Review of Summit 1/10 southern caribbean sailing

[scapel]

Your a star ... thank you I am excited again .. I have only read these two threads ( you helped me on the other one too) I was getting despondent. I wonder if you could explain the roll call or celebrity connections thing, I followed the links but I couldn't find anyone .. I've read that you can make links with people before sailing? To be honest, that's not hugely important to us but if we can I would like to look at it. I love the way you describe the ship, not at all as I imagined and we do both appreciate art so I look forward to it... and the Normandie is a must for us .. it is consistently reviewed in positive light.

Hey Novice girl,

here are some links to two threads. You didn't say which cruise you were on in march. In case you have trouble finding the threads I found them and posted the link. Save it in favorites.

March 21

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=893922

 

March 28

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=810844

 

If you are a new cruiser you might type cruise diva in google. That has some good stuff for first time cruisers.

You won't be dissapponted with the Summit.

================\

My PAST CRUISES: 1.Stella Oceanus 1975 South America, 2. Stella Oceanus 1977 Black Sea and Crimean Peninsula. 3. Mermox 1979 Med. Rome,Sicily,and Nice,Malta. 4. SS Freeport to Gulf Mexico. 5.Vistafjord to Caribbean 1981. 6. Sagafjord to Alaska 1983. 7. Stella Solaris to Aegean, Israel and Egypt 1984. 8. Mississippi Queen out of New Orleans. 9. Nantucket Clipper out of Boston 10. Fairsky to Caribbean 1987. 11. Royal Odyssey Med.& Dubrovnik. 12. Carnivalle to Bahamas 1990. 13. Crown Odyssey to Eastern South America 1991. 14.Monarch of the Seas Eastern Caribbean 1995. 15 Royal Odyssey (Old Royal Viking Sea) Panama Canal 1995. 16 Egypt-Nile River Cruise 1996.

17. Splendour of the Seas- Fjords of Norway 1997. 18 Sun Viking –Orient Cruise 1997.

19. Renaissance R-4 Barcelona-Lisbon 1999. 20. Paradise- Caribbean 1999.

21. Millennium to Baltic Capitals 2000. 22. Summit to Caribbean 2001.

23. Constellation –Fjords of Norway 2002. 24.Horizon –Mexico 2003. 25. Infinity to Alaska 2003. 26. Holiday to Mexico 2003. 27. Infinity -South America Cape Horn 2004. 28. Constellation- Transatlantic 2004. 29.Legend of Seas- Western Caribbean 2005.

30. Millennium- Panama Canal 2006. 31. Rhapsody of Seas- Western Caribbean 2006. 32. Constellation- New England/Canada 2006. 33.Millennium-Caribbean 2007. 34.Voyager of the Seas- Caribbean 35.Mercury- South Pacific 2007.

[scapel]

The seating is at 8:45? I thought it was at 8:00. I am in the late seating and have 4 preteens/teens. I know they will not last till 8:45 where I thought I had a shot for 8. Are you sure ad does anyone know if it is too late for me to change it for an April sailing?

 

You can always try to change your seating assignment. If you were scheduled to sit with someone else you need to co-ordinate (link) the booking numbers.

If your sailing is during a school spring break early seating is harder to come by. If it is not a school break, early seating is easier to get, and late seatiing is harder to get.

Which ever, don't give up. If you can't get changed before boarding go to the Maitre'd as soon as you board and try again.

Check your seating assignment as soon as you board and get to your room. Many times what you think you have is not what is on your card.

[ladyonboard]

We were also on this sailing. We found the ship to be lovely, the staff to be friendly and helpful! We were in FV 7199 and our room steward, Romano was on top of everything. We enjoy cranberry juice and ordered them the first couple of mornings. The 3rd day we returned to our room to find a huge can of Ocean Spray Cranberry Juice for us to enjoy. And this cabin is fabulous! Our kids had a balcony on 6 and they loved coming up to share our extended balcony with us. (that made it worth the extra $$ if nothing else)

Our waiter and assistant were very good also. We had late seating and were on the upper level of the dining room. Jay, our assistant waiter was particularly engaging. He loved to sing and tell jokes. we really enjoyed him! We found the food in the MDR to be good to awful. Nothing was outstanding. The lobster on lobster night was tasteless and dry...had a freezer burn or some other "old" taste to it. The steaks were very thin and once again tasteless. Some of the appetizers and soups were good. The bread was good and fresh. We enjoyed the Normandie 1 night and unfortunately had to compare every meal thereafter to that meal. There is no comparison! Some people were eating in the Normandie on multiple nights.

 

The entertainment that we saw was just okay. We will never figure out why the theme from the Titanic was played so often...we heard it in the MDR a couple of nights and then this woman vocalist sang it in the theater...how inappropriate! And her voice was not able to carry off that song. VERY poor choice in my opinion. We did find the pianist entertaining. We are not musicians and thought that he and the Celebrity orchestra worked very nicely together. We found them to be the best of the entertainment. The singing and dancing was fine, not great, just okay. The comic/juggler was not very good. The couple who swang from scarves were good, but, it was pretty repetitious. The A cappella group was just okay (my son sang A cappella in College and his group was GREAT!)

 

A little story about carrying liquor on board. We stopped to fill the rent car with gas before dropping it off at the agency. DH used a credit card and the station had a 15.00 min. purchase to use a cc. So, he bought 2 small bottles of beer to make up the difference. I told DH we couldn't bring beer on board, he thought that was silly. So, I stuck them in my carry on bag to see what would happen and I was pulled aside after my bag was scanned. They would not allow those 2 small bottles on board with me. I tell you this for those who continually ask about sneaking liquor on board. They clearly are confiscating alcohol being brought on board.

 

All in all, we had a very nice cruise! We bought some artwork at the auction which really are not auctions. They don't have people bidding against each other. If interested in a piece, they tell you the price and then bring it up. No one ever bid against anyone else that I witnessed.

 

Bought jewelry in Aruba, spices in Grenada and enjoyed the ports of call very much. Our weather was perfect last week. I am happy to answer any questions anyone might have...just ask!

[ParrotHead4Life]

We're on Summit the first week in March and am planning to eat in the buffet or the Waterfall (?) alternative every night. Can you give me an idea of what type of entrees are served in the Waterfall area and is it a $2 service charge per person? Thanks!

 

 

The waterfall bistro has a good menu - NY strip, salmon and risotto are standards - unfortunately I can't remember what the other entree options were. You can also order off the main dining room menu as well. They will have a "du jour" option for appetizer, entree and dessert too.

 

I had a spinach salad with a thai-lemon viniagrette that was unbelievably good. After our 2nd night there, I asked our server if he'd be able to get a recipe. He was able to get me an ingredient list, but since they make in bulk I couldn't get a small recipe. I guess I have some experimenting to do...

 

The $2 per person service charge is optional - in fact, I had to actually ask someone to ring up the service charge for us each time.

[ParrotHead4Life]

hi parrothead!

am booked on the summit for later in the year. someone posted that the ship is dead after 10. is that so? is there dancing, live bands? thanks

angelina46

 

There's plenty of music and dancing, although I'm also dead after 10, so I can't tell you what it was like :)

[ParrotHead4Life]

A little story about carrying liquor on board. We stopped to fill the rent car with gas before dropping it off at the agency. DH used a credit card and the station had a 15.00 min. purchase to use a cc. So, he bought 2 small bottles of beer to make up the difference. I told DH we couldn't bring beer on board, he thought that was silly. So, I stuck them in my carry on bag to see what would happen and I was pulled aside after my bag was scanned. They would not allow those 2 small bottles on board with me. I tell you this for those who continually ask about sneaking liquor on board. They clearly are confiscating alcohol being brought on board.

 

 

 

Ironically enough, on every cruise we've been on , we've packed a bottle of captain morgan in our checked luggage (NOT carry on's) and it has always made it to our stateroom!

[ParrotHead4Life]

Did you have Elizabeth as your room attendant

 

 

No, we had Jose.

[caribbeanchickie]

[quote name=erniesband;

 

In conclusion: I felt that while Celebrity advertises personalized service' date=' gourmet dining and exciting entertainment they do not live up to their advertising. I’ve concluded that service on both ships to be equal. There are outstanding, average, and the occasional poor service personnel on both ships. The dining and entertainment on Serenade was better than on Summit. I’ll be staying with RCI.

 

That’s my opinion, I could be wrong.

 

Ernie[/quote]

 

I couldn't agree with you more. We were first time celebrity cruisers and had high expectations, service wise. The Service was the worse we ever had on a cruise and we would likely never cruise Celebrity again. Unless of course it was FREE....LOL!

 

The ship was in great condition. Loved the Decor, ambiance and art work.

Shopping was the BEST i've ever seen for a cruise ship! :D

I thought the food in the MDR was great. My steak was cooked much better then the one I ordered in the Normandie. :eek:

 

IMHO- Entertainment was lacking something..:confused: 2 of the singers were down right awful. I

Out of all the entertainment, the only thing we thoroughly enjoyed the aerialist? (sp?)

It was the first time being on a cruise and dreading the nightly Ent.

YES, We could have opted to not go but we had hoped it would get better as the week went on.

 

Don't get me wrong, despite all our customer service "issues", we had a fabulous week visiting ports and family.

[caribbeanchickie]

We were also on this sailing. We found the ship to be lovely, the staff to be friendly and helpful! We were in FV 7199 and our room steward, Romano was on top of everything. We enjoy cranberry juice and ordered them the first couple of mornings. The 3rd day we returned to our room to find a huge can of Ocean Spray Cranberry Juice for us to enjoy. And this cabin is fabulous! Our kids had a balcony on 6 and they loved coming up to share our extended balcony with us. (that made it worth the extra $$ if nothing else)

Our waiter and assistant were very good also. We had late seating and were on the upper level of the dining room. Jay, our assistant waiter was particularly engaging. He loved to sing and tell jokes. we really enjoyed him! We found the food in the MDR to be good to awful. Nothing was outstanding. The lobster on lobster night was tasteless and dry...had a freezer burn or some other "old" taste to it. The steaks were very thin and once again tasteless. Some of the appetizers and soups were good. The bread was good and fresh. We enjoyed the Normandie 1 night and unfortunately had to compare every meal thereafter to that meal. There is no comparison! Some people were eating in the Normandie on multiple nights.

 

The entertainment that we saw was just okay. We will never figure out why the theme from the Titanic was played so often...we heard it in the MDR a couple of nights and then this woman vocalist sang it in the theater...how inappropriate! And her voice was not able to carry off that song. VERY poor choice in my opinion. We did find the pianist entertaining. We are not musicians and thought that he and the Celebrity orchestra worked very nicely together. We found them to be the best of the entertainment. The singing and dancing was fine, not great, just okay. The comic/juggler was not very good. The couple who swang from scarves were good, but, it was pretty repetitious. The A cappella group was just okay (my son sang A cappella in College and his group was GREAT!)

 

A little story about carrying liquor on board. We stopped to fill the rent car with gas before dropping it off at the agency. DH used a credit card and the station had a 15.00 min. purchase to use a cc. So, he bought 2 small bottles of beer to make up the difference. I told DH we couldn't bring beer on board, he thought that was silly. So, I stuck them in my carry on bag to see what would happen and I was pulled aside after my bag was scanned. They would not allow those 2 small bottles on board with me. I tell you this for those who continually ask about sneaking liquor on board. They clearly are confiscating alcohol being brought on board.

 

All in all, we had a very nice cruise! We bought some artwork at the auction which really are not auctions. They don't have people bidding against each other. If interested in a piece, they tell you the price and then bring it up. No one ever bid against anyone else that I witnessed.

 

Bought jewelry in Aruba, spices in Grenada and enjoyed the ports of call very much. Our weather was perfect last week. I am happy to answer any questions anyone might have...just ask!

 

 

We were in 7195 (Jan 3) and had Ramone as well. He wasn't my favorite room steward but, he was OK.

 

Re Liquor: I witnessed several bottles being confiscated during embarkation.

I read the boards beforehand and went prepared. My liquor was in RUM RUNNERS and packed in my checked luggage! They arrived to our cabin just fine. :D

[grandmkmk]

Thanks, Michelle, we are going soon and I was starting to worry a bit: got the rum runners but never used them before... Glad to hear they worked for you!

[caribbeanchickie]

Thanks, Michelle, we are going soon and I was starting to worry a bit: got the rum runners but never used them before... Glad to hear they worked for you!

 

Make sure you pack them in CHECKED BAGS. Don't carry them on.

GOOD LUCK and, HAVE FUN!:)

[grandmkmk]

Make sure you pack them in CHECKED BAGS. Don't carry them on.

GOOD LUCK and, HAVE FUN!:)

 

Thanks, Michelle. Got home Saturday and the 'rum runners' worked fine. Friends who were on a Carnival cruise last week also report that the rr's were a hit. We also packed two bottles of wine in our checked luggage, wrapped in bubble-wrap, and luckily they were both 'screw tops' as I had forgotten a corkscrew! At the port we purchased a bottle of Asti to carry on - the cashier at the Duty Free shop told us that it was not considered wine and we would not be allowed to take it to our cabins. But several of us purchased it anyway (it says sparkling wine on the front label!) and decided we would drink it on the gangplank if they didn't allow it onboard : )

 

All in all, we had a wonderful time, great food (with the exception on one steak and my tuna-steak), great ports, great weather, great service...On board, we switched to the late (8:30) dinner because of the late times getting back on board at most ports. Sometimes we went to see shows before dinner but most were not so hot. Usually took a short walk after dinner and went to bed by 11! Would go again in a heart-beat!!!