Just Returned From 1st Celebrity Cruise On Summit

[Clarea]

So sorry for the poor experience but appreciate the feedback.

[Lois R]

Well then there was no excuse for what the steward did. He was just trying to scam you.

 

In 8 years of cruising on Celebrity I've never seen a steward leave an envelope.

 

I was wondering if I was the only one........over the years of receiving statements and the end of the cruise, I don't

remember ever getting it in an envelope. Actually, I have seen it being folded and left outside on the door. I have also

received it on the floor (where it was slid under the door)---have received statements that way at hotels over the years

too. But I honestly don't remember getting a copy of the bill inside an envelope. Oh, there have been times when

nothing was left....if I wanted a bill on the last day I would go to Guest Relations to pick one up.

[upwarduk]

It is common for room stewards to leave envelopes for additional tips. I would have been a little taken aback had he written a specific amount he was requesting, but leaving the envelope is no big deal.

I thought this tipping method had been done away with.

2 ways to tip:

A) Pre paid tips were introduced when Select dining started, thereby ensuring waiters got tips, as you aren’t bound to be sitting in the same dining area.

B) Tips taken daily from you OBA.

[Baron Barracuda]

Your steward was wrong on multiple counts. Since the switch from teams to working solo stewards are responsible for around 14 cabins, so the 10 yours was assigned is below standard. It's his job to provide ice, not yours. DW always makes our needs known to steward at embarkation (ice and extra towels daily). For anything extra we always leave a note. Had we experienced the problems you described she would let him know right away, and then if necessary contacted housekeeping.

 

Don't understand the missing fridge. We have occasionally found the mini bar locked at embarkation and had to request that it be opened and emptied. Did you encounter such a locked cabinet?

 

As far as the tier system you mention, the only "off limits" areas on the ship are Michaels Club and the Luminae restaurant which are restricted to suite passengers and Blu which is for Aqua class. Since 93% of Summit passengers don't sail in suites you shouldn't feel left out. X does host a nightly cocktail event in Revelations for upper level captains club members, but unlike other lines such as Royal and Princess does not provide them with a dedicated lounge.

 

Drinks can be expensive, however many if not most passengers receive a "free" beverage package as part of the Big, Better, Best promotion. It includes lower tier alcoholic beverages, soft drinks and specialty coffees. Sadly this promotion isn't offered on inside cabins. If you consider sailing Celebrity again check the cost of trading up to an oceanview cabin. It's often minor and then you would receive the package.

[thebutlerdidit]

I know I will get flamed for saying this but...As I was reading your post I knew that the steward had to be Jamaican before you even mentioned it. When I was on the Summit we had a great room steward and everyone in the MDR were friendly and gave excellent service. However it was a good thing that the Jamaican bar tenders and waiters received a tip that was added to my drink purchase because they wouldn't have received a dime from me. By mid cruise if I saw that the bartender was from Jamaica I waited for someone else.

We had the opposite experience with a Jamaican waiter in the buffet on Equinox. It was Caribbean day and we were struggling with removing the coconut meat from our coconuts. A very kind waiter appeared with spoons (only knives and forks were wrapped inside the napkins) and returned a minute later to ask if he could help my husband. One fluid movement and he had scooped all of the coconut free of the husk for him. He said he was from Jamaica and had lots of practice.

[DiamondSuiteCruiser]

Poor service.....should have reported it early on...and you could have called him when u wanted ice...Needs retraining or a pep talk..

Hope you did not tip any extra amt for him.

 

We have only had one awful / lazy attendant..on Royal C, never on X..some are better than others but most do a very good to exellent job.

 

We did this on our last Summit cruise in Aug and kind of got black bald by the MC Conciege and Butler, because we did not go to them first. He was the worst that we have ever had in a suite. Would clean our room Late morning, and we would be out of the room by 9am, he would still be in our room at 9 pm when we ate at 6pm. The room was never really clean, and he only had two suites. The concierge and butler apologized and gave us flowers and wine, but they treated us different every time we saw them. He sucked and we got ousted.

[Griller]

Your steward was wrong on multiple counts. Since the switch from teams to working solo stewards are responsible for around 14 cabins, so the 10 yours was assigned is below standard. It's his job to provide ice, not yours. DW always makes our needs known to steward at embarkation (ice and extra towels daily). For anything extra we always leave a note. Had we experienced the problems you described she would let him know right away, and then if necessary contacted housekeeping.

 

Don't understand the missing fridge. We have occasionally found the mini bar locked at embarkation and had to request that it be opened and emptied. Did you encounter such a locked cabinet?

 

As far as the tier system you mention, the only "off limits" areas on the ship are Michaels Club and the Luminae restaurant which are restricted to suite passengers and Blu which is for Aqua class. Since 93% of Summit passengers don't sail in suites you shouldn't feel left out. X does host a nightly cocktail event in Revelations for upper level captains club members, but unlike other lines such as Royal and Princess does not provide them with a dedicated lounge.

 

Drinks can be expensive, however many if not most passengers receive a "free" beverage package as part of the Big, Better, Best promotion. It includes lower tier alcoholic beverages, soft drinks and specialty coffees. Sadly this promotion isn't offered on inside cabins. If you consider sailing Celebrity again check the cost of trading up to an oceanview cabin. It's often minor and then you would receive the package.

 

Yes there was a locked cabinet, and if we had booked an outside with a drinks package included it would have been nearly $1k extra, didn't seem worth it.

We only went on this cruise as family members had already booked it, but it made an interesting change from other cruiselines we cruise on.

Too late in life for us to change allegiance and ever get any worthwhile captains club perks on another cruiseline , even though we spend some months at sea every year.

There was also some other place we couldn't go, marked Concierge with a flunky sitting at a desk,. Looked comfortable.

Anyway we ate in the specialty restaurants almost every evening, that was pretty good if somewhat repetitive. We got better at ordering what we really liked from the menu, like the to die for filet mignon in the Tuscan Grill. Service in there was great, particularly a charismatic Turkish waiter called Volkan who looked after our party of 9 like we were his family..............

[Happy Cruiser 6143]

Perhaps the Summit does not have mini-fridges in the cabins? Never sailed her. OP, please try a Solstice Class ship; a totally different Celebrity experience. Regarding the final paper invoice, I haven't gotten one for our past several cruises, I think they have done away with them, but when I did get them it was a one or two page sheet folded and put in the mail slot outside the door. There was no envelope.

 

Just off the Summit. Summit does indeed have mini-fridges in all cabins. Perhaps the OP did not find it behind the door?

I had one of the best cabin attendents ever on this cruise. He did not leave an envelope requesting an additional tip--I've never seen such a thing. He did get an extra tip. I did not receive a printout of my account, but not an issue as I monitor it on the TV.

[CoconutOne]

I don't agree with the way he treated you, but I have to ask, what's so bad about the bill being not in an envelope and just placed on the bed? I don't see a whole lot to be embarrassed about. I even think they label the pornos something less conspicuous these days...

[Griller]

I don't agree with the way he treated you, but I have to ask, what's so bad about the bill being not in an envelope and just placed on the bed? I don't see a whole lot to be embarrassed about. I even think they label the pornos something less conspicuous these days...

 

There were absolutely no porno movies on my bill, I resent the implication, I just think it is inappropriate for a cabin steward to have access to my account details and to make sure I knew it by laying the statement face up on the bed.

 

Of course anyone with access to a passenger cabin can use the TV to see a passengers account, nothing you can do about that, but at least the passenger wouldn't know about it, its not being flaunted like the paper statement on your bed.

 

Seems to me like a cabin steward with only 10 regular cabins to service and doesn't even do that properly has altogether too much free time on his hands.

[Covepointcruiser]

We did this on our last Summit cruise in Aug and kind of got black bald by the MC Conciege and Butler, because we did not go to them first. He was the worst that we have ever had in a suite. Would clean our room Late morning, and we would be out of the room by 9am, he would still be in our room at 9 pm when we ate at 6pm. The room was never really clean, and he only had two suites. The concierge and butler apologized and gave us flowers and wine, but they treated us different every time we saw them. He sucked and we got ousted.

 

I am so surprised that your Butler had only two suites!!!

The one we have has 11suites, including the Penthouse(EXTREME HIGH MAINTENANCE} and Royal Suites on three decks. He is very good and would like to do everything for us. I will ask him why some Butlers have only two suites on the Summit.

[Cruise a holic]

Just off the Summit. Summit does indeed have mini-fridges in all cabins. Perhaps the OP did not find it behind the door?

I had one of the best cabin attendents ever on this cruise. He did not leave an envelope requesting an additional tip--I've never seen such a thing. He did get an extra tip. I did not receive a printout of my account, but not an issue as I monitor it on the TV.

 

Perhaps the OP didn’t realize where the fridge was and it was locked. Sailed on Summit many times and last time in August. Imo the best part of the experience is the great staff. We never had a problem. Our cabin attendent got used to our schedule and cleaned our sky suite based on our schedule. Sometimes he told us, that he would bring a towel or bathmat late as the laundry service wasn’t finished. He came back a little later with the missing towel. Yes we were in a suite, but he also had a few regular cabins also. Overall my only negative comment about the Summit is that the cabins, celebrity suites and sky suites need to be refinished and the bathrooms redone. I do agree that not all cabin attendents are the same regardless of how many cabins they clean.

 

I really do not care if anybody see's my cruise bill.

Edited October 28, 2017 by Cruise a holic

[upwarduk]

I just think it is inappropriate for a cabin steward to have access to my account details and to make sure I knew it by laying the statement face up on the bed.

 

The final bills used to be pushed under the door during the last night.

On our last cruise ( Princess) they were put into the mail holder OUTSIDE the door, so I suppose you could say anyone / everyone had access to it.

[TeeRick]

The final bills used to be pushed under the door during the last night.

On our last cruise ( Princess) they were put into the mail holder OUTSIDE the door, so I suppose you could say anyone / everyone had access to it.

 

We have not received a paper bill on our last few Celebrity cruises including earlier this month on Summit. We did check our accounts on the TV system the day prior to departure. If you call Celebrity post-cruise and give them your reservation number or cabin number they will immediately email the bill to you. Or you can also go to guest services on ship of course and get one printed for you.

[gimletgal]

I was wondering if I was the only one........over the years of receiving statements and the end of the cruise, I don't

remember ever getting it in an envelope. Actually, I have seen it being folded and left outside on the door. I have also

received it on the floor (where it was slid under the door)---have received statements that way at hotels over the years

too. But I honestly don't remember getting a copy of the bill inside an envelope. Oh, there have been times when

nothing was left....if I wanted a bill on the last day I would go to Guest Relations to pick one up.

This has been my exact experience as well, Lois!

[Jade13]

Well then there was no excuse for what the steward did. He was just trying to scam you.

 

 

 

In 8 years of cruising on Celebrity I've never seen a steward leave an envelope.

 

 

 

I have but it was in 2008 and maybe again in 2010 before Celebrity stopped ( I thought) having the cabin stewards leave them. I thought it was tacky.

 

 

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[Jade13]

There were absolutely no porno movies on my bill, I resent the implication, I just think it is inappropriate for a cabin steward to have access to my account details and to make sure I knew it by laying the statement face up on the bed.

 

 

 

.

 

 

 

Unless I am mixing up Celebrity with HAL, we have always received our statement inside an envelope, but I am pretty sure the last few cruises I went to the front desk to retrieve them.

 

 

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[DiamondSuiteCruiser]

I am so surprised that your Butler had only two suites!!!

The one we have has 11suites, including the Penthouse(EXTREME HIGH MAINTENANCE} and Royal Suites on three decks. He is very good and would like to do everything for us. I will ask him why some Butlers have only two suites on the Summit.

 

Sorry for the confusion, I’m not sure how many suites our butler John had, but our room steward on deck seven only had two suites (CS). We finally came up with calling him every morning and every evening when we would leave the cabin to eat, so he knew the room was empty, and free for him to do his thing. Otherwise he would service our rooms last, and I was not a fan of coming back to the room at 9:30 pm to change shoes and him still cleaning our room. There wasn’t much for him to do, because we keep out cabin clean and tidy. It just seemed as if he had no routine, and couldn’t get it together. He was the worst we have ever had on any ship.

[NovemberBaby]

We are going on the Summit on the 11th what was your CS name?? I hope we don't get him lol

 

 

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[Griller]

We are going on the Summit on the 11th what was your CS name?? I hope we don't get him lol

 

 

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Garfield, we were on deck 8 forward

[CoconutOne]

There were absolutely no porno movies on my bill, I resent the implication, I just think it is inappropriate for a cabin steward to have access to my account details and to make sure I knew it by laying the statement face up on the bed.

 

Of course anyone with access to a passenger cabin can use the TV to see a passengers account, nothing you can do about that, but at least the passenger wouldn't know about it, its not being flaunted like the paper statement on your bed.

 

Seems to me like a cabin steward with only 10 regular cabins to service and doesn't even do that properly has altogether too much free time on his hands.

 

I didn't say you did, I said they even label them something else, so what could possibly be so bad on your bill that you would care if the cabin steward saw it?

[helen haywood]

There were absolutely no porno movies on my bill, I resent the implication, I just think it is inappropriate for a cabin steward to have access to my account details and to make sure I knew it by laying the statement face up on the bed.

 

 

Really? You actually think your cabin steward was trying to flaunt the fact that he had access to your account details because the statement was face up on the bed?!?! I would have thought it odd to find a face down sheet of paper on my bed. I assure you your cabin steward has neither the time nor interest to peruse your statement. He would only have glanced at it to make sure he was leaving it in the correct cabin.

 

 

 

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[bEwAbG]

If you call Celebrity post-cruise and give them your reservation number or cabin number they will immediately email the bill to you. Or you can also go to guest services on ship of course and get one printed for you.

 

But do they close their eyes to prevent improperly sneaking a peek at what you paid for every day?

[Griller]

I didn't say you did, I said they even label them something else, so what could possibly be so bad on your bill that you would care if the cabin steward saw it?

 

At home if you had a cleaner would you want them to read your bank statements?

[ChucktownSteve]

At home if you had a cleaner would you want them to read your bank statements?

That's not an accurate comparison. Bank statements are assets not spending. Probably more accurate would be a credit cards statement.

 

However what could one spend on the ship that would embarrass them if someone saw the statement? Too many spa visits, drinks (if not on the liquor package) or specialty restaurant reservations? Even a doctor's visit would not include the diagnosis/prognosis

 

I find it hard to believe that the cabin attendant would care what was on anyone's account statement. It's useless information to anyone but the one paying the bill.