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OK...we were daring, having been on the Century last October when it broke down in Ville Franche (rudder problems)....but we thought we'd try again. So the first night out of Miami the captain gets on the PA and says we are turning around returning to Miami for a medical emergency...and then later that night, in our cabins, we get a note that says due to emergency repairs, we will be turning off the water from midnight to 6 AM. We are sure it's us...do not travel with us...we are clearly cruise albatrosses :)
But they helicoptered off the injured passenger, repaired the water while we slept and this was a very good cruise.
This was our first experience with select dining and I recommend it to all. We went at the same time each night (we had reservations, but didn't need them) and we would up eating with the same folks each night. It was a good group but we could have just changed our time a little and eaten with others or eaten alone. We'll definitely use select dining again.
The food was good..perhaps a little better than our last cruise on the Constellation. Excellent lamb, good beef (well, one steak wasn't great)...I love creme brule and that's available every night. Breakfast omelet stations have been expanded so there are many with little wait and there is a poached egg area...as well as an Asian breakfast. Breads are excellent, pastries were good, but not like they used to be...sigh! For lunch there was an excellent stir fry station with little wait, a pasta bar with little wait, sandwiches...we ate all our lunches in the back of the buffet where the special areas are placed. We never ate the prepared stuff in large bins. Finally the Sushi menu in the evening keeps expanding so there's a great choice, excellent miso soup. A couple of nights, that was our appetizer.
We like the century because it's a great size...there are no lines, no crowding, generally enough space to sit (yes, there were always chaises or chairs available unlike some ships with "chair hogs"). The ship is showing it's age...the walls and decorations are lovely, the seating could use re-upholstering or replacement in some cases.
Cabins are small with some strange design quirks. We were in a concierge cabin and it was impossible for both of us to pass the foot of the bed together...very tight. The safe is placed high and in back of the closet where my 5' wife could not possibly reach it...very poor placement. TV worked well so we could watch playoffs and state of the union. Balcony is small but big enough to sit and read. Lots of storage and closet space.
We are Celebrity Elite so we visited the elite lounge each night for our complimentary glasses of wine and cocktails (great perk). Select and Elite passengers were invited to visit the bridge and a few of us also visited the engine control room...interesting. There was also a backstage tour and a kitchen tour that we skipped, having done those before.
We are not show or entertainment people, but those who went thought they were excellent and the comedian got rave reviews. Unlike large ships, you do not have to rush to the theater 1/2 hour before the show just to get a seat.
We enjoyed the cruise.
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