Celebrity Millennium Review
I am not a fan of big ships and have spent a good portion of my cruising life avoiding them, but when the opportunity arose for me to join a group heading for an around-the-Horn cruise from Buenos Aires to Santiago on Celebrity's Millennium, I jumped at the chance. "It's too big," I thought to myself, "but no matter, I'll just make the best of it."
Little did I realize that this experience, replete with sea days between each port of call, would wow me and win me over. Have I suddenly become a fan of big-ship sailing? No, but I am smitten with Millennium, and after six at-sea days exploring the vessel, discovering hidden charms and quirks, I am head-over-heels.
When Millennium made its debut in 2000, it brought a new era of cruising to Celebrity. The first of its class -- and built after Celebrity Cruises was acquired by Royal Caribbean International -- the ship was followed by Infinity, Summit and Constellation. Millennium made news by incorporating, among other things, the first gas propulsion system on a cruise ship (thus the label GTS -- Gas Turbine Ship -- Millennium rather than MS, for Motor Ship). The GTS system is unique in that it reduces emissions and burns cleaner, creates less noise and vibration, and allows the ship to reach speeds of up to 24 knots. (It is not, alas, as fuel-efficient as was hoped at the time it was designed.) It was also the first ship to use exterior elevators, a feature that has been adopted ever since by several cruise lines. The ship also had, until recently, a unique music-listening venue called Notes (since converted to Acupuncture at Sea, also an innovation).
The ship is ... pretty. That's not a word that I use very often, especially when discussing a sea-going vessel, but it's the simplest and most accurate word to describe Millennium. The soft hues and stately public spaces; the tortoise-shell onyx stairway at the center of the ship; the diverse art around every turn; the stunning space in the Cosmos Lounge with its wrap-around floor-to-ceiling windows, contemporary design, glittery dance floor, Art Deco-style lighting system, and light woods; the clubby, homey feeling of Michael's Club; and the contemporary-mixed-with-Deco design of the Metropolitan Restaurant offer an eclectic experience, but all of it is soft ... and pretty.
I never thought that I would feel so at home on a ship this large; at 91,000 tons it carries 1,950 passengers. It is far from the largest ship at sea, but it's definitely big. Somehow, though, the feeling of an intimate experience prevails. The layout and accessibility are excellent, with 14 elevators and a design that makes getting from one point of interest to another easy and enjoyable. Lots of outside deck space and promenades help in this regard as well.
One thing I learned on this voyage is that as Celebrity continues to grow and build larger ships (a new class of ship, Solstice, is on the drawing board now, with an anticipated 3,000-passenger capacity and at 118,000 tons a really big ship), I won't be concerned about sailing on Millennium, which by then will be considered one of the line's "smaller" ships. In fact, I'll be delighted.
 Read Complete Celebrity Millennium Review
|
|
)
)
)
)
