Questions re: Blu on Solstice

[rolfecms]

Thanks! What about the main dining room?

 

The two decks below Entertainment: Promenade and Plaza

[Calico dan]

Celebrity Customer Service stated unequivocally that Blu will have two seatings, just like the main dining room. It IS the "main dining room" for AQ pax. I expect that, because of that, it will have a varying menu.

 

Did you obtain the seating times in the Blu reatarusnts for both Main and late?

Danny

[Host Anne]

I'm pretty sure that the two seating times in Blu will mirror the seating times in the main dining room as many other evening activities are planned around the two dining times. Don't know that for sure but that's an educated guess.

[Duanerice1]

I would think that Celebrity will have a difficult time selling Aquaclass staterooms if they limit passengers to BLU for dining. I have seen artist renderings of photos of the BLU dining room and there is nothing that jumps out and says WOW. I know the Celebrity Main Dining room will be something special and would expect that most passengers would want to have the flexibility to dine in the Main Dining room at least several nights. Just my opinion!

 

Wow, are you kidding? That IS the reason we booked Aqua Class. The separate dining room sealed the deal. I think it will actually be a big draw. I have no desire to eat in the main dining room. Getting packed elbow to elbow in a dining room with 1000+ people is our least favorite part of a cruise.

 

That's the great part of cruising, something for everyone.

 

enjoy,

Duane

[Host Anne]

That's one of the great thing about this ship...it has something that will appeal to many. The key is booking what best fits your interest!

[DCT61]

Getting packed elbow to elbow in a dining room with 1000+ people is our least favorite part of a cruise"

 

That might be true if the Aquaclass dining room is the same size as the main dining room...but something tells me Blu will be considerably smaller. Same elbows...different room.

[LouisV]

When we tried to book an Aquaclass cabin, we were told we could NOT opt out of Blu (we are basic "meat and potato" type people and wanted to dine with freinds not travelling in Aquaclass) so we went with Concierge class. Apparently we were given bad info (imagine that) and it is possible to eat in the main dining room, but from the way I read it...only with a reservation.

 

We also opted out of booking an AC cabin on the Equinox for the same reason. I didn't want to miss out on the dining experience in the main dining room every night so we went with a CC aft.

[Host Anne]

Blu is very small -- 150+ seats.

[madelinerose]

Our first Celebrity cruise will be in AQ on Equinox. What do you think will be missed by not dining in the main venue? Is the Celebrity main diningroom experience vastly different from, let's say RCI?

 

We truly have no interest in napkin waving or waitstaff parades, etc. I would think the intimacy of Blu for just DH and me would be right up our alley.

 

I'd really like to hear what folks here would be missing by dining in Blu exclusively. Thanks ;)

[Muushka]

Our first Celebrity cruise will be in AQ on Equinox. What do you think will be missed by not dining in the main venue? Is the Celebrity main diningroom experience vastly different from, let's say RCI?

 

We truly have no interest in napkin waving or waitstaff parades, etc. I would think the intimacy of Blu for just DH and me would be right up our alley.

 

I'd really like to hear what folks here would be missing by dining in Blu exclusively. Thanks ;)

 

Im with you on this one. Waving napkins and parades are not my idea of a good time! i enjoy meeting and dining with others, but for Blu we asked for a table for 2. We are hoping with only 2 at our table, it will go a little quicker. I am not a big fan of 2+ hour dinners.

[LouisV]

Our first Celebrity cruise will be in AQ on Equinox. What do you think will be missed by not dining in the main venue? Is the Celebrity main diningroom experience vastly different from, let's say RCI?

 

We truly have no interest in napkin waving or waitstaff parades, etc. I would think the intimacy of Blu for just DH and me would be right up our alley.

 

I'd really like to hear what folks here would be missing by dining in Blu exclusively. Thanks ;)

 

Having only taken 2 cruises in the past and with 2 future cruises booked I still love it all in the main dining room....yes, even the napkin waving or waitstaff parades!!! Everyone has different tastes.

[madelinerose]

We haven't sailed much either. ;)

 

Having only taken 2 cruises in the past and with 2 future cruises booked I still love it all in the main dining room....yes, even the napkin waving or waitstaff parades!!! Everyone has different tastes.

[LouisV]

We haven't sailed much either. ;)

 

ok....then you must spend a lot of time on Cruise Critic judging by the number of posts! lol

[ellbon]

I read the BLU menu and was very disapointed compared to the main DR. I am booked in AQ and if the menu stays thsi dull i will be asking or paying my way into the main DR. i can only eat i nthe french restuarant so many times.

[Host Anne]

Keep in mind that the menus shown were samples. I'm sure you'll see a variety of choices in Blu as the men changes nightly. Don't be too disappointed yet. :)

[tom_uk]

Duanerice1 said:

 

Wow, are you kidding? That IS the reason we booked Aqua Class. The separate dining room sealed the deal. I think it will actually be a big draw. I have no desire to eat in the main dining room. Getting packed elbow to elbow in a dining room with 1000+ people is our least favorite part of a cruise.

 

It's interesting how everyone sees thing differently, isn't it? For my part, I've never felt that I was 'packed elbow to elbow' on a Celebrity ship: because we've asked to be seated at large tables (6 or 8 seats) there's always been plenty of room at the table itself, and in practice we've found that because the dining room was so large, the background noise just disappeared, sort of. In a land-based situation, we've sometimes found that it's in a small dining room where the noise from other diners can be overpowering.

 

Of course, what we don't know from actual experience yet is how packed Blu will get (or feel): there may only 150 seats but if it's full and there's not much space, it may feel more crowded than the main dining room. Also, sightlines in Blu are going to be constrained (one level, smaller room): that can also make a person feel hemmed-in. One thing with the Orion restaurant on Galaxy was that although there were a lot of people in there, I was always aware that I was in a big, spectacular room, and I think Grand Epernay on Solstice will be even more spectacular.

 

That's the great part of cruising, something for everyone.

 

Absolutely! One of the things we enjoy is trying different things and comparing them.

[uktog]

This looks very good but as people say we are a long way from knowing all the detail and I am sure there will be lots of interest in early postings. We are in a Celebrity Suite so if I read correct we could ask to dine in Blu - I wonder if this will this be something we route through our agent pre cruise. we have some time to find out though. I think for us in the smaller number of people, space will be the same as in the large dining room, but it will be easier to cope with DHs nut allergy.

 

Did you get any feel as to whether there will be tables for 6-8 in Blu?

[madelinerose]

Looking forward to hearing the initial opinions of Blu and Grand Epernay. With all of the dining choices available, I can't imagine not finding your perfect venue.

[Host Anne]

uktog ~ I don't believe suite guests are going to be able to make a request to dine in Blu pre-cruise. Suite passengers will be able to eat there on a space available basis and I'm guessing they won't know what that is until very close to each cruise or until you are on the ship itself.

 

If you look at renderings of Blu on the Celebrity website: http://celebritysolstice.com/#/dining/specialty/blu you'll see mostly tables for 2, 4 and 6. Again, keep in mind that these are renderings and the final table formats could be different. Sorry, I didn't ask anything about the table arrangements in Blu

[uktog]

no problem, you had such an amazing list of questions to ask I am surprised to ask as many as you did. As we do not go onto Equinox until Jan 2010 there is lots of time for things to change before we need to get concerned but I am curious.

To be honest I was not keen on making the Jan 2010 on Solstice class, I had wanted Azamara or one of our old favourites like Century then but dates were not brilliant for DH and he dug his heels in and refused to change work arrangements (he contracts 18 months ahead) You know (but do not tell him) I am now, having seen all the plans, glad he did have a little boy tantrum and demand to go on a Solstice class ship!!

 

A

[Host Anne]

uktog ~ I think you will be pleased that DH dug in his heels. I promise I will NOT tell him you are happy that you are going to try Solstice :)

 

I wish I could have asked even more questions. It seems like every answer to a question brings up another question!!!! :) Too much excitement!

[Leejnd4]

I'm just enjoying feeding off all the excitement! And the frenzy will get even more wild as the first cruises set sail. :)

 

I'm with the folks who CHOSE Aquaclass mainly because of the dining situation. It's not the size, noise, ambiance or anything like that that impacted my decision - it's the food. I have read SO many reviews and posts that rate Celebrity's specialty restaurants as among the best dining at sea - even reviewers who were negative about virtually everything else on their cruise almost uniformly stated that their experiences in the specialty restaurants were the culinary highlight of their cruise. Whereas reviews and posts (and my own experiences) regarding main dining are that the food is standard mass-produced cruise ship fare - which is to be expected in a room serving thousands of the same plates every night.

 

I'm going under the assumption that Blu will continue Celebrity's dedication to making their specialty restaurants some of the best dining at sea. If that turns out to be inaccurate, well I guess I'll just try to get into the other specialty restaurants more often, and maybe even the main dining room. It's a leap of faith - but then, the reality is that we intrepid souls willing to book ships that aren't even built yet are obviously willing to make these leaps, aren't we? :)

[bellebaby]

uktog ~ I don't believe suite guests are going to be able to make a request to dine in Blu pre-cruise. Suite passengers will be able to eat there on a space available basis and I'm guessing they won't know what that is until very close to each cruise or until you are on the ship itself.

 

If you look at renderings of Blu on the Celebrity website: http://celebritysolstice.com/#/dining/specialty/blu you'll see mostly tables for 2, 4 and 6. Again, keep in mind that these are renderings and the final table formats could be different. Sorry, I didn't ask anything about the table arrangements in Blu

 

 

Hi, Anne

 

If I am reading the information you provided correctly, suite passengers will have the option to be assigned to Blu on a space available basis instead of a table in the Grand Epernay Dining Room. I initially thought a suite passenger would have the option to dine in Blu for one evening if space is available. So, it's an either or, not an additional option. Correct?

 

Thanks.

 

Mary

[madelinerose]

I'm with the folks who CHOSE Aquaclass mainly because of the dining situation. It's not the size, noise, ambiance or anything like that that impacted my decision - it's the food. :)

 

LeeAnne...it's all of the above for us. :)

[dmk]

We also opted out of booking an AC cabin on the Equinox for the same reason. I didn't want to miss out on the dining experience in the main dining room every night so we went with a CC aft.

 

That is the exact reason we selected the CC Aft. For those who have never sailed on Celebrity before they are in for a treat. The main dining rooms on X ships do not serve the same kind of standard food that is mass-produced on many other cruise lines.

"Getting packed elbow to elbow in a dining room with 1000+ people is our least favorite part of a cruise"

That might be true if the Aquaclass dining room is the same size as the main dining room...but something tells me Blu will be considerably smaller. Same elbows...different room." Good point!

I am looking forward to hear from the first AquaClass cruisers. I'd like to know how Blu stacks up against the other "specialty" restaurants.