Caribbean Itinerary - Reflection or Summit

[FrequentFlyKid]

We are trying to determine whether to sail on the Summit out of San Juan to the Southern Caribbean or Reflection out of Miami to the Eastern Caribbean in December is a better option. We sailed on Silhouette in the Europe last month and loved the ship. While the Summit sailing is a better itinerary (5 ports, 1 sea day) than the Reflection (3 ports, 3 sea days), I am concerned that we will be disappointed with the Summit after having sailed on the Silhouette. We are currently booked in C2 on the Summit but are before final payment and the Reflection sailing is the same date with a Veranda stateroom running about $350 less than what we paid for the C2 on Summit.

 

I am interested in your thoughts and experiences and trade off's between the two.

[sperkins921]

I can't give first hand experience on either, because I haven't yet done either sailing, but we are booked on both. Reflection eastern in December, Summit southern in February.

 

I will say that if I had it all over to do again, I likely wouldn't do the Summit during the time frame I chose because our airfare (even in coach) is coming in at nearly half the cruise fare. About 700-900pp depending on airline direct vs connections etc.

 

Our airfare to Miami was about $350 a person direct on AA.

 

And hotels in SJ seem to be selling fast, and are averaging about another $200 a night. Between the airfare to SJU and the hotel pre/post cruise- I have nearly spent enough to take another cruise in an AQ cabin. YMMV of course, but I thought I'd throw it out there.

[FrequentFlyKid]

I can't give first hand experience on either, because I haven't yet done either sailing, but we are booked on both. Reflection eastern in December, Summit southern in February.

 

I will say that if I had it all over to do again, I likely wouldn't do the Summit during the time frame I chose because our airfare (even in coach) is coming in at nearly half the cruise fare. About 700-900pp depending on airline direct vs connections etc.

 

Our airfare to Miami was about $350 a person direct on AA.

 

And hotels in SJ seem to be selling fast, and are averaging about another $200 a night. Between the airfare to SJU and the hotel pre/post cruise- I have nearly spent enough to take another cruise in an AQ cabin. YMMV of course, but I thought I'd throw it out there.

 

All valid points. Interesting for us (to/from Cleveland) that the airfare is less to SJU than to MIA by about $100 p/p and the return flight home is non-stop.

[20pluscruises]

We are trying to determine whether to sail on the Summit out of San Juan to the Southern Caribbean or Reflection out of Miami to the Eastern Caribbean in December is a better option. We sailed on Silhouette in the Europe last month and loved the ship. While the Summit sailing is a better itinerary (5 ports, 1 sea day) than the Reflection (3 ports, 3 sea days), I am concerned that we will be disappointed with the Summit after having sailed on the Silhouette. We are currently booked in C2 on the Summit but are before final payment and the Reflection sailing is the same date with a Veranda stateroom running about $350 less than what we paid for the C2 on Summit.

 

I am interested in your thoughts and experiences and trade off's between the two.

 

I would do the Reflection...we have done both and the Summit really needs some updating. I will get bashed for saying this...but some were absolutely right about the carpet...it's disgusting....esp outside of deck nine elevators (really bad) to the point of making me think, how bad is it behind the scenes.

[C 2 C]

Summit has a more southern itinerary whereas Reflection is quite a ways from the islands.

 

We picked Reflection because the ship is gorgeous and we don't like the San Juan airport.

[20pluscruises]

Summit has a more southern itinerary whereas Reflection is quite a ways from the islands.

 

We picked Reflection because the ship is gorgeous and we don't like the San Juan airport.

 

The San Juan hotels are having a LOT of issues with missing items from their safes...check out trip advisor...it is even at the nicer hotels.

[sperkins921]

All valid points. Interesting for us (to/from Cleveland) that the airfare is less to SJU than to MIA by about $100 p/p and the return flight home is non-stop.

 

I wonder if the season (Dec vs Feb) affects that? Our airport would be BOS JFK or BDL, and all are within the same $100 of each other in price. I thought it would be cheaper to fly out of BOS or JFK as those are larger airports, but BDL (Hartford) wasn't too far behind.

 

Personally, a southern was on my bucket list of cruises, so I'm happy to be doing it- but I would factor airfare better next time in my pricing. It literally will be the most expensive cruise I've ever done once you consider just getting there.

[sperkins921]

The San Juan hotels are having a LOT of issues with missing items from their safes...check out trip advisor...it is even at the nicer hotels.

 

I read that too, but I didn't want to throw it out there (it IS a valid thing to consider) because I feared flaming esp since I haven't personally been there.

 

The other thing I have heard is that getting from airport to hotel can be a long wait. Come in at the wrong time and you could easily wait in a line an hour long for a taxi.

[We're The Groupnors]

We're going on the Reflection for the first time in December, but have been on three other S-Class ships, and have been on the Summit three times. I love both classes of ship, so I would not let the age of the ship deter me. We were on Millennium last year in Asia and it was in great shape.

 

That being said, our favourite Caribbean itinerary is the southern itinerary out of San Juan. We love San Juan itself, love the islands that itinerary visits, and like being further south when we begin the cruise as we're guaranteed warm weather. Sailing out of Florida in December can often be chilly for the first day or so. So, that coupled with the less expensive airfare I would go with the Summit.

[countess5]

My vote is the Reflection. Sailed Reflection in the Caribbean January 2013 and we will be back on her this Friday in the Mediterranean. We are loyal RC cruisers but the First X was Reflection and she is fantastic!

With that said, my brother in law sailed Summit to Bermuda this past summer and liked her. There is nothing wrong with SJ, we have sailed from there many times.

 

To us we have been fortunate to be in the islands a lot so it is about the ship to us.

 

Either way you will have a great time! :)

[richsea]

I don't think you can go wrong with either ship. If you've never sailed an M class ship, Summit would be a good way to experience it because the fares out of San Juan are usually less expensive, & you've already said your airfare to PR is also less. We find the southern itineraries to be better than the eastern or western ports, so I would prefer the Summit.

 

I'm going to defend San Juan: we've never had a problem with the airport, find that the taxi line is the most organized of any ports we've sailed into or out of & if you are staying in a hotel pre cruise, most have free shuttle service if you want to wait for their van. We've stayed in hotels in San Juan, 8 times & never had a problem with missing items, so I can't speak to the reports of thievery. We've always found the Puerto Rican people to been among the most friendliest in all the Caribbean.

 

Which ever you choose, enjoy your cruise!!

Edited September 3, 2014 by richsea

[Sloop-JohnB]

My perspective having done both the Eastern & Southern Itineraries...

 

2012 on The Solstice out of Fort Lauderdale - 7 Nights, 3 Ports of Call (San Juan, PR - Philipsburg, Sint Maarten - and Charlotte Amelie, USVI). Great cruise. Our first. We had a Concierge C2, midship first off the hump on the angle with an oversized balcony on Sky Deck (floor 10). Traditional Dining, late seating. Wonderful service both in the MDR and by our cabin crew.

 

Gorgeous ship, lots to see & do... Especially so as there were 4 sea days on this cruise. There were 2 things that we were not that thrilled about. One was having to tender in Sint Maarten cause of too many ships in port that day... And the other was a weather issue. Our Atlantic crossing to San Juan was rough going... So 2 days of not the most ideal conditions (very windy... gale force winds at close to 100 kmph. Caused by the jet stream dipping down low from the North), this was January. By all accounts this happened on more than one sailing that year... And although Mr Sloop had a problem with his inner ear / vertigo... Neither of us fortunately got physically ill. Not so the case for some other Pax. Several Sr Officers told us this was an unusual occurance weather wise but not unheard of. Something we would bear in mind if we were to sail again in the period of time Late December thru to Mid February.

 

2013 on The Summit out of San Juan - 7 Nights, 5 Ports of Call (Bridgetown, Barbados - Casteries, St Lucia - St John, Antigua - Philipsburg, Sint Maarten - and Charlotte Amelie, USVI). Great cruise. We had a Concierge C1, aft Sunset Balcony over the wake on X Deck (floor 7). Traditional Dining, late seating. Wonderful service both in the MDR and by our cabin crew.

 

Great Ship... No complaints about The Summit she was in good for. A tad smaller than the S-Class Ships, but still lots to see & do... And a lot of familiar venues due the Solsticization of her. This cruise was port intensive... So that certainly changed how we interacted with the ship (our personal schedule).

 

With just 1-1/2 Days at sea... We didn't get a ton of time to really get to know the ship and take in all her venues... Part of the reason we have a Bermuda cruise on her booked for 2015.

 

Smooth sailing in the Caribbean... And The Summit being an M-Class Ship can get to islands that he bigger S-Class ships cannot. We really over our Southern Caribbean Cruise... So much so we would do it again in a heartbeat (either of the two Itineraries that the Summit offers).

 

Not sure I would say the same about he Eastern Caribbean Cruise... Unless the price was truly great. These ports of call, are the ones that seem to be on every cruise (Celebrity or other line) and consequently WHY these Destinations can be super busy midweek. 15,000 to 25,000 Pax in One Port just can be a little crazy. With the Summit by the time we reached these more northerly islands, those weekly run ships had all left and were on their way back to Miami & Fort Lauderdale.

 

--- --- ---

 

As for San Juan.

 

First time I was there I was quite apprehensive about this city cause of some of the posts I had read here on CC.

 

What I did figure out that it is more a case of "the boogeyman" than anything else... Posts perhaps written by Pax who have never travelled beyond the US mainland. Plain old street smarts is all you need. Common sense. Don't fall for the con man on the corner (can you help me I've had my wallet stolen) and don't be flashy with your possessions (cash, jewellery, camera, iPhone etc)

 

Other than that San Juan and its people are great.

 

We never had any issue itch getting a cab at the airport, port or hotel. And rates are fixed based on zones.

 

Our Hotel, the Caribe Hilton was wonderful... As were the staff. If you are worried about the "safety" of a Hotel... Then choose another place (we always read the Reviews on CCs sister website TripAdvisor). And when it comes to Hotel Safes... I would never leave anything in one that wasn't insured or easily replaceable (no cash ever). Again travelling with wads of cash just sets you up as a target.

 

We love San Juan... As we did all the other ports of call on our Summit Cruise. We will be back

 

Hope this helps,

 

Cheers!

Ps... The most difficult pert about San Juan we found was getting there... So much so that we dubbed the city "you cannot get there from here". By far the easiest route is thru Miami where American Airlines runs a dozen or do flights a day back & forth. We flew out in the AM and were in San Juan early afternoon, from touchdown at the Airport to being aboard The Summit... Welcome Champagne in hand... Less than an hour. Then we had hours & hours to enjoy the ship before an evening Sailaway. Highly recommend this low stress solution.

Edited September 3, 2014 by Sloop-JohnB
Edit to add the PS

[archerniak]

I don't think you can go wrong with either ship. If you've never sailed an M class ship, Summit would be a good way to experience it because the fares out of San Juan are usually less expensive, & you've already said your airfare to PR is also less. We find the southern itineraries to be better than the eastern or western ports, so I would prefer the Summit.

 

I'm going to defend San Juan: we've never had a problem with the airport, find that the taxi line is the most organized of any ports we've sailed into or out of & if you are staying in a hotel pre cruise, most have free shuttle service if you want to wait for their van. We've stayed in hotels in San Juan, 8 times & never had a problem with missing items, so I can't speak to the reports of thievery. We've always found the Puerto Rican people to been among the most friendliest in all the Caribbean.

 

Which ever you choose, enjoy your cruise!!

 

I agree - DH and I were on the Summit out of San Juan this past November and stayed pre cruise 2 nights in the Caribe Hilton - no problem with transportation to hotel from airport, love this hotel for not only location but the pools and room as well and very easy to get to the port.

[bouhunter]

I'm going to defend San Juan: we've never had a problem with the airport, find that the taxi line is the most organized of any ports we've sailed into or out of . We've stayed in hotels in San Juan, 8 times & never had a problem with missing items, so I can't speak to the reports of thievery. We've always found the Puerto Rican people to been among the most friendliest in all the Caribbean.

 

 

I agree with all of the above:)

[Want2Cruise 701]

I prefer the Southern over the Eastern. Another plus is that it's warmer too. You're starting your cruise in the Caribbean already and heading South from there.

 

You didn't mention which Southern route? The Reflection stops in St. Thomas which both of Summit's Southern routes do and depending on which Southern route you choose, you could have St. Maarten as well. The San Juan stop on Reflection is late afternoon/evening.

 

You might as well do the Summit since you get the additional great ports, and you won't be missing any of the Reflection ports except maybe St. Maarten if you choose the Grenada/Dominica route.

 

San Juan is very easy to fly into. Cabs are very organized. It's basically how it's done in Las Vegas if you've ever been there. The fare is also determined by zone.

 

Flying out is a little different. It is very busy and long lines but atleast it's not putting a damper on a vacation start since the cruise is over, and I had a great time visiting some great Southern Caribbean ports.

 

Good luck and have a great cruise.

[need2bespoiled]

We've sailed on Reflection to the Carribean, and done other Southern Caribbean itiniteraries and sailed on Summit, though not that itinery until April.

 

While this is an over simplification, as there are many factors and differences, I think you need to choose:

 

Ship, and more sea days to experence it it

Islands and less sea days

 

Reflection has many more dining choices, is a stunningly beautiful, large ship, with many, many more passengers and a much nicer spa / indoor pool area (minus the lack of T-Pool)

 

Summit is a smaller, more intimate ship with a slightly easier to navigate layout, though some issues of being more dated such as the buffet set-up, lack of specialty dining, much smaller spa.

 

My advice would be make two side by side lists of what is imptant to you, with things like:

 

Ports

Number of Sea Days

Dining

Cabin

Travel time

Price

 

plus whatever else are your priorties. Evaluate the decision, and then make up your mind with your gut, and go with it, and you'll be happy.

 

If that doesn't help, I'd recommend Blink By Malcom Gladwell ;)

 

Happy sailing,

Jenna

[sperkins921]

I'm glad others who've been to SJU have chimed in. Reading reviews that others have posted here and trip advisor (and yet not having been there myself yet) had me worried! Glad to see that it's not as bad as it's made out to be!

[purpletequila]

We are trying to determine whether to sail on the Summit out of San Juan to the Southern Caribbean or Reflection out of Miami to the Eastern Caribbean in December is a better option. We sailed on Silhouette in the Europe last month and loved the ship. While the Summit sailing is a better itinerary (5 ports, 1 sea day) than the Reflection (3 ports, 3 sea days), I am concerned that we will be disappointed with the Summit after having sailed on the Silhouette. We are currently booked in C2 on the Summit but are before final payment and the Reflection sailing is the same date with a Veranda stateroom running about $350 less than what we paid for the C2 on Summit.

 

I am interested in your thoughts and experiences and trade off's between the two.

 

In all probability, you will be at least slightly disappointed by the Summit having already sailed the Silhouette. It's only natural. Newer is almost always "nicer," especially if visuals and technology are important to you. However, if it comes down to service, remember, Summit is much smaller. ;)

 

That being said, I prefer the southern Caribbean itinerary. In my experience, the weather is nicer the further south you go that time of year and I much prefer the islands on the southern route.

 

For what it's worth, I also despise Miami airport. You walk miles and last time I was there, I was almost taken out by paparazzi chasing a Kardashian. I had no problems at SJU although there are a couple of extra steps there such as the agriculture check. I also recommend San Juan over Miami if you tend to fly down before your cruise day. I loved staying in San Juan! There's so much to do like the bioluminescent kayaking. We stayed at La Concha and really enjoyed it.

 

But the bottom line is, your vaca will be what you make of it. I wouldn't turn don either ship or itinerary but based on personal experience, if given a choice, would choose one over the other.

 

Good luck!

[happygran]

In all probability, you will be at least slightly disappointed by the Summit having already sailed the Silhouette. It's only natural. Newer is almost always "nicer," especially if visuals and technology are important to you. However, if it comes down to service, remember, Summit is much smaller. ;)

 

That being said, I prefer the southern Caribbean itinerary. In my experience, the weather is nicer the further south you go that time of year and I much prefer the islands on the southern route.

 

For what it's worth, I also despise Miami airport. You walk miles and last time I was there, I was almost taken out by paparazzi chasing a Kardashian. I had no problems at SJU although there are a couple of extra steps there such as the agriculture check. I also recommend San Juan over Miami if you tend to fly down before your cruise day. I loved staying in San Juan! There's so much to do like the bioluminescent kayaking. We stayed at La Concha and really enjoyed it.

 

But the bottom line is, your vaca will be what you make of it. I wouldn't turn don either ship or itinerary but based on personal experience, if given a choice, would choose one over the other.

 

Good luck!

 

I agree 100%..........

 

Shipwise I was disappointed with the Summit. It didn't have the 'Wow' factor that the Solstice class ships have, but with only one sea day it doesn't matter too much.

 

Loved the southern itinerary and loved San Juan, and much preferred SJU airport to Miami.

 

Whatever you choose, have a great cruise.

[New Hampshire]

We had the same decision to make for our March 2013 cruise. We had previously sailed on both ships. The Reflection is gorgeous, but we also had a great time on the Summit to Bermuda in 2012. Itinerary won out in our decision. The Summit itinerary is absolutely wonderful!! We had a great time and plan to return to the Summit in 2015 for another Bermuda cruise. We stayed in San Juan for three nights pre-cruise at Verdanza Hotel and had a wonderful time, with no issues. Our airfare to San Juan was quite reasonable from Manchester, NH through Miami.

[Cruise a holic]

We are trying to determine whether to sail on the Summit out of San Juan to the Southern Caribbean or Reflection out of Miami to the Eastern Caribbean in December is a better option. We sailed on Silhouette in the Europe last month and loved the ship. While the Summit sailing is a better itinerary (5 ports, 1 sea day) than the Reflection (3 ports, 3 sea days), I am concerned that we will be disappointed with the Summit after having sailed on the Silhouette. We are currently booked in C2 on the Summit but are before final payment and the Reflection sailing is the same date with a Veranda stateroom running about $350 less than what we paid for the C2 on Summit.

 

I am interested in your thoughts and experiences and trade off's between the two.

Having sailed on the Summit, four times, three to Bermuda, and one caribbean from san juan, the reflection once and silhouette twice, I can say that you should do the reflection. The ship is much nicer IMO, has wonderful specialty restaurants, including our favorite, the lawn grill, and the cabins nicer and more updated. While we do like the Summit, she needs updating. Our cabin this past August, was one of the top suites and needed new furnishings. We were again booked August 2015, on the Summit, but have decided to cancel and book the Haven on the NCL Breakaway. Enjoy your cruise. Less cost also? a no brainer. Enjoy your cruise Also consider flying into ft lauderdale. We are in jan, and the eclipse sails from Miami. Airfare was much cheaper. We are flying back home out of Miami. Rates and times worked best for us from NY. Even with additional airport transportation charger from ft lauderdale to Miami

Edited September 7, 2014 by Cruise a holic

[sperkins921]

We had the same decision to make for our March 2013 cruise. We had previously sailed on both ships. The Reflection is gorgeous, but we also had a great time on the Summit to Bermuda in 2012. Itinerary won out in our decision. The Summit itinerary is absolutely wonderful!! We had a great time and plan to return to the Summit in 2015 for another Bermuda cruise. We stayed in San Juan for three nights pre-cruise at Verdanza Hotel and had a wonderful time, with no issues. Our airfare to San Juan was quite reasonable from Manchester, NH through Miami.

 

 

we booked the cruise during the time that you took your cruise on the summit. Airfare has gone up since then. It will not stop me from taking the cruise, but if we do it again, I will know to budget quite a bit more in case the airfare remains high.

[New Hampshire]

Actually, I made a mistake. Our last Summit cruise was March 2014. Airfare was reasonable. We have airfare booked to St. Thomas for April 2015 for a St. John vacation at the cheapest fare we've ever had. The flight is from Manchester, NH.

[chrismakris]

Hello sperkins,

 

I think you'll always find that these kind of questions always will run about 50% for one ship and 50% for the other. Personally we were on the Summit last January and yes, while she did have some wear and tear on her she was great ship. Everyone on it was friendly, the room was nice, the food was excellent etc. We liked her so much we booked again our 2nd night on the ship for the opposite itinerary for this January.

 

I think the question you should ask yourself is whether this is a vacation to relax or a vacation to see as much as possible. If it's to relax, then do the Eastern Caribbean for sure. Days at sea sitting by the pool, drinking margaritas. Can't go wrong with that.

 

If you want to go to bed and wake up the next day and explore and see as much as you can, definitely do the Southern Caribbean.

 

Either way your on vacation. Enjoy your trip!!!!!!!!!