Sweltering on the Cloud

[duct tape]

Relief! Great.

[daddyo]

Everyone on board has received a letter stating that a 50% discount is being offered for future bookings from 10/10 to 12/31/2013. It is uncertain whether we can can use this against cruises that have already been booked or reconfirmed while on board. We should know tomorrow. All in all, that's a step in the right direction.

 

All is well here on the home front!

 

Daddyo.

[Seafairer]

So glad things have revved up to normal, Daddyo. I very much hope the discount works for you as you desire. Thank you for letting us know about this situation and its resolution.

 

And as to the speculation above, that "Silversea is going broke," I agree with Dusababy, Jennifer, and Observer, and will add two points: in addition to making an investment in this drydock, the company very recently built the Spirit and just purchased a second expedition ship for refurbishment for service in the Galapagos. Silversea is a privately-held European company and it is beyond the capacity of any of us here to know their financial situation, or why certain decisions are made.

[dusababy]

So glad things have revved up to normal, Daddyo. I very much hope the discount works for you as you desire. Thank you for letting us know about this situation and its resolution.

 

And as to the speculation above, that "Silversea is going broke," I agree with Dusababy, Jennifer, and Observer, and will add two points: in addition to making an investment in this drydock, the company very recently built the Spirit and just purchased a second expedition ship for refurbishment for service in the Galapagos. Silversea is a privately-held European company and it is beyond the capacity of any of us here to know their financial situation, or why certain decisions are made.

 

Thank you Seafairer, for injecting another note of reason into this charge.

[Scott1sh]

Daddyo - enjoy your last couple of nights on board - I am sure you are enjoying it all the more now things have returned to normal.

 

Their offer of compensation is an interesting one. I'd love to know what the "never-again" first-timers are making of this, as it is essentially worthless to them (assuming we take them at their word).

 

I personally would be scrutinising the brochure and taking them up on their offer. Hopefully we won't have to face the discomfort you have endured these past few days, so I guess that's a theoretical statement!

 

Thank you again for the timely updates.

[philipb]

I really do feel that there is no excuse for what has happened to the Silver Cloud. It is certainly not '5-star luxury' to sail in warm waters with no air-conditioning. It was clearly a very bad management decision for SS to postpone the original re-fit date which was due 6 months ago. This is dreadful PR for the Line. I'm not surprised the 'first-timers' on board now will be put off ever returning.

[daddyo]

I do agree that it was, in retrospect, a poor decision by senior management to delay the refit of the Cloud. Hopefully, there is a lesson learned. What has been more baffling to us is the inability of the managing staff currently on the ship to make decisions. We have been told many times "we are waiting on the home office". It seems the front line people have not been empowered to deal with anything outside the norm of operations. Considering the distance and time zones away from Ft. Lauderdale for any of the ships at any given time, one would think the Hotel Director or Guest Relations Director would be able to firmly make a decision. Frankly, I do not understand this.

 

As to the first timers on the cruise, we talked with several tonight who are considering booking a second cruise because the pricing would be excellent. The cruise is ending on a high note with the A/C working and smooth seas. This is good for Silversea.

 

Daddyo

[Mike2131]

I do agree that it was, in retrospect, a poor decision by senior management to delay the refit of the Cloud. Hopefully, there is a lesson learned. What has been more baffling to us is the inability of the managing staff currently on the ship to make decisions. We have been told many times "we are waiting on the home office". It seems the front line people have not been empowered to deal with anything outside the norm of operations. Considering the distance and time zones away from Ft. Lauderdale for any of the ships at any given time, one would think the Hotel Director or Guest Relations Director would be able to firmly make a decision. Frankly, I do not understand this.

 

As to the first timers on the cruise, we talked with several tonight who are considering booking a second cruise because the pricing would be excellent. The cruise is ending on a high note with the A/C working and smooth seas. This is good for Silversea.

 

Daddyo

...more importantly I hope it is much better for everyone on board. Enjoy the remaining days of a cruise that I sincerely wish, on reflection, proves to be a really interesting interlude that everyone can laugh - or at least smile - about in the future.

[Emtbsam]

I really do feel that there is no excuse for what has happened to the Silver Cloud. It is certainly not '5-star luxury' to sail in warm waters with no air-conditioning. It was clearly a very bad management decision for SS to postpone the original re-fit date which was due 6 months ago. This is dreadful PR for the Line. I'm not surprised the 'first-timers' on board now will be put off ever returning.

You are totally correct. It has proven to be a terrible decision given the problems with the A/C on the Cloud. I do wish they had not delayed the dry dock time because it certainly inconvenienced a number of people and has been a PR nightmare for the company.

 

None the less, I hope that they will rectify the situation in the current overhaul and that the Cloud will return to service fully up to the standards that we have come to enjoy.

[dusababy]

Now that the worst seems to be over -- let's look on the bright side.

I've always said if nothing unforeseen happens on a cruise - it limits what you have to talk about when you get home.

You've really got a story here -- and I'll bet you go to dinner on it for a long time to come.....;)

[daddyo]

Dusababy, as always, you are right on the mark. The problems with the A/C have already turned into a sort of amusement for the passengers on board. We have had a grand time on this port intensive cruise. Many new friends also.

 

I would like to make a correction to the compensation offered: all passengers were given 50% of the paid price of our current cruise without any add ons (business air for example) to be applied to a future cruise. Silversea did clarify that it could be used on bookings that had already been made as well as new ones. All in all, it is fair compensation.

 

Daddyo

[Scott1sh]

That makes a lot more financial sense. I was thinking about this offer earlier (wrongly assuming it was 50% discount on ANY future cruise), and wondered if anyone was going to bite the bullet and book a full world cruise on the back of it!

[Silver Spectre]

Glad to see that Gianni Dotti and the 'management' have handled this pretty well. Looks like they learnt from the experience on the Cloud in Oct last year.

[Sweetpea711423]

I'm stunned at this. This is absolutely unacceptable for any cruise line, never mind a line that considers itself a luxury line (and charges that way). I would be miserable if I were on this cruise. I've been on the Cloud multiple times in the past, and always really enjoyed it. I have another Silversea cruise upcoming, and I'm going to be keeping an eye on these boards to see if there are any more problems like this with their ships, with the possibility of canceling if necessary. Shame on them!

[oregon50]

I was on the Cloud during the October AC debacle. Employing a qualified maintenence mechanic aboard would prevent some problems. And when something big does happen, an accurate diagnosis can have proper parts at the next port. Not saying this particular problem would have had a different outcome, but.....

 

The shabby cabins can be excused and we make allowances for what seem like minor errors. After you reach a limit, it is time to look elsewhere and we have. Now I feel like an idiot for what has been tolerated with SS the past few years. Corporate decisions have crippled the good staff you find on the ships. It takes a long time to screw up a good reputation and this company is a prime example.

[Scott1sh]

Greetings from The Cloud. I'm pleased to report that the air conditioning seems to be working perfectly. If anything, we are finding the public spaces a little chilly.

 

This is our second voyage on The Cloud, having last been on board in 2010. We have already noticed a few differences in the overall service which I will report in more detail when we are back on dry land.

[duct tape]

What a teaser! Can't stand the suspense!

[TLCOhio]

Greetings from The Cloud. I'm pleased to report that the air conditioning seems to be working perfectly. If anything, we are finding the public spaces a little chilly. This is our second voyage on The Cloud, having last been on board in 2010. We have already noticed a few differences in the overall service which I will report in more detail when we are back on dry land.

 

Agree with duct tape that the above is a bit of an interesting "tease". Is it good or bad that you have as info to share?? Are you so busy enjoying things that you can share "it" now? Or, was it so bad you have to wait until you get off of the ship?? Inquiring minds want to know more!!

 

THANKS! Enjoy! Terry in Ohio

 

For details and visuals, etc., from our July 1-16, 2010, Norway Coast/Fjords/Arctic Circle cruise experience from Copenhagen on the Silver Cloud, check out this posting. This posting is now at 82,448 views.

http://www.boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1227923

[Scott1sh]

Hi folks! Sorry I didn't mean to be a tease. It's more of a case that the only Internet access I have is on my iPhone which is a) costly and b) fiddly to type up more than a few sentences.

 

Without going into too much detail, here are some highlights:

 

The service is still outstanding, although little to be seen of the management team - I think we have seen the Captain once. The CD does a good job but is no match for Judie Abbot. Our butler is truly excellent, and much improved on our last experience.

 

Food and wine remains as good as ever, although the more expensive spirits are no longer on display. For example, Grey Goose remains available, but it is stored out of sight. A less demanding passenger probably thinks that Absolut Vodka is the only choice.

 

No champagne or fresh fruit in our suite upon arrival, we had to ask for it. And two days later, when that bottle was finished, we had to ask for another one. The house pour appears to be Hiedseck Monopole. A couple of drops of cassis turns it into a lovely kir royale which definitely takes the "edge" off it.

 

The ship is well and truly ready for dry dock for various reasons, not purely aesthetic - a lot of things seem to be on their last legs. Two examples: the air conditioning in our suite is temperamental; the coffee machine in La Terrazza has broken down so staff need to go up to the Panorama Lounge for any orders. Oh, and I have encountered three broken toilets!

 

Lastly, I will never, ever sleep in a Vista suites 501-4 again. The noise from the bow thrusters is really quite something, and on a port intensive cruise we do not take lightly to being woken up a 6.30am to hear machinery running for up to an hour. It was honestly like trying to sleep with a washing machine on full spin in the bedroom. We moved after one night to a midship verandah suite, but have had to pay considerably to do so. It took us the best part of a day to agree upon a solution as the hotel manager appears to have no power whatsoever, and everything had to be double checked with Fort Lauderdale.

 

That said, we are still having a lovely cruise and currently in Livorno watching supplies being loaded for dry dock. We have been advised that we absolutely must be off the ship by 8.30 tomorrow so they can leave promptly to get into dry dock when the tides are right

 

I will write a more comprehensive report when we get back and I sincerely hope that the dry dock will bring back what we loved about The Cloud on our last voyage. In the meantime, here's a picture of the view from our verandah in Monaco yesterday .... As you will see, life could be much, much worse!

[Scott1sh]

[duct tape]

Thanx, Scot1sh, I was waiting anxiously. Safe travels home.

[Herman The Cat]

Scott1sh, your week has certainly flown by!!! Thank you for the commentary.

 

Much has been said about the renovations, refurbishment and cosmetic changes. I do truly wonder what they will be doing mechanically....

[Seafairer]

Several years ago on the Wind, and before the Spirit came out, I told the Captain how much we love the small Wind and Cloud. His comment at the time was that the company would be getting rid of one of them, because they're old ships and some of the machinery and mechanical design is outdated. We're very happy that Silversea decided to keep our two favorites in service, and wish them luck with this dry dock.

[zqtchas]

For what it's worth, when we sailed the Cloud last Nov/Dec Manaus to Barbados, SS informed us in MIA that the A/C was not working. They would either pay our way back home or continue on our cruise & miss a couple of ports on the Amazon (to get out of the heat quicker) & be completely reimbursed. Big decision!! Our cabin on deck 6 at night we needed a blanket. However the Chinese in the laundry were really hot. We got to Barbados 2 or 3 days early & a new A/C unit was installed. We got our complete refund a few weeks after we got home. The T/A got his cut, we got our cut from him & even was able to keep our OBC. Now is that a great company or what!

[M16NEW]

We were on the Cloud from Venice to Barcelona. This was our fourth on Cloud having been on the Wind Venice to Istanbul last year. As expected we found the ship a little tired but it soon became apparent that there were some major mechanical issues to be sorted. A/c being the main problem. These problems have been well documented elsewhere so no need to repeat them here. The food and service were outstanding throughout and we feel the real stars of the show throughout were the staff, keeping a cheerful face and outlook particularly in the Dining room. Their quarters (below stairs) must have been so much worse but they kept smiling thoughout. We had already booked on Wind next year so the generous offer made to recompense everyone has rescued a possible very damaging episode for Silverseas to an adventure we can all now recall as having a happy ending.