The Doctor's Lady

Except that nobody books Celebrity expecting Carnival's food style. I don't want burgers and barbeque and fast food. I want what Celebrity once so beautifully delivered.

The condition of the ship isn't new, but it's very very nice. Occasionally noted subtle signs of wear, but nothing to complain about. Our cabin was 1516 and it seemed like new except for the balcony dividers which could use some TLC. It was only the poor food that ruined our cruise. Everything else was consistent with what we've come to expect from Celebrity in over a dozen cruises.

Maybe we should just stand down and wait this out until everyone has a better handle on staffing and quality. But hubs is pushing 70; we have a bucket list and don't have an unlimited timetable.

That's the best you can do under the present circumstances. That way you might get better than you expect.

Cruise ship entertainment has never been our bag. We've been to too many Broadway Shows and headliner concerts and it's ruined us for everything else. So with that as a caveat, a group called The Barricade Boys was extremely good in the theater one night and they also performed in the foyer the next evening. The food and wine pairing class was expertly conducted by Murano's assistant sommelier and we were suitably impressed. Glass blowing was fun. The whale watching excursion we booked through the ship was fun. The stop on Catalina was unexpectedly charming, and we plan to return there for a long weekend getaway. Our room steward was just wonderful and our room was spotless. Molly in Guest Services could not have been more helpful or kind. So yes there were wonderful things. No cruise is all bad. We've spent quite a bit of time on the Baja, both on cruises and land based trips. We know it well and love it. If you're new to Cabo and want to party, you'll find plenty to do on a self-directed basis. If you're looking for the real Baja vibe, I'd recommend the excursion to Todos Santos. On the not good side, we've loved the Persian Garden on the M-class shops and spent a lot of time relaxing in them. It added immensely to our overall relaxation and enjoyment of our vacation. The Persian Garden on the Solstice was not good at all. Not even a little bit. Like the food, it just wasn't worth getting out of bed for.

My word. Just home from our cruise and shocked at some of the rude comments in response to my post. It was our first cruise in a decade and we were excited. No we don't go on the internet while on a cruise to check our posts. What a waste of cruise time that would be. For those of you who felt compelled to post something snarky, please seek a life outside of the internet. For everyone else, I hope to meet you on a cruise someday. Unfortunately it is with a heavy heart that I report the Celebrity we started cruising with when Century was a new ship doesn't exist any longer. And whatever it is that they're doing now (are they even sure?) isn't for us. We always cruised Celebrity for the good food and exceptional service. Presently the food has been dumbed down to the point of not being worth eating. As a food service professional, now retired, the present ingredients are subpar and the menus aren't interesting. We ate numerous times in Blu, the MDR, Ocean View Cafe, Mast Bar, and room service. We also ate twice in Murano. Only Murano had food worth eating. The Murano experience was above and beyond. Truly exceptional in every way. Sadly everything else was on par with a Carnival cruise I was strong armed into going on a few years ago. It obviously would take a lot to shift us off of Celebrity after so many wonderful cruises and life changing memories. But the customer Celebrity is pursuing doesn't seem to be us any more. We're foodies and Celebrity was once upon a time a foodies cruise. We kicked around getting a suite next time so we could eat in the better daily dining restaurant, because no one can eat rich food like Murano every single night. But we're booking Oceania for our next cruise. My understanding is that's where the refugees from the old Celebrity are finding their sweet spot. We still plan to do the Galapagos with Machu Pichu land extension on Celebrity Flora when the Civil unrest there simmers down. And we'll keep our ears on Celebrity to hear whether they've returned to their culinary roots. They should start with the Mast Bar and Oceanview Cafe. It is not difficult nor expensive to serve extraordinary hamburgers and buffets. At this point they're simply choosing not to. And why not? Carnival has made a fortune serving bad food to people who value other things in their cruise experience. Celebrity seemingly feels that's a more appealing audience that the one that has been cruising with them since the Century was a young ship.

We sailed on Celebrity beginning on the Century in 1996. It was indeed a premium line in those days. The food was quite good and the service even more so. We've remained loyal to them for a quarter of a century and have the second-to-highest level in their frequent cruiser program. Unfortunately in the intervening years they are chasing mass market quality in a race to the bottom. On a recent cruise we were saddened to find their "perks" for frequent cruisers have been dumbed down to non existent, and their food (other than specialty restaurants which are still quite good) was inedible about half the time and barely acceptable the other half. Like several on this thread, we're looking for that sweet spot Celebrity used to occupy. So it's with a heavy heart We have to agree with others that Celebrity is no longer a line that fits our needs. Maybe Oceania is. Hope springs eternal.

We're in port in Los Angeles on the Solstice preparing to depart. There are a half dozen cruise ships lined up. And ours was the only one that played the theme from The Love Boat on the ship's horns. So much fun. I bet all the other cruise ships were jealous! 😁

There is a new variant surging right now. Medical press is reporting it is the most contagious Covid variant so far. Hubs is a doctor. We don't want to be sick and miss our vacation so we will be masking when we board Solstice this Saturday and very much hope our waiter and wait staff will as well. I just received news this evening that a high school friend died from Covid last month so that hits close to home. She was only 58 and her daughter had just signed an athletic letter of intent with the University of Arkansas.

Does anyone know why Celebrity doesn't cruise to Hawaii or the South Pacific? We're planning a trip there and having to consider other cruise lines against our will.

If you love relaxing in the Persian Garden like we do, or value the higher quality meals in Blu (ditto), it will be worth every dime.

The cost for the wine class on a cruise leaving next week is 93usd pp, 88usd pp if you book in advance. I sure hope we get the glasses or a coupon but the description doesn't say anything about it. If we do it will be a nice surprise.

I'm wondering about signing up Hubster and I both for the courses involving wine since I can have a little. But on the courses involving hard liquor would I be allowed to tag along to the event without paying if I wasn't drinking? I'm diabetic and really shouldn't have hard liquor. Also are the events set at specific times or do you just show up at the bar or some of each?

Bad food. Mediocre food. Ordinary food. We cruise Celebrity for the food experiences.

Anyone who has participated in any of the Drinks Experiences on board, care to comment which ones and what you thought? They range in price from $35 to $93 per person, and we're trying to decide which ones we are most likely to enjoy and learn something interesting from. There's one for Mixology, one for World Wines, one for martinis, Jack Daniel's, MacCallan's, comparative wine crystal, Wine Pairing, etc etc.