alithecat

We plan to arrive 2 nights before the cruise, so will only have 1 full non-jetlagged day in Reykjavik for the great circle route. That's all the time we'll have.

Thank you for all your posts and photos. We are booked on the Wind in August 2024 for Iceland and Greenland, and have really appreciated this. Safe travels home.

Final post on this topic... It will be very hot in Santiago and if you are staying at the Mandarin Oriental it has a beautiful, large pool and deck area. We used our waterproof sandals there during our stay. Also remember to pack a bathing suit and a casual summer outfit for Santiago. You won't want to be stuck wearing your polar fleece there.

The slip on room slippers get soaking wet. The soles are rubber, but very thin, and the rest is terrycloth.

Re: Crocs. The mud room floor is often quite wet, and it's a good idea to have slip on waterproof shoes. But the Crocs might be too heavy and bulky. You need to keep everything as light as possible for the charter flight. We purchased Birkenstock Arizona Essentials, they are "ultra lightweight". Don't take flip flops because you won't be able to wear thick socks with them.

We did not need fleece under our parkas. Long underwear tops plus a turtleneck for me and thicker shirts for my husband, that were also nice enough to wear to dinner. One more tip for the return flights. If you want to keep your Silversea parkas, bring large plastic compression bags, the kind that you roll to get the air out not the kind that need a vacuum. They worked perfectly for us to flatten the parkas so they fit in our suitcases. This doesn't change the weight, of course, just the volume. Otherwise, you will have to carry your parkas home thru all the airports and planes.

Re: Bogs. For Antarctica they used the men's boots for both men and women. They said the women's Bogs didn't a thick enough tread. Did women get the women's version for the Arctic?

Excursion booking advice. When you go to the day's activities on MySilversea, book the more expensive excursion first. This becomes your no-charge, included excursion. Then book the second, cheaper one. You pay for that excursion. We have done two excursions a couple of times, but only if they are short, and we have time for lunch and a rest on the ship in between.

Yes. You can definitely ask to arrive 2 days early and pay the deviation fee of $150 plus the extra night in the hotel. We always do this. Note that if you don't book the extra hotel night(s) thru Silversea, you will lose the transfer from airport to hotel.

For clarification, could you ask: is a cruise around Iceland considered polar/red jacket worthy? What about Greenland?

I believe that those starting in Reyk. will get red jackets. Makes sense that you didn't.

Did your red jackets not come with an iPhone holder that has a long strap to go around your neck? That's what my husband used in Antarctica. The photos taken thru the plastic cover were fine. The only issue was that tapping the screen didn't work with thick gloves on.

Yes on the Cloud and Wind. The Vista suites are on the 4th floor, and when the seas are rough the waves can come up higher than the window. Someone told me it felt like they were inside a commercial washing machine. I recommend a mid-ship Veranda on the 5th floor. This is the best location for the "Drake shake". We did not sit out on the veranda but the extra expanse of glass provides more light to the room, and it was nice to be able to pop out and take photos. The side of the ship doesn't matter.

Thank you JP, Chris, Rachel and George for taking us along on your expedition cruise. I enjoyed following it, and am very jealous of your dinners! Safe travels home.

@AusMum Our cruise is Iceland and Greenland on the Wind starting August 1st, 2024.

Thanks for the info. I'll ask those on Iceland cruises this summer to be sure. We have our red Antarctica jackets from last winter, but would prefer not to pack them if we'll be getting new ones. I wish we had older style jackets. The new jackets have giant white Silversea vinyl lettering all across the back. I was able to pull off the letters, though it took a while and you can still see where they were if you look closely.

Question for you. Did Silversea provide the red jackets for this trip, or did you take your old Antarctica jackets? We are going to Iceland and Greenland next year. Someone said that you only get the jackets in that region on Arctic cruises. Thanks.

United/Alaska have a non-stop between ANC and SFO. I think this is the only one.

Silversea is currently advertising lower prices for certain expeditions on their website. This includes the one we booked for 2024. I asked my TA about this, she contacted Silversea, they honored the lower price and reduced my fare by about $1,000. We had a number of price reductions on our booking -- onboard discount, cancelled cruise discount, VS discount -- and they kept them all. Thank you Silversea! My advice is to keep checking the price of your cruise on the website and if you see a price drop, as for it.

@cotto22There are no formal nights on expedition ships. It will be mostly casual, with a few informal nights.

You are perfectly dressed in a blue blazer, tie, and dark trousers for all of the restaurants. Some men will be in suits, a very few in tuxedos. But you will be perfectly comfortable in blazer & tie. My husband does not take a suit on short cruises like this, just a blazer.

We were mid-ship on deck 5 in Antarctica. No issues at all with waves. We were above them. And less motion than if we would have been on deck 6. I would absolutely book that same deck 5 location again.

We have a home in Napa and collect wine. The included Silversea wines are cheap, but drinkable. They pour one complimentary white and one red each evening. The whites are usually some variant of Sauvignon Blanc, which I hate. I have better luck with the reds. If you don't like the suggested wines, you can ask for alternatives. What we do is once we have found an acceptable wine, we taste the new wines for that evening and then tell them we'd like a specific wine that we had before. They are good about getting them. The only problem is that when they do, they usually leave the rest of the full bottle on the table and we drink it all! Also, for included sparkling wines, always ask for the Pommery. It is much better than the Monopole they always pour, and is included. And finally, do check out the non-complimentary wines. The prices are very reasonable. Much less than standard mark-ups. Take photos of the list and google them to figure it out. We paid for one great wine for our dinner at La Dame and drank complimentary wine the rest of the time.

Silversea still does classic afternoon tea on the Cloud and Wind. Not sure about the other smaller ships. But not on the Muse class ships. There, as others have said, you can get tea, sandwiches and pastries all afternoon in the Arts Cafe, but it's not the same.

Kaiseki: We thought it was interesting to try once. But once was enough. Dinner reservations: As soon as you board the ship, go and line up to talk to the restaurant manager. He is usually at a desk in the main reception area. Often restaurants have reservations that are not available online. Your butler can help with reservations too, but he/she won't have time to do this until much later. So, you'll have better luck dealing with it immediately yourself.