Semi-live from the Solstice | Mexican Riviera, Oct 22-29

[micdee]

5 hours ago, Georgia_Peaches said:

We sail this itinerary in march as well.  March 4-11.  Really looking forward to the Mexican Riviera!

We're on this cruise too!  First time doing the Mexican Riviera. 

[GBeason884]

On 10/23/2022 at 12:36 AM, FastandFurious said:

Approximately 1200 guests which makes it enjoyable. Previous 2 cruises 2K +.

The Oct 8-15 cruise had 1400.    Retreat was booked.   When we left, the retreat host said they were down the 1100 with suites for the next two cruises not full.    

[Jim_Iain]

13 hours ago, OrcaGirl said:

Day 2 - at sea, evening

 

Formal/elegant/chic night… got our ‘fancy’ clothes on, mostly because I wanted to try the MDR tonight.

 

Dinner was delicious, and we cleaned our plates. I had the escargot and rack of lamb, with crème brûlée for dessert. The Fox enjoyed her honey and pear soup, steak Dianne, and apple crumble. And oh god the bread and butter was amazing, but I had to limit myself to one piece…

 

 

  

 

The actual service by the waitstaff was fabulous, and (humblebrag) I still enjoy surprising/shocking them by speaking my little bit of Indonesian and Tagalog. Only glitch was a couple of instances of waiters escorting couples to a table only to find it already occupied. Communication breakdown with hostess maybe?

 

Apres dinner, we hustled over to the theatre for the 7pm Rock City production show. Basically Rock of Ages without the plot. Great songs, fabulous costumes (Sequins! Kilts! Purple fur coats!), singing, dancing, aerialists, etc. We enjoyed ourselves immensely.

 

 

Our original plan was to return to the martini bar for more martini shenanigans but we were both still so stuffed from dinner that we decided to drop $20 in the casino and call it a night.

 

 

Did catch a teeny bit of martini shenanigans on our way back to our cabin.

 

 

And now to bed! Dawn comes early on a boat.

 

 

Random observations:

 

The PA system continues to be impossible to hear; did the captain say anything important? No idea. I’ve never found a ship that did this well. 

 

Our cabin is absolutely fine for us, but a few bits of wear and tear are evident, eg the shower door is janky as heck and there’s a small rip in the fabric headboard.

 

We’ve yet to meet our steward, but chocolates appear on our pillows and he or she accommodated our request for extra towels.

 

I hope the ship laundry has good bleach; I dyed my hair right before flying down and despite my best efforts, the colour is transferring to my pillowcase, towels, bath mat, etc.

 

We had changed clocks by one hour last night, and again tonight. Time is a construct, etc.

 

The PA messages are rarely played in the room and the best way to hear it is to open your door and stick your head out or Turn to Channel 1 (Bridge Cam) and they broadcast it over the TV.

 

 

[amawells]

Thanks for this! We got the 'free' blue chip deal for this ship/itinerary cruise as well, and are going in mid December, hopefully it will not be crowded then either.

Look forward to following along!

[OrcaGirl]

Day 3 - at sea, morning

 

Woke up at 7:30am phone time, which was 6:30am home time and 8:30am ship time. 🤯

 

 

Lazed about reading in bed until our stomachs insisted we head out in search of breakfast. Note to future self: a second sea day with a second time change would be a good day to preorder breakfast via room service.

 

To the buffet! Grabbed an eggs Benedict to order (yummy!) as well as some chicken sausage (fine) and cheese blintz (meh, I’ve had better). I think my big issue with the Celebrity buffet is that it’s repetitive - there are lots of stations but it’s a lot of repeats. The NCL buffets win out for me. But I did appreciate the variety of eggs benedict and that Celebrity makes them for you, they’re not sitting out as grab-and-go.

 

 

After breakfast we headed up to the hot glass studio to pick up the Fox’s jellyfish. We watched another session and probably talked a few more people into booking the class — we should get commission! I also purchased a previously-made glass Christmas ornament that I hadn’t seen yesterday and that was waaaaaay cuter than the ship ornament that was in the shops.

 

 

 

To the casino! I picked a machine that spoke to me, but it was false whispers as that $20 went fast. The Fox joined in on the free first-time cruisers slot tournament (semi-organized chaos!!), which was fun but alas she didn’t win anything.

 

 

The Fox headed to her spa appointment while I headed to the bar. One Miami Vice later, I decided to have a light lunch before my own spa time.

 

 

 

Random observations:

 

I miss Starbucks.

 

As an assurance to everyone else who booked the Blue Chip Club offer, there has been ZERO pressure to spend time or money in the casino. In fact, the Fox has received more invitations and special offers via card and voicemail as a first-time cruiser. I was invited to the captain club gathering per my lowly Classic status but that’s it.

 

Perhaps owing to the low capacity, but the bar staff around the pool have been walking around handing out free drinks.

 

The lawn seems underutilized; the screen shows RedBull races (?) and we’ve only seen one Cabana rented.

 

[OrcaGirl]

22 hours ago, davekathy said:

Thanks. I understand. Just curious based on your comment/opinion. 

TBH my comment is probably more a reflection of how small the balconies feel on other cruise lines. 😂

 

My husband is 6’5” and all legs: often he can’t sit facing out without his knees hitting the glass. But this would have been great for him. Me and the Fox are both short so this feels huge. 

[OrcaGirl]

3 hours ago, Jim_Iain said:

 

The PA messages are rarely played in the room and the best way to hear it is to open your door and stick your head out or Turn to Channel 1 (Bridge Cam) and they broadcast it over the TV.

 

 

Unfortunately we’re rarely in our cabin when announcements are made. My comment was more speaking to how hard it is to hear the PA system in the public areas, especially when the music keeps playing, the blender or espresso machine is whirring, and people actually raise their voices to continue their conversations. 
 

I wish they’d send the captain’s updates as text alerts via the Celebrity App.

[Georgia_Peaches]

I was wondering if you have visited the Persian Garden thermal suite area and if so, did you happen to inquire about the cost of a week long pass?

[OrcaGirl]

2 hours ago, Georgia_Peaches said:

I was wondering if you have visited the Persian Garden thermal suite area and if so, did you happen to inquire about the cost of a week long pass?

We haven’t but I’ll try to swing by and ask.

[Jim_Iain]

2 hours ago, OrcaGirl said:

Unfortunately we’re rarely in our cabin when announcements are made. My comment was more speaking to how hard it is to hear the PA system in the public areas, especially when the music keeps playing, the blender or espresso machine is whirring, and people actually raise their voices to continue their conversations. 
 

I wish they’d send the captain’s updates as text alerts via the Celebrity App.

 

Understand.... You are right unless you are near a PA speaker.  

[OrcaGirl]

Day 3 - at sea, afternoon

 

Spa time! The Fox enjoyed her seaweed something or other wrap and massage, but did comment on the upsell techniques employed by spa staff. My mani-pedi was also delightful, but I guess there was a minor miscommunication because the lady at the desk yesterday said she’d schedule us so that my pedicure would start while the Fox was still in her massage and then we’d have our manicures side-by-side, and that didn’t happen. Not a huge deal, we’re not joined at the hip, but I could see that upsetting others who did want to be together during their appointments.

 

But sparkles!

 

 

 

Grabbed treats from Cafe al Bacio and hightailed it up to the Sky Observation Lounge for constellation-themed cocktails and Disney trivia. I consider myself a ‘Disney adult’ (and am in fact headed to Disneyland for a few days right after we disembark) but boy I SUCKED at trivia. 7/15 answers right. Embarrassing. I will be having many martinis tonight to drown my sorrows.

 

 

 

 

With nothing else planned for the day, we headed back to our cabin for naps / downtime until dinner. I need to do some remote work today or tomorrow, in theory, but I don’t wanna…

 

Random observations:

 

Cruise ship spas should have cocktail service.

 

We should be able to check a box when making a spa appointment about whether we want to be chatty or not.

 

Auto-correct shouldn’t be suggesting ‘margarita’ as a replacement for ‘daiquiri’. ***** Apple?!?!

 

I just realized that our cabin doesn’t have any ‘do not disturb’ indicator. Huh.

 

 

 

[yoshi]

1. Thank you for the live review, such a nice jellyfish, Did you preorder the class or just sign up on board?

[JLMcruise]

On 10/22/2022 at 10:54 PM, OrcaGirl said:

Embarkation day notes:

 

Our flight down was uneventful if a bit tardy. We had booked transfers via Celebrity, and had a good hour wait until our bus arrived to pick us up at LAX. The transfers cost $35USD per person. A Lyft probably would have been cheaper/faster but we mostly didn’t want to have to think about transportation.

 

 

Check-in and boarding was super-fast and we were on board by 2:30pm.

 

Dropped off our bags in our room and then headed to our muster station for a perfunctory check-in there.

 

Had a snack at Cafe al Bacio and then set about exploring  the ship.

Watched the hot glass demo which was delightful. Got the Fox signed up for a class tomorrow; I’ll be her personal photographer.

 

 

The weather was overcast and chilly (for Los Angeles; my hometown got snow this morning, so it’s all relative) and we headed back to the cabin to reacquire our hoodies.

 

 

 

We had dinner in the buffet; the Fox declared it delicious, I thought it was okay. Although the caramel cake was a highlight for me.

 

 

Then off to the theatre for tonight’s vocalist, who was very good, but I felt bad because the theatre was sooooo empty.

 

Martini time! I loved the ice bar on the Reflection and the bar on the Solstice was just as delightful. In addition to the martinis we ordered, we each got a mini martini as part of the flair bartending ‘show’ (it was cool but not much of a show).

 

 

 

 

 

Random observations:

 

We’re wearing masks when in public indoor spaces; a few others are as well but not many.

 

The ship feels empty; I haven’t heard what the actual capacity is.

 

 

Apparently there’s a hurricane headed towards Puerto Vallarta? No one’s mentioned it on board that’s I’ve heard but my aunt messaged me so it’s made the news in BC… I guess we’ll see.

 

See y’all tomorrow!

 

 

 

Your Bartender is the best. We were on the ship for the 3 weeks.....we miss him! Ask him for his special! There is only 800+ guest this on your cruise. 

[JLMcruise]

The Toughest Trivia questions I have ever experienced. Don't feel bad. Danz and Dennis are fun!

[briguy1314]

On 10/23/2022 at 5:38 PM, Georgia_Peaches said:

WOW!  Where was everyone?  The ship must have felt like a ghost town...

It soooo did. Legit you could walk from one end of a deck to the other and not see a single guest. 

[Georgia_Peaches]

16 minutes ago, briguy1314 said:

It soooo did. Legit you could walk from one end of a deck to the other and not see a single guest. 

I’m pretty sure that would not be my cup of tea. I like a certain vibe when I cruise and although I’m not necessarily a Chatty Cathy, I do enjoy an eclectic crowd and meeting new people. 

[Milhouse]

7 hours ago, OrcaGirl said:

I also purchased a previously-made glass Christmas ornament

May I ask how much the Christmas ornament was?  And if there were a few of them or just the single?  I like ornaments as souvenirs and wouldn't mind considering picking one up during my sailing.  

[LinnieRed]

Thank you for doing this. We are right behind you. May I ask how the weather is?

[OrcaGirl]

What’s the TL;DR equivalent of too drunk, can’t type? Last night in a nutshell:

 

Dinner - so good

Comedy show - so bad

Martini bar - so dangerous

 

More to come once the cabin stops spinning.

[OrcaGirl]

14 hours ago, yoshi said:

1. Thank you for the live review, such a nice jellyfish, Did you preorder the class or just sign up on board?

We pre-booked (for the 5% discount) but there were lots of people signing up once on board.

[OrcaGirl]

13 hours ago, Milhouse said:

May I ask how much the Christmas ornament was?  And if there were a few of them or just the single?  I like ornaments as souvenirs and wouldn't mind considering picking one up during my sailing.  

It was $35USD. There was only the one out, but it sounded like it would be easy for them to make more if requested. The staff at the hot glass studio make things as part of the first-day demo and whenever they don’t have bookings to have things to sell.

[OrcaGirl]

12 hours ago, LinnieRed said:

Thank you for doing this. We are right behind you. May I ask how the weather is?

I’m a bad judge of temperatures. It was chilly and a little rainy as we left LA, warming up as we headed south. Not sure what to expect as we pull into Puerto Vallarta… 

 

[FastandFurious]

The internet issue was a one off satellite ship connection. Other than that it has been fine. Fun fact there are more crew on the ship than passengers. 1200 versus 1100. This is the first time In my memory the main dining room restaurant has been closed for second seating. Cruise is very nice. No issues. Weather good. Pool area packed even with reduced passenger count.

[SusieV]

Don't forget to check out the World Class bar- Nikola and Paul are amazing. We miss them already! (we were B2B Sept 16 and Sept 24).

[LinnieRed]

Is anybody currently on board doing any fun excursions? I had some fun things planned, but I broke my arm the other day, so no ATV in, etc. Trying to figure out what to do in Puerto Vallarta and Ensenada besides staying in the ship.