cynalan

Hope food is not a letdown :-(

I wouldn't call it a let down. It's just that in previous cruises we have experienced a broader selection of dishes and their sides, much better presentation and decent sized portions. Note my comment about the Chateaubriand... I was not exaggerating the sides... a couple of carrots and asparagus spears. That was it!!! 5 of 7 nights the fish dish was salmon. The food in the MDR is OK, just not as good as it used to be on board. As for the Oceanview, we did not have dinner there, but walking through, it seemed to be the same selections each night... very little variation.

I still would like to stress that we had a great time. This was one of the best Caribbean cruises we have taken. The CD, entertainment and lounge singers were the best ever!!!

I would like to offer a few comments about our experience on the Silhouette. My wife and I took advantage of the Charter package out of Hamilton, Ontario. We thought Celebrity had organized the package very well. Greeters at Miami steered us to the buses, which were ready and waiting for our drive to Ft Lauderdale. We had embarked within 15 minutes of arrival.

All in all, we had a great cruise, here are a few comments - both positive and negative.

The Good

Cruise Director - We were ecstatic to learn than Richard Spacey was the CD. We first cruised with him on the Freedom of the Seas about 7 years ago. He had incredible energy, a great sense of humour and unbounded energy. We were not disappointed. if you have a chance, go to see his performance at 70's night.

Entertainment - The dance pak and singers had to be some of the best we've seen on the seven seas. They were a talented, energetic group who presented three production shows as well as several shorter shows at other venues, particularly the Celebrity Foyer. There were also a number of singers at multiple venues. In particular The Vibes (pop band) and Five O'clock Somewhere ( pop/folk duet) were excellent.

Energy - This was probably best group of fellow passengers that we've experienced. A few ships in the past could have rolled up the decks by 10:00 PM. This group of cruisers kept rocking until the wee hours of the morning. The energy was infectious and no doubt rubbed off on the staff who provided terrific service.

Chef's Table Dinner - My wife and I enjoy fine dining and were able to participate in the chef's table dinner. We joined two other couples and a pair of sisters to enjoy a 6 course dinner, with several courses prepared table side by Carlos, the ship's Executive Chef. Wines were matched nicely and the food was superb.

Molecular Bar - We enjoyed the unusual and very tasty creations by the mixologist. This was a popular meeting spot. Too bad that Celebrity is phasing out this bar. It is the only reason that we upgraded to the Premium Beverage Package.

The Captain - This was our second voyage on the Silhouette. Captain Emanouil Alevropolous was captain on both occasions. He is the best and most interactive captain we have experienced. He participates in numerous activities and brings along a tremendously droll wit (particularly The Liars Club and Q&A session.)

The Not So Good

Main Dining Room - Over the years, the quality of food has definitely deteriorated. Portions are small, presentation is virtually non existent and side dishes were comprised of carrots and beans most nights. For example, Chateaubriand on the last formal night is usually a highlight. We received a 1/4" slice with soggy crust. The sides? Two carrots, two asparagus spears and about 2 tablespoons of mashed potato. No wonder that we observed many people order 2 mains. In fact, the waiters were recommending it.

Specialty Restaurants - We dined at Murano, the Tuscan Grill and Lawn Club. The food was good, not great, but at $45 pp, frankly, not worth it. Another example of the declining quality and value of dining options on board. The exception - the Chef's Table which was fantastic... but also $279 per couple.

Performing Venues - A number of the supplementary song/dance shows were held at the Celebrity Foyer on deck 3. This is a terrible venue. Site lines are poor. The number of people able to see anything at all is small. I cannot understand why the ship did not make better use of its larger venues.

Michael's Club - We used to enjoy the piano men performing in Michael's club. Last year, MC had been converted to a craft beer pub. The pub was not that busy. So what did they do... transfer the craft beer to Cellar Masters and convert MC to a suite only lounge. We never saw more than 4-5 people in that lounge. I do miss the piano men.

I just completed a cruise on the Silhouette 2 days ago. They definitely do sell GoPros but I saw no indication that they rent them.

We had a great experience with DenRus. Small bus carrying about 14 people with a very knowledgeable guide. Saw many more sites than the ship's shore excursions at about 2/3 the price.

Just returned from the Silhouette. The Molecular Bar is the only reason that my wife and I upgraded our packages to premium. The martinis and cocktails are wonderful and unique. It's a great place to meet fellow travellers. On this cruise, and our previous journey on the Silhouette, the Molecular Bar was jammed. Last cruise they had 2 FT bartenders. This time, just 1 with occasional relief. I sure hope they do not get rid of it. Losing Michael's Club was bad enough, this would be even worse.

We sailed on the Silhouette last September on an Eastern Med itinerary. The grass was absolutely pristine, so much nicer than in the preceding photographs. We'll know for sure as 12 hours from now we will be revisiting her for an Eastern Caribbean cruise.

At the same price I would definitely choose Celebrity over Norwegian. I find that X ships have more elegance and sophistication to them.

However, have you considered Holland America. We are cruising Alaska this summer and chose HAL because of their great land based tour. We are taking the two week option that will take us to the Yukon and multiple Alaskan sites including 3 days in Denali. We wanted to experience the interior and real nature, something that cannot be done from a cruise ship.

We cruised on the Silhouette in the Mediterranean last year and enjoyed it so much we just had to do it again. We leave on Sunday for an Easter Caribbean cruise. Right now the temperature at home is -23 C. I need some sun and warmth. 5 days and counting. Woo hoo.

On a hot sunny day lazing on the deck, nothing goes down nicer than a BBC - Bailey's, Banana Liqueur and Colada mix. I can almost taste it... 7 days and counting!!!

Will be taking another cruise on Celebrity Eclipse next year to Russia/Baltic area. Would anyone recommend the ships excursions? Also what sort of prices are we looking at paying?

When we visited St. Petersburg, we booked shore excursions through a company called DenRus. The cost of the excursion was about 2/3 of the price of the Celebrity shore excursions. On a positive note, we were a group of 14 on a very well appointed mini-bus as opposed to 42 on a regular tour bus. Our guide was a published historian who gave us a great overview of the sites we saw. We also were able to visit more cultural sites than the Celebrity tours. I have absolutely no hesitation in recommending them and would not hesitate to use them again.

I won't miss the Grand Buffet. The food was mediocre at best. I much prefer 'a la minute' ordering of my dinner. I agree with other posters that there was a tremendous waste of food.

I just noticed that Celebrity has a promotion running for Bermuda sailings for 2015. The promotion includes both the beverage package and paid gratuities.

 

I sent a request to the TA that bids for your business. I had 2 quotes so far and both quotes stated that I had to pick one or the other perk. If these TA's can't stay on top of the current promotions I have no use for them. I will see if I get any more offers.

Sorry, but cannot agree with you. I always use a TA to book my cruises. In fact, I booked our next cruise today. Our TA was able to arrange a book and go special for us - airfare, transfers, beverage package, and gratuities all included. The Celebrity website said it was sold out. So, yes, I see value in a TA. She also ensures that we have a bottle of wine waiting for us every cruise as a thank you for the business. Perhaps you need a new TA?

Can't answer your specific questions but I'll direct you to a post I made on another thread on the Gluten free topic. The bottom line for some friends was to make sure you are dealing with managers or other staff who you've determined are reliable sources and not to trust the lower level general serving staff if you have not talked to them enough to get a feeling for their knowledge of the subject. There are managers, and asst. managers, available in all dining venues to guide you on this including the buffet area.

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?p=44002168

I agree with your recommendation. My wife is gluten sensitive. We made this known to the Maitre D on the first night of our recent cruise on the Silhouette. He ensured that she had GF bread in the MDR each night and provided an overview of what she could/could not have the night before so we could plan our dining options for the next day. We were also told to give the specialty restaurants a day's notice so that they could prepare GF modifications to her menu choices. We thought that this was top notch service.

Going downhill? Quite the misstatement. I understand you being upset about not being able to change your reservation to take advantage of new perqs. However, this is not a new practice. it has been this way for years. The advantage of booking in advance is to obtain the cabin you want in the location you want. As cruise date approaches there may or may not be specials or perqs to encourage bookings - this is simply the Law of Economics, i.e. supply and demand. Frustrating? Yes, but certainly nothing new.

And which is your favourite?

The Noordam several years ago was one of the nicest cruises we've taken. The Niew Amsterdam, on the other hand, was one of the worst. Hated what they did to the upper deck around the pool - movable roof took all deck space away. Service was abysmal. Strange how two ships from the same company could be so radically different.

Thanks for the great review - we are doing the same itinerary Oct. 8. Can you tell us how many formal nights there were, and which nights they were? Thanks in advance.

My wife and I were on the Sep 15th cruise and had a great time. The formal nights were the Koper port of call and the only sea day.

When we did the Baltic years ago on Celebrity we did the trip to Berlin. We docked in Warnemunde and took the X trip to Berlin. At that time it was by train... about a 2.5 hour trip. I can state without conviction that the trip was absolutely worth it. Berlin was a fascinating city. The rebuilding of East Berlin is amazing. The history in the city and what it went through is not to be missed.

As an FYI, this is the only shore excursion where we actually arrived back to the ship late. Due to a train delay we were 1 hour past due. Given the significant travel time, I would not risk taking a private tour for fear of being late and missing the ship.

My impression of the Celebrity Century is not nearly as favourable as many who have posted. Several years ago, we did a Western Med cruise out of Barcelona on the Century. It's a good thing that we had a previous Celebrity experience or that would have been our first and last on X.

Without reservation this was our worst cruise experience to date. The ship was the rockiest we've had, even in relatively calm seas. Staff were not up to the usual standard that we had on the Connie. Worst of all, our stateroom and corridor outside our room reeked of a sewage smell for the whole cruise. We tried to switch but the ship was fully booked.

I know that exceptions happen and that our experience may have been a one off. However, should this one be retired, we will not miss her.

I want to try to understand this new offer. Is this bookable only through Celebrity or can I go through a travel agent and double dip on the incentives? For example, on a cruise I'm eyeing, my TA is already offering prepaid gratuities and some OBC.

Nice perqs from the TA. All I ever get from mine is a bottle of wine or maybe a dinner for two at a specialty restaurant.

30 minutes before expected departure. Further, you don't need to take your life jackets to your muster station.

Plus both pax have to buy the pk So if one doesn't drink or drinks only a little it is not worth it.

Not true that both have to buy. We recently did an Eastern Med cruise on the Constellation and I had one but my wife did not. As for the cost and amount one has to drink... well, I usually had a specialty coffee with breakfast, water for a shore excursion, a cocktail at lunch, something poolside in the afternoon, couple of glasses of wine at dinner and a night cap. I found it more that worthwhile.

I've also had a total knee replacement. Surgery was 9 weeks ago. After much hard work in rehab I am looking forward to our cruise on the AOS in 3 days!! I feel sorry for my American cousins on the Eastern seaboard but am really glad that I was not on a ship over the past week as originally planned. Escaped a close one!!

I've always checked my CPAP in a very well protected suitcase. with more than 100 business trips and vacations, I've never had an issue (touch wood). Actually, my biggest problem on most ships is finding an outlet where I could plug it in. Frequently, there are no usable outlets near the bed. Usually, a phone call to housekeeping would resolve the issue by giving me an extension cord. However, on my last Celebrity cruise, the staff refused to give me an extension cord due to a perceived safety issue. I had to please my case right through to the officers to have one delivered. Even the customer service desk was of no help.

My wife and I have chosen select dining for our next cruise on the Constellation. We recently had open dining on the Oceania Nautica and really enjoyed the experience. It provides an opportunity to meet many new and interesting people. Personally, we love being seated with dining companions at a table of 8. This number of people gives great flexibility for stimulating conversation.

I do have one question about select dining though. I recognize that there is a separate section. Where is it, i.e. are their any window seats or are the tables in the heart of the dining room? Second, does Celebrity offer to seat you at larger tables? From what I've read so far, it seems that select dining is primarily tables for 2. For us that is OK on an occasional night but we are social people who want to meet new friends.