Century or Constellation for Baltics Cruise in 2007

[katiebeth]

We are thinking of booking a Baltics cruise next summer on either the Constellation or Century. We sailed the Constellation in July of 2003 on the British Isles and Norweign Fjords itinerary. It was terrific and the Constellation was beautiful. We have also sailed on Infinity and have the Millennium booked this summer for the Med. Our only experience with Celebrity has been on the "M" class ships.

 

The idea of sailing on a smaller vessell with many of the same amenities as the "M" class ships does have some appeal to us. Am I correct that the Century it being totally refurbished? Does that include all of the staterooms and public rooms as well, or is Celebrity only adding things to the Century (such as balconies, a speciality restaurant, sushi bar, etc.). Does Century have a spa or will she have the refurbishment?

 

I am also assuming that all of the suites will be new on the Century?? We are looking at a Royal Suite on either the Constellation or Century. We have never sailed in a RS before but do have one booked on the Millennium this summer. The prices are better on the Century than the Constellation, but it is also 12 days vs. 14.

 

We will be sailing with our children who will be 11 and 13 at the time. I am assuming that the Century has a children's program just like the "M" class ships.

 

Finally, how far is Rotterdam from Amsterdam?

 

Any opinions or comments would be appreciated.

 

Thanks,

 

Nancy

[ArtM]

Nancy

 

I just did the same analysis and decided on the Connie for several reasons.

 

First, a 14 day cruise is always better than a 12 day cruise :) It also struck me that the Connie itineraries had one more port that the Century ones did.

 

Second, when I could match itineraries and dates, it looked like on a per diem basis, the Connie was noticeably less expensive. In particular, I was looking at relatively low end veranda staterooms.

 

Third, given that part of the cruising will be in the North Sea, which has a potential for being rough, I liked the fact that the Connie veranda staterooms were on relatively lower deck.

 

BTW, we ended up booking the June 2, 2007 Connie out of Dover.

 

There is currently another topic going about the Century departing from Rotterdam rather than Amsterdam that ought to answer most of your questions.

 

Art

[katiebeth]

Dear Art,

 

Thanks for posting. You make some very good points. You are so right about 14 days being better than 12!!!

 

We do love the Constellation and, although we like the idea of a refurbished Century ( and trying a smaller vessel), I must admit that I am a little concerned that we may miss all of the amenities of the "M" class ships.

 

I did do some further research and it appears that the Royal Suites are not new to the Century. The new suites will be Sky Suites. Your point about sailing from Rotterdam instead of Amsterdam is a good one as well. Although, it looks like Rotterdam is not too far from Amsterdam (maybe even closer than Dover is from London).

 

My husband has always wanted to do the Baltics and for whatever reason I have been less enthusiastic about the itinerary. (can't really explain why) We have done the British Isles and Norweign Fjords (which I would do again in a heartbeat, although it doesn't appear that Celebrity is offering this itinerary at all next summer) and we have the Med. scheduled for this summer. I think its finally his turn to pick the itinerary!! I would love to hear from anyone who has cruised the Baltics. We will be traveling with our children who will be 11 and 13 at the time and wondering if they will enjoy it. They travel frequently with us so I can't imagine that they wouldn't have a good time. It just seems that the Baltic itinerary may attract an older crowd than the Med.

 

Art ...you may have convinced me to stick with the Constellation. I do love the ship and crew!

 

Thanks and I hope you have a terrific cruise!

 

Nancy

[dbh62ark]

My husband and I have cruised the Baltics twice, most recently on the Constellation in 2005, and I know I saw some threads on the Baltics section of this site written by some who have done this itinerary with teens. I think that once you begin to research, you will become more enthused about the Baltics. Compared to the Med, English is very widely spoken in the Baltics and the ports are a lot closer to the main sights unlike some ports in the Med where you have a long commute in to the sites (Livorno and Civitavecchia). So most of the Baltics ports (other than St. Petersburg) are easy to do on your own, which usually is a very good experience if you do some advance planning. The only port that I'm not crazy about in the Baltics is Helsinki, and it's good but can't compare with the Med or the fjords in my opinion. But we enjoyed Copenhagen, Stockholm, and Tallinn as much as most of the Med ports (Venice is my favorite place on earth). The port stop in Germany gives you the opportunity to go into Berlin or to some lovely villages. Going to St. Petersburg is an incredible experience, and I highly recommend that you use a private driver (we used Denrus) there. We cruised the British Isles in 1996 and the fjords several years ago, and I think almost everyone who has been on those and the Baltics would rate the Baltics a little higher, even though they're all great cruises. There actually was a poll to rate these itineraries about a year ago, but I have no idea where to find it. I just wanted you to know that the Baltics cruises are popular for good reason, and I think you’ll enjoy it too.

 

The points made comparing the two Celebrity cruise are well taken. I'm partial to the Constellation because I sailed that itinerary, but I think either one would be good. I look at the itineraries from a little different point of view. Since you probably saw London prior to your British Isles/Norwegian fjords cruise, you would have the opportunity to stay in Amsterdam instead. It would be an incredible experience for your girls to visit the Anne Frank house. I expected it to be a moving experience, but I am literally getting chill bumps just thinking about it! Amsterdam is a nice place to visit, but it's something to think about with young daughters because of the red light district and the open pot smoking at the cafes. You can avoid all of that fairly easily, but it's something to consider for your individual situation.

 

I think the Baltics does attract an older age group than the Med.

 

We really enjoyed the 4 sea days that we had on the Constellation. That's a lot of sea days, and my husband and I are very active so were concerned about that, but the port days are long with lots of walking (for us). Also, we lost 4 hours in time changes before we arrived in St. Petersburg (and of course gained them back on the way to Dover), so the Baltics can become a wonderful endurance test. If you sail the Century, you'll have less time at sea.

 

Good luck with your trip planning.

 

:) Donna

[katiebeth]

Dear Donna,

 

Thanks so much for taking the time to reply. We love the Constellation as well, so it is a tough choice. We do like the idea of visiting Amsterdam since we have never been there. However, your point regarding the Red Light district and the pot smoking in the cafes is well taken. Both of these issues would be tough to explain to the children. I do love the idea of taking them to see Anne Frank's house and the museums. Besides the seedy side of Amsterdam, did you enjoy the city? Is it pretty and does it have charm?

How does it compare to Copenhagen? We really liked Copenhagen. In terms of the British Isles and Norweign Fjords cruise we loved cruising the fjords and our favorite port was Brugges with Copenhagen being a close second.

 

I am trying to find out if all of the staterooms on the Century will be refurbished or if Celebrity is just adding additional staterooms as well as balconies and refurbishing the public rooms. I have not been able to get confirmation of whether or not all of the staterooms will be updated.

 

We will be making our decision in the next few days. I am grateful that we have such "tough" decisions to make.

 

Thanks,

 

Nancy

[florisdekort]

Hi Nancy,

 

Like you, I have only sailed M class ships (Infinity and Millennium).

 

So... because of that... we decided to book Century to the Baltics for the summer of 2007! We feel that if we never give a smaller ship a try, we will never know if we like it or not. And with Century getting her major upgrades right now, this seems to be the perfect time and ship to give C-class a try. And because it still is Celebrity, I am convinced that it will be a great cruise anyhow!

 

We booked back-to-back, the Baltics and the North Cape cruise. So, to follow up on the above responses, a 24 nights is better then 14 nights :cool:

 

Rotterdam is 45 minutes by train from Amsterdam Schiphol Airport, and 60 minutes from the center of Amsterdam. And yes, you are right, it is closer to Amsterdam as Dover is to London.

 

If you opt for the Century cruise, make sure to spend the night before sail away at Hotel New York in Rotterdam: http://www.hotelnewyork.nl/. This hotel is right at the Cruise Terminal. Getting to the ship is only a 1 minute walk. The hotel itself used to be the Holland America Line terminal in the early 20th century, when Holland America Line was offering regular scheduled sailings from Europe to the US and back.

 

 

Whatever you decide, I am sure you will have a fabulous time!

 

Best Regards,

Floris

[mahdnc]

 

We will be sailing with our children who will be 11 and 13 at the time. I am assuming that the Century has a children's program just like the "M" class ships.

 

Yes, Century has a very nice children's program. I am sure your kids will enjoy it as much as ours did.

[katiebeth]

Dear Floris and Mahdnc,

 

Thanks for taking the time to reply. I really appreciate it.

 

Floris --Thanks for the recommendation for a hotel in Rotterdam. We have always talked about trying one of the "smaller" vessels and I agree that if we are going to do it, now is the time, with the Century being refurbished. It's great that you will be spending 24 days on the Century. We have never done a back to back but would like to some day!! (hopefully in the not too distant future). Also, thanks for the information on the distance between Amsterdam and Rotterdam. It really is closer than between London and Dover.

 

Happy Sailings everyone!

 

Nancy

[dbh62ark]

However, your point regarding the Red Light district and the pot smoking in the cafes is well taken. Both of these issues would be tough to explain to the children. I do love the idea of taking them to see Anne Frank's house and the museums. Besides the seedy side of Amsterdam, did you enjoy the city? Is it pretty and does it have charm?

How does it compare to Copenhagen? We really liked Copenhagen. In terms of the British Isles and Norwegian Fjords cruise we loved cruising the fjords and our favorite port was Brugges with Copenhagen being a close second.

Yes, I did think that Amsterdam had a lot of charm. The city is beautiful, and I think it would be easy to avoid the red light district. You can cross the canal to walk on the other side of the street, and you don't have to walk through it. The cafes where pot smoking is allowed at the tables is another matter because they are everywhere, but from what I remember, there were signs posted outside the cafes that showed the marijuana leaf to indicate that it was a "smoking" section. I think if you keep your eyes open for those signs while you are walking, you can avoid that situation.

 

I would highly recommend the canal boat rides in Amsterdam to you and your family. They take you past all the charming houseboats and through the canals to see the wonderful architecture. We also did a Frommers walking tour (I'm a big fan of their walking tours) that was so interesting because it took us by all the interesting architecture to a house that was 6 feet wide and to some really old, beautiful squares. One of the walking tours starts in the red light district, but you can skip that part. If you have a chance to go to the flower market and like that kind of thing, it's awesome. There is also a beautiful ship in one of the harbors that is a museum; we didn't have time to go on that, but I have friends who did and loved it. I don't know the name of that museum (sorry). We also went to the Van Gogh museum, and it's a very nice museum if you like his work. It's fairly close to the Hard Rock cafe if your girls are into that. If you are there for a pre-cruise stay and like biking, Amsterdam is a wonderful place to rent a bike. You've probably seen the photos of all the bikes there. One other tip--make the Anne Frank house your first stop because the lines can be long later during the day. Arriving in the morning, we only had to wait about 15 minutes during a busy month (early May) and visited with other tourists in line.

 

There is a really nice board member named Ine who is from Amsterdam that may be able to give you some tips on avoiding the "adult" side of Amsterdam with children. She posts a lot on the British Isles boards, but I don't know whether or not she reads the Celebrity boards.

 

It's hard for me to compare Copenhagen to Amsterdam. I don't think they're similar because they look so different, but I liked Amsterdam as much as Copenhagen. I think they're both great cities for just getting out and walking around. In Copenhagen, one of my favorite scenic areas is Nyhaven, and I don't know of an area in Amsterdam that compares to that because the buildings in Amsterdam look so different. The canals are a big part of the scenery in Amsterdam. Maybe another board member will have some thoughts on that.

 

I guess my only other comment is that I wish I were going with you! :) But if you need any additional info from me, I'll be glad to help.

 

Have a great trip,

Donna

[ArtM]

I should have added that we have done one cruise on the Century. We really liked the ship. It seemed to have a lot more wood and an overall more elegant appearance than the M-class ships. I guess the overall impression is that we were on "the owner's ship."

 

Hope none of that elegance gets lost with the current up-dating.

 

Art

[Sonrisa7]

I’m probably not qualified to answer, since I will be taking my first cruise this August (finally! – Century 12 night Scandinavia and Russia – can’t wait), but I was faced with the same dilemma before booking and I thought I would share my thinking, faulty as it might be. And while I’ve never been on either ship (yet) I have lived in and travelled throughout Europe for the past 20 years.

To start, it seems like in 2007 there are different Constellation itineraries to choose from, some starting in Stockholm, others rt Dover, some with 3 sea days and others with 4. In my thinking these are all better than the 2006 itineraries, which I discarded in favor of the Century because:

1) The ones that fit my schedule only had 3 sea days and with the exception of St. Petersburg, were in a different port everyday. This to me sounded just plain exhausting. I hate the “if it’s Tuesday this must be Belgium” way to travel. I see that for 2007 they’ve scrapped one port (Oslo?) and do an overnight in Copenhagen. I think this is a great idea, as I’d rather have time to enjoy one place instead of be hurried in 2. I think that if this had been available in 2006 it might have swayed me the other way, as the one thing I regret about my cruise is that we won’t have much time in Copenhagen.

2) Amsterdam was a lot more convenient to get to than Dover. This of course is no longer the case since you would leave out of Rotterdam, but I think that’s still easier than Dover.

3) Connie was more expensive than Century (OK, per diem might be less, but overall expense was more, plus hotels in London are generally more expensive than comparable ones in The Netherlands, as is transportation from airports to city center and from city center to port). While not a determining factor, the difference in cost is a consideration.

4) One less currency to worry about. I live in the euro zone, but again, not a determining factor.

5) I was intrigued about the Century refurb and thought we might prefer a smaller ship with less walking and less people. So far I’m pleased with this decision. Can’t wait for the first reviews next month!

As for your kids: If you plan on spending 2-3 days or more post or pre cruise, I truly believe few cities can compare with London, whatever your age or tastes. It’s just in a different league (along with NYC, Paris and precious few others). It doesn’t matter how many times you go, as there is so much to do and see, and if your kids have never been they would love it. On the other hand, if you only have a day or so, Amsterdam is a lovely, quirky, interesting place and very easy to get around. The “seedy” stuff, although part of the city’s character and charm, can largely be avoided by not staying next to central train station area. Other areas are very picturesque. And you don’t have to go to the red light district if you don’t want to, although a smart parent could make that a very good learning experience – better to see some things for the first time with parental guidance than without. Rotterdam has less to offer the tourist, but is also pleasant for a day. I’ve never been to Dover, so can’t comment on that.

As you can see, I’m not recommending one over the other, just making things more complicated for you! Sorry...I didn’t think this would get so long.

[dbh62ark]

To start, it seems like in 2007 there are different Constellation itineraries to choose from, some starting in Stockholm, others rt Dover, some with 3 sea days and others with 4.

Oh my, I hadn't looked at the 2007 Celebrity Baltics itineraries. It sounds like Celebrity is taking a page from Oceania's book. That would make it even easier for me because my first preference would be to stay in Stockholm for a few days prior to sailing. We LOVED Stockholm and would go back there any day.

 

:) Donna

[dileep]

We have only sailed on the M-Class ships and we love them. We enjoyed the Baltics last year on the Constellation. However, Dover was not easy to get to from Heathrow. I would have preferred to have sailed out of Amsterdam on the Century, but decided that we endure Dover to be on a M-Class ship.

 

With the new Century, I might be tempted to give it a try!

 

For our cruise in 2007 we again chose to do the Med on the Millennium instead of the Galaxy when both itineraries were equally interesting.