Jump to content

Live from the Whisper August 12-18


papa B me
 Share

Recommended Posts

Quite the adventure, Brian! Reminds me of an easy canoe trip we recently took on Lake Louise...

 

Glad you enjoyed yourself but sorry it wasn't as advertised. If you haven't already, let the excursion folks know what was missing.

 

Enjoying your take on these places we've seen before, but we haven't been to Split so especially eager to hear about that! Hope you have a great day!

 

Sent from my SM-G930T using Forums mobile app

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Dubrovnik continued....

 

Our sail away wasn't until 10:30 pm. Our host for the event who had invited myself and 3 other couples to have dinner at the Panorama restaurant that is at the top of the mountain where the godnola(lift) takes you. The goal was to meet at the tender drop off at 6:45. One of the couples was late so we got started around 7:15. Our host went to the restaurant an hour before to order wine and appetizers to be waiting for our party of 8. He had hired private cars to drive us so up the mountain as the lines for the gondola can be quite long. So we followed a guide through the city to where the car was waiting. What we didn't know as that about half way up the mountain the road turned into one lane but had 2 way traffic. In addition, you were at times literally on the edge of a cliff. It was quite the adventure. As we neared the top we then had to stop as there was a herd of goats in the road who were quite determined that they belonged there and we didn't. Our plan was to get there by 7 and finish by 8:45 to make sure we didn't miss the tender back to the ship. We arrived a little after 8 ordered our food within 5 minutes, they got it to us within 10 minutes and we ate went to the rest room and wer back in the cars for the harrowing journey down the mountain in by 8:50. So not the leisurely dinner anticipated.

 

So again didn't go as planned. However, we did arrive right at sunset. The view was the third WOW-we'll never forget this moment in time event. If you have never taken the gondola to the top it is worth standing in line for(don't take a car!!!). The food was good as far as I can remember as I was eating so fast. And now that I think about it as I type there was a 4th never forget moment and that was the herd of goats in the road with cars coming from both directions on a one lane road. It was a moment that reinforces why I like to get out of my confort zone and travel abroad.

 

All in all Dubrovnik was a great albeit hard on the body day. OH and we made the next to last tender so we did make it to Split

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Split Croatia:

 

When I woke up this morning(a little later then every other day this week -6:45) and as my custom went to the balcony we were already docked at Split. Split is the second largest Croatian city and the largest in Dalmatia. The port is quite large. We were the only cruise ship in port but many many large ferries taking passengers to many island along the coast were comining in and out all day.

 

As I mentioned in an earlier post we were originally booked to take the "RIB"(rigid inflatable boat) trip along the coast to the largest Island called Hvar. This would entail a 75 minute boat ride to the Island which would include a walking tour and then free time to look around the island's hvar city. Then it was a 75 minute bus ride back to Split. The entire excursion was a little over 5 hours.

 

After the physically demanding day yesterday and our harrowing events on the one lane road last night I made the tough call to skip the excursion and just spend time in the old city in Split. After all our all aboard was 2:30 so there would have been no time to walk into town before or after since it left at 8:30 am. I can't tell you how hard this decision was for me as I don't like to miss out on things I've planned on. But it was the right decision.

 

We had a leisurely morning and had our breakfast at the normal spot on aft of deck 7. Went all out and had them make me am omelette and smoothie this morning as I was in no hurry as usual. We then took our time getting off the ship. Split's main old town lies within the walls of Roman emperor Diocletian's retirement palace which was built in the 3rd century AD. There is also a large open air market on the outside of the walls(to the right of the main entrance). We spend our morning and early afternoon just wandering the streets, having gelato, and for my wife shopping for clothes in the open air market.

 

IMPORTANT: Very few places in Split(or Dubrovnik) take Euros(most shops take credit cards). But almost none of the stalls of the open air market take credit cards. So if you want to shop or get a snack or drink make sure you exchange or withdrawal some funds from an ATM. I had already gotten about $200 dollars worth and had spent about half in Dubrovnik. So the goal today was to spend the rest. My wife was able to find several shirts and souvenirs for grand kids and I was able to use up my "Kuna" with only one small credit card charge in a shop for about $37. So a great day for her and a great day for me.

 

We then walked back to the ship(about 10 minutes from the old city). And got our lounge chairs by the pool and had lunch at the grill. Probably the best hamburger I've ever had.

 

At 3 we were on our way to Venice. I spent an hour in the Casino(by myself- just me and the attendant) while my wife jumped in the pool. And now about to have tea time in the room.

 

Another great day. Hard to believe tomorrow is our last day. Will be in Venice all day and overnight. Another relaxed wander and get lost day in Venice as we spent a week on a Uniworld River Cruise in Venice last year and have seen much of the normal highlights. Goal tomorrow is to have one last WOW moment by getting off the beaten path(and I believe my wife has some more shopping planned as I'm way under budget and have a lot of Euros sitting idly in the safe).

 

Until tomorrow...

Brian

Link to comment
Share on other sites

We were back on the ship about 5:30 and quickly changed clothes to walk back into town. On our morning stroll we came across a shop with beautifully decorated glassware. We didn't want to buy it and carry it with us on our tour so we went back to buy pieces for our 3 daughters and 1 daughter in law as well as my wife. So was a good call not to buy it earlier in the day. Very nice and helpful shop owner and were able to negotiate a little better price.

 

 

 

Back on the ship we started getting ready for dinner. We didn't have dinner reservations and planned on just eating at the restaurant around 8:00. We are on deck 8 so after getting ready I went to the lounge on the aft of 8 to wait while my wife dried her hair and finished getting ready. In 35 years of marriage I've sat and waited quite a bit of time during this ritual ha. But I have to say this was the nicest place I've ever waited.

 

 

 

When she arrived I said let's just take the stairs down since it is only one deck to the restaurant. We went in and virtually no one was there. They sat us outside on the aft of the ship and handed us our menu. It was only then I realized I had a mental moment and went to LaTerrazza instead of the restaurant. But it was the perfect night and setting to be there. Wonderful 5 course dinner.

 

 

 

After dinner at 9:30 our charter host had a chocolate extravaganza on the pool deck. Silversea did a great job with this. Then as a surprise at about 10:00 they had a fireworks display off the ships starboard side over the bay with music timed to the fireworks. This was another one of those perfect moments. I know this isn't part of a normal sailing but the coordination between our host and Silversea was seamless and is further endearing this cruise line to me.

 

 

 

As I finish this post I am tendered in the bay and staring at the walls of Dubrovnik. Again, WoW! Very similar plan for today. Our 1:00 excursion is "Kayaking the City Walls". We are also having dinner off the ship this evening at a restaurant called "Panorama".

 

 

 

More to come tomorrow...

 

 

 

Brian

 

 

 

Hello

It is interesting to learn that even on a full cruise (I suppose the Whisper is full now) it is possible to show up at 8pm at la Terrazza without reservation and be given a table for 2 al fresco. I am supposed to make restaurant reservations for my upcoming cruise in a few days but I feel less pressure now if I cannot succeed in all my bookings. Thanks for sharing your cruise with us. It is quite helpful for me who has never cruised with SS (only Cunard Queens Grill).

 

 

Sent from my iPad using Forums

Link to comment
Share on other sites

pappa B me,

 

Was your Kayaking the city Walls and Locrum Island tour booked privately or through Silversea?

From the description, it sounds like a fantastic tour. I'm having trouble understanding how/why the reality could be so different from the description.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

pappa B me,

 

Was your Kayaking the city Walls and Locrum Island tour booked privately or through Silversea?

From the description, it sounds like a fantastic tour. I'm having trouble understanding how/why the reality could be so different from the description.

 

It was booked through Silversea. I don't know why it was so different then the description. It was a great tour. It was just really difficult and missed many of the elements advertised

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I was able to find out that our captain is Cataldo Destefano and our hotel director is Ken Fella. Again there had been very little interaction due to the nature of the cruise. I'm not even sure a cruise director is on this sailing. Sorry I couldn't be more help for those about to sail as far as officers on board

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Venice: Our last day

 

It's hard to believe but another adventure is coming to an end. Today is our last day which has been spent walking all around Venice with no agenda. This is an overnight and we will leave tomorrow morning at 8:20 am for the airport.

 

I actually had my desired WOW moment as soon as I woke up this morning. I woke up about 6 am and walked out onto the balcony to a picture perfect sunrise as we were entering the channel from the Adriatic to Venice. What a glorious hour or so as we approached Venice for docking. For the most part it was still asleep and with the pefect sunrise and clear skies the city was glistening. Great start to our last day.

 

We followed our normal routine for breakfast and got off the ship around 10 am. Silversea provides a shuttle from point of disembarkation to the gate at San Basilio. Doesn't look like a long walk but it is much appreciated with the heat today.

 

As planned we wandered the alleys, squares, and main streets of Venice from 10:00 till about 4:00. Found a nice out of the way place in the shade that was quiet for pizza and a Spritz and bath room break.

 

HINT: It cost about 1.50 Euros to use the public WC's(rest rooms). There are a multitude of places where you can sit and have a spritz, beer, coffee, etc... for 5 Euros or less and have a rest and use their restroom. I usually choose a place down an alley and not on one of the main shopping streets as there is rarely a line, prices are better, and more times then not shaded well.

 

As expected my wife did quite well at the leather shops for purses and a shoe store she found near Rialto market last year, and stores where all th clothing is either 8,90 Euros, 9 Euros, or 10 Euros(they are scattered through out)

 

EXTRA HINT: If you are shopping for leather purses don't buy any till the end of your walk as there can be a difference from one shop to another for the same purse. We buy multiple purses since my wife is also buying for our 4 grown girls. The shop we ended up buying at was anywhere from 10 euros to 30 euros cheaper per purse. So we saved close to 100 Euros by not buying at the first shop we saw.

 

EXTRA EXTRA HINT: If you are the one not actually doing the shopping(in this case me), look for shops where the shopper will be spending time across from somewhere that you can sit and take advantage of a 5 Euro spritz and a chair in the shade. Ha.

 

So again, all in all a great day even though we probably didn't do anything note worthy for most travelers unless you like to shop and wander.

 

I will wrap up in my next post with some final thoughts about Silver Sea and our trip over all.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Final Thoughts:

 

Overall Impression of SilverSea:

 

I have sailed with Uniworld on river cruises, stayed in upper suites with Butler service with Sandals, stayed in Four Seasons, Ritz Carltons and Mandarin Orientals and I would say in comparison I would say Silver Sea is on par and I would definitely consider it 5 star and luxury in it's orientation. I've found in all the places I've stayed that nothing is exactly perfect but I don't personally look for perfection. I look for a complete luxury experience and we found that with Silver Sea

 

Service of Staff:

 

Outstanding. The wait staff, bar staff and our suite attendant have been as good as anywhere I've been.

 

Food: This is the one area my wife and I agree that Silversea is slightly above our other travel experiences. Most of our other travels we always say food was good to excellent. Here we say it has all been excellent. Haven't experienced one misstep here. Now warning we are not Foodies. But I would say that my wife is picky(very health conscious) and I just plain love to eat. So it is rare that we are in agreement with food but this trip we have both agreed(albeit for different reasons-ha)

 

Ship: Absolutely LOVE the size of the ship. In the past few years we have ranges from Uniworld River Cruise with 100-150 passengers(love) to Royal Caribbean with 6000 passengers(didn't quite love it). I felt this size ship was a river cruise on steroids. It perfectly meets my needs. We are going on a NCL(Hawaii) cruise in February(couple thousand people) and Oceania Rivera cruise next October(1200 people), so we will have experience a wide range. But I think this size will be my favorite.

 

Suite 826: This Veranda suite has been perfectly fine. In all honesty I still like larger suites when I'm paying for it. The NCL next year is 1300 square feet and we have booked an Oceania suite on Oceania next year which is 1000 feet. But considering the veranda suite is their basic suite with a balcony it is really nice and wouldn't hesitate to book it again.

 

Butler: This is the only minor negative I've found compared to other travels. We are not very demanding when it comes to Butlers. We have had them on all our trips with both Uniworld and Sandals. For the most part we have always found them very proactive with special treats, drinks, checking in on us. NONE of this is needed but it has been there. We have even come back to the room to find bubble baths waiting for my wife. If we asked for something once we found it came every day(such as afternoon tea) etc.. If they found I drank a beer out of the mini bar I would find different kind of beers with a note from the butler saying I thought you might like to try this one. Again, none of this is expected or needed but just as a point of comparison. With our Butler this time we saw him when we first got into the cabin with choices of soaps/shampoo. We didn't see or hear from him again until a couple of days later when my wife ordered afternoon tea. All went well. We called the next day for afternoon tea and left a message but didn't hear back from him. Then she ordered tea again yesterday and received it. I think this may have to do with the fact that he has 15 suites to care for and we don't ask for anything other then the tea. Our other experiences they only have 6-8 suites to care for. And this could range from butler to butler and cruise to cruise. Doesn't leave a negative feeling but wanted to be fair and comment about it.

 

Other negatives:

 

If you can't tell by my posts I feel very blessed to travel the way we get to travel and do the things we get to do. I really have never had a bad trip. I can find things we love about every trip we've taken. The bad moments often become comical(with time). Life's too short to get bent out of shape over minor things and there are very few people in this world that are blessed to travel the way we get to travel.

 

With that said, what were my biggest(maybe I should say NON positives instead of negatives-ha)

 

#1. The heat- I've never traveled in August to Europe and now I understand why so many say not too. But if it's free like this cruise-I'll do it again!!

 

#2. The crowds- ditto of #1 above

 

#3. Lack of electrical plugs on the whisper- there really is only one usable outlet.

 

#4. Changes because of the chartered cruise such as shows at 10:45. There's one more tonight but doubt I make it. No enrichments lectures, etc... So will have to schedule a normal Silversea cruise.

 

Well that's it for now. One last supper this evening then it is officially over. Feel free to ask any questions and I'll do my best to answer in the days to come. I know this isn't a normal cruise so it may not be to much help to most but I so enjoy writing them thanks for bearing with me. For those schedule for your first Silversea cruise, you have a real treat in store.

 

Fun and Save travels to all!

 

Brian

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Hi Brian, I enjoyed following along as well.:) I must have picked the right week to sail...….there were charters before me and after me. My cruise was just "a regular cruise";).

 

I have to agree with you about the weather...…..it was VERY, VERY hot outside.:eek: (and I sailed in July).

 

Safe travels home!

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Just a quick note to say thank you again to all who followed my long winded ramblings and for the kind and encouraging comments.

 

We did make it home Saturday night after an uneventful flight from Venice to Philadelphia and on to Knoxville. Silversea has certainly become a cruise line that I will always look at for an itinerary that fits our needs and look forward to experiencing them in a more complete way next time around.

 

Safe travels and smooth seas to all of those who will be boarding the Whisper in the months to come and I look forward to reading about your experiences.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Please sign in to comment

You will be able to leave a comment after signing in



Sign In Now
 Share

  • Forum Jump
    • Categories
      • Welcome to Cruise Critic
      • New Cruisers
      • Cruise Lines “A – O”
      • Cruise Lines “P – Z”
      • River Cruising
      • ROLL CALLS
      • Digital Photography & Cruise Technology
      • Special Interest Cruising
      • Cruise Discussion Topics
      • UK Cruising
      • Australia & New Zealand Cruisers
      • Canadian Cruisers
      • North American Homeports
      • Ports of Call
      • Cruise Conversations
×
×
  • Create New...