Back from your Celebrity Sailing? Please write/submit your review... - Page 2

Shirley C · #21 April 30th, 2009, 03:17 PM

Spike 4/19 -- did you happen to go on a tour of the bridge?

Bandit · #22 June 1st, 2009, 02:51 PM

You certainly are qualified and experienced enought to write your review. Your experience is similar to what I have been seeing in the cruise industry for the last four years. The prices for the rooms are falling as well as the quality of the service and aminities. In 2005 I sailed on the beautiful Infinity from Hawai to San Diego. Had a Concierge Class stateroom. Received everything they said came with that class stateroom. If Celebrity wants to continue to say they have award-winning cuisine service and call themselves an upscale line they need to put the passerngers first and not the bottom line. I too, find it was for the bottom line that Celebrity removed the trays from the Lido. It certainly was not for the benifit of the passengers.

I just recently sailed with Royal Caribbean on their Voyager of The Seas. Royal Caribbean has also removed the trays in the Lido on their ships. It has not made it easier for us senior citizens to eat our meals in the Lido. And yes, Celebrity as well as some other lines used to have people their to assit you to your table with your meal. Now that was class. That is the extra mile that makes a "award winning line".

I just recently booked Celebrity's Equinox. I have not sailed Celebrity since my Hawaii cruise. I will be rather disapointed if the service and food has declined as much as you have said in your review. As for the solarinum if it is not open to all passengers then this will be my last cruise with Celebrity. I never use the regular pools because of the noise and sun worshipers. I like my quite spot in the solarinum with no children. I LOVE CHILDREN, but it is nice to get away from them now and then. I'm going to read more reviews on the Solistice Class ships as they come on line and make a decission as to wheather or not I want to keep my booking. I'm trying to keep an open mind. My cruise is about a year away. Thank-you for the heads up and I'm really sorry that you won't be booking Celebrity again. The Martini Bar sounds like a pretty cool place.

Bandit

firstbadger · #23 June 11th, 2009, 09:23 PM

I just booked our 10th anniv cruise on the Celebrity Equinox for May 3 - East. Med. Looking forward to it. I chose the Aquaclass for my wife who, I assume will love the spa, etc. that comes with this class, etc. Whenever someone gets the chance to further review this, please let me know! Most Solistice reviews seem to be positive except the one above. I have until Feb. to adjust my reservation...
I purposely chose a cabin more in the back of the ship to avoid being under the pool area, I assume it will be quieter there.
Any thoughts would be welcomed.
Thanks
Peder

goofymd · #24 June 25th, 2009, 10:18 PM

I hesitate on how I want to write this review- a dilemma erupts in my mind between writing the most helpful review and risking alienating people or writing it in a viewpoint for all. I have opted on the former. I believe the value of the reviews I read is in finding like mindsets. Luckily the world is made up of all kinds of people looking for all kinds of experiences. I have been fortunate enough to travel frequently. I do have high standards and am very critical. This may put off many Celebrity homers. I usually cruise on Crystal, RSSC and Disney (once). While this was my first Celebrity cruise, it was done in an unusual manor- in the Penthouse suite. I have never had a penthouse on my other cruises, so the review won’t be comparing apples to apples. Enough background, on to the review:

So we arrive at the port in Vancouver at around noon, after several fun days in the city. We were informed that all boarding was delayed due to 60 or so cases of Norwalk virus on the previous cruise and the extra cleaning involved. Boarding should ensue in about 45 minutes. Check in went quickly- (mostly done on line), after which we were to sit in a warehouse like area with hundreds of people already checked in. Then, our first nicety, the maitre'd invited us (sans kids) to dine in the Olympic on them the first night. He said he would sign the kids up for the fun factory dinner. Soon they started call groups to go to a second waiting area, before going through customs. We were told to wait, as the butler would escort us personally. After meeting Gene, decked out in full tux, he took us by the waiting masses, up to the front of the line. It was funny watch both my wife and myself, almost shrink into our shirts during this maneuver. It was an embarrassing, but valuable perk.
The suite was fabulous. The pictures do not due it justice especially the master bath. It is huge and gorgeous. I won’t go into more detail about the room, because there are pictures all over the web.
The rest of the ship was similarly gorgeous. Both my wife and I almost simultaneously said this was the most beautiful ship we had ever been on! She was in great shape, with only minor issues which to be honest, I only notice because of the controversy about her shape. Our biggest issue was they would clean the banister constantly on every port day, which I understand due to the infection, but they seemed to dump a bucket of bleach water on them, so not only did it stink, if you touched it, you would be soaked.
Rather than continue day by day, I will highlight certain areas:

Dinning:
Olympic room: a gorgeous setting with an incredible staff how made us feel very special. As a cork dork, I though the wine list was nice (ordered a 02 Pavie) as was the Sommelier. As a foodie, the meal was a nice slow food meal (around three hours) and was very good. Many dishes are prepared tableside, which is more of a show then I need. Being that we don’t eat Meat or Shellfish, most of the “signature” dishes were out of our reach, but we did find plenty of fish dishes we could eat on the menu. We actually enjoyed it enough that we came back another night, and just ordered salads and a piece of fresh fish done as the chief pleased, which was incredible.
Metropolitan (main dining room): again, gorgeous surrounding. We ate here the first time on the second night. The service was very slow- kids were having a hard time waiting (had to finally ask them to bring out the kids food first). The somms service was poor, but he made up for it by playing with the boys and making an origami frog for the 5 y/o. The assistant waiter was a very hard working guy who did his job very well. The main waiter, we didn’t see after we ordered (at which time he seemed very irritated with us not ordering fast enough) until he spilled by older sons strawberry sorbet on his one pair of nice pants (he did apologies as he was running away- I think), then he brought my wife’s entrée out- which was a different fish than she had ordered. (The fish she wanted has a sauce she couldn’t eat. She asked if she could have it without the sauce, he thought that would work, but it turns out they had already poured the sauce on all the fish. Which is fine, but I’d think he could have told her and asked if a fish substitution would be adequate. Luckily they served a fish she could eat- if cooked properly. None of the food was very good. We all had a few bites, then left before dessert. We never returned to the main dining room.
Ocean café: Buffet and cooking stations for all three meals. We ate here a lot more for convince than any other reason. My biggest problem was, I believe because of the viral infection on the previous cruise, there was no self -service. Which would be fine, except, it took forever to get your food- and drinks. The were definite language barriers and we would have to tell the server 3 or 4 times what we wanted, and usually settled for what ever we got. (I had an issue hold up the line even more to re explain that dressing on the side didn’t mean pour it down the center right part of the salad)
The boys liked the waffles in the morning (they were yummy), the pizza bar was a hit at lunch and the stir fry station for dinner.
Rainfall (or waterfall?) café- is an area in the back of Ocean café set up as an alternative restaurant. We ate here 3 times. They served the freshest fish on the ship (picked up in port that day), and the boys could get their food from the Buffet. Highly recommended.
There is also a grill by the Pool (forgot the name). Great fries!! Hot dogs, hamburgers and grill chicken.
By the thalassotherapy pool is a “health lunch spot- this was hit or miss- the general quality of the food was far superior to any other lunch spot, but most of the time was not appealing to us.

Spa: My wife had a few services all of which were very good. Worked out every day- gym and classes (yoga/palates/spinning) were both great. With plenty of equptment including some free weights for me.

General service was below par. I am used to more service oriented line, but it seem many people were “going through the motions”. I do think the level of service was as I expected it to be. No better/no worse.
Butler- Gene- a very nice friendly guy how did his job well but was not extraordinary. Little things- like my youngest liked only chocolate chip cookies as his afternoon snack- which gene forgot half the time (but once did return with some- the other time he said they didn’t have any- which I doubt there were none on the whole ship). I asked for pistachios each afternoon, which I got twice. He continues to bring certain things daily, even though we told him we don’t eat that particular item. All small things, but the good learn and adapt to your needs.
The housekeeper – solome (sp?)- Was great. She was always happy- running out to greet the boys whenever we walked by. Room was kept spotless- even with the boys. She set up the bed, with the proper stuffed animal on the proper bed each night.

The Boys were sad to leave both Gene and Solome at the end of the cruise.

Probably the best event on board was cruising Hubbard glacier- the staff had told me that the captain was daring and wanted to get close, as the weather was nice. We got within 0.2 miles of it. Awesome- we could hear the calving before the ice broke off. They said last cruise they could only get within 1 mile.

I know I’m missing a lot, but I’m tiered of writing. We did not do any excursions except the sled dogs at Segway- which was great. I’ll write more as I think of it.

Grades:
Ship: A+
Suite: A+
Dinning:
Olympic room A
Metropolitan Incomplete/D
Ocean café: C
Rainfall (or waterfall?) café: B
Spa: B+
Butler: B
Housekeeping: A+

Bottom line is we will cruise on Celebrity again.

goofymd · #25 June 27th, 2009, 12:59 PM

ops, I guess I can't read. will post the review properly now.

palex9 · #26 July 1st, 2009, 01:15 PM

Hello All,

just came back a few days ago from a 7 night Alaska trip on the Mercury. This is my 8th cruise. I have been on ships since the 60's on the SS United States, so I guess I can consider myself an old timer...

Anyway, I am not into writing pages and pages of info so in a nutschell:

1) Service was outstanding, from the stateroom attendant that always seemed to know exactly when we left for a meal to come back to a made up room to all staff constantly greeting us with a 'welcome back on board', 'good morning, good evening', etc

2) Restaurant staff (Manhattan) outstanding, incl. the maitre d. Once the waiter knew I liked shrimp cocktail, he brought me not 1, not 2, but 3 servings. Quality and variety were very good. Choice of 6 main courses every night. The Voyager of the Seas, a much larger Royal Caribbean ship, only offer 3! Highlights included escargot, prime rib, lobster tail, crepe suzette, baked alaska and much more.

3) Outside stateroom, deck 8, was OK for 3. Not really roomy, but have been in much more cramped space. Beds, sheets, towels all of good quality. Only gripe: the temperature of the shower had a mind of its own. would constantly go from medium to hot to cool...

4) Entertainment: Grade C, but it all depends on your expectations. A couple singers with very good voices, but still somewhat amateurish decoration and costumes.

5) Buffets on deck 11: Good but not outstanding. Liked the 5pm sushi offerings up there.

6) NO SPECIALTY RESTAURANTS! GREAT, I LOVE IT! ONLY ONE BIG RESTAURANT LIKE IN THE OLD DAYS. I HEARD NO COMPLAINTS ABOUT THIS.

7) Two format nights and smart casual the others in the Manhattan restaurant. Conservative dress code, no tank tops, flip flops, torn clothing etc. Love it! This ensured good manners and behavior. Very few teenager on board, no more than a dozen.

8) Ship excursions: Overpriced as everywhere else. Almost too many to chose from. Among others, we took the 4 glacier helicopter tour, fantastic if you have good weather. The undersea tour in Ketchican was a disappointment, the water is NOT like in the Caribbean, ie somewhat murky, low visibility, no coral reef teeming with fish. Basically a rocky sea bottom with few fish.

9) Spa: Way overpriced. About 2-3 times the land price for some services. Using the hot sea water jacuzzi costs $30 a day! This should be free or cost no more that $10 a day. My understanding is that the spa is not operated by Celebrity but some outside company. They kept calling us in the stateroom to get more massages and what not done, kind of annoying.

All in all, one of my best cruises ever, even though the Mercury itself might use an update with its decor and color schemes.

Nandelion · #27 July 7th, 2009, 03:02 PM

Thanks Goofymd...we sail this Friday on the Millenium! Your was a very helpful review!

lulu1957 · #28 July 7th, 2009, 11:18 PM

Nandelion, we'll catch up with you on the boat, and I'll shake your hand! LOL

Nandelion · #29 July 8th, 2009, 12:28 PM

Lulu! I look forward to meeting you soon! Although I'll be using hand sanitizer before and after I shake your hand! ha ha Can't wait!

magens93 · #30 July 12th, 2009, 09:56 AM

Our recent Alask cruise is going down as miserable! Me, my husband, and our daughter, Zoe (22 months old) were recently on board the Millennium ship heading Northbound- from Vancouver to Seward. We also paid for my husband's sister, Jean. We are Captain Club Members. This Alaska cruise was not a good cruise for a variety of reasons that I will share briefly with you in my email; however, I have requested a phone call from Celebrity... I will be surprised if I get a response.
Upon arrival, the ship was in "Code Red" (we did not know this until after checking into our room and unpacking) and announcements were made daily to "wash our hands"--the crew were cranky and you could hear them say, "a baby!" (not the norm we are used to with Celebrity). We have been on 16 cruises to date (Celebrity, Princess, Royal Caribbean, and Paul Gauguin just last year), and this cruise was alarming especially traveling with a 22 month old. The ship looked dingy - the bleach was dripping off the walls, doors, handles, elevators - myself having extrinsic asthma-I was constantly coughing because the bleach was burning my lungs!! Thank goodness we had a balcony so I could breathe fresh air.

We stayed in room 7208 with a balcony, our first balcony ever on any ship....this was a nice feature and much needed for fresh air. The TV station listed for cartoons in our room NEVER WORKED the ENTIRE CRUISE despite our room attendant kindly calling about this issue! The toddler room - a joke - honestly, there were maybe a dozen toys in there, a BROKEN TV and BROKEN DVD player - it was pathetic - and the staff in the FUN FACTORY were apologetic. I am appalled that this cruise promotes, "FAMILY" yet, nothing about this ship was designed with the family in mind - nothing worked for the little ones.

Because of the "code red," we were not allowed to touch anything. Could not get beverages. It was awful! And the staff in the dining areas were not walking around with coffee refills or any beverages. I had to ask 3 times one morning for a high chair on a cruise that is promoted as a "FAMILY" vacation.

I do not write letters like this ever! But with the recent events of our family vacation and only vacation this year and the EXTREME cost of this Alaska cruise, we suffered! I am very disappointed and feel as though I did not have a vacation at all - it was so extremely disappointing. We feel as though we haven't been on vacation! A VERY PRICEY VACATION AT THAT!!!!

Sincerely, Linda

lulu1957 · #31 July 18th, 2009, 05:40 PM

Did you enjoy the cruise? We had a good time; did not care for main dining room...had a wonderful dinner in the Olympic and ate 3 nights at the alternative dining on 10th floor..wonderful wonderful seafood!

Welcome home; hope you made it there safe!

lulu1957 · #32 July 18th, 2009, 05:43 PM

Linda, we are just back from room 7206 on Millie..my parents were in 7208. WE had the opposite experience....no Noro on the ship so everything was open..clean..working and pleasant.

My only major disappointment was the food in the dining room.

I would agree thought, that this is not the trip for families..we had teens from 12 to 23 in our group of 15...and they were some of the only people in this age group. I would definately recommend a more 'family' cruise ship and itenerary for families.

Nandelion · #33 July 19th, 2009, 04:59 PM

Hi all!
We had a wonderful cruise! Still very tired from the travel back from Anchorage. I agree with Lulu (by the way...HI LULU!) that I would recommend another line for a family cruise, this was definitely more for grown ups!
After reading the boards I was extremely concerned about the presence of norovirus and the staffs precautions and to my utter delight there was nothing. Only at the buffet was SOME of the food dished out by the staff, but then again at any nice buffet I go to it's that way anyway so I didn't see anything out of the norm. No runny bleach stains, I got my own drinks, handled my own salt and pepper shakers.
I'll write a longer review soon- there's so much to say.
Just wanted to say hi to the Cruise Critics that I met during our party...
We were the "moose call" group...and since he said they read the boards...HI JAMES!!!! (Cruise Director)

hideawaycruiser · #34 July 21st, 2009, 09:12 AM

Thanks for your encouraging words. We too (group of #12) are anxious about the Noro as some of our group are elderly, others have never cruised before and we want a memorable experience. Some things you just have to deal with a positive attitude and overlook the inconveniences. How was the weather, much rain? We are excited and the comments make our lifetime dream much more of a reality. Appreciate any other info you have to share about the Millie or Alaska cruise/land tour. This is our first Celebrity cruise, but have done several with RCL and love cruising.

Nandelion · #35 July 21st, 2009, 02:45 PM

Still tired from the trip and jet lag....

We had beautiful weather the entire trip. Was in the 80's for most of our stops. Very unusual weather for Alaska we were told. Once we hit Icy Strait Point it started to get overcast and a little chilly and of course when we were at Hubbard Glacier it was very chilly (but they constantly are offering you their special hot chocolate in commemorative mug while we were there). Hubbard Glacier was spectacular- we saw the glacier calve many times and the captain actually "spun" the ship around a couple of times so that everyone had a good vantage point (how he did that amazes me).

The food in the Olympic was truly amazing! You must, must have the goat cheese souffle- it is to die for. The main dining room was "okay"- service was superb, the food nothing to write home about. Not bad, but not what I'd expected.

A hideaway that we found was the bar at the aft of the ship outside of the buffet. Beautiful view and lots of tables. Our group was constantly out there- look for a waitress named Sandra. She was great!

The shows were okay- the singers and dancers are talented. I just like a little more variety.

The ship is beautiful, and the casino definitely pays out. My sister won almost $2,000 during the cruise!!!

Have a great trip! And say hi to the Millie for me!

lulu1957 · #36 July 21st, 2009, 10:47 PM

I would agree with Nan..but we also found the gem of 'alternative dining' upstairs by the buffet at night.....they turn part of the buffet area into a seafood restaurant...fresh cooked fish every day. It was wonderful.....and the goat cheese souffle..and everything else in Olympic was amazing.

Never did shows.....didn't do the casino.....and find Tania in the casino..tell her Ryan (Michael!) sends his love!

Geobill99 · #37 July 31st, 2009, 10:13 AM

My wife and I are first time cruisers and although unfamiliar with the terrain (or seascape as the case may be) I will venture several opinions in this review that I hope will be helpful to any cruisers – newbie and seasoned alike. Firstly the Celebrity Solstice is a remarkably sophisticated ship with an adult flavor (no rockwalls - no water slides) and a staff that caters to your every need and want. It makes you think of what elegant cruising may have been like back in the days of regular transatlantic crossings.

To begin, we arrived at Rome FCO airport on the 16th of July ex NYC JFK via Alitalia airlines. Those who may have followed my luggage concerns on CruiseCritic over Alitalia’s 11 lb carry-on restrictions need not worry to much as passengers on our ½ full evening flight going and full early afternoon flight returning to NYC ex Rome FCO were not scrutinized much and I could have walked on with a steamer trunk going to Rome and no one would have noticed. Just kidding of course but with that said I would not take the chance as one lady was stopped at boarding in Rome with a piece over 11 lbs. But everybody seemed to have large bulky luggage boarding that I am sure weighed well over 11 lbs. I still would follow our plan and check 3 pieces thru and have 2 carry-ons each person placing one smaller piece, with critical essentials you need to board with, inside the larger piece (also filled around with personal items around the edges) plus the smaller second carry-on you are allowed. If stopped at boarding than just pull out the smaller piece from the larger carry-on and redistribute your belongings giving the larger piece now to the attendant to check thru as your 4th allowable piece of checked luggage. Now you both walk on with your 2 allowable and legal pieces of carry-on luggage. The weight and size restrictions have penalties that are high, starting at 50 Euros and going up as high as 150 Euros for a third piece of checked luggage pp with weight and size penalties applying on top of that! I fretted many a night over this I don’t see an alternative plan with Alitalia accept for booking with another Airline whose weight carry-on restrictions can be as high as 30 lbs! I am not so much a seasoned air passenger but I see I may have to go back to school for another degree – this one on the science of airline luggage requirements or how to beat the system at their own game. Both flights were smooth, fast and my luggage arrived with me so I am not going to complain...for now.

My wife and I, along with a friend we met on CC and arranged to meet at FCO, transferred to the port city of Civitavecchia and stayed at the Hotel Bramante. Please remember that the 45 minute transfer will run 110-140 Euros depending on the transfer company you may use so get on the CC boards early to arrange to share your ride if you are so inclined. The Hotel Bramante is a wonderful boutique style hotel - modern and clean - with a full breakfast and within walking distance of several beaches and the port promenade which caters to a lively night time crowd mingling between many nicely decorated restaurants. The hotel staff was kind and attentive and the owner even gave us a lift to our restaurant engagement at the port. We dined with several of our new cruise mates and then we strolled the promenade, stopped for some gelato, people watched all those that came out at 10 pm to be seen, strolled out on a walkway jetty to catch the cool summer nighttime breeze off the Mediterranean Sea and on the way back to the promenade eyed a Salsa dance party/instruction on a make shift dance floor on the beach! Very cool.

We boarded the Solstice the next day about 1 pm. The Hotel Bramante offers a free transfer (about 10 minutes away) to dockside. Checking in was a breeze. We got to our room and our luggage followed about an hour later. BTW, I did not take any notes or keep a journal here so I am doing all of this by memory. Keeping a vacation journal is not a bad idea. My good friends, SandG, whom we met on the CC boards and later teamed up with on several private tours, just wrote me to say how from the journals that S keeps, they visited the same pensions in Switzerland a few years ago that they had stayed at on their honeymoon some years earlier! Now that is record keeping. As this cruise overall was wonderful and very memorable it should not be difficult to recall the highlights and I will try my best to be informative.

We were fortunate enough to secure a cabin in Aqua Class and although the difference in Aqua Class and most of the other veranda cabins are negligible there does exist several difference that are noticeable. Room size, veranda and bathrooms are the same size. The main differences are that in Aqua Class you get a fresh fruit plate each day, a plate of several tiny finger food selections that we canceled, the towels which are very fluffy and luxurious, the bathrobes which are waffled and thick and the shower has a large diameter rainfall shower head with 5 water jets along a vertical unit that runs parallel to your body and pulsates water at your body from knee to chest. I didn’t think those jets would make much of an impact but I have to admit I became attached to my showering regiment after the first time. The fruit was nice and you can take them out with you on port excursions but you can easily go up to the Ocean View Café and accomplish the same result. Two bottles of water are supplied each day but I understand that also occurs at the other cabin classes. Other than that there is not much difference. If you are as lucky as we were and found the cabin price drop to $100 difference between Concierge Class and Aqua Class then why not go for it. Do check on line with CelebrityCruise.com every day for price fluctuations. Our good friends, JSpirit and SandG, whom we met on-line with CruiseCritic, looked out for us and got us considerable savings several times by just checking and being aware. I learned a good lesson on that front. If I told you I saved $2000 would you believe me? Believe it. There are other amenities advertised with Aqua Class such as priority tender boarding and disembarking but that never was an issue for us.

Some how the cabin staff knew exactly when you would be stepping out of you cabin for a spell and when you returned your bed was made and your personal things put in a neat and orderly arrangement for your convenience. I will say that the mini bar was nicely stocked and reasonably priced…$2.50 for a coke if I am not mistaken. If you are like me a do not drink alcohol you may do as I did not and ask for the alcohol in the mini bar to be removed to make more room in the mini bar for other items. Sometimes I just end up doing things the hard way and it drives my wife crazy.
Your bed is also turned down each night while you are out of the cabin with chocolates left out on the bed for most class cabins.

If there are just two of you and you have global capabilities on your cell phones you may want to consider purchasing an extra wide spaced 4 outlet 3 prong power strip to accommodate chargers and the like. Monster makes one that I found to work well so that you can charge 2 cell phones, a digital camera and camcorder at the same time easily. You can pick it up at Radio Shack for less than $10! Here you can see for yourself:

Monster MP OTG400 BK Outlets To Go Power Strip, 4 AC Outlets (Black)

A few of us in our on-line “cruise crew” group got the power strip and it worked well.

There is plenty of storage space in the cabins. Besides closet and drawer space, there is an above the bed cabinet storage area and under the bed storage. In the bathroom there are 5-6 storage shelves to accommodate most of your sundries. I have heard some people complain about the closet space. I can’t quite understand that. No one should do what I did, as a newbie, anyway, and over pack. I had to have one suitcase open as storage due to my own over indulgence. It was ok but no need to over do it like that again Normally speaking the closet is more than adequate to accommodate anyone’s average 10 day stay at sea. After all, you are not relocating to Las Vegas like I was pretending to, as my DW insisted.

The tv has a good selection of movies, news and comedy. My only complaint is I wish the remote control and tv were more responsive. Channel changing and volume are slow but I think that is inherent either in the signal or the electronics of an LCD tv. I find the same thing on my big screen at home. Sometimes I miss the my big box JVC TV set as I could fly around the channels with my remote.

Now let’s look at the dining. For breakfast you have several choices. Room service is fantastic. You can call at 7 AM and have you breakfast delivered to your room, with everything you requested, by 7:30 AM and dining on your veranda by 7:35 AM with the Mediterranean Sea racing by under your feet or inside the caldera at Santorini facing the cliff town of Fira or viewing the walled Old City at Rhodes harbor. Either way it is a wonderful way to start the day.
Or you can breakfast at the Ocean View café with a huge selection of items to choose from. Or if you are In Aqua Class you can breakfast off a complete menu in the Blu Restaurant with waiter service from 7:30 AM to 9 AM. There are also smaller venue cafes around the ship from which to choose a light breakfast.

Lunch is self serve at the Ocean View Café or at the other smaller venues like the Bistro at 5 with waiter service or the pool side cafes. Crepes to steak are available with much to choose from in between.

Dinner is a very special experience as you can imagine. Formal days are normally the 2 sea days on a 10 day cruise…day 3 and day 9. But that is always at the discretion of the Ships Captain/Master. Formal wear is tux/suit for men and cocktail dress, gown or dressy pant suit for ladies. I will try and make this brief by only saying that each of the 5 major restaurants, the MDR – open to all; Tuscan (Italian), Morano (French) and Silk Harvest (Asian)– each from $20 -30 pp, and Blu – similar to MDR with a varied cuisine but only available to Aqua Class passengers, are all wonderful dining experiences in their own right. All restaurants are all you can eat. The dining service in each is impeccable. Your courses are delivered promptly, the waiter staff is very friendly and remembers your particular likes and requirements readily, the maitre d’ and ass’t maitre d’ make a point of coming to your table to chat with you each evening and seconds are always available for every course. If you want try the fish and pasta main courses at the same time, than you may. And this all holds true for each of the 5 restaurants I mentioned above. I will have to leave the wine review for someone else as I don’t drink alcohol but if my 6th sense is as sharp as I would hope I would venture to guess that whatever your grape requirement may be I am pretty sure that your tastes can be accommodated. The MDR has a 3 story high wine silo rising off the main floor in the middle of the MDR! Also each of the 5 main restaurants has their own dedicated kitchen. You can read about the other smaller dining venues in on-line reviews thru google. Bistro At 5, that has a $5 cover charge for all you can eat, is also a fine dining facility for light fare including delicious crepes. I have said before here on CC that I do not run in fine dining circles very often in NYC where I live. I have dined with clients (before I started teaching mathematics I worked in the marketing departments of several Steamship lines including Italian Lines) over the years at such wonderful eateries as Peter Luger Steakhouse in my adopted borough of Brooklyn (I was born and raised in Manhattan), Windows On The World at the late 1WTC, the old Quilted Giraffe, 21 Club, and One If By Land, arguably the most romantic restaurant in NYC. I would feel comfortable with going out on a limb by saying any of the main restaurants on the Solstice, even the huge MDR, could rival the best NYC restaurants in cuisine and service. Anybody that thinks differently reminds me of the girls my mother would warn me about…the clothes label “blanks”. To such people only popularity, such as to see and be seen, becomes the most meaningful reason to dine, regardless of the service or cuisine. Don’t let that fool you. These restaurants on the Solstice are top notch. But which food critic in their right mind would dare rate a cruise ship restaurant highly. They would be laughed off the planet. Oh well…let it be our secret then. I guess I did have a lot to say about dining.

Unfortunately I cannot comment about much of the entertainment. I had a late dining seating (8:45PM) and coming off land tours at 5PM often had my wife and I missing the early show due to the exhaustion of 110 degree weather at Ephesus for example (don’t get me wrong, I am not complaining. It just is what it is) and then dining through the late show. I did catch 2 shows in the Solstice theatre. One was a series of well choreographed and adeptly sung past and present Broadway show tunes (I am sorry, I do not remember the show title) in a montage format that would rival any Off Broadway production. Being from Manhattan I have some exposure to that level of entertainment. And the other is a show called Pulse that is a Cirque du Soleil type show. I have seen CDS in Montreal and Las Vegas several times and they are the standard. I also have seen the CDS show that comes to NYC’s Randalls Island each spring and I would say that the Solstice Pulse show is better than the NYC CDS show. Those performers, on the Solstice multi million dollar techno stage, are truly marvelous athletes and entertainers and could easily step into any real CDS performance, I am sure.

I have heard that people did miss the old tried and true hypnotist on many cruise ships. A fun thing to experience I am sure. And also some had commented that they would have liked to see a more risqué adult type comedian at a late show. No matter what your moral bent some of those jokes can be downright side splitting.

Finally, I will briefly (that is plan at least) comment on the ports visited on this 10 day Eastern Mediterranean cruise. Most of the ports have been reviewed extensively on CC and other internet sites. I will only attempt to be informative and helpful in my commentary here.

In Sicily, Taormina is a must see unless you have family there to visit with. Syracusa and Catania are a bit out of reach for a short day tour and Palermo is not really a worthwhile touristy spot. I give myself permission to say that as I am part Sicilian. So opposite of what Horace Greely wrote, “Go east young man”.

Athens – The Athenians are wonderful friendly and generous people. The Acropolis is MUST. It is the cradle of western civilization and awe inspiring. The Plaka shopping and dining district is a pleasant diversion. If time permits the Nat’l Archeological Museum is wonderful and just as important is the brand new Archeological Museum open last month just outside the Acropolis/Plaka area. The downside is that Athens needs a face lift. Everybody comments on that and you will see it for yourself. It is worn and graffiti ridden and the housing is box like gray units reminding you of a failed attempt at socialism. It is a shame. Such a wonderfully historic venue filed with lovely, vibrant and fun loving people living in such a drab surroundings. Now let us go to Rhodes and compare the differences.

Rhodes - As soon as you step off the ship into Old Town and travel 20-30 km inland you noticed several things immediately starting at Old Town and continuing out to the outskirts of town. Everywhere the greenery and flora (EVERYWHERE!) is freshly cut and manicured. The trees and bushes are all trimmed nicely. The streets are immaculately clean. They must have little gremlins that come out at night to landscape the island! This is an inviting island that wants you visiting it again and again. Everywhere that you look invites you to come back again. The houses and apartment buildings are colorful, clean and modern looking – all with an inviting character. It is probably the most pleasant place to roam freely on this cruise….taking nothing away from Santorini and Mykonos. But when you think about Rhodes and the turmoil it has gone through over the ages and being conquered over and over again by all of the cultures surrounding it on the Mediterranean perimeter, you have to admire the resiliency of these people who continue to want to live well and with pride. It is wonderful to appreciate. I think it is a remarkable culture there that I really cannot begin to understand. I will leave it to all the historians out there that can maybe explain it better to me here on CC.

Kusadasi – My friend recently came back from a single masted ship cruise along the Turkish coast and when I mentioned we would be docking in Kusadasi he made a face and said that it was a rundown, dirty port city in turkey. I disagree and he was never in Kusadasi. I think he was reading a 20 yr old travel book. If you YouTube search Kusadasi you will see for yourself it is an area that has made itself over to be inviting to foreign tourists. We drove through it and found Kusadasi to be clean, surprisingly modern with well manicured greenery and a comfortable sandy beach front with new restaurants and the obligatory Turkish bazaar. You want a bargain...it could be found here. But be prepared to haggle. Hang in there. The Turks are good salesman, aggressive salesman and hard bargainers. But once you crack the veneer you open the door to some fantastic bargains. Don’t be afraid to walk away. You may or may not get your price but around the corner is the same item you wanted originally and you start the bidding all over again. Make it a game, don’t be pressured and you can’t go wrong….even if you have to walk away. Sometimes you win by doing just that.

Ephesus – An amazing ancient site with well preserved ruins including the 3 rd largest library in the ancient world outside of Alexandria and Constantinople. There is plenty to see here. Before September bring plenty of water with you. It was 110 degrees when I was there last week and the heat was tough on some people. My wife and I are both 50+ and we both made it through so I am sure most of you can also. Just be prepared with water, light clothing, good walking shoes and a towel to wipe your face of perspiration. Search YouTube for Ephesus and see for yourself the wonders of these ruins. And don’t forget to catch YT’s Elton John 2007 Concert at the Great Amphitheatre ruins at Ephesus – especially “Honky Cat” with a great 5 minute piano solo.

Mykonos/Santorini – I want to lump these two beautiful islands together even though they have 2 very different landscapes. I am sure you know a great deal about both places already but if you want to reinvigorate your knowledge of both places please do a search on YT again and you will see all you need to know about these two magnificent stops on this cruise. I will say that there is an internet site, www. Cruisett.com/index.php, that will give you a listing of all the ships that will be in any given port when the Solstice is anchored there and the times of each ship’s arrival and departure at that port. This can be very valuable info for you especially in Santorini which is the only tendered port on this itinerary. The number of ships in any port will affect all the transportation networks of that port and will affect you debarkation times and return plans to the ship. But a tendered port you need to pay special attention to. Let me share my experience in Santorini with you.

The Solstice was the only ship in Santorini harbor that day. NP, right? Wrong. We left the ship about 9:30 AM, a leisurely time to disembark, and took a public bus to Kamari beach (bring your beach water shoes there – it is very pebbly and the stone are very hot. The water, although beautiful, is rocky along the bottom by the shore. At 2 PM we headed to Oia by bus for lunch and arrived at King Neptune’s Restaurant overlooking the caldera...a gorgeous view, very good service and fine food. We lingered knowing there was a 4:05 and 4.35 bus to return us to Fira for the cable car ride back down to the last tender, if need be, at 5:30PM. Hey...if I miss the 4:05 and get nervous I have the 4:35 bus or just call a taxi, right? Just like midtown Manhattan! Well, we miss the 4:05 and I start to worry. I am 20 minutes away from Fira and a 15 minute walk from the bus station to the cable cars at Fira. At Oia’s bus stop there are no taxi’s to be found or radioed for. One taxi comes at 4:25 and a family grabs it. We wait. I know there are only about 30 taxis on Mykonos so Santorini is probably nearly as bad. The bus comes promptly at 4:35 but wait a minute...the driver has to make an unscheduled stop and will be back in 10 minutes. 15 minutes later he arrives and we are on our way at 4:50PM. The bus is making stops along the way and I am frantic so I place a call to Celebrity Cruises in Florida! I know some of you are laughing now but what does one do when you are on the bus and your ship is ready to leave! I want Celebrity to call the ship and tell them of my plight so they can hold the ship (even I am laughing now). They can’t do that. As far as I know the only person that can do that is the port Captain whose phone number is listed on Celebrity’s daily scheduling brochure…EXCEPT FOR SANTORINI! Are you reading this Celebrity? As I plead with them on the phone the bus pulls into the Fira bus station at 5:15PM. Gotta go. I hang up and jump off the bus with the Mrs. I have 15 minutes to make the 15 minute walk to the cable car and my wife is reeling from the heat. She can’t walk anymore. A TAXI!! happens by and we jump in – as if an angel was at the dispatcher’s desk. He leaves us a block from the cable car station as automobiles can’t fit down that street. We jump out and my wife hobbles with my help to the cable car and we fall into it. Another couple is in the gondola ahead of us are also trying to get back to the ship and they are yelling at the cable operator to start the cable cars down! It is now 5:25 PM and the cars start to lumber down the side of the caldera. We all jump out at the bottom and there no tender to be seen! But there is a small obscure boat with two Solstice crew members waiting for us and 4 other people whom, promptly show up a minute later...it is now 5:35 PM and by walkie talkie it is verified that all 2800 passenger are now accounted for...we being the last 6 to leave on the under size tender used to deliver the dry goods to the ship. We made it. If there was one more ship in that harbor and another 2000 people roaming the island I would be writing you this review from a chaotic and sweaty Athens airport trying to arrange an overpriced flight to Naples to catch the ship and me cussing a blue streak! So please, do NOT make my mistake and give yourself plenty of time...especially if there are other ships in port...tender or not.

Naples / Amalfi Coast / Pompeii – Pick ur pleasure. Sorrento, Capri, Positano, Ravello, Amalfi, Pompeii or Naples. We did mostly private tours on this cruise with people we befriended on Cruise Critic early in our planning. Early February we started emailing each other...JSpirit, SandG, IHateClaims and Teechor...they were our core group at the beginning. I would advise any of you reading this to hook up as early as possible with a group to tour with privately and split the expenses if that is the way you want to tour. It gets hectic on the boards as time approaches for departure. In this port we chose to take the ships tour to Sorrento (we made it back to Sorrento as the song promises) and Pompeii, which we missed on our last trip to Italy. After our hair-raising experience on Santorini a few days before, you can imagine my relief just to lay back and relax knowing a ship’s tour will not leave a bus full of passengers behind if it can help it. Again, Pompeii...very hot…bring water! Nearly all Naples tours are all day to get to these places of interest. If you have never been to the towns mentioned above on the Amalfi Coast then that should be a priority unless you prefer the sights of the ill plagued excavated city of Pompeii. It is quite remarkable to see it for yourself. I think there may be a ships tour that includes both the Amalfi Coast and Pompeii. I had friends that did a private tour along the Amalfi Coast and came back by ferry from Sorrento to Naples. That sounds delightful and they said that they had a great time.

I don’t know what else to relate so I just want to tell you that I have not met anybody yet that has had a bad experience on this itinerary for the Solstice. Everybody has had glowing comments on their experiences on the Solstice and its ports of call on this itinerary. It was a fabulous experience and for first time cruisers as are I and my wife, we are just stunned at the quality of service, wonderful dining experiences and fun activities on the Celebrity Solstice as well the wonderful ports of call and their historical significance. BTW, there is this little town called ROME that you will happen to leave from and return to. Be sure to give yourself some time at the front end or back end of your cruise itinerary to enjoy the sights and Italian cuisine of Rome.

One quick final anecdote. I am visiting Rome several years back and the control addict that I am, I have tickets for everywhere (rail, musuems and venues) and reservations for opera and restaurants, in my hand, and all made by myself on the interne for an 18 days backpacking journey with my wife from Lake Cuomo, thru Venice to The Amalfi Coast and much in between. I have my tickets for the Rome Coliseum one afternoon and as we approach the gates of the massive structure the guards start to close and lock the old venue up! I am waving my tickets screaming that this can’t be. “Oh yes it be sir”, they told me. “Big soccer game today and everybody is going home to watch it on tv, goodbye Sir”. You have got to love the Italians for their passion for life. Well, it’s like the world series of soccer in Italy that day…the national championship game, winner take all….Milan vs Rome. Rome wins...the city goes crazy and parties all night. The wife and I have a blast that night partying with the winning side but I missed my chance at visiting the Coliseum. Now I got to come back again to Rome and I didn’t waste my chance this time to visit the Coliseum. We did a full guided tour. I thought maybe if I miss it again...no big deal. But entering and wandering through and around the interior of the Coliseum only affirms the grandeur that once was Rome and western Civilization. I think it is the single most impressive ancient structure on this entire cruise. If you can, don’t miss visiting the Coliseum.

I am not the best proof reader so please excuse any words out of place.

Finally I would like to mention my cruise crew again. Fine cuisine, ancient ruins and ship amenities are fine but the lasting impression and the intangible that always makes the difference to a successful journey are the relationships that you forge along the way. There would be a definite hole in my entire experience on this cruise if it weren’t for the friendships made before, during and after our cruise with our new friends of the “Cruise Crew” mentioned above, all wonderfully thoughtful and generous people, plus those that we came to call part of our “crew” later on.…Kevin and Susan, Lisa and Dale and their kids, along with SandG’s daughter Caity, Joe and Maria and Pam and Sandy. What an awesome group. Thanx again to all of you for making this first time cruise experience so memorable for Susan and I. And for the rest of you waiting your time to depart remember the words of my main cruise man, Sam….plan hard then sit back and relax because it’s gonna be a hoot! Enjoy. Ciao.

GeoBill99 and PMSusan99

idratherbesailing · #38 August 5th, 2009, 07:29 PM

I wish we had been on your sailing, just for the chance to meet you and your wife Susan. (we are not New Yorkers but I am a 1971 graduate of FIT aka Fashion Institute) But alas we sail on your very same Celebrity Solstice itinerary, aqua class on September 18th. Thank you so much for your terrific review. We are veteran cruisers (28 in all) and your's is one of the most complete, informative, SOMETIMES HUMOROUS, reviews we have ever read. With Appreciation. Idratherbesailing

Geobill99 · #39 August 6th, 2009, 02:52 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by idratherbesailing

I wish we had been on your sailing, just for the chance to meet you and your wife Susan. (we are not New Yorkers but I am a 1971 graduate of FIT aka Fashion Institute) But alas we sail on your very same Celebrity Solstice itinerary, aqua class on September 18th. Thank you so much for your terrific review. We are veteran cruisers (28 in all) and your's is one of the most complete, informative, SOMETIMES HUMOROUS, reviews we have ever read. With Appreciation. Idratherbesailing

YW, idratherbesailing! Thank you so much for your kind words. Septemeber should be a lovely month to sail the Med. I am sure you will have a fantabulous time. Coming from cruise vets like urselves your supportive words leaves me speechless. Very thoughtful of you to write that. FIT...right smack in the heart of Manhattan - 27th st. and 7th ave. to be exact. My wife and I started out 27 years ago together on 23rd st. and 8th ave. in a 300 sq. ft. studio apt. with a low boy refrigerator...for 8 yrs to save money for a home of our own! Now you live smack in the middle of the country..or almost. From Manhattan, NYC to Oklahoma...an intersting juxtapose I suppose. I graduated '71 also, from Bradley U. in Peoria, Ill. so I have some midwest experience, that I still cherish.

I wrote a follow up to my review on the CC July 17 thread only to mention the Pantheon as being a jaw dropping experience to walk into and look up at the ceiling and also the catering to that we received on the Solstice (especially in the dining facilities) that made this guy from the lower east side of Manhattan feel every bit as pampered as the next person on board. I think it takes a certain training of the staff to pull that off so well and indiscriminatly. My hats off to Celebrity for that.

Again, thanks for the kind words and I hope your cruise on the Solstice is as memorable for both of you as it was for us. Wow..28 and counting. That is amazing.

Ciao until we chat again.

Geobill

Herb44 · #40 August 8th, 2009, 12:05 PM

We're sailing on the Equinox (Oct 23/09) for the "Ancient Empires" itinerary. We just got upgraded to the Aqua Class (Penthouse Deck) w/o our request, but we can backout until COB Monday, Aug 10.

Thanks for your great review! Several of our concerns about our upcoming trip on the Equinox were resolved, but we have a few others. We need your HELP!!

In reading your review, you didn't note any noise issues from the deck above; were there any? Another cruiser also noted numerous issues with the "aromas" from the Sauna; did this present any issues for you? Other than the shower, there didn't appear to be any advantages to the Aqua Class.

About formal nights: did you participate in both? I'm very anti, but my wife is ambivalent. Is there any place to eat if one opts out (without paying extra? Are there set meal times in the Blu Restaurant for Aqua Class? How was the vertical movement (elevator) between the Penthouse and Entertainment Decks? It looks pretty nasty.

I've also got some concerns about breakfasts: early breakfasts are in the Oceanview Cafe. We just did a B2B on NCL's Jade, where there also were no trays, and found the experience horrendous.

In comparison, we are/were booked on the Vista Deck. Thus, the choices are to think about paying the extra tariff for the Blu (my sister is already booked and prefers up there) vs. staying where we are/were. It seems like a waste of $$, but there just isn't much info out there to do a real comparison.