QE2_Fan

Nothing! [emoji31]there is another main thread that people had been posting any new rumours or details...but it's been quiet of late.

Agree it's getting close to when you would expect one of them to start being built so hopefully some news will be forthcoming soon!

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Thank you very much. When were on Voyager of the Seas, that is exactly what we did and exactly what happened, same cost as well..

 

Thanks so much. Will wait and see and will also do as suggested from others as well. Fiona

Yes, sorry wasn't sure if you *wanted* to do the full package/paid option, which you should certainly register your interest ASAP upon boarding as spaces are limited, could be a one off experience per cruise.

But if you just want to do the complimentary bridge and/or engine room tour , these have in the past been offered quite regularly (often 3-4 groups a day of 10 people at a time) - but again it won't hurt to register your interest earlier than later. And certainly don't wait for them to be advertised in the ships daily, it will often be too late then!

Lol, having not done flowrider yet, my tip would be to hang on for dear life and hope to not fall off in less than 5 seconds! [emoji23]. Some good tips there though, hopefully will remember them when we try flow rider on Ovation next Feb!!

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As others mention, on our last cruise aboard a Solstice we just registered interest at Guest Services and they had a form we added our names/cabin number to. Nothing was guaranteed, but we received invites to both the Bridge and also the Engine Control Room.

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I've never experienced these black and whites, am starting to get worried I've seriously been missing out lol[emoji43]. Although from all that selection in the above photos I think I'm already spoiled for choice! [emoji38]

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Does anyone know what the charge is for an alcove?

 

FreestyleNovice replied: $149 sea day, $99 port day, 9am-9pm IIRC.

Being new on Solstice ( the Alcoves, not me!) I'm working with this info as a guide also. We are on her 1st sailing after refit on 31st October so will try and find out details.

Whether they will have specials whilst they are promoting them (or if they need to?) and what standard inclusions, if different to existing offerings on other ships will remain to be seen!

It's my honeymoon, I just want a nice little spot that's my own. Not have to worry about it. This will be my second X cruise but I've been on 20 ocean 1 x river so I just like the idea of having a nice little spot of my own. I'm sure there are great alternatives

 

 

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Thanks for your feedback, and CONGRATULATIONS! :D

That certainly would be a time when I would like to have my own little oasis to call my own ! I was interested as whilst I can't see the value in them (we were married 23 years ago lol!) I appreciated that there will be many that would.

If they don't show available online before your cruise head to guest services upon boarding and they should be able to take of it. If they advise of any interim policy on our cruise I'll post details.

Hi all!

 

 

 

I'm wondering if anyone that is booked on a future Solstice cruise has been able to pre reserve the Alcoves before they set sail? I can't see the function to book via online checkin....and I dont want to board expecting to book them and they're all gone!

 

 

 

Please advise, and thank you for helping :)

We are on her 'maiden' voyage post refit ex SIN on 31 October and so far they are not showing up in the calendar to pre reserve online. I'm not expecting they will be either as doesn't seem to be Celebrity's IT style to be on top of this stuff ...maybe for her 2nd or 3rd cruise post refit they'll show up!!

Out of interest what is it about them that makes you keen to reserve one? Have you used them before on other X ships?

Im not sure I can justify the usd150 fee to sit in one when there are plenty of places to 'perch' myself already..[emoji38]

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There's info on Slush bar here on cruise critic, but here's a photo of the menu. If you like frozen cocktails like we do, you will be sure to hope this is open and making drinks on your cruise!

We will be on Solstice just after her refurb in Singapore and hoping they have added one to her also! Previously this space was an under-utilised 'kiosk' that was never open but sold sun screen, hats etc. It's found between the outdoor and indoor solarium pool starboard side.

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You gambled trying to outsmart the system by moving your cabin from one region to another for a small discount (causing overhead for X along the way) and lost your cabin in the process. Seems fair to me!

OP mentioned major pricing difference. Where did you pick up it was a small discount?

With the correct information the changeover should have been possible keeping same cabin as per my own experience per previous post.

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Ha I found contacting any Celebrity sales office to be hit and miss. Even going through Celebrity AU support is handled centrally from South America call centre.

I had to do that once in reverse and my US TA had me stay on the line and coordinate me cancelling my AU booking whilst she worked with a Celebrity team member who rebooked the same cabin as it went back into inventory upon me cancelling it. Their system does not support waitlisting of cabins.

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It will keep spinning until something official is announced or 2018 comes.

I'm going to get rather dizzy on the meantime [emoji16]

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Well I have never purchased a drinks package and it doesn't appear to be happening anytime soon.

 

Cannot justify spending $480 AUD on the replenish drinks package for a 12 night cruise... I will just buy the drinks I would normally get and pay much less than that.

 

I think the only time I will get a drinks package is if it comes included in a cruise at some stage.

That's just it, the drinks packages are not going to offer value for everyone, and it's good that you know that for yourself. Many may buy thinking it's 'the thing to do' and Royal will make a huge profit ..which of course is what they are relying on.

On the other hand, $480 for a 12 night cruise seems more than reasonable to us. It really is an individual thing.

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Celebrity has denied all rumours.

 

 

 

We are more than just mildly interested as we are booked April 29, 2018, on the Solstice from Honolulu to Vancouver. Will closely follow this developing issue.

Exactly! And this is a great thread to discuss what is currently merely speculation. However I am interested to hear anything factual about the Solstice reposition cruise to Europe via the Suez Canal!

And could it be possible an Edge class ship could be headed down under to replace her? Oh the mind, as per the rumour mill, is spinning!! [emoji16][emoji12]

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Weve cruised on Solstice with a friend who is allergic to garlic and after advising the maitre'd and her dining room wait staff they looked after her superbly and went thru the next day's menus each night to work out what she could have.

Also at speciality restaurants she gave them advance notice and they also couldn't do enough to ensure she had a wonderful garlic free experience!

We were all very impressed with how her allergy was handled.

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We are booked on a sailing from Hawaii to Vancouver 29 April 2018,

 

So can't really see how she can get to Europe .

 

Maybe it's the new Edge clas on her maiden deployment

They will need to adjust itineraries/ships at some stage so IF the rumours are true you could find yourself on a different ship same itinerary or have your cruise totally altered.

Happened to us just recently where Royal changed schedule of Ovation of the Seas and a reposition cruise we were booked on 23Jan16 was rescheduled for a month later 20Feb16. [emoji33].

Please don't think I wish this on you!! Just saying nothing is 100% set in stone even with existing schedules.

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Am not sure of port timings for your cruise but we visit Cairns on Solstice early November and as this is a tender port she is not there long enough to make the best opportunity of visiting the GBR.

There was two ships tours to the reef offered although they cancelled one leaving only a mass market option. It's about 30 mins tender time and another 30 minutes from Yorkeys Knob (where tenders dock) to the main Cairns Marina where most day tours to the reef leave from which makes it all but impossible to catch a general tour. It's also a couple of hours out to the reef itself which even further limits your time to enjoy the experience.

I don't know why they can't extend a few more hours, as our next port of call is only a few hundred miles down the coast (Airlie Beach). It's disappointing that choices are so limited and even the poor selection of ships tours offered to visit this natural wonder of the world.

These itineraries attract a lot of overseas guests with the goal of visiting the reef but don't think Celebrity are offering the best options in this regard.

If you're really keen on visiting the reef and not compromise the experience around the ships time in port, then I'd suggest visiting Cairns separately as a land tour where you could justify a full day towards the experience.

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Cabanas on Reflection for our upcoming February cruise were $149 for the day on sea days (9AM-9PM) and $99 for port days.

 

 

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Thank you! they will be a novelty originally but I don't see them being popular when she is 'Downunder' as people will not see the value in paying for a glorified place to sit!

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We are part of a largish group of friends that will be on her maiden voyage post refit back to Australia on 31 October so looking forward to experiencing the changes first hand. Hope to post a few updates her too along the way!

Sounds interesting, but sure its a marketing statement and is not an exhaustive list of changes - although its only a 9 day dry dock so not expecting major changes. I was hoping she would get the SLUSH bar as added to other ships but no mention of that. We'll soon see!! :D

Also a lot of excitement by many on our 'other' social media page about those cabanas. But what wasn't said was they will likely be on a rental basis as per existing Cabana's on other S Class ships. Does anyone know the latest rental options (full/half day, per hour) and costs for these?

Cheers!

I have found they allocate cabins quite quickly once a deposit is received. They could change again but likely they will not. Should you see better cabin location (same category) I think you are able to ring and have it changed...someone else can chime in and correct me if I'm wrong on that...I know some lines will not let you. We didn't need to...was very happy with our assignment as we also booked 2 GTY cabins and once assigned found they were interconnecting !!

Happy sailing!

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Good news about the gins, thanks! :)

True, I won't cruise without Hendricks on offer lol [emoji483][emoji38]

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Here you go, this is a picture of Silhouette but gives a good indication of when the window washing equipment is 'parked' near the forward hump cabins. A few other pics and info cns be found in this rather interesting thread of Solstice class ships.

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1751328&page=3

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Well interesting indeed! I only thought deck 6 cabins were considered obstructed on Solstice class, and even then they are some of the best (as in minimal) obstructions afloat! I wonder if they refer to the deck overhang above or the pillars supporting it as an obstruction...but then again your cabin doesn't really seem to have either of those affecting it. You will have a nice deep balcony being on the forward hump!

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D'oh! Sorry. I'm in the country of Texas so not aware there are people elsewhere, hehehe. Sorry about that, stupid of me.

 

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LOL, no problems. I hear the country of Texas is a great place to visit, and often recommended to include a stopover after visiting the USA [emoji12][emoji1360]

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The packages come out tomorrow, sounds like they want to purchase today and still should be able to, no? Anyway I have no answer as I find the resolution department essentially useless. Having worked in a resolution department for many years, niceness helps as does persistence.

 

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True! I'm in OZ and it's 06Sep already!! But yes expect the policy change to take effect via US time.

Just guessing really as OP hasn't given any detail, and it seems strange to 'not' be able to purchase a drink package unless someone in the booking is underage or it is somehow related to confusion (back to resolutions team!!) around the new drink packages.

it might be worth waiting for the long weekend in the US to pass then trying them again and ask to speak to a supervisor if needed.

I agree with previous poster, they will likely be on skeleton crew over the long weekend and knowing how great RCI are with internal communications some may have the wrong end of the bat :-) as to correct info.

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