Celebrity’s ‘GTS Constellation’: A Tasty Sensation
By Roger J. Ritchie
Celebrity Cruises’ flagship GTS Constellation—the fourth in the cruise line’s Millennium Class vessels—made her debut in 2002 and is the product of much careful planning, clever design, and a good slice of new technology. The ship at 90,000 gross tons is almost medium-size in relation to the larger vessels currently making their debuts in the cruise industry, but for many passengers, she is just about as big as a ship should get. Constellation has all the refinements that Celebrity management deemed appropriate for their vision of high-quality cruising in this and the next decade.
Recently, this writer traveled on the 1,950-passenger vessel on an 11-night cruise from Cape Liberty to New England and the Canadian Maritimes. Here’s my reaction to a cruise in a cool climate and a review of the million-and-one well-funded decisions that together contribute to the design, building and running one the marvels of our age… a really comfortable—and fast—ocean cruiser.
Sail Away – timely and anxiety-free –
The fairly new Cape Liberty Cruise Port’s Terminal in Bayonne, New Jersey, has all the room needed for processing passengers quickly, with adequate parking-for-drop-off space and check-in counters. The short shuttle-bus ride, from terminal a few hundred yards down the quay to shipside was handled by a mercifully large fleet of vehicles. The Constellation has spacious boarding lobbies to accommodate the tiresome security procedures now required. The full airline-style boarding process is conducted after the passenger’s Identification/Charge Card has been scanned on boarding. The return at the end of the cruise to Cape Liberty was equally as smooth and wait-free. The scheduled debarking times were accurately observed and the pick-up space was easy to access.
The ship, technically . . .
With her design being the third generation of ships of the line, the Constellation is feature-rich with the passengers’ well being and with advanced technology in the operational department. The vessel was the first to be powered by smokeless gas turbine propulsion, which reduces exhaust emissions by up to 95 percent. And her azipod-driven technology translates to a mechanically quiet ship with more internal space than the size of the hull might indicate.
Constellation, which made her debut in 2002, is the fourth of the 90,000 ton Millennium-class quartet consisting of the Millennium in2000, Infinity and Summit in 2001. The Millennium Class represents the new generation of commercial vessels with electric motors powered by alternating current from gas turbine-driven generators. The second techno-novelty, when the class was introduced five-year ago, is the outboard mounting of the two propulsion motors in movable pods that provide the ship’s directional control. The ship’s underwater drag is reduced (as there is no rudder) and much less engine room space, as the two Rolls Royce gas turbines are very compact. Additional benefits are the low-noise, no vibration operation of the turbines and the reduced vibration of the outside mounting of the motors. The engine placement also provides the benefit of forward facing propellers for better efficiency. All this allows the ship to turn in her own (965 feet) length without noisy stern thrusters.
Constellation is just able to squeeze through the Panama Canal (at 105.6 feet width).
The Constellation is definitely stylish – it would seem the Celebrity policy of avant-garde artwork is celebrated with added vigor on this four-year old beauty with that feeling that this is a cosmopolitan design, which considers comfort essential, but that the decorative pieces throughout the ship need not be anything you might have in your living room! Stemming from the original specification of the Chandris family who founded the line in 1989, the level of sophistication in the styling and artwork onboard reflects a sincere effort to raise the bar on cruise-ship décor and refinements. Although Royal Caribbean (RCI) bought the line in 1997, the London-resident Chandris family lent the initial letter of the family name to the line’s graphic program—hence the X on the smokestack of the Celebrity ships and on just about everything created for the Celebrity brand. (The line operates as an independent unit of RCI.)
In the culinary area, the addition of Master Chef Michel Roux, owner of the celebrated Wayside Inn outside London, to the Celebrity planning team in 1989 established a high level of cuisine that lives on, in fine fashion, aboard the Constellation. Besides reviewing, evaluating and revising the menus and wine lists, every six months, Chef Roux's many contributions include key advisement on the architectural design of each of the ships' galleys to ensure that the most efficient methods of delivery of food to the table are employed, thus preserving the superior quality, temperature and taste of the cuisine. “Behind the scenes in the galleys of Celebrity Cruises, you’ll find no ready-made or convenience foods,” says Chef Roux. “From sauces to soups, from ice cream to breads and pizza, everything is made from scratch, with only premium ingredients. The goal is to create tasteful dishes that need not be high in calories or fat to be satisfying.”
Another personal touch Chandris introduced early on was the taste of fine coffee to their ships. Turning to the most beautiful coffee shop in the world, COVA of Milano, Celebrity created its sea-going version—the Cova Café Milano—where passengers may select from a full range of coffees and teas, espresso, cappuccino and fresh-baked pastries during the day. (By night, the café turns into a cozy wine bar with gentle musical entertainment.)
Dining, Eating, Snacking, Grazing . . . .
The Celebrity emphasis on food choice and easy availability is evident throughout Constellation. The San Marco Restaurant is a huge, quite glamorous room seating 1,198 guests in comfort. It really makes an occasion of the dining experience. The service was a fast as it could possibly be, with no apparent sacrifice in quality. My table companions enjoyed the flavors and presentation of dinnertime selections as much as I did. The menus were elegant in their diversity and the well-seasoned dishes are consistently up to the highest cruise ship standards.
The tasty pastas—always a good check dish—were of a top restaurant quality. The San Marco Dining Room has a two dinner-seating arrangement—6:00 pm and 8:30 pm— providing for a quite leisurely first-seating experience and a late seating that was popular with the cocktail and/or pre-dinner dancing crowd. Evening dining assignments are made prior to the cruise; however, breakfast and lunch service is open seating (no assigned tables or times). Special dietary selections are available to all guests, including vegetarian, diabetic, low-sodium, low-cholesterol, kosher, "lean and light" (with detailed nutritional information), and selections designed exclusively for children. Table wines and drinks are handled by a fleet-footed sommelier team which does wine-by-the-glass as well as consult on the selection and delivery of bottles from the cellar. As with the other drink services onboard, the ship’s tariff compares with good restaurant, big city prices.
Smokers are drawn to the several areas designated by ash trays and (of course) the camaraderie of fellow smokers. No smoking is permitted otherwise in Constellation’s public areas, including the casino.
Throughout the ship the dining choices were varied and consistently tasty. The ship’s Casual Dining Boulevard opens in the evening in the Seaside Café area with informal white table-cloth dining in one area while the pizza-zone around the corner becomes a Sushi Café for a nice break in dining format, with friendly assistance to initiate the first timers, from the Japanese sushi staff. The transformation is completed with the Starboard pasta buffet putting on there red and green Italian colors to continue the (almost) endless Constellation pizza party.
The eating choices go on and on around the ship—even the elegant Spa Menu at the AquaSpa Café is served up to 8:00 pm in the evening (to the rippling sounds of the indoor pool.) The Spa cuisine deserves praise for its deft arrangements and delicious quality. Meanwhile outside by the pool, the hamburger-happy Seaside Grill serves up its fare until to 7:00 pm—a great convenience for parents needing kid-friendly supper-time options. And, the bottomless ice cream tubs are just around the corner for the grazing passersby of all ages.
The Constellation’s evening eating options also include the pizza and pasta zone in the roomy Deck 10 Seaside Café which adds fresh salad fixing’s to the usual choices in the pasta-chefs repertory—right up to 1:00 am—providing for the two out of one hundred passengers who are taking a salad-break for lunch or dinner.
The noshing and grazing opportunities include the COVA Café and Pasticceria which boasts a handsome location overlooking the three-deck-high Grand Foyer. The now-common craving for the genteel service of espresso-based coffees and pastries, in the fine coffee-house tradition is well satisfied in this airy location. To top off the eating-day the Constellation’s waiters patrol the lounges and the casino with trays of gourmet bites until 12:30am!
And indeed the staff is obliging, consistently pleasant, and prompt; the overall atmosphere of attentive service sets a tone of hospitality with discipline aboard Constellation. The drink charges are quite high, about New York City levels, but most people accepted them as a balance to the high value of the cruise fare and the no-fuel-surcharge price of their holiday. The Constellation’s one card system—Identification/Room Key/Charge card eases the sign-off on drinks or espresso and services such as spa visits and shopping. Even end-of-voyage tips may be charged to the SeaPass card. Guests can keep tabs on their beverage or other purchases during the cruise via their stateroom TV set.
The Ocean Liners Restaurant -
Celebrity makes sure that its prime alternative dining option is really something to write home about! The Ocean Liners Restaurant whips up an atmosphere of trans-Atlantic liner luxury and sauces the elegant dining experience with a great-restaurant style of service and attention. Consistent with its name, Constellation’s Ocean Liners restaurant greets guests with an anteroom displaying a variety of memorabilia commemorating transatlantic travel, along with a continuous-loop video presentation of maritime dining history. Within the restaurant itself, guests may enjoy the charm of a selection from Celebrity’s collection of paneling from famed luxury liners: four original, lacquered panels from the private dining room onboard the Ile de France, one of the most famous grand liners of the 1920s, highlight on one wall of the room. Two additional original—and very well-traveled—panels are located in the tiled rotunda at the center of the restaurant.
At a $30 surcharge the restaurant creates no complaints on value for its elegant cuisine and stylish attentive service. The setting is the quiet luxury of an English wait-a-month-for-a-reservation establishment providing a showcase for the modern menu, created by Master Chef Michel Roux for Constellation— each course is listed with a Roux-recommended wine by the glass (for an additional charge) or guests may select from the venue’s wine list of more than 190 fine vintages from around the world. “In each of our specialty restaurants, the dishes we serve demonstrate the impressive workmanship and skill of our staff,” Chef Roux tells us. And the diner’s enjoyment of this individual service-from-the-cart is a nice part of the experience.
Most selections are elegantly “finished” on a tableside trolley in Chef Roux’s style and served to a maximum of 134 diners, with the flourish of a turn-of-the-century grand hotel dining room
The staff is very keen to play the role of grand restaurant servers and seem to really enjoy putting on a show. The Maitre d’ has indeed studied the service style at the Michel Roux’s landmark restaurant near London. It would be a shame for a Constellation traveler not to experience this noteworthy dining experience.
Fitness, Wellness and Exercise—all aboard for health
The AquaSpa and Gymnasium at the forward end of Constellation’s pool deck is as huge as the trend requires, with hair/beauty salon, spa facilities, and all huff & puff machines to satisfy the most driven health enthusiast. The space overlooks the bow and daylight floods the area. The full range of shore-side specialty massages is administered by a large international staff. Hot stones, aromas, and Swedish massages are all on the menu. At the core of the facility is the unusual Persian Garden Thermal Suite with dry, wet and other torpor-producing climates. But, for those the slap-happy types AquaSpa offers the Razul mud-daubing experience which calls for the plastering of mud on one another (team of two required) to expunge any last naughty toxins still left, after all the other detoxification treatments have been given a try. The treatment prices are pegged at land-based spa fee levels.
All this pampering is well rounded off with a splash in the large green house enclosed Thalassotherapy pool, with its warm seawater and two of the six whirlpools on the Pool Deck. The layout of the facility is all en suite for easy trips for the excellent ocean-view sauna to the bubbling waters of the warm indoor pool. It does come to mind that the spacious spa facilities and exercise equipment, along with the carefully tailored spa- cuisine (served away from the temptations of the yards-long buffets) would make a marvelous spa/health week at a price below such wellness-promoting excursions on terra firma. The AquaSpa is open from 8:00am to 11:00pm. The running/walking track (one deck above) is nicely free from obstruction—not always the case on ships—and allows the accumulation of one kilometer (about two-thirds of a mile) with only three trips around. One deck up from the track/promenade, on Deck 12 is the Paddle Tennis court which is also set up for shooting a few hoops. Paddles and balls of both sizes are provided for impromptu challenges.
Taking another type of step toward wellness… the Acupuncture Clinic is a new fleet-wide Celebrity feature. The facility is located mid-ship on Deck 8 so that new “experimenters” and seasoned enthusiasts have an easy access to the seagoing branch of a Miami-based acupuncture practice. The Constellation’s acupuncture practitioners have studied in China and further qualified in the USA to bring ancient art of those slender needles to an on-holiday group of patients. The four patient treatment areas give the clinic a calm Zen spa atmosphere to inspire confidence in the acupuncture concept. I gave it a try and I will be back. Several presentations on acupuncture were made during the voyage in the comfy cinema.
The Public Rooms
The bars are all smartly decorated without flash and in nicely toned schemes – amidship the trio of spaces called Rendezvous is the dance floor – (just cocktail-dancing sized) and balconied above on Deck 5 is the Martini Bar to starboard is echoed by the Champagne Bar to port. The huge Celebrity theatre is forward (at the bow spanning Decks 4 and 5 with a 900-guest capacity that looks more Broadway than shipboard. The décor is restrained and tasteful—another demonstration of the Celebrity dismissal of any styling ideas that are garish or showy. The large stage spins, sinks and rises to assist some lively shows—the powerful sound system is used to great effect, but at a sometimes uncomfortable volume for many passengers.
Moving aft on these public decks, the casino is the usual jingle-jangle area with the latest card games on hand, including an all computer version of Texas Hold’em poker played on a table top around a horizontal plasma screen? I personally prefer to move through a ship without the need to pass through the casino, but the Constellation layout uses the promenade deck for the casino so the space is limited by the wide promenade outside the casino space. Continuing aft the Grand Foyer unites all these decks with the guest services counters below on Deck 3. The Reception Desk, Tour Bureau etc. are at the foot of a remarkable glowing onyx staircase that would do Cinderella proud!
The exception to the prevailing Celebrity good taste in the public rooms is the Bar at the Edge of the Earth—the over-the-bridge, big-windowed sitting, sipping and disco-ing location. It has a sort of an-Amsterdam-disco-meets-Lord-of-the-Rings style of decor that made the otherwise magnificent space (it is on the other Millennium-class ships) into an oddly unappealing environment, particularly in daylight. While it is certainly trendy as a night-club venue, it’s entirely out of keeping with the balance of this smartly decorated ship.
All of Constellation is well accessible with easy wheel-chair reach provided to every public area and 21 staterooms in two categories and speaking of access, the Constellation does a fine job with its high speed elevators. The four-shaft glass elevator tower amidships portside not only provides exciting ocean vistas, I found it notably fast and convenient.
The Smokers have their own space – Michael’s Club – the Constellation’s cigar bar, which looks for the all the world like the Smoking Room from one of the old ocean liners to which the Ocean Liners Restaurant pays homage. This is a brandy-and-cigars atmosphere for an intimate group of 50 guests (it’s never full). They are amused by a pianist or as on one night, the members of the Celebrity Theater Orchestra having a great old time in a lively jam session!
There’s always more . . .
The kiddy-care zone was located in a most attractive top-deck area with outside and inside play grounds. The nanny-on-duty was giving some toddlers a whale of a time! The Online@Celebrity Internet Café provided the now essential E-mail access, for the Internet-addicted, in a nicely light-filled space on Deck 6.
The golfers are not forgotten—the Pro-shop is up on Deck 11 next to the Flower Shop and its Conservatory. Both these interests (golf and flowers) were the topic of presentations. I heard from fellow guests that they were suitably stimulated in the pursuit of both activities. The Topless sunbathing area is up high at the bow for the free spirits and seamless-tan inclined! There were no takers on my northbound voyage!
The Public Rooms—Lets meet or shop
Constellation’s suite of meeting rooms is particularly versatile, as they are slightly off the beaten path, to avoid passing traffic, on the aft end of Deck 3 with access from the “ground” floor of the Grand Foyer. The suite gets top marks with its rooms ranging from a Board Room with 14 chairs to a really attractive 40-ish capacity ocean-view room and on, across the corridor to the comfortable cinema with its curved rows of stadium-terraced seating for over two hundred. These should be really appealing to organizers of corporate groups of travelers doing some business meetings during an incentive trip. I immediately thought of the large family groups now more frequently voyaging together, perhaps using the cinema to do a “This Is Your Life” or family scrapbook show using these excellent onboard facilities. The Cinema is used for Church services.
The Shopping Center on Deck 5 is extensive and pleasantly non-glitzy, equipped with loads of eager assistants providing ready access to all the usual shipboard merchandise….jewelry leading the selection, of course, but the wristwatch selection was very good, perhaps for the return wife-to-husband gift after the stops at the glittering jewelry counters.
The Private Spaces—the Staterooms and Suites
All the staterooms have a minibar, TV, and wall-safe equipped. The cabin temperature is (in my experience) nicely responsive to the on-wall thermostat control.
All the Constellation’s staterooms are adequately sized—but not spacious —and the bathrooms are the efficient, shower-only variety. Celebrity has opted for the dispenser-style of shampoo presentation/dispensation in the showers (and similarly lotion in the bathroom). Collectors of those fiddly little amenity bottles will be disappointed! All are squeaky clean and the cabin-access corridors are attractively decorated with pleasant lighting and many yards of the ship’s art-photo collection.
The Constellation Suites come in rich flavors – Penthouse, Royal, Celebrity, and Sky.
At 1,690 square feet the two Penthouse Suites are just one bedroom –but ask-everyone-you-know-over-for-drinks-type spaces. The eight Royal (562 square feet) and eight Celebrity (498 square feet). Suites are very light, offering plenty of sit-outside balcony space, along with every creature comfort. The 32 Sky Suites are more like super-staterooms ranging from 254 to 362 square feet—are an attractive option for a very special trip. Their bathrooms are tub-equipped for the soapy-soaking crowd.
Do I hear a tune…?
Yes, all over the ship. There’s music in many locations throughout the day and night. Celebrity is no slouch in musician recruitment and disperses this musical resource in all the spaces where ears may be entertained. The Cova Cafe/Grand Foyer is particularly pleasant in the evening when the string quartet pours some soothing Mozart sensibilities from their balcony into the elegant three-deck high area. A young lady provides the ultimate aural civility of harp music throughout the evening in the Ocean Liners Restaurant. Of course, the toe-tapping champs are the pool-deck quartet of cheery West Indian musicians that keep things lively for the sunbathing crowd around the sheltered double outside pool and the adjoining four bubbling whirlpool tubs. The theater is busy nightly with lively shows of the song-and-dance variety—just as vigorous as you can get —or artists with engaging backgrounds and terrific musical skills.
But, speaking of music – the poor choices of music and rock-sounds coming over the PA system in some areas aboard ship failed to match the care exercised in other elements of the service. Hard rock sounds on the Pool Deck, I think selected to liven up the atmosphere; can be contrary to the traveler’s goals of serenity and relaxation.
The Art of the Ship . . .
Many ships have interesting works of art, even antiques, incorporated into the vessel’s décor. But in keeping with the Celebrity style ethos, Constellation boasts an unusual number of contemporary graphics and sculpture. For example, a huge gorilla glowers across the pool deck adding an unusual artistic gravitas to this playful area. A substantial more-than-plump Fernando Botero nude reclines beside the Thalasso Pool and a spectacular Dale Chihuly glass chandelier pendant turns an upper deck glass enclosed lobby into a jaw-dropper. The Constellation collection is truly varied, with sixty-one artists and photographers represented all over the ship. A purposeful gallery stroll though areas of the ship, which you might not need to pass through, is a really interesting view of what might be the collection of a wealthy collector of contemporary art. I called my own stairwell “Dandelion Gulch” after the many decks of remarkable native weed recreations in elegantly lighted Lucite boxes. An oddly charming idea!
Overall Assessment
The Constellation represents the whole cruise ship industry very well indeed – and brings great credit to the Celebrity brand—a perfect first-cruise choice. As a state-of-the-art cruise ship and floating resort it’s both a benchmark in big-ship comfort and facilities, as well as benchmark in the technological achievements in propulsion and onboard systems.
The ship personnel serve and entertain (on stage) you very well. Constellation’s 941 crew and staff, hailing from 50 nations, are a most genial lot. The training for the passenger service people seems to be focused on cheerful greetings and helpful attitudes and very effective it is too! Perhaps they try harder because of the cruise line’s policy of adding 15 percent to the service bills whatever the location on the ship—a policy that was well accepted by the guests with whom I spoke.
But the excellent value Constellation offers its guests does require a compromise in the trim dimensions of its staterooms—in all categories—and the rather modestly insulated, noise-permeable cabin walls. Otherwise there’s nothing much to dilute the long, long list of Constellation’s genuinely praiseworthy features and services.
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Roger J. Ritchie is a contributing editor to ShipsandCruises.com
INTERVIEW: Hubert Buelacher
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