South Pacific - Australia Cruise Reviews

The cruise was very nice,the ship cleaned and well maintained. The food was good and the service really good on the main dining Grand Epernay but the food was poor quality on the Ocean view cafe.The stateroom was OK and the service really good in the cabin, well cleaned. The entertainment was really not at at a level we expected for Celebrity,especially for Christmas time. ( especially shows at the Theater)  . But the worst will be our experience at the jewelry shop.We bought a Tag Heuer watch ( 3000 US$value).After 2 days and a visit at the pool,the watch was full of water ( supposed to be a diving resistant), they did not want to repair or exchange the watch ( still have one in stock). This event has ruined a part of our cruise experience. The manager of the shop,a turkish girl was not professional at all. Those people are not able to manage a shop with luxury brands and are not a good publicity for those brands. 

If we hadn't cruised on Celebrity before, then our last cruise might have been totally satisfactory.  But the fact is, we have cruised on Celebrity many times before, where we have reached elite status on its loyalty program, as well as on three other cruiselines, and we preferred Celebrity because of its service, dining, entertainment, and general passenger make-up.  That Celebrity we knew is gone. 

The food is bland, even in the specialty restaurants.  Other long-time Celebrity passengers on board had the same comment.  Service in the formal dining room is acceptable, but the flair that the experienced waiters had before is no longer there.  Even the formal nights had been eliminated.  The nightly entertainment in the theatre was for a much younger generation, the mature clientele that Celebrity is supposed to have.  My luggage was damaged on disembarkation, and that would not have been a big deal if only the Celebrity staff gave me the correct information in the first place.  But the fact is, a Celebrity official on shore during disembarkation told me to wait as a replacement would be given to me (which I found surprising as I did not think the ship would be carrying an inventory of luggage).  After over 30 minutes of waiting and wasting my time, another Celebrity staff came after I asked what was happening and told me to fill up a claim form, which did not take more than couple of minutes.  So what should have taken five minutes took 45 minutes.  Cruising on Celebrity is just no longer what it used to be.

The Celebrity Solstice main dining room tables are way too close - feel as if we are packed like sardines. The fish and meat were over cooked. The size of most dishes are also smaller than before. It's a shame.

Overall, we enjoyed this Cruise.  However, there were some issues.  I really think Royal Caribbean needs to put some more time and planning in the shore excursions, especially in Cairns, Port Hedland and Darwin 

Our cabin needed some updating, but was okay. 

We did enjoy meeting and talking to the Australians we met at meals and other sites on the ship.

The wait staff and room steward were great.

First of all, the ship's atmosphere was tense due to the sanitation issues from the previous cruise....being served at the buffet and always being reminded of the health concerns was stressful.  The staff was polite and efficient but overall there was a cloud of heaviness.  The captain was personable and available which is a positive.   The cruise director was fake - really did not have an engaging personality as he introduced the performers....sounded rote rather than real.  Other cruises I have been on had cruise directors who were cheerleaders and fun......

Room Steward was pleasant, efficient, personable.....Food was OK.....took the galley tour and got ill the next day so don't know for sure what that was about but lost a day at the reef?????

Really like Celebrity. Have sailed on the Solstice before. Ship really needs new furniture, especially on deck ( worn,some torn, faded). Food was not special in any way in dining room. Guess this is to force you to use the speciality restaurants for added costs. Cafe was much Better. Overall, you can't beat the service onboard. Due to weather a lot of indoor time was experienced. Lots of nice people with a seat hard to come by in thr public areas.

I had a wonderful experience on this cruise. The ambiance of the ship, the dedication of the staff, and the Itinerary were excellent.The destinations were very interesting. I was particularly impressed with the sailing in the sounds and the fjords Which were the best in the world. 

What a fabulous cruise.

We thoroughly enjoyed everything and were treated like VIPS wherever we went. We did not expect to have such a wonderful time on such a huge vessel and we were quite wrong.

Our only disappointment would be a wine tasting ( world wine)which we found to be a bit haphazard and a "free for all". However, this id simply constructive criticism only as it did not in any way reflect on everything else which we enjoyed to the full. We were particularly grateful to have met such fabulous staff ( those we found to be exceptional are named below). They are all to be applauded as they helped to make this one of our best cruises ever.

We will continue to use & recommend Celebrity highly.

internet was bad, too bad to be able to use, web pages and e-mail wouldn't load, yet no refund; they try to take every last penny from you, whether they deserve it or not. $3.25 for a small bottle of water? Really? The excursions run from mediocre to terrible. Food is monotonous. Service staff - room attendants, etc. - generally very good. Unreasonable to charge $8.00 to be able to get fountain soda (and up to $22/day or more for other soft drink packages.). Entertainment ranged from good to bad, but unfortunately most of it was very, very bad. They cater to "Diamond Club" members who have full use of the best lounge (only one where you can really see out) to the detriment of the rest of the passengers (like me).  You can look at the food on RCI to see how they cut corners - no veal, for example, in any dishes -they substitute cheaper pork. Medical staff is not smart enough to figure that if they taped open the rest room doors that would decrease the chance of transmission of norovirus, a problem on cruise ships and on this cruise ship as well.

Our 5th HAL cruise and 2nd on the Noordam. We were not disappointed. The service and dining on the boat were both fantastic.The Noordam was well taken care of as we saw constant cleaning, polishing, and upkeep. We opted for a suite this time and it was lovely. We used the gym, spa, casino, lounges, and attended all the shows and music we could fit into our schedule.

BB King Blues Club singers were great, offering a wide variety of music. Adagio players in the Explorer's Lounge were exceptionally good. Captain Henk Draper sailed the ship beautifully, knowing when to slow her down to avoid excess motion and when to speed her up.  There was plenty of trivia, music, culinary classes, port talks, and information sessions throughout the 14 days. We could not fit everything in our schedule that we wanted to do while on board.The ports of call were fantastic. Plenty to see, information at each port available for "sight seeing on our own". Shuttle buses provided where needed and everyone we encountered was friendly, helpful and smiling.

See detailed reviews below for each category. We took many pictures, I've shared just a few.

We obviously enjoyed our trip based on the five star rating.  While every shore excursion was either very nice or wonderful, the length of the excursion often precluded time for anything else in the town.  

Holland America could set themselves apart by offering free on board wifi.

We purchased extended leg room seating on both Delta and Air New Zealand.  Delta was fine.  Seating on Air New Zealand very disappointing and just plain cramped.  Would not to choose to fly that airline again.

We loved New Zealand.  Glad the itinerary included cruising Milford Sound.

Julie, from Cruises Only, was wonderful.  Attentive.  Helpful. Friendly.  Professional.  Good job, Julie!

The  very beginning of this cruise was noticably perfect ! From the checking in  to the getting off ! The crew was always there in the right spot!THE FOOD ,THE ENTERTAINMENT,THE ROOM  !.ALL WAS JUST RIGHT! WE WILL HAVE GREAT MEMORIES!

Our 17th Celebrity Cruise and they continue to excel with their service, friendliness and hospitality. Quality of the dining room menu and food is not as good as prior cruises. Quality of the dining room wait staff was exemplary. All of our excursions were well executed. The two day trip to Queenstown is well worth the cost!!

It was an amazing experience.  The ship, crew, activities and services were excellent.  We also enjoyed the shore excursions tremendously.  New Zealand is an amazing country with beautiful sights and very friendly people.  The Celebrity Solstice is an awesome ship!

We really enjoyed the our vacation on Royal Caribbean. We were amazed at how outgoing and friendly the staff.  Our kids loved every minute of kids club. The staff in Kids Club was exceptional ... especially Ms. Jasmine.  The My Dining experience with Mr. Putu and Mr. Sudira was 20 out of 10.  Each day they catered to our needs and provided exceptional customer service and care.  We also really enjoyed all of the activities available on the ship.

We did our own air but used a Princess pre cruise package which included transfer to hotel, hotel stay, transfer to ship and transfer ship to airport. When we notified Princess of our return flight they rejected our transfer because our flight departed at 11:40AM. We planned to take a cab. During the cruise we talked to passengers who took Princess air and had departures before noon. Talked to the front desk who were very vague, wanted to know passenger names and cabin numbers. Absolutely ridiculous! When final debarkation material was released we found 4 airport transfers prior to noon. Went to front desk who sold us 2 transfers. Left us with the clear message, if you don't use their air, they are not willing to help you!

This is my third time visiting Australia, only this one aboard the Rhapsody of the Seas to Cairns.  I'm now back home to the US but memories in Cairns, Brisbane, Gold Coast tour will probably never be forgotten.

It's sad to know the Rhapsody will depart for good Australian Water.  We have a lot of fun on this ship in Deck 4&5 Centrum, Deck 6 Shopping Center and Deck 9 Park Café and Forward All You Can Eat Restaurant.  I should mention here my time working out in the Fitness Center back Aft including wonderful experience in the sauna room.  Food in the Dining Room is OK but thanks to the great services of two waiters (names I already forget) at table #232 our group of 11 persons (Vietnamese Navy Veterans & spouses) had a wonderful time aboard ship after our reunion in Sydney.

We look forward to be on the future Royal Caribbean cruise! 

1. Ship is old but in good condiion

2. Staff are Generally friendly. Noticed (slight) discrmination toward 

    non-whte passengers (Paid more attention to the white passengers).

3. Food needs some improvements Not as good as before.. 

4. Everything seemed more expensive as compare to our previous cruises

5. Excursion directors not performing as excepted and as attentive. 

Otherwise, we are fairly satisfied. 

This cruise was very good for us.  We met many friendly and interesting people.  The food was excellent, the service friendly and helpful.  Our cabin was comfortable and pleasant. We were not happy with the many many extra charges for everything, including soft drinks and cookies, and the high charge for WiFi.

The ship is old and shabby and overdue for maintanance.Tho' I heard that only  the public spaces are going to get treatment. My bed was in need of a new mattress the carpet was thread bare. But the powers that be decided that all should be happy with movies under the stars even tho' the temperature was 15 and 16 degrees. They left the guest lecturer ashore(he would have cost money) and the promised book club did not exist. The food went from mediocre  to just bad. And with everything was the hard sell. For a 50 year experience they look like they are on their last legs.