Mercury Sold

[patseacruiser]

So it looks like April 1, 2011 will be the last sailing of the Mercury as it's sold after that date.

[BonnieVA]

Actually, the last sailing is Feb 14. There are several threads about it right now.

[chessbriar]

I wish. They canceled my April 1 cruise

[CruiseAdict218]

The last sailing as the Mercury is Feb 14th 2011 like above and its first sailing as Mein Schiff 2 is on May 2011

[iancal]

We liked the Mercury. It was our first Celebrity cruise. We have had numerous cruises since then, on a number of cruise lines. Mercury is still at the top....along with Equinox and Crystal Symphony.

[SeaBlu]

So what are they offering you when they cancel your "already booked" cruise on the Mercury?

[hcat]

So sad to see Mercury go--T pool & all --but I have already adapted to S class --just wish they had T pools!

[Lois R]

So what are they offering you when they cancel your "already booked" cruise on the Mercury?

 

From The Press Release:

 

"Celebrity Mercury will complete its scheduled sailings through the February 14, 2011, itinerary. Guests with individual bookings and named group bookings on Celebrity Mercury on or after February 26, 2011 have the option to either cancel their booking or move to any Celebrity Mercury sailing from Baltimore from October 18, 2010, through February 14, 2011, with the exception of the December 20, 2010 itinerary.

Guests who pursue this option will receive an onboard credit of $75 per stateroom for inside or ocean-view accommodations; $100 per stateroom for veranda or Concierge Class, and $200 per suite.

Guests with reservations affected by the transition will be proactively contacted by Celebrity Cruises. Guests with questions specific to impacted bookings are welcome to call 1-888-281-9343."

[reklawr]

Oh Geeze...I hate to see Mercury go. :(:(

[otcsteve]

We were on the first sailing of Mercury out of Charleston this year, our first Celebrity cruise...you know, the one with the massive Norovirus outbreak! Loved the cruise, but customer service fell apart during the outbreak! Totally unprepared for such an event!! And considering it took three more cruises to totally erradicate the virus....

In spite of that we booked Mercury for the 2/28 duplicate cruise for 2011, something we NEVER do, the same cruise twice. We did that BEFORE we disembarked...

Celebrity marketed cruises out of Charleston through mid-April 2011. Now, without advanced notice to those who had booked those cruises, they announce to the world that the ship has been sold/transferred and no cruises will occur after 2/26.

Options...sail Mercury during its Baltimore season...that is it. NO option to transfer to another ship/cruise within the fleet. Are they having that much trouble selling Baltimore?

We ended up canceling. And changing to another cruise line, later in 2011 to Bermuda. Not what we had planned. But have never done Bermuda, so it should be exciting...just NOT on Celebrity!

Would love to do Celebrity again, but have a sour taste in our mouths.

[CanWeGoYet?]

So if your schedule doesn't allow another cruise on the Mercury before it is sold, and you need to cancel, no onboard credit or future cruise discount offered at all?

[Lois R]

So if your schedule doesn't allow another cruise on the Mercury before it is sold, and you need to cancel, no onboard credit or future cruise discount offered at all?

 

Hi Tink, good to see you:)....there is another thread on here somewhere

with the full Press Release. It has all the information on it.

[shelbird]

When I spoke with my TA yesterday regarding the cancellation of our 2/28/11 Mercury cruise she told me she expressed great displeasure to her Celebrity rep concerning the lack of compensation for us displaced cruisers. However, this being said, I did book another cruise on Connie 1/15/11 at more than double the price of my Mercury cruise. I really needed that vacation!

[Lois R]

When I spoke with my TA yesterday regarding the cancellation of our 2/28/11 Mercury cruise she told me she expressed great displeasure to her Celebrity rep concerning the lack of compensation for us displaced cruisers. However, this being said, I did book another cruise on Connie 1/15/11 at more than double the price of my Mercury cruise. I really needed that vacation!

 

Hi, I was going to say join us for Mercury on the same date:)

She sail on Jan 15th too.

[outerspaceguy]

Celebrity marketed cruises out of Charleston through mid-April 2011. Now, without advanced notice to those who had booked those cruises, they announce to the world that the ship has been sold/transferred and no cruises will occur after 2/26.

 

As someone who sailed on Mercury in April this year from Charleston, I have to say that they made the right call there. Forget completely about the whole Noro infestation for a second:

 

The port of Charleston is a _disaster_ for embarkation.

 

There really is no other word for it. Having people wait in long lines, outside, exposed to the sun and rain the entire time; being required to wait in a long queue for that stupid bus that drives you a 50 ft distance while going the long way around; having an inspector in the car-van-drop-off-line that you have to show your passport and Xpress pass to in order to be allowed into the drop off luggage area (Seriously, I was in a hotel drop off van, and they made it stop (halting the cars/vans behind us), opened up the back, and had everyone fish through their carryon luggage to prove they were on the cruise... at the _luggage_ _drop_ _off_ line in the _parking_ lot... no wonder it took forever to get through...); Charleston having insufficient terminal space to even provide a checkin line for Select/Elite members; having a complete lack of in-port facilities... And to have the Mercury's crew tell me that my cruise (Apr 9, 2010 departure) was one of the smoothest that this port has run since they started calling there....

 

That port is a disaster.

 

Knowing Celebrity's decision now, and knowing that they actually read those comment cards we all get to fill out... I'm guessing that I'm _nowhere_ _near_ the only person who thought that Charleston should have never been used as a home port: their operation is frankly not up to what Celebrity guests' expect.

 

Other ports know how to board one 1800 pax ship in a day. Charleston can learn from them.

 

Am I surprised that Celebrity didn't extend Mercury's Baltimore season? Yes. Am I surprised that Celebrity decided to kill the 2011 Charleston season: No way. Not after what I saw.

 

My two cents.

[outerspaceguy]

We ended up canceling. And changing to another cruise line, later in 2011 to Bermuda.

 

Upcoming!!

Carnival Fantasy April 23, 2011 (Bermuda)

 

 

BTW- I don't want to sound too mean, given my previous post and that your vacation got canceled: Enjoy your Carnival cruise...

[angelpug]

I was disappointed with the cancellation of the Mercury cruises out of Charleston, ONLY because there really isn't another Celebrity itinerary to match it.:( We've done the Eastern Caribbean out of Baltimore on the Mercury, and didn't want to do that again in less than two years....we were really looking forward to Cozumel, Belize, Key West, and the Bahamas. We were hoping that Celebrity would offer the onboard credit for rebooking ANYTHING with Celebrity! To get the almost same itinerary I'd have to switch to Royal Caribbean.

 

So in the end, we DID rebook with Celebrity...but later on in 2011. Since we can't do the itinerary we want, we'll just try something completely different!:) We'll be doing the Century repositioning through the Panama Canal. It's our longest cruise ever...so we're now really looking forward to that. We didn't get the $200.00 onboard credit for switching (suite), but we did get an extra $100.00 for the longer cruise!:D

 

Anyway....soooooo sad to see Mercury go, but we all knew it was coming. I just thought it would be after the Aprill 11, 2011 sailing!:(

 

Goodbye Mercury...We LOVED you!

 

~Jaime

[CanWeGoYet?]

Hi Tink, good to see you:)....there is another thread on here somewhere

with the full Press Release. It has all the information on it.

 

Good to see you too Lois!

 

 

To outerspaceguy - shame that the port in Charleston is that way. I've only been to the airport there - which is one of the best designed airports I've seen! Beautiful, walkways lined with rocking chairs for whoever wants to sit, lots of indoor trees, natural light, artwork etc. They need to have the Port redesigned by whoever did the airport!

[shelbird]

Angelpug, Was the extra $100 for the longer cruise from Celebrity? When I spoke to my TA to rebook a 14 day cruise she told me Celebrity offered nothing for the inconvenience unless rebooking on the Mercury out of Baltimore. I rebooked the longer cruise on the Constellation.

[angelpug]

She said since the cruise was longer than 14 days, I'd get an additional $100.00. I also did this as on onboard booking (back in Nov. while on the Mercury), so that may also be the difference. I transferred my booking to my TA.

 

I originally got a $200.00 credit for booking a cruise in a suite for 10+ days onboard, and by having to change my onboard booking, and making it a 17 day cruise, I now get the $300.00 onboard booking credit for a 14+ day cruise.

 

Hope this helps!

 

~Jaime

[shelbird]

Thanx Jaime. That does answer my question. Have a wonderful cruise!

michelle

[abm3240]

So does anyone have any idea why Celebrity sent out a news letter yesterday advertising 10 & 11 nights out of Charleston on the Mercury for March and April? When you follow the link it says SOLD OUT but it was just in yesterday's news letter. We called Celebrity and they said they would have more info on these sailings next week.

[USNDiver]

Truly a shame, she's a fine ship with a world class martini bar.

 

Perhaps a moment of silence is in order.

[angelpug]

So does anyone have any idea why Celebrity sent out a news letter yesterday advertising 10 & 11 nights out of Charleston on the Mercury for March and April? When you follow the link it says SOLD OUT but it was just in yesterday's news letter. We called Celebrity and they said they would have more info on these sailings next week.

 

All of the TA's with these March and April bookings were sent notification over the weekend with the news that the Mercury would no longer be in service with Celebrity, and the options given to the passengers that were booked. Our option....rebook a Mercury cruise out of Baltimore from Oct. 18, 2010-February 14, 2011 (It's last Celebrity Cruise.) We had until June 9th to let Celebrity know what our decision was if we wanted their onboard credit they were offering ($50.00 inside, $100.00 outside/balcony, and $200.00 for a suite) if we rebooked on the Mercury. Since we'd already been on the Mercury cruise to the Eastern Caribbean our of Baltimore just 7 months ago, we never even considered that.

 

So we went in a different direction and chose the repositioning of the Century to Baltimore....so in transferring the booking to a different ship, we kept all of our onboard credits we'd already had with our reservation, and was even able to increase one of them by doing the extra days.

 

I've noticed that the websites, and newsletters seem to always be the last in the know. If you're being directly affected though, you WILL be told soon by your TA or Celebrity. If you have a cruise booked, and havn't been given notification, you NEED to contact your TA or Celebrity though if you want to take advantage of what they're offering....June 9th is the deadline.

 

Take Care,

Jaime

[chriscc]

I have just been informed that my cruise on Mercury has been cancelled on April 1st 2011. I had flights booked and now it will cost me approx $150 each to change the flights to something else and there is no compensation from Celebrity unless I choose a Mercury cruise out of Baltimore between now and Feb 2011. Unfortunately I cannot do this because I am on Mercury already to Alaska in September 2010 and on Eclipse Jan 2011. I feel a bit cheated not getting any compensation. Has anyone received any comp under these circumstances??

 

As a side issue, is there anyone who was on the Constellation just before it went to have it 'solstice' changes and did the ship run ok? Did they run out of certain food, started doing some refurb during cruise, areas closed etc ?????

 

Any info appreciated