Solstice Review 1/2 - 1/9

[yayvacation!]

Just off the beautiful Solstice and thought I would take a few minutes to review the cruise!

*disclaimer* These are my own personal thoughts feelings and opinions I do not claim to speak for anyone else except for me :D

 

Embarkation: Great experience, arrived at the port around 11:00 - 11:30am got right into the terminal building and into line, didn't have to wait in line for more than 10 seconds before we were ushered to a window, checked in and up the escalator to start the cruise.

 

Cabin: Celebrity Suite 1233, it was an amazing suite!! I would highly recommend staying in it if you have the opportunity! The living room had a sectional sofa, 50" TV, separate bedroom with walk-in closet and 42" TV, really nice bathroom with a great rain shower and wall unit sprayer, and the crown jewel of the cabin - the HUGE balcony :) It had a table and 2 chairs, and a nice lounger, we asked the room steward to bring a 2nd lounger and it appeared while we were at dinner. Room steward (Ruel) his assistant (Bismark) and Butler (Allen) were all great and very quick.

 

Food: Breakfast on most days was delivered up by the butler, I like the waffles so they frequently made a fill-in appearance and they did not disappoint! Other days croissants from Cafe al Biaco was breakfast - Yum!! Morning coffee was always a Cafe Americano - much much better than the regular brewed coffee at the buffets or with room service.

Lunch - Aqua Spa cafe great as always and I tested the burger bar - everything there was great too!!

Dinner - This is one of the areas I was a little diasppointed with - however DH and I have pretty high standards for food so that weighs on my opinion! The first night - Prime Rib was VERY good, DH had fish and liked that as well. Some of the other meals were hit or miss - Chilean Sea Bass was awful, Lobster was dry and pretty bad, meatballs were good. One bright shiny star goes to the Tuscan Grille - it was amazing! I love Italian and TG was as good as any land restaurant. The filet mignon was out of this world good!:) I also heard great things on board from fellow CCer's about the fabulous Murano but we never got to try it!

Special Extra - our waiter brought over a "Happy Honeymoon" cake and half the restaurant sang to us, it was very sweet and much appreciated! After he had the cake wisked up to our room and brought us over 2 more desserts :)

 

Spa: Not happy here at all. DH and I both got massages his was good, mine was NOT what I expected. The massage itself was good, but the massuse didn't even finish the massage - I added on an extra hot stone massage which was suppose to increase the length of the massage, however, the massuse stopped early, didn't finish the massage she didn't do my neck and shoulders or one entire arm/palm massage. She did however have time to put together a "recommended" $344 package of products I should really buy. :cool:

 

Drinks: DH and I both did the premium alcohol package and while it was really convenient and great not to have to sign anything I am up in the air as to how I felt about it. The service was usually ok with the exception of one of the pool bartenders who was either upset with my drink package or grumpy at the universe, he was sour and downright rude at times. From what we understood the servers do not see any tip when they get a drink for someone with a drink package - I don't know if that is the full truth or if that is just speculation. The sommelier did keep our glasses of wine topped off at dinner and the wine cellar and molecular bar provided great service.

 

Disembarkation: Very easy we stayed at Cafe al Biaco until about 9:30am then got off the ship, went through customs, got a cab right at the curb and we were at the airport by 10:15am.

 

Overall Impressions: If this were my first Celebrity cruise I would have been highly impressed. But this was our 3rd cruise with Celebrity and noticed a little decline in "wow-factor" from previous crusies with X. I personally felt like Celebrity went from a 6 star service line to about a 4.5 star for service. Don't get me wrong, this was a great cruise with great service but it wasn't the top-notch service we have received in the past. DH and I typically don't need much during the cruise and what we asked for was handled perfectly, example - we asked the butler to deliver shrimp cocktail or cheese and crackers instead of canapes and it wasn't a problem. Comparing the previous experiences to this one for example: each of our cruises has been in a suite, the past 2 cruises there was always a room steward or butler in the hall when we were released to the cabins - this time they came to chat about 2 hours later. Past 2 cruises we haven't opened the door to the cabin more than 4 or 5 times because someone would hear us coming and pop out from a wall somewhere and open the door for us, this time even when they saw us coming they didn't open the door. Our waiter and assistant waiter seemed like they were constantly rushing to get to the next table to take an order or deliver dishes they had such a big section of tables it made it hard for them to provide super high quality service.

 

Again the cruise was great, but some of the subtle differences made an impact, it wasn't anythng we would hold against any of the staff and it wasn't something you could rightfully complain about, but it was noticable. We did book an Alaska cruise while on board so we clearly aren't going anywhere anytime soon!

 

If you have any questions at all please ask, I'm happy to answer!! I kept the dailies and the listing of officers, and a spa menu also so if you need any information off of those please let me know and I will get it for you!

 

-Andrea

[SMA9497]

Andrea- If it was the older gentleman at the pool bar- I think he was just grumpy. He was that way with us as well- although we also had the drink package but he was that way the very first time we went there before he even knew we had the package. There was also another younger guy at the pool bar that was a little grumpy but the other younger guy, Sheldon, was great. Those gentleman and the older bartender at the Passport bar on deck 3 were the only problems I really noted with the service!

 

Great review and it was nice meeting you!

[jessNlane52804]

I know the bartender as well. I noticed that he had a change of attitude on comment card day.

[rvlandandsea]

thanks for the review...can you tell me who the cruise director was and the captain's club host/hostess...thanks

[yayvacation!]

thanks for the review...can you tell me who the cruise director was and the captain's club host/hostess...thanks

 

 

The cruise director was Ian Cresswell - I really really loved him, great guy, very personable, and he was everywhere on board. Also really good at remembering faces!

 

Captain's Club Hostess on this cruise was a girl named Jennifer, however she was only covering for 1 week for a girl out on medical leave, this week Personal Concierge Ashley Gordon is playing the role of Captain's club hostess! :)

 

Hope that helps!

[yayvacation!]

Andrea- If it was the older gentleman at the pool bar- I think he was just grumpy. He was that way with us as well- although we also had the drink package but he was that way the very first time we went there before he even knew we had the package. There was also another younger guy at the pool bar that was a little grumpy but the other younger guy, Sheldon, was great. Those gentleman and the older bartender at the Passport bar on deck 3 were the only problems I really noted with the service!

 

Great review and it was nice meeting you!

 

I know the bartender as well. I noticed that he had a change of attitude on comment card day.

 

I was really surprised with his attitude, but because you both experienced it as well I'll chalk it up to bing grumpy! :)

[portofrome]

Thanks for your review.

[rvlandandsea]

The cruise director was Ian Cresswell - I really really loved him, great guy, very personable, and he was everywhere on board. Also really good at remembering faces!

 

Captain's Club Hostess on this cruise was a girl named Jennifer, however she was only covering for 1 week for a girl out on medical leave, this week Personal Concierge Ashley Gordon is playing the role of Captain's club hostess! :)

 

Hope that helps!

 

I can't remember sailing with them. It should be fun meeting new people.

[FlotsamJetsam]

Great review Yay. We are in a suite on the Solstice in a few days and have the drink package. How does the coffee thing work with the butler- do you get the premium coffee by being in the suite, or do you need to show him that you have the drink package to get the good coffee.

 

Does the butler give you a breakfast menu to fill out the night before? We have had suites before on RCL, but not Celebrity. If RCL had the breakfast thing I was unaware.

[twopats]

We love Celebrity and RCL but have never been offered a "drink package" which I assume means wine at dinner. Can someone give me a cost and let me know if they felt it was worth it? Thanks. Trish

[Wings of Eagles]

Great review Andrea! It was a pleasure meeting you and your DH. With it being our first cruise and having nothing to compare it to, it's interesting to hear your review! We had a blast, and would definitely do another Celebrity Cruise and the drink package again. 'Predinner drinks 1-2, dinner wine 2-3, and closing the molecular bar down each night 2-5, it really adds up! $6-12 a drink, plus all your bottles of water for in room, excursions, and specialty coffees from Al Bacio'. With the drink package costing $788.90 for the two of us, I'd say not only that we saved money, but also saved the time and hassle of waiting for many, many receipts to sign.

*The Premium Drink Package basically gives you an open bar on all drinks $12 and under, both alcoholic and non-alcoholic, can be used on all drinks except for room service.

 

Jesse

[yayvacation!]

Great review Yay. We are in a suite on the Solstice in a few days and have the drink package. How does the coffee thing work with the butler- do you get the premium coffee by being in the suite, or do you need to show him that you have the drink package to get the good coffee.

 

Does the butler give you a breakfast menu to fill out the night before? We have had suites before on RCL, but not Celebrity. If RCL had the breakfast thing I was unaware.

 

 

We actually went down to Cafe al Biaco on the 5th deck each morning to get the coffee and brought it up. It's about $4 a cup, but we both had the premium alcohol package and it was included in that so we didn't have to pay extra.

 

There is a breakfast menu to fill out and hang on your door, anything you want that isn't on the menu, just write it in and they will make it and bring it to you - try the waffles!!!:)

[yayvacation!]

We love Celebrity and RCL but have never been offered a "drink package" which I assume means wine at dinner. Can someone give me a cost and let me know if they felt it was worth it? Thanks. Trish

 

Hi Trish! We had the premium drink package which like Wings (Jesse) said is $49 a day per person or about $788 for 2 for the week. It includes all drinks under $12 which is a good selection of wine, most martinis and the entire molecular bar. It also includes coffees, teas, water, smoothies, etc. There is a nice thread at the top of this page in "stickies" that really breaks down the package nicely.

[yayvacation!]

Great review Andrea! It was a pleasure meeting you and your DH. With it being our first cruise and having nothing to compare it to, it's interesting to hear your review! We had a blast, and would definitely do another Celebrity Cruise and the drink package again. 'Predinner drinks 1-2, dinner wine 2-3, and closing the molecular bar down each night 2-5, it really adds up! $6-12 a drink, plus all your bottles of water for in room, excursions, and specialty coffees from Al Bacio'. With the drink package costing $788.90 for the two of us, I'd say not only that we saved money, but also saved the time and hassle of waiting for many, many receipts to sign.

*The Premium Drink Package basically gives you an open bar on all drinks $12 and under, both alcoholic and non-alcoholic, can be used on all drinks except for room service.

 

Jesse

 

 

It was awesome to meet you guys too! We had a lot of fun!

[Mary Ellen]

Thank you for sharing your experience with us.

[Miss SeaBee]

Thanks for the review! I hope you mentioned Mr. Grumpy Bartender in the comment cards! We will be on the other side of the hump from you in 1243 in a humble concierge cabin. We will have to look jealously over at our Royal Suite next door neighbors, but I am pretty sure we are going to have an awesome time! :)

 

Was it pretty quick and easy to get to Cafe al Bacio from this location each morning?

 

Thanks!

Suzanne

[Texed]

I like the waffles ! -Andrea

 

So do I. ;)

Thanks for the review.

[yayvacation!]

Thanks for the review! I hope you mentioned Mr. Grumpy Bartender in the comment cards! We will be on the other side of the hump from you in 1243 in a humble concierge cabin. We will have to look jealously over at our Royal Suite next door neighbors, but I am pretty sure we are going to have an awesome time! :)

 

Was it pretty quick and easy to get to Cafe al Bacio from this location each morning?

 

Thanks!

Suzanne

 

He definitely got an honorary mention in my comment - I do like to reserve the comment card to mention the great service by the 5 people taking care of me, so the grumpy guy didn't get a lot of space :)

 

Yes very easy to get yummy coffee! The elevators are just a few feet away and the staircase is on the other side of the elevator. Down 5 decks and Cafe al biaco is right there in front of you. Simple and worth it!

[Lionheart1]

Hi Andrea - I set sail on the Solstice Feb 6. Are there any excursions you'd recommend? I'm leaning towards the Canopy Tour in San Juan.

 

Also, we're on the fence about the beverage packages. We're not heavy drinkers but enjoy wne with dinner, water, some beer for Husband. How much does a glass, or beer, or bottled water run out of pocket? Thanks in advance! This will be my first Celebrity cruise.

[jill1970]

Wow, thanks for the reveiw and info on the coffee etc. I had a room bar package but cancelled it because on the facebook celebrity page when i ask about it from former crusiers they said don't do it?! so, it was not the prem pckg you had, but less cost. we are in a c class cabin so i hope we have a good impression. it is our first celebrity cruise and hope not our last. we notice subtle downgrade in many places we have traveled to and revisted in the last few years. not sure what is going on?? even disney world we had 2 very rude "cast members" so i guess you have to remember all the other good things right?!

[Kruz Guys]

Thanks for the great review. We are going to be in the Celebrity Suite 1233 in November for a 12 night Med cruise and are looking forward to it, especially after your good review of the suite and the butler. I'm so glad you had a good trip (overall). Thanks again. :D

 

Kruz Guys

Stephen and Tom

[Holly2]

You can order cappucino from room service if you are in a suite.

[yayvacation!]

Hi Andrea - I set sail on the Solstice Feb 6. Are there any excursions you'd recommend? I'm leaning towards the Canopy Tour in San Juan.

 

Also, we're on the fence about the beverage packages. We're not heavy drinkers but enjoy wne with dinner, water, some beer for Husband. How much does a glass, or beer, or bottled water run out of pocket? Thanks in advance! This will be my first Celebrity cruise.

 

We actually didn't do any organized excursions, DH and I did a self guided walking tour of el morro fort and it was well worth it, we had a great time exploring!

 

As far as the out of pocket costs go: we are red wine drinkers, we tried a malbec $6 a glass, a pinot noir $8.5, and a super tusan $12. All were very good, they have a decent selection in price point and type. Water I think is about $4 for a large bottle, and beers around $5 - $8. There is also a "sticky" at the top of the page you might want to check out for prices and available drinks! :)

[yayvacation!]

Thanks for the great review. We are going to be in the Celebrity Suite 1233 in November for a 12 night Med cruise and are looking forward to it, especially after your good review of the suite and the butler. I'm so glad you had a good trip (overall). Thanks again. :D

 

Kruz Guys

Stephen and Tom

 

Stephen and Tom!! You guys will love this suite it really is incredible! I have photos for you, but I have misplaced the cord to my camera that I need to download the photos! As soon as I find the cord I will email you some pictures! There is so much storage space in this suite even I couldn't fill it up, and I am quite the accomplished over-packer! :D