After spending seven nights aboard the Celebrity Solstice on an Alaska cruise from Vancouver, we had plenty of time to explore the ship and experience what it has to offer. There was a lot we really enjoyed, along with a few things we wished were different!
In this Celebrity Solstice review, we’re sharing our Likes & Wishes in four main areas: the layout and amenities, our sideways inside cabin 7160, the free food and restaurants, and the entertainment and activities onboard. 🚢🏔️
Celebrity Solstice Layout & Amenities
One of our first impressions of the Celebrity Solstice was how elegant and sophisticated the ship felt. It had recently been through dry dock, and many areas felt fresh and updated. Even though our sailing was full, we also rarely felt like the ship was overcrowded.
Some of our favourite spaces included Sunset Park, with its outdoor seating, games and beautiful aft views, and the Sky Observation Lounge, where the floor-to-ceiling windows made it a fantastic place to enjoy Alaska’s scenery when the weather wasn’t cooperating.
We also really enjoyed the relaxing indoor Solarium, the outdoor pools, Oceanview Cafe, Grand Epernay Restaurant and many of the lounges throughout the ship.
One of our biggest wishes was the lack of a sports court and public forward-facing outdoor space on the upper decks. We also found the beautiful Grand Foyer could become crowded during popular events.
Overall, though, we thought the Celebrity Solstice was a beautiful, classy and easy-to-navigate ship. 👍
Our Sideways Inside Cabin 7160 🛏️
Our home for the week was inside cabin 7160 on Deck 7, and its unusual sideways layout ended up being one of the things we really liked.
The cabin felt surprisingly spacious for an inside room, with a full-size couch, large vanity, plenty of storage and a good amount of open floor space. We also had two North American outlets and one European outlet at the vanity.
Interestingly, USB-A and USB-C charging ports appeared beside both sides of our bed partway through the cruise! Looking back at our footage, they had covers over them when we boarded and appeared to have been installed during our sailing.
The bathroom included a glass shower enclosure, plenty of shelving and shampoo, conditioner and body wash. We also found the cabin generally quiet and were able to request a large fan.
Our biggest wish? We couldn’t fit our suitcases underneath the bed! Thankfully, the room was spacious enough that this wasn’t a major problem.
Overall, we were very happy with cabin 7160 for our seven-night cruise.
Celebrity Solstice Free Food & Restaurants 🍽️
We were impressed with the variety of complimentary food available aboard the Celebrity Solstice.
The Oceanview Cafe offered a large selection for breakfast, lunch and dinner, with separate food islands that helped keep lines manageable. We found everything from omelettes, eggs Benedict and waffles at breakfast to carving stations, steak, salmon, pizza, Indian and Asian dishes, salads and plenty of desserts later in the day.
Other complimentary options included the Mast Grill, Spa Cafe, Sunset Park Cafe, and complimentary snacks and pastries at Cafe al Bacio.
Our main dining room was the beautiful Grand Epernay Restaurant, where we enjoyed breakfast and several dinners. Some highlights included prime rib, beef Wellington, salmon, short ribs, complimentary lobster tail on the second formal night and even filet mignon as the chef’s special on our final evening. 🥩🦞
We wished there had been a little more variety among the appetizers, and some of our steaks were cooked more than requested, but overall we thought the complimentary dining was very good.
Celebrity Solstice Entertainment & Activities 🎭
Entertainment was another highlight, especially the production shows and live music.
The Solstice Theater featured singers, dancers, aerial performers and, importantly for us, a live band. Some of our favourite shows included Rockumentary, Broken Strings, and Smoke & Ivories. We also enjoyed guest comedians, magicians and musicians throughout the week.
One of our favourite evenings was the candlelight concert in the Sky Observation Lounge, with the sun setting outside while a violinist, pianist and full band performed. 🎻
The dueling pianos were another highlight, although they were so popular that the Boulevard Lounge often wasn’t big enough for everyone wanting to watch.
There were also plenty of activities, including trivia, bingo, karaoke, arts and crafts, dance lessons, board games, Skee-Ball, shuffleboard, cornhole and more.
The overall atmosphere was definitely more relaxed than party-focused, which we thought suited an Alaska cruise extremely well.
Our Final Thoughts on the Celebrity Solstice 🚢
After seven nights onboard, we came away impressed with the Celebrity Solstice. We loved its elegant atmosphere, comfortable public spaces, relaxing Solarium, surprisingly spacious inside cabin, complimentary dining and high-quality entertainment.
Of course, there were things we wished were different, and that’s exactly why we like sharing both sides of our experience.
If you’re planning a Celebrity Solstice Alaska cruise or considering booking this ship, we hope our Likes & Wishes help you know a little more about what to expect before you sail! 🚢🏔️
Watch our full Celebrity Solstice Likes & Wishes review here:
https://youtu.be/PLFIe46HNVA
Related Celebrity Solstice Articles
If you’re planning a Celebrity Solstice Alaska cruise, you may also enjoy these related articles:
🌅 Celebrity Solstice Alaska Cruise: Day 1, Sail Away from Vancouver
🌊 Celebrity Solstice Alaska Cruise: Sea Day & Evening Chic – Day 2
🌲 Celebrity Solstice Alaska Cruise: Exploring Icy Strait Point – Day 3
🏔️ Celebrity Solstice Alaska Cruise: Hubbard Glacier – Day 4
🐋 Celebrity Solstice Alaska Cruise: Juneau & Whale Watching – Day 5
🦅 Celebrity Solstice Alaska Cruise: Ketchikan Boat Tour & Evening Chic – Day 6
🐋 Celebrity Solstice Alaska Cruise: Final Sea Day & Inside Passage – Day 7
🛏️ Celebrity Solstice Inside Cabin Tour, Sideways Stateroom 7160
❓ 10 Questions We Had Before Sailing Celebrity Solstice (Answered)