Celebrity Solstice - July 28, 2023 - ALASKA Dawes Glacier 7 night - first cruise EVER! OMG

[spectromen]

Hello Everyone!

 

I can't believe it's finally happening - we booked our first ever cruise on the Solstice to Alaska, RT from Seattle.  Coming from the Los Angeles area.

It'll be my partner and I, my mother and her husband, friends of theirs, and distant cousins.  4 cabins total. Half are experienced cruisers, but we are the newbies.  I personally have put it off for over 50 years out of fear of motion sickness.  I have it BAD - really bad - but am armed with every conceivable medication and contraption, and hoping for the best!  Gotta face the fears and figure even if I puke, my body will adjust in 24-48 hours.  This will probably be my mother's only cruise - she's over 80 and I can tell she's starting to tackle her bucket list.

 

Initial impressions : 

 

Booking (when you are with a group that is very price-sensitive) is a HUGE PITA!  Getting everyone to agree on the same thing has been enough to almost throw in the towel.  But, it's done now.

 

Celebrity (and I assume the rest) change prices every 5 seconds!  You can make it a full time job to try to get the best price.  This particular sailing was rapidly filling up, so there was very little choice in the area of verandas near the center of the ship.  We all ended up on different levels; some concierge, some not.

 

The nickel and diming is RIDICULOUS.  Pay extra for this, pay extra for that; if you don't book this you will be missing out, if you don't get in this restaurant you will miss the best meal on ship, etc etc etc.  And I hear there'll be many more money grabs on ship.  That has put a sour note in my mouth.

 

Question:  Our shore excursion just dropped in price, thanks to a Memorial Day weekend sale.  Will Celebrity adjust the price or am I stuck with the price I already paid?

 

 

Would love to discuss with others on this cruise as well as any other experienced Alaska cruisers!  TIA!

 

 

 

 

 

[Octavias]

51 minutes ago, spectromen said:

Hello Everyone!

 

I can't believe it's finally happening - we booked our first ever cruise on the Solstice to Alaska, RT from Seattle.  Coming from the Los Angeles area.

It'll be my partner and I, my mother and her husband, friends of theirs, and distant cousins.  4 cabins total. Half are experienced cruisers, but we are the newbies.  I personally have put it off for over 50 years out of fear of motion sickness.  I have it BAD - really bad - but am armed with every conceivable medication and contraption, and hoping for the best!  Gotta face the fears and figure even if I puke, my body will adjust in 24-48 hours.  This will probably be my mother's only cruise - she's over 80 and I can tell she's starting to tackle her bucket list.

 

Initial impressions : 

 

Booking (when you are with a group that is very price-sensitive) is a HUGE PITA!  Getting everyone to agree on the same thing has been enough to almost throw in the towel.  But, it's done now.

 

Celebrity (and I assume the rest) change prices every 5 seconds!  You can make it a full time job to try to get the best price.  This particular sailing was rapidly filling up, so there was very little choice in the area of verandas near the center of the ship.  We all ended up on different levels; some concierge, some not.

 

The nickel and diming is RIDICULOUS.  Pay extra for this, pay extra for that; if you don't book this you will be missing out, if you don't get in this restaurant you will miss the best meal on ship, etc etc etc.  And I hear there'll be many more money grabs on ship.  That has put a sour note in my mouth.

 

Question:  Our shore excursion just dropped in price, thanks to a Memorial Day weekend sale.  Will Celebrity adjust the price or am I stuck with the price I already paid?

 

 

Would love to discuss with others on this cruise as well as any other experienced Alaska cruisers!  TIA!

 

 

 

 

 

They didn’t adjust my excursions but I was able to cancel and rebook at the lower price.  If your excursions aren’t sold out, you should be able to do that.  Congrats on your first cruise!  I’ll be taking my first one in May 24’.  Doing the Dawes glacier too! 

Edited May 26, 2023 by Octavias

[spectromen]

Thanks!  It's not sold out, so I'll try that.  And yay for another Dawes cruiser!

[cruisinfly]

I cancelled and rebooked all my sure excursions at a lower price for a cruise that leaves in a week... Even some that were sold out. My cancellation opened those spots and I quickly rebooked them at the lower price. (I had an alternate picked out in case this didn't work)

 

Research what is included and what's extra so you are in the know. There are extras worth paying for and some that are not. Vacations aren't cheap or free so don't get too upset paying for a great experience. Still typically cheaper than an equivalent land vacation.

[spectromen]

Thanks and great job on the re-book so close to sail date.  Got mine taken care of on the phone just now.

Yep I am reading and reading ~ SO much reading ~ and now I see there's a tour that picks you up after the cruise and ends at the airport.  Not much more than the cost of an Uber so that's an easy win!

When the ships arrive back to port is there any wiggle room when you can disembark?  IE if it gets back at 6am is that when they kick you off or can you linger a bit?

[Mark.Jules]

4 minutes ago, spectromen said:

Thanks and great job on the re-book so close to sail date.  Got mine taken care of on the phone just now.

Yep I am reading and reading ~ SO much reading ~ and now I see there's a tour that picks you up after the cruise and ends at the airport.  Not much more than the cost of an Uber so that's an easy win!

When the ships arrive back to port is there any wiggle room when you can disembark?  IE if it gets back at 6am is that when they kick you off or can you linger a bit?

You will pull into the dock early at times before 6 am. The ship will need to clear some governmental red tape and you will be able to begin disembarking at 7:30 as a walk off and then they will start with groups by calling assigned numbers. 

[spectromen]

Ahh thank you - much better than 6am.

I assume the dining room is open that morning for breakfast?

[raudacruise]

Spectromen, have you checked out the ReliefBand? It’s an anti-nausea electronic wristband originally designed for pilots. I have the rechargeable Sport model (the dial is similar to the Classic). Not cruising without it. I also use it for flying, windy roads, boat rides and action movies. http://reliefband.com

 

The Main Dining Room is indeed open for breakfast before they kick you off. They start really fussing at about 9:00 if you are still on the ship.

 

My first Alaskan cruise is also the Dawes Glacier in June.

[bigbenboys]

Enjoy free valet service from the port of Seattle.

 

https://www.portseattle.org/page/port-valet-enjoy-seattle-luggage-free

Edited May 26, 2023 by bigbenboys
added info

[cruisinfly]

Disembarkation takes a bit of time. Most cruise lines want you to vacate your room by a certain time (usually around 8 AM) and wait in one of the lounges for your group to be called to leave the ship. Your group number (or color) for disembarkation will be assigned the day before you leave but you might be in a group that leaves early or you might be one of the last to leave. The latest I've left was after 10 AM but I've never been in a rush to leave. You shouldn't leave before your group is called (they've never checked my number/color) but you don't have to leave right away when your group is called (but probably should).

 

I like to enjoy one last breakfast on board and have my last few coffees in the specialty coffee shop before leaving. As long as Cafe Al Bacio is still open and serving coffee, I'll be hanging out there until it's my time to get off.

[spectromen]

1 hour ago, raudacruise said:

Spectromen, have you checked out the ReliefBand? It’s an anti-nausea electronic wristband originally designed for pilots. I have the rechargeable Sport model (the dial is similar to the Classic). Not cruising without it. I also use it for flying, windy roads, boat rides and action movies. http://reliefband.com

 

The Main Dining Room is indeed open for breakfast before they kick you off. They start really fussing at about 9:00 if you are still on the ship.

 

My first Alaskan cruise is also the Dawes Glacier in June.

Yes!  I've been using it for a few years for rides at theme parks.  Definitely helps!

And thanks RE: the dining room - so we can leave the ship not hungry, lol.

Yay for Dawes in June!  Hope you have a great time.

[spectromen]

1 hour ago, bigbenboys said:

Enjoy free valet service from the port of Seattle.

 

https://www.portseattle.org/page/port-valet-enjoy-seattle-luggage-free

Yes! This is exactly what I'm planning to use.  Thank you.

[spectromen]

47 minutes ago, cruisinfly said:

Disembarkation takes a bit of time. Most cruise lines want you to vacate your room by a certain time (usually around 8 AM) and wait in one of the lounges for your group to be called to leave the ship. Your group number (or color) for disembarkation will be assigned the day before you leave but you might be in a group that leaves early or you might be one of the last to leave. The latest I've left was after 10 AM but I've never been in a rush to leave. You shouldn't leave before your group is called (they've never checked my number/color) but you don't have to leave right away when your group is called (but probably should).

 

I like to enjoy one last breakfast on board and have my last few coffees in the specialty coffee shop before leaving. As long as Cafe Al Bacio is still open and serving coffee, I'll be hanging out there until it's my time to get off.

Thank you!  All helpful info.  I created a separate post, too, asking "What if you want to book an excursion on your last day in the home port city, and it starts at 8am, and they haven't let you off yet".....another topic to figure out before booking anything.

[Swordfish1949]

23 hours ago, Octavias said:

They didn’t adjust my excursions but I was able to cancel and rebook at the lower price.  If your excursions aren’t sold out, you should be able to do that.  Congrats on your first cruise!  I’ll be taking my first one in May 24’.  Doing the Dawes glacier too! 

Thanks for the heads up - were we able to cancel and rebook too.