X Marks the Spot-The Summit to Bermuda & Back

Just returned from our first Celebrity Cruise. While veterans of 20+ cruises, this was our first "X" cruise. Rather than try to write a day by day travel log of our experiences (The days kind of blurred after awhile) I am going to group experiences/thoughts into my own categories. I will also include a few photos.

So what made us try Celebrity?

DH and I needed a break..FAST! We wanted something relaxing, and a good value (i.e. cheap). We had looked as several Caribbean cruises, but the airfare to FLL, normally a bargain, exceed that of many of the cruises we were considering. I also was hesitant to go to the Caribbean because we have two cruises planned for the Eastern Caribbean for later this year, and I didn't want Caribbean overload. I considered cruises with all of our usual suspects; Princess (13), Carnival (4), & Holland America (2). I had even checked out Viking River cruises (2). Nothing was checking all the boxes, so I expanded my search and looked to see what Celebrity offered and saw a 7-day to Bermuda out of Bayonne. It had several advantages; It was close enough to drive, it was cost effective if going with an inside, and it wasn't going to the Caribbean, but still tropical. We booked.

In the Days Leading Up to the Cruise & Embarking

About 8 weeks before sail date we booked our cruise. We selected a guarantee inside, which is always a gamble. But the gamble paid off, and just 2 days later we were assigned 9006. An inside, almost all the way forward, but on a higher deck, close to the spa and the solarium pool. It turned out to be a perfect location for us.

I was pleasantly surprised when just a few days before we sailed we received luggage tags. I didn't think any of the mass market lines did that anymore. Granted, they were not the pretty, colorful hanging tags of years past, but it was still a nice surprise, and I didn't have to print out tags, fold them, and hunt for the stapler to attach.

We drove up from our home Saturday night, stopping somewhere north of Baltimore, and continued on Sunday morning. With the help of MapQuest and my car's navigation system we had no difficulty finding the port. However, to anyone driving up I-95, you will need cash to pay for the tolls unless you have an Easypass. I paid $24.40 in tolls on the way up (And $20.40 on the way home). I thought that was high, but later spoke to a couple that had driven in from Ohio, paying over $60 in tolls! Anyway, after finding the cruise port terminal, I dropped off DH & the luggage, and was directed to the parking garage. One prepays the parking fee of $140 (Credit cards accepted), was directed to a parking spot, parked, locked car, and was quickly on my way back to the terminal.

Embarking was fast and easy. Any line moved quickly. As soon as we received our Sea Pass cards we were met with a barrage of Celebrity team members hawking everything from Specialty restaurants, various drink packages, the spa, and photo packages. I found it overwhelming but their ploy worked and before I knew it we had reservations at the Tuscan Grill (With a 20% discount), two drink packages (more on that later), Set up THREE (3) spa services and bought passes to the Thermal Suite! The only thing I resisted were the photo package, but that's mainly because I do not photograph well. However, we still posed for the embanking photo, which we later bought because it was cute and funny. However, I going on the record that while cruise photos in general are expensive, Celebrity's are crazy so! Our photo was $20, and that was for just one picture. I know I've paid less on HAL, Carnival, and Princess. Photo's with the captain were even higher at $30. That was for one 5x7, and three wallets.

Embarking ended on a high note. When we got on board we were greeted with our choice of champagne or a mimosa. That was nice. Princess use to do that or was it HAL? (Can't remember). It's not a break it or make it item for me, but I do find it a nice touch.

To Be Continued........

Thank you for taking the time to post a review. Just last week we booked the Summit for July 31! I am looking forward to reading more. Please keep it coming :).

Marie

Hoping you will be able to finish your post this week. We leave Sunday, May 15th for this same cruise. First time on Celebrity also. We are on Deck 9 also - 9070 - Aqua. That will be an entire new experience with dining in Blu, etc.

Thanks for taking the time to post so soon after your cruise.

Hoping you will be able to finish your post this week. We leave Sunday, May 15th for this same cruise. First time on Celebrity also. We are on Deck 9 also - 9070 - Aqua. That will be an entire new experience with dining in Blu, etc.

 

Thanks for taking the time to post so soon after your cruise.

Please share your thoughts upon return. We will be in our first AQ, 9043. This is a real treat for us as we typically travel in insides or OV's. - OP, apologies for the threadjack.

Back from throwing a load of laundry into the wash

First & Lasting Impressions of the Summit

Usually people wait until the end of their review, thoughts, travel log, etc. to give their overall impression. I am going to start with it. I loved the Summit. I loved the size, so easy to get from point A to B. Definitely a manageable size. Most of the public spaces were tastefully decorated, and looked fairly updated. The one notable exception was Revelations Lounge on Deck 11. It's a great location, high up & forward. It offers great views from the large windows, but the décor is blah, and worse, the chairs are in bad shape; the wood is scuffed and nicked, the upholstery is badly stained, and the chair seats are the size of airline seats, making them a tight fit. This area has major potential to be a "Star." Currently its used for Trivia & private events during the day, and late night it was used for music trivia and dancing.

Areas that were very appealing to me included Café Al Bacio, Bistro on Five, & my favorite bar, Cellar Masters. I also enjoyed all of the different art work on display throughout the ship.

Smoking, Drinking & Other Vices

Don't smoke myself, but wanted to give what information I have, so others can plan accordingly. For the most part the Summit is a smoke free ship. However, it is permitted on the port side of the open areas of deck 4 and deck 10. There was a nice seating area with a bar very close by on deck 10 for smokers.

There are drink packages. DH got the premium non-alcoholic package at $24 per day (I think the classic non-alcoholic, i.e. soda & bottled water, was $14 per day). I got the Premium drink package at $65 per day. Probably a waste for us as I just can't drink that much in a day. Included were all sodas, bottled water, fancy coffee, smoothies, & virgin drinks (This was in the Premium non-alcoholic package), in the Premium Drink package I also got all cocktails, most beers, and many of the wine by the glass. I also got a 20% discount on bottled wines, and on more expensive wines by the glass I just paid the difference of any amount over $14. IF we had waited until Day 4 (Our first scheduled day in Bermuda) we could have gotten the drink package for $165 per couple. So to save money, hold off drinking until day 4.

I don't gamble so I can't comment much, but to say that as of Friday evening the slots had paid out $75,376.07. The casino is located on deck 4, and they did show the Kentucky Derby on Saturday.

The Canyon Ranch Spa & Solarium

We did spend much of our time in the Solarium and spa. We had purchased spa passes for the thermal suite ($79 pp), which I thought a fair price (On NCL's Escape the thermal suite is $199 pp for the week, but granted it does have more amenities). The thermal suite has a heated bench, a bit like the individual tile loungers in most thermal suites, its just that you have to share it. It also had a steam room, a Turkish sauna, and an aromatherapy room, as well as a rain shower. I don't think all the parts of the rain shower were working though; I never could figure out how to work the fog, and the overhead mist didn't seem to work, but the shower head and body showers worked fine. You can save money by skipping the thermal suite and using the Hydro-therapy pool in the Solarium and the Finnish Sauna in the ladies changing room (Between the Solarium and Spa on deck 10, port side).

We had signed up for several spa treatments; I had a heated stone massage (Best.Massage.Ever!) and DH had a Tension Release Massage that made him look 10-years younger. The next day I had a facial that was very nice. Of course later in the week there were lots of specials. I just can't wait!

The Solarium had loungers on the port side, and chairs/tables and well as couches on the starboard side.

Finally was able to get Photo Bucket to work, so here are a few more photos from around ship.

Café Al Bacio

Cellar Masters, great beer & port

Bistro on Five

Thank you so much for posting the BO5 menu!

Perhaps you can answer a question but I'll have to explain it a bit.

Normally, when a ship leaves the Bayonne and heads out to go under the Verizzano Bridge, the ship pulls out and goes to the right of the Statue of Liberty. That is what we did last year when I went late May.

Later on in the year last year, they started pulling out into the river and actually made a left turn going around the Statue to the left. The ship pretty much pulled behind the Breakaway and went under the Bridge. I was wondering if you noticed what you did on your cruise.

While we had all ages on board, and travelers from all over, the vast majority of our fellow passengers were couples either retired or soon to be, most seemed to be from the Mid-Atlantic states of New Jersey, New York, & Pennsylvania. However, there were those from south of the Mason-Dixon Line and New England as well as a fair number from Canada, especially the French speaking province. Very few children, the ones we had were mostly younger and stayed close by to mommy & daddy. I didn't see any teenagers or college age passengers.

I won't pretend to be all sophisticated & blasé, I was hoping to see Captain Kate. I was very excited at the thought of sailing on a ship captained by the first American female to be Master of a cruise ship. It took until Friday, our unexpected sea day (More on that later), but I had heard her daily briefings at 10 AM throughout the week. On Friday I saw her not once, not twice, but three times. The first was around noon. I was walking past Café Al Bacio and I saw a woman that bore a strong resemblance to Captain Kate working behind the counter, serving cookies. I went in for a closer look (I was trying to read the name tag). She asked me if I wanted anything and I said 2 oatmeal raisin cookies. I then asked the woman if people ever told her she was the spiting image of our captain. She then smiled and said she got that all the time, then I knew it was her. Later she made a surprise appearance in a game show, "Are you Smarter than a Ship's Officer" which was a crew vs. passenger trivia game. And finally that night she posed for photos between 7:30-8:15. She was mobbed by excited passengers wherever she went. I must say she was very gracious and posed for lots of selfies (And encourage people to act goofy in them). She may be tiny, but she carried herself with confidence.

Our crew was quite diverse with a large number of crew members from Jamaica, Honduras, as well as the Philippians and Indonesia. Eastern Europe and a few American's rounded out the majority of the crew. Overall we had good service.

Captain Kate & my 6'8" tall husband

Finally was able to get Photo Bucket to work, so here are a few more photos from around ship.

 

Café Al Bacio

 

Cellar Masters, great beer & port

 

 

Bistro on Five

 

Thanks for the review, we are first timers on celebrity traveling to Bermuda in August so looking forward to your review. We are diamond plus on Royal so we are elite on celebrity and wondering about the cocktail hour, were you at those events?

Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk HD

Perhaps you can answer a question but I'll have to explain it a bit.

 

Normally, when a ship leaves the Bayonne and heads out to go under the Verizzano Bridge, the ship pulls out and goes to the right of the Statue of Liberty. That is what we did last year when I went late May.

 

Later on in the year last year, they started pulling out into the river and actually made a left turn going around the Statue to the left. The ship pretty much pulled behind the Breakaway and went under the Bridge. I was wondering if you noticed what you did on your cruise.

Sorry, no I didn't see. I was getting The.Best.Massage.Ever! However, it was raining and misty when we left, so it was difficult to see much. I could barely see the Statue of Liberty while docked.

Thanks for the review, we are first timers on celebrity traveling to Bermuda in August so looking forward to your review. We are diamond plus on Royal so we are elite on celebrity and wondering about the cocktail hour, were you at those events?

 

 

Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk HD

Since I had the drink package it was always cocktail hour for me :eek:

I will try to scan the Celebrity Today daily newsletter within the next couple of days and post and that might help with your planning.

Thanks for the review. I look forward to the rest!

Thanks so much for a readable Bistro on 5 menu, so many of us have been asking for it!

Looking forward to the rest of your review!

Thanks for the review! This is exactly what I was looking for.

Thank you for posting the Solarium pictures. We have sailed on the Summit 6 times. The last time was before the dry dock so I was anxious to see the new furniture.

There were a couple of Special Events on board. Some we participated in, others we did not. The first was "A Taste of Film" It was suppose to be on Thursday night, but because of the weather forecast they moved it to Wednesday (Our first official port day). They showed "The Hundred Foot Journey" and served a 7 course tasting menu of Indian & French cuisine. My personal favorite was a Curried Chicken Salad. It was held at the Rooftop Terrace and I would estimate that we were 2/3 full. It might have had a better turn out if it hadn't competed with the Harbor Nights in Hamilton. The cost was $10 pp, and I thought it worth it.

Another special event was they showed the Kentucky Derby on the big screen on the Roof Top Terrace, and they served Mint Juleps.

There is no assessable access to the Roof Top Terrace. I did see a man in a walker being helped up the stairs by two members of the staff, while a third carried his walker. It was also cool and windy during most of our sailing. They did have some warm blankets to use. There are 6 of the alcoves that hold a double lounger. Those were very popular and were the first places to fill up during special events and daily movies

The other special event was Indulgence. There was a $20 pp fee. We didn't go, but it was explained as an exclusive party for about 60-70 people that started at 10:30pm. It included drink and food and performance art. It was heavily hyped. Held at the Cellar Masters & Bistro on Five (The area was closed off to us non-exclusive types) I couldn't see in, so I don't know if it was well attended or not.

Food

Always subjective of course. I thought it ran the gamut between very good to downright awful. The Oceanview Café was opened for breakfast most days from 7-10am, Lunch 12-2, and dinner from 5:30-9:30. Breakfast was good, lunch was okay, and dinner was lousy. They had pizza and pasta offerings every day that made me want to cook my own food. Most of the sauces for the pasta were runny and had little flavor.

We had dinner three nights in the Cosmopolitan Restaurant. It was mostly good, but the service was a little slow at times. We had the Select Dining (Open seating) which was from 5:15-9:00 I thought with that we could go when we pleased. However, I was surprised to receive a letter in our stateroom the first day suggesting that we go to dinner between 8:15-8:45. Other people I spoke to had different times suggested to them. Even when going at 8:45 we had to wait a few minutes before being seated. The 2nd Evening Chic night was the night they served Beef Wellington, Lobster, Duck a la Orange and other fancy stuff. It was probably the busiest night for the restaurant and we didn't walk out of there until 10:30.

We ate the first night at the Tuscan Grill (With our 20% discount), and enjoyed the meal very much. Our last night on board we had dinner at Bistro on 5. Wow! loved it. We both had the Cowboy Crepe and it was the best thing I ate on the cruise. DH had the carrot & ginger soup as well, and asked for a second bowl. It was that good. We both had floats; DH had a root beer and I had a Coca-Cola. It was never full. Every time I walked by it averaged about 3 tables for lunch or dinner. I hate the fact that they are changing over to a sushi restaurant. They have sushi available in the buffet at night.

Fun Times

Much to DH's dismay I would leave him to go to the daily trivia. It was tricky at times. Teamed up with a lovey couple from Philly and on the last day we were victorious! IMO though the most fun was on the night they had 70's music trivia and a dance party afterwards. The Cruise Director, John hosted that night and his 70's trivia was hard. An example he would play a snippet of a song and you had to guess the song title and artist. Easy enough, but then you had to guess who wrote the song. The first song he played 99% of the people thought they knew, but they were all wrong. Or he would play a famous song, sung by a famous artist, but it wasn't the solo artist that recorded it, but the group he was in at the time. Some tricky, tricky stuff! Besides the Cruise Director John (a lovely, friendly man BTW) his staff included Liam & Oz. Both were high energy and engaging. They hosted many of the activities. Normally I could care less who the entertainment staff are, but these three men were memorable.

Wow, love the new solarium furniture, and the movie area looks great.

Thanks for the review!

thorne40,

Thank you sooooo much for posting. :)

This is an extraordinarily informative review of the Summit's Bermuda program. I do appreciate it! Have considered booking a Summit Bermuda cruise in the past, but have been discouraged by the pricing. Your comments and photos are making me think this is a cruise that I would enjoy regardless of the high per day cost.

This is an extraordinarily informative review of the Summit's Bermuda program. I do appreciate it! Have considered booking a Summit Bermuda cruise in the past, but have been discouraged by the pricing. Your comments and photos are making me think this is a cruise that I would enjoy regardless of the high per day cost.

Deals can be found, either on Tuesday Specials, or online TA's. Just last week, I booked an AQ(A2) for $1149 pp plus taxes, July 31, with beverage package and $350 OBC. This is with a well known travel agency that advertises on CC. I have used them before. I have two of my upcoming five booked with them, the other 3 with Celebrity direct.

Marie

Someone asked about this. It is from 5-7 except for the first night and the night they do a top tier event- which takes place from 7:45-8:30.

Our plan was to relax on the three sea days, and enjoy our three days in Bermuda in small doses each day. DH is having issues with one of his ankles and my knees are not working like they should. We had signed up for 3 ship sponsored shore excursions because of the new policy regarding multi-day passes for public transportation I had read about. I just didn't want to be bothered with dealing with long lines, especially after I heard that the Getaway was scheduled to get in an hour before us on Wednesday. We had signed up for a tour of St. Georges for day one, snorkeling on day two, and a beach transfer on day three. As others have reported, we had a medical emergency sometime Monday or Tuesday, and we actually had the pilot boat for Kings Wharf meet us Tuesday evening, take off the sick passenger, and come back to take us in. We docked Tuesday night around 8pm and we were allowed to get off if we wanted. We stayed because we figured most shops would be closed, and we had three whole days. On Wednesday we met our tour group on the pier. I was taken back to find out we had to take the ferry to St. Georges on our own (A ticket was provided, but no help to ensure we got a place). The St. Georges ferry fills up fast, so we got in line right away. Once in St. Georges we were meet by our van driver, who gave us an informative tour. Many sites were drive by, but we did get out at a lighthouse, St. Peter's (The oldest Anglican Church in the New World), and Ft. Charlotte. All too soon it was back to the pier to catch the 3:30 Ferry.

Day two was suppose to be snorkeling, but due to high winds all water activities had been cancelled. We didn't schedule anything else. Our day three beach transfer was cancelled due to the fact we left a day early due to deteriorating weather conditions. A letter was placed under our door early Thursday morning (Port day 2) telling us that we would be leaving at 5pm that day.