Photo Review: Celebrity Solstice to Alaska 5/27/16

[PortlandCruiser]

Great photos! Did you folks park in the Pier 91 parking lot? What was that experience like?

[gfkcruiser]

Like your idea about OJ and and the champagne. Will have to do this on our cruise in the fall. We were on the solstice last May and loved the Alaska cruise. We had great weather and stayed 2 days prior in Seattle. Great weather there.

[umper]

Alainamarie, It was it was nice meeting you in Cafe al Bacio! I'm sure we crossed paths many times. It is one of my favorites as well. Enjoying the beginning of your review so far. I'm with you, I didn't see whales except at a far distance. Wanted to take the whales watching excursion in conjunction with the Mendenhall Glacier tour. But did get to taste some yummy salmon.

 

Sheriff Joe, Did you know they make a frozen version of the Aspen coffee?

 

Sorry we didn't get to meet most of you at the connections party on the Saturday. Got our signals crossed. Might of had something to do with trying out the beverage package the night before!!! Ha! Ha!

 

Had a wonderful time! Will go back in the future just to get to do some of the things we missed out on this time around. Enjoyed meeting new people all over the ship. Hope everyone enjoyed the trip as much as we.

 

See you on a future cruise. Gonna try the Panama Canal next spring. Can't wait. Only 315 more days!!:D

[kenevenpar]

Questions:

 

Did you have the footstools on the balcony?

 

Did you have Champagne or was it the same typical sparkling wine?

 

Thanks for doing the review and for the pictures!

[lilcush1955]

Thanks for your picture review

Will be on board this Friday and saw that you mention that they still could not enter Tracy Arm

So were did that take those people on the tracy Arm excursion ? or was it cancelled

[paradyne64]

Great photos! Did you folks park in the Pier 91 parking lot? What was that experience like?

 

Was on the Solstice on the May 20th Alaskan cruise, parked here:

 

https://seattlecruiseparking.com/?_vsrefdom=adwords&gclid=COOftaeflM0CFc9ffgodJHAG8Q

 

Only 1/2 mile from terminal and they run free shuttles. Cheaper than parking right at Pier 91 which takes just as long to get from parking to the terminal.

[alainamarie]

After reading a few questions, I realized I forgot to open with my cabin selection! I mentioned in my intro that my group chose concierge C3 cabins on the 9th deck. Here are some pictures of my cabin - 9265.

 

View from the door (please excuse our backpacks!)

 

 

Another view without bags

 

 

Huge sofa that could easily be turned into a bed. Pretty comfy.

 

 

Table

[alainamarie]

I noticed a question about the balcony and I was sure to take pictures because I know a lot of us are curious about furniture arrangement. We did take down the partition so we could easily access each others cabins.

 

 

 

 

 

[alainamarie]

I always enjoy seeing the variety of bathroom configurations on ships, so I took a few photos. Sorry if you think this is strange, but here it is!

 

 

 

 

 

[alainamarie]

On to more weirdness... the shower! I LOVED the shower door. I cannot stand nasty shower curtains on cruise ships. This was my first time having a door and I honestly do not know how I will ever go back to the nasty ole curtain.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

And my ONE tip to anyone going on a cruise- shoe rack for storage!

 

[alainamarie]

Some other items found in the cabin.

 

 

 

My favorite thing about cruising = ROOM SERVICE!!! Just kidding, I love the ports, too.

 

 

 

 

 

Bar menu

 

 

Binoculars

 

[alainamarie]

Please let me know if you have been offered a variety of pillows before because I noticed this sign on the last sea day. :confused:

 

 

 

 

[alainamarie]

Great photos! Did you folks park in the Pier 91 parking lot? What was that experience like?

I was dropped off at the port as mentioned in the beginning. It was quite a disaster with no place to pull over due to car crowding. We pretty much had to hop out and get fussed.

I do not know much about the parking area since I did not do any research. Sorry I'm no help with this!

Thanks for reading!

Alaina

[alainamarie]

Alainamarie, It was it was nice meeting you in Cafe al Bacio! I'm sure we crossed paths many times. It is one of my favorites as well. Enjoying the beginning of your review so far. I'm with you, I didn't see whales except at a far distance. Wanted to take the whales watching excursion in conjunction with the Mendenhall Glacier tour. But did get to taste some yummy salmon.

 

Sheriff Joe, Did you know they make a frozen version of the Aspen coffee?

 

Sorry we didn't get to meet most of you at the connections party on the Saturday. Got our signals crossed. Might of had something to do with trying out the beverage package the night before!!! Ha! Ha!

 

Had a wonderful time! Will go back in the future just to get to do some of the things we missed out on this time around. Enjoyed meeting new people all over the ship. Hope everyone enjoyed the trip as much as we.

 

See you on a future cruise. Gonna try the Panama Canal next spring. Can't wait. Only 315 more days!!:D

 

Gary, I cannot believe you recognized me! Thank goodness for photos on here. I'm a little disappointed that I forgot about the Aspen coffee. I did not have a hangover to nurse, so I guess I did ok. What's the date of your cruise? I'm looking to do a Panama Canal cruise!

Thanks for reading!

Alaina

[SheriffJoe]

Hey honey!! I actually did NOT try it, I forgot until I ran into someone in line at Al Bacio from our roll call. Gary reminded me to try one, but my latte was hard to turn down!!! Thanks for reading! How were your B2B cruises in comparison to one another?

Take care!

Alaina

 

We didnt get Rock City either on either of our 2 weeks! LOL I think we enjoyed the second week more just because we had our flight over Glacier Bay National Park from Skagway and we made it to Dawes Glacier whereas the 1st week we did not make it to Sawyer Glacier....it was a great 2 weeks...oh and regarding Ben, we saw him WAYYYY more than we usually see a CD, just goes to show how different people on the same cruise can have a different experience!

[alainamarie]

We didnt get Rock City either on either of our 2 weeks! LOL I think we enjoyed the second week more just because we had our flight over Glacier Bay National Park from Skagway and we made it to Dawes Glacier whereas the 1st week we did not make it to Sawyer Glacier....it was a great 2 weeks...oh and regarding Ben, we saw him WAYYYY more than we usually see a CD, just goes to show how different people on the same cruise can have a different experience!

 

You are sooo right! I never saw Ben, but if I did I would have told him how I felt about his poor timing with Rock City! It was the one show I wanted to see. My friends saw Not Two Tenners (is that the name?! I'm too lazy to look at my program.) and they did not like the show. I had other friends who saw it and loved it... goes to show you that beauty is in the eye of the beholder!!

:eek:

[riclop]

Thanks for the review.

[Don't spammy]

Questions:

 

Did you have the footstools on the balcony?

 

Did you have Champagne or was it the same typical sparkling wine?

 

Thanks for doing the review and for the pictures!

 

We had a Brut Champagne upon embarkation. Sorry to say I didn't take note of any brand. Also had the three green apples.

 

And the same balcony furniture with footstools and round table, on deck 10.

 

Spammy

[alainamarie]

We had a Brut Champagne upon embarkation. Sorry to say I didn't take note of any brand. Also had the three green apples.

 

 

 

And the same balcony furniture with footstools and round table' date=' on deck 10.

 

 

 

Spammy[/quote']

 

 

Same exact for me. Champagne was perfect with OJ. Didn't get a close up.

A footstool for each chair. Very comfy.

[alainamarie]

Spa experience--

Lesson learned: one really good spa experience on one ship does not mean you'll have a great experience on a different ship.

I was so pleased with my Constellation spa experience, I decided to give this a whirl on the last port day. My first mistake was not clarifying if the prices were port prices... I assumed so because we were docking in Victoria at 530pm. You know what happens when you assume? You're wrong!!

I had a few spare hours on Thursday and walked up to the spa counter. I was surprised when they had a therapist available then, so I think I felt rushed and the thought of money went out of my brain. I should have also questioned why the therapist was so available at a moment's notice.

Her name is Eileen and she was nice. I received two tension zone massages & a reflexology on my last celebrity cruise and wanted to give this a try again. It was okay, nothing fabulous. When she came by with the bill, I was quite surprised that the price was a "sea day price". I told her we were docking in port today and it is a port day. She was very sweet but she said it was considered a "sea day". I had minimal desire to argue and you do not pay at the front desk, you pay your therapist after you receive your treatment.

My treatment was well within the hours of "port day" hours (8-1) so it really ticked me off to pay a ridiculous amount of money for such a mediocre experience. I could have purchased the Internet package for what I paid for those 50 minutes of my life that I will never get back! Anywho, I digress.

Lesson of the day: skip the spa, Alaina, just skip it!

[alainamarie]

Internet package---

 

My friend's daughter who is 16 and has her cell phone glued to her head debated over this package. I have a stressful job and life, so I almost threw my phone into the ocean because I couldn't wait to turn it off. Sticker price is a shocker -$199/7 days x 1 device and 50% off for 2nd device. So you could have 2 phones with wifi for $300/7 days. Guess it just depends on if it's worth it for you.

 

Gracie decided it was worth it because her friends couldn't live without her snapchats.

She regretted it almost immediately. You walk up to guest relations and they hand you a card and you sign yourself up. I had a captains club coupon for 10% off and long story short, they didn't apply it to her account because she signed up under her own name and not her parents. Not sure how that works, but they told her on day 6 that she could not use the coupon because of the account.

Quite honestly, we made two phone calls to guest relations while signing up to make sure it was done correctly and it still showed up under her own account. Like I said, we found this out on day 6 when we inquired as to why the discount wasn't applied. If it is so easy for a 16 year old to "sign up incorrectly", then why doesn't guest relations do it for you if there's a minor?!? She even had the coupon in hand when she went to the desk, but they want you to go to your room and do it on your own. I get it, it's like a hotel. But it's too much money to get it wrong. Also, two trips and multiple phone calls to guest relations and no help provided. If it were my money, I probably would have thrown myself onto the counter until a manager showed up to remove me. But that's just me. [emoji4]

 

Major note: IT IS SO SLOW. Celebrity lies and tells you you can stream, etc... If you don't mind streaming a 3 minute video that takes 4.5 hours to watch while it pauses, then sure, buy the package! It wasn't my money spent on this package and it still ticked me off! Checking emails, sending/receiving texts, and social media were no better than streaming videos. Goodbye YouTube!

 

Another major note: we received notification that they were working on the Internet in Skagway and it would be down for 6-7 hours. This was the final straw. Gracie's mom went down to guest relations twice with no reprieve. Want to know what they told her??? Do ya??

They told her the $199 was a calculated price that was taken into account with the exception of Skagway. So we clarified that the price was indeed higher, but because they worked on it for an entire day, it was reduced TO $199.

 

Celebrity, you're killing me with your mediocrity! Overpriced and underwhelming Internet package and a sour spa experience are my only two gripes.

 

Tomorrow I will turn my frown upside down and start with my first port: Ketchikan. Hang in there, my review will take a positive spin, I promise!!

[SheriffJoe]

Internet package---

 

My friend's daughter who is 16 and has her cell phone glued to her head debated over this package. I have a stressful job and life, so I almost threw my phone into the ocean because I couldn't wait to turn it off. Sticker price is a shocker -$199/7 days x 1 device and 50% off for 2nd device. So you could have 2 phones with wifi for $300/7 days. Guess it just depends on if it's worth it for you.

 

Gracie decided it was worth it because her friends couldn't live without her snapchats.

She regretted it almost immediately. You walk up to guest relations and they hand you a card and you sign yourself up. I had a captains club coupon for 10% off and long story short, they didn't apply it to her account because she signed up under her own name and not her parents. Not sure how that works, but they told her on day 6 that she could not use the coupon because of the account.

Quite honestly, we made two phone calls to guest relations while signing up to make sure it was done correctly and it still showed up under her own account. Like I said, we found this out on day 6 when we inquired as to why the discount wasn't applied. If it is so easy for a 16 year old to "sign up incorrectly", then why doesn't guest relations do it for you if there's a minor?!? She even had the coupon in hand when she went to the desk, but they want you to go to your room and do it on your own. I get it, it's like a hotel. But it's too much money to get it wrong. Also, two trips and multiple phone calls to guest relations and no help provided. If it were my money, I probably would have thrown myself onto the counter until a manager showed up to remove me. But that's just me. [emoji4]

 

Major note: IT IS SO SLOW. Celebrity lies and tells you you can stream, etc... If you don't mind streaming a 3 minute video that takes 4.5 hours to watch while it pauses, then sure, buy the package! It wasn't my money spent on this package and it still ticked me off! Checking emails, sending/receiving texts, and social media were no better than streaming videos. Goodbye YouTube!

 

Another major note: we received notification that they were working on the Internet in Skagway and it would be down for 6-7 hours. This was the final straw. Gracie's mom went down to guest relations twice with no reprieve. Want to know what they told her??? Do ya??

They told her the $199 was a calculated price that was taken into account with the exception of Skagway. So we clarified that the price was indeed higher, but because they worked on it for an entire day, it was reduced TO $199.

 

Celebrity, you're killing me with your mediocrity! Overpriced and underwhelming Internet package and a sour spa experience are my only two gripes.

 

Tomorrow I will turn my frown upside down and start with my first port: Ketchikan. Hang in there, my review will take a positive spin, I promise!!

 

LOL sounds like you should have booked our cabin, we had fantastic internet service both weeks....didn't try to stream videos but did a lot of emailing and FB posts as you saw the week before you boarded....we didn't have to mess with the coupons cause our price was $149 as Captains Club Select members...one odd thing though was we could use FB but cruise critic was really slow so we didn't use it....$149 was fine but I don't think I would have been as happy had I paid $199

Edited June 7, 2016 by SheriffJoe

[umper]

Gary, I cannot believe you recognized me! Thank goodness for photos on here. I'm a little disappointed that I forgot about the Aspen coffee. I did not have a hangover to nurse, so I guess I did ok. What's the date of your cruise? I'm looking to do a Panama Canal cruise!

Thanks for reading!

Alaina

 

OH! I didn't recognize you, I just asked every pretty girl I saw if they were from New Orleans!! :eek: My odds got better as the week went by:rolleyes:

No just kidding, your picture gave you away.:D

 

We are doing an eastbound 15 night Panama Canal cruise out of San Diego on the 17th of April, 2017. It is on the Infinity, the one that smacked into the peer in Ketchikan last friday.:eek: I'm sure it will be OK by then.

 

Enjoying your review. Keep it coming!!!

[Golfergirl15]

So enjoying this review. We leave on June 24 and can't wait!!

[MicCanberra]

Thanks for the review, I am enjoying it greatly:D.