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Celebrity Cruises has cancelled two 12-night Mediterranean sailings onboard Celebrity Millennium due to damage to the ship’s propellers. The ship will reenter service for its July 24 sailing. On July 2, while anchored off Villefranche, France, the ship’s propellers struck a submerged rock, following an electrical malfunction. Three of the four blades on the starboard propeller and one on the port propeller were damaged and needed to be replaced.

The company originally thought divers could accomplish the repairs while the ship was docked. The company has now concluded that a drydock is necessary. As a result, the remaining portion of the current cruise, which began June 30, has been cancelled. The next cruise, scheduled to depart July 12, has also been cancelled.
This is the latest in a long string of problems affecting the propulsion systems of the Celebrity Millennium and her Millennium-class fleet mates although most of the previous problems were related to mechanical failures of the propeller pods rather than direct damage.
“We deeply regret having to cancel these sailings and apologize to our guests for the disruption this will cause them,” said Dan Hanrahan, president of Celebrity Cruises. “We will continue to aggressively address the repairs and return the ship to service July 24.”
The ship will remain in Civitavecchia until the night of July 11, while the company assists guests in flying home from Rome and Venice. Guests from the June 30 sailing have received an onboard credit and other compensation that is equal to their full cruise fare, and a future cruise credit worth 50 percent of the value of their current cruise fare.
Guests booked on the July 12 sailing will receive a full refund of all monies paid to Celebrity Cruises and a future cruise credit worth 100 percent of the value of their cancelled sailing.
The company has established a special Help Desk to assist guests or travel agents who might have questions about this matter. That toll-free phone number is 1-888-281-9343.
Celebrity Millennium departed Barcelona, Spain, June 30 on a 12-night Mediterranean sailing that was scheduled to concludes in Venice, Italy, July 12. The ship was then scheduled to depart Venice July 12 on a 12-night Mediterranean sailing that was to conclude in Barcelona, Spain, July 24.