CHRISTMAS CRUISE ON SUMMIT

[elliekate]

We just returned from Christmas on Summit and had a wonderful time!  After reading all of the negative reviews about the condition of the ship and poor service at the bars, our expectations were not very high!  We were pleasantly surprised with our entire week onboard! To all of the people who complained about everything, maybe they should add a little more to their cups so that they will be half full rather than half empty!  It had been a while since we had been on the Summit and we had forgotten how much we liked that ship.  We had an aft cabin with the huge balcony and really enjoyed that once again.  The aft cabins on the S class ships are just not as nice!  The food in the MDR and buffet was excellent (we chose to have an aft cabin over Aqua class), our room steward was excellent, the bar service was excellent (especially the Martini Bar) and we were always greeted by a hello and a smile everywhere we went. We are not big entertainment people but we did go to one show....for five minutes! That's a matter of personal preference. 

 

It was an interesting blend of passengers onboard.   We met single people who had never cruised before, couples with children, couples whose children were grown and couples like us who were there to escape the reality of a first Christmas since the loss of a loved one.  We especially liked a couple from Wales who were on their first cruise and another "duo" of  two friends who had met 13 years ago on a cruise and have gotten together since then to cruise.  One lady had lost her husband and she was from Texas and her friend was from England.  They were just the cutest!

 

We only went to one specialty restaurant and that was Qsine.  It was good but I am looking forward to another visit at La Petit Chef!  The pools were not that crowded and we love those "bubble" bars in the Solarium! 

 

My only complaint that has nothing to do with Celebrity or the ship was the excursions I planned!  I usually plan for 20+ people and this time, it was just another couple and us.  Since we wanted this trip to be more laid back, we planned two excursions.  Prince Taxi Tours to Cruzan Rum Distillery in St. Croix and another rum tour in St. Maarten (Toppers Rhum).  Both of those tours left much to be desired.  I think I will stick with a good island tour or a nice catamaran tour from now on!  

 

All in all, I can't think of any negatives!  I will be happy to answer any questions!

[Atwell]

Thank you for your review.  We board the Summit this weekend for a 12x2 B2B.  We also have an aft cabin which we have had several times before and love so much.  We can't wait and are glad to hear the ship is apparently still as enjoyable as the last time we sailed.  We are glass half-full people.

[MarLieb]

We were on the same cruise and, I agree, after some of the reviews regarding the shape of the ship, I was a little hesitant.  I thought the Summit looked great!  We had a great time.  This was our first Celebrity cruise and, now that our son is 11, we felt it was time to try a more sophisticated line (we are gold on DCL).  Even my son loved it.  He is a huge basketball fan and there were pick-up games on the sports deck every day.  He played basketball with people from all over the world.  Our stateroom was lovely, food was great (ended up at Qsine twice just to try everything!) and the staff were so friendly.  Having Santa arrive on Christmas morning was also such a lovely touch.  We did two excursions through Celebrity (Buck Island snorkel and Dominica Emerald Pool and beach) and a private tour in Antigua - all were excellent.  Unfortunately we were unable to do our excursion in St. Kitts due to the rain, but we booked the same week for next year, so, hopefully, will get to visit the island again.  I can't wait to see how the Summit looks after the dry dock!

[elliekate]

12 hours ago, MarLieb said:

We were on the same cruise and, I agree, after some of the reviews regarding the shape of the ship, I was a little hesitant.  I thought the Summit looked great!  We had a great time.  This was our first Celebrity cruise and, now that our son is 11, we felt it was time to try a more sophisticated line (we are gold on DCL).  Even my son loved it.  He is a huge basketball fan and there were pick-up games on the sports deck every day.  He played basketball with people from all over the world.  Our stateroom was lovely, food was great (ended up at Qsine twice just to try everything!) and the staff were so friendly.  Having Santa arrive on Christmas morning was also such a lovely touch.  We did two excursions through Celebrity (Buck Island snorkel and Dominica Emerald Pool and beach) and a private tour in Antigua - all were excellent.  Unfortunately we were unable to do our excursion in St. Kitts due to the rain, but we booked the same week for next year, so, hopefully, will get to visit the island again.  I can't wait to see how the Summit looks after the dry dock!

I am glad you liked it too!  I was beginning to think I was really missing something since it was so nice!  We are also booked for next Christmas!  We are planning our first Disney cruise in spring 2020 and could use some pointers from you!  Our grandchildren will be 6 and 8 then!  We have done Disneyland but I have heard the cruises are much nicer!

 

Judy

[davekathy]

Thanks for your review.

[MarLieb]

40 minutes ago, elliekate said:

I am glad you liked it too!  I was beginning to think I was really missing something since it was so nice!  We are also booked for next Christmas!  We are planning our first Disney cruise in spring 2020 and could use some pointers from you!  Our grandchildren will be 6 and 8 then!  We have done Disneyland but I have heard the cruises are much nicer!

 

Judy

I felt the same way!  I thought, perhaps, my standards were very low because I thought the ship looked lovely, LOL!

 

6 and 8 are perfect ages for DCL, in my opinion!  The kids clubs are quite spectacular as are the dining locations (Animator's Palate is so fun!).  There are wonderful activities and we find the ships' staff to be very friendly.  Just be prepared, the pools are nothing like the Summit.  We were surprised by how few people were in the pools on the Summit.  On DCL, we call the pools, "people soup".  Still fun, but very crowded.  The slides on the ship are really fun, too!

[valuemkt]

I'll add my two cent to the Summit Christmas cruise. We're veteran cruisers, but first time Celebrity. The following are our observations / opinions / comparisons. This was our second Christmas cruise out of San Juan, having taken Caribbean Princess several years ago. From a holiday perspective, Celebrity nailed it. The ship was decorated nicely, holiday music ..both canned and live, was played throughout the cruise. And the buffet food and especially desserts, on christmas eve and day was exceptional. We had been anxious to try Celebrity after hearing about the high quality of the food. There were two highlights.. the aforementioned xmas eve and day, and the Tuscan Grill. Other than that, both at the main dining hall and the oceanview buffet, it was a wide variety of mediocre food. Really no difference with Princess or NCL. We have done Oceania once before, and they leave any of these lines in the dust, albeit at a higher cost. We liked our room, our room layout, the oversized balcony, and our housekeeping staff. The shower set up was very convenient with no banging of elbows. The crew and the cruise director were more visible and interactive than on many other cruises we have been on. Not aloof, but friendly and appreciative of their guests. Everyone said that the ship was 100% full, but it never felt that way. perhaps the fact that it only had about 2700 passengers made a difference. I thought that the entire pool deck wasted a lot of space.. all pools closed at 7pm, and NOTHING was going on there. The bar at pool level was inconveniently located, with disinterested bar staff. Unlike Princess, the outdoor movies were located far away on an upper deck (12?), instead of in the pool area. I recall watching several NFL games at pool level on Princess with attentive bar service. ANYTIME dining, or whatever Celebrity calls it. A confusing concoction of anytime reservations, where walkins did better than folks with reservations for anytime dining. We were not part of a big group, do not like to have a pre set time, and found this set up to be confusing and poorly managed. Also, tables for two were a joke, as like it or not you were positioned right next to couples on either side, with zero privacy. Again, i thought the food in the Cosmopolitan was very average, but the service and enthusiasm of the staff, especially those toward the back near the windows, to be very good. The spa services, and the Persian room, with Turkish steam and aromatherapy was good, although the promise of eucalyptus in one of the steam rooms was an exaggeration. Even though Celebrity advertises 5 or so up charge restaurants, pedestrian travelers like us only had 3, and only the Tuscan Grill had any interest. Even Princess and NCL puts the choices to shame. Entertainment.. again a personal choice.. but for a smaller ship, I;'d rate it as pretty high.. The comedian/ magician was really bad.. not sure how he made it through 8000 shows in vegas. I love magic and sleight of hand, and didnt find him entertaining at all.. My wife walked out. The real comedian was funny, and the variety shows were worth the 45-50 minutes. The aerial acrobatic couple were amazing, and the singing and dancing, especially the holiday show very good. The weather was spotty, and obviously Celebrity has no control over that. We managed to take a Celebrity sponsored catamaran excursion on Antigua with a lobster lunch.. had a lot of fun that day. We booked an excursion with thenford grey on St Kitts. The weather that day was really bad, but even with that, thought that the Grand tour was WAY overrated. There were some logistical issues on St Maarten (which port / dock we came into), but that wasnt major. Sorry for the length, but its fresh in our minds. Bottom line, we got what we paid for with our first Celebrity cruise. Did it blow us away ? No. Were we happy campers when we left the ship ? Yes., we now consider Celebrity on par with NCL and Princess, and would consider taking them again.

Edited January 8, 2019 by valuemkt
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[funfamilytime]

We came off the Summit on the Christmas Cruise.  I felt the same way reading the reviews and was nervous.  Being on the newest ships for the past 15 years, left me wondering if I was making a mistake.  But to my surprise, it was grand.  The service and the food were amazing.  The ship was very nice (the small feel and never having to wait for anything) was pretty awesome.  The entertainment was a bit junky, but the magician was good.  The Christmas eve entertainment at the Martini bar was very nice and cozy.  Santa visiting the children was very special.  I must say, all the complainers about the Summit were dead wrong in my opinion.  It was wonderful.

[elliekate]

On 1/8/2019 at 3:18 PM, funfamilytime said:

We came off the Summit on the Christmas Cruise.  I felt the same way reading the reviews and was nervous.  Being on the newest ships for the past 15 years, left me wondering if I was making a mistake.  But to my surprise, it was grand.  The service and the food were amazing.  The ship was very nice (the small feel and never having to wait for anything) was pretty awesome.  The entertainment was a bit junky, but the magician was good.  The Christmas eve entertainment at the Martini bar was very nice and cozy.  Santa visiting the children was very special.  I must say, all the complainers about the Summit were dead wrong in my opinion.  It was wonderful.

I totally agree with you!  We have already booked for next year!

[NorthCarolinaBelle]

I'm very interested in your large balconies, everyone... what cabins were you in, Atwell and elliekate? We have been on Summit several times, but haven't had an aft balcony yet.

[funfamilytime]

we had aft room 7128 standard balcony.  It was perfect.  We had a pulldown bunk for our daughter.  Plenty of room.  Very nice.   I would go for this and not the concierge.  I saw them and its not much difference.   Really, save the money and spend it elsewhere.  

[elliekate]

11 hours ago, NorthCarolinaBelle said:

I'm very interested in your large balconies, everyone... what cabins were you in, Atwell and elliekate? We have been on Summit several times, but haven't had an aft balcony yet.

The aft balconies are our favorites!  We could have upgraded to Aqua Class for an additional $100 but we were not about to give up our aft balcony!  It's nice that it is half covered which works well when you want shade or protection from rain!  The aft balconies on the S class ships are not as nice and we usually look for something midship on those ships!  We were in 7203!

 

Pictures are the view from our balcony and our friends'  balcony (they had a handicapped cabin and the balcony was approximately two feet wider).  On our balcony, we had a table with four chairs and the two lounge chairs just like the ones pictured!

Edited January 13, 2019 by elliekate

[NorthCarolinaBelle]

Wow, elliekate! That looks amazing. Thanks for the information and the great photos!

Edited January 13, 2019 by NorthCarolinaBelle