Now I'm just scared!!!!

[The Works]

We will be cruising on the Millennium on February 13, 2005. This will be our 2nd cruise with Celebrity (Zenith 2001) and 4 with RCCL.

We loved our 1st cruise with Celebrity and really enjoyed the pretty even mix of ages.

Up until recently I have been really excited until I started read the reviews for this ship!

I have read some very disappointing reviews for this ship. Most have been focused on nasty older people that are onboard the ship.

My DH and myself are in our early 40’s and have nothing but respect for the older generation, but we are concerned that our vacation may be ruined by some cranky people.

Can anyone who has been on this cruise recently please give me some reassurance? Or should we make plans to change our cruise to RCCL?

 

[randy]

Haven't been on the Millie, but took a trip on the Infinity, which should have similar demographics. Didn't find any more cranky old people or obnoxious young people than on any other cruise (I take that back--lots of obnoxious young people on my last Carnival cruise). While my first Celebrity cruise was when I was 44, and my most recent one was when I was 48, my opinion might be a bit skewed. I like the line, the ambiance, and the service very much. I wouldn't let the reviews scare you--if out of 2300 people, one or two are whining about something, then things are still okay. Just blow off the complainers and look at all the good stuff.

 

[littlebit]

Remember that what one person dislikes, another person doesn't see any problem with it. It's a matter of opinion most of the time. When someone "complains" about things like food - that's a matter of taste. As well as ones who dislike the cabins - maybe it was just the color of the carpet that turns them sour.

 

[geezer]

i was on the Millie in October (i even have the jacket to prove it). My honey and i are in our fifties but act like we are in our early forties. There was a great mix on our cruise.. with people ranging from 30 to 80. And there were enough activities that keep going til the wee hours..

You are going to find crotchetty people no matter where you go or what line you are on... ignore them... they will go away and you will have a great time. The Millie is a great ship (except the name on my jacket wraps all around - next time i'll sail on the Summit).

 

[Petert]

Hi Works,

We just returned from our second cruise on the Millennium in May, and we were very satisfied with the entire experience. The ship and the ship's personnel were fabulous. We were not aware of any friction between age groups on board, and while there may be some bias towards older cruisers, there was really a good cross section of age groups. While we are a part of the older generation we found that most of the older cruisers we talked to were laid back and enjoying the experience. Cranky people are not just limited to an age group, and we didn't see any examples of this category.

As you may have noticed, the dining table assignments seem to be made with an effort to populate tables with persons of a similar age group, so if you are seated at a large table you will probably have contemporaries to socialize with. If you are in fact seated with persons that you are not compatable with the maitre 'd will be happy to change your assigned table. Please don't worry about someone spoiling your cruise, you will find lots of pleasant folks that are also interested in meeting new people and sharing their experiences.

Peter

 

[Barry]

The Miliie is one of the most poular ships in the fleet. I always try to remember the ole saying about how often do you tell someone of a great restaurant experience? But have a bad one and you tell 10 people very quickly. You'll have a great time

 

[ljeanbrown]

It is a great ship and there are all age groups onboard. Actually it tends to attract a younger crowd than the Zenith usually does. It has a really nice childrens area and has more things for kids to do than the Zenith which is why more families choose that class Celebrity ship.You can find cranky elderly people on any ship and cruise line as well as cranky people in general.Don't take the reviews to heart, take them with a grain if not box , of salt :lol It is a great cruise and I would not hesitate to sail on the Millie again :thumb

 

[sailboat]

There's an old story about two men who traveled the country. The first man expected to find kind, good-hearted people wherever he went because he was that way himself. The second man generally distrusted people and felt there wasn't much good in any of them. The two men visited exactly the same towns and encountered exactly the same people. Not suprisingly, each man found exactly the type of people he expected to find!

"So much can be solved with a sail and a following sea."

 

[ptsong]

Have you ever try Princess- The Love Boats? The crowd there are usually younger and the ship decorations are much more tasteful. We love Princess and I suggest you try it too. I too had some bad experience with an older couple who refused to talk with us over the dinner tables and not at all friendly. They are very cranky and snobbish folks from the South.

 

[ljeanbrown]

ptsong,
I don't agree that the passengers on Princess are a younger crowd than Celebrity. Also Celebrity has beautifully decorated ships and very tasteful the Millie is a beautiful ship and the views from the glass elev. that face the ocean are wonderful.Celebrity is a real class act and there service is great the food is some of the best among the major cruise lines and the little extra touches that they do really add to the overall cruise experience. Princess is also a very good cruise line and we enjoy sailing on them as well, but I would not put them above Celebrity, it would be the other way around.On one of our Princess cruises the wheelchairs were all lined up under the stairs :lol so they get there share of the older crowd as well. It also depends on how long your cruise is and to where it is going. Certain cruises like Alaska tend to have an older crowd and cruises longer than 7 nights may also have older crowds, no matter what cruise line it is.

 

[Topman]

I thoroughly agree that the longer the cruise then the older the average age. Why?

Because "older" (you realize, of course, that the term is totally relative since a 21-year-old seems "older" to a teenager, etc) cruisers can generally afford longer length cruises and also have to ability to take that much time to travel.

I was not aware that you have to be "older" to be nasty. Britney Spears could probably give all of us a few "how to be nasty" lessons. And in terms of the veracity of the reviews...if you acted like (and had the same perspective) some of these reviewers, you'd never venture OUT OF YOUR HOUSE, much less onto a cruise ship.

Enjoy your cruise and remember whatever you send into the lives of others will surely come back into your own.

 

[ftrpltsgal]

I wouldnt be as concerned with the older folks on board as I would the condition of the ship and lacking staff. My parents returned from Zenith the end of March (14 nite cruise). They've sailed her before and more than two dozen cruises in total, and this was by far the worse experience ever for them.

They had to be changed to 4 different rooms over the course of the first 3 days because of all sorts of things, (i.e. bad plumbing that backed up in their bathroom, leaving sewage and liquid coating the floor of their bathroom - that is in itself, gross), the staff was inattentive, the head housekeeper ignored them when they had a question so they had to repeatedly see the guest relations desk downstairs. Dad said it was very evident by looking at the ship that it was in dire need of refurbishing from bow to stern. carpet rolling/buckling,

anyway, I could go on and on. my parents love their cruises and they had fond memories of their prior cruise on zenith, but this was very discouraging for them and I hope I never have to endure all the things they went through on this last one.

 

[ptsong]

I had not been on the Millie but I had been on the flag ship of Celebrity-The Constellation. I was hardly impressed. The decor is so gaudy and the loud colors drives me crazy. The food was good but the presentation is not as good as compared to Princesses. Anyway you may have some good experience with Celebrity and you're entitle to defend her but for me Celebrity is just so so. I still prefer Princess-THE LOVEBOAT indefinitely.

By the way did you read about my horrible experience with Constellation rip-off medical services? Don't fall sick is my advice.



Post Edited (07-26-04 16:31)

 

[jowhitt]

PTSong...how do you know they were from the south if they refused to talk to you!! I'm from the south and I generally like most everyone...except folks from NYC!

 

[ptsong]

It's a known fact that most(I said most not all) white southerners have a history of racial discrimination. I am a Malaysian and my skin is yellow. As for NYC folks I don't have any problem here as I have been here for 13 years. Most of them are friendly and helpful esp. so after 9/11.

 

[randy]

Okay, ptsong--I let the first reference you made to "cranky snobbish folks from south" slide. However, your most recent affirmation that "...It's a known fact that most(I said most not all) white southerners have a history of racial discrimination..." is malarkey. I happen to have lived all over the world, from Asia (Kobe), the Pacific (Hawaii, Pago Pago, Saipan), Europe (Germany, Norway and Holland) and the United States (Virginia, California, Utah, Michigan, Rhode Island, Georgia, and Missouri), and find that those of us who happen to be caucasian, and live south of the Mason Dixon line are no more prone to discrimination than any other group I have encountered. How do the Malays, Hindus and Chinese get along back "home?" When I last visited there (admittedly it was in 1993), there was obvious and evident discrimination and distrust between the groups--maybe the race riots of 1969 have not entirely settled down?
People in the American South are progressive, friendly, and no more nor less inclined to be prejudicial than anyone else. And that is at home or on board any cruise ship. Having had the choice of the entire world in which to find a retirement location, I chose the South particularly BECAUSE the people are friendly.

 

[ptsong]

That's because you are a white too. And I agree that racial intolerence existed everywhere around the world but some places are more prevalence then others and the South is one area notorious for that historically. I stick to my previous believe like a thousand others.



Post Edited (07-28-04 20:51)

 

[LBcruiser]

Back to the original subject (if ptsong can get off his Celebrity bashing for just a moment). I agree with the rest of the folks who say your cruise is exactly what you make of it. I was on the Summit (Millie clone) for an 11 day cruise which was mostly made up of over 60's (I'm 37) and I had a blast. Sure there were the crankpots who always found something to get mad about or complain about, but we chose to laugh about them and how much money they were wasting being angry all the time. The ship is plenty big enough to avoid those people, and if you end up with jerks at your dinner table you should ask to be moved the next night. My husband and I took a tour bus excursion in Panama and got yelled at by 20 senior citizen co-passengers when we were 5 minutes late back to the bus at the canal, and we had to laugh. If you give people the power to make you angry and uptight you might as well stay home. Sure there are frustrating moments in any journey (my husband's luggage was lost for 3 days pre-cruise, but now we laugh about the paisley silk underwear and Corona beer shorts he had to buy in Ft. Lauderdale to tide him over because they were the only clothes we could find for him within walking distance of our hotel). All I can say is you have to work really hard to have a bad time on one of these ships.

 

[The Works]

LBcruiser you sound like my kind of people!!!

And to ptsong....Just how did this go from my question to a racial thing???

Now I'm just sorry that I posted the question! Jeez!

 

[ptsong]

Sometime the truth can be ugly but sweeping under the carpet does not resolved the issue. The victimised should bring it to light that such thing still exist and we should never act like an Ostrich burying the head in the sand and pretend that nothing happened. Gosh I hope that one day everyone will live harmoniusly in peace and love each other unconditionally in this big blue marble we all call home.



Post Edited (07-30-04 20:00)