The Celebrity Solstice, the first in the Solstice-class ships, offers roundtrip cruises to Alaska from Vancouver, British Columbia. Travelers can choose from 7-night itineraries that visit two contrasting glaciers, one with a fjord experience.
We chose to sail on this Solstice-class vessel because we loved its design, especially after our fantastic voyage on its sister ship, the Eclipse. It strikes the perfect balance – large enough to offer a variety of onboard venues yet small enough to create an intimate experience.
The Sky Observation Lounge and outdoor Lawn Club maximize glacier viewing opportunities on an Alaska itinerary. The ship’s recent addition of Starlink satellite internet ensures guests stay connected while sailing through Alaska’s remote passages.
But the Solstice isn’t the only ship that Celebrity sends to the 49th state. Alaska-bound travelers have a choice of three vessels overall.
A Comparison To The Edge And Summit
Celebrity is a top choice for Alaska and is suited to adults who prefer fewer children onboard. Cruise guests can choose from a Millennium, Solstice, or Edge-class vessel.
The Celebrity Solstice sits between the Edge and Summit in terms of age and size, having launched in 2008. While Celebrity last refreshed her in 2023, she needs another renovation.
At 122,000 gross tons, the Solstice is smaller than Edge-class ships. This more modest size can be advantageous for Alaska ports.
The Solstice pioneered Celebrity’s signature Lawn Club – a half-acre of real grass at sea. This unique feature sets it apart from both the Summit and Edge.
We took an Alaska cruise on Celebrity Edge during her inaugural year in the state. While the Edge boasts the innovative Magic Carpet platform and infinite verandas, the latter aren’t ideal for Alaska’s cold climate. Once we opened the balcony, the cabin became quite frigid.
The Summit, built in 2001, represents an older generation of Celebrity ships but received extensive updates in 2019. Each ship offers different departure ports and itineraries, which might be a factor in your choice.
- Celebrity Solstice – offers 7-day roundtrip voyages from Vancouver, Canada.
- Celebrity Edge – offers 7-day roundtrip cruises from Seattle.
- Celebrity Summit – provides 7-day Gulf of Alaska cruises between Vancouver and Seward. Guests can choose a cruise or cruise and land tour.
Overview Of The Celebrity Solstice
Celebrity Solstice sets the standard for modern luxury cruising at the time of inauguration. The ship features the unique Lawn Club. It’s a half-acre of real grass on the top deck where guests can enjoy bocce ball or take in the fantastic views of Alaska.
Next to the Lawn Club, the Hollywood Hot Glass Class allows you to learn the technique of blowing glass. Cruise guests can either watch a show or book a time to create a glass piece. We enjoyed watching others make ornaments, paperweights, and vases.
One of the standout features of Solstice-class vessels is a large tree in its atrium. Each ship has a different take on the tree concept. This one was no different, with a Ficus tree suspended in a red cone-shaped pot.
The Celebrity Solstice is scheduled for dry dock in early 2026. While we’re unsure what will be refurbished, Celebrity has extended her dry dock schedule. This means she needs more work than initially anticipated. We hope the guest accommodations will be updated to the Edge-class color scheme.
Accommodations And Suites
The ship offers 1,426 staterooms, with 85% featuring private verandas. Most guests prefer staterooms with private balconies for Alaska. It gives a front-row seat on glacier viewing day and avoids the crowds on the open decks.
AquaClass cabins provide exclusive access to the Persian Garden spa facilities and Blu restaurant. Signature suites include the luxurious Penthouse, Royal, and Celebrity Suites. Each offers premium amenities, dedicated butler service, and access to the exclusive Luminae Restaurant.
Standard staterooms feature modern décor, comfortable bedding, and interactive flat-screen TVs. We felt our cabin had lots of storage for two or more.
Wheelchair-accessible rooms are available across multiple cabin categories, featuring wider doorways and modified bathrooms.
Alaska Itineraries
Celebrity Solstice’s two Alaska cruise routes are quite different—the ship alternates weekly itineraries. She includes Hubbard Glacier one week, and the following week, Dawes Glacier in Endicott Arm.
The difference between the sailings is not just glacier viewing but ports of call. Since Hubbard Glacier is further north, its itinerary includes three ports: Icy Strait Point, Juneau, and Ketchikan.
Sailings that visit Endicott Arm have one extra port day, Skagway, favored by many cruise guests. If you’ve wanted to ride the White Pass & Yukon Route Railroad, you must select a sailing trip that will visit Endicott Arm instead of Hubbard Glacier.
Ports Of Call
Since the Solstice begins and ends in Vancouver, the route sails the Inside Passage, known for stunning coastal views and calmer waters. Since we live in Vancouver, the Solstice was an easy choice.
Both routes visit Icy Strait Point first, a cruise-created port near the Tlingit town of Hoonah. This destination is renowned for incredible whale watching, thrilling ZipRider, and the largest population of brown bears globally.
Juneau, Alaska’s capital city, welcomes guests with optional excursions to Mendenhall Glacier, dog sledding adventures on a glacier, and the Mount Roberts Tramway. We’ve experienced them all, including a fantastic all-you-can-eat BBQ at the Gold Creek Salmon Bake.
This city offers great hiking trails if you prefer to forgo a tour. The Perseverance Trail, Mount Roberts Trail, and Gold Creek Flume Trail are recommended. The latter provides an easier option for families or those with little hiking ability.
Ketchikan, known as the “Salmon Capital of the World,” provides opportunities to explore Native American culture at Saxman Village and witness master totem pole carvers at work.
Here, we’ve enjoyed two fantastic tours on crab fishing. The Bering Sea Crab Fishermen’s Tour, one of the best tours in Alaska, gave us an insight into the dangers of king crab fishing in the Bering Sea.
Alternatively, the Wilderness Exploration & Crab Feast demonstrates the technique of Dungeness crab fishing. It includes an all-you-can-eat Dungeness crab feast which we thoroughly enjoyed.
Skagway transported us back to the Gold Rush era with its preserved historic district and scenic White Pass Railway journeys. While we enjoyed the train trip, renting a car and driving to Emerald Lake in the Yukon was just as wonderful.
Glacier Viewing Options
Dawes Glacier, accessible via Endicott Arm, offers dramatic calving displays and brilliant blue ice formations. If your ship gets close to the glacier, you can see harbor seals basking on icebergs. Look for the dark spots beneath the glacier’s face.
The route through Endicott Arm is picturesque. As a classic fjord, it features dramatic granite cliffs, dotted with towering waterfalls. With binoculars, look for mountain goats on the cliffs near the glacier.
Hubbard Glacier, North America’s largest tidewater glacier, presents an alternative route. The glacier’s 7-mile-wide face rises 350 feet above the water’s surface. Photos don’t do it justice.
Nicknamed the “galloping glacier” for its advancing movement, it wowed us with its incredible calving displays. Like Dawes Glacier, we saw numerous harbor seals close to the glacier’s terminus and colonies of sea lions approaching the glacier.
Should you book a balcony stateroom, the captain rotates the ship at the glacier, so all guests have equal viewing from their private space.
Onboard Experiences
The Celebrity Solstice delivers world-class amenities and distinctive features across its 13 decks.
Dining Options
The main dining room, the Grand Epernay Restaurant, spans two levels, offering elegant multi-course meals with changing menus each night. We could select from a set dining time or anytime dining.
Specialty restaurants include Tuscan Grille, an Italian steakhouse; Sushi on Five, which serves Japanese cuisine; and Murano, which presents fine French dining with tableside preparation. Alternatively, Le Petit Chef at Silk Harvest offers an entertaining dinner show with captivating animation.
The Oceanview Café provides casual buffet dining for breakfast, lunch, and dinner with international stations and made-to-order options.
Café al Bacio serves specialty coffees, teas, and fresh pastries throughout the day. The Mast Grill offers poolside burgers and snacks.
The Grand Epernay Restaurant was where we ate most our dinners and enjoyed excellent service, with well-presented delicious food. We preferred the buffet on early port day mornings for a quick breakfast before leaving the ship.
We tried both Sushi on Five and Murano. Murano was the highlight. Some items were cooked at our table, and my rack of lamb was superb.
Pools And Hot Tubs
The main pool area features two outdoor pools surrounded by comfortable loungers and daybeds. Other than embarkation day, rarely has it ever been warm enough to use the outside pool unless I felt like I was joining a “Polar bear swim.”
Six whirlpool hot tubs are strategically placed around the pool areas. Two are located in the Solarium, while four surround the main pools.
On the top deck, private cabanas are available for rent and are ideal in warmer climates. In Alaska, we never saw anyone use them.
The indoor Solarium pool provided adults-only relaxation, which we used frequently on cooler days. It’s advisable to always choose a vessel with an indoor pool when cruising to Alaska.
Glacier Viewing From The Sky Lounge
Celebrity Solstice’s Sky Lounge on deck 14 provides floor-to-ceiling windows perfect for viewing Alaska’s glaciers and scenery. This area was always busy during cooler weather conditions. The comfortable seating areas face outward, providing an ideal wildlife viewing spot with binoculars.
A full-service bar offers specialty cocktails and warm beverages while enjoying the views. Naturalists provide live commentary during scenic cruising.
During our sailing, the Sky Lounge hosted the popular “silent disco” party, where guests danced to different music. The silent disco is a fun event that we always try to attend whenever offered.
Entertainment And Activities
The Solstice Theater presents Broadway-style shows, musical performances, and comedy acts nightly. The Sky Observation Lounge transforms into a nightclub after dark.
We particularly enjoyed the destination speakers. They gave knowledgeable talks on Alaska’s wildlife, how climate change affects the glaciers, and port information. The Beyond the Podium talks were also fascinating.
Daily activities include trivia contests, dance classes, and enrichment lectures. The Lawn Club features real grass for bocce ball and putting. During our day in Dusenchanment Bay, it was a great spot to enjoy views of Hubbard and Valerie Glaciers.
The Casino offers slots, table games, and poker tournaments. Multiple bars and lounges provide live music throughout the evening.
Spa And Fitness
The Canyon Ranch Spa offers massage treatments, facials, and salon services. The Persian Garden thermal suite features heated ceramic loungers and aromatherapy steam rooms. We never used the spa on this trip, but my husband never missed an opportunity for a workout.
He felt the fitness center was well-equipped with modern cardio equipment and free weights. There was an option to attend daily fitness classes run by fitness trainers, including yoga, spinning, and boot camp.
A jogging track circles the top deck for outdoor exercise with ocean views. Due to the cooler weather, fitness fanatics use the indoor facilities instead.
Final Thoughts
The Celebrity Solstice may be an older vessel and lacks the innovative features of the Edge. However, what she lacks in design, she makes up on itinerary.
When heading to the Last Frontier, a great itinerary is key over the vessel that gets you there. If you choose to cruise on the Solstice in 2026, you’ll experience a refreshed ship after her refurbishment scheduled earlier in the year.
