Northern Aurora

Thanks for the review. We also were on for both the Pacific Coastal and the Mexico cruise. And we also had to change staterooms from a Celebrity Suite to a Sky Suite. We were in 1198 on the second cruise so were your neighbors. Despite the staterooms being side by side we had a different stateroom attendant than you. We had cool water one morning in the Sky Suite, my husband mentioned it to our stateroom attendant and within minutes a plumber arrived to fix the problem. We also suspect that there were more covid cases on the second leg. The Luminae seating hostess was "under the weather" for several days and on turnaround day, such a busy day for the staff, a Retreat Concierge also was "under the weather." Same phrase was used both times. We avoided covid but always (and I mean always) wore masks in elevators. On September 24th the long line in the Sky Lounge of folks lining up to have new photos looked like a possible covid spreader event, and we were some of the few who wore masks. We had spent two weeks on the Solstice in June and had been on her in Australia when the global suspension of cruising was implemented in March 2020. While we find the decor dated we have no qualms in cruising on her.

We just left the Solstice. I asked a Future Cruise salesman while on board. I was told in November or early December.

I am rather late to this discussion, but we have done six full transits of the Panama Canal on Celebrity ships, and there was a "Beyond the Podium" speaker presenting lectures about the PC on each one.

We did several cruises on the Summit pre-covid (which is where our Zenith "celebration" was held in 2017 -- or was it 2016?) and I do not remember any self-serve alcohol options. Cruises pre-covid I also don't remember any self-serve alcohol options either. Since the resumption of sailing we have done seven cruises (three different ships) and, again, no self-serve alcohol serving on any.

While I suspect you are looking for recommendations for fishing excursions from folks who have actually been on fishing excursions out of Sitka, since you aren't receiving any help, I just wanted to comment that I googled something like "fishing excursions our of Sitka, Alaska" and several websites popped up. And some had ratings. Also, all of the SE Alaska communities have websites, and most have lists of vendors (who are probably members of their respective Chambers of Commerce). I know that Sitka is one and has a visitor's guide. Again, just google.

Just a quick comment -- my understanding is that the crew sundry store(on the ship) is priced in US dollars so even if the ship will be out of US waters they will be able to use at least some US dollars.

If it isn't found in your junk folder then you might consider calling the Captain's Club.

I love that minted lemonade -- tart sweet with bruised mint.

Did you see the actual engines while on a Behind the Scenes tour? Both times we took this tour (first on a M-class and then last month on the Solstice) we didn't view the actual engines but visited the engine control room.

Just a quick comment for those interested in this tour -- passengers don't visit the actual engines. You visit the engine control room. We have done it twice now, and each time found it very interesting. I realize how little we, as passengers, actually see the ship.

There are so many frequent and semi-frequent CC posters on this forum who reside in Florida. I hope more report on their status. There are several folks I really wonder about and hope they are safe.

We just left the Solstice after a B2B, and did the Behind the Scenes tour on the first leg. We did an earlier Behind the Scenes tour on a M-class ship, so wanted to do one on a S-class too. Of course, I have trashed the tickets so don't know if long pants were required. If my memory is correct one woman wore capri pants last month. I remember stairs on the M-class tour, and on the S-class tour we did two flights of stairs, plus some other stairs too. We took elevators up but some stairs down.

A hotel director once told us the commission Celebrity pays to the content creator (Skullmapping ?) and my recollection is that the commission is in the $10.00 per person per meal. We are Zenith members of the Captain’s Club, and even with our Z specialty restaurant discount are not interested in a repeat performance. While our meal was fine (not outstanding) I just find the way the meal is presented rather strange. Folks are seated, the venue darkened, people stare at their plates, and then the animation for that course is shown. Then the lights turn on, folks eat that course, and then the process is repeated for the next course.

While the Marriott is not my favorite Seattle hotel for those sailing out of Pier 66 you simply can’t beat the location. And for those sailing out of Smith Cove they have a contract with a shuttle company which offers service for about $11 per person for the transport between hotel and Pier 91. I should also ad that we have stayed at the Marriott Waterfront several times. When we most recently stayed there (June 2022) they are in the process of remodeling the guest rooms. New decor is lovely.

We did LPC on the Eclipse when we had a great amount of non-refundable OBC. While it was amusing, for us it was and is a “once and done” experience.

Which Seattle cruise terminal is your cruise line using? If you don’t know then “google” the Port of Seattle cruise ship schedule. If your cruise line uses Pier 66 (Bell Street) then there are hotels within walking distance. For example, the Marriott Waterfront is across the street and the Edgewater is beside the cruise terminal. There are no hotels relatively close to Pier 91 (Smith Cove).

Mr. Singh, the head bartender in MC, has extended and expects to leave on December 11th. Both Retreat Concierges (who are also excellent) expect to leave in October/early November as does the equally excellent Suite Manager. These are all folks who were on the ship when it resumed passenger operations. Gerry

Michael’s Club is fully staffed. The standard number of waiters in Luminae, Murano and Sushi on 5. Cafe al Bacio seems to be fully staffed as well. I spoke with the current MC head bartender yesterday. He is extending his contract and expects to be onboard when you and Iain will also be onboard.

I am posting from the Solstice. They do indeed have the Tea Forte Bombay Chai on board but our out of the decaf Breakfast tea. I really suspect this is a supply chain issue.

Remember to ask for the B2B discount for each leg. The amount is not much and varies depending on the length of the legs. It is not automatically applied The turnaround day process will be outlined at the B2B meeting and in the instruction letter. And B2B passengers are invited to the Concierge class embarkation lunch. The turnaround day procedures are easy. You will not be the only B2B passengers, and the crew has done this many times before. Some folks try to overthink the process.

We boarded the Solstice on September 16th for a B2B. We had to change staterooms from a Celebrity Site to a Sky Suite 1. Both suites have the privacy sheers. If, for some reason they are not in your stateroom, just ask for them. And we have had absolutely no issues with air conditioning. If fact, some areas of the ship are so cool that a light sweater or fleece is needed.

I am posting from the Solstice. All crew and staff who I am observed are wearing masks. Will be interesting to read reports from other passengers.

Well — Jim posts about his walks and his coffee, and now we all know that he is not a tea drinker. The tea in the pyramid sachets is Tea Forte. I am posting from the Solstice, and the Solstice is serving Tea Forte in the Cafe al Bacio and also the Michael’s Club/Retreat Lounge. Bigelow is the brand used for room service. I am also guessing that this is a supply chain issue.

And to slightly expand on “cruise stitch” reply, we have also done Chilean Fjords in March. It was lovely.

The bulk of the time we have booked CS it has been on S-class ships. We actually prefer the layout of a CS on a M-class ship. Just the luck of the draw so to speak. We were in CS 9098 on Summit’s sister ship the Infinity. While we had no noise issues our next door neighbor did. They suspected that 9098 was under a storage area while the other CS on that floor was under an active area of the Mast Grill. On the Summit itself we have been in CS 7138 and had absolutely no noise issues at all. I would go with the CS 7138.