REVIEW!! Sihouette 3/16/2014

This is some of the highlights of our cruise on the Celebrity Silhouette March 16th, 2014, Eastern Caribbean.

This was our 16th cruise. A Majority of our cruises were on Carnival, especially when our kids were younger. Carnival is no Celebrity, but we did enjoy every one of those cruises. We have also cruised on NCL, American Hawaii (no longer around I think), Princess, Holland America and this being our 2nd celebrity cruise. Our first was on the Solstice that took us to Grand Cayman, Roatan, Costa Maya etc. That was an excellent cruise and hooked us on Celebrity.

Pre-cruise.

We flew to Ft Lauderdale the day before our cruise started. We live in Scottsdale Az. so flying in the day of doesn't work with the 4-hour flight and 3-hour time change. We departed Phx. at 10:25 am and landed on time at 5:40. Grabbed the bags and a quick cab ride and we were at our hotel.

Since this was spring break getting a reasonable priced room at our favorite hotels was not an option. The Hyatt Place was like $289 as was the Embassy suites. So, I opted for my good old stand by, Priceline. After working the system for a while we ended up at the Riverside hotel for $135. I must say what a fun location. Located on Los Olas Blvd there were lots of bars and dining options. We ended up eating at a place called Foxy Browns just off the main drag. Excellent food.

After a few nightcaps we headed off to bed. The room was clean, comfy and the balmy air made for a nice night of rest.

We woke up and headed around the corner to a Starbucks for a bagel and coffee. We opted not to sit down and eat a big breakfast because we knew the next week was going to be a total feed bag.

Around 10:30am we headed down to find a cab. The hotel does offer shuttles to the port at 11,noon and 1. I dislike the shuttles because you can end up going to other ship drop offs before you get to your own. I'd rather spend the extra dollars and get there nonstop. We found a cab waiting out front and we were at the port by 10:50. The fare was $17.

Embarkation

This process was a snap. Up to the counter, verify passports, verify credit card, boom we had our room cards and were on the ship by 11:10.

We were booked in cabin 1062, deck 10, and Concierge class. I didn't purposely book this class. But, I did wheel and deal with the Celebrity agent. When I originally called in I had an agent that didn't speak good English and I wasn't getting anything I wanted from him. So he tossed me to his manager or higher up. I mentioned I was either booking this cruise or the Carnival Dream all of which was true. Bottom line I paid for a category below Concierge, got the drink package and a $150 on board credit. The concierge level was a one upgrade level also as I wanted center ship. Would I pay for Concierge level ever? No! Ok, you get champagne in your room when you board, flowers, a tiny little set of binoculars and an umbrella. Also, in the afternoon they offer to have canapés delivered to your room. What's that you say. Not much actually. 6 olives, 5 corn chips and piece or two of fruit. So not worth it. I also, didn't see any priority boarding lines for Concierge either, not that we needed it.

Boarding was one of the smoothest ones we have ever experienced.

Day 1

Upon getting on board we decided to head to the back of the ship for drinks and some food. Time for the drinking and eating to start. We also met up and got to chat with many of you from cruise critic. For those we talked to it was a pleasure meeting you. We apologize for not making the wine tasting event on board but by time we heard of the date and time we were well into relaxation mode.

Speaking of drinking. We upgraded the free classic package we got to the premium package. I actually did this when I booked. We loved the premium package on the Solstice and also for this cruise. I love my cold beers during the day, my wife loves the frothy cold drinks. We consumed dozens of bottles of water on deck, on shore and in our room. We frequented cafe el baclo for premium coffee drinks. The martini bar was a frequent stop before dinner. During dinner we had bottled Pellegrino, a glass or two of wine and an after dinner cappuccino. All of these are covered on the card. I really enjoy the premium wines and beers and liquor so the premium package is a no brainer for us. P.S. I added up all of our drink purchases on the final statement, hehe, we came out ahead.

I won't continue to give you a blow-by-blow day by day but rather talk about topics most people have interest in.

Drink package: Again we upgraded to the Premium. Better wines by the glass and a better beer selection. I prefer premium liquor in my drinks like Don Julio for the margaritas and Chopin vodka for the martini. The premium package is a total personal preference others will disagree.

Staff: The friendliest set of crew ever. Every bartender was smiling and joking and saying hello. Our room steward was named Elder. Awesome! He always asked how our day was, how was the port or did we enjoy dinner. Sneaky too! Seems like every time we left the room even if we were gone only 20 minutes, it was all cleaned up. Main dining room waiters. They were great too.

Select seating: We prefer this way over set times. 5:45 or 8:30 just doesn’t work. One is too early especially on port days and the other is too late. Getting a table for two by the window was accommodated just about every night. On the last formal night we checked in at 7 and had to wait 25 minutes for a table. No big deal. We love select dining. I don’t know who the lady was handling the select seating dining area, but she was awesome. Gave us a premium table every time. Actually now that I think of it, most of the select two tops are great.

Cabin: 1062. Typical S class. Was super clean, plenty of space and of course the balcony we just have to have. Spent many late evenings there reading.

The shower is a crack up. Step in, slid the two glass doors together and you are in a glass cage on display. This cabin was a great location. 2 sets of stairs and you are on the pool deck. We have still yet to book aqua class and may on our next cruise. However I am very careful about where our cabin is. I will not book under a public deck. The noise possibilities are too scary. I always make sure we have a cabin above us.

Pool areas. We love the Solarium pool. No kids (this was spring break and I bet there weren’t more then 25 kids on board), quiet, soft spa music playing, bathroom steps away and bar service. If I want some sun, I head thru the doors to the main pool and sit on the edge of the pool for a while.

Chair hogs. A frequent topic of conversation. Yes there are plenty of them, but at the same time we always saw chairs available. Interesting note, our last sea day. We headed to breakfast at 9 stopped by the solarium to put our towels out on two chairs were gone about 15 minutes and we had a note from the pool butler. Please don't secure loungers. I actually saw them monitoring loungers and if people were gone 45 minutes they scooped up their stuff. Finally!

Food: Very good!!!!

We ate breakfast in the Grand Cuvée on most mornings. Everything was great. I had a few omelets made to order too.

We did do room service breakfast twice. We love eating and waking up on the balcony while at sea. Service was right on time.

Pizza was awesome

Shows: We popped in on two of them for about 20 minutes and they were ok. Been there done that. SinCity late night comedy. I had a major stomachache from laughing so hard. It was a riot.

Casino: Played craps one night, was fun, other then that didn’t really hang there at all.

Bars: Martini bar a must, Sunset bar and pool bar all my favorites.

We had a drink in every bar except the Sky lounge. It was always dead up there.

Ports of call

We booked this cruise for a few reasons. One we wanted to sail Celebrity again. Two, we wanted a relaxing cruise and not port intensive. We had been to San Juan and St Martin but not St kitts. We also didn't want to do any excursions so my port reporting will be low key.

San Juan: Beautiful port to watch while the ship enters the harbor. The Fort on the port side is gorgeous. We simply didn't do anything here other then walk off the shop and shop for about an hour. We bought a few t-shirts and then got back on board and enjoyed the ship, as it was mostly empty. The sail away was at 9 pm and it was so beautiful out. We watched it from the back, at the sunset bar.

St kitts: We got off the ship as soon as we were cleared. Grabbed a cab and headed over to the Carambola beach club. I had tried to get reservations for this about three weeks prior but they were not taking anymore at that time. We checked with the desk and indeed they had no more umbrellas available. So, we hiked down the beach about a 7 minute walk and ended up at the shipwreck bar and beach. Grabbed two chairs and an umbrella for $20 and had an awesome day. Great food, brown and black sand beach and calm waters. They also have a little floating dock you can swim out to and layout on. The views of the coast and water is spectacular. When we were ready to go we grabbed a cab and were back at the port in 15 minutes. Cab was $8 per person each way.

St Martin. There were 5 other ships in port the day we there...yikes and one of them was the Allure. We had no clue what we wanted to do until we woke up other then we wanted to go to Moho beach and see the planes land. So it was off the ship and we went direct to Moho. We grabbed a cab and paid $9 per person. We actually got there at about 9am. The umbrellas and chairs go super fast but we got two right on the waters edge, near the Sunset beach bar. A rain shower came through at about 10 and it looked bleak out. Planes started landing and we were hoping the rain would go away. Well by 11 am the rain was gone, the sun was out full blast and we were praying for rain again. Haha, yes it's intense heat even though we live in the desert it's a different oppressive deep burning heat.

Anyway, the day was great. Watching the planes land, swimming, the food at sunset bar was all perfect. By 3 we needed to get out of the sun and heat and we went back to the ship.

Likes: I love how Celebrity has ice cold hand towels as you get back on the ship after a super long hot day in the sun. The cold water cups too. In St Martin we were right next to the Allure of the seas and I heard their passengers comment on it. “why don’t we have that” On the last sea day I also saw pool butlers going around the pool area handing out iced hand towels. Nice touch!

We hit pretty much every bar area but the Sky bar up front. The two times we looked at it there was no one there. They did hold a lot of private functions there.

Martini bar. Awesome fun.

Sunset bar, great views.

COLD BEER, every bar had cold beer except one. See dislikes below.

Bummers: The bread they serve in the main dinning room. Worst I can remember on a ship. Good bread sticks but the big spongy white bread they pump out....just not good.

Burgers in the mast grill not so great. Way over cooked.

Michael's Pub. A major disappointment. First it was always dead. Second even though they have this killer beer selection, it's NOT cold. A serious screw up. You walk in see all these great beers in these big chillers on the wall, they pull one out pour it in a glass and it's 48 degrees at best. I heard rumors they are killing this area? They might as well, no one goes.

Best entertainment: Not what you think. So in St. Martin we were docked right next to the Allure…a massive ship. Our cabin was facing their cabins and I could see below all the people getting on and off. Sail time was 5pm for both of our ships. The entertainment started at about 4:50….people running for their lives to make the ship. The final and best was a grown man who came in on a golf cart that someone had provided him a ride on. Its 5:01, 2 of the Allures gangways are off and both doors are shut. The third gangway door is open but they had removed the gangway with the forklift. The guy is standing there pleading with them and finally they fire up the fork life, put the gangway back in place and passengers from both ships start whistling and clapping as he gets on board.

One more minute and the guy flys back to Ft Lauderdale.

I know I have missed so many highlights and other things we did, but the review is long enough. Please let me know what questions, if any you have.

We can’t wait to sail again. LOVE Celebrity!!!

Thanks for the review, we leave this Sunday on the same itinerary. One question, which nights were formal?

Monday and Friday, both sea days.

I did see men trying to enter the dining area without a jacket. The hostess made them carry a jacket she provided over their arm as they walked to the table. Strange.

1459,

Thanks for posting. Did you try the waffles? :)

Since I see you were in the casino, did you by chance notice if they have Let It Ride, and if so what are their table minimums?? Love going in there, but I like to play poker games and not Blackjack or slot machines. I do love craps, although I tend to get too intense when I play, I would much prefer to sit at a nice poker type table and give them my money!

Looking forward to our sailing in Dec.

Thanks for taking the time to share your cruise with us. Loved the "best entertainment story"!!:)

Great review! I only wish you'd sailed west Caribbean, as we are doing soon, do I could get your perspective on the ports of call!

Awesome review! We will be on the same itinerary April 13. Looking forward to it....and we LOVE the martini bar!! :)

Thanks for your great review. We were on the week before. Loved the ship so much, just booked it again for next March:D

Thanks for the great review! We have also cruised numerous cruise lines so always good to hear different perspectives. We will be on the Silhouette this December :D

Great review Devo--thanks!:)

We'll be doing this itinerary and got the free drinks package also. We paid for the Classic package 2 years ago on the Solstice and really enjoyed it. This time, DH wants to upgrade his package to Premium for the Craft Beers in Michael's. Michael's Pub was a dud on Solstice and from what I've been reading on cc lately, it is on Silhouette as well.

Will DH be disappointed? Can he order the craft beers at other bars on the ship (and at dinner in the MDR) or are they only available at Michael's?

Thanks for the review.

Excellent review.

Michael's Pub. A major disappointment. First it was always dead. Second even though they have this killer beer selection, it's NOT cold. A serious screw up. You walk in see all these great beers in these big chillers on the wall, they pull one out pour it in a glass and it's 48 degrees at best. I heard rumors they are killing this area? They might as well, no one goes.

Funny, on our sailing Michael's Club wasn't that full, either, but I would hate to lose it to suite passengers.

As far as the beer temperatures go, some beers aren't meant to be served ice cold! They are excellent in Michael's Club about serving beers in the appropriate glasses and at the correct (craft) temperatures.

Great review Devo--thanks!:)

 

We'll be doing this itinerary and got the free drinks package also. We paid for the Classic package 2 years ago on the Solstice and really enjoyed it. This time, DH wants to upgrade his package to Premium for the Craft Beers in Michael's. Michael's Pub was a dud on Solstice and from what I've been reading on cc lately, it is on Silhouette as well.

 

Will DH be disappointed? Can he order the craft beers at other bars on the ship (and at dinner in the MDR) or are they only available at Michael's?

It depends on where you go and who your server is. We fell in love with a few good beers in Michael's and asked for them elsewhere...sometimes they were available, sometimes not. In the specialty restaurants they are (probably because it's easy for the bar servers to zip over to Michael's since it's near the specialty restaurants).

The most crowded we saw it was the night of the beer tasting...there were maybe 12 of us in there. Cellar Masters was empty, too!

Funny, on our sailing Michael's Club wasn't that full, either, but I would hate to lose it to suite passengers.

 

As far as the beer temperatures go, some beers aren't meant to be served ice cold! They are excellent in Michael's Club about serving beers in the appropriate glasses and at the correct (craft) temperatures.

Me, too. But it certainly seldom used. I have only seen it crowded on two cruises. One was when Perry Grant was using it as his performance hall and it was super crowded and the other was when Celebrity allowed the use of drink vouchers on a very busy TA cocktail hour (5-7)

I am sure that many beers lovers are "rolling their eyes" at the beer was cold enough comment. This is a funny and typical comment from us in the U.S. Some people might even say we drink our beer so cold because it is not high enough quality. Of course this is not really true with the introduction of so many small breweries in the U.S. market.

The beers that they serve on the Reflection and Silhouette are excellent IMO and I have notice that the taste varies significantly depending on the temp. I really missed the beer selection on my recent Eclipse cruise.

Devo1459, very nice review. Thank you. Please do not be offended by my comments about the beer. Until I traveled to the UK I always thought that they served their beer warm until I realized that the difference. But I would guess from your comments that you did not enjoy it. Did you try Fuller's Vintage Ale? It has become my favorite.

1459,

 

Thanks for posting. Did you try the waffles? :)

Yes, waffles were great! Everything for breakfast was great. That ship is amazing. Sunday am when it was time to get off we went to the Oceans View for breakfast and it was crowded but I got eggs made to order and we found a great table too. I misspoke earlier we did not eat in in MDR at all for Breakfast.

Since I see you were in the casino, did you by chance notice if they have Let It Ride, and if so what are their table minimums?? Love going in there, but I like to play poker games and not Blackjack or slot machines. I do love craps, although I tend to get too intense when I play, I would much prefer to sit at a nice poker type table and give them my money!

Looking forward to our sailing in Dec.

Yes they did have let it ride. $5

Craps was also $5 when I played. I looked a few times and didn't see Blackjack under $10

Great review Devo--thanks!:)

 

We'll be doing this itinerary and got the free drinks package also. We paid for the Classic package 2 years ago on the Solstice and really enjoyed it. This time, DH wants to upgrade his package to Premium for the Craft Beers in Michael's. Michael's Pub was a dud on Solstice and from what I've been reading on cc lately, it is on Silhouette as well.

 

Will DH be disappointed? Can he order the craft beers at other bars on the ship (and at dinner in the MDR) or are they only available at Michael's?

You can only get the craft brews in Michaels.

Me, too. But it certainly seldom used. I have only seen it crowded on two cruises. One was when Perry Grant was using it as his performance hall and it was super crowded and the other was when Celebrity allowed the use of drink vouchers on a very busy TA cocktail hour (5-7)

 

I am sure that many beers lovers are "rolling their eyes" at the beer was cold enough comment. This is a funny and typical comment from us in the U.S. Some people might even say we drink our beer so cold because it is not high enough quality. Of course this is not really true with the introduction of so many small breweries in the U.S. market.

 

The beers that they serve on the Reflection and Silhouette are excellent IMO and I have notice that the taste varies significantly depending on the temp. I really missed the beer selection on my recent Eclipse cruise.

 

 

Devo1459, very nice review. Thank you. Please do not be offended by my comments about the beer. Until I traveled to the UK I always thought that they served their beer warm until I realized that the difference. But I would guess from your comments that you did not enjoy it. Did you try Fuller's Vintage Ale? It has become my favorite.

Thanks for your reply. No not offended one bit. I understand the UK and Europe beer thing. Been there. Upon further reflection it wasnt so much the beer it was a combination that it was such a great venue and it was dead. Would have been a much better experience if there were more people in there hanging out. I stopped in there two other times to watch some of the NCAA Bball tournery. NObody in there. The hot spot seemed to be the casino bar for game watching. Another further comment the tv's in the casino bar and Michaels, the picture quality was awful. So bad in fact I watched most of the games in my stateroom.

Thanks for your reply. No not offended one bit. I understand the UK and Europe beer thing. Been there. Upon further reflection it wasnt so much the beer it was a combination that it was such a great venue and it was dead. Would have been a much better experience if there were more people in there hanging out. I stopped in there two other times to watch some of the NCAA Bball tournery. NObody in there. The hot spot seemed to be the casino bar for game watching. Another further comment the tv's in the casino bar and Michaels, the picture quality was awful. So bad in fact I watched most of the games in my stateroom.

Glad to hear.

Celebrity has always struggled with the Michael's Club. My DW and I have always liked the look and feel of the place. It is nice that it is not really crowded, but as you say it is usually almost empty.

Just in case you did not know. Prior to the Solstice Class time the Michael's Club was a cigar bar. The cigar aspect and location was changed on the Solstice Class ship. The sports bar and International beer change was made on the last two of the five Solstice Class ships. So it would appear that Celebrity is seeking to find something that more people value. I am not sure if the utilization of the Michael's club will increase when it is changed to a VIP lounge because the potential customer base is so small, but it certainly would be a good venue for a VIP lounge. It will be a nice benefit especially if it is open all day. On the other hand as you say it is not usually used currently. I suspect that more people will complain about it being converted to a VIP lounge than actually used it. I will miss it, but understand the logic.

If they add the beers to the Wine Cellar perhaps I will actually use that bar. The only time I have ever had a dink in the Wine Cellar was when I had a pre dinner cocktail when invited to the Captain's Table.

So glad you enjoyed your Celebrity experience.

Glad to hear.

Celebrity has always struggled with the Michael's Club. My DW and I have always liked the look and feel of the place. It is nice that it is not really crowded, but as you say it is usually almost empty.

 

Just in case you did not know. Prior to the Solstice Class time the Michael's Club was a cigar bar. The cigar aspect and location was changed on the Solstice Class ship. The sports bar and International beer change was made on the last two of the five Solstice Class ships. So it would appear that Celebrity is seeking to find something that more people value. I am not sure if the utilization of the Michael's club will increase when it is changed to a VIP lounge because the potential customer base is so small, but it certainly would be a good venue for a VIP lounge. It will be a nice benefit especially if it is open all day. On the other hand as you say it is not usually used currently. I suspect that more people will complain about it being converted to a VIP lounge than actually used it. I will miss it, but understand the logic.

 

If they add the beers to the Wine Cellar perhaps I will actually use that bar. The only time I have ever had a dink in the Wine Cellar was when I had a pre dinner cocktail when invited to the Captain's Table.

 

So glad you enjoyed your Celebrity experience.

They advertised a beer tasting and even that didn't draw many people, which is surprising, because beer is trendy these days, don't you think?

So...I have to ask...are you a JAG? My husband is. :)

They advertised a beer tasting and even that didn't draw many people, which is surprising, because beer is trendy these days, don't you think?

 

So...I have to ask...are you a JAG? My husband is. :)

Yes, it is surprising. I wonder if the beer tasting is new. I do not recall ever seeing it. I went to a whiskey tastings once.

No, I am not very original and it is just my name. But I have seen every episode of the TV series at least once.

Hi,

Great review. Do you remember the name of the Captain and Cruise Director?

Have a great day:)

Great review! I only wish you'd sailed west Caribbean, as we are doing soon, do I could get your perspective on the ports of call!

Having done both on the Silly this Winter, I liked both. Labadee was my fav on the Western and St. Kitts/Nevis on the Eastern. Mostly the ship is the destination for me. The Silhouette is my favorite Megaship...