Solstice 5/15

[melsdt]

My family (husband, 2-year old son and 10 other extended family members) embarked on the Solstice today in Seattle. We are in a Royal Suite, with two sets of parents in suites, and others in balcony staterooms. The room is fabulous-nicely decorated and spacious. Since we have free internet, I thought I would share my initial thoughts from our first day aboard, but I don't planning on writing a blow by blow all week. Sorry guys I need to relax a bit too :)

 

I should mention this is my 13th cruise, 2nd with Celebrity and we are in our early 30's.

 

Embarkation was fine, nothing worth mentioning. We were escorted on the ship and brought to michael's lounge where we were told we could wait until our rooms were ready. We were offered two yummy savories and champagne. Of course, at this point, I am thinking, "ugh, Luminae is not open for embarkation lunch." I was actually pretty hungry and looking forward to it. Well, just a few minutes later the concierge Samantha came over to do her introduction, and towards the end mentioned that we could go there, bistro, or the buffet for lunch. So, I was quite happy about this. We headed over there and were the only table there until one couple came shortly thereafter. My parents staying in a sky suite were not told they could eat there, so perhaps the message isn't getting out. In any case, lunch was excellent. Hubby had the salmon sashimi and burger. I had the lobster bisque and duck confit sandwich which I shared with my son. He loved it too.

 

We stopped for a drink at the pool bar with the whole crew. The weather was gorgeous today and several family members who spent all day up there got sunburnt. I was not at all impressed with the bartenders. They were borderline rude and had no sense of friendliness whatsoever. This is pretty uncharacteristic of most of my experiences with staff on cruises.

 

Individuals in suites were invited to the helipad for sail away but due to safety reasons (liability), children under 12 were not allowed, so we skipped it and enjoyed from our balcony, but both sets of parents went.

 

We enjoyed a "coming up roses" and "tanned Russian" from molecular bar on our balcony. Loved the tanned Russian!

 

We arrived for dinner by 6pm (just the two of us plus son), and asked to be seated as far away from others as possible. Luminae is split off in two sections, so we were in the back area. There were two other tables seated in that area when we arrived. Despite that, I could hear the conversation of a group on the other side of the back area which had some anti-child rhetoric, and although it wasn't directed at us, it still soured my mood and I wanted to split. My son was great through dinner, by the way. And the staff were great with him too. The Maitre'd was sweet and tried to make us feel comfortable, saying he is easier than many of the adults onboard. For dinner, hubby had the pork belly app and filet mignon entree. The sauce with the filet was outstanding, but it was cooked a little more than he would have liked (ordered med but it was more well). I had the smoked tomato soup and turbot (fish). Both were delicious. My son had the zucchini spaghetti and a bowl of ice cream. Our waitress was extremely pleasant, but seemed a little forced and unnatural.

 

Later on we wandered the ship and stopped in on the comedian, who was quite good.

 

A couple other things worth mentioning. They are really pushing drink package upgrades. At cafe al bacio, the barista asked my sister if she wanted to upgrade to premium while she was ordering a coffee included in the classic package. I have not seen that before.

 

Our butler is okay so far. Between the two royal suites (parents next door) we did make several requests, some fulfilled, some not. I asked for extra water (there was one bottle). They brought up many soon thereafter. I asked for dewars to be swapped for Bacardi, which has not happened as of yet. I also said I wanted to have small gathering in my room (13 people) for about an hour before dinner for tomorrow and just need some hor'dourves delivered and he said someone else was in charge of that and he would get back to me. We did the same thing last year and our butler gladly brought sushi, shrimp cocktail, cheese and fruit plates, chicken skewers, etc without blinking an eye. So I am really not sure what the issue is in this case, but I will check on it in the morning. Additionally, my step-mothers safe is broken and no one has come yet to look at it (same butler). I will reserve judgement until the end of the cruise though on this. As long as these little things get resolved, it's all good.

 

Both the butler and the concierge said they are in charge of making specialty reservations. Also, the mini-bar and wine is not in the room, so I think they got rid of it to avoid confusion. The butler said everything in the room is included.

 

Lastly, in terms of mix of passengers. There are actually quite a few toddlers. We met at least 6-7 today (so families with young kids) and then mostly older adults. I hate to say this and hope it comes across in the way that I intend, but people just seem cranky on this ship. I can't explain it but the vibe is just very different from the Summit, which we sailed last summer. There does not seem to be a lot of people smiling and laughing. Perhaps people are just jet lagged, and will cheer up tomorrow. I hope :)

[chemmo]

Thank you for your report so far!

 

Don't let the looks/comments of others stop you enjoying Luminae with your son. He is a suite guest and entitled to enjoy! We were on the Equinox just after Easter. There was a family with young girls who could not have been better behaved. As your waiter said some adults can be more trouble!

[bothluv2cruise]

Thanks for the report!! We get on the Solstice when you get off- I can't wait!!

[Terry in NJ]

Thanks so much for taking the time to post! Please let us know if you go to a specialty restaurant and how you enjoyed it.

[melsdt]

Thanks so much for taking the time to post! Please let us know if you go to a specialty restaurant and how you enjoyed it.

 

 

My parents went to Tuscan Grill last night and very much enjoyed it. My husband and I are going to Murano tomorrow and will gladly report back. Tonight is formal night, so I can comment on that too in Luminae at some point.

[Chicogirl]

My husband and I have booked the Royal suite on Solstice for Alaska. Any info you can give would be great. It I'll be my first on Celebrity, so I'm excited to hear all about it. If I may ask, what room number are you?

Edited May 16, 2015 by Chicogirl

[ClaudiaB]

Thank you for reporting. I hope you have a wonderful cruise and your "issues" are resolved, and the smiles return to people's faces!

 

I know I likely speak for many, but I'm quite interested in the lunchtime offerings at Luminae. I don't think we'll be eating three meals a day in there on our upcoming cruise, but to have a real choice will be great.

[Lois R]

I just disembarked Solstice yesterday...the weather was simply

fabulous all week:D

 

I hope you have a wonderful cruise too:)......if you happen to have

a drink at The Passport Bar tell Joby Lois says hi:)...he is the bartender;)

[melsdt]

Just to add Luminae was open for brunch today from 10-1pm. It was fairly busy. I don't believe it was the same menu that Jenna posted a few weeks ago, but still was okay. I had an excellent smoked salmon appetizer and crab cake on brioche roll. The crab cake was quite large. My husband had the shrimp Caesar salad and liked it very much. Service in Luminae needs some improvement, but the food is outstanding.

 

They are requesting reservations for Luminae tonight because they expect it to be busy, being formal night.

 

Butler still hasn't swapped Dewars out. We have asked 3 times, and he says he will. He said the small cocktail party tonight will not be a problem, but I had to be very particular in what I wanted to serve, so a little different then my experience on summit, where I just said how many people and the time, and the butler wowed us with an amazing spread and attentive, yet not intrusive service. I will report back how it goes.

 

Weather is a bit chilly today, but we still walked around on deck.

[melsdt]

Thank you for reporting. I hope you have a wonderful cruise and your "issues" are resolved, and the smiles return to people's faces!

 

 

 

I know I likely speak for many, but I'm quite interested in the lunchtime offerings at Luminae. I don't think we'll be eating three meals a day in there on our upcoming cruise, but to have a real choice will be great.

 

 

Yes, people seemed to have cheered up a bit today. Interestingly, another passenger mentioned that she felt the same way about the mood of the ship. So, I wasn't the only one who observed that.

[maggie.1008]

I think people are much more up beat on a warm weather cruise.

[melsdt]

The wording on the Luminae welcome letter indicates "offering complimentary dinner as well as breakfast on port days, breakfast and lunch on sea days, and brunch on formal sea days."

 

Since this has been an ongoing discussion, I thought I would share what ours said.

[curtdesilets]

Yes, people seemed to have cheered up a bit today. Interestingly, another passenger mentioned that she felt the same way about the mood of the ship. So, I wasn't the only one who observed that.

 

... and I've noticed the same thing. People are quite grumpy on the embarkation day. I think it has to do with the long travel times. Our flight in from Long Beach Airport is a measly 2 hours. We are literally on the ship 4 hours from when we lock our front door. So our mood is usually wonderful, but others ...:eek:

 

They will feel better and act better after they see their first humpbacks.

 

Thanks for the updates. We are sailing Solstice for the first time in less than 2 weeks.

 

Also, just a side note, I went to Ramapo High School, if you know where that is.

[Lois R]

... and I've noticed the same thing. People are quite grumpy on the embarkation day. I think it has to do with the long travel times. Our flight in from Long Beach Airport is a measly 2 hours. We are literally on the ship 4 hours from when we lock our front door. So our mood is usually wonderful, but others ...:eek:

 

They will feel better and act better after they see their first humpbacks.

 

Thanks for the updates. We are sailing Solstice for the first time in less than 2 weeks.

 

Also, just a side note, I went to Ramapo High School, if you know where that is.

 

a side note.....as in Ramapo...Rockland County, NY?......I always

try to have a happy mood when I am sailing:D

[curtdesilets]

a side note.....as in Ramapo...Rockland County, NY?......I always

try to have a happy mood when I am sailing:D

 

1) Ramapo in Franklin Lakes NJ. Apparently there are some "Celebrity" housewives from around there, as that is what my housewife says :rolleyes:

 

I just spent a year at Ramapo before our family moved back to Southern California during my sophomore year. But we spent 5 years in Bergen County.

 

NJ is a much nicer place than many perceive it to be. And great schools!

 

2) We too are happy, happy cruisers, despite anyone else's attitude. We enjoy it very much, and I don't think we've ever had a truly bad cruise experience. All have been stellar.

[Lois R]

1) Ramapo in Franklin Lakes NJ. Apparently there are some "Celebrity" housewives from around there, as that is what my housewife says :rolleyes:

 

I just spent a year at Ramapo before our family moved back to Southern California during my sophomore year. But we spent 5 years in Bergen County.

 

NJ is a much nicer place than many perceive it to be. And great schools!

 

2) We too are happy, happy cruisers, despite anyone else's attitude. We enjoy it very much, and I don't think we've ever had a truly bad cruise experience. All have been stellar.

 

Oh..ok...sorry we got off topic;)

 

I can say I have had one truly bad one:eek: but we won't go there.

 

Alaska was wonderful for sure:D

[Texed]

I always try to have a happy mood when I am sailing:D

 

It is usually not very hard for me to be in a good mood when cruising. ;)

[Lois R]

It is usually not very hard for me to be in a good mood when cruising. ;)

 

Hi Texed:) I agree;)

[melsdt]

a side note.....as in Ramapo...Rockland County, NY?......I always

try to have a happy mood when I am sailing:D

 

 

I thought Rockland at first too. I worked there for 8 years.

[curtdesilets]

I thought Rockland at first too. I worked there for 8 years.

 

I never knew there were two Ramapo HS's, apparently somewhat close to each other. Sorry for getting off topic.

 

Hope the cruise is coming along well. You should be seeing whales by now, I would imagine.

[notexpiredyet]

Could you tell me about the current weather conditions? Will be on the ship next week.

[florisdekort]

Could you tell me about the current weather conditions? Will be on the ship next week.

 

 

Absolutely phenomenal. I'm currently on Millennium and we've had clear blue skies in Sitka, Icy Strait, Skagway and today in Juneau. It's 68F / 20C. All the locals keep saying how this heat spell is unlike anything they've ever seen before. The Captain is saying it will stay like this for the remainder of our cruise (4 more days).

 

Floris

[Terry in NJ]

Hi again melsdt. I hope you and your family are having a wonderful time!

Please report if you get a moment: are spa specials being offered? ...and did you enjoy Murano? Thanks so much!

[Champagne Cruiser]

Following along since we have a future cruise booked on Solstice. Thank you for sharing your experience.

[Tom-n-Cheryl]

The weather sounds nice! Only 18 days until it's our turn! :D

 

Just ordered a lighter weight waterproof jacket... as I think the one I already had might be a tad overkill unless daytime temps are in the 50's.

 

Being from Florida, and having always cruised from here (save our one Bermuda sailing last year from NYC) makes packing for this one a little different ! I've read that people tend to dress a bit more casually in the evenings for Alaska sailings - would you say that's correct?

 

Looking forward to dining in Luminae too. :)

 

 

Tom