Celebrity Solstice Cruise Reviews - Reviews

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.

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!

Celebrity offers a consistent quality that we appreciate.  There were a couple of bumps in the road.   We stayed in the concierge class on the 12th floor, one floor below the dining room almost all the way to the back of the ship and every morning at 5am the noise started as they prepared for breakfast.  We complained and Celebrity gave us some credit toward a future cruise.  5 days at sea at the start of the trip turned out to be a little long for our liking and the weather was very cool the first two days at sea, which apparently is normal for this cruise at this time of year.  We look forward to our next Celebrity cruise.

Interestingly holidays, the destinations were well chosen, only the ship's route might be optimized. It is better if the Johnstone Strait would sail to Victoria on the way back from Alaska would. A bit annoying are the various sales programs on board that looked a bit pushy. Excellent was the service and the food in the restaurant 'Luminae'. Overall, I can say that it was a nice trip.

The security, processing for embarkation and ease of access to the ship was very good. Lines moved quickly and staff were alert, friendly and proficient.  However, there was a problem with luggage tags.  We had paperwork showing Suite 1403, however, the master list that the ship personnel had was Suite 8336 which turned out to be a bit smaller (due to space used as outer area for adjoining suite); and it was on portside. We prefer starboard. 

It was very hard reconciling this mishap with the ground staff;  they were useless; and once on board, the guest relations Asst. Manager, Sandra was just as inept.  We were told the ship was sold out, no other suites available. Once under sail however, this did not seems to be the case. Sandra gave excuses, not solutions and never had the ensuing problems with the carpet and worn chair fixed, we had our butler Judas track down maintenance to clear the clogged toilet which lastd half a day…ugh!   In any event, the room was smaller, the furnishing worn, and the carpet near the balcony door was detached causing me to trip if not very, very careful (I took picks of the toilet,  torn chair cushion; the carpet and also showed it to Sandra -- nothing was done). So we just used the chair as laundry holding place, and avoided using the balcony...no need to temp an accident; and Judas followed-up with maintenance regarding the toilet issues.

We had wonderful experiences in all of the ports and the excursions were well organized, prompt, informative and fun.  We chose excursions in the mild and moderate category.  When the Whitehorse train excursion experienced delays on the way back, we were compensated without having to ask as a 20% discount was automatically refunded to our account. 

A welcome plus was the suite level "Luminae" restaurant. Excellent staff, great cuisine and fine dining menu! Only suggestions -- please more vegetarian selections; keep coffee in the carafe hot (was consistently lukewarm).  The Luminae staff was outstanding, so much so that I want to acknowledge and thank them by name: Waiters: Bayu, Indonesia; John, India; Ante, Philippines, Rosebud, India, Jay, Philippines; Marko, Serbia.  Asst. Waiters: Diana, Indonesia, Alvin, Philippines (who kept me laughing with his impromptu impression of his name (a take on Alvin and the Chipmunks....you had to be there....lol); Ruslan, Macedonia; and Gener, Philippines. Imade, Indonesia was a great Sommelier, pleasant and prompt with wine service and his personality made the atmosphere in the Luminae more pleasant and elegant. Please bring back the Sommelier neck-piece and cup; it would add a bit of class and recognition to the Sommelier.

The Suite staff for 8336 was outstanding, they were prompt, discreet, and the added touches were noticed by us, slippers or shoes placed neatly, bathroom immaculate, tables and counters wiped, no smears on mirrors, room temperate adjusted for the weather/location (i.e, Canada vs Alaska). Bed made crisp and pillows fluffed all which served to lessen the issues with the toilet, torn upholstery on chair and torn carpet near balcony.  Wilfred, India, Anish, Mauritius were the most excellent steward team each pausing to say a friendly hello from wherever they happened to see us in the corridors. I looked forward to Wilfred's greeting each morning, which was more than just a "hello" he was friendly and we enjoyed our inteaction with Wilfred.

 Judas, our Butler was remarkable.  He anticipated our needs (laundry service, reservations, etc.,), and followed-up promptly on our requests or inquiries. Judas ensured our afternoon tea service included piping hot masala chai (special Indian tea). After a chilly excursion or deck walk, it was refreshing to return to the suite for the afternoon tea which was always delivered within the allotted time. 

We occasionally dined in the Ocean Café which was clean, well appointed, with food and friendly, attentive staff.  We especially wish to recognize Sadna, Mauritius;who arranged for India Chai at buffet breakfast and Shadrick, Kenya; who was outstanding on the Pasta station and makes a really great pizza.  He kept the line moving and always acknowledge guests who were waiting; and Marlon, Guyana on the Mast Grill was friendly and prompt with service. Finally, Nevil, India; in the Passport Bar was attentive, prompt and he remembered our drink order from the previous visits. He made guests feel special even when it was not a formal night!

The entertainment line-up was[AP1]  average. There was no aerial show and we were told it was cut because the equipment was not ready.  As we are not into Rock music...we did not enjoy the Rock of Ages so left that event. The comedy illusionist was brilliant for both of his shows.  The standup comedian was just not funny and did not engage the audience.

The Solarium was as usual, a wonderful getaway onboard the vessel and immaculate.  If we had been accommodated with better room furnishings, it would have been a remarkable cruise.  As we are frequent cruisers, usually two or more a year; we find the room atmosphere to be just as important as the destinations, especially on sea days. 

I hope Celebrity Corporate will compensate us for the dismal experience of our S-1 Suite Level accommodations.  We have upcoming cruise in 5 months on the Reflection in Royal Suites  which will complete our having sailed on all of the Solstice category ships (we were on the Equinox twice); and hope that the RS category for Asia and Israel in 2016 and 2017 respectively will be more opulent in furnishings.  Overall, we enjoy the Celebrity experience and hope this review has been helpful.

 [AP1]

This was my first cruise and I thoroughly enjoyed it.  Everything was great.  The food was excellent, and the service was fantastic.  The stateroom stewards were both great.  I especially enjoyed the whale watching excursion.

I've done 9 cruises on RC and Carnival, this was my first time on Celebrity. My husband and I are in our mid-30s.

Pros: Concierge class was great, Italian restaurant was amazing and well worth the extra fee, ports were A+, scenery obviously incredible, the boat is very new and modern feeling, rooms/beds comfortable, loved the shaving bar in the shower, lots of hand sanitizer everywhere, lots of hot tubs, ESPN for my husband, only like 5 kids on the whole boat, public bathrooms were HUGE and actually very nice   

Cons: entertainment was AWFUL, food in the dining room was too fancy for our tastes, the cruise director was almost nonexistent it felt like, the hot glass show was being renovated so we didn't get to see it, bathroom sink faucet made it very hard to wash your face, small closet, no Dr. Pepper on board, no 24 hour food since pizza/pasta closed at 1am each night, slightly lacking nighttime activities, casino table game minimums were too high (ie. $20/hand)

The way up to Alaska was incredible and the ship was great as was the food, staff, etc.  The only issue was on the way to Victoria from Skagway.  It’s about 48 hours in mostly open water that got the ship swaying back and forth quite a bit.  That in itself was fine although I would have preferred taking the same way back south via the east side of Queen Charlotte Island to give us more protection from the large waves.  The main and really only disappointment my wife and I had was the entertainment.  The entertainment on the way north was below average but we figured they were saving the best acts for the way back to Seattle.  Unfortunately the acts back south were just as bad with the exception of the Elton John impersonator who was great but only played for less than an hour.  We were led to believe there would be a Broadway style musical and a Cirque du Soleil type show as well.  The complementary post cards in our room even were of the Cirque type show!!  Seems to me that would make an odd conversation with whomever I sent the postcard to….Needless to say the postcards (which by the end of the trip seemed to me mocking me) where left in the room.

My husband and I took an Alaskan Cruise to celebrate his Birthday and it was definitely worth it!  We opted for a balcony stateroom and I HIGHLY recommend this option to laid back travelers.  Although, we enjoyed the casino and many of the on-board entertainment options, some of my best memories are watching the world go by on our balcony.  We had fantastic views of sunset and sunrises, nature, wildlife (we whaled watched two mornings) and glaciers.   The boat itself was lovely and the staff was extremely polite, professional and courteous.

Second time on the Soltice to Alaska. It is such an awesome ship. The staff is so friendly and the service is great. Our room attendant never woke us up as we tend to sleep in. The food in the Dining room for lunch and dinner was very good. Murano was excellent, but my favorite is Tuscan Grille.

After getting on board, all is great. But since planes were late, the shuttle to the ship left before we (about 30 persons) got. there I called the "emergency" number and Sabrina did not care, and did not help. She said that if we do not make it to the ship it would sail without us. I asked her to let me speak to someone who could help and she transferred me to a number that said that that office was closed!

The weather was good... the captain  MADE A DECISION TO NOT GO TO THE AREA I BOOKED MY CRUISE TO SEE.  He had a med-vac situation in the middle of the night and arbitrarily decided he'd float around at sea and Juneau [to help rip off passengers by the cruise line subsidized vendors in Juneau]  He had plenty of time to meet his emergency AND ALSO GO TO TRACY ARM. When I asked Cruise passenger relations if any compensation could or WOULD  be forth coming I was told NO,  the cruise line did not have to make any compensation...very BAD public relations.. NEVER saw the Captain or OFFICERS of the ship ,EVER. Very controlling policies  regarding room service and anything offered that could be charged extra for..all in all I did not enjoy this cruise. The best I can say is that the room and dinning staff were good, honest ,hard working and FRIENDLY. THE FOOD WAS GOOD, but then I expected it to be.

I expect to hear from the Celebrity Cruise Line Corporate Office regarding not getting to the destination I Paid to see. The cruise was awash with Convention Type people who TOOK OVER the ship and its services. I purposely book this cruise as it was offered to HAVE "LESS YOUTH AND NO YOUNG CHILDREN" THAT ALSO WAS MISLEADING IN YOUR ADVERTIZING...  again I have NO young children and did not want to see or hear them in a horde on the ship.

*** EDITED 9/2/15 BY COMMUNITY MANAGER TO REMOVE PERSONAL INFORMATION ***

Very disappointed with the ship and the stops, not what we excepted at all. No coffee makers in room, rooms service took hours. On of our stops got cancelled because of an emergency and they didn't try to do anything to make up for it.

Overall, the cruise was a net positive experience primarily based on the sights and venues.  The naturalist lectures (Brent Nixon and wife) were highlights. The Murano restaurant was an outstanding experience and the spa/exercise area was excellent.  Went to several mini seminars that were very helpful on dealing with lower back pain and feet issues.  However,Very disappointed that the brochure highlight of the trip (Sawyer Glacier) was cancelled in order to avoid cancelling Juneau shore excursions and making related refunds.  There was a medical related delay but that didn't cause us to miss the Tracy Arm Fjord/Sawyer Glacier.  It simply required something to be skipped and the decision was made to skip the cruise brochure highlight.  Also the Internet service was very very poor. I paid $199 for "unlimited service" which was actually very limited.  I visited with the Internet Cafe staff on several occasions who on one occasion reviewed a report of my usage that clearly indicated it was severely limited.  All other internet users I spoke to had very poor and slow service.  The internet staff member also confirmed that there were known limitations in the ship's system.   Based on these factors, I think offering service that was so poor bordered on fraud. I requested that the charge be cancelled but the internet and guest relations staff refused. In the case of the Sawyer Glacier decision and the Internet issue both contacts simply referred me to the cruise contract which I thought showed some serious limitations on customer service.   

The cabin staff and dining hall staff were excellent.   The food was second rate at best, and the first thing on the ship we were pushed beverage packages, which ended up being a waste of money.   Our tour in Juneau was cancelled, but we were not informed until a half hour before the tour, which didn't leave us any time to book anything else.   Skegway was cancelled altogether.  The only town we saw was Ketchikan, the rest of the time was out to sea.    I had been to Glacier Bay before and thought that Tracy Arm Misty Fjord would be good, but not!.   I even heard another passenger complain about it.    I brought my grandson along on this trip and I know he was disappointed not to see Alaska. 

despite we had to skip Skagway due to bad weather, the cruise was excellent.  The Solstice is very modern and comfortable.  the food was excellent and plenty.

Alaska was beautiful.  Skagway and Tracy Arm Fjord were my favorite, especially Skagway.  Stepped way back in time....I loved it.  Juneau, we didn't see much of the towne.  Our Whale watching excursion was way to long.  The Mendenhall Glacier was beautiful.  We got back to ship at 7:30 PM almost missed dinner but there is always food.   Juneau is more commercial in the 1 hour we had didn't see much at all... We didn't make it to Skagway due to weather conditions.  That is where we had the train ride and dog sledding excursion scheduled. That caused us to have 2 1/2 days at sea instead of one.  We did get into Victoria, Canada early in the AM and didn't leave till midnight.  It was beautiful!!!!!  We took the horse drawn trolley.  That was neat.

All in all it was a great trip.  Would I go back again Maybe if a got a deal I just couldn't pass up.  Would loved to have gone to Skagway.

The Celebrity Solstice cruise to Alaska and Tracy Arm Fjord is an unbelievable adventure that needs to be on your bucket list!!!  Celebrity and the Solstice were outstanding in presentation and professionalism.  We have sailed on most of the major lines and none were up to the standard of the Celebrity Solstice.  The ship was extremely clean and well kept.  The staff was well trained and I did not experience or see any upselling on this cruise.  It was all about our experience and they made sure we were treated with respect and felt honored to be a guest on this ship.  They had two things that I have not seen before and that was an actual green grass lawn that was almost an half acre on top as well as a corning glass blowing exhibit that was entertaining and very different from most activities.  The crown jewel of this trip was the trip up Tracy Arm Fjord.  I have never experienced such pristine natural beauty as the few hours we traveled up the Fjord.  The ship traveled slowly through green aqua waters with blue crystalline icebergs floating by.  The cliffs on both sides of the ship were caressed with wispy clouds and multiple waterfalls were always visible as we moved deep into this undisturbed land.  The Captain even silenced all external electronics and narration so the passengers could absorb the natural beauty of this national treasure.  Ketchikan and Juneau were also very interesting but on a very different level.  We were not able to dock into Skagway as the winds were over 65 knots and safety of the ship was the Captains top priority.  The ships staff was able to quickly put together an amazing agenda of entertainment to cover the extra day at sea and was also a tribute to the outstanding crew of Celebrity.  You will not be disappointed with this choice.