4/7 Mercury Review

[cechase]

Oh Boy, it is getting a little nasty here - between us who are older pax who have gone through the child raising years, and those like caraisa who is most likely expecting her first child before her scheduled cruise. [Why she would do that with her newborn is beyond me!]

 

Well, I have some news for you! With an infant, you have to plan way ahead of time when traveling with an infant. How many of you have seen parents with an infant boarding an airplane, most are pretty prepared, with car seat, formula, diapers, and toting all kinds of stuff. This is even more important when you are considering a multi-day trip on a vessel.

 

There is a variety of selection of formulas, and the infant is happy with one, but may not be happy with another. This has nothing to do with feeding adults on a cruise ship!!! It has to do with feeding what the infant will tolerate. I think trusting the cruise line to get it right, and then relying on guest relations for 10 or 11 days is plain irresponsible, if you care for your child at all.

 

We can sympathize with Dave's comments about having a howling child in the cabin next door. Last week, while on highway 50 going to view Wiamea Canyon on Kauai, we stopped off at a really neat restaurant for breakfast. After being seated, a young mother and father came in with an infant and sat across from us. The mother decided to look in some shops while waiting for their breakfast to be delivered. As soon as she left, the infant, with an incredible set of lungs commenced to wail and howl, and this went on for 15 minutes before the father sensed us and the other customers glaring at him with thoughts of malice, before he got a clue that "kittchie koos" were not working and took the child outside. Clueless yes, but that seems to be the mindset of parents these days.

[Desertbelle]

There is a variety of selection of formulas, and the infant is happy with one, but may not be happy with another. This has nothing to do with feeding adults on a cruise ship!!! It has to do with feeding what the infant will tolerate. I think trusting the cruise line to get it right, and then relying on guest relations for 10 or 11 days is plain irresponsible, if you care for your child at all.

 

Did you really mean to say that fauxpaz doesn't care for her child at all??? :confused: :eek:

[thomasale]

key word is children NOT babies...babies should not cruise...nothing for them children can be entertained and corrected when wrong. Babies on the other hand are on and off, plain and simple.

[florida_cruiser]

Oh Boy, it is getting a little nasty here - between us who are older pax

 

 

And no reason for it either - although I am jumping into the frey head first. Why don't you get off of your soap box and simply admit X erred on this one.

 

This thread really wasn't about bringing an infant on a cruise but some of you have turned it into one. You guys jump all over this parent simply because she wanted to get what she had paid for and pre-arranged. For this she is called a bad parent - maybe she should have smacked the kid like you would have and told it to shut up and eat what was put in front of it. I can only imagine the uproar we would all hear if X accidently forgot to order prunes for your cruise although the over abundance of prunes may be what is causing the sewage problem on the Millenium cruises.

 

Why don't we start a thread about all our complaints about having too many old people on the cruises. Oh, wait a minute - we young folks have a little bit more respect for you old folks than you do for us!!

 

If you want a grumpy old adult only cruise book one!!!! I for one will be glad that you did.

[Happy ks]

Yikes, this is confusing. I think if I had a formula fed child (mine never had any formula) I'd have to bring it along myself, I would never trust that it would be supplied, or the correct type available. That they promise this is a big mistake on X's part.

 

But, since they did tell her it was available and they would provide it, then they are at fault for not providing it. I would have thought to contact the medical center, rather than the customer service desk for this type of request, though.

 

I'm very sorry that you had thins experience, it must have been awful for you.

 

All in all, isn't a child pretty much ready to start off the formula by that age? Sorry, I don't remember how old they have to be. My kids also did not eat much baby food, I chopped up table food instead. I was never crazy for all the processing that was done to their food, preferring fresh instead. So, I think I probably would have just done juices (watered down) table food (anyone can squish up soft fruit and veggies, or finely chop meats) and I would have saved the formula for one bottle a day. I work with special needs kids and our motto is to adapt to the child, whatever the need may be. I may be making a mistake by stating this, but I've alwasy thought of kids as being pretty sturdy creatures.

 

I do not, however, have a problem with the cruiseline charging a passenger the third person rate, no matter how old or young they are. They are counted as a body on the ship. Heck, if some of you think the charges should be adjusted because the baby doesn't eat the food, shouldn't the people eating seconds at dinner and piling on the food at the buffet, ordering extra room service, stopping by the pizza parlor etc... be charged double the going rate?

[Desertbelle]

And no reason for it either - although I am jumping into the frey head first. Why don't you get off of your soap box and simply admit X erred on this one.

 

This thread really wasn't about bringing an infant on a cruise but some of you have turned it into one. You guys jump all over this parent simply because she wanted to get what she had paid for and pre-arranged. For this she is called a bad parent - maybe she should have smacked the kid like you would have and told it to shut up and eat what was put in front of it. I can only imagine the uproar we would all hear if X accidently forgot to order prunes for your cruise although the over abundance of prunes may be what is causing the sewage problem on the Millenium cruises.

 

Why don't we start a thread about all our complaints about having too many old people on the cruises. Oh, wait a minute - we young folks have a little bit more respect for you old folks than you do for us!!

 

If you want a grumpy old adult only cruise book one!!!! I for one will be glad that you did.

 

If you are so willing to "jump in head first" why did you make up an alias to post....who are you really??? Beware, trolls are among us!!

[florida_cruiser]

No alias. Not sure what a troll is.

 

Just joined this forum a few days ago and took particular interest to this post after reading thru many of them.

[bububr]

First of all I think we can all agree a mistake was made. There were two infnats on board and the orders got mixed up. That is the staff of MERCURYS fault. I have said it in a previous post that they SHOULD take responsibility for this. I think everyone will agree on this one.....

 

Secondly, the requests have to go through corporate. I don't think the ship can simply stop in a foreign port and buy baby supplies. I am unfamiliar with the exact rules, but it waould be up to corporate to reslove this problem, not the immediate staff on Mercury after the mistake was made.

 

Thirdly, we all make mistakes. Some are worse than others but in the end they are still mistakes.

 

Fourthly, the oxygen thing is irrelevent in this case. The cannisters must be approved and inspected, and there is an additional charge for storage, regulation, etc....Extra paperwork.....This is usually taken care of at the travelers expense, as is dialysis which can also be done onboard and pre-arranged.

 

How do you know I can survive with out goose? maybe it is a nutritional necessity....You say there are alternatives, well, there is milk on board, let the infant drink milk...simple enough...right?

 

My point is a traveler is taking their infant OUT OF THE COUNTRY, where many things may not be available...be prepared for the worse, and if everything works out, at least you were perpared. That being said does not excuse X for the mixup. HOWEVER...AS A PARENT OF A MINOR CHILD YOU ARE SOLELY RESPONSIBLE FOR THEIR WELFARE REGARDLESS.

 

What if the supplier to X fell though and they weren't made aware till after departure? Then what. Is it X's fault or the supplier. What if the supplier substituted something because the original item was not available...and the substitution was not beneficial to the infant...Then what?

 

This is a case of a parent NOT being prepared. Plain and simple. I'm not saying they are a bad parent, they are mostlikely the most loving people that you might ever meet, but they were unprepared for an emergency.

 

Lastly, an infant is not going to understand what is hapening around them..the parents, regardless of having someone cook and clean for them are going to have to drag the thing around 24 hrs a day. If thats the vacation they want...its their choice. I would find more suitable vacations for my kids ( if I had any) untill they could appreciate and learn from their experiences. You as a parent are also risking exposing to the child to who knows what? If I were a parent I might want to wait untill my child has had some exposure to familiar things to build up their immune system and tolerance...I wouldn't risk being a selfish person and risking my childs health simply because I wanted to go on a cruise.

 

I don't even want to address the issue of the parents putting the infant in the hot tub on the March 17th cruise. Which diapers and hot tubs are a no-no. and a CDC violation...however these young parents felt that they paid for their vacation so they can do what they want.....Off topic but relevent in this case...since the issue of paying 2nd, 3rd, and 4th fares was brought up.

 

We need to stop this thread before it goes overboard.

 

I am sorry that the OP had a bad cruise. But I am just as sorry for their infant that was put second to their vacation.

 

Dave:eek:

[elsje]

Yes, Caraisa does make many fine points.

 

My daughter, who is pregnant, will be bringing her baby on our family cruise in November. My husband and I are taking all our children, their spouses and children (14 of us all together) on a special cruise we have been planning for quite some time. We picked and booked this cruise long before my daughter became pregnant. Should she now skip this special cruise because she will have a 3 month old? I don't think so! :) She can't wait to sit out on her balcony and hold her baby while someone else takes care of the cooking, cleaning and her 3 year old.....11 days of bliss. If you don't want to be on a ship with a newborn, two 3 year olds and a 5 year old, I suggest you not book our cruise (it's listed below for reference.) :)

 

I was also raised in the 1950's. I can't say that the discipline that I recieved, and what was considered to be normal, helped me to be a better person. I feel quite fortunate to have survived. I was beaten quite regularly, went to school and church with noticable bruises on my face and body, I was reminded over and over again how terrible I was....and all of this was accepted by our society. People, family, friends, teachers, priests, etc. looked away and never intervened, never offered to help me or my siblings. I imagine my parents family "talked" about us, but not once did anyone try to temper the situation. You bet I sat when I was told to sit, shut-up when told to be quiet, otherwise I would get a good beating when we got home. I know I wasn't the only child raised like this....there are millions of us. Is this really a better way?

 

I chose to raise my children in a different manner and I think I did a pretty good job of it. I diffinitely used time outs, removed privledges and gave restrictions....the same type of parenting I see my children use.

 

I think it's very hard to raise children these days. Most parents need to work, mothers are exhausted, kids are getting "raised" by multiple people, social pressures to buy more, be more, and have more, etc....I see my own children struggling with this.

 

As an "older" citizen of the world, a budding "wise woman" as you will, I try to help as much as I can. I try to be supportive, helpful and pleasant. Recently my husband, sister and I went on a cruise that had a few hundred kids on it. I never saw a problem, and I made sure to mention to parents, whenever possible, that they had a lovely family and well mannered children....I think positive reinforcement works better than criticism.

 

I imagine we will never see the end of grumpy old people in the world, but it sure would be nice if they would keep away from the rest of us. :D

Well said! My hats off to you ~ Els

[bububr]

With the new passport rules, anyone including infants will need one to travel. At over a hundred bucks a pop that is going to put a bit of a stress on many families. And for Infants, 2, 3, or four months old, unless you pay the price to expedite the passport...thay may not get theirs in time.

 

Just FYI

 

Dave:eek:

[elsje]

The OP did not ask any of you for your opinion, she simply wrote a detailed review. I am shocked at the crudeness of some. ~ Els

[cechase]

Did you really mean to say that fauxpaz doesn't care for her child at all??? :confused: :eek:

 

I did not say that! Read what I said about preparedness if you are traveling with an infant!

[Jessica&Ben]

As a mother of a 2 year old (who has cruised 3 times already) and we had a FABULOUS time each time by the way..... I can't believe the rude remarks this poor woman is getting from some of you. My daughter never had formula, so it wasn't an issue for us, but if she did need it I do think I would have brought my own - simply because I am neurotic and would rather have too much than not enough.

Attacking this person - and others who do choose to cruise with infants is so very rude. It is none of your business where we, with children decide to vacation. The cruise lines welcome small children on board and actually cheer up when they see the littles ones - some of the people working on these ships have children at home they never get to see - getting to see a sweet little face is a nice change from the grumpy grouches of the world complaining about wether or not they get a salt & pepper shaker on their table at dinner. While visiting Disney World, we have seen many of the "older couples" by themselves - should the "young people with children" start a revolution that no "old people without children" can go to DisneyWorld/Land????

Geez..... I could say more - but I am too polite. There's one thing you grumps should know - saying something negative about people's children is not going to get you many nice comments. Since you grew up in the 1940's and 1950's (like my parents) weren't you taught, "If you don't have nothing nice to say, don't say it at all."

[elsje]

As a mother of a 2 year old (who has cruised 3 times already) and we had a FABULOUS time each time by the way..... I can't believe the rude remarks this poor woman is getting from some of you. My daughter never had formula, so it wasn't an issue for us, but if she did need it I do think I would have brought my own - simply because I am neurotic and would rather have too much than not enough.

Attacking this person - and others who do choose to cruise with infants is so very rude. It is none of your business where we, with children decide to vacation. The cruise lines welcome small children on board and actually cheer up when they see the littles ones - some of the people working on these ships have children at home they never get to see - getting to see a sweet little face is a nice change from the grumpy grouches of the world complaining about wether or not they get a salt & pepper shaker on their table at dinner. While visiting Disney World, we have seen many of the "older couples" by themselves - should the "young people with children" start a revolution that no "old people without children" can go to DisneyWorld/Land????

Geez..... I could say more - but I am too polite. There's one thing you grumps should know - saying something negative about people's children is not going to get you many nice comments. Since you grew up in the 1940's and 1950's (like my parents) weren't you taught, "If you don't have nothing nice to say, don't say it at all."

 

Well said! No one forces any cruiser to be on a ship that could possibly have babies or children (aren't they the same):p ~ Els

ps. I grew up in the early 50's and we traveled with our children all over the world and took them to nice restaurants and..they behaved very well. Our girls (now 25 and 26) had issues with adults that were drunk at so many Mexican/Caribbean resorts.

[cml3]

I must say that this thread has made me angry and made me laugh ("if x forgot to order your prunes")

I see a lot of responses on the same idea as the responses to the complaints of the "bleaching cruises".

 

Instead of addressing the issues that the op was talking about she was attacked. I think everyone would agree they would not want a "screaming infant" next door, or a child with a diaper in the jacuzzi-including this mother. However that was not the issue.

 

I think I fall somewhere in the middle, I was not raised in the 40's or 50's nor do I have young children (they are teenagers).

However, X handled this very poorly and that is the issue!! Unfortunately this seems to be happening a lot lately.

"the over abundance of prunes may be what is causing the sewage problem on the Millenium cruises"

LOL:D

[bububr]

Darnit...If they forgot to order MY prunes I wouldn't be 'REGULAR' all week!:D

 

Some of have tried to address the issue, and I think we all think X dropped the ball once again on this one.

 

The OP actually wrote a good review, minus the gripe sections in the middle. That is where the whole infant thing got started, and went off topic. Then another poster thought it was stupid to charge $550.00 for an infant to cruise, and then the flames were fueled.

 

As far as "However, X handled this very poorly and that is the issue!! Unfortunately this seems to be happening a lot lately."

 

I agree with you 100%

 

Dave:eek:

[florida_cruiser]

"However, X handled this very poorly and that is the issue!! Unfortunately this seems to be happening a lot lately."

 

I agree with you 100%

 

 

That should end this thread on a good note. Thank-you

[ginadis2002]

Crappy customer service. If the corporation accepts the responsibility to provide the necessary items, then the corporation is at fault for not doing so. If the customer believes that the corporation will provide that service and they don't, how does that put the customer at fault? Naive, perhaps, but not at fault.

 

Little big things seem to be falling between the cracks. It's time to review, revise and reevaluate corporate procedure. Anything less than that is not providing customer service at the level agreed upon.

 

And if the corporation accepts any age group, then it becomes a personal choice as to whether or not one continues to use the services provided. X has no problem booking infants at a price. X has many problems providing necessary services at that price.

[DC2OC]

Am I Old Or Young ? Sometimes I Forget.yes Celebrity Should Of Had The Formula As Promised,but As With Any Other Business You Deal With Nowadays People Screw Up And You Have To Prepare For It. I Hope We Have A Great Time On Our Upcoming Cruise,i'm Sure Something Somewhere Won't Go As Planned And I Hope I Wont Allow It To Screw Up The Cruise:):):):):)

[redrobin]

Not negating Celebrity’s responsibility to provide what was requested, I’d be curious to hear their version of the story to better understand ‘how and why’ everything transpired regarding the formula mishap. To give them some credit, at the start of the cruise it appears Celebrity did provide, as promised, the baby cereal, food and requested formula, although the formula was not in sufficient quantity.

Since the OP brought formula for embarkation day, that 2.5 day supply from Celebrity would have been enough to last until day four, Mazatlan, the second port. In addition, if I understand correctly, while in Mazatlan, Celebrity provided the OP with enough formula for the remaining seven days of the cruise. It was a different brand, and may have contributed to the extra fussiness, gassiness and spitting up, possibly along with being in a new environment on a moving ship. It may not be the case, but based on the review, the OP makes no mention of searching for other formula in the remaining ports, appearing OK with using what was supplied even though she understandably would have preferred the ‘ready to use’ formula in her usual brand.

Although not requested, Celebrity also provided a bottle of Pedialyte, which appears to be prudent preplanning on their part to combat possible dehydration if the child had contracted norovirus while the Mercury was still overcoming that outbreak. Traveling with a young child aboard the Mercury, that would have been a primary concern of mine at that time, along with watching for any ill effects due to any bleaching onboard.

I was not aware that some cruise lines provide formula for children. Given the variety of brands and types (ready to use, concentrate, powder, soy, with iron…) I’m surprised that they would want to offer this service, given the potential for mix up unless you have a knowledgeable person purchasing the formula. Similarly, if someone pre-cruise fails to fill the order correctly, the crew, who may have limited knowledge and access to formula in port is left to resolve the problem, whether it’s finding some in port or having some sent to the ship.

From reading these boards I’ve learned it is not uncommon for a cruise line, not just Celebrity, to fail to provide pre-requested items of all types. That doesn’t mean that is OK, but it happens. Knowing that, along with the added activity on the Mercury dealing with the norovirus situation, I personally would not have wanted to take any chances and would have brought along my own formula, especially being particular with things like expiration dates. Again, that does not eliminate Celebrity’s accountability. Fortunately, in this case, with the child being 11 months old, the baby food provided, along with table food (juice, fruits, vegetables, bread…) available on the ship, hopefully minimized the impact of not having the requested formula. As appears to be the case, a younger child may have fared worse in this situation. Hopefully Celebrity will evaluate this incident, study the lessons learned, and make any necessary changes. I'm glad it appears that the OP and her family enjoyed other aspects of the cruise, hopefully returning home with some happy memories!

[Host Walt]

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[Desertbelle]

From our guidelines:

 

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Thanks for the reminder Walt.

 

I think it's unconscionable for people to be calling the OP a bad parent when they don't even know her.....shame on them.

[Host Walt]

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