoy that.

 

One odd thing was that there were three crew members on the Star that we had seen earlier in the year on the Spirit! They seem to move from ship to ship a lot. I heard the celebrity staff stay on one ship for years.

 

It is going to be fun sailing a new line!

[Karynanne]

We were in one of the newly added balcony aft cabins on Mercury. #8230. They refurbished all the carpeting, upholstery and beds/bedding in these cabins. The balcony is about 12 ft. in length, and of course, the width of the cabin itself. We really enjoyed all the additional closet and drawer space, plus with the added balcony it really opened everything up for creating a more spacious look and feel to the cabin itself. We would definately book this cabin again. Just great!

 

BTW, the cruise itself was wonderful. Great staff, food and fun. We're back on Mercury in Feb., for a B2B Down Under, and can't wait!

 

Karyn

[anyname]

Do you know how many places one could use their laptops? I can't seem to get an answer on that.

 

What did the new menus have added?

[TeaBag]

Thanks Karynanne. I have been waiting for your review and it sounds great. BTW how was the size of the bed? Did you find it small being a double? Is the screen at the end of the bed fixed, or can you move it over a bit so the person sleeping next to the wall could get out at the end of the bed instead of across the other person? I'm glad you liked the food, as someone else posted that it wasn't the best.

 

I hope you escaped the long lines for taxi when you disembarked.

[Lois R]

Welcome back and glad you had such a good time:)

 

Teabag, food is always such a subjective topic:eek:

You will find 2 people on the same cruise...one who thought

everything was cooked properly and delicious and another who

didn't enjoy anything......

[Karynanne]

Thanks Karynanne. I have been waiting for your review and it sounds great. BTW how was the size of the bed? Did you find it small being a double? Is the screen at the end of the bed fixed, or can you move it over a bit so the person sleeping next to the wall could get out at the end of the bed instead of across the other person? I'm glad you liked the food, as someone else posted that it wasn't the best.

 

I hope you escaped the long lines for taxi when you disembarked.

 

The bed situation was a bit tricky. The screen (opened) is fixed. And I agree, food is very subjective. We live in an area that really has some very fine dining. We're close to San Francisco, and we found the food quite good.

 

We did escape the taxi issue. BUT we had a worse experience. We had decided to take a "fun" 1 day cruise on the Golden Princess back to Seattle, the same day. Vancouver Port Authorities didn't plan this one out really well at all. There were 3 ships in port, and all approx. 6K pax had to stand in 1 long, long line to get through security, immigration, and then your designated cruiseline. It was absolutely horrible. 5-6 hrs. And, not to bash Princess, but let me put it this way....I will never stray from Celebrity again!

 

Karyn

[Kapricorn]

My son made frends with the hostess at the sushi restaurant and they still email. I wonder if it was the same one - I'll have to ask him her name. We ate lunch there a few times and one time she was talking about her dog and started to cry - she missed him so much!

 

I never thought about a single diner, I guess that would be hard. I did meet two ladies (sisters) that were traveling alone and they said they would ask for a "big table" each evening and then they would be sat with other passengers. They seemed to enjoy that.

 

Hi, Herewego - I don't recall the name of the sushi hostess. She was a very gracious lady, though. One night there was a Mardi Gras theme and passengers were given colourful necklaces. I noticed that the sushi hostess was collecting them, so I gave her mine. She was really happy.

 

I had thought of asking for big tables every night, but was afraid to be stuck with companions that I wouldn't care for. Dining by myself wouldn't produce surprises (except for the wasabi!).:D

[herewego]

Well Donald, if we are ever on the same NCL ship - we would love to have you join us! Both my husband and I are Doctors and we have one left at home - a 17 year old who at this moment finds playing the guitar more exciting than studying!

 

We started sailing with all the kids and slowly they go off to college, and we are left with one less. Now that we are down to one, we will soon be sailing alone. Oddly I find that both sad and exciting! LOL

 

Kristy

[LHARTWICK]

Karynanne: We have an aft cabin (#1163) booked in September. There will be 3 people in our cabin. I'm assuming there is a sofa bed in those cabins? I read in a previous post that even though you book a cabin for 3 people, there's no guarantee it will sleep 3 people. Also, how large is the cabin space and could you describe the configuration for me? I've read that the bed in these cabins is pushed against a wall?? Any info is appreciated!

[Karynanne]

Karynanne: We have an aft cabin (#1163) booked in September. There will be 3 people in our cabin. I'm assuming there is a sofa bed in those cabins? I read in a previous post that even though you book a cabin for 3 people, there's no guarantee it will sleep 3 people. Also, how large is the cabin space and could you describe the configuration for me? I've read that the bed in these cabins is pushed against a wall?? Any info is appreciated!

 

The cabin is divided into two spaces. The first space holds a double bed to one side (pushed up against the wall), with a long counter space and drawers to one side.

 

The second space holds a stationery bed (twin), with a pull-down bunk to one side, and another long counter with drawers opposite it.

 

Drawer space, counter space, and closet space are ample. Since there were only two of us, we really enjoy the additional storage. I do feel it would work well with 3 people.

 

Karyn

[LHARTWICK]

Is there a sofa/tv area?

[ekeberg]

Karynanne,

Thanks for posting about the aft cabins. I thought they would of moved the bed when they did the dry dock, but I guess it really is not that big of deal.

So glad to hear you had a great cruise. We leave in July for Alaska and I'm also thinking of booking the Mercury for next April. I really love that ship!

 

Lynn

[Karynanne]

Actually the only change in the cabin configuation was taking out the built-in sofa, and window, and replacing it with a sliding glass door, and extending the decking area. They did put in very nice teak decking material.

 

When we first went to our cabin, they were still putting together the outside furniture for the balcony. A rectangular table and 2 chairs. There may have been room for a lounger, but we didn't ask for one on this cruise. The weather was a bit chilly.

 

Karyn

[LHARTWICK]

So the only place to sit inside is on a bed?