Disappointed with Celebrity Silhouette Jan 26/18 - Feb4/18

[WonderMan3]

Wow, Wonderman, you really got the short end of the stick when it comes to room attendants! That type of service is really unacceptable anywhere on the ship, but in a suite? No way. We were in a regular balcony and our attendant did a good job for the most part - the only complaint I had was that I asked for bathrobes as soon as we arrived and found we didn't have any, and when I hadn't received them by the evening of the following day I called guest services. I have a feeling this wasn't his fault though - I'm sure X is trying to save money by only giving those out upon request. We aren't especially demanding of our steward, though - DH is a neat freak so our cabin/bath are generally kept tidy, and we rarely order room service so we don't generate a lot of dishes or food messes to clean. I got a peek into a couple of neighboring rooms while people were going in and out and it really made me feel sorry for their stewards!

 

 

 

Yes, it was our attendant specifically that was the issue. My sister was in a standard veranda cabin and she had an amazing room attendant who could almost predict their needs before they asked for it. She came and introduced herself right after they got to the cabin and always addressed my sister and her husband by name. Our guy never introduced himself, never addressed us by name, and we always got a half-baked smile in the hallway. And it’s not like we really asked him for much above and beyond normal. We generally only ever asked him for the things that ran out or were missing in the cabin. We did have to report multiple maintenance issues to him (two drawers were off their track in the bathroom when we boarded, a light fixture fell out of the ceiling in the bathroom, the toilet was leaking water, our wine cooler wasn’t chilling) but he only passed those along to a maintenance person; he didn’t have to address them himself. The only “extra” thing we asked for was to add a cushion to the bed as it was very uncomfortable, and he took care of that with no issue. And twice we had get togethers (4 people) in the cabin that he and the butler together set up and broke down. We only ordered room service twice and the butler told us to call him when we were done with the dishes as he took care of that not the attendant. I don’t think we asked for a lot. What was odd too was he had just transferred to that ship for that cruise (according to the butler), so it wasn’t like he was worn out at the end of his contract.

 

 

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[Suzcruz57]

For the first time in a decade we have decided not to sail for the latter part of this year... that’s two fewer months than our average... all because we notice that the experience is no longer exceptional for the prices Celebrity is asking.

Occasionally there are great deals and we can wait or just look for alternatives. Last week green beans were the vegetable of the day every day for every entree. Man (or Woman) does not live on beans alone. This week there was a change to “vegetable of the day”.

 

We have just cruised too much and remember the past too well to accept the present offerings at inflated prices.

Hoping you folks are burnt out and experiencing the same old same old, as we board today and have read nothing but great reviews on this ship. We're D+ on RCCL, and ventured away for a while, got sick of the same and needed a change. Holland was very nice, MSC, not so much. Anyway, we're back, and hoping for the best:cool:

[Adammara]

Our last Celebrity cruise was on Constellation in 2012, absolutely the worst of 41 cruises. All the best staff had be transferred to Reflection, and there were lots of new staff on board, and many other problems. Its my belief they brought in to many new ships to quickly, and history may repeat itself with the introduction of the Edge class.

 

We opted for land based holidays after that, although have recently cruise on Cunard a couple of times, and that was more like the old days of cruising.

[villauk]

For the first time in a decade we have decided not to sail for the latter part of this year... that’s two fewer months than our average... all because we notice that the experience is no longer exceptional for the prices Celebrity is asking.

Occasionally there are great deals and we can wait or just look for alternatives. Last week green beans were the vegetable of the day every day for every entree. Man (or Woman) does not live on beans alone. This week there was a change to “vegetable of the day”.

 

We have just cruised too much and remember the past too well to accept the present offerings at inflated prices.

 

Wow, Arno, this definitely highlights the lower value and standards when you have decided not to sail. So many of the ‘old regulars’ are considering other choices.

 

We are taking a break from X this year and have decided to try Princess again - if only for the change of scenery and itineraries on offer.

[WNCtourist]

While I have mentioned many issue with our Jan 26 Silhouette cruise, I must compliment our outstanding steward, Juneel. She was by far the best we've had on Celebrity --friendly, quick, and anticipating any needs. Quite a treasure!

 

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[miched]

Thanks for taking the time to report your observations.

 

Many times writing about your personal experience and observations of declining service, cutbacks and etc dont set right with the Celebrity Loyalists on here that take it as an insult, unless you are one of their self designated pet or favorite posters.

 

Thru the last several years we have noticed many cutbacks and changes and the majority not for the better.

I think the survey that they want you to fill out after the cruise is worthless as they always want you to designate exceeded expectations. For one it can never exceed expections after I cruised with them the first time because I will expect the same for every cruise thereafter and it would have to really improve on that experience.

It it now getting to be difficult to honestly mark met expectations in many areas.

 

 

Many won’t agree you or me and will reply if you aren’t happy then don’t cruise anymore. The point is that you may not really be unhappy but are writing about what you have noticed or experienced and to let others know about it. So be it.

 

 

My opinion and personal thoughts and probably doesn’t mean anything.

 

 

Happy cruising 🌊🚢🇺🇸🌅

[phabric]

I was on the Jan 26 cruise. This was my first Celebrity cruise being Elite with Princess, Platinum with RC, I wanted a change.

 

I ate in the main dining a few times for dinner and Ocean Cafe for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. The Ocean Cafe had a good selection especially the grill section with steaks grilled to order.

 

 

I left a note on the bed the first day for the cabin attendant with the things I wanted, which he did.

 

 

I enjoyed the nightly entertainment. If you arrived late for the shows, people had problems finding seats. I did find with the afternoon movie, bingo were in a room that was too small for the amount of people.

 

 

I booked 2 cruises for 2019 and 2020 with $100 deposit, category upgrade, 2 perks with an addition $200 OBC for booking while on board.

[micmacmissy]

I don't get it. We sailed Silhouette 4 years ago, and the Select Dining was a MESS.

 

RCCL does this beautifully - they're related companies - so why can't they train Celebrity to do this right? I honestly don't understand. Whether on the 3-4K passenger freedom class or the 6K passenger Oasis class, we never waited more than 5 minutes for a table.

 

What gives, Celebrity??

[Keys2Heaven]

So, our first Celebrity Cruise will be in 2020. A very nice Southern Caribbean itinerary. Reading your posts here makes me think it won't be much different than the Carnival experiences we've had to date. Not that they were bad, but we were hoping Celebrity would be a step up.

 

Now I'm depressed. Based on the negative comments here, it seems like we won't have the experience we were hoping for.

[elapel01]

Thanks for all the posts to my thread. My dh and I did have a great vacation overall but I just wanted to see if other cruisers had noticed the changes or not. It’s not the fact that they give 4 shrimp now instead of 5 (yes I know we can ask for more) but it was an example of 3 things that we found that Celebrity is cutting corners on either with quality or quantity while still raising their prices. It was interesting to read other cruisers experiences in regards to this. I guess I am just thinking that the price is now starting to exceed what I want to pay for a Caribbean cruise. My dh loves cruising (he doesn’t know the cost and doesn’t want to know lol) but we might think of renting a house in Florida or Arizona for a month. We have done 2 Celebrity Europe cruises but we usually do land trips there and for us the Caribbean can’t compete with what we see in Europe. More money for sure but the payoff is much higher. I think Edge is about $300 more pp but I prefer to wait to read reviews first and for any wrinkles to get fixed up that usually happen with new ships. Thanks again!

[elapel01]

For the first time in a decade we have decided not to sail for the latter part of this year... that’s two fewer months than our average... all because we notice that the experience is no longer exceptional for the prices Celebrity is asking.

Occasionally there are great deals and we can wait or just look for alternatives. Last week green beans were the vegetable of the day every day for every entree. Man (or Woman) does not live on beans alone. This week there was a change to “vegetable of the day”.

 

We have just cruised too much and remember the past too well to accept the present offerings at inflated prices.

 

I like your last 2 sentences. Well said.

[elapel01]

We also were on the Jan 26 cruise and were not impressed with the lack of organization and communication, particularly regarding the Select Dining fiasco. We put a refundable deposit on a 2019 cruise but are seriously considering cancelling it due to high prices and declining value.

 

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Glad I’m not just being picky. That’s it exacty: high prices and declining value.

[elapel01]

We were on Silhouette the cruise before yours. It was a mixed bag. Some things were good (Luminae, our butler, great masseuses in spa, Oceanview Cafe, ship clean and in good shape, we got several invites to special events), but some were not so good (room attendant was not good, had multiple maintenance issues in our suite, Lawn Club Grill was terrible, bed was the worst we’ve had yet with Celebrity, unfriendly casino staff, drink service was inconsistent all over the ship; you could go to three different bars and they would all make the same drink differently) Yes, and we encountered the same flimsy towels on certain days and we were in a Royal Suite. Our companions booked onboard for a future cruise and encountered the single perk as well for a balcony cabin. They wound up upgrading to a concierge cabin (only $40 more pp) and then paid a bit more for the go best with all 4 perks.

 

 

 

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I can’t imagine having towel issues when paying for a suite!

[elapel01]

It seems like January 2018 was NOT a good month for the Silhouette. We sailed on her for the sixth time in Aqua Class on the January 7 cruise and, with the exception of our excellent room steward and the wait staff who went "above & beyond" to try to compensate for the four of our seven mediocre dinners in BLU, this sailing was very disappointing. So much so, for the time in 10 years, we do not have a European sailing booked on Celebrity for this summer. When we compared the cost of a Suite on Celebrity and the great price we were able to get on a Concierge Class cabin on Oceania, we decided it was now time to move on.

We had excellent service (well not enough waiters at pool) as well. I can see why you would be checking on luxury cruise pricing compared to paying for a suite. It says a lot that you did not book a European sailing for the 1st time. Hope you have a great cruise with Oceania!

[elapel01]

We were on the same sailing and thought the crew was outstanding - by far the friendliest and most competent we've encountered on any ship. With the exception of disorganization in the MDR the one night we went (and slow waiters at lunch in Lawn Club), the service was excellent. I did feel that there were some corners cut in terms of the quality of towels, bedding, etc. - our bed was hard and lumpy (time for a replacement) and the pillows were so bad I plan to bring my own next time. We ate most of our meals in specialty restaurants and while I have noticed that they have rearranged their menus to encourage two courses instead of three in some places, etc., I never had any trouble ordering as many courses as I wanted. I actually prefer smaller portions in the MDR anyway, as I frequently encounter dishes that are poorly cooked - less waste that way if I don't eat it. You can always order another if you are still hungry.

 

What I didn't really love about this cruise was the itinerary (3 sea, 4 ports in a row, 2 sea), especially given that we missed the first port and ended up with 4 sea days in a row, but that isn't Celebrity's fault at all - it was ours for choosing an itinerary that was arranged that way. Lesson learned - we'll choose an itinerary that alternates sea days/port days next time. Anyway, I don't discount the OP's experience at all - everyone on a given cruise will have a different experience - but in our case I was largely satisfied with this particular sailing.

 

We did enjoy our cruise. Service was wonderful and friendly. We did talk with 2 different couples that mentioned about the bed and the bedsheets not being that good. Just noticing some decline in quality that shouldn’t be happening with Celebrity supposedly a high end large ship company.

[Marelaine]

So, our first Celebrity Cruise will be in 2020. A very nice Southern Caribbean itinerary. Reading your posts here makes me think it won't be much different than the Carnival experiences we've had to date. Not that they were bad, but we were hoping Celebrity would be a step up.

 

Now I'm depressed. Based on the negative comments here, it seems like we won't have the experience we were hoping for.

 

What ship and itinerary did you book?

 

We were on Reflection in November. That experience was lovely. The ship was in good shape and they have refurbished it since. The crew was excellent.

[elapel01]

We were also on this cruise and would agree with you.

 

Room attendant - he did a good job, but he was very overworked (looked after both suites and aqua class). Most days we received the afternoon appetizers but not always. Some days our towels were quite tatty. He was very friendly though and we could see he was doing his best.

 

Bedding - time for an upgrade or replacement. Both my partner and I found the bed to be very uncomfortable. The pillows were terrible - I ended up using the square day pillows.

 

Speciality dining - was good, but not the best we've had. One dish in Qsine was so terrible we did not eat it (wrong sauces on meatballs, meatballs undercooked in center but tough and chewy on outside, over seasoned etc).

 

Drinks - couldn't agree more with the above poster about inconsistency. Every bar had a different way of making the same drink.

 

Oceanview Cafe - this is the best we have seen the buffet in a while. We liked that there were daily changing "specials/cuisines".

 

Persian gardens - we haven't used the Persian gardens before so this may we fleet wide. We didn't like that we had to check in and exchange our cards for cards that had access to Persian gardens. We have paid for aqua so our cards should automatically swipe us in. Flavoured water was often empty and "bed" hogs were in full force, certainly not adhering to the 20 minute rotation.

 

Entertainment- we felt this was the same as previous cruises. However, the activities team was the best we have had in 5 cruises. Very outgoing, friendly and good range of activities.

 

For the first time in 5 cruises we have not rebooked a future cruise onboard. We know we can get better incentives in future sales and the prices are very high.

 

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Our attendant was great too. That is pretty bad about them having to do suites and AC. Ran into 2 other couples onboad complaining about bed and bedsheets.

Says a lot that you didn’t book a future cruise.

[elapel01]

Certainly agree with you that the value proposition for Celebrity has shifted in a negative way over the past few years. We currently have 3 cruises booked; however, for the third one, June 2019, the price is totally out of line, on a cost per night basis (same category) it is 50% more than the average of the next two cruises. There has been a slow steady decline in the product that now brings the price point into question.

We have experienced some pretty questionable linens and towels; however, a short discussion with our stateroom attendant has the issue resolved.

 

We have started to look around at other options.

 

There has been a slow steady decline in the product that now brings the price point into question.

 

 

I found this sentence to be exactly how I am feeling after this cruise. Thanks.

[elapel01]

Also disappointed: Feeling the same after our Dec cruise. The quality of the cruise is no longer something to cheer about. Thinking our May cruise may be our last. Does LLP not see the situation. It seems many loyal cruisers are expressing their dissatisfaction.[/quote

 

I dont think she cares that much about loyal cruisers...many others are coming over from cruise lines that sound much worse and they seem to like X very much.. As Arno has said...old timers know how it used to be and are not enchanted with paying more for so much less! Others have no clue!

 

Sad but probably true!

[elapel01]

The point is you shouldn’t even have to ask for towels to be replaced because worn out ones shouldn’t be placed in cabins in the first place. It’s like going to a restaurant and finding a dirty fork or dirty glass on your table; it doesn’t necessarily destroy the whole meal but it does make you question the training of the staff.

 

I can’t speak for the OP but for us it was a variety of issues with our room attendant. The worn out towels thing happened a couple times but was not a daily occurrence. But we also had to chase him on nearly everything: when we ran out of soap/shampoo/body wash it was not replaced automatically, bathrobes were not placed in the cabin when we boarded, when we used up the one laundry slip in the room new ones were not provided, when we used up the one room service menu in the room new ones were not provided, we only got beach towels in the cabin on the first day of the cruise; new ones were never provided again after those were used despite us bringing back used towels each day from the beach that we had grabbed from the pool deck, snack trays that were left in the cabin that we only had a brief look at before heading off to dinner were cleared away before we ever had a chance to try them, and on and on. We had never encountered this with a room attendant before so we kept hoping things would improve (these issues obviously did not all happen at once or all on the first day). Our bad for not raising the issue during the cruise but they were all minor by themselves but grew to be a big annoyance by the end of the cruise so we did lay it all out to our butler (who did a great job) on the last day as we felt he should pass on the feedback. Honestly though, at the suite level there’s really no excuse for these types of continual misses. The only other time we had a problem with a room attendant was our second Celebrity cruise back in 2014, but that was a cleaning issue (dust everywhere, mold on shower curtain, wine splatter on walls from prior guest, our balcony never being cleaned, etc.) rather than a missing/replacing items issue.

 

 

 

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The point is you shouldn’t even have to ask for towels to be replaced because worn out ones shouldn’t be placed in cabins in the first place. It’s like going to a restaurant and finding a dirty fork or dirty glass on your table; it doesn’t necessarily destroy the whole meal but it does make you question the training of the staff.

 

 

Thanks for your smart answer to that post. That is exactly the point.....Celebrity doesn’t have enough money to buy new washcloths and towels??? I highly doubt that.

[elapel01]

So, our first Celebrity Cruise will be in 2020. A very nice Southern Caribbean itinerary. Reading your posts here makes me think it won't be much different than the Carnival experiences we've had to date. Not that they were bad, but we were hoping Celebrity would be a step up.

 

Now I'm depressed. Based on the negative comments here, it seems like we won't have the experience we were hoping for.

 

I hope your first cruise with Celebrity is good. The things that myself and some other Celebrity regulars are posting about might not be noticed by first timers. It’s just that we know how things were back 6-7 years ago. I’m sure if I went on Princess I wouldn’t pick up on something unless really bad. It sounds like all the cruise lines are cutting corners so Celebrity still should be a step up. We used to cruise Carnival (had no big issues with them) but tried Celebrity Solstice after being beside it in a port. Hope this helps!

[Host Anne]

So, our first Celebrity Cruise will be in 2020. A very nice Southern Caribbean itinerary. Reading your posts here makes me think it won't be much different than the Carnival experiences we've had to date. Not that they were bad, but we were hoping Celebrity would be a step up.

 

Now I'm depressed. Based on the negative comments here, it seems like we won't have the experience we were hoping for.

 

It always makes me sad when someone gets "depressed" because of things they read on a public message board. Your cruise is a long ways off and you should be looking forward to it instead of getting bummed. I've sailed Celebrity for years and if you go back and read my reviews, you'll see I'm always honest about the good and the bad of any cruise. We've had plenty of great cruises and others that have been less than stellar.

 

There is no question that many of the things described in this thread are true. Staff cutbacks and cost cutting have been seen in the cruise industry and Celebrity continuously now for some time. I've seen this across all mass-market lines (Celebrity, RCCL, Princess, HAL, Carnival). We can cruise Celebrity now for less than we did five years ago. Something has to give when the cost of cruising has been essentially the same (or less) for years.

 

We had a great cruise on Solstice last summer in Alaska and sail Silhouette in a couple of weeks. I know before I get onboard that the experience won't be the same as it was 10 - 15 years ago. But we still cruise to get away and relax. For the most part, we love Celebrity's crew.

 

Like so many things, it's about expectations. I'll write an honest review when we return. I can comfortably say that no matter what happens in the next two years before you sail, that Celebrity should still be a step up from Carnival. I hope you can start looking forward to your cruise again!

[xxpinksaltxx]

We would still recommend Celebrity over many lines. We just cruised 10 years ago with Celebrity and notice the changes, cutbacks etc. It's not a bad experience, it's just different.

 

It's still a great line, and you will still have a very enjoyable cruise. Our first cruise was 14 nights 1A balcony for $900, the cruise we just completed was $3800 Aqua Class for 9 nights and certainly things have changed (both cruises booked 2 years in advance of sailing).

 

No we haven't rebooked, but not because of the experience. More because of the price and there weren't any onboard perks that really enticed us.

 

 

 

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[Keys2Heaven]

What ship and itinerary did you book?

 

We were on Reflection in November. That experience was lovely. The ship was in good shape and they have refurbished it since. The crew was excellent.

 

April 2020, 12 night ultimate Caribbean, Silhouette.

[Keys2Heaven]

It always makes me sad when someone gets "depressed" because of things they read on a public message board. Your cruise is a long ways off and you should be looking forward to it instead of getting bummed. I've sailed Celebrity for years and if you go back and read my reviews, you'll see I'm always honest about the good and the bad of any cruise. We've had plenty of great cruises and others that have been less than stellar.

 

There is no question that many of the things described in this thread are true. Staff cutbacks and cost cutting have been seen in the cruise industry and Celebrity continuously now for some time. I've seen this across all mass-market lines (Celebrity, RCCL, Princess, HAL, Carnival). We can cruise Celebrity now for less than we did five years ago. Something has to give when the cost of cruising has been essentially the same (or less) for years.

 

We had a great cruise on Solstice last summer in Alaska and sail Silhouette in a couple of weeks. I know before I get onboard that the experience won't be the same as it was 10 - 15 years ago. But we still cruise to get away and relax. For the most part, we love Celebrity's crew.

 

Like so many things, it's about expectations. I'll write an honest review when we return. I can comfortably say that no matter what happens in the next two years before you sail, that Celebrity should still be a step up from Carnival. I hope you can start looking forward to your cruise again!

 

Thanks. We're looking forward to the itinerary for sure. I guess I've always had an opinion that Celebrity is more upscale and was looking forward to that experience.

 

Maybe I shouldn't have said depressed but rather disappointed.