Just got home from the Silhouette

[Swampduck]

I was going to do my own review, but figured I would just plop it here....

 

We were also on this sailing and agree that the Silhouette is a beautiful ship. Our cabin was spacious and we loved our cabin steward Ryan. The steward for my daughters' cabin, they could not pick him out of a line up, never saw him.

 

 

We only ate 3 of our meals in the MDR since we had made specialty dining reservations.

Night 1 we did The Porch, and it was the greatest experience! We were the only ones eating there so it was like having our own private restaurant and Basilio our waiter was fantastic!

Our second night was in the MDR, there the wait staff seemed harried and spread thin. The sommelier seemed stressed, no one (except the assistant waiter) smiled. A very different experience from the prior night. The next 3 nights we went to Murano (GREAT!), QSine (will prob not go back, the experience, venue and presentation was different but the food only so so), Lawn Club Grill (Wonderful! Daughter and Hubby made flatbread pizzas).

 

Night 6 we were back in the MDR, we arrived on time to find that our assigned table (we had Assigned 6pm dining) was occupied. Spoke with a waiter, who spoke to the Assistant Maitre'd, who spoke to the people sitting there, who REFUSED to move. We were seated on the other side of the MDR which fortunately was right by a window so no worries. Towards the end of our meal, the AMD came over to tell us we would go to Select Dining the next day at 6 pm. My husband was a little out of joint about that since he felt we should not have been made to move a second time. BUT, every cloud has a silver lining, it all worked out since of our 3 nights in the MDR our waitstaff the final night turned out to be the best. We also found that the upstairs dining was a lot quieter than the downstairs. We were seated at a table for 4 and there were times we could not hear each other, the sound just seemed amplified on the lower level.

 

• We also had rented an alcove. We decided to keep it even tho the morning started off very rainy. The weather actually turned nice and we spent the afternoon in the alcove..... baking! There is absolutely no air up there. We made a suggestion that they give fans to circulate the air. I am glad I tried it, but I will not do it again.
  
• Loved our balcony and being able to hear the ocean, did not like the gentleman a few doors down smoking a cigar on his
  

• made good use of our premium drink package at the Martini and World Class bars. One good thing is that the bartenders will ask if you have a premium package when you ask for a glass of wine. I did note one bartender at the Passport Bar who did not use the alcohol stated on the the menu. It called for Bombay Sapphire and he used Beefeater. I just wanted to try it so I did not make a deal about it. It was still good.
  
• room service is a waste unless you are ordering cold food. They did follow up with a survey and I did tell them that it arrived cold. they offered to make it right but by then it was too late.
  
• loved the Hideaway until it got overrun with loud kids on scavenger hunts.
  
• not a big fan of the folks at Guest Services (a smile goes a long way),
  
• buffet was good but if you go when they are busy, don't count on a hot meal. Yes, the bar service was a little slow. When they came around and took your order, they would turn the menu card on its side to show that your order was taken. Yes it was a little slow, but there were A LOT of people during prime feeding time! After the first time, we planned ahead and brought our own.
  
• We saw the Tenors of Rock (they were GREAT) and Life (Very Good). Bar service in the Theatre was very slow if they came at all, I would suggest bringing your own.
  
• My girls loved the Spa Cafe for breakfast and smoothies
  
• Embarkation and Disembarkation was a breeze. Got to the pier early, they let us in at 10, was sipping first fruity drink by 10:45. We were one of the last off the ship (we were in no hurry since we had a late flight). short wait for a taxi, were at FLL by 10:20 only to find out we had to wait since we can't check in more than 4 hours prior to our flight. FLL was a zoo with 4 ships in port.
  

That's it in a nutshell I think.

 

 

Lisa

 

Thanks Lisa, I enjoyed your review. You sounded like you had a lovely break and know, like us, that sometimes we have to take the rough with the smooth, even though we are on holidays. We would do the same if it's too busy, bring your own booze, the staff are working hard. We find, a smile and a friendly word goes along way.

thanks again. Debbie:)

[sandc4e]

I was going to do my own review, but figured I would just plop it here....

 

We were also on this sailing and agree that the Silhouette is a beautiful ship. ........

That's it in a nutshell I think.

Lisa

 

Hi Lisa,

Just wanted to say HI and that it was nice to meet you at the CC meet and slot pull. We actually cancelled our Alcove on that rainy morning and after reading your post I'm glad we did.

 

Glad you had a great vacation, we did as well. We booked while onboard and now looking at booking EDGE for 2019.

 

Have a great day!

 

Sheila

[4ready2cruz]

Hi Lisa,

Just wanted to say HI and that it was nice to meet you at the CC meet and slot pull. We actually cancelled our Alcove on that rainy morning and after reading your post I'm glad we did.

 

Glad you had a great vacation, we did as well. We booked while onboard and now looking at booking EDGE for 2019.

 

Have a great day!

 

Sheila

 

It was great meeting you also! I just realized that with all my rambling in my review, I never said that I had a GREAT time. It was relaxing and enjoyable.

 

I was glad I tried the Alcove, but the heat in it was oppressive and the amenities basically worthless since I could get water with my beverage package and fruit from the buffet.

 

How did you like your Bungalow? We LOVED ours! Had #17, right in the middle and up front. We had been to that island once while on a Carnival cruise (they leased it from Royal for the year and called it Little Stirrup). We were at the area closest to the tenders and it was a madhouse. Hubby and younger daughter went snorkeling (there is a reef and a fake ship/plane wreck), then we moved further down the beach where we had to contend with an obnoxious little girl who kept trying to "share" our float. Guess her parents were too cheap to get their own! Our bungalow solved that problem!

 

Our concierge was great at keeping the area private. It was great that they came around with the food since it would have been a hike to the food area. Hubby and both daughters went jet skiing and were not there when they first came around. But they came back multiple times and then were willing to plate the food and leave it with me for when they got there. Fortunately they got back just in the nick of time.

[4ready2cruz]

Thanks Lisa, I enjoyed your review. You sounded like you had a lovely break and know, like us, that sometimes we have to take the rough with the smooth, even though we are on holidays. We would do the same if it's too busy, bring your own booze, the staff are working hard. We find, a smile and a friendly word goes along way.

thanks again. Debbie:)

 

We had a wonderful time and made many great family memories! After re-reading I realized I never said that. I am glad that it came off balanced. It is not always smooth sailing and sometimes we have to adjust to the individual situations. I am a firm believer in making lemonade out of lemons.

[JaniceB]

Thank you for your report.

[sandc4e]

It was great meeting you also! I just realized that with all my rambling in my review, I never said that I had a GREAT time. It was relaxing and enjoyable.

 

I was glad I tried the Alcove, but the heat in it was oppressive and the amenities basically worthless since I could get water with my beverage package and fruit from the buffet.

 

How did you like your Bungalow? We LOVED ours! Had #17, right in the middle and up front. We had been to that island once while on a Carnival cruise (they leased it from Royal for the year and called it Little Stirrup). We were at the area closest to the tenders and it was a madhouse. Hubby and younger daughter went snorkeling (there is a reef and a fake ship/plane wreck), then we moved further down the beach where we had to contend with an obnoxious little girl who kept trying to "share" our float. Guess her parents were too cheap to get their own! Our bungalow solved that problem!

 

Our concierge was great at keeping the area private. It was great that they came around with the food since it would have been a hike to the food area. Hubby and both daughters went jet skiing and were not there when they first came around. But they came back multiple times and then were willing to plate the food and leave it with me for when they got there. Fortunately they got back just in the nick of time.

 

Absolutely LOVED the bungalow - we must have been close to you because we were close to the middle too in the front row. We were the first to the area and it was so peaceful and quiet - we loved it. The entire trip for us was great, highlight for us was jetskiing to stingray city in Grand Cayman.

 

Here's hubby in ours.

 

I'll look for your posts, now that I know your screen name.

 

Sheila

[4ready2cruz]

Absolutely LOVED the bungalow - we must have been close to you because we were close to the middle too in the front row. We were the first to the area and it was so peaceful and quiet - we loved it. The entire trip for us was great, highlight for us was jetskiing to stingray city in Grand Cayman.

 

Here's hubby in ours.

 

I'll look for your posts, now that I know your screen name.

 

Sheila

Couldn't see the picture :-(. We were almost equidistant from the small bar and the bathrooms. To our right was a young couple (she was pregnant) playing music (fortunately I enjoyed it since I could hear it quite clearly) . The couple to our left, I recognized him from our tender ride over. We took the tram to the bungalows and they plopped us right at the Concierge. The other couple walked!

 

We were also one of the first ones there, I think everyone that met in the Silhouette Theatre must've been on the second tender. I was surprised when we got to the docks that another tender had gotten there before us since I thought we got off pretty quick.

 

We did all Celebrity Excursions and aside from the weather, we were quite happy. I could not talk them into doing Stingray City in GC! We did an island tour in Jamaica which I think is just a ploy by the tour organizer to get us to Bamboo Beach. But aside from the rain it was fun. We had been to Jamaica last year for a family reunion. We did Dunn's River, swimming with the dolphins and Scotchie's so it was kinda been there, done that. Plus I actually grew up in Jamaica (moved when I was 13) so I had seen and done most of the other stuff. This was another opportunity to show my kids the country where mommy grew up and make them appreciate more of what they have.

[sandc4e]

Aw that's nice that you were able to show the kids your former "home."

 

We were in front of the bathrooms. I just made our Facebook album public if anyone wants to take a peek.

https://www.facebook.com/sandc4e/media_set?set=a.10154802652847862&type=3&pnref=story

 

 

Back to work now, argh vacation is over.

 

Have a great day!

 

S

[Talex831]

We were on this sailing too and it was our best with Celebrity so far!

 

We didn't have any problems with bar service but didn't eat in the MDR at all since they put us at a table for 10 when I'd requested a table for 2. Ended up getting a dinner pkg and it was fantastic! The Lawn Club was out of this world! Qsine was quirky and fun. Tuscan Grille was a miss and won't go back to that one. We did bring our own drinks to the theater knowing service is tough there.

 

I agree with the ease of embark/debarking. Efficient and quick. The only issue we ran into was when we disembarked, apparently our luggage was left out in the thunderstorm on the pier and everything inside was wet when we got to the hotel in FLL.

 

Most people were very friendly and kind. The one exception was an older woman who verbally berated 4 adults for taking her table at the buffet one morning. She yelled at them because the bar menu was sideways which meant she was saving that table for she and her husband. The poor family of 4 were apologetic, but the woman said she would sit elsewhere. Then I heard her complaining to anyone who'd listen that those people took her table. I so wanted to tell her to stuff it!

 

I loved the library onboard and read 4 books. I've never seen such a selection on any other ship. We loved hanging out there or the hideaway.

 

We were on the port side, and could see the smokers on deck 5, but never could smell anything from our verandah. Loved, loved the size of the stateroom bathroom! We've been on a bunch of different ships (various cruiselines) and have never had such a large bathroom, shower or storage space.

 

I asked DS (10) where this cruise falls on his list of favorites (he's been on Disney 5x, Carnival 2x, and this was his 3rd on Celebrity) and he said it was number one!

 

 

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[lindy sails]

So glad DS said it was #1! I totally agree. It was an awesome week & the Silhouette is a special ship! I arrived @ the airport about 10 am and it started to pour rain shortly after. My 1 pm flight was diverted to Ft Myers due to the weather. I missed my connection in Atlanta & had to spend Sunday night in Ft Lauderdale. I went to the baggage desk to pick up my luggage that arrived by the ships Luggage Valet service. I was horrified my luggage sat outside in the rain until 4pm. You could ring out the clothes everything was soaked. Southwest did the minimal paying for $50 of dry cleaning & said I should have hard side luggage! I filed claims with Celebrity's Travel protection. My leather heels and hand bag are ruined and many bright colors bled on to white clothing. The luggage is ruined and it was brand new. Ft Lauderdale got over 3.5 inches of rain that afternoon. I will always line my luggage with plastic and pack my clothing in bags to protect everything. Oh well it could have been worse - luggage could have been lost! Hope to see everyone on another Celebrity cruise soon! [emoji41]

 

 

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[Talex831]

So glad DS said it was #1! I totally agree. It was an awesome week & the Silhouette is a special ship! I arrived @ the airport about 10 am and it started to pour rain shortly after. My 1 pm flight was diverted to Ft Myers due to the weather. I missed my connection in Atlanta & had to spend Sunday night in Ft Lauderdale. I went to the baggage desk to pick up my luggage that arrived by the ships Luggage Valet service. I was horrified my luggage sat outside in the rain until 4pm. You could ring out the clothes everything was soaked. Southwest did the minimal paying for $50 of dry cleaning & said I should have hard side luggage! I filed claims with Celebrity's Travel protection. My leather heels and hand bag are ruined and many bright colors bled on to white clothing. The luggage is ruined and it was brand new. Ft Lauderdale got over 3.5 inches of rain that afternoon. I will always line my luggage with plastic and pack my clothing in bags to protect everything. Oh well it could have been worse - luggage could have been lost! Hope to see everyone on another Celebrity cruise soon! [emoji41]

 

 

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Oh no! None of our stuff was ruined. It wasn't dripping wet, just very, very damp. Everything was in packing cubes, so I think it helped keep things a bit drier. Yes! The local news said Fort Lauderdale got 3.70" of rain on Sunday! We planned to enjoy one last day in the sun before we flew home on Monday--that didn't happen!

 

I too will always line my luggage with plastic now. We travel a lot and I guess we've been really lucky until now.

 

 

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[mhorgel]

Cruised on the Silhouette a few years ago. I refer to it as the "beautiful Celebrity Silhouette" because that's how the captain referred to it in all his announcements. Also have been on the Equinox. The best ships I have been on. I have been on Princess, RC, X, NCL and HAL. Booked on Reflection this summer for Western Mediterranean cruise.

 

 

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[Talex831]

Consider yourself very lucky. We have been twice on the Silhouette and leaving the ship has been very painful. Not a pleasant experience. An hour each time to get thru .

 

 

 

I forgot to mention we used Mobile Passport and blew by a huge line of people waiting in line at customs.

 

 

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[flparalegal]

Talex831, can you explain how Mobile Passport works. Is there a separate line in the Terminal for this? So when you enter the Terminal with everyone else, you get in a different line? Thanks.

[sandc4e]

We used Mobile passport too - literally 5 mins, no line, no waiting.

 

Download the app - enter passport info - take a picture - select travelers - select port - fill out customs form - breeze through customs.

 

The only port offering right now is FLL, but many airports are using it too.

 

Definitely a great experience for us as well.

 

Sheila

[SheilaS]

We used Mobile passport too - literally 5 mins, no line, no waiting.

 

Download the app - enter passport info - take a picture - select travelers - select port - fill out customs form - breeze through customs.

 

The only port offering right now is FLL, but many airports are using it too.

 

Definitely a great experience for us as well.

 

Sheila

 

Thank you for your suggestion!

 

This is the first time I have heard of the Mobile Passport, so please forgive my ignorance ;p ...

 

I downloaded the app. Do I enter all passport info in now, and then complete it the day we are to disembark?

[sandc4e]

Thank you for your suggestion!

 

 

 

This is the first time I have heard of the Mobile Passport, so please forgive my ignorance ;p ...

 

 

 

I downloaded the app. Do I enter all passport info in now, and then complete it the day we are to disembark?

 

 

Yes, we had everything ready before we left for our cruise. Filled out everything the night before we disembarked and it asks if you are at the terminal cause you have a 3-4 hour window to go through customs. Super easy.

 

 

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[RAYSWIN]

Also used mobile passport. Once you enter the terminal stay right and follow the signs. Regular line 150 people in the queue . Mobile passport line 4 people. They will want to see your passport. Hard to believe it is FREE!!!!!!!😆😆

 

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[Talex831]

Talex831, can you explain how Mobile Passport works. Is there a separate line in the Terminal for this? So when you enter the Terminal with everyone else, you get in a different line? Thanks.

 

 

 

As a PP, start by getting the app. Then, it really just walks you through getting it all set up. When we got into port, I entered our trip and submitted. They return a receipt to you with a barcode. It was good for 4 hours I think.

 

When we got into the terminal, I didn't see where Mobile Passport people were supposed to go, so I asked, and the gentleman took us right through. There was no one else using it when we were there, so we went straight to the customs agent. I scanned the barcodes (1 for each person) and showed him our passports.

 

We were done in seconds. The line was pretty long and we cut in front of everyone. It reminds me of Disney fastpasses!

 

 

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[Host Mick]

Perhaps the bar service is slow because so many passengers have drink packages. Celebrity saves money by serving fewer drinks. There is no financial incentive for Celebrity to hire more servers to provide more drinks to people with drink packages.

Crew berthing is limited. To get more servers, you have to eliminate other positions. Who?

[cheeseheads4ever]

Drink packages may have something to do eith it. But bottom line to have 30 people at bar waiting and 2-3 bartenders and busy times is ridiculous. They are understaffed. If you sell drink packages you need to provide the service of providing drinks.

Everyone standing at a bar with seapass in hand was waiting and waiting and waiting.. no reason for it...

Celebrity needs to address this..

[cherburt]

Glad to read that most was very positive! Would be interesting to know what the menu position represents.

 

We get to sail her in January 2018. Booked her almost 14 months ago, Now have 7 1/2 months to go.

We will be doing a b2b in Jan. Can not wait

 

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[cherburt]

As a PP, start by getting the app. Then, it really just walks you through getting it all set up. When we got into port, I entered our trip and submitted. They return a receipt to you with a barcode. It was good for 4 hours I think.

 

When we got into the terminal, I didn't see where Mobile Passport people were supposed to go, so I asked, and the gentleman took us right through. There was no one else using it when we were there, so we went straight to the customs agent. I scanned the barcodes (1 for each person) and showed him our passports.

 

We were done in seconds. The line was pretty long and we cut in front of everyone. It reminds me of Disney fastpasses!

 

 

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My sister and husband were going to use mobile passport in Jan on princess. Got out of regular line and the mobile passport was closed that cruise. Had to sneak back in line

 

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[riclop]

Thanks for your thoughts.

[Tommi Lee]

Couldn't see the picture :-(. We were almost equidistant from the small bar and the bathrooms. To our right was a young couple (she was pregnant) playing music (fortunately I enjoyed it since I could hear it quite clearly) . The couple to our left, I recognized him from our tender ride over. We took the tram to the bungalows and they plopped us right at the Concierge. The other couple walked!

 

We were also one of the first ones there, I think everyone that met in the Silhouette Theatre must've been on the second tender. I was surprised when we got to the docks that another tender had gotten there before us since I thought we got off pretty quick.

 

We did all Celebrity Excursions and aside from the weather, we were quite happy. I could not talk them into doing Stingray City in GC! We did an island tour in Jamaica which I think is just a ploy by the tour organizer to get us to Bamboo Beach. But aside from the rain it was fun. We had been to Jamaica last year for a family reunion. We did Dunn's River, swimming with the dolphins and Scotchie's so it was kinda been there, done that. Plus I actually grew up in Jamaica (moved when I was 13) so I had seen and done most of the other stuff. This was another opportunity to show my kids the country where mommy grew up and make them appreciate more of what they have.

 

 

Going on Silouette in Sept. Please tell me how you access these bungalows! Looks like fun!