Review- Celebrity Summit -10/7-10/21/2018 Canada/New England

[davekathy]

15 hours ago, CruisinNewb said:

 

Day 11 Charlottetown,  Prince Edward Island

 

When we booked the cruise we were scheduled to arrive at 8AM and leave at 5PM. Due to the presence of Right whales in the area, Celebrity changed the port times to 1145AM - 5PM  Despite this we still got to see a lot.

 

 

 

 

Where did you see the whales? We are doing the same cruise on the Summit 8 September 2019. We received a notice from Celebrity about the same exact time change for arrival as you experienced. No explanation. 

[4774Papa]

We decided to do the NE and Canada cruise (7 days) from Boston to QC.  We had stops in Bar Harbor,  which was great.  Also, enjoyed Halifax and PEI.  Sydney was nothing to brag about.  Also, we stopped in Sanguenay before QC.  QC was great.

 

I just preferred going out of Boston instead of NYC.   NCL did a pretty good cruise.

 

I enjoyed your review and the photos.  Our cruise was from 14-21 September, before many of the leaves turned.  You did yours at a better time.

[ericosmith]

9 hours ago, davekathy said:

Where did you see the whales? We are doing the same cruise on the Summit 8 September 2019. We received a notice from Celebrity about the same exact time change for arrival as you experienced. No explanation. 

https://www.tc.gc.ca/eng/marinesafety/bulletins-2018-06-eng.htm

[Eloise4Ever]

Thank you so much for taking the time to write this comprehensive review. Your pictures are totally stunning. Swoon-worthy in fact! They confirm my desire to sail the same itinerary one day.

[CruisinNewb]

On 11/8/2018 at 1:31 PM, phabric said:

Can you see the coast line as you cruise by?

 

Yes and no. Depends on the ports. The cruise up the St. Lawrence river gave us the best views of the coast on our way to Quebec City. We didn't spend a lot of time on our balcony other then when we approached a port because the scenery was so spectacular at the ports.

 

[CruisinNewb]

On 11/8/2018 at 1:48 PM, davekathy said:

Where did you see the whales? We are doing the same cruise on the Summit 8 September 2019. We received a notice from Celebrity about the same exact time change for arrival as you experienced. No explanation. 

 

We never really "saw" whales. The best photo I got was at 280mm with a 1.3 crop factor so the equivalent of a 364mm lens (photo below). Not even sure if it a whale, lol.  Our friend Jim said he saw them but they were too far away for a photo. The ship will decrease speed in areas where they have been sighted so that is what causes the delayed arrival.  

Edited November 9, 2018 by CruisinNewb

[CruisinNewb]

On 11/8/2018 at 3:36 PM, 4774Papa said:

We decided to do the NE and Canada cruise (7 days) from Boston to QC.  We had stops in Bar Harbor,  which was great.  Also, enjoyed Halifax and PEI.  Sydney was nothing to brag about.  Also, we stopped in Sanguenay before QC.  QC was great.

 

I just preferred going out of Boston instead of NYC.   NCL did a pretty good cruise.

 

I enjoyed your review and the photos.  Our cruise was from 14-21 September, before many of the leaves turned.  You did yours at a better time.

Thanks. We did a 7 day cruise on the Disney Magic last year with ports at PEI, Sydney and Halifax, NS. It was almost the last week of October. The colors were better this year. We were actually fortunate in that originally we were on the 9/23 - 10/7 cruise but changed to this one to join Jim and his group. Missed Bar Harbor but the foliage made up for it 🙂

[davekathy]

4 minutes ago, CruisinNewb said:

 

We never really "saw" whales. The best photo I got was at 280mm with a 1.3 crop factor so the equivalent of a 364mm lens (photo below). Not even sure if it a whale, lol.  Our friend Jim said he saw them but they were too far away for a photo. The ship will decrease speed in areas where they have been sighted so that is what causes the delayed arrival.  

 

Thanks for the clarification. 

[CruisinNewb]

5 hours ago, Eloise4Ever said:

Thank you so much for taking the time to write this comprehensive review. Your pictures are totally stunning. Swoon-worthy in fact! They confirm my desire to sail the same itinerary one day.

Your welcome and thank you. You're very kind.

[CruisinNewb]

Day 13 - Halifax, N.S.

 

Today we had a private tour again booked by Jim with Kathleen, Bob and Eileen. We finally had a bright sunny day. The six of us headed out on a private tour with our guide Andy Smith from Tattle Tale tours. Andy is an actor and was a superb tour guide as well. We did a tour of the South Shore, stopping at Peggy's Cove, Mahone Bay and Lunenburg. We also stopped for lunch at a restaurant Andy recommended. Peggy's Cove was awesome, the amount of people and busses, not so awesome so we just stayed 30 minutes, got my fill of photos and proceeded to our other stops. We did a brief tour of the city as well on our return. Had so much fun on this one.                                                                                      

 

 

That evening we had our last visit to the Martini Bar and said goodbye to all the awesome bartenders there. Had a great dinner in the main dining room and just spent as much time as we could with our new found friends, sitting around the bar and the lounge, chatting, exchanging numbers and e-mails. 

Edited November 9, 2018 by CruisinNewb

[CruisinNewb]

Day - 14 Bayonne, N.J.

 

And so at last we come to the end of our cruise. We had a late departure time which worked out fine for us. We grabbed our overnight bag and headed to the buffet at around 8AM, had a leisurely breakfast and then made our way to our area which was the Rendezvous Lounge. We were called at our scheduled time, got our waiting luggage, went through customs and met our car service quickly and effeciently. The last day was bittersweet knowing it was over. We will cherish the memories we made, the time we got to share with so many wonderful people whether they were crew, guides, locals or our fellow cruisers. We had the opportunity to meet so many people partially due to the awesome roll call and website. So Jim if you are reading this, once again I have to thank you for a job, very well done. It is great to know we will be able to enjoy the company of those nearby again soon and hope the people that are farther away will cross our path again soon. Overall Celebrity did a great job in feeding us, entertaining us, satisfying our thirst and ensuring we had a lot of fun. Was the cruise or ship perfect? No, it wasn't. But what in life is? Thanks to those of you who followed this to the end. If you have any questions I will do my best to answer them. Hope you all enjoyed reading it as much as I enjoyed reliving it through words and photos.

Edited November 9, 2018 by CruisinNewb

[PROCRUISE]

Enjoyed reading your whole review. I got off the Summit (10/7)when you got on. Naturally, I have many of the same pictures but we had a perfect day in Bar Harbor. We also went to Corner Brook, Newfoundland instead of Price Edward Island which turned out to be one of my favorite ports of call and the autumn colors where breathtaking there. Also took a private tour in Halifax that went to Fisherman's Cove instead of Peggy's Cove which was spectacular and only about 15 other tourists there at the time and great sea food too.

I also found the Summit to be in very good shape and crew and staff were excellent. I was pleasantly surprised at how really good the food was in the MDR and since I was solo, sat at a table with six others which was delightful and great fellow travelers.

[AZDonRose]

CruisinNewB (Ron) ... Thank you for your exceptional review of our cruise aboard Summit.  Your essay is wonderfully expressive and allowed us to escape back in time and relive our memorable journey aboard this very beautiful ship.  We were part of the Dr. Koob Roll Call group and we are still dropping our jaws over all the work he and Kathleen did to bring 150+ Cruise Critic people together.  While we didn't personally spend time with you, we feel as though we were following in your footsteps, eyeing the same sights at the same time you were. You have masterfully captured our experiences about this cruise - on board and off -perfectly.  Thank You!  Rose & Don 

[Ought To Be Cruising]

On 10/27/2018 at 6:12 AM, PelicanLvr said:

Will be on Summit in January.  Looking forward to reading your report!

 

So happy I finally found posting of your cruise.. We will be on the Summit Canada/New England   Oct, 2019.   So excited to read your reviews . Thank you for posting..

[DrKoob]

Ron,

 

At last I can read your review. I make it a policy that I never read anything about the cruise until I get mine done and with Bob's retirement and us still recovering from these lousy colds (I hope you didn't catch them) I just got mine finished tonight. 

 

Your pics are superb and the writing took me back and helped me relive some of our favorite parts of this cruise, especially meeting and spending time with both of you. Thanks so much for so many shout outs and I do apologize for the mix up in Sydney. I fully realize that you two and Steve and Jamie had a decent time and tour but I too think it was a real screwup on their part. You will see I addressed this in my review if you get a chance to see it. 

 

Your pics by the way are outstanding. Loved them all. Hopefully we will get a chance to sail together again. If you two ever make it out to Seattle, you better let us know. You have my contact info. All my best...Jim

[CruisinNewb]

On 11/19/2018 at 10:32 PM, DrKoob said:

Ron,

 

At last I can read your review. I make it a policy that I never read anything about the cruise until I get mine done and with Bob's retirement and us still recovering from these lousy colds (I hope you didn't catch them) I just got mine finished tonight. 

 

Your pics are superb and the writing took me back and helped me relive some of our favorite parts of this cruise, especially meeting and spending time with both of you. Thanks so much for so many shout outs and I do apologize for the mix up in Sydney. I fully realize that you two and Steve and Jamie had a decent time and tour but I too think it was a real screwup on their part. You will see I addressed this in my review if you get a chance to see it. 

 

Your pics by the way are outstanding. Loved them all. Hopefully we will get a chance to sail together again. If you two ever make it out to Seattle, you better let us know. You have my contact info. All my best...Jim

Thanks Jim. We were able to escape the colds for the most part. I think at one point half the ship was sick to some degree. No worries about Sydney. Yes the company screwed up. We had a great time anyway. Made lemonade out of lemons.  

Glad you enjoyed the photos. I should just upload them to another site and link them. The resizing algorithm used here reduced quality and sharpness too much.

Yes we hope our paths cross again before too long. Thanks again for all your efforts.

 

Anyone else still reading this, Jim did a great review on this cruise with some excellent photos.

Definitely worth your time to check it out. http://www.jkbellomo.com/Summit-New England/index.html

Edited November 23, 2018 by CruisinNewb

[luv2cruise0611]

I would very much like to thank you for your detailed review of your cruise and the beautiful pictures.  We are doing this cruise in September of 2019.   I'm sure that will be too early for the beautiful fall foliage that you got to see and capture. ... but none the less, I'm sure it will be a fabulous cruise.  Thanks again.

 

P.S.  I also enjoyed Jim's detailed review & photos as well.  So professional looking.   Wish I could create that for each of my cruises.

Edited January 3, 2019 by srfoxymom

[DrKoob]

5 hours ago, srfoxymom said:

I would very much like to thank you for your detailed review of your cruise and the beautiful pictures.  We are doing this cruise in September of 2019.   I'm sure that will be too early for the beautiful fall foliage that you got to see and capture. ... but none the less, I'm sure it will be a fabulous cruise.  Thanks again.

 

P.S.  I also enjoyed Jim's detailed review & photos as well.  So professional looking.   Wish I could create that for each of my cruises.

 

Thank you for those kind words. I will say that you shouldn't feel bad about not doing my kind of website for your cruises. This is what I do for a living. So while you see a cool cruise website, I also have about 60 others I am working on in my industry. If you are headed anyplace else we might have been there. Check out our past trips by clicking here. And you can read my daily travel posts by clicking here.

[luv2cruise0611]

6 hours ago, DrKoob said:

 

Thank you for those kind words. I will say that you shouldn't feel bad about not doing my kind of website for your cruises. This is what I do for a living. So while you see a cool cruise website, I also have about 60 others I am working on in my industry. If you are headed anyplace else we might have been there. Check out our past trips by clicking here. And you can read my daily travel posts by clicking here.

Thanks again for your new sites.  I have saved them for future reference and will definitely look at them all.   Besides creating these websites for a living ... were/are both you and your wife travel consultants?  

Edited January 3, 2019 by srfoxymom

[DrKoob]

1 hour ago, srfoxymom said:

Thanks again for your new sites.  I have saved them for future reference and will definitely look at them all.   Besides creating these websites for a living ... were/are both you and your wife travel consultants?  

 

Yes we are. We aren’t supposed to say anything about doing that here on Cruise Critic but since you asked... Just started a year ago tomorrow. 

 

[luv2cruise0611]

59 minutes ago, DrKoob said:

 

Yes we are. We aren’t supposed to say anything about doing that here on Cruise Critic but since you asked... Just started a year ago tomorrow. 

 

Hahaha   Glad I could be of help.  Good for you for doing what you love... traveling.   I'm the one who my friends ask to find cruises for them (& all inclusives some times).    I always say "I missed my calling" ... being a travel agent.  I love to research cruises and try to find 'deals' for myself and my friends.  I am retired now and spend a good deal of time with my 9 grandchildren when I'm not traveling.   We are very fortunate that we were blessed with grandchildren when we were quite young...early 50's.  Now we're in our mid 60's.   Good luck on your new business. 

[sdnich]

 I finally had time to finish reading this review great review great pictures we  Book this cruise in 2020 for our anniversary ! We will be going in and out of Boston .I will go back and take some notes on some of the tour guides and company to used and also  I will go back and take some notes on some of the tour guides and company to used . I hope  to take just half the quality of pictures that you took !!

[CruisinNewb]

On 1/3/2019 at 1:59 AM, srfoxymom said:

I would very much like to thank you for your detailed review of your cruise and the beautiful pictures.  We are doing this cruise in September of 2019.   I'm sure that will be too early for the beautiful fall foliage that you got to see and capture. ... but none the less, I'm sure it will be a fabulous cruise.  Thanks again.

 

P.S.  I also enjoyed Jim's detailed review & photos as well.  So professional looking.   Wish I could create that for each of my cruises.

 

You are quite welcome. And you are right, regardless of the foliage you will have an excellent time.  The itinerary is a good one and in my experience the cruisers and staff on Celebrity ships have been amazing.

 

Jim is quite the master at travel websites and is quite an accomplished photographer as well

Edited January 9, 2019 by CruisinNewb

[CruisinNewb]

On 1/3/2019 at 7:00 PM, sdnich said:

 I finally had time to finish reading this review great review great pictures we  Book this cruise in 2020 for our anniversary ! We will be going in and out of Boston .I will go back and take some notes on some of the tour guides and company to used and also  I will go back and take some notes on some of the tour guides and company to used . I hope  to take just half the quality of pictures that you took !!

 

Thank you for the kind comments about the photos. In another life I owned my own photography business so I have some practice, like 10,000 photos in a weekend lol.

 

Kudos also need to go to my lovely wife who took a few of those photos I posted, especially the lovely sunset from the martini bar.