Just back from Solstice May 25 cruise

[Scotchick]

I will try and keep this as condensed as possible.

 

Embarkation: Excellent, best ever. We arrived at the dock at about 12 o'clock midday and basically just walked on the ship. We had shared a minibus from Rome with two other couples. I think it cost us about 60 Euros each couple. Well worth it.

 

Cabin 9190: Again excellent. First time for us with a balcony. We are now completely spoiled for life and will require a balcony on every cruise in the future. We had Nazareth as our cabin boy and he was extremely efficient. Every time we opened our cabin door, he just seemed to appear there right in front of our open door as if he knew we were about to leave our cabin. It was pure magic. He dealt with our every need in a very efficent and timely manner.

 

The Ship: Fabulous. Exactly to our taste - chrome and glass, not glitzy or brassy like most cruise ships. We were still finding little bars and nooks and crannies right up until we left the ship. My favourite part of the ship was the public washrooms - right up to the minute in style. We had heard some stories about not being able to get a sunbed, but we never had any problem, either on the pool deck or the deck above. Really comfortable sunbeds as well. I think this ship impressed me most for its variety and style.

 

The Food: I am so sorry to say that the food can only be described as mediocre at best. We were so disappointed. It was bland, tasteless and usually COLD. We had been on a Celebrity cruise about 10 or so years ago and had above all remembered the high quality of the food. Not this trip - we were a party of 8 and I don't think anybody had a consistently good word to say about the food. None of us tried the speciality restaurants but we shouldn't have to. We already paid for our food in the main dining room and we expect to get what we paid for. Our waiters were excellent though and did try their best. It was quite obvious that we weren't enjoying the food and they offered to bring us other choices, but one was as bad as the other. They did tell us that there was only one galley on this ship, so this may account for some of the problems. Celebrity needs to be taking a careful look at the quality of the food, as quite often this is a deal breaker when deciding which cruise line to take.

 

Tours: We booked all of our tours privately and particularly enjoyed our tour from Naples of Pompei, Sorrento, Positano and the Amalfi Coast with Rome in Limo. We had Gianni (Johnny) as our driver. He was an updated version of John Travolta in Grease and we had one great day with this young man. So much fun. He also had a wonderful voice. We finished our tour at the dock in Naples with us all singing Volare - it was a scream. I will remember this day for a long time and I have to say that the Amalfi coast is the most wonderful site I have ever seen on any trip.

 

Disembarkation: Again Excellent.

 

Our Stay in Rome: We had an excellent few days seeing all the sites in Rome and even managed to fit in the pope saying mass on the Sunday. I will never forget the young male singing Pannis Angelicus (spelling).

 

All in all, this was the best trip we have ever taken. It is just a pity about the food - it was a really big disappointment for us. It will certainly make us reconsider using Celebrity in the future.

[europe10]

Very nice review. Thank you. I have a question about embarkation at Civitavecchia. After you got your Seapass card, how do you get from the check-in hall to the boarding ramp? Did someone lead you to the ship or is there a marked pathway to the ship? Was there a ramp/stairway onto the ship and at what deck did you enter the ship? Thanks for all your answers.

[Scotchick]

Yes, there are crew and staff there to direct you all the way on to the ship. Can't remember which deck we entered the ship. Once you get on, you are then directed up to the 14th floor to the Ocean View dining area where the buffet was all laid out. Very short time (maybe 3/4 hour until we could access our cabins - a bit longer until our luggage arrived in our cabins though). As I said, excellent embarkation - quite effortless.

[hylasgirl]

I will try and keep this as condensed as possible.

 

Embarkation: Excellent, best ever. We arrived at the dock at about 12 o'clock midday and basically just walked on the ship. We had shared a minibus from Rome with two other couples. I think it cost us about 60 Euros each couple. Well worth it.

 

Cabin 9190: Again excellent. First time for us with a balcony. We are now completely spoiled for life and will require a balcony on every cruise in the future. We had Nazareth as our cabin boy and he was extremely efficient. Every time we opened our cabin door, he just seemed to appear there right in front of our open door as if he knew we were about to leave our cabin. It was pure magic. He dealt with our every need in a very efficent and timely manner.

 

The Ship: Fabulous. Exactly to our taste - chrome and glass, not glitzy or brassy like most cruise ships. We were still finding little bars and nooks and crannies right up until we left the ship. My favourite part of the ship was the public washrooms - right up to the minute in style. We had heard some stories about not being able to get a sunbed, but we never had any problem, either on the pool deck or the deck above. Really comfortable sunbeds as well. I think this ship impressed me most for its variety and style.

 

The Food: I am so sorry to say that the food can only be described as mediocre at best. We were so disappointed. It was bland, tasteless and usually COLD. We had been on a Celebrity cruise about 10 or so years ago and had above all remembered the high quality of the food. Not this trip - we were a party of 8 and I don't think anybody had a consistently good word to say about the food. None of us tried the speciality restaurants but we shouldn't have to. We already paid for our food in the main dining room and we expect to get what we paid for. Our waiters were excellent though and did try their best. It was quite obvious that we weren't enjoying the food and they offered to bring us other choices, but one was as bad as the other. They did tell us that there was only one galley on this ship, so this may account for some of the problems. Celebrity needs to be taking a careful look at the quality of the food, as quite often this is a deal breaker when deciding which cruise line to take.

 

Tours: We booked all of our tours privately and particularly enjoyed our tour from Naples of Pompei, Sorrento, Positano and the Amalfi Coast with Rome in Limo. We had Gianni (Johnny) as our driver. He was an updated version of John Travolta in Grease and we had one great day with this young man. So much fun. He also had a wonderful voice. We finished our tour at the dock in Naples with us all singing Volare - it was a scream. I will remember this day for a long time and I have to say that the Amalfi coast is the most wonderful site I have ever seen on any trip.

 

Disembarkation: Again Excellent.

 

Our Stay in Rome: We had an excellent few days seeing all the sites in Rome and even managed to fit in the pope saying mass on the Sunday. I will never forget the young male singing Pannis Angelicus (spelling).

 

All in all, this was the best trip we have ever taken. It is just a pity about the food - it was a really big disappointment for us. It will certainly make us reconsider using Celebrity in the future.

 

I am so glad you enjoyed the private tour in Naples. There is nothing like a good private tour.

[theboswell]

Can you please let me know how to contact the private tour company you had for Naples? We will be there on the Solstice July 7.

 

Thank you.

[Solstice23]

funny how the ratings from food go from excellent to mediocre ??????

 

LOL......GET OVER IT everyone, I think most people expect to much and sit there an gawk at everything all the time, "ohh on this line its this, on that line its that"

 

I really am getting annoyed with the amount of complaints on food. I realize its subjective, but how can it be from one spectrum to the next. I am not speaking to this review I am just speaking in general. I know there has been cutbacks in areas due to the economy, and the mortgage melt down.....but we did not have that in Canada

 

I hope that the food over all gets better, and thanks for review. My comments about the food reviews are a general comment not towards your review. I am just confused why over all its amazing food to mediocre????? on the same sailing's reviewed????

[Scotchick]

Well, that's because food is so subjective. I am actually British born but have lived in Canada for 30 years and one would expect my tastes to be a bit more blander, but they aren't, not at all. I like hot, tasty food and my biggest complaint with this cruise was that the food was quite the oppostive. I actually see more of a thread running through most of the comments about the Solstice, (not just our cruise) that in general the food was quite bland and not up to par. I did not take your comments personally, but I do feel that when I pay for a cruise, just like anything else, I expect it to be as advertised. Celebrity has been well known in the past for having above average food - I just think that the paying public should be made aware that this is no longer a fact and that if food is a big consideration for you, then be aware of this. I don't choose a cruise for the food, I usually choose a cruise for the itinerary. The itinerary on this cruise was wonderful and could not be faulted in any way.

[Texed]

Thanks for posting.

[7leagueboots]

Nice review..thanks for taking the time:)

[lobster129]

I agree that food in general in the main dining room was disappointing. There were a few items that were quite good to excellent, several things good or acceptable but too many just too bad to eat.

 

Maybe it would be better to not offer such fancy selections and stick to basic things and do them well. I don't know what the new menus will yield, but any change will be an improvement. In many cases, the options available at the oceanview cafe were better than those in the MDR.

 

We were thankful for our reservations in the specialty restaurants. We also selected this cruise for the new ship (beautiful) and the itinerary (fantastic). People worry about gaining weight on cruises...no problem here! (I lost 8 lbs and my DH lost 15)

[Ommadawn]

We were thankful for our reservations in the specialty restaurants. We also selected this cruise for the new ship (beautiful) and the itinerary (fantastic). People worry about gaining weight on cruises...no problem here! (I lost 8 lbs and my DH lost 15)

 

 

Maybe they should keep the food the same, make people walk a lot on the itineraries, make the elevators accessible only to the handicapped and then advertise it as a weight loss cruise. "Lose 20 pounds in 11 days and see the world!" I think that this has potential. :) :) :)

[Scotchick]

Yes, I also lost weight, which is not alltogether a bad thing!!!! I think it was all the walking about that we did at the sites - wish I was still there:(:(:(:(