Summit Suite - a former True Believer returns after the Haven, Yacht Club and Viking!

[Cruise it or lose it]

My husband and I hate those bathtubs. 

[Cruise a holic]

any pics of the redo of the celebrity suites and the bathroom?  Will miss the corner shelving  

[marycruz]

1 hour ago, Dr. Cocktail said:

 

The crazy high tub has  glass openings on either side - you climb in over the center.   There's nothing to hang onto. The storage area is opposite to the vanity behind the bathroom door.  From my understanding as you stated, some cabins have the extra storage and some don't  - I don't know if there's a particular reason. We were in an S2. I think that S1's simply have a bigger balcony.

 

 

 

I see now what happened.   The other poster who showed the tub only took a picture of the front part so you couldn't see a shower curtain because it was probably pushed over to one side.  I n't know why they had no shelves for toiletries.   Do you have any pics of the closet?

 

 

[BEAV]

Thanks for your effort in writing such a comprehensive review. 

 

After recently spending 14 days aboard Millie I have to agree with you 100% on your assessment of the Retreat. Although humorous, your description of some of the seating as being fit for privileged kindergarteners was spot on. I’ll include a photo of those “chairs” you so aptly described. In two weeks I never once saw anyone attempting to sit in one of them! 

 

One of the fun people we met aboard Millie hit the head on the nail when her one word description of the Retreat was “sterile”!

 

Rather than truly being a “retreat” it was for us the place to stop off and stock up on bottled waters & sodas from the self-serve fridge. Had there been any comfortable furniture, it would have been a nice place to really hang out & socialize. The one thing the Retreat had going for it was an unfailingly friendly staff, from the cocktail servers to the Concierges and Suite Manager. 

 

[BEAV]

2 hours ago, Cruise a holic said:

any pics of the redo of the celebrity suites and the bathroom?  Will miss the corner shelving  

 

We were in a Celebrity Suite on Millie. Here are some pics. Unfortunately, the huge leap/step into/out of the tub/shower still exists. I'm short (5'6"), so stepping out of the tub was tough. I ended up using two large folded bath towels and placed them at the edge of the sink area to give me something to hang onto for support to get out of the tub/shower. Someone taller with longer legs would have an easier time, but not us shorties. 

 

We had our attendant remove this chair. You had to be 8 foot tall to be able to fully sit back (without slouching) in order to have your feet touch the floor. It served no purpose, other than being in the way, so we had it removed. 

 

Despite the shortcomings and necessary workarounds from the refurb, we absolutely loved the suite and living space. The floor-to-ceiling windows, to us, are the selling point of the Celebrity Suite. If you want a connection with the sea and world outside, this is the accommodation to book.

IMG_2882.HEIC

Edited May 25, 2019 by BEAV

[wrk2cruise]

From pictures I have seen I think the Retreat lounge on Summit still has the bar for preparing drinks but no stools so you can't sit at the bar.  I'm sure some would consider this "no bar".   There was also a high top table by the window by the door.  When there were few people in the lounge during the day I would like to sit at the high top and still be able to talk with the bar server.

 

I'll be back onboard Sunday and will form my opinion then.  I loved the decor in the "M" class MC before so I guess I'll see.

[Dr. Cocktail]

3 hours ago, marycruz said:

 

I see now what happened.   The other poster who showed the tub only took a picture of the front part so you couldn't see a shower curtain because it was probably pushed over to one side.  I n't know why they had no shelves for toiletries.   Do you have any pics of the closet?

 

 

Here's the cabin ... what you see is ALL of the storage ....  The unit under the TV has the mini bar on the left and two shelves on the right. There are some cubbies to the right of the mirror and shelves under them. The three units to the right of them have one door enclosing the safe, the famous two drawers and some shelves whereas the two doors too the right of them have the hanging space. We took one suitcase each and did a pretty decent job of using all of the storage.

 

We considered throwing the bric-a-brac over the side but didn't want to pollute the ocean ....

 

Edited May 25, 2019 by Dr. Cocktail

[MightyMike]

We were on the Summit last month. Our experience was much more positive--we booked again for 2021. However, I agree with your observations about the lack of shade.

[Ken the cruiser]

Thanks for the great review. We’ve only sailed in the S class aft-facing cabins and have so far been totally wowed. 

 

A couple questions. You didn’t mention anything about entertainment. We very much enjoy the 2-3 lectures on sea days, the first class production and guest entertainer shows in the massive main theater and the 20 minute interactive game shows between the early and late shows on the S class ships. How did the lectures and production/guest entertainer shows compare on the Summit to those on Viking, NCL and MSC?

 

We’ve been on the NCL Getaway and they definitely offered a variety of quality entertainment once we left the confines of the Haven. However, the food quality for us is not nearly as high quality as that we’ve experienced in the Luminae with their 14 day menu cycle, especially when it comes to their chocolate desserts. But I’m definitely interested in your thoughts about the quality of similar lectures and main theater entertainment on the MSC and Viking ships when compared to that offered on the Summit. 

 

As as far as X perks go, we thought the Elite+ internet discounts, 2 free bags of laundry pp/leg and 3 free drinks every day except embarkation and disembarkation days between 5-7 pm were a pretty good deal. Why do you thing NCL’s loyalty program is so much better?

[GastroGnome]

This is really helpful - thank you.  I love your writing style and the comparison of the lines.  And I loved your description of the chemically tenderized steak - spot on!

 

I hope your S class experience goes better - they are my favorite of the classes. (Although the steak gets the same treatment...)

[Schmoe38]

16 hours ago, Cruise a holic said:

Another question. We used to book 6145 or 46. The S1’s next to the penthouse with the huge green marble bathroom.  Wonder if they were redone 

We book 6145 or 6146 whenever we are looking to book a Sky Suite...subject to availability, of course. I recall seeing pictures of one of these 2 staterooms on the Summit Revolution thread.

 

Yes, they have been re-done. The bathroom still has the separate tub and shower and appears to be the same size as it was pre-revolution. The colours in the staterooms are consistent with the other staterooms on board.

 

We booked 6145 for our cruise in August 2020, so the changes that have occurred are not significant enough, in our minds, to change our plans of sailing with Celebrity in the future...and we are long time Celebrity cruisers.

 

Randy

[Schmoe38]

16 hours ago, Cruise a holic said:

Another question. We used to book 6145 or 46. The S1’s next to the penthouse with the huge green marble bathroom.  Wonder if they were redone 

Just found pictures of 6145 from Millenium. This should give you a better idea as to what the same staterooms look like on Summit.

 

Hope this helps

 

Randy

 

 

 

 

Edited May 25, 2019 by Schmoe38

[Cruise a holic]

Glad to see the bathroom is the same!  We will probably go on the summit again.  The problem however is that the summer week that we are available is now a nude charter- not for us!  They seem to charter the week around 8/10 for groups.

 

We also do not want to sail from PR too difficult from past experience.  Perhaps if celebrity rotates the week for August Charters, we will sail her again.  This August we are flying to Florida and will sail on the Equinox.  Next August, we have booked the Oasis of the seas which is a ship we enjoy. She will be sailing out of Bayonne- a no fly cruise for us.

 

  We do not like the other options from NY or NJ currently.  Have tried them all and found them to be very disappointing.  We are now waiting to see a picture of the redone Celebrity suite on the Equinox.

 

Thank you!  

Edited May 25, 2019 by Cruise a holic

[Dr. Cocktail]

12 hours ago, BEAV said:

Thanks for your effort in writing such a comprehensive review. 

 

After recently spending 14 days aboard Millie I have to agree with you 100% on your assessment of the Retreat. Although humorous, your description of some of the seating as being fit for privileged kindergarteners was spot on. I’ll include a photo of those “chairs” you so aptly described. In two weeks I never once saw anyone attempting to sit in one of them! 

 

 

 

The chairs that I was speaking of were the "bucket" seats on the left of the photo. If you manage to squeeze your butt into one of those babies, you'll probably leave the lounge with it still attached!

[Fogfog]

9 minutes ago, Dr. Cocktail said:

The chairs that I was speaking of were the "bucket" seats on the left of the photo. If you manage to squeeze your butt into one of those babies, you'll probably leave the lounge with it still attached!

Those bucket ones in the back left! Yes..I agree. 🤣

 

I wonder if they are there to remind people to step away from the "trough" aka Oceanview cafe.... though I suspect one has to be a petite woman size 00 to fit.   And know only 1 adult who fits that description (not me)

[Dr. Cocktail]

7 hours ago, Ken the cruiser said:

 

 

As as far as X perks go, we thought the Elite+ internet discounts, 2 free bags of laundry pp/leg and 3 free drinks every day except embarkation and disembarkation days between 5-7 pm were a pretty good deal. Why do you thing NCL’s loyalty program is so much better?

I will answer the first part of your question later - that's a topic onto itself!

 

Now, I didn't say "so much better", I said that Celebrity was a "little inferior"!

 

I don't care about the free drinks as I always have a beverage package when I sail. Both offer complimentary internet minutes (Celebrity offers more) but what's most important for me are the two dinners for two that NCL offers, one in one of their "premium" restaurants with a bottle of generally very good wine and one dinner for two in one of (what I view as) their "regular" specialty restaurants. On Celebrity, that would cost you about $250.

 

 

[Dr. Cocktail]

16 minutes ago, Fogfog said:

Those bucket ones in the back left! Yes..I agree. 🤣

 

I wonder if they are there to remind people to step away from the "trough" aka Oceanview cafe.... though I suspect one has to be a petite woman size 00 to fit.   And know only 1 adult who fits that description (not me)

My partner is 6 feet tall and weighs 165 pounds. He's not "into" cruises like all of us on these boards. He knew NOTHING about the new lounge. We walked in on embarkation and went to sit down to get a drink. He broke out in gales of laughter when he saw what he was supposed to sit on. He sat down and continued laughing for the duration of his Manhattan! (we down them quickly!)

 

He couldn't understand how anyone in their right mind would put furniture like that on a ship. He left uninjured.

Edited May 25, 2019 by Dr. Cocktail

[Dr. Cocktail]

5 hours ago, GastroGnome said:

This is really helpful - thank you.  I love your writing style and the comparison of the lines.  And I loved your description of the chemically tenderized steak - spot on!

 

I hope your S class experience goes better - they are my favorite of the classes. (Although the steak gets the same treatment...)

Thanks!  We spent a combined total of 31 days on board Equinox in 2011 so we're looking forward to the changes and will show up with chair umbrellas in hand!

 

As for the steak,  I discreetly asked one of the chefs later who confirmed that the beef indeed was chemically tenderized....

[marycruz]

12 hours ago, Dr. Cocktail said:

Here's the cabin ... what you see is ALL of the storage ....  The unit under the TV has the mini bar on the left and two shelves on the right. There are some cubbies to the right of the mirror and shelves under them. The three units to the right of them have one door enclosing the safe, the famous two drawers and some shelves whereas the two doors too the right of them have the hanging space. We took one suitcase each and did a pretty decent job of using all of the storage.

 

We considered throwing the bric-a-brac over the side but didn't want to pollute the ocean ....

 

 

Thank you for taking the time out to show these pictures.   Looks like the closet is smaller than before.  We were recently in an S2 (6115) and this is so much different.  Also, if I remember correctly the shelves behind the bathroom door are gone except, all except the one.  There used to be at least three shelves there.

 

I agree with the furniture looking uncomfortable in the retreat area.  We used to like sitting in Michael's club but doubt we'd sit in there now.   Who in their right mind redesigned these cabins and lounge for suite customers? 

 

We are still booked for two more cruises on Summit but thinking now of upgrading on our 2 week cruise to a CS.

 

Great pictures and thanks again.

[BEAV]

2 hours ago, Dr. Cocktail said:

The chairs that I was speaking of were the "bucket" seats on the left of the photo. If you manage to squeeze your butt into one of those babies, you'll probably leave the lounge with it still attached!

 

Ah, yes. I stand corrected. Here’s another photo of these “Junior” chairs. Thankfully, I didn’t embarrass myself by trying to squeeze into one. 

[parrotfeathers]

I really enjoyed my Infinity cruise.  Yes, the cabin is quite small compared to RCL and there is only one bathroom sink.  HAL has pitiful suite benefits in my opinion, plus Neptune closed at 8 pm a few years ago.  That is ridiculous.    I like RCL's suite/ DL coffee machine much better than Celebrity's.  Loved Michael's Lounge-it is nice and quiet and I enjoy talking to the staff to learn new things.

 

Didn't see much of my butler but loved by S1 suite on the 8th floor.  

 

Unfortunately Celebrity offers only a couple of 4/5 nighters for 2020 which I prefer at this point in my life.  So it's back to RCL.

[TeeRick]

23 hours ago, Dr. Cocktail said:

 

Hey TeeRick:

 

I wish it was Michael's Club with new furniture! They removed the main focal areas of the lounge, namely the piano and the bar. As I said, there's really no reason to spend time there unless your ego needs massaging with the knowledge that it's "exclusive".

 

The outside area could have been great with a canvas covering on the dining area and some pergolas or umbrellas.

Thank you.  It is too bad that the new Retreat Lounge is not an upgraded Michael's Club which was really our favorite on the M-Class ships (much better than MC on S-Class). Lots of fond memories there.  The old MC did not have a large bar- perhaps 2 or 3 stools only so not many used it as I recall.  It had a large Nespresso machine on one side.  Has that been taken away too?  What about the refrigerated glass-door cases which had beer, water and sodas- a help yourself area.  Gone too?  The good news is that the Retreat Lounge on Edge is quite nice and spacious with mostly comfortable furniture and a beautiful and private outdoor deck on one side.  Stairs lead up to the Retreat Sundeck from there.  There is no bar in the Retreat Lounge on Edge but it has been reported that they will put one other E-Class ships based on customer feedback.  

[yorky]

17 hours ago, BEAV said:

Thanks for your effort in writing such a comprehensive review. 

 

After recently spending 14 days aboard Millie I have to agree with you 100% on your assessment of the Retreat. Although humorous, your description of some of the seating as being fit for privileged kindergarteners was spot on. I’ll include a photo of those “chairs” you so aptly described. In two weeks I never once saw anyone attempting to sit in one of them! 

 

One of the fun people we met aboard Millie hit the head on the nail when her one word description of the Retreat was “sterile”!

 

Rather than truly being a “retreat” it was for us the place to stop off and stock up on bottled waters & sodas from the self-serve fridge. Had there been any comfortable furniture, it would have been a nice place to really hang out & socialize. The one thing the Retreat had going for it was an unfailingly friendly staff, from the cocktail servers to the Concierges and Suite Manager. 

 

Is just about everything in the revolution form over function ?. Wherever you look the furniture seems to be more about the design than actually being able to use it and feel comfortable. 

[ghstudio]

Great review.....convinces us that A1 (M class) and 1A (S class) are still excellent choices....just not worth the upgrade price to suites.  Funny that you talk about chairs too small for folks....our impression on all Celebrity ships is that with few exceptions the chairs require one to be 300 pounds or more and at least 6'....some of the most uncomfortable furniture in public spaces.  Tubs/showers without grab bars pretty much ignores the age of the passengers...and interesting choice (understandable because those bars cost something and we know what drives celebrity decisions). I guess no one showers if the seas are at all rough.  As you discovered, beef is not the protein of choice on Celebrity....two of the "always available" NY strip steaks would nicely resole a pair of shoes....I just can't imagine anyone actually paying $15 on top of $50 for a better steak at Tuscan Grill....like you, we have never had a memorable meal in Tuscan Grill. Food quality/preparation is variable of course....but it's rare that I'll order any beef in a dining room (chateaubriand or steak diane in Murano is the exception). 

 

Our last two Celebrity cruises are coming up...constellation...then, for the first time in years, no celebrity cruises booked....Princess, Oceania, HAL a river cruise and a VRBO.  I doubt Celebrity cares much.... 

Edited May 25, 2019 by ghstudio

[Dr. Cocktail]

8 hours ago, parrotfeathers said:

I really enjoyed my Infinity cruise.  Yes, the cabin is quite small compared to RCL and there is only one bathroom sink.  HAL has pitiful suite benefits in my opinion, plus Neptune closed at 8 pm a few years ago.  That is ridiculous.    I like RCL's suite/ DL coffee machine much better than Celebrity's.  Loved Michael's Lounge-it is nice and quiet and I enjoy talking to the staff to learn new things.

 

Didn't see much of my butler but loved by S1 suite on the 8th floor.  

 

Unfortunately Celebrity offers only a couple of 4/5 nighters for 2020 which I prefer at this point in my life.  So it's back to RCL.

HAL is being forced to up their game. Their two newest ships now have a Suite Restaurant - Orange (?!) whereas their older ships will have a separate section in the main dining room. As I mentioned - NCL, Viking and MSC all had Nespresso machines in the suite!