lbkjj

On 8/23/2021 at 2:27 PM, CJANDH said:

I spoke to the Cruise Director on Muse last week. He commented that at 200 passengers they are barely paying for the gas. If cruising continues at these levels the financial health of the company has to be at risk. Hopefully, there will be no outbreaks of the virus on any of the ships sailing and customer confidence will start improving.

 

Also, there was a strong rumor going around the crew that Muse would be heading for Japan after Alaska as the ship has apparently been chartered for a private cruise.

We were booked on the October 5 Muse cruise of Japan but canceled when it became doubtful the ship could dock in Japan. There is an empty week in the schedule after that cruise and I assume it is a private charter.

On 8/6/2021 at 2:03 PM, joyce Ottawa said:

So I talked with someone from head office who is on the ship.  He has been following our comment thread. I identified myself and said I might be causing him some trouble!  He has talked with his bosses at head office and they are fully informed that expectations are not being met. I made that point that I usually find high end cruise lines over achieve, and that I thought they would be very particular about keeping their new clientele happy and wanting to sign up for future cruises… so who knows what will happen next.  

Joyce,

Thanks for the first hand reporting. I am curious about the " included tours". Are there several tours included in each port or just one? I am now sceptical after the laundry and internet fiascos.

On 9/9/2020 at 11:29 AM, jjs217 said:

I have sailed on one of the former "little sisters" that were sold to Windstar - thought I would give it a try.  Seabourn is a much better product.  I would not sail on Windstar again - I'll stick with Seabourn - personal choice.

Same here, I found Windstar OK but the ship wasn't well maintained and I would need a substantial price difference to switch from Seabourn.

We sailed on a Windstar version of the Legend several years ago and were appalled at the lack of exterior maintenance. Have seen the former Pride in port and had the same reaction as to maintenance. I suggest you read the Windstar reviews before booking.

After seeing these photos, we are even more disappointed our inaugural Antarctica voyage was cancelled. Maybe next year???

Hey all,

 

My cruise is already refunded, flights not.... And yours ?

 

Best regards, jimmy

I received my refund first for the cruise and then for the flights. Well done Silversea.

We have had NO contact from Silversea since they canceled the maiden voyage almost two weeks ago. No answer to an e mail I sent either. Very poor followup although they handled the initial cancellation logistics very well.

My mistake. The Cloud is reported heading to Aitcho Island in the South Shetland islands, not the Falklands as I erroneously posted a bit ago. All sounds good except for the one day delay in departing.

Marine traffic now shows it underway but only about 30 miles out of Ushuaia. Falklands listed as destination. May have stayed in port overnight due to wind and weather.

Silversea explicitly said the failed pump caused the cancellation and that is why they refunded the full cruise price, airfare, rental costs, etc.

The weather vs mechanical question only pertains to the transatlantic crossing prior to the inaugural cruise. Silversea blamed weather for the ship's delay enroute. Other crew represented the ship had mechanical problems during the crossing.

I agree with Erica there was no indication on board of earlier " technical" problems with the Cloud during its Transatlantic crossing. The first time I heard about them was from passengers post cruise who had talked to some crew members.

The Cloud is in Ushuaia today to board passengers for the 10 day cruise. Let's hope all goes well.

I am still waiting to hear from Silversea about my flight and cruise reimbursement. I e mailed them yesterday but no response yet. I did get a credit from the equipment rental company that Silversea arranged.

While I don't dispute what the earlier poster was told regarding having only one fuel pump, I will dispute that this is actually the case. No classification society around would allow a ship to be built with only one pump for a critical system. Now, whether or not the ship was sailing with one pump out of service for maintenance or repair, and the other subsequently broke down is a different thing. I would also be surprised that the propulsion engines and the generators utilized the same fuel system, let alone the same, and reportedly single, pump.

I totally agree with you , it makes no sense to me either. I am quite sure I understood the Captain correctly however. Also, the VP of expeditions told the general assembly a fuel pump was being flown from Europe with mechanics to repair the ship. In any event, let's hope for smooth sailing from here.

The Cloud just set sail from Puerto Madryn ( 1300 EST Nov 28) so it should be OK for the Dec 1 trip, barring any new issues.

I believe the leaks were due to internal plumbing issues, not the integrity of the hull.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/travel/cruises/articles/inaugural-silver-cloud-antarctica-cruise-cancelled/

Well this didn't go as planned. See my comments on the main Silversea page.

My wife and I on this cruise and just arrived back in the USA.

I was apprehensive booking the inaugural cruise post refit but the price was right and it fit our calendar. I tracked the ship from dry dock onward online and was happy to see it arrive in Buenos Aires on time. We stayed in port in BA the first night because of weather and Manfredi Lefebvre ,the owner, and Conrad Combrink, director of Expedtion cruising, both spoke at the welcome evening greeting. ( Conrad was on board, fortunately, for the voyage.)They reported about $50 million was spent in the renovation, including a major rebuild of the engines and other mechanical items. The weather to Puerto Madryn, our first stop, was sloppy and there were a series of storms lined up for the next seven days. ( These same storms hindered the search for the missing Argentine sub.)

The facts reported in the Guardian newspaper http://www.telegraph.co.uk/travel/cruises/articles/inaugural-silver-cloud-antarctica-cruise-cancelled/ are accurate. We waited two extra days in Puerto Madryn because of weather and then set sail only to lose propulsion about two hours later and return after a " temporary fix". The captain later told me the main and only fuel pump, which services both engines and the two generators, had failed. We both agreed one fuel pump was a basic design flaw . The Guardian article describes what happened next leading to the cancellation.

Silversea did their absolute best to apologize, give a 100% refund of cruise and airfare both ways, buy passengers air tickets home, book 5 star hotels and give per diem allowances of $100 daily for food. and a 25% future cruise credit . We all were terribly disappointed but the weather would have made this a most uncomfortable voyage bordering on dangerous. Many passengers agreed the cancellation was a blessing in disguise.

Was the ship ready to tackle Antarctica straight out of a major refit and overhaul? Obviously not. If we had engine problems in the dreaded Drake passage, who knows what could have happened. Some passengers had flooding problems and wet carpets, others had a/c issues but most were resolved enroute. We experienced a/c issues on two days with no ventilation. More troubling, some passengers said crew told them the ship had to stop at sea four times enroute to Montevideo to fix issues. Other crew said they were supposed to meet the ship in Montevideo seven days earlier for work but only had one night aboard before the ship had to sail for Buenos Aires. They were put up in a hotel while they waited. ( hearsay)

I believe the Cloud will become an excellent, luxury expedition vessel when the launch problems are resolved.The food, service and upgrades to the ship put it at the top of the expedition fleet. I hope the ship is repaired for its next cruise date on Dec. 1. Not sure when we will rebook.

Just checked online at marinetraffic.com. The Cloud is enroute to the Grand Canary Islands and should be on schedule to arrive in Buenos Aires for the Nov. 15 inaugural cruise. Good news!:)

I found this photo of the Cloud in drydock in Malta.

http://www.shipspotting.com/gallery/photo.php?lid=2728929

Observer, am still planning to ask Mark Conroy specifically about your

suggestion (Cloud sightseer expedition vs Cloud Explorer booking). Am waiting to hear back from Mark, once I do will ask.

 

Ibkjj, hope you find a moment or two to post while you are on the inaugural or what we can also term the Maiden Cloud Expedition voyage. Know many of us booked/future Cloud Expedition explorers would be sincerely appreciative.

I certainly will. Concerned now about the completion status of the ship's transformation given past Silversea timing problems. I expect to find workmen still onboard at Buenos Aires arrival from the drydock in Malta. Fingers crossed.

Interesting suggestion , but I believe the 200 passenger limit is important because it opens up additional landing sites that can't be accessed by say Seabourn ships with 400 passengers. Promising that additional passengers over 200 wouldn't go ashore is difficult to administer and monitor. Easier just to enforce the 200 passenger limit.

We are booked on the inaugural voyage in November. Our first Silversea cruise was in 2009 on the Cloud and we are excited to see the renovated product. ( Lets hope it is completed on schedule). We did a "sail by" Antarctic cruise in 2016 and it whet our appetite for the region. Only disappointed we are not visiting South Georgia

She actually was found in Rockport, MA harbor, not Rockport Maine.

We were on the Windstar Pride in February and the laundry was removed from its previous spot on the Seabourn Pride. I assume they are doing this to all the triplets.

We did the 14 day Seabourn Norwegian Fjords trip last year in June and it was terrific. Great scenery, low key ports, easy to navigate on your own. Do the train ride in Flam.We rented a car and drove to the Nordkapp. The oil museum in Stavanger is worthwhile. Just relax and enjoy the scenery.

We are big Seabourn fans, 7 cruises so far with them and are doing our second Silversea cruise next month. I'm looking forward to a comparison.

We did this cruise on the Seabourn Quest in June 2014 and loved it. I had some

concern about spending the entire cruise in one country but the variety of ports and scenery was spectacular. Weather is a key factor and we were fortunate.

We thought the mix of sea days to port days was just about perfect.

I read the 10 knots post but she is showing at 13.5 knots on marine traffic. Could be the current boosting her along so that accounts for the extra speed.