Celebrity Cruise Line Ship Review - The Celebrity Summit

On March 24, 2012, we had the opportunity to attend a Seminar at Sea onboard the Celebrity Summit.  Below you will find my review.

Boarding the Celebrity Summit in San Juan, Puerto Rico, we along with all the other passengers were greeted by crew members and a choice of welcome aboard champagne or orange juice. This simple gesture set the stage for a cruise and crew that were indulgent and accommodating beyond what you typically find. Celebrity describes themselves as "Modern Luxury", and they set the tone from the beginning. 

Glimpses of "Modern Luxury" are found everywhere. You enter the ship right around the corner from the Martini Bar with its ice-covered counter. The Summit was just recently "solsticized" with new carpet, many refurbishments and a few additional restaurants added. The décor is classy and the atmosphere relaxing. The pool deck is adorned with beautiful wood furnishings, but most importantly, topped with comfortably luxurious chair pads that are missing onboard many other ships.

If traveling on this line, make sure to explore the Adults-only Thalassotherapy Pool area. Not only are the surroundings elegant, but the salt-water pool is jetted and warm. The perfect place to unwind those tired muscles.  

I know I've mentioned this before in a previous review, but you must attend the Spa Tour on the first day of your cruise! Once again, I was the lucky winner of a facial. Only a small number of passengers attend these events, making your chances of winning relatively high. 

My review will now focus on the three areas in which I thought Celebrity Cruise Line really stood out:

• Customer Service from the Crew
• Food Quality
• Overall Environment and Feel

Customer Service from the Crew: 

The crew expressed a true desire to accommodate people's wishes. Simply because Lon mentioned that he loved Tiramisu one night during desert, our waiter saved him an order for the next night and surprised him with it - leaving him to eat two deserts. No matter what the request the crew always responded with friendliness and enthusiasm.  

Food Quality: 

Along with a gourmet menu, Celebrity's dining experience incorporates a futuristic high-tech aspect to dining with experiences ranging from the use of digital menus in one of the restaurants to self-serve wine dispensers in Cellar Masters. Nominated for "Rising Star Chef of the Year" by the James Beard Foundation, Celebrity Cruise Line's Master Chef, Jacques Van Staden, is quoted as saying that "I consider all the details - texture, color, smell, presentation - to create dishes that leave guests with fond memories of a culinary journey". While you'll experience this culinary journey in the main dining room, you will find it taken to even the next level in the specialty restaurants. 

We had the opportunity to experience two of the specialty restaurants while onboard, The Normandie and QSine. The Normandie is a French restaurant with doting service, a delicious menu, the ability to have the staff pair your wine with your meals and even a little side entertainment - as they prepare a few dishes at your table. This is the perfect place to celebrate a special occasion or for those who appreciate a gourmet experience. 

QSine on the other hand is a whimsical experience where food becomes art. Each guest orders with an iPad, viewing dish descriptions and sending selections to their cart. If eating in a large group as we did, you'll share in each other's order until you say, "We just can't handle any more food." The presentation is as delicious as the taste. Creativity abounds here.

 On our last sea day, a brunch was served in the dining room. We almost missed it, because the hamburgers and crunchy fries were calling our names out by the pool deck. However, we had heard everyone raving about this, so we made our way to see it for ourselves. Ice carvings, white and dark chocolate fountains, mounds of seafood and deserts were laid out everywhere. This is definitely a not to be missed event. 

Overall Environment and Feel:

 Each cruise line has its own personality and feel. That's why I like to experience different lines and ships. The intent of your trip determines which line is best at the moment though many of us develop favorites. Although there were plenty of activities onboard this ship, there was no frenzied feel, no feeling that you needed to rush to get to where you were going. 

There were very few children onboard this ship. Even though all ages were represented amongst our fellow guests, the average was skewed toward middle-aged and above.  The environment was classy and relaxed. 

We enjoyed a host of activities onboard this ship - your usual musical acts and comedians, but two activities stand out to me. They were both part of the Celebrity Life Learning Series. 

When departing Dominica, the crew opened up the helipad area to guests. This is the area where helicopters land on the ship in an emergency. Located at the very bow of the ship, we had to enter through a crew area. With nothing blocking our view, we were able to watch as the pilot ships dropped their crew members off at the pilings located in front of the bow and unhooked the large ropes that help to secure the ship while in port. The ropes were then cranked in from the ship. It was interesting to see this all up close and made for a great place to take pictures.

 On another evening, the navigational officer gave an educational talk on "Navigating by the Stars". Once again on the bow of the ship, but this time after dark, the crew shut off the lights in our area, so we could see the stars and moon. The officer explained how even though they have navigational radar, they have trained officers who still know how to navigate by the stars in case of a power outage. An interesting lesson ensued with the sextant, a navigational instrument that's been in use for years.

 I think this cruise line is well-suited for couples looking for a relaxing get-away, people who enjoy gourmet food and good service and for the wine connoisseurs.