Great first time cruise
Celebrity Mercury Cruise Review to U.S. - Pacific, Northwest
Contributor Level:
Deck Hand
Cruises: 1 cruise (first)
Reviews: 3
Helpful Votes: 100
Sail date: September 01, 2006
Ship: Celebrity Mercury
Cabin type: Inside
Traveled as: Family (older children)
Reviewed: 14 years ago
Review summary
I have found the perfect cure for Post Traumatic Employment Stress Syndrome. A cruise! My younger daughter and I took a three night Celebrity Cruise on-board the MV Mercury to Canada in September. We flew to Seattle and took a transfer bus to the Pier 66 near the Space Needle. As it was our first time on a cruise ship, the sheer size was a little disorienting. Fortunately there were many courteous and informative crew members to help us on our way. The ship set sail to Vancouver and we past Widbey Island. I lived there as a child. One of our dinner table partners is a nurse on the island, so we had a lot to talk about. Later the obligatory life boat drill took place. Afterwords, we were able to get in a hour workout in the fitness center, which we did every day, and then experience the fine dining the ship had in the Manhattan Restaurant. After arrival in Vancouver we disembarked at the dock and made our way downtown for sightseeing at Gaslight Town and shopping at the Hudson Bay Company to buy 2010 Vancouver Winter Olympics clothing souvenirs. We returned to Mercury for a late lunch, workout, and self tour of the ship. We always took the stairs of the twelve deck ship to compensate for the great gourmet food always being served. Our dinner waiter Daniel and Maitre de were both from Romania and very accommodating and entertaining. We saw a musical production that night which included acrobatics. A large portion of the passengers were local to Seattle, which gave the ship's comedian fodder for jokes about being able to drive to Vancouver faster and cheaper than sailing. The next day we sailed to Nanaimo a small resort town on the island of Vancouver. We disembarked via a ramp to tender life boats lowered to sea level. The 15 minute shuttle to the dock was smooth except for being buzzed by local seaplanes. At the docks we were greeted by local townspeople and police who volunteered information and directions to passengers. The Royal Canadian Mounted Police were there too and posed for pictures. We were made to feel most welcome as every shop and restaurant had a welcoming sign for passengers and crew of the Mercury. We purchased boxes of Maple cookies and the local pastry "Nanaimo Bar". The last night on the ship was spent packing, visiting casino, disco and a show featuring the two acrobats from the night before. They were of Cirque du Soleil caliber. We disembarked in Seattle the next morning and flew home. We had a great time! A dream tour package for me would be a 2010 cruise from San Francisco to Vancouver for a week at the 2010 Winter Olympics and then a return cruise back to SF. We have already booked a cruise for next February with the whole family (who is going to feed the cats?).Pros: Choice of activities and the dining room experience
Cons: Unresponsive sushi chef in buffet area
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