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Celebrity Summit

Riga

Our cruise was a 6 night reposition calling in Bermuda, St Thomas and disembarking is San Juan PR.
We have sailed on Celebrity many times, and have never been disappointed with the food or service, however, from the moment we boarded, the warmth and hospitality of the entire staff overwhelmed us.   Everyone who works on the Summit takes great pride in delivering great service, from our cabin steward Bizuki, who fulfilled our requests with speed and to our utmost satisfaction, to our waiter Alfredo in the MDR and Abdullah in the buffet cafe who welcomed us warmly on first day and inquiring about our cruise experience each time we saw him, bringing our tea and coffee, carrying our trays, (yes, we had trays)! The pool bar staff who were always available and happy to deliver my Pellegrino water in an ice bucket- the service on this ship was flawless! Everywhere we went we were greeted with a smile by all.
Food on the ship is still very good, true, there have been cutbacks, but this is the case on all ships I've taken in the past 5 years on all shipping lines, and Celebrity still leads with quality provisions, selection and presentation.  I especially like the second sea day brunch, it's a great replacement  to the now extinct midnight buffet.  Realistically it is a much better time of day to overindulge on such delicacies, you can then skip lunch, if you wish, and be hungry enough for a great dinner.
On this trip, we were part of a cruise critic board of 90+guests, (all cruising independently)
and Celebrity hosted a connection party for us, even though the official rule is to give this party on 7 night or longer trips. This went well above and beyond my expectations.
On that note, a special thank you to Lise Blackman the Summit's events coordinator who met with a few of our group upon embarkation to arrange this party, she took a list of all the cabin#s, and sent written invitations to all our cabins for the party which was held the very next morning.  
When we arrived at the party she was there along with the entertainment director to greet our guests. Shortly after the Captain arrived to welcome us and he invited everyone to a bridge tour scheduled for our last sea day.  Again, we all received invitations in our cabins.  So many of us decided to go that we were split into 2 groups.  The bridge tour was something I've always wanted to do, but could never seem to make happen, and so I'm very grateful to have had this opportunity. 
We had sunny days and warm nights the whole trip, and since we have been to the 3 ports of call numerous times, we enjoyed taking in the sights on our own without tours from the ship.  The Ferry in Bermuda is punctual and runs continuously and for 12 dollars you can have a full day pass that includes the buses as well.  Once you ferry to Hamilton, the bus station is only a few blocks away.  From there you can get around to the beaches by bus.  We chose to go to Horseshoe Bay, which was not crowded as it is the end of the season there.
Likewise, in St Thomas, we took public transport to Meagan's Bay just to relax and swim all day-perfect.
However, I found the shopping in town not what it once was, maybe because there is an extensive shopping complex right at the pier, or perhaps it was a seasonal issue. Hard for me to say for sure.
A note about San Juan,  if you dock at the old pier, you are only 1 block from the bus terminal, so if you have already seen the Old Town of SJ, you can get a bus to the Condado Beach for 50 cents each way.  A cab will run 14 bucks. The buses are clean, run continually, and are far more interesting, in my opinion.
The Summit is due for renovations, wear is evident.  I hope to have the pleasure to sail the Summit again after she is "Solsticized".

Warm hospitality,outstanding service and a great group...

The day before the cruise we took Amtrak from Washington, DC to Newark International Airport and stayed at the Country Inn. We spent some of the evening across the street in Jersey Gardens Mall. Ate dinner there. I used the pool and fitness center.



Late on the next morning, we took a convenient but expensive Yellow Cab minivan to the dock. Would recommend using Independent Driver instead.



Boarding was fairly smooth except the part where there loaded us on a bus to go from the terminal to the ship. There was messy and uncoordinated, but it didn't really matter. This was a repositioning cruise and the ship was far from full. No issues ever about getting a lounge by the pool or a good seat in the theatre.



Our room steward, Pascoal, was tops. The shower was surprisingly large and I liked how the shower curtain was completely attached on one side. Excellent storage. We enjoyed the room and the balcony. Lynn hated the TV selections, but they had MSNBC, which I watch, except for friday night and weekends. So, I had no TV issues. The room creaked and made bumps in the night noises at an above average rate, even though this was a relatively smooth cruise and the ship was quite stable and quite clean and lovely in virtually every aspect.



Our wait staff at dinner, Ignasius and Anna, could not have been better or more simpatico. The dinning room and food were great. Our table mates were wonderful.



The buffet had good food, but kept running out of things like food, coffe, ice, plates, sliverware, and virtually anything you might really need to eat there. The setup was very awkward. I waited five minutes once for a slice of fritata because the setup required someone to serve it to you, but the only person there was way too busy cooking eggs to order for others. I finally went to another area to get a plate, came back, reached in deep under the counter to get to the fritata plate, and served myself. When I complained, the maitre'd or whatever he is called expressed visible contempt for my lack of patience. However the people working in the Buffet were very, very nice. At dinner, the Buffet made no effort to be a reasonable substitute for the dining room, even on formal nights.



The theatre was very good. The entertainment was very good. The lectures were very good.



We loved our two days in Bermuda. We loved our two sea days. We loved our tour on St. Thomas.



In San Juan, we took the ship's tour to El Yunque. Afterwards, the tour bus driver dropped us at our hotel in Isla Verde, the Vendanza. We had a nice corner room with views of the sea and mountains. We were on the beach in the afternoon and walked under starlight after dinner. On Sunday, we rented a car at the hotel and went to the Arecibo Observatory, the World's largest raido telescope, and to the Camuy caverns, which need more extensive development for the visitor tour, so visitors can see more of these magnificent caves, which are equal or superior in magnificence to Carlbad Caverns.



On Monday morning, the car rental manager took us to the airport for our flight home to Dulles Airport and Fairfax County. JetBlue was terrific. 

To Bermuda and beyond

This was my third cruise. First time on Celebrity, after two cruises on Holland America (Veendam & Osterdam).



I was traveling with a friend, both of us were in separate, private staterooms on the 9th Deck, in Concierge Class (#90XX). We enjoy meeting people, so we opted for Assigned Dining, Late Seating, at a group table. 



We planned on a later check-in, 3-hours before departure. By that time, crowds had diminished. The dockside facility was efficient, and while there was a line of 100+ people waiting for general check-in, there was no wait in the preferred line, which included Concierge Class. 



Our stateroom was clean & orderly, but definitely showed its age. The single beds had been combined to doubles, and the most obvious anomaly was the "sway-back" appearances of the mattresses, which had obviously seen a lot of use. Despite appearances, the bed was very comfortable; so much for first impressions.



Our cabinet attendant & his assistant were very cordial, and extremely competent. Almost magically, each morning our rooms were cleaned while we took a quick 30-minute breakfast at the buffet. Several mornings we never saw the attendant upon leaving for breakfast, but they just seemed to know when it was the moment to sweep in a make-up the room. Beach towels, extra ice, and wine service were very prompt.



Overall, the food at the Waterfall Buffet was consistently mediocre for breakfast and lunch. However, the waiters/busmen were far more attentive than on Holland. Dirty tables were promptly cleaned, and normally I was offered refills on my coffee or tea.



Dinners on the Summit were consistently disappointing. This was true both in the MDR, and their lone specialty restaurant; "Normandie". The later attempts to build up the idealized image and splendor of the liner Normandie. All of this seems ironic when they offer a flaming desert; as the actual Normandie ship caught fire and sank at its pier in New York City, in anything but a regal manner.



While service was excellent in Normandie, the food was at best mediocre. We both did the lobster thermador, and while adequately presented, it was in some portions rubbery/tough, and others mushy. We had hoped to do a second dinner there, but the lack-luster experience the first night terminated that plan. Our table companions in the MDR all indicated that they had similar experiences at Normandie, with one couple being so disappointed they asked for a refund, which they said was immediately granted.



My biggest single complaints with the cruise were the dinners in the MDR. Our six table companions were a delight! Our waiter was also a joy, representing all of the energy, skill, and attention to detail that one hopes for in a cruise. It was also clear that he was essentially embarrassed by the quality of some of the food items he was required to present. Uniformly, at the late seating, it seemed that salads, soups, and entrees had been prepared hours earlier, then allowed to simply sit. One cream soup actually had developed a type of "skin" on the surface suggesting it had separated, and/or partially evaporated. A few times, people at our table declared individual items inedible. That happened to me with the "Seafood ConsommE", which looked and tasted like dirty dishwater.



Best MDR dinner entree' was a vegetable curry served the final night that was highly recommended by our waiter. He was right, while it looked like it too had sat for w while, its flavors and textures were complex, and it was a delight. 



I am not a big dessert person, but the desserts were reasonable, and appeared fresh, unlike virtually all the other food served in the MDR at late dinner. There were few comments, good/bad about dessert from anyone at our table.

Disembarkation went smoothly, with less than a 10-minute wait for people opting to handle their own baggage at 7:30 AM.



Overall, after hearing so many positive comments about Celebrity from passengers who sailed 3+ years ago, we were disappointed. It appears that economic pressures impacting all of the vacation travel industry have been particularly hard on Celebrity cruises. My general comments appear to reflect those of some other passengers on the Summit that were posted here during the past year. 



Perhaps after Summit has undergone a complete refitting, now scheduled for 2012, things will improve. However, before then I cannot make a strong recommendation for the ship or its parent company; Celebrity. 

Celebrity Summit - Faded Glory

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