Just returned home from the Silver Dawn (5/2/24-5/14/24) Lisbon to Southampton...any questions?

[many cruises]

This was our first Silversea Cruise and we loved the Silver Dawn.  We are seasoned cruisers and have been on over 30 cruises on other lines.  Cruising on a small ship was wonderful...no crowds, no lines, roomy comfortable cabins, excellent food, wonderful service, and never waiting for an elevator.  Our experience was mostly positive, except for many of the included excursions we reserved.

 

We have been reading so many negative reviews on CC that we were worried about our cruise.  Fortunately, our experience on board was wonderful and we didn't experience the negatives we read about.   

 

We will be happy to answer any questions, so ask away!        

Edited May 17 by many cruises

[gnome12]

1 hour ago, many cruises said:

Our experience was mostly positive, except for many of the included excursions we reserved.

Could you elaborate please? I board in less than a month.

[many cruises]

13 hours ago, gnome12 said:

Could you elaborate please? I board in less than a month.

I will begin on a positive note.  From Bordeaux, we visited the village of St. Emilion and a chateau for a wine tasting.  We had a great guide on this tour and she was very upbeat and chatted with us about St. Emilion and the Bordeaux wine industry.  We had a walking tour in St. Emilion and the village was very pretty.  We had some free time there to wander also.  The wine tasting included in this tour was very good also.  We tasted 2 wines at the chateau and enjoyed the surrounding vineyards.

In Bordeaux (on another day), we drove through the city and admired the many beautiful limestone buildings and then visited the interactive wine museum.  The wine museum was very interesting and we were able to see most of the displays showing the importance of the wine industry there.  The museum was very well done because the exhibits were interactive with videos and displays to get visitors involved.

From La Coruna, we went on an excursion which included wines and pairings.  The wine wasn't great and the food wasn't either. 

In Bilbao, we had originally planned to go on the San Sebastian excursion, but we had much difficulty getting information from shore excursions about the details of this tour.  Silversea was emailed a few times with questions we had, but they never clearly answered them.  At the last minute we cancelled this tour and visited the Guggenheim Museum in Bilbao on our own.

Our remaining excursions were typical cruise ship bus tours, so we decided to cancel some and went off on our own.  Silversea needs to write more detailed information in their tour descriptions, so guests can make their own decisions on what they want to do.  Including information about how far from the city center we are docked, where will the buses be parked,  and can we leave the tour and wander on our own would be helpful.  

[Gourmet Gal]

The point about timing and distances is valid.  We’re on Spirit right now and I have a feeling that in most ports we’ll not be docked so departure times are 30-45 minutes in advance of the published tour times.  So far after 2 ports there seems to be poor logistics.  Everything is running late related to included excursions.  If you book independently you will not be able to catch the tender until the first excursions have departed.  You’ll have to just bully yourself onto the tender.  With the new pricing structure it’s tempting to just book without excursions.

[DrSHF]

Hi. How was the food and service on the Dawn? Onboard activities? We have been reading rather depressing reviews here on Cruise Critic. Thank you in advance.

[gnome12]

1 minute ago, DrSHF said:

Hi. How was the food and service on the Dawn? Onboard activities? We have been reading rather depressing reviews here on Cruise Critic. Thank you in advance.

I have no issues with either, but I am not a foodie, nor am I used to luxury travel. 

[many cruises]

9 hours ago, DrSHF said:

Hi. How was the food and service on the Dawn? Onboard activities? We have been reading rather depressing reviews here on Cruise Critic. Thank you in advance.

The food and service were both great...probably the best we ever had.  The tours were typical cruise line included excursions.  Much room for improvement there.    We too, were very worried after reading many negative reviews before our cruise, but the food and service were wonderful throughout the ship.  

[DrSHF]

Thank you for the encouraging response!

[PinonNoir]

How many different restaurants did you try, and which ones were your favorites?  We sail from Copenhagen on August 26th.

[Ken the cruiser]

We’ve been considering booking a Silversea cruise, as they have quite the array of itineraries. Just one question as my DW needs to eat dinner early. What time does the MDR open?

[Port Power]

2 minutes ago, Ken the cruiser said:

We’ve been considering booking a Silversea cruise, as they have quite the array of itineraries. Just one question as my DW needs to eat dinner early. What time does the MDR open?

The two main restaurants open at 7:00pm.  The Grill on the pool deck opens earlier.  The extended dinner menu available for room service also is not available until 7:00pm.  Perhaps you could eat a large lunch in Atlantide and have a lighter dinner in your suite?

 

 

[Ken the cruiser]

23 minutes ago, Port Power said:

The two main restaurants open at 7:00pm.  The Grill on the pool deck opens earlier.  The extended dinner menu available for room service also is not available until 7:00pm.  Perhaps you could eat a large lunch in Atlantide and have a lighter dinner in your suite?

Thanks! When we talked with a Silversea rep today, she said it starts at 6 pm and sports jackets were not required in the MDR, regardless of whether it’s a formal night or not. So, the chance of us booking a Silversea cruise anytime in the foreseeable future just got less likely.

Edited Saturday at 08:21 PM by Ken the cruiser

[sea bright]

Don't think the grill opens earlier for dinner on classic cruises. On our recent Muse and Nova cruises it opened at 7 like the other restaurants.

[gnome12]

5 hours ago, sea bright said:

Don't think the grill opens earlier for dinner on classic cruises. On our recent Muse and Nova cruises it opened at 7 like the other restaurants.

And on my recent cruise on the Dawn. Spaccanapoli is open from early lunch through to late, but their choices are only pizza. You can order there from the grill dinner menu, but again only from 7.

[Mayflower1]

Having just returned from a Silver Spirit Cruise I am able to agree with Guests on The Dawn that Food, Wine & service have been excellent throughout.

 

I would caution from taking advice from Silversea Reps ashore as they seem to have little real knowledge of what happens on board - Certainly from my experience over 25 years the Main Dining Room ( Atlantide on the larger Ships ) seldom opens at 6pm. As for the Jacket Issue I would suggest that you read in detail the latest Dress Code Advice printed by Silversea, as your best source of Information ( however this can change depending on the view of the Restaurant Manager at the time !!! ).

I have no knowledge of what happens on the Expedition ships.

[Timbuktu123]

What’s the entertainment like? How many shows were non-musical? Any comedians and/or magicians? How was the cruise director? Were there any onboard games hosted by crew? Has Silversea added horn players to the band or is it canned accompaniment?