First Silversea Cruise - Thumbs Up!

I don't have the patience to write a detailed review or blog, but I just wanted to check-in quickly from my first Silversea cruise. We are on the Spirit from Rouen to Lisbon. We are regular Celebrity and Azamara cruisers. When we splurge for a luxury line, we usually do Crystal and Regent. Just after a couple of days onboard, I can say SS is far better than Regent and also a bit better than Crystal.

Every staff member has been so genuine and friendly - unlike Regent whose staff is really spotty or Crystal whose staff spends days fawning over only the super regular passengers and ignores the less regular ones like us (you know, people in their 30s who still have to work and can't spend half the year on ships)

The food has been excellent. The room is lovely (we love the bathroom). Art work is something I never pay attention to, but they have some amazing pieces on this ship. The ship could use a bit of a spruce up, but still looks lovely and cared for. Boarding was the easiest we have ever experienced, with no lines and friendly welcomes.

All of the staff have been excellent and remembers our names, which is impressive as we are very unassuming.

We were very disappointed with Regent last year, and we were hoping SS would give us the true luxury experience. I don't normally throw numbers around, but to prove my point, we spent $30k for our Regent cruise, and we walked away disappointed. We didnt even spend half that amount for this cruise, but would gladly have.

SS has been superlative in every way and have moved to the top of my list.

Michael

SS has been superlative in every way and have moved to the top of my list.

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Very interested to read your comparison to Regent, as I've cruised only with Silversea and Seabourn. I'm curious about Regent but haven't yet been persuaded to give it a try.

It's good to hear that you're having a great time on Silver Spirit - enjoy the rest of your cruise!

I'm about to book a Silver Seas Spirit cruise and am a bit concerned about the ship's ranking in the Mediterranean category of US News. Did you see anything that would help me to understand why this ships ranking is lower, while their overall luxury and Meditteranian rankings are much higher?

Echo Stumbelhand...mean Stumblefoot's Kudos TxnAcquarian/Michael. Thanks for taking the time to give us your outstanding cliff note summary of your Spirit voyage--we can just imagine the intuitive service, delish cuisine in LT, Seishin, LC and the MDR. We especially love the Spirit Deck Washing crew (hardest working, most efficient deck washing crew I have observed at sea).

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I add my thanks to you for confirming what we have always thought about Silversea. I recommend that you read Terry's review of his cruise on the voyage just prior to yours. His photos are excellent, and you might find his experience helpful to you.

In any event, continue to enjoy your trip.

Hi Michael:)...another long time Celebrity cruiser here and I am going on SS for the first time in August:D....going on

The Spirit too.:D..I am so looking forward to it and happy to read about your positive experience:D

I'm about to book a Silver Seas Spirit cruise and am a bit concerned about the ship's ranking in the Mediterranean category of US News. Did you see anything that would help me to understand why this ships ranking is lower, while their overall luxury and Meditteranian rankings are much higher?

I would take these rankings with tablespoons full of salt. I cannot recall the specifics of the US NEWS rankings, but the criteria are often fuzzy and, with at least some rankings, the results can easily be gamed with. I know of at least one cruise line that hopes to raise its ratings on one poll by offering free internet to people on the ship who complete the survey. Since they have already invested in that cruise line they can be assumed to give it high ratings.

I think that the travel magazines' rankings just "might" be affected by how much certain cruise lines advertise in these publications.

Just a quick update from the mid-way point of our cruise from Rouen to Lisbon. The weather has been dreadful - rainy and cold the whole cruise. We're all a bit tired of sloshing through the ports in the rain, wearing layers. The bright side is that the weather is looking up by the time we get to Spain and Portugal.

The cruise itself continues to be fabulous! Food, service, everything is delightful. Our evening in La Terraza was excellent with one of the best canolis I have ever had! We will also be visiting The Grill for our second time. The cheeses around the ship have especially been excellent. And I'm a HUGE cheese fan. Desserts have also been much better than other cruise lines.

The crew is so intuitive. Our butler out-did himself decorating our room for our anniversary. I think he was more excited about our anniversary than we were! Lol When I was at the pool deck in a t-shirt, one of the crew came and put a blanket on me because it was cold. These are small touches we haven't found anywhere else.

Ports have all been lovely and easy to navigate on our own. It's a disappointment that the ship didn't sail into Bordeaux itself, and instead docked at an industrial port, requiring a 2.5 hr drive each way - especially on a port day that wasn't that long to begin with.

Silversea has continued to prove itself worthy of the luxury billing. It feels very reminiscent of Crystal back in the early days, which is warm, comfortable and elegant.

Michael

Just a quick update from the mid-way point of our cruise from Rouen to Lisbon. The weather has been dreadful - rainy and cold the whole cruise. We're all a bit tired of sloshing through the ports in the rain, wearing layers. The bright side is that the weather is looking up by the time we get to Spain and Portugal.

 

 

 

The cruise itself continues to be fabulous! Food, service, everything is delightful. Our evening in La Terraza was excellent with one of the best canolis I have ever had! We will also be visiting The Grill for our second time. The cheeses around the ship have especially been excellent. And I'm a HUGE cheese fan. Desserts have also been much better than other cruise lines.

 

 

 

The crew is so intuitive. Our butler out-did himself decorating our room for our anniversary. I think he was more excited about our anniversary than we were! Lol When I was at the pool deck in a t-shirt, one of the crew came and put a blanket on me because it was cold. These are small touches we haven't found anywhere else.

 

 

 

Ports have all been lovely and easy to navigate on our own. It's a disappointment that the ship didn't sail into Bordeaux itself, and instead docked at an industrial port, requiring a 2.5 hr drive each way - especially on a port day that wasn't that long to begin with.

 

 

 

Silversea has continued to prove itself worthy of the luxury billing. It feels very reminiscent of Crystal back in the early days, which is warm, comfortable and elegant.

 

 

 

Michael

Thanks for posting. Glad you are enjoying your Spirit experience.

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I recommend that you read Terry's review of his cruise on the voyage just prior to yours. His photos are excellent, and you might find his experience helpful to you.

Appreciate these nice comments and this kind follow-up/mention from Emtbsam. Glad you like the visuals!! It's fun sharing exciting visuals about great locations in the world. Will do an added posting for TxnAquarian.

THANKS! Enjoy! Terry in Ohio

Enjoyed a 14-day, Jan. 20-Feb. 3, 2014, Sydney to Auckland adventure, getting a big sampling for the wonders of "down under” before and after this cruise. Go to:

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1974139

for more info and many pictures of these amazing sights in this great part of the world. Now at 182,264 views for this posting.

Thanks for the encouraging review. It's been several years since I have been on Spirit, and it's good to see it has gone from strength to strength.

May I ask a trivial (but to me important) question?

One of the things I appreciate about Seabourn, Regent (I can't recall if this applies to Navigator) and Crystal is the presence of indoor, all-day snack bars (Seabourn Square, the Bristro, etc.) It's very nice to be able to pop in there for a cup of coffee, a mid-morning bagel, a snack in the afternoon if one does not want a full formal tea, etc,

I do not recall any such facility on my last Spirit voyage (at least 5 years ago). As I recall, there were some pastries and coffee at the bar (near reception) early morning, but nothing for the rest of the day.

I recall that something I read suggests that coffee and snacks are available all day at the deck 5 bar. Is this the case? If so, what kinds of things are on offer?

Thanks!

Just a quick update from the mid-way point of our cruise from Rouen to Lisbon. The weather has been dreadful - rainy and cold the whole cruise. We're all a bit tired of sloshing through the ports in the rain, wearing layers. The bright side is that the weather is looking up by the time we get to Spain and Portugal. The cruise itself continues to be fabulous! Food, service, everything is delightful. Our evening in La Terraza was excellent with one of the best canolis I have ever had! We will also be visiting The Grill for our second time. Ports have all been lovely and easy to navigate on our own. It's a disappointment that the ship didn't sail into Bordeaux itself, and instead docked at an industrial port, requiring a 2.5 hr drive each way. Silversea has continued to prove itself worthy of the luxury billing. It feels very reminiscent of Crystal back in the early days, which is warm, comfortable and elegant. Michael

Great to hear from Michael that you are super enjoying the service, food, staff, etc., from Silversea. Sorry to hear on the weather challenges. On our June 14-25 cruise, the weather was near perfect. No rain at all!! Mostly very sunny. Got in the 90's in Bordeaux. A little cooler in a couple of the northern areas.

Hopefully weather will be much better as you are enjoying Spain and Portugal. Happy to answer other questions on options to consider for any remaining port stops.

On the bland/boring nothing port used to reach Bordeaux, there are "trade-offs". Ideally, it would be better to sail and dock right in scenic and historic Bordeaux. BUT, it takes lots of added time to sail there and get back to the Atlantic. PLUS, there are major timing challenges on that waterway with their tides, getting the schedule to match/work, etc. I can understand why Silversea scheduled it the way that they did.

Keep enjoying and posting on your likes, loves and ideas from your first sailing with Silversea. Warning: Porto is fabulous!! Lots of love there, but only a limited amount of time to enjoy that historic and charming city.

How much time will you have in Lisbon? Need tips and ideas for Lisbon?

THANKS! Enjoy! Terry in Ohio

For details and visuals, etc., from our July 1-16, 2010, Norway Coast/Fjords/Arctic Circle cruise experience from Copenhagen on the Silver Cloud, check out this posting. This posting is now at 216,913 views.

www.boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1227923

Thanks for the encouraging review. It's been several years since I have been on Spirit, and it's good to see it has gone from strength to strength. May I ask a trivial (but to me important) question? I recall that something I read suggests that coffee and snacks are available all day at the deck 5 bar. Is this the case? If so, what kinds of things are on offer? Thanks!

From just getting off of the Silver Spirit, I do not re-call any type of all-day snack bar on this ship. There are some options for certain times at the Deck 5 Bar. BUT, between the Butler and the 24-hour a day room service, our experience is that if you have a certain "fancy" and/or need, just ask!! They like to be helpful. Tell them your needs and interests. I think they will try to work hard for satisfying your wishes. Good luck!!

THANKS! Enjoy! Terry in Ohio

From our Jan. 25-Feb. 20, 2015, Amazon River-Caribbean adventure that started in Barbados, here is the link for that live/blog. Many visuals from this amazing river and Caribbean Islands (Dutch ABC's, St. Barts, Dominica, Grenada, etc.):

www.boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2157696

Now at 51,654 views for these postings.

From just getting off of the Silver Spirit, I do not re-call any type of all-day snack bar on this ship. There are some options for certain times at the Deck 5 Bar. BUT, between the Butler and the 24-hour a day room service, our experience is that if you have a certain "fancy" and/or need, just ask!! They like to be helpful. Tell them your needs and interests. I think they will try to work hard for satisfying your wishes. Good luck!!

 

THANKS! Enjoy! Terry in Ohio

Thanks for your response, though it was not the response I was hoping to receive. I understand that one can call the butler or room service, but it's nice on these other lines just to pop by Seabourn Square or the Bistro for a cup of coffee to go in a paper cup or a bagel or pastry, etc.

It would be good to learn that Terry's (and my more distant) memories are faulty and that there is such a facility on Spirit. (I gather that this is what Arts Cafe provides on Muse.) But perhaps not......

Just a quick update from the mid-way point of our cruise from Rouen to Lisbon. The weather has been dreadful - rainy and cold the whole cruise. We're all a bit tired of sloshing through the ports in the rain, wearing layers. The bright side is that the weather is looking up by the time we get to Spain and Portugal.

 

The cruise itself continues to be fabulous! Food, service, everything is delightful. Our evening in La Terraza was excellent with one of the best canolis I have ever had! We will also be visiting The Grill for our second time. The cheeses around the ship have especially been excellent. And I'm a HUGE cheese fan. Desserts have also been much better than other cruise lines.

 

The crew is so intuitive. Our butler out-did himself decorating our room for our anniversary. I think he was more excited about our anniversary than we were! Lol When I was at the pool deck in a t-shirt, one of the crew came and put a blanket on me because it was cold. These are small touches we haven't found anywhere else.

 

Ports have all been lovely and easy to navigate on our own. It's a disappointment that the ship didn't sail into Bordeaux itself, and instead docked at an industrial port, requiring a 2.5 hr drive each way - especially on a port day that wasn't that long to begin with.

 

Silversea has continued to prove itself worthy of the luxury billing. It feels very reminiscent of Crystal back in the early days, which is warm, comfortable and elegant.

 

Michael

Hi. Question about Bordeaux. You said that you docked at an industrial port, requiring a 2.5 hour drive each way, rather than in Bordeaux itself. My question is whether this was the planned place for docking all along, or whether it was necessitated by something that happened during the cruise.

If it was planned all along to dock 2.5 hours away, I find that very disappointing. Years ago we sailed on Silversea to Bordeuax and sailed right into town. And I will be sailing on Silversea to Bordeaux in September, and I had assumed, per my previous cruise, that we would be sailing right into town again.

Any further information/clarification you could provide on this would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks

Hi. Question about Bordeaux. You said that you docked at an industrial port, requiring a 2.5 hour drive each way, rather than in Bordeaux itself. My question is whether this was the planned place for docking all along, or whether it was necessitated by something that happened during the cruise.

 

 

If it was planned all along to dock 2.5 hours away, I find that very disappointing. Years ago we sailed on Silversea to Bordeuax and sailed right into town. And I will be sailing on Silversea to Bordeaux in September, and I had assumed, per my previous cruise, that we would be sailing right into town again.

 

Any further information/clarification you could provide on this would be greatly appreciated.

 

Thanks

This had been part of the itinerary all along to dock at Le Verdon instead of Bordeaux, so my comments were not a surprised complaint. But after having done it, it was a disappointment to have a 2.5 drive each way with only 3 hours to spend in the city. It would've been better to hire a private car than take the ship's drop-off excursion. I assume that the itinerary was planned like this because 1) this was replacement itinerary 2) it's a very port-intensive itinerary and (like Terry said), it takes a long time to travel the river into Bordeaux and they needed to make the other port timings work.

On the positive, I have sailed into Bordeaux before on Crystal, and there will always be a next time :)

Michael

Observer, no there is no all day snack /cafe facility on the Wind, Whisper, Shadow or Spirit. However on the new Silver Muse there is the Arts Cafe which offers exactly what you are looking for.

Jane

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This had been part of the itinerary all along to dock at Le Verdon instead of Bordeaux, so my comments were not a surprised complaint. But after having done it, it was a disappointment to have a 2.5 drive each way with only 3 hours to spend in the city. It would've been better to hire a private car than take the ship's drop-off excursion. I assume that the itinerary was planned like this because 1) this was replacement itinerary 2) it's a very port-intensive itinerary and (like Terry said), it takes a long time to travel the river into Bordeaux and they needed to make the other port timings work. On the positive, I have sailed into Bordeaux before on Crystal, and there will always be a next time :) Michael

Appreciate this nice and positive follow-up from Michael. Yes, for us, also, that docking at Le Verdon was the Silversea plan from the original posting/schedule for our cruise.

Fortunately, we had BOTH a private guide and a super, excellent one. Yes, it took us a couple of hours in driving from Le Verdon to Bordeaux, but our expert guide, Nicole, was a spectacular wine expert. That allowed us to use that amount of time to have a wonderful "conversation" about the Bordeaux history, wine-making details, etc. Time went by quickly and in such an interesting manner!! Worked very well for us. Highly educational. Not just a boring script being repeated back to us.

Then, coming back, we had a pre-arranged tour at an excellent wine chateau. We toured around to see several other locations there during the return. That all "broke-up" the return trip to make things also very interesting and stimulating. Overall, we had a great experience in the Bordeaux area. "HOW" you do this connection from Le Verdon to Bordeaux and back makes a huge difference!! Research and plan accordingly.

Glad that Michael is so positive in looking forward with his comment of "there will always be a next time"!!

THANKS! Enjoy! Terry in Ohio

AFRICA?!!?: Lots of interesting and dramatic pictures can be seen from this live/blog at:

www.boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2310337

Now at 32,521 views for this visual sharing including Cape Town, along South Africa’s coast, Mozambique, Victoria Falls/Zambia and Botswana's famed Okavango Delta area.

Observer, no there is no all day snack /cafe facility on the Wind, Whisper, Shadow or Spirit. However on the new Silver Muse there is the Arts Cafe which offers exactly what you are looking for.

Jane

 

 

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Jane, l liked the Arts Cafe for that option on the Muse and it did seem to be a very popular venue.

Correct me if I'm wrong but l seem to recall that in the past certain all day snacks were available in the Observation lounges....

Sophia 😊

Sophia I bow to your superior knowledge. Certainly the Observation lounges offer more than most people realise. It is the lounge that few people discover. A hidden gem.

Jane.

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Thanks for the various responses.

I well recall a coffee maker in one of the observation lounges. Wind? But I could never master it. :)

Speaking only of Spirit, I wonder why Silversea cannot put out in the Bar a few thermoses of coffee/hot water and some morning pastry and afternoon small sandwiches.

Perhaps the success of Arts Cafe on Muse will encourage Silversea to provide something similar on other ships. Perhaps Stars on Spirit could be used for this function during the day.

Sophia I bow to your superior knowledge. Certainly the Observation lounges offer more than most people realise. It is the lounge that few people discover. A hidden gem. Jane.

Speaking only of Spirit, I wonder why Silversea cannot put out in the Bar a few thermoses of coffee/hot water and some morning pastry and afternoon small sandwiches. Perhaps the success of Arts Cafe on Muse will encourage Silversea to provide something similar on other ships. Perhaps Stars on Spirit could be used for this function during the day.

Agree that the 11th-floor Observation Lounge is a "hidden gem". We really enjoyed visiting here at different times during our June Silver Spirit cruise. You have options BOTH outside and inside. Per Observer, maybe Silversea will add some all-day options. In the Observation Lounge and The Bar, they have out some canned drink and ice options out and available. Don't know what they have done and/or offered in the past. Or, how much response and interest was there.

THANKS! Enjoy! Terry in Ohio

Did a June 7-19, 2011, cruise from Barcelona that had stops in Villefranche, ports near Pisa and Rome, Naples, Kotor, Venice and Dubrovnik. Dozens of nice visuals with key highlights, tips, comments, etc. We are now at 225,726 views for this live/blog re-cap, including much on wonderful Barcelona. Check these postings and added info at:

www.boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1426474

Thanks for the encouraging review. It's been several years since I have been on Spirit, and it's good to see it has gone from strength to strength.

 

 

 

May I ask a trivial (but to me important) question?

 

 

 

One of the things I appreciate about Seabourn, Regent (I can't recall if this applies to Navigator) and Crystal is the presence of indoor, all-day snack bars (Seabourn Square, the Bristro, etc.) It's very nice to be able to pop in there for a cup of coffee, a mid-morning bagel, a snack in the afternoon if one does not want a full formal tea, etc,

 

 

 

I do not recall any such facility on my last Spirit voyage (at least 5 years ago). As I recall, there were some pastries and coffee at the bar (near reception) early morning, but nothing for the rest of the day.

 

 

 

I recall that something I read suggests that coffee and snacks are available all day at the deck 5 bar. Is this the case? If so, what kinds of things are on offer?

 

 

 

Thanks!

Just go into the bar in the Panorama lounge and ask the staff, they will find you what you want within a couple of minutes.

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