Valentine’s Day on the Celebrity Solstice

Date: February 14, 2019
Location: Sailing along the New Zealand coast on the Celebrity Solstice

After our day in Tauranga, the next day was spent at sea. It was Valentine’s Day and we decided that to celebrate we would go to a wine and seafood pairing that was at lunchtime. This was not something included with the price of the cruise or drink package. It was $50 per person, but when we booked our cruise, we received $50 of on-board credit. When we have on-board credit we usually apply it to the gratuities, but we already had our gratuities covered for this cruise.

All of the wines were from the Villa Maria winery.

The chef told us about the prepared dishes.

Since this was being held at noon we assumed that it was going to be a full lunch. It was just small bites. All the food was really good, though!

A representative from Villa Maria was on the ship and told us about each wine.

The seafood and wine pairing was nice, but not a full meal, so we still went to the buffet to get lunch. In the buffet there was a Valentine’s Day display set up.

The grand foyer was also decorated for Valentine’s Day and there were many couples that took part in a vow renewal.

At dinner, all of the women were given roses.

Food in the buffet and main dining room is always included in the price of a cruise. However, if simply being on a cruise is not enough to celebrate Valentine’s Day (or another special occasion), there are also specialty dining restaurants on cruise ships. While you have to pay for each of those specialty meals, they are supposed to be even more exquisite than the fine dining that you can receive each night for free in the main dining room.

Throughout the cruise there are also wine and whiskey tastings that are an additional fee.