JayJennyFL

Thanks looking forward to hearing about your trip. Hope you have a wonderful sailing!

4 hours ago, billc23 said:

 

PH every time for me...

Why?? Well, in my opinion...

If you plan on spending time in your room I would go for the PH on S class. I have been in the E class RS twice (will not book again) and prefer the S class RS. I find so many design failures in the E class RS. Take a look at the layout and photos on Cruise deck Plans and notice the limited living area compared to bedroom/bathroom area. Also, there is very little isolation between the sleeping and living space - translucent doors! I find the living area nicer in the RS on the S class and the entire layout more functional and comfortable. The E class PH was very nice with great isolation between living and sleeping area, but I didn't need the second bedroom - so that was wasted space for me.

 

The PH on the S class you are asking about is excellent! Great space for living, sleeping, and entertaining! You will receive elevated attention compared to staying in a RS. I will be in the PH on the Solstice beginning in a week and I am looking forward to it. Part of my sailing will be a transpacific so the central location is best for movement. The balcony is fine for me, certainly not like the M class, but the room is nicer overall. One nice perk that I have experienced when staying in the S class PH is a no extra charge cabana to be used every day! Nice place for drinks/lunch and just enjoying your time. I'm not sure if this is still offered and it is not listed anywhere that I know of. 

 

I find the E class much more spectacular looking but not as comfortable. The Ascent has improved over the Apex and I still find more comfortable seating on the S class. The E class has so many suites that I find the lounge and Luminae not as nice as on the S class. The E class sundeck is way better than the non existent or retrofitted ones on the M/S class. E class has much more in the way of specialty dining options. You can book Murano every day on the S class and they will make off menu items so that may be of some consolation. 

 

If the choice was PH to PH then I would probably book the E class mainly because I have not sailed that class very much. However, RS vs PH on the ships you considering? PH all the way for me! I am not sure of the pricing on these sailings but you may want to consider a true luxury line like Regent or Silversea. There are many threads addressing Celebrity Retreat vs luxury lines that may be worth reading. I really enjoy sailing on Celebrity and enjoy the luxury lines more at this point in my life - and they are often less expensive. Each has their benefits and if you ever do a Panama Canal sailing the M class PH is the best! I'm happy to answer specific questions.

 

 

Thanks for the insight. Yes we did the penthouse for the Panama Canal sailing and hosted a huge party for our cruise critic group. It was even more awesome because we became good friends with the couple in the other penthouse often having dinner together so it was double the VIP service when they saw us enter a restaurant lol. 
as for the cabana thing I had not heard of that so please let me know if that’s still the case !

Great thanks!!

1 minute ago, Liao said:

We are also on starboard but one deck below you, so probably in the RS just below your PH on deck 11.

Do you know for sailing this direction if starboard will be facing land or water most of the time? I didn’t bother researching as there was only the one penthouse available. Curious as to how the weather will be as we head towards England hoping we can enjoy our balcony some 😉

You should join the roll call. I just commented in there that we booked 😉 and introduced ourselves thus far only 2 other me members besides us . 

Sorry you said you are in a Royal suite this time. We are on the starboard penthouse so someone must have grabbed the port one early. If you see it open up lmk;) 

Too funny that’s the same one we are booked on so you must be in the other penthouse !! 
past sailing we did we became great friends with the couple in the other penthouse and even hosted a Panama Canal crossing party together - it was a lot of fun ! Looking forward to meeting you;) 

18 hours ago, peanut head said:

Personally, I would go with the PH.  Itineraries/cost don't seem to be of much concern to you.  Like you, we tend to spend time in the suite and enjoy dining in Specialty and in the suite.  We also prefer the heavy on the sea day experience to unwind and leave the world behind.  For the size of the suite and the "feeling" that you will "own the ship", go with the PH. 

16 hours ago, Liao said:

Did one TA on Edge in the Edge Villa, I’d take a RS or PH on Solstice over Edge for sure.  My next TA is on Eclipse in RS .

Thanks to everyone with their responses and experiences / opinions . It helped tremendously!   We ended up booking the penthouse on eclipse (I thought it was solstice but still in same class ) .  The appeal as one poster said of the larger cabin since we spend so much time there won out over the allure of a newer retreat style ship in a royal suite . Plus with us not attending shows in the evenings the expanded entertainment venues/options on E class wasn’t really a draw.  Will let you all know once back with a full review ! Sailing is 3/2025.  

Liao, just curious of your reasoning for preferring RS or PH on solstice vs say edge class ship ?  

Peanut head 

Thanks for the insight, I realize everyone cruises for different reason and thus why I wanted to share a little background as to the “why” 

curious - have you sailed on both classes of ships and or Millenium class - do you have a favorite ?  Of course nothing quite tops the penthouse in the millenium class with the super huge balcony;)

29 minutes ago, cruisestitch said:

Without knowing anything about the cost, the itineraries, the ports, the embarkation and disembarkation point, I say solstice

The intineraries are both similar both transatlantic one is 12 nights (Fort Lauderdale to London) which is solstice 

the other is 13 nights on apex transatlantic from Fort Lauderdale to Barcelona. Same stops on each only the apex ends up in Spain and solstice ends up in London. Cost wise the penthouse on solstice is only about $2000 less overall vs royal on apex which is $2000 more but keep in mind you also have one additionally night on board albeit in a smaller cabin. Thank you for responding - thoughts ?

Ok I know real world problems here- but we haven’t cruised in about 8 years so want to get the make the best choice possible for the money we are spending on our cabin. For background we have only sailed on millennium class ships in the past so never sailed on any ship in the solstice or newer ship like Apex.   We have done both the royal suite and penthouse on the millennium class ships so needless to say hubby is spoiled now for life lol.  We currently are considering a transatlantic sailimg on the solstice in a penthouse or a different transatlantic sailing on the Apex in a royal suite . Can anyone chime in as to pros of going on newer ship like the apex with the private “ retreat” areas and expanded dining options vs one on the solstice which seems very similar to the millennium class in terms of Michael’s club / and no designated retreat area .  Trying to decide if giving up the space of the penhouse on solstice  for a smaller cabin on apex is worth it to be able to truly experience the new features celebrity has rolled out since we last cruised. For context - we do spend a good bit of time in our cabin and don’t attend nightly shows and often take advantage of specialty and in room dining. My husband and both have demanding jobs and schedules so by selecting a sea day heavy I timerary it forces us to unwind and relax and we do enjoy good food and wine ! 😎 Any insight /advice/tips or experiences would greatly be welcomed!