Celebrity's Pacific NW Cruise

[wa.mama]

Has anyone out there done the 3 or 4 night Mercury cruise out of Seattle? It goes to Victoria, Nanaimo, then Seattle. Is it the same quality as a normal Celebrity cruise, or more like the 3-day "booze cruises" in Mexico that I remember from college days? We're thinking about going with out of town guests as a way to see some local sights and relax together without having to do a lot of work.

 

Any input appreciated.

[LeftcoastBC]

We have not been on one out of Seattle but the other 3 dayers from Vancouver say..have never been at all like I have read about down south. Very relaxing and a neat way to get away for a few days. I'd say exactly what you are looking for.

[windermere]

Did A PNW cruise on the Mercury 2 years ago. It was same a longer trips. Same dining choices, great service & shows, etc. Great way to spend a long weekend.

[mithryl]

We're going on 10/15/07. It's my first Celebrity cruise and my shortest to date, but it sounds really fun. You might want to ask on our Roll Call Board, as many of those traveling on this cruise are experienced Celebrity cruisers and have done this same trip before and loved it.

Want to join us?

[wa.mama]

and I'd love to join any cruise on Celebrity! I'll check out your roll call.

[Cruise Gypsy]

We did the three night cruise on the Mercury last year, we are booked for 9/28/07 for this year and we plan to book next year when we are on board.

 

We normally do longer cruises but this is one of favorite short cruises.:D

[wa.mama]

Sounds great! We reserved 3 of the aft 2A cabins on deck 8.....are these the SV verandas? They're labeled as SV for the Alaska cruises, but 2A for this short cruise. So confusing.

[Guest maler]

Took that ship last fall.

Ship was very dirty and crew wiped everything down with bleach mixture as they have returned to Seattle many times with sick passengers. Some ruined clothing from the bleach.

Seemed like an older ship. I was told that the ship had been cut in two and a new section added in the middle making some areas difficult to get to.

Makes me hesitate to ever cruise with Celebrity again.

[wa.mama]

I was told that the ship had been cut in two and a new section added in the middle making some areas difficult to get to.

Makes me hesitate to ever cruise with Celebrity again.

 

Huh?!

[Cruise Gypsy]

Quote:

Originally Posted by maler

I was told that the ship had been cut in two and a new section added in the middle making some areas difficult to get to.

Makes me hesitate to ever cruise with Celebrity again.

 

Huh?!

 

 

Double Huh?:confused:

[Wild Thing ~T]

Thanks wa.mama for starting this thread! We are booked Oct. 1 on the Mercury. 8 girlfriends are onboard for our first ever (and hopefully annual) girlfriend cruise!

 

I was wondering the same questions about the shorter cruise. This will be my first short cruise.

 

When are you sailing?

 

We have sailed twice (two 7 day cruises) on Mercury and loved both cruises. I never had a hard time getting around and have never heard anything on these boards or anywhere else about the ship being cut in half. :rolleyes:

 

I was not the least bit hesitant to book the Mercury for this PNW cruise. :D

[wa.mama]

Hi wild thing,

 

we're from seattle and are also hoping to make this an annual thing. It just "happens" to coincide with my birthday in September. What a great idea to do it for a girlfriend trip! I'm happy to know the Mercury is in good shape. My kids won't care what it looks like as long as the waffle bar is open.

 

Where are you from, in eastern Wa? We go to Lake Roosevelt every summer for houseboating......a different kind of cruising, but our favorite vacation hands down!

[Wild Thing ~T]

Hi wa.mama,

 

we are from sunny Walla Walla! It is a warm one here today!:cool:

 

I have been to Lake Roosevelt, you are right, VERY NICE!

 

When is your PNW cruise?

[wa.mama]

OMG I grew up in Walla Walla! Fond memories of Rooks Park, Merchants Cafe, and all that. It's changed a lot since I was a kid.

 

We're booked on the 9-30 sailing. Hopefully.

[Guest maler]

Sorry for the poor explanation above.

 

I was told the ship had been cut in two and a large piece added to the hull that increased the passenger capacity.

Unfortunately then, some hallways just abruptly ended or dead ended at a kitchen door so you had to go back and go up or down stairs to continue to the back of the ship.

Basically you couldn't easily walk from bow to stern. I believe there was only one deck where you could walk from one end to the other which wasn't always convenient.

 

My hesitancy in cruising with Celebrity again is due to the ship being so dirty, not the dead end hallways.

[c_renee]

I took the 4 night one last year and love it! Other than 2 random drunk people who gave the poor CD a hard time, there wasn't a party atmosphere at all. It was very relaxed and classy. Of course, it was my first cruise, so there wasn't anything to compare it too yet.

[Wild Thing ~T]

We have sailed 14 days onboard Mercury and will log another 4 days October 1!!:D

 

She was beautiful and the crew were fantastic both cruises! My mom and dad were onboard for our 7 day Alaska cruise, my mom is a REAL neat freak, and she was VERY pleased with the cleanliness of Mercury.

 

Any ship can get "SICK" with the norwalk virus! It is the passengers that make the ship sick, not the ship!:mad:

[Wild Thing ~T]

OMG I grew up in Walla Walla! Fond memories of Rooks Park, Merchants Cafe, and all that. It's changed a lot since I was a kid.

 

We're booked on the 9-30 sailing.

 

wa.mama! WOW!! OMG!!

 

My DH runs every night on the trails around Rooks Park and Merchants is still in business, as a matter of fact they have about tripled in size from the good ole days!

 

Downtown looks great! I just wish we were not such a tourist trap lately!

Oh well...

 

I don't think there is a Sept. 30 sailing? Are you on our sailing? That would be great to meet you!:D

 

We are on the Oct 1 - 5 sailing.

 

Take care,

Teri

[c-cruise]

We did the 4 night Mercury out of Seattle last fall. It was our first Celebrity cruise and first "short" cruise, but it compared very well with the longer sailing we have done on other lines. I will say that Mercury wasn't my favorite ship, but it was certainly not dirty nor difficult to navigate your way around. Don't recall that the Mercury was ever cut and lengthened although RCCI has certainly done this to a few of their ships (Enchantment of the Seas most recently). Remember reading that Mercury was in dry dock earlier this year where a series of upgrades were done including adding additional balcony cabins to the aft of the ship.

 

Since we live in Seattle the ports were not really that important to us. It was nice to have a whole day in Victoria however. If you find anything at all to do in Nanaimo let us know! Actually it was a fun little town. The locals were very excited about having a cruise ship in port and there were chamber of commerce folks all over the place to point passengers in the right direction. Our 4 day sailing also spent a day in Vancouver. Think they replaced that with a sea day this year.

 

Seemed like most everybody on the ship was from Seattle or the Pacific NW area. Didn't have a boose cruise dynamic to it at all. There was a formal night, but we decided not to bring formal clothes for such a short trip and opted instead to eat at the buffet that evening.

 

Overall it was a great trip and wouldn't hesitate to do it again!

[wa.mama]

Teri,

 

Oops, we're on the 10-26 cruise. 9-30 is a different trip!

 

C-cruise, thanks for the info. We're doing the cruise as a surprise birthday present for a good friend (hopefully she doesn't read these boards) and are looking for a stress-free low maintenance weekend. The kids, of course, are going just for the waffles and ice cream bar. If it works out I'd like to do it yearly!

[jer_l]

We sailed on the Mercury last September on the 4-day PNW cruise. This was our second sailing on the Mercury. The week we sailed the ship was very clean although it was showing a bit of wear and tear. We sailed on the Mercury again in January and several areas had been refurbished. Even more work has been done since that time including new mattresses and bedding.

 

The cruise we took was definitely NOT a booze cruise. The itinerary has changed from last year, but I'm sure it will still be a wonderful cruise.

 

The poster who thought that the ship had been cut in two must not have been told where the galley is located. The galley is on deck 5 and spans the whole width of the ship. That is the only deck where you cannot walk all the way through the deck. That can be confusing at first. If you have lower level dining and you are headed to the restaurant from midship or forward you have to go up to deck 6 and then take the aft stairs or elevator to enter the restaurant on deck 5. All other areas of the ship are quite easily accessible.

 

Jerry

[Lois R]

Hi, I am going on 2 short b2b's in October too:) :D

I have sailed Mercury 3 times previously and love the ship.

I was on her earlier this year (in March for my birthday) and it

was fantastic as usual. Mercury is 10 years old but I love her

very much. Then again, every time I step back on her I seem to

know quite a few staff and crew! Makes it like Old Home week for

me:)

 

I will be sailing Oct 12-15 and then 15-19th!

 

Maler, Mecury has never been cut in 1/2. Century (her sister ship)

had a $55 Million overhaul the spring of 2006. Maybe that is what

you are thinking about?

 

Anyway, I love Celebrity and can't wait to sail again.

 

Is it October yet?;)

[sunsetme]

which pier does mercury leave from?

[Lois R]

:) Next to the Edgewater Hotel. I believe it is Peir 66!

[LeftcoastBC]

yup..66 From Port of Seattle web site

"Five major cruise lines currently operate weekly service out of Seattle on nine premier vessels. Norwegian Cruise Line, Royal Caribbean and Celebrity Cruises depart from the Bell Street Pier Cruise Terminal at Pier 66. Holland America Line and Princess Cruises depart from the Terminal 30 Cruise Facility."