Will I regret the Silhouette?

[LPYRCRUISER]

We are a group of friends who have been cruising together for 20 years. We are planning another for 2016. We have cruised Carnival and Royal. Now that we are more 'mature', I'm thinking we are ready for a 'step up'. We don't need a flow rider and Carnival has a few issues I don't want to have to deal with.

I have been considering the Silhouette and Nieuw Amsterdam. Both are comparable in price, but the 123Go offer is enticing. I found an online TA offer for both the drink package and prepaid gratuities. It needs to be booked by tomorrow.

I've looked at the reviews for the Silhouette for the last several days and they are dreadful. Do you think it's just frustration from the propulsion issue? Maybe it's the pressure from having to book quickly, but I'm on the fence about which to book. I guess I have two questions:

 

Will the 123Go offers continue and I can book a little farther down the road?

 

Is the Silhouette and Celebrity going down in quality so much, we'd be better off with HAL?

 

Thanks to all who have had experiences with both

[floridacruisers]

We're going on our second trip on the Silhouette in two weeks. We have been on the Solstice five times and on Celebrity 25 times. Either we're a bit crazy or Celebrity is doing something right. HAL is good too, but we prefer the lighter atmosphere of Celebrity. Don't go by a few miscreants ravings about what's wrong. No one gets everything right. Enjoy the moment.

Grab the 123go and go for it. That's my recommendation.

 

Phil............floridacruisers

[mskaufman]

I am also thinking of booking. The reviews before the propulsion issue are much more positive. I have hoping this thread will generate more information.

[attilamom1217]

We love the Silhouette. Beautiful ship. You will love it.

 

 

Sent using the Cruise Critic forums app

[phoenix_dream]

I had to go check out the recent reviews to see what you were talking about. We sailed her last spring and while it was not my favorite of my 25 Celebrity cruises, we still had a great time. No major issues at all. I found that the vast majority (but admittedly not all) of the people reviewing the ship had never posted a review at all before. Does that make those reviews not valuable or credible? Not necessarily, but it gives me pause. Either the ship was so very bad they were driven to finally post a review, or perhaps there is another explanation.

 

That aside, is Celebrity going far downhill? Having cruised the line for more than 20 years I have certainly noticed some things that are not as good as they used to be. I miss those. At the same time, there are a lot of new things that are very nice that I like a lot. Celebrity still provides a very, very nice product and I feel compares very well against comparable lines. The ships themselves are beautiful and well-maintained, and the service is almost always impeccable. The food ranges from good to excellent, as does the entertainment. Are there occasional bad apples? Like anytime you have thousands of staff to deal with of course that happens. But it is truly the exception. Do they occasionally have hardware problems like the propulsion system? Tell me a cruise line that does not. Not fun when it happens but it happens to all lines - it is definitely not a case of poor maintenance or attention to detail. It falls under 'stuff happens' like it does to any business at times.

 

At 25 cruises, you may think I am just a Celebrity cheerleader so to speak. Not so. If you read my posts I am just as vocal about what I don't like on Celebrity as what I do. And overall, I still believe in the cruise line and will not hesitate to sail again (and again and again and again:))

Edited January 2, 2015 by phoenix_dream

[Tricia724]

You are planning a trip that is over a year away. Not much stays the same in this world. The ship that is getting great reviews today may be getting panned by then, and a ship with problems today may be problem free in a year. And honestly, another person's problem may not be a problem for you.

 

Go with your instinct and book the cruise that you think will most meet your needs. You certainly will have plenty of time to cancel and rebook if you change your mind.

[raymar63]

Have been on this ship 3 times, the most recent Dec. 7, 2014. It is a beautiful ship with great cabins. I love every aspect of this ship. Don't listen to the negative comments, some people are never satisfied.

[stratixman]

"Is the Silhouette and Celebrity going down in quality so much, we'd be better off with HAL?"

 

Hmmmm... In a word "no".

 

There's not a cruise ship afloat from any line that doesn't get hit with its share of bad reviews. One needs to carefully review the both negative and positive reviews of a particular ship and the context within which they are made by individual posters, as well as the specific nature of complaints lodged, before deriving a conclusion as to its relative quality. We have never had what I would call a bad cruise over the past 15 years of sailing with Celebrity. I'm not saying the cruises were perfect. But in the balance scale of cost and value I think Celebrity comes out a consistent winner. Nothing ever stays the same and there have been perceptible changes over the years with Celebrity with respect to service levels and amenities that I think cause some to lament. However, which other lines haven't had to adjust service levels and prices in response to the reality of economics?

 

Regarding Silhouette in particular I would point out that the 2014 Cruise Critic Best Cruises - Cruisers' Choice Awards rates Silhouette at 4.7, tied for third place among large ships with another Celebrity ship, Reflection, and a Carnival ship, Liberty. I should think that rating ought to carry considerable weight in a consideration of which ships to pick for a cruise. Also note that regarding Celebrity as a whole, it has 4 out of its 5 S class ships included in the top ten rankings for large ships, more than any other line.

 

http://www.cruisecritic.com/memberreviews/cruiserschoice_index.cfm?category=Overall

[K.T.B.]

LPYRCRUISER, I'm probably one of the best people to talk to about your switch to Celebrity. I was a fan of Carnival (still am to a degree, but they don't have the itineraries I want) and tried out Celebrity a couple of years ago. IMO, it was one of the best decisions I made. While I wouldn't say "no" to a Carnival cruise, I'd much rather sail Celebrity. I love the product they put out and both ships I've been on were beautiful, which includes Silhouette.

Edited January 2, 2015 by Kevin T Brown

[cruza]

We are a group of friends who have been cruising together for 20 years. We are planning another for 2016. We have cruised Carnival and Royal. Now that we are more 'mature', I'm thinking we are ready for a 'step up'. We don't need a flow rider and Carnival has a few issues I don't want to have to deal with.

 

I've looked at the reviews for the Silhouette for the last several days and they are dreadful. Do you think it's just frustration from the propulsion issue? Maybe it's the pressure from having to book quickly, but I'm on the fence about which to book.

Is the Silhouette and Celebrity going down in quality so much, we'd be better off with HAL?

 

Thanks to all who have had experiences with both

 

We cruised on Silhouette in September and it's our favorite X ship. Everything - food, crew and cruise were good.

[mskaufman]

We have cruised both HAL and Celebrity and if there were two identical itineraries at the same price would choose Celebrity.

[satchiesmom]

We have cruised both HAL and Celebrity and if there were two identical itineraries at the same price would choose Celebrity.

 

Ditto.

[TeaBag]

The Silhouette is our favorite S class so far but we have not yet sailed on Reflection. Some have written negative reviews because of missed ports due to the azipod problems. That will be fixed in the next week or so.

 

We found the food in the MDR to be wonderful. Don't miss the Lawn Grill. It was so good we went back a second time and it was just as good that time.

 

Enjoy your cruise.

[wallie5446]

I guess I have two questions:

 

 

Is the Silhouette and Celebrity going down in quality so much, we'd be better off with HAL?

 

Thanks to all who have had experiences with both

 

Celebrity would have to slip way way down for 'US' to consider returning to HAL. I will be 61 shortly, and we have sailed 7 diff lines over the years. Celebrity is our 1st choice to sail with.

[MR_T]

If you have 10 people on a cruise that have a negative experience I'd guess 9 at least would write a bad review panning everything possible... If you have 10 people on board the same ship that have had an amazing time I'd guess 2 might write a review if your lucky...

 

My point being bad news stands out and draws attention and causes a lot of fuss which some people like we're as good news is just accepted and passed over without causing so much commotion...

 

Go with your gut feeling and I'm sure your be happy... Personally our very first cruise was on the silhouette in 2012 and it's the reason we are so hooked on cruising today and really looking forward to our March cruise aboard the silhouette...

 

Enjoy your cruise! :)

[Turtles06]

We spent two weeks on the Silhouette in November. We had a fantastic time. The ship is stunning, the crew and staff were great, the food was excellent. One of our best cruises ever. As for HAL, they still allow smoking on balconies; that would be enough to deter me.

[hcat]

Have sailed Silho twice....great ship. Better than Reflection in our opinion,,,

 

Celeb will fix the propulsion issue before OP cruises

[Presto2]

Have to say that, though we have been worried about recent comments about Celebrity - and have probably made some negative comments ourselves about the apparent changes - we would still jump at the chance of sailing on Silhouette again if the right cruise came along.

 

She is stunning and you will have a great time.

 

I cried when we had to disembark ------ felt a fool, but enough said

 

Very jealous

 

Have a wonderful time and say 'Hello' to her for us

 

 

:)

Edited January 2, 2015 by Presto2

[Host Anne]

We, too, are sailing on Silhouette soon. Sailed her two years ago as well. One of our all-time favorite ships. I wouldn't hesitate to book any Celebrity ship for the future. You can always cancel until final payment if you change your mind.

 

As an FYI, the current Celebrity promotion is if you book a Concierge class or higher stateroom, you will receive the drink package, pre-paid gratuities AND an onboard credit of up to $300 per cabin. You may want to check pricing and benefits and book a Concierge class room if your travel agency hasn't mentioned that.

 

Celebrity's website says the 123Go ALL INCLUSIVE promotion is good for this Sunday, Jan. 4.

 

My guess (and it's just my guess) in following the 123Go promotions is that they will be around for awhile. But we never know until Celebrity makes the next announcement. It will all depend on how well they are filling their ships.

 

I think you'd love Silhouette!

[RhondaPerr]

this will be cruise 34 for me, and when I read the reviews they don't send me screaming into the night :) I understand that most of the bad reviews have been because of the propulsion problems, which will soon be remedied. The remarks about food as we know is totally subjective. I do think cruiselines as a whole have declined in certain areas. BUT in 33 cruises, there has only been one cruise that was totally horrible, from beginning to end! There have only been two shows where I would have rather had my teeth drilled! :) two really bad room stewards, three horrible waiters, and one health changing excursion! Pretty good for 33 cruises on all different lines :)

[wally_bushy]

Celebrity is a good middle of the road cruise line.

We have been happy with them.

Every cruise line, every ship, every itinerary has been criticised at some point.

Something will go wrong at some point, but as I often say, "When you are perfect, then you can demand perfection"

Go for it

[sealover155]

I think you will love a Celebrity cruise with your friends. Our first cruise with Celebrity was in 1999, and our most recent was November 2014 on Silhouette, 15 nt. transatlantic.

 

We were in Aqua Class this last time and did not eat in the main dining room but we did enjoy all of the specialty restaurants. We had wonderful dining experiences in all, with very few slight misses. Especially had fun at the Lawn Club Grill which would be even more so with a group of friends. This also applies to Qsine.

 

Service was uniformly outstanding. We rented an alcove one sea day as we got closer to Ft. Lauderdale and absolutely adored the privacy and serene setting. It would have been so much fun to have shared it with friends.

 

Thinking back I have been remiss in not writing a formal review. Like others have mentioned, you will always hear more negative reviews and comments than positive.

[Islandgirl4242]

But having cruised on Carnival, RCL, and HAL we prefer Celebrity. We actually cruised on Celebrity in the early 90's and drifted away, but returned several years ago and now wonder why we ever left!

[Longhorn-ED]

We just sailed on her 12/14-21. It was our second cruise with Celebrity. We loved Qsine and the MDR. The food and the service in the MDR was fantastic. We were ready to buy a four night dining pkg but there was no need for us. The oceanview cafe compared to the Equinox last year was not nearly as good for lunch. The oceanview at breakfast was still good. There was not a grand buffet on the last sea day. Fish and chips only one day.On our cruise last year we had it each day. We still like Celebrity and booked another cruise to Hawaii. Also we did not have an problems with our premium drink pkg at all. Bartenders were great and they never ran out of anything we liked. The only real issue I had was seeing other passengers treating the staff in a rude way.

 

Have fun

Ed

[morbihan]

We loved the Silhouette. Fantastic holiday last June.