This was the second time on the eclipse and it doesn’t fail to disappoint. The ship was in good shape from the public areas to the cabin. Selected late seating as that was only thing available when booked, the staff wasn’t able to assign a perminate table for two the first night, but they accommodated us the second night and we stayed with the same table for the remaining 10 nights. The head waiter was helping his staff and greeting guests every night. We found the captain around the ship, he was very visable as well as his senior staff. Entertainment is available in the evenings before and after dinner. The heart of the ship is the Martini Bar and always a great place for a drink. Sky lounge is a nice venue for late night dancing. Casino wasn’t open during the ports days or evenings. Somethings to do during the days at sea are claim your chair in the saloruim where they also have light breakfast and lunch served. Gym is packed during the morning and early afternoon, plan to work out between 2-4 and 5-8. The Sunset Bar is a great place for an afternoon cocktail and live music on occasional. A few tips for excursions in the ports of call; Hilo - highly recommend renting a car from Hawaii Jeeps and make sure your a Budget Fast Break customer will save you time. There are a couple highlight must sees; Rainbow Falls, Akaka Falls, Two Step for snorkeling and Valcono National Park. Maui Hyatt Regency has a Hertz with a free shuttle that will save you time not having to go to the airport. Most popular excursion is the Road to Hana it will take a whole day. I would suggest downloading the GyPSy app and bring an extra phone charger cord. Ohe’o Gulch is not a must do we thought it wasn’t worth the drive. Kona has a great snorkel at Kahalu’u beach with snorkel rental avalible and accessible by Uber. Hawaii would not be complete with out a visit to Pearl Harbor, tickets are available online 60 days prior or 24 hours in advance. I would suggest staying in Ko Olina, we stayed at the Marriott Vacation Club and was one of the nicest resorts we have stayed at. Also there is a Four Seasons and Disney has a resort there as well. If you are not TSA PRE arrive to HNL airport 2 hours early to insure you don’t miss your flight, but if your traveling to another island be sure to look at Hawain Airlines as they mainly do island to island flights regularly throughout the day. This was a great way to see Hawaii even if you have been before. The ship changes time 1 hour every other day to help get adjusted. 5 days at sea may seem like a lot, but it’s nice to get into vacation mode or unwinding from a jam packed vacation. Read Less

We boarded the Solstice in Vancouver destination to Hawaii. It was our 25th Anniversary and we couldn't of made a better choice. The 5 full days at sea gave us time to relax and decompress from our everyday routine. We were in Aqua class and the service was in excellence. Our room with balcony was excellent and well taken care of by the room attendant (Devan). We dined in Blu every night and looked forward to our dinning experience each night with the wonderful service of our waiters (Yogender, Preyan and Nick) as well as received by beautiful Larissa each evening. I can't say enough about the food and variety we received on this ship. There was nothing missing. We visited and took advantage of the Persian garden spa which also delivered excellent service. On the first couple of days, the waters were a little rough and was a little on the cool side. They had fleece blankets available near pool side for everyone, I thought that was a nice touch. There was also always fresh towels available and as for loungers, there was always a seat available. The excursions we booked went well without any issues, well organized for tender ports as well. I will not hesitate to sail with Celebrity in the future. Good Job!! Read Less

This is a trip we are glad we took, but probably wouldn’t take again. On the plus side, it is a relatively inexpensive way to visit Hawaii, which is hideously expensive. Room and food cost us about $180 per person per day on the boat. Comparable accommodations and meals would probably cost at least twice as much on land. Not to mention we saved some on air fare. Flights to Vancouver are much less than flights to Hawaii. In addition, we got to visit three islands, one with two stops. On the downside, tendering at Kona and Lahaina limit how much time you have to visit these ports. There are some sights we would like to see, especially on Maui, that would better be done while staying there. The first day in Lahaina the sea was pretty rough and getting on and off the tenders was challenging, especially for people with mobility issues. We were on the Solstice in June to Alaska and liked it so much we booked onboard for Hawaii. Many of the same crew members were still on board and some remembered us. The ship is very well run, and the crew were all accommodating. We never ventured into the specialty restaurants since the food in the main dining room is excellent. Naturalist Brent Nixon was onboard on both cruises. He brought a lot of expertise to explain the natural world we would be experiencing. We took advantage of the adults only Solarium many times. The pool was the perfect temperature and it seldom felt crowded. The Alaska cruise was out of Seattle, most of the guests were Americans and there were 315 children. The Hawaii trip began in Vancouver, and at least half the passengers, perhaps as many as two thirds, were Canadians. Many were from British Columbia. Alberta and Saskatchewan were also well represented. There were also several Aussies traveling all the way through to Sidney. Most of the Americans seemed to be from the Pacific Northwest. We enjoyed meeting and sharing experiences with people from all over. This is definitely an older crowd. Most were retired. We probably had fewer than 20 children. For those of you wondering about the weather, it was 58° and raining when we left Vancouver. The first sea day it was 60°, the next 65, the 3rd sea day it hit 70, the 4th it was 75 and finally the last sea day as we neared Hawaii it hit 78°. Of course in Hilo it was about 85° and humid. The first two days the swells were running about six feet and people who were prone to motion sickness experienced some problems. After that, the ride was pretty smooth. Hilo – We rented a car for $48. The car rental shuttle will pick you up from the pier and take you to the airport, about three miles away, where you can rent a car. Couldn’t have been easier. We met a couple at Kilauea who hired a car and driver for $325. They said they wish they had talked to us first. Perhaps they should just read Cruise Critic. The first stop was Akaka Falls. Do this one in the morning because the falls face east. The sun will illuminate the falls perfectly in the morning. If you do it in the afternoon, the sun will be behind the falls and your pictures will be backlit. Next stop was Kilauea. While Akaka Falls was sunny and hot, Kilauea was rainy and cold. We wish we had our sweatshirts, but when it’s 85°and sunny, how do you know? This was kind of a good news bad news experience. The rain and mist kept me from getting really sharp pictures of the caldera, but the steam vents certainly stood out. I leaned over one to see how hot the steam actually was. Take my advice and don’t try this yourself. Steam is hot. We stayed at Kilauea about two hours and headed back to Hilo. I would have stayed longer, but the rain showed no signs of letting up and we had done all we could do without getting soaked. Kona – Here we took the ship’s excursion. It was billed as the snorkeling and dolphin adventure, but they apparently forgot to tell the dolphins, who didn’t show up. The cruise on the catamaran south along the Kona coast was picturesque. The excursion includes equipment rental, but we take our own. The rental equipment looked to be first class if you are interested. The spot they picked for the day had good coral and lots of fish. Three-foot swells made snorkeling and getting back on the boat more of a chore than you want, but overall it was a fun trip. Maui – Renting a car on Maui is substantially more difficult than on the Big Island, and more expensive. The nearest car rental outlet to Lahaina harbor is Hertz at the Hyatt. They claim they have a shuttle, but it runs just once between 8:30 and 9:30 and we never saw it. So it’s a $30 cab ride to rent a car. The car was $98 a day versus $48 on Hawaii and $53 on Oahu. We went south the first day looking for a beach to snorkel. The conditions were terrible. Because of the height and direction of the swells, waves were breaking right on shore and the water was churned up. We should have checked the daily report https://thesnorkelstore.com/maui-snorkeling-conditions-reports/. Then we would have known that. The next day we went to Honolua Bay. This is a terrific snorkeling spot and it’s always calm. It’s surrounded by land on three sides and facing Molokai, so no swells can get in. The shore itself is very rocky, so it’s strictly for snorkeling. Also, parking is very limited and it’s at least a 300 yd. walk from the road to the water. Hawaii is not California where they have large paved parking lots at all the state parks. Most of the fish and coral formations are on the eastern side of the bay. Turtles are found on the western side. Dolphins also made an appearance. Honolua Bay is a must stop for snorkelers. We would like to spend some more time on Maui. Some of the sights like the road to Hana and Haleakalā are too time consuming to be done from a ship while tendering. The cruise finished up in Honolulu. This was the smoothest disembarkation ever. We go off sooner than advertised, found our luggage immediately and got a cab to the airport to pick up our rental car. Hertz says they have a location the pier, but when I checked online, they said there were no cars of any kind available. Very suspicious. The cab to the airport was about $35. It is only 3.7 miles from the airport to Pearl Harbor. I was impressed by what the National Park Service and the Navy have done there. It’s a very solemn experience and well done. One very important note…they do not let you bring bags in through the gates, not even ladies’ pocketbooks. You can check them for a $5 fee. My wife took hers back to the car while I stood in line for tickets. I have to say I was not impressed by the Honolulu airport. Much of it is open air (not air conditioned) until you get to your gate. We had showered just prior to leaving the hotel and didn’t want to work up a sweat turning in the car and getting our bags through the agricultural inspection and airline check-in. Some on our cruise got off the ship in Maui, one day early. They then spent several days on Maui and flew home from there. I didn’t realize that was an option. If I took this cruise again, I would probably do that. Read Less

This was my first time cruising with Celebrity, but I had sailed with other lines previously. The demographic was what I expected, mostly 30 or 40-somethings and up. The staff onboard worked extremely hard to ensure I had everything I needed and that my experience was a positive one. The captain always had a good sense of humor, and I enjoyed his commentary during daily announcements. The area I enjoyed most was the solarium--super relaxing. For entertainment, I loved going to see the string duo, Lighthouse. They were so fun and such great performers. The only criticisms I could think of are regarding the thermal suite and the wifi. The thermal suite is fairly small for the ship size and the amount of money you pay to get access. It could use a refurb. The wifi was just not good. I realize most like to disconnect while on vacation (I understand this), but unfortunately I have to keep up with my house/dog sitter at home. The connection was just very poor for most of the cruise, and I did not like paying that much for something boasting access to all streaming apps, surfing, etc. Overall, the experience was a very positive trip. I would consider Celebrity again, and I do believe the solstice class ship could be a lot of fun in the caribbean. Read Less

We took this particular cross pacific cruise from Hawaii to Vancouver for the route it was sailing and also, the price was very attractive. We sailed in Concierge Class and we enjoyed the little extras it gave us, like priority boarding, tender service, sparkling wine and snacks every day. Our cabin was located on deck 10 in the forward part of the ship, it was very quiet, hardly any noise at all, we could hardly even hear the engines. Our first of five sea days threw us into a scale 11 storm with 55 knot winds and 25 feet waves. The ship handled it VERY well. Yes, there was movemnet, lots of people were sea sick, but there was nothing failing of the tables or anything like that. Luckily, none of us were prone to sea sickness. The ship itself is very beautiful, lots or artwork and spotlessly clean! It is ten years old and in the cabins the age is beginning to show just here and there. Nothing to be concerned about, and I understand that all cabins will be replaced during her major refit in 2021. The ship has plenty to do, you can do it all or nothing at all. The choice is yours. The service onboard is impeccable and the food is of a very high standard. Even the buffet and room service was excellent, ask for crispy bacon and you will have just that.. Personally, I did find some of the tastes to be a bit bland, but that is purely a matter of personal taste. The wines were excellent and all cocktails equally delicious. We had a few ports with tender service and that can be a bit of challenge, but sail in a Concierge cabin and you will not experience any of that. There were a few flaws here and there. For instance, the music in the lounges and bars is simply too loud. It discourages conversation and it fails to meet its purporse of adding to the ambiance. Furthermore, there were no change in the music during the day, why have Madonna blasting from the speakers on the aft deck outside the buffet, where people were having breakfast at 8 am?? Why not play some lovely classical music or piano, even some soft jazz would have done better. The bands on board and shows were very good as well. There was always plenty of seating to be found, both in and outdoors, no shortage of nice sun loungers either. We did not take any of the organized tours as we preferred to arrange it ourselves. Travelling as LGBTs we were greated with a social hour each evening, that was a nice touch! Read Less

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Review of Celebrity Eclipse We tried out the Eclipse on its ten day journey from Hawaii to Vancouver. We usually cruise on Princess so it was inevitable that we tended to compare the two. The Eclipse is a very elegant ship but we found that some of the venues were a bit sterile feeling, in particular the main dining room and the Quasar lounge. The main dining room is far too crowded, too many tables and strangely uncomfortable tub like chairs. The buffet area however was wonderful, spacious food stations with lots of access room between, definately superior to the Lido area on Princess ships. The main theatre is well laid out and quite comfortable. Our outside cabin was lovely but the bathroom is poorly designed with very limited counter space and strange tiny drawers and cabinets. They do have sliding doors for the shower which is just brilliant. No shower wand which would be preferable. Buffet food was excellent, lots of choices but finding a table was often difficult and line ups for the food were long. We were very disappointed in the dining room fare. Poor choices and variable quality food as well as disorganized service. Princess offers a far better dining experience. We did not use any of the specialty dining rooms even though they were very aggressively promoted. A major negative for us was the coffee. Very poor in the buffet and dining areas and the specialty coffee offered in the Cafe was very overpriced (5$ compared with Princess' $2.75). We purchased Starbucks instant in Honolulu and used that during the cruise. We have yet to see any cruise line that can compare favourably with Princess' International Cafe. Entertainment was very good, perhaps the best we have experienced. The singers and dancers were very talented and gave excellent performances. Shops were nothing special, overpriced and limited selection, however we don't patronize cruise ship shops anymore. Staff were friendly and efficient in most areas. Our cabin steward was wonderful, shout out to Marco! All in all a good, not excellent cruise and Princess will remain our go to cruise line. Read Less

We started off the trip a few days early by arriving in Honolulu by arriving on Saturday to board on Monday. The day we arrived the weather pretty great with a little cloud coverage. That afternoon/evening we checked the street fair and Jeff Goldblum and his jazz band. Sunday we did Pearl Harbor (a.m.) and a Luau (p.m.) that evening. Monday we boarded the ship which turned into a two day headache; please note that the boarding process and the Maître D’ rudeness were the only minor gripes I had during the entire trip. The issue with regards to the boarding process was that once we got through the lineup, which was not bad at all, the person who assisted us managed to jumble our seapass cards to the point where my charge account and photo were assigned to my friends card and vice versa. This did take some time to correct even after the assistance of a manager during the checkin process. Upon our arrival to our concierge class cabin, it was apparent that the special requests that were made through Celebrity directly was not passed along to the ship; this includes the request to separate the bed, emptying the mini fridge, sharps disposable container, which is fine as I was able to request these items once on board. During the trip our waitress, assistant waitress, sommelier and cabin attendant were all amazing and provided great service as they always went above and beyond in keeping us happy! We did do one shore excursion which was over Hilo’s volcano which was neat. Disembarkation was relatively easy and quick. All in all, it was a great trip after sorting out annoyances. Read Less

While the declining quality in food, decreased staffing, and lowered standards of maintenance was bad enough to make me question my decision to sail with Celebrity, the overall cherry on top that pushed me in deciding that I will never sail this line again was my experience with two falls in less than 30 seconds while descending the very wet and slippery stairs down to the tender in front of approximately half a dozen crew members. For the record, I had both hands on the railings, which is why I have pulled muscles and a wrenched back, rather than a cracked skull. At no point did any crew member ask if I had hit my head, did I think that I should get checked out, or even ask my name and cabin number, much less the names and cabin numbers for any of the people that had seen me fall. When I went to make a report to guest services, the woman at the desk was completely indifferent to what had happened, asking "Is that it?" and immediately waving the next guest forward. Quite frankly I found the complete lack of concern for passenger safety to be appalling. Also, my experience with staff at the Persian Garden was, shall we say, interesting. I don't think that I have ever been corrected quite so directly on how to pronounce my own name before. The cabin was nice, although the door opening the opposite direction of every other cruise ship cabin that I have ever been in took some getting used to, and the storage space would have been great for a seven day cruise, but a little tight for a twelve day cruise. Also, the outlet situation was a little tight. Here we are in 2019, and nearly everyone travels with cell phones, laptops and/or tablets, e-readers, cameras, etc., and there are a grand total of two sockets in the entire cabin. Also, nightstands with usable drawers would have been nice. Activities wise, this may be the scantiest collection of sea day activities that I have ever seen. Normally on sea days, the difficulty is in deciding what to do. On this cruise, my e-reader got more of a workout. Read Less

We had a great experience on Infinity last Halloween, and were incredibly surprised at the drop in quality, exterior maintenance, and staffing shortages. I would give this review a 3/5, if not for the indifference and shortness at guest services, to a problem that may have been partially their fault. Excessive rust on the lower hull, and tender steps that I feel should be kept dry, freshly painted, with weather strips. The beds are not bad, but have seen better days. Some meals in Blu were delicious, some were a blatant drop in quality. The bread became stale halfway though, and may have been baking every other day. Hummus and Cheese spreads got replaced by pureed corn, beets, peas, and carrots. Nearly no vegetables, a garnish of broccoli or asparagus was a rare find. While the dining staff were very professional and worked their all, it was obvious that they were understaffed and rushed. Oceanview Cafe was an even bigger letdown. Too much was lukewarm or tasted off, cuts to ingredients. Gone is the wok, and the sauces for the fresh pasta station are not nearly as good. The last night of our cruise, they introduced mixed frozen vegetables. The interior of the ship was nice, our first time on Solstice Class. I liked the cruise director, Cafe Al Bacio, guest performances from Hawaii, and our lunch in Murano (though our neighbors got under-cooked lobster). I liked the Spa and Persian Garden, though the receptionist was playing head games with passengers over their names. Read Less

After 2 sailings on the Edge, it was such a treat returning to a Solstice class ship. Until experiencing “The Future” it wasn’t clear just how great “The Past” really is. So many little things like the convenience of pivoting TV’s in your room, a real balcony, shower jets that are actually useful rather than decorative, no cheap pump bottles in the shower for soap and shampoo, never really waiting for an elevator and often finding it empty(exact opposite to Edge), roughly double the number of bars for the same number of passengers (no overcrowding), able to access the Sky Lounge even if not in a suite, fast efficient service everywhere, quiet areas like card rooms and libraries and hideaways, outside bars with actual shade that don’t force you inside after 10 minutes of baking sun, no more hallways of dull grey not to mention furniture that is actually comfortable to sit in. Yes the Eclipse is showing signs of age/wear but a good design it still is. Having just completed 22 days on the Vancouver - Hawaii - Vancouver my biggest complaint is they ran out of many provisions and beverages with 3 days to go on the first leg. In any case I would still choose a Solstice or Millennium class ship over The Edge any day. Hopefully the refurbs will not try to “Edgeify” the older ships but instead just perk them up. If not, a lot of faithful Celebrity cruisers will start investigating other lines rather than automatically returning. Especially with the latest promo of “Kids Sail Free”. (REALLY??) With a host of new Edge class ships on the horizon the future for the existing Celebrity ship lovers is looking iffy. Read Less

This cruise took us too Hawaii, of which we have not been. Also it gave us a taste of Celebrity as we have never sailed Celebrity before. And was not too pricey. Overall, seemed like the perfect cruise. For this cruise we booked an inside cabin. The stateroom was very large for an inside room. And had contemporary design with a wonderful stateroom attendant, Dragana. We were on deck 7, all the way forward. For two days when crossing the pacific we felt a little seasick, though for the rest of the cruise we did decent. As far as dining goes, we went to the main dining room twice (once for dinner, once for lunch), and the buffet for the rest of the cruise. As far as the buffet, the food was good with a large selection. However, breakfast was almost the same every day, it got a little monotonous. Regarding the main dining room, it as a bit of an experience. The one time we went for lunch the food was very delicious, we looked forward to our next visit to the main dining room. Dinner was where things took a turn. We went to dinner in the main dining room for the first time on the ninth night of the cruise (the 8:30 dining time got in the way of activities and was too late to eat for us). First, our waiter shamed us for not attending dinner service in the main dining room, alright...then, he said "I gave up your table because you didn't attended for so many nights." We felt shamed, though we sat with a wonderful couple. Furthermore, he begged us to give him and the assistant waiter a 10 as "it will lower their salaries." After this fiasco, we did not go back to the main dining room. Entertainment on the Eclipse was phenomenal, the best we've had on a cruise. The production shows blew us away, especially with the acrobatics. All of the guest entertainers were always entertaining, and interacted with the guests. Even the cruise director, Alejandro always entertaining, he was hilarious. There were enrichment activities regarding Hawaii every day, and always were appealing topics. Also, there were trivias every day, sometimes two a day. Great for those who enjoy trivia; most of it is more modern trivia. In our first port, Hilo, we did the most. In our first day in Hilo we booked rental car (of which I highly recommend). We first went to Punalu'u Black Sand beach. It as absolutely wonderful as there was a lot of wildlife and scenic areas. Soon after, we drove to the Papakolea Green Sand beach. To get to the actually beach after parking there were two options, by an hour hike, or by standing in a truckbed going 30+ mph through deep trenches and sharp hills. It was very rough and we sustained a few bruises when holding on to the bars. Though if you're lucky, you will be on of the select four who get to sit inside of the pickup. The fee was 10 dollars per person for both ways. Even so, the journey was worth it. The beach was absolutely stunning. To get down to the beach we had to hike down a very narrow corridor of sharp rocks...not very ideal. With this, we still find this our favorite journey ever. For the second day in Hilo, we took a Celebrity sponsored bus tour that took us to Akaka falls, a macadamia nut farm, and the tropical rainforest zoo. Our favorite was Akaka falls, absolutely gorgeous. The excursions was very worth it, I highly recommend it. Our next port, Kailua Kona was more modern and new compared to Hilo. We did not stray far from the port, we bought souvenirs and hanged around the beach at the port. Kailua Kona was very walkable. We also booked a glassbottom boat reef tour. We saw many fish and even a turtle, which was unexpected by the guides. It was a pretty good excursion. For our final port, Lahaina, we stayed for two days. On the first day, we booked a whale watching excursion. Of which we saw a mother humpback whale and her baby on a couple of occasions. Lahaina was also very wakable. On the second day we browsed around shops and walked pretty far. Overall, this cruise was the best cruise we have had yet. The itinerary, and the overnights. Not to mention the stateroom, ambiance, and overall atmosphere was a pleasure. We plan to sail Celebrity in the future and we strongly encourage you to book a Celebrity cruise. Read Less

We had done this cruise before on the Solstice three years ago, had seen all the sights, and stayed in Lahaina and Waikiki for several weeks some time ago. So we merely wanted some R&R, good food, originating in Vancouver, some sunshine, and were not interested in organised shore excursions. We got exactly what we paid for. Embarkation at Vancouver took much longer then we expected. Disembarkation at Honolulu was OK. I particularly enjoy Celebrity's English breakfasts and the variety in the buffet at other times, especially the cheese selection in the afternoons. The MDR - and the service there - was excellent, though one or two evenings we couldn't get the early time we preferred. One night in the buffet I complained about the poor quality of a prime rib, as did the passengers at the next table. Qsine was a gimmick and the food not particularly good. The ship's facilities, pools and public areas are excellent throughout. The entertainment in the theatre was excellent, as were the violin/cello couple from Ukraine(?) in one of the bars. I am no fan of Polynesian music but the group from Lahaina were very good. I asked for copies of the daily news summary Celebrity used to have available at the Guest Relations desk from Canada, UK and US. “Sorry sir, we don’t have them any more – gone paperless sir.” So I asked about the distribution of their daily on-board program on paper every day when they could just as easily be distributed to guests on the web or by email or posted on the in-room TV. Answer came there none. Not quite so paperless after all? The “James Bond style” safety video shown at the beginning of the cruise was ineffective and, even worse, insulting to many guests. They told me so because I asked them. Many people were little the wiser when it was all over. Two guests who had cruised in double figures with Celebrity and other lines told me they learned nothing and that it was pathetic compared with Celebrity’s competitors. I suggest that Celebrity change this program immediately, fire the producer responsible and the senior safety officer who approved it. Safety aboard is a serious matter. We are not particularly demanding of our stewards but our steward (Sijas, from India) was very attentive and looked after us very well. The lettering on the staff name/country badges is far too small to be legible by the guests. They are thus quite useless for the purpose intended. Read Less

I chose this cruise because I could get off at the end in Honolulu which would allow me to shorten the flight to Korea. This was my first time sailing with Celebrity and only my second cruise. I selected my cabin and Aqua class before I knew anything. After booking this cruise I began reading reviews here on cruise critic and on Ship Mate to learn what I was in for. Funny there were no reviews or pictures of the cabin 1544 I chose but lots of info on Aqua class. Aqua class turned out to be a great choice for me and my husband. Many reviews from those that were not Aqua class look at this as snobbish or at a way for this cruise line to make extra money. Yes mabe that is the case when comparing this line to other lines that I had no experience with. But for me and comparing it to the Princess cruise ship Star(my only other cruise) I found this to be a great option to have. Choosing this class gave me a great shower. Note I measured and took pictures which I will share. I am a large woman. Comparing the shower on the Star Craibe deck cabin C709 I would chose spending a little more to have this shower available to me. Another perk with Aqua class is the assigned restaurant Blu. I kept reading reviews about clean cuisine and thought it meant diet food, not so. Entrees were an array of meats and seafood with sauces artfully arranged on your plate. When the reviews spoke of intimate dinning it was not enough info that explained what it was like in the Blu. The tables in the Blu were grouped and arranged in several ways. Looking at the plan provided you will see an area near the windows with a row of tables perpendicular to the windows.these were tables not treated as a group but as individual tables for two. The space between was just enough for the waiter to squeeze through while servicing the table. Each perpendicular row was primarily serviced by a group of waiters for your morning and evening meals. The service was outstanding. My husband is a picky eater. He doesn't eat vegetables or any greens. They brought him the menu for the next day so he could choose what he would like that would be customized to his taste. The tables were close enough to have conversations with the couple next to you if you wanted but if you chose to not speak to your neighbors you didn't feel obligated. Now there were large round tables that could seat large groups of people that liked that. I thoroughly enjoyed the option of having our waiters just for us and we could enjoy the guest that would sit next to us that would rotate from time to time depending on what time they arrived. We met so many wonderful people. The room was a great location for attending the shows but not a good location for going to eat at the many restaurants on the ship, which was at the opposite end of the ship. The room was quite never heard any people noise nor any elevator noise. View from the balcony was great. Now what I found could use some improvements is the outlets. The only 110v outlet in this cabin was located desk level. I was told by Celebrity I could not bring an extension cord nor a multi plug adapter without surge protecter aboard the ship. However, spoke with fellow shipmates that have sailed with Celebrity that they brought adapters on board without surge protecter with problems. If you need a extension cord one will be provided. We were provide with two. One was for a C-Pap and the other was for a electric nasal flush. The downside to using extension cords is they were strung across our cabin. This is the only negative I have for this ship. I had the premium non-alcoholic beverage package. At dinner I could order special coffees, teas and other frozen non-alcoholic drinks. I could get bottled water where ever it was available all over the ship. At the Cafe Blanco I could get a large assortment of speciality coffees with the free assortment of pastries. When it came to water from this place. I could get more than one bottle at a time. Funny thing is is across from the Cafe Blanco was the icecream bar was not free. Also when at the shows you could order frozen virgin drinks like pinata colettas, strawberry daiquiris and the like non-alcoholic or bottled water. All and all I had a wonderful experience. Read Less

Firstly, the ship is in excellent shape. This was our 7th Celebrity cruise, the first time to Hawaii and also the most sea days we have experienced. Much of the staff was top notch, as friendly as you would expect on a Celebrity ship. Food was excellent, except a bit of a hiccup in Murano one evening, but no one is perfect. We have never participated in so many activities, specifically the dance classes (keeping busy during the long sea days) The Hawaiian dancers/instructors were amazing. I really enjoy working out and they actually had a couple of super tough workout classes which had no charge. My workout experiences were excellent. Our cabin was not the cleanest when we arrived, major fingerprints on the doors. Cleaned it ourselves. The biggest problem with the cabin was the noise, neighbor’s phone sounded like it was in our cabin, there must have been a speaker right outside our door, so even though we were trying to sleep in, we had to hear every single tender announcement. All the way to “39 and 40”. We love to sleep in on vacation, was only able to once. Room attendant would vacuum the neighboring cabins shortly after 8 am.... Biggest beef is the entertainment and specifically the music. Must have heard “Rock around the Clock”, four times.......either performed by one of the house bands or a DJ. I googled the song, it was released in 1954........really??? So you would have to be 80 to have “grown up” with music that old, I have nothing against 80 year olds as I plan to be one someday but I don’t think they were up dancing at 11 pm.. Was told that Celebrity carefullly pre-selects music. I don’t expect to hear Eminem but a song that is 64 years old played at least 4 times is crazy. That was just an example of how poor the music was. Clearly Celebrity is aiming at a demographic much older than we are, and we are in our 50s. I planned to discuss this with the cruise director but he was no where to be found. Bottom line, we had a pretty good time but we would never cruise to Hawaii again, it is too beautiful to spend 5 days to get there, fly straight there and enjoy the beautiful islands longer. Secondly, we are taking a break from cruising. Some people cruise to stuff themselves with food and booze, cant deny we do a bit of that but we also cruise to enjoy dancing, getting out at night etc. This had to be the worst cruise for music we have experienced as Celebirty seems to be catering to the 70 plus set. I don’t think I will ever like songs like Rock around the clock but perhaps in a decade or two I won’t mind so much... Read Less

Love leaving out of my home town, and wanted to try 5 days at sea! Cruise was great, good activity staff and a great roll call who had many activities to help fill up those days at sea. Love the fact that Celebrity now does Silent Disco one or two times per trip. Do not miss this, as it is hilarious. Guest speakers Brent and Mary Amanda were very knowledgeable and enjoyable. Celebrity Life activities sharing information about other itineraries and ports were very informative as well, and helped us pick out our next cruise. Dined in the main dining room which was quite good, with lovely table mates. Only issue was that they had us originally as Select Dining, when we were a set seating but that was quickly sorted out on the first night. No problems with embarkation ( >15 mins!) and disembarkation was great. Ports were good, tendering was a bit painful in Hilo, but they sorted it out for Lahaina! Highly recommend this cruise Read Less

We have sailed with Celebrity for years, enjoying many of their ships and cruises. We booked this cruise, starting in Hawaii and going on to Canada. It's fair to say that we are now unkeen to remain with Celebrity. Starting by saying that the room steward and our waiters were fabulous. I have simple dietary needs. Well, simple to explain, but apparently almost impossible to deliver on board, it seems, for reasons too mysterious. The hotel before the cruise managed fine. Other restaurants on land manage fine. The hotel after the cruise managed fine. I am not a chef and can manage to feed myself effortlessly. On Celebrity, the chef for Blu managed by just not giving me food. For example, each day, I'd watch the other diners with their basket of bread. For me, nothing. Their meals had sauces. For me, nothing. They had a full range of desserts. For me, same one offered every night, barring one where the lovely waiters took pity on me. Cakes -nothing. Pastries - nothing. The actual waiters and staff were good. But I was left truly hungry on the ship. The cafe had foods that nearly all contained the things I can't eat. The grill likewise. The 'highlight' for me was a main course which consisted of one dry piece of meat balanced on two burned brussels sprouts. I actually burst into tears afterwards. Interestingly, the male diner next to me was given sauces I could easily eat, so the chef could do them. He just didn't bother with mine each time. The waiters tried their best to improvise, but they are not the chefs. Then, there was the nightmare flight on their preferred partner from LA to Honolulu, Delta, booked via Celebrity. We arrived in pain and exhausted, unfed and with nothing to drink. Crammed into tiny uncomfortable seats for six hours. Having paid for an upgraded service, we even had to pay for a snack that I couldn't then eat. Then, their transfers to and from the ship and hotels, again organised by Celebrity. Don't ask how two of the four of those went. But if you enjoy paying a lot of money for a car transfer that turns up an hour late, or one that drops you unexpectedly in the middle of an unknown town at near-midnight, some distance from your hotel, with four heavy cases, you're in the right place. "Oh the road's closed ahead - I'll have to leave you here. The hotel is just round the corner". It wasn't. No attempt to find anywhere closer. Again, left in huge pain trying to get the cases to the hotel. As a disabled traveller, Celebrity have always been good until now. This time...I just can't explain how exhausting it was. Celebrity, you need to do better than this. We've been very loyal and, as normally-suite-level customers, spent a lot of money with you. We are in conversation with their guest relations people. Read Less

Hawaii Celebrity Solstice review April 29 - May 11, 2018 We had a enjoyable cruise despite some bumps along the road. We embarked in Honolulu. The lines were short but the woman we had checking us in just couldn't get it together. We stood waiting for her to check us in. It took 30 minutes. We were not happy with that but couldn't do anything about it. Finally, we got on board. They were giving out Champagne and mimosas as we boarded. The ship looked great. It shined and sparkled. The rooms were not ready yet. So we found some lunch and then found a comfortable place to wait. We had the Classic beverage package and enjoyed some drinks while waiting. We booked a handicapped accessible cabin on deck 11 Aqua class. I use a scooter to get around as I have muscular dystrophy. The cabin was barren as usual for handicapped cabins but did not have enough storage. We had only one closet and only 4 small drawers. The balcony had a lovely built in ramp to get out to the balcony. We had two chairs and loved having matching foot stools for each. We spent may hours out on that balcony. The door to our room was automatic which was wonderful for me. It is so hard to drive my scooter and open the door at the same time. I found the whole ship to be wonderfully accessible. All the doors were automatic all around the ship. I was able to get everywhere. Waiting on elevators after shows were awful. I would wait for my turn however able bodied people wouldn't let me get in the elevator. By the time I was able to get to elevator door it was full of able bodied people. I would have to wait and wait. Most of the time I would have to travel to the back of the ship just to find an elevator. Then had to travel back to the front of the ship where our cabin was. I would have loved to travel the stairs but my disability makes it impossible. We booked no excursions thru the ship. We booked them on shore. Much cheaper and just as good as ship excursions. Since we were in Aqua class we were able to eat in the Blu restaurant. It was open for breakfast and dinner each day. We went to breakfast there a few times, however, I like waffles and Blu didn't serve waffles at breakfast. The buffet did serve waffles so we preferred to eat there. The buffet was quicker too. The buffet food was delicious. Two lunches in the buffet they had fish and chips which were wonderful. We ate all our dinners in Blu. The food was good. The waiters were very nice and knowledgable about the menu and food. I liked having a cosmopolitan at dinner. After 3 days the wine waitress in Blu would recognize me and would always bring me my cosmopolitan with out me even having to ask. This made me feel so special. I went to all the shows. I was always entertained. My favorite shows are usually production shows but I found these productions shows to be lacking. I enjoyed all the game shows. The newly wed game and liar liar were hilarious. All the comedians were funny and clean. We experienced an earthquake in Hilo. We were on the ship at the time. The whole ship shook while we were at the pier. It was quite the adventure. Not for one man. I went down to guest relations to find a man yelling at the poor guest relations attendant. Earlier in the day he went on a ship excursion to the Volcano. He wanted a full refund. He couldn't understand how Celebrity would take passengers to a place that had earthquakes and that Celebrity should have known a earthquake was going to happen. I had to laugh. I don't even think all those specialists with all their expensive equipment knew that an earthquake was going to happen. I don't know if he got a refund or not. Getting a bar drink during the day was next to impossible. We would go to the pool bar to find one bartender trying to get drinks for 10 people in line. This was a daily thing. However, at the show room at night it was super easy to get a drink. The bar waiters were abundant. We had the classic drink package and liked it. The only drinks I couldn't get were at the martini bar. It worked for wine, beer and drinks of the day. I spent most of my money at the spa. I do not get the popularity of the Persian Garden. It was included in our Aqua class cabin. Lovely view but those tile chairs are hard and uncomfortable. I got two massages which were wonderful but expensive. I also got a facial. I was not told to buy this cream and that cream. No hard sell. Actually no sell at all. I really liked that. I also got my teeth whitened. It worked really well. I went 7 shades lighter. I was happy at the time but it sure doesn't last very long. I am now home and my teeth look the same as they did before the whitening. Next is the horrible problem we had in our cabin. Bugs. We found 7 in total. 3 we found in our bed. They were not bed bugs. I was told they got in thru our balcony. We did not leave our balcony doors open. Only when we went in and out. This really was a problem. I have been on over 27 cruises and I have never had bugs in my cabin before. Despite the bugs, and the earthquake we really enjoyed our Celebrity cruise and still believe that there is no such thing as a bad cruise. Read Less

We sailed on the Celebrity Solstice from Sydney to Hawaii via Auckland & Tahiti in April 2018. This ship was breathtakingly fabulous. We stayed in the Celebrity Suites and this we could not fault. Our private dining room for breakfast lunch dinner was outstanding. Nothing was a bother for them. The food was simply delicious and the staff were absolutely brilliant. Although we could have dined here every night on our 19 day cruise we chose to eat in Murano Restaurant. This restaurant is not to be missed. The food and the staff are very very professional. The service is akin to six star fine dining restaurant. The meal selection is very varied and they will offer you something else if you can’t find a suitable selection from the menu.. Being Suite guests we had the opportunity to visit Michaels. Michaels is a suite only private area where you have canapés and drinks before dinner. Our female bartender was brilliant. She could remember everyone’s drink orders and was an asset to the ship. Our Butler was very attentive and prompt. We are sailing on the Queen Elizabeth in February 2019 for 12 days around New Zealand. This ship has got some very big shoes to fill. I have my doubts. Read Less

We have sailed Celebrity Solstice class ships several times before, but we chose this itinerary as our first trip to Hawaii. Overnights in Oahu, Maui, and ports on both sides of the big island were much enjoyed. Our last day in Hilo we experienced two earthquakes about 1/2 hour apart while on a bus tour in Volcanoes National Park and its environs. It was great and very exciting. All our excursions were from Celebrity, and all were well organized. We had one guide on the island of Hawaii, Anthony, who was very knowledgeable and entertaining. We actually enjoyed him on 2 separate tours. We learned a great deal about the history and geology of this island. I also really liked the "Beyond the Podium" lectures that were offered on the 5 sea days, especially the ones about the art of the south Pacific. I joined the choir, directed by Isaac, and had a great performance on our last night of the cruise in Victoria, B.C. A great way to get back to Canada! Read Less

We chose this cruise because the last time we sailed on celebrity we had a wonderful time and rated celebrity as the top of the line. We were originally planning to sail on Norwegian but switched to the Solstice when we saw it. Big mistake. It was the most boring cruise I have ever taken. I have been on 15 cruises on 4 different lines. Celebrity is now at the bottom of my rating. The entertainment throughout the ship was very good especially the cello and violin duo and the band featured on deck 3. The big problem with the band on deck 3 was that there was no room to sit and listen them. there was rarely even room to stand on deck 4 or 5 and look down at the band. The entertainment in the theater was pathetic. This was a cruise to Hawaii and their big entertainment was a dance school recital. Great if you happen to be a parent of one of the children who did 5-10 minute hula but not what you would expect as entertainment on a cruise ship. There was an acrobatic show that was very good. Everything else was mediocre at best. The on board activities were a joke. There was a lie making class, held in a small bar with not enough seating not enough needles for making the lie and not enough flowers. people had to make lies in shifts. They made Hawaiian bracelets. Unless you got there early you were out of luck. They had enough supplies for about half the people who showed up. The third non athletic activity on the 10 day cruise (5 sea days) was adult coloring. They had enough coloring books but not enough colored pencils. They also scheduled the activity in a small bar along with the trivia. There was no place for people to sit and those who did have a place had to compete with the trivia groups. When the trivia was over, about 30 minutes, they took back all the colored pencils. The food was terrible. There was only one main restaurant depending on whether or not you had a scheduled eating time or had open dining. The service was generally slow and the food wasn't anything to get excited over. There were some really good menu choices, unfortunately they were all offered on the same night. If they were open at lunch time we were not able to find which one was open and when it was open. We made the mistake of eating lunch in the cafe and then going back for dinner because there was nothing appealing in the main restaurant. We were surprised to find that the choices were the same as they had been for lunch with the exception that there weren't as many choices. The menu choices were the same every day for 10 days. The only thing that changed was the carving choice. It alternated between chicken and pork. there was at least one time when there was beef. A few of the other dishes changed. If it was good you never saw it again. The bread was often raw in the middle. On one occasion when we came back on board and tried to get something to eat, the staff was picking up the food as people were trying to put it on their plates. The ports do not compare to the ports we stopped at on an earlier Hawaiian cruise with another cruise line. Read Less

We really enjoyed this cruise. Be ready for smaller portions than the usual American size that I have come to know. There is plenty of more portions, all you have to do is ask. The buffet was not portions, so make your picture. I did not like the 5 specialty restaurants. We did eat at the Asian Silk Harvest one time. They advertised king crab legs. They should have said ONE king crab leg. Same smaller portions. Ok, I get that. I ordered the unlimited photo package, it is two days post cruise and we are still waiting to get the so called easy download. I emailed twice, and they said that I should have downloaded them on the ship, but if you don't have the wifi package, then how can you download them from the Celebrity wifi. 250 dollars cost? Hawaii, well worth visiting, I was very impressed with ALL the onboard activities and the talks From Beyond the Podium! Hey were all great as well as the shows. Equal to or better than Las Vegas. You won't be disappointed. Read Less

This was our first time cruising with Celebrity and first time in Hawaii! Overall we really loved the cruise! We had five days at sea and loved the relaxing, slow paced days! We could be as busy or as not busy as we wanted... it was wonderful! We loved exploring Hawaii and we thought doing that via a cruise was awesome! It was nice being able to spend at least a day or two in each place and take the time to see all we could. Each evening after exploring the islands we were excited to go back on the ship as it just felt like home! We loved that! We heard the food would be absolutely amazing on this ship and we didn't necessarily be the case. The food in the dining room was good, but not jaw dropping. We did love the buffet and thought the breakfast was amazing... fresh waffles with whipped cream? Yes, please! We missed having more "typical" foods in the buffet and dining room.. perhaps thats the point with a higher class ship, but we missed some of those comfort foods. Don't forget to try the free pastries and treats at Cafe El Bacio- they were amazing and I didn't learn about them until our cruise was almost complete. You cannot get those same pastries and tarts anywhere else on the ship. YUM! Don't miss out! Overall our service was amazing.. people were ready and willing to help whenever and wherever they could! The only place we had a bit spotty service was in the dining room. We had a different server every evening and some were great and some were not so great or friendly. I think they were just busy, but there was definitely a noticeable difference. We would definitely cruise on Celebrity again and had an AMAZING cruise, but don't think we will make Celebrity our go-to cruise line. Norwegian felt to be on a similar scale to use with more restaurant options! But we really did love this cruise! Hawaii was incredibly beautiful and we loved visiting many islands! Read Less

Choose this cruise to return to Hawaii after 33 years. We are from the east coast, so we thought it would be a good way to get accustomed to the time change to Hawaii (it was). With five plus sea days to start out, it was relaxing, but everyone was getting a bit stir crazy. Since it was late in the season for Vancouver, the first few days were cloudy and cool. The remaining sea days were sunny and progressively warmer. With so many sea days up front, one had to rely on Celebrity to keep you entertained. The speakers talking about Hawaii were very good. On Board sporting events (one/two per day) were very spotty and very poor (there was not one ping pong tournament which is a first in any of our cruises!). Other entertainment were typical cruise activities, Evening entertainment was normally very good with several acts from Vegas. The Celebrity singers and dancers were average at best. This is the first cruise that we used anytime dining. Our last few cruises at the late seating for dinner were frustrating as we typically dined by ourselves. This cruise, we ate with different people every night and met several other couples at different tables. We thought this was very enjoyable. As typical for Celebrity, the food was excellent and the specialty restaurants were very good as well (Murano twice and Tuscan). The shore excursions in Hawaii were expensive, but were very enjoyable (Snorkeling in Kona, lava flows in Hilo, and waterfall hike in Maui). None of that compared to seeing the lava flow hit the ocean at midnight as the ship passed within a half mile. Make sure you book the excursions you want before you board the ship or you may be on a waiting list. Read Less

Once again, Celebrity provided top quality, top service and a great experience. From cabin steward, Dominic to our wait staff Ian and Vincent to Debbi the Event Coordinator and Josef, the Concierge everyone was very professional; service oriented and provided excellent service. The main dining room: excellent service for our large group. Wait staff, Ian and Vincent were exemplary. From remembering each cruisers drink request to special requests for "back pillows" for shorter legged women; our menu selections were varied, from fish to filet to lobster. Great selection. Cafe au Bacio: Variety of coffees and pastries. Spa service: easy to make reservation and great service. Ice Bar/Martini bar: We met up with a bartender, Yodi, whom we had met on the Equinox two years prior. Bartenders were entertainers while serving a mass of cruisers each and every day! Stores/shops on board: Usual variety if merchandise, They were selling all Alaska items at discounted rate since we were headed towards Hawaii. Photos: Finally, they have stopped printing photos! The kios where you swipe your sea pass cards were easy to use and after viewing photos, you could delete those you did not want. Read Less