SolsticeTrip Report July 1-8

[Plaidlulu]

We returned from our very first Celebrity Cruise and in preparation from the trip I used a lot of the tips and information on this board.  In hopes of returning the help I received here are some brief notes from our recent trip:

 

Arrival at SEATAC: The baggage took a significantly long time. We used Seattle Elite Towncar for transportation to our hotel. Our driver said the baggage delay has been going on for about the last month as the airport is short staffed.  Our experience with Seattle Elite Towncar was great, so great we decided to have them pick us up from the hotel to take us to the pier. We could take two Ubers for a bit less money; however, we are willing to pay more to keep our group together since we had never sailed from this port or on this cruise line and the service was so great with Seattle Elite Towncar. 

We stayed at Residence Inn Seattle Downtown/Convention Center which turned out to be an excellent location for us as we walked to everything we wanted to see/do.  

Would definitely stay there again.

 

Pre Cruise COVID Testing, we decided to use the emed COVID test kits (purchased online) and conducting the tests from our hotel room. Prior to departing for Seattle we set up our emed accounts which saved time. Each person needed to have their own account and they email you the results very quickly.  Afterwards we completed the ArriveCAN requirement. I added all travelers prior to leaving home so it was really easy to complete the remainder from the app on my phone.

 

Our boarding time for the ship was 11:30am and we boarded very quickly. We noticed some folks struggling with security (metal detectors and x-rays) which made me wonder if they didn't expect that type of screening would be in place.   After security they checked all of our boarding documents (boarding pass, passport, COVID test results and vaccination cards) by person and it was a smooth process.

 

Once on board we were told we could go directly to our stateroom and pick up our SeaPasses (they were on the stateroom doors), 2 of the 3 rooms were ready, one had a note on the door to leave bags and return.  (We all had Sky Suites)

 

We knew this was an older ship and that it didn't receive the planned make over so we had reasonable expectations.  The ship was beautiful and very clean.  Our stateroom was in good condition and our stateroom attendant was great.  He told us he was new but it did not show at all.  We noticed one light in the bathroom wasn't working and they had it corrected before we returned to the room. We purchased swivel magnetic hooks from Amazon and found them, along with our USB 6 port charging station to be the most useful things.  One note is that the hair dryer does not work in the bathroom, only the outlet in the stateroom near the television and mirror.

 

We found the Persian Garden Room and the fitness room to be disappointing.  The Persian Garden Room is a smaller area but it was packed, and packed with guests that were not in the appropriate attire and were loudly chatting/socializing as if was a lounge rather than a relaxation room.  We stayed about 10 minutes, quickly departed and never returned. I don't think it was being monitored by a spa attendant which might have made a difference.  The ladies' changing room in the spa area is also in need of some TLC, the lockers don't fully function (my lock got stuck and the attendant couldn't get it open, which turned into an ordeal - there was rust, I cut myself, they eventually used the master key to override the lock..).  For the fitness center, only about 1/2 the treadmills are operational, and on sea days it was crowded as was the spa reception area.  I'm sure it will be improved in the future. 

 

We found the service to be absolutely amazing!  We did not note any staff shortages, although the World Class Bar wasn't often open (not sure if that is related) but we enjoyed every other bar/lounge with the exception of the Sunset Bar which numerous folks recommended; however, for our sailing it was a designated smoking area so we did not spend time there. 

 

The weather was really warm and sunny so I'm glad that we packed a mix of clothing, although a bit sad I didn't get wear one of the 4 jackets I brought 🙂 

 

We booked two excursions - VIP Glacier Explorer and White Pass Railway. They were both absolutely exceptional.  I was hesitant about the Glacier Explorer but it was stunning!!!  The crew was exceptional and we saw so much!  The train was also super, although we only made it to mile 18 and had to return due to an issue with the train but it was still awesome.  To our surprise they fully refunded the cost of the excursion to our cruise accounts.

 

The crew on the ship was absolutely amazing, from dining to the coffee bar to the martini car.  We had a great time and would not hesitate to cruise Celebrity and the Solstice again. 

[Northern Aurora]

So glad you enjoyed your first Celebrity cruise and the Solstice.  We were on the Solstice for B2B cruises and left the day you boarded.  While we have been on the Solstice a number of times (and were actually on her in the South Pacific when the global suspension of cruising was implemented on March 20, 2020) we were pleased to return and also had a great time.  

 

We found the Solstice Retreat team to be one of the best we have experienced.  And while we had a different Luminae maitre'd as Mr. Fernando was leaving on vacation I hope you also experienced a wonderful Luminae experience.

[Plaidlulu]

1 minute ago, Northern Aurora said:

We found the Solstice Retreat team to be one of the best we have experienced.  And while we had a different Luminae maitre'd as Mr. Fernando was leaving on vacation I hope you also experienced a wonderful Luminae experience.

Yes! They were absolutely fantastic in both Luminae and Michael's Club. Our maitre'd was Bruno and the team of Noval, Ari, Annge & Melissa were outstanding at every single meal.  They spoiled us beyond!!!

[Northern Aurora]

1 hour ago, Plaidlulu said:

Yes! They were absolutely fantastic in both Luminae and Michael's Club. Our maitre'd was Bruno and the team of Noval, Ari, Annge & Melissa were outstanding at every single meal.  They spoiled us beyond!!!

 

We also enjoyed Noval, Ari, Anna and Melissa.  And also Raffy.  During both of our cruises the Luminae clientele tended toward early dining which I find fairly typical for Alaska cruises.  We tried to dine after the initial early diners.  

 

Since we live in the state other passengers find it amusing that we do Alaska cruises periodically.   But we live in the Interior which is so different than SE Alaska that an Alaska cruise gives us an excuse to spend time in a different part of our very, very large state.

[CGBanks]

Thank you for the lovely review.  Very soon we will be on our first Alaskan cruise.  We have always done warm weather cruising but with the 100+ weather at home we are excited to experience some cool temps.  

[jasmine196]

Hey there, we were on the same cruise.  Did anyone in your party get COVID when they got back?  My husband just tested positive and we think he got it on Wednesday or Thursday last week.  He didn't show any symptoms until last Saturday.  We knew the risk, and it was worth it.  We had a wonderful trip!

[Jim_Iain]

Thanks for taking the time to post.  Really enjoy reading along and hearing of your fun vacation.

 

[mahdnc]

On 7/10/2022 at 1:42 PM, Plaidlulu said:

We returned from our very first Celebrity Cruise and in preparation from the trip I used a lot of the tips and information on this board.  In hopes of returning the help I received here are some brief notes from our recent trip:

 

Arrival at SEATAC: The baggage took a significantly long time. We used Seattle Elite Towncar for transportation to our hotel. Our driver said the baggage delay has been going on for about the last month as the airport is short staffed.  Our experience with Seattle Elite Towncar was great, so great we decided to have them pick us up from the hotel to take us to the pier. We could take two Ubers for a bit less money; however, we are willing to pay more to keep our group together since we had never sailed from this port or on this cruise line and the service was so great with Seattle Elite Towncar. 

We stayed at Residence Inn Seattle Downtown/Convention Center which turned out to be an excellent location for us as we walked to everything we wanted to see/do.  

Would definitely stay there again.

 

Pre Cruise COVID Testing, we decided to use the emed COVID test kits (purchased online) and conducting the tests from our hotel room. Prior to departing for Seattle we set up our emed accounts which saved time. Each person needed to have their own account and they email you the results very quickly.  Afterwards we completed the ArriveCAN requirement. I added all travelers prior to leaving home so it was really easy to complete the remainder from the app on my phone.

 

Our boarding time for the ship was 11:30am and we boarded very quickly. We noticed some folks struggling with security (metal detectors and x-rays) which made me wonder if they didn't expect that type of screening would be in place.   After security they checked all of our boarding documents (boarding pass, passport, COVID test results and vaccination cards) by person and it was a smooth process.

 

Once on board we were told we could go directly to our stateroom and pick up our SeaPasses (they were on the stateroom doors), 2 of the 3 rooms were ready, one had a note on the door to leave bags and return.  (We all had Sky Suites)

 

We knew this was an older ship and that it didn't receive the planned make over so we had reasonable expectations.  The ship was beautiful and very clean.  Our stateroom was in good condition and our stateroom attendant was great.  He told us he was new but it did not show at all.  We noticed one light in the bathroom wasn't working and they had it corrected before we returned to the room. We purchased swivel magnetic hooks from Amazon and found them, along with our USB 6 port charging station to be the most useful things.  One note is that the hair dryer does not work in the bathroom, only the outlet in the stateroom near the television and mirror.

 

We found the Persian Garden Room and the fitness room to be disappointing.  The Persian Garden Room is a smaller area but it was packed, and packed with guests that were not in the appropriate attire and were loudly chatting/socializing as if was a lounge rather than a relaxation room.  We stayed about 10 minutes, quickly departed and never returned. I don't think it was being monitored by a spa attendant which might have made a difference.  The ladies' changing room in the spa area is also in need of some TLC, the lockers don't fully function (my lock got stuck and the attendant couldn't get it open, which turned into an ordeal - there was rust, I cut myself, they eventually used the master key to override the lock..).  For the fitness center, only about 1/2 the treadmills are operational, and on sea days it was crowded as was the spa reception area.  I'm sure it will be improved in the future. 

 

We found the service to be absolutely amazing!  We did not note any staff shortages, although the World Class Bar wasn't often open (not sure if that is related) but we enjoyed every other bar/lounge with the exception of the Sunset Bar which numerous folks recommended; however, for our sailing it was a designated smoking area so we did not spend time there. 

 

The weather was really warm and sunny so I'm glad that we packed a mix of clothing, although a bit sad I didn't get wear one of the 4 jackets I brought 🙂 

 

We booked two excursions - VIP Glacier Explorer and White Pass Railway. They were both absolutely exceptional.  I was hesitant about the Glacier Explorer but it was stunning!!!  The crew was exceptional and we saw so much!  The train was also super, although we only made it to mile 18 and had to return due to an issue with the train but it was still awesome.  To our surprise they fully refunded the cost of the excursion to our cruise accounts.

 

The crew on the ship was absolutely amazing, from dining to the coffee bar to the martini car.  We had a great time and would not hesitate to cruise Celebrity and the Solstice again. 

 

I am glad to read that you had a fabulous time aboard Solstice.  Our last cruise before the pandemic shutdown was aboard Solstice and we hope to sail her again at the end of next year.

[SusieV]

When you say the World Class Bar often wasn't open, do you mean during posted hours? It's usually only open in the evenings until late.
It's my favourite watering hole by far!

[tweetylori]

Thank you for your review.  Very helpful!

[Plaidlulu]

10 hours ago, jasmine196 said:

Hey there, we were on the same cruise.  Did anyone in your party get COVID when they got back?  My husband just tested positive and we think he got it on Wednesday or Thursday last week.  He didn't show any symptoms until last Saturday.  We knew the risk, and it was worth it.  We had a wonderful trip!

Sorry to hear about your husband.  Nobody in our party has tested positive or displayed any symptoms.  Hope he feels better soon!

[Plaidlulu]

8 hours ago, SusieV said:

When you say the World Class Bar often wasn't open, do you mean during posted hours? It's usually only open in the evenings until late.
It's my favourite watering hole by far!

We tried to go twice during the hours it was posted as being open, one time it was simply closed and another time we were told it was closed for a private event.  Since this is the first time we cruised I'm not sure if this is normal or not.

[ScottC4746]

On 7/10/2022 at 11:42 AM, Plaidlulu said:

Sunset Bar which numerous folks recommended; however, for our sailing it was a designated smoking area so we did not spend time there. 

 

 

This made me research on the app to find out what areas to avoid 

"Designated outdoor areas are Dec 5 forward port, Mast Bar and Sunset Bar"  

At least they no longer have a cloud room meaning one of the indoor bars.

[SusieV]

15 hours ago, Plaidlulu said:

We tried to go twice during the hours it was posted as being open, one time it was simply closed and another time we were told it was closed for a private event.  Since this is the first time we cruised I'm not sure if this is normal or not.

 

I wouldn't consider that normal. I hope they have it fixed by the fall!

[bigbenboys]

3 hours ago, ScottC4746 said:

This made me research on the app to find out what areas to avoid 

"Designated outdoor areas are Dec 5 forward port, Mast Bar and Sunset Bar"  

At least they no longer have a cloud room meaning one of the indoor bars.

It has been my understanding that smoking is on the port side only of the Sunset Bar.

[Plaidlulu]

4 hours ago, bigbenboys said:

It has been my understanding that smoking is on the port side only of the Sunset Bar.

This might have been the intent but at the Sunset Bar there was smoking on beyond the port side and one day they had a sign advertising 50% off cigars so there were a good amount of people enjoying them.  The mast bar only had smoking on one side, it was the side opposite of where they were cooking the burgers.

[RollWave]

On 7/12/2022 at 9:35 AM, jasmine196 said:

Hey there, we were on the same cruise.  Did anyone in your party get COVID when they got back?  My husband just tested positive and we think he got it on Wednesday or Thursday last week.  He didn't show any symptoms until last Saturday.  We knew the risk, and it was worth it.  We had a wonderful trip!

We were on the same cruise. My SO came down with COVID upon return.  Hard to tell when he caught it as we were on the cruise and we also were on a flight out of Seattle. Very mild symptoms (thankfully). We are both vaccinated and boosted. I am perfectly fine and have repeatedly tested negative. 

 

On one of the FB pages for Solstice there have been reports of COVID for the 7/1 sailing.