What do you call a place that offers world-class restaurants, Broadway-style shows, a luxurious spa and amenities that rival the grandest hotel on land? We call her Millennium; you'll call her magnificent. To sail on Millennium, the first of our Millennium-class of ships, is an experience that cannot be expressed in words. Stride her decks and see for yourself what those who have experienced her already know: Millennium is more than a ship; she is a special memory waiting to be had.
Ship Reviews Celebrity Cruises Millennium
Millennium
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4.4 (2) |
Ship Facts
| Cruise Line | Celebrity Cruises |
| Date Launched | 2000 |
| Passengers Capacity | 2,118 |
| Tonnage | 91,000 |
| Ship Registry | Bahamas |
| Passenger Decks | 11 |
User reviews
Average user rating from: 2 user(s)
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Mediterranean Cruise Reviewed by Joey
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1 of 1 people found the following review helpful
We booked this cruise that would take us from Barcelona to Venice, May 2005 with an Embarkation date of October 29, 2006.We reserved stateroom 9160 upon Celebrity's Millennium. This is a Concierge Class aft cabin, which is approximately 251 square foot and a large 200 square foot veranda. Boarding this ship had never been easier, once our taxis dropped us off at the Pier in Barcelona, a porter was very eager to accept our luggage and guide us to the entrance to the embarkation lobby. We were immediately asked to sanitize our hands before entering a ship controlled area and would later discover that this is now SOP aboard Celebrity, we were also offered a cool fruit punch while we stood in the proper line. The line moved quickly and was thru security and champagne in hand by 12:00noon. As with so many cruises that allow early embarkation our Cabin was not "ready" until 1:00 by we just could not resist stopping by and "dropping " off things. Once there we met Gregorio and Tailer our stateroom tag team that did a pretty good one two punch in Stateroom cleanliness and attentiveness. Any concern we had through out the cruise was always met quickly and efficiently. October 29 Night one shortly after our sailing from Barcelona while getting ready for dinner I became aware of Mediterranean Fruit Flies that had infested our cabin. I was distraught and after expressing our displeasure firmly, with the staff at guest relations we were moved to another cabin while they attempted to correct the problem. After expressing my displeasure to The Guest Relations Office. The entire staff of the Millennium did their best to turn a negative into a positive the Lead Guest relations Officer Ms. Jann Ramos could not have been more understanding of the situation and her performance in this situation reminded me of just why we chose Celebrity. It took a little over 36 hours before we could get back into the cabin we had purchased for this adventure. When things at the start of an Adventure begin to turn negative, and you see all of you dreams go up in a mist. It can become very scary and disappointing to say the least. Ms. Ramos not only coordinated the cleanup effort between the various departments, she made an effort to keep in touch with us every step of the way! I must applaud the entire staff for a Job well done! AND we are back in our stateroom where on David's Birthday October 31, we were able to wake up and have breakfast on the veranda. SUCESS! The Millennium as a whole is in fine condition, all carpets appear to be in good repair, and it show little signs of age. The support staffs have done a wonderful job with maintenance. We opted for late dining a table for two we received table 552, which is at the top of the staircase in the Dining Room located adjacent to the Jan Martini Quartet so our meals were always filled with music. Nice touch. Our Wait Staff, the team of (Glenn) Joseph and Richard; a nice combination that did their best to please. However At times, they seemed to be a bit overwhelmed. Sebastian our Sommelier was attentive and supportive. He accepted our boycott of first night no wine sales with real grace and on night two made an effort to find a specific vintage that we asked for... He was outstanding and very personable. The food was Just as we remembered the cold soups were just as remarkable while the roast beef was just as tender and the Escargot which are now part of the regular standby menu were outstanding. With this being a very port intensive cruise, we did not see much of the late night activities?. So the entertainment; we really cannot comment on. The exception was for a review for a fantasy type show that the "Singers and Dancers" "entertained" for the passengers ? ( I personally didn?t care for it.) On November 4th a formal night we had reservations for the Olympic Restaurant. Once again, a table for two and this time a great duce by the Harpist. The meal was outstanding and the service exceptional Thumbs up to Stanislaw Stoyanov, Maitre D'Hotel he runs a fine restaurant, Our only exception was for the Sommelier who was unhappy that we chose not to buy wine and refused our request to purchase a second sparkling water. We were planning a small gathering in our stateroom to samples some wines Gregorio had anticipated the tasting and offered to provide cheese, crackers, and things before we had to ask. He was amazing. The Casino when open had a nice selection of slots and our favorites Little Green men , Texas Tea, where I was able to pick up a few hundred on this cruise so that?s a nice feeling. Over all we felt we did in fact receive our moneys worth! Got our Bang for the buck as they say. The Millennium is a fine ship with an outstanding crew, and would not hesitate to sail it again if the Itinerary would present itself. |
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Millennium Review 6/24 Istanbul to Barcelona
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1 of 1 people found the following review helpful
Just returned from a 12 day Mediterranean cruise on Celebrity?s Millennium ship. Wow! What a vacation! My husband and I took our 15 year-old son and had a fantastic time. We met some great people and thoroughly enjoyed each port city. I am still amazed at the itinerary for this cruise: Istanbul, Kusadasi (Ephesus), Limassol, Alexandria (Cairo), Piraeus (Athens), Naples (Pompeii), Civitavecchia (Rome), Villafranche (Nice, Monaco), and Barcelona. We have always taken our vacations in the U.S., Canada, or Caribbean. Europe seemed too far away when Hawaii and the Caribbean were so easily accessible. Not anymore! We are already planning next year?s vacation to Europe, only next time we will travel on our own (minus the cruise) to England, France, and Italy. If you are the kind of person (like us) who is a bit uncomfortable about traveling abroad, I would highly recommend this cruise.My husband (a CPA), son, and I (teacher) have been on six cruises in the past ten years (two to Alaska, two to the Caribbean, one from Hawaii to Vancouver, and this Mediterranean cruise). Actually, my husband has gone on four other cruises with his family (Caribbean and Mexico). We did not like the repositioning cruise from Hawaii (Pacific Princess, ten years ago) but the other cruises were wonderful and hooked us on cruising (with Celebrity and Royal Caribbean). They were fun and had lots of activities going on at all hours of the day. This Mediterranean cruise was fun too, but it did not have the same type of activity-filled days, perhaps because everyone is so busy seeing the sights. However, on the Millennium, even the evenings and sea days are more laid back with less to do. We spent the majority of our ?spare? time up by the pool. Like most of the other cruises we have been on, it is pretty much ?dog eat dog? regarding the poolside lounge chairs. There is a big problem with people saving chairs hours before they plan to use them. This was the only problem area we encountered on the ship. We had one obnoxious woman get in my husband?s face about moving her towels from 3 chairs. She didn?t see anything wrong with having 3 chairs in the sun and 3 chairs reserved in the shade for when they got too hot. They would lie in the sun for hours and then sit in the shady chairs for a few minutes to cool off. You might need to remind people there is no reserving and it is written up in the ship?s brochures of do?s and don?ts. You will see a lot of chairs laying empty for hours and hours without a soul in sight. We?re not talking about people who are swimming or grabbing a bite to eat in the buffet line. Nope, we are talking about people who see nothing wrong with putting down 10 towels on 10 chairs at 8:30 in the morning so that they will have a place to sit at 12:30 in the afternoon. Regarding the ship, the Millennium is absolutely beautiful: very elegant, clean, and comfortable. It was hard to believe 2,000 people were aboard. None of the lounges, restaurants, or public areas ever got that crowded. We heard the tenders in Villafranche were a bit crowded at 7:00 am but they were no problem an hour later. The ship is very well maintained and the cleaning crew is constantly working around the clock to make sure everything is shipshape. Our balcony was washed off every few days, which was great because the sea spray really built up on the railing, windows, and chairs. If you plan to have 3 people in your veranda room, try to book early and get a cabin with an overhead bunk. We were unable to book a room with a bunk for our son so we had a fold out chair. It worked fine and was comfortable (according to him) but he didn?t appreciate my husband and I climbing over him each morning in port cities to take photographs or movies from the balcony. The cabin was very comfortable because it was designed well. We had an excellent cabin stewardess who took good care of us. One thing I really took advantage of on this cruise was the ship?s laundry/dry cleaning service. On previous cruises I remember being appalled at the cost of laundering a pair of pants. The Millennium?s prices were the same or even cheaper in some cases than my neighborhood drycleaner. I laundered and dry-cleaned about 12 items (pants, dresses, shirts) because we went through clothes like crazy and I got tired of hand washing stuff in the sink. It is hard to pack for a 2-week cruise for 3 people and not have to take 10 suitcases. The food was fabulous; we have no complaints. A few of the people we talked to complained about a few items on the menu (New York steaks said to be on the tough side) but we thought everything was great. Sometimes the dining room?s lunch menu looked less than appetizing because they had a number of foods we simply do not enjoy (rabbit, veal, etc.) On those few occasions we would head to the lunch buffet, which was fine but not as good as the dining room. No matter where or when we ate our meals my husband and I tried to select the leaner menu items and they were excellent. The sherbets were always outstanding. We also really liked the spa menu up by the pool. They usually served excellent dishes that our son even enjoyed, such as salads, sushi, and fruit plates (and he is very much a pizza and hamburger kind of guy). Many people ate at the Olympic Dining Room, but we opted not to go. Everyone we spoke to who ate at the Olympic said the experience was fantastic: they had never had such incredible service before. Also, everyone we spoke with said the food was comparable or even slightly less wonderful than the meals served in the main dining room. I wasn?t that thrilled about eating there but I wanted to see the Olympic Dining Room so we asked if we could go in and look around. It is very nice looking inside but very different looking from the dining room. Something interesting about the main dining room on this particular cruise was the abundance of empty tables, especially the first two nights. We were at a table for 8 and our tablemates never showed up once. According to the Matre?d they never made it on the cruise. The ship was sold out but there were many tables near us that were ½ empty. Eventually, we moved to another table with a couple and their son (same age as our son). They were wonderful dinner companions and we only wished we had hooked up with them earlier. The dining room staff tried very hard to make us happy and we were impressed with the service they provided. Our waiter, Georgie, and assistant waiter, Jose, were the best. Very professional and personable. The entertainment on board ranged from excellent (the production numbers with the ship?s singers and dancers) to mediocre. There were a few solo entertainers who seemed to have been booked with a much older crowd in mind. We love classic music and show tunes as well as contemporary ones, but one guy in particular sang dull songs from the earlier part of the last century in a very silly manner. He had an excellent voice but his presentation and style grated our nerves. We were also unimpressed with the magician who looked about 16 years old. He was very talented but his act was very tedious. He would do the same tricks over and over again. The lighting on stage was turned down so low you could barely see the guy at times. I guess the stagehands were trying to hide the little tricks of the trade (wires, etc.) by eliminating most of the lighting. Another thing: he didn?t say a single word during the entire performance. Drove me nuts. Now, getting down to the good stuff: the ports. Well, I think this itinerary is the best I have ever seen for a cruise. Three days after our cruise, I am still in awe of what we did on our vacation. The good thing about the itinerary is it let you see places you might not have selected if you were traveling on your own (like Egypt or Turkey). The bad thing is you really do not have time to see everything you want to see. In fact, it gets frustrating at times because you feel so rushed. Let?s face it: it is crazy to think you can see Rome or Cairo in a day! So, we approached this cruise like a ?sampler? vacation. We got a reasonable taste of 8 different ports and now we plan to go back in future years and visit these places in leisure. We used the ship?s tours for each city except Istanbul, Limassol, Monte Carlo, and Barcelona. Yes, the ship?s tours are very whirlwind and you do feel a bit like cattle. However, our excursions were well organized, comfortable and informative. The tour guides ranged from good to excellent. The buses were clean and in excellent shape (most had a toilet). You do run into huge crowds of people, particularly in Rome, Cairo, Istanbul, and Pompeii, but you will not be able to avoid crowds of people in Europe in summer, even if you do your own private tours. The people we talked to who did their own tours varied in their experiences. Those who paid exorbitant fees for a private, small tour seemed to have a better time. They all had booked months ahead of time with well-known tour companies and were pleased with their choices, even though they paid double the price that we did. They were able to see more things than we did because they didn?t have to wait for 40 other people taking a potty break (like we did). However, those doing private tours had to pay for their own entrance fees (usually under $10 each) and cost of lunch. The people we talked to who took less expensive private tours or took advantage of a taxi driver offering to take them on a private tour were not that happy. One friend said that in Rome her guide barely spoke English and did not tell her all of the interesting info we got going on a ship?s tour. She paid quite a bit of money as well (for 5 people). Taxi driver tours seem to be bad news. You are almost guaranteed of being ripped off and hassled if you choice this type of tour in Istanbul or Athens. They always have a rug shop or restaurant of some friend or relative they insist you go to. You protest, they want more money or they will call the police. In Athens, the cab drivers are notoriously rude. Everyone we talked to on board seemed to have a similar story regarding an obnoxious cab driver. Make sure you talk to the cab drivers BEFORE you get in the car. Tell them you want them to use the meter. They will protest, but insist before you get inside of the cab. Taxi drivers can be major rip-off artists in Athens, and they will yell at you as well. The favorite thing taxi drivers seem to say in Athens is, ?What is your problem????? Starting from the beginning, we flew to Istanbul on Turkish Air via Chicago (on American) a day early, which was terrific. We had no problems with the plane trip. We felt pretty good (not very tired despite the fact that we had not slept at all) when we arrived in Istanbul and set out right away to see the Hagia Sophia and Blue Mosque. (We got the best advice on avoiding jet lag from Rick Steve?s book Europe Through the Back Door that recommends being completely ready for your trip two days before you go and spending those two remaining days resting up.) The cab drivers in Istanbul drive like the proverbial bats out of Hades. Man, we saw our lives flash before our eyes a number of times in two days! As soon as I stuck my foot out of the cab in front of the Hagia Sophia I had a guy bugging me. He greeted me and started rattling off ?helpful? tips and advice. He latched onto me like an ant on a marshmallow. I tried to be polite at first but grew considerably cooler when he would not leave me alone. We had been warned about Turks looking for American tourists to make money off of. Well, the guy finally got tired of me and went after my husband, who was Mr. Friendly. I tried warning hubby that this guy was not a member of the Welcome Wagon, but he just kept on chatting away. So, the pesky man started steering us to the Blue Mosque because he said the Sophia closed later (he lied). We tried to lose him (no chance!) and I began to get annoyed. We couldn?t take pictures or even have a conversation with this parasite right in the middle of us. This guy kept saying he didn?t want anything from us but he would not leave us alone. He kept pointing out things like, ?Here is where Muslims wash their feet before going into the mosque. Here is a very old tree. Here is a very old door?? Finally, he told us he had a carpet store nearby and wanted us to come by and look since he was being so nice to us. We said maybe. No, he said. We must come to his store after the Blue Mosque. He would wait for us. I told him our time was limited and if we had time after Hagia we might go by his store. No, he said. He would personally escort us. He became more and more pushy and aggressive. Finally, after about 15 ? 20 minutes of his aggressive pestering I told him we would not be going to his store. He became very angry and I told him he was harassing us. Well, he finally stormed off and we were left to see the Blue Mosque and St. Sophia in peace. Be warned! These guys are crawling all over the place. We watched at least a dozen of these pests harassing tourists near the mosques with the exact same strategy and technique. They come on friendly (?Hi, where are you from? Oh really? My cousin lives there too!?) and they won?t let go of you. Different guys approached us at least more ten times. My husband finally started telling them we were from Mexico although we do not look Hispanic and do not speak Spanish. Surprisingly, they left us alone when he said that. The cab drivers at the tourist sights will try to rip you off. Our cab rides around the city always cost less than $6 but they will initially ask you for $20. Just walk away and say ?too much? and they will lower their price. Also, the vendors and cab drivers love American dollars in the tourist areas but will often say they won?t take them if you are at a sight wanting a ride back to your hotel or to the ship. So, have Turkish money on hand. One American dollar pretty much equals $1,000,000 in Turkey. The money is confusing because the zeros are close together and are not separated by commas. They will try to take advantage of the fact that you are confused and will offer to ?help? you with the money. Don?t let them. Also, be prepared to bargain for goods, but do not counter-offer on their price if you do not plan on buying the item. This is culturally very wrong and rude and they will yell at you. Istanbul is a fascinating city with a remarkable history. Besides the Hagia Sophia and Blue Mosque we visited the Topkapi Palace and toured the harem (go early and buy tickets for the harem as this is the most popular sight at the palace). We did a lot of walking around and visited a couple of parks where the locals had picnics with their families. The Turks are very curious about foreigners, which made me uncomfortable, at first, because they openly stare. My husband and son wore long pants and I wore conservative dresses in order to ?blend? (hah!), but the people gawk at you. We boarded the ship before 10:30 on Sunday, which was great, but weren?t allowed to go to our cabin until 1:00 pm. This is a new policy of Celebrity that has been in effect for a couple of months. We explored the ship, ate lunch, and went back to Istanbul for the afternoon. The next morning we could have gone off the ship until noon, but our jet lag finally caught up with us and we slept late. Most people we talked to went to the Grand Bazaar and said it was an interesting and (rather obnoxious) experience. I am talking very aggressive salesmen who are all over you if you even look at any item for more than a few seconds. A number of people ended up buying Turkish rugs and mailing them home to the states, but they all seemed to wonder if they would actually receive the rugs once they got to the U.S. After the ship left Istanbul we had an afternoon at sea and used it to take a nap. Our advice: take naps whenever you can because they really help. (By the end of the cruise you will be exhausted if you don?t rest up along the way.) The next morning we arrived in Kusadasi and took the ship?s excursion to Ephesus, which is about 30 minutes away by bus. This place is incredible! We weren?t expecting much from the pictures we had seen but you really have to experience walking through the old city ruins to appreciate it. Ephesus used to be a seaport, but is now 6 miles inland from the coast (sand filled up the coastland). When Constantinople became the capital city, Ephesus slowly died. They are now actively excavating the city and have uncovered quite a bit. The communal city toilets are not to be missed! You can buy picture guidebooks going into or leaving the ruins for about $5. Our next day was a sea day and we hung out by the pool, which was not very crowded. People were still sleeping off their jet lag. We met a number of people who actually boarded the ship in Kusadasi because they missed embarkation in Istanbul due to plane problems. Following the sea day we arrived in Limassol, Cyprus. If you want to do any shopping there, be advised the shops are closed from about 1:00 to 4:00 in the afternoon. We took a cab to town and walked around. This was our least favorite port. The city was fine, but it really can?t compete with the fantastic sights of the other port cities. Our cab driver was quite a character who chatted nonstop and had studied American history. He was thrilled to find out that I?m a teacher. For 15 minutes I was quizzed on obscure facts about the U.S. (?Do you know what the word Alaska means? Do you know where Rhode Island got its name? No? And you call yourself a teacher? Bah!?) We heard the ship?s tours were very average, mostly because the sights were not that exciting. The following morning we arrived in Alexandria. You can still see the giant marble blocks that used to be the foundation of the Alexandria Lighthouse, one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World. They are still lying around the breakwater. Strangely enough, there are a number of rusty, abandoned, half-sunken ships poking out of the water. You would have thought the city had just survived a war. Indeed, Alexandria is very dirty, poor, and looks war-torn. In my mind I had imagined a romantic city with beautiful buildings that hinted of a rich history. Hardly! There was no sign that Cleopatra had ever ruled this city. Cairo looked much the same. Police boats surrounded the ship and remained stationed close at hand until we left port in the evening. Armed policemen (they looked about 18 years old) surrounded the debarkation area near the ship. In fact, armed policemen escorted the eighteen or more tour buses that left the port area. We traveled in a tight pack on the road and parked close together in tourist areas as well. An interesting situation happened during our tour in Rome. As we were walking around the city we came across a beggar woman who looked just like a hag you would see in an old fairy tale book. She looked very ?Old World? and I was looking at her to see if she really had a baby cuddled up next to her since she was holding a bundle in her arms the way mothers cradle their infants. Well, about the time our tour guide yelled out (and I mean YELLED) ?Gypsy! Look out! She?s a gypsy!? the woman had picked the pockets of two men in our tour group. She lifted one man?s wallet from his front pocket and even stole another man?s wallet from his fanny pack that he had zipped up in front of him. Both men felt the pressure of her taking the wallets but she was so quick they barely had time to respond. Well, they soon started chasing her and she threw down one guy?s wallet. We never really heard if the other guy got his wallet or money back. The coliseum is massive and impressive despite the missing floor. You can see where the wild animals were caged before they were forced into the arena to fight the gladiators. By the way, we found out that Christians were never fed to the lions at the Coliseum, despite what we have heard over the years. Christians were killed at other areas around the city, but never at the coliseum. The coliseum was strictly an arena for gladiators. It was sickening hearing about all of the thousands of wild animals that were slaughtered there. Bull fighting is basically a remnant of the ancient gladiator games. Our next port day was in Villafranche, where many of our fellow cruisers had planned to go it alone into Nice or Monte Carlo (us included) via the local train. Guess what? Train strike, so we took the bus into Monte Carlo. This area of France is very beautiful, like the Amalfi Coast. There really wasn?t much for us to do so we walked around and looked into the windows of stores like Prada, Gucci, and designer jewelry stores. My husband laughed while I pointed out some very fine ?souvenirs? I would have enjoyed taking home with me. There were very few typical gift shops around and the few we found seemed to carry mostly racing gear aimed at toddler-aged boys and garish gold-trimmed ladies handbags. When we walked around the little shops by the ship I did find some nice (and very inexpensive) lavender sachets and French milled soaps. There really wasn?t much more than that, unfortunately. I mention the shopping because I really came on this trip prepared to buy some great gifts to take home: pottery, linens, etc. Honestly, we barely had anything to declare when coming back into the U.S. There simply wasn?t enough time to properly shop and the places you go to on the arranged tours do not have great items. Okay, if you are in the market for a plastic statue of Michelangelo?s ?David? or ?Pieta? you will be in luck. But, if you would like a beautiful Italian bowl to take home or a lovely hand-knit sweater ? good luck. I certainly didn?t find any. My husband is very happy about this, I might add. We arrived in Barcelona and disembarked the ship at 8:30 in the morning. The entire process was smooth and hassle-free. My parents (who live in Spain) met us at the port. We spent an extra 3 days in Barcelona and I am so glad we did. Not only did we love the time we had with my parents, but also enjoyed walking around the city, seeing all of the major sights without all of the rush, rush, rush. Barcelona is a dynamic city that seems to love people. Las Ramblas is an incredible area of pedestrian boulevards that are a people watcher?s paradise. Montserrat, an exquisite monastery high up in the mountains near Barcelona, was probably the highlight of our time in Spain. We went hiking in the hills nearby and then enjoyed the church. The statue of the Black Virgin is housed there. She is the patron saint of Barcelona. We also enjoyed Gaudi?s La Segrada Familia, but you really have the best view of his work walking around the outside of the church. The church is a weird mix of the fantastic and the bizarre. Guell Park is another Gaudi creation that is worth seeing, despite the hike up the steep incline. We had lunch nearby at a marvelous restaurant. In fact, all of the food we ate in Barcelona was exceptional, once you get past the fact that locals prefer their fish with the head, tail, and skin still on. At least they gut the fish for you! The prawns we had were excellent but they came with all of the crustacean trimmings still intact. So, you have to work in order to eat your food. It was always delicious. Well, that about wraps it up. I can?t believe I wrote so much about our trip. It seems as if there was a lot more to say. If any of you have booked this cruise for the near future I envy you. Have a wonderful time! I know we certainly did! You will come home tired and in need of another vacation (a quiet, relaxing one) but you will be amazed at how much you saw and experienced. I know that our experience changed the way we view our world. It was truly a vacation of a lifetime. |
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