Just returned fron the Mercury 9/24 to 10/3/2004 sailing. Any Questions?

[CINDON]

We just got home from 9 glorious days on the Mercury. We will be happy to answer any questions that anyone may have if we can.

[Marion2004]

Oh good, we are going in February. I'm sure we'll think of quite a few questions....we are booked into cabin 8006, an ocean view category #5. I've read quite a bit and have seen a few pictures. Any idea on what kind of a location we have, we know it is at the front of the ship. We would also like to bring a couple of bottles of special wine in our suitcases, do you know if that was a problem for anyone doing the same thing? I've heard the hair dryers aren't great and to bring your own. Mine is a low powered one anyway and since we are flying, I'd rather not have to bring any more than I have to. Do you think we'd be disappointed with theirs?

 

 

I'm sure I'll have more!

[CINDON]

Marion2004,

 

You are going to have a wonderful time on the Mercury. The staff and crew are the friendliest and provide the best service of any ship that we have sailed and we have been on 18 cruises. The Captain and Staff Captain on this ship actually mingled with the passengers. We got to know them fairly well and they treated all the passengers like they were extended family. I'll answer your question in the order that you asked them.

 

 

Cabin 8006 is in the front of the ship on the starboard side. This cabin will be all right if you don't encounter any very bad weather. Cabins located in the front of the ship will experience the ships movement in bad weather and rough seas. We didn't have any bad weather or rough seas on our recent sailing.

 

We had absolutely no problem bringing wine onboard. I brought 7 bottles in my carry-on.

 

The hair dryers are mounted to the wall in the bathroom and have a hose (like a vacuum cleaner) that connect the wall unit to the defuser drying head. They seemed to have quite a bit of drying power but were hard to use because of the hose. If you want to sit down at the vanity to dry your hair, you will have to bring your own hair dryer.

[JJPNYC]

I'll be on it on the Nov. 26 sailing.....what's happening down in Mexico? Any shore excursions to look at, or conversely ones to stay away from?

[Marion2004]

I guess all we can do is pray for calm seas! Thanks for your info!

[rae]

Don & Cindy!

Welcome home!! Glad you had such a wonderful cruise. The Mercury sounds great! It's so encouraging to hear all about the wonderful service and staff. I'll be looking for a trip report in the near future and can hardly wait to hear all about your cruise.

Bye for now

Muriel

[MSBYRDY]

Do you happen you remember the Captain's name?

Thanks

Marilyn

[high seas gal]

CinDon,

What was the highlight of your cruise? Which port did you enjoy the most, and why? Was there one particular port which you found good for shopping? How was the food on Mercury? And ... on formal nights what were folks dressed like? Lots of tuxes? Dark suits? Long gowns? Cocktail gowns? Other types of clothing? Did folks tend to remain in their formal wear after dinner? My curosity has the best of me ... we're sailing on Oct. 13!

[Marion2004]

CinDon, did you take the ship's excursions or did you use cabs, tours etc. at the pier?

[johnsfo]

Who was your cruise director? We are also sailing on Oct 13? Also, which nights were the formal nights on your 9 night cruise? Thanks for your responses. John

[CINDON]

JJPNYC and Marion2004,

We did not take any of the ships excursions.

• In Catalina we rented a golf cart and toured the island. This was a very scenic, and a fantastic way to see Catalina.
  
• In Puerto Vallarta we took a 3 hour tour on our on in an air conditioned 12 passenger van for $20.00/person. It was a great way to see all of the important things. The tour drivers will be waiting when you arrive at the tender pier from the ship. They will be dressed in white uniforms and have credentials/name/photo I.D's on a lanyard around thier neck for all to see. After the tour is over they will drop you off at the tender dock or in town for some shopping. We got dropped off in town and shopped for awhile. The cab ride to the tender pier after shopping was $3.00 total for the cab.
  
• In Cabo San Lucas we just went on a walking/shopping tour on our own. Every thing is near the tender drop off and within walking distance. Try not to miss Cabo Wabo and The Giggling Marlin. They are both fun places.
  

MSBYRDY,

 

The Captain's name is Anastasios P. Salessiotis

The Staff Captain's name is Isidoros A. Makrionitis

The Social Hostess's name is Winnie Hung

The Cruise Director's name is Dru Povlov

 

They are all great fun loving people that place a lot of importance on the passengers and they are all accsessable and not behind the scenes.

 

high seas gal,

 

• The highlight of our cruise was being invited to dine with the Captain at the Captain's table. We were invited by Winnie the Social Hostess. It was a good time and we really enjoyed it.
  
• The port that we enjoyed the most was Peurto Vallarta. We liked the fantastic scenery of the ocean and the hillside homes and villas. We also liked the shopping there.
  
• As stated above we thought that Puerto Vallarta was the best port for shopping.
  
• We found the food on Mercury to be quite good considering all of the cutbacks that almost all cruise lines have been going through.
  
• The dress was about 50% tuxs and 50% dark suits for men. Women were wearing both long gowns, cocktail gowns, and dressy pant suits on formal nights. Most folks remained in thier formal attire for the remainder of the evening.
  

[MSBYRDY]

Thanks for the names.

Marilyn

[PeggySand]

HI! Thanks for answering all of the questions that have been asked of you. We will be on the Mercury for the 12/06 sailing to the Mexican Riviera. Did you try the T-Pool, and do you feel it is worth the money? How about the regular pools and whirlpools? Also, I was wondering how people get the opportunity to dine with the Captain? This will be our sixth cruise, but our first with Celebrity, so I know we probably don't have a chance. One last question (for now)........ how was the ocean water temperature in PV and Cabo? I suppose it will get warmer as we travel further south, but we are thinking about doing some snorkeling on this trip and are hoping that it won't be too cold in December.

Thanks, Peggy

[CINDON]

PeggySand,

 

The T-Pool is fabulous. We found it to be much better on the C class ships than on the larger M Class ships. It is very relaxing. I cannot comment on your question regarding price because it was free to us. I don't even know how much it costs normally. The regular pools are fairly small. The hot tubs look large enough but we did not try them.

 

The only way to get an invitation to dine with the Captain once onboard is to impress The Social Hostess (currently Winnie Hung). She is looking for smiling faces and outgoing people that she feels would best make an interesting table for the Captain. Also Captain's Club members with lots of cruises on Celebrity are chosen for thier loyalty. Talk to her when you board the ship and smile a lot. She carries a black book with her and is constantly taking notes about people that she meets. Good Luck.

 

I don't know about the water temperature in PV or Cabo. We did not go in the water. Some people were going snorkeling so it must not have been too cold. If the outside temperature means anything it was very hot in both places. 98 degrees in the shade.

[rucruisn2]

Cindon, Loved your idea about renting the golf cart in Catalina. How did you go about it? What was the cost? Thanks!

[trcori]

Peggy S - we sailed Mercury to Cabo last April. My 8-year-old son and I were determined to have a swim, so we waded into the water ... certainly not Caribbean-warm ...took a while to get used to ... but tolerable! December, however, might be a different story. Perhaps some form of a wet or dry suit would be advisable for real enjoyment :)

 

TR

Millennium EC 12/12/04

****

Mercury MX-CA 4/04, Infinity AK 8/03, Century WC 3/03 & EC 9/02

[johnsfo]

Please tell us which nights were formal nights. Thank you. John

[Marion2004]

Do you happen to remember the name of the tour company? It would be nice to go with a company that we know is reliable. I've already started to pack for February! Not really, I am putting away some summer things so I put them in the suitcase I'll be taking. Speaking of clothes, can you kind of give me an idea of what I'll need for an 11 night cruise? If there are 3 formal nights, I have one gown and a 'little black dress' that I'm sure I could get away with wearing a couple of times. We are flying so I'm trying to get away with one good sized suit case each plus a carry on.

 

Thanks,

Lynda

[RM]

We also sailed with Cindon so we'll try to help out too.

 

Marion our cabin had 2 hair dryers. One attached to the wall in the bathroom and another in the bathroom cabinets. The unattached one was much better.

 

Wouldn't swim in PV. The water looked yucky!

 

In Cabo I took the short boat tour (1 hour) to Los Arcos. Absolutely lovely and great photo ops. The stores were more expensive here then in PV and their was very little bargaining going on in our experience.

 

In Catalina we just strolled around. Great little town with some great shops and bars.

[Montana]

My Husband and I and our 23 year old beautiful daughter were on the Constellation Baltic cruise in June,04. To our surprise we were invited to dine with the captain. We were in a FV room category and everyone else at the table were in Suites, however, when seated at the table our daughter was seated to the left of the Captain and myself and my husband to his immediate right. Moral of the story, if you want to be invited to dine with the Captain bring along a beautiful young woman or book a suite. I can't wait to leave next Wednesday the 13th of October for Mexico on the Mercury, and since our daughter is not comming with us since she is in graduate school, I hope to be dining with one of you and enjoying your company.

[CINDON]

rucruisn2,

 

The golf carts are $30.00 for two hours if memory serves me. You have to leave a $60.00 deposit and will be returned any money for unused time. The golf carts hold four people and are available on the main street in town. Go to the end of the pier and turn right. It's about a block away. Have fun:D .

[bjdcrd]

My husband Bob and I are sailing December 6th and after reading all of the above my enthusiasm for this trip has now tripled (at least)...how will I survive the last two months!! (My poor husband...I think I will be driving him crazy)

 

Thanks to all of you answers - Very much appreciated..

 

Cheers, Bonnie

[hookedoncruises]

We were also with Cindon. I just want to correct the golf carts. It was $30 an hour. We used it 1 3/4 hour and received money back from our $60 deposit.

[Tatka]

Do you by any chance remember what time pools were closed?

 

Thank you

[TomL]

Can you give me some information regarding the gym on the Mercury? Were there aerobics classes daily at sea? I am an exercise fanatic and will need my fix daily. What were the ages of most aboard?

Thanks for any information. My wife and I are sailing the last voyage in December.