beachlover98

We locked up the apartment and left around 11:15am that Saturday, and caught a cab over to the Pan American pier. We got there early enough that embarkation was a breeze – we were on the ship within minutes. The welcome champagne was a nice touch!

We had originally booked a veranda stateroom on deck 7. I don’t have any interest in the AquaClass or Concierge Class cabins (we wouldn’t use the amenities or perks to justify it). However, a couple of months prior to our cruise, I found that some of the aft family veranda cabins had become available. We decided to spend a little to upgrade to one of those, ending up in cabin 7201. We enjoyed the extra space inside, but more so the larger veranda, as we really only spend time in the room to sleep and shower. In contrast to many cruisers, we always choose the more port-intensive itineraries – the ship comes second to the ports of call.

Here are a few pictures of our stateroom, veranda, and the views:

As I mentioned, for us, the ship is not the focal point of the vacation. That’s not to say we don’t want a great cruise experience, but perhaps our perspective is a little different. I wonder sometimes if maybe my expectations aren’t high enough, so this review may be quite different from others. I’ve read reviews almost detailing “white glove tests” of the staterooms. I’m the first one to say I want a clean and comfortable place to live for a week, but I’m also realistic, and this trip was no different. Was the room clean? Yeah, pretty clean. Is the bathroom grout new and perfect? No, but did it ruin my vacation? No. Was the upholstery on my sofa perfectly stain-free? No, but did it ruin my week-long stay? Of course not. I always look past the little things – sure, I notice them, but compared to the rest of the trip they’re hardly important. I’m a mom of four, so anytime I don’t have to plan meals, cook, clean kitchens and bathrooms, and make beds, I’m happy!

All that said, the customer service by the Celebrity staff during the week was absolutely fantastic! Our stateroom attendant was an adorable girl from the Philippines; she did a wonderful job, always cleaning our room well and in a timely manner, and cheerfully and immediately fulfilled the few special requests we had. She even caught us in the hallway once to let us know that she had found my husband’s wedding ring mixed up in the bed sheets – he had taken it off and forgotten it on the bed before we left for the day, and she had found it before it got lost or sent to the laundry! She was always cheerful, with a quick “Hello” and “How was your day?”

We ate in the main dining room each night except the first – we always love to watch the ship sail away from San Juan, so we got dinner a little earlier. Our waiter and assistant waiter were some of the best we’ve had; they were very personable, and got to know our preferences right away (I’m always impressed by how well the serving staff manages that!). We never had empty water glasses, courses were brought and cleared in a timely fashion, and not once did they get an order wrong, even the details. It also came to be a running joke with the waiter how I never looked at the dessert menu, and he never had to ask – crème brûlée every night, no exceptions, although on two occasions I did order two desserts (it’s vacation, right?). Regarding the food in the main dining room, I know there is a lot of debate on whether it’s good or bad, improving or declining. I think it’s just fine. Sometimes good, sometimes excellent, sometimes fabulous, and, admittedly, sometimes not so great. I think, though, that that’s more of my personal preferences rather than the actual quality of the food – there were a couple of appetizers or soups that I ordered that I didn’t care for too much (again, just my taste), but never have I gotten something, on this cruise or any, that I would actually call awful. Overall, my husband and I thought the main dining room was very good – the atmosphere was nice, and we love the formal nights (we do appreciate when people dress up just a little even on casual nights). Our tablemates were fantastic, and that’s one of the best parts of the main dining room. We love to get to know new people and spend time together swapping stories.

Regarding other dining venues on the ship, well, you just can’t go hungry on a cruise! We hit the buffet for breakfast every day and brought it back down to have on our balcony. There was certainly enough variety that we could find enough we liked, so no complaints here (again, we’re not “foodies,” so it was just fine). We also had burgers, fries, and pizza from the grill several times for a casual meal – all delicious.

I’m not terribly picky regarding the entertainment factor of a ship, but the entertainment on the Summit was okay. We only went to a couple of shows in the main theater – we loved the comedian, the jaw-dropping comedy juggler, and the final show, which was a very enjoyable combination of the cruise director, ship a cappella group, and comedy juggler. I’ve never been a fan of the productions involving the ship’s professional singers and dancers, so we didn’t go to see those shows. We do, however, love a cappella groups, and loved the group on the Summit. We made sure to see them whenever they performed – I only wish they did so for longer! None of the other assorted acts aboard the ship really stood out to us, but they were all good.

As an overall cruise experience, I would rate our time on the Summit as excellent. Celebrity is definitely our preferred cruise line – I am already booked for next January on the alternate itinerary out of San Juan!

Next up are the ports of call – by far the reason I pick a particular cruise....

One new thing we did do on this pre-cruise stay was visit a nearby beach. We had been to the Condado/Ocean Park area before, but wanted to try something different in the three days we had. We found that Escambron Beach was only about a thirty minute walk from our apartment – it turned out to be fairly easy, and pretty scenic most of the way. Here are a few pictures of the walk to the beach:

Escambron Beach is the one you see straight across:

And, here we are at the beach. It wasn’t crowded at all, which was wonderful, but it was a Thursday. The water was very nice; the breakwater kept the waves from getting rough.

Here is a view from the beach, looking back to where we started in Old San Juan, with a nice glimpse of both forts:

One of our favorite places to walk is the Paseo del Morro. The walking path goes along the water out to the point where the fort El Morro sits, following the old wall.

If you’re a cat person (as we are!), you’ll love this walk. A colony of resident cats lives on the Paseo del Morro as well as all around Old San Juan. They’re taken care of by a local organization called Save a Gato, which feeds them, keeps them healthy, and runs a spay/neuter program to manage the population. We have actually become involved in raising funds for this group.

Here’s what you might see on a typical walk:

This is one of my favorites – we named her Princess:

My husband and I recently cruised on the Celebrity Summit, which sailed out of San Juan on January 26, 2013. I’m a veteran cruiser, having sailed with Celebrity, Princess, and Royal Caribbean, to the Bahamas, the western, eastern, and southern Caribbean, the Mexican Riviera, and the Mediterranean. This was my seventh cruise sailing from San Juan – it’s definitely one of my favorite embarkation ports.

I’ll start by saying I don’t think there is such a thing as a bad cruise. Okay, strike that. I’ve never sailed on Carnival, and I certainly have never experienced anything like what some have recently gone through on the Triumph, or a few years ago on the Splendor. I’ll admit those qualify as bad cruises. But the worst thing to happen to me was missing embarkation on a ship sailing from San Diego because of severe weather delays – we spent the next two days with a large contigent of 70- to 80-somethings trying to catch up with the ship in Cabo San Lucas. Nonetheless, we made lemonade from lemons, and the adventure turned it into one of our best cruises yet!

So, the following will be my take on our pre-cruise stay in Old San Juan, our week-long cruise aboard the Summit, and our five ports of call.

Our three-night pre-cruise stay was very relaxing. We had wonderful weather and enjoyed Old San Juan’s culture, architecture, music, and food – the colonial apartment we stayed in was in the heart of Old San Juan, central to everything.

Here is a view from our street level Juliet balcony:

Here is one of the many resident cats in Old San Juan. They looked for any opportunity to jump the three feet to come visit us inside the apartment, again and again, but were actually very sweet!

We spent a lot of time just walking around Old San Juan, often going down to the pier where the cruise ships dock.

This is one of my favorite parks, near the El Convento Hotel and the Catedral de San Juan Bautista:

The old wall that used to protect Old San Juan is still standing in many places, and I love how it mixes in with all the new structures

Originally Posted by CaveDiving

Then don't under dress!

 

In my experience, the usual dress on most ships is definitely not shorts and t-shirts. Yes, there are people who choose to dress this way but it seems to me they are far outnumbered by men wearing golf shirts and khakis or nice jeans.

 

Scott & Karen

 

[buddybean11;30557416]Maybe I misunderstood but I have read on the boards numerous places that the usual dress on carnival during the day is "shorts and T-shirts, bathingsuits, etc." Maybe you are used to a diferent cruise line or am I terribly mistaken on what I've read. I am female so I usually don't wear golf shirts and khakis.

I agree with casual dress around the ship. Many of my cruises have been to the Caribbean and I can't imagine not fitting in wearing shorts or a swimsuit with coverup. I've cruised on RCL, Celebrity and Princess. I also can't imagine EVEN PACKING a pair of jeans!

I don't believe these rules apply to the MDR, however. I don't go overboard, but like to see nicer attire in such beautiful formal dining rooms. Never jeans!