Silversea versus others for newcomers

[mikeydrummer]

Hi everyone. Sorry if this has already been covered. We want to go on a high-end cruise in 2011 for our 25th anniversary (probably Med). We are British, and have been on many different large cruises over the years with varying enjoyment. We really want to have a 'classy' experience. I have read a lot of posts about Silversea, and we are also looking at Seabourne. Any advice on which line to choose would be welcome, especially about which is best!

[TLCOhio]

Hi everyone. Sorry if this has already been covered. We want to go on a high-end cruise in 2011 for our 25th anniversary (probably Med). We are British, and have been on many different large cruises over the years with varying enjoyment. We really want to have a 'classy' experience. I have read a lot of posts about Silversea, and we are also looking at Seabourne. Any advice on which line to choose would be welcome, especially about which is best!

 

Welcome to these Cruise Critic boards. Both lines are very, very good!!! Both stress good food and service in a setting that is smaller and more personal. There are differences and personal loves, etc. But, the two lines are fairly similar, in general. I would suggest that you focus on . . . where you want to go and what you want to see and do, first. Share that information with those on these boards, including what you liked most from past cruises on some of the larger lines. In the Med, there are lots of great options. I think it is as much where you go versus one of these lines being that much better and/or dramatically different. Most of the Med cruises are more port focused. A very good cruise lines makes it much, much better. How much do you want southern France and Italy versus Greek Isles/Turkish Coast versus Croatian Coast versus other options/variations in the area?

 

THANKS! Enjoy! Terry in Ohio

[mikeydrummer]

Thanks Terry. The cruise that remains high on our list was the QE2 back in the 1980's, despite it being a big ship. We had a stateroom that got us into the Queen's Grill, and loved the service and quality of food. It felt really special. Other cruises with the big lines have not given us that, although we have got other things out of the holidays. This time we want good food, great service and being made to feel special. The ports are important (we would really like to do Greece, Turkey etc), but we know a lot of the Med already, and so the onboard experience is almost more important than where we go (if that makes sense!!). We are really excited about this holiday!

[TLCOhio]

Thanks Terry. The cruise that remains high on our list was the QE2 back in the 1980's, despite it being a big ship. We had a stateroom that got us into the Queen's Grill, and loved the service and quality of food. It felt really special. Other cruises with the big lines have not given us that, although we have got other things out of the holidays. This time we want good food, great service and being made to feel special. The ports are important (we would really like to do Greece, Turkey etc), but we know a lot of the Med already, and so the onboard experience is almost more important than where we go (if that makes sense!!). We are really excited about this holiday!

 

My sense is that you can have "BOTH"!!! Great cruising and super port experiences. With either Seabourn or Silversea, you would get "good food, great service and being made to feel special" . . . AND . . . ports that are nice and unique in the Greek Isles and Turkish Coast areas. We did Seabourn in June 2006 for the Greek Isles and Turkish Coast and Crystal in late July 2008 for the Baltics and Russia. Loved both. Each had their service differences and other factors. We are getting ready for Silversea on the Silver Cloud for the Norway Coast, fjords, Arctic Circle, Land of the Midnight Sun, July 1-16, 2010. We had three days in Athens before departing on the cruise to see Mykonos, Milos and historic Patmos in the Greek Isles; then it was Bodrum and Kusadasi (Ephesus) on the Turkish Coast before sailing up the Dardanelles to Istanbul. We had two days with a private guide in Istanbul and loved it there. Then we flew home, but stopped for five days in London to recover from our first cruise.

 

I would look closely at the various options in these areas through both lines. See what fits best, is most reasonable in cost/value, etc. THANKS! Enjoy! Terry in Ohio

[ltsally]

Wonder if you've posted on the SB board as well, for that input? We have sailed both and had outstanding experiences on both Silversea and Seabourn.

 

The "triplets" as they are known (SB's original, smaller 200+pax ships) offer and even more intimate luxury experience than the 400 pax SS. But you can't beat that SS terrace! Or their luxurious baths.

 

Have enjoyed terrific service and food on both lines. It probably should come down to the itinerary/price that best fits your specs.

[Hobar]

1. SERVICE was excellent overall, and Ali (head waiter) was excellent in that he was involved, always visible and making sure everythng was running to perfection, friendly and professional, and Francois (assistant to Ali) also excellent; waiter Singh was our favorite because he joked around with us, could read our wants before we even spoke them; the sommerliers (Robin and his team) were extremely knowledgeable, professional and always eager to work with us to find wines we liked (complimentary no less, never trying to steer us to the premiums); other wonderful staff include pool bartender Aldrin and bar bartender Oliver (who also has a fabulous singing voice, so make sure you don't miss that treat); and all waiters quickly learned our habits, but I like to think we are relatively easy; and I saw staff remain polite, professional and courteous with demanding, rude passengers.

2. Gym - despite complaints from other passengers about low ceiling and small size, I found it quite adequate (comparer to the Wind and Seabourn's small sister ships), and was often the only one there, so it suited me fine.

 

NEGATIVES:

1. Ship old and tired - upholstery and carpeting threadbare, and furnishings old. Bed sheet was torn, and I requested a new one, but it was simply turned around. Maitenance was uneven at best -- lights that didn't work had to be reported by us as neither our housekeeper nor butler apparently noticed (which they would have on Seabourn);

2. Rarely saw any officers - just saw F&B officer who was wonderful in that he was always friendly and communicative and seemed to really enjoy meeting and chatting with passengers, but all other officers were missing, and Hotel Director was visible but aloof.

3. Shore excursions were all poor in that the tours did not appear to deliver what had been described, and were overpriced for what was offered - for instance, each tour was approx $100 - $200 pp, but compare that to a private tour we arranged in Mumbai through Mumbai Magic for 8 people at $55 pp/$110 a couple for 8 full hours, including full Indian lunch, and saw more sites than were offered by any other SS tour; and the Leandro was disinterested and simply unpleasant; Sean was nice enough, but didn't know much -- he was most recently a Verizon salesman, so I question SS' criteria, especially since SS touts itself as a high-end product and therefore it should fill positions with knowledgeable, talented personnel, not a kid out of an unrelated retail market;

4. Port lecturer was just awful - all he did was READ from the tour descriptions in the SS guide, he offered no additional information whatsover, and there were no lectures for first or last port - which, as it turns out, was no loss considering the lack of any information he had to offer.

5. Potato chips -- seriously, would rather do without than have low end potato chips. But on the other hand, nuts were plentiful (so why dimish with low end junk food, even if they were, in all fairness, Pringles?).

 

OVERALL:

It was better than expected given our previous sailing on the Wind, but still not on the level of Seabourn, so we will return to Seabourn now that it offers more varied itineraries; we selected SS this time around for the itinerary.

[clkc86]

We too are celebrating our 25th anniversary next year. Like you want something upscale. We have booked on Silversea for a Caribbean cruise. Didn't want long flights from the US. I have looked on the forums here and scoured the cruise lines websites and Silversea seemed to fit us best. This is a first luxury cruise for us so I can't give you any opinions, but it sounds like we are looking for the same kind of experience. Good luck!!

[mikeydrummer]

Thank you Hobar. Really interesting and has made us slightly question SS which may have been our favourite. Which ship were you on? We are considering Wind.

[mikeydrummer]

Thank you clkc86. Have a great 25th!

[DaveA]

I'm sure you would love either Silversea or Seabourn, mikeydrummer.

 

One other factor that my wife and I (also a British couple) considered when we chose a special cruise back in 2003 was the likely mix of other passengers. We gained the impression, supported by various postings and the CruiseCritic line reviews, that Silversea generally has a more international mix (albeit predominantly English speaking) whereas Seabourn has mostly American passengers.

 

We really loved our Silversea cruise and we're off on Silversea again in a couple of months time.

 

Dave

[mikeydrummer]

Thanks DaveA, that's really good input. At moment favouring Silver Wind in eastern Med in May rather than SB Odyssey as similar alternative.

[endosunshine]

I would not put too much stock in one extremely negative review. Some people are quite difficult to please. Others that were on that same cruise said they must have been in an alternate plane of reality to the negative reviewer. At any rate, that particular ship goes into dry dock in May to be completely refurbished.

 

Our first SS cruise was to celebrate our 15th anniversary and my b-day was the last day of the cruise. We received (in our suite) a delicious cake for each occasion. Every staff person we encountered was very pleasant and eager to help in any way that you requested. We found it to be an excellent experience!!

 

Some passengers are difficult, I have noticed pax behaving very badly towards staff many times. For example - on one cruise a couple was shown to a table for dinner, it apparently was not desirable to them. Rather than just say "could we have a different table (area, whatever)" the man began to shout and make a scene in the restaurant. :eek: I was quite stunned. In my opinion the staff tries very hard and if you are friendly and pleasant towards them, they notice, appreciate and just try harder for you.

 

I hope that you have a fabulous anniversary and a lovely trip, whatever you choose!

[jpalbny]

We're doing SS for our 15th this year - Black Sea in June on the Silver Wind. It will be our first time on the "big" SS ships, but if the service is anything like the Prince Albert II, we will be very happy. We are big fans of O, but the all-inclusive fares on SS are looking really good, especially after getting a taste of it on the PA II. Plus the itinerary looks like a lot of fun.

 

PA II had a good international mix of passengers on the Antarctic expedition - sounds like others are saying that this is true throughout the whole line. We have really enjoyed meeting people from all ends of the earth while traveling. Should make for a very interesting cruise! Only 51 days...:)

[Neilio]

We're celebrating 5 year anniversary on Spirit in June. First time on SS. Can't wait. We appreciate all the feedback and suggestions on this board.

 

Neilio

[ging466]

We're celebrating 5 year anniversary on Spirit in June. First time on SS. Can't wait. We appreciate all the feedback and suggestions on this board. Neilio

 

Hi Neilio

 

Make sure u inform SS that u r celebrating your anniversary during your cruise.

 

Cheers

Jennifer (ging466)

[oregon50]

Hobar....might that have been Ian Denton acting as a port lecturer?

[Jaffa]

I like both Seabourn and Silversea, they both have benefits and disadvantages, it would just depend on itin & price for me.

However Seabourn is undergoing quite a transformation ATM, that does not seem to popular with many of the regular cruisers. So it might be to early to tell how they end up.

 

But! Just to balance out Hobars SS review,

 

Here's one for Seabourn's newest ship the Odyssey, which is the first of 3 identical new-builds, that are at the forefront of the new Seabourn product.

 

You will find many more in the review section.

 

..............................

 

Not at all a 6 star experience!

After 10 years of travelling on 4 star cruise ships and last year on Silversea, we decided to splurge and try the "yet to be built Seabourn Odessey". Travelling from Australia to start your cruise from an overseas port can be a very expensive exercise, but almost 2 years before the Odessey was built we booked our cruise on the inaugural Transatlantic crossing as we thought it would be a special 6 star experience with some added highlights as it was the first time it crossed the Atlantic. To say the cruise was a disappointment is an understatement.

 

Whilst the staterooms were spacious and comfortable and offered decent facilities, the rest of the ship was a let down. Corridors were often lined with laundry trolleys for most of the day, carpets throughout the corridors and public areas were badly stained (looked like the cleaning product bleached the stains), carpets had been patched in many places (badly and this is in a ship that was barely about 4 months old. How could this happen?

 

We also felt that the ship lacked artwork throughout, furnishings were dull and there was a mish mash of different carpets in areas that didn't blend in well with the colour scheme. It is always nice to see scuptures and paintings around and we missed this. There was also a distinct lack of sofas/chairs scattered around that offered a quiet place to sit or wait for friends.

 

The theatre was badly planned. What could have been prime seating next to the aisle centre to the stage was blocked by large columns, and the timber stage floor was a dark brown flat stain finish that was scuffed and looked grubby.

 

During the second half of the cruise we booked the exclusive and supposedly very upmarket private spa area for a cost of $300. No one informed us that the pool was initially freezing then emptied, the day beds and all outdoor facilities were covered with soot and some facilites were not in operation. We asked for a refund as did 4 others that we knew of. This was a huge disappointment as we had planned to use the spa on the Crossing.

 

The rear of deck 4 had no ambience. Cushions on the outdoor furniture were stained and most days were missing altogether. Much more could have been done to brighten it up.

 

A photo shoot was being conducted on board for the first 10 days of the cruise and paying guests of Seabourn had to watch from the sidelines whist the main pool and whirlpool was taken over by photographers/models etc. Various other locations around the ship were also out of bounds on various days. This was not acceptable and we should have told this was going on as the shoots went on and on for hours and hours each day. Hello -----we were paying guests who couldn't use the facilities. We also found out that the photo crew/models/hangers-on had been allocated much better staterooms than we had and we felt that in the interests of good customer service, this shouldn't be so.

 

Our stateroom was located next to a service area and after the first couple of days of not being able to rest due to metal grinding through to 7 pm we asked to be moved to a quieter cabin. To cut a long protracted story short, our request was denied. Apparently there was no spare rooms. 4 days later and by this time the noise was driving us crazy and we continued to request a quieter room. Then whilst we were at breakfast on the 5th day, our belongings were moved to a disabled room without our knowledge. The disabled room was awful. Our things were moved back to our noisy cabin. Then after we let management know that we were unhappy with the way they were handling things, they "found" an empty cabin. We were shown an identical room on the next floor up, same location, same everything. The cabin was full of the models/photographers baggage and had been empty of guests for the whole 5 days we were requesting a move. NO SPARE ROOMS !!!Meanwhile another couple on deck 4 were upgraded to a quieter room due to similar noise we were experiencing. NO SPARE ROOMS!!

 

The day after we changed cabins, we were preparing to go on tour when a huge noise rumbled through our room and water started pouring into our bathroom and under the door. Outside, the roof had caved in after a water pipe had burst. We missed our tour, we were soaking wet and very unhappy. It was beginning to be a nightmare. Our room had a mouldy smell for the rest of the cruise, carpets were lifted up outside in the corridor, noisy fans were working most of the day to dry out the carpets, the roof was being repaired and pieces of carpet were being cut out and patched with old carpet pieces that didn't match. It was, and looked dreadful. Nice relaxing cruise so far !!!!

 

We felt that senior management treated us poorly and were lacking any compassion. The rest of the cruise was uneventful but the Hotel Manager ignored us for the rest of the cruise and seemed unconcerned about what had happened. Our friends who travelled with us were very unimpressed and will not sail Seabourn again.

 

After returning home we have corresponded to Head Office and we have been given a discount on a next cruise, but to be honest, we would have rather been treated like valued guests on the cruise we were on at the time. Seabourn needs to lift their game.

 

We probably will not be able to use the discount so we have ended up with nothing but a bad experience and a depleted bank account. Shame on you Seabourn.

[DaveA]

Just as most of us are more inclined to write a letter of complaint after a bad expereince than we are to write a letter of thanks after a great experience, it seems that most reviews here focus on negatives!

 

Don't be put off, mikeydrummer. Almost all passengers have wonderful experiences on these ships and I suspect that many of those who don't went looking for problems rather than enjoyment.

 

Dave

[unfathomable]

We've been on three SS cruises, over the years, where photography or video was going on, with models. The effect was entertaining rather than disruptive. The models and (huge) support team didn't get in the way or monopolise facilities, and areas like the pool were not shut off to regular paying guests. The models were much more beautiful than the average guests, ourselves included. We were left wondering whether SS was trying to attract a better class of guest??!! Several years after the first of these trips, a friend got a promotional video tape (this was a while ago) for SS and mailed it to us -- we were in it, moderately prominently, and never knew! I keep asking for my free cruise, but no dice so far....

[thinmint]

Hi -

My husband and I will also be celebrating our 25th anniversary next year. We have been on many cruises, but this will be our first time on a small ship. We have chosen the March 4 2011 sailing from Barbados to San Juan on the Whisper.

 

A question on attire - My husband has a nice suit, but no tux. Does anyone know if they rent these onboard the Whisper?

 

Thanks!

 

Thinmint

[ging466]

A question on attire - My husband has a nice suit, but no tux. Does anyone know if they rent these onboard the Whisper? Thanks! Thinmint

 

Hi Thinmint

 

If it's a dark suit (black), he can get away with it.

 

I don't know whether they rent them onboard but u could try here:

 

http://www.cruiselineformal.com/

 

Cheers

Jennifer (ging466)

[cechase]

My late wife and I were avid cruisers on Celebrity Cruise Lines. We always had a Royal Suite on their vessels which came along with a butler [and of course another person to tip].

 

Celebrity is in what might be referred to as a premium mass cruise line. We loved to be invited to have dinner at the Captain's Table [four times], and we enjoyed our suites on the vessels. We did not like the lines for a buffet, to enter a tender or disembark, no crew member knowing our names, and most particularly the little session that my dear wife and I would have the day before disembarkation on figuring out the amount of tips! Did we make good friends on Celebrity, absolutely yes, and wonderful people they are. Fortunately, we only encountered the unruly children in the public areas and they seemed to ignore the area where the Royal Suites are located.

 

Then my dear wife and I took a cruise on Silver Shadow [our last cruise before she passed away] and it was like stepping from a rain storm into a rainbow. We had a Silver Suite which was much larger than the Royal Suites on Celebrity and marvelously laid out. Within hours we were addressed by the crew by name! No lines, no chits to sign, no art auctions, no bingo, no "inch of gold" for sale, etc. And we met such a lovely diverse group of people, and yes friends who I still communicate. And the second time on Silver Shadow did not disappoint - grief that my sweetie was not there - but an even better experience, lovely accommodations, and meeting some of the nicest and friendliest people in the world.

 

So what is my point? Good question. Maybe you have been raised with a silver spoon - but if you have tried the mass cruise lines or the premium cruise lines, and then tried Silversea, you would be blown away. So for those "silver spoon" people, keep your clever reviews coming, but we do want to know where you are coming from.

[unfathomable]

My husband has a nice suit, but no tux. Does anyone know if they rent these onboard the Whisper?

AFAIK, no; but a dark suit will be 100% OK for formal nights.

[CalmCruiserNC]

This is a VERY interesting thread! Like so many others here, my wife and I will be celebrating a milestone anniversary (20th) next year and want to commemorate it with either a Silverseas, Seabourn or Crystal Cruise.

 

I'm leaning toward the September 9th departure from Southampton to Barcelona aboard the Silver Cloud.

 

My question is about the inclusive airfare policy. Does it still apply if we want to go into London a couple of days early and/or add a few days at the end for more of our favorite city, Barcelona?

 

Thank you for you input --

 

CalmCruiserNC

[unfathomable]

My question is about the inclusive airfare policy. Does it still apply if we want to go into London a couple of days early and/or add a few days at the end for more of our favorite city, Barcelona?

I think so. "Air deviations" are usually possible. SS may want a fee, but we're talking $100 pp not 000s. You may have to do without included transfers. That's no big deal in Barcelona, where a cab runs about 30 Euros. Getting to Southampton will be more expensive. It's about 80-85 miles from central London (65 miles from Heathrow) on congested roads and will take two hours if all goes well. You can take the train (much cheaper and only 90 minutes, running twice an hour from London Waterloo station) to Southampton; this is a short (GBP 5-8) cab ride from the cruise terminal. You will need to check which cruise terminal the ship is at -- most likely City terminal, but there are four. If you do take a car from London, a "black" cab will be very expensive; getting your hotel to arrange a transfer will be a bit cheaper, but there are plenty of pre-bookable options (search online for airport transfers!) and they will be much cheaper.