MIAMI – September 20, 2007 – Some things just need a woman’s touch. To design a larger stateroom that is also intuitive and stylish on its extraordinary new ship, Celebrity Solstice,Celebrity Cruises has gone right to the source: ladies who cruise.
“First, we decided to make the staterooms larger – an average of 15 percent larger, in our deluxe ocean view verandas – and then, we decided to make them better,” said Richard Fain, Chairman and CEO of Celebrity’s parent company, Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. “To do that, we enlisted the expertise, intuition and wish lists of five exceptional women.”
Celebrity engaged a panel of five boomer women, identified by the line as “Celebrity’s Leading Ladies,” specially selected for their distinct points of view – a frequent cruiser, a travel agent, travel writer, a hotelier and a cruise considerer. The women participated in an immersive, four month process led by Synectics, a world-renowned innovation consultancy firm, to make the staterooms onboard Celebrity Solstice among the most spacious and inviting at sea.
Give me space…and tone down the colors!
Celebrity’s Leading Ladies offered many insights and desires relative to the stateroom design;chief among them, suggestions for improved stateroom flow, made possible by a larger stateroom size and Celebrity’s new interlocking technology. Also, in an industry first, Celebrity Solstice will feature an adjoining stateroom design with a double set of doors, allowing guests to open up the space for families or friends traveling together or close the doors for a more private environment.
Verandas of adjoining staterooms can also be opened up to create a veranda that spans both rooms. Clear sight lines and walkways to sea views are found in nearly every stateroom; modular furniture design and vestibule areas facilitate a more spacious flow; and additional storage – generous hooks, shelves and nooks – ensures a clean and clutter-free look.
Celebrity and Miami-based design partner RTKL Associates Inc. have taken additional design cues from the Leading Ladies, including their recommendations on color scheme. As a result, Celebrity Solstice will steer away from bright colors and patterns, in favor of neutral colors and elegant textures, for a more sophisticated and timeless look.
Key stateroom innovations include:
- Distinctive interlocking stateroom floor plan for better and more efficient space utilization,
resulting in deluxe veranda staterooms that are 15 percent larger than comparable
accommodations on the balance of the fleet.
- First-in-industry adjoining stateroom design with double set of doors, allowing guests to
open up space for families or friends traveling together, or close doors for a more private
environment. Verandas of adjoining staterooms also can be opened up to create a veranda
spanning both rooms.
- More spacious bathrooms with glass showers equipped with a foot rail for easy leg shaving
in every stateroom, and large fog-free mirrors, which are being introduced in Celebrity’s
suites and new AquaClass staterooms.
- Individual reading lights at each nightstand, including a shelf for personal items such as
reading glasses, books, etc.
- Expanded and “smarter” storage, including increased clearance beneath the bed for larger
luggage, and storage units over the bed for personal items such as handbags, shopping
bags, etc.
- Modular closets for varied clothing length and additional flexible storage areas.
- 32-inch flat-screen TVs in every stateroom, and larger flat-screen TVs featured in suites.
“While the increased space was helpful, we wanted to do something really special to capitalize on that space,” said Hanrahan, “and our Leading Ladies really helped make that happen.”
AquaClass
Another key insight provided by Celebrity’s Leading Ladies was the desire for a more relaxed,intimate shipboard stateroom experience connected to the sea and linked to highly personalized spa elements. The result? A unique class of veranda staterooms called AquaClass, an oceanside retreat created for guests who are most passionate about pampering and “getting away from it all.”
Simplicity and comfort are evident throughout the room, from the bathroom’s fog-free mirror and tall jetted bodywash shower, to the robust pillow menu. Aroma scent selections tied to specific vacation goals (relax, revive, re-energize, etc.) provide guests with a multi-sensory experience, while lavish AquaClass toiletries and refreshing daily teas, juices and bottled water round out the offering.
AquaClass will comprise 130 of the ship’s 1,425 staterooms, each double-occupancy only, creating the perfect grown-up getaway. Guests in AquaClass will receive unlimited access to Celebrity Solstice’s new AquaSpa relaxation room on the same deck, and the Persian Garden, an exotic aromatherapy and steam room. AquaClass guests also will have an exclusive dining room, Blu, an intimate, 130-seat specialty restaurant with menus developed by Celebrity Cruises’ culinary consultant, Blau & Associates, which operates upscale eateries for high-end hotels such as Las Vegas’ Bellagio, Miami’s Setai and Cabo San Lucas’ One & Only Palmilla.
Celebrity Solstice Celebrity Solstice will be the line’s first in a class of four 2,850-passenger vessels with an exceptional range of guest-inspired services and amenities. German shipbuilder Meyer Werft, who constructed the line’s Century-class fleet – Celebrity Century, Celebrity Mercury, and Celebrity Galaxy – is building the 122,000-ton ship.
Following several weeks of inaugural activities, Celebrity Solstice will make its maiden voyage December 14, 2008, on a seven-night Eastern Caribbean cruise roundtrip from Fort Lauderdale, Fla., visiting San Juan, Puerto Rico; Basseterre, St. Kitts; and Phillipsburg, St. Maarten. The itinerary will be offered on Sundays through April 5, 2009, with an alternating itinerary calling on San Juan, Puerto Rico; Phillipsburg, St. Maarten; Tortola, B.V.I; and Labadee, Haiti, through April 12, 2009. Fares for veranda staterooms begin at $1,099 per person, based on double occupancy.
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