Celebrity or HAL for Bermuda?

[Diane In TN]

We are a young 60s couple and have cruised with HAL (Zandaam) and Carnival (Legend) in the not terribly distant past (maybe 7-8 years). We loved HAL and its quieter crowd (though at the time we were definitely on the young side), loved all the wood, the library, the one central main dining room. Carnival was not really our favorite, though our colleg-age kids loved it. Now we're looking at a last-minute May Bermuda cruise (by ourselves) and are considering HAL's Vendaam, though the dates aren't quite right. A friend recommended Celebrity's Summit, and it looks great and the dates are good. But will it be stuffy? Is the library cozy? If we opt for an inside cabin, will we have places to sit on the deck? Is there a nice promenade to get our steps in?

[southernbreezes]

We loved our Bermuda cruise on the Summit. Holand America I liked my wife did not care for, we did two cruises with them and she thought the entertainment, music was for old people. We were in our late 50's then. We both love Celebrity and no it is not stuffy and yes the library is cozy and beautiful. We walk 3 miles every morning and spend most the time by the pool on sea days. You should find the food better and the Martini Bar is one of the best bars at Sea. I would never take an inside cabin we are a big fan of Aqua Class but have liked the Ocean View Cabins on deck 3 midship also.

[hcat]

When we were there on Summit awhile ago, it docked at the wharf area way outside of Hamilton along with Norwegian. We enjoyed that area for some of the history, smaller shops, taverns etc. Yet were able to do some bus and ferry tours quite easily. There's a fee beach area there, but we did not go...not beach season,

 

HAL ship at the time docked right in town...no need for bus, ferry or cab into the City.

 

Never been on HAL but you sound lke a perfect fit for Celebrity...not stuffy at all. Summit not the newest X ship but for its age it kept up fairly well...still popular. There are places to walk...and cozy nooks for reading,

[ECCruise]

Having cruised to Bermuda about a dozen times, here are my thoughts.

This is a destination cruise. For us, the ship is secondary. You are there to enjoy Bermuda and all it has to offer.

 

Even though we have sailed Celebrity at a ratio of about 25 to 1 to HAL, we would without a doubt choose the Veendam over the Summit.

 

Why? 2 main reasons. With the Veendam you dock in Hamilton, right in the middle of all the action. Walk off the ship and in 30 seconds you are in the middle of town. Bus service all over the island. Ferry service all over the island. The Summit docks in Dockyard, close to almost nothing. Yes, there are buses there, and in season, ferries to both Hamilton and Georgetown, but with less frequency. The second reason I would choose Veendam is time in Bermuda. That ship arrives at 1:00 PM on day 3 and stays until 1:00 PM on day 6, including 3 nights. Summit arrives at 08:30 on day 4 and leaves at 3:00 on day 6, less time and only 2 nights.

 

Like I said, for us, Bermuda is the destination. The ship is secondary.

[George C]

I prefer Celebrity in general, but for Bermuda I would pick Veendam because of Hamilton

[bEwAbG]

Summit is an M-class ship, and they're pretty elegant, but I've never found Celebrity in general to be stuffy.

 

There is not a true promenade deck, but you can get outside on a deck that runs a good length of the ship on deck 4, though it does not wrap around. You could cut through the interior to get to the other side if you don't want to walk back and forth. There is also a jogging track on the deck above the pool area that goes in a circle. That is not crowded early in the morning but gets busier as the day wears on and people start re-arranging loungers.

 

Photos of the library are at the link. It's not very extensive but is usually a quiet place.

 

https://www.cruisecritic.com/photos/ships/celebrity-summit-251/library-159579/

[1025cruise]

The one advantage of HAL is that it docks in Hamilton versus the Dockyard.

[charleysmom]

We were on the Veendam in Bermuda a few years back and loved docking in Hamilton. we had a balcony cabin that faced town when we were docked and my elderly mother loved sitting out on the balcony watching all of the activity below. Loved seeing the men go to work on scooters in their suit jackets ties and Bermuda shorts.

[hughdm]

Been to Bermuda three times and docked both places. Where Summit docks is really quite nice and we didn't really miss docking at Hamilton. It's a relaxing ferry ride there. Celebrity is very smoker unfriendly and I understand HAL is less so, if that is a factor. Never sailed on HAL but love Summit and doubt you would feel out of place.

[ECCruise]

HAL smoking policy changed over a year ago so less an issue.

 

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[lvz2cruz]

We were faced with the same dilemma a few weeks ago for a May cruise to Bermuda. These are the differences on each:

 

Veendam holds about 1200 passengers and docks downtown. It will probably be the only ship there. It gets in Monday at noon and leaves Thursday early afternoon.

Summit holds about 2100 and docks at the Dockyard with a NCL ship that holds over 4000. They both get in Wednesday morning about 8 and leave Friday afternoon.

If you take Veendam, the island is very quiet Monday and Tuesday. There might be another ship at the dockyard.

 

Veendam is a short walk from the bus station where buses come every 15-30 minutes depending on which route you need. There are probably 30 different routes so always a bus. Many beaches can be reached by a few different routes--one goes along the coast, one is direct, one goes inland, etc. You will never wait long for a bus and the buses are rarely full.

From Summit at the Dockyard, there is one bus that goes to the beaches in that area. One bus comes every 20-30 minutes. There are over 6000 cruise passengers and many will be wanting that bus, so often they are forced to wait for the next bus. Same thing in the afternoon coming back to the ship. People at Horseshoe Beach complain full buses pass them and do not stop.

 

Veendam docks in Hamilton which is central to most things on the island. Many destinations require a transfer in Hamilton if coming from Dockyard. Both locations also have ferry service nearby. Again, the one in Hamilton is less busy unless you are going when workers are commuting. Usually you are leaving Hamilton in the morning as they come to work and you're returning to the ship as they leave the office, so no problem. The line for the ferry from Dockyard was crazy. We were thankful to get on as the next one was two hours later and happily stood for the 30 minute ride.

 

The ships----

We love the pool on sea days so this was very important to us.

Summit--Has a nice Solarium with warm pool and also a nice pool midship.

Veendam--Has a small pool midship and cool splash pools aft. They look like hot tubs but are not heated or jetted.

We prefer food on HAL and their service/crew are significantly better.

Summit is a nicer ship.

 

Port of Embarkation

I see you are from Tennessee. We are too and it's a hassle to fly unless you are in Nashville. We find it easier to drive. Summit is a 12 hour drive which is very preferable to us. Veendam is in Boston which adds about 5 hours and is more than we care for. We went out of Boston once and the first and last sea days were not warm enough to enjoy the pool. Summit is a little further south and our trips from there have always been warm enough.

 

We have sailed Celebrity 10-15 times and HAL about 10. Our recent Celebrity experiences have made us appreciate HAL more than we already did. We keep hoping to be pleasantly surprised but it just isn't happening. As we considered each line for Bermuda, my husband noted that we wouldn't be having this conversation if we were going any where else. It would definitely be HAL. We are mid 50s and feel it has a good mix of younger families and 40s and up.

 

We have cruised Veendam to Bermuda twice about 5 years ago when it went out of New York and sailed Summit there two years ago. Veendam is small and does not have the entertainment options the newer/larger HAL ships have. My sister sailed her new Cuba itinerary this past January and said there was nothing to do at night other that the theater show.

 

We chose Summit because the three sea days coming and going are as important as the time spent in Bermuda. We are on the ship more than in port. Summit has more to offer than Veendam.

We both prefer HAL, but hopefully Celebrity will impress us this time and become our favorite again..

Both ships have good things to offer. Hope this helps you narrow it down to what is important to you.

[allentownahoy]

I have been on both ships and like both ships very much. I would choose Veendam because you have more time in Bermuda, and, as others have stated, it appears you will be the only ship in port most of the time. But really, you cannot go wrong with either.

[PelicanLvr]

Have been on both X's Summit and HAL. Been to Bermuda many times (mostly on land) including once on Summit. Mostly been on X, but for Bermuda I would recommend HAL.

 

Above posters are correct, docking right in Hamilton is a BIG advantage for HAL. Only the smaller ships can dock directly in Hamilton. The dockyard (where Summit docks) was converted to a passenger ship dock to accommodate the larger ships & that's where Summit docks. Far from pretty much everything.

 

Neither the Library nor the promenade deck on Summit is anything to brag about, so certainly don't base any decision on that. X is not stuffy.

 

Summit Suggestion: You mentioned an inside room. IF the budget allows an oceanview, I suggest the "newer" oceanview aft rooms on deck3 - #3112 - 3144 - (Starboard side, those even numbered rooms only). These have extra large round windows as they previously were a conference room later converted to staterooms. Many threads here at CC on these. Highly recommended...but we have never stayed in one.

 

If you have never been to Bermuda, I think I would go with HAL because of docking in Hamilton. Just walk off after dinner for a stroll or coffee on Front Street. Much better location + more time in Bermuda.

[Stateroom_Sailor]

I've not sailed HAL yet, and can't add much to this conversation, other than bring up the fact that HAL is axing their libraries. Oprah book of the month club discussion groups will be available, which HAL claims is unrelated.