We booked this cruise almost 2 years ago, as soon as the bookings on the new Solstice class ship were opened up. We waited anxiously to see any information about Solstice as well as watching the weekly shipyard webcam updates showing the construction progress.
Like many Celebrity fans, we were excited that our favorite cruise line finally had a new ship and we were booked on it. Since this was an official Cruise Critic group cruise, it was a very active thread; and we made many friends before we boarded the Solstice.
It was also a reunion cruise for our group of Martini Mates who we have sailed with since This was going to be a fun cruise. In October , we received an invitation from Celebrity Cruises to attend the official naming ceremony and sail on a two day pre-inaugural cruise.
Words cannot describe the excitement we felt to be able to experience the Solstice on one of its first cruises. It was an amazing experience. It allowed me to take lots of photos of the ship that can also be viewed from the homepage. Since we have so many photos of the ship on that web page, this review will focus more on the ports and activities.
The night before embarkation, we had arranged a pre-cruise dinner at a Ft. Lauderdale restaurant, Bravo Ristorante Italiano www. We asked to be seated outside in an area that they normally use for larger parties.
