Celebrity Summit Refurbishment???

[Brad1185]

I was on the Summit a few weeks ago, ship to me looked to be in very good condition. My bathroom tiles and grout needed some work, toilet seat looked like it had been through both world wars, but other than that I was very impressed with the condition of the ship.

[RosiePosie1013]

I was the one who originated this topic...... I have a hold on a concierge class cabin on the Summit for March 2008, with the deposit being due tomorrow. I am getting alot of varied feedback regarding the condition of the ship and am starting to wonder if I am making the right decision to go on the Summit. Celebrity is our favorite cruise line - 8 cruises with them so far (10 with RCCL/2 with HAL). We were considering the Crown Princess, but have never done Princess before. RCCL's prices out of San Juan are considerably more. We really like the Summit itinerary but are wondering if Celebrity is kind of letting the condition of the ship slip in anticipation of the drydock & refurbishment. Any additional thoughts????

[judyfssw]

I would go and will go on the Summit again. Even though there were a couple of things worn in our suite, it didn't stop me from thinking that it was a good cruise. And, I like CC. It's just a little bit better and, to me, worth the money.

[Shirley and Les]

...So that tells me that X doesn't do much in terms of touch ups while passengers are on board or not on board. I can give you two instances from just this cruise. The railings on the balconies are down to bare wood. It's so deteriorated that my sister got a sliver in her hand from grabbing the railing when the ship hit a bump In the suites that have the wooden furniture on the balconies, they're also down to bare wood. I've been on ships where the crew were touch up painting the exterior parts of the ship at nearly every port of call. Not so here. ...

We were on the Summit in the early summer of 2005. One morning, I noticed a group of workmen on a few verandas on our deck at the bow of the ship. When we returned from shore late that afternoon, a 'Wet Paint' sign was hanging on the sliding door. Yep, they stripped and revarnished the 9th deck railings on the starboard side of the ship that day. I also saw similar painting and varnishing on the Infinity in April of this year.

Maintenance-type upkeep repair work is continuous on Celebrity.

Les

[CaptainG]

If a spot on the carpet or a blemish on your veranda railing is going to ruin your vacation, then you better stay home. You probably shouldn't get in your car either. I bet the carpets in there have lost that showroom look too.

 

Some of these comments make the Summit sound on par with some skid row hotel. If I read any more, I'll never go cruising again.

 

Of course you could always wear an environmental suit and a blindfold. What you can't see or touch can't hurt you.

[Xcruiser]

When I read something like the carpet all was torn, the apholstery was old and stained the windows were fogged the service was bad and teh ship missed sereral ports because of Pod problems ..... but in no way did this distract from my great Celebrity cruise or my enjoyment: I always wonder who these people work for!!!!!

 

Funny, I was wondering the same thing about you!

 

You've been very busy on the boards today for someone with so few posts. I'm sorry but I have not caught which Celebrity cruise(s) you were on that all these issues you are posting about.:confused:

[many cruises]

We were on the Summit in July & the ship was definitely showing signs of wear & tear. Many of the upolstered seats in the buffet were visibly dirty and they appeared as if they hadn't been cleaned in quite some time. We noticed that the ship wasn't maintained on the level that the Princess ships are maintained. The Princess staff constantly cleans furniture, carpets, and varnishes railings while passengers are onboard. On the Summit, furniture, carpets, and railings were in need of cleaning and/or maintenance. The ship also had problems with the air conditioning and it was very uncomfortable many nights in the dining room and in our stateroom. Complaints were made throughout the week (even to the hotel director), but the air conditioning problem never improved. We would hesitate sailing on a Celebrity ship again because of these maintenance problems.

[CaptainG]

That's funny. We were on the Summit in September. I guess I was having so much of a good time that I didn't notice how horrible everything was.

 

Next time I'll pay more attention.

[ginagirl]

Just did a 2 week sailing on the Summit, and thought the ship was in very good condition. Our CC cabin was in tiptop shape and so was our balcony railing...shiny and nicely stained. I do believe the soft goods could definitely benefit from replacement. Furniture, for the most part, was totally okay unless one went around with a magnifying glass. All in all, I would sail the Summit tomorrow. In fact, I am heartbroken that it won't be sailing out of California anymore. Celebrity pulled out almost every ship from California except for the old, tired Mercury. (I'm not counting the Alaska runs.) One thing I will say is I regret the day Celebrity was bought by RCL.:mad:

[Germancruiser]

Interessting thread this. I sailed all Milli- Class ships. Love them all. We are just a little spoiled with all those new buillds during the past years, some may expect to look the ship new forever. An old ship, good maintained can have is own charm ( see QE2) and sucess.

Brad 1185 I could not agree more about your comment to the toilet seats. (LOL)Those in my cabin on board Millenium two years ago looked also as they went through both world wars....! THEY COULD EASY TAKE CARE OF THAT! A new toilet seat is not that of a fortune to spend.

In spite of that i found all X- ships exeptionell clean.

Michael

[Shirley and Les]

Funny, I was wondering the same thing about you!...

When I first read this comment, I thought a big fight was about to commence due to the earlier poster's comments about being stained, fogged and old. Then, I continued to read about cruise credentials and decided 'false alarm'. ;) Aw, shucks!

Les

[Jonas Grumby]

We just left the Summit, and while I observed many of the same things other posters have (and didn't observe others), allow me to point out something here:

 

The Summit went into service six years ago. It's a ship on a mass-market cruise line. It's not the QM2 or the QV or even Seabourn or Crystal. It's an upscale, MASS-MARKET ship. With that observation, I have to say that my wife and I have been on seven different cruise ships combined, and the Summit was in the best shape of all of them.

 

Now, if I wanted to get very picky, could I? Of course. For example, Darcie pointed out that the teak rails outside the verandas on some decks had been sanded down to the bare wood. I fully expected the rails to be varnished while we were aboard, but surprisingly, it didn't happen. Our drapes were a bit worn (and had a tiny hole in them) and the furnishings could use an upgrade of decor. I also noticed the worn spot in the dance floor in the Rendezvous Lounge. (For that matter, our 19-inch tube TV in the cabin didn't have the best reception, either.)

 

Having said that, NONE of these things interfered with our enjoyment of the cruise. I wouldn't say that any of these signs of age made the ship look "shabby"; rather, it's just not new from the shipyard. I saw plenty of hull painting taking place in most ports of call, as well as window-washing and general maintenance. (In fact, one of the more irritating aspects of the cruise to me was when they deodorized and cleaned the corridor carpets outside our room, causing everyone to track cleaning powder all over the place. However, I'm certainly not going to complain about the clean carpets that resulted.)

 

Most importantly to us was the Celebrity crew we met. For two weeks, not a single employee failed to smile and greet us as we passed by. It's the people and amenities that made the Summit special for us -- not whether everything was as new as it could have been. We'd sail on Summit again without hesitation.

 

Gary

[Nancyquilts]

We just left the Summit - someone else is sleeping in my bed and eating at my table:eek: .

We had a concierge class aft balcony (7206 to be exact). Loved it. We had breakfast there each morning and watched the sun set most evenings. Our cabin and dining room stewards were great. The staff was very friendly, and someone seemed to be cleaning all the time - vacuums were often out. I was looking for "shabby", but the only place I noticed a lack of paint was at one end of the swimming pool. I'd like to take that ship again - any time. Nancy

[RLM77]

It's the relative condition of the ship compared to others that bothers me. We were on Summit in September. I posted at the time that some of the public areas looked a bit run down, but that the ship's condition did not affect my enjoyment of our cruise. I still feel that way and we will happily cruise Celebrity again.

 

But ... and it's a big but ... Zuiderdam is about the same age as Summit, is going into a major dry dock at about the same time, and in comparison looks brand new. Maintenance and upkeep were visibly superior on the HAL ship. The relative difference may not significantly change one's overall cruise experience, but it is an important point of comparison for those trying to choose between two cruise lines (in this case HAL and Celebrity). And HAL wins the front-of-house upkeep competition hand down.

 

Does this mean that one should always choose HAL over Celebrity? Of course not. But HAL does seem to do a better job keeping their ships fresh and well maintained.

 

If HAL and X compete with each other then X should take note and pay a little more attention to the wear and tear.