Celebrity lived up to their reputation for service. We definitely were treated very well. My husband is not a big cruise fan and was worried that he would be bored on a 13 day cruise. That didn't happen. He would be the first to tell you that we never lacked for something to do while on the ship. I think this is relatively new itinerary for Celebrity and they do need to develop their excursions a little better but overall we had a wonderful vacation.
Embarkation
3 out of 5
Embarkation was a bit chaotic. We had to sign up for a time to arrive and we chose an early time. When we arrived there were hundreds of people already in line. My thought was that many showed up before they were supposed to but when we got inside the building we found that only 2 of the 4 security gates were open. The line moved very slow. In all, it took over an hour to get onto the ship which has never happened before
Ship experiences
Food and Dining
4 out of 5
We were Aqua Class so we ate breakfast and dinner in Blu. The food was excellent but the variety was a little lacking. We always found something to eat because you could choose between Blu and Main Dining Room menus. There was a definite upgrade in quality in Blu. We also had the Classic Beverage Package which worked well for us. We often had to go to the bar directly to get our drinks because the servers were a little hard to find but that was no big deal.
Onboard Activities
5 out of 5
We were never lacking for something to do. We attended lectures, played games and attended all of the shows (sometimes three times a day!) When you say that sometimes you missed an activity because there was more than one thing that you wanted to do going on at the same time you know that they had an action packed daily itinerary.
Entertainment
5 out of 5
The entertainment on board was great! Celebrity brought on a varied amount of entertainers from singers to impressionists to comedians & magicians. There were many sea days on this cruise and on those days they had a matinee show in addition to the two nightly shows. We attended them all and thoroughly enjoyed ourselves. The musicians in the various lounges were excellent. Celebrity definitely lived up to their reputation when it came to the entertainment!
Children's Programs
We did not travel with children.
Service and Staff
5 out of 5
Our room steward was the best! He always greeted us by name and took care of any requests immediately. Our waiter and his assistant in Blu were also top notch. They took note of little things like that my husband liked ice tea with his dinner and made sure that it was there for him without him having to ask after the first few nights. As I mentioned before, waiter service in the lounges was a little slow but we had no problem going up to the bar and getting what we needed ourselves. We had an issue with the air conditioning in our cabin being stuck on high (in Iceland this is a problem), went to guest services and it was fixed within an hour. I can't way enough about the ship personnel. They work hard to make your vacation experience the best that it can be.
Ship Quality
4 out of 5
The layout was good. Common areas were clean but showed signs of wear which seemed unusual given that this ship was just revitalized in 2019 and wasn't in use for over a year after that.
Cabin / Stateroom
5 out of 5
The cabin size was about what you would expect. I heard some people who were also in Aqua Class saying that they thought these cabins would somehow be different from regular veranda cabins. I think we were paying for the amenities more than the cabin size.
Ship tip
We were Aqua Class because that was all that was available when we booked (about 4 weeks before sailing.) If you are not spa people my advice would be to save your money and go regular Veranda Class. Eating in Blu was a nice perk but the food in the main dining room was also good. I'd rather save my money for use on excursions, etc.
This was where we began our cruise. There was alot to see and do in Reykjavik. Be prepared, it is an expensive city but I would definitely recommend visiting.
We did a whale watching excursion so we didn't see much of the City. The excursion was nice. We did see whales. Never left the harbor as there was a pod of pilot whales right there. We could see our balcony the entire time so we could have saved ourselves the money. Not a complaint, just an observation!
This is where I would say the cost of the cruise was worth it! Six hours of the most magnificent scenery on earth. You didn't want to leave your chair because you never knew what was going to see next and every time you thought it couldn't get more beautiful, it did! The glaciers, icebergs, waterfalls and rock formations were stunning. We started out in fog which quickly cleared, thank goodness!
There was not much to see or do. There were only a few excursions but they required a lot of walking up hills and given that the average age of passengers was probably around 70, not many people did an excursion. It was a tender port and the cruise director the night before admitted that most people would probably go into town and be back on the ship within an hour. He wasn't kidding. There just wasn't much to do, although the people that we met were quite friendly.
Nice City with a bunch of things to do. We went on a 3 1/2 hour City Bus tour which was not quite as advertised. Most of the time was not spend on the bus touring the City but walking through the Public Gardens (which were beautiful) and visiting the Citidel (which was ok). Worst part was that the air conditioning on the bus didn't work and it was 93 degrees outside. By the time we got back to the ship, we were overheated and exhausted. The tour guide shared some great stories about the City and was very friendly.
No problems. We ate breakfast, waited in the theater for a little bit and left when our number was called. The line for a taxi was over an hour long so we ordered ourselves an Uber and were on our way.
I agree that Summit is a grand ship! I have booked Aqua Class on previous cruise and thoroughly enjoyed the perks! The advice to see whether Aqua Class is for you is well taken. So glad you enjoyed your cruise!
Wonderful itinerary. Appreciate your very detailed review. You’ll just have to go on this cruise again to do the activities you missed because of conflicting options.😉. Glad you (and your husband) enjoyed your cruise!
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