CNSfromHI

On our first cruise, we had the basic drink package. On the first full day, seated at the casino bar aboard the Silhouette, I must have ordered something "outside" of that package and the bartender printed a receipt that I had to sign. I was annoyed, to be honest, but that was the only time I had to do so. By the end of the first week, however, that same bartender was not only familiar with what my wife and I liked, but he didn't care if it was within the package limits. In fact, toward the end of the cruise, he was pouring drinks for my wife definitely "above" our package. (I stick to beer.) To answer your specific question, no, you won't need to sign for every drink, @LizzGo. Hope this helps, cjr

During our cruise last September aboard Silhouette, the ship ran out of H2O in aluminum bottles at some point and started handing out glass ones. Before the end of the cruise, though, aluminum reappeared. I agree with @WestLakeGirl; even Miller Brewing (Molson Coors now) seems to be having a problem getting enough aluminum pints for its Lite beer in the Milwaukee, WI, area lately. cjr

Yes, you will receive an email notification. In our case, my wife submitted a bid and received the "success" email 8 days later, which was roughly 10 days before the ship departed. cjr

Our last cruise included the AI Premium package and, according to the invoice thing, the price was $840 per person for the cruise. For 10 days, that's ~$84 in drinks per day. Sounds like a lot but, depending on your go-to drink(s), it can prove a bargain. Classic-package drinks up to $9 are included; Premium includes drinks up to $15 each. So, that's roughly 8 or 5 drinks per day, respectively, before your package "pays for itself." But as @chemmo points out, both packages include water, soda, coffee, tea and juices (to varying degrees), so those beverages need to be factored in, too. I usually start my morning with a coffee or two, and my wife and I down several bottles of water each day. I find the AI packages (either level) worthwhile but, obviously, you need to "do the math" for you to make sure it makes fiscal sense. Hope this helps, cjr

We experienced something similar on an excursion in March in San Juan, PR. At various times, this particular couple kept everyone waiting because they would wander off by themselves. At one spot, the guide had to backtrack along our route after these two didn't show up at the meeting place at the appointed time. Took him almost 15 minutes and he seemed mighty irritated when he came back. 😃 It happens, I guess, and I won't bang on about it. Really just wanted to thank you for the suggestion of photographing the port agent info in the paper. Great idea! cjr

On our autumn 2022 cruise aboard the Silhouette, the binoculars in our cabin were fantastic -- better than the ones I would have brought. Can't tell you the brand, power, etc., but they were the "full size" type that require two hands to hold/steady, if you know what I mean. On our last cruise, again on the Silhouette, in late March 2023, I noticed there were no binoculars in our stateroom upon arrival. I told our butler who, later, supplied a brand-new pair. Unfortunately, these were the smaller, compact type with much lower power/resolution. I have no idea if that resulted from a conscious corporate decision to save money by gradually replacing missing binos with less-expensive models, just unique to this cruise, supply issues, etc. It does, however, speak to the attentiveness of the cabin steward during turn-around that morning. All I'll say about that is definitely check your cabin upon arrival and report anything amiss as soon as possible. Hope this helps, cjr

The Future Cruise benefit depends on the offer available, in my experience. While on our last cruise (March-April 2023), we plunked down $100 per person and have six months to book our next one. We figured there would be new Celebrity cruises available during that time, and the OBC offered -- combined with any other current offer -- makes this option worthwhile to us. Moreover, there's no downside if we don't book in time; Celebrity just refunds our deposit. As long as you know you want to book another Celebrity cruise down the road, and the benefits remain advantageous vs. what's otherwise available, this seems like a great deal. What fluctuates, based on our past two cruises, is the OBC and the amount of time you have to book your next cruise. Definitely something to watch. cjr

Apologies for the late reply, @mdsteele8! For our cruise, we'd booked the Jameson distillery tour so a tour bus whisked us from Cobh to Cork and back. If you don't have an excursion booked that day, it's likely you can find a bus that will take you to Cork and back once you dock/disembark. If you do so, though, then you are responsible for getting back to the ship before it departs. Hopefully someone else on the CC site can offer more insight than I can. Also, I highly recommend the Jameson tour, if you're contemplating excursions. Neither my wife nor I are whiskey drinkers, but this excursion proved one of our favorites. Very interesting and cool to visit a place so synonymous with Ireland. Hope this helps, cjr

Not sure if the form works but I wasn't aware it existed until now so I didn't use it. Last time, we were contacted (email) directly and the whole program was explained, requiring us to indicate our choice. cjr

No, when my wife called, the spa peeps just changed the time of her appointment that day; no extra charge. cjr

The scheduling flexibility and the refunded deposit if we don't book make this offer a must for us. The extra OBC is great, but it's really secondary to those first two things. cjr

I booked a deep-tissue massage for my wife as a surprise before our cruise about a month before our latest cruise, which ended last week. At that time, there were only a few time slots available but the cost was definitely lower than it would have been if I'd booked it once onboard. Ultimately, my wife called the spa and changed the time anyway -- she prefers very early (8 a.m.) vs. the mid-day slot I'd booked. Go figure 😆 cjr

We took advantage of this program during our cruise last autumn, but it was not available on the cruise we just finished last week. Originally, "going green" meant turning down the second stateroom cleaning each day, which we thought unnecessary anyway. We still received the turn-down service, which included removing any glasses/dishes, used towels, etc., and received an extra day's helping of CC points. For the latest cruise, however, this was not an option -- and like you, @Straughn, I looked for it. Hope this helps, cjr

Just experienced this last Thursday, April 06. Silhouette docked at 7:00 a.m., flight was at 10:00 a.m. (Southwest) out of Miami airport. I'd booked two seats on Celebrity's shuttle service for $19/each via the Retreat concierge for the 7:45 a.m. shuttle. The ship wasn't cleared until 7:50 a.m., at which point we were walked out... I'll spare the horror story about long disembarkation lines, luggage that wasn't where it was supposed to be, a slow shuttle trip, etc. Bottom line, we reached our gate with less than 5 minutes to spare after run-walking the whole time. Nerve-wracking and definitely something we won't do again. We always arrive the day before departure; now we will always make sure we've got a minimum of 6 hours for departure, as well. cjr

We received this personalization email six months before our latest cruise (email last September, cruise last month). Never received another one, but I followed the link at the time and selected the various options we wanted, e.g., tons of extra hangers, a bottle of wine vs. sparkling wine, cabin temp, etc. Didn't receive anything like this for our cruise last autumn so this might be new, but I appreciated the attentiveness (even if virtual/automated). Everything I requested was in place when we boarded. cjr

Ran into this at times on our latest cruise, i.e., some port-security spots require both your SeaPass and a photo ID to progress back to the ship. Seemed inconsistent, but definitely wise to always carry an official ID with you. cjr

Just off Silhouette last Thursday and we booked another future cruise onboard. This is the info we received... cjr

Trust your gut. Go Premium. cjr

I forgot to mention that we enjoyed the Starlink internet service on this cruise. I didn't expect it, but it proved a total improvement over the "basic" (or whatever it's called) service we used last fall and still offered. This service still requires logging into one device at a time/only, but the responsiveness proved incredible in terms of download speed, accessibility, availability, etc. cjr

Just filled out my post-cruise survey after 10 days aboard the Silhouette in the Caribbean and welcome any questions CC users might have. Here are a few of my thoughts: • This cruise hosted ~2,600 guests but it felt as if there were fewer staff vs. our cruise last autumn aboard the same ship. We noticed this particularly in the Ocean View Cafe (OVC) concerning drink (alcohol) servers, as well as restroom attendants, among other areas. • The OVC offered fewer stations during dinner on several nights. I asked a few staff members why, but they could not offer a reason. That said, attendance in the OVC was definitely sparse for much of this cruise, and I assumed Celebrity had adjusted supply to demand. I never felt "gipped" by the OVC's offerings, however. • Compared to our cruise last autumn, the ship definitely felt more crowded -- even though I think it only held ~200 more people. Probably just a function of a different (warmer/sunnier) route, faulty memory, etc. Anyway, if you have any questions, I'll be happy to answer them if I can. cjr

🙄 cjr

On this site and just about everywhere else, you will find people suggesting that you carry a change of clothes, essential meds and anything else you might want/need in your carry-on bag just in case your suitcase(s) doesn't show up on the airport carousel, or takes a really long time to arrive at your cabin for some reason. Our bags were waiting for us in our room not long after we boarded last autumn (~6 hours after boarding). We packed "smart" though and didn't include anything that might warrant a trip to the "naughty room," as it's called here, based on Celebrity's list of no-no stuff: What Not to Pack. Otherwise, once you board, you should find your room keys ("SeaPass") in an envelope outside of your door. No need to drop a bag outside of your door! Hope this helps, cjr

My wife and I loved our last cruise and already knew we wanted to book another one while onboard. After hemming and hawing, we visited the "Future Cruise Vacations Team" very late on our last full day -- truly, I think they were minutes away from closing the joint for the day. When we sat down, we told the kid exactly what we wanted to do (pay now, book later) and he quickly took our $200 deposit, gave us a quasi-receipt and a Silhouette magnet (which still hangs on our 'fridge 😁). It was only after we arrived home that I noticed the one-year offer only included the enticing OBC if booked within 90 days. Ultimately, it didn't matter for us because we booked our next journey quickly, but lesson learned. cjr

Last week, I purchased pre-cruise a 50-minute "deep-tissue muscle massage" for my wife (total secret; an onboard surprise 🥰) for roughly $170 before the addition of "gratuities," which brought my total to ~$210. Is your $170 then/$190 in January @39august the total cost, if I may ask? If so, then that is a big jump. 🥲 I'm curious but not complaining, though. I always remind myself that this, and cruising at all, is my choice. 😃 Still... Thank you, cjr

Totally agree! cjr