Summit vs Infinity & booking onboard

[Mynki]

We have sailed 10 times, a total of 113 nights on Celebrity, in the last 3 years. Twice on Summit; last December and again a few weeks ago. Every experience has been different, but our experience on the Summit, both times, was absolutely top notch. We've logged enough cruise nights to have accumulated enough points to be Elite. Which gives us at the option of breakfast with other Elites in a specialty restaurant rather than the MDR. We tried it on the Summit this last time because the Elite breakfast is a lighter more Continental menu and my wife wanted that. We waited 20-25 minutes to get coffee, we were about to leave when we finally got service. That is the single instance of poor or slow service I can think of in our 113 days on Celebrity, and when we went back a few days later there was no wait. So, a one-time glitch. This will certainly not sour us on the Celebrity experience.

People complain all of the time about old ships, but I think it is only because they are old themselves and are just starting to realize that they are mortal and are hypersensitive to any indications of aging. In fact, the "old" ships are well maintained and quite comfortable.

 

Stan

 

You were very lucky then as there are many comments on this very forums reviews section where many people did not have the same experience as yourself. Hence me posting the latest review scores. Or maybe they have different expectations from yourself. I don't believe an average score of 3.7 out of 5 would constitute "top notch" though. I also note that among the 5* reviews people were scoring Celebrity entertainment 5 out of 5 so I'm not sure how objective those reviews are!

 

Summit is in decline and in need of the planned overhaul. You know that cruise pricing is based on supply and demand. Summit has some very cheap sailings indeed and thus can be good value for money. But compare its cheap prices to other ships and think about why this is the case. Simple answer, many people want a better ship and so don't book.

 

I'm also Elite, but I don't believe that means anything as non elites can certainly appreciate good and bad service. The Elite breakfasts in Tuscan during our 21 days last december were distinctly average though it is nice to avoid the buffet at busy times. Now I think about it, the plated breakfasts were not as nice as the buffet they used to have which is another step backwards....

 

Dunno if you'd consider me old though. I was 42 when I sailed on her.Is that old? Nor do I don't think my mortality has anything to do with my comments, I'd say it's more my experience with other ships and lines which simply offered better service. I appreciate certain ships and lines have their own fan boys and fan girls. These people dislike any critical comments referring to the ships they've chosen to spend their money on and some take it personally when there's no need to. If you're happy with this ship then good for you. Enjoy it.

 

The OP claims to have been looking at genuine 6^ lines. If he expects that kind of service he's in for real disappointment though. It's a shame that he'll miss the only decent burger on the ship too as he won't have access to Luminae. :(

[Denny01]

So, you disagree with my comment that you'll need to be in a suite to have a luxurious experience. But you then state that Celebrity per se is not a luxury brand and then state that you've not had the Celebrity Suite experience.....

 

That leaves me questioning the validity of your views. There's much more to suite life than a lunch in Luminae.

Stick with questioning the validity of my views.

 

Den

[Cachecara]

We recently sailed Summit on July 8-15 and I echo all the good comments. This was our third sailing on her. The only wear and tear I noticed were on some of the public seating areas. Certainly did not alter our cruise experience. Staff was impeccable.

[Denny01]

There’s a good Summit review posted and active on the Suite stay and the ship conditions. Reads like a evenhanded evaluation.

 

Den

[Mynki]

There’s a good Summit review posted and active on the Suite stay and the ship conditions. Reads like a evenhanded evaluation.

 

Den

 

This one here?

 

https://boards.cruisecritic.co.uk/showthread.php?t=2658952

 

That's well balance and objective. Much more meaningful than two or three sentences etc.

 

It mirrors our experiences as far as bar service, lack of staff resulting in poor service etc. This was without doubt the root cause of many issues. We also had a waitress masquerading as a sommelier. Sadly in Blu we'd often started our main course by the time she arrived. The maitre d' admitted they were one short along with four waiters so Blu was always going to be challenged. Funnily enough though she did spring into life on the last night, telling us about her home life and telling us all about her two year old toddler back home. Previous to that she'd been very reserved. I wonder why that is eh? :D

 

It seems the Summit is also in need of more bar staff several months later from this review.

 

Funnily enough the author also comments on areas of the ship being in poor condition yet a few claim it's "top notch". Could it be they need to visit an optician? Or something else? :p

 

I was surprised to read their butler was poor though. Ours have always been very good.

[Doug & Cindy Scrap Hunter]

This one here?

 

https://boards.cruisecritic.co.uk/showthread.php?t=2658952

 

That's well balance and objective. Much more meaningful than two or three sentences etc.

 

It mirrors our experiences as far as bar service, lack of staff resulting in poor service etc. This was without doubt the root cause of many issues. We also had a waitress masquerading as a sommelier. Sadly in Blu we'd often started our main course by the time she arrived. The maitre d' admitted they were one short along with four waiters so Blu was always going to be challenged. Funnily enough though she did spring into life on the last night, telling us about her home life and telling us all about her two year old toddler back home. Previous to that she'd been very reserved. I wonder why that is eh? :D

 

It seems the Summit is also in need of more bar staff several months later from this review.

 

Funnily enough the author also comments on areas of the ship being in poor condition yet a few claim it's "top notch". Could it be they need to visit an optician? Or something else? :p

 

I was surprised to read their butler was poor though. Ours have always been very good.

 

If you folks cherry pick the cheap sailings in the Fall like I'm doing - you'll probably still come out ahead. If we're going to pay the big bucks then I'm going to skip all this and try Crystal / Oceania / Viking Ocean where EVERYTHING is upscale - not just the room. Even the the burgers are high end. :hearteyes:

[richsea]

And........we’re off!!!!!

[Denny01]

You’d think I would have learned......Oh well.

 

OP - you are booked on the Summit this Fall. Wait until you take the cruise, and make your decision on booking on a smiliar ship, the Infinity, based on your direct experience.........no one can ‘convence’ you via these threads. It’s all subjective. Minky lists reviews that go from 2-stars to 5-stars, all written by posters such as we. Just make your own call while/after you make the cruise.

 

Enjoy your cruise. And as Edward R Murrow would say, “Good night, and Good Luck”.

 

Den

[Doug & Cindy Scrap Hunter]

You’d think I would have learned......Oh well.

 

OP - you are booked on the Summit this Fall. Wait until you take the cruise, and make your decision on booking on a smiliar ship, the Infinity, based on your direct experience.........no one can ‘convence’ you via these threads. It’s all subjective. Minky lists reviews that go from 2-stars to 5-stars, all written by posters such as we. Just make your own call while/after you make the cruise.

 

Enjoy your cruise. And as Edward R Murrow would say, “Good night, and Good Luck”.

 

Den

 

At this point I'm not even that picky because we got cheap sailings booked and in mind. Whatever these problems and cutbacks are it isn't anything I haven't seen on Carnival - and maybe Cindy will like it better. The criticism might help make us pleasantly surprised when we actually get on board. Seems like there are some glass is half empty type folks loyal to X - the hidden cheerleader comes out when you mention the luxury lines. I won't book the Infinity ship until we're been on board a few days and know the real skinny. Right now I'm optimistic.

Edited July 24, 2018 by Doug & Cindy Scrap Hunter

[Mynki]

If you folks cherry pick the cheap sailings in the Fall like I'm doing - you'll probably still come out ahead. If we're going to pay the big bucks then I'm going to skip all this and try Crystal / Oceania / Viking Ocean where EVERYTHING is upscale - not just the room. Even the the burgers are high end. :hearteyes:

 

Here's the thing, we live in the UK. So as far as booking on Celebrity is concerned we're really lucky because we can choose to book with Celebrity UK, UK based TA'a and US based TA's. Pricing varies between the two so we have access to both markets and can get the best deal.

 

Usually Caribbean based sailings are cheaper in the US. But last year the hurricanes caused chaos. Celebrity UK had a deal with £900 ($1215) off and a beverage package included on selected sailings. As a result of Caribbean prices crashing we managed to book an 11 day concierge class cruise on Summit for £451 ($609) followed by a back to back 10 day aqua class sailing for £501 ($676) also with beverage pack. These prices included port charges and taxes as all UK bookings do but do not include a back to back discount!

 

If you calculate the cost of buying the beverage pack which we would have bought we were in effect cruising for free.

 

So here's the weird thing, these dirt cheap Summit sailings are easily the best value cruises we ever booked and it's unlikely we'll ever get such a good deal again. But Summit provided the worst overall service of all ships we've been in.

 

I know Luminae would have offered much better service than Blu, and issues we had with guest relations would have been dealt with by a butler or MC concierge far more professionally. So this is why I based my comment of only having a luxurious experience in a suite on Summit. Some will get what I'm saying, some won't and as we've seen some will comment on things they have no personal, first hand experience of. But this is cruise critic after all.... :D

 

Four days from now we'll board an RCL mega ship. Once upon a time I expected sailing on RCL would be a poorer experince than sailing on Celebrity. I still think it will be poorer than our experinces on Silhouette, Eclipse (Truly great cruises on that ship), Millennium and others. But now I'm hoping it will be better than our experiences on Summit. Time will tell. As this 8 day Norwegian Fjord cruise will cost about the same as the 21 days onboard Summit and our airfare costs to San Juan I think Summit will still be the best value trip we've taken though.

 

And that's the thing, there are still bargain Summit trips about in 2018 and 2019 so if people have realistic expectations people can still enjoy their sailings onboard her. After all a vacation is really as good as you make it and it's about who you're spending your time with too.

 

What you need to do though is not make the schoolboy error of comparing Celebrity suite experiences to those in other classes of stateroom. The suite experience has been designed to compete directly with Oceania and Azamara etc. The Edge suite prices are directly comparable to some 6* lines like Seabourne too. If you can get your head around that (And not everyone can) you'll start to realise that Celebrity is now a two tier cruise line.

 

Hence the Luminae burger getting great feedback on here and the crap served at the poolside bar less so........ ;)

[villauk]

Here's the thing, we live in the UK. So as far as booking on Celebrity is concerned we're really lucky because we can choose to book with Celebrity UK, UK based TA'a and US based TA's. Pricing varies between the two so we have access to both markets and can get the best deal.

 

Usually Caribbean based sailings are cheaper in the US. But last year the hurricanes caused chaos. Celebrity UK had a deal with £900 ($1215) off and a beverage package included on selected sailings. As a result of Caribbean prices crashing we managed to book an 11 day concierge class cruise on Summit for £451 ($609) followed by a back to back 10 day aqua class sailing for £501 ($676) also with beverage pack. These prices included port charges and taxes as all UK bookings do but do not include a back to back discount!

 

If you calculate the cost of buying the beverage pack which we would have bought we were in effect cruising for free.

 

So here's the weird thing, these dirt cheap Summit sailings are easily the best value cruises we ever booked and it's unlikely we'll ever get such a good deal again. But Summit provided the worst overall service of all ships we've been in.

 

I know Luminae would have offered much better service than Blu, and issues we had with guest relations would have been dealt with by a butler or MC concierge far more professionally. So this is why I based my comment of only having a luxurious experience in a suite on Summit. Some will get what I'm saying, some won't and as we've seen some will comment on things they have no personal, first hand experience of. But this is cruise critic after all.... :D

 

Four days from now we'll board an RCL mega ship. Once upon a time I expected sailing on RCL would be a poorer experince than sailing on Celebrity. I still think it will be poorer than our experinces on Silhouette, Eclipse (Truly great cruises on that ship), Millennium and others. But now I'm hoping it will be better than our experiences on Summit. Time will tell. As this 8 day Norwegian Fjord cruise will cost about the same as the 21 days onboard Summit and our airfare costs to San Juan I think Summit will still be the best value trip we've taken though.

 

And that's the thing, there are still bargain Summit trips about in 2018 and 2019 so if people have realistic expectations people can still enjoy their sailings onboard her. After all a vacation is really as good as you make it and it's about who you're spending your time with too.

 

What you need to do though is not make the schoolboy error of comparing Celebrity suite experiences to those in other classes of stateroom. The suite experience has been designed to compete directly with Oceania and Azamara etc. The Edge suite prices are directly comparable to some 6* lines like Seabourne too. If you can get your head around that (And not everyone can) you'll start to realise that Celebrity is now a two tier cruise line.

 

Hence the Luminae burger getting great feedback on here and the crap served at the poolside bar less so........ ;)

 

And you have to be very flexible in order to get those great bargains/deals. Unfortunately, not all of us can sail last minute or in the cheaper season. I’ve looked at the prices for suites on some of those Caribbean itineraries and it can be less than an OV in peak season in Europe.

[Mynki]

And you have to be very flexible in order to get those great bargains/deals. Unfortunately, not all of us can sail last minute or in the cheaper season. I’ve looked at the prices for suites on some of those Caribbean itineraries and it can be less than an OV in peak season in Europe.

 

Yep, you do. I can completely understand why well heeled retirees living in Florida spend as much time at sea as they do!

 

We booked an S1 on Edge early next year. We booked within 24 hours of the cruises being made available. I guess we got caught up in the hype. My wife worked out that we can fly to Miami, jump on a 7 day balcony cruise on a non Celebrity but 5* cruise ship, spend a week in the Keys, pay for three weeks SUV rental, boat rental in the keys followed by a weeks accommodation elsewhere in Florida for the same price of our 7 day Edge cruise which to be fair has a really boring and crappy itinerary (San Juan, St Martin and Tortola which we ended up visiting after booking Edge). So I considered cancelling and booking a Med Edge itinerary in an S1. That won't be happening!

[Doug & Cindy Scrap Hunter]

Here's the thing, we live in the UK. So as far as booking on Celebrity is concerned we're really lucky because we can choose to book with Celebrity UK, UK based TA'a and US based TA's. Pricing varies between the two so we have access to both markets and can get the best deal.

 

Usually Caribbean based sailings are cheaper in the US. But last year the hurricanes caused chaos. Celebrity UK had a deal with £900 ($1215) off and a beverage package included on selected sailings. As a result of Caribbean prices crashing we managed to book an 11 day concierge class cruise on Summit for £451 ($609) followed by a back to back 10 day aqua class sailing for £501 ($676) also with beverage pack. These prices included port charges and taxes as all UK bookings do but do not include a back to back discount!

 

If you calculate the cost of buying the beverage pack which we would have bought we were in effect cruising for free.

 

 

So here's the weird thing, these dirt cheap Summit sailings are easily the best value cruises we ever booked and it's unlikely we'll ever get such a good deal again. But Summit provided the worst overall service of all ships we've been in.

 

I know Luminae would have offered much better service than Blu, and issues we had with guest relations would have been dealt with by a butler or MC concierge far more professionally. So this is why I based my comment of only having a luxurious experience in a suite on Summit. Some will get what I'm saying, some won't and as we've seen some will comment on things they have no personal, first hand experience of. But this is cruise critic after all.... :D

 

Four days from now we'll board an RCL mega ship. Once upon a time I expected sailing on RCL would be a poorer experince than sailing on Celebrity. I still think it will be poorer than our experinces on Silhouette, Eclipse (Truly great cruises on that ship), Millennium and others. But now I'm hoping it will be better than our experiences on Summit. Time will tell. As this 8 day Norwegian Fjord cruise will cost about the same as the 21 days onboard Summit and our airfare costs to San Juan I think Summit will still be the best value trip we've taken though.

 

And that's the thing, there are still bargain Summit trips about in 2018 and 2019 so if people have realistic expectations people can still enjoy their sailings onboard her. After all a vacation is really as good as you make it and it's about who you're spending your time with too.

 

What you need to do though is not make the schoolboy error of comparing Celebrity suite experiences to those in other classes of stateroom. The suite experience has been designed to compete directly with Oceania and Azamara etc. The Edge suite prices are directly comparable to some 6* lines like Seabourne too. If you can get your head around that (And not everyone can) you'll start to realise that Celebrity is now a two tier cruise line.

 

Hence the Luminae burger getting great feedback on here and the crap served at the poolside bar less so........ ;)

 

Oh I get it even if other folks don't. That 21 day cruise for $1800 - WOW! That's the thing is next year I can try Luminae for $900 and then a luxury cruise after that for comparison. Nancyshaw was making the same point about the two tier cruise a couple months back. The question will become - Luminae or luxury line after we really get going here. Maybe that depends on each sailing.

 

 

Hamburgers are an easy comparison to see in a photo. If the poolside burgers look gross and Luminae looks delicious - I know what to expect with everything else too. Don't get me wrong, I like a good burger - but I do eat normal food like most folks.

 

 

Just goes to show how some folks should eyeball both up and down for the best deals, luxury or ports. Switch up your cruise lines - change your experiences and opportunities.

 

[phoenix_dream]

.........….People complain all of the time about old ships, but I think it is only because they are old themselves and are just starting to realize that they are mortal and are hypersensitive to any indications of aging...…..

 

Stan

What in the world!?!? People complain about old ships because they are old themselves??? One of the finest examples of 2+2=576 than I've ever seen. If anything, I think the younger, new to Celebrity crowd is more likely to complain about the older ships because the Celebrity marketing always shows the newest and best. Those of us who have some years behind us understand what is important and what is fluff. We do agree, however, that the older ships are just fine and well maintained. And that's coming from one of the old folks who have sailed Celebrity a lot.

[keesar]

 

The OP claims to have been looking at genuine 6^ lines. If he expects that kind of service he's in for real disappointment though. It's a shame that he'll miss the only decent burger on the ship too as he won't have access to Luminae. :(

 

You don't cruise Celebrity for a real good burger. However, if you are hungry and want something in a bun, then you will be happy.

[chemmo]

Oh I get it even if other folks don't. That 21 day cruise for $1800 - WOW! That's the thing is next year I can try Luminae for $900 and then a luxury cruise after that for comparison. Nancyshaw was making the same point about the two tier cruise a couple months back. The question will become - Luminae or luxury line after we really get going here. Maybe that depends on each sailing.

 

 

Just goes to show how some folks should eyeball both up and down for the best deals, luxury or ports. Switch up your cruise lines - change your experiences and opportunities.

 

[ATTACH]425691[/ATTACH]

 

I do know friends who have in recent years tried more luxury lines than Celebrity and simply found that much as they could maybe see/taste what they were paying extra for the general ‘ambiance’ of the ships just didn’t fit...

 

We are fully aware that what we usually pay for our RS on Celebrity would buy us a decent room on other lines but there is something about Celebrity that at present just fits us like a glove! Not too noisy but plenty to see and do, people do dress nicely but it isn’t an effort, choices of places to dine...We have cruised other lines but at present X just suits us.

 

You will know when you are on Summit if it suits you...if it doesn’t consider other mid range options too. More cash spent on more ‘luxurious’ lines may not necessarily suit you any better. You need when you next cruise to try to really evaluate what is important to you, not necessarily to equate more cash = better experience.

 

Sincere best wishes for a great cruise on Summit and for your future cruises, whatever line you choose next.

[Mynki]

You don't cruise Celebrity for a real good burger. However, if you are hungry and want something in a bun, then you will be happy.

 

You've completely missed the point of that post. ;) :D

[Mynki]

Oh I get it even if other folks don't. That 21 day cruise for $1800 - WOW! That's the thing is next year I can try Luminae for $900 and then a luxury cruise after that for comparison. Nancyshaw was making the same point about the two tier cruise a couple months back. The question will become - Luminae or luxury line after we really get going here. Maybe that depends on each sailing.

 

That deal was due to exceptional circumstances. We needed a catastrophic event to force prices down to those levels. For about four or five days people could have picked up a OV room with classic beverage package for £255 ($345) for either of the 11 or 10 day cruises! Something we may not see again.

 

What I would say, and this is very much my personal opinion which people may disagree with is that if you want to experience the Celebrity suite class experience book a sky suite on Summit before the big refurb. There are some well priced deals for off season Caribbean sailings. They're cheap now as Summit is an undesirable ship. I don't base this on comments here on Cruise Critic forums, but on prices compared to its competition. Find a big box TA that has a search engine and compare 7 day Caribbean sailings with other 5* ships and compare prices. Pricing is based on supply and demand so if you do this you'll see clear as day that other ships are charging more for a comparable cruise whilst Summit struggles to keep up.

 

Once it had it's update Celebrity will inevitably ramp the pricing up considerably to see what they can get away with. In time supply and demand factors will kick in and Summit sailings will find their new level in the market place as they have done now, but I'd expect them to be higher than they are now. That said, if you look at the new ships coming online over the next few years including several 6,000 + passenger ships then you'll see that competition will be increasing which is great for us consumers.

 

If you can, consider upgrading to a suite now.

 

 

Just goes to show how some folks should eyeball both up and down for the best deals, luxury or ports. Switch up your cruise lines - change your experiences and opportunities.

 

 

Many people are married to a cruise lines loyalty program. I've always thought that if you do this then you'll acrue a few perks but lose out on big savings overall....

 

As for deals, again use a TA with a great search engine. I have a whole system of searches using set parameters on these search engines to identify potential deals. Then was anything of interest is found it's noted and potentially added to a third price price monitoring website which emails you when prices change.

 

You can then undertake due diligence by tracking available inventory on that site followed by searches on the UK based Celebrity site to see exactly what rooms are available. In time you'll start to quickly identify trends in price movements. Some popular cruises usually only ever increase in price for certain cabin classes whilst others seem to drop and even plummet after final payment date. You'll have seen people state that it's best to book the lowest class of cabin you're happy with asap and then monitor for any price drops if they occur. This is a no risk strategy likely to get a decent result on a popular sailing. But if you were looking at an Asian sailing on Millie that doesn't involve Japan and you were happy with a balcony you'd be best to wait till after final payment date as prices often plummet. Some will state that youthen run the risk of airfare increases which can be true, but more often than not it's not an issue in my experience.

 

Nothing is certain but do this for a few months and you'll quickly be able to make educated guesses as to which way a cruise fare is likely to go. The best advice I can give you though is to ignore anyone who makes sweeping statements about cruise fare pricing. Treat each individual cruise on its own merits. There are many people who have been cruising for decades who still haven't figured out how to get the best deals yet. That's not a snarky dig, just an observation.

[Mr&MrsBee]

Just found another poster (Mynki) that I can ignore along with two others that that offer zilch.

[Denny01]

Personally, how I pick a cruise is focused on the itinerary and then the Line/ship. Cost plays a factor of can I afford it, but I don’t and won’t spend time looking through multiple websites, or consider Lines and especailly ships I have little/no interest in for pricing. I realize there are those that either the ship is just a transport for the itinerary, and others that enjoy a cruise Line that has no interest for me such as the new huge ships, and some specific Lines. And if price is the driver, because of people’s financial status or those that would be greatly bothered if they heard they paid more than someone else, that should be a decider, for them.

 

My staying with a Line does not make me a ‘Cheerleader’ and blind to issues. It’s a factor in my decision-making, not the control over it. I also realize all these companies are in the business to make a buck, and more if they can. And I doubt most of us (or really any of us) can predict business models and what will happen to SR pricing. If we could, we’d be cruising on our own private ship!

 

I’ll disagree that the Summit’s prices are low because it is undesirable. That makes little sense, since 95% (or higher) of cruisers don’t read any of these reviews or certainly these threads. When comparing the Summit Caribbean cruises coming up with Infinity and S-Class Equinox, this is what is on the US Celebrity website for Verandas (I always use that as a compare): Summit: $749; Infinity $759; Equinox $789. 7 Day cruises. I don’t think $10-$40 reflects cruisers aren’t taking Summit because it’s ‘undesirable’.

 

If a poster thinks the Summit is poor quality, then don’t cruise it; if you think it’s fine, as I do, then enjoy it or another Celebrity ship, or another Line for whatever reason.

 

And yes, I came back......

 

Den

[Mynki]

Personally, how I pick a cruise is focused on the itinerary and then the Line/ship. Cost plays a factor of can I afford it, but I don’t and won’t spend time looking through multiple websites, or consider Lines and especailly ships I have little/no interest in for pricing.

 

Me neither. Thankfully the TA's with good search engines make it easy to eliminate the likes of Carnival and other lines I won't cruise on. :) If it's a bucket list trip then it's about the itinerary and quality of the ship. If it's part of an extended land vacation to Florida with a week or two on a ship it's much less important as we've done almost all of the popular ports now.

 

I realize there are those that either the ship is just a transport for the itinerary, and others that enjoy a cruise Line that has no interest for me such as the new huge ships, and some specific Lines. And if price is the driver, because of people’s financial status or those that would be greatly bothered if they heard they paid more than someone else, that should be a decider, for them.

 

I'm not a fan of discussing pricing onboard. More than once we've been asked what we paid for our trip. I find this direct questioning rather crass. The price paid is no ones business other than the individuals IMHO.

 

IMy staying with a Line does not make me a ‘Cheerleader’ and blind to issues. It’s a factor in my decision-making, not the control over it. I also realize all these companies are in the business to make a buck, and more if they can. And I doubt most of us (or really any of us) can predict business models and what will happen to SR pricing. If we could, we’d be cruising on our own private ship!

 

No one will predict 100% accurate pricing. However you don't monitor price movements so you won't be best placed to make educated guesses. So I think your last point is moot. I will however bet you $100 for a charity of your choice right here, right now that Summit suite pricing will increase in 2020 after the remodel. Would you like to take that bet? ;p

 

I’ll disagree that the Summit’s prices are low because it is undesirable. That makes little sense, since 95% (or higher) of cruisers don’t read any of these reviews or certainly these threads. When comparing the Summit Caribbean cruises coming up with Infinity and S-Class Equinox, this is what is on the US Celebrity website for Verandas (I always use that as a compare): Summit: $749; Infinity $759; Equinox $789. 7 Day cruises. I don’t think $10-$40 reflects cruisers aren’t taking Summit because it’s ‘undesirable’.

 

Cruisers all get their info from somewhere. Maybe not this website, but there are many with customer feedback. But you've compared it to only two ships from the same line. If you take a look at everyone sailing in the Caribbean over 7 nights, Summit is nowhere near top of the league. Again, if you were using informative websites to compare pricing you'd again be better informed. If Summit were a better ship, it would be priced higher due to more demand.

 

So, if we take a more analytical approach and do a search on December 2018 seven day Caribbean cruises across the board, which is the cheapest sailing today? You've guessed it, it's the Summit, well technically joint last with an old 3.5* Carnival ship! You can verify this yourself. What you need to understand here is that the OP has started a thread looking how to find the best deals. My post was in reply to him giving him an overview of where to start. So whilst you appear to be missing the big picture it should give him an idea.

 

You could also post your own theory as to why Summit is currently cheaper than every other 7 day itinerary in the Caribbean over December if you like. If it's as good as you think, why do you think more people are not booking it and driving up the cabin prices?

 

For those unfamiliar with this particular website the current price is the $ amount on the right. The higher price on the left is the alleged brochure price.

 

 

 

 

If a poster thinks the Summit is poor quality, then don’t cruise it; if you think it’s fine, as I do, then enjoy it or another Celebrity ship, or another Line for whatever reason.

 

I'm pretty sure I used a near identical sentence in this very thread previously! :D

 

And yes, I came back......

 

Den

 

Good to have you back. I look forward to reading your Summit pricing theories.

[Denny01]

I have no pricing theories for Summit or cars or hotdogs......hehe, except one: when I moved into a new area, it was a seller’s market; when I moved out to sell, it was a buyer’s market. I’m not moving anymore!

 

And I completely agree with your comment about talking about what I paid for a cruise, or that hotdog. I got in a bit of a pickle on another thread when I said I didn’t think it was a good idea to share what’s we paid, and the OP took offense. I could have probably put it much nicer and not come accross as judging. Didn’t mean to, but as we all know on these threads, postings can be misunderstood, as you probably saw in my earlier post about Suites.

 

Den

[George C]

We did a sky suite charter on summit, if it’s in your budget do the suite, loved the perks , luminae was great , service was perfect , micheals is a truely elegant suite lounge with free drinks from early morning to midnight, we have sky suite on infinity booked next year.

[Mynki]

I have no pricing theories for Summit or cars or hotdogs......hehe, except one: when I moved into a new area, it was a seller’s market; when I moved out to sell, it was a buyer’s market. I’m not moving anymore!

 

I guess when Celebrity launched the M class and were providing a more upscale service they were in a sellers market. Eighteen years later, they're not delivering the same product due to cutbacks and there are more ships than ever before. You know as well as anyone else it's all about supply and demand. But if pricing is now competing with Carnival there can't be that much demand. And if there's little demand, the ship can't be seen as desirable at least in my view anyway.

 

Celebrity know it doesn't meet the image the try and sell, hence the multi million dollar refit program to keep passengers interested and cabin prices up.

 

I still believe it offers good value for money as previously stated though.

 

And I completely agree with your comment about talking about what I paid for a cruise, or that hotdog. I got in a bit of a pickle on another thread when I said I didn’t think it was a good idea to share what’s we paid, and the OP took offense. I could have probably put it much nicer and not come accross as judging. Didn’t mean to, but as we all know on these threads, postings can be misunderstood, as you probably saw in my earlier post about Suites.

 

Den

 

I'm happy to post pricing info when it's used to help advise others or even educate then as to how cruise prices vary. In person I'm happy to discuss the pros and cons booking in the US or UK and the use of third party price monitoring sites. A fellow Celebrity passenger taught me an awful lot once and I owe him for that education so happy to help others. But nothing good will come of chatting about what you paid especially if one party got a much better deal than the other which is possible.

 

And hell yeah, the whole board is full of misunderstandings, poor communication, trolls, idiots, the mentally unhinged on occasion and many other things. Still it keeps us all entertained and I've learnt a lot on here from those kind enough to offer their help and advice so it's all good.

[GottaKnowWhen]

What in the world!?!? People complain about old ships because they are old themselves??? One of the finest examples of 2+2=576 than I've ever seen. ...

You are right, I was a bit over the top with that comment.

What bugs me is that so many keep going on and on about "oh, it is old" or "oh, it is showing its age." Those comments may be coming from those who think anybody over 30 is ancient, could be coming from the geriatric crowd, or anybody in between. Doesn't matter. My issue is that such comments convey nothing, no information. Tell me that a carpet is faded or the sofa has broken springs or the chair leg is held together with duct tape and I will learn something. But tell me that a ship is showing its age and I will have learned nothing except the person making the comment likes to complain but doesn't really have anything to say.

 

Stan