Our Review of Solistice's Jan 4th Sailing

[Traveling Fools]

Before beginning, a little about us. DW and I have lived in several different countries and have traveled extensively throughout most of the world and in recent years have spent 2 or more months a year traveling (almost 4 months this past year). We maintain a balanced choice of travel options; e.g. cruises, RVing, powerboat and sailboat cruising, and international land trips. We have stayed in a wide range of hotels ranging from true five stars/diamonds to cut rate fleabags. We have created our own itineraries and excursions, as well as purchased commercial group and private (individually tailored) itineraries. Although not snobby eaters, we do enjoy fine, exotic dinning and fancy ourselves to be beginning level gourmet cooks. That said following are our comments regarding the Jan 4th sailing of the Solstice.

 

We will follow the criteria contained in the guest questionnaire provided to each stateroom. (Ratings on the questionnaire are Excellent, Good, Fair, Poor, Did not use)

 

STATEROOM ----- Suite 2130, a handicap accessible Sky Suit located on Deck 12

 

DINNING ROOM SEATING ----- Late seating at table 141, a two top

 

OVERALL CRUISE EXPERIENCE

· Staff’s friendliness and attitude ----- Excellent

· Staff’s responsiveness to needs ----- Improvement needed.

· Staff’s level of professionalism ----- Excellent

· Staff’s ability to resolve issues ----- Improvement needed.

 

GRAND EPERNAY RESTAURANT

· Overall experience ----- A solid good; not good plus, just good.

· Presentation of cuisine ----- Good

· Quality of cuisine ----- Good

· Menu variety ------ Good

· Waiter service ------ Excellent

· Assistant Waiter service ----- Excellent

 

Comments: Considering the upscale reputation Celebrity claims and our past sailing history aboard Celebrity, we were disappointed in the quality, presentation, and over all dinning experience in the Grand Epernay. Having sailed twice last year on Carnival, with the exception of salad selections, we found the quality of cuisine on Solstice to be equal to that aboard Carnival. It is our sense the relaxed dress code in the MDR at dinner is a step backward for Celebrity. We did not observe any enforcement of “Smart Casual” and saw several quests wearing jeans, untucked and unbuttoned shirts, and tennis type shoes in the MDR at dinner. Two of them sat next to us and even more at the Eight top across from us. Although we had requested being seated at a larger table, we were assigned a two top and felt a bit isolated. For those who prefer two tops, it seemed as if there is an abundance of them available on Solstice. The quality of lunches and brunches in the MDR were much better than dinner.

 

BLU RESTAURANT ------ Did not use

 

SILK HARVEST RESTAURANT ------ Did not use

 

BISTRO ON FIVE RESTAURANT ------ Did not use (couldn’t see paying for it)

 

MURANO RESTAURANT

· Overall experience ----- Excellent

· Cuisine ----- Excellent

· Dining Service ----- Excellent

 

TUSCAN GRILLE RESTAURANT

· Overall experience ----- Excellent

· Cuisine ----- Excellent

· Dining Service ----- Excellent

 

OCEANVIEW CAFE

· Overall experience ----- Good

· Cuisine ----- Good

· Dining Service ----- Good

 

BEVERAGE SERVICE

· Bar and Lounge service ----- We found the design and location of the Martini Bar on Solstice to be less conducive to guest interaction than those found on M-Class ships. I read one passenger’s comments that they didn’t think the $10 drinks carried a punch. That was not our experience. The bar tender poured them as strong as I pour our own. The best value is the $18 sampler. It is equal to three drinks and cost $12 less.

· Wine service ----- The sommeliers we had in the MDR and Specialty Restaurants knew their stuff and provided excellent service.

· Café al Bacio ----- Did not use

 

IN-ROOM SERVICE

· Overall experience ----- We had breakfast delivered all but one morning. The service was excellent, but the quality of some items on the menu sucked.

· In-room dining cuisine ----- The first morning we ordered a salmon/egg item that was supposed to be wrapped in a crape. Don’t waste your time on this, it was bland and the crape was a rubbery tortilla. The next morning we thought we would try a Rancho Omelet. Forget about this one too. It came with pork and beans style beans and some salsa. A far cry from the Spanish Omelet we were expecting. DW ordered a ham and cheese omelet….the ham came on the side and the cheese was skimpy. I stuck with sunny side up eggs, ham and fresh squeezed grapefruit juice and was not disappointed.

· Promptness of delivery ----- Excellent

 

HOUSEKEEPING SERVICES

· Overall experience ----- Good

· Stateroom attendant ----- Very friendly, but needs to improve her cleaning skills. The pedestal of our in-room coffee table was dirty from the time we boarded until the time we departed. DW sat on a wet toilet seat that had just been cleaned. That experience left a somewhat negative impression. (I might add, I was very glad I didn’t visit the bathroom before DW….saved me a lot of grief.) We appreciated that the stateroom attendant and her assistant knew our last name from the get go. The butler never could remember it and it is a simple name.

· Butler ----- Ours must have been new, because it seemed he was in over his head. Although very friendly, he wasn’t very intuitive. Without exception we had to ring him every afternoon/evening to replenish the ice in both the ice and wine buckets. Really no excuse for that. Some mornings he showed up with half the table service and had to run back to get the rest. Afternoon teatime he showed up with the snack, but no tea or coffee and had to make a second trip. One thing that really annoyed us was his habit of ringing the bell or knocking and then opening the door before we could tell him to come in. This made for a beat the clock contest to get into our robes.

· Pool Butler ----- Did not use

 

HOTEL SERVICES

· Overall Experience ----- Fair to good. We loved the shower so much we intend on having one just like it installed in our master bathroom at home. The extra cabin and balcony space were also a plus. However, this and adjacent cabins on Deck 12 are located under the Oceanview Café’s galley. If you ever want to find out what it is like to live under a bowling alley or the end of a jet runway, book one of these cabins. We were plagued with this noise 18 to 20 hours out of the day. It was generally quiet from midnight to 3 or 4 in the morning and then all hell would break loose. There was no reprieve from the noise at all the last night on board. Because of the noise, DW and I were unable to get much sleep that night. We booked this suite before Solstice’s maiden and inaugural cruises and I read one review that alerted me to this potential noise problem. Because I have a “It’ll never happen to me” attitude, I was a bit dismissive of that review. Now having been there, done that I will tell you, “DON’T BOOK 6130 OR ADJACENT STATEROOMS, OR SIMILAR STATEROOMS ON THE PORT SIDE OF THE SHIP!” Anyway, I registered a complaint with Guest Services and told them this condition was unacceptable for premium class stateroom. They were friendly, but clueless and acted like this was the first they had ever heard of this condition. When no one followed up with me about the complaint, I lodged a second complaint. Same drill. On the way back to our suite, I stopped at the Captain’s Club Office to register a complaint with them. Ironically, the future cruise saleslady was aware of the problem and informed me that she will not sell those cabins and suites. She did tell me Guests occupying the aft cabins on Deck 12 do not seem to have a noise problem. One other issue regarded periodic sewage smells in our cabin. Celebrity needs to make it a priority to find and fix the cause of this problem. We also suggested they install a second hanger rod in the secondary closet. The only existing one is so low to the floor of the closet that you can’t hang shirts on the rod.

· Guest Relations staff ----- Pleasant, but unresponsive to our complaint.

· Concierge ----- Did not use

· Cruise Sales Manager ----- Did not use

 

CAPTAIN’S CLUB SERVICES

· Captain’s Club events & activities ----- Did not use, busy doing other things. We found no value in the discount coupons provided to us and question the benefits of being members of the Captain’s Club.

· Captain’s Club hostess ----- Visited one time and learned from her future sales colleague that Celebrity is aware of the noise problem affecting suites and staterooms on Deck 12. We are unable to rate the quality of service.

 

OTHER EXPERIENCES

· Onboard shops staff service ----- Good to Excellent. With one exception the small onboard “drug” store (corner) had sold out and never replenished inventory, or didn’t stock several items; e.g. nail clippers, contact lens case, etc. They do stock antacids. The staff was always pleasant and friendly. When I told a saleswoman I was going to buy two shot glasses for my wife to soak her contact lens in, she suggested I go to the liquor store and ask them for a couple of their disposable, plastic sampler cups. I really appreciated her suggestion.

· Casino staff service ------ Did not use

· Art auction staff service ------ Did not attend any auctions, but did ask a few questions and observed the staff interacting with one another. They seemed to be very full of themselves and freely criticized comments made by passengers.

· Photographer’s staff service ----- Did not use

· Beauty salon staff service ------ DH got a haircut, the barber was friendly enough, but the haircut was terrible.

· AquaSpa staff service ----- DW had 2 treatments. Staff was friendly and professional.

· Acupuncture staff service ------ Did not use

· Fitness center staff service ----- Did not use

 

GUEST INFORMATION

· Interactive TV ----- Didn’t really use

· TV Programming ----- We liked the free On-Demand movie selection, but would have liked to have seen Fox News as an option rather than two CNN channels.

· Availability of information ----- We experienced three information disconnects; the first was the failure to announce we were cleared to go ashore at Tortola, the second involved tendering at Labadee, and the third regarded Xpress Departure (self disembarkation). At Labadee those of us who had priority tender privileges were told to meet in the Ensemble Lounge. When we got there, no one from the crew was there. This was the source of confusion. Rather than inform passengers who elected to use Xpress Departure to begin queuing up at the amidships gangway on Deck 5, passengers were instructed to meet in the Solstice Theater on Deck 5 and then later told to move to the amidships gangway. This only contributed to a mad rush to get off the ship.

 

SHORE EXCURSIONS

· Overall experience ----- Good to Excellent

· Information & communications ----- Poor----- In Tortola, no announcement was made informing us we could disembark. This resulted in a mad rush to get off the ship and get to the meeting point for the excursion. The fact that Customs was late in arriving to clear us exacerbated things. The guides briefing passengers failed to wait for everyone to assemble before beginning their briefing, so some of the group initially didn’t know what was going on.

· Quality of shore excursions ----- We booked one ship sponsored shore excursion to Virgin Gorda and the Baths. Given the limited time we had at this port of call, we thought it prudent to book a ship sponsored excursion rather than do it on our own. I know many reviews state the ship-sponsored excursions use the same ferry as those who do it on their own. BE ADVISED, on this itinerary with Celebrity this shore excursion has a dedicated ferry that departs at 7:30 and returns to Tortola at 12:30. It is my understanding that regular ferry service from Tortola to Virgin Gorda does not start until 9:00 A.M. So, the benefit of a dedicated ferry adds value to the excursion. The excursion includes a 45-minute stop at Savannah Beach. Snorkel equipment is supposed to be included. Water temperatures were on the chilly side, so only a handful of people in our group ventured into the water. I recommended to Celebrity they exclude the stop at Savannah Beach and spend more time at the Baths. As currently scheduled, there is barely enough time to walk down the beach, through the rock formations and back, and then return to the gathering place. An extra hour at the baths would enhance the excursion. In St. Maarten, we chartered an excursion with Joyce Prince and highly recommend her.

· Onboard shore excursion staff ----- Did not use

· Tour guides ----- In Tortola---Good; they did not provide snorkel equipment at Savannah Beach and split their time with groups from other ships. In St. Maarten---Excellent

 

ENTERTAINMENT, ACTIVITIES AND EVENTS

· Overall entertainment ----- Good to Excellent

· Cruise Director and staff ----- Minimal contact---unable to rate

· Activities and events ----- Can’t rate

· Theater Production shows ------ The one we saw was Excellent

· Musicians and bands ----- On deck entertainment was Excellent, there was one band that played Oldies that was great. We were only able to find dancing to a band one night in the Sky Observation Lounge. There was disco dancing in Quasar, but the volume level was too high for us. It was our observation there were fewer dance opportunities than on the M Class ships. We are wondering if this is going to be a trend.

· Enrichment speakers ----- Did not use

· Hot Glass show ----- Saw something similar at the Waterford Crystal Plant, so did not attend

· The Lawn Club ----- Seems like the space can be put to better use.

 

GENERAL

· Ship’s officers ----- Minimal interaction---Can’t rate

· Security staff ----- Efficient and professional

· Ship accessibility for guests with disabilities ----- N/A, however it seems as if the grade of the gangway at time of embarkation and disembarkation at Port Everglades could make it difficult for guests in wheel chairs or those who require walking aids or have limited stamina.

· Itinerary/Ports of Call ----- Puerto Rico, Good, not really enough time to do very much; St. Maarten, Excellent, ample time to do what you want; Tortola, Good, short amount of time in this port limits your options---I wish they would shave time off Labadee and add to Tortola; Labadee, Fair to Good, we really are not fans of these privately owned islands.

· Tendering service ----- Good to Excellent

 

SHIP CLEANLINESS

· Ship overall ----- Excellent

· Public areas ----- Excellent

· Public restrooms ----- Excellent, one outstanding feature is the handicap buttons that activate the door. This eliminates the need to touch the door handle coming and going.

· Stateroom ----- Good, as previously stated, stateroom attendant could have done a better job.

 

SHIP CONDITION AND APPEARANCE

· Ship overall ----- Excellent; with the exception of the last sea day we never experienced a crowded sensation. It was nice to be aboard a ship that was not so tackily decorated.

· Public areas ------ Excellent

· Public restrooms ----- Excellent

· Stateroom ----- Good to Excellent, I would like an extra chair in larger staterooms/suites. The hanger rod in our secondary closet was hung low making it impossible to hang any shirts on it. A second rod installed higher would be an excellent addition. There is less storage room on Solstice than on M Class ships.

 

PRE-CRUISE EXPERIENCE (IF BY CELEBRITY)

· Air arrangements/pre-cruise hotel package ----- Did not use

· Ship check-in & boarding process ----- Excellent---We had priority boarding privileges and check-in and boarding was seamless and quick. We did observe passengers waiting in the general boarding area. Our suite was made-up and ready for us when we boarded (12:30)

· Disembarkation process -----Excellent--- We met at the designated meeting point at 7:15 and were in our vehicle at 7:45. We parked on site and walked from the terminal to our vehicle in less than 5 minutes.

 

WOULD YOU RECOMMEND CELEBRITY CRUISES TO A FRIEND? Probably

 

WOULD YOU SAIL WITH CELEBRITY CRUISES IN THE FUTURE? We have decided to check out the competition before returning to Celebrity.

 

ADDITIONAL COMMENTS

 

In comparison to M Class ships the Persian Garden on Solstice is a joke. The aromatic sauna never worked, leaving the steam room and the heated, tiled relaxing lounges. We cannot recommend paying extra for this option and can fully understand how someone who did would feel ripped off.

 

With the exception of the extra space, we did not feel as if the extra amenities and benefits that came with a sky suite were worth the cost. Many of the same perks are available to Concierge class staterooms and should we sail Celebrity again that will be our choice of service.

[ellbon]

I was oon that cruise. used the sauna, steam room and tile beds. food was ok in Blu to me.. maybee my choices but the salmon was over cooked twice.

 

 

loved the shows.. saw one twice. ate in all three fee restuarants twice. was on for two weeks.

 

cabin and attendent was great. yes, you need more stoarrage but oh well!

 

would like to see a bigger pool or another pool.

 

service all over the ship was excellant. music in Michael Club was wonderful. I have now booked the EEquinox for next year. counting down now.

 

only did one ship tour in st kitts.. no problem at all.

[Fogtownrog]

I was oon that cruise. used the sauna, steam room and tile beds. food was ok in Blu to me.. maybee my choices but the salmon was over cooked twice.

 

 

loved the shows.. saw one twice. ate in all three fee restuarants twice. was on for two weeks.

 

cabin and attendent was great. yes, you need more stoarrage but oh well!

 

would like to see a bigger pool or another pool.

 

service all over the ship was excellant. music in Michael Club was wonderful. I have now booked the EEquinox for next year. counting down now.

 

only did one ship tour in st kitts.. no problem at all.

How did you get to St. Kitts? Our cruise didn't take us there. We were in St. Marteen instead. Did I miss a port?

[BurgerBits]

Thanks very much for your detailed review - hope you post it on the 'Member Reviews' Board as well!

 

Especially liked reading a bit about your backgrounds prior to your evaluations. Nice to know where reviewers are 'coming from' in terms of travel experience.

[Mysticks1]

Wonderful review. Thank you for taking the time to list things in such detail and in such an organized manner.

I am trying to put together a one thread location for basic cabin information for Solstice to try and give future cruisers a place to search for specific cabin number information. If you have the time could you add your information? The information on the noise factor could help those looking at that specific cabin. I hope to periodically put all collected info into a table sorted by cabin number and post that on the thread. Here is a link.

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=911018

[willysgrandma]

Wow, what a thorough review. Thanks very much.

 

Does anyone else think that perhaps the MDR food is just good quality instead of excellent to encourage use of the alternate dining venues? It seems like almost all the reivews of the other restaurants are great and teh MDR only so-so.

[GMoney]

Great review. :)

 

I was on the trip to VG and the Baths as well and agree about more time at the Baths and less time at the beach (though the beach was very nice).

 

The only thing I could think of is maybe the Baths weren't "open" yet, as it is a national park and we were there very early. Just a guess...it could just as easily be some diversionary tactic...:rolleyes:

[ellbon]

How did you get to St. Kitts? Our cruise didn't take us there. We were in St. Marteen instead. Did I miss a port?

 

I was on for 2 weeks which i said:D

[Milo's Dad]

How did you get to St. Kitts? Our cruise didn't take us there. We were in St. Marteen instead. Did I miss a port?

The itinerary alternates St. Maarten and St. Kitts. One week St. Maarten, the next week St. Kitts.

[ellbon]

The itinerary alternates St. Maarten and St. Kitts. One week St. Maarten' date=' the next week St. Kitts.[/quote']

 

 

Hi mark

 

it does St M's each week. tortola or st kitts..

 

already booked oon the new ship for next Jan. YEA!

[caribbeanboy]

St.maarten each week and alternating one week St.Kitts and the other week Tortola & Labadee.

[denb]

..... However, this and adjacent cabins on Deck 12 are located under the Oceanview Café’s galley. Now having been there, done that I will tell you, “DON’T BOOK 6130 OR ADJACENT STATEROOMS, OR SIMILAR STATEROOMS ON THE PORT SIDE OF THE SHIP!”

Obviously you meant 2130.

 

Glad to hear the aft cabins, under the Oceanview Bar, don't have that problem. We'll be in an aft CC on deck 12 in a couple of months. Thanks for the great review!

[Peteymil]

It's funny, because I was the Christmas cruise and did the Baths and Virgin Gorda excursion, and we did not stop at a beach. I can see that would have really cut into the time at the Baths.

[O2B@C]

Thanks for the detailed review. I'm hoping you can help me answer one question, which unfortunately :( is a make-or-break issue for my husband and me. Could you please comment on the quality of the mattress on the bed in your stateroom?

 

I'm asking because my DH has back problems and can only sleep on a really high quality mattress. He is comfortable on a Tempurpedic (which we have at home), or on the very thickly padded pillowtop mattresses at top hotel chains (Westin, Hyatt, and some Hiltons). He cannot sleep on a standard innerspring mattress with little or no padding, or on a thin, too-soft foam mattress.

 

Given these limitations, do you think the mattresses on Solstice would work for us? Thanks for any information you can provide on this question!

[pris993]

Wow, what a thorough review. Thanks very much.

 

Does anyone else think that perhaps the MDR food is just good quality instead of excellent to encourage use of the alternate dining venues? It seems like almost all the reivews of the other restaurants are great and teh MDR only so-so.

 

 

I think this is what is happening on alllllllllll cruiselines. As a result, we don't eat in the alternative dining venues.

[Milo's Dad]

it does St M's each week. tortola or st kitts..

You're right! Sometimes my fingers are not connected to my brain.

[fattyjeff]

You're right! Sometimes my fingers are not connected to my brain.

 

 

Hi Mark. It was a pleasure meeting you. I hope you had a great time on the cruise. Andrew and I had a really fun time!

[caliber35]

Thanks for the detailed review. I'm hoping you can help me answer one question, which unfortunately :( is a make-or-break issue for my husband and me. Could you please comment on the quality of the mattress on the bed in your stateroom?

 

I too am hooked on my Tempurpedic at home, and found the bedding on Solstice to be excellent! They use a good quality European pillowtop that is neither too soft nor too firm. I slept like a baby on their bedding. The only better bedding I've had on a ship was on Oceania, who put a layer of memory foam into the pillowtop. In general, I find that most of the newer ships have superior bedding to what they had in the past. Some of the older Celebrity beds were like army cots! Enjoy.

[ellbon]

I too am hooked on my Tempurpedic at home, and found the bedding on Solstice to be excellent! They use a good quality European pillowtop that is neither too soft nor too firm. I slept like a baby on their bedding. The only better bedding I've had on a ship was on Oceania, who put a layer of memory foam into the pillowtop. In general, I find that most of the newer ships have superior bedding to what they had in the past. Some of the older Celebrity beds were like army cots! Enjoy.

 

 

I own two homes so i have two Tempurpedic beds. The Solstice beds were/are great.

 

Hi again to jeff and mark

[Milo's Dad]

Hi Mark. It was a pleasure meeting you. I hope you had a great time on the cruise. Andrew and I had a really fun time!

 

Jeff,

 

It was great meeting both of you, too. We had a fantastic time on the cruise. I can't imagine how it could have been better.

 

Robin,

 

I enjoyed meeting you, too. Thanks for arranging the get together at sail away.

[ellbon]

Jeff' date='

 

It was great meeting both of you, too. We had a fantastic time on the cruise. I can't imagine how it could have been better.

 

Robin,

 

I enjoyed meeting you, too. Thanks for arranging the get together at sail away.[/quote']

 

maybe you should think about the Equinox for next jan. I am already planning the party.. jan 15h is CC group cruise also.

[Traveling Fools]

Obviously you meant 2130.

 

You are right, my mistake.

 

Thanks for the detailed review. I'm hoping you can help me answer one question, which unfortunately :( is a make-or-break issue for my husband and me. Could you please comment on the quality of the mattress on the bed in your stateroom?

 

I'm asking because my DH has back problems and can only sleep on a really high quality mattress. He is comfortable on a Tempurpedic (which we have at home), or on the very thickly padded pillowtop mattresses at top hotel chains (Westin, Hyatt, and some Hiltons). He cannot sleep on a standard innerspring mattress with little or no padding, or on a thin, too-soft foam mattress.

 

Given these limitations, do you think the mattresses on Solstice would work for us? Thanks for any information you can provide on this question!

 

We too have a Tempurpedic. We found the mattress comfortable and more than satisfactory.

[Milo's Dad]

maybe you should think about the Equinox for next jan. I am already planning the party.. jan 15h is CC group cruise also.

I'd love to, but I can't make plans now. I was notified while on the cruise that I lost my job. No new plans until I know what I'll be doing next.

[O2B@C]

I too am hooked on my Tempurpedic at home, and found the bedding on Solstice to be excellent! They use a good quality European pillowtop that is neither too soft nor too firm. ...

 

I own two homes so i have two Tempurpedic beds. The Solstice beds were/are great....

 

.... We too have a Tempurpedic. We found the mattress comfortable and more than satisfactory.

 

Thanks so much to all of you. This is very reassuring! DH and I have enjoyed our two HAL cruises (HAL's beds are lovely), and would go back again, but we would enjoy having the option to cruise on other lines as well. I now feel we have Solstice as an option, which is great. Thanks!

 

PS to Caliber35: We'd love to try Oceania too, but so far I haven't found a cruise on that line that I felt I could afford!