Would you book a Sunset Veranda?

[cheeseheads4ever]

Wondering if anyone has booked a Sunset Veranda on Silhouette and what your thoughts are? Positives and negatives?

I realize its a long walk everywhere but may not be a bad idea to walk some of that food off. Just thinking positive.

Views seem to be awesome from some of the pictures Ive seen.

Thought?

[lola2013]

We are huge fans of Sunset Verandahs.  We haven't done it on Silhouette, but have sailed in a SV on Solstice and have a SV booked on Edge (a "real" balcony) for this December...and also for Equinox next September.  The views are outstanding.  I read comments beforehand about possible soot on the balcony, but didn't have any problems.  We also considered noise from the Oceanview but didn't experience any of that on deck 8.

I can't think of any negatives!

Hope that helps.

Susan

[SleepingUgly]

We booked two of these (concierge level) on the Silhouette late last year.  We all loved them!  Very quiet, no foot traffic at all outside of your cabin.  Yes, it is a "long" walk from the stairs / elevators, but it's all flat (not like it's uphill anywhere, haha), so very easy to do and also fun to walk by rooms if doors are decorated (which a lot were for the holidays).  The views were amazing, as you've noted - very broad and expansive and when the captain backed the ship into port at St. Maartens ... just incredible.  We never felt more movement in the cabins than anywhere else on the ship.  In fact, we felt a lot more swaying when we were in the Sky Lounge - higher up and forward.  Sometimes, when walking back to the room, the ship would sway a bit and we'd feel it then, but funnily enough, never in the rooms themselves.  We also never had a problem with soot on the balconies either.  Let me know if you want to see some pics!

[Tracyi]

2 minutes ago, SleepingUgly said:

We booked two of these (concierge level) on the Silhouette late last year.  We all loved them!  Very quiet, no foot traffic at all outside of your cabin.  Yes, it is a "long" walk from the stairs / elevators, but it's all flat (not like it's uphill anywhere, haha), so very easy to do and also fun to walk by rooms if doors are decorated (which a lot were for the holidays).  The views were amazing, as you've noted - very broad and expansive and when the captain backed the ship into port at St. Maartens ... just incredible.  We never felt more movement in the cabins than anywhere else on the ship.  In fact, we felt a lot more swaying when we were in the Sky Lounge - higher up and forward.  Sometimes, when walking back to the room, the ship would sway a bit and we'd feel it then, but funnily enough, never in the rooms themselves.  We also never had a problem with soot on the balconies either.  Let me know if you want to see some pics!

 

Hi there,

Sorry to hijack this post, but we had booked a midship concierge cabin on Silhouette for next May and just this week changed to an aft concierge cabin on deck 10, and were wondering if we'd done the right thing. So it's good to see the positive comments and that you loved these cabins! It would be great to see some pics if you are able post some, thanks a lot.

[Turtles06]

Is it correct that the SV balconies are not covered?  

[Marelaine]

6 minutes ago, Turtles06 said:

Is it correct that the SV balconies are not covered?  

 

The SV balconies aren't covered. The balconies above can see down into your balcony. 

We booked an SV on Silhouette once. My husband loved it. The view is amazing. There's not a lot of unnecessary traffic at the end of the ship. You'll be putting in lots of extra steps to get to the pool, buffet, theater. Those are the pluses. 

We use the Solarium a lot. It's a long walk back to your cabin if you forget something. The same wake view is available at the Sunset bar and the deck beneath, Aft of the buffet. 

Our last cruise was in a cabin on the hump slant. Nice, roomy balcony. We chose a cabin near the forward elevators for easy access to the Solarium. We both agree that was our best cabin so far.

Edited September 25, 2019 by Marelaine

[Fouremco]

We frequently book stern cabins on both Celebrity and HAL and have enjoyed every one of them. The only potential negative is being directly under a public deck, where there is the potential for early morning noise. That said, we grabbed a last-minute cabin on the Nieuw Amsterdam this past spring and were directly below the aft pool deck. A couple of mornings we heard deck chairs being put out at about 6:30am, but we just rolled over and went back to sleep.

 

Potential issues include more movement in rough weather, but I don't think this is a problem unless you are prone to sea sickness. There's also some short-lived noise and vibration when docking, but we are usually up by then. If we aren't, it's a nice supplementary alarm clock! Soot used to be a problem, but I think that the introduction of exhaust scrubbers has reduced soot to the point that it is no longer an issue.

 

Go ahead and see for yourself. I think you'll be very happy with your choice!

 

 

[robmab]

We'll be in our first Celebrity SV in March on Equinox, but we have sailed in these types of cabins on RCCL for years. They're our favorite. The 180-degree view over the ship's wake is incredible and the balconies are usually a bit more spacious. We've never had issues with movement because we've always been on very large ships.

 

There is some noise when coming into port (and sometimes that's early in the morning), but like another poster said, we just roll over and go back to sleep. It's MUCH quieter than having a mid-ship cabin where everyone getting off the elevator and stumbling to their cabin at 2 am passes your door with voices at full volume.

 

I will always choose the SV over any other category (except maybe a suite...if I could ever afford one). 😊

[british betty]

This is aft on Equinox which we left on Monday.

 

If the sun is on the back of the ship, there is no shade ( we were on deck 11). We didn’t find the walk a problem at all and didn’t have an issue with soot.

 

 

[SFCAcruiser]

1 hour ago, cheeseheads4ever said:

Wondering if anyone has booked a Sunset Veranda on Silhouette and what your thoughts are? Positives and negatives?

I realize its a long walk everywhere but may not be a bad idea to walk some of that food off. Just thinking positive.

Views seem to be awesome from some of the pictures Ive seen.

Thought?

 

This is a topic that comes up every so often and it results in divided responses (like most other topics on Cruise 

Critic). We tried it once on a 14-day cruise on Equinox and did not like it for a variety of reasons.

On our cruise, the long walk became annoying during the second week when we had to return to the cabin because we forgot something. We did have a soot problem - could not lean on the railing or sit on the chairs without first wiping them down. The deck was not covered and we prefer to sit in the shade rather than the direct sun. Finally, on our deck 6 cabin, we were awoken every morning by the noise and vibration caused by the azipod (propellors) as the ship maneuvered into a port.

Other posters will refute all of my objections and enthusiastically recommend a SV. So, as Fouremco mentioned, the OP should try it  for him/herself. 

[Fouremco]

41 minutes ago, Turtles06 said:

Is it correct that the SV balconies are not covered?  

They are partially covered, and you can pull back under the overhang if you want privacy or protection from the rain. Here's a photo of DW on the Eclipse taken from the area of the Oceanview Bar on Deck 14.

 

Look at those lovely footstools and large table...

 

Edited to add that shade depends largely on the direction of the ship and time of day. As this photo shows, our balcony on deck 11 was in complete shade and those below mostly in shade.

 

 

Edited September 25, 2019 by Fouremco

[british betty]

Footstools have gone however, another thread mentions there’s a possibility of them returning 

[Fouremco]

Just now, british betty said:

Footstools have gone however, another thread mentions there’s a possibility of them returning 

Yes, and we're all happy to hear that!

 

[SleepingUgly]

Here are a few pictures of the inside of our two, adjoining cabins.  One was our room, and our cabin steward pushed the two beds together for us.  We kept the beds in the other room separated for our two older daughters, and the little one slept on the sofa.

 

 

 

 

[SleepingUgly]

This is what the hallway looks like as we step out of our room and start heading down the hallway, towards the first set of elevators / stairs.  The dark doorway at the very end of the hallway?  That's where those elevators and stairs are.  It looks really long and endless, I know, but it was manageable for us.  I'd say, at a regular pace - not too leisurely, but like you're walking with a destination in mind - it took a a good 45-60 seconds to get from our cabins to the elevator banks.

 

 

 

[SleepingUgly]

I thought some of the more interesting aft views were when we were docked in port.  Here we are, backing into St. Maarten:

 

 

This is when we were docked in Grenada.  So peaceful and quiet:

 

[SleepingUgly]

Our two balconies - not sure if you can tell, but the first one has more room than the second one.  Note there is a bit more space on the other slide of the glass doors in the first picture, whereas in the other balcony, this extra space is not there.  We also had the divider between the two balconies opened up so we had more space, and the space itself felt more open.

 

 

 

Anyway, hope these pictures help!

 

 

[cookie_monster]

We just did a concierge class on deck 11 on the Equinox in early September.  It was our first time at the aft.

while the view is amazing, there is little to no shade.. the room can get pretty warm, if you leave the curtains open during the day.

Sunrises/sets was awesome, but not being able to see the port or pier from the room was a little disappointing.

[Tracyi]

8 minutes ago, SleepingUgly said:

Our two balconies - not sure if you can tell, but the first one has more room than the second one.  Note there is a bit more space on the other slide of the glass doors in the first picture, whereas in the other balcony, this extra space is not there.  We also had the divider between the two balconies opened up so we had more space, and the space itself felt more open.

 

 

 

Anyway, hope these pictures help!

 

 

 

Thank you so much 🙂 Great photos. I have just seen that you also did a photo review of your cruise, I've started it but think it may take me a while to finish it! Thoroughly enjoying it and your sense of humour, so thanks for that too.

 

Tracy

[explorer1]

Hey There,

 

We enjoyed a 10 day Caribbean cruise January of this year in a sunset verandah on the Silhouette, deck 7.  We had always wanted to try an aft cabin at least once but will probably not book one again.

 

Pros & cons:

 

Pros:  was in a quiet location; the walk was not an issue at all; dining room is directly below; didn’t feel exposed to those above us; great views

 

Cons:  every day our balcony was soaking wet: the chairs, table and always a puddle on the floor - this water either from rain or hosing down from above so our feet were always wet, had to wear sandals/shoes.  If it started to rain you also have no shelter whatsoever due to lack of overhead coverage.  Because our balcony was always soaking wet we did not enjoy our breakfast outside once, which is one of the things we’ve always enjoyed while cruising in a balcony.

Alternately, if your balcony happened to be in the full sun we found it much too hot to stay out for long - would be a plus if you’re a sun worshipper.

 

Having said all that, I say go for it because you’ll never know unless you try it for yourself!

 

P. S. we did not have any footstools either, would’ve been very nice to have them!

[NoWhiners]

18 minutes ago, explorer1 said:

Hey There,

 

We enjoyed a 10 day Caribbean cruise January of this year in a sunset verandah on the Silhouette, deck 7.  We had always wanted to try an aft cabin at least once but will probably not book one again.

 

Pros & cons:

 

Pros:  was in a quiet location; the walk was not an issue at all; dining room is directly below; didn’t feel exposed to those above us; great views

 

Cons:  every day our balcony was soaking wet: the chairs, table and always a puddle on the floor - this water either from rain or hosing down from above so our feet were always wet, had to wear sandals/shoes.  If it started to rain you also have no shelter whatsoever due to lack of overhead coverage.  Because our balcony was always soaking wet we did not enjoy our breakfast outside once, which is one of the things we’ve always enjoyed while cruising in a balcony.

Alternately, if your balcony happened to be in the full sun we found it much too hot to stay out for long - would be a plus if you’re a sun worshipper.

 

Having said all that, I say go for it because you’ll never know unless you try it for yourself!

 

P. S. we did not have any footstools either, would’ve been very nice to have them!

 

 

Can you share your cabin # please?

 

thx

[explorer1]

We were in 7317.

 

** Am also making a correction - it was on Reflection, not Silhouette... sorry.

[garyl62]

We were on the Equinox in a C1 (aft Concierge) this past March.  We booked it a few weeks after canceling a previous reservation we had for a "hump" cabin on the same trip (story not relevant to this thread).  

 

I heard so many comments about the length of the walk, the first thing I did was count the steps from the end of the elevator lobby to our room in the port aft side of the hallway.  104 steps for me and I don't have a long stride.  To us that was not a big deal.

 

As far as everything else we thought it was great, no soot, great views, tranquil wake, enough cover to get some shade unless the sun was shining into your cabin, no extra noise (we were on deck 10) from Sunset bar or engines.  We'd book it again without any reservations.

[Mauidiver]

Our first experience with an aft cabin was on Infinity many years ago when we did an Alaska cruise.  Not only was our deck HUGE, but it had a good amount both covered and uncovered.  The views of Glacier Bay was unbelievable from our balcony and we really enjoyed having such wonderful outdoor space.  We had one day where there was a horrible storm and huge seas, but the only time we felt it was when the ship did a 180 in the channel near Sitka and the side thrusters were at full power to turn the ship on it's axis.  Literally at no other time did we feel any extra motion or vibration.

 

On our first ever cruise we had a cabin toward the bow of the ship and we felt FAR more motion on that trip than we did with an aft cabin.  We loved our aft cabin so much on Infinity that the first cabin category I looked for on Edge was aft and we booked an SV for our January cruise and can't wait to enjoy all it has to offer.

 

I say if you don't mind the walk, give it a try and see if you're one of us who really love the aft cabins.  If not, you can always go back to a mid-ship cabin on your next cruise.  

[NoWhiners]

3 hours ago, explorer1 said:

We were in 7317.

 

** Am also making a correction - it was on Reflection, not Silhouette... sorry.

 

Thanks. We will be in 7360 on Silhouette, and I thought it was completely covered. I think I saw some pix posted, but the pix here show it is only partially covered. We will be cruising Antarctica, so if it was wet, that could be bad.