Summit Review 12/11 - 12/18/10 with photos

[PartyAllDaTyme]

Let me add my thanks to a most enjoyable review! A little less than six weeks to go for us-- it's certainly more fun looking at your pictures than at the foot and a half of snow out our front window!

 

You mentioned the beach to the left of the dock in St. Croix was closed to swimming. We had been planning on this as an easy-to-get-to snorkeling destination, based on what I had seen on the USVI port of call boards. Did it seem to be temporarily closed due to weather or some other condition, or did it appear to be more permanently off limits?

 

And I want to make sure I read your posts right-- the Connections party was at 5:00 pm the day of the St. Kitts stop, correct? Too bad it was so close to dinner, but at least it wasn't at 10:00 am, when most people would be ashore.

[emmabella]

Awesome...you have great taste Lois!

really enjoyed your fotos! we are sailing on the 12th feb on Summit. Pleased to see that not everyone was in dinner jacket for the formal evening.

[emmabella]

Sandi, I saw Dancing with The Stripes and it really is alot of fun:)

I can't recall when I saw it;) but I do remember everyone in the

audience really enjoyed it:D. I will look for it in February!:)

I w0onder if you are sailing from san juan on the 12th? I'm looking for fellow travellers!!! It would be nice to chat before we go!

[PartyAllDaTyme]

I w0onder if you are sailing from san juan on the 12th? I'm looking for fellow travellers!!! It would be nice to chat before we go!

 

Here's the link to your roll call--

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1210293

 

Since you're new to Cruise Critic, you may not know how this works. Briefly, there's a thread for every individual cruise where everyone going on that cruise can chat, ask questions, arrange to go together for shore excursions, plan things like sailaway parties, and more. Here's a link to find out more about roll calls, and how to find yours in the future--

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=547106

or just look for the sticky thread towards the top of the Celebrity board that reads, "ROLL CALLS - What Are They and How Do You Find Yours?"

[Lois R]

I w0onder if you are sailing from san juan on the 12th? I'm looking for fellow travellers!!! It would be nice to chat before we go!

 

Hi:), actually I am sailing the week before you on Feb 5th. Hopefully

you will find some folks on your cruise to chat with;)

[librarylady19]

How hot was it in Tobago on your birding tour? We're going on a tour with Newton Gorge in a couple of weeks and can't wait to see the birds. Also, did you encounter many mosquitoes? My teenage daughter welts up like crazy the instant she gets bitten so I like to be prepared in advance.

It was in lower 80's in Tobago with low humidity. Definitely wear bug spray if you are going into wooded areas, there were definitely mosquitos! Enjoy your visit; others on our cruise used Mr. George as a guide and I believe they enjoyed the experience. Are you going to Tobago or Little Tobago?

[librarylady19]

We received our debarkation notice on Friday - 9:15 a.m. which we were happy with. We were staying in SJ until Sunday so no huge rush to get off the ship. DH opted to sleep in rather than get to breakfast prior to 8:00 a.m. I just went up to the Aqua Spa cafe and grabbed a cup of coffee and one of their rolls. The buffet was a mob scene; just walking through there was difficult.

We had plenty of time to say goodbye and thanks to our wonderful butler Bart and room attendant Menino before heading down to deck 4 to the Theater. It was pretty deserted by that time so we were able to pop our heads into some of the other suites and rooms on our floor. We were interested to see that our Sky Suite was much nicer than the "regular" sky suites, much larger bathroom of course but also nicer furnishings!! When I get rich, I am booking a Royal Suite; just beautiful with a lovely living room, separate bedroom, walk in closet, nice bathroom and even a jacuzzi on the balcony....maybe for our 10th anniversary!!

As a suite guest, we had the option to wait in Normandie where there was coffee and pastries but didn't bother since the exit was on deck 4. We waited in the Theater for a few minutes and right on time, our group number was announced and we were off the ship and waiting in the customs line in a few minutes. Our luggage was waiting for us and we breezed through customs and were whisked away in a taxi off to the Marriott Stellaris in Condado.

 

It was a very smooth, organized departure. I was sad to leave the ship. I don't think I would have liked to stay on another week for a b2b but certainly could have spent a few more days on board. With only one sea day (which was really packed with activities, often competing with each other) there were several events I missed (including the Crew Talent Show) and despite my best intentions, I only used the T-pool once all week. I was never bored during the cruise, there was always the option to do something or nothing at all and simply relax in our lovely suite...just perfect.

 

We arrived at the Marriott quickly (those San Juan taxi drivers are quite speedy). We were fortunate that a room was available for check in even though it was only 11:00 a.m. (We had booked our room on Priceline for $119 several months prior to the cruise.) It was only late that night that we discovered that the 5th floor was not the best location as we were right above the area where the band played. Avoid this area if you are a light sleeper. I did not bother to ask for an upgrade to oceanview as we did not plan to be in our room during the day anyway.

 

 

The room was in good condition and very clean.

 

 

As we had skipped breakfast, we were famished and we headed across Ashford to Latin Star, which had been recommended by the hotel staff. Very tasty PR food! We started with the appetizer sampler plate that featured fried plaintains and fried pork pieces and shared the shrimp mofongo which was very yummy and not as heavy as I had imagined.

The Marriott has beachfront access as well as a very nice pool complex.

 

 

 

The ocean was beautiful but a bit choppy (it was quite windy) so we opted to spend a lazy afternoon at the hotel pool (which has 2 bars and waiter service) enjoying the last few hours of beautiful sunny Caribbean weather before returning to Chicago.

 

After the sun started to set, we cleaned up and took a taxi back to old San Juan. We wanted to walk around a bit more and do a bit of last-minute shopping. Old San Juan is a very walkable city day or night. We loved walking the narrow streets exploring the shops and restaurants. We went to a beer bar Scott wanted to try (the only one in old San Juan according to DH) that featured 100 bottled beers and had a light but delicious dinner across the street at Cafe St. Germain (salad, sandwich, 2 drinks & dessert for $40 - dinner special).

I was battling a cold so didn't have the energy to stay out too late...we had an 8:30 a.m. flight back to Chicago the next morning...so we headed back to the Marriott (cab was $12).

Wonderful end to a wonderful week in the Caribbean.

[CaribbeanAmphibian]

Thank you so much for the great review. It's only 24 days until we take the exact same one and this only got me more excited.

[lovetocruise99]

It was in lower 80's in Tobago with low humidity. Definitely wear bug spray if you are going into wooded areas, there were definitely mosquitos! Enjoy your visit; others on our cruise used Mr. George as a guide and I believe they enjoyed the experience. Are you going to Tobago or Little Tobago?

 

We're going on a boat over to Little Tobago then to see the hummingbirds. I will cover us in bug spray for sure. Thanks!

[The M&Ms]

Hi Gang,

We are looking ahead to doing a Baltic Cruise in August. Anyone else thinking about that possibility? You were a great bunch to cruise with.

Thanks for the review and pics Sandi.

Matt and Marie

[librarylady19]

Hi Gang,

We are looking ahead to doing a Baltic Cruise in August. Anyone else thinking about that possibility? You were a great bunch to cruise with.

Thanks for the review and pics Sandi.

Matt and Marie

You are most welcome; it was a pleasure getting to know both of you. We have to stick to the 7 nighters for now so I think our next cruise will be on the Eclipse next winter....would love to do the Med in Sept. tho...

[ljk76]

I've been enjoying a couple of vacation days planning our February Summit cruise. Your excellent and detailed review (combined with Deladane's great review) has really helped us map out our plans. "Library lady" - I should have been reading some of the books on my nightstand! I think I have a serious Cruise Critic addiction. And I don't think I'm the only one! I do know that I've enjoyed cruising even more since I discovered CC! Thank you for the time and effort that goes into a detailed post (with pictures imbedded.) It's been so helpful. I did think I had scored a really good cabin, until I saw yours though!

[ljk76]

P.S. Consider Regent for the Med cruise. I think you would love it.

[Kruz Guys]

Hi Gang,

We are looking ahead to doing a Baltic Cruise in August. Anyone else thinking about that possibility? You were a great bunch to cruise with.

Thanks for the review and pics Sandi.

Matt and Marie

 

Which cruise are you on in August? Tom and I did the Baltic on the Constellation in 2005 and loved it. Wish we could join you on you trip in August but time and money stand in the way since we are going to the Med in November on the Solstice.

 

Keep us posted on your trip. Have a great one.

 

Happy New Year!

Kruz Guys

Stephen and Tom :D

[marciab]

librarylady

 

Thank you for your detailed review! It was very helpful. Have been to the first 3 islands but not Dominica and Tobago.

 

We are also from Chicago area~ far western burbs and leave next Thursday for the 1/8 sailing of the Summit. I can't wait!

 

You mentioned you didn't want to leave after 7 days.. Celebrity has many 10 day Southern Caribs.. we did one last year and it was perfect!

 

Thanks for all your tips and pictures!

[librarylady19]

librarylady

 

Thank you for your detailed review! It was very helpful. Have been to the first 3 islands but not Dominica and Tobago.

 

We are also from Chicago area~ far western burbs and leave next Thursday for the 1/8 sailing of the Summit. I can't wait!

 

You mentioned you didn't want to leave after 7 days.. Celebrity has many 10 day Southern Caribs.. we did one last year and it was perfect!

 

Thanks for all your tips and pictures!

Hi Marcia - which ship would you recommend for a 10 day?

Batavia is a nice town, great library too (I used to work in Aurora)!! Still, will be nice to be away from our MW weather for a while. Enjoy your cruise.

[librarylady19]

Thank you everyone for your compliments. I have so enjoyed reading other reviews and pictures shared here on CC that I felt I should share mine. Sorry it has taken so long to get finished.

I hope my review has helped dispel some of the misconceptions about the Summit.

Just a few observations:

Service - consistently excellent at all levels of the staff and crew that I encountered on board. It was truly a pleasure to chat with some of the friendly, hardworking staff on board.

 

Food - we split our dinners equally between Normandie & MDR. I would rate Normandie as 4-1/2 stars and MDR and 4 stars in terms of both food and service. We had no real complaints. We loved Cova Cafe for variety of snacks and drinks as well as the relaxing atmosphere. Did not partake of the buffet other than the sushi (DH really enjoyed that.) Ate a couple of snacks at Mast Grill that were just ok but wasn't expecting gourmet food there!

 

Drink Service - servers at all bars and pool were friendly and efficient; never a wait. DH was happy with beer selection. We found prices reasonable (compared to Chicago). Only disappointment was the mojitos, much better in San Juan!

 

Interior Appearance/Design - Ship is very well maintained in the public areas. Cleaning seems to be go on around the clock. We liked the classic design and feel of the ship. The bars/lounges were more comfortable and inviting than those on Equinox imo. Loved the aft bar.

 

Exterior Appearance -- yes, there is a lot of rust and peeling wood. Balcony furniture definitely needs replacing. None of this affected our enjoyment of the cruise or ship in any way.

 

Fellow Passengers - there was a really wide mix of ages on board, from 20's to 70's. Not many kids as it was mid-December. Most of the kids seemed to be part of a Puerto Rican group. The "locals" were friendly and fun. Everyone was friendly and considerate. I did not witness any of the snobbery and rude behavior either to fellow passengers or crew I have seen on other cruises. It was especially nice to meet and socialize with some of our Roll Call group; fun to see familiar faces around the ship every day!

 

Smoking - I rarely saw anyone smoking in the designated areas and did not smell any smoke while on our balcony. This is one of the reasons we initially selected Celebrity and hope they continue to enforce their policies.

 

Entertainment - This is the only area I think Celebrity could really stand to improve. The various groups playing around the ship were great (esp. Charlie Butler & Tango for Two) but they need to widen the variety of entertainment offered in the Theater if they want to attract more people under the age of 65. Too many Broadway song/dance type shows for my taste. Both comedy shows were promoted as family-friendly. It would have been nice to have a late night comedy option as well or in lieu of these G rated acts. The band Fusion was very good but their playlists, and those of the DJ, skewed too heavily to Latin music. I know that the ship sailed out of San Juan, but most on board were not Latin and I would have liked more contemporary music. This is a minor gripe, however, and would not deter me from sailing Celebrity or the Summit in the future.

 

I can't wait to sail Summit again after she is Solsticized. It is the staff that really makes the experience and I hope this does not change.

Feel free to ask any questions.

[Lois R]

Hi Sandi,:) thanks for sharing all your pictures and your review

was terrific:D. I am really glad you enjoyed the ship so much because

I do remember how concerned you were for almost this entire year.

I knew you and Scott would have a good time;).....even after reading

all those postings............

 

I am going again in February and can't wait:DI will be watching the

Superbowl on board the ship and that should be fun for sure:)

 

Thanks again and you were asking about 10 nighters? Millennium

is doing them right now but not sure what the schedule will be for

the next couple of seasons. I know Equinox does 10/11 nights out

of FLL. Once we get to April another year's worth of itineraries will

be released so we can see what is coming out.

[travelingterps]

Thanks so much for your wonderful review and pictures! We will be on the Summit for the same itinerary in February and your insights and suggestions will help us so much in planning for meals, activities and excursions. Thanks again!:)

[ljk76]

When exactly is the Summit due to be "Solsticized?" We are on her in 8 weeks, and looking ahead to 2012 think it would be fun to plan a repeat, if she's been updated it would be fun to see the changes.

[Lois R]

When exactly is the Summit due to be "Solsticized?" We are on her in 8 weeks, and looking ahead to 2012 think it would be fun to plan a repeat, if she's been updated it would be fun to see the changes.

 

She is being "Solsticized" for 3 weeks in January 2012.

[marciab]

Hi Marcia - which ship would you recommend for a 10 day?

Batavia is a nice town, great library too (I used to work in Aurora)!! Still, will be nice to be away from our MW weather for a while. Enjoy your cruise.

 

I haven't yet been on a ship I didn't like! We did the 10 day So Carib on the Milli .. and for the 10 day Panama Canal did RCCL Brilliance.

 

When we started cruising... 15+years ago.. not knowing if we'd like it or not.. we did a couple of short 4-5 days cruises.. we found we love cruising.. but the friends we went with on the first few cruises.. them not so much! We still travel with them.. but on land vacations!

 

After a number of 7 day cruises we tried the 10 day.. and love that just as much.. We would often go a day early or stay a day late.. so not much differance in time away.. and often the 10days are over 2 weekends. That being said.. I think I could do 14.. but DH while liking both the 10days.. thought that was enough..

 

This time next week we'll be on our way to San Juan!!!

[librarylady19]

Just received my online survey from Celebrity yesterday. I gave everything high marks, except for the entertainment. Made sure to name those on board who really did a great job (i.e. butler, waiters). I hope others who find this area lacking will note the need for change. If Celebrity is truly targeting a younger demographic, their entertainment needs to keep up with the improved amenities and decor. It's not a dealbreaker for me, but they asked my opinion!!

[mbw1024]

This was a wonderful review and I loved looking at all your photos.

I can't believe Keith Cox was CD. He was the CD on my first cruise on Princess in 1991. I hope he stays on Summit until I get here in May. That would be fun.

 

Question about Normandie on the first night. Is that open to all passengers or was that only because you were in a Suite that you were offered dining there?

 

Thanks for taking time to do the review.

[Feelin' Nauti']

Another day - another island! This morning we had a light breakfast of pastries from Cova Cafe along with cappucinos delivered by our butler. We loved the selection of pastries available each morning at Cova. They are fairly small so one can try one of each without too much guilt. In addition to plain, almond and chocolate croissants, there were also mini apple danish, sausage rolls and mini choc. chip pastries available. Yum! This was definitely one of our favorite daily rituals.

 

 

 

 

Ok, this is not good when you're trying to diet. :eek:

 

Salviating here! :p

 

Can't wait till my cruise.

 

Thanks for posting all your great photos. :)