Southern Caribbean

[NOSaints1]

My DW and I are going on Carnival out of San Juan in Nov. My question is on the Summitt, what's the food like, entertainment, service things to do for people in their mid 30s, if you also sailed Royal on Jewel or Adventure that would be great thanks.

 

 

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[gijoe76]

We have been on the Summit and the Jewel in the Southern Caribbean. Both ships are somewhat elegant compared to Carnival. From our experience with recent cruises, we would say that the food is comparable. Even on Carnival, the upscale steakhouse is to die for! IMHO, the Southern Caribbean is so port intensive that you should be worn out by the time you get back on the ship every day. Every island is different and has much to explore both on land and 'under the sea.'

 

Our personal favorite is Celebrity, but with the Southern Caribbean, I would choose the ship with the best itinerary.

 

Have fun!

[Medic5emt]

We have been on the Summit and the Jewel in the Southern Caribbean. Both ships are somewhat elegant compared to Carnival. From our experience with recent cruises, we would say that the food is comparable. Even on Carnival, the upscale steakhouse is to die for! IMHO, the Southern Caribbean is so port intensive that you should be worn out by the time you get back on the ship every day. Every island is different and has much to explore both on land and 'under the sea.'

 

Our personal favorite is Celebrity, but with the Southern Caribbean, I would choose the ship with the best itinerary.

 

Have fun!

Its nice to see someone else with like thoughts. After only 3 Cruises, and lots of reading. I have narrowed my field of Cruise line providers to my likes. The Ships and food are similar on all. I all ways remind my DW that anyone can have a bad experience regardless of what we read here. Chose where we want to go, the port, and ship that fits the time we can sail, and book the flight.

Enjoy the Sea and watch a Sun set

[phoenix_dream]

Just one comment about Summit in November. We have been on the sailing the week after Thanksgiving (and in fact, are doing so again this year) and one thing we found is that particular week is not quite as representative of Celebrity as other times. There were ALOT of families sailing from Puerto Rico so there was a salsa band in the Rendevous lounge every single night (we loved it, but that was a few nights too many), and the ship was more crowded and a bit more loud and boisterous than most Celebrity cruises due to all the families and extended families. This made for more noise in the MDR, and often in sections of the ship/hallways, etc. - not unique to a particular group of people; just that there were alot of large families having fun together - nice for them but not always so nice for those around them looking for a more quiet cruise. I suspect the ship was not selling out so they put out some good bargains for locals. Obviously this did not discourage us about trying it again, and this is NOT meant to be a criticism of the people of Puerto Rico as this would be true of many large family groups, but just wanted to mention this. If you are sailing a different week it shouldn't make a difference.

[Can'tstopcruising]

Wish Celebrity would bring back the 10 and 11 day itineraries from San Juan. They made a perfect b2b

[phoenix_dream]

Wish Celebrity would bring back the 10 and 11 day itineraries from San Juan. They made a perfect b2b

Can't do a b2b until retirement, but we also LOVED these itineraries. I just don't know why they stopped them - they seemed very popular.

[NOSaints1]

Do you have to dress up for dinner? Can you book and pay in CDN? What can you explain the congiercre class between the aqua and what do you get?

 

 

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[Clydesmom7865]

IMHO, the Southern Caribbean is so port intensive that you should be worn out by the time you get back on the ship every day.

 

As someone who has done the 14 day Southern Caribbean on Celebrity I have to echo this sentiment. There were many days that I was literally falling asleep in my dinner plate in the main dining room. In retrospect I wished I had done room service or the buffet I was SO tired.

 

I had the BEST time but there is a LOT to do and food became the least of my worries.

[NOSaints1]

What would you recommend for a first time X cruiser is it right for people in our mid 30s

 

 

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[NOSaints1]

What do you have to wear to dinner on non formal nights. How is the concierge class ? What kind of entertainment and things to do?

 

 

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[packyourpixiedust]

What would you recommend for a first time X cruiser is it right for people in our mid 30s

 

 

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I'm in my mid 30's and I LOVE Celebrity. It's my and my husband's favorite line.

 

 

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[NOSaints1]

What do you like to do in there? Which is your favourite ship?

 

 

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[bigbenboys]

For us I think we have done Southern Caribbean 3 times now. 2 times on Celebrity and once on HAL. We did Connie M class and Eclipse S class. I like the S class ships better, more bling. Plus glassblowing on 3 of the S class ships.

 

We normally book Aqua or Concierge. Blu has great service, many people love the food. What I like best about Blu is no formal wear required and dine when you want.

 

The must do for us is swimming with the stingrays. We book tour for every other day. Some days we just visit the port town. I do enjoy staying on the ship when so many people are off the ship.

[NOSaints1]

How is maintained for an older ship?

 

 

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[NOSaints1]

So in your opinion which is a better choice for the money spent for the level of service you get?

 

 

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[WestLakeGirl]

Going back to post 7, check out the celebrity website for the dress code.

 

As to payment, if you are in Canada you book and pay in your currency. At the end of the cruise you can settle your bill in either currency. The shipboard account is always in US dollars no matter where the ship is

[packyourpixiedust]

What do you like to do in there? Which is your favourite ship?

 

 

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I have been on 3 of their ships for 5 cruises with them. I love the s-class ships, but would do the M class if needed for an itinerary. Since the S Class have existed, that is what we have been cruising. We really like to relax when we cruise, but we also catch the evening shows. (When we are not in Europe (exhausted) or not traveling with our young son (he goes to sleep early.) We love reading on the balcony, my husband catches some of the talks and speeches, and some drinking of course! The martini bar is a lot of fun!

Edited July 6, 2014 by LovesVaca

[NOSaints1]

Can you explain the S class, the M class and what they mean ?

 

 

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[packyourpixiedust]

Can you explain the S class, the M class and what they mean ?

 

 

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So they are the size and classification of the ships- the M class (millennium) and S class for Solstice. And all the ships in those classifications are roughly the same size and have similar designs. That being said the first 2 solstice class ships have some differences than the last 2. But they are not game changers in my opinion.

 

 

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[NOSaints1]

Do you have someone you use at Celebrity to book your cruises?

 

 

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[packyourpixiedust]

well I am an agent, so I book my own cruises. But I highly recommend finding and using a local travel agent. Ask their policy about cancellation fees and changing a booking to obtain a lower price. See if they have an email address that they check on the weekend to get in touch with them during off hours. It helps out your community (revenue stays local and there is a local employee of Celebrity that benefits as well) by booking with an agent and you get their local expertise.

[tserface]

My wife wears nice jeans and a top. I wear either Khakis or nice jeans and a shirt with a collar. They are not too particular.

 

We enjoy dressing up occasionally since we don't get to on land (people don't even dress up for weddings and church any more). So, that adds a different kind of treat to our vacation. Lots of people don't like to do formal and they either just don't, go semi-formal, or go elsewhere like a specialty restaurant or the buffet. I think it is fun to dress up (especially if you don't dress up in normal life) and new cruisers should at least try it once.

 

Tom

 

What do you have to wear to dinner on non formal nights. How is the concierge class ? What kind of entertainment and things to do?

 

 

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[tserface]

We've been on all of those lines and the food has been excellent (in our opinion) on all of them. There are some people who complain about the service and food and I often wonder what they are used to at home :)

 

The Southern Caribbean is a great cruise. It's port intensive, but if you've never been on a cruise it's a way to get a *real* island feel. The Western and Eastern cruises are more built up and fake IMO. They are still fun, but more like visiting cities.

 

I've never been on a cruise, on any line, that I didn't like. Even cruises where "stuff" happens have turned out to be a lot of fun in their own way. Be careful of cruise addiction. It's so easy to fall into :rolleyes:

 

Tom

 

My DW and I are going on Carnival out of San Juan in Nov. My question is on the Summitt, what's the food like, entertainment, service things to do for people in their mid 30s, if you also sailed Royal on Jewel or Adventure that would be great thanks.

 

 

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