Celebrity Solstice - 14 day New Zealand

[deon]

Hi

 

We thinking of booking this cruise in December this year. Has anybody done this cruise or been on this ship.

 

Also - thinking about taking out the premium drinks package - is it worth it?

 

Lastly - we have 2 small kids aged 4 and 6, will the concierge class cabin be big enough or will it simply be too much of a squeeze? Toying with the sky sure, but it's a lot more $$

 

Thanks

Deon

 

 

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[heathluvsing]

We did this cruise...except on the Celebrity Millennium. We stayed concierge class and it could hold 2 small kids (the couch may have been pull out). It would be tight. We are going on the silhouette and it seems like they pull down bunks from the ceiling. I would have a look at what they provide. Honestly, we found you don't spend much time in the room. So if you're trying to save, I'd tough it out in a smaller place.

[tangogulf]

Did this cruise in Jan this year in Concierge Class. Great cruise but don't waste money taking kids in a concierge class cabin- you'll pay a premium for little extras really lost on the kids. As far as space it will be a squeeze with 4 in there. The sofa when converted to a bed will make moving around the cabin a bit of a nightmare. Also this isn't a cruise for kids in terms of ports. They'll probable have a good time at the kids club etc but general ship activities are geared for adults. We didn't really see many kids on our cruise even around the pools etc. An S1 will certainly give you the extra space but also comes with extras that will be lost on the kids e.g butler service.

 

 

 

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[deon]

Thanks for the info - the ceiling pull down beds sound great.

 

 

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[deon]

Thanks for the info tangogulf.

Perhaps this cruise is not for us if it's not geared towards families with kids etc.

 

I've actually prices up 2 interconnecting rooms and they not much more than a concierge room sleeping 4.... Interesting

 

 

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[The_Big_M]

Solstice caters well for children, just that type of cabin doesn't. :-)

 

Also, the concierges are sadly different between the Millennium and Solstice class, as I found to my disappointment.

 

I'd agree with the above posts that concierge class isn't a great choice for 4, especially for that period of time. Another limitation with those cabins is they don't have a lot of wardrobe storage - although 4 and 6 isn't old so don't have as much clothes space needs, you'll still find it very tight for both sleeping, comfort and storage issues. I'd strongly advise against CC for 4 on a Solstice ship.

 

They also don't have the pull down bunk beds in Concierge class. I also agree they make things better.

 

On Solstice for this 12 nt cruise, my suggestion would be to look at two cabins, look at a bigger cabin, or even look at a lower grade, which has a pull down.

[deon]

Thanks for all the responses.

I think the way forward is to explore interconnecting rooms and see what the costs look like.

 

Happy cruising!

 

 

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[aussielozzie18]

You might want to ask about pullman beds for the 4 year old. I have read on CC that many parents don't like putting their very young ones in them due to safety issues ie. limited or no railing. On our Rhapsody cruise, there was only a partial railing near the head to hold onto which was fine for my teen but not so good for a much younger child who may wriggle or move around. I think there was also a suggested minimum age which I think was around 5 or 6.

Edited February 3, 2014 by aussielozzie18

[deon]

Good point aussielozzie - thanks for that will do!

 

 

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[14ersco]

For the 21 December Solstice cruise there are a number of families on the roll call, though most of the kids are tweens and teens.

[deon]

Thanks 14ersco!

Just out of interest how do you get

To know who is on the roll call?

 

Cheers

 

 

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[14ersco]

Thanks 14ersco!

Just out of interest how do you get

To know who is on the roll call?

 

Cheers

 

 

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To get to any of the Roll Call boards you start by logging in at: http://boards.cruisecritic.com/

Then go down to the Roll Call section and choose the cruise line. From there chose the ship you are sailing on or considering sailing. There should be a roll call for each cruise happening within the next year or so. If a roll call is quiet it may "disappear" off the list, but can be found by using the search function.

 

Each roll call takes on its own personality, some have many posts and conversations between cruisers. Others are fairly quiet and linger towards the bottom of the list. When cruisers post they sometimes provide background info, like family sizes and kids ages. The very active roll calls even have someone keeping track of every ones name, for meeting up on the ship or planning shore excursions.

[deon]

Thanks 14ersco!

I found it and and have now subscribed

 

 

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