The Voyage of The Damned: Initial Review of the Silhouette (6-22 - 7-3)

[parallax]

It is so difficult to put into words how upsetting and disappointing my recent Adriatic Cruise was on the Silhouette. It is clear that Celebrity has cut costs and has moved away from the level of luxury we, my wife and I, were previously accustomed to. Based on previous comments, I paid careful attention to what was going on, where cuts had been made and the level of service. Unfortunately, the cuts were evident right when I got on the ship. The horrors included:

 

1. There was only one washcloth in the room when we arrived. The room attendant gave me some lame excuse that they had run out and would be replenished in the near future. I berated him for 30 minutes.

 

2. I had to wait for one minute at a bar to get a drink.

 

3. The staff refused to call me Mr. Awesome.

 

4. There was a slight stain on the carpet of about the size of a quarter on the 2nd floor.

 

5. The 40s- 50s music was earsplitting in the atrium. I need to find Benny Goodman and punch him in the face.

 

6. The steak was the quality of Swanson Hungry Man Dinner

 

Obviously, this is all in jest. We (wife, daughter, myself) had a great cruise. This was our fifth cruise on Celebrity and it met all our expectations. I do not see the deterioration that some posters harangue about. Actually, I find many of the changes for the better.

 

Because I'm sleep deprived and in no position to provide a detailed review, I will give you some of my initial reflections:

 

1. The ship is beautiful in appears to be in great shape.

 

2. The staff was awesome. Particular shout outs go out to Salmon and Valentin in the Passport Bar. Valentin makes the best Caipirinha outside Sao Paulo.

 

3. The food in the MDR met exceptions. This is not Joel Robuchon after all. We ate in the MDR 6 of the 11 nights on the trip. The other nights we ate at Tuscan Grille (2), Cafe (2) and Quisine (1). We ending up eating in the cafe for the first time ever because we started feeling food overload and wanted lighter meals.

 

4. The Bistro on 5 and the wine bar, which is beautiful, were ghost towns. I believe that both those spaces should be repurposed and it appears that Celebrity is heading in that direction.

 

5. We had the premium drink package and it was great. It was nice to check your brain at the door and not have to worry about what you want to order. It was fun to try the various drinks at the Molecular Bar. The Dragonfly was awesome.

 

6. For the first time in several cruises, I'm happy to report that I did not see any horrible conduct by a passenger against the cruise staff.

 

7. Although my wife is an "Elite" member, I hated the fact the Sky Bar was constantly close for an Elite Club event. The prevented other passengers from seeing the sail aways from Kotor, Split and many of the other locales we visited.

 

8. The Fun Factory staff was awesome. My daughter loved her time at the FF.

 

9. The shows are milquetoast and nothing special. We definitely do not book cruises to see the shows.

 

10. The passengers were a good mix-- many from the US, UK and from various parts of the EU. It definitely skewed older than other cruises we had been on.

 

11. I lost a couple hundred bucks mainly playing blackjack during the course of the cruise. The casino staff was great and they set up several TVs for the world cup games.

 

12. Tuscan Grille is our favorite place to eat. The ravioli appetizer was our favorite dish on the whole cruise. It is a beautifully styled restaurant and has one of the best views on the whole ship.

 

13. Kotor was amazing. Words can not describe how beautiful the town and the surrounding areas are. We climbed up to the top of the old walls (3600 feet up) and it was well worth it.

 

14. We did three of shore excursions and we were pleasantly surprised by all three. A couple we did were very strenuous and definitely not ADA friendly. There were some serious climbs and slopes that made traversing the ground difficult. I had to help some people in our group. There were several people with walking disabilities or had weight issues that made their going difficult.

 

15. Three people in a regular balcony cabin is a little tough when is comes to storage. Storage issues were the one defect we found with the cabin.

 

16. I was surprised that St. Peters Cathedral did not sink into the ground or implode when we walked in.

 

Just some initial thoughts. I apologize for any typos.

[lovestx]

Thanks for the chuckle! You had me going there for a minute as we loved the silhouette and you got on when we got off.... Glad you enjoyed her as much as we did. Hope to do that itinerary someday.

[KirkNC]

Thanks for the report!

[tinky41]

That title and first few words had me worried for a second -less than 2 weeks to go and i'm avidly reading the latest reviews with bated breath -phew, what a relief to find that the cruise is going to be amazing. I've waited a year for this and after my husband getting over an op for the last 11 weeks and my daughter completing her GCSE's we are well and truly ready for it.

We're so excited, it will be our 3rd cruise with Celebrity and not our last -we love the brand and what it stands for. We are a very busy family from the UK who are fortunate to be able to afford 2 holidays a year (yes in this financial climate we are considered lucky) and as Mum of the family I love not having to cook,clean and make my own bed for the duration of the cruise. I believe we should concentrate on the positives in life and enjoy every day of our well earned holidays -enjoy ;)

[flifish64]

Awesome review by Mr. Awesome.

We will be on the Silhouette TA next April so thanks for the heads up.

[Andy]

Hi Parallax,

 

Thank you for sharing your insights, and the chuckles. I'm glad you had a wonderful time on Silhouette. Welcome Home, and have a great 4th of July !

[cl.klink]

What a great way to lead off this review. You really had me going for a moment. You reinforce a basic point: It is easy to enjoy and have fun on a cruise and it is easy to find snitty criticisms. It's our choice.

 

- Joel

[NLH Arizona]

Thanks for the laughs and your review.

[BCRose]

LOL!!!! Loved #2 and #3.... Mr. Awesome, indeed.

 

Love your humour. :D

[rkacruiser]

Thanks for an interesting report. Needless to say, your report's title will receive many, many hits!

 

My only Celebrity experience was in a standard veranda cabin on Eclipse and I am sure that Silhouette's cabins are the same as on Eclipse. I totally agree with you about storage. For 3 people, I cannot imagine the issues. I found it to be a challange such as a solo. (Whomever thought that it was a good idea to put storage cupboards above the bed ought to be keel-hauled!)

[Texed]

Thanks for posting. :)

[MR_T]

Great review and does indeed make a refreshing read to hear how great the silhouette was for you! I also don't see where all the negatives come from... Other then some people do like a good old moan!!

 

I must say though from your first few sentences I was preparing myself to go in feet first with my reply but then it clicked and laughed through the rest of it...

 

Glad you had a great time! 😄

 

 

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums

[MR_T]

 

 

I can imagine with 3 people in the cabin it could be a problem but as a couple in my opinion there was more than enough space for all our stuff... I've always thought the storage above the bed was a great idea!! But I am 6ft3 so guess that helps... 😄

 

If you struggle as a sole maybe you should only take 3 x changes of cloths per day!! 😁 how many bags does one need for a vacation... 😉

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums

[DebbieMacG]

Great review, thanks for the laugh :D

[We're The Groupnors]

Thanks, Mr. Awesome, for the rocking review! Glad to hear Silhouette is still a great ship!

[FireEater]

Glad to hear the ship is in tip top shape. I am on the fence with booking on her next Fall for an Eastern Caribbean. It will either be this one or the new Princess Ship Regal Princess....I will be reading reviews from both...but this one is high on the list.

[Adidas4fun]

I think parallax needs to provide a proforma for all future reviews

[rkacruiser]

I can imagine with 3 people in the cabin it could be a problem but as a couple in my opinion there was more than enough space for all our stuff... I've always thought the storage above the bed was a great idea!! But I am 6ft3 so guess that helps...

 

If you struggle as a sole maybe you should only take 3 x changes of cloths per day!! how many bags does one need for a vacation...

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums

 

Mr_T:

 

I am 5 foot 8 and 70 years old.

 

Standing on the bed in order to "get stuff" when the "ocean is in motion" is not the world's best safety idea. The cupboards at the ends were able to be used. But, the bulk of the storage space was not used as whomever intended.

 

What baggage did I have: one normal sized suitcase and a small carry-on.

[antsnanny]

Ok, that was awesome!

 

Tuscan Grill is my favorite on the Silhouette too! Was Andre by any chance the Maitre'd?

[wallie5446]

You have been waiting for weeks and weeks to open with that, right!:D

Nicely done.

[smtcan]

Mr_T:

 

I am 5 foot 8 and 70 years old.

 

Standing on the bed in order to "get stuff" when the "ocean is in motion" is not the world's best safety idea. The cupboards at the ends were able to be used. But, the bulk of the storage space was not used as whomever intended.

 

What baggage did I have: one normal sized suitcase and a small carry-on.

 

I don't want to appear to 'one up' you, but I am 72years old and 5'2" and have no problem at all with the over the bed storage, without standing on the bed most of the time. I put the least used items in the middle and frequently used stuff at the edge. DH and I find the storage adequate, although not over generous. Since we fly to all our cruises we pack quite lightly.

[Phxazzcruisers]

Great review. I was a little nervous, but you gave me a great laugh. Welcome home

[toras]

Read #1 and thought "what a jerk". #2 quickly put me in the right frame of mind!

 

Since you mentioned Caipirinha, I had it twice on Summit and it was awful both times. Couldn't be because I have the classic package could it? don't tell me cachaça is considered top shelf!

[wpgcycler]

Hee Hee!!! I loved this!!! :D

[portofrome]

Thanks for the review.