Review for Solstice Mediterranean Venice cruise June 28, 2012

[jagaul]

Just want to thank you again for your lovely review! We will be doing the same cruise in October and the excitement is building day by day! Hoping to offer up a reveiw as great as your's has been upon our return!

[h20cruzer]

Dln929

Loved your review and pics. would love to see more pics any chance you could post the link to shuttefly so I could see them all?

I understand if you don't want to.

Norma

[dln929]

Hi Norma, I am glad you like the photos. I will have Rob help me edit them into a public view album some time this week. We'll weed out all the dorky ones we took of each other. :p

 

Here are some random photos taken around the Solstice.

 

I had read enough posts on CC to find about this cruise ship phenomenon called the "Chair Hog." Just about everyone has a Chair Hog story. They provoke a lot of negative reaction because of their stealth. It seems like everyone has seen evidence of their handiwork--acres of chairs with towels or other stuff draped on them and no human in sight to occupy said chairs. But has anyone ever seen an actual Chair Hog in the flesh? I was beginning to think that the Chair Hog was something akin to Big Foot or the Abominable Snowman. Everyone swears there's evidence out there to prove its existence, but who's ever seen one?

 

I have! The scene is the Solarium. The time is 6:13 am on the nose. The Chair Hog came in, gave a satisfied smile that she was indeed the first one out, and then proceeded to very carefully lay half a dozen towels out on the front row seats. And then she left. I walked by about 45 minutes later and there was hide nor hair of anyone on said "reserved" chairs.

 

I mentioned that we skirted land quite a bit during our last two sea days on the way back to Barcelona. At one point we couldn't tell if we were looking at mainland Italy or Sicily. We pulled up the map on the TV in our cabin and saw that we were on the top side of Sicily. This is a handy tool for the navigationally challenged!

 

 

 

 

 

 

I thought the theatre ceiling was really beautiful. Whomever painted that mural is very talented! I never minded waiting for a show to start because there was this gorgeous ceiling to admire.

 

[Ladygags]

Hi,

 

Thanks for your review. We are doing a similar itinerary this November on board the Reflection. Can you please tell me what time the Celebrity Florence On Your Own bus trip left from Livorno and approximately what time you arrived in Florence.

 

Thanks from Australia!

[momofmeg]

LOL! let the chair hog have the front roll seats I preferred the lounges by the windows! However, I would have been tempted to remove the towels to the "dirty bin" LOL! if I saw no one had returned after 45 minutes!

 

I was thinking (maybe wishful?) is since her pic is posted here someone just may recognize her-that would embarrass her!

[jdangelo]

My husband and I will be on the Oct. 14th sailing of the Solstice and are a bit unsure of what type of clothing to bring for sightseeing. We both find sandals comfortable but wonder if we'll have cold toes. I'm also wondering if summer-like prints would be ok or whether darker fall colors are the way to go. I've checked temps. for the cities we'll visit but the ranges are wide. Do you have any suggestions?

 

Thanks!

[BBsails]

Hi jdangelo. My husband and I will be on that cruise also. I plan to take fall clothes that can be layered because the weather will probably vary from very warm and sunny to cool and cloudy. We've been in the Mediterranean in the fall on prior cruises and found most people in the cities are wearing fall colors and fabrics in October. One year I took capris and very few women were wearing them when we were ashore.

 

Have you accessed our cruise's roll call? Click on the link below to go to a section of the board reserved for passengers on our specific cruise. Read through the posts to get to know us better.

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1388821

 

Be sure to join the Cruise Critic connections party (sometimes called Meet and Mingle) by registering here:

 

https://secure.celebritycruises.com/cruisecritic/home.do

 

Betsy

[dln929]

Hi,

 

Thanks for your review. We are doing a similar itinerary this November on board the Reflection. Can you please tell me what time the Celebrity Florence On Your Own bus trip left from Livorno and approximately what time you arrived in Florence.

 

 

 

Thanks from Australia!

 

Thanks for reading! About the bus--it leaves approximately 8:15 am. The cost is $89.75 usd for adults; $64.75 for children. It takes about an hour and a half if memory serves. It goes by really fast because your bus guide will give you a travelogue and the scenery is really pretty. Once in Florence you will be dropped off at Santa Croce and left on your own for about six hours. The guide is very specific about where to meet up so there's no confusion. In terms of sheer convenience, we thought the bus ride was great and we appreciated not having to make a detour in Pisa as so many of these excursions do.

 

Guess where we are here. :)

 

LOL! let the chair hog have the front roll seats I preferred the lounges by the windows! However, I would have been tempted to remove the towels to the "dirty bin" LOL! if I saw no one had returned after 45 minutes!

 

I was thinking (maybe wishful?) is since her pic is posted here someone just may recognize her-that would embarrass her!

 

We actually met a very nice young man on board, a crew member who worked in the pool area. It was part of his job description to keep law and order with the chair hoggers. Not his favorite part, he said.

 

Here's the passageway behind the solarium pool on the upper deck, Kotor in the background.

 

 

My husband and I will be on the Oct. 14th sailing of the Solstice and are a bit unsure of what type of clothing to bring for sightseeing. We both find sandals comfortable but wonder if we'll have cold toes. I'm also wondering if summer-like prints would be ok or whether darker fall colors are the way to go. I've checked temps. for the cities we'll visit but the ranges are wide. Do you have any suggestions?

 

Thanks!

 

We were on the Voyager of the Seas' Adriatic cruise last October around the same time you'll be on the Solstice. Bring a mixture of clothing that you can easily layer, you know, like a short sleeve t-shirt and a jacket or cardigan for the mornings and evenings. I had a very soft, lightweight leather jacket with me and it got a lot of use. Another thing that came in handy was a pashima scarf. You can buy them anywhere in Florence for about 5 euros (they're obviously not real pashima but they're still good quality). They don't take up a lot of space but if you need a bit of warmth on your neck or shoulders they get the job done. Same thing with footwear, bring sandals and a pair of shoes, too. We dressed more in fall colors than bright summer colors. I brought mostly black, white, and khaki colored clothing and a bunch of scarves for a pop of color so I wouldn't be bored with a travel uniform. ;)

 

A plain white button shirt and neutral color capris pants would work as well in October as in July. Here, in Kotor. Or maybe it was Dubrovnik!

 

[Ladygags]

Thanks for these details. We are considering doing Segway tour in Florence but it starts at 9.30am so doesn't sound like we'll be able to get there in time if we take the Celebrity Florence on your own tour.

 

Really enjoyed reading your review - I'm counting down the days til we are onboard again!

[h20cruzer]

dln929 were you ever able to get alink to all your pics.

Norma

[dln929]

dln929 were you ever able to get alink to all your pics.

Norma

 

Hi Norma, no not yet--busy workload this week for Rob and he hasn't gotten to it. I'll post again when it's done. In the meantime though here are a few more photos. :D

 

Sailing into Venice is every bit as spectacular as they say!

 

 

We climbed stairs like this in Cannes, Florence, Rome, Naples, Kotor, Dubrovnik, and Barcelona. I am happy to report that Venice, at least, was blissfully flat.

 

 

Water fountain in Kotor, Montenegro.

 

 

 

Rob at another one of the many water fountains we found. Needless to say but we were very grateful for each and every one of them. This is at the Mercado Centrale in Florence, right next to one of the market stalls. Rob's carrying our Concierge Class Celebrity tote. ;)

 

[dln929]

There were so many comfortable spots on the Solstice for quiet relaxation!

 

 

 

 

 

 

Pisa is not the only place in Italy with a leaning tower. This one in Burano Island gives it a run for the money.

 

 

 

Splash guard. Low tech but apparently effective. Woe be the man who tries to tinkle in this corner. :eek:

 

 

 

 

This is one of the joys of not having yourself booked up for a tour or excursion at every port. It affords you the opportunity to wander and get lost. Here, lost in Venice, a beautiful little street with an old wisteria vine.

 

[dln929]

dln929 were you ever able to get alink to all your pics.

Norma

 

Finally! Though I'm still not finished adding all the descriptions. I'll keep plugging away at it. ;)

 

http://dln929solsticecruise.shutterfly.com

[Ma Bell]

Love your review. Well done!:)

[librarylady19]

Hi Deirdre,

lovely photos....we really need to take this cruise.

Looking forward to meeting you in less than A month!

It should be easy to recognize you and Rob after seeing your photos.

[momofmeg]

Did you ride those water buses in Venice? LOL! Water bus is a good term for them. It was just like being on a city bus except for being on the water. I enjoyed the gondola much more!

[h20cruzer]

dln929 great great pics. Felt like I was there, my favorites were of Naples. I spent some time there 20 years ago. Also loved the Venice pic where the boats look like they are in a residential are.

Must do that cruise some time. I am scheduled for a TA from Barcelona to Miami 11/18/12 and sending a couple of days in Barcelona first.

norma

[dln929]

Thank you once more for all the nice comments. Sandi and Ma Bell, can't wait to meet you on our future cruises in September and April. Norma, maybe I've made you a Naples convert? Naples really does take a bum rap but it's a great place to visit, full of lots of treasures. If you climb to the top of Naples nearby the fortress (the one straight ahead of you when you're docked) the neighborhood is very spiffy.

 

 

 

 

MomofMeg--yes we did a lot of "joy riding" around Venice. We bought the 24 hour pass. We tried buying it at one of the landing docks in the little machine, but it wouldn't take our credit card. Rob had only a larger euro bill with him so we went over to the newsstand nearby, hoping to get some change. The news guy did us one better by selling us the tickets instead. I had known you could buy bus tickets at a newsstand, but I hadn't realized that in Venice, where the bus is a boat, you could do the same. Duh! :p We've never gone on a gondola. Rob used to row in college and we own kayaks at home, so it's never appealed. We know all about paddling. The vaporetto is much more fun for us except when they're crammed with more people than you could shake a stick at. However, there's a new solution to that problem--the Art Vaporetto. We didn't take it but maybe the next time we will. http://www.venezia.net/venice-italy/1801/venice-art-waterbus-vaporetto-arte/

 

Here's a tarted up vaporetto, the artsy version.

 

 

 

[momofmeg]

What was good about the gondola ride is th guy took you through some little canals and we saw residential areas-people's laundry out to dry, etc. It was neat.

 

We also bought the 24 hour pass as we did not do a ship's excursion in Venice. We took the gondola in the evening-that was when we went up to the Rialto bridge area. Earlier that day we went up to St. Mark's Square and the Doge's Palace, we then returned to ship-rested a couple of hours and went out again to the Rialto.

 

The next morning I stayed on ship and enjoyed the solarium but hubby went to the House of Gold. He did have to buy a return ticket as the 24 hours was up-that was 7 euros. He said he wished he had bought for himself the 36 hour pass which was 5 more euros than the 24 hour and saved a couple of euros-but I said-it was only a couple of euros and he may have decided he was too tired the next day as I had. I think we did right to buy the 24 hour pass.

[wednesday]

Excellent review! I always intend to do a nice review but I either start them and never finish or just never start at all. I shoot most of my photos in RAW and have to convert and edit each one...I am only about halfway done with my Baltic pics from June/July :o

[lilghallinsf]

Wonderful review!!!

We just did celebrity for the first time this past April. An inside cabin in the carribean. I just booked the two transatlantic in April next year in an Aqua Class. I could not be more excited!!! Your review is highlighting some of the places we will go and is very very helpful.

[lilghallinsf]

I love the idea of the wine tasting on the lawn. Is this done often? I think this is a fantastic idea and would be more than willing to pay that price.

[momofmeg]

I love the idea of the wine tasting on the lawn. Is this done often? I think this is a fantastic idea and would be more than willing to pay that price.

 

They do that when you are leaving Venice so once a cruise that overnignts there I guess. This summer the Equniox is doing this cruise as the Solstice is cruising Alaska. I am not sure if the Celebrity cruise that starts in Venice and ends in Rome or vice versa does this. I am pretty sure though the Equinox round trip Barcelona does it.

[momofmeg]

I love the idea of the wine tasting on the lawn. Is this done often? I think this is a fantastic idea and would be more than willing to pay that price.

 

I see you live in SF. Our next crusie is from that port on Princess.

[lilghallinsf]

Have you been here? It's a wonderful city and we will have a new cruise terminal next year