In May of 2024, my husband and I along with another couple embarked on an amazing adventure to the Last Frontier. We planned our own land tour and then got on one of Royal Caribbean's oldest ships, Radiance of the Seas, for our cruise down the coast of Alaska through the inside passage. I was curious as to how our experience would compare to Royal Caribbean's big sister company, Celebrity. This year in May and June, I had two different sets of friends go on a land tour and cruise on one of Celebrity's oldest ships.
When cruising through Alaska, your cruising needs are a bit different. Check out my recommendations for Cold Weather Trips.
As stated in a previous article, it seems that bigger cruise lines are in a way forced to use their older ships for cruises to the smaller ports in Alaska because of the size of the bodies of water around the ports. Many cruise lines are consistently building bigger and fancier cruise ships and ignoring the need for newer, smaller ships that can reach these more unique destinations. Royal Caribbean has announced, with very little detail, that they will be working on coming out with a smaller fleet of ships in the future. There are some cruise lines like Virgin Voyages that pride themselves on the fact that because their ships are designed to be smaller that they can go to these smaller ports. Since Virgin has announced some itineraries to Alaska for the 2026 season, I am curious to see how that might encourage cruise lines like Royal Caribbean and Celebrity to improve or come out with new ships that can manage the smaller ports.
Both sets of friends were on the Celebrity Summit, which is currently Celebrity's only ship that starts or ends in Seward so that you can do a land tour up to Denali. For me, it's a no-brainer that you would want to do a cruise where you can also go up to Denali or some other areas in Alaska. As I see it, a trip to Alaska may be once in a lifetime and so adding on the famous national park and the train rides through Alaska is a must.
Celebrity Summit was built in 2001 and was refurbished in 2019. With a capacity of 2200 passengers, Summit is a much smaller cruise ship than many of the ships sailing today. As a result of the refurbishment, the ship is in great condition. Both sets of friends commented that the ship was clean and well maintained. The staterooms were described as nice, clean and comfortable. As one friend stated, the rooms are "small but we didn't spend a lot of time in our room." This is very typical of cruise travel and likely means that both sets of friends were fully enjoying themselves on the ship and in port.
Crew & Service
The crew of the Celebrity Summit was "phenomenal" and helped to make everyone feel welcome and ensured a good time. As one friend needed to eat only gluten-free food, it was reported that there was, at times, a language barrier with some of the crew, which made it more difficult to inquire about allergy issues. With a bit more effort, this could be overcome. The officers and cruise director would greet every passenger as they left and returned at each port, which made everyone feel valued. This is a practice that they simply can't do on the larger ships.
Food & Dining
The food on board Summit was excellent. My friends felt no need to eat in any of the specialty dining restaurants as the food and service in the main dining room was superb. And, because of the need to eat gluten-free food, it was easier to eat in the main dining room so they could choose the next night's meal ahead of time. The portions were small but this made it so that they could try more items and not feel stuffed. One set of friends said that they had their beverages of choice waiting for them each night at dinner, which sounds awesome to me. The buffet also had a lot of great and tasty options for everyone. The one comment made was that there were times where it was difficult to find available snacks. They were looking for a quick bite before leaving the ship one day, and it turned out to be more of a challenge than expected. It appears, however, that perhaps a more experienced cruiser might not have that same difficulty.
Entertainment
When we went on our Alaskan cruise, we were pleasantly surprised to find that the entertainment was actually pretty good. The stage shows weren't big, broadway numbers but the talent was there. The headliners seemed to enjoy the smaller ships over the bigger ones. My friends found this to also be the case on the Summit. The ship's ensemble appeared polished and professional. The entertainment overall was well-received by both groups.
The Alaska Experience
For both sets of friends, the ports and the overall Alaska experience were the highlights of the trip. The scenery, the wildlife, and the excursions all delivered on the promise of Alaska. The land tour component — traveling up to Denali before boarding the ship in Seward — added an incredible dimension to the overall vacation. If you are going to Alaska, doing a combination land-and-sea tour is absolutely the way to go.
Overall, Celebrity Summit proved to be an excellent choice for an Alaska cruise. The intimate size of the ship, the outstanding crew, the quality food, and the ability to combine it with a Denali land tour made for a truly memorable experience. If you are considering an Alaska cruise and want a more personal, boutique feel with the backing of a major cruise line, Celebrity Summit is well worth it.
If you would like help planning your own Alaska adventure — land tour, cruise, or both — I would love to help you plan it.