Solstice class after Ruby Princess - how many steps down?

[eroller]

Ernie, aren't the Queen Victoria, new Queen Elizabeth, Eurodam and the new Nieuw Amsterdam all built on the same hull? They look similar in profile and I think I remember seeing that somewhere somewhen.:o

 

 

Yes, that is correct. They are all Vista Class ships. QV and QE have a different internal arrangement than the HAL Vistas, but they are essentially the same ship.

 

Ernie

[lusitanica]

The decor that you consider nautical and warm...

 

I consider the sea to be the best decor of a cruise ship.

Nothing better has been invented so far.

I avoid euphemisms like "traditional". I say "classy".

Solstice class ships seem to be classy. For example, Epic is not classy.

What concerns me is that while reading reviews, I cannot find a solid positive about Solstice class food and entertainment. Even here, in the "heart" of Solstice discussions - comments are mixed.

Whatever decor Solstice has - it's fine.

No decor can substitude classy cuisine and shows.

I don't expect to see a cruise ship when I go to MOMA and I don't need MOMA when I cruise.

 

The NIEUW AMSTERDAM is in the list for the future but not with this company. I am with the first comers (now they are "second" comers).

The NIEUW AMSTERDAM will not impress them. This ship is for enthusiasts like DW and me.

 

I just would like to make sure that the food and shows on Solstice are equal to Ruby.

 

Otherwise we'll simply substitude a cruise with an excursion on Oasis/Allure. That's a different type of vacation but it's worth seeing once.

Thank you for the input.

[lysolqn]

I consider the sea to be the best decor of a cruise ship.

Nothing better has been invented so far.

I avoid euphemisms like "traditional". I say "classy".

Solstice class ships seem to be classy. For example, Epic is not classy.

What concerns me is that while reading reviews, I cannot find a solid positive about Solstice class food and entertainment. Even here, in the "heart" of Solstice discussions - comments are mixed.

Whatever decor Solstice has - it's fine.

No decor can substitude classy cuisine and shows.

I don't expect to see a cruise ship when I go to MOMA and I don't need MOMA when I cruise.

 

The NIEUW AMSTERDAM is in the list for the future but not with this company. I am with the first comers (now they are "second" comers).

The NIEUW AMSTERDAM will not impress them. This ship is for enthusiasts like DW and me.

 

I just would like to make sure that the food and shows on Solstice are equal to Ruby.

 

Otherwise we'll simply substitude a cruise with an excursion on Oasis/Allure. That's a different type of vacation but it's worth seeing once.

Thank you for the input.

 

Many posters have tried to assure you that a cruise on Solstice is not only equal to one on Ruby but superior, yet you seem h*llbent on proving them wrong. You trust no opinion other than your own which you present as fact, and parse every word in a game of semantics. Since you've already chosen "an excursion" on Oasis/Allure as an alternative to a cruise, specifically one on Solstice, should you not get the impossible guarantee you demand, I suggest you go with Plan B - and heaven help those on the RCI boards. Enjoy your cruise.

[emileg]

Absolutely talking about the RUBY and her Grand Class sisters. Big Yawn IMO. The decor that you consider nautical and warm, I consider boring and contrived. As I mentioned before, it evokes no emotion what so ever. Princess is VERY careful to always play it safe. Olive Garden gone to sea. Been on one Princess ship, been on them all.

 

Also, I consider the Promenade Deck to be narrow when compared to other ships I have sailed (even those on Royal Caribbean), and of course there is the rubber decking. Your last picture is a little deceiving. It's of the bow and the picture has the appearance of the deck being wider than it is. Also, you can't sit in this area as there are no chairs and the side promenades are too narrow for traditional steamer loungers. Attached are some pictures of truly exquisite promenade decks. Again, if these are of such great importance to you I highly suggest Holland America (a very traditional cruise line) and Cunard (even more traditional).

 

Celebrity is not a "warm and fuzzy" cruise line and feels very different than Princess. You will be disappointed if you are expecting traditional. Celebrity is much more contemporary, modern, and eclectic. Many people that like Princess actually find Celebrity decor to be cold. Just a word of warning so be sure you have your expectations in line.

 

I'm not sure what kind of mini-suite you had, but almost all mini-suites on the Princess Grand Class are open to the decks above and are located on Dolphin Deck.

 

Regarding the food and entertainment, that is all subjective. I'm glad you enjoyed it. I found it adequate and for the most part, not memorable. This is not to say I didn't enjoy it, but I honestly don't recall any of the shows or specific meals on Princess. I do recall several of the meals on SOLSTICE and one show in particular that was excellent.

 

I just got of HAL's newest ship, NIEUW AMSTERDAM just last week. Based upon everything you have written, I would seriously consider this ship over the Solstice Class. I think it's more what you are looking for, especially if you enjoyed Princess so much.

 

Ernie

 

QM2 Promenade Deck - It's wide, wrap-around, and 100% teak.

 

NIEUW AMSTERDAM - all teak and full wrap around

 

DISNEY WONDER - full wrap around and teak - not quite as wide as some

 

FREEDOM OF THE SEAS - it's not teak but it's lovely and wide, and wrap around - you can even walk all the way to the bow

 

MAASDAM - traditional teak and wrap-around

As a lover of wrap-around promenade decks, thank you for posting these beautiful shots. Except for the Coral and Island Princess, most of the Princess decks are fairly narrow. The wrap-around promenade is for me the only thing lacking on a Celebrity ship.

[emileg]

...2. I am very positive to a cruise on a Solstice class ship. ..

I think you have experienced the kind of flaming you have because of the provocative way you wrote your first post and the title of the thread. Nevertheless, you certainly have stirred things up and generated lots of comment. You managed to maintain your cool in spite of some harsh criticism. - Emile

[yayvacation!]

Yes, food and entertainment can be subjective.

Nevertheless...

As an example, below is a brief description that gives a general idea of what is going on.

We had same menu every day in the MDR on Epic /completely new menu on Ruby every day, same selection every day in the buffet on Epic/ selection changed twice a day on Ruby, afternoon tea on Ruby/nothing on Epic, a few boring muffins in the atrium cafe on Epic/ it's hard to list everything in the atrium cafe on Ruby, 2 shows in the theatre on NCL/ 4 shows on Ruby...

Even without going into details - you get the picture.

 

I'm going to preface this post with the fact that I have only sailed Celebrity, so I cannot compare the two lines. Celebrity is an amazing product, so sophisticated, relaxing, and service oriented. We have friends that have been loyal Princess customers and after one trip on the Celebrity Equinox they will never go back to Princess.

 

MDR: Menu changes everyday in the MDR, you will find an "everyday menu" with selections you can get throughout your cruise. Food is, in my opinion, very good. I have never had any issue at all with the quality of food that has come out, DH and I would both consider ourselves "foodies" and enjoy the food on Celebrity.

 

Buffets: We don't usually eat in the Buffet area, there is a great "healthy-option" called the Aqua Spa Cafe that is where we go for lunches they have cold soups, salads, salmon filets, ect. Very good lunch, plus I don't like the crowds or the concept of a buffet. I have seen some very yummy looking things while passing through though! Pasta station, salads, sandwich/wrap stations. Breakfast we always have brought up from the butler to enjoy on the balcony.

 

Afternoon Tea: If you have a suite, your butler will bring it to your door. If you are in any other category cabin, you can enjoy afternoon tea in the buffet area with pastries and small sandwiches.

 

Entertainment: An area I don't realy care much about, I don't particularly find the singers/dancers to catch and keep my attention but my father in law (who enjoys these things more than I do) absolutely loved the production shows on Celebrity. I liked the acrobats/comedians more. Always an available seat in the theatre. Additionally, there are lots of people all over the ship entertaining, there is usually a guitar player or accapala group in the coffee bar, piano in Michaels club.

 

Hopefully that helps, but really most of us consider Celebrity a superior product for all the above plus the overall quality of the cruise.

[eroller]

What concerns me is that while reading reviews, I cannot find a solid positive about Solstice class food and entertainment. Even here, in the "heart" of Solstice discussions - comments are mixed.

 

 

Comments about food, service, and entertainment are always going to be mixed. They are all highly subjective. What I find to be great food and entertainment will be mediocre to someone else. That is the name of the game. The same mixed reviews exist for Princess food and entertainment as they do for Celebrity and frankly every cruise line that exists. I've been on these boards for over 10 years now, and I have yet to see universal agreement for any cruise line over food, service, and entertainment. You and I are a prime example of that. You thought the food and service on Princess were excellent, and for the most part I find it to be mediocre. Even on lines like Silversea where the food and service budget are far higher than mass-market/premium lines, you will find negative comments. So if you are looking for universal praise, you can stop your search now. It's not going to happen.

 

Personally I find all the large mass-market/premium lines to be on a fairly level playing field when it comes to food and service. There is only so much you can do when preparing meals for 2000+ people. Essentially it's mass-produced banquet food like you would find at a wedding. If you want to elevate that experience, you can dine at the extra-fee specialty restaurants which are smaller and can achieve more personalized service and higher food standards. The other option is to upgrade entirely to a luxury level cruise line like Seabourn or Silversea.

 

Ernie

[eroller]

No decor can substitude classy cuisine and shows.

I don't expect to see a cruise ship when I go to MOMA and I don't need MOMA when I cruise.

 

 

 

Food, service, and entertainment on the Solstice Class is superior to Princess IMO. Again, it's just an opinion and that is all you will get on a message board. As I explained in the last post it's all highly subjective and you will never get a consensus.

 

Frankly one of the reasons to sail on the Solstice Class is because they are stunning ships. If this is of no consequence to you and you really only care about looking at the ocean, then why not go back to Princess? If you are happy with the ship, the food, and the service then why set yourself up for disappointment? If you don't want to sail on the same ship, then pick one of RUBY's sisters. It's a fact the Solstice Class does not have a traditional promenade deck. It's pretty much like what the EPIC offers. If this is going to disappoint you then save yourself some time and money and choose a different ship.

 

You have already determined that Celebrity is an inferior product to Princess just by the title of your thread, so why bother pursuing it? As I recall you were accused of doing the same thing with NCL's EPIC prior to sailing on her.

 

Ernie

[neilrr]

Food, service, and entertainment on the Solstice Class is superior to Princess IMO. Again, it's just an opinion and that is all you will get on a message board. As I explained in the last post it's all highly subjective and you will never get a consensus.

 

Frankly one of the reasons to sail on the Solstice Class is because they are stunning ships. If this is of no consequence to you and you really only care about looking at the ocean, then why not go back to Princess? If you are happy with the ship, the food, and the service then why set yourself up for disappointment? If you don't want to sail on the same ship, then pick one of RUBY's sisters. It's a fact the Solstice Class does not have a traditional promenade deck. It's pretty much like what the EPIC offers. If this is going to disappoint you then save yourself some time and money and choose a different ship.

 

You have already determined that Celebrity is an inferior product to Princess just by the title of your thread, so why bother pursuing it? As I recall you were accused of doing the same thing with NCL's EPIC prior to sailing on her.

 

Ernie

 

eroller -Ernie - We have been on many Celebrity and several Princess cruises. Over the years, the food has actually improved on Princess while the food on Celebrity has dropped a notch or two. We really miss Michel Roux who coordinated the food on Celebrity, prior to even being bought by RCCL. The service on Celebrity generally beats Princess and Princess tends to nickel and dime you a bit - i.e. no free ice cream (recently started soft serve for free). The layout of Princess ships are not as good as Celebrity, as Princess generally puts the dining rooms mid-ship and this causes a lot of dead ends and running up and down, whereas Celebrity puts the dining rooms at the end of the ship and it flows much better. Also, Princess needs to allocate more space to cabin bathrooms and shower. Don't drop the soap or you will have a special new friend called Mr. Shower Curtain...:p

 

Whatever line we take we try to give a fair and unbiased review. I must say the only line we will not go on again that we have tried is NCL. Others we have heard to avoid is Costa and MSC..

 

Though we generally love Celebrity and are at the Elite level -- we recently took a cruise on Solstice (our first "S" class cruise) and were somewhat disappointed in the ship for several reasons. some of the reasons include the following:

 

The stateroom is not laid out well - only 5 dresser drawers, shelves above the bed - you need to stand on the bed to get items placed there, the safe is close to the floor and had to get down on my hands and knees to get valuables (changed on later sister ships); huge sofa blocking a tiny closet;

 

Dining Room - same size as "M" class ships but "S" class has 800 more people; very crowded; tables upstairs set up like a mess hall;

 

Pools - Very small; built a sprinkler area for children - basically goes unused and takes up a lot of pool space; indoor pool very small and no jets like Thallsotherapy pool on Millennium.

 

Other public spaces i.e. Public restrooms were enormous - for what reason I don't know...

 

My Partner and I will try to stick with the "M" class ships, as they are more traditional and "classy" and love how well the space is utilized. Celebrity is already working on changes to the other sister ships in the cabins and dining rooms.

 

We have always been big fans of Celebrity and the "S" class ships have a lot of style and Pizazz to draw a younger upscale crowd, but is not very practical IMHO...

 

We will be on the Ruby in December and I will write a full review when we return...

 

Happy Holidays and Happy Sailing

[Crusing Nut]

I consider the sea to be the best decor of a cruise ship.

Nothing better has been invented so far.

I avoid euphemisms like "traditional". I say "classy".

Solstice class ships seem to be classy. For example, Epic is not classy.

What concerns me is that while reading reviews, I cannot find a solid positive about Solstice class food and entertainment. Even here, in the "heart" of Solstice discussions - comments are mixed.

Whatever decor Solstice has - it's fine.

No decor can substitude classy cuisine and shows.

I don't expect to see a cruise ship when I go to MOMA and I don't need MOMA when I cruise.

 

The NIEUW AMSTERDAM is in the list for the future but not with this company. I am with the first comers (now they are "second" comers).

The NIEUW AMSTERDAM will not impress them. This ship is for enthusiasts like DW and me.

 

I just would like to make sure that the food and shows on Solstice are equal to Ruby.

 

Otherwise we'll simply substitude a cruise with an excursion on Oasis/Allure. That's a different type of vacation but it's worth seeing once.

Thank you for the input.

 

You would plan to go on the Oasis or the Allure compared to a Celebrity ship? 5,000 other passengers with you doesn't bode well for the "Classy Ship" that you are looking for. While I found the entertainment to be good, I was also disappointed in the food.

 

And beginning in December, Dreamwork characters will be on board. Allure has Shrek, Fiona, Puss In Boots and Donkey. Doesn't work for romantic for me. Not sure what Dreamwork characters Oasis will have. Don't get me wrong, it was a beautiful ship but the Royal Promenade was crowded when the parades were going on.

 

It sure will be different from what you are looking for. Good luck and Happy Cruising!

[neilrr]

You would plan to go on the Oasis or the Allure compared to a Celebrity ship? 5,000 other passengers with you doesn't bode well for the "Classy Ship" that you are looking for. While I found the entertainment to be good, I was also disappointed in the food.

 

And beginning in December, Dreamwork characters will be on board. Allure has Shrek, Fiona, Puss In Boots and Donkey. Doesn't work for romantic for me. Not sure what Dreamwork characters Oasis will have. Don't get me wrong, it was a beautiful ship but the Royal Promenade was crowded when the parades were going on.

 

It sure will be different from what you are looking for. Good luck and Happy Cruising!

 

Cruising Nut - I agree with you - on our last RCCL cruise we were not impressed by the food at all. We will stick with Celebrity, Princess and HAL for the moderately priced lines. The ships on RCCL have grown too big and they have lost that intimate feeling - speaking with the Captain and the Officers, food quality, etc.. We have had several wonderful Bridge and Galley tours, etc.. Being with 5,000 people on a ship is not what we are looking for either...

[chessbriar]

I consider the sea to be the best decor of a cruise ship.

Nothing better has been invented so far.

I avoid euphemisms like "traditional". I say "classy".

Solstice class ships seem to be classy. For example, Epic is not classy.

What concerns me is that while reading reviews, I cannot find a solid positive about Solstice class food and entertainment. Even here, in the "heart" of Solstice discussions - comments are mixed.

Whatever decor Solstice has - it's fine.

No decor can substitude classy cuisine and shows.

My personal opinion. I prefer the dining and shows on the S class ships. Where quality is comparible, with X just a small step ahead, I felt the venues on Ruby took away from the experience.

 

The show venues on the Ruby were too small for the number of people who chose to come. It's sad to have to show up nearly an hour early for a good seat. Larger venues on X made for more choices for seating and the shows are great.

 

Dining I felt the same too. Lunch I find X's buffet to have better food and the buffet stations to be more accessible. Instead of what feels like coves cut into hidden corners, the X buffet was open with may varied stations depending on your tastes that day.

 

As to dining, how you feel will depend on if you prefer traditional seating or anytime dining. Food is comparible, but X is still a little better. Not enough to have me jumping for joy. It's going to depend on what you order at dinner. I never had a bad meal on either. I also feel sometimes X tries to get a little too fancy.

 

I am a fan of traditional dining and nowadays it's not easy to get on Princess. I prefer the grandeur of the formal 2 story dining rooms to the smaller venues on Princess.

 

I find service to be better on X based on the fact they put fewer people on their ships. However, the best service on X has come on their smaller ships.

 

All things considered, I prefer to book X. But I do not hesitate to book Princess. We have had great cruises there as well.

 

The best advice I can give is take in all the info you can here. They throw it away. The best way to have a great cruise is to have an idea of what to expect, but have an open mind. You won't regret booking X.

 

If you are still leary of booking X, Try, Emerald, Crown, Caribbean Princess. There are a lot of choices out there for you

[BettyCruiser]

Thank you for the photos.

I saw them before. It's nice to see them again.

I can comment on every detail in your post about the Ruby (you know from Epic discussion that I have 10 videos and 20 photos behind every word I post on CC) but this is not a Princess thread.

Just 2 things.

1. It sounds to me like you are talking about a different ship, not the Ruby.

2. I am very positive to a cruise on a Solstice class ship. We enjoyed every minute on the Ruby - a beautiful cruise ship, warm like home, very nautical, full of sea air. We had the best balcony cabin at sea for three at a reasonable price (mini on Emerald) with a large covered balcony and a spectacular unobstructed view of the ocean. We enjoyed 4 shows in the main theatre plus various entertainment in smaller venues. 7 days on Ruby were 24/7 culinary festival.

We are not planning to travel on the same ship twice.

So we are looking for something adequate to what we had on Ruby.

Solstice class seems to be the closest option.

 

 

 

Have you seen this thread?

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1247134

 

It has pretty much any menu you would encounter in the MDR on a 7 day cruise and the always available menu.

 

Beth

[lusitanica]

You would plan to go on the Oasis or the Allure compared to a Celebrity ship? 5,000 other passengers with you doesn't bode well for the "Classy Ship" that you are looking for. While I found the entertainment to be good, I was also disappointed in the food.

 

And beginning in December, Dreamwork characters will be on board. Allure has Shrek, Fiona, Puss In Boots and Donkey. Doesn't work for romantic for me. Not sure what Dreamwork characters Oasis will have. Don't get me wrong, it was a beautiful ship but the Royal Promenade was crowded when the parades were going on.

 

It sure will be different from what you are looking for. Good luck and Happy Cruising!

 

Thank you.

You might not noticed that I call that an excursion.

It's not a cruise ship and barely a ship.

It's an absolutely unique piece of machinery - surely worth seeing once.

And it floats BTW.

[lusitanica]

Have you seen this thread?

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1247134

 

It has pretty much any menu you would encounter in the MDR on a 7 day cruise and the always available menu.

 

Beth

 

Thank you.

I have just seen it.

Very informative. I will post something like that when my Ruby review is ready.

It would be interesting to know some details of X entertainment as well.

[blueboro]

Food, service, and entertainment on the Solstice Class is superior to Princess IMO. Again, it's just an opinion and that is all you will get on a message board. As I explained in the last post it's all highly subjective and you will never get a consensus.

 

Frankly one of the reasons to sail on the Solstice Class is because they are stunning ships. If this is of no consequence to you and you really only care about looking at the ocean, then why not go back to Princess? If you are happy with the ship, the food, and the service then why set yourself up for disappointment? If you don't want to sail on the same ship, then pick one of RUBY's sisters. It's a fact the Solstice Class does not have a traditional promenade deck. It's pretty much like what the EPIC offers. If this is going to disappoint you then save yourself some time and money and choose a different ship.

 

You have already determined that Celebrity is an inferior product to Princess just by the title of your thread, so why bother pursuing it? As I recall you were accused of doing the same thing with NCL's EPIC prior to sailing on her.

 

Ernie

 

Ernie,

 

Noticed you have been on both the Solstice and recently the Nieuw Amsterdam. We were on the Solstice in April and loved it. Have booked N.A. for March and a little concerned after our wonderful Solstice cruise. Booked N.A. due to a hard to resist balcony price. Can you give me your opinions of Solstice vs. NA in regard to the ship, entertainment and food?

[tdk1938]

Thank you.

I have just seen it.

Very informative. I will post something like that when my Ruby review is ready.

It would be interesting to know some details of X entertainment as well.

 

 

Three reviews after she came back from Europe. Very impressive!:cool:

 

 

http://www.cruisecritic.com/memberreviews/getreviews.cfm?action=ship&ShipID=443

[FritzG]

We sailed on the Ruby Princess for the last 2 eastbound TA's. In October we tried Celebrity Eclipse's westbound TA. We are definitely going back to Princess. We missed the open decks, especially the walk around promenade deck, and we felt that most of the ship felt more closed in than the Ruby.

 

We found the biggest difference in the food. For the entire 13 day cruise I don't remember one memorable meal; the food wasn't bad, there was just nothing special about it. On Princess the breads were fresh, and there was a great variety. On Eclipse the breads never tasted very fresh, and the breads at dinner were identical every night. The desserts on Eclipse were also repetitive; the chocolate dessert the first three nights was nearly identical. Even the black forest cake which should be a layer cake or torte was barely an inch high.

 

On the positive side the showers were the biggest we've ever seen on a ship, and we liked the sofa in the room.

[Miss SeaBee]

 

Attached is a link to my photo gallery of CELEBRITY SOLSTICE. It was a joy to take these pictures as the ship was just so stunning. I didn't even take pictures of CROWN PRINCESS because frankly it just wasn't that inspiring.

http://gallery.mac.com/ekroller#100378

 

Ernie

 

I loved your pictures! I think they are the best ones I have seen so far. Thank you!

[eroller]

Ernie,

 

Noticed you have been on both the Solstice and recently the Nieuw Amsterdam. We were on the Solstice in April and loved it. Have booked N.A. for March and a little concerned after our wonderful Solstice cruise. Booked N.A. due to a hard to resist balcony price. Can you give me your opinions of Solstice vs. NA in regard to the ship, entertainment and food?

 

 

Attached is a link to my review and over 300 pictures taken of NIEUW AMSTERDAM.

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1309436

 

That should provide a pretty good idea as to the experience.

 

Overall I quite enjoyed NIEUW AMSTERDAM, even though in the past Holland America has not been my line of choice. I'm only in my early 40's and frankly on past HAL cruises the lack of active passengers (think dead zone by 10pm) and poor entertainment offerings has been a turn off. Food and service have never been an issue on HAL for me (it's always good), although I still feel Celebrity is a notch better in that regard. On this particular cruise, I really enjoyed the entertainment and there was a more lively atmosphere.

 

As for the ship itself, there is no comparison to the Solstice Class. NIEUW AMSTERDAM is a Vista Class and the design is ten years old. The ceilings are low and the ship just doesn't have the modern, open, and airy feel that the Solstice Class has. I would call NIEUW AMSTERDAM "cozy". Entertainment is more traditional (no acrobat shows) but still enjoyable. There was a group of four gentleman called Cantare that I thought were excellent. They were in the other shows as well. One negative is that HAL seems prone to noro-virus for some reason. Almost all their cruises start out in "code red", which means limited amenities. This goes on for about two days and if everything is ok, then they lift the "code red". HAL is the only cruise line I know that does this as a fairly standard practice. You can read more about what "code red" means in my review. Unfortunately it does detract a little from the first couple days of your cruise.

 

In any case, NIEUW AMSTERDAM is a brand new ship, and as you say the price is right so you really can't go wrong. This is what attracted me to her as well. Of course when we docked behind SOLSTICE in Ft. Lauderdale I couldn't help but be a little envious, wishing I was on her instead. It's just very hard to top the overall design, decor, ambiance, and aesthetics of the Solstice Class IMO.

 

If you have any specific questions please let me know.

 

Ernie

[lusitanica]

Attached is a link to my review and over 300 pictures taken of NIEUW AMSTERDAM.

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1309436

 

That should provide a pretty good idea as to the experience.

 

 

Ernie

 

Thank you.

Very interesting.

This is exactly how I "see" this ship.

That's why I said "for enthusiasts".

[minnesotalady]

Princess = 8.2

Celebrity = 9.4

 

(Celebrity Solstice Class ships are the best mass market ships at sea!)

 

any questions?

 

Can you tell us the smoking policy as we are occasional smokers on vacations. We would like to try this cruiselines and want to know if we can smoke on a suite balcony or in a designated area. Thanks in advance as we are seeking information and not wanting anyone to take offense. We are asking the questions before booking!

[Lois R]

Can you tell us the smoking policy as we are occasional smokers on vacations. We would like to try this cruiselines and want to know if we can smoke on a suite balcony or in a designated area. Thanks in advance as we are seeking information and not wanting anyone to take offense. We are asking the questions before booking!

 

Hi,:) No smoking in your stateroom or on your balcony. There are

designated smoking areas on the ship and those 2 venues are not

included in them.

[Crusing Nut]

Thank you.

You might not noticed that I call that an excursion.

It's not a cruise ship and barely a ship.

It's an absolutely unique piece of machinery - surely worth seeing once.

And it floats BTW.

 

Yes, it does float since I sailed on it. I would know that. If you are going to sail on the ship even for 3 days, it is a cruise by defination alone.

 

"It's not a cruise ship"? You better let Royal Caribbean know that. Maybe they can sue the company that built the "barely a ship" since they paid over a billion dollars for a CRUISE ship to be built.

 

:rolleyes:

[TomTN]

Can you tell us the smoking policy as we are occasional smokers on vacations. We would like to try this cruiselines and want to know if we can smoke on a suite balcony or in a designated area. Thanks in advance as we are seeking information and not wanting anyone to take offense. We are asking the questions before booking!

 

And no smoking in the Casino.:)