Silver Wind or Silver Dawn for next cruise?

[lucas34]

I would like to hear opinions about two different options; Silver Wind vs Silver Dawn. I know the Wind is an older and smaller ship, but sailing from the London/Tower Bridge is an experience that beats the Dawn (from Southampton) in terms of ship, service and food?

[mitz18]

15 minutes ago, lucas34 said:

I would like to hear opinions about two different options; Silver Wind vs Silver Dawn. I know the Wind is an older and smaller ship, but sailing from the London/Tower Bridge is an experience that beats the Dawn (from Southampton) in terms of ship, service and food?

Take the itinerary you like as both are nice.  However that being said, was on the Dawn in January and absolutely loved it.  The food was great, the terrace of La Terrazza was spacious and enjoyable and the service was top notch.  It never felt like 500+ passengers and the ship was beautiful.   But again, the Wind is great & love the small capacity.  Pick the itinerary you want and enjoy.     

[Silver Spectre]

23 minutes ago, lucas34 said:

I would like to hear opinions about two different options; Silver Wind vs Silver Dawn. I know the Wind is an older and smaller ship, but sailing from the London/Tower Bridge is an experience that beats the Dawn (from Southampton) in terms of ship, service and food?

Sailing out under Tower Bridge is magic, however the Wind is now an expedition ship, which means no CD and no proper entertainment. It also means that most stop will be serviced in Zodiacs, no tenders as these are now only used as lifeboats. Other than that it’s sort of 250 versus max 600 guests, a main dining room v a number of different restaurants. You will enjoy either.

[elb]

Silver Whisper or Silver Muse 6/29 Alaska

[jollyjones]

Last time I sailed out under Tower Bridge we sailed at 5am on a dull misty drizzly morning which rather took the gloss off it. 

Take note of Spectre’s comments. 
 

Personally I wouldn’t hesitate to recommend the Dawn, she has so much more to offer than the Wind. The cabins, and especially the bathrooms are better on the Dawn, and there’s so much better choice for dining. 
 

But pick whichever itinerary suits you, both ships are good. You might prefer small with less to offer. But I suspect the Wind will be more expensive, being an expedition ship, you’ll probably get better value on the Dawn. 
 

Service should be wonderful on both. 

Edited March 22, 2023 by jollyjones

[Lois R]

Dawn....I have sailed her twice and have multiple upcoming cruises on her🙂

[jollyjones]

Following on from Lois, I might add I don’t even look at the little ships any more, I’m only willing to sail the Moon, Dawn, Spirit, and slightly reluctantly the Muse. 
I do have the Nova booked but I’m very unsure about her. 

Edited March 22, 2023 by jollyjones

[Stumblefoot]

2 hours ago, jollyjones said:

I’m only willing to sail the Moon, Dawn, Spirit, and slightly reluctantly the Muse. 
I do have the Nova booked but I’m very unsure about her. 

With apologies to the OP, this is big news from Jolly.  I think I know why there is appeal of the Muse Class ships, but why reluctant about the Muse herself, Jolly?    Like you, we have a voyage booked on Nova, as well as Ray, to see what we think.

[alithecat]

As others have said, Silver Wind is a smaller, older expedition ship. They will anchor near small ports and take you to shore on zodiacs, then on active hikes etc. There is an expedition leader and large team. There is no entertainment beyond a piano or guitar player in the lounge. Dress is much more informal.

The Dawn is one of the larger, newer classic cruise ships. You dock at large ports or anchor and they take you to shore on tenders. They have classic excursions, usually involving bus rides to the destinations. There is a cruise director and entertainers, with shows. Dress is more formal. Expect men to wear a jacket in the dining room most nights, plus 1 formal night per week. There are many more choices of dining rooms. It is a very different experience.
 

Book whatever appeals to you.

[jollyjones]

8 hours ago, Stumblefoot said:

With apologies to the OP, this is big news from Jolly.  I think I know why there is appeal of the Muse Class ships, but why reluctant about the Muse herself, Jolly?    Like you, we have a voyage booked on Nova, as well as Ray, to see what we think.

 

The Muse is the first in the Muse class and they got it mostly right but there's a few small things I'm not so keen on - Arts Cafe is too small and not very welcoming, the bar in the forward starboard corner of Dolce Vita makes the space look huge and not so inviting, and I hate, hate, hate the ghastly bright red running track up on deck 11 - I spend a lot of time walking on the upper deck when I'm cruising and this awful colour really annoys me. I don't like spicy food so Indochine is problematic (although Les thinks the food there is too bland!), even though I think the decor in the room is attractive.

That said, if she's the ship with the itinerary I like, I book her without hesitation.

 

The Spirit was my first SS ship so I've always had a soft spot for her, and I think the stretch was a great improvement.

 

In the Dawn and Moon, SS has got it just about right for me.

 

 

 

Edited March 23, 2023 by jollyjones

[Stumblefoot]

Thanks Jolly.  Appreciate you sharing and thanks for the context.  Enjoy the rest of your current voyage!

[crusinbanjo]

Mrs Banjo and I sailed on both the Wind and the Cloud when they were brand new, of course we felll deeply in love with both.  The experience back then is not matched on any ship today.  But, having said that, being converted to expedition ships makes them less desirable for a luxury cruise, IMHO.  Not that changing them was a bad move on SS's part, I think both will serve their new markets quite well.  So, if it were me, I would go with the Dawn, unless you want the "Expedition Experience"  as was described in previous posts.

[Mocamps]

We’ve been on the Cloud twice and Wind once, and booked again for Wind next year. We love the whole expedition experience. No need to dress up, casual atmosphere, guests tend to be of a more active and adventurous nature. Expedition staff are experts in their field and organise hikes, zodiac trips, kayaking etc. We had some very interesting talks on the Cloud (Antarctic and Arctic) but were less impressed with the presentations on the Wind last year in the Arctic. There’s not much in the way of entertainment though we’ve enjoyed trivia, Bingo, Name that Tune etc. But all very laid back and not taken at all seriously!

if that’s not for you and you prefer things to be more like traditional cruising, I’d probably stick to the Dawn.