Summit June 9 Sailing Comments

[Giorgi-one]

Just a few comments from our recent Bermuda cruise on Summit. For info, we have been on over 30 cruises with 8 on Celebrity and have sailed Summit a few years back. Have been to Bermuda on cruise about 15 years ago.

 

Ship - Excellent condition and clean. Have no idea where comments about ship looking worn came from. Deck chairs were not great but definitely not falling apart.

 

MDR Food - Not as good as 5 or 10 years ago but good. Lobster was excellent. Steaks were even good. Service was excellent.

 

Oceanview Cafe - I am not fan of cruise ship buffets. Food is usually nothing special and Summit was no different. Biggest problem was getting coffee in the morning and beverages in the aftermoon. At least half of the coffee urns were emtpy at any given time. Same for beverges and ice. Servers only react after someone tells them they are empty. Biggest peeve is people standing at the beverage stations making their tea or adding sugar and cream to their coffee while everyone else is waiting to get coffee. if everyone did this it would take about 12 hours to serve breakfast. Also, they close the Oceanview Cafe just as everyone is getting back from shore excursions. DUH!

 

Entertainment. Shows were great. Probably the best 6 singers I have seen on a cruise ship. Dancers were also very good. Illusionist was very good. Comedian OK for first half hour - I really dont get anyting out of bringing people on stage. Looks like he is trying to stretch a half hour show into an hour. Cruise Director needs to cut back on his "Good" comments. It was funny for the first day or two.

 

Bar Service - In a word HORRIBLE. Definitely not enough bartenders and servers to handle all the people with Beverage packages. I thought a fight might break out at the pool bar several times. The only way I could get drinks in Reflections was to go directly to the bar and wave a few $$ at the bartender.

 

Bermuda - Nice island but a little overrated. We did a walking tour of Hamilton which I got from Fodors. Highlight was the Anglican church. A few little parks and old Fort with 2 canons. Went to Horseshoe Bay 15 years ago and thought is was the most beautiful beach I had ever seen. Went there this yeat and it was Coney Island with about 2000 people and 1000 umbrellas. NCl Breakaway has ruined Horseshoe Bay. Also $12 to rent a chair and another $12 for an umbrella they probably got for free with the Pepsi logo. Ate lunch in Hamilton at nice little restaurant but not on Front street. $27 + tip for two nice sandwiches and sodas. Not too bad. Probably about the same in any large American city downtown.

 

Transportation - Excellent. No problems getting buses and ferries at Dockyard.

 

Dockyard - Very nice. They have done a great job using all the old buildings. The Museum was fantastic. Very well done.

 

Music at Pool - Way too loud and monotonous. I can only take that Caribbean beat for about 20 minutes and then it is just noise. Most people are trying to read or talk. Some nice soft background music would be nice. Everyone around me at pool agreed.

 

Bayonne - Embarkation was a little slow but not bad. They only had one scanner working in Secutiy line which really slowed things down. Debarkation was fantastic. Celebrity only lets a limited number off the ship at any given time as opposed to RCL Allure where they let 3000 people off at a time. Plenty of customs agents and we used the shuttle to the parking lot. Left lot at 9:30 AM and we were home in Cherry Hill, NJ at 10:50 AM.

 

Summary - A very nice cruise especially considering the great deal with prepaid gratuities, Classic Beverage package and free parking. I would book this cruise every year if I can get that kind of deal again. Just need to find some other beaches with facilties and much smaller crowds. Actually, I could be happy staying on the ship when everyone leaves..

[turkeysmoker]

thanks for review great info 64 more days:)