Celebrity Summit Review

My experience on Celebrity Summit 02/2018

Review for the Eastern Caribbean Cruise on Celebrity Summit
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wcolton
2-5 Cruises • Age 60s

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Sail Date: Feb 2018
Cabin: Aqua Class

Let me start out by saying that this cruise was our 5th. We have done 2 Norwegians and previously we have been on Celebrity Silhouette and Reflection. After some serious research we have decided to remain loyal to Celebrity as they seem to suit our life style. We like good food, exciting cocktails, fantastic service and an older more refined crowd that still likes to enjoy themselves. We chose Summit this year because of the Caribbean itinerary. We want to go to places that we have not yet been which starts to get a little difficult after having been on 5 cruises. Summit is an older, smaller ship than those we have sailed on in the past however, reviews were good and a smaller ship can be a more intimate experience they stated. We opted for the Aqua Class having done Concierge class on past Celebrity Cruises. In a nutshell, it was explained to me by Celebrity Aqua Class generally includes all the amenities of Concierge Class plus additional perks such as access to exclusive Blu restaurant and the Persian Gardens Spa. The boarding process was painless and stream lined. One of the first things I noticed once on board was the age of the ship. Although maintained well one could not help but notice the rust that is inevitable when saltwater comes in contact with steel. Having never sailed on an older ship one could not help but feel a little sad to see what was once been a grand lady of the seas starting to show her age. Not a deal breaker but lesson learned. After taking a walkabout the ship we were ready for some lunch. Upon arriving at the main dining room we were informed that the lunch this day was only for Concierge Class. Whoo, Whoo, Whoo, stop the clock. We're Aqua Class. Aqua Class is higher on the food chain than Concierge and Blu is not open for lunch. Where are we to eat? Well, where else...the buffet. People cruise for many reasons. Some people cruise for the all you can eat buffet. We're not one of them. If you've never been to the buffet on a cruise ship it’s a feeding frenzy. I don't want to come off as an elitist, I’m not, it’s just that we are more quality than quantity although we have been known to enjoy the buffet for breakfast and coffee on port days before an excursion. OK, not a deal breaker just another lesson learned.

Blu was nice with amazing service. The staff were attentive, remembered our names, preferences and always seated us quickly. The food was what I would consider average. After several nights we started comparing the Blu menu to the Main dining room menu. This night we liked what was being served in the main dining room so we decided to eat there. It’s a different experience. Blu is small and intimate. The main dining room is grander with its 2 story ceiling to floor windows, grand stair case and is more akin to the tradition of cruise ship sailing from days gone by. “Table for 2 please.” “What’s that? Were Aqua Class and we have to eat in Blu?” “But we don’t care for the menu in Blu tonight. I’m sorry sir but you must eat at Blu”. And before we could say a word the hostess was on the phone with the matra de at Blu explaining to him that 2 of his diners had gone rogue and were currently off the reservation, no pun intended. We returned to Blu where our matra de was waiting for use. He seemed genuinely disappointed in us. We told him that we love Blu, it’s just that this night we decided to go for a change. Would it be possible to order off the Main Dining room menu? After all both restaurants share a common kitchen. We were told that this would be nearly impossible and would take forever. Do you see where I’m going with this? Perhaps we are just not Aqua Class people. Perhaps, just perhaps were are Concierge people. After it was all said and done we were able to get the meals from the main dining room in Blu but not without feeling a little like pains in the ass. OK, I have yet to have a bad day on a cruise ship and these turn of events were far from doing so. It’s like going to a restaurant and ordering wrong. There is nothing wrong with the meal. I just didn’t care for it. Getting back to the age of the ship. Did I mention that it was starting to show her age? She was. And along with that it seemed that a lot of things were not working as they should. No deal breakers but accumulatively it started to become a Nuisance.

Let me give you a couple of examples. Our refrigerator in our room didn’t work, no problem they replaced it however the new one never really got to temp. My card would not work in the door to our cabin. It would work for a while and then it would just stop. I literally had to have it changed 4 times. The door to the balcony would not stay open in high seas. I would put the deck chair in the door way to keep it open while we slept. The bottom of the shower door did not make a good seal and the bathroom floor would fill up with water during showers. We did the best we could until the seal completely fell off. I told our cabin steward about this and told him that I would leave the seal in the sink. The remote for the TV did not work and had to be replaced. When we had returned to our cabin it still had not been repaired. One night we stopped into the wine cellar for a happy hour. My wife had 2 glasses of Sauvignon Blanc, her go to drink and I had a Monkey Shoulders Scotch. Keep in mind I am not a Scotch drinker I ordered it because I like the name. The next morning we saw a charge on our account for $70.00. When I enquired about the charge I was told it was for 2 glass of wine and a glass of scotch. Whoo, Whoo, Whoo, stop the clock. I have the Premium Drink package. Did I mention that I was Aqua Class.? Shouldn’t your bartender give you a head up if you are ordering something out of your package? Shouldn’t you have to sign something if you are ordering out of package? I was pretty sure I did not sign anything and I told the Guest Relations Rep that if I did I would own it but I don’t think I did. And to add insult to injury I would have enjoyed the scotch a hell of a lot more had I know what I was paying for it. In the end they voided the charge. Anyhow I’m rambling. Despite this less than stellar review I still love Celebrity and I have already booked my next cruse on The Equinox in Jan 2019. I still feel that Celebrity is a great value and will continue to cruise with them. Hope this is helpful. More to follow.......................

Cabin Review

Aqua Class

Cabin A2

Aft facing cabins can be spectacular. I chose this one because it was as high as you can get and had a larger balcony than side facing cabins. It was one floor up from the Sunset Lounge which we could access from a stair way just outside our door. Thought this would be a plus and it was in the evening. The drawback is in the morning where diners are using it to eat the buffet breakfast. Very noise. Also the cabin is one floor down from the outdoor movie theater which ran till quite late in the night. Very loud Were not able to leave the balcony door open at night which we usually like to do. Still could hear sound from the movie.

Port Reviews

Nassau

Lovely snorkel trip to Pearl Island with lunch

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