Celebrity Millennium has become the first oceangoing "big ship" to restart cruises in North America. Revitalized in 2019, it's now sailing eastern and western Caribbean voyages.
Travel Agent is aboard and checking out the ship's spaces and places. First, what's new aboard?
New for Millennium's Guests
Upon boarding, guests on this first "Caribbean Comeback" cruise received a letter in their stateroom from Lisa Lutoff-Perlo, Celebrity’s president and CEO, which outlines some of the changes since the ship has returned to service. Here's a quick rundown of some of those:
Open Access: Guests now have open access on Day 1 that allows them to go straight to their room shortly after boarding.
New Safety Mustering: The line has a new e-muster process. Guests check out the in-stateroom video or watch it on the Celebrity app, then head for their muster station at their convenience anytime before boarding. They receive a "live" lifejacket demonstration from a crew member and then can ask questions. Presto, it’s finished!
Mask and Hand Sanitizer: While wearing masks is optional once guests have boarded (as all crew and guests 16 and over must be vaccinated; plus, guests must have negative COVID-19 PCR test prior to boarding), the line nicely provides guests with two complimentary masks in paper pouches on the stateroom counter, along with two small bottles of hand sanitizer.
New Eco-Friendly Programs: The ship is introducing Celebrity’s new "Go Green" sustainability program. Plastic bottles are gone. When guests arrive in their stateroom, they’ll find two TRUE Grade aluminum water bottles; they're filled with spring water and refilled as needed by the stateroom steward.
New Spa and Fitness Center Partnership: On Celebrity Millennium, the line’s guests will see that there is a new spa and fitness center partnership with OneSpaWorld. The ship's full-service Spa on Deck 10 includes a relaxing Persian Garden; during our cruise, a full cruise pass for garden access was $219 per person or $399 per couple.
Upgraded AquaClass: Guests who book AquaClass accommodations will have new amenities and food and beverage offerings. Among the Aqua Class perks are complimentary entry to that Persian Garden mentioned above.
New Fine Jewelry Partnership: Celebrity Millennium also has a new look to its shopping area, plus a new fine jewelry partnership with Effy, one of New York’s top designers. .
Enhanced Photo and Private Studio Services: Guests who want to savor the moments of their vacation cruise for years to come can check out the new photo and private studio services.
New State-of-the-Art Slot Machines: The line says they’ll be more winners than ever.
Tasting the Cuisine at Sushi on 5
Yesterday, Travel Agent dined at Sushi on 5 for lunch. While this attractively designed specialty eatery has a diverse range of sushi and sashimi, it also has other options for non-sushi fans (like us). Pricing is a la carte.
Here’s a look at the items we sampled. First, there was steamed Edamame (shown above); it was delightful and tasty, with a light amount of Himalayan salt.
Next, we tried the Chicken Ginger Gyoza—essentially a dumpling or potsticker with melt-in-your-mouth chicken inside. Definitely very yummy.
A robust dish (shown above) was the Lobster Ramen. This is definitely a hearty serving. The dish had chunks of miso butter lobster tail, green onions and plenty of noodles in a dashi bisque.
Our favorite of the tasting dishes, though—and highly recommended—is the Homemade Lobster and Shrimp Wonton with a sweet Hoisin glaze and Wakame salad.
Sushi on 5 offers sushi fans a good selection of sushi rolls, sashimi and nigiri (such eel, yellow tail or a four-piece Omakase Sushi; the latter was billed as the chef's top selection of assorted sushi. Cocktails, wines by the glass and a good selection of sakis were also available. Diners could also order either green tea or brown rice tea.
We enjoyed Sushi on 5 and would recommend it to others. Stay tuned for our next report looking at more dining in such exclusive restaurants as Blu for AquaClass guests and Luminae for suite guests only.
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