Butler Service

[Bern loves cruising]

I have booked a Sky Suite on the Mercury for an October sailing. What is included in the Sky Suite and Butler services? This will be my first celebrity cruise and I am curious how it will compare to Royal Caribbean.

 

Thanks,

Bern

[claud925]

Celebrity's Butler Service on Mercury

Celebrity's suites include European butler service, a Celebrity exclusive.

This service includes:

 

• Assistance with unpacking/packing
  
• Daily news delivery
  
• Full breakfast
  
• In-suite lunch & dinner service
  
• In-suite afternoon tea service
  
• Evening hors d'oeuvres daily
  
• Complimentary espresso & cappuccino
  
• Shoeshine service
  
• Delivery of requested board games

Sky Suite Indulgences

When you stay in Sky Suite on Mercury you will receive these added amenities:

 

24-hour European butler service

• Priority check-in and departing
  
• Priority luggage delivery at boarding
  
• Welcome champagne
  
• Dining room seating preference
  
• Personalized stationery
  
• Celebrity tote bag
  
• 100% cotton oversized bath towels
  
• Complimentary use of bathrobes
  
• Private portrait sitting
  
• Opportunity to book in-suite massage
  
• Complimentary use of Thalassotherapy pool

[cruisin'mama]

I will be in a Sky Suite on Mercury in June and am looking forward to having dinner served on my verandah if it's not to windy or chilly. I have heard that if you don't like what is served for your evening hor d'oeuvers, you can request something else like shrimp cocktail or cheese and fruit, etc. I hear the butlers are WONDERFUL and I can't wait to be a little pampered ( as a mom of 3 teenage boys, I don't get pampered too much!).

Cathy

[Bern loves cruising]

Thanks for the info. I am sure looking forward to getting spoiled. To Cathy, I am also a Mom of 3 boys 13, 11, & 7. Keep me posted on your cruise, would love to here about it.

Bern

[cruisin'mama]

I will have my boys with me, although the oldest 2- 19 and 18 will be across the hall. I will have my 15 year old who has Down Syndrome in my Sky Suite with me. I am hoping that the older 2 will be able to partake in the pleasures of the Sky Suite too. They basically will only be across the hall to sleep and shower. I am going to try to get them their own keys for my cabin so they can come and go as they please in there too. When I booked the cruise, my husband was going too and all 5 wouldn't fit in the Sky Suite so they put the older boys across the hall. Now that my husband isn't going, they COULD have fit us all in there, but I decided to leave it as it was so we'd have the extra bathroom and a little more privacy. I'll let you know how it goes.

Cathy

[Bern loves cruising]

This July I am taking a cruise with my Sister and Brother on Royal Carribean for a 4 night cruise to the Bahamas. We are staying in a Junior Suite and I am guessing the rooms are similar in size to the Sky Suite on the Mercury. I am curious to see how 3 adults will get along in a 264 square ft. room. Good luck on the cruise with the boys. I see your from Riverside, Ca so am I.

[cruisin'mama]

That's great that you're cruising with your brother and sister! When my husband cancelled at the last minute, I tried to get my brother to take his spot, but he's working on his Masters and couldn't miss a week of school. He lives in Cheyenne and I don't get to see him much so that would have been nice. I think a junior suite will work out ok for you. What perks do you get with that? Anything like X?

What part of Riverside are you in? I'm in Orangecrest.

Looks like you'll be leaving for the Bahamas right after I get back from Alaska enjoy!

Cathy

[Bern loves cruising]

First of all we are neighbors. I live in Woodcrest near King High School. I am sailing on Sovereign of the Seas, July 17-21. My travel agent as told me that they usually have a Concierge Room for passengers in suites but I believe the junior suite does not qualify for this Concierge room on this particular ship. I believe the room size is what we are paying for.

 

Have you sailed before on Celebrity? Do they supply shampoo, lotions or other bathroom ammenities?

[cruisin'mama]

What a small world! I have one son who is a senior at King HS and one that has already graduated from there. My youngest is finishing Earhart MS this year.

 

I have never sailed on Sovereign of the Seas. Have you checked the RCCL boards to ask about the Conceirge Room for a junior suite? Hopefully it's available to you. That's sounds nice! Good luck!

 

I have never been on Mercury, but I have been reading like crazy about it. I was worried after the Noro cruises, but it's sounds like everything is ok now. I am really excited to cruise on her. And even more so having a Sky Suite with the huge verandah AND a butler! I was trying to find some of the old threads I read to give you more info on what to expect from your butler. I'll keep checking.

 

I have read that "normal" rooms have dispensers for shampoo and lotion, but the suites get the little bottles in a basket. I'll let you know for sure when I get back. Also, if there is anything else you want me to check out, why don't you email me at:

baseballmom2001@att.net

 

Cathy

[la_croisiere_s'amuse]

I am sailing on Sovereign of the Seas, July 17-21. My travel agent as told me that they usually have a Concierge Room for passengers in suites but I believe the junior suite does not qualify for this Concierge room on this particular ship. I believe the room size is what we are paying for.

Mind if I step in here? :)

 

We took the family on Sovereign of the Seas last summer. We were in the Grand Suite which normally would qualify for the Concierge Lounge services, but unfortunately there isn't one on Sovereign.

 

That being said, we LOVED this ship! She is small but we enjoyed the scale more than the mega-Voyager ships. I'm sure you'll have a wonderful time.

[Bern loves cruising]

Jump in anytime :) . How was the weather last summer in the Bahamas? ( I am assuming that is where you went on the Sovereign? ) I am anticipating it to be hot and very humid.

[cruisin'mama]

Found this on another thread...

 

Here's some things I've found!

 

For those people in Suites that are getting tired of "Guess the room appetizers"...you can ask your Butler for a different pre dinner snack like sliced melon or shrimp cocktail. On our Galaxy Cruise, after the first 5 days of the butler picking up the plate, totally untouched, we were told we had these options. From that point on we had a HUGE shrimp cocktail brought to our cabin while we were getting ready for dinner, and when we returned he'd have a plate a slice melon waiting for us. (I think the reason for the second plate was for suck up purposes....overall him and the room steward screwed up the first 5 days of the trip, and the head housekeeper told him to let us know our other options!) If these can be offered on one cruise to make up for bad service, then I'm going to ask for them from the beginning of the next cruise because now I do know that it's available!!

 

You can also ask for your fruit options in the suite. There's the regular fruit bowl, and a tropical fruit bowl. We didn't find out about this either until after the 5th day....our regular fruit bowl had sat uneated for 4 days with mold on it! The head housekeeper gave us a list of fruit available, and from that point on, our fruit bowl was made fresh daily with our choices.

 

If your bed is too hard, they do have wonderful matress pads that the room steward can put on the matress to make it softer, or to fill up a whole in the mattress that's formed. My husband likes a firm matress, and I like a soft one, so the room steward came in and put 3 matress pads on the bed...I slept like a baby. I was told ANYONE could ask for this!

 

Also Chicken Breast is offered everynight at dinner along with Salmon, Shrimp Cocktail, Cesear Salad, Baked Potato, and just about anything you can find on the room service menu (Our tablemates LOVED the Clam Chowder, and had that for their soup one night!) If you only like a regular salad with iceberg lettuce and tomatoes...that's do-able too! Also had a good friend that wanted mashed potatoes everynight with his dinner, and it was there each night...enough for the whole table. You ask, it'll be there!

 

The room service chocolate chip cookies are HUGE!! We'd order 2 of those (for 3 of us) for eating with our afternoon tea. That's another thing....hot tea and coffee aren't the only things you can have brought to you in a suite. Your butler can also bring in iced tea. It was wonderful with those cookies!

 

Cathy

[cruiselover20]

Our butler, Arles, on the Summit April 9th, was horrible. We were never offerered anything extra, had the same cheap canapes as the concierge class.

 

When we ask about having dinner in our suite, 9096, he said "it is just too much work, as I have to go down to the kitchen and get each thing just like the dining room staff"......Well, needless to say he got the minimum tip.

 

I guess I don't think you should have to ask for anything, they should ask you what you might like. He also informed me he had 12 suites, so do the math, he was making out okay even with the minimum.

 

No more Celebrity.

[cruisin'mama]

I was thinking of having my son eat in our Sky Suite for dinner while he has an in-room babysitter. Does the butler handle this too?

[jarbg]

I was on the Mercury on the May 8 cruise in a sky suite.

 

In my opinion the butler was useless. He was friendly enough but with the exception of the afternoon tea and seting up room service delivered food he did nothing that you could not get from your normal cabin steward.

 

We got a note saying that flowers would be in our room after San Francisco, never got them.

 

No offer to help pack or unpack, no pillow menu, no offer to shine shoes, no offer to serve dining room food in room even after we ordered room service. No priority baggage delivery, no priority embarcation or debarkation.

 

I liked the room but for some afternoon tea and snacks I would never pay for the service again.

[sbmaureen]

We really enjoyed our butler (Darrell) on the Summit last fall. He brought us cappucino and croissants from the cova cafe every morning for breakfast. When I told him the cappucinos were smaller than we were used to he would bring me two or three at a time. We told him what we wanted in the morning and afternoon and what drinks we wanted in our frig and we weren't disappointed. He brought us champagne and cake and decorated our suite for my birthday and was outside the door with a big smile waiting for us to come up so he could open the door and show it to us. When my daughter was seasick he made sure we had 7-up and soda crackers in our room at all times. He was just great. I couldn't wait to book another trip in a suite when we got back.

[A Little Pixie Dust]

sorry - my questions has been answered.

[Joy2]

Wonderful additions to special occasions or just for making one feel more pampered than ever. We cruise over my birthday which for the past four years has been on Summit on the repositioning coastal cruise to Alaska. Last year we had people in during the cocktail hour which overlapped with the tea hour - we had sandwiches and all kinds of hors d'oeuvres and of course a magnificent birthday cake. We have never had a butler who hasn't gone far beyond what we expected - last year our butler wanted to bring breakfast and we wanted to start our day meeting new people in the dining room - we compromised - started with something light in the cabin, then on to our dining room breakfast - again for something light! When our dining room reservation was not as requested, the butler straightened it out - . For two weeks of pampering, I dread giving up the wonderful experiences we have had - we've been on many other cruises without a butler but now find there is a big void without one - Cruising is designed to be one place where being pampered is standard - the butler makes sure every moment creates a new wonderful memory. Enjoy your cruises!

[cruisin'mama]

jarbg,

 

I will be on the Mercury June 23...what suite were you in and who was your butler?

[cechase]

I am sorry to read that some people have had very poor butlers. Our experience has been just the opposite having had five different butlers in Royal Suites in our five cruises on Celebrity.

 

They have been from very good to outstanding. On our very first cruise on Mercury, our butler Keith not only introduced himself and walked us around our Royal Suite, but engaged us in a friendly conversation concerning our wishes [no fruit plate] and explained briefly what services he would provide, gave us the phone number to call him, and told us when his off hours were, and who to call when he was off.

 

We learned from keith's introduction, and on each successive cruise had a similar conversation with Eduardo [first Century cruise], the legendary Lawrence [second century cruise], Bon Fee on Galaxy, and Stanley [second Mercury cruise]. We had a wonderful relationship with the butlers because we knew what they would provide and they knew our preferences, even right down to when we were in the cabin or were out.

 

There services are considerably more than merely providing tea sandwiches in the afternoon. They see to the pressing of gowns and suits, shining shoes, miraculously appear from nowhere to open your cabin door for you, set the dining room table in the evening, and deliver your breakfast at the appointed time [after calling first] in the morning, set and deliver dinner in your suite from the dining room menu not the room service menu, act as your go between with Guest Relations, see that any conditions needing fixing in your cabin are attended to forthwith, see that you get the appropriate furniture for your veranda, deliver paperwork for you to guest relations, see that you have all priority passes for tenders the night before they are needed, and so forth.

 

After our first cruise, I suggested to my DW that perhaps we might wish to get a Sky Suite or a veranda cabin. She responded - I want a Royal Suite :D and of course, I agreed with her not only because of the size and separate bedroom, but also for the great pampering we had received.

[jarbg]

I was in 1207 and Mateus was the butler.

 

Don't get me wrong, the cruise was great and the service was not bad, it just that it was no better than if I would have been in a normal room with only a cabin steward.

 

I expected that a butler would check in from time to time to see if you need anything or at least offer the services that are listed on their website as perks of a suite. He did not seem lazy but it may be that they are spread too thin to do a good job.

 

I have booked a 17 day cruise on Century next year so it did not bother me that much but I did not book a suite for that cruise.

[camella]

We sailed on the Summit to Hawaii on a 14 day cruise and because it was a long cruise, we opted for the sky suite with butler service partly because of the extra room and partly because of the "service". Unfortunately we had a terrible butler, who could only be bothered to go a little bit out of his way to bring us things when the cruise was almost over and his tip was in jeopardy. When we first got on board we asked him to please get us a wine bucket full of ice so I could keep my water chilled and also we had a few bottles of wine that we took to the dining room that needed to be chilled and our travel agent sent us some too. He couldn't even comply with this one simple request. I was constantly asking for ice and he was very put out when I did. I even wrote Celebrity a letter about the total lack of service and they just said oh ho hum...so sorry - and even knowing that we had already booked a cruise this summer you would have thought they could have at LEAST offered SOME type of discount. Even 10% but nothing. Never again. I love the line, and all of my other service was great but it was definitely NOT worth the extra money!

[tbelian]

We have always had great experiences with our butler(s). Perhaps part of the reason is that 4 out of the 6 (7?) cruises we've been on we have had Lawrence. We have also had Desmond, Sanjay (on our first cruise), and Alfred (on Infinity).

 

Ask and you shall receive. They are not mind readers. All the services 'listed' have been gladly provided when asked for (some services we didn't ask for). Their approach has always seemed to be 1.) remain unobtrusive until needed 2.) Provide what is asked for.

 

If you get a bad apple, complain!

 

Enjoy your cruise.

[DC2OC]

I was on May 8 Mercury sailing Suite 1222 and our Butler Elias was Excellent.All of our request were handled promply.He always asked how he could serve us when we met him in the hallway.When I was heading to the mailbox on my way to dinner he insisted on mailing my letters for me.The fruit bowl was always replenished with extras of what we were using most.I did inquire about the flowers and he said the mail people delivered "the letter" in error.(Flowers are not listed on the perks for SS service).We tipped him extra for his attentive service.

Frank:):):)

[Sonrisa7]

Does anyone know why the list of things included in the butler service on Century is different from the list on all the other ships? On Century (according to website) it includes flowers, pillow menu, duvets and pillow-top mattresses, which I don't see listed on the others. On the other hand, it says nothing about complimentary espresso and cappucino, full breakfast or in-suite lunch and dinner service or afternoon tea. Is this a mistake or are the suite perks really different?

 

Also is there a difference between "Early embarkation and debarkation" (Concierge class amenity) and "Priority check-in and departing" (suite amenity). Ditto for "Express luggage delivery" (CC) and "Priority luggage delivery at boarding" (Suite)?