Summit Review- 2/12

[patterson3]

We flew into San Juan a day early and stayed at the Caribe Hilton. I had read quite a few negative reviews on tripadvisor on this hotel so I wasn't sure what to expect. The hotel grounds were beautiful! The pool area and beach area was also very nice. The rooms seemed a bit disappointing considering how nice the rest of the resort was, but they were clean and the bed was extremely comfortable. We got an ocean view room but in the future I don't think I'd waste my money. We hardly spent any time on the balcony after initially taking some pics out there when we first arrived. Also, if you plan on eating at the resort, take lots of cash! The food was so-so, but the frozen mojitos were phenomenal (albiet expensive).

 

Anyway, the next day we woke early, ate breakfast then hung around the pool area until heading to the port around 2:00. Embarkation was very smooth and we were onboard within 15-20 minutes. We booked a 2A veranda cabin (7180) because of the larger balcony and we were happy with the room. Unlike at the hotel, we did spend a lot of time on our balcony on the ship. The ship, as others have stated shows a little aging, but overall I thought she was beautiful. She wasn't in nearly as bad of shape as I expected based on some reviews and you really had to look for blemishes to see them (IMO).

 

As for the ports, First stop was St. Thomas where we headed to Coral World and we did the sea lion encounter. It was really amazing. I highly recommend that to anyone. Most of the other people doing that with us were from the Emerald Princess so they must offer that as an excursion. Unfortunately Celebrity does not so you'll have to book it independently. After the sea lion encounter we did the shark encounter which was pretty interesting too. Not nearly as fun as the sea lion encounter, but it's my first time swimming that close to sharks (that I was aware of anyway). They had juvenile lemon and nurse sharks and the girl running the encounter (as well as the sea lion encounter) was extremely knowledgable. After leaving Coral World we headed next door to Coki Beach. It was beautiful but small. We didn't stay too long- just took a quick dip before heading back to the ship for a late lunch.

 

Next stop was St. Maarten. We took the water taxi to Phillipsburg and walked around for a while before taking a land taxi to Orient Beach. We spent the day there and if you've never been, it is quite a beach. (be prepared to be asked to buy everything from towels and shirts to reggae CDs, rides on jetski's, etc., etc)....After a few hours on the beach we headed back to the ship.

 

In Antigua we did the ship's canopy and challenge tour. It was a scenic ride through the island and the ziplining was a lot of fun. The employees were extremely helpful and friendly and everyone on the tour seemed to enjoy themselves. I was not too impressed with the Antigua port area though. We went for a brief walk before our tour started and the "vendors" were extremely pushy and impolite. I should've just carried a sign stating "I don't need a taxi and my wife doesn't want her hair braided"....It's probably the only island we visited on this cruise that I could not see spending a full week there, but I would love to go back on a cruise and see some of the beaches.

 

Next was St. Lucia. We just did some shopping this day and in the afternoon we were going to grab a quick taxi to Marigot Beach, but despite being only 15-20 minutes away (in the words of one of the cab drivers), it would've cost us $60, so we decided to pass since we didn't have much time left in the day anyway before we would've had to be back on the ship. From what we saw of St. Lucia it looked beautiful and the people were extremely courteous, but our table mates said their tours took them through some pretty dirty and rundown sections. That's unfortunate but I hope to get back someday and see more of teh island myself.

 

Last stop was Barbados and this was our favorite island. We did the ship sponsored snorkel with turrtles, wreck, beach break tour. It was a blast and everyone on the excursion was friendly and knowledgable. We had a blast and the island of Barbados looked beautiful. When we returned from that trip we did some souvenir shopping then headed back to the ship.

 

As for the Summit, the Cosmopolitan restaurant was beautiful and every meal was outstanding. Our waiter, Andonie was extremely prompt and was a joy to be around all week. We also were lucky to have wonderful tablemates and we really enjoyed the dinners all week. They were one of the highlights of the cruise for us. As for dress, I'd say we were a little more dressed up than most (I rented a tux for formal nights and usually wore a collared shirt/tie and either sweater or sportcoat on the other nights while my wife wore cocktail dresses for the non-formal nights and evening gowns on the formal nights)....I really loved Michael's Club and the Champagne Bar. Revelations (or the bar at the end of the world) was a bit of a disappointment. The decor was strange and you could definitely tell they allowed smoking in there and DJ Ron was not for us. We went there hoping to dance, and were therefore hoping for some hip-hop or at least top 40 "dance music", but all we heard DJ Ron play was Matchbox 20, Goo Goo Dolls, Bob Seger, etc. I'm guessing that's because of the average age of the Celebrity guest, but needless to say we didn't spend much time in Revelations because of that. We were planning on eating in the Normandie at least once, but we enjoyed our tablemates so much we never did. But we had afternoon tea in the Normandie on the at sea day and that was also one of the highlights of the cruise for us. What a beautiful room, outstanding service and they had the string duet playing in the background which was a great touch. Obviously I can't speak for the food in the Normandie though....

 

As for the entertainment, I loved the comedian Don Gavin and Travis Turpin was excellent. The shows were very well done as well. Was not a big fan of Charlie Butler (the guitar player at the aft bar), Tammy Rafferty or the spanish band in Rendezvous, but did like the string duet and These Guys accapella group.

 

Overall we had a wonderful time and we even put a deposit down on a Celebrity Passages towards o future cruise (probably on one of the Solstice ships, although I would loce to try the Summit again in the future, especially after her "solsticization" next year).

[johnlcruise]

Great Review. Thanks for posting about your Adventure.

[sarahc78]

We flew into San Juan a day early and stayed at the Caribe Hilton. I had read quite a few negative reviews on tripadvisor on this hotel so I wasn't sure what to expect. The hotel grounds were beautiful! The pool area and beach area was also very nice. The rooms seemed a bit disappointing considering how nice the rest of the resort was, but they were clean and the bed was extremely comfortable. We got an ocean view room but in the future I don't think I'd waste my money. We hardly spent any time on the balcony after initially taking some pics out there when we first arrived. Also, if you plan on eating at the resort, take lots of cash! The food was so-so, but the frozen mojitos were phenomenal (albiet expensive).

 

Anyway, the next day we woke early, ate breakfast then hung around the pool area until heading to the port around 2:00. Embarkation was very smooth and we were onboard within 15-20 minutes. We booked a 2A veranda cabin (7180) because of the larger balcony and we were happy with the room. Unlike at the hotel, we did spend a lot of time on our balcony on the ship. The ship, as others have stated shows a little aging, but overall I thought she was beautiful. She wasn't in nearly as bad of shape as I expected based on some reviews and you really had to look for blemishes to see them (IMO).

 

As for the ports, First stop was St. Thomas where we headed to Coral World and we did the sea lion encounter. It was really amazing. I highly recommend that to anyone. Most of the other people doing that with us were from the Emerald Princess so they must offer that as an excursion. Unfortunately Celebrity does not so you'll have to book it independently. After the sea lion encounter we did the shark encounter which was pretty interesting too. Not nearly as fun as the sea lion encounter, but it's my first time swimming that close to sharks (that I was aware of anyway). They had juvenile lemon and nurse sharks and the girl running the encounter (as well as the sea lion encounter) was extremely knowledgable. After leaving Coral World we headed next door to Coki Beach. It was beautiful but small. We didn't stay too long- just took a quick dip before heading back to the ship for a late lunch.

 

Next stop was St. Maarten. We took the water taxi to Phillipsburg and walked around for a while before taking a land taxi to Orient Beach. We spent the day there and if you've never been, it is quite a beach. (be prepared to be asked to buy everything from towels and shirts to reggae CDs, rides on jetski's, etc., etc)....After a few hours on the beach we headed back to the ship.

 

In Antigua we did the ship's canopy and challenge tour. It was a scenic ride through the island and the ziplining was a lot of fun. The employees were extremely helpful and friendly and everyone on the tour seemed to enjoy themselves. I was not too impressed with the Antigua port area though. We went for a brief walk before our tour started and the "vendors" were extremely pushy and impolite. I should've just carried a sign stating "I don't need a taxi and my wife doesn't want her hair braided"....It's probably the only island we visited on this cruise that I could not see spending a full week there, but I would love to go back on a cruise and see some of the beaches.

 

Next was St. Lucia. We just did some shopping this day and in the afternoon we were going to grab a quick taxi to Marigot Beach, but despite being only 15-20 minutes away (in the words of one of the cab drivers), it would've cost us $60, so we decided to pass since we didn't have much time left in the day anyway before we would've had to be back on the ship. From what we saw of St. Lucia it looked beautiful and the people were extremely courteous, but our table mates said their tours took them through some pretty dirty and rundown sections. That's unfortunate but I hope to get back someday and see more of teh island myself.

 

Last stop was Barbados and this was our favorite island. We did the ship sponsored snorkel with turrtles, wreck, beach break tour. It was a blast and everyone on the excursion was friendly and knowledgable. We had a blast and the island of Barbados looked beautiful. When we returned from that trip we did some souvenir shopping then headed back to the ship.

 

As for the Summit, the Cosmopolitan restaurant was beautiful and every meal was outstanding. Our waiter, Andonie was extremely prompt and was a joy to be around all week. We also were lucky to have wonderful tablemates and we really enjoyed the dinners all week. They were one of the highlights of the cruise for us. As for dress, I'd say we were a little more dressed up than most (I rented a tux for formal nights and usually wore a collared shirt/tie and either sweater or sportcoat on the other nights while my wife wore cocktail dresses for the non-formal nights and evening gowns on the formal nights)....I really loved Michael's Club and the Champagne Bar. Revelations (or the bar at the end of the world) was a bit of a disappointment. The decor was strange and you could definitely tell they allowed smoking in there and DJ Ron was not for us. We went there hoping to dance, and were therefore hoping for some hip-hop or at least top 40 "dance music", but all we heard DJ Ron play was Matchbox 20, Goo Goo Dolls, Bob Seger, etc. I'm guessing that's because of the average age of the Celebrity guest, but needless to say we didn't spend much time in Revelations because of that. We were planning on eating in the Normandie at least once, but we enjoyed our tablemates so much we never did. But we had afternoon tea in the Normandie on the at sea day and that was also one of the highlights of the cruise for us. What a beautiful room, outstanding service and they had the string duet playing in the background which was a great touch. Obviously I can't speak for the food in the Normandie though....

 

As for the entertainment, I loved the comedian Don Gavin and Travis Turpin was excellent. The shows were very well done as well. Was not a big fan of Charlie Butler (the guitar player at the aft bar), Tammy Rafferty or the spanish band in Rendezvous, but did like the string duet and These Guys accapella group.

 

Overall we had a wonderful time and we even put a deposit down on a Celebrity Passages towards o future cruise (probably on one of the Solstice ships, although I would loce to try the Summit again in the future, especially after her "solsticization" next year).

So happy to hear you enjoyed your trip!

 

Last year the Summit had an excellent guitar player in the Aft Bar named Simon. He was really good. Sad to hear that he wont be on board this May.

[portofrome]

Thanks for your review.

[espmass]

We also loved Don Gavin. Thought he was really hilarious!

[TeaBag]

Great review. We enjoyed the Summit too, last Nov.

[Want2Cruise 701]

Thanks for the review. We will be on Summit too in April and staying at the Caribe Hilton beforehand. Can you tell me how much the taxi cost from the airport to the hotel and to the pier from the hotel. How long of a drive was it too.

 

Did you tour San Juan at all or was there enough to enjoy at the hotel? Our flight gets in to San Juan around 11 am so we will have all afternoon and evening to spend there before the cruise the next day.

 

Thanks. Sorry for all the questions. Glad you enjoyed your trip.

[Lois R]

Hi, thanks for the review and glad you had such a good cruise:D:)

[herb]

As for dress, I'd say we were a little more dressed up than most (I rented a tux for formal nights and usually wore a collared shirt/tie and either sweater or sportcoat on the other nights while my wife wore cocktail dresses for the non-formal nights and evening gowns on the formal nights).....

 

How did the majority of guests dress for dinner both formal & non-formal nights??

[allentownahoy]

Glad you had a great time. Can you tell me more about your balcony? We have this cabin booked in May. Does the balcony have loungers? Is the table larger? Was it sunny, shaded or both?

Thanks

[patterson3]

Thanks for the review. We will be on Summit too in April and staying at the Caribe Hilton beforehand. Can you tell me how much the taxi cost from the airport to the hotel and to the pier from the hotel. How long of a drive was it too.

 

Did you tour San Juan at all or was there enough to enjoy at the hotel? Our flight gets in to San Juan around 11 am so we will have all afternoon and evening to spend there before the cruise the next day.

 

Thanks. Sorry for all the questions. Glad you enjoyed your trip.

The taxi ride was about 5 minutes from the Caribe Hilton to the pier. I believe it was about $6 per person. The ride from the airport to the hotel was about 15-20 minutes but can't recall how much it was.

[patterson3]

How did the majority of guests dress for dinner both formal & non-formal nights??

I would say the majority of gentlemen wore suits on formal night (with approx. 35% wearing tuxes). On non-formal nights the vast majority wore slacks and short-sleeved collared shirts (either golf shirts or hawaiian shirts)

[patterson3]

Glad you had a great time. Can you tell me more about your balcony? We have this cabin booked in May. Does the balcony have loungers? Is the table larger? Was it sunny, shaded or both?

Thanks

It's funny you should ask. The balcony was obviously longer than average and could've easily fit loungers, but instead had basic white chairs. and our table was rather small (but it was more than adequate for what we needed. If you wanted to eat on the balcony it would've been too small.) The funny thing is our friends booked 7178 next door and had the same table but 3 deck chairs and the balcony to our right (7182- which was concierge class) had the same chairs but a much larger table. Not sure if you asked if they could bring you a larger table or if that's just a CC benefit.

[herb]

I would say the majority of gentlemen wore suits on formal night (with approx. 35% wearing tuxes). On non-formal nights the vast majority wore slacks and short-sleeved collared shirts (either golf shirts or hawaiian shirts)

 

oh good, that's what I was planning on wearing. :D

[allentownahoy]

Actually it is the lounge chairs that I really wanted. I chose this cabin thinking I would have the lounge chairs because of the larger balcony. Otherwise I think I would have opted for CC instead.

[allentownahoy]

Just double checked my booking. I am in 7080, not 7180. Wonder if that will make a difference.