4 ships to Bermuda, which one to choose

[ghstudio]

We stopped in Bermuda last fall on a transatlantic...at the dockyards (king's wharf) where I think all celebrity ships now dock. It's a relatively new area with little of the charm of Bermuda....you really want to be in Hamilton or St George to get the flavor of Bermuda. If you are at the dockyards, you are at the mercy of the ferries which don't run late (or that often) or taxi's/buses which drive at 20mph making any trip long (and in the case of taxi's, expensive).

 

If we went back, we would not go on any ship that used King's Wharf...just too inconvenient and not much charm.

[dkjretired]

We stopped in Bermuda last fall on a transatlantic...at the dockyards (king's wharf) where I think all celebrity ships now dock. It's a relatively new area with little of the charm of Bermuda....you really want to be in Hamilton or St George to get the flavor of Bermuda. If you are at the dockyards, you are at the mercy of the ferries which don't run late (or that often) or taxi's/buses which drive at 20mph making any trip long (and in the case of taxi's, expensive).

 

If we went back, we would not go on any ship that used King's Wharf...just too inconvenient and not much charm.

 

I've done all three King's Wharf, Hamilton and St. George and I echo your sentiments on King's Wharf. Unfortunately, there are only a couple of ships that do Hamilton anymore, just a sign of the industry, no small ships.

[donaldsc]

Haven't I seen your post on at least 3 or 4 other boards on CC? That is a no-no.

 

DON

[Got2Cruise]

Haven't I seen your post on at least 3 or 4 other boards on CC? That is a no-no.

 

 

 

DON

 

 

Oh puleeze. She can post as many questions she wants.

[bigbenboys]

We have booked Celebrity Summit for Aug 2015, Aqua deck 11. Seems like you might be looking at summer of 2016. I might try the new RC Anthem of the sea. I think it will be christened later this year.

[captdave]

First time on Summit, just before it went to be refit & upgraded.

 

Great trip to Bermuda on the Summit. I liked it so much I did a Eastern Caribbean trip in Nov 2013. If you look below you will see I'm booked on 2 more Summit trips.

 

 

Royal Naval Dockyard Clock Tower with a Perfect Sunset, Bermuda 6-2011

 

 

CaptDave

[Iamcruzin]

We thought the Summit was terrible in food, service, cleanliness.

 

While I'd like to cruise to Bermuda, the other ships are not highly rated either. I don't know why the choices are so poor.

 

Were you on the Summit before or after it was Solsticized? We sailed in 2013 while it isn't as modern and open as the newer ships I found it to be clean and the furnishing looked new or updated. We actually liked that it has less passengers than the Grand Class Princess ships and we found the service to be just as good or better at times. However, the food was mediocre and sometimes just bad. Hated the buffet and one night I couldn't even eat my steak. It was a shame because it was tender and juicy. It was just way over salted. Even my wife who piratically holds the salt shaker while she is eating couldn't stomach it.

Edited March 25, 2015 by Iamcruzin

[Iamcruzin]

I agree, loved Summit to Bermuda, our only downside was 600+ children in August, you won't experience that in May. Aqua is a great way to go if you can trade up a bit.

 

600 children in August? That's probably half of what's on Carnival, NCL and Royal Caribbean. I'm with you. We sail in May or early June. I'm not a child hater. We have 2 adult children but when they were young we sailed in May as well. Even they didn't like to be around that many kids. The weather that time of year has also been great.

[midwestchick]

I agree, loved Summit to Bermuda, our only downside was 600+ children in August, you won't experience that in May. Aqua is a great way to go if you can trade up a bit.

 

Has anyone that sailed in July experienced this many kids? We have nothing against children but that is a LOT of young pax.

I also noticed our roll call is not active at all...there are only 2 of us for our July cruise :eek:.....are Bermuda roll calls typically not active?

We may have to rethink this cruise.

[CruisingChick]

Has anyone that sailed in July experienced this many kids? We have nothing against children but that is a LOT of young pax.

I also noticed our roll call is not active at all...there are only 2 of us for our July cruise :eek:.....are Bermuda roll calls typically not active?

We may have to rethink this cruise.

 

We sailed to Alaska in July and did not have anyone on our roll call at all. Could not even get to the 25 people needed to have the Cruise Critic party. Just think it's a different make up of passengers at that time of the year.

 

Most cruises in July and beginning of August have tons of kids, no matter what the line.

[Wine-O]

Has anyone that sailed in July experienced this many kids? We have nothing against children but that is a LOT of young pax.

I also noticed our roll call is not active at all...there are only 2 of us for our July cruise :eek:.....are Bermuda roll calls typically not active?

We may have to rethink this cruise.

 

I think 600 kids is a bit of an exaggeration. :) I've found that Roll Calls for these Bermuda cruises aren't as active because most of the travelers are just summer vacationers who cruise infrequently and probably have no clue about Cruise Critic.

 

We went a few years ago in late July and had no problems. We just stayed in areas where kids aren't allowed or don't go, like the Solarium, Martini Bar, and late seating dining. If you are traveling AQ, there probably won't be a lot of kids in there.

 

You'll have a fun time, especially in Bermuda.

[debgord]

Went on the Summit to Bermuda in May 2013. Loved every minute. Look daily to get another deal to go. Plus out of Bayone is an easy drive from Ottawa, Ontario. There are a few hotels that will look after your car for the week. Plus provide a lift to the port, plus pick you up. great deal.:)

[ghstudio]

Many don't really care where they cruise..it's the cruise, not the ports...it's being on the water vs being home....it's not having to do housework/cook....and so on. Celebrity does a great job at providing a great week on board their ships. IMHO, they are, as I've said many times before, the quality mass market cruise line.

 

However, if you do care about the ports and want to actually see and experience Bermuda, then there are other factors to consider..like where the ship docks. If they all dock at King's Wharf, then Celebrity is an excellent choice. If any of the ships you are considering dock elsewhere, that may be a good reason to choose them vs celebrity.

[midwestchick]

I think 600 kids is a bit of an exaggeration. :) I've found that Roll Calls for these Bermuda cruises aren't as active because most of the travelers are just summer vacationers who cruise infrequently and probably have no clue about Cruise Critic.

 

We went a few years ago in late July and had no problems. We just stayed in areas where kids aren't allowed or don't go, like the Solarium, Martini Bar, and late seating dining. If you are traveling AQ, there probably won't be a lot of kids in there.

 

You'll have a fun time, especially in Bermuda.

 

 

Another thing I find a little strange is how much availability there is in Aqua cabins. Final payment is coming up and it's almost a given these cabins will decrease in price. From what I can tell, the Bermuda cruises are more expensive than other Caribbean sailings.

With all the children on the ship, how was it leaving the ship when you wanted to to somewhere?

[Wine-O]

Another thing I find a little strange is how much availability there is in Aqua cabins. Final payment is coming up and it's almost a given these cabins will decrease in price. From what I can tell, the Bermuda cruises are more expensive than other Caribbean sailings.

With all the children on the ship, how was it leaving the ship when you wanted to to somewhere?

 

Getting on and off the ship is the same as any other cruise.

[gormless]

We're taking our third cruise on the Summit to Bermuda this June.

Before going on X, we traveled there on the Majesty twice from Baltimore (closer for us) before Norwegian sold her off; the Majesty was one of the last major cruise line ships able to get into St. Georges harbor. I've got some really amazing photos off the ship going through the town cut into the harbor, with really limited clearance for the ship on the way in.

 

Docking in Dockyards isn't the same, but you can always ferry to Hamilton and St. Georges. Or, if you want to see the islands, take the bus.

 

We've been on RCL, Celebrity, and NCL to Bermuda. The best has been Celebrity in Aqua class as far as I'm concerned.

[S&G1968]

Many don't really care where they cruise..it's the cruise, not the ports...it's being on the water vs being home....it's not having to do housework/cook....and so on. Celebrity does a great job at providing a great week on board their ships. IMHO, they are, as I've said many times before, the quality mass market cruise line.

 

However, if you do care about the ports and want to actually see and experience Bermuda, then there are other factors to consider..like where the ship docks. If they all dock at King's Wharf, then Celebrity is an excellent choice. If any of the ships you are considering dock elsewhere, that may be a good reason to choose them vs celebrity.

 

I have to agree...There are certainly certain itineraries that I find interesting but for the most part, I enjoy the particular ship and the relaxation and the level of service.

 

~Steve

[FlorenceItaly]

Absolutely Celebrity! We've cruised RCI, HAL, Princess, Carnival and RCI. We got off a Celebrity ship yesterday, and there is not turning back for us! We loved it.

[midwestchick]

Absolutely Celebrity! We've cruised RCI, HAL, Princess, Carnival and RCI. We got off a Celebrity ship yesterday, and there is not turning back for us! We loved it.

 

 

One thing I noticed is X is more expensive for it's Bermuda cruise than other cruise lines. :rolleyes: No flames, please. :p

[donaldsc]

Seems like you have posted the same message on a number of boards.

 

DON

[midwestchick]

Seems like you have posted the same message on a number of boards.

 

DON

 

 

I believe you've also posted the same comment on other posters comments. I didn't realize you were the posting police. :rolleyes:

[marco]

We've cruised to Bermuda many, many times over the past 30 years. "Once upon a time", pretty much all the ships docked 2 days at St Georges, and then moved over to Hamilton for 2 days. Now, NO ship is small enough to dock at St Georges, let alone Hamilton. We went a couple of years ago on HAL and docked in Hamilton We did sail out of Manhattan. They do go to Bermuda out of Boston this year, but I think May and part of June only, then it's Canada/New England cruises. We went last year on the Summit. We LOVED them both! We are going this June on the Summit, again. We chose the Summit over HAL only because "X" was offering the 1-2-3 Go promo. We prefer a little bit smaller ship (and the HAL ship is) and because of that, it docks in Hamilton. We do prefer that, but again, there or King's Wharf is not a deal breaker for choosing one over the other. The 3 day bus/ferry pass makes docking at King's Wharf a bit more palatable, and if your're going to a beach (especially Horseshoe Bay, which is THE beach in Bermuda, docking in Hamilton is no closer to the beach then Kings Wharf. Over the years, the Kings Wharf area has gotten a bit more "charming" if you will, then it had been, and the iconic shops that were in Hamilton (Triminghams and I think it was Archie Moore) are no more, so docking in Hamilton now is not as primo as it once was. As far as sailing out of Manhattan, yes....it is MUCH more scenic and impressive then sailing out of Bayonne, but that should not be your reason for choosing one ship over the other. Yes, once in Bermuda, regardless of where docked, you can get on/off 24/7. If you are flying to take this cruise, it's MUCH closer and less expensive to get from Newark Airport to Bayonne then JFK or LaGuardia to the Manhattan terminal, if you're flying in a day early, hotels are MUCH less $$$ in NJ then Manhattan, and if you're driving to the port, parking at Bayonne is less then 1/2 of what it is in Manhattan. And finally, Bermuda has so much to offer, I would not take any sailing that is shorter then 7 days, regardless of the ship or line. And OP: I'm assuming in your #2 in your criteria list you inadvertently left out the "but": "I've heard nothing BUT good things about Celebrity.

Edited March 28, 2015 by marco
added something

[S&G1968]

We've cruised to Bermuda many, many times over the past 30 years. We went a couple of years ago on HAL and docked in Hamilton We did sail out of Manhattan. They do go to Bermuda out of Boston this year, but I think May and part of June only, then it's Canada/New England cruises. We went last year on the Summit. We LOVED them both! We are going this June on the Summit, again. We chose the Summit over HAL only because "X" was offering the 1-2-3 Go promo. We prefer a little bit smaller ship (and the HAL ship is) and because of that, it docks in Hamilton. We do prefer that, but again, there or King's Wharf is not a deal breaker for choosing one over the other. The 3 day bus/ferry pass makes docking at King's Wharf a bit more palatable, and if your're going to a beach (especially Horseshoe Bay, which is THE beach in Bermuda, docking in Hamilton is no closer to the beach then Kings Wharf. Over the years, the Kings Wharf area has gotten a bit more "charming" if you will, then it had been, and the iconic shops that were in Hamilton (Triminghams and I think it was Archie Moore) are no more, so docking in Hamilton now is not as primo as it once was. As far as sailing out of Manhattan, yes....it is MUCH more scenic and impressive then sailing out of Bayonne, but that should not be your reason for choosing one ship over the other. Yes, once in Bermuda, regardless of where docked, you can get on/off 24/7. If you are flying to take this cruise, it's MUCH closer and less expensive to get from Newark Airport to Bayonne then JFK or LaGuardia to the Manhattan terminal, if you're flying in a day early, hotels are MUCH less $$$ in NJ then Manhattan, and if you're driving to the port, parking at Bayonne is less then 1/2 of what it is in Manhattan. And finally, Bermuda has so much to offer, I would not take any sailing that is shorter then 7 days, regardless of the ship or line.

 

That was a good commentary!

 

Thanks!

~Steve

[phoenix_dream]

I think 600 kids is a bit of an exaggeration. :) I've found that Roll Calls for these Bermuda cruises aren't as active because most of the travelers are just summer vacationers who cruise infrequently and probably have no clue about Cruise Critic.

 

 

You just never know. I was 'lucky' enough to be on the now infamous Constellation cruise in March where we had 1,000 college age kids on board (and that is not an exaggeration, but a number from multiple ship's crew). Granted, it is not usual for that many kids to be on a Celebrity ship - I would estimate that at peak times the number is normally in the 300-400 range on M class.

[DrivesLikeMario]

Good information in this post. :)

 

Can anyone tell me what time I should book my flight home for after my Celebrity Bermuda cruise? Thanks in advance for the help.