Celebrity Silhouette Review
Silhouette delivers as expected - pleasant cruising experience
Rating by category
Additional details
This was our first Eastbound Transatlantic, having done 3 Westbound in the past.
We stayed one night pre-cruise at the Homewood Suites Ft. Lauderdale Airport, which had justifiably good reviews. They provide a free shuttle from the airport, and we shared a taxi to the port the next morning. It was a rainy morning and we decided to arrive early (10:30am). Embarkation was well organized, and we made it in time for the Concierge Class Lunch in the dining room. It was pouring buckets the rest of the day and we pitied the passengers who embarked later. The departure was delayed to allow for slower luggage handling to keep it dry.
We sailed on four Solstice class ships, so the Silhouette layout was very familiar. The ship did not feel overcrowded. It is well designed and the crew is friendly. Captain Dimitrios and his officers were interacting regularly with guests. There were less than 10 kids on board.
Cabin Review
Concierge Class 1
First time in a stern balcony on deck 9 (#9378). It was very secluded behind an access doorway (not shown on the deck plan), next to the corner suite. We had good exercise walking to/from midship elevators. The balcony is small compared to the other stern cabins, but still adequate for our two loungers, footstools and a small table. It was partially covered, with hardly any wind, but there was some soot residue. We enjoyed the large screen TV with free movies, re-runs of ship’s activities and lectures, restaurant menus, guest account etc. We learned you can leave the balcony door open, and to keep it from sliding to and fro with the ship's movement just raise the handle..
Port Reviews
Amsterdam
Amsterdam – we stayed for 6 nights at Urban Lodge hotel. Upon disembarkation from the ship we walked to Amsterdam Centraal station and purchased a 3-day the Amsterdam Travel Ticket at the Information kiosk at the station. We toured on our own using trains, trams and busses, visiting Zaanse- Schans, Harrlam, Zandvoot aan Zee, Keukenhof gardens. Jewish Historical Museum, the Portuguese Synagogue, Botanical Gardens, “Lovers” Canal Cruise, 360Amsterdam Free Walking Tour and Rijksmuseum. A business colleague drove us to Volendam, a quiet fishing village, where we had lunch by the marina and walked on the dike
Le Havre
Le Havre – we shared a taxi from the pier with two other couples to Honfleur (€10pp) and took the Tourism Office walking tour with audio guide (€5) which you keep for 3 hours. We enjoyed a crepe and ice cream, then walked to a supermarket and back around the narrow streets by the marina. We then shared another taxi back to the ship around 4pm.
Lisbon
Lisbon: Walked to the meeting point for Sandemans New Lisbon free walking tour at 11am. Our guide Jamie was a history major and spoke perfect English. He covered many of the important monuments and neighbourhoods. At 1:45pm we walked to the Time Out Market for refreshments, then via the elevators to Castelo de San Jorge for the panoramic vistas. Then we wound our way down through the stairs and narrow streets of the Alfama back to the ship at 5:45pm.
Brugge (Bruges)
Zeebrugge – With Royal Caribbean Freedom Of the Seas at the main quay (Zweedse kaai), the Silhouette docked at another location which caused a lot of confusion for people meeting passengers coming off the port shuttles. We were let off by a gas station (OCTA) and the kind attendant let me use his phone to call the person meeting us, who was 2 km away at the other quay. After picking us up we went on a private tour of the zigzagging border area of Belgium/Holland, Knokke-Heist, Sluis, then headed to Brugge where we had lunch in the main square and a the Legends of Bruges walking tour for 2 hours. The city was very crowded with thousands of tourists which spoiled the charm of this quaint location.