Celebrity Solstice October Refresh Thread

Hi Everyone,

A few minutes ago, Celebrity Tweeted the following :

Celebrity Cruises ‏@CelebrityCruise 17m17 minutes ago

Guests onboard #CelebritySolstice will soon be able to enjoy exciting new offerings as the ship undergoes a bold refresh in late October.

We knew the Solstice Drydock was coming.... but now we have a tiny tease from Celebrity. It will be interesting to learn what recent Solstice guests are hearing onboard the ship. I'm wondering if Celebrity will share more hints of what's to come, and if it's safe to assume that what's ahead for Solstice, is a preview of what's ahead for the other S-Class ships.

Inquiring minds would love to know :)

Thanks for the heads up. We will be on the Solstice next April fir her repo cruise Sydney to Honolulu.

On the very tip top of what is moving n shaking at Celebrity as always for us!

Thanks Andy!

On the very tip top of what is moving n shaking at Celebrity as always for us!

Thanks Andy!

Thank You Wallie. I'm getting very comfortable in my new role, and should have more time to post here. Even when I'm not posting, I'm always on the lookout for all pertinent news, so I fully plan to keep everyone updated.

We're also sailing on Eclipse in November, when she returns to Miami. Mom & I are looking forward to being onboard EC again. She's a truly wonderful ship !

All the best to you, and my dear friends on the Celebrity forum.

WOW! An 8.5 million dollar refresh!

http://l.facebook.com/l.php?u=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.celebritycruises.com%2Fabout-celebrity%2Fabout-celebrity-overview%23footer_pages_about_celebrity_press_room_tab%2Fabout-celebrity%2Fpress-room%3Fsubtab%3Dtrue%26year%3D2016%26event_date%3D2016-09-19%26sequence_code%3Da&h=-AQEo5db3

Wow! Thanks for the link. Fun to read about the refresh. Excited to hear more about the "taste of film experience".

I've read complaints about furniture in staterooms looking old and in need of replacement. I wonder if that will happen still with this refresh??

Any thoughts?

Hi Everyone,

For those who cannot see the Facebook information posted by Wallie, here's the direct information from Celebrity's website : http://www.celebritycruises.com/about-celebrity/about-celebrity-overview#footer_pages_about_celebrity_press_room_tab/about-celebrity/press-room?subtab=true&year=2016&event_date=2016-09-19&sequence_code=a

Celebrity Solstice to Emerge from Stunning 8.5 Million-Dollar Modern Luxury Makeover

SEPTEMBER 19, 2016

Guests onboard Celebrity Solstice will soon enjoy even more exciting new offerings as the ship undergoes a bold refresh. New features include Celebrity Cruises' unrivaled "A Taste of Film" experience under the stars, authentic Japanese cuisine at Sushi on Five, a reimagined Photo Gallery, among other exciting new additions. The enhancements will further enhance Celebrity Solstice and exemplify the Celebrity Distinction.

"Celebrity Solstice already turns heads with her beautiful design, so these lavish enhancements will ensure our guests never want to leave," said Lisa Lutoff-Perlo, President and CEO, Celebrity Cruises. "When discussions began about what we could do to further enhance the already stunning Solsticized ship, we couldn't think of a better way to further delight guests than to offer the multi-sensory A Taste of Film experience, Sushi on Five, the savvy new Art Gallery, and all of the other glimmering finishes. We are offering a truly distinct experience."

The revitalization, which is scheduled for late October 2016, will see various enhancements and additions implemented across the ship, including:

A Taste of Film:

Celebrity Solstice will be the first of the Solstice Class ships to offer the iconic gastronomic adventure, which pairs films that evoke a specific cultural, culinary or destination experience, with cuisine that brings the scenes on the screen to life through guests' taste buds

A large movie screen will be added to The Lawn Club where the unique culinary experience will be hosted

Transformative alcove-style cabanas will line the real grass lawn for additional seating and relaxation space. Guests will be able to adjust the cabanas to their preferred view as the spaces evolve throughout the day

Sushi on Five:

Celebrity's hotly anticipated newest dining endeavor will be reimaged from what was once Bistro on Five and feature an expertly crafted à la carte menu. The new menu, curated by sushi chef Yoshikazu "Yoshi" Okada, offers hand-rolled sushi, fresh tableside grated wasabi, house-made soy sauce, Asian-inspired cocktails, Japanese beers and premium sakes, plus an array of mouth-watering starters and entrees

The revitalization of Celebrity Solstice will also see the following new distinct additions:

Suites onboard will have various modern luxury enhancements, including lavish new patio furniture being added to suite balconies

Celebrity Solstice's Photo Gallery will receive a full modern luxury makeover, removing the traditional panel display of printed photos:

The new Photo Gallery will include 25 state-of-the-art touch screen kiosks where guests will be able to view their professional photos taken throughout their cruise vacation and purchase a variety of photo formats. This new service allows guests to download their purchased photos direct to their mobile device at any time during their cruise, and instantly share their cruise memories with friends and family back home via social networking, email or messaging.

In addition, an expansive Art Gallery will emerge from the current Photo Gallery, featuring a dedicated auction location with contemporary art lining the freshly renovated space

Celebrity Solstice is scheduled to enter dry dock in Singapore on October 22, 2016, and will emerge on October 31, 2016. The revitalized ship will arrive just in time for the hotly anticipated transition into Australia's summer season, featuring a series of jaw-dropping itineraries, including stops to the gorgeous green expanses of New Zealand, the exotic escape of Indonesia, and to sought-after ports of call across the continent of Australia.

About Celebrity Cruises:

Celebrity Cruises' iconic "X" is the mark of modern luxury, with its cool, contemporary design and warm spaces; dining experiences where the design of the venues is as important as the cuisine; and the amazing service that only Celebrity can provide, all created to provide an unmatchable experience for vacationers’ precious time. Celebrity Cruises' 12 ships offer modern luxury vacations visiting all seven continents. Celebrity also presents immersive cruise tour experiences in Alaska and Canada. Celebrity is one of six cruise brands operated by global cruise vacation company Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. (NYSE, OSE: RCL). For more information, dial 1-800-437-3111, or call your travel agent.

Wow! Thanks for the link. Fun to read about the refresh. Excited to hear more about the "taste of film experience".

 

I've read complaints about furniture in staterooms looking old and in need of replacement. I wonder if that will happen still with this refresh??

 

Any thoughts?

Hi Bekbek,

If the Press Release is fully accurate, it would seem there's nothing planned for the Non-Suite Staterooms... though they do mention enhancements for Suites.

With that said, I've always found the Non-Suite staterooms to be in excellent condition, especially on the Solstice Class ships. Also, please keep in mind, that soft goods are occasionally refreshed while the ship is in operation. Frankly, I wouldn't worry about it.

Hope this helps !

Great, thanks for the info! We will be on the Solstice going to Hawaii at this time next year. For now, we will just hurry up and wait. :)

So they're adding cabanas to the Lawn Club.

It's not mentioned but I wonder if the movie screen will be replacing the hot glass show.

They don't necessarily need to do that - they could put the screen on the white wall that backs the aft bar. Just wondering.

I think it's hysterical that she's touting solsticizing a Solstice class ship! Refreshing it, yes. Updating it, yes. Solsticizing it--I don't think so. It's already a Solstice class ship. Solsticizing is something they did to the M class ships.

Linda

Redoing the photo area is an enhancement??? That's a joke, eh????

Doesn't sound like they're doing very much; but I'll bet my first born that the prices will certainly go UP....

Ludicrous, if you ask me.... Perhaps that is why LL-P didn't ask me....

I think it's hysterical that she's touting solsticizing a Solstice class ship! Refreshing it, yes. Updating it, yes. Solsticizing it--I don't think so. It's already a Solstice class ship. Solsticizing is something they did to the M class ships.

 

Linda

 

I noticed the same thing. :confused:

Redoing the photo area is an enhancement??? That's a joke, eh????

 

Doesn't sound like they're doing very much; but I'll bet my first born that the prices will certainly go UP....

 

Ludicrous, if you ask me.... Perhaps that is why LL-P didn't ask me....

 

 

They're moving the "art gallery" to the photo area. That leaves a big empty space next to the World Class Bar. It would be nice if that was made into some kind of lounge but she didn't mention doing that so I won't hold my breath.

We will be on the Sydney to Singapore leg. If I read this correctly the printed photos will be done away with and one can order photos from a computer. This is in fact a cash saving for the photographers as they wont have to print any photos that aren't ordered and will not improve the viewing for customers. Extra space will then be made for art auctions which will again be improvement on bottom line no benefit for passengers as the sky lounge is an even larger area and that was used for the large auctions. Cabanas if were free could be a benefit but I understand that they have to be booked and paid for on the later Solstice ships. Modern luxury at an increased cost. I look forward to see how one can enjoy food and movies on the lawn without bringing ones food from the Oceanview café or mast grill. Still lets see what develops, I see little benefit from the proposed changes

We are part of a largish group of friends that will be on her maiden voyage post refit back to Australia on 31 October so looking forward to experiencing the changes first hand. Hope to post a few updates her too along the way!

Sounds interesting, but sure its a marketing statement and is not an exhaustive list of changes - although its only a 9 day dry dock so not expecting major changes. I was hoping she would get the SLUSH bar as added to other ships but no mention of that. We'll soon see!! :D

Also a lot of excitement by many on our 'other' social media page about those cabanas. But what wasn't said was they will likely be on a rental basis as per existing Cabana's on other S Class ships. Does anyone know the latest rental options (full/half day, per hour) and costs for these?

Cheers!

Well folks, RCCL just announced a 23% increase in their dividend.

Something is going right for us to keep booking and talking about it here on CC.

I can't say I'm excited about the addition of cabanas to the lawn ... marring the space and undoubtedly for a fee.

I guess it should be called Silhouetting the rest of the S-class.

We loved the Lawn Club Grill on the Reflection- I wish this restaurant would be added to the Solstice for our May Alaska repositioning cruise...

The release doesn't sound very interesting. Mostly just revenue raising changes.

Cabanas on Reflection for our upcoming February cruise were $149 for the day on sea days (9AM-9PM) and $99 for port days.

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We will be on the Sydney to Singapore leg. If I read this correctly the printed photos will be done away with and one can order photos from a computer. This is in fact a cash saving for the photographers as they wont have to print any photos that aren't ordered and will not improve the viewing for customers. Extra space will then be made for art auctions which will again be improvement on bottom line no benefit for passengers as the sky lounge is an even larger area and that was used for the large auctions. Cabanas if were free could be a benefit but I understand that they have to be booked and paid for on the later Solstice ships. Modern luxury at an increased cost. I look forward to see how one can enjoy food and movies on the lawn without bringing ones food from the Oceanview café or mast grill. Still lets see what develops, I see little benefit from the proposed changes

The food and movies is a fee event on M class..,the food and movie are related.

Not sure if they'll run other movies or sports there during the daytime..and how that might affect enjoyment of the Alcoves/cabanas,...also extra charge.

No interest in Art Auctions so no benefit for us there

It does seem a waste for photogs to print so many pics...most are discarded..but hope pics are clearer in the kiosks than on the in-room tv.,hard to really see if it's worth purchasing,

Maybe other enhancements will be more interesting and no extra charge!

The release doesn't sound very interesting. Mostly just revenue raising changes.

I concur. More space for art auctions. Please google cruise ship art auction scams if you have not already. Simply an attempt to raise more revenue.

The cabanas sound like they will result in less public space being available, and are only available for a fee.

Sushi on 5 has resulted in the sushi being removed from the buffet, so many people will be inconvenienced.

I assume the dine and movie experience will also be a fee based event.

Nothing wrong with more upselling, but I'm not sure many people will benefit from these changes. As for the new suite patio furniture, all that really means is that it's time to renew the stuff!

Lisa Lutroff-Perlo doesn't seem to have a very high opinion of her clients intelligence IMHO.

I concur. More space for art auctions. Please google cruise ship art auction scams if you have not already. Simply an attempt to raise more revenue.

 

The cabanas sound like they will result in less public space being available, and are only available for a fee.

 

Sushi on 5 has resulted in the sushi being removed from the buffet, so many people will be inconvenienced.

 

I assume the dine and movie experience will also be a fee based event.

 

Nothing wrong with more upselling, but I'm not sure many people will benefit from these changes. As for the new suite patio furniture, all that really means is that it's time to renew the stuff!

Lisa Lutroff-Perlo doesn't seem to have a very high opinion of her clients intelligence IMHO.

Exactly what I was thinking.:(

Why doesn't she (or her marketing dept. ) think we can read between the lines .

 

Lisa Lutroff-Perlo doesn't seem to have a very high opinion of her clients intelligence IMHO.

IMHO this is the total reverse. She has her focus dead on center of what the million people not on Cruise Critic that sail on Celebrity want.

Cabanas sell out every cruise on the 2 ships that have them.

The go shop local and dine with the Chef has advanced bookings way more than expected.

The food and beer parings in the GastroBar on the Equinox sell out every time it is offered. So to have a Chef cook a special meal to match the theme and local of a movie, ya wont be able to get a ticket. Think Studio Movie Grill stateside.

Photo gallery, sales will double cause newbys will be able to see their pic's in a 'nano' :rolleyes: second on the computer.

Repeat cruisers know about the art scam, but we are a small %. , the place is full of people wantin the free bubbly.

Smart and successful business cater to what the biggest % of their clients want, is the hard cold bottom line.

We don't cruise Celebrity for this stuff, but many others do.

Cabanas on Reflection for our upcoming February cruise were $149 for the day on sea days (9AM-9PM) and $99 for port days.

 

 

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Thank you! they will be a novelty originally but I don't see them being popular when she is 'Downunder' as people will not see the value in paying for a glorified place to sit!

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