Mercury disappointment

[oceanview585]

First time Celebrity cruiser after 6 cruises on Princess. Thought we would try Mercury out on a quick 3 day Northwest excursion before our planned Solstice adventure next year. Walked right on at Seattle pier without problem. Thought the champagne at the gangway was a nice touch. Unlike Princess surprised rooms not ready when they let people on. Buffet was ok and surprisingly not very crowded for first day. Friend's cabin was to have two twins but it was made up as double but room steward quickly remedied. Second seating dinner was to be a table for all eight traveling together however they set us at a table for six and 2 of our group had to eat at another table as they were unable to fix it on the spot. However it was remedied on the second night. The food had beautiful presentation but the variety was strange. They served lamb for lunch at buffet then served it as entree choice next two nights at dinner. There were three dessert choices shown on a tray to pick from but they had bread pudding the first two nights. We were wondering if it was left over. The only steak served was a london broil on the last night and it was not available on the "always available" menu. All three nights at dinner we had to ask several times to send the person to take our bar orders. We tried to go get a snack at 4:30pm but there was no buffet open so went to pool grill as it was the only place serving and there were about 25 or more people in line. With the exception of the comedian who was excellent the entertainment was expected cruise ship fair. Surprisingly the drink order taker never got us to order anything during the entertainment. There were not enough people wainting on the croud. They missed a lot of revenue. Somehow we overlooked a form that we were supposed to turn in the first day allowing the auto tips. Because we had not turned it in we had to deal with those silly envelpes. I thought the auto tips were just that...automatic!

Disappointed in that I had thought Celebrity was supposed to be a step up from Princess. The ports were wonderful however when we had to tender they only offered two tenders so even by 11:30am they were still requiring tender tickets which caused some angry passenger vs staff confrontations at the tender gangway from people thinking by then they should have been able to walk right off without tickets.

We will give Celebrity a second try however I met a lot of first time cruisers who were using this as a trial to see if they liked cruising and I am afraid Celebrity Mercury did not do enough to step up to make people want to crusise again.

[FinelyCruising]

Three days is not a worthy indication of any cruise IMHO.

[hcat]

I suspect they let alot of staff take time off during short cruises--at least that was the case when we did a weekend on QM 2. We have always been pleased with Mercury & did a 5 day Pacific NW cruise a few yrs ago--it was all very nice! Maybe three days is just too short

[cruiseyguy]

I, too, was on this 3-day cruise, together with my parents and brother. I have been on all 4 "M" class ships but never on Mercury. Based on my experiences on the "M" class ships I was very disappointed with the food and beverage service on this cruise. It was difficult to impossible to get a drink at the evening cocktail venues, especially the small Martini Bar. On the second evening, in the Rendez-Vous Lounge the bartender told us she could not make martinis because she was out of martini glasses. Then when we asked her to use any available glass, she simply said "No" and turned away from us. In the Martini Bar the bartender would simply disappear for long periods and there would be no one available to take drink orders (this was during prime evening cocktail hours). It was this way all over the ship---almost impossible to get any bar service, which clearly resulted in lost revenue for the company. As for the "London Broil" mentioned by the OP, it wasn't real London Broil, which is flank steak marinated for tenderness and flavor, but simply flank steak roasted, cut as a single piece and covered with a bland brown gravy. Impossible to cut without a steak knife, which was "not available." And so it went throughout the cruise. On the plus side, the cruise was fun, the ports pleasant, the weather "mixed," and the stateroom service excellent (the bathroom in my cabin was absolutely spotless). But the F&B operation was way off track and I noted such on my evaluation. BTW-this was an extremely popular cruise and was completely sold out--a very bad time to let crew take a break, if that was the case.

[wa.mama]

We were on this cruise also, and echo the food reports. However, my kids managed to order steak every night in the dining room, and our table managed to order the regular shrimp cocktail appetizers. I think the "old menu" is still partially there, but one has to know what to ask for and order it in advance. For example, the Celebrity dressing is not mentioned in the menu selection but if you ask for it you can get it. Our waiter seemed used to these complaints as he had a ready answer to all questions regarding menu changes.

 

It's our fault all the martini glasses were dirty!:p We found the service appalling but my DH would hunt down the bartender, order in bulk, then we'd be OK for a few hours. Enjoyed the martini samplers but they seem to be mixed a little weaker than before. I thought the music in the Martini bar was painful, but I know it varies.

 

I can see how it pales for a previous princess cruiser, as I also feel the service and quality is subpar or equal at best. If you are expecting a superior experience you may find it at Crystal or Radisson, but Celebrity, sadly, is just a mainstream cruise line these days.

[dkjretired]

Should have done a little better research, Celebrity has never had buffets for dinner and tipping is not automatic. The customers on Celebrity prefer it that way. You will find the same thing on Solstice, not buffet and tipping is not automatic.

[richsea]

I'd like to chalk this up to the fact that it was a three day cruise (as Seinfeld would say: "not that there's anything wrong with that")

 

At least I hope so.:(

[mike35]

I'd like to chalk this up to the fact that it was a three day cruise (as Seinfeld would say: "not that there's anything wrong with that")

 

At least I hope so.:(

 

We were on the 8-night 9/14 - 9/22 Mercury - same negatives applied, unfortunately.

[hcat]

No Celebrity Dressing on the menu?--no way!

[dixieva]

I'm considering my first Celebrity cruise. Did I read this right? There is no dinner buffet on Celebrity ships? So you have only the dining room for dinner or maybe room service? We usually eat in the dining room but some nights like to go casual and eat in the buffet for dinner.

[cruiseyguy]

Customers on a 3-day cruise deserve the same quality as those on a 14-day cruise. The ship appeared to be understaffed-could be several reasons for that but it should not have adversely affected the customers' cruise experience. There was also a serious lack of English language skills at all levels-waitstaff, stateroom attendants and, most egregiously, customer relations. No excuse for that one.

[Karynanne]

I'm considering my first Celebrity cruise. Did I read this right? There is no dinner buffet on Celebrity ships? So you have only the dining room for dinner or maybe room service? We usually eat in the dining room but some nights like to go casual and eat in the buffet for dinner.

 

 

In the buffet area, there is pizza, sushi and pasta available...but no traditional buffet during the dinner hours.

 

There is also an "alternative dining" area in the buffet, that does offer a varied menu. This is served course by course by waiters that are in the training process. The charge is $2.00/per person.

[Lois R]

I'm considering my first Celebrity cruise. Did I read this right? There is no dinner buffet on Celebrity ships? So you have only the dining room for dinner or maybe room service? We usually eat in the dining room but some nights like to go casual and eat in the buffet for dinner.

 

There is an area upstairs near the buffet that gets

set up for what is called "Alternative Dining". You are served

on linen, off a menu in a more casual atmosphere.

You usually get about 4 entree choices.

 

They also have, as Karynanne mentioned, Pizza, Pasta and

Sushi.

 

No traditional buffets for dinner.

 

Hi Karyn:)

[Canadianhey!]

As it has been a couple of years since we cruised celebrity I can not comment on X food since then. Mercury was the best. I am sorry to hear that it has gone down hill. Getting drinks during the entertainment, I can agree with. It is alway hard, so many people, such a big room and yes probably not enough staff. I know it is tacky but I would walk in with a drink, then the waiters would notice an empty glass and ask if you wanted another. Hey it worked

[Sky Sweet]

One of Celebrity's best features is that it has more crew per passenger than other mass market cruise lines.

 

With that in mind, how is it possible for them not to have enough crew to provide good service on a cruise?

 

Is it because their personnel resources were not properly allocated on this cruise or that they no longer have the same crew per passenger ratio that they once did, but the statistics have not been amended accordingly?

[FinelyCruising]

One of Celebrity's best features is that it has more crew per passenger than other mass market cruise lines.

 

With that in mind, how is it possible for them not to have enough crew to provide decent service on a cruise?

 

Is it because their personnel resources were not properly allocated on this cruise or that they no longer have the same crew per passenger ratio that they once did, but the statistics have not been amended accordingly?

 

 

Sky Sweet--- We were on the Connie last March and they sold so many of the martini glasses as souveniers that there were no clean ones available for use!!!

 

Alternate/Different Point of View Number 1

[cruiseyguy]

I wouldn't suggest that the food & service on the Mercury 3 day cruise is typical of Celebrity but it may be typical of Mercury at this point in time.

[Norcal Cruiser]

I sure hope you are all wrong about the Mercury.We are planning to spend 16 days onboard her next month.We have sailed on the Mercury twice before.One time great ( 3 years ago) one time not so great (last April).I hope it was just the fact that it was a 3 day cruise.We believe that the longer you get to sail and know the crew the better your experience will be.We took a 15 Nt.Panama Canal cruise 3 years ago and by the time we disembarked we knew the crew so well several of the crew members left the ship before us and stuck around to shake our hands.But we were on the Infinity.I know there are new menus and the Mercury is a smaller ship but I have loved the lectures on the Mercury and I'm still not cooking or cleaning and really how bad could Hawaii be? 8 at sea days.Those of you who are working while we are sailing would you really rather be there? I expect great service.We will let you know what we get!

[jimgev]

I was on this three day cruise also. The service we received was great. We established a great rapport with our dinning room servers and our stateroom attendants. They were simply wonderful.

Our stateroom was very clean as was the bathroom.

Overall, we found the food to be a bit disappointing. I ordered the lamb on the first night and thought it to be tough. The deserts were unimaginative and unexciting.

I thought the quality of the food at the buffet for both breakfast and lunch was far superior to the quality of the food at the dinning room for dinner.

All in all, we had a very nice time and would cruise on this venue again.

Jim

[Norcal Cruiser]

Thanks Jim...At least now I won't be dreading our cruise.How could you dread going on a cruise?I hope we like the food better.Will let you know.

[Lois R]

Thanks Jim...At least now I won't be dreading our cruise.How could you dread going on a cruise?I hope we like the food better.Will let you know.

 

Hi Kathy,:) I sailed her for 8 nights on Sept 14th and had

a wonderful time. I posted some thoughts about it but

they are a few pages back now.

It was my 6th sailing on Mercury and I am trying to find

another one for next year too.

 

Hope you have a fantastic cruise. I would love to sail her

for 16 nights:)

[elena7seas]

Hi Kathy,:) I sailed her for 8 nights on Sept 14th and had

a wonderful time. I posted some thoughts about it but

they are a few pages back now.

It was my 6th sailing on Mercury and I am trying to find

another one for next year too.

 

Hope you have a fantastic cruise. I would love to sail her

for 16 nights:)

 

As our resident expert on all things Mercury, I was wondering what your experience was with the food on the Mercury in September, especially in comparison to your past cruises?

 

We were on her last October when they were just trying out some of the new menu selections, and except for one entree, I thought the food was great, as good or better than it had been in the past.

 

I would appreciate any of your thoughts on the subject of food on the Mercury.

 

Thanks!

[Lois R]

Hi Elena,

Was everything as good as in the past? Probably not. But

its just part of my overall experience, which was outstanding.

I know alot of crew and staff on board and they always make

me feel so welcomed~and this time I had some wonderful

folks from these boards on my sailing so that was super too.

 

Did they have the same choices on the "offered every day" plan?

No. They had chicken and fish but I don't recall seeing the

steak.

I am trying to think back to what I had each night.....guess

I am having a Sr moment but it was almost a month ago

now so I really can't remember. Did I order shrimp cocktail?

Nope..did I order escargot? Yes...it was delicious.

 

 

I did have a problem with the wine one evening. I wanted one

they have listed on the menu...was told they were out.

So I picked a 2nd...out of that one too. When the Sommelier

brought me a 3rd to taste I didn't like it and he understood and

took it back.

Well, the following night (or 2 nights later) I went to order

another wine and he told me he had found my 1st choice:eek:..actually

a few bottles of it.

That was a bit strange. But I guess stuff happens.

I also agree that the Martini Bar is understaffed when it gets

busy....and I have said something on board about it too.

They need 2 bartenders in there many times.

 

From reading all the posts on this forum I can see almost everyone

is unhappy about the food.

 

I have 2 more cruises booked with final payments almost due

so I guess I am in the minority.

 

Not sure if this is the answer you want but If I say too many

positive things I will probably get a flame thrown at me.

[sunnydaze]

"I suspect they let alot of staff take time off during short cruises--"

_____________________________________________

 

No - They do not "let alot of staff take time off"

They have ALL signed contracts, and don't just come + go. Taking any time off is a HUGE thing, requiring tons of paperwork, and is almost impossible to do until your contract is up. It also protects the employee.

They have the same number of staff for every length of cruise.

[Sky Sweet]

Duplicate post due to computer glitch