Summit or Explorer:10 or 7 days?

[island04]

I've cruised a lot in the past, however, I've never cruised longer than 7 nights. I've also never cruised on Celebrity. From what I understand, the Summit is a beautiful ship. My biggest concern is that I'll be "stuck" on the ship with elderly people and will end up bored. I KNOW I would have a great time on the Explorer. The attraction of the Summit to me is the itinerary it offers. I've never been to St. Kitts, St. Lucia, or Barbados. Someone PLEASE give me some tips on what to do. I'm looking at sailing on the Summit November 26 or the Explorer November 28. Thanks ahead of time for any help.

[Host Joe]

In my honest opinion, I would take the Summit anyday over the Explorer. We have been on the Infinity (Summits sister) and it is our favorite ship/line taken to date. My partner and I are in our mid-30's and did not feel too young on the Infinity at all. Definitely a little older crowd, but it was great. The Explorer on the other hand, we were on in March and HATED it! The Explorer caters to families with lots of kids that roamed the ship and the ship has really taken a beating... it looks like it is 10 years old! Anyway, I hope that all of this helps!

[CelebrityMan]

Hi,

I have to second the previous poster: by all means sail on the Summit!! My partner & I are in our mid-40s and have sailed exclusively with Celebrity since the late '90s. Never once have we felt out of place or that it was an "older crowd."

We've sailed on the Summit, and believe you'll find it a magnificent Celebrity Cruise Lines choice. As part of their four-ship "Millenium" class of vessels it is one of the most comfortable and well-appointed ships we've ever sailed on. The decor is cosmopolitan and elegant, without being pretentious.

Celebrity does tend to appeal to a bit more upscale clientele, and they strive to cultivate a more personalized level of service among the mass market lines. Still, we've never been bored on a Celebrity ship! There's SO much to do, and always interesting people to visit with. Each sailing is different depending on the mix — one time the discos will be hopping 'til the wee hours, another they'll be emptied out by Midnight or 1:00.

Sounds like you're considering a 10-day sailing? Don't worry about the duration, it won't be long enough. ;) When I introduced my partner to cruise travel on a 7-night sailing, he couldn't wait to do more. Now he'd NEVER go back to the 7-night. In fact, our next one is 15 nights.

I'm sure you'll make some wonderful friends on your Celebrity cruise — among both passengers and crew.

Have a great cruise!!!



CM

[island04]

I appreciate both posters for for their reply to my question. CelebrityMan...you made the Summit sound fun...and a little promising! Yes, I am looking at a 10-night going all the way down to Barbados. I'm certainly not worried about the cruise itself being too long! I've been on 30 cruises and love to cruise! I've always enjoyed the passengers AND crew I've met on Royal Caribbean. I'm sure there will be many nice and interesting people to meet on Celebrity, too. I was on an RCCL cruise last Feb. and the Capt. let all of us know that we were 90% over the age of 60. There was NEVER anyone in the disco the whole week. Oh well, I guess I'll just have to give it a try and see. I've also been looking at RCCL's Brilliance Of The Seas doing a 10-night to Aruba, Costa Rica, Panama Canal, Cozumel, and Grand Cayman. Thanks again and have a great day/night!

[mjlafarr]

We are also a gay couple in our 30's we went on the Explorer a year ago, and I agree with the person who wrote how surprised they were about how this ship already looks beat up. There were kids everywhere, out of control. It was our first trip and we were disappointed becuase of all of the kids. My bet would be avoid the Explorer. (We are going on our second cruise this winter and we are going to try Princess.)
Best of luck!

[CelebrityMan]

Hi island04,

Thanks for your kinds words. I'll put in another plug (don't go THERE) :rolleyes: for Celebrity vs. RCCL. While they are the same corporate family, they are separate lines and Celebrity is the more upscale line in every way.

I think you'd appreciate the finer points of Celebrity, i.e., the higher, more personalized service, the ambience, and the quality of their food and dining experience.

On our last Celebrity cruise the announced average age was 55, so you know there were plenty of younger folk aboard. We've always found Celebrity to be a very pleasant mix.

The western Caribbean itinerary you describe is a wonderful trip. I'm sure you'd do well to select RCCL's "Brilliance" for it, but I think Celebrity has a similar sailing. ;)



CM

[island04]

Thanks for the plug! I just got a response from another board telling me to stay away from the Summit. What to do, what to do! Oh well, who knows? I'll probably make a last minute snap decision. When do you cruise again? What part of the country are you living in? Just curious. Have a great one!

[CelebrityMan]

Hey Island04,

Someone said to stay away from Summit? Hmmmm.... I can't imagine why, unless they were sour grapes about something. All lines have their unexplainable "moments." I hope that poster will give Celebrity another chance — unless, of course, nothing would satisfy them short of a Radisson or Seabourn ship. If that's true, we don't need their "attitude" ruining our time on Celebrity.

We cruise again in May, 2005, a 15-night sailing from Ft. Lauderdale to San Francisco. We are SO looking forward to it!! We've done the Canal with Celebrity before, but in the opposite direction.

Our part of the country is diagonally opposite you: you're in Florida, we're in Washington state — very near Mt. St. Helens.

And, you're welcome to the plug. Always glad to help family. ;)

Have a great weekend, guy!




CM

[island04]

Thanks, once again, for the kind input. Yeah, I'm not sure about the other poster telling me to stay away from the Summit. It's ok, though. Some replies, I just take with a grain of salt. Washington? Wow! That is quite a distance, indeed! Your next cruise sounds like a blast! I'm sure you'll enjoy it. I would love to do that, but I DON'T FLY! Too long to explain why. Have a great weekend!

[CelebrityMan]

Hey Guy,

Don't fly? Well, since we end in San Francisco I'm sure you could take Amtrak home.... ;) Might take awhile, but you'd see more of the country.

Have a good Saturday!



CM

[BraznCdn2]

[color=green][b]My partner and I have just booked onto the [/b][/color]

[b][size=4][color=green]SUMMIT (10day Caribbean) Nov 26 2004[/color][/size][/b][b][color=#008000]

Anyone else on this cruise?[/color][/b]

[scot01]

We sailed on the Summit last year - 11 day western. It was great.

We met many FOD's on the cruise and felt the crew to be very gay friendly. I would guesstimate there were 20 to 23 couple on board and 10 to 15 singles.

The Disco was crowded until 2am most nights and we had an absolute blast laying around on deck during sea days.

We also met many straight couples that made the trip fun for us (we all bonded , ain't it cute). And still stay in touch.

We met one gay couple who live two hours away and have had sleep overs several times since.

All that being said --------- I highly recomend Celebrity.

Scot

[BraznCdn2]

This may be a silly question... but, what's an FOD?

[CelebrityMan]

Brazn,

FOD is code for "Friends of Dorothy." It's in the same vein as "Friends of Bill W." The former is a way for G/L travellers to post a notice of a get-tegether aboard ship, and the latter refers to the same thing for members of Alcoholics Anonymous.

When on a Celebrity ship (and many others ;) ) you'll see these listings quite often in the daily program or newsletter. "Friends of Dorothy" meet in the Martini Bar at 4:00 p.m." or "Friends of Bill W. meet in the Card Room at 4:30 p.m." or something similar....

It's a quaint hold-over tradition from the past when society was less accepting and affirming. Please God, don't let anyone succeed in pushing us back that direction!! :( :rolleyes: :mad: :confused:



CM