The best and worst about the Silver Spirit

[MJN1]

We were 12 days on the Silver Spirit from Southampton to Barcelona in May. In a nutshell, the Silver Spirit is beautiful, but has incredible design flaws and can not deliver the full Silversea experience.

 

Here are more details about the “great, good, bad and ugly” :

 

“Great”:

 

• More dining choices: Star Club, hot-stone grill and Seishin significantly increased the variety of dining atmosphere and food. The Star Club is fantastic all around and the outdoor grill good “fun”. Seishin is mixed: it does add one more “flavour” (Asian), although the menu choices are limited and the extra charge is really not justified.
  
• Launderettes on all floors (except 4th): great idea!
  
• Bathroom with separate showers and bath-tub: perfect apart from minor design flaws (why is the toilet paper roll behind the hand-towel?)
  
• TV screens integrated in the wall mirror and 400+ on demand movies: no more trips to the library for missing DVDs...
  

“Good”:

 

• the colour scheme (yes, this is subjective)
  
• the larger table and more storage space in the Verandah suites (and yes, you can not pass between bed and mirror if your wife sits there and does her make-up)
  
• the larger space for Yoga classes
  
• having a cabin on Deck 6 (very convenient, especially for Gym and Spa and close to most dining venues)
  

“Indifferent”

• the Gym: tempers flared in the mornings until lunch time as it is only slightly larger than on the other ships. We found it usually empty around 5 p.m. and appreciated the increased head-room.
  

“Bad”: lets go from “bad to worse” and start with

• the glass dome above the staircase on Deck 10 ensures that the place for table tennis is hotter than the sauna,
  
• the very small size of the card room had the bridge teacher and players in great despair, and
  
• the absence of the galley lunch (assume due to the fact that one has to pass the back of Le Champagne/Seishin to get from the restaurant to the galley?); before we mention
  
• the Bar on Deck 5 (imagine a hotel lobby with “always on” TV screens)
  
• the size of the Panorama Lounge (less seats than on the smaller ships so the Afternoon Tea is now held in La Terrazza) and with chairs which are too low (or maybe the tables are too high...) and
  
• the Show-lounge: there are not enough seats to handle all passengers and not enough space in each row for the crew to serve drinks or canapés (and the small, fixed “air-plane” like trays between every two seats have been “designed” with a wide partition in the middle so a regular wine/cocktail glass does NOT fit...:rolleyes:); the staircase in the middle is so narrow that the crew can not walk down at the Captain's reception (which featured Capt. Corsaro mingling in the Bar and then in the Panorama Lounge as the Show-Lounge can't handle it) or the farewell event; the stage is too narrow for the Performers.
  

“Ugly”:

• the “Thermal Suite” in the Spa (what was the “architect” thinking?:eek:) including the additional sauna/steam “rooms”on the other side: the sauna has space for four people sitting (you can't lay down as it is too short) and seemed to turn itself off late afternoon; the steam room reeked so badly of sewage (and was way too hot) so it was unusable (staff tried to spray perfume in the morning to “fix” it...), the relaxation area has five (!) stone-”beds” and not a single hook to hang your towel/bath-robe; the additional sauna/steam “cubicles” were only luke warm or “under construction” and there are no changing rooms in the whole area... Add the concept of uni-sex to this and no wonder the place is always empty!
  

Net, at the end we could not stop wondering if the people who designed the Spirit had ever been on a Silversea cruise before! :confused:

 

A few additional observations, not necessarily related to the ship:

 

• food was good, but not outstanding; the wines average at best (but as always one could try others) and we had eaten much better in Le Champagne on previous cruises (Thanks go to all the posters who mentioned that you can book this for $150 as part of the Bon-Voyage Gift program!);
  
• the staff (mostly) were very friendly and helpful as always;
  
• not sure that the new “butler” system adds any value compared to the previous maid-service;
  
• my wife had an allergic reaction after a (regular) massage requiring a visit to the ship's doctor, an injection and pills to recover. She received no follow-up from the Spa after reporting this :(
  
• we found many typical Silversea “touches” missing: few staff bothered to remember our names (maybe not surprising given the ship's size) and especially the Maitre d' seemed not to care and made no effort how to mix people so we ended up with the same dinner guests again and again; there were no personalized menus from our Le Champagne dinner in the room afterwards, nor any recognition of the special anniversary we had noted on the Passenger registration form in advance. We also got NO response to the extensive comments on the mid-cruise feed-back form. None of this is critical, but a missed opportunities to delight!
  

Last, but not least - and this is NOT Silversea's fault - we were astonished by guests throwing the head-phones in the garbage bin in the gym, regularly “borrowing” the International Herald Tribune in the morning and not returning it, ripping the cross word puzzle out of the New York Times, bridge players storming into the card room during lessons berating the poor teacher on some minor issues. This was also the first time that smoking bothered us on Silversea: the Panorama lounge was empty on several nights as an elderly couple apparently chain smoked cigarillos which kept everyone else away. Heavy smokers were also in a cabin a few doors away from us so we sometimes returned to a “smoking room”, but no action was taken. If we had the chance to vote passengers “off the ship” as suggested in a previous thread we would have submitted about 2 dozen ballots...

 

So, will we sail again on the Spirit? Maybe, if the itinerary and price are attractive, but she will not be our #1 choice. We booked our next cruise on-board: Silver Wind here we come!

[meow!]

Thank you kindly for such a comprehensive report. From the beginning, we mentioned the Spirit's lowering of space per passenger, from 74 to 67, a decrease of 10%, perhaps that accounted for what you had experienced. Normally when a given cruise line builds a larger ship, they increase the space ratio, not decrease it. In other words, they compensate for the decrease in exclusivity with increase in space and amenities, and that was the case when Silversea went from the Cloud/Wind to the Shadow/Whisper.

 

Now with the Spirit, for its size, it should perhaps carry 480 passengers, and not 540. If that were the case, they would have been able to widen the cabins by a few inches, perhaps raise the ceiling a couple of inches, and put the rest of the space back into a multi-storeyed theatre and a larger main restaurant which could sit all passengers "in camera" as in the earlier ships. The change from Yran & Storbraaten of Oslo to an unknown Italian architect was unfortunate.

 

However, the Shadow/Whisper were designed before the post-millennium financial crisis, at the peak of the world's fortunes. The Spirit's gestation coincided with the economic tsunami, with no end in sight even now (especially with Europe following into a tailspin). In your opinion, aside from the software (food, service, etc. which can be more easily changed), would you say the Spirit's hardware (ship and cabin design) is half a step below the Shadow/Whisper?

 

P.S. Have they solved the noise problem for suites 642 to 650, right above the bar where they play music (people complained about that a few months ago)?

[Observer]

This seems to me to be a very objective and very helpful report. The bad and the ugly are especially worrisome. If one were on this ship for a brief cruise, these issues might be tolerable. If, on the other hand, the Spirit is to be the flagship used for long (world) cruises, these matters are potentially deal-breakers. Tea should be in Panorama. The theatre should be usable. The spa should be functional. Etc. 50-100 days in such a situation is simply not acceptable.

[WesW]

+1, thanks for taking the time to post..esp concur with Ugly Spa comment (in terms of

unisex area), tho we would put the pool deck (9,10) design as also Ugly..just not enough space when u have a full ship; but we would move your indifferent rating for the gym/aerobics area to the very bottom of the Ugly category. We also enjoy the dining choices on the Spirit, but also agree Seishin

should be fee free. And another great Spirit asset is--as our good friend Doug Burns says, the Spirit as the smoothest sailing ship on the seven seas.

 

ps..enjoyed u'r review format too..thanks

[MJN1]

In answer to above questions:

 

Would you say the Spirit's hardware (ship and cabin design) is half a step below the Shadow/Whisper? - This depends how many steps are on your scale.., but I would call it at least one full step below.

 

Have they solved the noise problem for suites 642 to 650 – Don't know. You could hear the band practising in the sauna also.

 

We would put the pool deck (9,10) design as also Ugly..just not enough space when u have a full ship – Agree in principle. The ship was about 85% full and the weather in the Gulf of Biscay not really for sunbathing... so not much of an issue this time. The ship was 100% full for the first time on the next leg and the staff was “looking forward” how this would play out. :o

 

We would move your indifferent rating for the gym/aerobics area to the very bottom of the Ugly – Many would agree with you. As I said, it was empty at 5 p.m. so it worked for us.

[wripro]

This is why, now that the Whisper has had an extensive dry dock, I would choose her over the Spirit.

[TLCOhio]

We were 12 days on the Silver Spirit from Southampton to Barcelona in May. In a nutshell, the Silver Spirit is beautiful, but has incredible design flaws and can not deliver the full Silversea experience.

Here are more details about the “great, good, bad and ugly”:

 

I liked very much your format and approach to look at these various different factors. It makes it in a style where one can breeze through it to find the details of most interest. We are getting ready for our first Silversea experience, July 1-16, doing the Silver Cloud from Copenhagen. We will sail along the Norway Coast, see the fjords, Arctic Circle, Land of the Midnight Sun.

 

I might borrow some of your “great, good, bad and ugly” style, but hopefully we won't have much for the "bad or ugly" categories.

 

THANKS! Enjoy! Terry in Ohio

[Travelcat2]

It is very interesting to me, a Regent loyalist, who is trying to book a SS cruise (another story -- not worth going into). I am reading this thread as a typical "newbie" would. We would not notice if the space per passenger has been lowered since we have not been on other ships. Nor would we care if Tea is served in one venue vs. the other. While I would certainly be sharing similar details with someone new to Regent, I now know how unimportant it is to those who have not sailed on the ship.

 

As a side note, after reading a lot of information on Silver Spirit and Seabourn Odyssey, Silver Spirit rates heads and shoulders above the Odyssey. We will do our best not to compare every item on the Spirit with our favorite ship, Regent's Voyager. While we will not share which cruise we will be on until after the fact, we will post a review by the end of the year. In the meantime, I will be lurking on the SS board often.

[dougburns]

Travelcat; As you know, "Miss Lynn" and I were loyal Regent cruisers as well and Voyager was our favorite ship. However, our favorite is now Silver Spirit. We don't use the gym or spa and I know there are issues there for those that do. The rest of the ship is fantastic IMHO. As I have said before, she's the best riding ship out there and I've been on a bunch; both commercial and military. I really think you'd enjoy cruising on her. Haven't been on Whisper, but we have been on Shadow and we're scheduled for 28 days on the Wind next March/April. In addition, we have 2 cruises booked on Spirit this December and next Oct/Nov. Go for it!

[Keith1010]

It is very interesting to me, a Regent loyalist, who is trying to book a SS cruise (another story -- not worth going into). I am reading this thread as a typical "newbie" would. We would not notice if the space per passenger has been lowered since we have not been on other ships. Nor would we care if Tea is served in one venue vs. the other. While I would certainly be sharing similar details with someone new to Regent, I now know how unimportant it is to those who have not sailed on the ship.

 

As a side note, after reading a lot of information on Silver Spirit and Seabourn Odyssey, Silver Spirit rates heads and shoulders above the Odyssey. We will do our best not to compare every item on the Spirit with our favorite ship, Regent's Voyager. While we will not share which cruise we will be on until after the fact, we will post a review by the end of the year. In the meantime, I will be lurking on the SS board often.

 

Glad to hear that you are branching out and considering trying SIlversea. Was curious why you don't plan to mention which cruise you will be on prior to the start of the cruise.

 

Keith

[ging466]

Was curious why you don't plan to mention which cruise you will be on prior to the start of the cruise. Keith

 

Yeah I wondered that too. Does that mean that u don't join roll calls?

 

Cheers

Jennifer

[Travelcat2]

We are actually booked on a cruise -- just need to work out some complex routing details. Our TA is currently working with Silversea -- we are hopeful that we can finalize details early next week.

 

We do join roll calls on Regent but are taking things slowly with Silversea. My "Travelcat2" persona is misunderstood sometimes and I prefer to meet people and chat with them prior to introducing myself as the poster on CC. We are taking this cruise to have fun -- enjoy the ship, the cuisine and the company of other passengers (as well as checking out how Silversea makes chocolate martini's:-) At this point, it isn't possible to determine how I'll feel about posting "Live from the Silver Spirit" or meeting with other CC'ers on board. In any event, we are really looking forward to experiencing Silversea.

[Emtbsam]

We are actually booked on a cruise -- just need to work out some complex routing details. Our TA is currently working with Silversea -- we are hopeful that we can finalize details early next week.

 

We do join roll calls on Regent but are taking things slowly with Silversea. My "Travelcat2" persona is misunderstood sometimes and I prefer to meet people and chat with them prior to introducing myself as the poster on CC. We are taking this cruise to have fun -- enjoy the ship, the cuisine and the company of other passengers (as well as checking out how Silversea makes chocolate martini's:-) At this point, it isn't possible to determine how I'll feel about posting "Live from the Silver Spirit" or meeting with other CC'ers on board. In any event, we are really looking forward to experiencing Silversea.

If you have the opportunity, try a chocolate cake martini. We were introduced to it by a passenger on our last cruise and Gerardo made it for us. Sadly, Gerardo and Honey Bee have left SS for now and are working in Scotland. Maybe one of the other bartenders will know how to make that variety of a chocolate martini.

[DebbieH103]

Thanks for the great review and the nice format.

 

We were on deck 6 and found it convenient, also.

 

On the women's side, there were people that laid down in the sauna, but then it took all the room, and I did not feel comfortable interrupting anyone that looked that comfy. With 3 people in the steam room, it was OK, but it did not feel that private even though it was nice. The whole layout of where the lockers are, where there are/are not hooks makes no sense throughout. Hooks, at least is a problem that is solvable.

 

I also found the toilet paper, hand towel setup a bit odd and annoying.

 

As I always report, we like packing and unpacking from the butlers, so we appreciate it, and I have not found this all butler concept to be increasing prices. My next two sailings are with free air that would have otherwise been pricey, so I feel good value still exists in Silversea and appreciate them trying to give us more.

 

I still think not serving drinks in the show lounge is a mistake because as I told them on board, they can at least pass out sparkling wine, wine, and soft drinks on a welcome tray as people walk in. They are standing there anyway.

 

People did try to learn our names or some knew us, and that was an improvement over what we saw on Whisper and Shadow but certainly not as extensive as Wind. I was recently at a 680 room resort in Mexico that took great lengths to learn people's names, so it certainly could be done on Spirit. The resort used all sorts of tricks to do it - asking for room numbers, walkie-talkies, etc. so that by the time your waiter came, they knew your name and remembered you and everything you liked by the next day even if they served you at a different venue.

 

As far as comparing Voyager to Spirit, well, there are so many differences. I just love Voyager, but it keeps getting more and more expensive. It is hard to beat the dining, ship layout and overall experience on Voyager, but I prefer the service and cabins on any Silversea ship, including Spirit. We really loved the better separation in the sleeping and sitting area and how the drapes were on a track and could fully close on Spirit, allowing whoever was still in bed to sleep longer if the other was up since 100% blackout was more "doable".

[Travelcat2]

If you have the opportunity, try a chocolate cake martini. We were introduced to it by a passenger on our last cruise and Gerardo made it for us. Sadly, Gerardo and Honey Bee have left SS for now and are working in Scotland. Maybe one of the other bartenders will know how to make that variety of a chocolate martini.

 

Thanks for the tip on the chocolate cake martini -- will definitely ask about it:)

 

DebbieH103: I read somewhere (perhaps this thread?) that there were generally not many people in the Observation Lounge. Is there any particular reason for this? It would seem that a forward lounge with a view would be a big draw.

 

In terms of the Spirit vs. Voyager. . . we will are staying in a Silver Suite --- typically stay in a Penthouse B on the Voyager. I am very interested in experiencing the service and food and not so much comparing the ships. We certainly do not expect perfection -- there are always "hits" and "misses". There is an underlying concern about smoking on balconies and other places on the ship.

 

At the moment, our concern is just finalizing the flights. My DH will cancel if we cannot work it out (and, I don't want to cancel. . . . .:o)

[wripro]

Travelcat2,

 

I have always found the Observation Lounge on any SS ship completely underused. I never see more than one or two people there except when sailing in to or out of some great port. I don't know why. The views are obviously wonderful. Maybe because it's way forward on a high deck and somewhat separated from the rest of the ships' public rooms.

[DebbieH103]

When we self-toured the Spirit when we first boarded, we liked the Observation Lounge. I agree with Wripro on the possibilities of why it is underutilized. There is nothing wrong with the room at all!

 

The silver suites are nice, and I imagine you will enjoy.

 

We did not encounter hardly any smoking on the ship. It was cold weather, so almost nobody was out, but we did not encounter cabin issues. We did last time on Whisper in the hallway on one day only. What we did encounter on 6 was some sort of odor thing by the elevator that then stopped working. Of course, I am sure we had opening week issues, but we had this smell every time we took the stairs there, so we started walking further down and taking the next stair case. That was our main "miss" of the trip.

[WesW]

IMO, a major fault with the observation lounge Debbie, no bathrooms. U will need to trudge down to the pool deck (deck 9) if the urge beckons..unforgivable

as a design fault...that said, we loved going to the Obsn Lounge for a pre dinner drink--a Spirt best kept secret vs. lobby bar and panorama lounge.

As Henry says above, the Obsvn Lounge has spectacular viewing daytime opportunities (esp coming in to port) and wonderful views in the obsn lounge at sunset. Also, you can go out fwd on deck 11 via Obsn Lounge and experiencea wonderful outside vista. Finally, a few of us on the maiden crossing (right dusababy) loved to go to the Obsvn Lounge after breakfrast and before lunch for a wondeful respite for reading and great sea views (bar is self service during this time tho).

[Travelcat2]

Appreciate the input regarding the Observation Lounge. Since we will be on deck 10, this lounge will be very convenient and may be the perfect place to meet a few passengers as well as the bartender in the lounge. It will be strange to be on a ship where we are not familiar with procedures, etc. I suspect we will learn quickly. I am finding some of the recent Silver Spirit posts most interesting and wonder how different the passengers on the ship will be from the passengers on Regent ships. We will remain open minded.

[zqtchas]

If you have the opportunity, try a chocolate cake martini. We were introduced to it by a passenger on our last cruise and Gerardo made it for us. Sadly, Gerardo and Honey Bee have left SS for now and are working in Scotland. Maybe one of the other bartenders will know how to make that variety of a chocolate martini.

We were there too. How do you keep up with all the comings & goings of these people?

Will be sailing on the Spirit Oct 23,'10 from Lisbon. Hope all is not as bad as they're saying!

Anybody else be there too?

[wripro]

Maybe one of the best things about the Observation Lounge is how quiet it is and that it provides a great space to get away and be alone for awhile. Great for reading, as Wes says.

[Wellseasoned]

Hear, Hear! And the deck just above and accessible from the observation lounge on the Spirit, deck 12, affords a glorious outdoor, windy deck for standing and watching the magnificent world , stars, and ocean go by!

[Emtbsam]

Hear, Hear! And the deck just above and accessible from the observation lounge on the Spirit, deck 12, affords a glorious outdoor, windy deck for standing and watching the magnificent world , stars, and ocean go by!

 

That sounds simply wonderful!

[Emtbsam]

We were there too. How do you keep up with all the comings & goings of these people?

Will be sailing on the Spirit Oct 23,'10 from Lisbon. Hope all is not as bad as they're saying!

Anybody else be there too?

We'll be on the 10/23 crossing as well. There is a roll call thread started for that cruise. You might have to go back several pages to find it. There is also going to be a cocktail get together at the Marriott the evening before the sailing, and another morning get together the first day out.

[ging466]

We were there too. How do you keep up with all the comings & goings of these people? Will be sailing on the Spirit Oct 23,'10 from Lisbon. Hope all is not as bad as they're saying! Anybody else be there too?

 

Hi zqtchas

 

We have a roll call for the October transatlantic...please join it here:

http://www.boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1083698

 

Please email me your names & cabin number if u would like an invitation to our meet & greet on the ship.

 

U are also invited to our party on the Friday night before the cruise. It's being held at the Marriott Lisbon, in the bar @ 7pm.

 

Cheers

Jennifer