critics0001

Here is our comparison of the "large" ships on Silversea and Seabourn for a comparable length of cruise.

Cabin – about the same but you felt more closed in on the narrower Silversea room.

Cabin furniture – Silversea since the balcony furniture was better and better TV size

Main Dining Room – better on Seabourn but one of the best meals on Silversea. This is based on old menus.

Specialty restaurants – better on Silversea but you have to pay extra for two of them. However Le Champagne experience was mixed, one good and one bad.

Pool Grill - Silversea, but both are worse than Oceania

Sushi, Asian – clear winner is Silversea, no sushi available on Seabourn.

Buffet – slight edge to Silversea except conversion to dinner better on Seaborne with different themes which you may or may not like.

Food Availability - Seabourne, they did not run out of food that has happened to us twice on Silversea.

Alcohol – generally gave you the same class of brands, easier selection process on wines on Seabourn but both have too many under $10 per bottle wines on their list.

Pool Deck Furniture – better on Silversea

Excursions – Silversea but limited data here based on a few tours. We generally book our own and use cruise ones to use cruise credits

Spa – clear winner is Seabourn

Entertainment – a few better shows on Silversea but more consistent good performances on Seabourn. If you really think shows are important part of cruise then these two lines are not for you.

Internet – clear winner is Seabourn, 20% of the price of Silversea

Fellow Passengers – very similar but edge goes to Silversea on these two cruises

Crew Helpfulness – slight edge to Seabourn, Silversea crew tended to focus on frequent travelers than to first timers.

But it will be listed as le grande mac!

So far you have gotten good advice but if you wanted to catch an earlier flight than you need to look at the date and answer a few questions. I had a horrible experience in Fort Lauderdale but it was in March on a weekend with 12 ships in port. April is slow month, so I am guessing only a few ships and if it is a weekday maybe no others. If it is the only ship then Customs will want to get it out of the way so there should be no hang up with them. How much luggage do you have? If you don't check it and can take if off you can get off between 7 and 8am. Otherwise you might have to wait for your luggage to be taken off the ship.

Preprint your boarding passes the night before so you go directly to baggage check. Most airlines operate these lines very fast except for discount ones.

Remember Fort Lauderdale airport is 15-20 minutes from the time you get in the cab.

I have caught a 10 am flight from FLL and was at the airport at 815 getting off with checked luggage.

I have gotten the best deals on Oceania and other cruise lines using a website that provides multiple quotes from TAs. I get either a discounted fare, cash back and/or OBCs(some refundable and some not).

For Oceania I used the same agent for several cruises where I was made part of a group purchase. But on last two cruises the agency stopped booking groups and I got lower prices from other agencies.

I made the mistake of booking on board once with Oceania and then discovered that I got a better deal by over $1000, so I do not waste my time or theirs by talking to Oceania.

For another cruise line I have gotten the best price on 4 cruises from a different agent who specializes on that line.

I have never had a problem with any of these agencies, just a good deal.

On 5 cruises we have been able to get specialty restaurant on first night 4 out of 5 times. We have been in PH all of the times. The first time we were asked if we wanted to go specialty restaurant when we went to MDR. Two times we just showed up at several of the specialty restaurants and asked if they had openings. Once we got the butler to see if it was available. On last cruise in February nothing worked so maybe they are changing the policy. Walking by the specialty restaurant later we noticed a number of empty tables.

you cannot bring the bottle to the bar and not pay corkage

Cruise has gotten better since my post and midcruise review. Wine has improved but you have to ask it. We found 2 reds and 1 white that are drinkable. Also they found 2 cans of a beer that was not local brew. We have found that food quality down at Grill (lunch and dinner) and Italian restaurant. Food in MDR has been similar to earlier cruise but is inconsistent.

Renovation of boutiques has not produced more customers.

Lecturer on ports, Ira, is really a shill for SS tours!

Internet extremely slow but is cheaper than some other cruise lines.

On a very positive note the service has been very good with cabin service tops but some slip ups in the restaurants. But they are quick to rectify problems.

Boarded in Barbados. The quality of Silversea has really gone down since last cruise 14 months ago. The service is the same but entertainment, food and wine have really dropped. The easiest one first is entertainment. The comedian was the worse show I have ever seen on any cruise line and that is saying a lot. You could have been hurt by the large numbers of people leaving the show early. Most of the ones that stayed were asleep.

Food quality is down especially with fresh fruits. Outside of strawberries thee were no other berries. No papaya or mango either on a tropical cruise. On another cruise line 6 weeks ago and there were plenty of these items.

Beer and wine choices were bad. For beer mainly local Carib brews. But the biggest issue is the wines. Finally last night after complaining so much they found a drinkable French wine. So far really bad whites. The first excuse was they had not unloaded the provisions from Barbados. Next excuse we did not get provisions from and earlier port.

We were planning another cruise on SS in a few months but with the quality dropping maybe it is better to find another cruise line.

I am sure I will get a response from all the SS lovers on this site but the quality has gone down based on many of the passengers on this ship.

Agree with most of comments. Will never go back to HAL. If you like a larger ship than O ones then try celebrity, better than HAL but definitely not as good as Oceania.

I would check out their standard tours to see if they cover what you want to see. The cost will be 1/2 of private tour. Also tour groups get into many places ahead of the normal line. The negative is that you will be in a small bus with about 15 people and seeing some sites that you did not want to see. If you want to spend a day at the Hermitage then you need a private tour.

Enjoy yourself it was a great visit for us.

It is one thing to bring on board a bottle of Petrus (retailing at around $900 I think) and pay a corkage fee of $25 and another to bring on board a bottle of plonk costing $8 and pay the same corkage fee...

I do not recognize plonk, is it a Swiss wine? Also would love to know where you get a good year Petrus for $900, going rate is $3000.

But you can get a very good Pomerol or other Bordeaux from great years; 2005, 2009 or 2010 for about $40-60. What O sells these for is $150+ for not so good years.

What is an average wine? Prices range from $40s to several hundred. Wine package does not get you the better wines. Best way is bring your own and pay corkage. Also they have a 2 for 1 happy hour every night and you get free drinks at the Captain's welcome party. If you cruised before you also get a second party with free drinks.

OMG

I would not pay $8 for Asti :eek:

do people actually drink that stuff

Maybe it tastes better at $42.50 a bottle from Oceania.

no visa required, can totally recommend Alla.

I would go with Silversea. On a number of their cruises the supplement for singles is only 25%. On our cruise we met many people traveling single due to the low supplement.

The Cruise critic meet and mingle is a great place to meet people. Silversea puts on a cocktail party for this event(remember alcohol is free) while oceania barely provides space for the meeting.

The key is not to worry about meeting people, just have fun.

You are right about that observation, prices are higher in NY. I did find Cline Zin, Hess Cabernet, Rodney Strong Sauvignon blanc in NYC(albeit Queens) for $1 dollar more and you would have to add in the sales tax. What I was trying to show was a sample of the types of wines you would get in the package plan. Also you should note that I quoted retail prices which are higher than the cruise line buys the wine by at least 20%-30%.

Personal experience from last year without visa. First day we took a bus/canal tour booked through ship. Upon returning, walked around neighborhoods, visited a bar, small markets and very large supermarket by myself. No problem getting back on ship. I would not go through aggravation of applying for visa and there is no guarantee of approval, especially today.

You were lucky they did not stop you during your walk around. If you get in by being on a tour you need to stay with the tour at all times. Read the fine print.

I tried to post the list but message denied by cc.

Here is a sample of bottles at $42.50 each with corresponding US retail price. Since cruise line buys in bulk it should be similar to all ships.

Asti Spumante $8

Jackaroo Chardonnay $10

Robert Mondavi Chardonnay $10

Rodney Strong Sauvignon blanc $11

Orvietto Ruffino $6

Principessa Banfi Gavi $11

Penfolds Merlot $10

Backhouse pinot noir $7

Hess Cabernet $12

Robert Mondavi Meritage $7

Cline Zin $11

Placido Chianti $6

Since we are talking beverages, I have a few questions for past Oceania passengers:

 

1. I heard that you don't have to decide on a bev. package purchase on the embarkation day. How long do you have to decide? Was thinking of buying a couple of bottles for the cabin until I get used to the ship.

 

2. This might seem like a dumb question, but my wife is primarily a wine drinker who imbibes from time to time with the harder stuff. We were thinking of the 7 bottle package for her, but will the Oceania mafia confiscate my drink ordered on my prestige beverage package if I let her have a sip or two.

 

3. I know that the wine list changes with every trip, but does anyone have a source for finding out the 7 bottle list options for the March 15 Marina voyage in French Polynesia? I heard from others that Perrier Jouet was one of the selections. If so, that makes the 7 bottle package a no-brainer for those who like bubbly!

No French champagne on the list from my cruise in January. The wines were in the $6 to $15 per bottle range retail US. Better deal is to buy your wines and pay corkage on those you bring to restaurant.

Only really busy the first few days, good intentions disappear as the cruise progresses. Busy in early AM more often on Carib cruises less so on European ones.

Easy to tear out pages since the book fell apart when we opened it.

If source of OBC is the TA then they may be refundable in cash. If from cruise line then you need to spend it. We have used them for corkage on wine we brought on board, 6 containers of sunblock, and last but not least bingo cards. Actually according to my spouse the spa prices on some treatments are comparable to onshore facilities.

It is convenient to book on board but I learned that that changes are not that easy and the "discounted" price is cheaper by going directly to a TA after the cruise. Since then I would never book on board.

Thanks for the review and I agree with a number of points. You should post it in the review section for the ship. Here are our comments on the cruise.

This was our fifth O cruise and have always had a PH cabin. Getting onboard was efficient except for the check-in staff not knowing how to use the computer. Baggage was at cabin door when we got ok that rooms were ready. This was a FIRST in over a dozen cruises.

Your comment on getting additional specialty reservations needs to be balanced with the fact that PH passengers can have the specialty restaurant dinner served in their cabin. Aside from the additional space it is the best perk for the larger cabin.

I think you were generous in the review of the restaurants, except for Red Ginger, which has improved since our past cruises. Better service and food. You could see the lobster in the pad thai now. Jacques was ok but several people(we shared tables most meals) had to send back the fish entry. The quality of the meat in Polo has gone down. Filet was tough and tasteless. We liked Toscana in the past but the quality has gone down the most of any of the restaurants. We had three dinners in the MDR, one was very good , the second ok and the third was terrible. The soup must have been made with seawater since it was so salty. The meat was dry and tasteless and the dessert was a frozen cake.

Totally agree with assessment of internet-a ripoff. If you did not need to go on line each day, then you should have used the ports for the internet. In Grand Cayman the library about 500 meters from tender dock has free internet. Bars in Belize and Roatan have internet for the price of $3 bottle of beer or cola. Costa Maya free internet was useless while Key West has free internet. The cruise line limits you to one device since it stops multiple people from using the same account.

Aside from using the internet the ports on this cruise were terrible. It should have been called the Diamonds International cruise. Fifteen years ago George Town had great shops now it is overpriced or junk. Key West was the exception but we had been there a number times so we stayed onboard most of the time.

I disagree with your comments on the card. They should have used it more often. They only put the card out at 1-2 pm.

The entertainment was the same as past cruises. In fact half of the same performers were on the September cruise we took. Also tired of the Elton John-Billy Joel night. The talent on the smaller R ships was better than the O ships. Finally the cruise direction was slightly above average. He had less announcements(great) but seemed to ignore the guests as he walked on the deck.

I agree with the earlier comments about the poor choices of "free" tours. I did a limited comparison of the port tours of SS versus Regent and Regent offers better and more "free" tours than SS.

So if you want free tours stay with Regent.