Odyssey vs Celebrity Silhouette?

[Cruiscs]

On 6/16/2024 at 7:31 PM, Bxc53 said:

We are a retired couple and have cruised on Solstice and Quantum, sister ships to your choices. We like them both for different reasons, but having said that, if we were in our 30’s, the Odyssey  would be the strong choice for the variety of on board activities.  Neither are bad choices- ‘There is no such thing as a bad cruise’.

 

Enjoy, whichever to decide on.

 

 

Thanks. Odyssey looks like a fantastic ship but kinda worried about tons of kids and lines to everything. Also such a big ship in ports like Santorini. 

[Ocean Boy]

11 minutes ago, Cruiscs said:

Thanks. Odyssey looks like a fantastic ship but kinda worried about tons of kids and lines to everything. Also such a big ship in ports like Santorini. 

I've not encountered lines on Odyssey nor found kids to be a big problem but maybe that is due to when I sail. I also find leaving and coming back to the ship at ports of call to go very smoothly. Though I will say I've never been to a tender port on Odyssey.

[Saab4444]

5 hours ago, Cruiscs said:

Nice. But it is not dated and «tired»?

She is also just 13 years old and compared to many others a new ship.

[The Fun Researcher]

9 hours ago, Saab4444 said:

They come from the same yard in Germany and the idea was indeed to copy some internal (!) Celebrity design elements and vibe from Solstize Class into a new Royal class of ships but the overall ship design and size is completely different. 

 

I would love to read more about this. Do you have a link to an article confirming?  The ship classes are so different that I'm curious what they thought was something common between the two.  I guess they do both have the "hump" balconies.  We do like those.  We had three of them side by side on the Equinox in December and were able to open all the dividers in between.  Made for one HUGE balcony and very easy travelling between each of our rooms.

 

Some other random thoughts we like about the Solstice class on X:

• Sunset Bar area looking out the aft
• Excellent indoor pool area
• Including the drink package (in general) isn't nearly as cost prohibitive as on Royal.  Love that it includes specialty coffees at Café el Bacio (although the lines can be loong)
• Food is a tiny step up from what we experience on Royal.  However, late night food options are still a big struggle
• Ship is big enough to have lots to offer, but not so huge that it's a pain to get from point A to point B
• Great buffet layout and pretty good seating area
• The glass blowing experience is really something fun to do on a ship and get a nice souvenir/keepsake.  Costs money but a very cool (well maybe hot 😉 ) experience

 

What we didn't care for on S class

• Entertainment in the Main Theater felt severely cut back.  Their main shows had a cast of around 8 cast members.  Very few, to no set changes.  Maybe it was because we were on the week before Christmas and they were gearing up for that, but it was very disappointing.  We just got off the Liberty of the Seas and they had a cast of 18! for Saturday Night Fever.
• Sleepy at night.  No hot tubs or pool after 9pm I believe it was.  After the main theater shows, just a spattering of entertainment.  Ship felt pretty much asleep by 11pm.  
• Don't like the feel of "Centrums", the round open areas inside the ships near the elevators.  They try to do a lot of stuff there, but it's cramped and hard to see from other decks.  Plus it really breaks up the flow inside the ship compared to the Royal Promenades or Esplanades on Royal ships
• No lunch offered at the Specialty Restaurants.  I just don't get this one.  It's become a splurge of ours on Royal but no such luck on X.
• Very lackluster late night food options.  The buffet has a pasta bar and pizza station that can be o.k. of managed properly, and some breads, cheeses and fruit but it's pretty skimpy offerings.  (I actually have this some complaint on a lot of Royal's ships though)
• Almost no activities, not even putt putt 

 

Solstice class has a lot to offer for those looking for that style of cruising.  It's way more focused on the classic cruise vibe.  All about chilling and vegging.  We just realized we're not at that point yet.

[akcruz]

52 minutes ago, The Fun Researcher said:

No lunch offered at the Specialty Restaurants.  I just don't get this one.  It's become a splurge of ours on Royal but no such luck on X.

 

When did this start?  We did lunch at specialties on both Reflection and Silhouette, of course that was pre pandemic.  Our latest Silhouette in Jan was only 4 nights so didn't do any specialties or look to see what was or was not available.

[The Fun Researcher]

6 minutes ago, akcruz said:

 

When did this start?  We did lunch at specialties on both Reflection and Silhouette, of course that was pre pandemic.  Our latest Silhouette in Jan was only 4 nights so didn't do any specialties or look to see what was or was not available.

I think Sushi on 5 was available for lunch, but I don't think other specialty locations were.  Sorry if I'm giving out bad info, but I just don't remember the others being open for lunch.

[whitshel]

6 hours ago, PhillyFan33579 said:

Additionally, I don’t like the location and design of Playmaker’s

Thats so funny, different strokes for different folks.  I think that Playmakers has the best location on Odyssey.  Being way up on top of the ship being able to watch your favorite team while looking out at the ocean or looking down at the sports court and see whats happening.  Noting better.....

[Saab4444]

1 hour ago, The Fun Researcher said:

 

I would love to read more about this. Do you have a link to an article confirming?  The ship classes are so different that I'm curious what they thought was something common between the two.  I guess they do both have the "hump" balconies.  We do like those.  We had three of them side by side on the Equinox in December and were able to open all the dividers in between.  Made for one HUGE balcony and very easy travelling between each of our rooms.

 

Some other random thoughts we like about the Solstice class on X:

• Sunset Bar area looking out the aft
• Excellent indoor pool area
• Including the drink package (in general) isn't nearly as cost prohibitive as on Royal.  Love that it includes specialty coffees at Café el Bacio (although the lines can be loong)
• Food is a tiny step up from what we experience on Royal.  However, late night food options are still a big struggle
• Ship is big enough to have lots to offer, but not so huge that it's a pain to get from point A to point B
• Great buffet layout and pretty good seating area
• The glass blowing experience is really something fun to do on a ship and get a nice souvenir/keepsake.  Costs money but a very cool (well maybe hot 😉 ) experience

 

What we didn't care for on S class

• Entertainment in the Main Theater felt severely cut back.  Their main shows had a cast of around 8 cast members.  Very few, to no set changes.  Maybe it was because we were on the week before Christmas and they were gearing up for that, but it was very disappointing.  We just got off the Liberty of the Seas and they had a cast of 18! for Saturday Night Fever.
• Sleepy at night.  No hot tubs or pool after 9pm I believe it was.  After the main theater shows, just a spattering of entertainment.  Ship felt pretty much asleep by 11pm.  
• Don't like the feel of "Centrums", the round open areas inside the ships near the elevators.  They try to do a lot of stuff there, but it's cramped and hard to see from other decks.  Plus it really breaks up the flow inside the ship compared to the Royal Promenades or Esplanades on Royal ships
• No lunch offered at the Specialty Restaurants.  I just don't get this one.  It's become a splurge of ours on Royal but no such luck on X.
• Very lackluster late night food options.  The buffet has a pasta bar and pizza station that can be o.k. of managed properly, and some breads, cheeses and fruit but it's pretty skimpy offerings.  (I actually have this some complaint on a lot of Royal's ships though)
• Almost no activities, not even putt putt 

 

Solstice class has a lot to offer for those looking for that style of cruising.  It's way more focused on the classic cruise vibe.  All about chilling and vegging.  We just realized we're not at that point yet.

Just knowledge from the past when they were built. E.g. one key element was the so called Royal Eplenade on Quantum Class which was different from the Royal Promenade on all other big Royal ships and explained as a more upscale approach with Celebrity S class in mind.

[akcruz]

49 minutes ago, The Fun Researcher said:

I think Sushi on 5 was available for lunch, but I don't think other specialty locations were.  Sorry if I'm giving out bad info, but I just don't remember the others being open for lunch.

 

No problem could be accurate now.  We had in Tuscan Grille but as mentioned that was pre pandemic so can't say now.

[PhillyFan33579]

1 hour ago, whitshel said:

Thats so funny, different strokes for different folks.  I think that Playmakers has the best location on Odyssey.  Being way up on top of the ship being able to watch your favorite team while looking out at the ocean or looking down at the sports court and see whats happening.  Noting better.....

Unless one of my favorite teams is playing, I like to watch multiple games at once, especially during football season, which is limited on Odyssey. I like the layout of Playmaker’s on Freedom and Oasis class ships where you can easily watch 5 or 6 games at once. I understand your point about looking at the ocean or sports court, but when I watch sports I don’t pay attention to what is going around me, so that is irrelevant in my book. 

[whitshel]

On 6/19/2024 at 11:18 AM, PhillyFan33579 said:

Unless one of my favorite teams is playing, I like to watch multiple games at once, especially during football season, which is limited on Odyssey. I like the layout of Playmaker’s on Freedom and Oasis class ships where you can easily watch 5 or 6 games at once. I understand your point about looking at the ocean or sports court, but when I watch sports I don’t pay attention to what is going around me, so that is irrelevant in my book. 

Haha i get what your saying but a little confused about watching more than 1 game at a time.  Its been a coupe years but I remember tvs being everywhere.  Maybe not, like I said its been a couple years.  And don't forget 1/3 of the games are commercials, plenty of time to glance at the ocean and remember where you are 🙂 

[jerseyjjs]

On 6/19/2024 at 2:18 PM, PhillyFan33579 said:

Unless one of my favorite teams is playing, I like to watch multiple games at once, especially during football season, which is limited on Odyssey. I like the layout of Playmaker’s on Freedom and Oasis class ships where you can easily watch 5 or 6 games at once. I understand your point about looking at the ocean or sports court, but when I watch sports I don’t pay attention to what is going around me, so that is irrelevant in my book. 

 

I'm looking at the Odyssey in December.   Would one of the 2-top tables along the windows facing the main bar be the best spot for watching ALL the games?   And, are the bathrooms as far from Playmakers as the deck plans indicate?

[PhillyFan33579]

13 hours ago, jerseyjjs said:

 

I'm looking at the Odyssey in December.   Would one of the 2-top tables along the windows facing the main bar be the best spot for watching ALL the games?   And, are the bathrooms as far from Playmakers as the deck plans indicate?

That is a pretty good location. There are plenty of TVs there, but the distance between the TVs and tables isn’t that far.  So it gives you a great view of 3 TVs or so but to see the other TVs you are looking at them at a fairly sharp angle. The picture on the large screen TV across the seaplex is phenomenal…best picture I have seen on any ship. Definitely the screen to watch when only one game is being played (Sunday night, Monday night, etc.). I don’t recall the bathrooms being too far away, but you had to go down stairs to get to them.