Educators2

Thanks for the bon voyage greetings.

As of now, Qsine is on the Summit.

We enjoyed lunch in the Aqua Spa Cafe. Food is beautifully presented and very good. We did not go to the Concierge lunch but there is a pass for that lunch given with your Sea Pass card.

If you are Elite, complimentary laundry must be turned in three days before end of cruise.

Hi. We are on the Summit for the Canada/New England Independence Day Cruise. We did the same sailing last year and have done many New England/Canada cruises. We like the ports and like the fact that the cruise port is only a forty-minute drive from our house.

I’ll try to give useful information and will try to answer questions. I’m not proficient technologically to scan dailies or post photos. We are seniors from Belle Harbor, NY, a beach community in NYC.

Some heads ups:

Parking for the Summit is in the overflow lot, not the indoor garage. We read complaints about the lot but it is fine, an asphalt lot and close walk to the terminal.

Make sure to bring your amenities papers. We upgraded to concierge and Go Best about a month before the trip (same price as our balcony and one perk that we booked a year ago). Although concierge was on our room pass, the Go Best amenities were not. We had to go to Guest Relations to correct this. This happened the last two cruises with Celebrity so be sure to bring your papers. The young lady at Guest Relations, Ji Park, was excellent and set up our internet accounts.

We will keep you updated. Shows are at 7pm and 9 pm.

Susan

Thanks for the advice. This forum is great.

We will have phones and iPads that will need charging when we cruise on the Summit next week. Are there any USB ports on the tv or room lamps that we can use? How many electrical outlets are there?

Thanks.

Thanks. We will take a look and see what they have. I know that they don’t have much.

For anyone on Summit now or just off, does the Apple store sell IPads? We have a lot of on board credit and would prefer to buy another iPad than just spend on stuff we don’t need.

Thanks.

I normally don’t post about website issues and honestly, don’t understand lots of the technical points, but I do know how to use the Internet and had many issues today. I could not access my account on an iPad. I had to use a PC to do so and only after many tries. The information was correct. Further, I cannot get Celebrity emails to an aol address.

Celebrity will lose a lot of customers because of a website that is difficult and frustrating to navigate. We have a cruise coming up and many recent posters cannot sign up for the Connections Party...but that is another issue.

If you have mobility issues or want to find your luggage more easily, depart 15 minutes after your time is called. Most luggage will be gone, no one is rushing to your color area. Much simpler.

Sorry this is so late. I did submit a survey.

For some reason, my Celebrity emails stopped and I cannot sign up for them.

But, ask for the POSTTHANKU if you feel you are eligible.

I, too, have stopped getting promotional emails. I have signed up on two accounts. I did get the review after a cruise,so my email cannot be blocked.

Not good for Celebrity.

We have cruised on both lines and found more similarities than differences. The specialty restaurants on Norwegian are a good perk and/or more reasonably priced than Celebrity specialty restaurants. Main dining room on Celebrity was far better years ago than now. Celebrity has a lovely Aqua Spa and Cafe al Bacio. Breakfast buffets are good on both lines. Years ago, Celebrity had no announcements but that has changed. Both lines have fewer activities than before--no more food demos, fruit carvings, arts and crafts (on last two Celebrity cruises). Celebrity has guest speakers; they vary from ordinary (boring) to outstanding on our recent Independence Day cruise. There are more families on Norwegian. Norwegian has better entertainment in public areas in the evenings. Main shows are similar but Norwegian production shows are better. We choose based on the itinerary, fewest sea days and price.

On the Summit's Independence Day cruise, you had to have Premium package to get a can. We were asked for our card every time.

I checked the price of a cruise I booked last week. I think it was the same summer promotion for July. I was given one complimentary perk on the mock booking and we did get the $100 off the room (per person) for a balcony cabin when we booked last week. The price was the same as last week.

It doesn't hurt to call. The worst thing they can tell you is that your cruise isn't included in the promotion.

Thanks you to the original poster. We were on the Independence Day cruise on the Summit, filled out the survey but never got an email. Asked about POSTTHANKU and it was immediately applied to a booking we made today. Doesn't hurt to ask.

Again, many thanks.

This year on July 4 you were able to see the fireworks in Boston after dark. Two areas in the aft were the best viewing places. It was a very pleasant evening. There was also a party by the pool.

We were able to see the fireworks in Boston. We sat in the outdoor seating area behind the Oceanview Cafe...it is in the most aft area. There was also seating on Deck 12 aft where they show movies. You have to be early to get a seat. We were too late as for Deck 12 as many seats were "saved." There were many fireworks visible from various locations in Boston. It was a beautiful evening for sitting outside.

In Halifax, they moved the fireworks from the harbor to the Commons for the 150th Anniversary. There was a Celebrity shuttle for $41 per person. It was very foggy and I didn't speak to anyone who went. Next year, it will be in the harbor so you'll have a ring-side seat.

This was our first cruise as "Elite." We had no problem with getting a tender and didn't realize how lucky we were.

I do agree that people did not follow "their time" at face-to-face Immigration in Portland. We got on line at our scheduled time-9:50a.m. and did not leave the ship until 10:30 a.m. Someone should have checked our paperwork--this led to long lines and bottlenecks.

We found the Oceanview Cafe to be fine for breakfast. The omelets were made to order and there was a very good sweet bread on most mornings. We never had a problem finding a seat in the morning. Since most days were port days, there was no wait for tables at lunch time. We never ate dinner there. On July 4, Qsine had a two for one offer. We didn't get the phone message until we returned to our room in the late afternoon and wanted to be on deck for the fireworks. Honestly, although we had onboard credit, I think $90 is too much for two people at a specialty restaurant.

I did not notice officers acting aloof. They came to the Meet and Greet and answered questions. They also participated in game shows, archery, poker tournaments, etc. We were not looking for or expecting any greater interaction.

As for the condition of the ship, we were in a balcony cabin, Room 7172. The shower was clean and had hot water. One cabinet door in the bathroom did not close properly but the other cabinets and drawers in our cabin were not marred. There were stains on some dining room chairs but other than that, nothing stood out as being in disrepair.

We just returned from the Canada/New England Independence Day cruise on the Summit. Here are our opinions, starting with the positives:

The cruise is port intensive with only one full day at sea. If you do research, you can find places to see without paying for shore excursions. In Halifax, where it rained on the 150th celebration, there are places to go within walking distance of the pier. The Immigration Museum is inside Pier 21 and is truly heart-warming; be sure to take the guided tour. The Maritime Museum includes an exhibit on the Titanic and other exhibits related to Halifax's maritime history. We found that the Kingscote mansion in Newport, Rhode Island, was walking distance from the tender port. There is an excellent guided tour included with admission. In Bar Harbor, Maine, Oli's Trolleys offers one-hour tours of Acadia National Park. Our guide spoke of the sand bar on West and Bridge Streets that you can walk across at times of low tide. That was a lot of fun. We also visited Loyalist sites in Saint John, New Brunswick, on another rainy day. If you like history, the Anglican Church and the Jewish Museum had guides that recounted their founding by Loyalists. In Portland, Maine, the Science Museum had an excellent exhibit on pirates and the slave trade.

Our independent travel agent arranged a tour through Distinctive Voyages in Boston. The tour, to Harvard Yard and the Peabody Museum and then to Old Ironsides was complimentary. The tour guide was superb and attentive to the group's needs. Distinctive Voyages also hosted a cocktail party. If you book with a local agent, ask if they are connected with this group. Linda Schwartz, who acted as concierge for Distinctive Voyages, was very effective in her role.

The guest lecturers on board were excellent. Professor Ed Lynch spoke on the American Revolution, the Maritime Provinces and Maine. He is the teacher you wish for yourself and your children. Melinda Bates spoke about her White House experiences in a most engaging and entertaining manner.

It was fun to see the Boston Independence Day fireworks on board. Getting a seat was a challenge...my husband cleared a table of dirty dishes so that we could sit. He had to carry a chair from the buffet, too.

The Aqua Spa Cafe had a lovely buffet at lunch time. The dishes were tasty, beautifully plated and low calorie.

The gym was well maintained and not crowded. Cafe al Bacio, the coffee bar, is a lovely spot. The Neptune Strings,a duo from Poland, entertained at night on many evenings. The pastries at the cafe were the best. Irina and Colleen in the jewelry shops were both helpful and enthusiastic. I won one of the raffles and that was fun. Irina helped me spend my "free" onboard credit.

If you live within driving distance, the port is very easy to find, has a lot of help and has plenty of parking.

Needs improvement-

When our fare dropped, we upgraded to GoBest rather than choosing a concierge class room. The Internet was a disappointment. It disconnected often and more often than not, did not work properly in our room or on the balcony.

There were few activities that did not incur a fee or promote spending at the spa, acupuncture center, etc. It is disappointing that arts and crafts, workshops, free computer classes, cooking demos, etc., have been eliminated by most cruise lines.

Years ago, Celebrity had the best dinners. That is no longer the case. If you are a good home cook, your dinners are better. On two occasions, my husband sent his meat back...he never does that. The Steak Diane could not be cut with the steak knife. We settled for roasted vegetables that night. I guess they are cutting back on expenditures for food. The cream brûlée is still delicious.

We went to the shows every night. We enjoyed the comedians and IMagic. There was one new production show, Life,on the next to last night. The dancers, aerial artists and singers were talented but the show made no sense at all.

I'm happy to answer any questions. All in all, we enjoyed the trip very much but the ports were the highlight for us.

I am on the Summit right now. The Internet in public areas and the iLounge is better than in your room. I mainly wanted Internet in my room so I am disappointed with the service. In port, a place that offers wifi, like a coffee shop, is better. I don't know about security issues for work.

We are also on this cruise. All the port stops have been great. We had a complimentary excursion today of Harvard through Distinctive Voyages. They operate with independent travel agents. Our room, 7172, is in fine shape. Our Internet, though, is pretty awful. It is hard to get on and stay on, especially in our room. Guest Services admits that it isn't good but since we have GoBest, they can't help us.

Susan

We have a ten day cruise coming up. Are there any restrictions on when we can use the free laundry? If we disembark Friday morning, can we do the free laundry on Tuesday or is that too late. The same question applies to dry cleaning.

Thanks.

Take a cardigan or sweater. The air temperature on cruise ships varies from place to place. I need some cover-up or longer sleeved top. Might as well pack something if you need it.

I was curious about July 5 when we only have the morning and many places open at 10:a.m. We don't want to worry about getting back to port late. We have been to the North End.

I just found out that the travel agency I booked with has a free four hour excursion on July 4 so we will take advantage of that experience and re-visit some historic sites.(That tour includes the museums at Harvard and the North End.)

So, my question was only for day two. Thanks for your help, so far.

We have an overnight in Boston on July 4-5. We have to be back to the ship by 12:30 pm. on July 5. Are there any places to visit that are a short walk from the terminal?

We have been to Boston many times and have seen the historic sites.

Thanks.

Thanks. I can always count on Cruise Critic.