How sweet is Solstice suite life?

[chemmo]

We were last on the Solstice when Michael's Club had recently opened but pre Luminae, then we were on Equinox just as Luminae opened. Both were great cruises.

 

We return to a RS on the Solstice in March...

 

So how suite is the suite life on Solstice? It would be great if some of you recently off the Solstice or still on board could come back with the following....

 

.How busy is Michael's Club, especially pre and post dinner and are they holding any special events?

 

.Can you order off menu in Luminae, in particular items from the specialities.

 

.Is Bistro on 5 complementary to suite guests on port days?

 

.Are the speciality restaurant sea day lunches included in the RS/PH dining package?

 

.How was boarding, disembarkation in the new Sydney cruise port?

 

Any other comments on your recent Solstice experiences would be appreciated.

[TrulyBlonde]

We were on Solstice Oct/Nov for OZ/NZ. I will try to answer a few of your questions based on our time onboard.

Suite life is "sweet" and worth it with the 4 Go Best package.

MC was never crowded but this was prior to X allowing Sky Suite access so that may have changed.

We were told Bistro on 5 was free for suites on sea days but did not partake.

One thing we noticed about Luminae was the lack of vegetables and salads.

DH would order a large tossed salad from main dining and they would accommodate him. Luminae was hit or miss for us (fabulous service) as the foods were a bit rich and too much sauce. We balanced it by eating in the specialty restaurants often.

Embarkation was easy at the new terminal (long lines but with Suites you get priority). We disembarked in Auckland so cannot help you there. The terminal is very nice in Sydney and great and easy location.

[chemmo]

We were on Solstice Oct/Nov for OZ/NZ. I will try to answer a few of your questions based on our time onboard.

Suite life is "sweet" and worth it with the 4 Go Best package.

MC was never crowded but this was prior to X allowing Sky Suite access so that may have changed.

We were told Bistro on 5 was free for suites on sea days but did not partake.

One thing we noticed about Luminae was the lack of vegetables and salads.

DH would order a large tossed salad from main dining and they would accommodate him. Luminae was hit or miss for us (fabulous service) as the foods were a bit rich and too much sauce. We balanced it by eating in the specialty restaurants often.

Embarkation was easy at the new terminal (long lines but with Suites you get priority). We disembarked in Auckland so cannot help you there. The terminal is very nice in Sydney and great and easy location.

 

 

Thanks for your reply!

 

We felt very much the same about Luminae on Equinox, super service but we also found the menu limited, hence my question re dining off menu. Like you I think we will use the specialities quite a lot. Glad the new terminal is good!

[maggie.1008]

I was on the Solstice in Sept/Oct. 2015. Luminae service was good but food was just o.k. My friend and I ate lunch and we both wanted Salmon. We were told there was only one ? What ? We were never told we could order from the MDR. I knew we could as I had done so in Luminae on the Summit. We ate at Murano and Tuscan Grill and had wonderful food and service.

[chemmo]

I was on the Solstice in Sept/Oct. 2015. Luminae service was good but food was just o.k. My friend and I ate lunch and we both wanted Salmon. We were told there was only one ? What ? We were never told we could order from the MDR. I knew we could as I had done so in Luminae on the Summit. We ate at Murano and Tuscan Grill and had wonderful food and service.

 

Thanks Maggie, we had excellent service and food pre Luminae in all the specialities our last time on Solstice. On the Equinox we tended to look at the Luminae menu after breakfast and then decide Luminae or speciality tonight? It looks like the same strategy may be the best....

 

Thanks again for your comments!

[Waqui]

I can't speak to the Solstice version of Luminae, (won't be on it until September), But recently was on the Infinity and in Luminae you could order whatever you wanted. Something off the MDR menu? No problem! One person we dined with frequently had broiled salmon every single day! They definitely will do their best to accommodate you. You want vegetables? Ask them for vegetables and they will give you a choice of what you want. You can order them all if you want!:)

[chemmo]

Thanks for your response Waqui!

 

It is nice to have some responses from suite guests.

 

We were on Equinox as Luminae was launched, we didn't know what we could ask for and I don't think serving staff knew what additional items they could offer. We have unlimited speciality dining but would like to give Luminae another chance to impress.

 

Did you go into Michael's Club at all? How busy was it, especially pre and post dinner?

[Chicogirl]

I'm very interested in this thread. My first Celebrity cruise and will be on Solstice Royal suite, and any information would be helpful.

[chemmo]

I'm very interested in this thread. My first Celebrity cruise and will be on Solstice Royal suite, and any information would be helpful.

 

Hi Chicogirl, whilst I am looking at updates re the suite life I can tell you you are in for a treat. We have found the RS really nice to stay in, quite spacious and with good sleeping, living and balcony area - bathroom is really nice too! On our last cruise (Equinox) we enjoyed the unlimited speciality dining, the room bar set up, premium drinks package....We were also well looked after by the Conceirge and bar staff in Michael's Club. Luminae we found a bit hit and miss with the menu being limited but recent responses and posts do suggest we can order off menu.

 

What I am really hoping to hear is the atmosphere we enjoyed in Michael's Club on both Equinox and Solstice is still the same...We really enjoyed our pre and post dinner drinks, always just nicely busy....Always chairs available but never dead.

 

Look forward to your cruise, Solstice is a lovely ship, can't wait to get back on board!

[Waqui]

Thanks for your response Waqui!

 

It is nice to have some responses from suite guests.

 

We were on Equinox as Luminae was launched, we didn't know what we could ask for and I don't think serving staff knew what additional items they could offer.

Did you go into Michael's Club at all? How busy was it, especially pre and post dinner?

 

 

Honestly if a previous suite guest had not told us about ordering whatever you want in Luminae we would not have known. They don't seem to want to have too many people knowing about it, no one from the ship told us about it. Guess the cat's out of the bag now!

 

My sister and I were on the early December trip to South America, and since we were SKY suite guests we were not allowed in. It changed after that. I wandered in one day because the door was open and the bartender about had a cow, but he did give me a drink!

[chemmo]

Honestly if a previous suite guest had not told us about ordering whatever you want in Luminae we would not have known. They don't seem to want to have too many people knowing about it, no one from the ship told us about it. Guess the cat's out of the bag now!

 

My sister and I were on the early December trip to South America, and since we were SKY suite guests we were not allowed in. It changed after that. I wandered in one day because the door was open and the bartender about had a cow, but he did give me a drink!

 

I guess inside knowledge from CC comes to its own! I really don't understand why with such a limited Luminae menu they don't have, like the MDR, a couple of standby items....Don't get me wrong, when we were on Equinox service was outstanding but some days we would look at the menu and really did struggle to spot something we may like....

 

It really is great now that Sky Suites can also enjoy Michael's Club as long as there are enough tables, chairs and staff! I am less worried about this on M class ships where Michael's is bigger and a more regular shape but on both Equinox and Solstice pre and post dinner Michael's was fairly full just with the 'upper' suites. It would be a non perk for everyone if you returned from dinner for coffee and a drink and could not get a seat!

 

Hopefully some recent Michael's Club attendees will report that the venue continues to be the relaxing and friendly place we have enjoyed so much on recent cruises.

[LabGuy64]

Does anyone know if you can access the menue for luminae,blu and the MDR on the TV in your cabin?

 

 

I guess inside knowledge from CC comes to its own! I really don't understand why with such a limited Luminae menu they don't have, like the MDR, a couple of standby items....Don't get me wrong, when we were on Equinox service was outstanding but some days we would look at the menu and really did struggle to spot something we may like....

 

It really is great now that Sky Suites can also enjoy Michael's Club as long as there are enough tables, chairs and staff! I am less worried about this on M class ships where Michael's is bigger and a more regular shape but on both Equinox and Solstice pre and post dinner Michael's was fairly full just with the 'upper' suites. It would be a non perk for everyone if you returned from dinner for coffee and a drink and could not get a seat!

 

Hopefully some recent Michael's Club attendees will report that the venue continues to be the relaxing and friendly place we have enjoyed so much on recent cruises.

[Gordoncruickshank]

Does anyone know if you can access the menue for luminae,blu and the MDR on the TV in your cabin?

You couldn't get them on the Eclipse in September. The butler got us a copy of all the menus. It would have been better if he had checked a bit better their running order as based on his info we booked Murano for what turned out to be a formal night rather than the one menu we did not fancy.

[Waqui]

On the two weeks on the Infinity Michael's was nearly empty whenever I passed by. Things did not seem up to par, with the exception of service, on the ship. Everything seemed to be on a "need to know" basis. Very poor information management. My sister and I almost always seemed to find something we liked on the menu in Luminae, and once we realized we could order anything, well all bets were off! I thought people were exaggerating (sp?) about weight gain, but no they were not!

[chemmo]

On the two weeks on the Infinity Michael's was nearly empty whenever I passed by. Things did not seem up to par, with the exception of service, on the ship. Everything seemed to be on a "need to know" basis. Very poor information management. My sister and I almost always seemed to find something we liked on the menu in Luminae, and once we realized we could order anything, well all bets were off! I thought people were exaggerating (sp?) about weight gain, but no they were not!

 

Good news re Luminae although I had better start cutting back the calories now!

 

Less good re Michael's... Hopefully it will have more atmosphere on our cruise!

[floatplan]

We return to a RS on the Solstice in March...

 

.Is Bistro on 5 complementary to suite guests on port days?

 

.Are the speciality restaurant sea day lunches included in the RS/PH dining package?

 

On Silly in October there was a little confusion but then decided for an RS/PH all food venues were included, except gelato. That included specialty lunches, Bistro, Spa Cafe and The Porch.

Edited February 2, 2016 by floatplan

[chemmo]

On Silly in October there was a little confusion but then decided for an RS/PH all food venues were included, except gelato. That included specialty lunches, Bistro, Spa Cafe and The Porch.

 

Thank you for your reply...There was confusion on our Equinox cruise but I put that down to the suite life programme only recently being launched...

 

Hopefully what you have experienced is now standard across all ships...