Very Disappointed - Celebrity Galaxy

[Cracker Ken]

You know, I pretty much know which cabins on a ship will be noisy, and which ones will be relatively quiet - without even going on the ship. I look at the cabin location on the ships layout map, and if it's aft, and low, it's more than likely going to be noisy. If it's in the bow of the ship, I know there are chances it could be a little noisy too. If it's midships, I know that it's going to be relatively quiet. If the cabin is above or below the casino, I know that's probably going to have some noise. So, if I book what I think is going to be a noisy cabin, I live with it. Nobody to blame but me. Of course, if it's only me to blame, there is no compensation bucks available.

 

These days, with the theory of liability, which seems prominent these days, everything has to be someone else's fault all the time. Nobody is in charge of looking out for themselves. Nobody is charged with looking where they are walking anymore. There always has to be sombody (with lots of money) to blame for everything. A lot of people cannot take responsibility for their own actions, simply because there's no many in it for them.

 

Ken

[claud925]

These days, with the theory of liability, which seems prominent these days, everything has to be someone else's fault all the time. Nobody is in charge of looking out for themselves. Nobody is charged with looking where they are walking anymore. There always has to be sombody (with lots of money) to blame for everything.

Ken

 

Bravo!

[Buckeye Geo]

I just return from a 13 night Holiday cruise on Galaxy. IMHO the ship was in great shape. The windows in the Stratosphere Lounge were cloudy, but who cares. Yes, if you had a Aft cabin on the lower decks it was a bit noisy. If you are a Cruise Critic member and pay attention to what is written on the boards you would have known this information and booked your cabin accordingly.

[Nonna and Papa]

Just curious...Which Ancient Empires sailing were you on - the Nov. 10 sailing out of Rome (Civitavecchia), or the Nov. 24 sailing out of Athens?

 

Mary

[Desertbelle]

What will you be asking for in the way of damages in court? Even if you "win" is it likely you will get more than a few thousand dollars in damages?

 

I had an extremely bad cruise on Princess Cruises, in fact we had many more problems than you have stated you had on the Galaxy, but it never even crossed my mind to take them to court.

 

My decision was to never give Princess anymore of my money and to move on. In fact, Princess offered us a small compensation, $125 (as far as I am concerned an insult), and we never used it. I feel that the stress of fighting is not worth the money. Do you really want to give a company you clearly dislike the power over you to make your life even more stressful and to cost you even more money?

 

Obviously it's your choice but is it really worth it?

[Coreopsis]

I don't mean to minimize your unpleasant holiday, but . . . taking it to court??

 

Did you lose an arm? This is over lost sleep?? Did you insist on another cabin? Try earplugs??

 

The other posters are right, there is information on these Boards about the cabins to avoid and those highly sought :) . So maybe check into some specifics before booking your next cruise.

 

Although, from the sounds of your other issues and previous court appointments, looks like you are running out of cruise lines. I agree with DesertBelle - before you put yourself down the legal road, maybe one more try to appeal to management and include in your communication suggestions for what would appease you? It doesn't sound as if you want to sail on Celebrity again - and they can't give you back your sleep or your vacation. So what is reasonable and would make you happy?

 

If, on the other hand you've already included language in your communications about legal actions - that probably escalated your issue way beyond customer service and it is sitting with their corporate attorneys and insurance companies since a lawsuit will involve both. That could explain why you haven't received a response within the timeframe you felt was appropriate.

 

Wowie.

[Ma Bell]

I never cease to be amazed.

[Goofyisme]

I never cease to be amazed.

 

Oh so true

[Goldeneye]

Hi Buckeye nice to see you are home safe and sound ..say hello to your beautiful wife Joyce...

 

I too am just back from the 13 night Christmas/Holiday Cruise.. Where as I do have a lot of little niggles from the ship.. It didn't mar the holiday and we had a Fantastic Awesome wonderful time and met some lovely people..

 

Would I go with Celebrity again..? Probably not, unless they had a particular itinerary I liked...

 

IMO the ship is long overdue for that re-fit.. It was supposed to have been done a year ago..

My hubby and I were supposed to go on this cruise last year having booked it while on the Mariner of the Seas the Christmas before...

 

Circumstances meant we had to cancel and re-schedule for this year..

I had kept in contact with a friend I made from the Mariner and infact we all booked together after meeting on the mariner..

Some of the CC's from the previous year had such a blast they booked again for this year and all agreed it was like night and day, had this cruise been last years they certainly wouldn't have booked the ship again...

 

From what I understand many management changes started occuring 10 months ago. (this was from crew members) and things changed for the worse.

Can you believe they even 'forgot' to order New Years Eve Party favors.. There was a mad scramble for a few top hats that were found NOTHING was left on the table..I have always had Top hats for the guys tiara's for the girls and a few whistles, streamers etc...

Well I like to believe that 'they forgot to order them and it wasn't more penny pinching'

New years eve celebration on deck consisted of a glass of bubbles and some very unappealing huge Subs wrapped in Cling film that very few were bothering with.. A far cry from the wonderful celebration put on by the Mariner (and indeed last years Galaxy Celebrity cruise)

 

The Cruise director Martin was rubbish and the quality of 'most' of the shows were amateurish at best..

I like to 'listen' to others opinion and their comment cards ranged from Martin's got to go ~ To a few choice words I won't repeat !!

 

The musicians were excellent and did a great job, most of the staff were hard woking and I can't fault them at all..

After a bad start (2 hrs to get a main course) the dining room got their act together and dinner ran smoother.. (this was due in part to a couple on our table having a meeting, and saying that if things didn't improve after 15 celebrity cruises this would be their last)

 

The 'C' lifts were hit and miss, I was stuck in one for a couple of minutes looked for the 'phone' only to find there wasn't one .. The lift then opened on the deck I got into it and I decided to take the stairs..

Often the doors would open/close open/close open/close and then we would give up and walk..

 

The Captain did the bare minimum to keep passengers informed many would have liked to know what Islands we were travelling by and as this was the first cruise out after repositioning the staff too were in the dark..

 

I tore my evening Gown on a screw that was sticking out of the back of the row infront of me in the theatre.. I didn't bother to 'giripe' about it and try to get it fixed/ refund/ money for new gown.. I felt my vacation time was worth more than haggling with management..

 

Finally, if you want to go on a cruise at Christmas and feel a bit of Christmas Atmosphere DO NOT GO WITH CELEBRITY.. They were politically correct to the point of being insulting.. Christmas Day they didn't even call it 'Christmas Breakfast, Lunch and dinner.. Opting for 'Holiday breakfast, lunch. dinner..

 

They had the 'obligatory' Christmas Tree and had some carols around the tree on Christmas Eve.. although they chose to re-name the 'Holiday Carols' many people complained about this .. but seemingly it was on deaf ears ..

 

My answer to this is .. change with your feet and look elsewhere to a ship/ Cruise company that is more 'Christmas friendly'

 

Cheers

 

Goldeneye

 

Good luck with the elevators !! ;)

[Drew B]

Let me get this straight. They had the tree. They sang the carols. But you're upset because they NAMED them "holiday tree" and "holiday carols" rather than "Christmas tree" and "Christmas carols"? I think that is, in fact, the single most petty complaint I have ever heard in my life! I can understand how you would be upset if they refused to have a tree or to sing carols, but what harm is done by using the inclusive word "holiday"?

[Drew B]

Sorry. Double post.

[Goldeneye]

Let me get this straight. They had the tree. They sang the carols. But you're upset because they NAMED them "holiday tree" and "holiday carols" rather than "Christmas tree" and "Christmas carols"? I think that is, in fact, the single most petty complaint I have ever heard in my life! I can understand how you would be upset if they refused to have a tree or to sing carols, but what harm is done by using the inclusive word "holiday"?

 

CHRISTMAS IS THE REASON FOR THE SEASON .... By all means join in however, The reason is Christmas .. So why change it.. perhaps you believe we should change other festivals to be 'inclusive'

 

It's just happening with Christmas and I'm making a stand.. May be petty to you, but what's next an outright Ban on the use of the 'C' word !!

 

It all starts somewhere ...

[Drew B]

You were welcome to call it a Christmas tree. Nobody was "banning" anything. They chose to call it a holiday tree. Big deal! If you refer to the piece of furniture in your cabin as a sofa, but they called it a couch, would that also get you outraged?

 

Most of the accoutrements of Christmas (including the tree and many of the carols) are entirely secular, anyway. There is no direct link between these things and the true "reason for the season", the birth of Christ... By all logic, trees and songs are holiday adornments that have gotten linked to a religious holy day. It is very accurate to refer to them as holiday trees and holiday songs...

[HLN500]

Goldeneye...did they have midnight mass and services for Christmas.

On the prior 2 cruises X had a Cantor conducting Hanukkah services all 8 nights and they had an electric menorah lit daily. They also served 'latkas' after services. (There was also a Priest on board for Catholic and Protestant services).

They did have a 'holiday' show prior to the end of the cruise for the Christmas season only. This I gather was a preview of the show they would put on for the next cruise.

When both holidays overlapped in prior years they placed the tree and menorah at the same venue.

When they changed our itinerary after final payment was due they did offer everyone a full refund if they wished to cancel.

I find the OP very interesting. His initial complaints had been against the QM2 in 06 and included excessive noise/vibration.

As other posters have stated it need not take a genius to figure out where the 'noisy' cabins are and the OP IS a noise engineer.

Did he take the cruise and specific cabin so he could get another free cruise??

[Buckeye Geo]

Nothing that has been stated on this forum will tanish our golden anniversary celebration on board Galaxy. We met some of the nicest people and had a wonderful time. Eileen & Alan you are right on top of our nice people list. Have a Healthy & Prosperous New Year.

[fireman999]

Just curious...did you book a guarantee or a specific cabin?

I booked, what my Travel Agent informed me, was "the best available" cabin at that time (8 months prior to sailing) and was informed that I would be upgraded because I was a member of the Captain's Club - that never happened. Whilst I consider Celebrity have a number of questions to answer I also believe that the TA should take some responsibility - any good, reputable TA that is looking for repeat business should look after the interests of their clients. Unfortunately, that does not appear to happen and all they want is the booking and commission without having to do anything for it. I have now received a reply from the TA and all they have said is that they have sent my complaint to Celebrity and I will hear from them.

 

I don't believe that the client should have to do all the research work to find out potential problems, I did however purchase the Berlitz Guide to Ocean Cruising and there was no mention of noisey cabins on the Galaxy.

This is the first time that I have experienced such a high level of noise and vibration and obviously I am now wise after the event but I still believe that I did not get what was promised. How would you feel if you booked a nice 4/5 star hotel and arrived to find that there was a factory next to it that operated steam hammers all night and no one had told you about it - I guess you wouldn't be very pleased - well neither was I.

[Susan-M]

I booked, what my Travel Agent informed me, was "the best available" cabin at that time (8 months prior to sailing) and was informed that I would be upgraded because I was a member of the Captain's Club - that never happened. ....

 

I don't believe that the client should have to do all the research work to find out potential problems, I did however purchase the Berlitz Guide to Ocean Cruising and there was no mention of noisey cabins on the Galaxy.

 

It sounds like a "guarantee".... if the TA told you it was the best available, then you should have been given a cabin # at the time. If it was a "guarantee" then you should have been informed to be prepared to end up in the "worst available" in that category. Just curious....but was this the same TA that you used for your Cunard cruise that you filed a lawsuit for afterwards?

 

Re upgrades, this is from Celebrity's website:

 

One-Category Upgrade

One-category upgrade requests must be made at the time of booking and apply only for inside-to-inside or outside-to-outside staterooms, depending on availability. This offer cannot be used with certain restricted fares. Upgrades apply for one stateroom per cruise. Stateroom assignments only. Suites, ConciergeClass and verandas excluded. Not valid on holiday sailings or Reunion Cruises. Century, Galaxy, Mercury, Millennium, Infinity, Summit and Constellation: Upgrades available from categories 11-4.

 

I agree that your TA may have let you down if they did not properly inform you on your cabin choice. However, you have 15 prior cruises and a previous complaint re vibration on another ship that you mention here on CC, so I'm surprised that with your prior cruise experience, it didn't give you reason to investigate your choice of cruise and cabin a bit more thoroughly beforehand.

[Ma Bell]

Celebrity uses either a "guarantee" or specific cabin number not a "best available" system.

After your horrible experience with Cunard and your many cruises, I agree that one would think you would not take the chance of a guarantee.

Perhaps you should include Berlitz in your lawsuit.

[Lsimon]

I'm just amazed sometimes about the level of grumbling and even the thoughts of lawsuits over such matters.

 

Maybe I'm just lucky but we had a great time on the Galaxy last February. Such a good time that we've booked again for this March and we're looking forward to being back on the Galaxy with a lot of anticipation and excitement.

 

Yes we saw some areas showing some wear, but we also saw many more areas showing renewal. Neither of which came as much of a surprise on an older ship.

[Drew B]

Is the noise issue consistent or does it vary with sailing conditions? I sailed in an aft cabin on Mercury, and there was definitely some noise pulling into and out of ports, as well as a little noise during a period of extremely rough seas. Otherwise, it was quiet as a mouse. If you faced near-constant noise, I would think that would be intolerable. However, if you experienced sporadic but higher-than-usual noise due to sea conditions (beyond the cruiseline's control), then I'm not sure what your gripe is. That would be like complaining about the noise from a thunderstorm ruining your trip...

[excitedofharpenden]

Is the noise issue consistent or does it vary with sailing conditions? I sailed in an aft cabin on Mercury, and there was definitely some noise pulling into and out of ports, as well as a little noise during a period of extremely rough seas. Otherwise, it was quiet as a mouse. If you faced near-constant noise, I would think that would be intolerable. However, if you experienced sporadic but higher-than-usual noise due to sea conditions (beyond the cruiseline's control), then I'm not sure what your gripe is. That would be like complaining about the noise from a thunderstorm ruining your trip...

My experience of Mercury and Galaxy is that there are two distinct noise factors. First is the vibration you get from the forward and aft stern thrusters when pulling into/out of port. This is more pronounced the further forward or aft you are and the lower down you are. I have stayed on deck 10 forward and the glasses on the tray rattled a bit in the morning as we arrived. I've stayed midship on deck 12 and never felt a thing.

 

The other is the vibration you get as the ship is underway. I did not notice this until I was in the dining room and it is quite localised. On the lower floor of the dining room toward the rear it is quite pronounced, but you can walk thirty feet and the vibration is much less. It seems to thunder more when the ship is moving slowly and I understood from an officer this was because of the natural cavitation of the prop shafts. I'm no expert, but this seems to make sense.

 

I have read on the boards here that there are a few cabins at the rear on the lower decks that suffer the same noise as the dining room and again, you can be in a cabin just a few doors down toward the middle of the ship and the noise is much less.

 

Phil

[excitedofharpenden]

I should have added, it would be interesting to know exactly which cabin the OP was staying in, if only to serve as information to other posters.

 

Phil

[Susan-M]

If you faced near-constant noise, I would think that would be intolerable.

 

That was the situation on one of our Zenith cruises. I booked a guarantee at a very low price two weeks out, and once again realized that I have no luck at gambling. Fortunately we were in Bermuda for 3 nights, when sleeping was blissfully quiet, but on the 4 sea nights, it was noisy (to say the least) - we were in a far aft/side cabin, lower deck. I chalked it up to experience and now book a mid ship cabin.

 

I feel that you usually get what you pay for and on that cruise, although the cabin wasn't worth much, the rest of the cruise more than made up for it.:)

[Drew B]

If there are cabins that are regularly and constantly noisy, there should be a warning waiver that guests/T.A.'s need to accept before they book the cabin. That should not come as a nasty surprise...

[fireman999]

The vibration on the QM2 was, I am informed, due to one of the pods that was damaged being out of action and was only noticable in the Main Theatre.

The cabin that I was in on the Galaxy was 4153 and my complaint was not about the vibration that you could feel in the Dining Room or when they were using thrusters - I could live with that as it was only for a short duration. The noise and vibration that we experienced in the cabin appeared to be coming from the ceiling and was there all the time that the ship was cruising except at very low speeds-if someone from the ship had bothered to come to my cabin they would have heard it quite plainly. The vibration/noise also appeared to get worse the faster that the ship went and in addition to this there was very loud metallic banging which appeared to come from below and happened throughout the night. I am not sure what was below us but I assume that it was cargo area or storage space.