Happy Cruiser 6143

Thanks for the warning about Lyle. Will avoid him if he's still on board in October. It sounds like they need to throw him back. If someone told me to "keep up," my reply wouldn't be printable here. It wouldn't hurt to have a friendly chat with the suite manager or the hotel director about that.

I had Prez for 18 nights in the spring. He is indeed a rock star. Would you ask Yuskel if he will still be on board for the October 15 cruise? Lobo had indicated he might be back by then.

FYI, I was on the Summit this spring. Had always had meh experiences in Tuscan, but it was included with my suite and friends wanted to go, so I went. Surprise! Excellent meal and excellent service. Had always been indifferent to Le Petit Chef as well, but again it was included and friends wanted to go. We went to steak & lobster night. Again a surprise. The food was good and the visuals were fun. I've always had good meals in Sushi on 5.

Yes, you can do this. Just clear it with the maitre d'. Prior to covid, when I sailed solo in a suite, I was told by the maitre d' that I could bring a guest at no cost since I had paid for two. That was on the Equinox. I don't know if it's ship specific or if it's up to the maitre d'. Since covid, I've not sailed solo in a suite.

The butlers have those.

RosieRoo, you're just a sailin' fool--can't wait for October, huh?

Really? Those chairs are horrendous! They should be thrown overboard or burned.

Jim, I was impressed at how good Tuscan was on the Summit. My previous experiences there on other ships had been meh. It came with my suite, so I thought I'd give it one more try. Will definitely go back in the fall. Also, if you can catch lobster & steak night at Le Petit Chef, that was also good. Since there are so few specialty restaurants on Summit, it's good they've upped their game.

I spent the summer in France the year after I graduated from college with one suitcase. In those days, suitcases didn't have wheels. I bought toiletries in France after I arrived. The French have wonderful stuff. I will say that I threw out all those clothes when I returned to the US because I was sick of them! But it can be done.

Once upon a time they did have real tables on the balconies. Then Ms. Hoppen got her mits on things and everything went south.

We were pleasantly surprised when cruising in Europe to find that the buffet often had fresh food from on shore--fresh mussels, one night, for example. So check it out.

The ship may arrive at 5 but no way you're getting off then. And you're coming off a TA, so you have Customs & Border Protection to deal with. So, you might make it, you might not. Do you want to roll the dice?

I've rented a Twizy once. They're fun for the driver. Hell for the person who has to contort him or herself into the back seat. Never again. We did this in Bonaire.

Since you're staying in the same cabin, you just leave everything as is. No need to pack up. As for getting off the ship and back on, it will depend on your cruise and the port. You will receive full instructions on board. As for an earlier checkin time, again it will depend on the port and the number of passengers on board. You can try showing up earlier and see what happens. Most likely you will be permitted to board early, but there are no guarantees.

I don't know why you would get slammed for your opinion. It's your opinion. We don't all like the same things. Thanks for your report.

Anxious to see your nouveau deck design in October. I thought Ms. Hoppen's design took up rather a lot of room on our lovely balcony but I also thought the furniture was a bit heavy to be moving around. Alas, Alex our butler extraordinaire, will be on vacation then. Fingers crossed that Lobo is back at his post as Fab Maitre d' in Luminae.

I've sailed YC on MSC a couple of times. Their ship within a ship concept is definitely better than Celebrity's, their cabins are excellent, and the pool deck is far superior to Celebrity's. The food, however, is lackluster and the service is definitely not up to Celebrity's standard in Luminae. When I asked for non-alcoholic wine or champagne, they looked at me like I was crazy. Apparently it has never occurred to them that some cannot or don't drink alcohol. It was a good deal in the early days of their sailing from the US, but lately the pricing is more than I want to pay for a boring 7-night cruise with the only interesting port being their excellent private island. And I'm not a fan of sailing out of Miami, which they seem wedded to.

Tip of the day: always organize something like this with your butler. Do not involve the shoreside concierge or the suite concierges. Apparently they have been instructed to try to charge for this. When the shoreside concierge called me before my last cruise, I asked her to alert the butler that we would be holding a sailaway party in our PH. She responded by sending me a catering menu with outrageous setup and food charges. I just never sent it back. It wasn't my first rodeo and I knew there would be no charge if the butler set it up. Just worked with him when we got on the ship.

Yes, it can be done. Once upon a time we invited the entire roll call to the PH for sailaway. About 125 people showed up. It was a tad crowded, but can be done in an M class PH. But I prefer smaller gatherings.

We weren't forgetting restaurants, we were dining in our suite. What we forgot was the meals everyone had ordered. It was pretty funny, and we sorted it all out and nobody went hungry. That's why I suggest that folks make a note of what they order if they order in advance. Then when the butler asks who gets the whatever, you'll know the answer.

Yes, please arrange in advance with your butler. But a small tip: once we ordered the dinners so far in advance that by the time the night arrived, none of us could remember what we had ordered! So make a note so it's easier for the butler to serve you.

And yes, you may have guests in your suite for dinner.

Free laundry, dry cleaning, pressing. Whether or not any of these items are worth the extra cost is debatable. Mostly you're paying for more space.

I never did find any fares where the single supplement was completely waived. The max I found was 60%. I certainly expect to get double points for paying any single supplement. Will see what happens this fall.

I'm not back on Summit until October. Interested to hear how you like the new captain.