Torn between RCL Brilliance and Celebrity Silhouette

[Twotravelers0779]

Hi, my question is about a cruise to the Baltic Sea.

Me and my husband are in between Celebrity Silhouette and RCL Brilliance of the Sea for next year. Brilliance is lower price, of course. But if someone can tell me if it is worth it to pay less or to go higher on Celebrity. Thanks!

[Husky61]

Because someone else likes a particular cruise line and ship, doesn't mean you will.:):)

[Twotravelers0779]

Pros and Cons could help

[tallnthensome]

Pros and Cons could help

I agree, that's a pretty generic question. Ports? Cabin type? Number of days? I doubt anyone on the Celebrity forum is simply going to direct you to a cheaper cruise on a different line .

[Luvcrusn]

That depends on what you like on a cruise. IMO Celebrity has better food and service. It is a much more laid back atmosphere than does Royal. There are no slides, rock climbing walls, IFlight, carousels, wave pools etc., that you'll find on Royal. There are also, and this is related to the previous list, fewer families with children. Some prefer the entertainment on Royal, but we've always been satisfied with X's shows (although we can usually pass on the production shows), and on X you do not need to make reservations for the shows. There are perks offered on X like unlimited beverage packages, pre-paid gratuities, OBC and unlimited WIFI that usually have to be purchased on Royal. On X you'll find real cloth towels in the rest rooms and a cool beverage and iced towel waiting dockside when you return from a port day (in warm climates of course). There will be less pool games. It all depends what you find enjoyable. Without knowing anything about the two of you it's hard to make a recommendation.

[hcat]

Older versus newer ship....smaller versus larger...

 

Check the amenities you look for in a ship..check both on websites and compare ..only you know what works best for you.

[phoenix_dream]

It truly does depend on what matters to you. We always choose Celebrity unless traveling with kids. We enjoy what we perceive to be better service, a more laid back atmosphere, fewer children, less of a party atmosphere, better food. We don't know what matters to you so it makes it hard to provide good input. There is certainly nothing wrong with Royal Caribbean, but it has a different vibe, and almost always more families with children. On the plus side, there are more activities and sometimes better entertainment. Itinerary may also be a factor for some, although for us we would normally pick for the ship/cruise line unless there is a particular port we really want to go to that Celebrity does not do.

[Silvery Seas Cruiser]

While I have sailed on both ships, it has been several years since I have sailed on Brilliance. Without knowing the OP's preferences, I'd say Brilliance is a cozy, yet elegant ship that does offer amenities such as rock climbing wall and putt putt golf, for example, that Silhouette does not. It has more of interest to younger passengers, but I certainly wasn't young when I sailed Brilliance. I loved the glassy atrium with wonderful sea views.

 

That said, if the itinerary is equal on both ships, I'd sail on Silhouette, one of my favorite Solstice Class ships. For one thing, I find that the food is better. I think the cabins are nicer. Passengers are treated better with such things as water, cool wash cloths and a comfy sofa when you return from your excursions which Brilliance does not. You also get a welcome mimosa or champagne when you first board which Brilliance doesn't do.

Such amenities may not matter to you especially given the price differential.

 

But as I said, I haven't sailed on Brilliance in several years, so some things may have changed. I bet you will have a fun cruise no matter which ship you choose.

[Big Red 2016]

We sailed Brilliance in 2017 on a 12 night Med-Venice... loved the ship... and there really weren't that many kids.. I know because we sailed with our almost 12 year old :P We prefer the smaller ships, and really enjoyed the service and atmosphere... The itinerary was the major factor because it was the only way we could get the Naples area and Venice in the same trip... the price was a great deal, too, though... this will be our first experience on X, and again itinerary was first and pricing 2nd.... CHOICES lol...

[KikisDad]

Both are beautiful ships. As other posts mentioned, it depends on what you like.

[4774Papa]

That depends on what you like on a cruise. IMO Celebrity has better food and service. It is a much more laid back atmosphere than does Royal. There are no slides, rock climbing walls, IFlight, carousels, wave pools etc., that you'll find on Royal. There are also, and this is related to the previous list, fewer families with children. Some prefer the entertainment on Royal, but we've always been satisfied with X's shows (although we can usually pass on the production shows), and on X you do not need to make reservations for the shows. There are perks offered on X like unlimited beverage packages, pre-paid gratuities, OBC and unlimited WIFI that usually have to be purchased on Royal. On X you'll find real cloth towels in the rest rooms and a cool beverage and iced towel waiting dockside when you return from a port day (in warm climates of course). There will be less pool games. It all depends what you find enjoyable. Without knowing anything about the two of you it's hard to make a recommendation.

We are elite on Celebrity after 10 cruises, so we took advantage of RCI recognizing that and giving us Diamond status. We did our first RCI cruise last April/May from Sydney, Australia to Seattle on Explorer of the Seas.

 

We found many similarities between the two cruise lines. We went with RCI because they don't price bundle promos like Celebrity does not and RCI was cheaper.

 

Celebrity's food was a bit better than RCI in the MDR, but the difference was not significant. The biggest difference was at the buffet. The RCI buffet offered up a lot of heavy meats that we just don't eat at lunch. Also, we like Celebrity's eggs benedict station better than the one on RCI. The salad bar at the buffet on Explorer was not as good as the one on Celebrity ships. However, there is a great salad bar in the MDR for lunch.

 

Entertainment was better on RCI. We even had two wonderful ice shows that you won't get on Celebrity.

 

Ship design, we like Celebrity more, since all Celebrity ships have an open aft deck on the level with the buffet that allows you to go outside. RCI's ships generally don't have that.

 

The elite happy hour on Celebrity goes from 5-7pm and you cannot take a drink out with you. RCI's diamond happy hour runs from 4:30 to 8pm and you can take out a drink when you leave and even order a glass of wine at the MDR (prior to 8). In fact, our Explorer of the Seas cruise for 23 days, we did not purchase a single alcoholic drink during the entire cruise. That was a savings that we liked.

 

We still prefer Celebrity, but frankly, the difference between the two lines is not great. If Celebrity gets a 4.5 of 5, then RCI gets a 4.4. I would go with the less expensive.

[cmhdoogalsatsea]

Hi, my question is about a cruise to the Baltic Sea.

Me and my husband are in between Celebrity Silhouette and RCL Brilliance of the Sea for next year. Brilliance is lower price, of course. But if someone can tell me if it is worth it to pay less or to go higher on Celebrity. Thanks!

 

Save your money and go with RCL. Celebrity doesn't need any encouragement regarding its price strategy and those of us who frequent it don't require additional "fellow travelers" at this time. ;)

 

Whatever you decide, have a great trip!!

[upwarduk]

Older versus newer ship....smaller versus larger.

 

Check the amenities you look for in a ship..check both on websites and compare ..only you know what works best for you.

 

 

Which is the larger vessel?

 

DONT PICK IT.

 

I say this because we were on Celebrity Silhouette and were refused entry into St Petersburg on July 1/2nd 2018.

 

We were told we were too large to turn in the narrow canal considering the wind conditions.

 

( picture courtesy of Google)

 

Azamara Journey which only has 700 passengers was allowed in on July 2nd.

 

 

We bobbed around for 2 days, waiting for high tides, but we were still denied entry, as at a wind speed of 53 knots we were ‘off the chart’ for safe entry because of our size.

Edited September 8, 2018 by upwarduk

[Twotravelers0779]

Thank you for all your opinions, it's good to learn from all your experiences. :confused: When we cruise, we love to sight see all the ports of call but when we are at sea, love to relax (don't partcipate much in activities the ship offers), yes, we like pop pop gulf and go inglés to the gym. What is important for my husband is the good food at the dining! We want a balcony cabin to lay back on sea days. I know Brilliance (RCL) is not as big as X Silhouette (don't know how small is Brilliance) and that kind of discouraged me, BUT now I got concerned for the post saying they were refused (X Silhouette) to enter the canal in St. Petersburg, which is one of my major reasons of this cruise, that was in the month of July and our cruise would be in June (I wonder if it's similar weather).

[upwarduk]

The weather at the beginning of July was a complete surprise, we had heat wave conditions in all ports except St Petersburg.

I felt so sorry for passengers who had come from Australia, New Zealand, South America and other far flung parts of the world.

We had been before, but I am still sore that we didn’t get into St Pete.

 

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[Twotravelers0779]

I wonder if they would apply the same regulations to Brilliance since is as big as more of 2000 passengers (XSilhouette is more than 3000 passengers)

[upwarduk]

A marine architect was on an excursion with us. He had access to a web site which showed the correlation of ship size to wind speed. He told us we were indeed too big to turn in the channel with the prevailing wind speed. He was supporting the Captain’s decision, as many people disputed the reason, as they had seen P&O Britannia leaving. Britianna was bigger than us, but had managed to get in the previous day ‘by the skin of her teeth.’

Some passengers on our cruise managed to claim ontheir Cruise Insurance. Unfortunately we only had Medical Insurance.

 

 

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Edited September 9, 2018 by upwarduk

[sippican]

We have sailed on both ships, to different destinations.

One of the main reasons we have recently stuck with X is beacuse of our last cruise on Royal (Jewel - same class as Brilliance). It felt crowded in all of the public areas - especially the buffet and atrium during presentations. It seems like there was constant jostling to get anywhere and the elevator waits were ridiculous.

 

We have been very happy with X. That being said - if we were to find a cruise with an attractive itinerary and price on Royal in a Radiance class ship - we would no hesitate to book.

 

Do both overnight in St. Petersburg? Very important IMHO.

 

But when all is said and done, the Silhouette is our absolute favorite ship. If you can afford a sky suite - the benefits of dining in Luminae, and using Michael's Club can't be beat.

 

Either way, I'm sure you'll have a wonderful cruise.

[TeeRick]

We have sailed Brilliance twice and Silhouette once. Both are great ships. The service on Silhouette was fantastic but you cannot go wrong with either choice!

[Twotravelers0779]

Thank you all so much, it's been so helpful all the information you have given us!!!

[NCHPcruiser]

Thank you for all your opinions, it's good to learn from all your experiences. :confused: When we cruise, we love to sight see all the ports of call but when we are at sea, love to relax (don't partcipate much in activities the ship offers), yes, we like pop pop gulf and go inglés to the gym. What is important for my husband is the good food at the dining! We want a balcony cabin to lay back on sea days. I know Brilliance (RCL) is not as big as X Silhouette (don't know how small is Brilliance) and that kind of discouraged me, BUT now I got concerned for the post saying they were refused (X Silhouette) to enter the canal in St. Petersburg, which is one of my major reasons of this cruise, that was in the month of July and our cruise would be in June (I wonder if it's similar weather).

 

I was on the Silhouette when we were not able to go to St. Petersburg (July 1 & 2) and her size (along with the weather conditions) definitely played a part in our inability to enter the channel. At least one other ship couldn't enter either. From what I've read this happened once before about three years ago. In that case they were able to enter the second day so didn't miss SP altogether as we did. The odds of it happening again next summer are slim but we wouldn't chance it and would go on a smaller ship.

[George C]

I did brilliance for Europe two years ago , I would go with celebrity newer ship better food

[TeeRick]

I was on the Silhouette when we were not able to go to St. Petersburg (July 1 & 2) and her size (along with the weather conditions) definitely played a part in our inability to enter the channel. At least one other ship couldn't enter either. From what I've read this happened once before about three years ago. In that case they were able to enter the second day so didn't miss SP altogether as we did. The odds of it happening again next summer are slim but we wouldn't chance it and would go on a smaller ship.

 

It would definitely be a disappointment to miss St. Petersburg after getting so close! I heard it was the wind gusts that kept you out of the channel.

[Silkroad]

It would definitely be a disappointment to miss St. Petersburg after getting so close! I heard it was the wind gusts that kept you out of the channel.

That is true. I was on this sailing also, and even though we couldn’t dock at St. Petersburg, DH and I had a wonderful cruise. We know it’s always possible to miss ports due to weather, crew/passenger medical emergency, or social unrest, so we were philosophical about missing St. Petersburg. I can’t comment on the RCL ship, but I’ve twice had splendid cruises on Silhouette and would happily book her again.