The Celebrity Solstice heads out for a week of fun. Photo / Michel Verdure
The Solstice is a 122,000-tonne superliner, the youngest in the fleet to be based in Australia and New Zealand. It boasts - among many firsts - the half-acre of grass, a glass-blowing studio, and the highest ratio of guest rooms with private balconies in the world. An astonishing 85 per cent.
The ship is more than just a floating hotel; it's a floating resort. And that doesn't do it justice.
I was struck by the surprising mix of ages around me: it ran the gamut from toddlers to shufflers, making the average guest in their 40s. But no matter what your age, you would find it difficult to be bored on this ship.
Tours of the vessel, presentations, exercise classes, cooking demonstrations - the list is long and diverse - even the most restless passenger wouldn't manage to fit everything in.
I had only the vaguest idea of what a holiday on a cruise ship would be like, and I hadn't grasped the sheer number of people. 2785 guests, 1238 crew. That's 4023 people. Four thousand and twenty three. I needed another cocktail to take that in.
We boarded the ship in Sydney and after passing through Customs I made my way to my stateroom on deck eight, stopping for a quick buffet lunch in the Oceanview cafe and bar.
Waiting for me in my room was the ship's newsletter detailing the following day's activities. It included a brief trip itinerary and other useful snippets of information such as evening dress codes and opening hours.
Evening attire for the main and speciality restaurants, as well as the theatre, is expected to be smart casual and, on two occasions, formal.
This adds to the experience, as dressing up to go to dinner makes the night seem a bit more special. But don't worry - elsewhere you can wear what you like when you're dining, so long as you're presentable.
My luggage swiftly arrived with my stateroom attendant, Malroy, who told me the evacuation procedures in the highly unlikely event of an emergency. No open flames are allowed on the ship - the kitchens all use electricity generated in the engine room and smoking is only permitted in certain areas.
After a quick and reassuring lifeboat drill and safety briefing in our muster station, I headed to the top deck to watch our departure from Sydney and my last glimpse of land for the next couple of days.
And to sample the bar.
The dining options on board are extensive and 10 kitchens provide the huge range of food on offer, from casual buffet to elegant dining. Be prepared to put your diet on hiatus.
We had a table reserved for us each night in the Grand Epernay dining room, a vast chamber designed to resemble the inside of a bottle of champagne, with bubbles of light hanging in chandeliers over the elegantly dressed tables.
The dining room is built to evoke the inside of a champagne bottle. Photo / Supplied
Our excellent sommelier, Ana, was eager to recommend individual choices from a huge collection of wines stored in a tower of glass at the end of the restaurant.
The food was international, with dishes that changed theme each night. I sampled frogs' legs, and snails in garlic and pernod butter one night, and scampi linguini the next.
The friendly waiters all took the trouble to learn our names. It was a personal touch that added to the enjoyment of the meals.
But you are not restricted to eating in the main dining room. You can book a table in one of the specialty restaurants and enjoy Asian cuisine in Silk Harvest, or contemporary French in Murano - I can't recommend the goat's cheese souffle highly enough. It melted in my mouth like a wonderful barnyard cloud.
I had the nicest filet mignon I'd ever tasted in the Tuscan Bar and Gill, but had to turn down the pistachio creme brule as I feared for the integrity of my trousers.
But we didn't miss out. At the waiter's suggestion, we returned later in the evening when we'd made room for dessert. It was worth it.
After dinner it is only a short waddle to the Martini Bar and Crush - I could live on their apple martinis - and one deck up is Molecular Bar, where the barmen can conjure up an exclusive cocktail to suit your taste.
But it is very popular so you need to get there early to avoid having to queue.
After a couple of drinks it was time to take in a show. In fact it was Solstice - The Show: in which a Cirque du Soleil-style acrobat troupe flipped, balanced and flew its way around the 1100-seat theatre.
High-flying acrobatics in Solstice - The Show. Photo / Stephen Beaudet
There are plenty of other options, too: you can take in some comedy or a film at Celebrity Central, hang out by the pool bar, play the pokies in Fortunes Casino, or even make some shapes on the dance floor at Quasar bar.
I enjoyed rounding the night off with a drink on the top deck, sitting back watching the vast night sky with the stars sparkling like a glorious sneeze. I even saw a meteor streaking blue and white as it burned. Magical.
Thankfully, there's a fully equipped gym where you can subdue the guilt of the previous night's over-indulgence.
It's placed at the front of the ship where there are stunning views of the ocean.
I found exercising surprisingly enjoyable there, especially when we arrived at the islands, although running forwards on the treadmill as the scenery in front of you slides sideways took a bit of getting used to.
If gyms aren't your thing, there is a track on the top deck where you can run or walk in the fresh sea air. There are, however, tempting bars and cafes on the circuit that I knew would distract me from my healthy stagger, so I stuck with the gym - and visited the bars later.
All too quickly, the time passed and we were heading home. I was surprised by how quickly I'd adapted to a life of relaxation and luxury and felt slightly aggrieved I'd have to give it up.
I'd had a taste of a different sort of holiday and, glutton that I proved to be, I'd be having another slice as soon as I possibly could.
Additional costs
• Many package options are available, ranging from ones including shore excursions to health and fitness classes to internet usage, allowing you to tailor your cruise to your taste.
• Drinks packages are also available, as alcohol is not included in the price of the cruise. I recommend choosing one if you plan to enjoy more than the odd tipple.
• Dining at specialty restaurants has an additional cost, as do spa treatments, fitness classes and shore excursions, so it's a good idea to think ahead and buy a package deal when you book.
Further information: See celebritycruises.com to see the various packages available.
Phil Welch ate his way across the Pacific courtesy of Celebrity Cruises and Qantas Airways.
