margsipie

We received a buzzer once when we arrived at about 8:30, but after that we always arrived a little later and there was always a table available. We found a wait crew we really like, so we happily wait a couple of minutes for a table with them.

Currently on the Solstice on its way from Auckland to Sydney. Food in Blu is very good, but the service is the standout. Even if the food were the exact same quality as the MDR I would book Aqua just for the more personalized service. The Blu manager has made a point to catch my attention and say hello during two crowded lunches at the buffet and the rest of the staff follows his lead and are all incredibly friendly and service oriented.

Great news, thanks for the response!

As an aqua guest, how far in advance do you need to let the Blu maitre d' know if you want to eat in the MDR one night? I know you are supposed to arrange it through them, but can this be done the same afternoon or does it need to be a couple of days in advance?

Thank you! Do you know if their hours are the same on weekends?

We have a flight arriving in Auckland at 7:00AM on a Saturday morning prior to our cruise departure at 8:00PM that night. We would like to drop our luggage somewhere and then go explore, but we will be too early to leave the luggage at check in. Does anyone have any tips on where we could store it near the ship?

Thanks!

Is Blu open for breakfast on both port and sea days?

Has anyone had any luck requesting cold water washing when sending items to Celebrity's laundry?

What great news! I hope they keep the items permanently, but at least until 11/14!

Does anyone have any recent experience with internet speeds on the Solstice?

Does anyone have any insight on the Amora Hotel Jamison? We want to be relatively near the sights, as we will only be in Sydney for 2 nights post cruise.

Has this new and improved internet been implemented on all ships? We are sailing on the Solstice in November and connectivity is always a large concern. (I wish it weren't!)

Of the ports you mentioned, I have been to Bergen, Geiranger and Alesund. Alesund is the only one that does not overlap and that would be disappointing to miss. The city's architecture (as you can see in the photo above) and the surrounding landscapes and towns are stunning. When we were there, we went on an 8 hour excursion that included the Troll Road, Troll Wall, ancient churches, and lunch with at least 5 different kinds of salmon. The views we saw that day at our stops and traveling to and from the stops were some of the best I have seen, topping many European spots.

I agree with Terry that the ports should be more of a consideration than the cruise line, but to touch on that, we have done HAL twice and had no major issues with the smoking (and we are quite sensitive and averse.)

To anyone looking for the menus in blu... i took pictures of it. Just click the link in my signature :)

Thank you for the link to your blu menus! What fun to browse! Do you have any of the breakfast menu? I may have missed it, but I didn't see it there. Or the breakfast room service menu for Aqua class?

I think Trogir would be the most romantic of the options. It is away from the hustle and bustle of Split (which don't get me wrong - is amazing) and is very scenic and charming. It is an island of no cars and all around gorgeous.

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I can only speak on Bergen. It did not have the scenery of Geiranger and Flam. The area was much more of a city, so it had more interesting sights in town (architecture, boats, people watching and fish markets), but I would definitely recommend Geiranger, Flam or Alesund over it.

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You can absolutely do Bergen on your own. It is a perfect area to stroll, shop, and people watch on your own. The cruise excursions in Geiranger are worthwhile to get up high in the mountains to see the view down into the fjord or to go boating in the fjord to see the waterfalls and enjoy the peaceful water.

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We stayed at the Scandic Front which is near trendy Nyhavn. Nice rooms, excellent included buffet breakfast, great location. It was a wonderful home base for us in Copenhagen.

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Tanned Russian, Black Mamba, and Gentle Reflection. Envious of all who get to have them before they vanish - make good use of the bar!

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The Tanned Russian (for dessert), the Black Mamba, and the Gentle Reflection all from the Molecular Bar. Get them before the Molecular Bar is no more!

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Highly recommend Malta if you want to venture in that direction, it was stunning. We have been to Split twice and loved it both times (photo attached). We are even considering a land vacation to Split.

Istanbul is wonderful - fun if you can find an overnight in port there. Recommend Kusadasi as well if you like ruins. We enjoy them and found Ephesus very impressive.

Thanks for coming back to it and wrapping the review up! I really enjoyed following along and I'm looking forward to your review of the Allure. I hope it was another successful vacation (with a quieter cabin)!

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Thanks for the quick reply! Is there a certain time you normally go to dinner? We will probably want to go between 6:30 - 7:30.

We had no problems at all doing this on our last cruise. We went at about 8:15-8:30 every night and were never asked to share a table.

How do you go about finding a Cicchetti bar? I think this sounds like a great way to spend the early evening, but I wouldn't even know where to begin!

Hi,

We are going to Malta in June and would like to see the Blue Grotto and spend most of the rest of the day exploring Valletta. All of the excursions go to the Blue Grotto and other places, so we are considering doing the Blue Grotto on our own. Has anyone done this lately? If so, could you advise on the ease of doing this, prices, etc?

I did search for past information, but they were all from about 4 years ago, so any updated information would be great!

Thank!