4.5 stars overall. The Celebrity Solstice cruise ship has been operated by Celebrity Cruises since 2008. The ship holds roughly 3,000 passengers. Staterooms include the inside, ocean view, verandah, concierge, aqua class, and retreat, in order from least expensive to most expensive. Passengers may eat at the main dining room, several upscale and casual restaurants, bars, and a gelateria. Entertainment includes a theater, a movie screen, a casino, an art gallery, swimming pools, a basketball court, and a hot-glass studio. Other amenities include boutique stores, professional photography, a fitness center, a spa, a salon, and a medical facility. My husband and I stayed in a verandah room on the Solstice in November 2022. Our room was in good condition. Our stateroom attendant was very friendly, always saying our names, and he kept our room very clean. I felt surprised that the cruise line gave us only small bottles of shampoo, conditioner, and body wash, but when our bottles ran out of product, the stateroom attendant brought us additional bottles. My husband and I ate at many of the restaurants, including Murano, Tuscan Grille, Sushi on Five, Oceanview Cafe, La Petite Chef, and the gelateria. We enjoyed the taste of nearly all of the food, and the waiters were very courteous. read more

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I was really impressed with the service across the board on this ship. From room steward to guest relations...to servers in main dining room and buffet. I just finished a breathtaking Alaskan cruise. It was my first one to Alaska. Celebrity has won many awards and have been voted best premium cruise line several years running. They are very accommodating and are always willing to help. We ate in the main dining room a few times and most of the food was tasty. There were a couple duds, but our server was happy to substitute a different dish quickly. We had select dining which meant we can sit in the dining room anytime at night. I went with my daughter and we sat with different people each evening at tables for 8. It reminded me of a Yelp event. :) Passengers were friendly. The buffet food was mostly good and at times, better than the main dining room. We also ate at Silk Harvest, an Asian Specialty restaurant. We tried chicken fried rice, veggie spring rolls, rock shrimp and cream cheese wontons. We both really liked the appetisers and my daughter liked the pepper steak, but I did not care for it. I was too full to get another entree. Dessert was not my forte, the only one I thought I might like was caramelized bananas and vanilla ice cream. One bite and I was done. This restaurant was $35 per person all inclusive. The entertainment was pretty good. There was a magician, two comedians and the most amazing acrobats and some great singers and dancers. There is definitely something to do on this cruise for everyone no matter your age or your entertainment preference. I would sail on this ship again but I am anxious to go on Celebrity Edge, a brand new ship. The Solstice is about 13 years old but was refurbished a couple years ago. Overall, the Solstice is an all around great ship. read more

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Celebrity Solstice is a really cool ship. It has a lot of fun and Interactive things going for it. They have a cool movie screen outside where you can watch some great movies under the stars with your fellow passengers. Or you can join a hot glass blowing class. I like have how the entire crew was very upbeat and happy and professional. We sat in the dining room a few times and our waiter was an Anil and his assistant waiter was Michael. Both of them were exemplary. They really took pride in their work. Kadek was our room steward and make sure we had everything we needed. I liked how they took photos during the cruise and did not print them. Back in the day, they would print out what seemed like thousands of photos and hardly anybody purchased them. The Solstice has moved to digital and they will only print photos you want to purchase. This is so much better for the environment. Staff was very informative about the different ports we were going to in advance. They gave some very useful information regarding shopping and things to do. They had some excellent shore excursions. When you take a Shore Excursion through Celebrity, you do not have to worry the ship will leave without you if the Excursion runs late. Yes, you are probably spending more money but to get that guarantee is well worth it. Plus, the excursion companies they deal with are reputable. We both got the classic drink package. This is where you pay one flat fee per person per day and a 20% gratuity is included for each drink. It is nice because you do not have to sign for each drink. You simply present your seapass card and they swipe it and give you the drink of your choice. Some of the bartenders did seem to be overwhelmed at peak times because a lot of people chose to purchase their drink package. I like some of the beer brands included, a lot were craft beers that I enjoy. Some of the wines were not so great but there was one that I really loved and stuck with it once I found it. They had quality brands of vodka included in our package such as Tito's and Absolut. Towards the end of the cruise, they ran out of Tito's and substituted for Ciroc vodka which was awesome. Ciroc is my favorite vodka brand so I was happy. Just a note, when you get the beverage package, everyone in your cabin must as well, except for minors of course. My mom is not a huge drinker and I do like to drink. So it is something to consider if one person in your cabin is not a big drinker. She definitely did not get the full value of the drink package but it really doesn't matter. Just something I wanted to put out there. I bought a couple of cool pair of sunglasses on board and a picture frame. Their gift shop seemed to be nicer than other cruise ships I have been on. Also, they gave free slot play a couple times during the cruise. It is only valid for 2 hours. One day I noticed and remembered to play it. The other day I saw it, tried to remember to play it but failed. Oh well. They have several hot saunas and jacuzzis. They also have a heated pool indoors. I am wimpy when it comes to swimming or being in water in cold weather so I skipped that part. But many people enjoyed it. They have several specialty restaurants if you want a more upscale dining experience. There is Tuscan Grille, an Italian restaurant. There's also Murano which I believe is another steak restaurant. There is Blu for the aqua class guess that can only eat there. We ate at Silk Harvest, an Asian restaurant. The service was impeccable. This restaurant is the only place on the ship that offered Asian beers. The food overall was tasty. I did not care for the veggie rolls. Mom did not eat much of the pepper steak. They have a nice, varied menu here. It is great because you can order as much or little as ypu want foe $35 per person. I really like Kirin beer and was happy to drink it there. They also have Tiger Beer and another one I cannot remember. So if you like those type of beers, you can probably just go in there and order those without even dining there since you cannot get them other places on the ship. Celebrity works very hard to keep their guests healthy. There's Purell everywhere! They have employees squirting Purell on your hands constantly when you go into the buffet and when coming back to the ship from a port. It is good to know they do this because there are almost three thousand guests on this ship. It is the little things that sometimes mean the most. We sailed over the Mother's Day Holiday. Before we left, I said to my mom that I wonder if they will provide flowers for all the moms. She did not think so and said they would have to provide maybe two thousand roses or so. Well, they did give all the moms two roses on Mother's Day. I was impressed. I thought it was a nice touch and something that they did not have to do but chose to make the Moms feel special. read more

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Being a cruise and a travel by ship fan I've been on most of them; several of Cunard's including Queen Mary 2, most of the Princess Line, Norwegian Line and others. However, my favorite is any one of Celebrity Lines Solstice Class (not their "solstisized"....there's a big difference) Ships, particularly its Solstice out of Port Everglades, Florida. It's a spectacular ship, decorated in modern whites and glistening chrome devoid of that "old lady" frumpy, overly done ornate gold all over the place crap as is found on any one of the Princess Line ships and many other ships. There is beautiful lawn on top with croquette, a Corning Glassware, glass blowing exhibition, bars, pools and patio type dinning. The service I've experienced aboard the Solstice has been, to put it in one word, "superb," as has been the food and accommodations. Yes, one can spend more $$$$ for even more elegance aboard a ship, but to my way of thinking, this one or any Solstice Class offers the best bang for the buck. By the way, I'm not the only one that thinks so. Solstice won Frommer's Best Cruise Ship 2011. read more

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The Husband and I recently stayed on the Celebrity Solstice for an 8 day Alaskan Cruise out of Vancouver. We picked the Celebrity Solstice because it was reasonably priced, had a lot to do, and didn't seem to geared towards one age range. Service- Our stateroom attendant was amazing! She cleaned our room twice a day and made some cute towel animals! Only downside was that I was supposed to get flowers on the first day and they didn't arrive until the second sans card. The card arrived the next night. Service in the dining room and the buffet always ranged from good to great, but never any less than that. The ship was kept super clean and there were always employees picking up trash and cleaning. Food- We tried to eat in the Grand Epernay Dining Room whenever possible. The food there was always 3-4 courses, changed every night, and was on par with a nice restaurant on land. The buffet unfortunately stayed the same every breakfast, lunch and dinner. I was hoping there would be more variation because it got boring quick. The food was only OK, typical buffet food. I liked the coffee in the cafe and spent a lot of time there. Not as good as Starbucks, but hey it was free! Room- We stayed on the 9th floor in a balcony stateroom and loved it! As everyone was crowded around the railing outside in the main areas on the ship, we were relaxing in our deck chairs and seeing the same sights from our private balcony. The room size was perfect for two people, any more it would have felt a little crowded. Entertainment- The ship had a small casino, a few shops, a theater, a few bars, a lawn area up top, two pools, a main dining room, a buffet, a few specialty restaurants, a kids area, a teen area, a fitness center, spa, cafe and club. Even though we never went to any, there was always something going on somewhere to participate in. Boarding/Deboarding- This was a major problem in the ship. The first day trying to board the ship took almost two hours just standing in line with nowhere to sit or rest. One older lady passed out halfway though the line! It was horrible. Totally ruined the whole initial experience. Then every time getting on and off the ship there was a small line and wait. We would sail on the ship again, we had a pleasant experience but we would look into other ships and weigh our options before making a decision... it wouldn't be a slam dunk. read more

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Although this was my first cruise and first trip to Alaska, as a rookie somewhat on a budget, I had a fantastic cruise! This ship is thoughtfully designed. My friend and I had more than enough storage space and overall functionality. Our cabin attendant apparently never slept because he was always around and always helpful. I could go on about the food and (free) activities on the ship, but would like to gush about lecturers Mary Amanda and Brent Nixon, husband and wife historian and naturalist that added so much richness and laughs to our trip that the actual shipboard "entertainment" seemed unnecessary! We were so tired out by the end of excursion days that we had to go back to our cozy room and sleep! Mary Amanda Fairchild is a woman of many many accomplishments in music, dance, education and history. She give a poignant lecture about the music on the Titanic while wearing the real "Heart of the Ocean" necklace! Her "before you go" lectures and walking tour advice were exactly right short of the wonderful dry weather we experienced our particular week. (Barely needed raincoat-- that's unusual) Also, she is hilariously funny. Mary Amanda is worth her weight in Klondike gold! Her husband, Brent Nixon is a manic guy, but only because he worships nature with a capital N. He is passionate about nature in the Last Frontier and shares it with depth and lots of humor. Celebrity Solstice, hang on to this couple! I would much rather see them than another comic or flashy revue show. The food was usually excellent. Plentiful at the buffet and artfully presented at the dining room. We did not buy the drink package, but here's a hack: go to the art auctions. They are entertaining and educational and hello... complementary champagne! Also, plug some money into the casino, complementary drinks! Make sure to bring your one bottle of allotted wine in your checked bag. There is WAY more to review, but still absorbing the wonderful experience on the Solstice! read more

My wife love to cruise. We have tried royal Caribbean and celebrity cruise lines. This is our second cruise with celebrity. The first time was an Alaskans cruise which was spactular. This cruise was also wonderful. This cruise was a Caribbean cruise stopping in st Thomas st marten and Porto Rico. One thing you should be aware of is the average age of cruisers on this ship is usually about 60-65. Very few children are on this cruise usually. As a result the are few activities overall and nothing like a zip line or a rock climbing wall or slides. This is for mature people that like to drink,eat and lay by the pool. We love all of the above except drinking Everything was wonderful. The food was so varied and wonderful. The service everywhere was spectacular . Our room was comfortable and always clean. The entertainment was varied and great. We had such a wonderful time as always. read more

Modern Luxury sums it up. Excellent service, great food, very stylish, upscale feel, mature crowd but also a number of young families. Beautiful shops, many daily activities, including an evening string quartet performance. A Library and a gelato bar were nice to have. Always plenty of lounge chairs on deck. The adults-only area is very relaxing, but not in full sun. I'd recommend this ship for a honeymoon, especially. The rooms have plenty of drawers and cubby holes and closet space. Turn-down service is a nice touch. Bring a hand garment steamer because no irons are allowed, or pay for items to be pressed. The aqua spa cafe had nutritious spa meals. The children's area is not huge, but they do have some programs for the little ones, can leave little ones with them if age 3 & up. They have a splash pad area that little ones can use (those in swim diapers). read more