Help Salt Lifer choose our next cruise (Alaska)!

[Salt Lifer]

Hi friends.  My husband and I are looking to book our next Celebrity cruise to Alaska and would like your feedback on two items:

 

1.) SHIP - Summit vs. Solstice. 

-Right now we are leaning towards Solstice because it appears to be a beautiful ship, but don't want to rule out Summit just because of its age.  Based on your experiences, is there much difference in food or entertainment between the two ships?  Does one ship stand out to you above the other, and why?  With Celebrity we have sailed extensively on E-class, so would really like feedback on these two ships as both will be a different experience than we are used to.  (We will not be sailing in a suite, so the Retreat experience will not be applicable to us.  We are not big drinkers, but do enjoy good food.)

 

2.) ITINERARY - Endicott Arms/Dawes Glacier vs Hubbard Glacier 

-We leaning towards Endicott Arms because we are told the scenery leading there is amazing, but have also been told that the size of Hubbard Glacier makes it well worth visiting.

 

So, cruising experts, please share your opinions and experiences.

[ScottC4746]

44 minutes ago, Salt Lifer said:

Hi friends.  My husband and I are looking to book our next Celebrity cruise to Alaska and would like your feedback on two items:

 

1.) SHIP - Summit vs. Solstice. 

-Right now we are leaning towards Solstice because it appears to be a beautiful ship, but don't want to rule out Summit just because of its age.  Based on your experiences, is there much difference in food or entertainment between the two ships?  Does one ship stand out to you above the other, and why?  With Celebrity we have sailed extensively on E-class, so would really like feedback on these two ships as both will be a different experience than we are used to.  (We will not be sailing in a suite, so the Retreat experience will not be applicable to us.  We are not big drinkers, but do enjoy good food.)

 

2.) ITINERARY - Endicott Arms/Dawes Glacier vs Hubbard Glacier 

-We leaning towards Endicott Arms because we are told the scenery leading there is amazing, but have also been told that the size of Hubbard Glacier makes it well worth visiting.

 

So, cruising experts, please share your opinions and experiences.

Summit is 7 years older and about 700 passengers smaller than Solstice.  Have not done Summit but have done Solstice.  I felt Solstice was very plasticy in many of the public bars with uncomfortable seating.  We just got off the Edge a few weeks ago and realized how tiny the lifts are on the Solstice.  Theater seats were in need of repair.  This was in 2022.

 

Itinerary I cannot compare as we only did Dawes Glacier run.

[Tom and Ingrid]

I haven't looked at the itineraries, but what we did (a Vancouver to Seward on Millennium (or a sister ship)) was a great way to do it. Every day, buy going north, everything got "better".  The stuff from day 1 that was spectacular was "normal" by day 3, and so on.

 

Personally, I love both M and S class ships. S class being a bit newer and larger have some pros, but also some cons, so neither would be a deal breaker for me.

 

Not much to help you, but hopefully you have a great time. I might pop over to X and review their Alaskan itineraries.

[DaKahuna]

Solstice has Murano, Summit does not.  
Solstice has the aft corner suites, Summit does not. 

The top deck forward on Solstice is the Retreat Sundeck, on Summit it's open to everyone.

 

I would go with Solstice for the greater selection in venue's over Summit.  But it is all personal preference. 

 

Full disclosure, we have done both itineraries. 

 

[lynncarol]

While I am a long-time fan of Celebrity (reached Diamond status years ago) for our Alaska cruise I chose Princess Cruise line as I really wanted to see Glacier Bay National Park and Celebrity can't include that.  Have to say, that park was one of the highlights of our cruise.

[1025cruise]

I would expand your search beyond Celebrity. Celebrity and Royal do not go to Glacier Bay. If this is a special trip, you might want to consider a different line.

[cruisestitch]

Just disembarked solstice Hubbard glacier today. It was a fabulous cruise. The naturalist was Milos and he is experienced and informative. Solstice has the glass blowing show/school.  Solstice has Murano.  Shows were excellent.  

Edited June 23 by cruisestitch

[SbbquilterUT]

We choose based on itinerary - just back from B2B on the Summit,   Northbound from Vancouver on the Summit which includes Hubbard Glacier (much more impressive than Dawes/Tracey Arm glacier front though we have enjoyed those as well).  Stayed on board for the Southbound sailing and had a second gorgeous sailing in to Hubbard Glacier.  Summit suited our needs just fine and we enjoyed the smaller size to disembark and avoid lines in the buffet.

[lynncarol]

12 minutes ago, lynncarol said:

While I am a long-time fan of Celebrity (reached Diamond status years ago) for our Alaska cruise I chose Princess Cruise line as I really wanted to see Glacier Bay National Park and Celebrity can't include that.  Have to say, that park was one of the highlights of our cruise.

Oops.  I meant we have Elite Status on Celebrity.  I keep confusing that with our Diamond status on RCCl

[NutsAboutGolf]

32 minutes ago, ScottC4746 said:

Summit is 7 years older and about 700 passengers smaller than Solstice.  Have not done Summit but have done Solstice.  I felt Solstice was very plasticy in many of the public bars with uncomfortable seating.  We just got off the Edge a few weeks ago and realized how tiny the lifts are on the Solstice.  Theater seats were in need of repair.  This was in 2022.

 

Itinerary I cannot compare as we only did Dawes Glacier run.

 

The Summit, unlike the Solstice, was revolutionized and will therefore feel newer than the Solstice

[NutsAboutGolf]

I said in another thread, Alaska was a one-and-done, we found Norway to be stunning.  Definitely try Alaska once but add a Norway cruise to your bucket list

[Salt Lifer]

15 minutes ago, NutsAboutGolf said:

I said in another thread, Alaska was a one-and-done, we found Norway to be stunning.  Definitely try Alaska once but add a Norway cruise to your bucket list

Funny you should mention that... Norway is on our bucket list also and almost won our for this cruise we are planning, but we didn't want to leave our kids for as long as we would need to for a trip leaving out of Europe.  Our hope is to do that as a family in a couple years when they are older and would appreciate the trip more.

[Salt Lifer]

41 minutes ago, lynncarol said:

While I am a long-time fan of Celebrity (reached Diamond status years ago) for our Alaska cruise I chose Princess Cruise line as I really wanted to see Glacier Bay National Park and Celebrity can't include that.  Have to say, that park was one of the highlights of our cruise.

I should have mentioned we have a future cruise credit we are using, so Celebrity it is.

[Northern Aurora]

Even though we live in Alaska we have done 6 or 7 Alaska itineraries.  This state is so huge Alaska cruises give us an opportunity to visit another part of our state.  So a few random thoughts --

 

In my opinion, the best itinerary is the one way between Seward and Vancouver, which we also have done as B2B.  The RT out of Vancouver is better than the RTs out of Seattle.

 

When comparing the cruises take a close look at the times in the ports.

 

Hubbard is one of the few tidewater glaciers which is actually advancing.  The glaciers in Glacier Bay are retreating (shrinking).  If you opt for the itinerary which goes to Dawes book the small vessel excursion which essentially tenders of the ship approaches Dawes and then takes a different route to Juneau; this excursion will get you much closer to Dawes and will sell out so book fast.

 

 

[Ken the cruiser]

2 hours ago, Salt Lifer said:

Hi friends.  My husband and I are looking to book our next Celebrity cruise to Alaska and would like your feedback on two items:

 

1.) SHIP - Summit vs. Solstice. 

-Right now we are leaning towards Solstice because it appears to be a beautiful ship, but don't want to rule out Summit just because of its age.  Based on your experiences, is there much difference in food or entertainment between the two ships?  Does one ship stand out to you above the other, and why?  With Celebrity we have sailed extensively on E-class, so would really like feedback on these two ships as both will be a different experience than we are used to.  (We will not be sailing in a suite, so the Retreat experience will not be applicable to us.  We are not big drinkers, but do enjoy good food.)

 

2.) ITINERARY - Endicott Arms/Dawes Glacier vs Hubbard Glacier 

-We leaning towards Endicott Arms because we are told the scenery leading there is amazing, but have also been told that the size of Hubbard Glacier makes it well worth visiting.

 

So, cruising experts, please share your opinions and experiences.

What is the date you are considering, so we can compare itineraries? Also, are there any aft-facing cabins still available on either/both of the ships? Cruising through the Alaska waterways and fjords in an aft-facing cabin is a great way to see out both sides of the ship as well as the aft from the comfort of your balcony, regardless of the time of day. We cruised around Alaska last month for 22-days in an aft-facing cabin (see Live From below) and it was awesome!

Edited June 23 by Ken the cruiser

[takemewithyou]

1 hour ago, DaKahuna said:

Solstice has Murano, Summit does not.  
Solstice has the aft corner suites, Summit does not. 

The top deck forward on Solstice is the Retreat Sundeck, on Summit it's open to everyone.

 

I would go with Solstice for the greater selection in venue's over Summit.  But it is all personal preference. 

 

Full disclosure, we have done both itineraries. 

 

Solstice has a retreat sun deck?

I thought it had not been revolutionized?

 

[DaKahuna]

1 hour ago, takemewithyou said:

Solstice has a retreat sun deck?

I thought it had not been revolutionized?

 

 

sorry - that's backwards... Summit has the Retreat Sun Deck .. Solstice is open to all. 

 

[Salt Lifer]

2 hours ago, Ken the cruiser said:

What is the date you are considering, so we can compare itineraries? Also, are there any aft-facing cabins still available on either/both of the ships? Cruising through the Alaska waterways and fjords in an aft-facing cabin is a great way to see out both sides of the ship as well as the aft from the comfort of your balcony, regardless of the time of day. We cruised around Alaska last month for 22-days in an aft-facing cabin (see Live From below) and it was awesome!

We are looking at early to mid May.  Either Solstice (round trip from Vancouver) or Summit (either northbound from Vancouver to Alaska, or southbound from Alaska to Vancouver).

[Ken the cruiser]

1 hour ago, Salt Lifer said:

We are looking at early to mid May.  Either Solstice (round trip from Vancouver) or Summit (either northbound from Vancouver to Alaska, or southbound from Alaska to Vancouver).

We went on a 28-day B2B Canada/Iceland cruise on the Summit back in Aug 2022 in an aft-facing Aqua cabin on Deck 11 and had an awesome time (see Live From thread in my expanded signature below). If you look at the Summit deck plan, you’ll notice the Aqua cabins in the Aft are very conveniently located to everything up top plus there is a back set of stairs that go directly down to the sunset bar.

 

I checked this particular mid May itinerary 

 

 

and there were still some good aft-facing Aqua cabins available (1138 and 1141).

 

 
Since the Summit is also smaller than the Solstice, which BTW we took on our first cruise to Alaska back in 2015, we would opt for the smaller Summit as the chances of getting closer to the shore and maybe even glaciers as you’re cruising around the various fjords might be more likely plus you’ll be in an Aqua cabin where you’ll get to dine in Blu! 

 

BTW I took this picture from our aft-facing balcony on the Summit, as we cruised between Iceland and Greenland on that Aug 2022 cruise.

 

 
Like I mentioned earlier, the views out the aft give you much more viewing options from your private balcony! 😁

 

Edited June 24 by Ken the cruiser

[phoenix_dream]

Can't go wrong with either but I probably would pick Summit as I'm guessing there are more ports? Plus you can explore Anchorage as well as add a few days so you can fit in a trip to Denali which I highly recommend (and would book independently as it is much less $$). If possible as an alternative do a b2b Summit.  Gives you more time to explore the ports. I've done that multiple times. 

[dreamer321]

5 hours ago, DaKahuna said:

...

The top deck forward on Solstice is the Retreat Sundeck, on Summit it's open to everyone.

...

 

You have that backwards, Summit has been Revolutionized hence Deck 12 forward on Summit is reserved for Retreat guests.  Solstice has not been Revolutionized so Decks 15/16 are open to all passengers.  Both ships have a Sky Lounge so there's forward views for all passengers unlike Edge class ships.

 

Sorry, I posted this before I saw that you corrected yourself.

Edited June 24 by dreamer321

[Turtles06]

37 minutes ago, dreamer321 said:

Sorry, I posted this before I saw that you corrected yourself.

I almost did the same thing. 😂

 

We sailed on the Summit in 2019, shortly after she’d been “revolutionized,” and while we enjoyed the ship and how spiffed up she was, the closing off of the sun deck to non-suite guests was one of the things we really disliked.  It is the only forward facing exterior deck space on the ship. 

[NMTraveller]

Princess or HAL for Glacier Bay ...