It's OFFICIAL - Celebrity Millennium To Receive $10-Million “REFRESHMENT”

[MacThespian]

Hello everyone. Just a quick initial report of what we've seen on the Millie post dry dock.

 

When I checked a web cam at 7:30, Millie was already at Canada Place. Despite our documentation saying not to arrive before 2pm, we were able to get on around 11:30am.

 

As previously reported the carpets have been upgraded in many areas. Modern patterns and colours. Seemed to be a lot of burgundy/brownish colours. You can also feel the springiness in the new carpet. Some of the carpeting work was a bit of a combo. Eg. The carpets on the steps of stairs were not changed out while the landing areas were. Talking to some of the crew, some of the lounge chairs have been upgraded too.

 

We're in a outside cabin on deck 3. Linens haven't been changed yet. And as initially reported in the thread, the tv wasn't upgraded to a flat panel since we aren't in a suite.

 

Some of the exterior public areas are still closed it seems for more refinishing of the deck. Eg. Basketball court level and the deck area behind Fun Factory. The deck area around the pool also seems to have been sanded a bit (??). If the jogging deck was upgraded, it's not really obvious.

 

Confirming as reported, buffet area has not upgraded to stations. The long line format definitely has a lot of bottlenecks particularly with the staff serving you.

 

Also confirming as reported, the new menus in the DR and Olympic will be in effect for this cruise.

 

We were scheduled to depart at 4:30pm but it look like we're going to be delayed to about 5:30-6:00pm.

 

Thanks for posting so quickly. I'm a bit disappointed that the buffet area was not upgraded, but hey, I can live with that.

 

Did I miss the new menus for the Olympic DR? Are they posted here?

 

Enjoy your cruise. I'd love to see more comments as things go on.

[2Canucks]

Hey Pat,

 

Nice to "see" you! Hehehehe.

 

You'll have a great time with LoisR on Mercury! John & Dave will be with us on Millennium....

 

 

 

CM

 

 

Cal...

 

Please say "HI" to Dave & John for Cliff & I...they were our "tablemates" in the Dining Room on the Millennium last fall.

 

Too bad our Mercury and your Millie schedules don't have a port overlap like last year (different timeframe this year) ... it would have been fun to get all of us together again!

 

Pat :)

[Milhouse]

Internet feed was down for days 2 and some of day 3 so limited ability to update. Looks like they've finished some of the flooring on the upper deck (ie. with the jogging track tho haven't had time to check basketball court level) now and you can walk completely around the ship whereas before they roped off sections they were still working on.

 

New carpeting isn't everywhere. Mainly replaced heavily trafficked areas.

 

New menus posted in another thread. Personally, I think the selection and quality is very good.

 

Keeping a log and will post a more detailed review likely after we return.

[baby]

thanks for the information

 

looking forward to future updates

 

carol

[2Canucks]

Internet feed was down for days 2 and some of day 3 so limited ability to update. Looks like they've finished some of the flooring on the upper deck (ie. with the jogging track tho haven't had time to check basketball court level) now and you can walk completely around the ship whereas before they roped off sections they were still working on.

 

New carpeting isn't everywhere. Mainly replaced heavily trafficked areas.

 

New menus posted in another thread. Personally, I think the selection and quality is very good.

 

Keeping a log and will post a more detailed review likely after we return.

 

 

Thanks so much for being our "eyes" on the Millennium. looking forward to your detailed review! :D

 

We're not back on the Millie until Sept 17/10 so hope the complete rehab is done by then.

 

Here's a picture of you pulling away from the Vancouver Canada Place pier.

 

Pat :)

[Minybear]

We're not back on the Millie until Sept 17/10 so hope the complete rehab is done by then.[/font]

 

Hi Pat. I agree and I hope that the Millie is completely rehabed by 9/17/2010 :) until we are sailing on the Millie :). Oh by the way you still haven't joined our roll call. There is already lots of us on this roll call. Please join in on the fun :).

 

Cindy

[nothriver]

Internet feed was down for days 2 and some of day 3 so limited ability to update. Looks like they've finished some of the flooring on the upper deck (ie. with the jogging track tho haven't had time to check basketball court level) now and you can walk completely around the ship whereas before they roped off sections they were still working on.

 

New carpeting isn't everywhere. Mainly replaced heavily trafficked areas.

 

New menus posted in another thread. Personally, I think the selection and quality is very good.

 

Keeping a log and will post a more detailed review likely after we return.

 

Can't wait to hear more! Thank you so much for taking time from your cruise and using your internet minutes to keep us posted!:D

[midsouthj]

Hello everyone. Just a quick initial report of what we've seen on the Millie post dry dock.

 

When I checked a web cam at 7:30, Millie was already at Canada Place. Despite our documentation saying not to arrive before 2pm, we were able to get on around 11:30am.

 

As previously reported the carpets have been upgraded in many areas. Modern patterns and colours. Seemed to be a lot of burgundy/brownish colours. You can also feel the springiness in the new carpet. Some of the carpeting work was a bit of a combo. Eg. The carpets on the steps of stairs were not changed out while the landing areas were. Talking to some of the crew, some of the lounge chairs have been upgraded too.

 

We're in a outside cabin on deck 3. Linens haven't been changed yet. And as initially reported in the thread, the tv wasn't upgraded to a flat panel since we aren't in a suite.

 

Some of the exterior public areas are still closed it seems for more refinishing of the deck. Eg. Basketball court level and the deck area behind Fun Factory. The deck area around the pool also seems to have been sanded a bit (??). If the jogging deck was upgraded, it's not really obvious.

 

Confirming as reported, buffet area has not upgraded to stations. The long line format definitely has a lot of bottlenecks particularly with the staff serving you.

 

Also confirming as reported, the new menus in the DR and Olympic will be in effect for this cruise.

 

We were scheduled to depart at 4:30pm but it look like we're going to be delayed to about 5:30-6:00pm.

Thanks so much for the update on Millie... We will be sailing her again next month and can't wait. I am thrilled to see they are making these improvements to her. She is one of my fave Celebrity ships. What was the reason for the late departure? Has the internet service been restored completely?

 

I also just heard that the fantastic Carl William Quartet is back on Millie for the Alaska Sailing. If you haven't checked them out, you should do so as they play in the Rendezvous Lounge. Incredible singer with great dance music. Tell Carl that "Kiddo" says hello....

 

Thanks for the updates..

[ATLfuzzy]

Its about time. Good news!!!

[Milhouse]

Sorry for the quick replies. Trying to save time while online.

 

Haven't caught the Carl Williams quartet yet. Will try to catch them tonight.

 

As of yesterday afternoon, the Sport Deck with the basketball deck still isn't finished.

Also found some rolls of carpet on the deck just below the basketball court. Not sure what the plan is for it. Might be for more carpet replacement(?).

 

Personal general impression is that I think the ship looks very good.

 

Didn't catch why we departed late. The ship docked at Canada Place (Ryndam?) was departing nearly the same time when we were supposed to depart so that might have been it.

Internet connectivity has been restored over the last few days. However, I'm having some probs getting wifi connectivity in some hotspots around the ship. Not sure if it's just my laptop.

[Milhouse]

BTW, it doesn't sound like they're going to redo the buffet set up to a station format based on a chat during a galley tour. Way too complex to redo the infrastructure (but who knows whose info is correct).

[takemewithyou]

Sorry for the quick replies. Trying to save time while online.

 

 

Didn't catch why we departed late. The ship docked at Canada Place (Ryndam?) was departing nearly the same time when we were supposed to depart so that might have been it.

 

Milhouse:

Thanks for the updates. I have a friend who is also on your cruise. She has called me a couple of times when you were in port and told me the reason you were late leaving Vancouver is because X had all new check-in staff that day. Most were still in training and learning and she said check-in was very slow and many people did not get checked in time for your scheduled departure. She said the Supervisor of the check-in area said this was the first X ship to depart from Canada Place this season and everything was new to the employees. I guess that may be the reason.

 

Hope you are having a great cruise. Look forward to more updates when you have time and can connect!

[Milhouse]

Thought I'd do another quick post since I've found a hotspot I can connect to...

 

Thanks for the info takemewithyou. Yes, I wouldn't doubt it if there was a bottleneck in the check-in process due to the first sailing of the season for X out of Canada Place. We might have gotten lucky when we checked in around 11:30am, as the overall process (x-ray, customs, and check-in) was relatively quick for us. Our check-in person was pretty seemed quick and competent.

 

When we arrived on board, we thought the ship was pretty empty. The welcome buffet was fairly busy but the rest of the ship seemed very dead. I'm not sure if it had anything to do with our cruise docs saying not to arrive for check-in before 2pm. I'm curious if that notation caused a flood of people to arrive relatively late.

 

Not sure if the ship was waiting for them but I also heard during the cc meeting there were a handful of people that missed embarkation and were going to board in Juneau.

[Germancruiser]

Hello

thanks for the Info. Has anyone an idea what happend to the Cova Cafe- is it still there or did they replace it- maybe in the style of the Solstice??

Thanks

Michael

[midsouthj]

Sorry for the quick replies. Trying to save time while online.

 

Haven't caught the Carl Williams quartet yet. Will try to catch them tonight.

 

As of yesterday afternoon, the Sport Deck with the basketball deck still isn't finished.

Also found some rolls of carpet on the deck just below the basketball court. Not sure what the plan is for it. Might be for more carpet replacement(?).

 

Personal general impression is that I think the ship looks very good.

 

Didn't catch why we departed late. The ship docked at Canada Place (Ryndam?) was departing nearly the same time when we were supposed to depart so that might have been it.

Internet connectivity has been restored over the last few days. However, I'm having some probs getting wifi connectivity in some hotspots around the ship. Not sure if it's just my laptop.

Thanks so much for the quick update. I can't wait till our sailing and see all the nice improvements. Keep us posted..

[Milhouse]

Cova Cafe is still here. I'm sitting in the area while writing this up.

Being a newbie to X, I don't really have a baseline for it.

Looking around... How it's set up is that it's situated around the open view to the grand foyer. On one corner is the drink bar (Caffe e Liquore). Opposite it on the other corner is the Pasticceria where you can pick up snacks (and wine?). In between is a seating area and a place for an musical act to perform. There's also a piano. There are tables situated around the railing overlooking the foyer. The carpet here doesn't seem to have been replaced (it's in decent shape but the colour and pattern scheme is a bit off from the newer stuff). The chairs by the tables look in great shape. The high chairs by the coffee bar are in decent to good shape.

 

Was talking to one of the staff and they said the deck for the running track level was replaced. I think I said earlier it didn't look like it was replaced so I guess I don't know what a new deck looks like.:o He also said parts of the deck around the pool was refurbed. When I look closely at the deck around the pool, it does have a bit of a sanded look.

The basketball court on the sport deck was still closed as of this morning. The upper deck at the front of the ship also still needs to have its deck refurb finished but they haven't closed off that area.

 

Unfortunately, it's our last day today (Thu). If there's anything specific anyone wants me to give a look and report on, I'm happy to do so.

[Milhouse]

Thanks so much for the quick update. I can't wait till our sailing and see all the nice improvements. Keep us posted..

 

To be honest, don't expect any dramatic changes. Even tho I've never sailed on Millie, I was kind of expecting a lot of new things but I think a lot of it is subtle... little details that you don't overtly notice unless you're looking for it but overall makes for a fresher ship. Again, I think Millie is a great ship and am really happy I sailed on her.

[takemewithyou]

Thank you for the reports!

 

Do you think the linens in the rooms (comforter, bedskirt, even towels) are new?

Do you think the mattresses are new?

Do you the upholstery on the chairs and sofa in the rooms are new?

How is the overall condition of your stateroom?

Thanks :)

[Milhouse]

We're in an outside cabin.

The linens and towels don't look brand spanking new but they are in very good shape (ie. tough enough for us to tell if they are new but just gone thru a wash cycle). However, some of the "trim" type stuff is definitely old because it's in the old aqua-ish blue colour.

 

I don't think the mattresses are new because they are not completely firm but they are good condition. My wife is a bit of a complainer about bad mattresses and her sleeps have been great.

 

Definitely don't think the chairs and sofa are new.

 

Overall, the condition of the stateroom is very good. The carpeting seems new. They haven't upgraded the tv but we don't cruise to watch tv. No complaints from us about the stateroom.

[takemewithyou]

We're in an outside cabin.

The linens and towels don't look brand spanking new but they are in very good shape (ie. tough enough for us to tell if they are new but just gone thru a wash cycle). However, some of the "trim" type stuff is definitely old because it's in the old aqua-ish blue colour.

 

I don't think the mattresses are new because they are not completely firm but they are good condition. My wife is a bit of a complainer about bad mattresses and her sleeps have been great.

 

Definitely don't think the chairs and sofa are new.

 

Overall, the condition of the stateroom is very good. The carpeting seems new. They haven't upgraded the tv but we don't cruise to watch tv. No complaints from us about the stateroom.

 

Thank you, Milhouse! I really appreciate you posting LIVE for us.

Have a safe trip home - I guess you don't have far to go to get home! ;)

[Oceans&Rivers]

That webcam photo at Canada Place looks like it is of a Princess Ship, not Millenium!

 

The ship in the large webcam photo posted in this thread is the Carnival Splendor. :)

[vmarq]

You made the same mistake that I did. That link is actually a LIVE webcam and not a photo. When I viewed it, it was a Princess ship but now I see it is Carnival.

[Germancruiser]

Hello Milhouse

thanks for the information you provide us. Nothing to top a live report!

Thx.

Michael

[cvpends]

Milhouse,

 

Thanks for all the information about the Millennium! It is so exciting to read all of your on-the-spot updates.

 

From your description of the furniture in your cabin, I wonder if it might be 7002 or 7003? We've booked 7002 for the cruise on 7/17/09 and although

I've read everything a search engine could find on Cruise Critic I'm still having a hard time picturing it. I'm especially having a hard time imagining the view out of the window and the entry way into the cabin. If you are in one of those cabins I would love a description! Or photos, even, if you are taking them and would like to share.

 

Anyway, thanks again for your updates!

 

Claire

[Milhouse]

Back at home.

We were on deck 3 near the front. I'll see if I can post a pic in my main review (when I can compile my notes).

 

Last refurb update is that we actually made it up to the basketball court on day 6 and shot a balls around. Previous days they had tape preventing people going up the stairs or other "barriers". Again the court didn't look refinished when we played on it and there was some "junk" (some electrical stuff, setc) scattered here and there. It was kind of a fun place to be (high up, near the funnel, etc) but it definitely needed some TLC.