Q: Tim, thanks for inviting Traveltalk onboard. You must be delighted with how the refurbishment of Celebrity Solstice has turned out?
A: Absolutely. Our guests have always described Solstice with words like “sophisticated” and “elegant”. What the team has done with these new spaces and experiences is to take something that was already great and elevate it again to another level.
That’s really what we’re about as a brand: constantly elevating everything we do but always rooted in what our guests tell us they want. We listen carefully to what they’re after and then design around that.
With Solstice, we’ve created a ship that’s meeting the evolving needs and demands of our guests.
Q: The competition in cruising is fierce. How do you keep pushing yourselves to improve day after day?
A: As a business, we actually compete against ourselves more than anyone else. We’re constantly asking, “How can we do it better? How can we take what worked and elevate it to the next level? What else can we do to look after our guests on board?”
There’s a constant drive within the business just to get better and better every day, which makes it a super exciting place to work.
Q: When you’re spending this kind of money on refurbishment and new experiences, is there an added sense of pressure that you have to get it right?
A: There’s always a responsibility that comes with significant investment, whether that’s renewal programs like we’re doing with Solstice, where we’re investing about $US250 million across the Solstice-class ships over the next few years, or building brand-new ships like Celebrity Xcel and the rest of the Edge class series.
It is all about redefining and expanding the guest experience in a very considered and responsible way. We don’t invest for the sake of it – it’s always linked back to what our guests are telling us they want.
Q: You’ve now moved into river cruising. What was the thinking behind that move?
A: Our guests love ocean cruising with us, but we were consistently hearing, “We also do river cruises – we just wish we could do them with you.” They wanted that same Celebrity experience on the rivers.
We recently announced that the river fleet will grow to 20 ships by 2031, which is a doubling of the initial order. That gives you a good indication of how popular it’s proving to be.
Tim Jones, Vice President and Managing Director, Australia and APAC, Celebrity Cruises
Q: Coming back to this ship, you mentioned that Solstice has a particular bond with the Australian market. Why is Australia so important and what is it about this ship that resonates here?
A: Solstice was one of the most advanced, if not the most advanced, ships operating in Australia when she first came here around 2012 so there’s a lot of nostalgia for Australians who have spent birthdays, anniversaries and had incredible family holidays onboard.
I think what’s really great on Solstice now is not only do we have four brand new experiences that aren’t available anywhere else on the fleet, but we have four other experiences that you can find elsewhere on the fleet that are new to Solstice.
But we’ve also kept the favourite spaces and places that our guests love. There’s a great mix of new and nostalgia, which I think is perfect.
Q: When you look at everything that’s been achieved here, what are you personally most proud of?
A: It’s a company that I feel proud to work for but probably the emotional glue is the amazing teams that we have on board. Our crew are exceptional and they’re the ones who create the memories. We build the stage; they bring it to life.
There’s a very warm, authentic and genuine level of hospitality that goes beyond “service” as most businesses define it. That emotional connection between crew and guests is, I think, one of the most special aspects of the Celebrity experience.
Celebrity Solstice will return to the region in October as part of her 110-night Grand Voyage, sailing across the Pacific from Alaska to Asia, visiting 15 countries and more than 55 destinations.
Image below courtesy Tim Faircloth
https://www.celebritycruises.com/au
