Before I continue on my observations of Celebrity’s Silhouette, I found it interesting to hear the chairman of Royal Caribbean, owners of Celebrity, say that next year the rest of the world will book more cruises than North America, probably for the first time.
It’s not that North America is not growing, because it is. However, the rest of the world — especially Europe and Australia — is growing faster, having discovered this form of travel. More on subsequent Blogs.
Oh, did we have fun on the inaugural run of the Celebrity Silhouette! Sailing out of Hamburg, it’s like a river cruise in that it takes about six hours to get into the North Sea from the Elbe River. However, that said, you can while away the time sitting out on your balcony enjoying the views, some of them quite beautiful.
The weather, once we reached the North Sea…well, that was another story. Strong winds and seas to match as we circled off shore for 36 
hours, allowing us to get to know Silhouette better. An indication of the weather is my two media friends (above) having fought hard for a single picture.
Overall, I find very few problems with this ship.
There are plenty of pay-as-you-go restaurants, and also many that are locked into your cruise price.
Deck 5 is interesting — it’s where you find most of the restaurants and bars. Bistro on 5, which cost $5, has made some menu changes. Michael’s Club is still Michael’s Club, but now has 50 international beers on the beverage menu, none of them from Canada. When I asked why, this was the answer: “Oh sir, we still have many to come.”
I hope so. I also hope that on Reflection, the last of the Solstice Class ships and scheduled for launch next year, Celebrity will offer a true British-type pub that goes well beyond 50 beers.
There are plenty of places to hide on this ship, like up in the grass area, beyond the many loungers around the pools and hammocks. I assume with the Flame Grill this will be come a popular spot — even though it costs $30 to eat there.
Tuscan Grille is still one of my favourite restaurants, as I love Italian food, but the views at the stern of the ship are as important to me. Tuscan costs $30, as do Qsine and Murano.
Now it’s time to leave Silhouette and head to Barcelona to join Liberty of the Seas and a 7-day cruise of the Mediterranean. Before I go, a reminder: You’ll find lots of pricing for cruising on the Silhouette, check out my Blog this Saturday (July 30).
All for now.
My Ports and Bows colleagues are looking for some advice from seasoned Alaska cruisers. If you’re one of them, go to cruisingdoneright.com to give them some ideas.
