My review of celebrity solstice

[lizzy77]

This is my opinion and review of Solstice. It's a bit long but there was soooo much to write about and being a new ship to Aussie waters I wanted to try to make it quite detailed.

 

Solstice Singapore - Sydney Nov23- Dec 9th

 

We boarded in Singapore for a 16 night voyage to Sydney stopping at Bali, Darwin, Cairns and Brisbane. Lots of sea days and that's what we like. We had a C2 Concierge with a huge, covered, extended balcony on deck 12. It was a great position near the elevators and one floor up to the buffet. We got to the pier about 11.30 and we were on the ship before 12. Celebrity don't let you into your cabins until1.30pm so it was very busy in the Buffet till then. In hindsight would should have gone to Bistro on 5 for lunch till the cabins were available.( $5 pp charge).

The weather was very hot and steamy in Bali and Darwin with smooth seas. Unfortunately we sailed pass Thursday Island in the dark but we could see the lights. Our first impression of the ship was tarnished with a big stuff collecting passports when we were leaving Singapore and we were 4 hours late and it was 10pm before we sailed out. That was a real shambles and the ship unfortunately offered no apologies to some passengers involved, or disclosed exactly what did happen. There were lots of different nationalities onboard with the majority being Aussies, Americans and Brits. The Christmas decorations went up on Dec 1 and looked fantastic.

Solstice is a gorgeous modern ship which we found to be bright and spacious. It's well laid out and easy to navigate around and never felt crowded even though there were 2900 on board. It was the smoothest cruise we have been on and we were fortunate to have smooth seas all the way but there was no motion at all!! Till the last day and then we felt a slight motion. It was like we were in a shopping mall and not on a ship! Not even the slightest bit of rocking and rolling to put you off to sleep at night.

The captain was Captain Yannis Berdos who we found to be rather dull and boring with his morning report on our navigational progress then he started to promote the Ship's tours! That lost us! The Entertainment director was Paul Bayo who has a great voice and did a great job at the Pool Party and lots of other activities. The Activities manager was Peter Baker. The Dancing with the Stripes show where the passengers paired up with some officers for a Dance competition was very funny as well as the Egg Drop. If you want a laugh they are a don't miss. The Cooking demonstrations were very good and they had an Australian Executive Chef for the Australian summer season who was very approachable and was always out and mixing with the guests. I think he was trying to ensure that there was an Aussie influence in the food. All the staff were friendly and not one of them passed us without eye contact and a greeting. The air-conditioning tended to be on the cool side indoors and when we left Brisbane and the temprature dropped it was actually cold. A couple of the guest speakers were dull but Milo who was the naturalist had some very interesting talks.

The theatre is the largest we have seen and it wasn't necessary to get there 1/2 hr before the shows, unlike Princess ships. Show times varied with some nights 7pm and 9pm and then, 8.45 and 10.45pm. Overall the shows were very good and the highlight shows were the Aussie Boys who brought the house down with their rendition of Aussie songs and the Acrobatic Show was amazing and would have to rate as one of the best we have seen on any ship.

 

We had a great Cruise Critic group with 176 signing up for the meet and greet and had a few functions starting with a wine tasting, as well as organized tours shared within the group.

 

Deck 14, The Lawn area has real grass..... Yes real grass that they mow!!! You can play a few different games and it had some very comfortable large chairs to lounge in. It's a great spot for sail away and has a bar at the very back of the ship that was a great spot for sail away. In the middle was the glass blowing area, with gas fired furnaces where twice a day they have the glassblowers demonstratingthe making of a piece of glassware that is then sold at the end of the cruise. Deck 15 and 16 are great spots for those who like to sun bake.( not us!!) and you do seem to get a great breeze there as it is so high up.

Deck 12 is where the 2 pool areas are, one air-conditioned and undercover. The outdoor area has 2 small pools and 4 spas. Definitely not big enough to have a decent swim in! There were also some great large cane chairs for reading, a couple of huge cocoon chairs for 2 and an actual bed with netting to spend the day in!! It never ceased to amaze me at how many people will spend all day in the sun. The pool attendants also went round with iced face washers to cool people down.

There seemed to be lots of small areas around the ship for reading which I am sure would be used by the inside cabin dwellers.

For those who booked Aqua class and suites, they eat at the Blu restaurant and were not encouraged to eat in the dining rooms even if they wanted a change of scenery.

I could not understand why they had the table tennis set up in The Central area on deck 4. It interrupted the whole flow of traffic especially after a show. In my opinion, The table tennis should be on the open deck area.

 

The library is in a very open setting on deck 7 and was well used as a reading room but doesn't seem to have any accountability for those who borrow the few books that were there, and I could only see a sign that asked you to return the books at the end of the cruise.

The cafe is one of the busiest areas on the ship with a large variety of coffees and teas. Most coffees are .$4.50 and they also have tiny rolls and cakes available. There is a gelatti bar but there is a charge.

 

Internet is expensive and slow. You can also use the Ship's Internet in your cabin with a keyboard and the TV. Fortunately after we left Cairns we had the Telstra signal all the way so I was able to use my Ipad all the way down the coast which was great.

There weren't many kids on the ship and those that were, well, we never saw them. I did speak to a mum who had 3 boys, 14, 12 and 8 and they never saw the kids and had to beg them to have a lunch with their parents. So sounded like the kids and parents were all happy. When they had the Crossing the Equator Ceremony the kids were involved and they had a great time. I felt the ceremony was a bit ordinary and there was very little muck thrown about as we have seen on other ships. Those involved got off very lightly.

 

The cabins had a modern interior, though I have heard complaints as to how narrow they are. Didnt bother us. Quite roomy bathrooms and large showers with glass doors, much more preferable than the clingy shower curtains. Some cabins had the beds by the balcony window and they alternate with the next room having the bed as you walk in. Fabulous TV system with 20channels plus music, information, dining options, room service, ability to book shore excursions and check your onboard account and photos taken by the ship's photographers. We had a Concierge cabin where we had a complimentary Bottle of sparkling wine, fresh fruit delivered every day, extra breakfast options for in cabin breakfasts, Egyptian linen bedding, fresh flowers plus a few other small in cabin extras. Totally spoil us. We were also very fortunate to have one of the large extended balconies, which was fully covered overhead, where we would sit every day to read and watch the world go by. Also by having a Concierge cabin you get 2 cruise credits instead of only 1 which is a good way to build up your points with Celebrity. We had 2 room attendants as they seem to work in pairs, and every need was looked after and they would have to be the best we have had on our 14 cruises. Breakfast on our balcony, which was lovely, was delivered by our own room attendant so you were always looked after by the same people.

 

We had the Select Dining option for dinner where we were able to go to dinner at any time we pleased. Sounded great but we did get sick of every night going through the same old thing,"where are you from" etc. The Select Dining allows people to book a specific time every night which meant if you haven't booked you would go in one line with the bookers in another, and of course they always got a table before you. In my opinion this defeats the purpose of going to dinner at any time if you always book for the same time very night. We found the service and the food to be not up to the Princess standard that we have had previously. What we did like was they have some standard favorites on the menu every night such as French Onion Soup, Prawn Cocktails, Salmon and Steak, Creme Brulee and Cheesecake, so there was always something to fall back on if the menu wasn't appealing. The dining room food seemed to be very hit and miss. Set Dining times were6.30 and 8.30 The Dining room was also open for breakast and lunch every day except shore days.

We enjoyed the buffet area and liked the way it was set out with different stations. Italian, Indian, Asian, Salads, roasts and veg's, soups, and of course the deserts. Every day the chef had a special dish such as Paella or Fish and Chips and we enjoyed the made to order pastas and stir fries. They also have an ice-cream bar open from11.30- 9.30, needless to say it was always busy.

Specialty restaurants.

Murano is international 5 star fine dining $40pp

Silk Harvest , Asian cuisine $25pp

Tuscan Grill, Italian style Grill, $25pp and has the best view right at

The back of the ship

Bistro on Five. light meals and crepes for breakfast lunch and dinner$5

We only tried Bistro on Five and enjoyed it and wished that we had tried it earlier in the cruise.

 

There are numerous bars and everyone seems to have a favourite and ours was the Martini Bar before dinner. Loved the Apple Martini but there were heaps to chose from and the bartenders loved to put on a show throwing the bottles and cocktail shakers around. They never measure any drinks in any bar and the servings are.... Very generous to say the least!!! Martinis and cocktails were about$10, beers started at $5 and a glass of wine started at $6.50 which I thought were all reasonably priced. Soft drink is $2 per can and all drinks are plus 15%gratuities. There is a huge range of bottled wines but a very limited range of Aussie ones.

Lots of people had the Drinks Package for soft drinks and coffees as well as Alcohol Packages which includes everything. The Basic Alcohol package is about$44 per day which is good value if you drink lots of teas, coffees, waters and spirits and wine.

I was very disappointed that they didn't sell Clinique products as I always have a big shop up when on a ship. If you intend to buy some alcohol, do it early in the cruise as they sold out very quickly and after the first week they had a very limited range left. Spirits were very cheap with some starting at $11.99 but I was told by some cruisers who had been on the ship since Barcelona that they had increased the prices after we got on in Singapore. They must have know that the Aussies would buy up big!

I didn't use the Spa but I did go to the hairdressers and I thought that the prices were quite reasonable at $59 for a cut and $79 for a colour plus gratuities of course.

The tendering process in Bali was nothing short of a disaster and it took us 2 hrs to get off the ship and then we had a 2 hr wait to get back on. Needless to say there were lots of unhappy vegemites on the ship but it gave them something to talk about for a while. It seemed to us like the crew were not very efficient at the tendering process so they better learn quickly for the Australian Cruise ports. They provided shuttles in Darwin but charged $8pp which we have never had to do before and considering it was only about 2 klm once again folks were not happy. Cairns they charged $12 for the shuttle and $22 in Brisbane. The tendering process at Yorkeys Knob was much improved and went without any hassles.

 

Their Shore excursions were greatly overpriced and Bali was just ridiculous!! They were charging $99.25 for a tour which I organized privately for 10 people at a cost of $72 for the 10 of us and our bus could have accommodated 12!!!!!! I know all cruiseline tours are overpriced by I felt these tours were ridiculously expensive.

There was a nasty chest infection with a severe cough that a lot of passengers experienced. We were fortunate to miss it, however our Dr always gives us some anti biotics when we cruise...... Just in case! Some people tried to tough it out, but ended up at the Drs after a few days.

 

Overall we thoroughly enjoyed the cruise and loved, loved, loved the ship. It was a great experience which has definitely spoil us for who cruising on anything other than Celebrity ships. I know we would find it hard to go back to some other ship sailing in Aus now. This was our first Celebrity cruise and it definitely won't be the last! So look out Princess..... You have some first rate competion now:) :)

[Guest012]

Thanks Liz thoroughly enjoyed your review, i will pass onto our friends who are still booked on the Syd/Hnl cruise next April if that's okay.... cheers Shiona

[Gold Coast Cruisers]

What a wonderful review Lizzy. I felt like I was on board and I haven't even been on Solstice...lol.

Glad you liked Celebrity, we do too. I hope you can do some cruising quickly, make it 2 point cabins so you can attain Elite Loyality status quickly, it's worth it.

I look forward to cruising on Solstice sooner rather than later. :)

Jilly:)

[lizzy77]

Thanks girls. Of course you can pass it on Shiona. I was going to book for the Jan cruise Auckland to NZ. Gor a great quote from my US TA. Procrastinated for a few days and now we are back and people are hearing about Solstice, the price has gone through the roof:(.

[Gold Coast Cruisers]

Thanks girls. Of course you can pass it on Shiona. I was going to book for the Jan cruise Auckland to NZ. Gor a great quote from my US TA. Procrastinated for a few days and now we are back and people are hearing about Solstice, the price has gone through the roof:(.

 

 

Lizzy do you know if once it leaves here in April, will it be back down here again in the future?

 

Jilly:)

[rkmw]

Lizzy do you know if once it leaves here in April, will it be back down here again in the future?

 

Jilly:)

 

Liz i enjoyed your review also and maybe we'll go on it ourselves one day

 

Jilly, Solstice once it goes back in april it'll be back here on the 23rd oct 13 doing a 12 nighter to the South Pacific

[JacintaH]

Lizzy do you know if once it leaves here in April, will it be back down here again in the future?

 

Jilly:)

 

I understand that Solstice will be back in AUS/NZ waters next summer.

 

Thanks for the great review, we are booked for the 23rd and I am busting out of my skin with excitement.

[K-Roo-Zers]

Hi Liz,

 

Welcome back, and thanks for the wonderful, detailed reivew.

 

We, too, love Celebrity, and can't wait to sail on her again.

 

You are correct, it will make it difficult for you to return to some of the local "Aussified ships".

 

Thanks again for sharing.

 

Nicki

[Sandielle]

Thanks for the great review, Liz. :)

[NSWP]

Thanks Liz for the review, tells me some of what I can expect when it is my time to board Celebrity Solstice on 4 March.

[rugbypopsie]

Welcome home Lizzy...great review sounds like another good ship.

 

Sue

[KirkNC]

Thanks for the review, wow 176 at the M&G :eek:.

[anandaindonesia]

Thank you for the review.

I am looking forward to having my turn to get 'solticised' :)

[suncityga]

I am looking forward to having my turn to get 'solticised' :)

 

It will be tough to get back to just 'cruising' once you are 'solsticized' ! ! ! :)

[MMDown Under]

Pleased you enjoyed your cruise, Liz. Thanks for the detailed review.

 

After going in yesterday for a look, I have a question. I noticed most of the balcony cabins are set in, inside the frame of the ship. Would this location only enable you to look out to sea, rather than down into the ocean, along the side of the ship? Do you know what I mean?

 

I also love Celebrity.

[lizzy77]

Yes I do know what you mean Marion. We had a balcony that was on the hump and ours and any other ones on the hump can only see one way, either forward or aft. Made no difference at all to us. I saw quite a few of the balconies on our cabin crawl and I can honestly say that I didn't notice that the view was all that bad. In fact the balconies are much more open than other ships we have been on. If you do want shade you are better off on the high decks with the overhang.

The cabins they market as obstructed view balconies had no obstruction in front of them at all. The only obstruction was that the tender boats were underneath their cabins and their view was fine;)

[Sutho]

Thanks for the review. I cant wait to go in March. This ship has a reputation that proceeds it. The balcony cabin I have is an obstructed view one on the port side above the specialty restaurants so it has the blue platform stretching away from it. Any comments about these cabins will be appreciated. I cant complain because I got it cheap. In fact it was cheaper than my Grand Event cruise on Aurora this year that I had an inside cabin for.

 

Just a query did the prices for specialty restaurants have a higher fare on board compared to pre pay before you go?

[Keith1010]

Very nice review. Thanks for taking the time to write and post it.

 

Keith

[Aussieflyer]

Thanks for the review. I cant wait to go in March. This ship has a reputation that proceeds it. The balcony cabin I have is an obstructed view one on the port side above the specialty restaurants so it has the blue platform stretching away from it. Any comments about these cabins will be appreciated. I cant complain because I got it cheap. In fact it was cheaper than my Grand Event cruise on Aurora this year that I had an inside cabin for.

 

Hi Sutho, have you checked on the Solstice cabin sticky over on the main Celebrity board? Librarylady19 maintains a spreadsheet with comments by passengers on their cabins. The link is under her signature.

 

Not sure if your cabin is listed.

[The_Big_M]

 

Just a query did the prices for specialty restaurants have a higher fare on board compared to pre pay before you go?

 

There was a promotion recently giving a small discount if you prepaid. However, normally the price is the same onboard or not.

 

The advantage booking in advance is that you get the optimal choice of times, as popular times can sell out and mean you can prepare when convenient instead of chasing it up onboard.

[TLCOhio]

Appreciate so much this posting and the details from your Solstice sailing/adventure. We are looking forward to our first “down under” visit, Jan. 20-Feb. 3, 2014, Celebrity Solstice sailing, departing Sydney, doing 14 days on this ship we loved in the Med in June 2011. We will be finishing in Auckland. Plus, doing some pre-cruise options for the Great Barrier Reef and then Kangaroo Island near Adelaide before departing from Sidney’s scenic harbor.

 

For those who have not yet sailed on any of these Solstice-type ships, below are just a few of my sample/preview visuals. Many, many more details and pictures of this classy ship and its food, entertainment, etc., offerings can be seen on my live/blog connected below. Happy to answer any questions as those in Australia prepare to enjoy this great sailing vessel. Don’t be shy and feel free to comment. The only "dumb question" is the one you don't ask.

 

Good luck to those sailing on the Solstice, but don't drink her dry and be sure to leave her in good shape for our early 2014 cruise.

 

THANKS! Enjoy! Terry in Ohio

 

Did a June 7-19, 2011, Celebrity Solstice cruise from Barcelona that had stops in Villefranche, ports near Pisa and Rome, Naples, Kotor, Venice and Dubrovnik. Enjoyed great weather and a wonderful trip. Dozens of wonderful visuals with key highlights, tips, comments, etc., on these postings. We are now at 111,951 views for this live/blog re-cap on our first sailing with Celebrity and much on wonderful Barcelona. Check these postings and added info at:

http://www.boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1426474

 

 

On the top, back of the Solstice, here is a wider view of Corning Hot Glass show area, plus the green grass and the unique covering designs for this special area of the ship. Classy design touches and style!!:

 

 

 

The Solarium was one of our favorite areas. Food and drinks were nearby and it was very relaxed and sophisticated. Quieter, too, as it is an adults-only area. Two hot tubs here. Not crowded, especially in the evenings. Nice art and design with this facility. Wonderful setting for relaxing and watching the outside water/shore views, enjoying subtle inside action, etc.:

 

[bazzaw]

 

The only "dumb question" is the one you don't ask.

 

 

Do I see some roping off of the "grassed" area?? I was wondering how a small patch of grass could be maintained with so many people on such a ship. If so, I would consider that the grass is just a novelty which actually reduces the area of the ship that can be actually used??

 

Cunard's Queen Elizabeth has a "grass' bowling green, a "gass" crocquet green and a lawn tennis court - but of course, this "grass" is artificial. It is however a very nice and well used area of that ship.

 

Barry

[TLCOhio]

Do I see some roping off of the "grassed" area?? I was wondering how a small patch of grass could be maintained with so many people on such a ship. If so, I would consider that the grass is just a novelty which actually reduces the area of the ship that can be actually used?? Cunard's Queen Elizabeth has a "grass' bowling green, a "gass" crocquet green and a lawn tennis court - but of course, this "grass" is artificial. It is however a very nice and well used area of that ship. Barry

 

Yes, Barry, good eye and catch. There were a couple of small areas marked off for maintenance and restoring. Not sure that it was caused by too much wear. Might have also been the factor of the sea air and some salty moisture, etc. Overall, it is in part of "gimmick", but it's a nice, refreshing touch, look, in my personal opinion. Here below is another grass view on the top, back of the ship.

 

THANKS! Enjoy! Terry in Ohio

 

Did a June 7-19, 2011, Celebrity Solstice cruise from Barcelona that had stops in Villefranche, ports near Pisa and Rome, Naples, Kotor, Venice and Dubrovnik. Enjoyed great weather and a wonderful trip. Dozens of wonderful visuals with key highlights, tips, comments, etc., on these postings. We are now at 111,951 views for this live/blog re-cap on our first sailing with Celebrity and much on wonderful Barcelona. Check these postings and added info at:

http://www.boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1426474

 

 

In the top, back area near the Sunset Bar with live grass, some enjoy this area by reading, playing on the lawn or sun-bathing there. Usually, it’s not too crowded!:

 

[6andy6]

BUT anymore gimmicky than say, a rock climbing wall, a wave rider, a water slide that comes out from the side of a ship, restaurants with singing waiters, an ice bar, champagne waterfalls, etc etc.

 

Most of what occurs on a ship, any ship, is gimmicky and designed to 'capture' or appeal to a market jaded by the last gimmick and pull in the punters.

[timtam2]

There were small patches roped off the other day with signs 'lawn is resting'. Most of the lawn would have been accessible, except there was a wedding gong on up there and it would have been intruding. Why you would want to get married nboard a ship when 1000s of gawkers were going past, I couldn't understand