Live in Luxury: Solstice 1/2 - 1/7 Cabo & Ensenada Cruise

[ACorgan]

We’re just a few days out from boarding our ship and, as long as the internet cooperates, I’ll share our experiences as we go along.

 

This will be our first cruise with Celebrity. Most of my past cruises have been with HAL or with Viking River Cruises, so I’m looking forward to trying out a new line.

 

Initially, I was offered a free inside stateroom through MGM in Vegas and when we booked, we paid extra to upgrade to a veranda room. After several other canceled vacations in Q3/Q4 (due to conflicting work travel), we decided to upfare to a sky suite, since this is turning out to be the one big vacation for the last half of the year. We had also put in several move-up offers and to our surprise and delight, on 12/21 we were notified that our offer for the Penthouse Suite had been accepted 🎉 So now, our first experience with Celebrity is going to be in an amazing room. 
 

Our very helpful shoreside concierge contacted us on 12/27 wanting to know all our preferences. Since we’re new to the Celebrity Suite Life, we weren’t even sure what we should be asking for. In the end, we provided her with our in room alcohol choices and asked for specialty dinning on three of the nights, so that we could try Murano, Tuscan Grill, and LPC. We thought the Luminae menu looked decent, so want to dine there at least two nights and we figure we’ll catch Sushi on 5 for a lunch or two.

 

Our first night dinner is at Murano. For those of you who’ve been: any recommendations on the must tries? I think I remember someone talking about the lobster on a different thread? I’m guessing it’s just the a la carte menu that’s complimentary for upper suites and that the Five Senses would be an additional charge? 
 

Any activities that you would consider not-to-be-missed on the first day? Our daily schedule is starting to be built out on the app and I’m seeing all kinds of fun sounding trivia options through the cruise. On HAL, trivia was always one of our favorite activities, so hoping it’ll be entertaining on Celebrity too. I’ll also want to check out the casino (there’s a reason MGM offered me a free inside room 😉). Do I need to wait until we’re out in international waters for the casino to open? If so, it might be a post-dinner activity. How are the evening shows on Celebrity? We always skipped them on HAL, but can make time for them in this trip, if they’re worthwhile?

 

We finished taking down all our Christmas decorations, so now I need to switch gears and start packing for the cruise. Looking forward to it! 

[spiritkat090909]

Lobster Murano is usually fantastic. The goat cheese soufflé appetizer and the Grand Marnier soufflé dessert are my not to misses!  The Five Senses is extra, and not worth it IMO. The wine made it better, but you have less choice of meal and can get all of them individually.

 

I'm not a big show person, but the live orchestra makes a big difference. The guest entertainers are usually not to miss.

 

Make a list of your requests you made to the shoreside concierge...I've heard they don't always make it to the ship. 

[ACorgan]

21 minutes ago, spiritkat090909 said:

Lobster Murano is usually fantastic. The goat cheese soufflé appetizer and the Grand Marnier soufflé dessert are my not to misses!  The Five Senses is extra, and not worth it IMO. The wine made it better, but you have less choice of meal and can get all of them individually.

 

I'm not a big show person, but the live orchestra makes a big difference. The guest entertainers are usually not to miss.

 

Make a list of your requests you made to the shoreside concierge...I've heard they don't always make it to the ship. 

I pulled up the Murano menu on the Celebrity app and that goat cheese soufflé does look amazing 🤤 I didn’t see any deserts listed on the app, other than the cheese plate, so good to know there are other options. Thanks for all the advice! Looking at all these food options is making me hungry; I should probably get some brunch going. I’m definitely looking forward to someone else doing the cooking for a week! 

[George C]

We did move up to penthouse last year on edge , your treated like royalty.

[Beachlover1989]

You have to go to the Martini Bar for a drink and the flair show!  And the dulce de leche danishes in Michael's Club in the morning are to die for!  We love the World Class Bar (especially the El Don Julio) and would frequently meet friends there before dinner.  You will get tired of filet for lunch in Luminae haha.  And make sure to ask the Retreat Concierge about a bridge visit, and a sailaway from the helipad.  Since you are in a Penthouse, they will basically give you anything you ask for!

[KurtMo]

8 minutes ago, ACorgan said:

I pulled up the Murano menu on the Celebrity app and that goat cheese soufflé does look amazing 🤤 I didn’t see any deserts listed on the app, other than the cheese plate, so good to know there are other options.

Both the lobster Murano and a strawberry dessert (like a crepe filled with ice cream and covered with warm strawberries) are prepared and flambeed at tableside, so provides a nice upscale / special ambiance.

[Retired888]

We just got off Solstice on Boxing Day.  Regarding trivias, there are 3 to 4 of them per day and a ton of fun and usually held on deck 14 in the Sky Lounge.  Dee, young girl from Brazil, and Dennis, young Filipino man, usually run those.  Dennis, especially, is a ton of fun.  There is also something very silly with audience participation every night at 8pm and not to be missed, on deck 4.

 

Out of the 7 nights, Celebrity Production singers had 4 nights - BOO, I always skip them because they are really not good singers.  Normally, we only get 1 night or maximum 2 nights on a weeklong cruise.  The other 3 nights, we had a Canadian lady comedian, well she was a little over the top and I thought she was OK but my husband didn't care for her.  We had a very good high energy threesome called Uptown and they were fabulous.  They did a bunch of Motown music.  We also had a magician and mentalist called Andrew Lee from Malaysia and he was top notch.  He performed on night 6 in the theatre and also night 7 in a smaller room called Celebrity Centrale.  He was a semi-finalist in Britain's Got Talent and an Asian version of that.  He was also on America's Got Talent or some version of that.  The response was overwhelming and Celebrity Centrale barely had any standing room left to see him on night 7.  

 

We enjoyed Sushi on Five and had a lunch and a dinner there but did not do other speciality dining venues.  

 

Enjoy your time.  Penthouse Suite sounds fabulous!

Edited December 30, 2022 by Retired888

[ACorgan]

3 hours ago, George C said:

We did move up to penthouse last year on edge , your treated like royalty.

We’re excited about it. We’re fairly low maintenance though, so most looking forward to all the extra room and the plunge pool on the deck. I think I saw something about PJs in a different thread? Did you get PJs on your cruise when you were in the penthouse?

 

[ACorgan]

3 hours ago, Beachlover1989 said:

You have to go to the Martini Bar for a drink and the flair show!  

I was just looking at the martini bar menu and saw so many yummy sounding options. I’m going to have to prioritize since it’s a shorter cruise. Thinking I might start with the candied apple martini, since that looks scrumptious 🍸🍎

[ACorgan]

2 hours ago, KurtMo said:

Both the lobster Murano and a strawberry dessert (like a crepe filled with ice cream and covered with warm strawberries) are prepared and flambeed at tableside, so provides a nice upscale / special ambiance.

I love when they prepare things right in front of you. It always seem to taste even better when you see the work that goes into it. For example, my favorite guacamole is the table side guacamole from Boudros in San Antonio. I’m not sure if it really does taste that much better than other guacs (although it might) or if I’m just influenced by watching them adding in the fresh citrus juice and other ingredients 

[Laurab23]

Try the raspberry lemonade in the martini bar. My favorite.

 

Laura

[ACorgan]

15 minutes ago, Retired888 said:

 We had a very good high energy threesome called Uptown and they were fabulous.  They did a bunch of Motown music. 

Ooh - it looks like they already have the “Uptown Boys” on the schedule for our second night, so will plan to check them out. I’m not seeing things scheduled in the Solatice theater for the other nights yet, so will wait to see what options we end up with 

[ACorgan]

7 minutes ago, Laurab23 said:

Try the raspberry lemonade in the martini bar. My favorite.

 

Laura

Good tip; thanks! I don’t see that one on the online menu in the app, so didn’t know that was an option. My favorite drink in Vegas is the Raspberry Lemondrop at the Cosmo, so I think this would be right up my alley 

[danceswithphones]

PJ's were in a closet. I asked the butler have them monogrammed. They came back the next day. We had hang tags for room service breakfast. Butler delivered it. Wonderful!

[ACorgan]

Does anyone know what the power/outlet situation is in the penthouse suite on the Solstice? On past cruises, I’ve usually taken adaptors for European outlets and non-surge protector extension cords. Not sure if I’ll need that this time around? There’s only 2 of us and guessing we’ll only need about 4 US-outlets (charging phones, using hair straightener, etc.). I’m guessing/hoping that such a large room has at least a few outlets? 

[LaCal]

Have a great cruise and i’ll be following your posts 

 

We’re taking our first Celebrity cruise on the Solstice in April 🍹🍹😜

[chemmo]

Sincere best wishes for a wonderful cruise. We have cruised Solstice twice, both in RS but have cruised in the PH on other S class ships.

 

The PH is decadently spacious and the banks of windows make it wonderfully light.  Ideal for entertaining. The balcony is quite long and thin but does have a covered area so useable most of the time. Great dining table and wet bar area inside and the table on the balcony is also a good size. As the ship has not yet been revolutionised you will still have a piano. A great place to drop your cards or keep a box of chocolates!

 

On the negative side the ship has not had Michael’s Club revamped and has no suite deck area. 
 

To get the most out of a PH you do need to communicate clearly with your butler, the concierge and other staff. A couple of examples….

 

The butlers bring afternoon treats. They always look wonderful but often they are not what you want at that time of day. If we ate them it would spoil our evening meal. Make it clear what you do/don’t want. We usually request a small afternoon tea selection and have to stress the word ‘small’.

 

If you want to dine in suite for a special occasion let the butler know the day before if possible. He can then usually arrange alternatives to the standard menu and course by course service.

 

The concierge can usually arrange bridge tours and other behind the scenes tours. Let them know on boarding if you are interested.

 

On the evenings you plan on dining in the speciality restaurants make sure you communicate any table preferences. For example, a window seat in Tuscan, a corner seat in Murano.

 

Enjoy!

 

 

[LaCal]

1 hour ago, chemmo said:

Sincere best wishes for a wonderful cruise. We have cruised Solstice twice, both in RS but have cruised in the PH on other S class ships.

 

The PH is decadently spacious and the banks of windows make it wonderfully light.  Ideal for entertaining. The balcony is quite long and thin but does have a covered area so useable most of the time. Great dining table and wet bar area inside and the table on the balcony is also a good size. As the ship has not yet been revolutionised you will still have a piano. A great place to drop your cards or keep a box of chocolates!

 

On the negative side the ship has not had Michael’s Club revamped and has no suite deck area. 
 

To get the most out of a PH you do need to communicate clearly with your butler, the concierge and other staff. A couple of examples….

 

The butlers bring afternoon treats. They always look wonderful but often they are not what you want at that time of day. If we ate them it would spoil our evening meal. Make it clear what you do/don’t want. We usually request a small afternoon tea selection and have to stress the word ‘small’.

 

If you want to dine in suite for a special occasion let the butler know the day before if possible. He can then usually arrange alternatives to the standard menu and course by course service.

 

The concierge can usually arrange bridge tours and other behind the scenes tours. Let them know on boarding if you are interested.

 

On the evenings you plan on dining in the speciality restaurants make sure you communicate any table preferences. For example, a window seat in Tuscan, a corner seat in Murano.

 

Enjoy!

 

 

Good tips.  thx 

[miched]

Being in a Penthouse suite you have  unlimited dining in all of the Specialty  restaurants.    This also gives you unlimited in Sushi on 5 and any specialty restaurant that is open during lunch time and etc.   There  is also a per fee menu in Craft Social Bar with stuff like bone marrow, burgers and etc.  you also get gelato without paying extra.  

 

One time we had a Royal suite.   It was really nice having breakfast there every morning.   There is a large dining table and the butler would have everything there.   Since the bedroom is in a different area he can come in and drop it off without disturbing us.   It was great to sit here having the morning coffee and breakfast and not be crowded or having to walk down to the Luminae and wait to be served and for the food    There should also be a microwave, large refrigerator, and beverage cooler stocked with beer, water, soda and etc.  

 

I would book every specialty restaurant and repeat them as you can order something different. 

 

You will also have unlimited premium internet. 

Happy cruising 🌊🚢🇺🇸🌅
 

[George C]

19 hours ago, ACorgan said:

We’re excited about it. We’re fairly low maintenance though, so most looking forward to all the extra room and the plunge pool on the deck. I think I saw something about PJs in a different thread? Did you get PJs on your cruise when you were in the penthouse?

 

We got pjs and robe you can ask them to be monogrammed also we now have a collection of them will get another in a couple of months on our royal suite these perks are for royal suites and above .I never use mine my wife likes the pjs .

[chemmo]

1 hour ago, miched said:

Being in a Penthouse suite you have  unlimited dining in all of the Specialty  restaurants.    This also gives you unlimited in Sushi on 5 and any specialty restaurant that is open during lunch time and etc.   There  is also a per fee menu in Craft Social Bar with stuff like bone marrow, burgers and etc.  you also get gelato without paying extra.  

 

One time we had a Royal suite.   It was really nice having breakfast there every morning.   There is a large dining table and the butler would have everything there.   Since the bedroom is in a different area he can come in and drop it off without disturbing us.   It was great to sit here having the morning coffee and breakfast and not be crowded or having to walk down to the Luminae and wait to be served and for the food    There should also be a microwave, large refrigerator, and beverage cooler stocked with beer, water, soda and etc.  

 

I would book every specialty restaurant and repeat them as you can order something different. 

 

You will also have unlimited premium internet. 

Happy cruising 🌊🚢🇺🇸🌅
 

No microwave other than in the butlers pantry area of the PH on m class I think. We have never had a microwave in the PH on S class ships.

[miched]

59 minutes ago, chemmo said:

No microwave other than in the butlers pantry area of the PH on m class I think. We have never had a microwave in the PH on S class ships.

You are probably correct.   The only time I was in a PH suite was during a cabin crawl and I thought there was one.  It has been a long time ago.   I know there isn’t any in the RS   Here is a photo of the kitchenette area in the  RS on the Reflection. 
 

Happy cruising 🌊🚢🇺🇸🌅

[ACorgan]

5 hours ago, chemmo said:

To get the most out of a PH you do need to communicate clearly with your butler, the concierge and other staff. A couple of examples….

 

Thanks so much! I definitely appreciate the examples. Love the idea of an afternoon tea. We tend to eat dinner closer to 7 or 8, so an afternoon snack is usually welcome 

[ACorgan]

2 hours ago, miched said:

 

One time we had a Royal suite.   It was really nice having breakfast there every morning.   There is a large dining table and the butler would have everything there.   Since the bedroom is in a different area he can come in and drop it off without disturbing us.   It was great to sit here having the morning coffee and breakfast and not be crowded or having to walk down to the Luminae and wait to be served and for the food  
 

This is a great idea. Usually I’m not a fan of room service breakfast because (in smaller rooms) I feel like I’m eating in my bedroom, which I don’t care for. Since we have the dedicated dining room space, in suite breakfast might be a nice change of pace, letting us have a more leisurely morning before we get ready for the day 

[ACorgan]

Looking at the online pics of the PH suite, it looks like they have a lovely bathtub in the master bath. Does anyone know if bubble bath (or even ok smelling liquid body wash) is provided? Or should I bring some of my own along?