Booking first Celebrity Cruise...

Getting ready to book our first Celebrity cruise...we've been on RCL and HAL but the repo cruise on Summit to Puerto Rico this October lines up perfectly for a relaxing trip after our daughter's wedding.

Right now I can book Concierge cabin for just $50 more than a regular veranda so we're leaning heavily to this category. We prefer as much shade as we can get on our balcony though, so looking for the best option. I saw one picture of what I think is a C3 on the Sky Deck that seems to have a large overhang...does anyone know where I can see more pictures of that particular location of stateroom?

Is there another deck that will also give us the shade we want?

I'm also curious about the Family Veranda. Now this category would be another $40pp above the Concierge, but I noticed that FV Guarantee popped up this morning. Would they even let a booking for two people go through in that category? The balcony is huge in that option, and while I'm not a fan of solid railings it does seem like the side view of these railings is more open to view the water.

Thanks for the opinions of all you Celebrity regulars...

We haven’t stayed in a CC cabin so I can’t help with info on which have more shade however I can tell you the the Concierge cabins are about 20 sq ft larger than a standard veranda cabin on M class ships. I would book the Concierge for the extra space if nothing else.

The corner FVs have huge balconies with a good portion covered so plenty of shade. Don’t know whether or not they would let 2 book a FV this far before sailing. When we moved to a FV it was less than a month before sailing.

Check the Sticky at the top of the Celebrity Boards on M Class ships and see if you can find info on cabins there.

For a difference of only $50 I'd definitely book the Concierge Class on Summit for the larger room. A bonus is the 2 extra Captains Club points per night, priority boarding, and especially the embarkation luncheon in the MDR that would allow you to avoid the chaos of the OVC in favor of a quiet sit down served lunch. That will be a nice start to a relaxing vacation after the hubbub of all the wedding hoopla! Also, they'll store your carry on luggage while you relax and have lunch, and by the time lunch is over your room will most probably be ready.

You'll find a lot of information about the Summit cabins on the sticky, as mentioned below, but I also use cruisedeckplans.com whenever I select a cabin. It's a TA website that has free access as well and offers deck plans for all cruise ships and lines with lots of pictures, video links, and information about good and bad points of various cabins.

For $50 I would definitely book concierge on Summit. Look at the aft cabins. We had one on the Summit and the balcony is huge, no one problem with shade on that ship.

For only $50 extra, heck yes ... go for the Concierge.

If they allow you to book the FV with only 2, even better!! You will be guaranteed shade. However, if there are only 2 passengers and that cabin is needed for a larger group (I think they will sleep up to 5), they might bump you up and out of that cabin since it is on a guarantee. I'd be tempted to go for the FV after having gotten one (the day before the sailing) on the Infinity. Best cabin ever!!

Just to be clear, $50 total? Or per person per day?

Just to be clear, $50 total? Or per person per day?

It's $50 pp for the whole six nights...so the difference between a regular balcony and concierge would be $100 total for the cruise. That is NOT for an aft though...the aft concierge rooms are $350 pp more than a regular balcony.

I'm thinking it's a great value to have the extra space. I'm leaning toward the sky deck as I found a picture that shows the balcony of 9144 with the overhang above and it still looked like a great view despite the angled supports.

I mentioned the FV earlier but that stateroom as a guarantee would be $90 pp more than a standard balcony, and if I get bumped from that stateroom I would hate to have paid that much more for a standard balcony, or a poorer location, when I thought I'd get the big balcony.

I'm leaning more and more toward the concierge room. Just need to pick the right location.

It's $50 pp for the whole six nights...so the difference between a regular balcony and concierge would be $100 total for the cruise. That is NOT for an aft though...the aft concierge rooms are $350 pp more than a regular balcony.

 

I'm thinking it's a great value to have the extra space. I'm leaning toward the sky deck as I found a picture that shows the balcony of 9144 with the overhang above and it still looked like a great view despite the angled supports.

 

I mentioned the FV earlier but that stateroom as a guarantee would be $90 pp more than a standard balcony, and if I get bumped from that stateroom I would hate to have paid that much more for a standard balcony, or a poorer location, when I thought I'd get the big balcony.

 

I'm leaning more and more toward the concierge room. Just need to pick the right location.

I don't recall which ship you're looking at. If an M class, maybe consider one of the "sweet sixteen" if the cruise is far enough out. If an S class, consider a hump balcony. (You can search on here for sweet sixteen to get cabin numbers.) Those are highly desirable cabins and always go early, but occasionally one of them will pop back in, so even if they're not available, it pays to keep a regular watch and snap it up for a switch once you've booked. If that's the route you choose, and you book with a TA, when you see one, put a 24 hr. hold on it. Then call your TA ASAP to make the switch for you.

IMHO, the FVs are the best cabins on M class ships apart from the PH. C1 (Concierge) cabin balconies are larger than most standard verandas, with great aft views and part shade. We have stayed in both types on all the M class ships except Summit ;).

IMHO, the FVs are the best cabins on M class ships apart from the PH. C1 (Concierge) cabin balconies are larger than most standard verandas, with great aft views and part shade. We have stayed in both types on all the M class ships except Summit ;).

We changed our booking to a FV 2 months before we sailed on Infinity in 2013. All M class cabins are similar, so the pictures below will be similar for Summit.

However, we given a named cabin 9156, so we knew it was a corner one.

Yes, Jackie, we’ve loved our stays in the corner FVs - fabulous large balconies, with the added side view too ;). Just a pity we can’t find any itineraries in Europe during the peak summer months in 2019 to entice us.