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Celebrity Solstice Inside tips

josephml1

By josephml1,
in Celebrity Cruises

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  • 3 weeks later...
old ninian

old ninian

Posted
Posted
We love the Solstice Class ships, never been on Solstice or Silhouette but have cruised the others namely Eclipse, Equinox and Reflection. Here are a few things to consider (not really insider tips !) ................

 

1. Check out the Ultimate Dining Package, seldom advertised, only available on Day 1 aboard, still costs $29pp/per day - It allows you to dine in any speciality venue every night and eat in Bistro on Five for free, plus a few other perks.

 

2. Don't forget you can Book your next cruise aboard with some good incentives, significantly reduced deposit, obc on your current or future cruise and one cabin upgrade. Incentives change so check it out when aboard.

 

3. Don't forget your allowance of 2 bottles of wine (750ml) per cabin - ideal for enjoying at sunset! If you have a very special bottle, you can take to dinner for $25 corkage fee. (we have had the fee waived before now- nice tip to the Sommelier)

 

4. Aqua Cabins are no different to other Balcony cabins, many of which are in poor locations, check out the so-called perks - are they right for you? Dining in Blu doesn't suit everybody and the cost increase is highly questionable.

 

5. Enjoy breakfast in the MDR avoiding the hustle and bustle of the Buffet. It is more enjoyable especially on sea-days when time is not at a premium. If you ever become Elite you will be able to take breakfast in the Tuscan Grill.

 

Don't forget free coffee is ugh...... take some sachets. You need an elastic band to keep the hairdrier switch ON. Some clothes pegs for the bathroom clothes line and don't forget the Corkscrew for your wine - you can always ask your cabin steward !!

 

I didn't know we are allowed two bottles of wine per cabin. Does that mean we are allowed to purchase two bottles of wine offshore and bring them onto the ship?

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Beanb41

Beanb41

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I didn't know we are allowed two bottles of wine per cabin. Does that mean we are allowed to purchase two bottles of wine offshore and bring them onto the ship?

 

2 bottles per cabin on EMBARKATION DAY only. Any other wine brought on board will be confiscated and returned on the last night

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  • 2 weeks later...
  • 1 month later...
OzKiwiJJ Great Review Rare

OzKiwiJJ

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If you're doing a New Zealand cruise try to be up on either the Solstice Deck or the Sky Observation Lounge when departing from the various ports, especially Tauranga and Dunedin (Port Chalmers). It's fascinating to see how such a big ship maneuvers it's way through such narror channels, especially when there are very large sandbanks just off the side of the channel. And, of course, teh NZ ports are very beautiful.

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  • 4 weeks later...
finchy1950

finchy1950

Posted
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If you like wine go to Cellarmasters. They have much more variety than any of the bars and you can sit at a window seat watching the water and/ or having good conversation with the sommelier.

 

Hi everyone, we are Celebrity virgins - been on 5 NCL ships but this is our 1st Celebrity. We will be on the Equinox leaving March 6th, can anyone tell me if Beer is available at Cellarmasters - DW likes a wine whereas I am a beer man.

Many thanks

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KazLoudspeaker

KazLoudspeaker

Posted
Posted
A woman shots amazing photo of shark near Celebrity Solstice

at http://crew-center.com/amazing-photo-shark-jumps-out-water-near-cruise-ship

 

Holy smoke!! We were on board and was watching this at sail away from the Sunset bar. We thought it was a dolphin, not a shark! A rain shower and squall was just passing as we were leaving the Bay.

 

Karyn

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MicCanberra Holiday Sharing Rare

MicCanberra

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Hi everyone, we are Celebrity virgins - been on 5 NCL ships but this is our 1st Celebrity. We will be on the Equinox leaving March 6th, can anyone tell me if Beer is available at Cellarmasters - DW likes a wine whereas I am a beer man.

Many thanks

 

Welcome to cruise critic.

Welcome also to Celebrity. I cannot answer for the Equinox but would assume it is the same across the fleet so yes, beer was available in Cellar masters on the Solstice. :D

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  • 2 weeks later...
Preacherman46

Preacherman46

Posted
Posted
No charge.

 

Yes, on formal night, or any other.

 

Ordering earlier the same day is fine.

They usually like to deliver the room service dinner orders around the end of the early seating in the MDR and before late seating begins,

(in other words, when the galley has some slack time between preparing the food for early and late dining),

but it can vary from cruise to cruise, especially if they get busy preparing food for select dining during that time period.

 

Just ask your butler (if you have one) or stateroom attendant to bring you a copy of the main dining room menu for that evening, and check off the items you want.

 

The butler (if you have one) will set the table and serve you the dinner course by course.

 

Otherwise, the entire meal will be delivered to your cabin at one time on trays, but the dishes arrive covered so the hot foods stay pretty hot and the cold foods cold until you uncover them.

 

However, if you order something frozen like ice-cream, I suggest sticking it inside the fridge until you are ready for it.

Or else we like to go up to the buffet area and get ice-cream ourselves later, after the meal is finished.

 

If we are not staying in a suite (therefore no butler), we like to pull the coffee table over close to the balcony doors before the food is delivered and have them set the tray(s) down on the coffee table inside the cabin.

Then it takes only a few steps to carry the dishes out to the balcony and uncover them ourselves as we want them, and to return the dirty dishes back to the tray on the coffee table as we finish with them to make room for the next course out on the balcony table.

 

Enjoying our own private dinner on the balcony is one of our favorite things to do on a cruise, especially when sailing through a scenic area at sunset (not only on the Solstice, but on any cruise ship).

 

We are first-time Celebrity cruisers and are in a CC. A friend who has had those cabins in the past said that we would have a dining level table on the balcony. But I think I have been seeing the smaller tables in pictures. We would like to order from the MDR but would be difficult on the smaller table, if that is what we will have. Can anyone tell us what the table might be? Thanks.:)

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Preacherman46

Preacherman46

Posted
Posted
We love the Solstice Class ships, never been on Solstice or Silhouette but have cruised the others namely Eclipse, Equinox and Reflection. Here are a few things to consider (not really insider tips !) ................

 

1. Check out the Ultimate Dining Package, seldom advertised, only available on Day 1 aboard, still costs $29pp/per day - It allows you to dine in any speciality venue every night and eat in Bistro on Five for free, plus a few other perks.

 

2. Don't forget you can Book your next cruise aboard with some good incentives, significantly reduced deposit, obc on your current or future cruise and one cabin upgrade. Incentives change so check it out when aboard.

 

3. Don't forget your allowance of 2 bottles of wine (750ml) per cabin - ideal for enjoying at sunset! If you have a very special bottle, you can take to dinner for $25 corkage fee. (we have had the fee waived before now- nice tip to the Sommelier)

 

4. Aqua Cabins are no different to other Balcony cabins, many of which are in poor locations, check out the so-called perks - are they right for you? Dining in Blu doesn't suit everybody and the cost increase is highly questionable.

 

5. Enjoy breakfast in the MDR avoiding the hustle and bustle of the Buffet. It is more enjoyable especially on sea-days when time is not at a premium. If you ever become Elite you will be able to take breakfast in the Tuscan Grill.

 

Don't forget free coffee is ugh...... take some sachets. You need an elastic band to keep the hairdrier switch ON. Some clothes pegs for the bathroom clothes line and don't forget the Corkscrew for your wine - you can always ask your cabin steward !!

What is the dress code for breakfast in the MDR?

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ClaudiaB

ClaudiaB

Posted
Posted
By waiting until you book on board you can generally get a discount. You'll pay full price when booking in advance. If this is not important to you then definitely book in advance.

 

You can rebook it on the spot - cancel and rebook with the lower price. They'll credit your on board account the original $$ you paid and charge your account the lower price. We like to book in advance to get the time and night we want.

 

Definitely you'll get a discount on the first night. At the very least, 20%.

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SheriffJoe

SheriffJoe

Posted
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Preacherman46. Casual attire (T shirts & shorts) are fine for breakfast (every day) & lunch (sea days only) in MDR. However, no bathing suits, in MDR. Love lunch in MDR on sea days

 

In all our cruises I can count the number of times we have eaten in the buffet on one hand, including embark day...we always have breakfast and lunch in the MDR, its so much more civilized than the chow line food trough ....not to mention my wife says "if I am paying for my food I want it served to me"

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