Last minute Alaska?

[khuselid]

Hi all,

 

We have not sailed with Celebrity before and are long time Oceania-ers. There are some excellent deals out of Seattle and we can easily drive up from Portland and get on the Solstice for a Jun10th- 7 day cruise. We have cruised twice in the past 2 years so we know the drill around testing, masking etc on Oceania. We did a Viking ocean cruise where we were tested everyday!

 

How is Celebrity doing in regards to outbreaks etc. Anybody up to date? How full might this sailing be as I notice there are openings to book at all cabin levels? 

 

What might we expect on Celebrity as long time cruisers but first time Celebrity people?? We know no one has a crystal ball as regards the virus but I am sure some of you ideas as to how it is going on Celebrity.

 

Thanks for you time! Kim

[Alakegirl]

Take some time to read the various posts here on Cruise Critic and you will find many of the answers you seek

[khuselid]

35 minutes ago, Alakegirl said:

Take some time to read the various posts here on Cruise Critic and you will find many of the answers you seek

Thanks I have done that. Looking for something more recent. Like how are we doing now?

[chefchick]

Just disembarked Solstice on the 20th.  I didn’t get numbers but the ship felt pretty full.  I would say most guests were mask less, but I saw some wearing them at their own discretion.  My husband and I didn’t seek out crowds, but we didn’t necessarily avoid them either….we haven’t tested, but are showing no symptoms either.

 

If you can swing a good deal, I would go for it.  Hope that helps.

[Fly and Sail]

You can expect occupancy around 60% and should definitely book a Veranda cabin. Solstice has NOT been renovated or as they call it "revolutionized" yet. Service should be a bit better in two weeks as by then the crew had 5 sailings to get up to speed. Forget about Covid.

 

If you can get a good price, do it!

Edited May 23, 2022 by Fly and Sail

[Ladyshopper23]

We did the first sailing of Solstice on 6th May. Had around 1650 passengers onboard. Had great weather in Alaska, and really enjoyed our cruise.

Covid was definitely doing the rounds on the ship though. Tested positive when I got home, and was quite unwell, and a lot of people on our FB group also tested positive. Officially, I believe that Celebrity told another passenger whilst we were still on the ship that there were 5 cases.

I don't regret the cruise at all, but I guess I'd got a little bit complacent about Covid. I did wear masks, but not all the time. We cruised 5 times last year, and all of those cruises had mask mandates, social distancing, limited numbers in elevators etc. There is nothing like that on Celebrity.

[dgoz]

1 hour ago, Fly and Sail said:

You can expect occupancy around 60% and should definitely book a Veranda cabin. Solstice has NOT been renovated or as they call it "revolutionized" yet. Service should be a bit better in two weeks as by then the crew had 5 sailings to get up to speed. Forget about Covid.

 

If you can get a good price, do it!

My Solstice from Seattle on July 1st is close to 75% booked. June and July are the 2 most popular months to Alaska, so I would expect more than 60%...but that is just my guess.

[pl281]

@khuselid

 

While it's been a few years since I've been on Oceania - and when we did Alaska we were on Regent.

 

The biggest thing IMO that I think will be different is the level of service. All of my Oceania cruises were on their smaller / original ships so that is one big difference. 

 

We have only been doing Celebrity for the last 8 years or so - and while they are attentive - I would tell you that you need to be in a suite on Celebrity to get close to the level of service even the ocean view cabins get on Oceania. The 2 lines are really in different classes IMO

[dreams_of_travel]

2 hours ago, Ladyshopper23 said:

We did the first sailing of Solstice on 6th May. Had around 1650 passengers onboard. Had great weather in Alaska, and really enjoyed our cruise.

Covid was definitely doing the rounds on the ship though. Tested positive when I got home, and was quite unwell, and a lot of people on our FB group also tested positive. Officially, I believe that Celebrity told another passenger whilst we were still on the ship that there were 5 cases.

I don't regret the cruise at all, but I guess I'd got a little bit complacent about Covid. I did wear masks, but not all the time. We cruised 5 times last year, and all of those cruises had mask mandates, social distancing, limited numbers in elevators etc. There is nothing like that on Celebrity.

Interesting info.  I was on the May 6th cruise, too.  I wasn't aware that there was Covid onboard, or that a few tested positive afterwards.  At any rate, I enjoyed the cruise, and it was nice to visit Alaska again.  Hope your recovery wasn't too terrible. 

[Ladyshopper23]

9 minutes ago, dreams_of_travel said:

Interesting info.  I was on the May 6th cruise, too.  I wasn't aware that there was Covid onboard, or that a few tested positive afterwards.  At any rate, I enjoyed the cruise, and it was nice to visit Alaska again.  Hope your recovery wasn't too terrible. 

I take it you're not on the Facebook group, as it was talked about quite a lot on there? Someone shared a CDC info thing showing that the ship had gone orange, so someone else phoned down to guest services and got told 5 positive cases. There have been a fair few people who tested positive the day they got home, or day after, suggesting that they were incubating it from catching it on the ship.

I started to feel ill on the flight home (to the UK) and tested positive when I got home. Felt dreadful, 6 full days in bed. On the mend now thank goodness. My husband also caught it, but from me rather than the ship I think, as he was 3 days behind me. Luckily he didn't feel so bad, so was able to do a wonderful job in looking after me, for which I am extremely grateful!

[bigbenboys]

We have Sept booked for Solstice out of Seattle. I love the S-Class ships. Yes the size is a little bigger. If you want a "revolutionized" ship look at Celebrity Millennium out of Vancouver to Seward. It is a smaller ship and has been revolutionized. We are on the June 3 sailing out of Seward and was on Millie last Oct out of Seattle. Millie is in great shape.

[dreams_of_travel]

1 hour ago, Ladyshopper23 said:

I take it you're not on the Facebook group, as it was talked about quite a lot on there? Someone shared a CDC info thing showing that the ship had gone orange, so someone else phoned down to guest services and got told 5 positive cases. There have been a fair few people who tested positive the day they got home, or day after, suggesting that they were incubating it from catching it on the ship.

I started to feel ill on the flight home (to the UK) and tested positive when I got home. Felt dreadful, 6 full days in bed. On the mend now thank goodness. My husband also caught it, but from me rather than the ship I think, as he was 3 days behind me. Luckily he didn't feel so bad, so was able to do a wonderful job in looking after me, for which I am extremely grateful!

I am not on the FB group.  Wow! That's tough to hear about so many getting ill.  Your case doesn't sound fun at all, but glad you're on the mend.  Good thing your husband got a milder case, too.   I should remember to check the CDC site for such info when next I cruise.  I had no idea it had gone orange.  

 

Re: the OP of this thread -  if you find a good fare, I'd grab it.  Alaska can be wonderful. Cruising with reduced capacity is very nice.  It is the reason I've been on several cruises since July last year, and have 3 more booked in the next 6 months. YMMV

[Ladyshopper23]

47 minutes ago, dreams_of_travel said:

I am not on the FB group.  Wow! That's tough to hear about so many getting ill.  Your case doesn't sound fun at all, but glad you're on the mend.  Good thing your husband got a milder case, too.   I should remember to check the CDC site for such info when next I cruise.  I had no idea it had gone orange.  

 

Re: the OP of this thread -  if you find a good fare, I'd grab it.  Alaska can be wonderful. Cruising with reduced capacity is very nice.  It is the reason I've been on several cruises since July last year, and have 3 more booked in the next 6 months. YMMV

People on the FB group seemed to be quite shocked that the ship had moved from green to orange on it's very first sailing back in service.

As I said, no regrets doing the cruise, it was our first time in Alaska and it was incredible! I think it's just something to be aware of really, that people need to remember Covid hasn't disappeared, and that for some people, me included, it can hit you really hard (I'm double vaccinated and had my booster just for info). People definitely need to be realistic in terms of the chances of getting it, and be prepared for that. 

It was cruise number 7 for us since cruising re-started last year, and it finally got me! We have 2 more cruises booked later on in the year though, and still fully intend to go on them, so it hasn't put us off. I guess if I'd got it earlier in the cruise and had to go into isolation that may have changed my opinion, but I was off the ship and heading home when I started to feel ill (luckily for me I guess).