jtm1

Have you experienced noise issues from the pool deck above your cabin? I am enjoying your postings tremendously!

Thanks, Jim

We were in a Silver Suite on the Moon in July and enjoyed it very much; especially in rough weather it's midship position makes it less bumpy than the forward suites.  On a TA a few years ago on the Whisper we encountered quite rough weather, hopefully you will not.

Enjoy your cruise!

On 8/20/2022 at 3:19 PM, Picky Traveller said:

Would welcome views on the Silver Suite that we have been offered on Silver Moon , 1006. This is three cabins away from the Bridge and Machotspur bumping into the Captain on the way to the Bridge made me wonder whether we would be likely to be disturbed by noise from the Bridge in this cabin.

Also  this would be our first voyage in a Silver Suite and on the subject of noise we have found in the past that the soundproofing in the Veranda suites is not always the best particularly with TV's being mounted on the wall. Has anyone experienced this issue in the Silver Suites?

 

We were in that exact cabin on the Moon in July, no noise issues at all and very little traffic going to and from the bridge. By the way, the officers who do pass by do so in silence. It's a great Suite.

Yes there was a coffee machine with tea also available in the Observation Lounge each morning.

My review of our July 5 to 15 cruise on Silver Moon can be found here:   https://www.cruisecritic.com/memberreviews/memberreview.cfm?EntryID=690138

According to the Marine Traffic web site the ship was at the dry dock in Frederickshavn between the end of the July 15 cruise and start of the July 19 cruise.

The last night of our voyage as we cruise to Copenhagen and a 7 AM arrival tomorrow. All in all this has been another wonderful Silversea experience, not without hiccups (we don't live in a perfect world) but nonetheless an A+ cruise.

As I provided my credit card at Reception for the settling up of my bill I was struck by how anxious several folks were over how they were going to get home to the US with the SAS strike continuing. It is certainly understandable that they are anxious but it seemed that they wanted more from the Reception staff than could be provided, which was apparently to say that it is being worked on by corporate.

This is not meant as a criticism of either the effected passengers or the Reception team, I feel badly for both of them. Circumstances outside of Silversea are putting a sour ending on many folks cruise.

I hope all works out for the passengers and they get home quickly.

I have done both direct and thru an agent, I now use direct all the time and am very satisfied with the service I receive.

US Dollars are the currency on board regardless of the destination.

Tucson Guy and I are like ships in the night... my wife and I also ate at La Dame last evening. I agree it was outstanding.

A note regarding tenders and mask wearing,  yesterday in Flam 100% wore masks on the tenders. 

We did the Flam railway excursion which was very interesting, although due to the train schedule it is perhaps a little long.

Today the scheduled stop at Alesund had to be scrapped when the wind was too brisk for us to dock. So, we are off to Olden a day early to be there overnight. That will be a welcome respite from the rather rough seas last night. In 9 previous cruises we have experienced rougher but still it was a bit unpleasant.

I agree with Tucson Guy that the fashion police would be unhappy that some of our fellow passengers are lax in following the dress recommendations. On the Formal Night two nights ago we ate in La Terrazza as I did not bring a tux but rather a dark blue blazer, which I wore with a dress shirt and tie. Nearly everyone else there was dressed similarly save for the fellow in his  jogging outfit. They gave him a blazer which the maître'd placed upon the back of his chair. Weird, but I am way past really caring, I post this just for entertainment value.

 As an aside, I am glad I cancelled my Chicago to Copenhagen roundtrip on SAS and switched to Swiss Air connecting through Zurich. The unfortunate pilots strike is messing up many passengers plans to get home from Copenhagen when our cruise ends.

At the half way point this has been yet another wonderful cruise on Sliversea.

Dinner in SALT tonight, very good! Salmon, of course, as well as Char and Venison.

Popular but not overcrowded.

I can  answer a few of these right away:

460 on board yesterday with 40 more joining today in Bergen. Has not felt crowded at all.

Masks mandatory in Venetian Lounge last evening for Captain's welcome. Most folks complied until seated and eating/drinking. I don't know about the gym, but the material says masks are mandatory there and on the excursion buses. On our excursion today a mix of some did and some didn't.   The guide made no mention of masks and did not wear one himself. I saw no cloth masks and the instructions indicated  N95 or surgical, which they handed out if needed.

Will report on Salt and the little thermal pool if I have news.

We are in a Silver Suite.

Private excursions were happening today, since we did not take one I don't know about mask requirements.

Jim

Embarked Tuesday in Copenhagen for a 10 day Norwegian fjord's cruise. The embarkation was a bit scrambled as first the port authorities had to permit you to move on to the local health authorities and then finally to the Silversea medical team who looked at our vaccination cards and Covid test results. And then at last we surrendered our passports and got our key cards. All of this took no more than 20 minutes but it seemed a bit chaotic, mostly the local folks creating the twists and turns.

The ship is, of course, a delight. Spotlessly clean and sparkling in every detail.

Muster drill went smoothly and is one of the few times that masks are mandatory for passengers. (They are mandatory for crew at all times).

Dinner the first night was in Atlantide. We had planned for the Grill but the weather had other plans for us. The food and service in Atlantide were quite good, as good as we remembered from our last cruise on Silver Muse three years ago. 

Our butler is figuring out how best to be of service to us. He does whatever we ask, which is very little, but does not seem to take the initiative, maybe that will change as time passes.  

Last night we had dinner in La Terrazza and it was excellent, the pappardelle with duck ragout was as we remembered: outstanding. Some service glitches, but minor ones. 

In general the crew is as they have been on our previous nine Silversea cruises: friendly, professional and seemingly a step ahead of our requests. They are the true heart of Silversea.

After a day at sea we arrived in Bergen this morning and had our excursion, The Best of Bergen, very enjoyable and informative with a great guide.

Tomorrow on to Flam.

Happy to answer questions if I can.

Jim

No, I cancelled SAS and booked Swiss. Both transactions on the respective airline web sites. SAS was flexible about giving a full refund under the circumstances so that helped.

Jim

We are on the same cruise and were also flying SAS from Chicago to Copenhagen (although on 7/1). I had booked my flights on my own and was able to change to Swiss Air through Zurich, not ideal but the situation at SAS does not look promising. We also absolutely need to get home after the cruise and had concern that even if SAS got us there would they get us back.

Admittedly a first world problem, Jim

I also received my refund when Silversea said it would arrive. Roughly a little over a month after I cancelled.

You  are correct --not sure why the fodor's headline says 8 ships when there are 9 on the  list. And I certainly messed up and should have indicated 2 of 8 (or 9). And the Silver Wind score is indeed from a year ago. So, mea culpa.

I was on The Silver Spirit just  prior to this February inspection and it looked spotless to me. Nonetheless, the score is recent and it is not a good one. 

Doesn't effect my fondness for Silversea nor my plans to sail on  it's ships in the future.  

According to CDC six of the eight dirtiest cruise ships are Silversea vessels. Yikes!

https://www.fodors.com/news/cruises/the-8-dirtiest-cruise-ships-according-to-the-cdc?fbclid=IwAR0QfP24gOg3N1Wvef9J8h1W23hXhn6cF1nbxwnDZ1TwpIakoqcczjJRN_o

My experience on Silver Spirit in the Caribbean this  January was very much like yours: disappointing. I, too, had premium internet and cannot imagine what the less premium could have been like.

My questions were also answered with the same obfuscations about the numbers trying to use the internet, the nature of the area, etc.

Not a Silversea type experience

.

Jim,

Thank you for your report.  I, too, am disappointed to hear about the duck pappardelle, I recall that people were raving about that dish in the past.  Are there any particular dishes in the various venues that you found to be outstanding?

Bob

I especially liked the lamb chops in Atlantide, the salmon and the filet of Beef prepared on the hot rocks at The Grill (which we asked them to cook for us and they did so gladly) and the tasting menu at Silver Note was very interesting and worth a try. Enjoy your cruise.

Jim 

Our 11 days on Silver Spirit ended in Fort Lauderdale yesterday morning and after various delays due to the terrible cold in Chicago we arrived home last evening.  Trying to remember the warmth of The Caribbean.

Overall our cruise was delightful. The only downsides being: first, some of the ports on this cruise (Road town,Tortola and Rouseau, Dominca) were odd choices. They are both sadly still suffering from hurricane damage. My second issue, as mentioned in my post from when we  boarded was the awful wi-fi, even with the premium service we received for being in a Silver Suite. At times it simply did not work, and we were only doing emails and checking the weather and written (not streaming) news.. The explanation that it's tough to do wi-fi at sea is at odds with our very positive experience with wi-fi on Silver Muse about 18 months ago. 

Moving on to all the many positives:

 The Ship   was in perfect, pristine condition. It was interesting to play "find the stretch spot". It was done so well that only with the help of a crew member could we figure out precisely where the work was done. And the additional room at the pool and Grill made for a better experience.  I particularly like the new, Muse like, color scheme; others may disagree.  

Dining options are plentiful. We made reservations on MySilversea and all were honored. It was easy, however, to make some changes as the cruise went on. And, Atlantide and Indochine require no reservations. Even with a nearly full cruise (544 passengers) there were no problems making adjustments. The increased space in La Terraza was a mixed blessing. It was easy to get in there for dinner, but the relative intimate nature of the space is gone. And, I notice they no longer mention Slow Cooking in the description. And, sadly, the duck pappardelle was just OK. We tried Silver Note and enjoyed it. The duo (singer and pianist) were quote good, took requests and not at all too loud. 

The crew  make the Silversea experience and this trip was no exception. They were uniformly charming and a delight to interact with.

I would be happy to answer any questions.

All in all another wonderful Silversea cruise. 

Jim

Bob, we very much enjoyed our time on the Spirit and I think/hope you will as well. I will be posting a more detailed report on this board later today.

Regards, Jim

Boarded yesterday in Ft Lauderdale after two days at the wonderful Pillars Hotel, where the photo below was taken. This is our second time on the Spirit, first since it was stretched. 

The ship is in pristine condition, and as expected the crew is outstanding. I like the subdued color scheme in the corridors and the addition of Art's cafe and Silver Note are most welcome.

Posting will be a bit challenging since even with the premium wi-fi the internet connection is poor. Perhaps a way to withdraw from my screens addiction.

544 passengers on board but plenty of room, especially around the pool and inside in La Dolce Vita on the 5th deck; the two places  where the stretch is most notable.

Beautiful weather, while back at home snow storm and cold.

We will also be on that cruise and the answers you have gotten here are, in my experience, quite correct. I would not fret about day time wear on sea days as it is extremely varied.

Jim 

The Silver Suite powder room is the separate room with the toilet and a sink as opposed to the adjacent room with the two vanities, shower and tub. It is a beautiful suite.