Solstice Stateroom Sleuth: what are you going to book...

[MBZ Girl]

P.S. MBZ is no closer to 60 than I am.;)

 

I just might be closer than you Cheryl!!!!:D

[caviargal]

How do these cabin selection linked dining venues work on other lines? Someone mentioned Cunard...can anyone expand on what they know about how that line or another line handles?

 

Cunard assigns dining room based on cabin category. The suites, etc. have exclusive access to the higher end dining room(s). Regular cabins use the basic dining room.

 

On HAL, suite guests have exclusive access to the Pinnacle Grille for breakfast. We use it as often as possible. Lovely room, great service and quiet and uncrowded. Great perk, IME! For lunch and dinner, it is open to all who will pay. But, per X, this will not be the case with Blu.

 

Wonder if they will still have the Aqua Spa Cafe?

[Dale Jr]

While I love the concept Kim, what about us "child free" couples who would rather have a suite for more space being "forced" to take a lesser cabin for an adult experience???? Seems rather unfair to make a certain cabin available to an "adults only" environment when most of the upper suite pax are definitely not interested in kids!!! We just don't "do" 192 sq ft any more. (before I get flamed, as Finely Cruising knows, I am way under 60)

 

It won't matter where you book a room or suite on this ship. With 3000 passengers and 7 day cruises it will be full of kids which means perhaps in excess of 3500 when you account for those that will have three or four to a room. The aqua class may be a safe haven but what is the point of restricting yourself to such a tiny area of the ship to avoid kids?

 

For an adult experience they have other ships and cruise lines which are dedicated to provide this. Why try and force it on this ship? It will never happen.

[hajekfam]

I don't think this ship will have any greater percentage of children than any other Celebrity ship unless they announce more child friendly areas in public areas in the way of water parks, huge play areas, video games in the cabins, pool dedicated to kids, waterslides, children's program starting at age 2 instead of 3, etc. And if they keep prices higher, large families are going to look elsewhere. The number of children onboard depends on the time of sailing - sail during the school year and you won't have that many. Sail during the holidays, school breaks, or summer and you will have many children.

[Schplinky]

I don't think this ship will have any greater percentage of children than any other Celebrity ship unless they announce more child friendly areas in public areas in the way of water parks, huge play areas, video games in the cabins, pool dedicated to kids, waterslides, children's program starting at age 2 instead of 3, etc. And if they keep prices higher, large families are going to look elsewhere. The number of children onboard depends on the time of sailing - sail during the school year and you won't have that many. Sail during the holidays, school breaks, or summer and you will have many children.

 

This is off-topic but can you post a link to your countdown clock generator? I'd like to switch to that one.

[MBZ Girl]

It won't matter where you book a room or suite on this ship. With 3000 passengers and 7 day cruises it will be full of kids which means perhaps in excess of 3500 when you account for those that will have three or four to a room. The aqua class may be a safe haven but what is the point of restricting yourself to such a tiny area of the ship to avoid kids?

 

For an adult experience they have other ships and cruise lines which are dedicated to provide this. Why try and force it on this ship? It will never happen.

 

Exactly, which is why I will NOT book Solstice!!!!:D We try to travel during times when kids are in school and we prefer cruises over 10 nights minimum AND we prefer other than Caribbean itineraries. That's all out there to be had!!!;)

[caviargal]

I don't think this ship will have any greater percentage of children than any other Celebrity ship unless they announce more child friendly areas in public areas in the way of water parks, huge play areas, video games in the cabins, pool dedicated to kids, waterslides, children's program starting at age 2 instead of 3, etc. And if they keep prices higher, large families are going to look elsewhere. The number of children onboard depends on the time of sailing - sail during the school year and you won't have that many. Sail during the holidays, school breaks, or summer and you will have many children.

 

 

I disagree. The big ships with their increased food venues and activities do indeed attract more families. Look at the number of connecting cabins on Solstice as well as the triples and quads. This will be a ship targetting families more than any of the others in X's fleet to date. They do not need water parks to do so, none of RCI's Voyager class ships have them and they are very popular with families. I bet there will be plenty of kid oriented venues on Solstice. A ship this large does not make business sense otherwise.

 

Dale, I agree that there are other ships and other lines that do not cater to families. That is exactly why we prefer HAL and Regent to all others, with X as third choice. However, it would be in X's interest to appeal to a broader audience than RCI has chosen; to quote from Richard Fain while onboard Liberty in May: "We are the premiere cruise line for families".

 

If X is headed in that direction, the other ships will be afterthoughts. JMO. Excluding of course, Azamara.

[Schplinky]

I think and Richard Fain and his colleagues are smart enough to realize that having RCL and X going after the exact same customer makes no business sense. I recall all of the X devotees swearing they would never go on an M class because of their being over-run with children. That certainly was not our experience but I know each week is different. Our week-long Caribbean sailing (which usually attracts families) was more of a fifty-something sailing, with some people on either side of that demographic. I'd wait until more details are released before I predicted the end of the world.

 

As regards additional restaurants and other revenue opportunities, I think that folks will need to make a choice there. Either go on a truly premium and all-inclusive line or stick with a mass market line like Celebrity, Hal, etc,. and stomach the revenue possibilities. It's not as though Celebrity is the only line doing this or there are any other mass market lines not doing it. Cruising has a relatively low base price in order to attract folks; to expect all the bells and whistles associated with new bells without paying for them is becoming increasingly unrealistic, given fuel prices and the number or competitors out there. The average onboard charge to accounts above the cruise fare on a mass market line is $47 a day. If folks would rather not pay this, they are going to have to pony up the additional $325 a week or so. I doubt they would. Most folks would simply abandon any line that took this tack.

[caviargal]

I think and Richard Fain and his colleagues are smart enough to realize that having RCL and X going after the exact same customer makes no business sense. I recall all of the X devotees swearing they would never go on an M class because of their being over-run with children. That certainly was not our experience but I know each week is different. Our week-long Caribbean sailing (which usually attracts families) was more of a fifty-something sailing, with some people on either side of that demographic. I'd wait until more details are released before I predicted the end fo the world.

 

Schplinky, the fact is that all of the mass market lines are building ships and making changes in order to attract more of the lucrative family market. HAL's Vista class is targeting this sector and IMO Solstice is X's entry into the fray. As a TA, I sit in on meetings, trainings and presentations regularly and to think X is not doing so is to put ones head in the sand, no disrespect intended.

 

Competition is fierce and X wants their piece of the pie.

 

It is the older ships and more exotic itineraries that are more adult oriented as well as the smaller, more premium lines.

 

What that means to me is that when I am looking for a cruise vacation, my options are very limited. Stay away from the standard Caribbean runs, stay away from newer ships and stay away from the times of year kids are out of school. These days, that last one is hard to predict. My early December RCI sailing - normally fairly safe from being overrun with kid - was full of infants and younger kids. It is apparent that parents are willing to pull kids out of school more easily these days to take advantage of lower priced sailings.

 

I am not interested in cruising the Med (much prefer land trips), Hawaii (once was enough), etc. And I have neither the time nor the interest in long, exotic itineraries.

 

Doesn't leave many options for people like me who work to avoid kids on vacations, period.

[Schplinky]

I agree that you have your work cut out for you if you don't like the Caribbean, Med., Hawaii, kids, new ships, informality or the rest. I'm afraid that the more expensive lines are all that are left but even there, you see RCL actively pursuing your business with Azamara (although that may be too informal for you).

 

I disagree that the family market is specifically lucrative but I do agree that Celebrity will need to continue to attract new and younger cruisers in order to not become a repeat of Holland America which, with all respect, we had been told was making a stab at the younger market but still was far too sedate and elderly for us. Never on a cruise have my cruise documents told me not to leave my walker or personal mobility device in the hall except on HAL.

 

If the drawings released so far of the Solstice are any indication, my hope is that they are heading more toward hip than kid-friendly. I think a very lucrative market are the younger folks who don't have kids and therefore have a lot more disposable income than those with broods of children. I hope X taps into that. If you look at the Century refurbishment, it certainly seems that is the direction they are headed. I sat in on the TA sessions on Liberty's pre-inaugural and all of the kid-friendly stuff was in specific reference to RCL and they mentioned several times that X was for more upscale experiences.

[Dale Jr]

Schplinky, the fact is that all of the mass market lines are building ships and making changes in order to attract more of the lucrative family market. HAL's Vista class is targeting this sector and IMO Solstice is X's entry into the fray. As a TA, I sit in on meetings, trainings and presentations regularly and to think X is not doing so is to put ones head in the sand, no disrespect intended.

 

Competition is fierce and X wants their piece of the pie.

 

Unfortunately this evolution of Celebrity into a family line will not be limited to the Solstice class ships. When they attract families to one ship those same families will feel free to book any ship of the line for a future cruise assuming all of their ships are alike in facilities etc..

 

It somewhat makes it a no brainer that Azamara will prosper being that they do provide the adult only experience so many of us desire at a reasonable price. This is precisely the reason Azamara was created and so quickly pulled away from the Celebrity name.

[caviargal]

I agree that you have your work cut out for you if you don't like the Caribbean, Med., Hawaii, kids, new ships, informality or the rest. I'm afraid that the more expensive lines are all that are left but even there, you see RCL actively pursuing your business with Azamara (although that may be too informal for you).

 

 

Informal - actually Country Club Casual casual - is great for me. And I love the Caribbean! I just do care for many of the ships that offer weeklong cruises there.

 

As much as Oceania and Azamara appeal, the time and $$ involved are a bigger commitment than we generally make just for the Caribbean.

 

We can agree to disagree on the impact and importance of the family cruising market and what it means to the future of cruising overall.

[caviargal]

I tried to edit my post but it would not allow:

 

 

We can agree to disagree on the impact and importance of the family cruising market and what it means to the future of cruising overall. I have watched as it changed RCI into what it is today, which is nothing like it was in the 70s to 90s. Larger ships with more activities, more casual atmosphere and more casual dining venues all appeal to the family market far more than the smaller ships.

 

Since it worked so well for them the first time, and senior management is the same, it stands to reason that similar changes will be made on X. Solstice is the first big step in this direction, IMO, though Century was a baby step with her shortened cruise schedule and family friendly pricing.

[Schplinky]

I tried to edit my post but it would not allow:

 

 

We can agree to disagree on the impact and importance of the family cruising market and what it means to the future of cruising overall. I have watched as it changed RCI into what it is today, which is nothing like it was in the 70s to 90s. Larger ships with more activities, more casual atmosphere and more casual dining venues all appeal to the family market far more than the smaller ships.

 

Since it worked so well for them the first time, and senior management is the same, it stands to reason that similar changes will be made on X. Solstice is the first big step in this direction, IMO, though Century was a baby step with her shortened cruise schedule and family friendly pricing.

 

You're right; we'll have to agree to disagree. It was precisely the environment that RCL offers that got us to try and stick with cruising and we are neither parents nor overly casual. Cruising isn't a package deal: liking good food and a more adult environment (which X provides) doesn't mean that you don't also enjoy activities and excellent entertainment (which RCL tends to excel at). I think that trying different lines helps one to figure out which aspects of cruising are more important to them and then to choose accordingly. While we will tend to stick with RCL for their innovations, we're also quite happy to try Celebrity again to see how they are evolving.

 

I disagree that the two companies having the same senior management would mean they would approach each line the same way. It makes no sense having three companies pursuing the same customer. If it did, Azamara would have water slides and pool games (I'm presuming it doesn't). If you think of the cruise market being a continuum, it makes more sense to have Celebrity being somewhere in the middle with RCL and Azamara at the ends of their customer base than to have one upscale line and two pursuing families, in my opinion. That was also what I heard from the Senior Management when we were on Liberty but clearly you were hearing something different.

 

Time will tell.

[LeoinSF]

I still haven't received a fax confirmation. but Celebrity said they are having problems with email and fax on this ship. I've called about 6 times but hopefully I will have received it by the morning. I did confirm prices and cabin #'s though.

 

Diane in Music City

 

Diane, when I called back last night to see where my email confirmation was (I had been promised one that morning when I made the booking) I was informed by a somewhat embarassed Celebrity res agent that they had been told that afternoon that since the ship was so new it wasn't in their system yet and so no Fax or email confirmations were going to be sent out at this time. She said that I could call customer service today and request "some kind of confirmation" be sent to me. Odd isn't it.

[Schplinky]

That is strange since we got an econfirmation minutes after booking, which names the ship and sailing and all that other stuff.

[LeoinSF]

Per my Celebrity sales rep, Blu is the dining room for Aqua Class, not a specialty restaurant. Makes sense as the numbers add up perfectly as Schplinky pointed out. 130 seats in two seatings and 130 cabins on that level.

 

Caviargal,

 

The Celebrity rep that I spoke with yesterday told me that Blu is indeed the restaurant/dining room for Aqua Class and that if an Aqua Class passenger wanted to eat in the main dining room on any given evening they needed to request the change from the Maitre D. She went on to say that other passengers would be able to eat in Blu on a space available basis for a charge that is to be determined.

 

When I asked if Aqua Class would have some of the amenities of Concierge Class such as upgraded bathroom amenities and robes, etc. she said that she didn't think so but that she didn't have definitive information on that as all she had was the basic information they had been given in training and upgraded AC cabin amenities were not included nor discussed. She said that the upgrade discussed for AC was access to the Persian Gardens and Blu. She did go on to say that ONLY taking double occupancy bookings into Aqua Class. No single, triple nor quad bookings were allowed in this category of cabin. I thought this was strange until I read of the exact seating size of Blu compared to the occupancy number of the Aqua Class cabins. I just wonder how they will handle booking other passengers into this restaurant.

[LeoinSF]

That is strange since we got an econfirmation minutes after booking, which names the ship and sailing and all that other stuff.

 

Thanks for the info Schplinky. I appreciate knowing that I have called on this twice now and have been told the same thing. Guess I'll have to call again! Any others out there having problems getting a fax or email confirmation?

[Schplinky]

I just wonder how they will handle booking other passengers into this restaurant.

 

Me too.

 

I really hope that it isn't a matter of their keeping track of our reservations in the other restaurants. We often travel in a crowd of 6 and so if one of the couples does not dine in Blu on a particular evening, I would hope that would not mean that the four of us have to have dinner with a couple of strangers. My hope is that others will only be dining there if they don't sell all of the AC rooms.

[LeoinSF]

That is strange since we got an econfirmation minutes after booking, which names the ship and sailing and all that other stuff.

 

 

Schplinky,

 

Thanks again for your info. I called and had been misinformed as it was a one day glitch and they are now sending out confirmations. Ihe system evidently crashed yesterday afternoon and was down for a while. They still don't know why it didn't go through yesterday morning but i have it now! :)

[ocngypz]

Caviargal,

 

 

She did go on to say that ONLY taking double occupancy bookings into Aqua Class. No single, triple nor quad bookings were allowed in this category of cabin. I thought this was strange until I read of the exact seating size of Blu compared to the occupancy number of the Aqua Class cabins. I just wonder how they will handle booking other passengers into this restaurant.

 

There are no triple cabins for AQ, thus the double occupancies. However, I booked Aqua Class single occupancy. And I have a fax confirmation from Celebrity with dinner seating confirmation.

[LeoinSF]

Hey All,

 

I JUST got off the phone with a Captains Club res agent who had received some new training on Solstice. She cleared up some misinformation for me and gave me some new insights into the cabins on Solstice:

 

When I asked if Aqua Class would have some of the amenities of Concierge Class such as upgraded bathroom amenities and robes, etc. she said that she didn't think so but that she didn't have definitive information on that as all she had was the basic information they had been given in training and upgraded AC cabin amenities were not included nor discussed.

 

Here's the scoop, Aqua Class cabins ($1350 + taxes & fees = $1560.42 for 12/14 inaugural) will have ALL of the amenities of Concierge Class. This makes Aqua class a very very attractive proposition! She said that one thing that they (Res agents AND TA's) have to be careful of is the fact that people will book into Aqua Class (ALL of which are non-connecting) and want to have their kids or other family book into an inside or CC on the same deck (Penthouse 11) but not realize that they will be eating in a different dining room (Blu) than the rest of their party.

 

She did go on to say that ONLY taking double occupancy bookings into Aqua Class. No single, triple nor quad bookings were allowed in this category of cabin. I thought this was strange until I read of the exact seating size of Blu compared to the occupancy number of the Aqua Class cabins. I just wonder how they will handle booking other passengers into this restaurant.

 

They ARE accepting single bookings into Aqua Class. The res agent said that originally they had been told that only doubles were to be booked but that now singles were OK.

 

She went on to say that the cabins actally have more room than it look as they are a new "interlocking" design which allows more interior space. Res agents were also told that there will be "at least" on additional Specialty restaurant on board.

 

That's the update that I received this morning. Hope it helps. I don't know about you but I can't wait for 12/14/08 and a chance to finally be aboard this beautiful ship!

[Schplinky]

Thanks for posting, Leo!!! That's a lot of new information. It's interesting that they will only allow two in AC because it appear there are three or four with berths.

 

I hope the person was right about us having all the CC amenities plus the spa stuff. That would be totally cool and would help explain the extra price over CC.

 

I'm glad you got your confirmation. It's always nicer having it in writing. Hopefully, the web-site will catch up soon so we can add the reservations to our My Celebrity.

[eroller]

Leo,

Thanks for the info on the Aqua Spa cabins. I ended up booking a regular 1A balcony (nice location on the Deck 8 hump) but I am rethinking my decision. I can't get past that $300 more per person is a lot of money for what will essentially be the same cabin. I'm also not sure if I will want to eat in Blu every night. Maybe the selection will not be as good as the main dining room and it will be mostly healthy food selections?

 

I also note that the Aqua Spa cabins are located on Deck 11 and I don't know what will be above the majority of them on Deck 12. Deck 12 could be a pool area and I usually avoid being below the pool deck due to noise issues.

 

I do have one question. You mention the "interlocking" design aspect of the cabins. I assume this means they will still be prefabricated, but they will not be a prefect rectangle as is usually the case. Did the agent state that all standard cabins will be of this interlocking design, or only the Aqua Spa cabins. It's interesting that the cabin diagrams show the standard cabins as being pretty standing. No unusual design aspects. Maybe this is a surprise still in store?

 

Thanks again!

 

Ernie

[LeoinSF]

Leo,

Thanks for the info on the Aqua Spa cabins. I ended up booking a regular 1A balcony (nice location on the Deck 8 hump) but I am rethinking my decision. I can't get past that $300 more per person is a lot of money for what will essentially be the same cabin. I'm also not sure if I will want to eat in Blu every night. Maybe the selection will not be as good as the main dining room and it will be mostly healthy food selections?

 

Hi Ernie,

 

I was with you on that as I had booked a CC at $1090pp but upped to the AC at $1350 (it was $1300 yesterday :( ) when I learned that AC included all of the goodies that I liked from CC. My thinking was that use of the Persian Gardens alone usually run $99 bucks and with the write ups that the new food specialists are getting I'm betting that the food in Blu will be pretty darn spectacular. If I don't like what's offered on a particular night I can always try a different specialty restaurant or the Main dining room. For the upgrade in cabin price I factored in the thought that Blu will probably be at least $35.00 for those not booked there. JUST a non-educated guess. That with the Persian Gardens access makes it a good deal for me.

 

I also note that the Aqua Spa cabins are located on Deck 11 and I don't know what will be above the majority of them on Deck 12. Deck 12 could be a pool area and I usually avoid being below the pool deck due to noise issues.

 

This is a concern to me too. We'll have to wait and see as it may end up being the lido restaurant deck above. I decided to roll the dice. :p

 

I do have one question. You mention the "interlocking" design aspect of the cabins. I assume this means they will still be prefabricated, but they will not be a prefect rectangle as is usually the case. Did the agent state that all standard cabins will be of this interlocking design, or only the Aqua Spa cabins. It's interesting that the cabin diagrams show the standard cabins as being pretty standing. No unusual design aspects. Maybe this is a surprise still in store?

 

The agent that I spoke with actually said that since the cabins were interlocking and thus weren't uniformly rectangular in shape it allowed for more interior space. She said that we would "probably" be able to see this design feature when the drawings were updated "in the future". She was speaking to me of the 192' balcony cabins. She also mentioned how spacious the interior cabins were...

 

At a recent Celebrity training day that I attended a Sr. VP kept stressing how many new and exciting venues and activities, new to Celebrity and geared to the Celebrity cruiser, that there would be on board this class of ship. I can't wait to find out what they are. I'm really excited about this cruise as it's the week of my birthday so it will be an extra special treat! I'll post more info as I find it.