Solstice cabin with Upper Berth - Anyone have info/pics?

[BeachChica]

Hello all - just booked 2 cabins on a Med cruise on the Solstice for May and noticed that our cabins each have an upper berth and convertible sofa. Does anyone have any pics of how the upper berth looks. Does it pull down from the ceiling above the couch? Does it take away from the room at all?

 

Thank you!

Jessie

[Essiesmom]

It is stored flush with the ceiling, you won't even know it is there unless you are looking for it. Yes, it is above the couch. EM

[BeachChica]

Thanks EM! Wow you have quite a lenthy list of cruises!! How was Barcelona when you were there last year? We are staying there 5 days before getting on the Solstice.

[grayjay]

We had the same concerns about the extra beds - we didn't really notice them when we cruised on "Solstice". The trundle bed isn't noticeable under the sofa and the pull-down bed was "inside" the ceiling - you could just see its outlines.

Barcelona is lovely and a great town to see! We only had two pre-cruise days and so decided to be back, once now in February to visit the museums and once in May - we booked the "Solstice" as well but it's the cruise before yours. We're always envious of people living in Florida because they are so near to Miami and FLL to cruise from - now we're the lucky ones to have some European ports at our back door!

Enjoy your cabin !

[ginny123]

Below is a link of a wonderful video from the Howarth family's Summer Cruise, 2011 that they posted, and since our first Celebrity cruise is in April, I kept the link to watch several times. It's a really great tour of the cabin, including the trundle and upper berth.

I think the actual cabin tour is number 5 out of 14 although the entire video is great and very enjoyable.

[SandraLee]

Perfect! Just what I expected. Thanks.

[BeachChica]

Wow Ginny! Thanks for posting that video. It was great! I watched the whole thing. What a nice little recap of their trip! :)

[pete_coach]

Thanks EM! Wow you have quite a lenthy list of cruises!! How was Barcelona when you were there last year? We are staying there 5 days before getting on the Solstice.

I know you didn't ask me but we were just in Barcelona in the Fall, also before a Solstice cruise.

We went to Madrid and Barcelona and thought Barcelona was a much nicer place. I suggest you get a place right on Las Ramblas. I know there are many places close or nearby but really, the action is on Las Ramblas and it is active from early in the morning to very late n the evening.

There is also fantastic market, Mercat de Sant Josep or La Boqueria where you can get all sorts of fresh produce and more importantly...tapas. It is a great place to get some breakfast and lunch and then down the Ramblas and off any side street is a huge assortment of restaurants for dinner. we ended up doing tapas every night we were there, several different places every night, great fun. LOL

There are many areas and places to stay in Barcelona but in the end, you will almost certainly end up on Las Ramblas or immediate area.

I suggest you do the Hop On Hop Off bus tour the first day. Take both routes on the HoHo you choose (there are two companies, both go to the same places). They start at Placa Catalunya at the top end of Las Ramblas (bottom end is Port Vell, worth seeing the port and the incredible array of yachts).

Bring a bathing suit, Barcelona is surrounded by beautiful beaches and boardwalk (well not boardwalk but a walkway along the beaches). Barcelona did a lot to make itself beautiful for the Olympics and it has retained it all. there are tons of things to do and see.

Much of it is walkable from point to point. There is public transportation but we did not use it. we took taxis and did not find them expensive. A taxi from our Las Ramblas hotel to Parc Guell (a must see) was only 12 Euros. From there to Poble Espanyol (Spanish Village) was another 12 euros. The Spanish village is a recreation of Spanish life in various areas of Spain, well worth seeing).

There is for sure 5 days worth of sight seeing to do in Barcelona itself but if you did want to take a day outside of town, I strongly suggest a day trip to the Cathedral on Mt Montserrat. Breathtaking and spectacular.

http://www.barcelonadaytours.com/montserrat-wine-country-tour/?gclid=CLbk7L234a0CFYTrKgodFwMZXw

http://www.aviewoncities.com/barcelona/barcelonaattractions.htm

http://www.barcelona-tourist-guide.com/

Again, I apologize for being so forward as to answer for Essiesmom but I just had to share our new-found appreciation for Barcelona. :)

[BeachChica]

Thanks Pete for the great info! All info is welcome and appreciated as this will be my first time in Barcelona. I have been doing a lot of reading and online and making my list of places to see, I definitely think we will keep ourselves busy. I will check out the links you posted as well.

 

BTW any hotel recommendations reasonably priced?

 

Did any of you see a Flamenco show while you were in Barcelona? I have fond memories of them when I was in Malaga many years ago. I feel like this is a must see while in Spain :)

[pete_coach]

Thanks Pete for the great info! All info is welcome and appreciated as this will be my first time in Barcelona. I have been doing a lot of reading and online and making my list of places to see, I definitely think we will keep ourselves busy. I will check out the links you posted as well.

 

BTW any hotel recommendations reasonably priced?

 

Did any of you see a Flamenco show while you were in Barcelona? I have fond memories of them when I was in Malaga many years ago. I feel like this is a must see while in Spain :)

We stayed at the Royal Ramblas hotel, near the top of Las Ramblas. We really liked the hotel and the staff.

You know, we were disappointed at the flamenco venue we went to. We though it was really overpriced and they jamb people into a small space and well, it was not as we envisioned. We went to Tablao Cordobes, which was supposed to be one of the best places. In all fairness, we were probably there on a bad night.

There is no doubt you will be kept busy. Bring good walking shoes. LOL

[BeachChica]

My mom tells me that if you want to see real flamenco you really need to stay away from the touristy spots as they can get very expensive and theatrical. Is that how you felt about this place? What didn't you like about it?

 

Right now we are booked at the EuroPark Hotel up in the Eixample section of town. A hotel on Las Ramblas definitely sounds exciting but I think it might be a little to loud etc for my husbands parents who are traveling with us.

[pete_coach]

My mom tells me that if you want to see real flamenco you really need to stay away from the touristy spots as they can get very expensive and theatrical. Is that how you felt about this place? What didn't you like about it?

 

Right now we are booked at the EuroPark Hotel up in the Eixample section of town. A hotel on Las Ramblas definitely sounds exciting but I think it might be a little to loud etc for my husbands parents who are traveling with us.

The windows are very well insulated and we never heard a thing, no matter how active Las Ramblas was. Thing is, while Eixample is nice and modern and quite quiet, also a little higher end for restaurants and shops, you will most likely end up on or around Las Ramblas. It seems to be where the "action" is. It is where the people come to stroll the street, come to eat and come to just sit and watch people.

We wandered around everywhere and like it best around the Las Ramblas area. We were concerned about the bad reputation for pick pockets and stuff but, we saw lots of Police and felt quite safe. As with traveling anywhere, precautions should be taken but we never once felt uncomfortable.

[BeachChica]

Pete!!!! You are making me rethink our place to stay!!! :)

[pete_coach]

Pete!!!! You are making me rethink our place to stay!!! :)

I don't get commission or kick back for any hotels.....honest LOL.

Thing is, for us, we take few vacations and want to make the most of every minute and situation. We are not rich and do try to save money here and there but, we just don't want to have regrets when we come home. Chances for us ever going back to Barcelona are very slim as there are so many places we still want to see. We just could not see saving a few dollars a night by staying away from "the action" and missing all there is to offer. The Las Ramblas area is more active, more people and, open later than other areas in town.