Solstice Hawaii Cruise Sept. 9, 2016

We got home on Saturday from our incredible Hawaiian vacation and I wanted to try to comment on some of the things we experienced and did while on our vacation. CruiseCritic has been great in helping me plan my vacations and I wanted to help anyone else who may be in the stages of planning a cruise to/from Hawaii.

Just to provide our background:

Couple celebrating 20th wedding anniversary.

We have cruised with Celebrity (8), Royal Caribbean (3) and Princess (1)

Stayed 3 nights in Vancouver, boarded Solstice for 10 day Hawaiian cruise, then stayed 4 nights in Waikiki

Summary of vacation:

Sept. 6: Arrive in Vancouver, check into L'Hermitage Hotel, walk the seawall in Stanley Park, dinner at CinCin

Sept. 7: Wild Whales Vancouver Tour, dinner at Blue Water Café

Sept. 8: Sea to Sky Gondola Tour, dinner at Carderos

Sept. 9: Board Solstice

Sept. 10: Day at sea

Sept. 11: Day at sea

Sept. 12: Day at sea

Sept. 13: Day at sea

Sept. 14: Day at sea

Sept. 15: Kona - tour with MaryLou's

Sept. 16: Hilo - tour with MaryLou's

Sept. 17: Maui -Tender, use local bus and try to snorkel near Black Rock (Kaanapali Beach), Old Lahaina Luau

Sept. 18: Maui -Tender, Robert's tour to Haleakala Crater

Sept. 19: Honolulu - Disembark Solstice, private tour with Oahu Private Tours, check into Outrigger Reef, dinner at Hulu Grill

Sept. 20: Pearl Harbour Tour with E-Noa tours, dinner at Roy's Waikiki

Sept. 21: City bus to Hanauma Bay to snorkel, dinner at Orchids (@Halekulani)

Sept. 22: Take Waikiki Connection Trolley to Diamond Head to hike to top, swim at Kuhio Beach, dinner at Orchids

Sept. 23: Breakfast at Duke's, check out and fly home to Ottawa ON. :-(

I had booked this cruise in December 2014 so I had lots of time to plan and research (what I love most!).

Day 1:

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We used points with Air Canada to fly from Ottawa to Vancouver and arrived bright and early to enjoy a full day in Vancouver. We stayed at L'Hermitage and they allowed us to check in early at around 10:30. Starbucks was less than a block away so we grabbed something quick and then walked to Stanley Park. We walked most if not all the seawall and had a beautiful day to enjoy the sights and scenery. Wear comfortable shoes and try to get a map from the visitor centre if you aren't familiar with the park as it will help you locate any points of interest.

We ended the day with a nice dinner at CinCin which was easily walkable from our hotel. I had mentioned to the hotel that we were celebrating our 20th anniversary and they were kind enough to send up a bottle of wine, chocolates, a flower and some other nibbles.

Day 2:

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Whale watching with Wild Whales Vancouver. Seeing ocras in the wild has been a life long dream of mine so this was going to be a day to remember! We walked about two blocks to catch the city bus to Granville for our 11am tour. We opted for the open boat experience so we had to wear anti-exposure suits during the tour. This kept us dry and warm throughout the day and we were thankfully to have them. This day was absolutely incredible! We only had to travel about an hour outside of Granville Island before we spotted the first whales. We got to see about 18 whales from the southern resident pods of varying ages. They were very active throughout the time we were allowed to stay with them and thankfully the rain held out until we had to leave. We also got to see some harbour seals and sea lions on the return trip.

We ended this rainy day at the Blue Water Café. I can understand why this restaurant gets top ratings on TripAdvisor. This tied for the best meal of the trip and possibly sits on my Top 10 meals ever.

Day 3:

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I woke early to check the weather forecast for the day and with it looking good, we booked the shuttle to the Sea to Sky Gondola in Squamish.

This has got to be one of the most beautiful places to see in BC. The gondola is very smooth and quiet with fantastic views. We hiked through most of their short trails at the top (grab a trail map from the gift shop) and walked across the suspension bridge (yikes!). The various lookout platforms throughout the area offer many beautiful views with some offering views above the clouds. It's also a short walk to Shannon Falls from the bottom with more beautiful scenery.

We ended our day with a nice dinner at Carderos with a walk along the water back to the hotel.

Day 4:

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We planned on checking in around 11am at the cruise terminal so we walked around downtown and found the steam clock in Gastown. I also came across a book at the Art Gallery that had a lot of the local art featured around town so we looked for some of those. It's a neat book that I'll be sure to take with me the next time we're in Vancouver.

We checked out of the hotel and decided to walk to the terminal with our luggage. It wasn't a bad walk and I think we were probably at the terminal shortly after 11am. It was a bit confusing with both Royal and Celebrity ships in departing that day but once we found the Celebrity line, we dropped off our bags and then headed upstairs to check in. There were quite a few people who missed the luggage checkin and were sent back downstairs to drop off their bags. We didn't have any problems with checkin or security but it didn't seem to be the most efficient way of getting things done. We did upgrade our drink package and sign up for a 3 speciality restaurant package before boarding.

We boarded the ship and were immediately given a glass of sparking wine. With the rooms not being ready, we first went to Murano's to book our 3 speciality dinners and were told that the package also included two lunches (this should have been a red flag) so we booked all the restaurants then we walked to Café al Bacio for a latte and waited for the room announcement. We had booked a forward Aqua class room for our anniversary and we were very happy with the room once we were allowed in. The sparkling wine was already in the room as were the slippers, two bottles of water, the special tote bag and the lip gloss. The room also had the rain showerhead with 4 body jets. Very nice! I'm not sure how the storage compares to the other rooms but it was adequate and thankfully we were able to reach the storage above the bed. The far end of the closet wasn't the easiest to access as it was a bit tight with the bed. Our suitcases fit nicely under the bed. The footstools on the verandah were enjoyed on the sea days.

We spent the day exploring the ship and ate dinner in Blu. More on Blu later...

I have to go for now but if anyone has any questions or comments, fire away...

Tracey

Wow! Thank-you very much for sharing. I really look forward to reading the rest of your review. My DW and I, celebrating our 25 wedding anniversary, will be departing from Montreal in May, 2017, to do the same 10 nights trip on Solstice but backward, with 4 nights on Oahu Island prior to cruise and 3 nights in Victoria/Vancouver post-cruise. I am really glad to hear that it was an incredible vacation for you.

RCL Sovereign of the seas (1992), RCL Enchantment of the seas (2010), HAL Rotterdam (2014), HAL Maasdam (2015), Celebrity (2017)

Looking forward to the rest of your review. Thank you!!!!

I think we were probably at the terminal shortly after 11am. It was a bit confusing with both Royal and Celebrity ships in departing that day but once we found the Celebrity line, we dropped off our bags and then headed upstairs to check in. There were quite a few people who missed the luggage checkin and were sent back downstairs to drop off their bags. We didn't have any problems with checkin or security but it didn't seem to be the most efficient way of getting things done.

We were on the same cruise. We stayed with friends in Vancouver for a few days prior to departure. They drove us to the cruise terminal for drop off. We were directed to the lower parking level by cruise terminal staff (not Celebrity). There was close to 1000 people standing in a single line, both Celebrity and RC with all of their luggage!. It was 11am. It took us 1 1/2 hours standing in line for two elevators that terminal staff were taking people up two levels with only two people in each elevator because of all the luggage (some with 6 pieces for two people! Then we stood in line with all our luggage for Celebrity check-in. Celebrity staff was astounded by all the people in line with all their luggage. Celebrity directed us back downstairs to a long line to drop our luggage off. Then we had to go back upstairs to stand in line for customs to get a colored card for what reason only Poseidon knows. Then we had to go stand in another line for customs to hand in our card. We finally boarded Solstice at 1:30 pm, 2 1/2 hours after being dropped off. People in the line on the lower level were really upset about the procedure and were blaming Celebrity, but it is really the Vancouver Port Authority that is at fault. NEVER AGAIN WILL WE DEPART FROM VANCOUVER! It is a nightmare!

One unattended woman, booked on RC, on a scooter had 3 pieces of luggage with no one to help her, so fellow passengers around her helped by taking an extra piece of her luggage.

We were lucky since we didn't have much luggage (and we are Elite Aqua) to make it through in 2 1/2 hours. It took some people 3 + hours to board from the lower level. Others checking-in at 11am reported that they somehow were directed to the correct parking level (where luggage drop-off awaited) and made it through check-in in 15 minutes!

As soon as we boarded Celebrity, all the anxiety and anger melted away. Smiles, welcomes, and sparkling wine awaited us. Our room was ready and a whole bottle of sparkling was in the ice bucket. But heck, we had the drinks package, and went directly to the bar for more attitude adjustment. I ordered something straight, on the rocks, and 10 days of fun, fun, fun ensued - terrific ship, terrific staff, great food, and great weather......oh and though I never gamble, I used our six $5 Elite casino coupons at Blackjack and turned that into $150 which I stuffed into my pocket and walked away! Beginners luck.

Somehow Vancouver can't seem to cope with two ships at once. Boarding Celebrity once to Pacific coastal was a nightmare - also HAL for Alaska. However because I like Royal Vancouver to Hawaii I always hope for the best!

How was the weather? Is sept/oct best weather for Hawaii?

Thank you for doing this review. This cruise is on our bucket list.

How was the weather? Is sept/oct best weather for Hawaii?

It was warm and humid but dry at the time Solstice was there. It had been raining the week before.

The Captain took us around the south side of Hawai'i from Kona to Hilo. It was a beautiful, clear, dry evening. We were able to view lava pouring into the sea at 11pm. It felt like we were right on top of it! This was a once in a lifetime, incredible experience. UNFORGETTABLE! Thank you so much Celebrity and Solstice senior staff!

Wow, you are really on a holiday!

Looking forward to your updates.

AHHH! On my bucket list as well. Looking forward to hearing about the sea days. Rough? Manageable?

I have never been a sea day person and was dreading 5 straight days at sea. I was surprised how much I enjoyed them after the first day.

The first day out of Vancouver was wet and cool but after that first day the weather improved and seats were hard to find near the outside pool. We had a few showers on the last sea day but it just freed up the pool chairs :-)

We don't suffer from sea sickness so can't comment on that but we did notice it took us awhile to get our sea legs on this trip. We had a forward cabin on deck 11 and I found the rocking of the ship kept me awake some nights.

Thanks for the review.

We finally boarded Solstice at 1:30 pm, 2 1/2 hours after being dropped off. People in the line on the lower level were really upset about the procedure and were blaming Celebrity, but it is really the Vancouver Port Authority that is at fault. NEVER AGAIN WILL WE DEPART FROM VANCOUVER! It is a nightmare!

Yes, Vancouver is a problem. I'm thinking if we do Alaska again we may just go out of Seattle. *sigh*

I have never been a sea day person and was dreading 5 straight days at sea. I was surprised how much I enjoyed them after the first day.

 

The first day out of Vancouver was wet and cool but after that first day the weather improved and seats were hard to find near the outside pool. We had a few showers on the last sea day but it just freed up the pool chairs :-)

 

We don't suffer from sea sickness so can't comment on that but we did notice it took us awhile to get our sea legs on this trip. We had a forward cabin on deck 11 and I found the rocking of the ship kept me awake some nights.

Yes, similar to my experience sailing from NJ to the Caribbean in January. We had a AQ forward on deck 11. I had sleep deprivation (3 sea days) by the time we arrived in the Caribbean. Following seas sailing south and heading into them on the way north. At night in bed, I had the sensation of someone poking my shoulder with a shove. This was the shudder of the ship as the bow hit the waves.

My husband says he'd never do 5 sea days, it's a waste. I reminded him that on our next cruise, we're going to have 4 sea days, split up on either side of the ABCs mind you, but still.

I should mention that the muster drill occurred at 4pm the day we boarded and for those not yet onboard, they held a separate drill for them at another time. After the drill, we thought that this was the busiest that we saw the ship during the whole cruise. I'm not sure if the ship was full but aside from after the drill, we never found the ship crowded. Sure it was difficult to get seats right by the outdoor pool after 7:30am but there were usually seats a few rows back. We ate breakfast in Blu so I can't comment on the Oceanview Café at breakfast but it was difficult some days to find a seat at lunch.

Also the Celebrity Today did not include any weather forecasts until the port days. Only the sunrise and sunset times were provided.

Day 5: (First Evening Chic) Saturday

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It was a cool, rainy day so all activities were indoors. When researching this cruise one thing that I was never able to find out were the actual activities planned on board during the sea days. The days could be as busy as one wanted them to be.

The activities for the day included:

Hawaiian Arts

9:00am | Fresh Orchid Flower Lei Making

11:00am | Hula Dance Class

1:00pm | Ukulele Lessons

10:45am |Heartbeat of the Operation - Galley Tour

11:00am | Taste of Solstice - Culinary Showcase

Beyond the Podium Series

11:30am | Brent Nixon: A Migration of Whales

Trivia throughout the day.

The CruiseCritic get together was scheduled for 9:30am on this day also.

We visited the gym before breakfast and were surprised to see most of the treadmills in use by 6:15am. This was a trend throughout the cruise and although they have a 30min limit and will stop after that time, I did see a few people restart them to extend their time.

I dropped into the Lei Making but left as it was going to run into the time for the CruiseCritic get together. I did attend the Ukulele Lessons, Galley Tour and the Brent Nixon presentation.

The indoor pool area was busy because of the weather but we did find chairs later in the afternoon and got to enjoy the pool and hot tub. A couple of porpoises were spotted swimming along the side of the ship late in the afternoon and we saw another from our verandah.

We had purchased the 3 speciality restaurant package when boarding the ship and we had scheduled our first dinner for Tuscan Grill on this evening. The dinner and service were excellent and the view from the back of the ship could not be beat.

The clocks were set back 1 hour this evening.

Day 6: (Sunday)

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I believe the weather started to improve throughout the day and we got to enjoy some outdoor time around the pool. I also went up to see my first Hot Glass show. It was a bit difficult to see at times with the amount of people there but they do have overhead monitors that show inside the ovens so you can see what is happening. The glass shows were offered a couple times throughout the day.

The activities for the day included:

Hawaiian Arts

11:00am | Hula Dance Class

12 noon | How to Tie a Pareo

1:00pm | Ukulele Lessons

Today's Trivia - sessions at 10:15, 3:15 and 3:45

Beyond the Podium Series

10:15am | Mary Amanda: Hawaii Past to Present

11:30am | Brent Nixon: Dolphins of Hawaii

Matinee:

3:00pm | Comedian Mike Wilson

Other activities included NFL games, Adult coloring sessions, Bocce, culinary demonstrations, and flashmob dance rehearsals.

As part of the dining package, we had lunch at Silk Harvest and I had to skip the Ukulele Lessons. The fixed menu for Silk Harvest provided a very good overview of what the restaurant had to offer and we really enjoyed the food. Enough to go back twice for dinner.

We had missed the comedian show the first night so we went to matinee and had a good laugh.

Since we got up so early for the gym most days, we did not make it to any evening shows and usually returned to our room after dinner. They offered a fairly good selection of movies that were updated part way through the cruise.

Day 7: (Monday)

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Pool day! The days are starting to blend together and all we wanted to do is lay by the pool enjoying our books and a couple of beers. I had started out by highlighting all the activities at the start of the cruise but by now the highlighter is forgotten and Celebrity Today is shoved in beach bag.

The activities for the day included:

Hawaiian Arts

9:00am | Pareo Sarong Tying Class

11:00am | Hula Dance Class

1:00pm | Ukulele Lessons

Today's Trivia - sessions at 10:15, 3:15 and 3:45

Beyond the Podium Series

9:00am | Brent Nixon: Green Turtles of Hawaii

10:15am | Mary Amanda: Women of Pearl Harbor

Matinee:

2:30pm | Tribute to Whitney Houston

3:30pm | The Wild Side of Glass

The clocks were set back 1 hour this evening.

Day 8: (Tuesday)

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Pool day!

The activities for the day included:

Hawaiian Arts

11:00am | Hula Dance Class

1:00pm | Ukulele Lessons

Today's Trivia - sessions at 10:15, 3:15 and 3:45

10:30am |Top Chef at Sea Quickfire Challenge

Beyond the Podium Series

11:45am | Brent Nixon: Volcanos of Hawaii

This was a crazy day for food as we had lunch at Tuscan Grill followed by dinner at Murano. Way too much food for one day but we enjoyed both meals. Given that Murano is the more expensive of the speciality restaurants we thought this was the weakest of the 3 main restaurants.

The clocks were set back 1 hour this evening.

Day 9: (Wednesday-last sea day)

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Pool day (in the shade and out of the possible weather)

This was an odd day onboard as it felt like the last day of the cruise. They had scheduled the Hot Glass Charity Auction, the Grand Finale Art Auction and the Bingo Final Jackpot. It wasn't a great day weather wise and we had intermittent showers throughout the afternoon. Not a great day for the chair hogs by the pool as their stuff got rained on quite a bit. We also saw the pool attendants take some people's stuff after the 30 minute empty limit to have those same people come back hours later looking for their things.

The activities for the day included:

Hawaiian Arts

11:00am | Ori Tahiti Dance

1:00pm | Ukulele Lessons

Today's Trivia - sessions at 10:15, 3:15 and 3:45

11:30am | Oceans Ahead: Secrets of Ships Navigation

Beyond the Podium Series

10:15am | Miss Amada: Titanic: The Last Song

1:30pm | Pool Volleyball challenge - Officers vs. Guests (the CD Ken actually wore his full suit into the pool!)

After the volleyball game, the hula and ukulele classes each did a song. Remember this if you sign up for the classes….

3:00pm | Movie at Celebrity Central - X-Men Apocalypse.

10:00pm | Welcome to Hawaii Party

We ate at Silk Harvest as part of the final dinner of our dining package. Silk Harvest was my favourite out of the 3 speciality restaurants and we would eat here one more time before the cruise was over. I loved the options on the menu and there were so many tasty things to try.

We went back to our room to get our stuff ready for our first port day - Kailua Kona the next day….

You are killing me. :eek: This sounds amazing!!!! I'm keeping my eyes open for September 2018. Waiting for the deployment schedule to come out.

Was this your first trip to Hawaii??? It won't be your last :D

Yes my first trip to Vancouver and Hawaii. My husband had said to plan like we wouldn't be back but we both enjoyed ourselves so much that I think we will be returning! Maybe for our 25th anniversary....

We were on the same cruise. We stayed with friends in Vancouver for a few days prior to departure. They drove us to the cruise terminal for drop off. We were directed to the lower parking level by cruise terminal staff (not Celebrity). There was close to 1000 people standing in a single line, both Celebrity and RC with all of their luggage!. It was 11am. It took us 1 1/2 hours standing in line for two elevators that terminal staff were taking people up two levels with only two people in each elevator because of all the luggage (some with 6 pieces for two people! Then we stood in line with all our luggage for Celebrity check-in. Celebrity staff was astounded by all the people in line with all their luggage. Celebrity directed us back downstairs to a long line to drop our luggage off. Then we had to go back upstairs to stand in line for customs to get a colored card for what reason only Poseidon knows. Then we had to go stand in another line for customs to hand in our card. We finally boarded Solstice at 1:30 pm, 2 1/2 hours after being dropped off. People in the line on the lower level were really upset about the procedure and were blaming Celebrity, but it is really the Vancouver Port Authority that is at fault. NEVER AGAIN WILL WE DEPART FROM VANCOUVER! It is a nightmare!

 

One unattended woman, booked on RC, on a scooter had 3 pieces of luggage with no one to help her, so fellow passengers around her helped by taking an extra piece of her luggage.

 

We were lucky since we didn't have much luggage (and we are Elite Aqua) to make it through in 2 1/2 hours. It took some people 3 + hours to board from the lower level. Others checking-in at 11am reported that they somehow were directed to the correct parking level (where luggage drop-off awaited) and made it through check-in in 15 minutes!

 

As soon as we boarded Celebrity, all the anxiety and anger melted away. Smiles, welcomes, and sparkling wine awaited us. Our room was ready and a whole bottle of sparkling was in the ice bucket. But heck, we had the drinks package, and went directly to the bar for more attitude adjustment. I ordered something straight, on the rocks, and 10 days of fun, fun, fun ensued - terrific ship, terrific staff, great food, and great weather......oh and though I never gamble, I used our six $5 Elite casino coupons at Blackjack and turned that into $150 which I stuffed into my pocket and walked away! Beginners luck.

I also was on the same cruise and went through exactly what you've described, except I didn't get the colored piece of paper and had to wait in another line at that point. It was the worst embarkation I've ever experienced and I agree that it was the local ports fault in the way they directed people. I don't blame this on Celebrity at all. I was on the ship by 12:45 and just barely made the Concierge lunch, which I had been looking forward to trying. We were in line around 10:30 am.

I'll wait till Tracey finishes her review before adding too many comments, but I'll say out of 11 or 12 Celebrity cruises this was one of our favorites, and we've liked them all.

PS, the night be went by the volcano spewing lava into the ocean was a once in a lifetime experience. We were so happy to be there and glad the Captain took the boat by there with Brent Nixon narrating.

Day 10 (Thursday Kona)

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Kona was a tender port and I had booked a tour with MaryLou's that was supposed to meet at 8:30 with the tenders taking about 25 minutes. This caused me a bit of anxiety as I didn't want to be the one that the tour company had to wait for at the pier or worst have them leave because I didn't get off the ship quick enough. Since we weren't yet Elite status, we were entitled to Priority tender tickets and we would therefore have to line up to get an early tender. I had read all kinds of stories online about the process taking hours to get people off the ship and I almost cancelled our private tour to go with something from the ship. I did stay with MaryLou's tour but I also did talk to the Guest Relations Manager at the Cruise Critic get together to see if he could help me get off the ship early. He told me to go to Guest Relations and to tell them that I had spoke to him and that he would help me get off the ship early. Once I mentioned his name it was surprising how much they tried to help. I was told to visit the Captain's Club manager and she would be able to help. She was great and simply told me to go to the 4th floor dining room where the Elite members would be gathering for the tender and she would allow us to join the group. I think we were the 2nd tender after one that contained people going on the Celebrity Tours. In the end we didn't have anything to worry about as MaryLou was stuck waiting on other guests who were not that fortunate to get off early. I think some people took well over an hour. We did have 2 medical emergencies that had to be evacuated by the tender.

We had to wait at the pier for about 30 minutes while MaryLou decided how she was going to handle the late people with the tenders. We were moved to another group that was ready to go and off we went. Throughout the day we visited: Greenwells Coffee plantation; got to see Kealakekua Bay with Captain Cook's monument; went to Two Steps (we were supposed to snorkel but we were going to be the only ones doing it while the others left to tour. The water was also a bit rougher than we're used to so we opted out); watched some spinner dolphins off the shore at Two Steps, went to the City of Refuge, and the painted church. We did stop for lunch along the way and met up with her other groups that were touring that day. We had some good fish and chips at the stop.

When we returned from the tour, there was already a long lineup for the tenders and we had to wait awhile to get on one.

Once back onboard we decided to stop by the pool to cool off from the day then dressed for dinner at Blu.

This was going to be an exciting night if things worked out as everyone hoped. The captain had announced that he would try to bring the ship along the ocean lava flow on our way to Hilo at approximately 11:30pm. I believe this is referred to as the 61G lava flow at Kamokuna but I may be incorrect. Being the early people we are, we set our alarm for 11pm and went out on our verandah to watch our approach. Unfortunately we could not hear what was being said on the upper deck but we did get to see a very nice show that I would guess we got to watch for over 30min. The captain even turned the ship around 360 so all sides of the ship had a view of the flow. This was definitely a very unique experience and one that we may not witness again.

Day 11 (Friday - Hilo)

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Thank goodness Hilo is a docked port and we were able to walk right off the ship. We toured Hilo with MaryLou's Tours again and I enjoyed what we got to see this day. We visited 'Akaka Falls (listed as one of the most beautiful waterfalls in Hawaii) and the trail around the park, Volcano National Park, the Jaggar museum, the steam vents, Kilauea Iki Crater, the Thurston lava tube, Mauna Loa macadamia nut factory, and Richardson's black sand beach among other places. I got to see my first nene also but unfortunately no photo opportunity.

We ate at Silk Harvest this evening for the last time. With the discounted rate, they also included some crab legs. The thought was there but they were a mess to try to crack and eat. Still a fantastic dinner with excellent service.

Not realizing that Celebrity has different 3 speciality restaurant dining plans when I purchased the package, I was signed up for a 3 dinner, 2 lunch package instead of the 3 dinner package. I assumed (wrongly) that the 2 lunches were just included in the price. Wrong. We were charged two fees for the package, one for the three dinners and then later for the two lunches. I had wanted to book online before boarding but I had waited too long and the 2nd night bookings were no longer available. Lesson learned.

Day 12 (Saturday - Maui)

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Another tender port. We were attending the Old Lahaina Luau that night so we planned to take the local bus to Ka'anapali beach to snorkel at Black Rock them come back to the ship to clean up and take the tender back for the luau. In other words, we weren't in a rush to get off the ship and just went for a tender ticket after we finished breakfast. I would guess that I was there after 8am for a ticket and we had to wait about an hour to get off the ship. Not idea. Anyway the tender took about 30 minutes to get to shore and then we walked to the back of the Wharf Cinema to wait for the bus. The bus runs on the half hour every hour so we caught the 10:30am bus. A note for anyone planning on using the bus system - buy the day pass rather than individual tickets. They are the same price however they load pass holders onto the bus first which will help when catching the bus at Whaler's Village later when the crowds are large.

We rode the bus to Whaler's Village and walked through the shopping area out to the beach. What a beautiful beach (has been rated one of the top in the world)! We had taken towels from the pool the day before for the beach, claimed our area and then got in the water. Watch out for the under tow! Standing in water thigh deep, you can feel the waves dragging you further into the ocean. It actually knocked me off my feet at one point. Not the most graceful action to happen. We decided the water was going to be a challenge so walked down to Black Rock to check out the rest of the beach. We really should have taken our stuff with us as the water looked much calmer here and the snorkelling actually looked pretty good. A missed opportunity for next time.

We knew we wanted to try to be back on the ship by around 2 so we walked around the shops at Whaler's Village then caught the bus back to Lahaina. Buses were $2 per person and straight forward to use. We got on a tender right away and grab a quick bite before getting ready for the luau. We got ready way too early and were back on shore by 4pm. There was a group planning on coordinating transportation to the luau but unfortunately it didn't work out so we walked with another group to the luau. It was a hot walk but it was manageable and it may have taken 20-30 minutes tops.

Now onto the Luau. This was awesome! We sat in chairs at a table for 8 (there are tables in the front where you have to sit on the floor) and had a terrific view. Prior to the start of the luau, you are seated at your table and given water and drinks (they are included). You are allowed to walk around the grounds beforehand to view the area where they are cooking the pig and various vendors selling different things. The grounds are beautiful and we got to witness a pretty sunset before the show started. It’s a buffet that they do by table and there was an abundance of different food to try. Desserts were brought out to each table and everything was so good. The show itself was spectacular with respect to the costumes, the dancing and the music. It was a fantastic show that we would go again in a heart beat. We shared a cab back to the ship and it was $10 shared among 4 people.

Day 13 (Sunday - Maui)

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Another tender day. I booked a tour with Robert's to go to Haleakala Crater that we supposed to be picked up by 9am. Tenders ran for 24 hrs but were reduced to running hourly after midnight and I think they were to start up again at around 7am. Tendering was a bit of a mess as no one seemed to know if we were going to need a tender ticket to leave around 8am and how busy it was going to be with the tours departing around that time. We didn't want to be late for the tour so we skipped breakfast and caught a tender just before 8.

We weren't very happy with the hours for Blu on some of our port days as they only opened at 7:30 on our second day in Maui and made getting the early tender impossible. I don't know why they opened at different times throughout the cruise.

It was actually marathon weekend in Maui while we were there which complicated pickups with taxis and tours due to road closures. We had plenty of time to find our tour group and had to wait some time before we were led to our tour bus. It was a lot of driving but we didn't want to worry about a rental car so it was a great tour for us to see the crater. We had stopped prior to entering the park in the upcountry area to visit the Kula Lodge as a gift and snack stop. Nice place that had some things cheaper than we had seen in Whaler's Village the day before. Once entering the park we stopped at the various visitor centers for different views of the crater and park. We had a chance to do a bit of the Sliding Sands trail and got some very nice photos before having to head back to the bus. During the day we saw some silversword, nene, an Hawaiian owl and a monk seal laying on a beach. It was a good day of touring and I cannot put into words the beauty of the crater area. There were so many different colours that I can only hope our photos have captured.

We had no issues getting a tender back to the ship at the end of the day. If you happened to get on a tender that had to wait to fill, it was a very warm wait. They opened the front windows but it didn't help much.

This is the last day of the cruise so the day ended with packing. We had an island tour booked for the next morning so we opted to self-disembark so at least we didn't have to hurry to get our bags out before 11pm.

Day 14 (Disembarkation)

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I was surprised that Blu was open for breakfast on the last day and we enjoyed our eggs benedict for the last time. After getting cleaned up and packing our last few items we decided to do our self-disembark. I had asked our tour guide to meet us at the pier at 9am thinking that disembarkation would be a slow, long process like it is in Florida or San Juan but I think it took us less than 15 minutes to walk through the ship and terminal. The longest wait was for the elevator on the 11th floor. We had to hand in our declaration form as we left the ship and then it was a straight walk out of the terminal. We were standing at the pier by 8:20 (I think) and hoping our guide could pick us up earlier.

Comment on Aqua Class and Blu:

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I will comment at this point about our experience with Aqua Class and Blu. I was very excited to give this a try and I was slightly disappointed with Blu and the benefits of being Aqua Class. The room was great. I liked the rain shower head and jets and the furnishings in the room (couch, bedding and aromatherapy oil). The 4 pm nibbles are a waste and the fruit was also questionable. I think they would leave the fruit there to rot if we didn't throw it away after it got too ripe. I should have spoke to the room attendant and requested that bananas or something else be left in the room instead but I didn't. I tried the relaxation room once at the end of the day and it was nice in there. I can imagine it being very peaceful and relaxing on a rainy day. The Persian Gardens did not do it for us at all. I didn't realize that we have to leave our room card with the spa so they can "control" the number of people in the room but when we went in there were people asleep on the beds and others had obviously set up shop there for well over the time you're supposed to be in there. We tried one of the saunas but the temperature kept fluctuating.

We really enjoyed the breakfasts in Blu and appreciated being able to order made to order eggs benedict even though they weren't on the menu. Their breakfasts were much better than what we've ever had at the Café. We would have liked that they had better or more consistent hours for breakfast. While supper was good in Blu it was uninspired and not very exciting. I often felt that I had to settle for something on the menu rather than be excited to try something. The service in Blu was fantastic however we were assigned to a particular waiter after the first day and were always seated in his section even if we got there just at opening. Unfortunately his section was nowhere close to the windows. I think they started to realize our disappointment after our sporadic use of Blu for dinners and near the end of the cruise they asked if we would like to sit elsewhere. YES! I know we could have asked earlier but we aren't the type of people to rock the boat and we felt we may offend our waiter.

Would I do Aqua Class again? No. I think I'd sooner save the money on the room and spend it instead on a dining package.

We were celebrating our 20th anniversary on a cruise with a lot of sea days so it was the best time for us to try Aqua with its added services and rooms. Do I regret trying it? No.

The ship itself was beautiful and I look forward to being on the Silhouette in April.

We ate at Silk Harvest as part of the final dinner of our dining package. Silk Harvest was my favourite out of the 3 speciality restaurants and we would eat here one more time before the cruise was over. I loved the options on the menu and there were so many tasty things to try.

This was our first opportunity to try Silk Harvest. We have tried all the specialty restaurants on other Celebrity ships - Murano, Tuscan Grill, Qsine, Lawn Club Grill - and have liked all of them. We were a bit apprehensive about Silk Harvest because of the mixed reviews on CC. But we agree with you, we loved Silk Harvest and ate there twice, but only once in Tuscan and Murano. Just to be clear, Silk Harvest is not "Chinese food" but more like "Asian Fusion" cuisine and it was delicious, one of our favorites too. Our server, Maria, was beyond GREAT!

Would I do Aqua Class again? No. I think I'd sooner save the money on the room and spend it instead on a dining package.

We were celebrating our 20th anniversary on a cruise with a lot of sea days so it was the best time for us to try Aqua with its added services and rooms. Do I regret trying it? No.

We found that David (Columbia) the assistant maitre 'd in Blu to be outstanding and we never had a problem getting the table we wanted. But we prefer Blu on the smaller M class ships - less crowded, less noisy, more intimate. And in the future we may shop for the best price on a standard Veranda stateroom and them purchase the daily specialty restaurant package for $29pp/pd and eat in a specialty restaurant every night.

Thanks for your review, it pretty much mirrors our experiences too.

We also thought that Silk Harvest was one of our best meals, and like others were a bit apprehensive about it due to some posters reviews, but found it excellent. It was our first time there. Having tried most of the other Specialty restaurants we decided to try this one and are glad we did. We got a 30% discount on the price. Towards the end of the cruise they were offering 50% discounts on most of the Specialties. For those interested they were offering Sushi on 5 for $25 PP for anything you wanted. Actually all of the food was really good on this cruise with the exception of the Top Chef menu.

We were in Concierge and the afternoon delights were abysmal. They really need to rethink these.

All in all an excellent cruise. I tried most of the drinks in the World Class bar and also they made us a few from the old Molecular menu. I loved it.

Top marks for the crew at Al Bacio, service was good for us in all venues. It seemed to be a full ship and you had to wait sometimes for a drink, but all in all we thought the bartenders and waiters did a great job.

I'm still scratching my head trying to figure out what people are talking about when they mention the "downgrade" in the Celebrity product. There are things I could pick at but we were there to have a good time, not find fault.

We got home on Saturday from our incredible Hawaiian vacation and I wanted to try to comment on some of the things we experienced and did while on our vacation. CruiseCritic has been great in helping me plan my vacations and I wanted to help anyone else who may be in the stages of planning a cruise to/from Hawaii.

 

 

 

Just to provide our background:

 

Couple celebrating 20th wedding anniversary.

 

We have cruised with Celebrity (8), Royal Caribbean (3) and Princess (1)

 

Stayed 3 nights in Vancouver, boarded Solstice for 10 day Hawaiian cruise, then stayed 4 nights in Waikiki

 

 

 

Summary of vacation:

 

Sept. 6: Arrive in Vancouver, check into L'Hermitage Hotel, walk the seawall in Stanley Park, dinner at CinCin

 

Sept. 7: Wild Whales Vancouver Tour, dinner at Blue Water Café

 

Sept. 8: Sea to Sky Gondola Tour, dinner at Carderos

 

Sept. 9: Board Solstice

 

Sept. 10: Day at sea

 

Sept. 11: Day at sea

 

Sept. 12: Day at sea

 

Sept. 13: Day at sea

 

Sept. 14: Day at sea

 

Sept. 15: Kona - tour with MaryLou's

 

Sept. 16: Hilo - tour with MaryLou's

 

Sept. 17: Maui -Tender, use local bus and try to snorkel near Black Rock (Kaanapali Beach), Old Lahaina Luau

 

Sept. 18: Maui -Tender, Robert's tour to Haleakala Crater

 

Sept. 19: Honolulu - Disembark Solstice, private tour with Oahu Private Tours, check into Outrigger Reef, dinner at Hulu Grill

 

Sept. 20: Pearl Harbour Tour with E-Noa tours, dinner at Roy's Waikiki

 

Sept. 21: City bus to Hanauma Bay to snorkel, dinner at Orchids (@Halekulani)

 

Sept. 22: Take Waikiki Connection Trolley to Diamond Head to hike to top, swim at Kuhio Beach, dinner at Orchids

 

Sept. 23: Breakfast at Duke's, check out and fly home to Ottawa ON. :-(

 

 

 

I had booked this cruise in December 2014 so I had lots of time to plan and research (what I love most!).

 

 

 

Day 1:

 

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We used points with Air Canada to fly from Ottawa to Vancouver and arrived bright and early to enjoy a full day in Vancouver. We stayed at L'Hermitage and they allowed us to check in early at around 10:30. Starbucks was less than a block away so we grabbed something quick and then walked to Stanley Park. We walked most if not all the seawall and had a beautiful day to enjoy the sights and scenery. Wear comfortable shoes and try to get a map from the visitor centre if you aren't familiar with the park as it will help you locate any points of interest.

 

We ended the day with a nice dinner at CinCin which was easily walkable from our hotel. I had mentioned to the hotel that we were celebrating our 20th anniversary and they were kind enough to send up a bottle of wine, chocolates, a flower and some other nibbles.

 

 

 

Day 2:

 

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Whale watching with Wild Whales Vancouver. Seeing ocras in the wild has been a life long dream of mine so this was going to be a day to remember! We walked about two blocks to catch the city bus to Granville for our 11am tour. We opted for the open boat experience so we had to wear anti-exposure suits during the tour. This kept us dry and warm throughout the day and we were thankfully to have them. This day was absolutely incredible! We only had to travel about an hour outside of Granville Island before we spotted the first whales. We got to see about 18 whales from the southern resident pods of varying ages. They were very active throughout the time we were allowed to stay with them and thankfully the rain held out until we had to leave. We also got to see some harbour seals and sea lions on the return trip.

 

We ended this rainy day at the Blue Water Café. I can understand why this restaurant gets top ratings on TripAdvisor. This tied for the best meal of the trip and possibly sits on my Top 10 meals ever.

 

 

 

Day 3:

 

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I woke early to check the weather forecast for the day and with it looking good, we booked the shuttle to the Sea to Sky Gondola in Squamish.

 

This has got to be one of the most beautiful places to see in BC. The gondola is very smooth and quiet with fantastic views. We hiked through most of their short trails at the top (grab a trail map from the gift shop) and walked across the suspension bridge (yikes!). The various lookout platforms throughout the area offer many beautiful views with some offering views above the clouds. It's also a short walk to Shannon Falls from the bottom with more beautiful scenery.

 

We ended our day with a nice dinner at Carderos with a walk along the water back to the hotel.

 

 

 

Day 4:

 

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We planned on checking in around 11am at the cruise terminal so we walked around downtown and found the steam clock in Gastown. I also came across a book at the Art Gallery that had a lot of the local art featured around town so we looked for some of those. It's a neat book that I'll be sure to take with me the next time we're in Vancouver.

 

 

 

We checked out of the hotel and decided to walk to the terminal with our luggage. It wasn't a bad walk and I think we were probably at the terminal shortly after 11am. It was a bit confusing with both Royal and Celebrity ships in departing that day but once we found the Celebrity line, we dropped off our bags and then headed upstairs to check in. There were quite a few people who missed the luggage checkin and were sent back downstairs to drop off their bags. We didn't have any problems with checkin or security but it didn't seem to be the most efficient way of getting things done. We did upgrade our drink package and sign up for a 3 speciality restaurant package before boarding.

 

 

 

We boarded the ship and were immediately given a glass of sparking wine. With the rooms not being ready, we first went to Murano's to book our 3 speciality dinners and were told that the package also included two lunches (this should have been a red flag) so we booked all the restaurants then we walked to Café al Bacio for a latte and waited for the room announcement. We had booked a forward Aqua class room for our anniversary and we were very happy with the room once we were allowed in. The sparkling wine was already in the room as were the slippers, two bottles of water, the special tote bag and the lip gloss. The room also had the rain showerhead with 4 body jets. Very nice! I'm not sure how the storage compares to the other rooms but it was adequate and thankfully we were able to reach the storage above the bed. The far end of the closet wasn't the easiest to access as it was a bit tight with the bed. Our suitcases fit nicely under the bed. The footstools on the verandah were enjoyed on the sea days.

 

We spent the day exploring the ship and ate dinner in Blu. More on Blu later...

 

 

 

I have to go for now but if anyone has any questions or comments, fire away...

 

 

 

Tracey

Thank you very much OP, for the very interesting review, for the 10 day cruise. I particularly appreciated information regarding restaurant and on- board activities on sea days.

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Can you tell me the name of the place you went for the luau? And how to make reservations? We will be going on this cruise next September and really enjoyed your review. Thanks for taking the time to do it. Also could you share where you stayed in Waikiki and would you stay there again? Ty.

We did the Old Lahaina Luau: https://www.oldlahainaluau.com/home/

You can book through their website. We had a group booking for our cruisecritic group that I think was through Maui Activities but this was just so everyone could sit together. In the end I don't think it made a difference as i think we were just seated by where we were in the line that evening.

It was well worth the money.

I'm going to summarize our post cruise stay in Waikiki but we stayed at the Outrigger Reef and we would stay there again without hesitation.

Tracey

We did the Old Lahaina Luau: https://www.oldlahainaluau.com/home/

You can book through their website. We had a group booking for our cruisecritic group that I think was through Maui Activities but this was just so everyone could sit together. In the end I don't think it made a difference as i think we were just seated by where we were in the line that evening.

It was well worth the money.

 

I'm going to summarize our post cruise stay in Waikiki but we stayed at the Outrigger Reef and we would stay there again without hesitation.

 

Tracey

Rated best and most authentic Hawaiian Luau in Hawaii. We went in 2006. Glad it's still fantastic!