Would not choose Celebrity again

Celebrity Solstice Cruise Review to Mexico

Goldenknight2

Contributor Level: Purser

Cruises: 4-6 cruises

Reviews: 3

Helpful Votes: 90

Overall rating:

2.8 out of 5

5 Night Cabo & San Diego (Los Angeles Roundtrip)

Sail date: January 02, 2023

Ship: Celebrity Solstice

Traveled as: Couple

Reviewed: 1 year ago

Review summary

After five previous cruises on NCL, this was our first on a Celebrity ship. The best part of this cruise was the easy embarkation and disembarkation. Fastest ever. Other than this, we will not be sailing Celebrity again for many reasons. The cons far outweighed the pros. The Good: With two notable exceptions, the staff was pleasant and helpful. The cabin was fine, though it clearly needed updating/refurbishment. The entertainment options were good, but always too crowded to fully enjoy. The Grand Lobby/Atrium is not ideal for live music, due to very limited seating. The Bad: Food. Dining options. Dining selections at venues. Here is where NCL stands out in comparison. First, we absolutely despised the assigned seating times for the main dining room ( 6 or 8 pm. each night) and the assigned tables. If only two of you, it is positively unacceptable. Tables are squashed together tightly, such that you will be just inches away from the next diner. The first time, we felt as if we were sitting on the laps of the folks at the next table. We were not the only passengers who felt this way, as we witnessed other couples request to be moved. We enjoy the freestyle dining on NCL, being able to eat dinner whenever we wanted and sitting at tables reasonably spaced. Second, the food quality in the main dining room, and menu selections were quite limited. Lots of seafood. Staff was okay. Thirdly, there was zero disclosure prior to our cruise that the buffet was not a viable option for dinner. If we chose to ignore our "assigned" main dining room seating time, and just dine casually at the buffet, it was woefully inadequate. Pizza and pasta. Every night. If you think pizza is a reasonable dinner five nights a week, then Celebrity is for you. We were told that Celebrity is forcing guests into the speciality restaurants and main dining room, to save on food costs. We were also told that guests WANT to be served and therefore prefer the main dining room. Hmm. The buffet food was regularly cold, tasteless, and poor quality. Cold white rice, cold pasta, cold oatmeal, and so on. It's unfortunate we didn't anticipate the vast difference between NCL and Celebrity prior to booking this cruise. Our fault, relying on a travel agent who raved about the food on Celebrity. Hmm. Fortunately, it was a five day cruise, not seven days or more.