Recommend at least 3 days in Tokyo pre/post cruise. Plan carefully for port calls. In some -Osaka, Hiroshima- there’s too much to do. In others -Aomori, Hakodate- there’s a lot less.
Embarkation
5 out of 5
From arriving in a taxi until being onboard was about 35-40 mins (and we arrived 15 mins before they started boarding.) Very quick procedure, staff carried out passport checks whilst we were in allocated seating areas. If pax hadn’t yet uploaded photos to their profile, the staff members did that here too. Very efficient.
Ship experiences
Food and Dining
4 out of 5
Overall, we were very pleased with all of the food onboard, especially the Oceanview Cafe which we felt was the best buffet we’d experienced. Food in the MDR was also very good but the arrangements for ‘Select’ dining was a bit chaotic. Needs improving.
Oceanview Café
5 out of 5
The best selection of food and dining times we’ve experienced in a ship’s buffet.
Metropolitan Restaurant
4 out of 5
Food in here was generally very good but sometimes we felt it was lukewarm rather than hot. Staff overall very good. However, for those on ‘Select’ dining, it was like a zoo at times with lengthy queues whilst we waited for pagers so we could wait to enter. However, it wasn’t very becoming for a nice restaurant and, furthermore, when waiting in the lounges and watching entertainment there’s a constant cacophony of the noise of bleepers sounding.
Cafe al Bacio and Gelateria
5 out of 5
Open 0600-midnight with great selection of coffees, pastries and now small sandwiches.
Onboard Activities
4 out of 5
The ‘Beyond the Podium’ talks given on a variety of subjects including Japan, Ramen & S. Korea were very interesting.
Entertainment
4 out of 5
Celebrity Theater
4 out of 5
Production shows, for us, ranged from very good (Broadway & last night songs) to mediocre. The ‘aerial’ shows felt boring as we’ve seen them regularly on Celebrity ships over the years. Guest artistes were generally very good and included rock violinist Takei and magician Andrew Lee.
Service and Staff
5 out of 5
We had no problem with any if the staff and there was a good presence of senior officers around the ship too, especially the Hotel Director.
Ship Quality
4 out of 5
She may be the oldest ship in the fleet but Millennium is still a pleasure to sail on. Despite cruising with max capacity, it rarely felt crowded (except at dining times.) The crew keep the ship in tip top condition and it looks great after 2019’s ‘revolutionise’ upgrade.
Cabin / Stateroom
5 out of 5
The cabin was a decent size and the ‘revolutionise’ upgrade has utilised the space with plenty of storage space. The shower room/toilet was on the smaller size but again, added storage. This is an aft-facing cabin and being one floor above large suites, the balcony is massive, really big, with two sun beds, two chairs and two tables. There is a canopy blocking 80% of the balcony from being viewed from the higher decks.
Ship tip
Consider timed dining as it was manic for ‘Select’ diners.
Plenty to see and do in this massive modern city. We did a privately-booked excursion which took in a few sites, most notably the cultural village of Gamcheonb and a hillside temple by the sea (name escapes me.)
Walked to the Hakodate Ropeway (cable car) for a really pleasant trip to the top of Mount Hakodate. Great views all around at the spacious summit and a nice restaurant.
A very significant city in the history of the modern world. The Atomic Bomb Museum is well worth a visit (advise pre-booking) but was very crowded. An easy place to walk around and you must try and get to an okonomiyaki restaurant to have one of these ‘delicacies.’ Wonderful.
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