Millenium Review

[Napi's Mom]

We were on the 1/18 cruise of the Millennium....no everything wasn't perfect, wasn't really thrilled with the dining room food, but our waiter was very helpful, our assistant waiter was a real treasure. I Was a first time Celebrity passenger (except for 1993 on their original Meridian), and had quite a few dislikes (considering our trip started off with us being Quarantined for24& 48 Hrs respectively and lucky to have an aft cabin with big balcony, we had excellent help from the medical team...my DH had fever and the old sailors curse and they gave him a drip and offered us free water, etc. for the duration Course we missed Tauranga, the port we were looking forward to the most!) We knew Shore-trips were bad...haven't you been reading the posts here???? That's why we did private and enjoyed every one and saved a ton of money. This is true of EVERY cruise ship we've ever been on!!

Entertainment was good for what WE liked pretty much...after touring 7-8 hrs we were tired and no really up to after hours stuff. BUT the ships was extremely clean everywhere we went, our stateroom staff was very thorough, very polite and nice, having to do 20 cabins a day, and needed to wait for us to vacate on Sea Days.

I never got a dirty plate in the Oceans Buffet, and usually had help as I had a cane and they carried my tray almost every time, even the busiest. The weather, excepting the near Hurricane (74 knots winds) by the Fjord-land area, and heat in Melbourne was wonderful, and commented on by our Cabin attendants, as being the nicest trip through New Zealand they'd had!

 

Many of the "Dislikes" I had was strictly personal...some of the activities staff were not to my liking but others at our table LOVED them! Photographers were very low key not intrusive...say "no thanks" and no pics were taken. As said earlier food was really below standard, a generally held impression with passengers, not just menu changes, but soups that were watery and tasteless...Prime rib about 1/2" thick, but the desserts were great! Room service was quite good as we got to know on our 2 days in exile! Our table mates were very different from each other which made for great conversations and discussions, we were always late leaving the table!

BUT I really have to say we enjoyed our cruise a great deal, the countries were great, and the peoples in them moreso!

I'd say the worst part of the cruise (except "exile") was the last day, being hauled to the airport by 8:30am ~when our plane left at 3:05pm, and dumped there... they need to make some sort of arrangements for people in this position, a lounge or something, we couldn't even check our bags until after 11am, and Sydney has no real pre-booking waiting room, just a couple benches!

Some of my worst comments are for the people who got up and walked...actually ran up the aisles leaving for a performance of one entertainer...he wasn't the best, but only truly RUDE people would do something like this, each show was only 45min or so, and folks could be polite that long. Some things people loved I didn't (Felt a pair of duets on the last show, singing BOTH loves songs from Phantom of the Opera simultaneously was a travesty...one lady complained they didn't do her favorite song, which of course they HAD she just couldn't recognize it sung this way! As a singer , I was really appalled)

The Celeb Cruise critic Party rather useless but missed another called by some members as we went to an enrichment lecture, we felt was more to the point. NO OFFICERS greeted us (except the CD & that's his job!) No questions were answered, as no staff were there to ask.:rolleyes:

[The_Big_M]

Although I had been reluctant to reply given some of the opinions are personal, as I had sailed only 2 weeks earlier, it seemed a very short time to have such a great turnaround in its impression; greater than seems possible.

 

I can only agree with the previous 2 posters, particularly that the references to a ship's condition should be a shared experience. My own impression of the condition was that there were no significant issues in actual condition or safety. I also didn't encounter mould or mildew either in my shower area, nor anywhere else in the ship.

 

Some of the commentary is also incongrous. It is said that staff were "below average at best" yet the only specific references to staff amongst the details of the issues were that the "waiter tried his best to accommodate us" and the activities staff "did an exceptional job". Similarly the cuisine was also claimed as "below average at best" yet again in the details it only says "the food in the main dining room was on most nights average" which doesn't reconcile.

 

While everyone is entitled to their opinion, that impression is starkly different from mine and those I sailed with, and also those around us that I heard so is quite surprising.

[phinn]

I'm sorry you had such a bad experience on the Millie. I have never been on her so I cannot comment, however, indicating you may cancel your RCI cruise to me is like saying you would cancel a Holland American cruise because you didn't like the Carnival cruise you had. Each line seems to satisfy its customers in a different way. Perhaps you will have the total opposite experience on your RCI cruise. I would not cancel, but go with an open mind. I hope you do, and I hope you have the best cruise ever!

[Sky Sweet]

I think that the expectations a person has prior to taking a cruise is a major reason why there is such a discrepancy in the opinions of people who have been on the same ship.

 

For most people, a cruise that is halfway around the world from where they live is a once in a lifetime experience and most people are going to have higher expectations for that type of cruise than they would for a "fun in the sun' itinerary that they have done many other times.

 

Expectations are also likely to be different for people who has never been on Celebrity before, but have heard glowing reviews about the cruise line from Celebrity fans, Conde Nast, and Douglas Ward than someone who has already been on many Celebrity cruises and knows exactly what to expect.

 

In addition, based on what a passenger likes to do, it is very possible for someone to have spent a considerable amount of time in an area of the ship that has extensive deferred maintenance that another passenger never saw.

 

A person's cabin steward and wait team in the dining room can also make it very possible for two people on the same ship to have had very different experiences which would in turn affect their opinions about food and service.

 

This is why I think it is so important for all opinions and experiences to be shared on cruise critic. This way potential cruisers will get the big picture and be in a better position to make an informed decision. They are also less likely to have unrealistic expectations which usually lead to disappointment.

[English muffin]

Not very good news about the Millenium , we are on the cruise Syd/Auk March 1.

I am concerned that the ship is not up to Celebrity standards, no doubt someone will say the ship was fantastic and the food best they have ever had. This ship should not be cruising Australia & New Zealandin in fact the Millenium should not be cruising at all and the re-furb needs to come earlier. The prices of the Australian cruises are not cheap and in addition we all have the expense of the air fare. I thank you for your views. We have booked AA Concierge so I hope we dont have the same cabin problems. To late to cancel but if its not up to standard I shall be doing exactly the same as you and complain. Very Worried

[Lynnees]

Not very good news about the Millenium , we are on the cruise Syd/Auk March 1.

I am concerned that the ship is not up to Celebrity standards, no doubt someone will say the ship was fantastic and the food best they have ever had. This ship should not be cruising Australia & New Zealandin in fact the Millenium should not be cruising at all and the re-furb needs to come earlier. The prices of the Australian cruises are not cheap and in addition we all have the expense of the air fare. I thank you for your views. We have booked AA Concierge so I hope we dont have the same cabin problems. To late to cancel but if its not up to standard I shall be doing exactly the same as you and complain. Very Worried

 

How can you pass judgement (which you are doing) without even seeing the ship? You will not have a good time because you have already decided the ship and everything about it is sub-par. You are ruining your own vacation.

[stereo]

Hi All--My wife and I plan to sail March 15--Have read posted menues from other Celebrity ships and the MDR choices seem to be terrific. Have friends that sailed in Nov2008--they loved it. Am using frequent flyers and got a great price after cancelling various bookings. I will have a great time. However if I paid top dollar for a penthouse suite I would complain bitterly if they buttered the wrong side of my toast.

[Ozziecruiser]

"This is the problem with our country (USA) today, we are tolerant of mediocre customer service and choose to just accept things they way they are. We could learn a lot from the people of NZ and AUS, from what I saw they provide amazing customer service, with pride in what they are doing. I will get off my horse here, but come on people it's just a review...lighten up...

 

I almost burst out laughing when I read this part of your statement. I am Australian and have spent a good amount of my time in the USA. Customer service in Australia and New Zealand is lacking and can not compare to the fantastic service in the USA.

I personally think that this is due to the fact in AU & NZ staff get paid a higher wage and do not work for tips. A waiter in AU will get about $16 an hour where as a waiter in the USA will get a wage of less than $5 an hour. So if a waiter in AU works hard they will get their complete wage as well as a few extra dollars for a small tip. If they are lazy they will still be guaranteed a complete relatively high wage. Whereas in the USA, a waiter relies on their tip which is basically their wage and if they do not give good service their income will decrease.

 

Service in Australia and New Zealand is LACKING.

[Gemmajam]

Hi All

 

Reading these reviews would make people think that cruising and cruise ships are like art - beauty is in the eye of the beholder. Part of the problem with the cruise experience belongs to this very forum - cruisecritic allows members to form groups to take tours together - and this deprives the cruiseline of the necessary revenue to upgrade aspects of the cruise ship/experience, like the carpeting, entertainment, food, etc. Someone has to pay for the upgraded experience - the CD doesn't choose 'lousy entertainment' - he chooses the best entertainment he can buy within the limited budget that he has. RCL, which owns Celebrity, has seen their net income plunge to near 'depression' levels - so obviously they don't have the money to lavish on us passengers the way they used to. We were very fortunate to do these B2Bs, and seeing this part of the world, the people, and of course, the animals, was something we will never forget. Yes we did find the ship/staff sub-par, but I don't think we expected that X would have the money to spend like they did in the past.

 

I think its accurate that X is focussing on the Solstice class, but I don't know if that's a good strategy given that they are measured on their business on their entire fleet, not just the newer ships.

 

When we are interested in the very best ship/service/food, we sail Oceania.

 

One final postscript - the increase in gratuities, and the switch from discretionary payments to mandatory service charges, was not authorized by their contract.:)

[knightgrad03]

Ozziecruiser, it's funny how we both feel the customer service in our respective countries is lacking...it must be that when you are on vacation you tend to not see the negative. Although, I must remark that I hope we (Americans) are as courteous and helpful to you as the Aussie's and Kiwi's were to us. We thoroughly enjoyed your country as well as NZ.

 

Gary, you hit the nail on the head with that post...

 

Gemma,

 

I could not agree with you more, beauty is definately in the eye of the beholder, and I truly believe that Celebrity is investing more of their financial resources to the new Solstice class, and also Azamara.

[Ozziecruiser]

Hi knightgrad03, I am sorry you got attacked by posting your negative review. Everyone is entitled to their own opinion and I appreciate that you took the time to post your opinion.

 

I have sailed once before with Celebrity on the Summit but that was along time ago.

I will be taking the same sailing on the Millennium March 29th and have reserved a RS. Even though I live in Australia I have not taken a cruise to NZ before. Judging by the many negative reviews and also positive reviews I have been reading about the Millennium I will be going with a positive open mind. Too many people rely entirely on the cruise line whether or not they will enjoy themselves. I personally think its 90% up to the person who is taking the holiday whether they are going to enjoy their vacation or not. Celebrity are there to enhance your vacation experience or in your case not. ;)

[wolfshadow]

You, my dear, have the right attitude! ;)

[Napi's Mom]

How can you pass judgement (which you are doing) without even seeing the ship? You will not have a good time because you have already decided the ship and everything about it is sub-par. You are ruining your own vacation.

Lyneese: You are quite right. I sat with lady during that interesting afternoon Buffet during the "Hurricane", who did nothing but complain about everything "I'll never sail on Celebrity again"....one of her main complaints was that as a vegetarian she'd like a plate of "crudites" and asked her waiter...or assistant waiter and was insulted that they didn't know what she wanted. These very hard working, trying hard to please you at every turn guys are from...our Dave was from Jamaica, Nehemias was certainly NOT educated to the point they would understand that word...If she's just asked for raw veggies I'm sure she would have gotten them with some great sauce if she wished. Instead she huffed and puffed about how ignorant they were. In fact ask the Maitre D in charge of your section. I know if once she'd have asked politely they would be there like magic EVERY EVENING, like our lemon for water was provided by Nehemias, without any further request. Food service was never the problem, quality of food was...but HEY as one of our tablemates said...I have 3 meals a day, my room is cleaned twice daily, and I get a nice chocolate every night..." and extra bottles of shampoo etc appeared magically which I gladly took home.

Lyneese how did you enjoy your butler service, we really needed that huge balcony to relax in during our "Exile" for 48hrs (Quarantine).The CD asked what cabin we were in while at the CC meeting, said...wow those cabins are the best kept secret on the Millennium! (Aft accessible...really need that bath with it's safety bars during the little blow!) On that subject today we received 2 vouchers for credit on a future cruise, my DH over $400, and I over $200...but must be used before 2/14/10! not sure we can afford to do another cruise so soon! Hope it's also for Azamara then we'd be more tempted. This in Compensation for the 2 days we missed and the 1 I did. Was surprised...wish they'd just credit our account for the ppv movie that said we could watch free while in exile , but then charged us for...no amount of talking made them erase the charge!:D

[Ma Bell]

The really sad thing is that we have some posters who don't really even sail on Celebrity, but consider themselves experts on the product. They spend every day of their lives discussing a cruiseline that doesn't interest them.

 

As with any other cruiseline, each cruise is a different experience. Some are better than others. Each person has a whole set of circumstances that affects his perception. While it is helpful to get all kinds of opinions when trying to decide which cruise might be suited to your needs, it is obvious that there are some folks on these boards who have nothing better to do with their lives than pretend to have cruised the world on a regular basis when in fact they have very little experience.

 

The best advice I can give anyone is to do your own research, go with a positive attitude and decide for yourself what is important to you. If you encounter a problem, a kind request is usually enough to handle the situation.

 

Reviews that are well balanced, emphasizing the good and the bad, are the ones that are most likely to be closest to the truth.

[woodofpine]

Cops will tell you that if there's a drug store or 7/11 robbery where the perp charges in with a gun, fires a hole into the ceiling, wheels the weapon around and demands cash...

 

Ten minutes later the cashier and two customers will swear to God by their description of the perp. One say it's a little white guy with long haird, the other says its a black guy with a beard, the third says he thought it was a woman! At that point, some fella will walk out from the magazine rack with a couple of mags and a puzzled look and say, "What's happenin'? You seen the new Road & Track?''

 

I think cruise reviews are sort of like this. OP sounded unobjectively unhappy about his cruise... Maybe the cruise wasn't the best but to me it read, 'riled up about something else'.

[Solstice23]

this is the way is see it with any good cruiseline in these times....

 

When you go to Saks, Niemen Marcus,Burberry etc in March you expect great service and store standards. But when you go right after Christmas in Canada like aorund boxing day....the regular customer base is not there...But as a normal customer I do not expect the same level of service or standards...because i am paying a much lower price at that time.

 

what I am trying to say is I see all cruiselines discounting huge right now...Like 400.00 Cnd for a window room for a 7 night cruise on Celebirty, 250.00 on Carnival?? How would you like them to still keep the food selection up, standards have more then enough staff???? and stay afloat?

 

Be realistic, you pay for what you get and all cruise lines, hotels etc are all trying to get passed the global economic crisis started mostly in North America

 

Just my thoughts

[buffpuff2]

Whew, well okay , I just plowed through all of these posts, but that still doesn't help me to decide if the Millie cruise we booked for December should be a go or not?

[knightgrad03]

this is the way is see it with any good cruiseline in these times....

 

When you go to Saks, Niemen Marcus,Burberry etc in March you expect great service and store standards. But when you go right after Christmas in Canada like aorund boxing day....the regular customer base is not there...But as a normal customer I do not expect the same level of service or standards...because i am paying a much lower price at that time.

 

what I am trying to say is I see all cruiselines discounting huge right now...Like 400.00 Cnd for a window room for a 7 night cruise on Celebirty, 250.00 on Carnival?? How would you like them to still keep the food selection up, standards have more then enough staff???? and stay afloat?

 

Be realistic, you pay for what you get and all cruise lines, hotels etc are all trying to get passed the global economic crisis started mostly in North America

 

Just my thoughts

 

Toronto, with all do respect, I tried to leave money out of this because when I book a cruise I don't look at the price, I believe in you pay for what you get...now to the nitty gritty, we booked this cruise over a year and a half, and paid pretty darn close to full price. Therefore this negates your point about getting a discount and then complaining. I have not once asked celebrity for a refund other than the shore excursion which was a GROSS overstatement from what was described. Not once have you heard me complain about the cost of the cruise, just the quality of the food and quality of SOME of the staff on board. If I would have paid a "Carnival" price then I would expect "Carnival" service. However, I paid Celebrity's price, and therfore EXPECT the level of service Celebrity advertises. I assure you, I did not receive any discount. So please stop trying to make this a money issue.

[knightgrad03]

Whew, well okay , I just plowed through all of these posts, but that still doesn't help me to decide if the Millie cruise we booked for December should be a go or not?

 

I received an email from Celebrity today stating they were going to look into the issues I presented them with, and hopefully if they are the company they keep saying they are, these items will be taken care of. As you can see, I had my experience and people have agreed, and there are just as many people who have said they're experience was positive. Go with an open mind, and I hope that you will be pleasantly impressed. I wouldn't wish a bad vacation on anyone...

[dadsbdaycruiser]

I've been reading all these posts and I just keep thinking that you find what you are looking for.

 

I went on the Millennium on the Nov 2 Australia/New Zealand cruise. We met some wonderful people, had a great cabin, and enjoyed the food (both onboard and off) and sights we saw. Yes, there was some wear and tear but the great cabin steward and dining room staff were very good... and we had an incredible voyage. I can't tell you there wasn't a little rust, and that they were due for a drydock- and I suspect a lot of it will be addressed. The staff on the ship were really superb (but we spent a lot of time talking with them, and listening to their recommendations) and I do believe our enthusiasm made a difference. We will be back onboard in Alaska, and I have absolutely no reservation about this ship. In fact there will be 40+ of us, and I guarantee you that the Celebrity Millennium will give us the trip we are looking for. I don't fall into the "normal" demographic for cruises (we were in our 40's) and are very adventurous in the excursions we book (all independently with private guides) so maybe that made a difference, I don't know.

 

Any vacation is a personal experience, and everyone who reads these posts needs to factor in the writer. I feel badly if a vacation falls short of anyone's expectations. I guess I can't imagine on this particular cruise not pointing the camera to all that amazing scenery and all the happy new friends on the ship instead of at the negatives... I have 100's of pictures of some of the most amazing places I have ever been- I don't think we have any of the wear and tear of the ship.

[Texed]

We did the Brilliance in June of 05 and found the food to be lacking in variety, taste, and quality.

Ditto! In fact, after the first night, we tried to make reservations for Chops the rest of the cruise.

[Ma Bell]

I can tell you, one was enough for me...

 

Sorry it was so bad for you. Bye