Solstice Thanksgiving Cruise 11/21/10

[jmss1950]

:)

About us: DH[61] and I[59] are teachers and this was our 23rd cruise. We have cruised with Carnival, Celebrity, Disney, Hal, Princess, RCCL.

We drove from south, central Georgia on Saturday 20th, to Port St. Lucie, about one hour north of Fort Lauderdale which made for an easy drive the morning of embarkation.

I had booked the Marriott Residence Inn online and got a really attractive suite with full kitchen and at a great rate which always make DH happy.

We arrived at Port Everglades, dropped off the luggage, parked in the Midport Garage, and were onboard with mimosa in hand all in less than an hour. Muster drill –without life-vests- was held in venues throughout the ship. We were in Blu which did look nice.

As has been said many times, the Solstice is a beautiful ship. We really enjoyed the décor both the contemporary [MDR, Sky Lounge etc] and the traditional [Michael’s Club, Wine Cellar – which became two of our favorite places to sit with a drink before of after dinner]. Our stateroom was 8343, port side balcony – the last one which does give a slightly larger balcony. However, be aware that you look down onto a large blue metal area of roof and walkways. Not the best view. The bathroom was clean, bright and the shower a good size. The sofa was awkwardly placed for accessing the closet and there is definitely a shortage of drawers. DH and I really felt that not having large pull out drawers below the sofa was a missed opportunity for storage. We find those very useful on Carnival ships. We liked the décor of the room and the flat screen TV but were disappointed to see quite a lot of rust on the balcony walls and the railings really needed refinishing and re-varnishing. Lucas was our steward and was efficient and friendly.

We ate in the Ocean View café twice for lunch; the Aqua Spa Café for breakfast several times, and apart from room service for breakfast one morning [which was exactly what we ordered and delivered on time], we ate mainly in the MDR. We had select [anytime] dining which worked well for us. We like to be able to decide what to do and when to do it. While the wait staff was in general competent, only one pair seemed to go above and beyond and make the extra effort. I know it is more difficult to build a rapport with the waiters when you have anytime dining, but we have managed it on other cruises.

Food overall was good if somewhat uninspired, but our main criticism was that we often felt the choices were lacking in the MDR. It is the first time on a cruse that I never felt torn between several items, in fact I ended up selecting items which were available every day.

The weather was a little rough to start with and according to the navigator when we went to his talk, the seas were “moderate” with 12 foot swells. We really enjoyed his talk and also the one done by the environmental officer, but DH went to the engineer’s talk and said it was disappointing. I went to the first scrap-booking class but as everything we wanted to do seemed to be at the same time, never made it to another one. We always enjoy the dance classes, but the two dancers teaching it were probably the worst we have ever come across [more about the dancers later].

There was some good entertainment onboard. Metro West, the a cappella group was excellent; the Adagio Strings were good; and several other solo musicians were good, but we did not care for the show band. They seemed to think very loud equals very good. Now to the shows. Having taught theatre in both the UK and USA I can honestly say the singers were second rate and the dancers were poor at best. I really enjoy going to the shows onboard any cruise line and love to sit behind the techie working the sound/light boards. With the exception of Solstice the show, which was worth seeing, I cringed while watching the other two productions shows. Paul Baya, the CD and entertainment director [he said] should really suggest a great deal more rehearsal time for the dancers, perhaps then they could perform a cohesive and in step routine. Even DH who freely admits he has two left feet, remarked how out of time the dancers were. The ventriloquist and impressionist were reasonably good. We did really enjoy the hot glass show, and the Captain’s Club reception. I am glad that we got to sail with and meet the most amusing captain with which we have ever come across, as this was his last cruise before going on vacation. His sense of humor and timing were outstanding.

The whole point of this cruise for us was rest and relaxation and we managed that with no problem. As we have spent time in all the ports of call, except for wandering round the fort in San Juan, we stayed on board, read and relaxed.

We enjoyed the Solstice and the cruise and will be happy to sail with Celebrity again.

[PS90]

Thanks for the great review.

 

I'm not sure that rust would be enough to make me "disappointed", since it wouldn't really affect me in any way, but to each his own.

 

Would you care to comment on the attitudes of the crew/service provided - since that seems to be a "hot topic" on Solstice right now? Such as the bar staff, room stewards, etc. Thanks again. Edit: sorry, I see that you did mention that your room steward was friendly. thanks.

[p2lockhart]

Thanks for posting your review. We are cruising over the holidays and wanted to know what to expect during a holiday cruise on Solstice regarding service, crowding, etc.

 

I hope the Captain will be back from his vacation by Dec 26th. I was looking forward to meeting him after reading so many favorable comments about him.

[portofrome]

Thanks for your review.

[katiebeth]

We were on the same sailing and the Captain was very very funny, a dry sense of humor. We really enjoyed him. He could be a stand-up comedian. Actually, we enjoyed him more than the Cruise Director.

 

Unfortunately, p2lockhart, I do not believe the Captain will be back in December. As I understand it, he was leaving to oversee the building of the Silhouette in Germany and will be her new Captain.

 

Happy Sailings,

 

Nancy

[Hatteras51]

They were working on some of the railings when I was on Solstice last month. The salt air wreaks havoc on them. The captain was hysterical. He was definitely the best entertainment of the week. The ship is beautiful and the staff did an exceptional job.

[jmss1950]

The captain did say that he would not be returning to the Solstice, but would be going to the Silhouette as her new captain.

We found all the crew/staff to be friendly and never had any issues. We have always found that a smile and taking a few minutes to treat the crew as people with feelings too seems to make for a more responsive and pleasant experience all round.

We did enjoy spending time in Michael's Club, where Brian, the bar tender [Canadian] was one of the most pleasant bar tenders we have ever come across. It was a great place to sit, relax, listen to music and chat. Also it never got too busy.

I do realize that maintanence is constantly ongoing at sea, but because of the design of the balcony for 8343, the whole of the aft wall is steel. Also the overhang and rails for the window washing machine is right there and there were really quiet a lot of rusty areas. Because of the enclosed design of this balcony you did seem to be more surrounded by rusty patches. While this is no way spoilt the view or the balcony, it had probably more rusty areas than I have experienced on any other cruise, irrespective of the cruise line or the age of the ship . This is what made it disappointing to see.

Happy cruising.