Summit 6/26/2022 Bermuda Sailing – Live Blog, Cat Blog, Vlog!

[Mr. Boston]

Following along as we’ll be boarding a week from today.  Thank-you for taking the time to report your experience with us.  Bon voyage! ⚓️

[Redking]

5 hours ago, Laurab23 said:

Thank you. Yes the PH will be our one time splurge. Then we will have to go back to booking Agua.

 

Laura

That's what we all say🤣 look out it's addictive! Enjoy.

[Cruisegoer]

20 hours ago, MaggieAtSea said:

Still on the fence about sailing out of Bayonne on last day of July… following closely to push me one way or the other!

Why? What’s the hang up? Hurricane possibility? 

[David Kane]

On Boarding and Apologies!

 

SO! As Obi-Wan might say, Hello There!

 

There is a lot fo detail to go into here and the real problem is useful information will be buried behind blather and cat pictures so for you following along at home, let's click this real quick.

 

Transit

 

OMFG seriously New Jersey. Literally thosands of people cruise out of Bayonne every two weeks and a competant 11 year old could have designed better signage. ALSO, welcome our foreign friends, enjoy driving past 19 abandonded warehouses to get to your cruise. SERIOUSLY. 

 

SO, once you make it here, and XZs Vlog will detail it more, the onboarding process as Suite level took such little time I didn't even have a chance to write about it. To be fair, there were no lines anywhere, and, as far as I have seen, any confusion comes from people who are unprepared. NOW, I get it, it is your vacation, what should you need to prepare for? Onboarding. Prepare for it. Have all of your documents  available online and printed.  the staff will literally applaude you coming on board. Be preprared for their welcome! Post-COVID it is the best experience you will personally have!

 

Once onboard, the Staff on the Summit (remember, Queen of the Fleet) will have your room keys available right now. Not in 10 minutes, not in a half hour. Right. Now. If you  can finish your welcome abord champagne before your room key is in your hand - congratulations! I owe you a coke.

 

 So, drop your onboarding bag in your room and grab a drink, and then, food. BTW that was in the correct order. Despite your boarding time, there will be a wait for food. Are you annoyed? Stressed? NO, it is day 1, get s drink. Relax. Breathe. and, while on the topic of breathing, here is our attack cat with her first go!

 

Yes, so I know, YMMV (stands for Your Milage May Vary) but, cat, this isn't really a thing, Perhaps one random inside might be under the confluence of all the pipes ever, but, seriously,  one can ask for another. And that will be a recurring them theme here. Yes, as my Dad says, you put your money down and you takes your chances. There is no smell here, at all. I don't mean to invalidate someone but...I just don't see it. Or rather, smell it.

 

Next Up! Actual onboarding, more picutres, less extemporizing!

 

[David Kane]

Penthouse Beds

 

Hello There!

 

Yes, the PH beds are two set side x side in the Master Suite. How do I know this? One of us got an appendage stuck in the crack between the two beds last night. It was her arm. Totally. Definitely her arm. 

[dianedebuda]

On 6/25/2022 at 7:46 AM, David Kane said:

We took a slight break and came back for an SS on the Summit out of San Juan in Jan. 2020 and then, about 2 weeks after we got off the ship, the lockdown began.

Ah, yes, I remember your threads.  We were on the Feb 8 SJ Summit cruise.  First cruise was a Princess Alaska the previous August and then the SJ one, one of the very last when we were just starting to hear about Covid "way over there in Asia".  No third time is a charm right now unless the Summit can manage to dock in Austin so we don't have to fly.  So looking forward to sailing by proxy with you.

Edited June 27, 2022 by dianedebuda

[sdnich]

I am looking forward to following you on your cruise!! 😁

[Holly g]

Looking forward to your report. Thanks for doing this. How lucky are you to get the PH suite!  Wow!!!   
Since school is out are there a lot of kids on the ship ? Someone said they read there are 77 kids on board?  Like a Disney cruise lol..  

Have an amazing time!

 

 

 

[David Kane]

OnBoarding 2 - The Mustard Kind

 

As previously noted, after dropping your onboarding bag off in your room and pinky-swearing your SO to remember the safe combination, it is time for food. While there are a host of options available, Luminae is a must for suite level participants. Why? Because this is the time to meet the staff and set your preferences for choice of water, dining time, and number of pillows per seat. And, in order, it is non-sparkling, 530pm and 1 pillow, the last of which being best tip so far! When XZ vlogs...maybe? The Click-Bait title of our next video will be "the best kept secret on Celebrity" and it's really just 'ask for a back pillow to enhance your dining experinece.' 10 out of 10, would pillow again.

 

And speaking of repeats and the nature of this ship, our waiter in Luminae is the same from 2 years ago! In fact, he told me the exact day we last cruised, as it was the end of his contract as well, and XZ ended up buying him drinks in the San Juan airport. We have noticed this level of attention to detail across the entire ship; but, anyways, lunch!

 

So, they have a chilled lobster roll at Luminae! It is quite excellent and, to my taste, I believe it was a North American (instead of Carribean) Lobster. XZ had requested Vegan options, which is hilarious, as she just eats the crew meal at every dining. In fact, the actual Luminae chef came up to discuss her dining options and they ended up deciding on a thai/indian blend which the wait staff was also excited to eat! and THEN, of course, it was said Chef's birthday, so, of course, one has to get a present for the person quite literally making your food for the next week.  1 bottle of scotch later we have finally resolved our answer to "what do you do with OBC?" You buy gifts for the crew. It's like tipping - in whisky form!

 

After lunch, we made it past the last, last hurdle - the new muster drill. 

 

So, in past, the staff had to wrangle 463 people into a lounge and explain the seriousness of an emergency with a straight face to 462 people who had exactly zero chance of getting off of this ship in the cold north atlantic in case of a disaster. And then everyone would laugh, and then you would remember than 'other' line which crashed a billion dollar ship into the coast of Italy and then everyone got very serious indeed.

 

The new muster drill has everyone watching 2 videos on 'the app' and then going to their designated muster station to scan their card to prove, yes, even after 6 champages on the first day you can succesfully locate a lounge and, that's it. Well, not really it. They have demonstrations available and 7 destroyer veterans who likely survived Dunkirk (the ship tends to skew a touch older; also, thank you for your service) were busy quizzing some young staff member who is actually a casino dealer on how to use the attached whistle. I hope they were just BSing him (they totally were). 

 

ANyways, that is the new muster. The only useful point of information to be had here is each guest has to complete the muster on their own device. Don't not do it (triple negative) together. Each person must complete this on their own device or risk getting called down to the punishment muster later in the day and 'meeting' the security staff who absolutely are not fooling around. 

 

Next Up! Come Sail Away with me! Also, I am now 1 1/4 days behind, but XZ, who I am currently watching fall asleep in a chair, hasn't Vlogged once so...Win/Win?

[David Kane]

Obligatory Photo Post

 

In not particular order since the CC formatting on a tiny, tiny, tablet with tiny, tiny keys and no mouse is tricky:

 

1) The Heart of Etheria loaded up and ready to go.

 

2) Onboarding photo; I was going for Borderlands Chic, turns out everyone just thought I was a Euro-Sport Bike Racer. Except for the one Phillie fan who thought I was a Steelers guy and exactly no one who guessed Dewalt Enthusiast. Fair Enough.

 

3) XZ!

 

4) Sneak Peak; we packed shuffleboard! 

 

 

[David Kane]

Quick Reply!

 

'What's with the Bin?'

 

HEY, it's Totes McGoats, thank you very much.

 

Basically, we bring a lot of props on board and after 7 suitcases we just ran out of luggage. So XZ tied a bin shut, slapped a label on it, and the port, uhm porters? did not blink an eye. As opposed to the LAST time when she packed everything into a 200 lbs. titanic-themed railroad trunk and the porters...continued to not blink an eye. Say when you will about Bayonne...and there is a LOT to say about Bayonne, but the port side staff if accomodating as heck!

[WB57]

1 hour ago, David Kane said:

Quick Reply!

 

'What's with the Bin?'

 

HEY, it's Totes McGoats, thank you very much.

 

Basically, we bring a lot of props on board and after 7 suitcases we just ran out of luggage. So XZ tied a bin shut, slapped a label on it, and the port, uhm porters? did not blink an eye. As opposed to the LAST time when she packed everything into a 200 lbs. titanic-themed railroad trunk and the porters...continued to not blink an eye. Say when you will about Bayonne...and there is a LOT to say about Bayonne, but the port side staff if accomodating as heck!

Posted this earlier - perhaps you missed it.  Any insight would be appreciated.
 

Hello - as you will be driving to Cape Liberty, please let us know what time you get there - and what the garage parking situationlooks like (how full/empty) - and the Retreat check-in process. 

[kennystwin]

Hi David!

 

Thanks for your live blog. We're doing the July 10 cruise in the PH along with our adult kids and their spouses (in mere Concierge cabins). This has been a long planned family trip delayed by Covid. I was solo on the Summit last November and the "private yacht" experience (600 pax, 800 crew) made for the best cruise ever. As others have noted, the Summit crew was stellar and I look forward to seeing some of them again on this cruise. 

 

Do you have a passenger count for your cruise? Are any venues crowded? Looking forward  to following your trip!

[David Kane]

Quick Replies!

 

A) The drive to Bayonne is simply not as advetized. Google Maps gets it wrong, somehow, and for a quite literal billion dollar industry no one has yet constructed a decent set of signage that prevents potential spousal arguments from happening in real time. Allocate an additional 15 minutes and when you end up on some weird rural street across of from some stoplights with a "Port" sign the size of a small dinner plate being the only indication as to where to go just have a good laugh about it and move on.

 

B) Arrival: Everyone gets an arrival time, and I did not get asked for it, ever. I know there is the whole 'suite' thing, but Billy McNuts who is directing traffic to the porters has no clue 'who you are' so there is no unloading express line or otherwise. We arrived at 11:38am, 99.4% of the departing guests had already left and there was no line for luggage drop off.

 

C) In terms of parking, we made it juuuuuuuust inside the parking garage. I do not believe there was 'that' RCI ship in port (the...Overlord of the Seas?) so there was still parking in the garage. I think if you arrived by 1pm you would have been directed to one of the exterior lots, from which you would require decent bush-craft skills, a dog of questionable breed, and barter-able goods to be able to return from. 10 out of 10, would parking garage. OH! And take that ticket with you. You pay at the terminal on your way out.

 

D) The Retreat (and Zenith) check-in process is quite straightforward. Once one enters the terminal itself you will walk to your right and pass through a 5 wide set of metal detectors which are more forgiving than the security theatre at airports. You will be required to surrender most of your props to the stage manager, but you can keep your belt and shoes on. If you are mobility limited you will still have to progress through a metal detector gate so be careful if you have a cane - you can't walk through it with it, but the attendants there will assist you. ALSO, note, for the more generous of our readers, one is not allowed to tip the security staff...something something bribery, etc. OH! There is also a Sniffing Transit Police German Shepard on duty. Please do not pet the goodest boy; his handler assures us he is well taken care of when not working. Wow, this post digressed. Where was I?

 

E) OH! Once through security theatre there will be a wide array of desks ahead of you with no lines. If you squint to your left, you will see another set of desks about 30 yards away also without lines that have a Retreat/Zenith sign out front. You may use any kiosk with no line you would like, but the ones to the far left are staffed by the Retreat Managers so it's a good time to get to know your hosts.

 

F) For check-in you will need copies of your Bermuda COVID form, your negative test, your passport, and your vaccine card. I would insert some jokes here, but let's just let them check us all in and move along to...

 

G) The ACTUALfunny part! Right past the Suite kiosks are the restrooms (a good first stop if you didn't feel like getting in a knife fight with a hobo at the Vince Lombardi Rest Area over a trough urinal) and a little area with slightly better chairs and a tensa-barrier separating you from the other, non-suite area exactly 7 steps away. This area will be entirely filled with dutch engineers, because they onboard with the suite levels. However, the upshot is that it really doesn't matter because onboarding happens to darn fast you won't even sit down or get to try a piece of friblinkestaan (it's a dutch cookie with caramel and salt water taffe) (no, it's not).  So here is the hilarious part - to feel a little special, Suite Guests enter the official onboarding hallway just behind that kiosk which leads you....literally right back to where everyone else onboards. So, essentially, you get to walk an additional 90 yards to the far kiosk and then back up the same hallway to board with everyone else. Look at it this way, in will put you closed to those 10,000 steps a day.

 

H) Beyond that there are a few more orderly areas and document checks, but at Suite Level a host just walks you past them! Oh, there is also the onboarding picture, but more on that later, because BOY has that photo package changed!! Then, finally, you are across the gangway and on board, where the staff is literally cheering as you board.

 

Now, did you read of this? If so, you just spent more time reading bad jokes than it will take you to get on board. That is how fast they have this down*.

 

 

*Note: I am a rule follower as is my nature and the above extended onboarding experience reflects rules following. If you are a Teenage Anarchist (like I once was) your experience might be different and you may end up talking to a serious looking Indonesian Man who has no name tag and doesn't smile.

[David Kane]

Pax Count

 

I will double check with the Cruise Director tonight but the ship looks pretty full. There are...a whole 170 people under 18 on board which is almost unreal. Last cruise they routinely closed the Teen Club because the one teen was sleeping in or playing Tik Tok on their Facetime Book or whatever it is teens do these days; I wouldn't know,  I once bought a truck because it had a tape player.

 

In terms of venue space, the new layout for the buffet seems to straight up eat people and spit out more chairs, so there were no problems there. Sushi on 5 was even 3/4 full, which is astounding. The MDR had it's usual line out front, but the MDR always has had a line out front of confused looking people who would seem more at place at the US Open. Like seriously, I do not know what that is all about - I think it's people waiting for their full party to arrive? Which you wouldn't think is difficult what with the commute being 8 flights of stairs, but apparently is for some reason. 

 

Luminae is a slightly different story day 1 - the Retreat Host actually had to manage the initial lunch list! I think it's because rooms are ready for luggage drop off immediately it unemcumbers people from 70 lbs. of bags and makes them lighter on their feet whereas before they needed to catch their breath and have  2 Cuba Libre's before contemplating food. Point is, there may be up to a 11 minute wait in the Retreat Lounge for lunch day 1, the perfect amount of time to totally not smash three shots of Whisky. After that, it seems everything got smoothed and so far there has been no wait at all for Luminae meal times. 

 

Final Note: Masks are...well, let us just say at this point it is personal preference. The staff is still required to wear them at all times, so that skill it took you two years to hone of recognizing people from the eyes up will still be useful, but even the Terminal, despite signage, did not require masks. 

[WB57]

13 hours ago, David Kane said:

Quick Replies!

 

A) The drive to Bayonne is simply not as advetized. Google Maps gets it wrong, somehow, and for a quite literal billion dollar industry no one has yet constructed a decent set of signage that prevents potential spousal arguments from happening in real time. Allocate an additional 15 minutes and when you end up on some weird rural street across of from some stoplights with a "Port" sign the size of a small dinner plate being the only indication as to where to go just have a good laugh about it and move on.

 

B) Arrival: Everyone gets an arrival time, and I did not get asked for it, ever. I know there is the whole 'suite' thing, but Billy McNuts who is directing traffic to the porters has no clue 'who you are' so there is no unloading express line or otherwise. We arrived at 11:38am, 99.4% of the departing guests had already left and there was no line for luggage drop off.

 

C) In terms of parking, we made it juuuuuuuust inside the parking garage. I do not believe there was 'that' RCI ship in port (the...Overlord of the Seas?) so there was still parking in the garage. I think if you arrived by 1pm you would have been directed to one of the exterior lots, from which you would require decent bush-craft skills, a dog of questionable breed, and barter-able goods to be able to return from. 10 out of 10, would parking garage. OH! And take that ticket with you. You pay at the terminal on your way out.

 

D) The Retreat (and Zenith) check-in process is quite straightforward. Once one enters the terminal itself you will walk to your right and pass through a 5 wide set of metal detectors which are more forgiving than the security theatre at airports. You will be required to surrender most of your props to the stage manager, but you can keep your belt and shoes on. If you are mobility limited you will still have to progress through a metal detector gate so be careful if you have a cane - you can't walk through it with it, but the attendants there will assist you. ALSO, note, for the more generous of our readers, one is not allowed to tip the security staff...something something bribery, etc. OH! There is also a Sniffing Transit Police German Shepard on duty. Please do not pet the goodest boy; his handler assures us he is well taken care of when not working. Wow, this post digressed. Where was I?

 

E) OH! Once through security theatre there will be a wide array of desks ahead of you with no lines. If you squint to your left, you will see another set of desks about 30 yards away also without lines that have a Retreat/Zenith sign out front. You may use any kiosk with no line you would like, but the ones to the far left are staffed by the Retreat Managers so it's a good time to get to know your hosts.

 

F) For check-in you will need copies of your Bermuda COVID form, your negative test, your passport, and your vaccine card. I would insert some jokes here, but let's just let them check us all in and move along to...

 

G) The ACTUALfunny part! Right past the Suite kiosks are the restrooms (a good first stop if you didn't feel like getting in a knife fight with a hobo at the Vince Lombardi Rest Area over a trough urinal) and a little area with slightly better chairs and a tensa-barrier separating you from the other, non-suite area exactly 7 steps away. This area will be entirely filled with dutch engineers, because they onboard with the suite levels. However, the upshot is that it really doesn't matter because onboarding happens to darn fast you won't even sit down or get to try a piece of friblinkestaan (it's a dutch cookie with caramel and salt water taffe) (no, it's not).  So here is the hilarious part - to feel a little special, Suite Guests enter the official onboarding hallway just behind that kiosk which leads you....literally right back to where everyone else onboards. So, essentially, you get to walk an additional 90 yards to the far kiosk and then back up the same hallway to board with everyone else. Look at it this way, in will put you closed to those 10,000 steps a day.

 

H) Beyond that there are a few more orderly areas and document checks, but at Suite Level a host just walks you past them! Oh, there is also the onboarding picture, but more on that later, because BOY has that photo package changed!! Then, finally, you are across the gangway and on board, where the staff is literally cheering as you board.

 

Now, did you read of this? If so, you just spent more time reading bad jokes than it will take you to get on board. That is how fast they have this down*.

 

 

*Note: I am a rule follower as is my nature and the above extended onboarding experience reflects rules following. If you are a Teenage Anarchist (like I once was) your experience might be different and you may end up talking to a serious looking Indonesian Man who has no name tag and doesn't smile.

David - thanks for the info (and as always, your humor).   Just one point of clarification (and/or your sarcasm and wit)…so was there ‘plenty of room’ in the garage at 11:38 AM - or did you snag one of the last spots?  We will be arriving around noon the day you are getting off the ship (unless of course, you decide to do back-to-back in the PH suite…in which case Party in your PH!).

 

Thanks and enjoy Bermuda!

 

cheers

[David Kane]

Quick Parking Redux!

 

Yes, at around 11:40 in the AM the entire top level of the parking garage was still empty - we got the last spot that was under the roof

[JimInBuffalo]

Hi, can you or any others on the thread give a synopsis of the entertainment that you had on the Summit for your cruise.

We are on the July 10th sailing. This will be our sixth cruise on the Summit for this itinerary. We normally go every year at this time, but the last two years were moved out, of course.

We will be celebrating our anniversary and our SIL’s birthday while on board. It would be helpful to determine what days they have “formal’ nights (understanding that its a relative term). I am assuming they would be on Monday and Friday if past precedent is followed.

Finally, what specialty restaurants have you been to in recent cruises and your opinion of same (along with prices)?

Feel free to included any other info that you think would be helpful. I find this the best place to get details before I go.

-Jim

[Shimsdan]

Loving your report thus far!  I am going through serious cruise withdrawal, having just gotten off the Equinox on Sunday (family cruise to use up FCC's), and your report will not only fill that void, but thank you for your humor as well.  Most enjoyable.  

 

Regarding Bayonne - as a former New Yorker (now Connecticutite (?)), I've sailed out of Bayonne several times.  The first was for my brother's wedding cruise on Explorer of the Seas 16 years ago 😮going to....Bermuda!!!!   As bad as the port is now, it was MUCH worse back then, if you can believe that!

 

Looking forward to traveling along with you!

[kenb]

On 6/28/2022 at 11:04 AM, David Kane said:

Obligatory Photo Post

 

In not particular order since the CC formatting on a tiny, tiny, tablet with tiny, tiny keys and no mouse is tricky:

 

1) The Heart of Etheria loaded up and ready to go.

 

2) Onboarding photo; I was going for Borderlands Chic, turns out everyone just thought I was a Euro-Sport Bike Racer. Except for the one Phillie fan who thought I was a Steelers guy and exactly no one who guessed Dewalt Enthusiast. Fair Enough.

 

3) XZ!

 

4) Sneak Peak; we packed shuffleboard! 

 

 

Nice truck! I'm still waiting for mine I ordered 9/21/21!

[Guppy99]

2 hours ago, Shimsdan said:

Loving your report thus far!  I am going through serious cruise withdrawal, having just gotten off the Equinox on Sunday (family cruise to use up FCC's), and your report will not only fill that void, but thank you for your humor as well.  Most enjoyable.  

 

Regarding Bayonne - as a former New Yorker (now Connecticutite (?)), I've sailed out of Bayonne several times.  The first was for my brother's wedding cruise on Explorer of the Seas 16 years ago 😮going to....Bermuda!!!!   As bad as the port is now, it was MUCH worse back then, if you can believe that!

 

Looking forward to traveling along with you!

Bayonne is now a beautiful port that is very well managed.  

[David Kane]

Come Sail Away wih Me!

 

After lunch and solemnly swearing that we know where our muster station is it was time to relax in the Retreat Lounge and then enjoy the sailaway from the Helipad because when you get invited to these types of events "Yes of course" is the best of answers.

 

Now, in all actuality Celebrity does such a good job of navigating around the Statue of Liberty there really is no bad location to watch from - all the decks on both sides have up close and personal views of Lady Liberty. There is also the Retreat Lounge, the Persian Garden, heck, the gym probably has good views.

 

But you know what has the best of views? The Penthouse. Yes, for the first time, we actually declined an invitation and just watched sailaway from the expansive back deck. There has been an ongoing theme, that once you stay in this room it will be difficult to stay in any other, and for the last numbers of years we have 'believed' this as being true but always been satified with our SS guarentees and occasional RS. The back deck on this room alone is stunning. And we have fallen down the rabbit hole of "why would we leave the room?" And SPEAKING of this, we have another stunning admission to make. 

 

We apparently are Kelly Hoppen's target audience. This hurts to admit. Apparently when the Edge-i-fi-cation of this room added like 6 additional cloest spaces which no one could possibly fill. Annnnndddd...we filled them. Freaking WHOOPS. We have things in things that don't even look like spaces. This suite and the storage involved is quickly turning into House of Leaves. There is no way, after unpacking, I am going to be able to find everything again. So, apparently we owe an apology to KH*. We're sorry for the polite mockery**.

 

After sailaway we proceeded to dress for dinner, and, as noted before but worth repeating, attending your Main Dining Room on the first night is a must. You meet the staff, set your preferences and begin building those relationships whcih can last beyond your cruise? Think I'm exaggerating? We get seated in Luminae and the waiter comes over and says "Sir, I bet I can tell you the exact time and date of your last cruise." Now, with all the staff wearing masks it is a touch harder to recognize people but it turns out not ONLY was he our waiter in Jan. 2020, but his contract had ended the same day we disembarked. And how do we know that? Because XZ abandoned me for an hour in the San Juan airport because, walking back from the water closet, she spotted him in the lobby and proceeded to buy him rounds of drinks. SO, the point is...the point is? Ah! The Point Is, attend your opening night MDR meal.

 

And next, pictures.

 

*I mean, who else would plan for someone to drag 9 clostes full of stuff on board? Now, some of those "closets" contains nothing but spats and Fez(es....here's a tricky word to pluralize) but still...

 

**You didn't SERIOSULY think we were going to swallow our tongue on Hoppen-stances without one last shot across the bow, did you? Take a look at the next pictures. Instead of guessing the weight of Peter Max, see if you can guess which of these objects was not selected by a world reknown designer. Hint: Got a $4 bowl and some white rocks? Congratualtions, you too can design Celebrity's newest ship, the Infinte Edge-Pex. Think whites and greys.

 

 

[David Kane]

[David Kane]

Obligatory Picture Post#2

 

Formal Night (every night is formal night!)

 

[garyl62]

So happy to be following along again!  I bet those shuffle board cues could get used right on your own deck too