$55M makeover of Celebrity's Century by June '06

[Ned]

CELEBRITY CRUISES LEAPS TOWARD NEW CENTURY

Miami - (December 22, 2005 ) - Celebrity Cruises has made a giant leap toward transforming a century into a millennium in just five weeks. The line has signed with Fincantieri in Palermo, Italy, to handle the significant revitalization of its 77,713-ton Century cruise ship in 2006.

The approximately $55-million makeover designed to incorporate on Century a variety of Celebrity's most popular Millennium-class attributes marks the line's most extensive refurbishment to-date, and the first time the company has worked directly with Fincantieri. The Century project will be the largest cruise ship modification to-date for the Palermo yard.

Century will emerge on June 2, 2006, from a five-week drydock period at Fincantieri with 314 new verandas, 14 new suites, 10 new staterooms ranging from inside to veranda category, an expanded number of ConciergeClass category staterooms, a new specialty restaurant, and a series of features and amenities that typify the line's acclaimed Millennium-class fleet. The contract with Fincantieri involves Century's major structural modifications, new verandas and associated stateroom interiors, new staterooms on deck 12, and regular drydock work. Other interior outfitting contractors also will handle portions of the work.

I'm looking forward to Celebrity's conversion of this class of their ships. I've sailed on Galaxy and had a great time. This will really add to the quality of Century. It's often very nice to take a smaller, more intimate ship, compared to Celebrity's Millenium Class ship. For my wife and I, verandas add quite a bit to our cruise enjoyment giving us a wonderful private outside area for eating reading and watching the passing scenery. Even when the weather isn't conducive to being outside, those big floor to ceiling glass doors are wonderful windows to the outside world.

[willysgrandma]

The Century was the first ship I ever cruised on and it is the bar I compare every other cruise to.

I loved this ship when we sailed in 2000. It was beautiful and had the moist spectacular midnight bufffet I've encountered.

I've been on the Horizon and it didn't hold a candle to this ship, so I would imagine it is going to be magnificent after it is modified.

[Ned]

Originally posted by willysgrandma@Jan 2 2006, 11:58 AM
The Century was the first ship I ever cruised on and it is the bar I compare every other cruise to.

I loved this ship when we sailed in 2000.* It was beautiful and had the moist spectacular midnight bufffet I've encountered.*

I've been on the Horizon and it didn't hold a candle to this ship, so I would imagine it is going to be magnificent after it is modified.

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I've never been on Century, but have been on its sister ship Galaxy. These ships were huge improvements over Celebrity's first two ships, Horizon and Zenith. We took Galaxy to Alaska. We thought the ship was wonderful.

It's interesting that you say that about Horizon. I never sailed on it, but was able to tour it once. I thought it was the least of all Celebrity's ships.

On October 22nd, Horizon sailed on its last cruise for Celebrity. It was a 7 nighter to Bermuda. I think Celebrity probably felt that Horizon wasn't up to their standards too. Celebrity sold Horizon to Island Cruises, a joint venture between Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd and First Choice Holidays. The ship will be overhauled and renamed "Island Star", and will be cruising in the Mediterranean this summer, with transatlantic cruises to Brazil in the winter.

Happy new year.