Celebrity solstice formal nights

[mc53]

We are doing 12 day cruise from New Zealand on 12th November.

 

We are not keen on doing the formal nights and would prefer to book into a specialty restaurant on these nights .

Husband doesn't want to dress up in suit and tie so I am not going to force him

 

I cant find any information as to when these nights are held .

 

I can book specialty restaurants in advance but only if I nominate which dates I want .

 

If anyone can give me a general idea if formal night are at the beginning, middle or end of cruise I would appreciate it

 

Thanks

[AntjeG]

I went on this cruise a few months ago and just checked my Celebrity Today:

1st formal night was the 1st sea day (on the way from Sydney to Tasmania), 2nd formal night was when cruising The Sounds in NZ (day 6) and the 3rd formal night was on the last sea day (day 10).

Hope this helps. It is a wonderful itinerary and a great ship - I loved it!

 

EDIT:

I just saw you are doing it from NZ to Australia - so your formal nights should be your 1st sea day (day 3), then when cruising the sounds and the last on the way from Tasmania to Sydney being the last sea day.

Edited May 21, 2015 by AntjeG

[mc53]

Thanks. That helps me a lot.

I am really looking forward to this cruise, the ship looks fabulous.

[AntjeG]

It is fabulous. If you are interested here is my review:

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2167007

 

The last few posts have links to YouTube where I posted some photo slideshows.

[ClaudiaB]

Also, I would say that they can change the dates of the formal nights. That happened to us on a TA once when we encountered very rough seas and there was an itinerary change. Not to worry, however. Just book them when you *think* they might be, so as to get the times and dates you want. We typically do formal nights in specialty restaurants too, even though we do dress up - not formally, but open collar and jacket for DH and something kind of sparkly on top for me. <--- that isn't required at all, but we hang out on the ship all evening and like to be a part of the general "formal night" ambiance even though we're not in the MDR. There will be a mix of everything in the specialty restaurants on formal nights and if you wear a polo shirt and a pair of slacks and cute top you'll be ok too, you won't be the only one.

 

Anyway, there will be a table either right before you get on board or right after, which details the restaurants. There will be a card or small poster with the formal nights on that cruise. Confirm there. If your reservations don't sync with what is listed, just change them. There shouldn't be any problem.

 

Also, if you pre-pay for the specialties, you can almost always receive a discount on board. Again, no problem. They'll refund the difference you already paid to your on board account.

 

As long as you take care of the details first thing on board, you should have no issues.

[mc53]

I have now booked the specialty restaurants but is it necessary to book the complimentary dining in advance or can it just be done on a daily basis?

 

 

:confused:

[mtn_couple]

You don't need to book for the main dining room at all. Just show up when you want to eat. We never had any queues and did that every night. We did this same cruise last November. You'll love it!