Seabourn Odyssey, SS Shadow or Silver Spirit for Greek Cruise

[amgslg]

I would love any input you could share on the ships and the itineraries as I would be new to both cruise lines and to Greece.  I have a few options that I'm having a hard time choosing between.  I have learned that the weather gets worse in this area as we progress from summer to November, so the earlier cruise seems better in that regard [will the seas be rough in late October/November?].  I have also heard that the dress code is more stringent on Silversea, although we are comfortable in jacket/tie and cute dress -- just don't want to pack a suit or cocktail dresses.  Thanks in advance for your assistance.

 

9/26/20 -- 7 night Seabourn Odyssey

Athens, Crete, Patmos, Cesme, Ephesus, Mykonos, Skiathos, Athens

 

10/3/20 -- 7 night Seabourn Odyssey

Athens, Ermoupolis, Rhodes, Fethiye, Bodrum, Santorini, Spetses, Athens

 

10/12/20 -- 7 night Silversea Shadow

Athens, Nafplion, Crete, Rhodes, Marmaris, Kusadasi, Santorini, Athens

 

10/29/20 -- 7 night Silversea Spirit

Athens, Mykonos, Kusadasi, Rhodes, Crete, Santorini, Nafplion, Athens

 

[alwaysonaship]

We were on Silversea a few years ago, and it didn’t hold a candle to Seabourn.  We are on the Shadow

Edited August 12, 2019 by alwaysonaship

[Catlover54]

First choice is the first SB cruise

Next is the next SB cruise

 

Not that anyone on this board would be biased! 🙂

[saminina]

My objective opinion, unlike others that might be biased towards SB.   Having 480 days with Silversea.....meaning 20 days away from two free weeks.....anything SB would be better than the best SS could possibly offer.   Minus consideration for the true exploration ships doing a worthwhile itinerary.  Even then, you better pack your own water.   I've been over 450 days with Silversea since 2015.   Might never make it to 500.  Too many better options.

[amgslg]

Thank you all for your replies.  Catlover can you explain what about the first Seabourn week itinerary makes it better than the second? And Alwaysonaship and Saminina, could you give me some idea about what you think makes Seabourn better than Silversea?  What differences can I expect?  

 

Thank you all so much for your time.  

[saminina]

Beyond my comfort level to write more.   Loads of threads will provide what you seek.  

[Lois R]

I will be taking my first Seabourn cruise next year. Been on 2 SS... I would also love to hear more about that...…..SS doesn't hold a candle to Seabourn?  I loved both of my cruises..….would very much enjoy reading more about that big difference?

[alwaysonaship]

We were on the Shadow from Singapore to Hong Kong. The whole attitude of the cruise was a disappointment. For example I ask for a lightweight blanket the first day as they had those heavy duvets on the beds. It took 8 days to get one. When you meet your buller they ask what you need.  1. Lightweight blanket. 2. Bottle of cognac 3. Extension cord to plug in my waterpic. That was it, as I said it took 8 days for the blanket, 1 day for the cognac, and 2 days for an extension cord. 

 

‘’The water in the bathroom sink was brown, the food was awful, and we received a $2000 voucher for a future cruise and tossed it. 

 

In a nutshell unless there has has been a miraculous turnaround, go with Seabourn. I fell that they actually care about their guests. 

[marazul]

IMO the first SB itinerary is better because it includes Patmos and Ephesus (Kusadasi is the port for Ephesus).  If you have been there before, then choose the second SB cruise.  Ideally, do a back-to-back of both cruises.

[MJN1]

amgslg,

I second catlover54. The first SB cruise is earlier and thus still more in "summer" and the ports are IMHO "better". Santorini is usually way overcrowded (we stayed on board last 2 cruises) and personally we like the ports on the first cruise more. But this is "personal"!

Like others we have been avid SS fans for 12 years and nearly 200 days. We tried SB in 2014 as we got fed up with the deteriorating service and the constant cost cutting. We did SS again in 2015 and 2016 and endured Prosecco being passed on as Champagne. Replacing the sugarcoated dried ginger in the MDR with ginger flavoured candy "broke the camels back" and we have been on SB ever since...

[Heather White]

I have no experience of Silversea. On the basis of time of year and ports, I'd go for the first cruise on your list. If you're lucky they might still do the free evening concert in Ephesus. Brilliant!

[ab21au]

We did Istanbul to Venice in the Odyssey, our first cruise of soon to be 70 days on SB and stopped at many of the ports in your SB cruise #1. Loved the ports. For Ephesus, we unfortunately docked in Izmir which is further from Ephesus than Kusadasi so we didn’t do the evening concert (a reason to return). I would certainly go for #1

 

While we have not traveled SS personally, several friends who were on that SB cruise with us have since traveled SS have told us they would much prefer SB to SS. Other friends who always traveled SS will not travel with them again. 

[Lois R]

Sorry some of you had such poor experiences on Silversea....sounds like a different line than my sailings, as mine were fabulous…….service, food, everything was wonderful.   Guess I will see for myself if I think one is so much better than the other.

 

Different strokes!

 

[markham]

Lois,

 

I am no expert on Silversea but I know Seabourn well enough to comment: the Seabourn staff and officers are more active, interesting, engaging-friendly in their service-delivery, can-do creative and always better supervised.

 

It’s the style of Seabourn! The training works across their South African, Latin and eastern European staff in every department. Silversea’s uniformly Filipino staff are pleasant but more passive and less well and actively managed. Unlike Silversea, officers on Seabourn are always visible doing checks and participating in certain crew routines alongside them, while showing passengers their dedication to the product. 

 

You will see soon enough how Silversea “good” is taken to a new and very different level.

 

Happy and healthy sailing!

[lincslady]

+ 1.    I completely  agree with Markham's second paragraph.  I have done 3 or 4 cruises on Silversea, and many on Seabourn.  He sums it up perfectly.

 

Having said all that,  there are people to whom the Silversea style is more attractive, and it all depends on your own  personality and needs.  But as the OP mentions preferring informality, it sounds as if Seabourn would be more their style.

[marazul]

14 hours ago, Lois R said:

Sorry some of you had such poor experiences on Silversea....sounds like a different line than my sailings, as mine were fabulous…….service, food, everything was wonderful.   Guess I will see for myself if I think one is so much better than the other.

 

Different strokes!

 

And let us know what you think. 😊

[amgslg]

Everyone has been very helpful.  Thank you for taking the time to comment!

 

[2SailingNomads]

Seabourn experience, Markham sums it up well above, also these 2 ports: Ephesus, Mykonos

[Accessor]

Cruising brand X 4 years ago may not reflect the current quality or experiences of the cruise line today. This year we sailed both SB Encore for 2 weeks and SS Spirit for 2 weeks. This is based on our recent experiences on both lines.

 

1. SB is more laid back especially with less formal dress code

2. SS has an extensive drink menu. Sure, SB will make you anything you want, but more fun ordering from creative extensive drink menu vs two pages on SS.

3. SS (Spirit) had higher end food/better selection/choices/variety (7 places to dine). We had lobster offered once on SB on a 2 week cruise *Silversea has lobster on menu every night. No crab legs or Chilean Sea Bass on Seabourn, which are two of our fav items. And don't get me started with the tapas served in the SB observation lounge (buffet of baloney, cheap chips, salsa, guac, all what you would expect on Carnival, not Seabourn). Silverseas presented properly plated high end tapas in lounge.

4. Servers on Seabourn were in short supply. Thus long waits, poured wrong wines, brought wrong food, and overall felt very stressed and rushed during service.

5. Entertainment was mixed bag on both. No clear cut winner.

6. Having a butler on SS was a pro. We got better service and felt more pampered.

 

The Executive Chef chatted with me about a few things I felt lacking on Seabourn. His response was he ordered food thru HAL suppliers and had limited on choices of products. I could feel the CCL corp penny pinching on Seabourn. We didn't feel this with Silversea under partial ownership from RCCL.

 

Overall both choices are great choices, but for us, Silverseas delivered a superior product and experience. It's our go to cruise line for this reason.

[CLOU]

It's interesting how different people's experiences and preferences can be.  Granted, we have taken ten Seabourn cruises and only one Silversea cruise, but that was partly because of our negative impression following the SS cruise.  Unlike Accessor, the food on SS was one of it smain drawbacks for us.  We sent our meals back once in the main dining room because it was inedible, not just improperly prepared, and I cannot think of any other time I have done that anywhere.  And our experience in the club was the exact opposite.  While Seabourn's passed hors d'oeuvres may have gone a little down hill in recent years, as I think have many things on many cruise lines, they are still far superior to what was served to us in the lounges on SS just a couple of years ago. Everythings was ice cold, including greasy fried calamari and soggy pigs in a blanket.  Each cruise can be different and everyone has different tastes.

[Mauzac]

Everyone's perception is different isn't it?

 

I find the appetisers in the Obs Bar good.  Little cubes of tortilla, serrano jamon, prawns... whatever takes your fancy!  We also sometimes go to the Club pre-dinner where they offer you a delicious little plate of 4 different appetisers, always beautifully presented.  

 

I don't know what baloney is, if it's mortadella, not sure I've seen that there.  I just don't particularly like fried 'brown' food and SB successfully avoids that.  

[Colgal]

7 minutes ago, CLOU said:

It's interesting how different people's experiences and preferences can be.  Granted, we have taken ten Seabourn cruises and only one Silversea cruise, but that was partly because of our negative impression following the SS cruise.  Unlike Accessor, the food on SS was one of it smain drawbacks for us.  We sent our meals back once in the main dining room because it was inedible, not just improperly prepared, and I cannot think of any other time I have done that anywhere.  And our experience in the club was the exact opposite.  While Seabourn's passed hors d'oeuvres may have gone a little down hill in recent years, as I think have many things on many cruise lines, they are still far superior to what was served to us in the lounges on SS just a couple of years ago. Everythings was ice cold, including greasy fried calamari and soggy pigs in a blanket.  Each cruise can be different and everyone has different tastes.

We just spent 11 nights on SS  Spirit in June after a 9 year hiatus and just booked a 14 night cruise on the Silver Muse to Asia in the fall.

 

Our first two cruises (about 9 years ago)on SS were disappointing because of the food and we moved on to five cruises with Seabourn. Initially we enjoyed the dining  on Seabourn ( Legend, Quest, Sojourn, Encore, And Odyssey),  but our experience on Encore was so negative that it took almost 2 years for us to return to a 14 night cruise on Odyssey this past January. After the first week the dining seemed repetitive and was not that enjoyable. 

 

We reluctantly booked SS for a cruise in June and selected it due to itinerary and the need to try something new-we were blown away by the professionalism and warmth of the staff, delicious and varied dining choices and overall feel of the ship. We never went hungry and could always pop into the Arts Cafe for snacks and chocolate. Our butler was amazing, room service outstanding, and the overall experience  exceeded that of Seabourn. The bartenders did an excellent job with poolside cocktails as well as the other venues and the champagne was certainly an improvement as well. The pool loungers were padded and very comfortable and there was more availability than what we found on Seabourn. We took quite a few excursions and they were highly organized and we appreciated that each bus was only half full with lots of seating options for everyone.

 

I agree that stops in Mykonos and Kusadasi are very desirable- two of my favorite ports,  and the more informal vibe of Seabourn appeals to many cruisers. Both lines offer a wonderful experience and can be a great option but for now we are willing to pay a higher cruise fare for the Silversea product as it appeals to our “wants” at this time.

 

Enjoy your cruise!

 

 

[Lois R]

This is all very interesting reading.....I hope my Seabourn cruise passes with flying colors.  

 

Baloney is "lunch meat"...…..not considered anything gourmet but I have eaten plenty of baloney and cheese sandwiches as a kid.  Fried baloney with eggs is a good breakfast. Of course, others may think I have no taste.   I also love fancier foods......caviar, for example

[Accessor]

20 hours ago, Colgal said:

We just spent 11 nights on SS  Spirit in June after a 9 year hiatus and just booked a 14 night cruise on the Silver Muse to Asia in the fall.

 

Our first two cruises (about 9 years ago)on SS were disappointing because of the food and we moved on to five cruises with Seabourn. Initially we enjoyed the dining  on Seabourn ( Legend, Quest, Sojourn, Encore, And Odyssey),  but our experience on Encore was so negative that it took almost 2 years for us to return to a 14 night cruise on Odyssey this past January. After the first week the dining seemed repetitive and was not that enjoyable. 

 

We reluctantly booked SS for a cruise in June and selected it due to itinerary and the need to try something new-we were blown away by the professionalism and warmth of the staff, delicious and varied dining choices and overall feel of the ship. We never went hungry and could always pop into the Arts Cafe for snacks and chocolate. Our butler was amazing, room service outstanding, and the overall experience  exceeded that of Seabourn. The bartenders did an excellent job with poolside cocktails as well as the other venues and the champagne was certainly an improvement as well. The pool loungers were padded and very comfortable and there was more availability than what we found on Seabourn. We took quite a few excursions and they were highly organized and we appreciated that each bus was only half full with lots of seating options for everyone.

 

I agree that stops in Mykonos and Kusadasi are very desirable- two of my favorite ports,  and the more informal vibe of Seabourn appeals to many cruisers. Both lines offer a wonderful experience and can be a great option but for now we are willing to pay a higher cruise fare for the Silversea product as it appeals to our “wants” at this time.

 

Enjoy your cruise!

 

 

 

We felt the same way comparing SS to SB on our recent sailings on both...too bad some loyalists haven't experienced a SS cruise lately. Once they do, their perspective may change.  Mykonos is a fantastic stop that I wouldn't want to miss...

[frantic36]

17 minutes ago, Accessor said:

 

We felt the same way comparing SS to SB on our recent sailings on both...too bad some loyalists haven't experienced a SS cruise lately. Once they do, their perspective may change.  Mykonos is a fantastic stop that I wouldn't want to miss...

 

It depends what you call recent for SS versus SB? We did a Silversea on Shadow in January, 2018 and though we enjoyed our MDR we were unimpressed with Terrazzo, La Dame and Hot Rocks.

 

I had heard so much about the Duck Ragu in Terrazzo but I felt the one I make at home is superior. 

 

Lunch and breakfast unless we ate in the MDR was only okay. We had a great pizza at Terrazzo for lunch one day and tried another day and it was "okay". The pizza was doughy/floury instead of crisp and the topping was a bit sparse. I am not one who overloads a pizza with many flavours but the 2-4 I put on are generous.

 

I was not keen on the Butler idea, ours was always hovering which made it uncomfortable for us. I got the impression there was definitely an expectation to tip. As an Australian I will tip on some occasions but I don't feel comfortable with feeling the need to tip. 

 

But I have had some sailings with Seabourn where there have been fails on some nights, but our good times far exceed those.

 

But YMMV and it obviously does, and that's fine as there is enough ship choices for everyone.

 

Julie

Edited August 18, 2019 by frantic36