Cruise Overview
Celebrity Constellation is a Millennium-class ship that strikes an ethereal balance between luxury and value, big-ship amenities and small-ship service. Since it's launch in 2002, this combination has earned Constellation many loyal fans. It's easy to see why both couples and retirees return to this ship again and again.
Cabin Details
Inside, oceanview and balcony rooms feature two twin beds that convert into one queen, a small couch, a safe, small desk, a flat-screen TV and bathrobes. Minifridges offer pricy "emergency rations" that include hard liquor, beer, wine, snacks and water.
Constellation's standard cabins ÂÂ inside, oceanview with a window and balcony cabins with a verandah (called "Deluxe Oceanview") ÂÂ average 170 square feet (with 38Â-squareÂ-foot balconies, where applicable), about 15 to 20 feet below the industry average. They are small, but well laid out, and after a couple of days, we got used to the size.
Dining Details
Celebrity Constellation's massive two-deck, 1,170Â-seat San Marco dining room features an elegant curving double staircase leading from the upper to the lower dining rooms. Two rows of dark wood columns form a corridor from the stairway to a dramatic two-deck-high wall of windows, which offers views of the ship's trailing wake.
Menus offer a wide range of traditional international dishes from mild (beef Wellington, prime rib, fried chicken or veal chops) to wild (frog's legs, snails and ceviche). For vegetarians, there are several meat-free options like vegetable and ricotta cheese-stuffed "conch" shells and vegetable paella. Low-calorie specialties, like poached salmon, grilled chicken breasts or sugar-free desserts, are marked with a little heart on the menu. Celebrity deserves special commendation for its portion restraint (in the main dining room, at least). The reasonably sized appetizers and salads allow passengers to save room for dessert. It's also perfectly acceptable to order two starters, appetizers or desserts if you're really hungry or just can't make up your mind.
Activities Details
The modern 900-seat Celebrity Theater is where most of the major entertainment action takes place. The banquet-style seats are comfortable enough for the nearly hour-long programs, and the small tables positioned along the rows of seats are handy. The two-tiered theater is three decks high and hosts Vegas-style song-and-dance revues at night, focusing on Broadway and pop hits. Other evening headliners may include veteran singers, comedians and musical acts. Celebrity has a favorite list of entertainers, including a lot of musicians and singers from England, so regulars can expect at least one or two acts during a cruise to be a repeat from previous cruises.
Evening entertainment elsewhere on the ship emphasizes music, with bands in the Rendezvous Lounge on Deck 4 performing '40s and '50s jazz standards, some pop songs (a la swing) and other danceable classics. The Reflections venue on Deck 11 serves as an observation lounge for readers or sea gazers and a quiet place for dance and craft classes by day, but it's also the official gathering place and watering hole for the Captain's Club Elite members from 5 p.m. until 7 p.m. and later turns into a (often sparsely attended) disco for the few who are willing or able.
During sea days, the ship's cruise director and staff offer plenty of activities to keep cruisers busy, although many passengers are content simply to read, knit or play cards. There are usually two or three popular Celebrity Life enrichment events including lectures related to the cruise itinerary or subjects of intellectual interest including astronomy, history, arts and music. In addition, there's usually at least one wine tasting education event per day and several beer and booze tasting events during the cruise.