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Note - this page contains multiple reviews.
Name: Bob & Wendy Evans
Email: bob7REMOVETHIS@canoemail.com
Age: 55
Occupation: School Psychologist
NumberOfCruises: 4
TravelAgent: No
Ship: Celebrity-Century
SailingDate: August 26, 2000
Itinerary: Fort Lauderdale, St. Thomas, St. Maarten, Nassau.
Cabin: 8012/Cat 10
FoodDiningRoom: 90
CruiseDirector: 85
CabinComfort: 90
FoodRoomService: 90
CruiseStaff: 90
CabinAmenities: 90
FoodLidoDeck: 85
DiningRoomService: 90
CabinQuietness: 90
FoodMidnightBuffets: 90
CabinSteward: 90
ShoreExcVariety: 80
FoodVariety: 90
DeckService: 90
ShoreExcValue: 80
GoodForHoneymoon: 80
CasinoStaff: 85
PrivateIsland:
GoodForFamilies: 90
LoungeService: 90
TenderService: 75
GoodForSeniors: 80
BeautySalonStaff:
EntertainmentLounges: 85
WheelchairAccess:
ExerciseFacilities: 90
EntertShowLounge: 85
OverallPortsofCall: 85
BeautySalon:
EntertainmentPoolside: 85
CruiseActivities: 85
Casino: 85
AirSeaProgram:
MedicalFacilities:
ShipCleanliness: 90
EmbarkDisembark: 90
DiscoNightclubs: 85
DeckSpace: 85
Stabilization: 95
ShopsOnBoard: 85
SpaceRatio: 85
OverallCruiseValue: 90
Submit: Submit Review
Date: 16 Sep 2000
Time: 15:44:33
Remote Name: 206.248.114.120
Remote User:
Comments
Celebrity Century Review Eastern Caribbean Aug. 26 - Sept. 2, 00
This was our 4th cruise, the other 3 were to the Greek Islands, NY-Bermuda, and the western
Caribbean. We are 2 adults and 2 teen sons, and had an inside quad cabin. The cruise itinerary was
Ft. Lauderdale, Puerto Rico, St. Thomas, St. Maarten, Nassau, Ft. Lauderdale.
EMBARKATION
The cruise docs say embarkation starts at 2pm, but if you want time for the buffet lunch you need to
show up sooner. We arrived at 11:00, and there were about 100 people already there. Porters put
your luggage into loading containers for a buck a bag, and you proceed inside the terminal. Boarding
is by priority number, and we were given a 1. Judging by announcements, people arriving after 11:45
were given a 2. The terminal has very comfortable seats, and staff come around to look at your docs
and make sure you have filled them out correctly, a big improvement over the lineups at Carnival. At
11:40 the number 1's were called to the next room, where we had a brief wait before going into a third
room where they processed our docs and shipboard card, and took our passport/birth cert. We waited
in a 4th room for our group to finish this, and then a crew member took each of us to our cabin. We
were on board before 1pm. Celebrity has the smoothest embarkation we ever had.
THE SHIP
The ship was lovely, a cut above Carnival. As advertised, there was exquisite art everywhere,
paintings, scuptures, and other interesting pieces that we found ourselves stopping to just look at for
awhile. The ship was also very clean, you'd be hard pressed to find a piece of lint on the carpet
anywhere, the crew is always vaccuuming. It looks like the crew has had the Disney employee
program, they always greet passengers around the ship, very friendly.
The impressive thing about the dining room is the floor to ceiling windows, expecially if leaving port
during a meal. Of course the better tables are closer to the windows, and the captain's table is at the
very stern end, right beside the largest window. If there is glare from the sun they have different types
of lovely curtains that scroll down the windows, different thicknesses depending on the glare. If you
aren't happy with your table or seating time the maitre d' is available in a salon room from about 3pm
to perhaps 5pm the first day to try to fix you up, the location is listed on the welcome newsletter. Some
of our friends were successful in changing their seating time.
Ship policy is to make as few general announcements as possible, which passengers perfer. But the
captain kept us up on what was happening, and even made a general announcement one afternoon
that there was a whale off the port side. Half the ship ran over to watch it, I'm surprised the ship didn't
roll over :-) The whale didn't pay us much attention, he just lolled along wagging his tail, I guess he
wasn't as interested in us as we were in him. Us camera buffs were going nuts trying to time our shots
to when he was blowing ... lots of wasted shots :-)
CABINS
The cabin was great, lots of storage space, and nicely appointed with stainless steel accessories. Big
shower, more water than Niagara Falls, bath robes, free safe. The hair dryer was rather weak, and if
you have a good head of hair you should bring your own. Bring a power bar so you can have several
things plugged into the one desk outlet.
You can check your ship account and book tours on the cabin TV. Check your account frequently, we
found 2 errors where others had charged stuff to our cabin by putting the wrong cabin number on the
bill. When you report this to the Info Desk it takes a day or so for them to obtain a copy of the bill and
send it to your cabin. If it's not your bill you take it back to them and they proceed to cancel the
charge. Our were fixed after a few days.
You can also use the TV to book tours, saving standing in line. Our tickets were delivered the same
night.
Using this interactive method can be a bit slow, sometimes you click on a choice and it won't work, the
server seems slow at times, and sometimes we even got a WIN 98 error or shutdown box, but decided
it would be bad manners to shut down their network server :-) But if you just keep trying every few
seconds you will get a beep and it will connect or move to the next step.
MEALS
The dining room meals were great, like upscale city restaurants. Lots of choices, and you can get 2
entrees if you want, but order them together, because by the time you are done one entree the galley
will have switched to the next course, and the waiter won't be able to get another one. Some were
quail, lobster, prime rib, many wonderful pasta dishes, many types of steaks, duck, pork, different
types of lamb, fish, all delicious. A few of us would always order a second pasta entre so we all could
try it. Try the soups, many originals, and try the 'home-made' ice cream, of course made with real fruit
and cream, it will totally spoil your for that stuff in the grocery stores. The trick is to match the ice
cream choices with the dessert choices and get both. We made some crazy matches, but there was
never a drop left. The blueberry ice cream was to die for.
If you want to avoid the dress code in the dining room you can have a buffet breakfast and lunch in the
Island Cafe, but not dinner. The buffets had tons of choices, something for everone, including made to
order omlettes. A lovely place to eat here is outside the back doors on the covered deck, looking over
the ocean. You can also get burgers and fries in the Grill beside the pool from about noon till 3pm.
There is a free juice bar that is a bit hard to find, located behind the pool bandstand. It's got
lemonade, punch, ice tea, and water, but it closes at 3pm.
If you want informal dinners (not in the dining room), you have to reserve a table in another room
(forget which one), not as many food choices, and sort of a nuisance. We never tried this alternative.
The midnight buffets were good, and several had a theme with entertainment and fun stuff for the
passengers. On tex-mex night there were line dance lessons and everyone got into it. Great ribs that
night. A few nights were called Gourmet Bites, and the waiters came around to the various public
rooms after midnight with h'ors doevers on trays. The Grand Buffet night had tons of choices,
including shrimp and lobster, but not unlimited and whether you got some depended on the supply
when your spot in the line came up. Beef Wellington was another good choice that night.
ENTERTAINMENT
The entertainment was ok, like mid-level Vegas. Adequate song and dance acts, comedians, magic
acts. The theatre is great, no really bad seats like CCL, but marginal seats at the ends of the
balconies. Celeb has just as much a party atmosphere as CCL, and just as many activities, something
for everyone. Karaoke was quite a hoot. And some of the best entertainment was provided by Egbert,
a Jamaican drink waiter, who worked the pool in the daytime and events at night, and danced with all
sorts of things on his head, bottles, pineapples, you name it. A real party guy, there was a picture of
him on everyone's camera.
CAPTAIN'S RECEPTION
If you like a few good free drinks and h'ors d'oerves, hit the captain's reception before dinner, I think it
was Monday. Take your camera and you can get a shot with him in the reception line, or you can buy
the pic the pro takes.
POOL
Lounges and chairs at pool level have blue padded cushions, but are mostly taken after midmorning.
Loungers on the deck looking down on the pool, and other decks, have those stretch straps, but no
padding, and it's not hard to get them any time of day, and they are comfortable. Passengers are told
not to 'save' chairs, but everyone tries to save the padded ones. If people leave just a ship towel on a
chair others would toss it off and take the chair, or the staff will pick them up, but if books, clothing, etc
were on the chair it was left alone. There were a few incidents over this between passengers.
GET IN SHAPE
The gym is nice, not large but never crowded. Treadmills are booked ahead of time for 30 min max,
but if no one kicks you off you can keep going. There are weights and several types of workout
machines, and the staff run aerobics workouts. There is a jogging track on the top deck, with a sort of
canvas/hemp surface, which at first we thought would not be as nice as the rubberized CCL tracks, but
it turned out to be a nice surface, easy on the feet and knees. Great running with the sea breezes in
your face. This deck doubles as the topless deck, so we had to be careful to keep our eyes on the
track and not to run off the side of the ship :-)
BOOZE
Celeb's daily newsletter says that liquor brought on board will be confiscated and returned to the
passengers at the end of the cruise, but they didn't search or x-ray anyone's bags, and there were no
restrictions, which made it nice for cabin drinks. To take drinks on the upper decks you need plastic
glasses. The ones at the free juice bar are too small, so get the larger size from the poolside bars,
there are stacks of them there. The cabin has glass glasses.
PORTS
What we wanted to do in each port was shop, hit a beach, and take a tour. That was only possible in
St. Thomas where the ship stays the whole day. There wasn't time for all that in the other ports. We
should also mention that there were no bugs on the islands, no sand flies or mosquitos like Jamaica
has, so bug repellant wasn't necessary. Cabs on all the islands charge per person, so there is no
advantage to sharing a cab with someone.
PUERTO RICO
Puerto Rico is the first stop, but arriving at 4:30pm and departing after midnight doesn't leave much
time. Be sure to watch the ship enter port, and get on the port side for excellent shots of the fort. The
El Yunque rain forest is a major attraction, but the last tour is about 4, and the same for the
underground caves. The crew said the ship often arrives earlier, about 3pm. The ship had to alter
course closer to Dominican to med-evac a passenger with a serious medical problem, to be within
range of the chopper, so we lost time and didn't arrive till 5pm. Most of the shops close at 6, so we
only got a bit of shopping done. There are 2 tours available that evening, a rumba show, and a night
tour of the city. There is a nice little casino just a couple blocks from the ship at the Wyndam Hotel, so
we went there to make a donation. The ship docs at Old San Juan so walking around is picturesque,
sort of like the French Quarter in N. Orleans, but not as smelly.
ST. THOMAS
We took the mountain tour in the morning, and got some great shots. We got back just before lunch,
did a bit of shopping, had lunch on board, then took a $4 cab (per person) to the closest beach to
save driving time (Morning Star), which is just a couple miles from the ship, left midafternoon to do
some more shopping, and then back on the ship. The St. Thomas beaches are not the pink or white
sand of places like Bermuda, but are a medium light tan color, and were ok to walk on. The drop off is
a bit steep for pre-schoolers. At Morning Star beach you can rent loungers and umbrellas, and wave
runners, and get drinks and snacks. Ask to be dropped off at the beach, not the huge Mariott Resort,
which doesn't have a beach, just a pool complex. If you want to avoid paying to rent loungers and
umbrellas there are a few free benches under the palm trees near the Marriott pool area, on the
beach walkway. If you take a beach tour it will be to one of the bigger more popular beaches on the
other side of the island, like Magen's Beach, but the driving time is much longer to get there and back.
The ship docks at Havensight Mall, a mile or 2 from Charlotte Amalie, but there are the same shops at
Havensight as the town, and no need to go into the town to shop. Tons of shops, but we found the
shopping was cheaper at St. Maarten.
St. MAARTEN
The ship docks right at Philipsburg where the shopping is, and the prices were better than St. Thomas.
The prices are also better the further you get from the pier. A bottle of Malibu rum was $10 at the pier,
$9 a block from the pier, $8 about 2 blocks away, and we got ours for $6.25 several blocks away. The
cheap shops are left of the dock. Tenders take you ashore here, the ship is at anchor, which kills time,
and with a departure time of 3pm you don't have long to do much. We shopped in the morning and
after lunch did the beach right beside the pier, called Everything Cool Beach, which had nice water
and was fine. You can rent beach stuff there. This sand was also tan colored, not white or pink, but
nice to walk on. You don't need to book the ship tour for this beach, just rent what you need yourself.
Doing the shopping and the beach left no time for a tour.
NASSAU
Be sure to watch the ship enter Nassau, get on one of the upper decks at a forward railing for some
good shots. You'll go by the Atlantis on Paradise Island, quite a sight from the port side, and watch the
captain fit the ship between the rocks at the entrance to the harbour. There may be other ships there
for you to dock beside, there were 3 others when we went in. Some ships dock bow in, and some stern
in, and it's cool watching your ship turn in mid harbour. If he turns when departing it will be during early
dinner seating, a nice sight from the dining room windows.
Forget shopping, prices were 2 to 3 times higher than the other ports. A $6 bottle we got in St.
Maarten was $24 in Nassau. We took a $4 pp cab to Paradise Is to see the Atlantis. You can walk
around the hotel and their casino, but not use their beach/pool, it's guarded, and they charge $25. To
do the beach, walk next door to the Sheraton, no restrictions. This was the best sand on the cruise,
almost white, very fine texture. Tons of beach activities, the boys rented wave runners for $50/half
hour. Several ppl got shorted on their time, so show the owner that you have a watch, and are noting
the start time. We got shorted about 10 minutes, but complained and were given more time right away.
As the ship docks you'll see a nice beach and large yellow hotel very near the pier, an easy walk,
which would save time if you are rushed. From the ship we could see it had all the normal beach
equipment, but we don't know the name of the place.
DEBARKING
Debarking is by colors, according to when your flight leaves. No ones leaves until everyone's account
is settled. The first color was called at 8:40, ours was the 4th color and was called at 9:10. We were in
a cab by 9:30, and it was $10 to the airport. Out at the cab line there are a few cab hailers who find
you a cab, which is really not useful, there are lots of cabs, and then try to load a few of your bags
before the cabbie gets out, and then collect a tip from you. Then of course you are expected to tip the
cabbie when he unloads them. So if you want to avoid 2 sets of tips, hold on to your bags and let the
cabbie load them.
After these few cruises we've learned that it's important to take a cruise that stays in the ports all day
so you can get things done, and to also choose ports that aren't tendered, which also kills time. St.
Maarten is working on their ship pier, but it doesn't look close to completion. On our other cruise,
tendering killed a lot of time in Grand Cayman too.
Hi to our new ship friends Julie, Jim, Gabe, Vee, Ernie, Ray, Carol, and Ashley!
If anyone wants more info here's our email, just take out the 'Remove This' part, it's to avoid auto
spam robots.
Bob and Wendy Evans Bob7REMOVETHIS@canoemail.com
Name: Terri & Larry Morrison
Email: tlmorrsn@megsinet.net
Age: 47 & 51
Occupation: Private Secretary & Electrician
NumberOfCruises: 2
TravelAgent: No
Ship: Celebrity-Century
SailingDate: July 8,2000
Itinerary: Western Caribbean
Cabin: 8047
FoodDiningRoom: 95
CruiseDirector: 95
CabinComfort: 98
FoodRoomService: 80
CruiseStaff: 95
CabinAmenities: 98
FoodLidoDeck: 89
DiningRoomService: 100
CabinQuietness: 95
FoodMidnightBuffets: 100
CabinSteward: 100
ShoreExcVariety: 98
FoodVariety: 95
DeckService: 96
ShoreExcValue: 90
GoodForHoneymoon: 95
CasinoStaff: 95
PrivateIsland:
GoodForFamilies: 93
LoungeService: 98
TenderService: 90
GoodForSeniors: 88
BeautySalonStaff:
EntertainmentLounges: 95
WheelchairAccess:
ExerciseFacilities: 99
EntertShowLounge: 95
OverallPortsofCall: 98
BeautySalon:
EntertainmentPoolside: 85
CruiseActivities: 90
Casino: 95
AirSeaProgram:
MedicalFacilities:
ShipCleanliness: 100
EmbarkDisembark: 95
DiscoNightclubs: 95
DeckSpace: 93
Stabilization: 97
ShopsOnBoard: 94
SpaceRatio: 98
OverallCruiseValue: 97
Submit: Submit Review
Date: 17 Sep 2000
Time: 01:14:53
Remote Name: tnt19a-51.focal-chi.corecomm.net
Remote User:
Comments
We sailed on Celebrity Century on July 8, 2000. We went for our 25th Anniversary. The ship was
absolutely beautiful.
We haven't cruised in 21 years because of raising a family and lack of money. I guarantee it won't be
long before we cruise again. The Century is an absolutely beautiful ship!!! The service was great and
so was the food. Most of the time we ate breakfast in the Island Cafe and it was very good. There was
something for everyone. We ate lunch either at the Island Cafe or at the Pool side grill. We never had
a bad meal no matter where we ate.
We flew in to Ft. Lauderdale a day early. It was a great way to start our vacation. We arrived in
Ft.Lauderdale before noon and had the whole day to relax. I wouldn't do it any other way.
On Saturday, July 8th we arrived at the port about 11:30. Boarding didn't start until noon, but since we
were in the first group, we had number 1 and we were on the ship by 12:45 p.m. We went to check the
cabin out, which was much larger than we had 21 years previously on RCCL's Song of Norway. There
were 3 closets - 2 where you could hang long things and 1 with drawers and an area to hang shorter
things. The bathroom was quite large. The shower was a good size and there was plenty of storage
room. There was also a desk area with drawers and an in room safe. It was great!!!
We then went to the Island Cafe for a lunch buffet, which was wonderful. By time we were done with
lunch, we went back to our cabin and our luggage was there already. Great service right from the
start.
We then went to explore the ship and see where everything was. We were amazed at the cleanliness
of this ship. The carpet looked brand new. It was shampooed every day though with a dry chemical, so
we're not sure if it was new or just very well maintained. If there was a handprint by the elevator, which
had mirrors all around it, within a short time the smudges were gone. Our cabin stewart was wonderful.
By the time we were back from breakfast our cabin was cleaned and we had fresh water , ice, and
glasses. We never wanted for anything. If we asked for ice or anything else, within a few minutes we
had it. Celebrity definately caters to their guests.
We were at a great table!!! We made some good friends and had a GREAT time. Our Waiter Ismailes
(Spelled wrong)was wonderful. If you have him, ask him what is chocolate for dessert. After a day or
two, he pretty much knew everyone's preference. If you couldn't decide what you wanted, he would
bring you 2 or 3 different things. Johnson was our Assistant waiter and he was very good also. Mario
was the Maitre'D and he was great!!!! Every day he came to our table to talk to us and he also
advised us of places to visit in the different ports.
We tried to book our excursions through the television, but we had a little problem with the TV. We
went down to the Guest Relations Desk and had absolutely no problem. Most of the time there were
only a few people in line when we went.
Ocho Rios was our first port. Dunn's River Falls is a must see. We went on the 10:30 tour and we had
a great time!! Our only problem was going through the market after you climb the falls. The natives
were not very friendly. They all harrassed the tourists.
The next port was Grand Cayman. Stingray City was a lot of fun - after you get over the fear of the
stingrays coming by you. After Stingray City, we went to 7 Mile Beach. It was beautiful, but very rocky.
We walked back from 7 Mile Beach with another couple that was at our table which we became good
friends with. It was a hike, but we enjoyed it.
Next was Cozumel. We had a GREAT time in Cozumel. We went on the Fiesta Party Boat with the one
two couples that we became quite good friends with. It was fabulous!!!! We took the Party Boat to
Playa Del Sol. At this resort there was volleyball, a Banana Boat Ride, a Pool, games, etc. My husband
is 51 and I'm 47 and we still had a wonderful time, so you don't have to be in your 20's or 30's to enjoy
this excursion. We definately want to go back to Cozumel some day. Of course, we went to Carlos &
Charlies, but it was a VERY short visit. By time the Party Boat excursion was done, we only had 45
minutes to get back to the ship. We made it though & we have the pictures to prove it!!!
Key West was next. This is another town I would visit again. My brother and sister-in-law were there in
May and told us how great it was. It is a quaint little town. We went on the catamaran to go snorkeling.
It was great!! I was a little apprehensive, since the water was about 20 feet deep, but we had vests on
to keep us afloat. We saw all types of fish,including a baracuda. Then we went back to Key West and
visited a few places such as Hog's Breath Saloon and Sloppy Joe's. We would have liked to spend
more time in Cozumel and Key West.
Unfortunately, it was time to disembark. We had booked the tour in Ft. Lauderdale since our flight
didn't leave until 4:10 p.m. It was an enjoyable tour. We saw a lot of sights in Ft. Lauderdale, both by
bus and by boat on the Inter-Coastal tour. It was beautiful. Because we were booked on this tour, we
were off the ship by 8:30 a.m.
We thoroughly enjoyed the entertainment, expecially the comedian, Jeff Neece. He was hilarious,
without being dirty. I enjoy a comedian who gets down and dirty, but since it was July and there were a
lot of children, I'm glad that they were able to enjoy him. The ladder guy was very good and so was the
violinist. I don't normally care for violin music, but he was very good. We really enjoyed the production
shows also. The Not So Newlywed Game was hilarious also. Some friends of ours almost volunteered
us, since we were celebrating our 25th, but we arrrived a few minutes too late. Oh well. After the
shows, we usually went to Michael's Cigar Club. It was a very intimate place and beautifully decorated.
We would have a cocktail and my husband would splurge on an occasional cigar. It was a nice quiet
place to sit and just talk about everything.
We only had a few complaints. The shower wasn't hot enough when I took my shower, but for some
reason it was hot enough when my husband took his. There was shampoo, but no conditioner. We
ordered the Anniversary Package and it was well worth it. The only complaint I had was that the
breakfast in bed was not up to Celebrity's standard of food. It was a little cold, but we didn't care. We
were in our cabin, having breakfast in bed on our anniversary and by ourselves. We wnjoyed every
minute!!!
I would definately sail Celebrity again. They are a class operation!!! The Century is beautiful, nicely
decorated, nice sized cabins, clean, and great food and service. The buffets are not to be missed. We
only ate at the Grand Buffet, but the amount of work that goes into each of the buffets (and everything
else) is incredible. We did have one of the pineapple drinks at the Island Buffet thought. I guarantee
we won't wait 21 years to go on a cruise again. We will definately sail on the Celebrity Cruise Line
again. Words can't describe how beautiful this ship is.
Name: Barbara Hutchinson
Email: barbarah33@yahoo.com
Age: 30
Occupation: Operations Manager
NumberOfCruises: 15
TravelAgent: No
Ship: Celebrity-Century
SailingDate: 9/9/00
Itinerary: Eastern Caribbean
Cabin: 1225/Sky Suite
FoodDiningRoom: 85
CruiseDirector: 96
CabinComfort: 96
FoodRoomService: 94
CruiseStaff: 88
CabinAmenities: 92
FoodLidoDeck: 84
DiningRoomService: 87
CabinQuietness: 92
FoodMidnightBuffets: 75
CabinSteward: 95
ShoreExcVariety: 67
FoodVariety: 80
DeckService: 90
ShoreExcValue: 65
GoodForHoneymoon: 80
CasinoStaff: 80
PrivateIsland:
GoodForFamilies: 80
LoungeService: 82
TenderService: 88
GoodForSeniors: 83
BeautySalonStaff:
EntertainmentLounges: 87
WheelchairAccess:
ExerciseFacilities: 85
EntertShowLounge: 80
OverallPortsofCall: 89
BeautySalon:
EntertainmentPoolside: 86
CruiseActivities: 86
Casino: 81
AirSeaProgram:
MedicalFacilities:
ShipCleanliness: 90
EmbarkDisembark: 95
DiscoNightclubs: 84
DeckSpace: 93
Stabilization: 93
ShopsOnBoard: 82
SpaceRatio: 89
OverallCruiseValue: 91
Submit: Submit Review
Date: 18 Sep 2000
Time: 22:36:49
Remote Name: 63.209.226.5
Remote User:
Comments
I just returned from my second cruise on the Century and my 6th cruise with Celebrity overall. It has
been almost 2 years since my last Celebrity cruise and I am pleased to report that the service and
food have not changed for the worse. I was a little concerned that once Royal Caribbean took over the
line and had a chance to be with them for a few years I would notice little changes here and there that
would disappoint me; this was not the case. Celebrity remains a cruise line just a smidge above the
others. And I would guess this is the reason you seem to meet so many repeaters on a Celebrity
cruise.
On this particular cruise we were fortunate enough o have been upgraded from a Level 2 Mini-Suite to
a Sky Suite! Wow, what a difference a cabin can make. I admit that this was the first suite I have had
the opportunity to stay in on any cruise line and I wonder if I will ever cruise again without one. Then
again, on another line I don’t know if you get the same ‘perks’ that I received on Celebrity. I am already
a member of the Captain’s Club so the priority embarkation wasn’t really any different for me as suites
are invited to board as soon as Captain’s Club members are allowed to. My cruise ticket told me I
could not board the ship until 2pm on Saturday afternoon. Seeing how this was my 15th cruise I have
learned that you can always get on a ship before then. I got to the terminal at 12:30 in the afternoon
and literally walked right on the ship.
The cabin was just beautiful with lots and lots of storage space for everything: we had two women in
the room and we still had empty drawers and cabinets once we had unpacked. I hadn’t been in the
room for more than 4 or 5 minutes when our butler, Herman, came knocking on the door. I knew a
suite came with a butler on Celebrity but until I sailed with one I kept wondering what I would do with a
butler. That question was immediately answered. When he introduced himself and explained the room
and what he was responsible for I asked for a sewing kit as I had noticed I was missing a button on a
skirt that I wanted to wear to dinner that evening. Herman simply told me to give him the skirt and he
would take care of it. In less than an hour my skirt was back and had a button. (I had actually lost the
button and they managed to come up with a new one for me.) Every morning Herman would knock on
our door and ask if I needed anything pressed for that evening. (Something I took him up on several
nights.) If you have ever sailed on Celebrity and wondered exactly what you are supposed to do with
those VCR’s they put in all their cabins Herman quickly answered the question by bringing me several
videos after asking a few simple questions as to what kind of movies I preferred. After that he offered
to bring me some new titles daily.
You also have a cabin steward in a suite and Joanna did a great job cleaning our room and keeping all
the things on our balcony cleaned. (Due to some unusual circumstances I will explain later this was not
an easy task.) The cabin steward does all the ‘normal’ things they would do and anything else is up to
the butler. He or she will also bring you complete meals from the dining room to your suite and serve
them in the room or out on your verandah. And when I tell you the butler brings your meal I mean he
brings it as if you were eating in the dining room. From the tablecloth and flowers for the center of the
table, to serving the dinner in courses. It really was a treat that anyone should try once if you have the
opportunity. And if you decide to have breakfast brought to your cabin you are given a menu like in a
hotel to simply check off what you want and then hang it on your doorknob before 4am. If there is
something not on the menu that you want I learned that you could just ‘write in’ whatever it is. (I did
eggs benedict, pancakes, etc. and whatever I asked for was always brought without question.) If you
have any other questions about the suite or the butler service please email me and I will happily
answer them for you.
Since her inaugural year when I last sailed on her the Century has not changed much. She still looks
brand new. The wall in the atrium no longer has water coming down it as it did the first time I sailed on
her and several of the PlayStation booths are now broken in the Sports bar but those are the only
negative changes I noticed. On the positive side, in the Crystal Room at the stern of the ship they
added a much needed martini bar. Before dinner every evening it is open and you can have several
different types of martinis—they have a menu so there’s no need to be familiar with what you like
already, they offer lots of different ones. This is a quiet bar but the drinks are plentiful. When I was
there they would serve the martinis in a margarita glass—now that is a big drink!!
They have also taken the upstairs area that was formally the Sky Bar in the back of the ship over the
Islands Café and made it an alternative dining room for dinner. The last time I was on this ship you
didn’t have an option for dinner, it was the dining room or nothing. With a ship that is in ports, such as
San Juan until well after dinnertime it’s nice to know that there is another option if you aren’t back on
board in time for your assigned dining room seating.
On our first full day at sea—the day after we sailed from Ft. Lauderdale, I was on the deck lying in the
sun when they came around and politely asked everyone to please clear all pool decks. When I
questioned it they politely informed all of us that there was a medical emergency on board and a
helicopter had to come pick somebody up. It turns out that a member of the staff, an engineer I think,
had an appendix attack and he had to be taken off before it ruptured. Luckily we were informed a
couple of days later, he is fine. They did handle this well especially when you consider that it was our
first day and most of the ship was out by the pool or heading down to the buffet for lunch or the grill for
a burger. The grill and the Islands Café also had to be shut down as they are on the upper decks of
the rear of the ship. I also mentioned earlier that there was an unusual thing that made keeping my
verandah clean hard. The helicopter came and in the process of getting close enough to get the
patient off the ship the wind from the propellers blew the jogging track apart leaving little bits of cork all
over all of the port side suite verandahs. And for days little pieces of cork were coming out of
everywhere but the verandah seemed to be cleaned and vacuumed off each day.
I don’t really feel the need to talk about the ports as you can read about them in any review of the
Eastern Caribbean. I have been to each several times so if anyone has a question please feel free to
email me with it and I will happily get back to you. I will make a point to say that several people had said
during the week, including the cruise director, that in Nassau you could no longer go to the Atlantis
Resort. I am a stubborn woman who really wanted to see this place after hearing so much about it so I
opted to ignore them and try going anyway. I had no problem getting in and around: just look like you
know what you are doing when the cab drops you off. I walked all around the place, had drinks, then
some lunch and went into the casino to give the tables and slot machines a go. Nobody ever
questioned me once. I did hear somebody else at the Let it Ride table saying that they tried to go in
the pool and were denied without a hotel room key but I didn’t try that so I can’t be too sure. (But I
certainly wouldn’t blame a resort for that.)
On the first day of the cruise if you are in a suite you can book an in-suite massage. The AquaSpa
people even come knocking on your door that day to see if you would like to try something. They block
out certain ‘key’ times of each day for suite passengers so don’t bother running right up there the
minute you get on the ship. Both myself and the person I was sailing with decided it would be nice to
have a massage on our days at sea so we booked them. When it came time for out appointment we
were in the cabin waiting…and waiting…and waiting. I finally picked up the phone after they were
officially 20 minutes late without any word from anyone. When I told them who I was and what I was
waiting for they did take responsibility saying they were running a little late and that somebody should
be in our suite shortly. They also said they should have called but must have gotten too busy. I am a
patient woman but the morning before hand a table mate of ours had a massage scheduled and he
overslept, the AquaSpa called him after 10 minutes to tell him that he was late and they were charging
him 50% for not showing up. Well, in this case they were 20 minutes late so shouldn’t I have been
offered 50% another massage? No such luck. I told them not to bother coming as I was already
frustrated and not in the mood to relax. That evening while we were at dinner the manager of the spa
did call and leave a message apologizing for the mishap but nothing was offered in return for their
mistake. And I did have another massage booked which they knew about as the manager mentioned
that for the next one I had booked they would be on time or sure to call. I cancelled that one as well. I
don’t blame Celebrity at all for this as other companies that simply ‘rent’ space on Celebrity ships run
the spa and the casino.
All in all a Celebrity cruise remains a wonderful experience and I can’t wait until I get to sail on another
one. Next time I think I will have to try the Millennium or the Infinity. If there are any questions about
anything or another line that I have been on; Carnival, Royal Caribbean or Princess please let me
know.
Name: Bruce Barringer
Email: BruceByron@aol.com
Age: 48
Occupation: Food Management
NumberOfCruises: 5
TravelAgent: Yes
Ship: Celebrity-Century
SailingDate: 09/16/2000
Itinerary: Western Carribean
Cabin: 1060/suite cat 1
FoodDiningRoom: 92
CruiseDirector: 95
CabinComfort: 95
FoodRoomService: 85
CruiseStaff: 95
CabinAmenities: 95
FoodLidoDeck: 80
DiningRoomService: 90
CabinQuietness: 90
FoodMidnightBuffets:
CabinSteward: 90
ShoreExcVariety: 85
FoodVariety: 85
DeckService: 85
ShoreExcValue: 75
GoodForHoneymoon: 95
CasinoStaff:
PrivateIsland:
GoodForFamilies: 80
LoungeService: 85
TenderService: 85
GoodForSeniors: 90
BeautySalonStaff:
EntertainmentLounges: 85
WheelchairAccess:
ExerciseFacilities: 80
EntertShowLounge: 90
OverallPortsofCall: 85
BeautySalon:
EntertainmentPoolside:
CruiseActivities: 85
Casino:
AirSeaProgram: 80
MedicalFacilities:
ShipCleanliness: 90
EmbarkDisembark: 80
DiscoNightclubs: 80
DeckSpace: 95
Stabilization: 85
ShopsOnBoard: 85
SpaceRatio: 90
OverallCruiseValue: 90
Submit: Submit Review
Date: 02 Oct 2000
Time: 17:08:51
Remote Name: spider-wk062.proxy.aol.com
Remote User:
Comments
My wife & I just returned from our first cruise on Celebrity's Century. We are late 40's and are
experienced cruisers from Oklahoma. We traveled with friends on their first cruise. We booked
guaranteed category 2 suites and were upgraded to a category 1 suite. Our first timer friends were
upgraded to a Sky Suite. Cabins were identical, the SS is on deck 12 and has a much larger verandah
(very nice). Our cabin on deck 10 was centrally located and very convenient to the AquaSpa
(Thalassotherapy!! More on this later). This was the largest and nicest cabin we have ever stayed in. It
was kept very clean & fresh, and had a marble tiled bath that was large enough to actually turn around in!
We loved having a private verandah, it made for a wonderful private place to read & relax.
We booked our air with the cruise line and found the connections uncomfortably close, arriving just 2
hours before ship departure. Fortunately FLL is only 10 minutes from Port Everglades, but we felt like we
were the last ones to board. The famed white glove greeting was completely absent and were directed to
find our own cabin (not a great start). Our cabin door was locked and someone else's bags were piled in
front of our door. With no butler or cabin stewards in sight, we returned to the lobby and asked for
assistance. We then were escorted to our cabin properly by a senior staff member who confirmed our
assignment and got us settled. The ship sailed promptly at 4:30pm and our bags were delivered to our
cabin after dinner at about 7:00pm (we were getting a little nervous).
The Century is a beautiful ship and very well maintained. Most public rooms look brand new and the
Grand Restaurant is fabulous! The layout of the ship is somewhat confusing, with few direct routes from
bow to stern. I'll challenge anyone to find the Grand Restaurant on the first couple of days from an upper
deck, forward without asking directions. The central atrium area seems small for a 70,000 ton ship and
often was crowded.
Service on board ship was good, with nothing really exceptional. Our Waiter and Busboy (who were
assigned to us at dinner only) were excellent, but open seating lunch service in the Grand Restaurant
was miserable. Food quality in the Grand Restaurant was very good and occasionally excellent. Terrific
Filet mignon and Lobster and some very good veal and poultry dishes. You will not be disappointed at
dinner.
Because we booked a suite, we had butler service which included daily High Tea Service and nightly hor
d'eouvres. I could survive very well without this. Our butler always seemed in a hurry and too busy for
attention to detail. We did however enjoy full service breakfast in our suite served on linen and china
almost every morning. Our traveling companions had a much better experience with their butler and
enjoyed the service.
We enjoyed the AquaSpa located on deck 11 forward. The Thalassotheraphy Pool is a very large
saltwater & mineral pool (which is available at $16.50 per day/$88.00 per week or n/c if you are staying in
a suite) which we found far more relaxing than a regular hot tub. We used this pool every day and found it
invigorating and fun! The staff at the spa was helpful and didn't do the typical hard sell on spa products.
Note that on in-port days the spa featured specials on services.
We had heard the quality of entertainment on board Century to be iffy at best. Maybe we're too small
town, but we found it to be great! All three production shows were terrific. The comedians were funny (not
vulgar) and the lounge acts very talented. We especially liked the a cappella quartet Forte. The staff &
Cruise Director (Scott Peterson) were fun & engaged with the guests the entire cruise. They seemed like
friends by the end of the week. We gave the entertainment and cruise staff all excellent ratings.
When we cruise, we select the ship first and the itinerary second. The Century sails a pretty standard
Western Caribbean route clockwise around Cuba. Ocho Rios, Jamaica was dumpy, third-world like,
almost scary, Duns River Falls being the big attraction. To do it again, I don't think I'd get off the ship.
Grand Cayman was lovely, this could be a destination for a nice (expensive) land based vacation.
Cozemel was fun in it's own Mex/Carribean way (party time). Key West is a nice stop and interesting
(Conch fritters & Hemingway).
Overall, this was the best cruise we have been on to date. It was a great value (off-off season) and great
fun! We are already making plans to do it again!
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