On the Solstice now....first impressions

[gregjm]

This is a "mini" review of our still in progress May 17th Solstice sailing to Alaska. I will do a more detailed review when I get back home, but thought i would share first impressions.

 

This is our third time on the Solstice and our fourth time to Alaska. This sailing is unique in that it is the first time that a Solstice class ship has been part of the Alaska fleet of Celebrity ship.

 

Embarkation:

 

We arrived at the Pier at 12:15 and were on the ship by 12:40. As Elite's we avoided some of the lines, although during the time we arrived everything seemed to be moving very quickly. I was told by one of the counter people that there was a mad rush around 10:30. The moral of the story: Don't rush to the pier to be the first on. Getting there at 12:15 avoids longer waits.

 

First lunch:

 

As is our tradition we went to Bistrol on 5 for lunch after we embarked. Our server at Bistro on five (Sasha) has been the "Shining star" celebrity employee since we have been on the ship. She welcomed us, told us that it was her goal to make sure that we have a wonderful Celebrity experience. She was fantastic, and now, every time we see her around the ship she knows our names and asks us if we are having a great time. Interestingly, she reminds me of many of the employees from our first couple of Celebrty sailings. I'd give Celebrity an A for their handling of embarkation. Easiest ever of all past cruises.

 

Stateroom:

 

Our Aqua Class stateroom was ready by 12:50 when the "all clear" announcement was given. After lunch we went to our cabin, met our room steward and were pleased that one of our suitcases arrived shortly thereafter. By 5:00 p.m., our other suitcase had not arrived and our stateroom attendant said that all bags had been delivered. He directed us to Guest Relations where we were shown luggage with missing luggage tags (none was ours) and then he took us to Security to see the luggage that had been pulled out for inspection (once again, none was ours). He told us that he would immediately institute an immediate search of the ship and would find our luggage. When I asked what would happen if it wasn't found, I loved his response: "let's think positive---we'll find it even if we have to go cabin to cabin". He then told me to "give him an hour". We went for a drink and within an hour the bag had been found and delivered to our cabin. Our room steward apologized for the inconvenience. Celebrity gets an A for stateroom cleanliness and the handling of the missing luggage

 

Tuscan Grille

 

We were asked if we wanted to dine in Tuscan; there was a two for one first name special. We opted to dine at Tuscan, and since we had a long day wanted to eat early. We arrived at 6:00 p.m., and were given a nice window table. Everything regarding this meal went down hill from there.

 

First, we sat for ten minutes before our presence was acknowledged by our waiter (remember---it's 6:00; they aren't busy). Finally, we get water and then our waiter appears with the menus and disappears. Ten minutes later he reappears and said "Have you decided?"

 

All around us, we saw other waiters explaining the menu, offering suggestions and engaging their guests as through they were happy to be serving them. Then, there is our waiter.

 

So, "HAVE we decided?" as his question, we went ahead and order. The calamari appetizer was good, as was the minestrone. Salads were served (again, acceptable but nothing special) and the entrees arrived while we were still finishing our salads.

 

The entrees were delivered by two very nice assistant waiters. When we got the entrees we realized that in the rush of Mr. "Have we decided" we forgot to order sides for the main course (Potato, vegetable, etc). So, we get a plate with the entree and thats it.

 

We ate, with both my partner and I really irritated by the very poor service of our waiter, who was for all practical purposes totally ignoring us. We could see him engaging other tables in what I would think is the expected manner, yet for some reason he decided that we were not worthy of his service.

 

Finally, he sees that we are done and approaches the table: "Can I get you anything else?" he asks. Maybe dessert, we say. He turns to retrieve dessert menus and comes back a few minutes later and asks if we "wanted anything" . One dessert was ordered along with coffee; both delivered by a very nice assistant waiter.

 

We wait…and wait…..and wait. By now, it's becoming an experiment for me to determine just how bad of service we will receive. Fifteen minutes later he comes back and says "will that be all". I hand him my sea pass card and he returns it for signature.

 

When we left the hostess asked how everything was. I told her we were disappointed in the service; it was not what we have come to expect from Celebrity. She apologized, but really did not express any concern. It was more of a "sorry to hear that; have a nice night" type of response.

 

So, here is my take on this debacle at Tuscan Grille: Our waiter treated us in a manner where I can reach no conclusion other than the fact that he is homophobic and was expressing his displeasure with the fact that two men can love one another by providing us with terrible service.

 

Grade for Tuscan experience: F

 

Blu

 

Breakfast in Blu has been great; the service is wonderful as is the food. Dinner on the first formal night was also excellent in Blu.

 

(One side note: Celebrity needs to enforce their dress code on formal nights. As we were being seat in Blu, a couple walked in wearing shorts and flip-flops and they were seated. The maitre 'd should have said something about this)

 

Grade for Blu: A- (only because of not enforcing the dress code)

 

Entertainment

 

Cruise Director (Patty) is pretty standard Celebrity entertainment. Standard entertainment so far. Sin City late night comedy was very good

 

Cruise for entertainment so far: B

 

Other highlights:

 

Brent Nixon is the naturalist on board for the Alaska cruises. He is EXCELLENT. Do not miss his presentations.

 

Other impressions:

 

The martini bar "ice" is not working. Celebrity----get it fixed. It's just not the same sitting at the martini bar without the frost on the bar. Also, the bartenders in the martini bar seem, at times, to be more interested in talking to each other than engaging the guests. Finally, someone in housekeeping needs to take a good look at the clear glass tower the corner of the martini bar (where there are bottles of booze, etc.) It is filthy, and looks like it hasn't been cleaned inside since Solstice was launched.

 

As I said, this is a preliminary review since we are only in day 3 of the cruise. The few negatives are not in any way detracting from our experience, although I do have to say that the Tuscan experience is the first time ever on Celebrity where my partner and I felt discriminated against by a Celebrity staffer because we are gay.

 

More will be posted upon return…

[H2OH!]

straighten them out!! we will board June 7th! The martini bar is our favorite so the "ice" on the bar needs to be fixed! :D

 

Hope you are having fun. Can hardly wait to read your full review.

 

Amy

[cruiseacecat]

This absolutely should NOT have happened. If you believe he treated you badly because of your sexual orientation, please bring this to the attention of the hotel director. One way would be to fill out an "attention to detail" card which will be given to him. I am certain he would want to know about this. This waiter can use a little more training.

Sorry this happened to you and please do not let it ruin your cruise.

 

Anne

[pdcat21]

straighten them out!! we will board June 7th! The martini bar is our favorite so the "ice" on the bar needs to be fixed! :D

 

Hope you are having fun. Can hardly wait to read your full review.

 

Amy

 

Yes, Yes it does!:D

[lightning bolt]

There is another thread that has a problem with Tuscan Grille. They were on the Reflection and had a much worse time than you. Your should read JW and Jerome's Excellent Adventure on the Celebrity REFLECTION! They loved the cruise except for the time in Tuscan Grille. I can see it is happening on more than one Celebrity Ship. This has to be stopped.:mad: Hope you enjoy the rest of your trip.:)

[Moobaby214]

From one gay to another, how do you know the service was bad because you are gay? I'm not saying that it wasn't the reason, but do you really know? It is definitely a very strong accusation to just lob out there without anything at all to back it up.

 

P.S. thank you for the review. I look forward to reading more.

 

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[gregjm]

Sorry. It was my opinion of a bad experience and there was NO other reasonable explanation of the poor service in Tuscan. Sorry if it offends for sharing my experience. BTW. Don't throw around the "actionable" stuff for posting opinions. You weren't there and did not witness the treatment we received. Please note that I did not post the waiters name and have talked to management and relayed our experience

[Nanny2Trey]

Formal wear is not required in Blu or any of the specialty restaurants on formal night. That is one of the reasons we like Aqua Class to eat in Blu. We do wear nice clothes and no flip flops, however.

 

Linda

[Christine Frances]

Formal wear is not required in Blu or any of the specialty restaurants on formal night. That is one of the reasons we like Aqua Class to eat in Blu. We do wear nice clothes and no flip flops, however.

 

Linda

 

Shorts and Flip Flops (smart casual) :eek: Give me the MDR anytime:D

[Karen@Steve]

There have been a few people that have claimed that Tuscan grille was not up to standards for any number of reasons. Sounds like they have a management problem there. Hopefully it will be straightened out and the only reason for poor treatment was poor management and no other. Sorry you had a bad experience and glad the rest of the cruise was good.

[Aussie Claire]

This is a "mini" review of our still in progress May 17th Solstice sailing to Alaska. I will do a more detailed review when I get back home, but thought i would share first impressions.

 

This is our third time on the Solstice and our fourth time to Alaska. This sailing is unique in that it is the first time that a Solstice class ship has been part of the Alaska fleet of Celebrity ship.

 

Embarkation:

 

We arrived at the Pier at 12:15 and were on the ship by 12:40. As Elite's we avoided some of the lines, although during the time we arrived everything seemed to be moving very quickly. I was told by one of the counter people that there was a mad rush around 10:30. The moral of the story: Don't rush to the pier to be the first on. Getting there at 12:15 avoids longer waits.

 

First lunch:

 

As is our tradition we went to Bistrol on 5 for lunch after we embarked. Our server at Bistro on five (Sasha) has been the "Shining star" celebrity employee since we have been on the ship. She welcomed us, told us that it was her goal to make sure that we have a wonderful Celebrity experience. She was fantastic, and now, every time we see her around the ship she knows our names and asks us if we are having a great time. Interestingly, she reminds me of many of the employees from our first couple of Celebrty sailings. I'd give Celebrity an A for their handling of embarkation. Easiest ever of all past cruises.

 

Stateroom:

 

Our Aqua Class stateroom was ready by 12:50 when the "all clear" announcement was given. After lunch we went to our cabin, met our room steward and were pleased that one of our suitcases arrived shortly thereafter. By 5:00 p.m., our other suitcase had not arrived and our stateroom attendant said that all bags had been delivered. He directed us to Guest Relations where we were shown luggage with missing luggage tags (none was ours) and then he took us to Security to see the luggage that had been pulled out for inspection (once again, none was ours). He told us that he would immediately institute an immediate search of the ship and would find our luggage. When I asked what would happen if it wasn't found, I loved his response: "let's think positive---we'll find it even if we have to go cabin to cabin". He then told me to "give him an hour". We went for a drink and within an hour the bag had been found and delivered to our cabin. Our room steward apologized for the inconvenience. Celebrity gets an A for stateroom cleanliness and the handling of the missing luggage

 

Tuscan Grille

 

We were asked if we wanted to dine in Tuscan; there was a two for one first name special. We opted to dine at Tuscan, and since we had a long day wanted to eat early. We arrived at 6:00 p.m., and were given a nice window table. Everything regarding this meal went down hill from there.

 

First, we sat for ten minutes before our presence was acknowledged by our waiter (remember---it's 6:00; they aren't busy). Finally, we get water and then our waiter appears with the menus and disappears. Ten minutes later he reappears and said "Have you decided?"

 

All around us, we saw other waiters explaining the menu, offering suggestions and engaging their guests as through they were happy to be serving them. Then, there is our waiter.

 

So, "HAVE we decided?" as his question, we went ahead and order. The calamari appetizer was good, as was the minestrone. Salads were served (again, acceptable but nothing special) and the entrees arrived while we were still finishing our salads.

 

The entrees were delivered by two very nice assistant waiters. When we got the entrees we realized that in the rush of Mr. "Have we decided" we forgot to order sides for the main course (Potato, vegetable, etc). So, we get a plate with the entree and thats it.

 

We ate, with both my partner and I really irritated by the very poor service of our waiter, who was for all practical purposes totally ignoring us. We could see him engaging other tables in what I would think is the expected manner, yet for some reason he decided that we were not worthy of his service.

 

Finally, he sees that we are done and approaches the table: "Can I get you anything else?" he asks. Maybe dessert, we say. He turns to retrieve dessert menus and comes back a few minutes later and asks if we "wanted anything" . One dessert was ordered along with coffee; both delivered by a very nice assistant waiter.

 

We wait…and wait…..and wait. By now, it's becoming an experiment for me to determine just how bad of service we will receive. Fifteen minutes later he comes back and says "will that be all". I hand him my sea pass card and he returns it for signature.

 

When we left the hostess asked how everything was. I told her we were disappointed in the service; it was not what we have come to expect from Celebrity. She apologized, but really did not express any concern. It was more of a "sorry to hear that; have a nice night" type of response.

 

So, here is my take on this debacle at Tuscan Grille: Our waiter treated us in a manner where I can reach no conclusion other than the fact that he is homophobic and was expressing his displeasure with the fact that two men can love one another by providing us with terrible service.

 

Grade for Tuscan experience: F

 

Blu

 

Breakfast in Blu has been great; the service is wonderful as is the food. Dinner on the first formal night was also excellent in Blu.

 

(One side note: Celebrity needs to enforce their dress code on formal nights. As we were being seat in Blu, a couple walked in wearing shorts and flip-flops and they were seated. The maitre 'd should have said something about this)

 

Grade for Blu: A- (only because of not enforcing the dress code)

 

Entertainment

 

Cruise Director (Patty) is pretty standard Celebrity entertainment. Standard entertainment so far. Sin City late night comedy was very good

 

Cruise for entertainment so far: B

 

Other highlights:

 

Brent Nixon is the naturalist on board for the Alaska cruises. He is EXCELLENT. Do not miss his presentations.

 

Other impressions:

 

The martini bar "ice" is not working. Celebrity----get it fixed. It's just not the same sitting at the martini bar without the frost on the bar. Also, the bartenders in the martini bar seem, at times, to be more interested in talking to each other than engaging the guests. Finally, someone in housekeeping needs to take a good look at the clear glass tower the corner of the martini bar (where there are bottles of booze, etc.) It is filthy, and looks like it hasn't been cleaned inside since Solstice was launched.

 

As I said, this is a preliminary review since we are only in day 3 of the cruise. The few negatives are not in any way detracting from our experience, although I do have to say that the Tuscan experience is the first time ever on Celebrity where my partner and I felt discriminated against by a Celebrity staffer because we are gay.

 

More will be posted upon return…

 

Thank you for your review, it was very interesting.

 

The Martini Bar has been broken for months, we sailed out of Sydney to Honolulu on the 8th April and the Martini Bar wasn't working then, John Paul, the Food & Beverage manager said it had to be fixed in the USA because that is where the technicions were located.

 

I don't think Blu have a formal policy?

 

Enjoy the rest of your cruise.:)

[dkdb]

Hi,

 

We were on the Honolulu to Ensenada segment and dined in the Tuscan Grill four times. We did not have any issues there, however we sat next to another couple and even I was nervous at the length of time for their waiter to acknowledge them. They were a heterosexual couple so I don't think sexual orientation has anything to do with it. It was uncomfortable to us because our server was very attentive and we had finished our meal and they were placing their order. You may be making something out of nothing.

 

Just had to add my two cents.

 

Debbie

[wallie5446]

Quite a few people we know book AQ mainly for the ability to dress 'relaxed' in Blu. Now I doubt they would go so far as to wear shorts to dinner, flip flops maybe :rolleyes:

[Petoonya]

Thanks for the terrific review Gregjm.

Enjoying immensely and look forward to part 2.

[skoeper]

This is a "mini" review of our still in progress May 17th Solstice sailing to Alaska.

 

I'm so glad you posted, now I can ask you Solstice Alaska questions :D

 

Here's my first one: Is there body lotion provided in the stateroom? It sounds like Alaska's cold might be kind of drying, so I should probably pack lotion .....unless it's already provided :)

[POPDISPLAY]

So, here is my take on this debacle at Tuscan Grille: Our waiter treated us in a manner where I can reach no conclusion other than the fact that he is homophobic and was expressing his displeasure with the fact that two men can love one another by providing us with terrible service.

 

What specifically happened to leave you with this conclusion?

[worldtrekker]

Thank you for your "mini" review. We are going on the Solstice to Alaska in July and are very excited. I hope they have the martini bar/bar issues resolved by then as we have the 1-2-3 package awating :D

 

How is the solarium pool for Alaska? I understand it is covered, so thought it may be comfortable for swimming, or is it too cold?

 

Enjoy the rest of your trip, and I look forward to hearing more.

[dln929]

Gregjim, I don't think your bad experience dining in Tuscan Grill had anything whatsoever to do with your sexual orientation. I say this because my husband and I had the exact same experience as you at Murano on the Equinox, and we're about as straight vanilla as they come. It was a singularly unsettling meal at Murano, to the point that we didn't even stay for dessert and coffee. And we had a private meeting with the Director of Food and Beverages and the Maitre' d of Murano a day later to discuss the debacle. (I am confident that they'll sort things out and no one else will get such lousy service as we got.)

 

So please don't think you were slighted just because you're gay. The rest of us occasionally suffer through crappy service too. :(

[Northern Aurora]

Is there body lotion provided in the stateroom? It sounds like Alaska's cold might be kind of drying, so I should probably pack lotion .....unless it's already provided :)

 

I'm not the OP, so hope no one minds if I answer. Body lotion is provided in all staterooms. It is an a small (approximately two ounce or so) bottle, and more is provided as you use the first container.

 

And to the OP -- I certainly hope that the service issue can be resolved, and that the cruise in the end will be an enjoyable one.

[gregjm]

I'm so glad you posted, now I can ask you Solstice Alaska questions :D

 

Here's my first one: Is there body lotion provided in the stateroom? It sounds like Alaska's cold might be kind of drying, so I should probably pack lotion .....unless it's already provided :)

 

There is...and if you need more, just ask your stateroom attendant...

[Keith1010]

Thank you for sharing your initial review. Enjoy!

 

Keith

[gregjm]

Thank you for your "mini" review. We are going on the Solstice to Alaska in July and are very excited. I hope they have the martini bar/bar issues resolved by then as we have the 1-2-3 package awating :D

 

How is the solarium pool for Alaska? I understand it is covered, so thought it may be comfortable for swimming, or is it too cold?

 

Enjoy the rest of your trip, and I look forward to hearing more.

 

The solarium is great for swimming. It is definitely not too cold..

[cruzen8ter]

Question for gregjm:

 

Did you tender in Juneau today? We will be there in a couple of weeks on the Solstice and are signed up for an independent excursion. The Solstice was originally shown as anchoring in Juneau, but they changed it to tendering. We're concerned about making our excursion on time. If the tendering goes smoothly, we'll make it. If you did tender, how did it go? Thank you in advance for your reply.

 

Please continue to post updates on your experience with the Solstice in Alaska. We really enjoyed your first post and we've been watching for your subsequent posts. Hope you're enjoying your cruise.

[cruzen8ter]

I meant to say the it was originally shown as docked - not anchored. Sorry about that.

[Rude Cat]

We are taking the Harv & Marv tour at 4:30 PM hopefully it will not take 3 hours to get off the ship.