On our Radar - Celebrity Solstice

Today we’re off to sunny Ft. Lauderdale to set sail on the new Celebrity Solstice ship for a two night preview cruise. We’re not generally cruisers, but we were invited by Celebrity to attend this weekend’s festivities, including the naming ceremony today and some mysterious “white party” on Saturday.

Aside from the obvious benefits of warm weather, sea air and all the free pina coladas we can drink, we’re really looking forward to exploring the ship. Especially after reading USA Today’s Gene Sloan’s initial review of the ship, “First impressions of the ship? In a word, ‘wow’!” and “The design of the ship is exquisite, with space after space that makes you gasp with surprise and amazement.”

Celebrity Solstice has an actual lawn—we’re talking real grass—on its deck where cruisers can play croquet. There’s also a glass blowing studio where you can indulge your inner artisan. What makes this ship extra special is its AquaClass Staterooms, which share the deck with the Aqua Spa. Also high up on our list is the Master Class wine bar, the specialty restaurants, including an Italian steakhouse, a pan-Asian restaurant and a creperie and Fortunes Casino.

Gene was very impressed with some of the ship’s space-saving measures that made us think Celebrity is taking a cue from Apple. Stay with us—the ship raised the beds so you can store your luggage underneath, kind of like how the first iPod had a quick wheel that later generations did away with and the new MacBook Pro has the coolest touchpad we've ever seen. (Can you tell one member of JSG just got a new laptop?)

It sounds like internet service is pretty spotty on the high seas, so we’ll report back next week!