Liveish trip report - Celebrity Silhouette - 11.10.23

[theopup]

Following along too. Happy Anniversary. Enjoy your cruise.

 

Our last 2 cruises were on The Silhouette, such a nice ship

[Jim_Iain]

Really enjoying your Live Post.   The photos are really bringing back good memories.

[DaKahuna]

11 hours ago, rwright261 said:

I’m so sorry I don’t know why I keep getting random pictures at the be end of my posts! If anyone can shed any light, please let me know! 

 

Check to make sure that they are deselected after you post them the first time.  Sometimes I notice on my iPhone /iPad that they do not automatically get deselected after posting so will upload again when I make the next post. 

 

[rwright261]

Good morning! 
 

I think I have a whole days worth of photos to post… 

 

We slept well on our first night and headed to the buffet for our breakfast. 
 

It was quite busy, but we did find a place to sit quiet easily not far from the window. 
 

Interestingly we hadn’t been sat down long when we saw a helicopter approaching us. It flew past once forwards, once backwards and then very low down to the ship. 
 

We later read on our social media groups page that it was French authorities doing surveillance. 
 

 

 

 

 

 

That was certainly a highlight of breakfast! 
 

I took some buffet photos for you - 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I had an orange juice, and pancakes with sugar free syrup and strawberries. It was nice enough, just could have been warmer. 
 

 

 

 

We spent the whole morning in the solarium, testing out the hot tub (lovely and warm), reading and chatting. It was very relaxing. 
 

During the morning a waiter came around with a cocktail, but I can’t remember what it was called. Think it had vodka in it, it was nice and refreshing. 
 

 

I also picked up some noodles from the spa cafe, which were very flavoursome. It had a strong flavour of coriander. We really liked it. 
 

 

We headed to the buffet for lunch and it was absolutely crazy! We walked around for a good 10 minutes before finally asking a couple if we could join their table. As it turned out we spent a very pleasant time talking to them, overhearing from others how they had never seen the buffet so busy. 
 

As we were sat with others, I didn’t take a photo of my food, but I had chicken breast, baked potato, Asian slaw and salad. It was nice, again could have been warmer. 
 

DH had southern fried chicken, ribs and salad. 
 

Our group is being called for our trip now, so I’ll continue this later 👋

 

[Stem to Stern]

Bravo!  What a lovely live report unfolding here.  I am feeling rested and relaxed from reading along.  Fortunately not much longer before I am back on board.

[weregoingcruising]

Enjoying this great honest report. Will on this  ship in November for 10 days. If you happen to visit guest services would you please inquire who the F&B director is. Thank You

[bluwes]

56 minutes ago, weregoingcruising said:

Enjoying this great honest report. Will on this  ship in November for 10 days. If you happen to visit guest services would you please inquire who the F&B director is. Thank You

Had dealings with the guy last week, his name was Mark Gazovic, the assistant F&B director was a guy called Sassa from Serbia.

[cluso]

Following along.  We board October 22 for the Transatlantic to the colonies.  😆 Spending several nights in Darley, Harrogate with friends then driving down to Southampton for a few days.

Can you please post the Coffee drink menu in Al Bacio, I heard there were some changes on it.

Enjoy your trip and take good care of the Silly.

[Texed]

Nice buffet pictures, but I didn't see any waffles.  😁

[Red Ray]

On 10/12/2023 at 8:02 AM, rwright261 said:

When we came out it was raining so we farted for the inside getting a bit wet as we left.

Sounds like it was a bit windy as well as wet!

[rwright261]

43 minutes ago, Texed said:

Nice buffet pictures, but I didn't see any waffles.  😁

There were waffles - in the photo they are under a covered tray. I’m yet to try them, maybe tomorrow! 

[rwright261]

1 hour ago, cluso said:

Following along.  We board October 22 for the Transatlantic to the colonies.  😆 Spending several nights in Darley, Harrogate with friends then driving down to Southampton for a few days.

Can you please post the Coffee drink menu in Al Bacio, I heard there were some changes on it.

Enjoy your trip and take good care of the Silly.

Yes, I will post that at some point for you 👍🏻

[rwright261]

We’re back from our excursion so I’ll catch up with last night before having a nap 🤪

 

After a few hours in the cabin we decided to head for a drink before getting ready for our 8pm reservation in the MDR. 
 

We headed to sky lounge where 99% of people were dressed for the evening, queue some very odd looks as we were still casual from the day. 
 

Nevertheless we enjoyed a strawberry daiquiri and a beer there. 
 

 

We decided to get one more before heading back and ended up in the craft bar. 
 

We met the most interesting couple of the cruise so far in there. I doubt they read here so will tell you she was very tipsy, told the story of how she was 75 on this sailing and had been married 8 times! She had had all the names of her husbands tattooed onto her body and then saved £8,000 to have them all removed! It’s a shame they had to go for their dinner reservation as we could have chatted to them for hours. 
 

Deciding it was time to get ready for our own reservation we came back to the cabin to get ready for formal night, or evening chic as it’s called. 
 

We had 40 minutes or so to kill before our 8pm reservation so headed to the martini bar for a drink. We sat at the high top and again got chatting to a couple who were telling us their experience of P&O cruises and Princess. It was another interesting conversation. They thought like us the atmosphere on the ship seemed a bit flat and put it down to the age demographic. 
 

Anyway, it was 8pm and we headed into the MDR and led to the left and all the way to the back where we had a table for 2 in Leo’s section. We described it as the naughty corner. It was quite dull there. 
 

This was the menu - 

 

 

 

We were brought a bread bowl of French Stick, breadsticks and chiabatta with tzatziki, garlic butter and regular butter. 
 

DH ordered shrimp cocktail and lamb t bone (with a side of veg) and I ordered French Onion Soup and steak dianne with a Yorkshire pudding. 
 

 

 

 

 

 

DH said his shrimp cocktail was nice, he couldn’t fault it. Leo explained the lamb might be a bit tough and was that ok, he said it was. DH’s meal came up hot, with the extra veg, and said it wasn’t any tougher than a lamb chop usually is. 
 

The French onion soup was warm but not piping hot how they usually are. My steak dianne was nice, the steak was good quality, but again it could have be hotter. My Yorkshire pudding wasn’t even warm. 
 

We had eaten some of the bread before our meals came out which was probably a mistake as I was too full to finish my meal and we completely skipped dessert. 
 

We called into the theatre to see what the show was like, but deciding it wasn’t for us we found two seats in Cafe Al Bacio next to the glass and watched the band playing and the couples dancing below. 
 

We had a latte and a hot chocolate and DH had a piece of carrot cake. 
 

 

He said this was amazing and tasted the same as what he had in the Lawn Club Grill. 
 

After sitting for a while we decided to call it a night. We had set our alarms for midnight to call Virgin Atlantic Flying club as we were booking premium reward flights for next September which came out today. Sure enough we called but were told we were too early so set another alarm for 5am, and after a 20 minute wait got through and booked the flight we wanted.

 

We dozed off after that task was completed and got up in time for a quick stop at the buffet and being at our meeting point for 9.15am this morning. 
 

I’ll leave that there and post the update from today later on tonight or tomorrow when we have another sea day. 
 

Thanks for reading 👋

[cachouonacruise]

Thank-you very much Rwright261 for taking the time to write this very detailed review of your experience on Silhouette, including so many pictures of your good, drinks and menus.

 

We were on Silhouette in June 2022 and thoroughly enjoyed our experience. So, it is really nice to read fresh news about that ship.

 

So, I will be following along!

 

Enjoy your cruise and congratulations on your 15th wedding anniversary! 

[hcat]

thanks for posting the menu,  did not look too bad.  Seems one can order two mains..one meat and a pasta or vegetarian as a side .  sauce on shrimp cocktail looks more like salad dressing, ???

 Nice idea to have dessert at al Baccio.

 

i saw prosecco was  $11..not bad with Classic Alc plan..not sure of our limits,,,??

 

Hope you are having fun!

Edited October 13, 2023 by hcat

[JDPCruisers]

1 hour ago, rwright261 said:

We’re back from our excursion so I’ll catch up with last night before having a nap 🤪

 

After a few hours in the cabin we decided to head for a drink before getting ready for our 8pm reservation in the MDR. 
 

We headed to sky lounge where 99% of people were dressed for the evening, queue some very odd looks as we were still casual from the day. 
 

Nevertheless we enjoyed a strawberry daiquiri and a beer there. 
 

 

We decided to get one more before heading back and ended up in the craft bar. 
 

We met the most interesting couple of the cruise so far in there. I doubt they read here so will tell you she was very tipsy, told the story of how she was 75 on this sailing and had been married 8 times! She had had all the names of her husbands tattooed onto her body and then saved £8,000 to have them all removed! It’s a shame they had to go for their dinner reservation as we could have chatted to them for hours. 
 

Deciding it was time to get ready for our own reservation we came back to the cabin to get ready for formal night, or evening chic as it’s called. 
 

We had 40 minutes or so to kill before our 8pm reservation so headed to the martini bar for a drink. We sat at the high top and again got chatting to a couple who were telling us their experience of P&O cruises and Princess. It was another interesting conversation. They thought like us the atmosphere on the ship seemed a bit flat and put it down to the age demographic. 
 

Anyway, it was 8pm and we headed into the MDR and led to the left and all the way to the back where we had a table for 2 in Leo’s section. We described it as the naughty corner. It was quite dull there. 
 

This was the menu - 

 

 

 

We were brought a bread bowl of French Stick, breadsticks and chiabatta with tzatziki, garlic butter and regular butter. 
 

DH ordered shrimp cocktail and lamb t bone (with a side of veg) and I ordered French Onion Soup and steak dianne with a Yorkshire pudding. 
 

 

 

 

 

 

DH said his shrimp cocktail was nice, he couldn’t fault it. Leo explained the lamb might be a bit tough and was that ok, he said it was. DH’s meal came up hot, with the extra veg, and said it wasn’t any tougher than a lamb chop usually is. 
 

The French onion soup was warm but not piping hot how they usually are. My steak dianne was nice, the steak was good quality, but again it could have be hotter. My Yorkshire pudding wasn’t even warm. 
 

We had eaten some of the bread before our meals came out which was probably a mistake as I was too full to finish my meal and we completely skipped dessert. 
 

We called into the theatre to see what the show was like, but deciding it wasn’t for us we found two seats in Cafe Al Bacio next to the glass and watched the band playing and the couples dancing below. 
 

We had a latte and a hot chocolate and DH had a piece of carrot cake. 
 

 

He said this was amazing and tasted the same as what he had in the Lawn Club Grill. 
 

After sitting for a while we decided to call it a night. We had set our alarms for midnight to call Virgin Atlantic Flying club as we were booking premium reward flights for next September which came out today. Sure enough we called but were told we were too early so set another alarm for 5am, and after a 20 minute wait got through and booked the flight we wanted.

 

We dozed off after that task was completed and got up in time for a quick stop at the buffet and being at our meeting point for 9.15am this morning. 
 

I’ll leave that there and post the update from today later on tonight or tomorrow when we have another sea day. 
 

Thanks for reading 👋

Following along like others with delight for your honest review and pics. Sounds like you're having an overall great cruise and, hopefully, more to come. 

[rwright261]

1 hour ago, hcat said:

thanks for posting the menu,  did not look too bad.  Seems one can order two mains..one meat and a pasta or vegetarian as a side .  sauce on shrimp cocktail looks more like salad dressing, ???

 Nice idea to have dessert at al Baccio.

 

i saw prosecco was  $11..not bad with Classic Alc plan..not sure of our limits,,,??

 

Hope you are having fun!

On our sailing from Southampton the limit is $12 for the classic package, but I’m not sure if this changed depending on where you sail from? I’ll try to find out. 

[rwright261]

3 hours ago, cluso said:

Following along.  We board October 22 for the Transatlantic to the colonies.  😆 Spending several nights in Darley, Harrogate with friends then driving down to Southampton for a few days.

Can you please post the Coffee drink menu in Al Bacio, I heard there were some changes on it.

Enjoy your trip and take good care of the Silly.

Hi, 

 

Here are the menus for you - 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Texed]

2 hours ago, rwright261 said:

There were waffles - in the photo they are under a covered tray. I’m yet to try them, maybe tomorrow! 

 

Make sure you grab them as they come off the waffle iron, not the ones setting in the tray.  😊

[Happy Cruiser 6143]

1 hour ago, Texed said:

 

Make sure you grab them as they come off the waffle iron, not the ones setting in the tray.  😊

 

That appeared to be a problem--I did not see a waffle iron in the background.  If they have been made in the kitchen and brought to the buffet, they will not be too appetizing. 

[hcat]

still  a great menu in Cafe Baccio..thanks for posting it..

 

many  good choices

love Tea Forte  and once per cruise..must do IGLU!

 

 

[rwright261]

Good morning, 

 

Heres my summary of day 3….

 

We were arriving in Porto today, and as I mentioned in my last update we were up at 5am booking flights for our September trip next year so it was a tiring day for us!

 

We headed to the buffet for breakfast, and I chose exactly the same as the day before - pancakes with sugar free syrup and strawberries. Sadly once again they were only just warm, although edible. 
 

We made our way to the theatre for our meeting time of 9.15am. It was packed. 
 

There were a couple of independent options for Porto, a 10-15 min walk from the ship and you reached the seaside town of Lexious, Celebrity were running two shuttles but encouraged everyone to walk. The other independent’ option was to take the Celebrity shuttle into Porto which was approximately 45 ride, with the last shuttle leaving at 3.00pm (for all aboard 4.30pm). 
 

There seemed to be 3 or 4 trips running, but so  to multiple coaches for each one. 
 

Unfortunately, they were behind in clearing into port which made all the trips leave late having a knock on effect later in the day, but more on that later. 
 

We were eventually called for our trip and had quite a walk to the coach - be aware for the else mobile if getting off at this port. 
 

This was our trip - 

 

 

It was mainly a coach tour where the guide pointed out points of interest, and consisted of a 10 minute stop for photos where we were given a Portuguese custard tart, and 40 minutes free time in Porto itself. 

 

This was the photo stop -
 

 

And the delicious tart - 

 

 

And our free time in Porto - 

 

 

 

We arrived back at the ship at 1.45pm thinking there was plenty of time to hit the buffet for lunch which closed at 2.30pm, however, this is where the earlier delay caused a problem as all the coaches now arrived back at the same time, and there were literally hundreds of people trying to get back onto the ship at the same time. 
 

The ramp they had attached to the ship was the steepest I had ever experienced, and due to the age of the people on this cruise it took what felt like forever to board because some of the guests needed assistance getting up the ramp. It was very poor show by Celebrity, and not very accessible at all. 
 

Anyway, by the time we got to the buffet it was about to close so unfortunately I don’t have any photos of the options nor my lunch. I had some beef fajita mix, quesadilla, some beef curry and rice. It was ok. Again, just warm, 

 

What has become very apparent to us is the lack of seating on this cruise, every time we have gone to the buffet except for embarkation lunch we have struggled to get a seat, there are also lots of people wandering around decks 3,4 and 5 especially from 5pm ish looking for places to sit. It’s becoming quite annoying, and would be even more so if you were a group of more than 2. 
 

Anyway, after lunch it was time to catch up on some rest so we headed back to the cabin for a couple of hours. This is where we really appreciate having a balcony cabin. 
 

Deciding to get a drink after our rest we headed down to Cafe Al Bacio, where DH picked up a raspberry cheesecake. 
 

 

We had a few drinks before heading back to the cabin, which we enjoyed. 
 

 

 

 

We had checked the menu for dinner, and there was nothing we really wanted, so we decided to head to the buffet. 
 

This was after karaoke with the band in the sky lounge which was really enjoyable. 
 

Here are the choices in the buffet - 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I had chicken broth to start with, which was tasty and warm. 
 

 

For my main I had beef teriyaki, fried rice and noodles. A couple of the pieces of beef were quite fatty, but in the main it was tender and well flavoured. I enjoyed having something tasty. 
 

 

DH had some of the Indian curry, which he enjoyed. He said the Bombay potatos were very spicy. 
 

 

When I went up for my dessert, I bumped into a member of staff called Craig who I had previously spoken to at the buffet. I told him I was going for my dessert, a minute after he rushed over to me with a piece of chocolate cake and said he had kept it for someone who hadn’t arrived and he wanted me to have it. I was thankful for the gesture as there didn’t seem to be much choice for dessert as you can see from the above photos. 
 

I had the cake with a scoop of vanilla ice cream which was very enjoyable. 
 

 

After dinner, we headed to the theatre to watch the show ‘Cosmopolitan’. The singers and dancers were very talented, however, we didn’t think the show had any story line and the props were very poor. We saw some brilliant shows on the Celebrity Beyond last year, and unfortunately this was very poor by comparison. 
 

We had another drink in the martini bar before heading to bed. 
 

We had an enjoyable day, were thankful we booked a tour in Porto as thought the independent options would have been a hassle, and enjoyed our evening meal in the buffet. 
 

It’s day 4 now and the sun is shining! I will post the update from today later this evening or tomorrow. 
 

Thanks for reading! 

[wineoclock]

20 hours ago, rwright261 said:

What has become very apparent to us is the lack of seating on this cruise, every time we have gone to the buffet except for embarkation lunch we have struggled to get a seat, there are also lots of people wandering around decks 3,4 and 5 especially from 5pm ish looking for places to sit. It’s becoming quite annoying, and would be even more so if you were a group of more than 2. 

We found this on our cruise on Silhouette in May/June. It was half term so I thought that may have had something to do with it.
 

So many times ended up going back to our balcony as nowhere to sit before dinner or after. OVC was always packed! It was hunt the table. 

[gold1953]

I response to you comment about the very steep gangway when returning from your day in Porto. Celebrity does not have an option as this happens when the tide is very high. If there was a better way they would do it

[rwright261]

6 hours ago, gold1953 said:

I response to you comment about the very steep gangway when returning from your day in Porto. Celebrity does not have an option as this happens when the tide is very high. If there was a better way they would do it

 

When we disembarked at Porto we came through a tunnel like the one you use when you embark the ship for the first time, I wonder why this could not be used when we got back on? 
 

I think then there should have been more staff on hand to help passengers with mobility issues. There were 2 one at each end, but this wasn’t enough for the age demographic and ability of some of the passengers on our cruise.