Silver Spirit or Navigator ?

[guerchino]

We have sailed on Silversea and enjoyed it very much - have never sailed Regent. Same Western Caribbean itinerary - cost difference negligible. May I have thoughts from those who have sailed on both.

 

Thanks very much!

[RachelG]

We have sailed on both. If itinerary and cost are about the same, spirit gets the edge from my view due to more dining venues. And a better walking track. Rooms are about the same.

[Travelcat2]

We have sailed both. I'm curious why your only question is about the ship. Sailing Regent is not the same experience as Silversea. We do not care for the Silver Spirit (love the Whisper and Shadow). We are not fans of the Navigator. Given the choice of the two ships, we would stay home and wait until the Voyager or Mariner were in the Caribbean.

[fizzy]

We love the Navigator and all of the SS ships. The cabins, food and crew are equally outstanding. Depending on your age, I honestly feel that the Spirit draws a slightly younger age group with things a little more lively at night.... but by no means a frat party. The free excursion thing is not an issue on the SS ships but is a strong selling point for some on Regent. You could not go wrong with either.

[Lvtocruize2]

We love the Navigator!!! The crew is outstandingly friendly and will call you by name from the first day. I have been on all three Regent ships but will admit only once on the Mariner and Voyager. We prefer the Navigator because of the size, food and service that was fantastic, entertainment extraordinary. We made many new friends which we still email and keep in touch with. I'll stop since I'm running out of adjectives but I do think you will enjoy being on this ship. We are sailing the Eastern Caribbean in March on the Navigator. I can't vouch for SS since we haven't cruised on any of their ships.

 

Happy sailing!!!

[guerchino]

Thank you all for your replies. To answer Travelcat2 - we are very much aware of the Silversea experience and it is possible to get a sense of the Regent experience from reading these boards. My question relates to the specific ambiance of these two ships. I am curious as to why you do not like either of them.

[LindaM]

We love the Navigator and all of the SS ships. The cabins, food and crew are equally outstanding. Depending on your age, I honestly feel that the Spirit draws a slightly younger age group with things a little more lively at night.... but by no means a frat party. The free excursion thing is not an issue on the SS ships but is a strong selling point for some on Regent. You could not go wrong with either.

 

I love the layout of Navigator. I would sail her again, but would not expect outstanding food or service. If you don't mind being in the DR for 2 1/2 hours or having one bar steward in the show lounge for the first couple of nights....I guess our expectations were too high, for a luxury line. The cabins and incabin service were wonderful. Our first time on Navigator was perfect. 9 months ago---not up to luxury standards, IMHO. Service in the other venues was good---Sette Mari could be improved upon service and food wise, as well.

[JPR]

We like the Navigator, which was rated ahead of the Silver Spirit in a recent Conde Nast Poll regarding small cruise ships.

Edited December 23, 2013 by JPR

[Mr Retired]

We have sailed in both ships. We loved the Spirit but would not sail in Navigator again. To some extent we were unlucky with Navigator... we were in Alaska and the weather was bad. The outside decks were unusable with the result that all the public rooms were overcrowded all the time. Navigator does not ride well in rough seas and she has a serious vibration problem... she was not built as a luxury cruise ship. In all respects, Mariner and Voyager are in our view a cut above Navigator and those two ships compare well with the Spirit. Generally, in our opinion, Silversea has a very slight edge over Regent but both are excellent.

[guerchino]

Again - Thanks to all of you and have a good holiday.