Celebrity Cruise Lines
Constellation Cruise Review
Southern Caribbean and Panama Canal
CELEBRITY
CONSTELLATION in the Southern Caribbean and Panama: A Review
and Port Guide
By: efschlenk
This is a brief review of a
very enjoyable 11 day cruise. Rather than repeat the details
of my extensive Constellation review from December 2004,
which may still be available on this web site, I shall
highlight some of our favorite aspects of this ship and
these ports. In addition, I shall offer some inexpensive
suggestions for those who enjoy adventuring (or relaxing) on
their own when visiting Grand Cayman, Aruba, Panama,
Cartagena, or Cozumel. Images of our cruise are available at
www.picasaweb.google.com/efschlenk.
I am not in the travel business but have taken 20 previous
cruises on a variety of ships, three of them on the
Constellation. Reviews are by nature subjective, and I
apologize in advance for any errors or omissions in this
review. I shall HIGHLIGHT major topics in all caps so that
readers can skip down to areas of particular interest.
At 90,000 tons and a full complement of 1,950 passengers,
the Celebrity Constellation is large enough to provide a
diversity of dining and entertainment options but small
enough to avoid most of the frustrations associated with
today’s mega-ships.
This begins with EMBARKATION, which went quickly and
smoothly for us, partly because we had pre-registered and
pre-printed our boarding passes through Celebrity’s web
site, and partly because our Celebrity Captains Club
membership level gave us an express check-in line. Just like
airlines, cruise lines offer perks to previous customers,
and it is worth the effort to join the passenger club of
each cruise line one sails on.
The Constellation entered service in 2002 and has been well
maintained. The design and décor of the ship remain fresh
and attractive. The PUBLIC AREAS did not seem crowded on our
cruise, except during some concerts in the Cova Café or
Michaels Club, where it pays to arrive early.
The ship’s library ("Words") has a pleasant choice of books
available on the honor system. The former music-listening
room ("Notes") is no longer available, which is probably due
to the emergence of iPods since our previous cruise. The
fitness area is well equipped and is mercifully quiet during
much of the day. The lockers, saunas, and fitness equipment
remain free to all passengers, which is a plus in this day
of nickel-and-dime-ing by some cruise lines. Fitness classes
ranging from low-key yoga to high-energy aerobics are
available for a reasonable fee and appeared to be popular.
On all Celebrity ships we enjoy the interesting and
sometimes quirky art collections (distinct from the
commercial art auctions), parts of which are world class and
quite valuable. Some cruise lines provide recorded tours of
their art collections, and Celebrity should offer this in
the future. This would make a worthwhile option during days
at sea, especially since quirky art benefits from good
background information.
Perhaps my major complaint about the public areas on the
Constellation, and on some other Celebrity ships, is the
absence of self-service laundry facilities. We have sailed
on a variety of mainstream, premium, and ultra-luxury ships,
and they all provided free washers and dryers for passenger
use. Ironically, damage to cabin furnishings caused by
passengers hanging wet clothes and trying to iron in their
cabins probably costs Celebrity a good deal more than free
laundry facilities would.
Standard CABINS are of reasonable size and convenient
design. On this cruise, which we booked several weeks before
departure, we opted for an inside cabin. On some older ships
an inside cabin may be painfully small (we have had some
nasty surprises on other cruise lines), but on the
Constellation they measure an adequate 170 square feet
(about 15.5 square meters). Granted, one does not have the
pleasure of sunshine and sea breezes that a balcony cabin
affords, but the absolute darkness of an inside cabin is
great for catching up on one’s sleep after a busy day in
port or a late night out.
Our cabin steward and his assistant treated us royally. They
kept our cabin immaculately clean, and they refreshed our
towels frequently. The bathroom is small but efficiently
designed, with a shower only. One no longer finds
designer-brand bath amenities in small bottles, but shower
gel, shampoo, and body lotion are available in wall mounted
dispensers, which is a plus for the environment since it
eliminates all the former packaging waste. Fortunately,
bathrobes are still provided in all cabin classes.
Celebrity prides itself on its fine DINING, and we enjoyed
their offerings on this cruise. The increasingly weak dollar
and high commodity prices have become a challenge for
executive chefs on all cruise lines. On the Constellation
the executive chef met this challenge successfully, and in
addition provided a very funny and instructive cooking
course during one of our days at sea.
We sailed on a small ultra-luxury ship in the Persian Gulf
during the month prior to this cruise, so our expectations
on this cruise were set higher than usual. The menu in the
Constellation’s main dining room still provides several
choices for each course, although the kitchen was
understandably less able to deal with special requests and
substitutions than on a smaller ship. Our waiter was
commendable and was very eager to obtain our feedback in
case anything was not up to our expectations.
The major drawback of the main dining room on the
Constellation, as on other large ships, is the noise. We
found it difficult to maintain a conversation at our table
of eight without shouting, which was a disappointment since
our tablemates, all from England, turned out to be good
sports and excellent company. The excessive noise diminished
the sense of elegance and detracted from our enjoyment of
the evening meals. On top of the usual noise, at the end of
each meal there were several birthdays being celebrated,
each with raucous singing by the staff and passengers, a
tradition hopefully forgotten in the future.
We dined at the Oceans Restaurant only once. This elegant
surcharged restaurant recreates the atmosphere of a bygone
era of ocean travel from the 1930s. We made reservations to
dine there our first night onboard, since we feared that
Oceans would be fully booked as the cruise progressed.
Surprisingly, there were only two other occupied tables that
evening, so we received special attention from the
well-trained and personable staff.
The Oceans menu is fixed for the duration of the cruise, and
we felt that we had sampled everything we wanted on our
first visit. The cuisine, like the décor, favors traditional
items with dramatic tableside preparation of such items as
Caesar salad and shrimp flambe. The menu did not seem very
adventurous or inventive. Showmanship sometimes trumps
flavor in such restaurants.
Oceans Restaurant also offers the option of a tasting menu
with wine pairings. We received a complimentary amuse
bouche from the tasting menu, and it was enjoyable. We
are not wine buffs so we decided not to try this option. The
regular menu surcharge was about $30, and the tasting menu
with wine pairings was about $60 per person.
On our final night at sea we opted for informal dining in
the area used for the lunch buffet. In the evening this area
has an attentive wait staff, full linen and crystal on the
tables, and a fixed but enjoyable menu. There was almost no
one else dining there that evening, and the resulting peace
and quiet added immeasurably to the pleasure. Since the
kitchen was smaller and less stressed than at the main
dining room, it also did a better job of making a few
substitutions in side dishes. Had we known about this option
earlier in the cruise, we would have dined there more often.
Similarly, at breakfast and lunch we were pleased to see
that the standard buffet line has been supplemented with
various cooked-to-order specialty stations such as Asian
stir fry, Italian pasta, and a delicatessen. We uniformly
preferred the specialty food that was prepared individually
or in small quantities. For this reason the Aqua Spa buffet,
which is somewhat hidden behind the sculpture at the indoor
pool, was also a favorite of ours.
Enjoyable dining is very important when selecting a cruise
ship, and my hope is that in the future cruise lines will
eliminate or at least downsize their main dining rooms and
instead provide multiple smaller restaurants and bistros
with attached smaller kitchens. This certainly would be much
easier on the wait staff. Perhaps our expectations have
risen, but it seems that over the years the larger and
larger main dining rooms on cruise ships have become less
and less enjoyable.
The best upgrade on this cruise was the ENTERTAINMENT. There
were still high caliber Broadway reviews and lounge acts in
the main theater. There were still two very good dance bands
with vocalists in the lounges, in addition to the main
theater band. Perry, the enjoyably over-the-top cabaret
singer, still performed in Michaels Club. But now Celebrity
has added a variety of musicians in smaller venues. They
even presented a wonderful Chopin piano recital by a
prize-winning Israeli pianist in the main theater.
There were multiple concerts in the Cova Café and Michaels
Club by classical musicians (strings, piano, and guitar).
The classical musicians were from Belarus, and they played
everything from show tunes to dance melodies to classical
chamber music, both ensemble and in solo recitals.
Their talent was breathtaking, and they were the highlight
of our cruise.
In addition, there were multiple concerts by an all-American
a cappella quartet. The quartet was a delight to
listen to and very personable to speak with. They were just
out of college, and this was their first cruise contract.
Let’s hope that both the classical musicians and the a
cappella quartet have many future contracts with
Celebrity. These alternative concerts were so popular and so
crowded that Celebrity would do well to add a small concert
venue or a small stage with café seating in their future
cruise ships. CELEBRITY DESERVES AN AWARD (and will
certainly get our return business) for thinking outside the
box and providing such wonderful music alternatives, the
best we have encountered on any cruise ship. In addition,
Celebrity has made an effort to provide enrichment lectures
during days at sea, for which they also deserve praise.
IN SUMMARY, Celebrity Constellation in the southern
Caribbean and Panama is a wonderful cruise choice if one
wants a large cruise ship with good food and excellent
entertainment at a reasonable price. It will be interesting
to see if Celebrity’s newer and larger ships (Solstice and
Equinox) will be even better.
PORTS OF CALL
We chose this cruise partly because of the ITINERARY, which
provided alternating day in port and day at sea. From Ft.
Lauderdale we stopped at Grand Cayman, Aruba, Colon
(Panama), Cartagena (Columbia), and Cozumel.
We have never transited the Panama Canal, so this was the
highlight of the itinerary for us. Some cruise lines pass
through the locks from the Caribbean to Gatun Lake and then
back to the Caribbean. Instead, the Constellation remains in
port at Colon, and those passengers wishing to experience
the canal locks can do so in a small ferry as part of an
optional excursion. This excursion costs about $150 through
the cruise line, but the canal tolls are so high that cruise
ships entering Gatun Lake must charge passengers an
additional $120 in taxes, so the excursion cost is almost a
wash. More about that later.
GRAND CAYMAN was our first port of call. This is a
relatively expensive port because of the international
off-shore banking community, and the absence of a cruise
pier necessitates tendering between the ship and Georgetown.
In the past, long waits for tenders to shore and back have
given this island a bad reputation. On our cruise large
local tenders supplemented the ships own tenders, making the
transfers fast and trouble free, even for those passengers
without shore excursion reservations.
The most popular excursion on this island is a boat trip to
Stingray City, a shallow area in the North Sound where one
can stand or snorkel among surprisingly tame and friendly
stingrays. This trip is available through the ship, or it
can be booked from a variety of tour companies when onshore.
When on Grand Cayman, my wife and I prefer to relax and
snorkel on famous Seven Mile Beach north of Georgetown. Much
of the beach is now lined by a solid wall of resorts and
condominiums, but there is a small relatively undeveloped
area with shade trees at the public Cemetery Beach. To get
there one simply walks a few blocks inland from the tender
port to the main square to catch a public minibus, which
costs about $2.50 US each way for the West Bay route along
Seven Mile Beach. If you ask, the driver or a fellow
passenger will alert you at the Cemetery Beach bus stop.
These buses also continue north to the turtle farm and the
town of Hell (for those who want to visit Hell without
having to stay there). Minibus service is frequent and
reliable. As on most Caribbean islands, it is customary to
greet fellow passengers when boarding the minibuses and to
make room for other passengers as they enter and leave. A
bonus is that the downtown bus stop is near the public
library, where free internet access is available (but may be
fully booked). In general, we have found that any internet
café on the islands is much cheaper than the internet
service on cruise ships and just as fast.
Our second port was ARUBA. Cruise ships dock at Oranjestad.
The town is quite pleasant and there are several nice
beaches north of town. The public bus terminal is in a large
square behind the façade across the street from the cruise
dock. Buses to beautiful Arashi beach (the northern
terminus) leave several times per hour. Again, most of the
route is lined by large condominiums and resorts, but Arashi
Beach is undeveloped, although there are shade huts and a
restroom.
An easy walk north from Arashi Beach is the California
lighthouse, with a nearby restaurant and a nice view over
the island and shoreline. Small dunes nearby also provide
interesting walks. A short walk along the road south of
Arashi Beach brings one to an area for snorkeling at Malmok.
Offshore is the wreck of the Antilia, but this is too
far and too deep for safe off shore snorkeling.
Along the way, the bus stops at several large resorts with
their own beaches, but we met several vacationers who left
their resorts to spend the day at Arashi, which they
preferred. Also along the way is a windsurf rental area for
those who enjoy the sport.
Our third port was the city of COLON Panama, at the Atlantic
entrance to the PANAMA CANAL. Because this was the most
important port on our cruise, we booked the canal ferry
excursion offered by Celebrity via their website booking
service. This service requires immediate payment by credit
card and cannot be charged to ones shipboard account. As
outlined above, it costs $150 per person for a 7 hour
journey by bus and then ferry through the San Pedro and San
Miguel locks to the Pacific Ocean, and back to the cruise
ship by bus.
As mentioned above, this excursion costs only a little more
than the additional tax for cruise ships that pass into and
back out of the Gatun locks, and costs only a little more
than the same excursion when booked ashore, which we did not
risk due to the tight schedule. For us this excursion was
very enjoyable and worth every penny. In fact, it was the
first time in 20 cruises that we booked an excursion through
our cruise line rather than traveling independently. Being
on a small ferry rather than a large ship makes the canal
engineering all the more impressive, and the ferry transits
two sets of locks and travels all the way to the Pacific.
We did not spend any time in the city of Colon itself, but
the cruise terminal has a pleasant sheltered market for
souvenir shopping, including handicrafts from the local
Indians. Their embroidery is famous and makes excellent,
easy-to-pack pillow covers and shirt appliques.
Our fourth port was CARTAGENA Columbia, the historic center
of which is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Unfortunately,
some passengers were spooked by the reputation of Columbia
and did not leave the ship. They missed one of the most
photogenic cruise ports in the western hemisphere.
We made an effort to go ashore as soon as the ship was
cleared, and we were glad we did. The town was wonderfully
peaceful for several hours until it began to fill with tour
groups from our ship and from the QE2, which was docked with
us. Street vendors will offer their wares but will not
pressure you if you politely decline. Remember that they are
simply trying to earn a living and merit your respect.
Colon has a very pleasant cruise terminal with a free
shuttle from the ship and a taxi stand just outside. A taxi
ride for three people to the old town clock tower gate costs
a standard $15 US. The price is posted at the taxi stand,
but should be confirmed with the driver before entering the
taxi. Make certain that the driver takes you up to the gate
and does not drop you a few blocks away at the convention
center. Return taxis are easy to find, and when metered they
are less than $15 for the return trip.
For those who prefer, local English speaking guides are
available in the town and via the internet. They can add
interesting information and a sense of security, but we
preferred to wander on our own and were quite comfortable
doing so. We even came across a movie being filmed near the
town walls.
Our fifth port was COZUMEL. This can be a hectic port – when
there I counted seven other cruise ships, together
off-loading more than 15,000 passengers. To avoid the crowds
we simply snorkeled from a dive shop that was a short walk
north of our cruise dock (the most southerly of the three
Cozumel cruise docks).
While eating a late breakfast, we noticed several snorkel
tour boats tied up not far from our ship. Assuming that the
locals know the best snorkel spots, we walked north along
the shore to a nearby dive shop diagonally across from the
large thatch roof pyramid in front of one of the hotels. The
dive shop is in a small whitewashed building down a short
drive adjacent to a walled resort beach. It offers free
lockers (bring your own padlocks), a changing area, and an
easy water entry.
In the past we had taken taxis to various snorkel spots
south of San Miguel town, but this snorkel site was just as
enjoyable and could not have been more convenient. Those who
want to relax on a beach, however, will still need to take a
taxi several miles south.
Have a wonderful cruise and happy port adventures! |
