How confident are you in booking Summit to Alaska with regard to pod propulsion prob?

[Superman of Inaction]

Infinity was in dry dock in March of 2006 and then again in September of 2006. I don't know if they worked on her pods in March or it was just a "spruce up".

 

Bbro, I think you are right about the dry dock in March of this year was probably a scheduled "spruce up". You would think that Celebrity, instead of all the inconvenience caused this fall by Infinity pod problems, would have just repaced the pods at the time the ship was being "spruced up" in March. This would be what I call "Attention to Detail". Management must have decided that the best thing for the bottom line is to just keep sailing until the next pod breakdown.

[bbro]

Bbro, I think you are right about the dry dock in March of this year was probably a scheduled "spruce up". You would think that Celebrity, instead of all the inconvenience caused this fall by Infinity pod problems, would have just repaced the pods at the time the ship was being "spruced up" in March. This would be what I call "Attention to Detail". Management must have decided that the best thing for the bottom line is to just keep sailing until the next pod breakdown.

We had thought they were fixing up the pods in March so were certain our cruise wouldn't be affected by it in August...no such luck. We still had a great cabin and saw beautiful things though, So I count myself lucky - I wasn't on one that missed ports (we just didn't see all the inside passage due to the slower speed) or was cancelled all together. But I don't think my nerves can handle another "pod cruise". I'll wait til they're all fixed before I give those ships another shot. I drove my poor husband crazy for weeks fussing about our cruise and the "what if's" etc...I really allowed myself to miss out on all the exciting anticipation of a cruise by worrying so much.

 

I'm trying Princess in January and I won't even go on those boards because what I don't know may actually make my experience more enjoyable! :-)

[bbro]

Thanks Superman! I have joined my roll call and we've already got a group meeting for dinner the night before the cruise. Should be a great time!

[Kathie44]

We did an Alaska cruise on Summit in 8/03 and had no problems. The land tour beforehand was also great.

You will love Summit. It's a very nice ship and the staff is great. It seems to me that Summit doesn't have any where near the pod problems that the other M-class ships have had.

 

1/02 Explorer E. Carib.

1/03 Explorer W. CArib.

8/03 Summit Alaska cruise/tour

2/04 Adventure S. Carib.

2/05 Galaxy Panama Canal

6/06 Jewel Brit. Isles/Nor. Fjords + 3 days in London

1/07 Mercury Mexican Riviera

[Superman of Inaction]

We did an Alaska cruise on Summit in 8/03 and had no problems. The land tour beforehand was also great.

You will love Summit. It's a very nice ship and the staff is great. It seems to me that Summit doesn't have any where near the pod problems that the other M-class ships have had.

 

1/02 Explorer E. Carib.

1/03 Explorer W. CArib.

8/03 Summit Alaska cruise/tour

2/04 Adventure S. Carib.

2/05 Galaxy Panama Canal

6/06 Jewel Brit. Isles/Nor. Fjords + 3 days in London

1/07 Mercury Mexican Riviera

 

Hi Kathie44, With all due respect you are mistaken about the Summit pod problems. The Summit is second only to the Infinity for the number of pod problems, by a narrow margin. While most cruises are free of pod problems about once per year, since the launch of both the Summit and the Infinity, on each ship, one or more cruises will be curtailed while another will be cancelled while the ship goes to dry dock for repair. The important thing to point out here is that while most cruises will not have a problem, the passenger when making their decision should be made aware that this is an increased risk when sailing on M-Class ships. Each passenger has their own values as to how important missing ports would be. For myself missing ports on a Caribbean cruise would be no big deal, but missing ports and Itinerary on an Alaskan cruise would be a big deal, and not worth taking the risk of ruining an Alaskan cruise because of a pod failure. I would agree 100%, with DrukeI when he said "I would look for another ship without the pod system".

[cechase]

We were on Infinity [sister vessel to the other M class vessels including Summit] for the Alaska cruise out of Vancouver on 9/3/2006, the cruise just before Infinity went into drydock in Victoria. Prior to the cruise we were advised that she would cruise at a maximum speed of 19 knots. We also found out here on cruise critic that the issue was not the bearings for the drive shafts, but rather an issue with the electrical motor on the port side which drives the shafts. [This information was verified when we had dinner with the Chief Engineer and the Staff Engineer, each of whom were incredibly versed in the mechanics of the pod system, and on a tour of the bridge of Infinity.]

 

The upshot of our cruise is that there were two minor changes in our itinerary, involving reduction of one hour in one port and two hours in another port. Otherwise, we arrived and departed every port on time, except for arriving in very heavy fog in the Golden Gate [you could hardly see the bridge when we passed under it.] and were 30 minutes late in docking. It was a wonderful cruise, and all of our over 90 passengers in our Cruise Critic Connections group to almost a person raved about the cruise. The captain of Infinity took the vessel closer to the Hubbard Glacier than any our vessel, so he announced - and we were very very close - a life time highlight. We did the run from right to left, and since we were on the starboard side of the vessel were on our veranda, and those pax on the verandas above us were all cheering.

 

Breakdowns on cruise ships while not common do happen. Carnival has had several instances where the ship was dead in the water for an extended period of time. Speaking of Princess - the Star Princess had a very serious fire in March of this year. Pods or not, these are all mechanical creatures which are prone to failure.

 

My suggestion to the OP, is do not make your cruise decision based upon the posts in this forum, or concern about the pods, but on the basis of accommodations, service, quality of food, and itinerary. We did, and if you look at our signature, we are on Millie for a TA in 2007.

[many cruises]

In response to your question: NO

We were on the ill fated Infinity to Alaska Cruise on July 16, 2006. We had "pod" problems, left a day late, didn't see the inside passage, missed Sitka, and had very limited time in the 3 remaining ports. Because of the altered itinerary, excursions were cancelled and had to be rebooked, and many people were unable to rebook what they had originally reserved. In addition, our cruise experience on the Infinity was a disaster too. As a result of the "pod" problems, the staff was overworked, passengers were arguing on the ship, and we dealt with one problem after another. It was a chaotic experience, rather than a cruise to Alaska. I wish I would have known about this ongoing problem before our cruise. I would not have taken a chance on "pod" problems ruining what should have been a trip of a lifetime. Simply stated, we didn't get the cruise we paid for, and we continue to argue our case with Executive Personnel at Celebrity Customer Service. My advice to you is that if you want to gamble with thousands of dollars, you should cruise on one of these ships with ongoing "pod" problems. If you are lucky enough to book a cruise that Celebrity cancels because of "pod" problems, then you will probably be happy because you will receive a "free" cruise. If you are unlucky and sail on a cruise that has "pod" problems, the result will be quite different. We didn't get the cruise we paid for, and, as of this date, Celebrity seems to care less. We will continue to argue our case with Celebrity, and will hopefully be able to post a positive result on these boards.

We are considering booking a small family group (4-6 cabins) on the Summit for an Alaska cruisetour for July "07. Can we feel reasonably confident in this ship, in light of the history of the pod propulsion problems with the "M" class of ships?

[Gramps25]

I was watching a Discovery Channel show on the building of the Queen Mary 2. They use pod propulsion on her as well. But the narrator pointed out that some 50 cruise ships employ the pod system and about 75% of them experience mechanical issues. The newer the ship, the fewer the problems.

 

But, problems can arise on any ship at any time. Judge on all factors, but potential problems should be weighed at the bottom of the scale.

[flagger]

No way, no how would I book on an M-class ship. The "compensation" Celebrity offers for ruining people's vacations is abhorrent at best.

[Gramps25]

The fewer people whining on my cruise, the better. I have found in all of my cruises that by far the worst part of them are the large number of arrogant, self-centered, pompous passengers.

 

If you don't want to chance it don't. But to use the term "ruined" is implying that you can't possibly have fun unless everything is perfect. Gee, that's a tough way to view a vacation where there is nothing you can do about it. Of course, you could stay home.

[flagger]

It is not perfect when with short notice a cruise is cancelled and people who only get off at certain times of the year or have to bid for their vacations by seniority have to make other arrangements. Yes I would call that a RUINED vacation. Shipboard credits are usually per cabin not per person, open bars are useless to people who do not drink, refunds can take quite a bit of time to process, if you did not book air or hotel with X you are out of luck, and the "free" cruise comes with many many restrictions.

 

Doesn't sound like a whole lot of fun.

[Ma Bell]

I hope everyone finds a cruiseline to make him happy.

 

We've obviously been very fortunate. We've been to Alaska seven times on M-Class ships with never a problem. We've also been there four times on Princess and enjoyed our Celebrity trips much more.

[Jarronwood]

Has anyone looked at percentages of broken down vessels i.e. pod problems and other issues. If there is somebody out there who has the time it would be interesting to see how many times eaach ship breaks down and do a comparable with other lines.

 

I would be looking for how many sailings does say Summit do per year and of those sailings how often is there a problem?

 

Any ideas?

[Cachecara]

The only wrong would be to hide the true facts, and I am sure that would not be allowed to happen here on cruisecritic.

 

Very well put. :) I have learned so much about cruising from this source/message board.

 

Our last cruise should have been Zenith to Bermuda, but due to that darn hurricane(HOW DARE IT), we were diverted and did not get to Bermuda. Our alternate itinerary was to the Bahamas. We made an informed decision to go--we did have a choice to cancel and rebook and almost did that! But we didn't.

I guess my point is, we had a GREAT time. We love Zenith and met lovely people we still keep in touch with. But did I miss not going to Bermuda--YOU BETCHA!!!! I am still sad we didn't get there, but alas, it was not to be. But at least I made that choice. It was under my control.

 

Now Zenith will no longer be doing the Bermuda route or any other route it seems. So I am even more sad that I didn't take my chance when I had it. Yes, Journey will be doing that route, but it looks like it will also be substantially more expensive.

 

If given choices, I would much rather not take the risk with a M class pod disaster waiting to happen. With my luck, it will happen.:rolleyes: That doesn't mean this is for everyone, some people have great luck!

[Dandylyon]

Changes of itinerary due to engine problems are not limited to ships with pod propulsion systems.

 

Our last Alaska cruise on NCL Dream was seriously affected by a longstanding engine problem. We had some shortened port visits, missed Sitka entirely, and substituted a port.

 

We will be on Summit to Hawaii in December!