Diamond Princess or Celebrity Summit?

[patde44]

We're considering a RT from Southern CA to Hawaii for fall 2007. A number of lines go there, but the best prices we've found are the Diamond and the Summit, which are in the same price ball park. Has anyone cruised both of them? And/Or, has anyone cruised this itinerary? Would love to hear the pros and cons asap as we have a hold on one cabin that will soon expire. I look forward to your input!!!

[Nurse Bambi]

The Diamond is a little larger and holds 2670 and the Summit holds 1950 passengers. Food, service and entertainment are about the same on both ships. For me the biggest difference is the recurring pod problems that plague the Summit. These problems happen about once per year and have shortened cruises and have forced the last minute cancellation of others. Another Princess advantage is the past passenger program, which far exceeds what Celebrity offers. For example after your fifth cruise on Princess you are given free Internet, plus other perks. Given the above, it would tip the scales toward the Diamond, for me. Hope this helps.

God luck in which ever one you choose.

[patde44]

Thanks for your input NurseBambi. You made some really good points.

[Rev22:17]

patde44

 

We're considering a RT from Southern CA to Hawaii for fall 2007. A number of lines go there, but the best prices we've found are the Diamond and the Summit, which are in the same price ball park. Has anyone cruised both of them? And/Or, has anyone cruised this itinerary? Would love to hear the pros and cons asap as we have a hold on one cabin that will soon expire. I look forward to your input!!!

 

To me, that's no contest. MV Grand Princess has the worst layout of any ship on which I have ever encountered in twenty-one cruises, and the layout of MV Diamond Princess copied nearly all of the flaws. Now, mind you, I would never let annoyances like the absence of gathering space outside the dining room that offers Traditional Dining, causing the elevator/stair landing to get so packed that handicapped passengers coming down for dinner can't get off the elevator, and promenades that are too narrow for the lounges normally placed there ruin my cruise, but such annoyances certainly don't contribute to my enjoyment of a cruise -- and these ships have many of them. If I'm paying the bill, you can be sure that the cruise will be on a ship with a layout that works.

 

I would not worry too much about the Azipod problems on the ships of Celebrity's Millennium class. Yes, they do fail, requiring emergency drydocking for repairs, about once per year, but Celebrity has been quite generous with compensation to affected passengers. The normal compensation for a cancelled cruise is a full refund plus a free cruise of equal duration, with your travel agent getting full commission for both. When Celebrity cancelled my cruise to Alaska in June 2005, I simply rebooked on the same itinerary in July 2005 and went to Alaska as Celebrity's guest. This is positively the best deal in cruising today!

 

Norm.

[sailinglisa]

I've been on both the Summit and the Diamond.....and to me, hands down (and I am a Princess lover, being Platinum with them compared with only two cruises and one coming up on Celebrity), the Summit wins hands down.

 

There are some good things about the diamond - the aft Terrace Pool which is adult only, the 24 hour Horizon Court for food. But, the layout of the ship is poor compared to the Summit.

 

Room size - hands down to the Summit! Showers are nice sized, rooms are somewhat bigger and the bedding and mattresses are much better. Princess's bathrooms and showers are so small, the phrase get wet, soap up, spin and rinse is true. No room to wiggle for a normal sized person.

 

The Diamond has more dining options, for sure, but I never went hungry on the Summit. Service is a tad more formal on the Summit than on the Diamond.

 

JMHO, but I would choose the Summit over the Diamond. Maybe I hit the Diamond on a bad week, but still the Summit wins in my book.

[two rabbits]

patde44

I would not worry too much about the Azipod problems on the ships of Celebrity's Millennium class. Yes, they do fail, requiring emergency drydocking for repairs, about once per year, but Celebrity has been quite generous with compensation to affected passengers. The normal compensation for a cancelled cruise is a full refund plus a free cruise of equal duration, with your travel agent getting full commission for both. When Celebrity cancelled my cruise to Alaska in June 2005, I simply rebooked on the same itinerary in July 2005 and went to Alaska as Celebrity's guest. This is positively the best deal in cruising today!

 

Norm.

 

Hi Norm: One correction to your post is that Celebrity M-Class ships do not use the Azipod propulsion system. The Azipod system, BTW, has been a fairly reliable propulsion system. Celebrity uses a different system manufactured by Rolls Royce and Alstom on its M-Class ships. These systems have had problems ever since there introduction in 2000. There have a total of some where around sixteen failures of this pod system. Celebrity currently has 300 million dollar lawsuit against the manufacturer.

The other point is that while it is true if you are booked on the cruise that is cancelled for dry dock when the pod failures occurs, you will receive a "free" cruise from a selection of cruises from Celebrity. The down side is if you are on the ship when the problem starts the compensation can be downright insulting. For example the Summit cruise this year had a pod failure in Alaska on a thirteen night cruise and missed over 1/2 of an Itinerary and skipped two ports completely and the offer of compensation from Celebrity was $200 per cabin. Later, after a lot of passenger complaints, Celebrity offered a 30% future cruise credit if you were willing to book at full price. While you can "win" the pod lottery there is just a good of a chance that you could also lose in the pod lottery.

[chumley]

Hi,

We have sailed both on the Diamond and the Summit and my vote would be for the Summit. We did the Hawaii cruise last December on the Summit and it was fabulous. We are booked for that same cruise 12/07 and would have booked for 2006 but it didn't fit in with the kids school schedule. We liked the Diamond Princess also but the service was much better on the Summit, especially in the dining room. We had traditional dining on Princess so I can't comment on how the alternative restaurants work. My kids (12,15 and 18) all liked Celebrity's kid/teen program better than Princess as well.

I'm sure you'll have a great cruise no matter which ship you choose!

Leslie

[Host Anne]

I'd vote for Summit, too, if it weren't for the pod problems. I, too, much prefer the layout of the Summit (she's one of our favorite ships) over the Diamond (have not sailed her but have been on other Grand class vessels). But I'm among those no longer taking chances on the M-class ships with our vacation. Until the pod problems are permanently solved, we'll likely be sailing Century class ships with Celebrity.

[Nurse Bambi]

I'd vote for Summit, too, if it weren't for the pod problems. I, too, much prefer the layout of the Summit (she's one of our favorite ships) over the Diamond (have not sailed her but have been on other Grand class vessels). But I'm among those no longer taking chances on the M-class ships with our vacation. Until the pod problems are permanently solved, we'll likely be sailing Century class ships with Celebrity.

 

Host Anne;

Thanks for your candor and honesty with your opinion about the pod problems on the Celebrity M-class ships. I agree that the Summit is the perfect size for a cruise ship. The service, food and entertainment are also very good.

I agree with you when you stated "I'm among those no longer taking chances on the M-class ships with my vacation, until the pod problems are permanently solved". I have met may others who still sail on Celebrity, but who avoid M-class ships.

[Canes Rule]

I have met may others who still sail on Celebrity, but who avoid M-class ships.

 

No more M-class for me as well!!!

 

I am willing to try Journey when it comes on line depending upon how they set it up. Right now they are charging a pretty high per diem for an un-known entity with rumors abounding (such as a butler for every room on the ship - how can that be).

 

As far as the three new ships they will be too big for my liking - and I can't see how Celebrity can maintain its level of service and experience while trying to fill ships of that size. Per diems get very low on the mega ships due to the abundance of inside cabins created.

 

Galaxy and Mercury need a little bit more maintenance to get to the level that Celebrity is trying to portray in their advertising. So that leaves Century for me right now and even that is not getting very glowing reports overall.

[Rev22:17]

two rabbits,

 

One correction to your post is that Celebrity M-Class ships do not use the Azipod propulsion system. The Azipod system, BTW, has been a fairly reliable propulsion system. Celebrity uses a different system manufactured by Rolls Royce and Alstom on its M-Class ships. These systems have had problems ever since there introduction in 2000. There have a total of some where around sixteen failures of this pod system. Celebrity currently has 300 million dollar lawsuit against the manufacturer.

 

Call it whatever you like, but it's a poor design, regardless of who builds the unit, because it puts likely failure points (main thrust bearings) in a location that requires drydocking the ship for repairs. On a conventional shaft, the main thrust bearings are inside the hull where the crew can replace them at sea if they fail.

 

Now, it's time for honesty in reporting....

 

The other point is that while it is true if you are booked on the cruise that is cancelled for dry dock when the pod failures occurs, you will receive a "free" cruise from a selection of cruises from Celebrity.

 

The list is "all cuises of equal or lesser duration that are not completely booked" that fall in a substantial period of time (mine was about nineteen months) after the cacellation. This is not nearly as restrictive as your post makes it sound.

 

The down side is if you are on the ship when the problem starts the compensation can be downright insulting. For example the Summit cruise this year had a pod failure in Alaska on a thirteen night cruise and missed over 1/2 of an Itinerary and skipped two ports completely and the offer of compensation from Celebrity was $200 per cabin.

 

If you actually read the contract of passage that you had to accept before you can embarked, you would have known that the initial compensation was $200 per cabin more than that to which you were legally entitiled.

 

Norm.

[JLC@SD]

patde44

To me, that's no contest. MV Grand Princess has the worst layout of any ship on which I have ever encountered in twenty-one cruises, and the layout of MV Diamond Princess copied nearly all of the flaws. Now, mind you, I would never let annoyances like the absence of gathering space outside the dining room that offers Traditional Dining, causing the elevator/stair landing to get so packed that handicapped passengers coming down for dinner can't get off the elevator, and promenades that are too narrow for the lounges normally placed there ruin my cruise, but such annoyances certainly don't contribute to my enjoyment of a cruise -- and these ships have many of them. If I'm paying the bill, you can be sure that the cruise will be on a ship with a layout that works.

 

I would not worry too much about the Azipod problems on the ships of Celebrity's Millennium class.:confused: Yes, they do fail, requiring emergency drydocking for repairs, about once per year, but Celebrity has been quite generous with compensation to affected passengers. The normal compensation for a cancelled cruise is a full refund plus a free cruise of equal duration, with your travel agent getting full commission for both. When Celebrity cancelled my cruise to Alaska in June 2005, I simply rebooked on the same itinerary in July 2005 and went to Alaska as Celebrity's guest. This is positively the best deal in cruising today!

 

Norm.

To me there is also no contest.

 

Crowd at Traditional Dining.....easy solution.....show up a couple of minutes after the doors open....and everyone has already entered.....:)

 

and .........I prefer to do the cruise I booked.....not the free one I will get after the ship propulsion fails.....like it has many times on the Celebrity's Millennium class including Summit and other azipod ships......;)

[JLC@SD]

To me there is also no contest.

and .........I prefer to do the cruise I booked.....not the free one I will get after the ship propulsion fails.....like it has many times on the Celebrity's Millennium class including Summit and other azipod ships......;)

 

as I was saying ......I saw this.....INFINITY is broken down again

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=448006

 

AND

 

More Bearing Problems for Millie - Millie Cancellation (Combined Thread)

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=443985

[Canes Rule]

Diamond Princess - pretty much guaranteed going on a cruise.

 

Celebrity Summit - if you pick this one you probably enjoy Vegas as well 'cause its a gamble as to whether you go or not or even where you will go.

[Nurse Bambi]

To me there is also no contest.

 

Crowd at Traditional Dining.....easy solution.....show up a couple of minutes after the doors open....and everyone has already entered.....:)

 

and .........I prefer to do the cruise I booked.....not the free one I will get after the ship propulsion fails.....like it has many times on the Celebrity's Millennium class including Summit and other azipod ships......;)

 

You are right when you stated "I prefer to do the cruise I booked".

I would add to that thought, I also prefer to go on the itinerary that I have purchased and not skip ports and sail a shortened or altered itinerary of Celebrity's choice. This is not a one of a kind problem, it is a known mechanical problem. If this latest Infinity reported problem turns out to be pods, it will be the fourth pod failure in less than seven months.

[patde44]

I so appreciate all your input - it's been quite an education!

 

I booked the Diamond today! I was anxious for a first Celebrity cruise, but decided the Summit, at least for now, might not be the best introduction. We've had some grumbles on past Princess cruises, but we've also had some wonderful times. The grumbles fade quickly, though, and the wonderful times live on. The pod problems and the inclusion of Kauai helped tip the scales toward Princess. Also, if all else was equal, DH would prefer the bigger ship.

 

Am hoping to drive to LA and stay at Doubletree (as learned elsewhere on the boards), once they have their 2007 Park & Cruise rates.

 

Again, many thanks and happy sails to you!

[two rabbits]

Patde44,

You are very welcome. I don't if this was mentioned, but there is a Westin in Long Beach that is also very nice.

Have a great cruise.