Celebrity Solstice: A Standout

I had the pleasure of visiting Celebrity Cruise Line‘s Solstice ship while she was in port this week. The Solstice is one of the more amazing cruise ships at sea. From the ice counter Martini Bar to the “Lawn Club,” this ship has something for everyone.

Real grass on a cruise ship? Who would have thought? But Celebrity did it. The “Lawn Club” is an outdoor area on the top deck– with real grass — where you can enjoy casual outdoor activities, play bocce ball, or have a nice picnic on the lawn. It was one of the more unbelievable sites I have seen on a cruise ship.

Also located at the “Lawn Club” is “The Hot Glass Show.” It’s an incredible glassblowing center with live demonstrations where artful creations from glass are made from scratch. It’s definitely a one-of-a-kind exhibit, a must-see while sailing aboard the Solstice.

While you can watch some magnificent glass pieces being made, you cannot purchase the artwork, since this is a non-profit organization.

They do auction some of the pieces and give out raffle tickets. Some lucky guests go home with a very unique and beautiful gift. Otherwise, some of the pieces are displayed about the ship to admire.

In addition to the glass art onboard, Celebrity cruises has always had a fascinating art collection onboard their ships, and you can enjoy an onboard art tour with iPad in hand to direct you about the ship and to get more information about each artist and their work.

The Sky Observation Lounge is a quiet refuge by day for watching the scenery go by. At night this lounge comes to life with live music and dancing.

The “Cellar Master” is a unique wine bar at sea, with vintages from all around the world available to enjoy. Several state-of-the-art Enomatic machines dispense wine directly from the bottle in a 1-ounce to 5-ounce serving, allowing guests to taste different types of wines without having to purchase a whole bottle, or even a full glass. It’s a wine drinker’s dream come true. (This is not included in the Beverages Packages onboard).

The Solstice has three specialty restaurants to choose from for an additional charge. These specialty restaurants range in price, and I highly suggest purchasing the dinner packages offered. We were able to sample a few items from each specialty restaurant. Among my favorites were the crab cakes from “Tuscan Grille” and the orange chicken from “Silk Harvest.”

Unfortunately, we didn’t get to see any staterooms this visit because the ship was sold out, a testament to its popularity, but several of my TravelStore colleagues have had the pleasure of sailing onboard.

You can contact Tracy Wedde via her profile page here.