On Board the Summit! March 21, 2015

[Smurfette76]

Hello fellow cruisers!

 

Just a happy post to share that we boarded the Summit around noon today and she is a beautiful ship. Having sailed on the Reflection we knew not to expect the bells and whistles of the newer S-Class ships. That said, the Summit is in great condition for her age. It's like a compact version of the S-Class ships. The staff members have all been wonderful. I will post a review upon our return. I'd love to do a live on board type entry but we are planning on being busy in port! :) I'll happily answer questions upon our return.

 

So to anyone booked on the Summit and is worried about her age, fear not. With age comes wisdom! We think she is just lovely!

 

Safe travels everyone!

[TeaBag]

Have a great cruise.

[richsea]

Couldn't agree more! We are just off her, & them ore times we sail her, the more we like her.

Tell Justin (he will be CD someday, he's that good) of the activities staff hello from Joan & Rich, & ask how he is enjoying sailing with his family, who is on board this week.

Have a fantastic cruise!

[midwestchick]

Enjoy your cruise. We are looking forward to being on the Summit.

[stinsowm]

If you see Ashley the Captains Club hostess please give her a hug from Walter

[Andy]

Thanks for posting. Have a wonderful time on Summit !

[maggie.1008]

Looking forward to being on the Summit in 3 weeks. Can you tell me if the new suite dining room is complete ?

[Smurfette76]

Just a quick update to share that our cruise aboard the Summit was amazing! We sadly disembarked a few hours ago. Embarkation and disembarkation were a breeze, by the way. We are spending the day exploring Old San Juan and fly home tomorrow.

 

We loved the size of the ship, our suite, the staff and the itinerary. I will post a proper photo review when I upload my pictures onto my laptop. Until then, a special shout out to: Bernadeth and Casa Nova in housekeeping, Jose the head butler, Toto from Cellar Masters, bartenders Tess, Daniel, Lionel, Carlos and Alexander, wine attendant Marko, Justin the activities host, Caroline the Port Shopping guide and Ashley the Captsin's Club hostess. Thanks to the Bandmates and Airband for the great tunes! Thanks to the captain (who could headline as a comedian) for the smooth nights at sea. I know I'm forgetting some other wonderful staff so more accolades to follow!

 

The only thing that we wished we could have changed (but can not) is how some of the guests gave bar staff the gears. I only noticed this on a few occasions but I just wanted to hug the staff for continuing to smile and do their best. We thought the bar staff worked like wizards given how busy they were!

 

Off to explore the El Morrow fort! Gotta enjoy some sunshine before returning to chilly Toronto!

 

Thanks to everyone for answering our questions prior to sailing. I will do my best to return the favour when back on land. We took a lot of amazing excursions so I'll be sure to share the details of those. The beauty of the islands on this itinerary and their friendly inhabitants combined with the ship experience truly made for a magical vacation.

 

Ok this wasn't quick but I felt compelled to post how happy we were with the cruise.

 

Safe travels to all of our new friends we met on board!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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[Smurfette76]

I forgot to mention that the construction of the new suite restaurant was practically invisible. I forgot to ask if it will open early, but it is slated to open at least for the April 4th sailing. It wasn't until I stepped off the ship that I realized I didn't ask if I could have a sneak peek! Staff told us the menu and experience is going to be outstanding!

 

 

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Edited March 28, 2015 by Smurfette76

[Barwick Cruiser]

Looking forward to your review...hopefully with lots of pics? We are booked on the Summit for a B2B next Feb and will also be leaving from Toronto. What day did you fly down and with which airline? Seems like the only direct flights to San Juan are on the weekend and since Summit sails on Saturday we're not sure how we'll manage our usual flying in a day or two early. Hate doing connecting flights...

Thanks and glad you had a great time!!

Cathy

[Smurfette76]

Hi Cathy! I took over 1000 photos and took some GoPro videos so indeed I will post a bunch. ;) We flew down on Friday (one day in advance) and are so glad we did. We had a 6:15am American Airlines flight to Miami. I think our connection time was around an hour and a half. We landed around 2pm. We had no problem catching our flight to San Juan BUT my suitcase didn't make it! Fortunately it arrived at our hotel around 8pm. Had we flown in on the day of embarkation, I doubt my suitcase would have made it to the ship in this scenario. I advise flying in at least a day in advance, and if one can swing it, two. We would do two days next time in order to rest up after the long travel day. We are on Air Canada's direct flight tomorrow (Sunday). I think West Jet has a Saturday direct flight to Toronto as well. Happy planning!

 

 

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Edited March 28, 2015 by Smurfette76

[Barwick Cruiser]

Hi Cathy! I took over 1000 photos and took some GoPro videos so indeed I will post a bunch. ;) We flew down on Friday (one day in advance) and are so glad we did. We had a 6:15am American Airlines flight to Miami. I think our connection time was around an hour and a half. We landed around 2pm. We had no problem catching our flight to San Juan BUT my suitcase didn't make it! Fortunately it arrived at our hotel around 8pm. Had we flown in on the day of embarkation, I doubt my suitcase would have made it to the ship in this scenario. I advise flying in at least a day in advance, and if one can swing it, two. We would do two days next time in order to rest up after the long travel day. We are on Air Canada's direct flight tomorrow (Sunday). I think West Jet has a Saturday direct flight to Toronto as well. Happy planning!

 

 

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Thanks for that info. The luggage issue is the reason I really dislike connecting flights but I guess we'll have to do that to get down there. I like that you connected in Miami as opposed to some of the more northern States as they can just as easily have weather-related delays like we do here. Enjoy your day in San Juan!!