Back from Galapagos-Spectacular!

[LadyMusketeer]

Snorkelling: can be done from the shore ( in which case wear a swimsuit and go for a shorter hike) or deep water off the zodiacs. This last recommended - even for a novice like me. The crew are very accommodating so will take you back to the ship if you want to. I forgot my camera once and having dropped everyone off on a beach, I was ferried back with another guy who had forgotten his wet suit top!

 

Binocs: the ones in the suite are not only large, but poor magnification . Recommend you bring your own.

 

Dining: you can eat whenever you want. 10 days ago it was warm enough outside with just a t shirt on. Sometimes a little wind but I got the feeling the captain positioned the ship so wind was minimised. Actually, a little wind was welcome. The hot rocks warm things up anyway. Take a light wrap in case it gets cooler You have to book for the grill on deck as tables are limited. Otherwise the main dining room is large enough to accommodate everyone. This never happened when we were there as the grill was always popular.

 

Bon voyage all!

 

 

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[dkepcruiser]

Thx!! And one last question, at least for now - I'm assuming since the ship is older that there aren't many outlets in the cabins? In these days of personal electronics I want to make sure we are prepared and bring power strips to charge phones, iPads, camera batteries, etc.

[ppiew]

For dinner we ate when we wanted except at the outdoor GRILL (Hot Rocks type) we had to have reservations as seating space up there is somewhat limited. Not so in MDR - no ressie necessary. The AC problem mentioned here is partially covered if you keep the door to the verandah closed. It seems the cooled air escapes thru there hence the stateroom is too warm. Not sure about the non-verandah suites. We never wore swimsuits under hiking clothing. Snorkeling was usually a half day occurence and some wore wetsuits over swim suits some didn't, and most had a shirt or a coverup over suit. A few carried their backpacks with stuff in them and in most cases SS brought towels on shore.

We never needed a sweater or jacket on the deck in the evenings. The weather couldn't have been better

[wishIweretravelling]

Thanks for all the great info. A couple more questions:

 

For the snorkeling from the zodiacs, is there a ladder or some other aid to get back in, or do you need to hoist yourself in?

 

On the 7-day itinerary, it looks like there are two stops a day. about how long is the ship at each stop, on average?

 

I'm going in August, and your reviews have piqued my excitement!

[RachelG]

Having been on many zodiacs, I do think you will have to hoist yourself in, with the assistance of many able bodied men. I have not seen any ladder ever, in probably 10-15 cruises involving zodiacs.

[ppiew]

yes, we did have a ladder of sorts to get back into the zodiacs. The stops in the AM and PM were usually about 2-3 hours. Also the zodiacs returned you to the ship for lunch each day. Never felt there was too much or too little time. some of the beach time the zodiacs ran steadily so you could spend as much or as little time as you wished. The hikes of course were a bit more rigid.

[dkepcruiser]

Are there ever opportunities to swim/snorkel more than once each day? Wondering if I need to bring 2 swimsuits, I hate putting a wet one on but will only bring 1 as long as I know it can dry overnight. Also, will the outlets in the rooms accommodate 3 prong grounded plugs? I have a small surge protector that I like to travel with because there are so many things that need to be charged these days, but it has that third prong. Thank you!!

[duct tape]

There are both types of outlets available. Enjoy the trip.

[5waldos]

There are ladders to get back in with strong men there to assist. Just back- great experience , and will join in tomorrow with some of our experiences.

 

 

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[Stumblefoot]

Looking forward to it 5Waldos!

 

 

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[5waldos]

Not in any way back yet (despite my corporeal self being here in Denver) but a very few quick thoughts.

 

We had a serious run-in with jelly fish so you might consider using either a full length rash guard or the full wet suits. 3 of our party, including Mr5W, ended up in the med clinic with serious effects (muscle cramps, some breathing problems, and this in addition to the stings themselves) and we came close to being evacuated. This on day 2 of the cruise. I had 3 areas where I was stung and still am having itching episodes. Those things HURT!!! This was in the deep water snorkeling and we never saw them even.

 

There are not stabilizers on the ship- apparently it is too small. This information from a group who had the opportunity to spend time with the engineers. So we experienced a bit of rocking even when the sea was apparently very very quiet. Not bad enough to impact people but we were quite aware of it.

 

Two favorite experiences- the fish market (on Santa Cruz I believe) was really a hoot- sea lions and pelicans waiting in line for some fresh fish. Quite the show. And in the evenings when we were still anchored when the lights were turned on to the sea. One night we had many many sharks cruising around the ship, another night we had an explosive show of flying fish, a shark or two, a frantic squid, a sea lion- all just off the ship. They would be very quite for a few minutes, then suddenly there would be things jumping and flying about.

 

And we never needed sweaters or jackets at all, inside or outside. There was often wind up on the deck, but it was warm wind. And we had perfect weather for the entire trip- I think we may have had a few minutes of sprinkles one day at the turtle nursery, but not even enough to consider ponchos.

 

And storage- there is additional space for luggage in the life jacket cupboard. We were able to put most of our bags in there, with only a single bag that needed to go into the closet.

 

One final thought- if you experience a banging at night, lock the bottom drawers. That will hold them and keep them from rattling about all night. It took me half of one night, and part of the next morning to figure that one out- the noise was really annoying and we couldn't figure out where it was coming from (especially at 3am).

 

And I don't remember any 3 prong plugs, although the ones for the tv may have been.

Edited February 25, 2014 by 5waldos

[duct tape]

Interesting, thanx! I may have misspoken about the availability of plugs. I was thinking of the SS cruise ships, not the expedition ships. Sorry.

[RachelG]

Good advice about the jellyfish, and sorry you got bitten. They can be really nasty. Glad that you didn't have to be evacuated.

 

But it sounds like you saw a lot of really cool other stuff!

[5waldos]

We had a wonderful time and did indeed see lots. But people on many of the snorkeling outings were stung, both deep water and shore- but apparently none as severly as the 3 on our trip. I just didn't even think about jelly fish (they had never been mentioned) and it came as a shock. Put a bit of a damper on further snorkeling for sure.

[duct tape]

Always have Adolph's seasoning aboard. Works on the jellyfish stings on the Chesapeake!

[5waldos]

Hm...vinegar gets higher marks scientifically and after our experience all pangas are supposed to carry it. The seasoning did exactly nothing for us.

 

 

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[mrsm88]

Not in any way back yet (despite my corporeal self being here in Denver) but a very few quick thoughts.

 

We had a serious run-in with jelly fish so you might consider using either a full length rash guard or the full wet suits. 3 of our party, including Mr5W, ended up in the med clinic with serious effects (muscle cramps, some breathing problems, and this in addition to the stings themselves) and we came close to being evacuated. This on day 2 of the cruise. I had 3 areas where I was stung and still am having itching episodes. Those things HURT!!! This was in the deep water snorkeling and we never saw them even.

 

There are not stabilizers on the ship- apparently it is too small. This information from a group who had the opportunity to spend time with the engineers. So we experienced a bit of rocking even when the sea was apparently very very quiet. Not bad enough to impact people but we were quite aware of it.

 

Two favorite experiences- the fish market (on Santa Cruz I believe) was really a hoot- sea lions and pelicans waiting in line for some fresh fish. Quite the show. And in the evenings when we were still anchored when the lights were turned on to the sea. One night we had many many sharks cruising around the ship, another night we had an explosive show of flying fish, a shark or two, a frantic squid, a sea lion- all just off the ship. They would be very quite for a few minutes, then suddenly there would be things jumping and flying about.

 

And we never needed sweaters or jackets at all, inside or outside. There was often wind up on the deck, but it was warm wind. And we had perfect weather for the entire trip- I think we may have had a few minutes of sprinkles one day at the turtle nursery, but not even enough to consider ponchos.

 

And storage- there is additional space for luggage in the life jacket cupboard. We were able to put most of our bags in there, with only a single bag that needed to go into the closet.

 

One final thought- if you experience a banging at night, lock the bottom drawers. That will hold them and keep them from rattling about all night. It took me half of one night, and part of the next morning to figure that one out- the noise was really annoying and we couldn't figure out where it was coming from (especially at 3am).

 

And I don't remember any 3 prong plugs, although the ones for the tv may have been.

Oh wow, sorry to hear about your jellyfish issues. We also got stung- my brother much worse than myself & they had vinegar spray on the beach, but our guide told us urine is the best cure (I knew I read that) & have to say, for me, it was! (sorry I hope not grossing anyone out, but please, remember this, important). WE were stung the 1st day we snorkled off beach.

We stowed our luggage in the closet by our desk- we had the terrace suite so I am wondering that if our room was larger, there was more closet space? Also we saw on the last day that there are drawers at foot of bed! We didn't even use all of our drawer space. There are 2 locked drawers in desk & there is a vanity mirror that opens up on desk, it didn't stay up though. Hubby fixed it once & then it stopped working again at end of cruise.

We only had a little rocking, not terrible, never put my bracelets on. But we had 1 very rough deep water snorkel that getting into zodiac was tough & hubby banged his knee & was bleeding when he got in. Guide immediately (without gloves) cleaned his wound & bandaged it! The tides had turned & we were supposed to be able to float to calmer water & it didn't happen, we were getting pulled further out so most of us gave up pretty fast.

We also shared 5waldos 2 fav experiences. The fish market is incredible watching the pelicans & sealions trying to steal fish scraps. That town- puerto arroyo is also a good souvenir spot. But my advice- if you see something, buy it, cause you may never see it again! (I had read that somewhere & I wish I listened). In Quito, outside a church, indigenous women were selling scarves 2/$5 out of Alpaca. I bought 2, should have bought more. A couple of other things I figured I could get at airport- you can shop in Baltra airport (which had no water in ladies room day we left), but Guayaquil airport (we flew direct home from there) is expensive & not worth shopping in. They do have a very nice 1st class/priority pass lounge there.

We did have the night banging- we thought it was the exit door to the deck outside our cabin. We were at the front of the ship & the deck outside was incredible for stargazing- make sure you take a trip up there. (deck 5)

[dkepcruiser]

Got home this AM from a wonderful cruise on the Silver Galapagos! That being said, while the overall experience was truly wonderful, I have to agree with other reviewers that the ship has a ways to go. We've never cruised with Silversea before, only Crystal, but to my way of thinking, if you're going to charge 5 star prices, then you need to deliver a 5 star experience. At this point I would say this is more of a 3-4 star experience in terms of the ship. And you certainly have to keep in mind that there are tradeoffs being on a larger ship as opposed to some of the smaller ones. However the wildlife is truly incredible, which is why it was still a fantastic experience.

 

Just some notes - husband and I (mid 50s) traveled with our 2 adult children so we didn't socialize a ton. We had cabin 506, one of 2 terrace suites, it was quite spacious although the decor was dated and needs some sprucing up. Our kids' cabin, 334, was more average. The terrace outside our cabin is "public" space but there were only maybe 6-10 other people who seemed to know about it and we generally had it to ourselves which was great, it's on the front of the ship, some misc seating (not terribly comfortable) but for our group of 4 it was perfect. The biggest complaint that everyone has is the room temps and the inability to control it. It wasn't awful, and it was unseasonably hot this past week, but I would have preferred the room to be at least 5 degrees cooler for sleeping to be comfortable. We got a lightweight cotton blanket after the first night which definitely helped but this is a big problem. Our "butler" was very pleasant and, like most of the staff, tried hard but still has a ways to go to really be a "butler". Some days we had the extra towels I requested, some days we didn't….some days there was extra Coke Light in the minibar, some days not. But he did replenish the bottle of white wine before we had finished the first one, and was very solicitous one evening when I wasn't feeling well, offered to bring me tea, etc so a solid work in progress. The bathroom was adequate although the drain in the shower was quite slow, I asked to have it checked but didn't really seem any better. Was a bit of a concern when hubby and I showered back to back and the ship was rocking a bit, worried that the water would slosh on the floor, but never quite did!

 

Food was pretty good given the limitations put on all the ships. We had breakfast each morning in the restaurant and lunch each day in the grill, got a little repetitive but what do you expect on a ship with only 100 passengers? I'm sure the smaller ships were even worse. Quality was above average but not great. We got bored after 3 nights for dinner at the grill, the hot lava rock concept is cute but the novelty wears off when it takes too long to cook a thick cut of meat and your companions are already done with their prawns. Also had the same salads offered each night and same desserts, so the only thing that varied was the fish of the day. So we opted for the restaurant more. We just drank the house wine which was adequate, nothing great but we just didn't bother to check the wine list because we were sort of all over the place about what we all wanted, it just wasn't something that was important to us. Same spotty service issues, some of which I think are attributable to language difficulties. My daughter speaks fluent Spanish which definitely came in handy more than once!

 

The briefings each night were helpful although I suggested on my comments that they consider doing them around lunch time instead as we found 7 PM to be awkward, we often didn't get back from the afternoon excursion till 6 or even 630 which left very little time to shower, etc and pretty much no time for a pre-dinner drink unless you don't eat till 830 or so. There was an option to buy a $150 photo and video package, you get to see the video portion before purchasing, decent footage, especially the underwater stuff, but we didn't think worth $150. There are also some presentations by the guides most nights about the wildlife, etc in addition to the briefing about the next day's activities.

 

They use an old school sign out/sign in sheet when you leave the ship, surprised they don't have the ability to scan your ID, would in all honestly be pretty easy to leave someone behind! The zodiacs work fairly efficiently, about as good as you can expect when you're dealing with a ship with 100 passengers as opposed to the smaller 30-50 ships. I think the only way to avoid not having some waiting around would be to assign departure times, which they did do for some excursions but not all, they would assign maybe 2 decks at 830 and the other 3 at 900.

 

The excursions were quite simply wonderful. Each day was different - typical was maybe a hike for 90 min around 8 or 830, then motor to a different spot for snorkeling around 1030, back on board for lunch while puttering off to somewhere else, then another hike or zodiac tour in the afternoon around 3 or 4. The guides were wonderful, found out they are independent contractors and work for different ships different weeks so no way to know who you might have, but they were all pros. We did the Western itinerary, really wanted to see penguins - LOVED the snorkeling!!! Champion Inlet was particularly spectacular, that was the last of the 5 snorkeling opportunities and it was great, sea lions everywhere! Fernandina is incredible, the iguanas freak me out a little and they were everywhere, but they couldn't care less about us. Even the slightly less "exciting" walks into the interior of some of the islands were still interesting, each island truly has it's own personality.

 

So all in all still a fantastic experience, even if I don't really feel we totally got our money's worth. Happy to answer any specific questions people might have!

[Stumblefoot]

dkepcruiser,

 

Thanks so much for taking the time to share your experience. Overall, it sounded like a good voyage, albeit a bit pricey for the product/service.

 

Hope to see you enjoy a SS mainline cruises sometime in the future. Would be interested to read your perspective vs. Crystal as we've not cruised Crystal before.

 

Best wishes!