Celebrity Solstice Cruise Reviews - Reviews

This cruise was after my RC Allure of the Season cruise...which was much bigger, better experience. Celebrity's staff was great...the boat is just worn and entertainers were sub-par...can't wait to go back to RC and check out Quantum of the Seas...just disappointed for the money it cost.

Everything on the cruise was great! Food was excellent - way beyond my expectation. Particularly my son and I really enjoyed the glass blowing show, all the evening shows (vegas style, magic show), and friendly staffs. 

 Ship and crew were excellent. Food quality was more than adequate.  Classic beverage package had an satisfactory variety of alcoholic and non-alcoholic selections.  Onboard entertainment was lacking at times.  Itinerary  could include a better glacier experience.(We went to Dawes glacier.)

My husband and I have been on many cruises. This ship was great. The food and staff were wonderful. They had great shows but you couldn't beat the scenery. Everyone needs to take this trip!

I was not happy with this cruise line or the agent who help us. They over charged us by $2,000 and had our reservation under the wrong name. When I called the agent to get it fixed, she didn't even return my call. It was like she made a sell and she didn't want to deal with us. If I had to do this again I would not call this company or this agent to get any trip booked. 

Best cruise we have ever taken!  Everything was fantastic!  Alaska is indescribably breathtaking.  Celebrity Solstice was the best laid out ship and the service was superb! 

Grill line too long. Needs more grill space to move people thru faster for burgers and fries at lunch.

Karaoke closed too early. Need s to stay open longer and NO LITTLE KIDS.

Kids need to be kept out of the Solarium pool area.

Prizes for tournaments in casino were much too small for the # of entrants.

The awareness and knowledge of the crew and presentations about nature and the area

aqua class was an outstanding choice

food was good as was service and cleanliness onboard

Main entertainment was just ok

better coordination between the ship and the excursions is certainly necessary

There were several excellent things about the ship and its crew.  Here they are:

1.  Cruise visit to the glacier was highlight of the trip with spectacular views of the mountains, ice and glacier.

2.  Coffee shop staff were tremendous.  They were friendly, courteous and never failed to give guests their undivided attention even during busy times.

3.  The speciality restaurants were fantastic.  The good in all three were gourmet.  We had never gone to them before due to cost, but now we will definitely include at least one or may be two dinners.  The waiter named Wid in the Asian Fusion restaurant was particularly helpful in explaining the various choices and delicious alternatives.

4.  Breakfasts on Deck 14 were good and fast.  We particularly commend the waiter/bus boy named Rabinger.  He was always there to give us extra service and coffee.  He had a pleasant demeanor and you could always hear him approach with his "happy, happy" encore.  

5.  The one show that was outstanding and deserved kudos was the one dedicated to Whitney Houston.  We don't recall the name of the absolutely fantastic singer, but she is to be commended and given a show of her own.

6.  Getting on/getting off the ship was very easy and customs was a breeze.

7.  The shows given by the naturalist were terrific and should be continued.

Poor things about the cruise

1.  The shows, especially "Amade" were dreadful.  Though we appreciated the very talented acrobats and dancers, the singers for the most part were mediocre (except for the one that sang at the Whitney Houston show).  The males, in particular, were marginal at best.  The entire concept of the show Amade should be scrapped or reworked.  No one we spoke to understood the story line or what the purpose of the show was about.  We did like the comedian and the men's quartet.  The men's quintet was good but not excellent.  Unfortunately, the lead tenor was slightly sharp whenever he sang thus throwing off the entire song.  Having gone on over 25 cruises, I rarely criticize the shows on ships.  However, I thought I would give you my unbiased thoughts on these productions.  Hopefully, the next cruise on a Celebrity ship will provide better entertainment.

On a final note, we found the captain of the ship to be extremely welcoming and fun to listen to.  His willingness to be part of the shows and to graciously give of his time to be with the guests earned my respect and gratitude.

We had a wonderful week aboard the Celebrity Solstice. It is a beautiful ship with great service, fun activities, and enjoyable entertainment, We especially enjoyed the naturalist onboard, Brent Nixon. Our cabin stewards, Mario and Rafi were exceptional as was the dining staff in the Blu restaurant, a great perk for the Aqua Class! We loved the Persian Gardens with the heated relaxation chairs, saunas and aromatherapy rooms. We are already thinking of planning a 2nd trip to Alaska!!!

This was our first cruise, and we did not know what to expect. The ship itself was great, just the right size for beginners with really polite and attentive crew.

We had a veranda cabin on Deck 8, and our cabin was adequate for 3 of us. It was not huge, but well appointed with lots of storage. The bed was comfortable,  and everything was kept very clean. The carpet was a bit worn, but who cares when you are in Alaska. Loved our cabin attendants.

The food was ok, but nothing super to write home about. We had 5 dinners in Grand Epernay, tried Tuscan Grill once, and Ocean View once for dinner. We had most of our breakfasts and lunches in Ocean View too. The food quality was good, with a lot of variety to choose from, but the taste was hit and miss. Some dishes were too salty, but most dishes were too bland. Most desserts had great eye appeal, yet lacked taste - which was really disappointing.

Service was a bit slow in the MDR. A lunch should not last 2 hrs. And finding seating during peak times was a bit painful in Ocean View. Room service for breakfast was convenient on shore days.

Beverage package was very handy too. Bottled water to take to our cabin and on shore was much appreciated. Wine selection during dinner was ok, but cocktails had only a trace amount of alcohol in them.

We took few excursions with the cruise line to utilize our on board credit. Maybe we did not pick the right ones, but we were not too impressed, especially in Ketchikan. Our guide kept pointing out things like the library or bank in the " highlights" tour. Nothing substantial about the town was mentioned, which was dissapointing. And in Juneau for Mt. Roberts Tramway: the tram up runs until 9 pm, but everything other than the gift shop closes about 6:30 pm. We had saved that for the last, which turned out to be another disappointment to go up there and find stuff closed. I wish that it was mentioned on the tickets.

The highlight of our trip were the wonderful Nature Talks given by Brent Nixon. Very educating, entertaining and thought provoking.

Its been almost a week since my cruise finished and when i close my eyes i still remember my experiences on the ship. This cruse was my first and it is definitely not going to be my last. The staff on board were undoubtedly the best, they were the real heart of the operation and not enough thanks can be given to them. The food everywhere was great as well as the drinks especially the bar by the art gallery on 5 ask for ARI or LOIDA  they are the best. Thank fr a great time. 

I highly recommend this cruise and Celebrity was the best service we have ever had from any cruise line! The captain was great, the weather was wonderful, the excursions were fantastic!  No kids, thank god, I swear, the few that were there were out of sight and out of mind, Celebrity kept them stashed away!  An older group of passengers, not the booze cruise or college kids, late 30's to 70's, so nice and relaxing, everyone was just smiling and happy the whole time!

The Solstice was a beautiful ship and the amenities and service were excellent. The restaurants were top notch and the service was prompt and attentive.

We were very disappointed in this cruise.  We had previously cruised with Carnival and were led to believe that Celebrity would be a "step up" from Carnival.  We did not find that to be the case.  The ship did not WOW us like our previous Carnival experiences.  We did not find the staff to be as friendly and personable as on our previous cruises.  Our dining room wait staff seemed flustered during the first night, so much so that we wondered if they were either understaffed or inexperienced, which we later found out not to be the case.  We had to repeatedly ask for our water glasses to be refilled and our coffee was served after our dessert was finished rather than at the same time.  The presentation of the food was underwhelming (i.e. Chilled Pear Ginger Soup served as a pale soup in a plain white bowl... no garnish (just one example).  We could go on and on but suffice it to say that we will probably never cruise with Celebrity again and would not recommend it to others.

Our cruise was fabulous. The Solstice boat was spacious and in excellent condition.

We ate primarily at Blu. Food and service rivaled great restaurants on land. Many choices, excellent preparation and attention to detail.

Highlight was the Solstice doing slow spins in front of a glacier, Tract Arm Fjord.

We were lucky to get a beautiful morning to see a Glacier as we cruised the Fjord.

Also fortunate to see whales, sea lions, two bears and several mountain goats

Our favorite part of the cruise was the scenery.  We did quite a few excisions, but you didn't have too.  You could stay on the ship and see whales and eagles!!  If you do go on an excursion the helicopter onto the ice field in Juneau shouldn't be missed.

From embarking to disembarking, the cruise was wonderful. Our stateroom was comfortable, clean, and with a lovely veranda with which to view the passing beauty. Our stateroom attendant was ever ready to help us and took good care of us and our stateroom. Every crew member was friendly and courteous no matter their assigned duty or time of day. The menu choices were extensive and each item was delicious and carefully prepared. The entertainment choices were varied, professional, and abundant. We look forward to sailing with Celebrity again in the future.

We enjoyed the beautiful scenery and the balcony,the ship is very special and welcoming, the quality and amount of food was good. The evening shows were excellent and the service was very good.

We were disappointed that we had to go outdoors away from the buffet to get the American of hot/dogs and hamburgers; it was inconvenience.