Silver Wind re-fit (conversion)

[cruiseej]

Seabourn's changes also include a revamp of plans for Antartica next winter. They were planning to have their new small expedition ship, Venture, enter service in the summer and do the Antarctica trips, but they now expect the Venture to be delayed about 5 months. so they're sending the Seabourn Quest -- the ice-class ship that's been doing Antarctica trips -- back for one more season. The new Venture, when it debuts in December 2021, will do a series of first-ever Norwegian Winter voyages; details of those itineraries will be released next month.

 

We had been looking forward to an Antarctica trip. we really wanted to go on the new Seabourn Venture next winter, but when they released the itinerary and prices, the few trips which included South Georgia Island were pretty long and too expensive for us, so we switched to Silversea and the Silver Wind. Of course, that trip was cancelled because Silversea delayed the refurbishment of the Wind, so we switched our booking to the Wind next December. I kept wistfully looking at the Seabourn Venture because it looks so great, but it was more than $10,000 per person additional, so we stayed with the Wind. Now the Venture won't even be doing Antarctica until the 2022-23 season, so I guess we made the right choice. Assuming, of course, that Silversea moves ahead with the Wind refurbishment next spring -- which is certainly not assured. 😉 

[scottjeanne]

We opted for the Seabourne Quest in 2022 in light of the 2021 season being cancelled.  We shall see.  That too may no go ahead.  But he price remains the same, and the deposit is low so we will stick with it for now.

[mspjerry]

On September 23, 2020 Silversea updated their set sail dates:

 

As of today’s date, this list is accurate. However, please note that the situation is constantly changing and we cannot guarantee that the voyages shown below will indeed sail on the date shown. We are monitoring the position daily and will keep this page updated.

 

•     E4201201010 - Silver Cloud will set sail on December 1, 2020
 

•     WI210614014 - Silver Wind will welcome guests once more from June 14, 2021
 

•     SS201204014 - Silver Shadow will commence service once again from December 4, 2020

•     SL201201018 - Silver Spirit will set sail on December 1, 2020

•     SM201220016 - From December 20, 2020, Silver Muse will resume sailing

•     WH201209009 - Silver Whisper will commence service once again from December 9, 2020

•     E1201221014 - Guests will cruise on Silver Explorer again from December 21, 2020

•     MO201208015 - Silver Moon will set sail on December 8, 2020

•     DA211109010 - Silver Dawn will commence service from November 9, 2021

•     OR201205007 - From December 5, 2020, Silver Origin will resume sailing

[mspjerry]

Oct 7, 2020 updates on sail dates, and canceled cruises:

 

Silver Cloud:

•     E4210319021 - Silver Cloud will set sail on March 19, 2021
 

 

Silver Wind:

•     WI210614014 - Silver Wind will welcome guests once more from June 14, 2021
 

 

Silver Shadow:

•     SS201204014 - Silver Shadow will commence service once again from December 4, 2020
 

 

Silver Spirit:

•     SL201201018 - Silver Spirit will set sail on December 1, 2020
 

 

Silver Muse:

•     SM201220016 - From December 20, 2020, Silver Muse will resume sailing
 

 

Silver Whisper:

•     WH201209009 - Silver Whisper will commence service once again from December 9, 2020
 

 

Silver Explorer:

•     E1210209015 - Guests will cruise on Silver Explorer again from February 9, 2021
 

 

Silver Moon:

•     MO201208015 - Silver Moon will set sail on December 8, 2020
 

 

Silver Dawn:

•     DA211109010 - Silver Dawn will commence service from November 9, 2021
 

 

Silver Origin:

•     OR201205007 - From December 5, 2020, Silver Origin will resume sailing
 

 

[Stumblefoot]

2 hours ago, mspjerry said:

Oct 7, 2020 updates on sail dates, and canceled cruises:

 

Silver Muse:

•     SM201220016 - From December 20, 2020, Silver Muse will resume sailing

 

etual324 isn't going to be happy about this.  Wonder when SS will acknowledge they aren't going to be sailing this holiday voyage?

[philipb]

As the months pass I cannot see the Silver Wind refit happening in Q1/Q2 2021, purely on financial considerations.

[cruiseej]

6 hours ago, philipb said:

As the months pass I cannot see the Silver Wind refit happening in Q1/Q2 2021, purely on financial considerations.

 

I can't see anything that's appreciably changed in the past three months since they pushed the refit from this year until the first half of next year. I think they knew by mid-August that there would be no or only limited cruising in 2020. By early 2021, we (and cruise executives) will have a better handle on whether there is/are vaccine(s), how quickly they'll be available to the traveling public, and how countries around the world are dealing with opening borders for travel. They'll be looking ahead to the winter 2021-22 season -- 9 months further down the line -- and assessing whether they think the winter Antarctic season will be viable. So I wouldn't expect a final decision until early 2021. I think the next three months will shed a lot more light on the future of cruise travel than the past three months of status quo have done.

[mspjerry]

I took a look at "marinetraffic.com" today and found the Wind is leaving Barcelona again and headed to Marseille. I do not have any ideas for why it returned to Barcelona after being moored for several months. 

 

The environment for cruising has not been getting any clearer after 8 months of pandemic. We can hope the vaccines may offer a means of controlling the virus.

 

Stay Safe

 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Position Received: 2020-11-27 15:35 UTC
1 minute ago

Vessel's Local Time:
2020-11-27 16:35 LT (UTC +1)

Area: WMED - Balearic Sea

Current Port: -

Latitude / Longitude: 41.28466° / 2.25321°

Status: Underway using Engine

Speed/Course: 14.6 kn / 65 °

[Randyk47]

14 minutes ago, mspjerry said:

I took a look at "marinetraffic.com" today and found the Wind is leaving Barcelona again and headed to Marseille. I do not have any ideas for why it returned to Barcelona after being moored for several months. 

 

The environment for cruising has not been getting any clearer after 8 months of pandemic. We can hope the vaccines may offer a means of controlling the virus.

 

Stay Safe

 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Position Received: 2020-11-27 15:35 UTC
1 minute ago

Vessel's Local Time:
2020-11-27 16:35 LT (UTC +1)

Area: WMED - Balearic Sea

Current Port: -

Latitude / Longitude: 41.28466° / 2.25321°

Status: Underway using Engine

Speed/Course: 14.6 kn / 65 °

This is maybe the second or third time the Wind has made this trip.  Other than needing to run the systems to keep them running right I can’t imagine what the purpose might be.   I suppose another choice is that they have to leave the port in Marseilles periodically for some legal reason.     

[cruiseej]

I wonder if they need to change countries to deal with crew rotation on and off the ship, depending on the restrictions each country imposes?

 

What we really need to know is when and where the two-month major drydock, originally scheduled for August 2020 in Malta,  has been rescheduled. If that doesn't happen on time in early 2021, then all of us booked on one of next winter's Antarctica itineraries will know our plans are going to crumble.

[Randyk47]

4 hours ago, cruiseej said:

I wonder if they need to change countries to deal with crew rotation on and off the ship, depending on the restrictions each country imposes?

 

What we really need to know is when and where the two-month major drydock, originally scheduled for August 2020 in Malta,  has been rescheduled. If that doesn't happen on time in early 2021, then all of us booked on one of next winter's Antarctica itineraries will know our plans are going to crumble.

I can’t but wonder if much or some of the planned itineraries aren’t going to have to slide to later dates.   While the vaccine or vaccines seem almost ready to start being used it is going to take months and months to reach a sufficient and significant part of the world population.   Despite what I think will be potentially a monumental effort you can only do so much so fast.   Add that if airlines, cruise lines, and countries potentially  require proof of vaccination to travel or visit you could see the supposed pent up demand dampened.   The next two to three months are going to be critical as to the pacing of the distribution of vaccines and will give us a projection for the following months and in turn a return of cruising whatever that might look like.   

[philipb]

30 minutes ago, Randyk47 said:

I can’t but wonder if much or some of the planned itineraries aren’t going to have to slide to later dates.   While the vaccine or vaccines seem almost ready to start being used it is going to take months and months to reach a sufficient and significant part of the world population.   Despite what I think will be potentially a monumental effort you can only do so much so fast.   Add that if airlines, cruise lines, and countries potentially  require proof of vaccination to travel or visit you could see the supposed pent up demand dampened.   The next two to three months are going to be critical as to the pacing of the distribution of vaccines and will give us a projection for the following months and in turn a return of cruising whatever that might look like.   

 

A perfect summation of the situation which echo my thoughts exactly. The problem then becomes how long the major cruise companies can survive. Their currently stressed balanced sheets could reach breaking point in the second half of 2021. At which point the vultures will circle.

[Randyk47]

46 minutes ago, philipb said:

 

A perfect summation of the situation which echo my thoughts exactly. The problem then becomes how long the major cruise companies can survive. Their currently stressed balanced sheets could reach breaking point in the second half of 2021. At which point the vultures will circle.

I too share the concern about how long the major lines can survive at least as we knew them.   I actually think Silversea might be in a better place than its now parent company.   RCCL mega ships rely very heavily on what I call “butts in beds” and the resulting onboard spending.   Their business model is quantity and highly repetitive cruises over well established routes week after week.   Between potentially having to limit capacity and concurrently deal with the requirements of various jurisdiction it is going to be a challenge particularly in 2021 as we hopefully turn the pandemic around.  I have no idea what capacity meets their break even point and tips them to profit.   Indeed some cruising could slow the bleeding but even with reduced losses how long can they continue?   I suspect some deep pocket entities are watching this very closely and getting ready to acquire piece parts if not whole companies at a bargain rate.   

[philipb]

19 hours ago, Randyk47 said:

   I suspect some deep pocket entities are watching this very closely and getting ready to acquire piece parts if not whole companies at a bargain rate.   

 

If RCCL does go bust might just Manfredi Lefebvre be standing by ready to re-acquire Silversea? There's a thought.

In the meantime, back to the topic of this thread. I think the Spring '21 conversion (or delay thereof) of Silver Wind will be an acid test of just how strained the finances are at RCCL.

[Randyk47]

2 hours ago, philipb said:

 

If RCCL does go bust might just Manfredi Lefebvre be standing by ready to re-acquire Silversea? There's a thought.

In the meantime, back to the topic of this thread. I think the Spring '21 conversion (or delay thereof) of Silver Wind will be an acid test of just how strained the finances are at RCCL.

I think Lefebvre could very well be watching RCCL closely and if RCCL gets desperate he could indeed reacquire Silversea for potentially a discount if not pennies on the dollar.   Another deep pocket company in the waiting could be Mediterranean Shipping Company.  Yes they have their own cruise line which is probably hurting but the privately owned parent company is one of the largest cargo shipping companies in the world with over 400 vessels.   Their cruise business right now is focused more toward mass market mega ships but I could see them being interested a luxury sub-line.  
 

I too think the potential delay of the conversion of the Wind might be another indication of financial strain at RCCL.  While I’m not aware of them offloading ships to the extent that Carnival Corporation has they have cut or slowed down other projects. For instance, they were in the middle of expanding and renovating their headquarters in Miami when this whole mess started.  That work has completely hauled to the point even the three tower cranes at the site have been dismantled and removed from the construction site.   

[mspjerry]

She is again  moored in France.

 

This was just copied from Silversea's website:

 

Break new waters with Silver Wind.

A major upgrade in December 2018 will saw Silver Wind looking better than ever. A second refurbishment in summer 2021 will see her benefitting from a strengthened to ice-class hull and will make her one of the most adaptable ships in our fleet. Still timelessly elegant, still luxuriously relaxed, her improved cruising versatility means she is able to whizz from the Polar Regions at the ends of the earth to the iconic ports of the Mediterranean with fluid ease. So whether you want to get up close and personal to penguins in Antarctica or laze on the golden sands of the Caribbean, get ready for a wealth of diverse destination experiences, in traditional Silversea comfort.

 

• Guests capacity: 274
• Crew capacity: 239
• Built: 1995
• Last refurbishment: 2020
• Tonnage: 17,400 Tons

[Stumblefoot]

6 hours ago, philipb said:

If RCCL does go bust might just Manfredi Lefebvre be standing by ready to re-acquire Silversea? There's a thought.

Highly, highly unlikely.  You don’t sell the remaining part of the company you own (33%) during a pandemic in July 2020 for only common stock (5.2 million shares of Royal Caribbean Group) with no cash consideration if you are flush with cash.  To me, that signaled Manfredi was out of cash, without further access to financing, and couldn’t meet the obligations required of his 33% ownership stake in the line.

[jollyjones]

And even if cruise lines survive, I doubt they'll be profitable for a while with the new Covid costs required to sail, and all those FCCs out there.

[DCCruiser57]

20 hours ago, mspjerry said:

She is again  moored in France.

 

This was just copied from Silversea's website:

 

Break new waters with Silver Wind.

A major upgrade in December 2018 will saw Silver Wind looking better than ever. A second refurbishment in summer 2021 will see her benefitting from a strengthened to ice-class hull and will make her one of the most adaptable ships in our fleet. Still timelessly elegant, still luxuriously relaxed, her improved cruising versatility means she is able to whizz from the Polar Regions at the ends of the earth to the iconic ports of the Mediterranean with fluid ease. So whether you want to get up close and personal to penguins in Antarctica or laze on the golden sands of the Caribbean, get ready for a wealth of diverse destination experiences, in traditional Silversea comfort.

 

• Guests capacity: 274
• Crew capacity: 239
• Built: 1995
• Last refurbishment: 2020
• Tonnage: 17,400 Tons

Where on the website is this announcement posted?

[mspjerry]

DCCruiser57

 

I found it on their main home page, scrolling down until you see a listing of their ships. Then I scrolled right until Silver Wind appeared, and clicked. It brought me to the description I copied. The link is:

 

https://www.silversea.com/ships/silver-wind.html

 

It could have been typed by someone in error, or could have been recently been updated based on a new schedule.

[vcd]

Does anyone know if the Silver Wind and Silver Cloud will carry less than 200 passengers for next seasons in Antarctica, like they used to? I can´t find it anywhere on the Silversea website...

Thanks

[Stumblefoot]

7 hours ago, vcd said:

Does anyone know if the Silver Wind and Silver Cloud will carry less than 200 passengers for next seasons in Antarctica, like they used to?

 

Silver Cloud didn't carry less than 200 passengers this most recent 2020 Antarctica season, so I can't imagine they'll carry less, unless required to do so by maritime officials.  I don't remember exactly, but our passenger count in January was 236 or 238.

[Randyk47]

9 hours ago, Stumblefoot said:

 

Silver Cloud didn't carry less than 200 passengers this most recent 2020 Antarctica season, so I can't imagine they'll carry less, unless required to do so by maritime officials.  I don't remember exactly, but our passenger count in January was 236 or 238.

Not being particularly interested in expedition cruises I haven’t been paying that much attention but I thought the Cloud’s passenger capacity was around 250.   I’m guessing the renovated Wind will be about the same.   Of course until we return to whatever the new norm is I can’t say what if any limitations will be placed on any cruise.

[jpalbny]

Yes, when Cloud was reconfigured from classic to expedition they reallocated some passenger cabins for extra staff. Capacity dropped to about 250-260 as Randy says. My memory of pre-expedition Cloud is sketchy but I think they took a block of cabins on deck 4 forward for crew.

 

AFAIK the 200 limit for Polar cruises is voluntary,, and relates to landings. You're not supposed to have more than 100 ashore per IAATO. On Explorer with max capacity well under 200, we could split into two landing groups. That way we could be ashore longer, and/or do more landings in a day.

 

There was rumor early on that Cloud would voluntarily limit pax to 200 for Polar itineraries but that was not the case in January 2020, as Stumbles points out. So we had three landing groups. Made for shorter times ashore because they had to land three groups, not two, in a similar timeframe. They did well but it still felt a touch more crowded.

[Gourmet Gal]

Looking at an interesting itin. London to Lisbon 9/2021 on The Wind.  In reading this thread the re-fit seems unlikely at this point.  But in case it actually happens does anyone know if the Project Invictus re-fit includes stabilizers?  It’s my understanding that barring actual storms, this part of the Atlantic can still be very rough in Sept..  As we get older my husband and I are increasingly motion sensitive even after years of sailing on SF Bay.