Delay in drydocking wind this OCTOBER?

[rosewood jo]

Anyone know if silver-seas wind  is still planning on dry dock refurb to get ready for Antartica in December 2020?  Will it really be ready?      I’m suppose to be on that ship mid December 2020?    Any news on this would be appreciated! 

[Stumblefoot]

1 hour ago, rosewood jo said:

Anyone know if silver-seas wind  is still planning on dry dock refurb to get ready for Antartica in December 2020?  Yes.  Will it really be ready?  It depends.  I’m suppose to be on that ship mid December 2020?  I don't understand your question.    Any news on this would be appreciated! 

 

[rosewood jo]

Many companies are holding back  expenses with further improvements with the corona virus craziness going on.   So asking if silver sea still  plans to move forward  with refurb in the fall?   
example: Disney is holding back going forward with further installs and changes in rides etc  

May point is if that ship is held back from its refurb then I won’t be going on that trip! 

Edited April 7, 2020 by rosewood jo

[DCCruiser57]

At this point, the SS website shows that the last cruise before the scheduled drydock ends on August 13th in London.  There are no sailings in September and October and the next sailing is set for November 11th in Ushuaia.  Given that this extensive drydock is to convert the Wind to an expedition ship with a strengthened hull for ice operations, they probably will not postpone it, especially since expedition cruises generate much higher per diem revenues.  

[Stumblefoot]

2 hours ago, rosewood jo said:

So asking if silver sea still  plans to move forward  with refurb in the fall? 

 

Maybe you didn't see my answer to this same question you previously asked, but the answer is "yes" the refurb will begin this summer and extend into the early fall.

[cruiseej]

7 hours ago, Stumblefoot said:

 

Maybe you didn't see my answer to this same question you previously asked, but the answer is "yes" the refurb will begin this summer and extend into the early fall.

 

@Stumblefoot  I'm curious what's your basis for confidently saying the conversion will definitely proceed on time?

 

The dry dock is apparently scheduled for Valletta, Malta starting August 21. But Malta, like much of Europe, has shut down most businesses. I don't know which shipyard does this work, but if they lose a month or more of work, won't that likely impact other dry-docks scheduled for later in the year? Additionally, they need all the materials for the retrofit, from the steel to new carpets and everything in between -- all likely sourced from around the world, and all also subject to delays as factories around the world are closed this spring. So isn't there some likelihood that either the shipyard could be behind or the materials could be behind?

 

My interest in this is that I'm on the same holiday cruise as @rosewood jo... hopefully! (Whether we'll all be cruising before vaccinations are universally available is a separate issue none of us can answer at this point.)

[Stumblefoot]

1 hour ago, cruiseej said:

 

@Stumblefoot  I'm curious what's your basis for confidently saying the conversion will definitely proceed on time?

My confidence stems from the fact that at this time, there is no data to indicate it will not proceed on time. However, with that said, I’m pretty sure my confidence was couched in the words I used to answer rosewood jo’s “will it really be ready? question were "it depends".

 

Everything you describe, could certainly occur.  More likely though is that other vessels presently scheduled for dry dock will either cancel, or change, the body of work.  As such, the Wind’s dry dock would not be impacted.  Besides, for the Wind’s upcoming Antarctic season, the dry dock must occur or the ship will be incapable of sailing in polar regions.

[drron29]

Well I wouldn't be confident about the dry dock being on time.Many docks are under lockdown now so their current jobs are being delayed.Those would take precedence I assume when work restarts so future booked jobs could very well be delayed.

[les37b]

On 4/7/2020 at 7:15 PM, DCCruiser57 said:

At this point, the SS website shows that the last cruise before the scheduled drydock ends on August 13th in London.  There are no sailings in September and October and the next sailing is set for November 11th in Ushuaia.  Given that this extensive drydock is to convert the Wind to an expedition ship with a strengthened hull for ice operations, they probably will not postpone it, especially since expedition cruises generate much higher per diem revenues.  

 

I am booked on that final sailing and (unfortunately) fairly confident that it's not going to happen. Even if the ports were reopened mid July, I can't see Silversea flying in crews for a couple of weeks of cruises then flying them home again when the Wind departs for dry dock. 

 

Until this virus is beat, I can't see any hope of any sailings because the last thing countries will want to to open and be reinfected. The financial gain compared to the losses for reinfections is pretty obvious really.

 

I just wished I can think of a scenario some sort of normality returns, but I can't.

 

 

 

 

 

Edited April 10, 2020 by les37b

[Observer]

1 hour ago, les37b said:

 

 I can't see Silversea flying in crews for a couple of weeks of cruises then flying them home again when the Wind departs for dry dock. 

 

 

 

I have no idea about arrangements for the Wind, but I do know that many crew are often retained on SS ships during dry dock and do various kinds of work on the interior of the ship.  A butler proudly told me that he had worked a couple of dry docks and said he had become quite proficient in the use of the jack hammer. 

[les37b]

Thanks for that. I still can't see it going ahead, but at least that's a positive... And I've not seen too many of those recently!

[rosewood jo]

That’s what I thought,  but DISNEY is cutting way back on upgrades to their parks  for their 50th anniversary!    Entertainment corporations are cutting way back.  Guess we will have to wait and see.   Amusement/ cruise industry has been hit really hard.   Even AMC theatre is going to shut down !     My concern is are those dry dock companies going to be open in August and will they have the supplies to make the refurb happen for nov 2020 sail 

[safarigal]

I am on a November sailing on the Wind and spoke with an agent at Silversea today.

 

They have been told that the Wind refit will occur, and the Antarctic season will continue as planned. I do hope that this is the case, but I agree that there is a strong likelihood that it will be cancelled. We will just have to wait and see.

[les37b]

On 4/15/2020 at 1:58 AM, safarigal said:

I am on a November sailing on the Wind and spoke with an agent at Silversea today.

 

They have been told that the Wind refit will occur, and the Antarctic season will continue as planned. I do hope that this is the case, but I agree that there is a strong likelihood that it will be cancelled. We will just have to wait and see.

 

Putting aside the dock situation (ie if the dock will be open - which personally suspect it will), there is also the matter of the expense involved at a time when SS will be skint. Its one of those damned if you do and damned if you dont moments. I genuinely dont believe there will be any Wind sailings until after the refit (if it happens.)

[cruiseej]

4 hours ago, les37b said:

 

Putting aside the dock situation (ie if the dock will be open - which personally suspect it will), there is also the matter of the expense involved at a time when SS will be skint. Its one of those damned if you do and damned if you dont moments. I genuinely dont believe there will be any Wind sailings until after the refit (if it happens.)

 

…AND whether a huge amount of custom materials will be built/produced and shipped to Malta on time. The Silversea website describes the renovation this way:

 

As well as benefitting from a strengthened ice-class hull, new state-of-the-art equipment for cruising in remote regions, a fleet of Zodiacs and kayaks for on-water exploration, and an upgraded theatre; all suites will undergo another full upgrade; the Spa & Salon will each be completely refurbished; the Reception/Atrium will be overhauled; and additional improvements will be made to La Dame, La Terrazza, the Main Bar, the Observation Lounge, the Panorama Lounge, the Pool Bar, public bathrooms, and the Theatre, among other spaces. 

 

That's a lot of carpets, fabrics, chairs, electronics, not to mention steel -- sourced from around the world -- which needs to be at the shipyard and ready to go when the ship arrives. With the worldwide supply chain heavily battered, there are a large number of ways this could not go well. I'll be keeping my fingers crossed!

[Mocci]

Hi everyone , we are on the November 11th sailing , the first after the dry dock. I’m also concerned this sailing may not go forward if there is a delay. The last 2 sailings in the summer have been cancelled and the ship is currently docked in Marseille France. I hope that we all get lucky on this one. This is a trip of a lifetime for us... I am a hospital employee and it helps so much to look forward to this amazing trip!! If anyone hears any info on this please share, it’s so helpful.

[safarigal]

50 minutes ago, Mocci said:

Hi everyone , we are on the November 11th sailing , the first after the dry dock. I’m also concerned this sailing may not go forward if there is a delay. The last 2 sailings in the summer have been cancelled and the ship is currently docked in Marseille France. I hope that we all get lucky on this one. This is a trip of a lifetime for us... I am a hospital employee and it helps so much to look forward to this amazing trip!! If anyone hears any info on this please share, it’s so helpful.

We are on the November 21st sailing, and like you the thought of being on that cruise keeps me going! Silversea says that the cruise is still on. I contacted the Palumbo shipyard in Malta where the refit is scheduled to be done, they did get back to me, but really were only interested in whether or not I was a ship's broker, and failed to answer my question as to whether the dry dock was going to be done as scheduled. I have contacted someone else in Malta, to see if they can find out for us.

[carefreecruise]

the Silver wind has no more sailings till after its retro-fit. It is currently in Marseille, just across from Malta. The Wind is not able to make any money for Silversea in its current state. It MUST be converted to capture the expedition market or it's no use to them.

 

So the plan looks to me that they are getting it in early to make sure it gets done on time.

Edited May 24, 2020 by carefreecruise

[carefreecruise]

3 minutes ago, carefreecruise said:

 

 

Edited May 24, 2020 by carefreecruise

[Randyk47]

2 hours ago, carefreecruise said:

the Silver wind has no more sailings till after its retro-fit. It is currently in Marseille, just across from Malta. The Wind is not able to make any money for Silversea in its current state. It MUST be converted to capture the expedition market or it's no use to them.

 

So the plan looks to me that they are getting it in early to make sure it gets done on time.

While I wouldn’t go as far as to say the Wind can’t or isn’t making money for Silversea I do think they’ll go ahead with the work.  Worst case scenario is that they’ll have a renovated smaller ship that can go pretty much anywhere.  Personally I don’t know what the new norm is going to be in cruising.   We could see the whole world, and in turn the cruise industry, throw this all off by this fall or winter with a return to pretty normal operations.   We could see this mess linger and  in turn leisure travel and particularly cruising be devastated.   Then again we could see something in between and I have no idea what that would be like.  

[les37b]

1 hour ago, Randyk47 said:

While I wouldn’t go as far as to say the Wind can’t or isn’t making money for Silversea I do think they’ll go ahead with the work.  Worst case scenario is that they’ll have a renovated smaller ship that can go pretty much anywhere.  Personally I don’t know what the new norm is going to be in cruising.   We could see the whole world, and in turn the cruise industry, throw this all off by this fall or winter with a return to pretty normal operations.   We could see this mess linger and  in turn leisure travel and particularly cruising be devastated.   Then again we could see something in between and I have no idea what that would be like.  

 

Agree. It’s all a big unknown. We have some posters still optimistically hoping for a sailing in July, some who predict and hope it’s the end of Silversea. I suspect medical science will play a huge role going forward (instant accurate testing, vaccines and treatments etc) and also self survival changes implemented within the cruise industry like the ANZAC bubble being proposed which I personally think is a great idea to actively do something instead of just waiting.

[Randyk47]

6 hours ago, les37b said:

 

Agree. It’s all a big unknown. We have some posters still optimistically hoping for a sailing in July, some who predict and hope it’s the end of Silversea. I suspect medical science will play a huge role going forward (instant accurate testing, vaccines and treatments etc) and also self survival changes implemented within the cruise industry like the ANZAC bubble being proposed which I personally think is a great idea to actively do something instead of just waiting.

I’d be the last one to rain on the parade of those who hope for sailings in July.   Indeed that would signal a significant reduction in the pandemic which everybody wants.  It’s easy for me to be in the “wait and see” mode as we squeezed in a cruise on the Wind in late January so not in total cruise withdrawal mode.  Add that Mrs K is in her second year of graduate school and graduates in July 2021.  There is virtually no way we could cruise again until later in 2021 and indeed had our eyes on a Spirit cruise.    I will admit we’re holding off booking for the time being until this all settles.  

[rosewood jo]

I’m so impressed anyone even knew how to get the silver wind info from the shipyard.(safarigirl)     Hope all the positives come true on the ship getting completed refurb by deadline to sail! 

[rosewood jo]

biggest problem is flying to Chile or Argentina in NOV/DEC 2020.     also getting into the different ports could still be a problem.  time will tell.  

[scottjeanne]

We are scheduled to fly in to Buenos Aires in January.  Since it is the new hot spot, even if we can fly in I am not sure the US will let us back home.  Again time will tell.  Waiting is hard.