Highlights of our 11/30 sailing on Solstice

[ohhbother]

Hi everyone. We had a wonderful time on our 11/30 sailing on the Solstice. This was our first cruise on Celebrity but definitely not our last. We've previously sailed on Disney, Carnival and RCCL, and Celebrity is the best by far.

 

First, some background: My DH and I are 40 and 36, respectively. We stayed in Aqua Class cabin 1650 on the Penthouse deck. We dined at Blu every night, with the exception of one night in Tuscan Grill.

 

Here are some highlights:

 

The Aqua Class cabin was wonderful. The bed was very comfortable. We had our stateroom attendant remove the diffuser because of my asthma. We also had him empty the refrigerator so we could use the space for Pepsi we brought with us. The balcony chairs are VERY comfortable and are of ample size for plus-sized passengers like me. We had plenty of storage space. Our room was arranged with the sofa near the verandah, which I preferred. The hair dryer in Aqua Class was very nice (not the kind where you have to continuously hold the button). We loved the free bottled water, fruit and even the daily canapes. I didn't like the fact that our items were removed from the refrigerator, and the refrigerator locked, on our last night. We also didn't get fruit on the last full day. It made us feel like we were being "herded out."

 

The bathroom was incredible -- loved the Aqua Class showerhead. The shaving bar in the shower is also very nice. I was worried I'd find the shower cramped, but I didn't at all. However, I do agree with everyone who complained about the terrible location of the toilet paper!

 

The interactive TV system in the cabin is fantastic. I listened to my favorite music all week -- it was a very nice touch. We also could preview our photos on the screen and even order them. This worked seamlessly. We ordered room service four times on screen, and everything was delivered promptly and correctly.

 

Around the ship:

 

We loved the library. Between us, my DH and I read more than a dozen books over the course of our trip. We also enjoyed the board games available in the library.

 

The Solarium was very nice and soothing. The water in the pool was cold at the first of the week, but it was heated later in the week. The round "beds" in this area were a favorite spot for us -- we'd pile into one and read for hours.

 

The outdoor pool area was very nice. I'm always a little uncomfortable with outdoor furniture because of my weight, but I found the furniture to be very sturdy and comfortable -- no worries at all. On three afternoons, we were able to snag one of the outdoor "beds" by the pool -- heaven! One complaint, though -- even though the pool doesn't close until 8 pm, the cleaning crew would start soaping down the deck around 6:30. We literally had to walk barefoot through soapy, standing water to get out of a hot tub, and our personal items on a lounge chair were hit with water from a pressure washer. This was bad form and shouldn't have happened.

 

All of the public areas of the ship are beautiful, and we really enjoyed the art. The theater was very nice with great sound. The chairs here were a tighter fit for me, but I could slide back into them -- just didn't have any wiggle room. We went to the hot glass show once and to the lawn club a couple of times for a brief visit. We only went to the Persian Garden once, and we didn't find it all that great -- the Solarium was far more relaxing to me.

 

Entertainment was very good. We LOVED Jefferson Ang. I think my favorite memory of the cruise was listening to him in Cafe Al Bacio before dinner one night. We also enjoyed Robert Simon, the steel pan player, and Ocean's Four, the acapella group.

 

Christmas decorations went up during the week and added a festive touch to the ship.

 

Unfortunately, I came down with bronchitis early in the week and had to visit the onboard medical facility. I'm happy to report that facility is state of the art, and the nursing staff was incredible. I had to have six breathing treatments over two days, and the nurses became like old friends to us!

 

Finally, our thoughts on the food:

 

We were really nervous about Blu. We're not "spa" people -- we tend to favor meat and potatoes. So this was a gamble for us. I'm happy to say we were thrilled with Blu four of the six nights we ate there. Highlights included a delicious cream-based soup every night (my favorite was a white bean soup), as well as wonderful appetizers such as a cheese souffle and a goat cheese appetizer coated in a honey pecan topping. We also had potato croquettes that were delicious. Entrees were very good and fresh and always served piping hot. I particularly enjoyed an orichette pasta with mushrooms, and my husband had a great ribeye one night. There was a chicken and black-eyed beans (yes, beans) dish one evening that was terrific, as well. Desserts were generally very good, with our favorites including a warm pear tart, caramel pecan ice cream, After Eight ice cream, a cigar pastry with Cognac cream and berries and a caramel flan. The two nights we didn't enjoy dinner were Monday and Friday -- we don't eat seafood or lamb, and that left us a little limited those nights.

 

We had requested a table for two, which we received, but the tables are so close together that you end up with tablemates regardless. Fortunately, we had some great ones on this cruise (Hello red bennett, happy clam and cos cob!) We ended up being very happy to have people to chat with at dinner.

 

We dined in Tuscan Grill one night. We both had the filet. I also sampled the spaghetti, which I liked more than the filet. Overall, it was a delicious meal, but it was no better than the food at Blu. Again, the chairs here were plenty comfortable.

 

We also had lunch one day at Bistro on Five. To me, this is a hidden jewel. We had the soup of the day, which was a pasta and vegetable, a chef's salad, a breakfast crepe and a chicken pesto crepe (the Mediterranean). All the food was scrumptious and so light. For dessert, we had the Spanish and the Italian crepes -- yummy. This was one of our favorite meals and certainly worth the $10.

 

We had gelato on a couple of occasions, and it was delicious.

 

We ate "late risers" breakfast just about every morning in the Oceanview Cafe. The food selection was great, and there were no lines. I had my doubts about the waffles -- I mean, really, how good could they be? But they were that good! I had two every morning.

 

One complaint about the Oceanview Cafe -- the pasta bar only had bolognese sauce the first day. It never reappeared. Some days, the options were limited to a tomato sauce and a seafood sauce -- neither was appealing. So I'd have the cook whip up a pesto for me, which suited my tastes better.

 

Oh well, I could go on and on and on -- it was a fantastic trip despite my illness. I'll be happy to try and answer any questions you may have. Thanks for reading!

[paradise08]

Nice review! We were on the same cruise with you and we too enjoyed the musical talents of Jefferson Ang. We loved to listen to him at the Oceanview Bar at sunset. It was just perfect.

 

We also agree with you about the Bistro at Five. A hidden gem. We had a fantastic dinner there on Wednesday night. The soup and salads were great and the crepes were amazing. I can see why Celebrity needed to charge a service fee, with only 30 tables and the amazing food and service, it would be too crowded.

 

Michael and Donna

[Goya_Essence]

Dear Ohhbrother,

 

Welcome back from your trip on the Solstice!

 

Thank you for taking the time to provide such a detailed and thoughtful review of the Solstice. I shall be departing on the 12/21/08 cruise.

 

I have a couple of questions for you:

 

i) Of all the things you saw and did while on board, what is your #1 recommendation?

 

ii) I have also been reading posts about a rather cool and detached crew. Did you find this to be true? (Personally, having sailed with Celebrity seven times, this has never been my experience.)

 

iii) Did the flat screen TV swing out, allowing you to view it while in bed?

 

iv) What was your impression of the on-board activities (e.g., types of activites, variety)?

 

Thanks so much!

 

Best wishes,

Meredith

[ohhbother]

Dear Ohhbrother,

 

Welcome back from your trip on the Solstice!

 

Thank you for taking the time to provide such a detailed and thoughtful review of the Solstice. I shall be departing on the 12/21/08 cruise.

 

I have a couple of questions for you:

 

i) Of all the things you saw and did while on board, what is your #1 recommendation?

 

ii) I have also been reading posts about a rather cool and detached crew. Did you find this to be true? (Personally, having sailed with Celebrity seven times, this has never been my experience.)

 

iii) Did the flat screen TV swing out, allowing you to view it while in bed?

 

iv) What was your impression of the on-board activities (e.g., types of activites, variety)?

 

Thanks so much!

 

Best wishes,

Meredith

 

 

Meredith,

 

To answer your questions:

 

1) Our No. 1 recommendation on board is catching the musicians at locations around the ship -- we enjoyed hearing them by the pool, at Cafe Al Bacio, in the Ensemble Lounge and at the Oceanview Cafe. A close second would be to spend the $5 pp and enjoy Bistro on Five -- the food is heavenly and certainly worth the cost of a Big Mac!

 

2) Our experience with the crew was just the opposite. Everyone made a point of saying hello, and our room steward was attentive without being intrusive. Our wait staff at Blu was friendly and efficient, and the sommelier was wonderful -- I couldn't drink because of the medicine I was taking, but she still came over just to chat every night.

 

3) The flat screen TV does swing out and can be positioned at various angles. You really have to tug on it at first -- if I hadn't read on here that it moved, I wouldn't have pulled hard enough. It's sort of "snapped in," if that makes any sense, and you have to pull hard enough to unsnap it.

 

4) Because I was sick most of the week, we didn't go to a lot of the programs during the day, but some of the topics sounded really interesting. I think we'd have enjoyed the hot glass show more if we'd gotten there early -- we arrived right at starting time, and there were no seats left so we had to stand in the sun. We also only saw bits and pieces of the evening shows in the theater, but the talent level of the performers was comparable to that on Disney and better than those on Carnival and RCCL.

 

Hope this helps!

[Texed]

I had my doubts about the waffles -- I mean, really, how good could they be? But they were that good! I had two every morning.

 

You mean you doubted my word? :eek:

Nice review. :)

[Muushka]

Thank you for your review. Your description of Blu is just what I hoped it would be. I am not a fan of cruise food in the dining rooms, which is why we booked AC, to experience fresh, hot food in Blu.