Seabourn versus Silversea ?

[Garybem]

For those of you who have been on both Silversea and Seabourn, what did you like most about either? Amd why? Guessing most people in this forum prefer Seabourn..?

 

I am going on Silversea in July on a Baltics Cruise, and just this past week got to tour the Seabourn Sojourn (which was impressed with and limited crew met seemed very positive and enthusiastic).

 

Thanks!

[JaneBP]

Lots using the search function. Here's a start:

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1803097&highlight=silver+seas

[Tillylovesseabourn]

My personal opinion is that I would never sail SS again, when I sailed everyone was complaining about food quality and staff were either overbearing or downright rude. I much prefer the more European style crew on SB, and their attitude so for me far superior

 

I think SB seems to have a more modern approach to cruising and far more friendlier crew members.

[lincslady]

Garybem - the link Jane BP has given you will tell you all you need to know about the differences - and is pretty up to date.

[Emperor Norton]

For those of you who have been on both Silversea and Seabourn, what did you like most about either? Amd why? Guessing most people in this forum prefer Seabourn..?

 

I am going on Silversea in July on a Baltics Cruise, and just this past week got to tour the Seabourn Sojourn (which was impressed with and limited crew met seemed very positive and enthusiastic).

 

Thanks!

 

On my SS cruise the food was garbage (especially the at the time Le Champagne upcharge restaurant), a majoristy of the staff were in the wrong line of work, and some of the passengers (to me anyways)oddly evil.

 

On my SB cruise, the food was excellent to ok. The staff aside from two were excellent and the passengers aside from one were interesting and a pleasure to deal with. Thats a 2k9 SS v. 2012 SB.

[Keith1010]

I will give you my own view having sailed both cruise lines.

 

I thought that Silversea was fine but I prefer Seabourn.

 

But with that said, we had a nice time on Silversea and would sail them again with the right itinerary and in the end it does not matter my opinion or those on this board or the Silversea board. That is because ask this question on both boards and some will say they prefer one cruise line over the other, while some will say they didn't care for either and some will say they like both.

 

In the end the only opinion that matters is your own.

 

Don't worry about what others say. Don't pre-judge. Don't compare the two while you are on board. Just take it all in and then afterwards you can decide what you liked and what you didn't.

 

Most of what people say is very subjective.

 

Also remember that it is rare that two cruises are the same and even factors such as the mix of passengers on board the ship, the ship you are sailing (Silversea has three different types of ships as Seabourn has two different types), the itiinerary, your stewardess or even the weather can have an impact on a specific cruise.

 

Keith

[whystayhome]

I will give you my own view having sailed both cruise lines.

 

I thought that Silversea was fine but I prefer Seabourn.

 

But with that said, we had a nice time on Silversea and would sail them again with the right itinerary and in the end it does not matter my opinion or those on this board or the Silversea board. That is because ask this question on both boards and some will say they prefer one cruise line over the other, while some will say they didn't care for either and some will say they like both.

 

In the end the only opinion that matters is your own.

 

Don't worry about what others say. Don't pre-judge. Don't compare the two while you are on board. Just take it all in and then afterwards you can decide what you liked and what you didn't.

 

Most of what people say is very subjective.

 

Also remember that it is rare that two cruises are the same and even factors such as the mix of passengers on board the ship, the ship you are sailing (Silversea has three different types of ships as Seabourn has two different types), the itiinerary, your stewardess or even the weather can have an impact on a specific cruise.

 

Keith

 

Keith is absolutely correct. His last paragraph sums it up very neatly.

 

We had two weeks on Silversea in the Med last summer and thought it was a wonderful vacation, one of the best we have ever had. We preferred it to the Crystal Med cruise, which as you know is heresy on another board. We also did 10 days on HAL in the Med and had no complaints. We are looking forward to 3 weeks on Seabourn in the Med this summer and I'm sure that will be terrific, too. (That's a lot of Med cruises, but a lot of the ports on the Seabourn itinerary are new to us and the repeats are certainly worth another visit. That's primarily why we picked this cruise.)

 

Keith's point that two cruises on the same line are rarely alike is a good one; after all, restaurant reviewers always visit a place several times before writing a review, don't they?

[wripro]

I think it's terrific that people try different cruise lines and be a slave to any one in particular. No matter how good a line is it can get boring and repetitive after too many days on board. And, as Keith wisely says, the only opinion that matters is your own because what's important to you may not be to the next person.

 

All that said, I do love Seabourn, having sailed them for many, many days and Silversea as well.

[Garybem]

Lots using the search function. Here's a start:

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1803097&highlight=silver+seas

 

Thanks for this link, really helpful!!

[Garybem]

I think it's terrific that people try different cruise lines and be a slave to any one in particular. No matter how good a line is it can get boring and repetitive after too many days on board. And, as Keith wisely says, the only opinion that matters is your own because what's important to you may not be to the next person.

 

Thanks to both you and Keith.

 

I have been "addicted" to Cunard and the last 10 or so cruises and crossings done have all been on Cunard, but (as you say) decided to try other lines (partly as feel Cunard drifting from what made it unique) but also had a chance to go on MSC Preziosa maiden voyage and realized that it was much better than thought it would be. Got me itchy to try new lines, and thought trying a "small ship" experience would be the next best move.

 

Hopefully Silversea will be amazing. Think must do Seabourn having toured the ship when one was at Tilbury!!!

[wripro]

Garybem

 

I have done many crossings on both the QE2 and QM2. I loved the former because she was a true ocean liner in all respects. The QM2 on the other hand has the hardware of an ocean liner but the software of a cruise ship imo. Still, I enjoyed the crossings on her but would never do a cruise as she is way too big for me to have to deal with 2600 people embarking and disembarking at port after port.

 

I'm sure you will enjoy Silversea, and Seabourn too, for that matter.

[Jim Avery]

Garybem

 

I have done many crossings on both the QE2 and QM2. I loved the former because she was a true ocean liner in all respects. The QM2 on the other hand has the hardware of an ocean liner but the software of a cruise ship imo. Still, I enjoyed the crossings on her but would never do a cruise as she is way too big for me to have to deal with 2600 people embarking and disembarking at port after port.

 

I'm sure you will enjoy Silversea, and Seabourn too, for that matter.

 

Wripro, I ditto your comparison exactly. Big surprise.:eek::D Now if Seabourn would just do Alaska again.:D

[wripro]

Perhaps they'll take one of the new ships to Alaska one season. Maybe the Quest with its strengthened hull post Antarctica.

[Jim Avery]

Perhaps they'll take one of the new ships to Alaska one season. Maybe the Quest with its strengthened hull post Antarctica.

 

Count me in! I used to run a ship up there years ago all year round.:eek: Not near as much fun as sitting in a nice forward lounge and having someone bring you a never ending string of drinks and bites.:D

[Keith1010]

Garybem, I am glad that you are going to try the luxury lines. In time, hopefully you will try a few of them so you can figure out which ones work best for you.

 

Keith

[Garybem]

Garybem, I am glad that you are going to try the luxury lines. In time, hopefully you will try a few of them so you can figure out which ones work best for you.

 

Keith

 

Yes I am sure I will. Think have got the trying other lines bug now! I love the QM2 Crossing as per above, but think that for cruising the smaller more personal lines will likely be better than bigger ship experiences.

 

I would love to do Alaska. See Seabourn doing Antarctic this year. That could be quite something

[sugarbird]

My wife and I have 136 days on Seabourn and about 60 days on Silversea. Both our excellent cruise experiences. We give an edge to Seabourn because of their person touches---remembering names, hosted dinners, etc.

The food on Seabourn is also slightly better.

We do, however, love Silversea--we are on the Shadow Vancouver to Tokyo in September.

One should be pleased with the experience on either line!!!

[italycruiser]

Totally agree with tillylovesseabourn. I have been on both lines; the staff on Silversea is aloof at best and rude at worst. Further, the officers act like they are doing you a favor to walk by in the hallway - never a greeting or a smile, just a look like you are an annoyance. The opposite on Seabourn; friendly greetings from all including the captain and his officers. I also like the "extra" touches on Seabourn like the hosted dinners (again, dependent on friendly and connected officers and staff). I stopped sailing with Silversea several years ago.

[philipb]

I suppose everyone has different ideas. I find Silversea vastly superior to Seabourn when it comes to food (quality, choice and presentation), wine(quality and choice) and service. Silversea is slightly more formal, which I also prefer. The public rooms are preferable, too. La Terrazza on the SS ships is so much nicer than the dreary Colonnade restaurant on SB, and I don't like the impersonal main restaurant on the new SB ships either.

[Adventurans]

Seabourn, hands down. Even the passengers on Seabourn are more interesting. The service and food is superb compared to Silversea. The larger Seabourn ships are so much nicer than Silversea. Seabourn is just so much more accommodating that Seabourn.

[wills47]

This is an interesting thread. After a wonderful cruise on Seabourn, I have been looking at future cruises, based on ports/ destinations. I was really interested in a Silverseas cruise in Alaska, but preliminary research on the SS cruise board and trip reports made me change my mind. Most people seem to like the cabins, the complaints are about service/ food issues, which indicates a lack of proper management.

 

Speaking for myself, it isn't so much the price as the time. When one is "time poor" one hates to make a mistake in choosing a vacation. It is tempting to go with a known product that hopefully guarantees success. Alternatively, I considered a rock bottom cruise on Princess but the dates didn't work. I guess it is about expectations. You expect SB and SS to be excellent, and if they aren't, it's disappointing.

 

I decided to look for Seabourn cruises in the Med this fall and put Alaska off for another year. It seems like SS is having a hard time with its product right now, perhaps next year they'll have righted their ship-pun intended!

[ct-andy]

T I was really interested in a Silverseas cruise in Alaska, but preliminary research on the SS cruise board and trip reports made me change my mind. Most people seem to like the cabins, the complaints are about service/ food issues, which indicates a lack of proper management.

 

True, and my last year's Silver Shadow Alaska trip is my last cruise with SS.

 

Looking forward to my first Seabourn next week. :D

[Jim Avery]

We are in the same boat as the above posters. Want to do Alaska on Seabourn.:D We have the same misgivings about SS and, at that price point, want to make the right choice. Love Seabourn and certainly do not want to be on a Mega Ship. I used to work in Alaska running a freighter up the inside passage and over to the Bering Sea. Lots of work. Really want to do it in a fun way and see what it is like with someone else doing the driving.:eek::D Regent also seems to be having issues and the Navigator is famous for bad vibrations in the aft cabins. So, Seabourn, how about Sojourn in Alaska a few times a year??.:D

[vistaman]

if you are a wine lover : SS does have a great winelist especially for Champagne and European " upper medium " priced wines

on the other side the complimentary wines are better on SB

i never liked the Charlie Palmer dishes - in a few weeks i will discover the SB menu's without those...

i liked the Legend but i did not like the 2 small SS sisters

contrarely to Crystal both SB and SS do not have a wide choice of premium licors ( to purchase )

entertainment is more sophisticated on SB

[harbormaster]

After just coming off the Shadow in Alaska, and having been a frequent Silversea guest, in fact 4 cruises in one year, we recommend you go on Seabourn. We have also cruised Seabourn a lot, and find it to meet expectations and even exceed them. The Sojourn is our favorite ship on the seas.

While we love the crew on Silversea, they no longer can make up for the changes onboard in terms of food and cost cutting, nor the poor decisions by management in terms of customer service and not honoring promotions.

It's like losing an old friend but sometimes you have to say goodbye.