I was on the April 17 Celebrity Solstice cruise from Ft Lauderdale to the eastern Caribbean, stopping in San Juan, St. Thomas, and St. Maartin. It was spring break time for many of the schools in the north east (something I had overlooked). I was told by staff that there were 600 children/teens on board. My first thought was "ON NO!" There was no need to worry. Celebrity had brought on a total of 20..20 youth workers for the cruise. Their normal staffing if only four! I talked with the youth director and she said they use a lot of people with a background in child services. One was a middle school principal on vacation.

My view on what they did was to take control of what could have been an annoying situation by keeping the kids occupied, interested and under control. I felt the "situation" had no negative effect on my experience.

Let me cover the days at sea first. After that I've got some notes on shore excursions, which have nothing to do with the ship, but you might find of interest. Read more