Silversea Muse Live #2 Sept. 12-28

[Silver Spectre]

Per the Silversea website, here is what they show for the KEY FACTS on the Silver Muse:

GUESTS: 596

CREW: 411

BUILT: 2017

TONNAGE: 40,700 TONS

 

Does this help a little? THANKS! Enjoy! Terry in Ohio

 

Lisbon, NWSpain, Bordeaux/Brittany: Just finished June 2017 sailing from Portugal to France along the scenic Atlantic Coast, plus great pre- and post-cruise experiences. Many interesting pictures and details on history, food, culture, etc., from my live/blog at:

www.boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2511358

 

Thanks Terry, should have looked myself. The reason I asked is that the Montreal Cruise port schedule for Sept 28th erroneously shows the number of guests for the Muse as 1007, now I know where that number comes from.

[Silver Spectre]

I believe it is Martin Blanar. He has progressed during his 9-year career at SS. We met him on our very first voyage on SS back in 2008 when he was the Cruise Director on the Shadow.

 

That would be most interesting as we have met him twice in the last 5 years, firstly as HD on the Spirit and more recently in 2014 as HD on the Shadow.

[Silver Spectre]

There are two events that are not on the Muse, but are on the other Silversea ships. First, there is no formal tea in the afternoon. I was surprised by this as it is the first ship I have been on that has done away with this event. Second, the traditional bullion service at 11 AM is also discontinued. According to the reception desk, they are still being offered on the other Silversea ships. I had looked forward to the tea. The explanation I received was that the Arts Cafe was taking the place of the tea. I for one liked the formal tea, but "somewhat" understand the reasoning. On the good side, it will be easier to stay in the same size pants for a little longer. Until tomorrow.

 

Whoops, that's two of my sea day highlights gone in one go. If we loose the Bridge play as well, then there will just be no point in being at sea at all.

[Emtbsam]

I believe it is Martin Blanar. He has progressed during his 9-year career at SS. We met him on our very first voyage on SS back in 2008 when he was the Cruise Director on the Shadow.

I think we traveled with him as well on the Shadow either Alaska or LA to LA via Tahiti. I am glad to hear that he has progressed.

[Jacko]

There was no crew parade or first of the month awards to crew team for their performance in prior month; no captain's farewell. They did have a great liars club but only after I asked about it.

[Observer]

There was no crew parade or first of the month awards to crew team for their performance in prior month; no captain's farewell. They did have a great liars club but only after I asked about it.

 

I am a bit confused. Again! :)

 

To which cruise are you referring? Do you know why there was no Captain's Farewell, crew parade, etc? Were there weather issues? Was the day before disembarkation a port day with late tour arrivals? I would have very much missed the crew parade. I think it's a wonderful tradition.

[Camillus112]

Although we usually not do afternoon tea (we prefer champagne) we love tea sandwiches and other goodies associated with the ritual. We enjoy the formal service and conversation with other tea afternoon attendees. It will certainly be a pity to forego the experience.

[spinnaker2]

I adore cucumber sandwiches.

So silly, but I do.

I would never eat them at home but with some tea they are a wonderful afternoon respite.

I don't eat the other sugar laden goodies.

We aren't tea regulars but do enjoy it occasionally and on the expedition ships always.

A tradition gone away?

[Observer]

.

We aren't tea regulars but do enjoy it occasionally and on the expedition ships always.

A tradition gone away?

 

Please note that this development is only on Muse and apparently because management imagined that the addition of the Arts Cafe (a great addition, IMHO, unique so far to Muse) with its all day snacks and coffees/teas made the traditional tea unnecessary.

[onetravelbug]

I applaud SS for thinking outside the box on issues like the formal tea. Until you try it you won't know if it works. However, saying that I am sitting in the AC with approximately 17 passengers. We would be lucky to double that number comfortably, so 34 is what per cent of 596? I think you get the idea that the AC can't replace a more formal tea. I would pick up with what another poster said that having a formal tea on sea days might be the right mix for SS. I have some thoughts on this, but will hold off until a few more days before sharing.

[wripro]

Afternoon tea is one of the things SS does really well. I especially love the little timers they put on the table for brewing the tea. And the three tier trays with goodies is terrific. I hope they realize removing this is also a mistake.

[Tothesunset]

On the subject of afternoon tea - but apropos of nothing else on this thread - we had afternoon tea in a very nice hotel in Peterborough recently. They offered the option of traditional or savoury. OH went for trad and it was OK. I went for savoury and it was superbe. I'd not come across this before but if you can imagine the sweeter elements replaced by savoury goodies it might seem all wrong but it worked really well.

[etual324]

Can someone please get me the email address of the on board sales person, I am boarding the Muse in Oct and would to get in touch

Thank you

PLZ send to etual324@aol.com

[Stumblefoot]

Afternoon tea is one of the things SS does really well. I especially love the little timers they put on the table for brewing the tea. And the three tier trays with goodies is terrific. I hope they realize removing this is also a mistake.

Agree with everything you said.

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[onetravelbug]

Can someone please get me the email address of the on board sales person, I am boarding the Muse in Oct and would to get in touch

Thank you

PLZ send to etual324@aol.com

I just sent you his email address.

[etual324]

I just sent you his email address.

 

Thank you again

 

:):):):):):)

[onetravelbug]

I had a nice conversation with our Cruise Director Jimmy this morning. He was very informative on why some of the Muse procedures were what they were. Indeed the formal tea was eliminated because of the Arts Cafe addition. I would like to suggest that the Arts Cafe be expanded and moved to mid ship if it is going to be the only all day venue for coffee and tea. Everyone has commented that the Dolce Vita seems too vast, so maybe here would be a great place for the Arts Cafe (at least on e new Moon)?

It wouldn't be impossible to add a formal tea in the future again, but due to new ship construction restrictions on food handling there has to be coolers available to keep the food in prior to serving. I would personally like to see SS consider having a formal tea at least on sea days. The Panorama lounge might be the only viable place to have a formal tea, if they still have enough coolers installed here. A question that only SS knows the answer?

The morning bouillon should be available at any bar. One can ask for this, which I think I will later to make sure they are providing this service.

I definitely want to see some limited coffee & tea availability in the Observation lounge each morning. The distance from the Arts Cafe and the Observation lounge is just too great not to consider adding this feature.

Some of my concerns about the ability to bring food from one restaurant to another were explained. It seems that the kitchens are not connected in a way that allows a free flow of food from one to another. Having a waiter leave one venue and walking though another restaurant to get a specific item and then back again makes sharing very difficult. Other SS ships presently don't have this many venues so it hasn't become an issue. I am wondering if the dry dock for the Spirit and the construction of the Moon will leave only the original ships with the flexibility we have seen prior to the Muse? Not that change is bad, it just makes one a little uncomfortable until we get use to it?

The ship has handled itself very well so far on the crossing. Not too much movement so I doubt we will have any with sea sickness. Lectures are very good and informative. Overall a great relaxing cruise with enough to keep you busy or time just to chill out. All the above comments and suggestions are really minor compared to the overall experience of the Muse.

 

Ok, a trivia question that I picked up from Jimmy: What are all of the SS ships named for? Answer later.

[Emtbsam]

Rolls Royce models.

[Tothesunset]

So when will they be launching the Silversea Silver Phantom Drophead Coupe?

[onetravelbug]

Rolls Royce models.

Yes, you are correct. Don't think the Phantom is going to make SS list. ;)

[rosepark]

Yes, you are correct. Don't think the Phantom is going to make SS list. ;)

Or the Wraithe. Too many calories on board for that.

Rp

[onetravelbug]

Saturday Sept. 23-

I haven't posted too much in the last few days. Maybe it is the fact that I have become so relaxed that it is hard to find the motivation to post more. As we sit in the port of St. Pierre, the French islands, which is stuck in the middle of Canadian territory I thought I would write a few more thoughts about the cruise & the Muse.

After a very good crossing of the Pond, we arrived in St. John's, Canada. The Muse handled the crossing in style. Lectures were especially good with Bill Miller & Howard Franklin. St. John has a beautiful harbor with a very narrow channel to enter. Cliffs, which were used as part of the defense of early St. John reared up on each side of the channel. I can only imagine how well it could have defended the city. My DW & I took a two hour hiking tour on these cliffs. Great views and good exercise. A musical symphony done by all the harbor boats was to salute our departure. Although I am not for sure anyone recognized which song they were playing. A beautiful day followed us to St Pierre. This is a French Collective which has full voting powers in France. Little English spoken here as their first language is French. All of these islands were established as fishing outposts, and indeed is still the main industry along with tourism. A great time to visit this area is July when the whales are here by the hundreds. St John is a hub for spotting the whales.

Today a visit to Sydney, Canada where we enjoyed another great day. We took a tour to the heart of this area and learned about the early settlers and their life style.

Some more thoughts on the Muse. At this date we have eaten in all of the restaurants except Silver Note and La Dame. Food and service gets high marks at all venues except La Terrazza, which still has sporadic service issues for breakfast and lunch. The lack of a formal tea needs to be addressed by SS. The Arts Cafe just does not replace an established formal tea activity. As the reservation system is being revamped, I won’t comment on what won’t be there in a few weeks.

How the Observation Lounge is utilized needs some rethinking. A lack of coffee etc in the mornings makes it necessary to converse the entire length of the ship to find a cup of tea or coffee so you can enjoy the scenery with your comfort drink. Not to mention that there are no refills available.

The shore excursion department has not shown any weak spots. Organization seems good, and I haven’t heard any complaints from fellow travelers. Normally we only hear complaints not complements so no news is good news.

The Spa is beautiful, and except for what I consider a design flaw of separating the dressing rooms from the steam & sauna rooms it functions very well.

More as we wind down our cruise in a day or two.

 

[Silver Spectre]

Thanks for your further Muse thoughts onetravelbug, we are looking forward to checking them out for ourselves next week.

 

 

Sent from my iPad using Forums

[Master Echo]

Thanks to all those who have taken the time and effort to keep us updated on the progress of their cruise.

 

A high standard has been set for those who will be following from Montreal.

 

Kindest regards

 

Master Echo

[Emtbsam]

Is Bill Miller the investment manager from the US?