Royal Caribbean Issues Statement Regarding Millennium

Celebrity Cruises has been working in cooperation with Chantiers de l'Atlantique, the builder of its newest ship, Millennium, to evaluate the ship's performance. The ship is equipped with the cruise industry's first gas turbine engines, and testing has demonstrated that Millennium has unusually low levels of noise and vibration. However, testing also has shown that under certain unusual sea conditions a vibration could be felt within certain areas of the ship.

While this has not been, and is not expected to be, a problem on the ship's current European sailings, it is possible that the sea conditions in question could be more prevalent in the Caribbean. Therefore, Celebrity is working with the ship's builder to resolve the matter prior to its sailing in the Caribbean this winter. The joint effort could lead to a decision to put the ship in dry dock for a period of time following its arrival in New York on November 15. That decision, however, has not yet been made. Celebrity Cruises will provide more detailed information as it becomes available and will contact all guests whose cruises may be affected. In the event drydocking is necessary, the company expects the bulk of any costs associated with it will be covered by contracts with the ship's builder.