We just got off the Summit

[jobythebay]

after a 2-week Panama Canal cruise. We loved it. If you have any questions I'll try to answer them. Jo

[westerfiek]

what did you think of the ship? Good and bad.

 

I am planning a southern caribbean in Jan 08.

 

we went on a Panama one 5 years ago on the Galaxy.

[jobythebay]

what did you think of the ship? Good and bad.

 

I am planning a southern caribbean in Jan 08.

 

we went on a Panama one 5 years ago on the Galaxy.

 

The ship was great. I heard that it is going in for some renovations. It's 6 1/2 years old so for ex. the bathroom could be up dated a bit and if you like flat screen tvs you won't get one at this point. I'd go Celebrity again in a heart beat. Jo

[chloe68]

after a 2-week Panama Canal cruise. We loved it. If you have any questions I'll try to answer them. Jo

 

Did you try and take a couple of bottles of alcohol on board with you? If so, were you successful?

[jobythebay]

Did you try and take a couple of bottles of alcohol on board with you? If so, were you successful?

 

:DYou are allowed two bottles of wine without hiding them. We brought two maybe 500ml sized alcohol - Kahlua and Vodka. What we did was this:

 

We put each bottle in a sock and then put the sock in a bag with other bottles (shampoo, etc) with the theory that they are x-raying for stuff that looks like bottles. I'm not sure if our theory worked but we had no problem and saved $12.00 a day! Jo

[chloe68]

:DYou are allowed two bottles of wine without hiding them. We brought two maybe 500ml sized alcohol - Kahlua and Vodka. What we did was this:

 

We put each bottle in a sock and then put the sock in a bag with other bottles (shampoo, etc) with the theory that they are x-raying for stuff that looks like bottles. I'm not sure if our theory worked but we had no problem and saved $12.00 a day! Jo

 

I know this is a very touchy subject on these boards, but I plan on doing this for my honeymoon cruise next July. I just like having a cocktail in my cabin while I'm getting ready for dinner.

[jobythebay]

I know this is a very touchy subject on these boards, but I plan on doing this for my honeymoon cruise next July. I just like having a cocktail in my cabin while I'm getting ready for dinner.

 

from our cruise two years ago. The fact is we spent plenty of money at the bars (casino too :rolleyes:) but we too like a cocktail while getting dressed. Jo

[chloe68]

from our cruise two years ago. The fact is we spent plenty of money at the bars (casino too :rolleyes:) but we too like a cocktail while getting dressed. Jo

 

 

I love those tropical type of drinks!

[IrisTattoo]

Any favorite crew members?

[IrisTattoo]

How was the menu on board? I thought Celebrity was changing head chefs and doing a menu overhaul.

Did you dine at the Speciality restaurant? If so, how was that.

Any Norovirus on board.

I'm going to Europe on the Summit in a few months.:p Any info is appreciated.

[Kaboochi]

Dear Jo,

Thanks for starting such a great thread. With so many of us CC posters getting ready to head to the Caribbean on Celebrity Summit, your posting is so welcomed. Thanks for the answer about the wine, I have sent that on to our 11 friends that will be joining us on our trip next month.

 

My questions are: Is there just one outdoor pool and are there enough lounge chairs; what was your best entre selection for dinner; what was your favorite bar/bartender; and last, what is a must do on this ship. Welcome home and thanks, Laurie

[quail26]

Hi

 

We are departing on the Summit 2/2, CC class and are anxious to hear about the condition of the cabins. What type of cabin did you have and was it clean, etc.?

 

Also, did you dine in the Normandy Restaurant and how was the food? How was the menu in the main dining room in the evening? Any comments on the sushi bar?

 

Thanks very much.

[jobythebay]

Any favorite crew members?

 

They do switch but Jeff, the cruise director, was wonderful- funny, personable, friendly and listened to us i.e. there was a group in one of the alcoves, On Point. They were fantastic. He had them on the stage because so many people requested that.

 

Our stateroom attendant, Luna, was amazing. She was always around, knew our names from day 1 and ran to open the door for us when she saw us approaching and always with a smile.

 

We had superb dining room staff- Jorge was our waiter. Jo

[jobythebay]

ANSWERS are within the body of your question except at the end.

 

 

 

How was the menu on board? I thought Celebrity was changing head chefs and doing a menu overhaul.

They are but it wasn't changed for our 1/5 cruise.

Did you dine at the Speciality restaurant? If so, how was that.

 

We didn't - it's called the Normandie but we knew several people on board who did and thought it excellent. You'll be eating for about 3 hours and even get escorted to the restroom! I don't eat red meat or duck so for us it didn't make sense. It is certainly worth $30 if you want a change of venue.

Any Norovirus on board.

 

Oh gosh, this ship is germaphobic maybe to a fault. They bleach everything constantly- even the cushions of the chairs. There are signs on counters saying not to lean on them because they've just been bleached. I don't think any bug can live on that ship!

I'm going to Europe on the Summit in a few months.:p Any info is appreciated.

 

Well one thing I want to point out - for good or bad. IF you don't feel well - I mean maybe you threw up once but really don't think you are sick as in contagious and want to get out of going on your shore excursion. You will be told that you can't unless you see the dr. If you do see the dr. you will be quaranteened for 24 or 48 hours IN YOUR ROOM. No visitors except crew and if they see you on board they can tell you to leave the ship! Now the bad part of telling you all this is if you really are sick no one wants to catch what you have. The good part is if you aren't truly sick - maybe just quesy you may be better off losing your shore excursion money than losing 2 ship days. Jo

 

I know there are spelling mistakes. :confused:

[jobythebay]

Hi

 

We are departing on the Summit 2/2, CC class and are anxious to hear about the condition of the cabins. What type of cabin did you have and was it clean, etc.?

 

Also, did you dine in the Normandy Restaurant and how was the food? How was the menu in the main dining room in the evening? Any comments on the sushi bar?

 

Thanks very much.

 

We had a veranda on the 7th floor. It wasn't as large as the one we had on Carnival but it was large enough. The cabin was spotless (read below about the bleach). I do think that when they upgrade which we heard they were doing at some point the bathrooms should be upgraded. They are a bit out of date. I didn't like where the bedside lamps were because they weren't close enough to read at night comfortably.

 

See below about the Normandy. The menu in the dining room was excellent. There was always a fish, meat, pasta, (sometimes two meats) dishes. You'll get an appetizer choice, soup choice, entree choice, salad choice and of course desserts and if you don't like those then on the left side of the menu are items they have every night. For ex. if you don't like any of the appetizers of the day then you can always have a shrimp cocktail. The food was excellent.

 

I don't eat Sushi but my husband does and loved it. One of our friends we met was there every night at 5:30 just to eat the Sushi so I think you'll be pleased with it. Jo

My REVIEW

[jobythebay]

Dear Jo,

Thanks for starting such a great thread. With so many of us CC posters getting ready to head to the Caribbean on Celebrity Summit, your posting is so welcomed. Thanks for the answer about the wine, I have sent that on to our 11 friends that will be joining us on our trip next month.

 

My questions are: Is there just one outdoor pool and are there enough lounge chairs, what was your best entre selection for dinner; what was your favorite bar/bartender; and last, what is a must do on this ship. Welcome home and thanks, Laurie

__________________

Great questions: There is one large outdoor pool and the therapy (it has a long name) pool that has minerals in it. Lounge chairs are always a problem everywhere but we always got one. We don't sit in the sun. If we did then there seemed to be more lounges there. But what you want to do is this:

 

1. There are pool butlers. You will probably find spaces for chairs but no chairs there. Ask the butlers to get you one or two (13 may be asking too much:eek:) and he will gladly find you the chairs and put them where you want.

 

2. Although they say don't save, everyone does. Obviously if you just put down a towel on chairs no one is going to be very happy but we would put down towels, our books and tote bag (you'll get a Celebrity bag for free in your room) and then went for breakfast. We'd go to the pool, sit for awhile and then leave again. That's fine. So do that especially if you have a large crowd because by 11:00 it will be hard to find lots of empty chairs.

 

Next - my favorite entree were the shrimp dishes thought the chicken dishes were terrific as well. I don't eat meat but our tables mates do and always got and loved whatever meat was served...and this is a surprise but...you'll get lobster tails on the last formal night.

 

I can't say I had a favorite bartender because there are just so many of them everywhere. We really liked a little alcove called Cova Cafe di Milano which has a bar and when we were there a wonderful singer/guitar player named Jefferson Ang. We spent a lot of time there.

 

Must do on board?? Well we really enjoyed waterpainting classes but I'm not sure that's on every cruise. I would really suggest taking dance classes if you have any interest. They were fun and we learned a lot. One of the Celebrity dancers got paid extra to teach the classes. Her name was Jordan and she was adorable!

 

Have fun, Jo

 

My review of the ship

[quail26]

Jo

 

Thanks so very much for all the great details. As you can tell, everyone is very appreciative of your useful information.

 

We appreciate you starting this thread and we will continue to tune on for new information.

[usha]

Although they say don't save, everyone does. Obviously if you just put down a towel on chairs no one is going to be very happy but we would put down towels, our books and tote bag (you'll get a Celebrity bag for free in your room) and then went for breakfast. We'd go to the pool, sit for awhile and then leave again. That's fine. So do that especially if you have a large crowd because by 11:00 it will be hard to find lots of empty chairs.

No, jobythebay, "everyone" doesn't save chairs, so please don't encourage newbies to be chair hogs.

[jobythebay]

Jo

 

Thanks so very much for all the great details. As you can tell, everyone is very appreciative of your useful information.

 

We appreciate you starting this thread and we will continue to tune on for new information.

 

I know how much people want to know what to expect. This was the best cruise of the 3 though I know compared to others 3 is not very many! Still I wouldn't hesitate for one second to go with Celebrity again. Jo

[April Jewel]

Thanks for a wonderfully informative review.

 

We will be sailing on the Summit in the Med in August and your review has made me even more excited.

 

Tammy

[jobythebay]

Although they say don't save, everyone does. Obviously if you just put down a towel on chairs no one is going to be very happy but we would put down towels, our books and tote bag (you'll get a Celebrity bag for free in your room) and then went for breakfast. We'd go to the pool, sit for awhile and then leave again. That's fine. So do that especially if you have a large crowd because by 11:00 it will be hard to find lots of empty chairs.

No, jobythebay, "everyone" doesn't save chairs, so please don't encourage newbies to be chair hogs.

 

You are correct. Everyone does not save chairs; however enough were saved so that we had a hard time finding one after breakfast. IN FACT, Celebrities newsletter states this, "We would like to request that guests do not reserve deck chairs. If you leave and anticipate returning in a short while you can leave your personal belongings on or near the chair. "

 

So I saw nothing wrong or unethical about placing our stuff on a chair and going to breakfast. I might then have sat at the pool for 2 hours and gone to the stores and come back. Celebrity states that is fine so I shouldn't have even put that it isn't ok to hold onto a chair because as stated above it is. Obviously if you are going to play Bingo and then to a Texas Hold em Tournament and then to the buffet for a snack and you'll be gone for 4 hours, holding a chair wouldn't be fair or necessary. Hopes this clarifies things. Jo

[IrisTattoo]

Thanks, Jo, for all the info.! I'm even more excited now!!!:p

Glad to read a review that was so positive.

[eandj]

You are correct. Everyone does not save chairs; however enough were saved so that we had a hard time finding one after breakfast. IN FACT, Celebrities newsletter states this, "We would like to request that guests do not reserve deck chairs. If you leave and anticipate returning in a short while you can leave your personal belongings on or near the chair. "

 

So I saw nothing wrong or unethical about placing our stuff on a chair and going to breakfast. I might then have sat at the pool for 2 hours and gone to the stores and come back. Celebrity states that is fine so I shouldn't have even put that it isn't ok to hold onto a chair because as stated above it is. Obviously if you are going to play Bingo and then to a Texas Hold em Tournament and then to the buffet for a snack and you'll be gone for 4 hours, holding a chair wouldn't be fair or necessary. Hopes this clarifies things. Jo

 

 

JO,

A "short while" isn't seen as the same for everyone. That's the problem. If I'm having problems finding a chair on any ship, I sort of watch to see which chairs remain non attended for more than a half hour. That's plenty of time to run in for a cold snack or check on their family members elsewhere on the ship. The chair should not be sitting vacant while they socialize during and after a meal in the restaurant or go shopping, hit the casino or attend a seminar.

At that point I move the "personal book" or whatever is holding that chair, lay my fresh towel down and relax. Most often I can be there for more than an hour with no one showing up. If someone shows up more quickly, I offer to move to another chair. Often a group of wives say they are holding chairs for their husbands. Well, if their husbands decide not to show up for a few hours, it's not fair to the rest of the guests.

I don't believe in playing those games. If people are afraid to move another's items, all you have to do is ask a pool steward. They will do it easily enough. If everyone just complains of the chairhogs without doing anything to change it...well then don't expect things to change. If people were just considerate of others, and not feel they are more entitled than others, we wouldn't have all these silly "rules".

I agree with the earlier poster that said by giving new cruisers the info about holding chairs is doing everyone a disservice.

[jobythebay]

JO,

A "short while" isn't seen as the same for everyone. That's the problem. If I'm having problems finding a chair on any ship, I sort of watch to see which chairs remain non attended for more than a half hour. That's plenty of time to run in for a cold snack or check on their family members elsewhere on the ship. The chair should not be sitting vacant while they socialize during and after a meal in the restaurant or go shopping, hit the casino or attend a seminar.

At that point I move the "personal book" or whatever is holding that chair, lay my fresh towel down and relax. Most often I can be there for more than an hour with no one showing up. If someone shows up more quickly, I offer to move to another chair. Often a group of wives say they are holding chairs for their husbands. Well, if their husbands decide not to show up for a few hours, it's not fair to the rest of the guests.

I don't believe in playing those games. If people are afraid to move another's items, all you have to do is ask a pool steward. They will do it easily enough. If everyone just complains of the chairhogs without doing anything to change it...well then don't expect things to change. If people were just considerate of others, and not feel they are more entitled than others, we wouldn't have all these silly "rules".

 

I agree with the earlier poster that said by giving new cruisers the info about holding chairs is doing everyone a disservice.

 

I totally agree that it isn't fair to leave a chair unattended while people go play the slots. I thought I made it clear. I also wanted to post Celebrity's official line "If you leave and anticipate returning in a short while you can leave your personal belongings on or near the chair. "

 

If new people think they can put down a towel at 11:00 and come back at 4:00 they will find out quickly that this won't happen. Their items will be removed. However, and I'll say it again, putting your items down and having breakfast or bringing back your food to the chair is fine according to the Celebrity newsletter. You may need to run up to your room to get the hat you forgot. I wouldn't give up my chair for that short hop. I think this topic is getting out of hand. So let's leave it at that. Yes, short while is different for different people. Celebrity doesn't give a time frame but has the right to remove items if the chair has been unoccupied for whatever length of time the pool butler thinks is fair. Jo

[prosenbl]

Can you tell me if there were people carrying large insulated tumbers with the ship's picture on it - they would have gotten these if they purchased a soda pass.