Silversea or Seabourn

[Doolz]

Very interesting to read the opinions and comparisons between Silversea and Regent, however as a someone who has only experienced SS I would like to read a comparison between SS and Seabourn, I have tried via the search function but surprisingly there are no links. Can anyone please advise, thanks in advance.

 

We’ve booked the Silver Moon over Christmas and NY from Hong Kong to Singapore, I’m enjoying reading the feedback on the current maiden voyage and nervously wondering whether our cruise will go ahead later this year, keeping everything crossed that Hong Kong and Singapore are allowing cruise ships into their ports!

Edited June 20, 2021 by Doolz

[Stumblefoot]

13 hours ago, Doolz said:

I have tried via the search function but surprisingly there are no links.

Actually, there are several links for what you seek based on the perfunctory search I just performed.  Refine your search to a single term such as Seabourn and limit your search to the Silversea parent forum.  See attached screen shot.

[lincslady]

I have had several cruises on both lines, but not on Silversea for some 8 years, whereas more recent on Seabourn.

 

To me the main differences were that Silversea is slightly more formal in the evenings, and that the staff you encounter on Seabourn, stewardesses, bar and wait staff, are from more parts of the world than  on Silversea.  (Unless Silversea has changed recently).  Seabourn recruits young people from many countries, who have generally got land based hotel and restaurant experience, and who wish to travel and possibly not regard their job at sea as one for life.  The result is that they are personable, chatty and friendly, but occasionally perhaps not as efficient as the Silversea staff.   I personally prefer this attitude, as they are more able to think 'outside the box' if problems arise.  Also the specialist restaurants are included in the cost.  And you will never be chased for a tip, as we sadly were - though only once - on Silversea.

 

I do find Seabourn more relaxing generally, and the Reception staff in the very pleasant Square very helpful and friendly.

[phillipahain]

We have done Silver Seas, Seabourne and Regent

 

Regent remains firm favourite for very many reasons however itinery is the key especially when you have been lucky enough to travel extensively and for 2022 we are on SS around Japan purely because no one else does the same ports which would allow me to see Kenroykan Gardens ...

[markham]

I would like to focus on Silversea specifically as a BIG fan of the new Muse class ships and someone who will cruise on Seabourn anytime. In fact, I have a few cruises booked on both lines in the next 2 years.

 

The Seabourn brand ie facilities, vibe and relative newness of their 5 ships makes discussing Seabourn easy - as well as returning to the any of their ships. But I have strong opinions about Silversea as I do not personally believe the Whisper and Cloud are in the same league as the Muse class. The old ships are tired and the facilities wanting. 
 

So my advice is focus on which Silversea ship you might choose for these differences and choose carefully. For me, the best “itinerary” is one on the Muse class ships.

 

Happy and healthy sailing!

[cece50]

We have sailed on both Seabourn & Silversea on the newer ships only….. Encore, Ovation, Muse and would be hard pressed to make large comparisons.  There are little ones, which would not be a deal breaker in our case. We loved the Thomas Keller Grill on Encore & Ovation (best coconut cake ever),  I was not a fan of the giant waiting room style of the main lounge on the Muse, but I think they have reconfigured that area on the Moon & Dawn.

The entertainment on both was very nice, with a slight nod to Seabourn.  I also give the nod to the CDs on the Seabourn , Ross & Handre  with very differing styles were just the best. My DH is a fan of the Connoisseur Corner on Silversea where he can enjoy a fine cigar.  So as I said, we love both lines and will certainly book again.  For us, the itineraries & dates will make our final decision.  We were booked on the Dawn for her  original inaugural but that was cancelled. We look to 2022 to catch up with both lines. 

[Observer]

1 hour ago, markham said:

 

So my advice is focus on which Silversea ship you might choose for these differences and choose carefully.

 

Good advice!  Some people prefer the intimacy of the older (pre-Musification) SS ships.  My earliest cruises were on Seabourn triplets, and in some ways those very small ships set for me the standard for luxury cruising.   

[Lois R]

I have never sailed on Seabourn but have been on Spirit, Whisper and Wind.....I would put Wind in 3rd place and Spirit and Whisper tied for 1st.......Loved them both and didn't think either one was tired.🙂

(just my opinion).

  

Getting ready to sail MOON so will definitely be expecting a different experience since she is really brand new and of course there will be health protocols in place.

[Fletcher]

I prefer Seabourn to Silversea for many of the same reasons as Lincslady above. It's less formal and the decor of the ships is more pleasing to my eyes.  Seabourn Square is a stunning use of space that has no real counterpart on Silversea, or Regent for that matter.  I think cabins are roughly similar at all levels. Seabourn Quest is far and away the best ship I've ever sailed on but I was also surprised how much I liked the larger Ovation which took us to Norway. I'm not a fan of the Thomas Keller restaurants on Seabourn though I much prefer Seabourn's overall dining choices to Silversea which charges extra for their top venues, a total no-no for me.  Both Seabourn and Silversea have rather repetitive itineraries but Silversea has the more adventurous expedition trips which is a big plus for them.  In the end, go with the itinerary as that's the most important thing.  At least it is for me.

Edited June 21, 2021 by Fletcher

[Gourmet Gal]

What a happy choice!  Probably really can’t go wrong unless you’re opposed to dressing up a little.  Itinerary is more likely a better determining factor.

[cece50]

1 hour ago, Gourmet Gal said:

What a happy choice!  Probably really can’t go wrong unless you’re opposed to dressing up a little.  Itinerary is more likely a better determining factor.

So right Gourmet Girl….,happy choices indeed. We dressed the same on both lines and felt very appropriate.  Nice dress or dress pants & silk top for me and nothing more formal than dress trousers & blazer (with tie for formal

night) for my DH.  We loved both lines. 

[markham]

Lois R,

 

Firstly, I wish for you a wonderful cruise on Moon!

As you are a long time Silversea cruiser, your opinion on the Moon class ships will be most interesting. And as such, I expect you will know many crew and that they will welcome you.

 

Happy and healthy sailing!

[les37b]

18 hours ago, markham said:

I would like to focus on Silversea specifically as a BIG fan of the new Muse class ships and someone who will cruise on Seabourn anytime. In fact, I have a few cruises booked on both lines in the next 2 years.

 

The Seabourn brand ie facilities, vibe and relative newness of their 5 ships makes discussing Seabourn easy - as well as returning to the any of their ships. But I have strong opinions about Silversea as I do not personally believe the Whisper and Cloud are in the same league as the Muse class. The old ships are tired and the facilities wanting. 
 

So my advice is focus on which Silversea ship you might choose for these differences and choose carefully. For me, the best “itinerary” is one on the Muse class ships.

 

Happy and healthy sailing!

 

It's quite funny, after reading Lois comments (now above) how opinions can differ. I've sailed on the Muse and know how good it is, but I'd still prefer (if I could) sail on the Wind (prior to expedition). Yes, she is tired compared to the Muse and Moon, but there is just something special and appealing about the Wind (for me anyway). I was booked on her final sailing.... alas covid.......

 

I cant argue that the Muse will generally give the better experience on board..... But no sailing up the Saigon River or Thames to Tower Bridge for example can be a huge factor. Part of it for me too I guess, but its probably mostly sentimental. I liked the Shadow and Whisper and they are of course quite similar to the Wind (and Cloud)........ But they come below my preference order.

 

Of the Moon, Dawn and Muse, i'd take the later. I loved Indochine which has been dropped for the Moon and Dawn. I know I'm in the minority with that opinion (and why Silversea has done so), but again - its personal opinions. No rights or wrongs.

 

I can remember when I first saw the Muse how massive she looked. That perception has completely vanished. It feels the norm now.

 

To clarify also.... I wouldn't say no to any of them. I'd also happily sail on any Seabourn ship, though free laundry is gonna be a hard thing to lose to swap ships!

[frantic36]

12 minutes ago, les37b said:

I'd also happily sail on any Seabourn ship, though free laundry is gonna be a hard thing to lose to swap ships!

 

I understand your feelings. We are hoping to try Muse or Moon at some point but as we get free laundry on our Seabourn sailings it is a hard thing to lose when we sail on Silversea 😊.

[les37b]

5 minutes ago, frantic36 said:

 

I understand your feelings. We are hoping to try Muse or Moon at some point but as we get free laundry on our Seabourn sailings it is a hard thing to lose when we sail on Silversea 😊.

 

Haha.... well the truth is, I've not had that experience yet..... I've qualified now through default after 3 cruises with 43 days between them cancelled and have been rebooked. They all count! 

 

Doubt my Dawn sailing in its current form will sail (Panama Canal - FLL to Lima) - but I can't see SS not replacing it with something else with it being its first few sailings.

 

 

[Lois R]

1 hour ago, markham said:

Lois R,

 

Firstly, I wish for you a wonderful cruise on Moon!

As you are a long time Silversea cruiser, your opinion on the Moon class ships will be most interesting. And as such, I expect you will know many crew and that they will welcome you.

 

Happy and healthy sailing!

Good morning, thank you but compared to others on this forum? I am really not a long time SS cruiser.

First cruise with them was 2017.  I am still new🙂.  Many on here have sailed with them for 10-20 years! THAT is a long time😃

[markham]

Silversea gets a gold star from me on laundry. It’s free after 100 days and is returned same day. Perfect. No wonder its loyal followers stay that way!

On Seabourn it’s 250 days for free laundry and it’s next day. Or at least it was until a couple of years ago when some staff tried to convince me that it was always “next day” with an alternative meaning as far as I was concerned: in their hands before 9 am on Monday and back Wednesday afternoon. That is not next day. That is 2 days. Next day means Tuesday!  Remember, definitions in the hospitality segment are defined by the customer, not some operational unit. At least that’s my view.

 

We will have more to say on this since we are on both Ovation and Moon next month. 
 

Happy and healthy sailing!

[cece50]

6 hours ago, frantic36 said:

 

I understand your feelings. We are hoping to try Muse or Moon at some point but as we get free laundry on our Seabourn sailings it is a hard thing to lose when we sail on Silversea 😊.

Yes, “free” laundry on Silversea requires you to dole out the big bucks for at least a Silver Suite.  We did for other reasons but you only have to pack half the clothes. Our butler, Mark, came each morning to pick up laundry.  I think there are other ways depending  on your status with number of cruises…but don’t quote me on that. 

[dusababy]

3 minutes ago, cece50 said:

Yes, “free” laundry on Silversea requires you to dole out the big bucks for at least a Silver Suite.  We did for other reasons but you only have to pack half the clothes. Our butler, Mark, came each morning to pick up laundry.  I think there are other ways depending  on your status with number of cruises…but don’t quote me on that. 

After 100 days on board you get free laundry -- you can figure out the per piece price from the total fare for 100 days  🙂😅

[markham]

For what it’s worth, and especially for those who want to “price” laundry services on Seabourn and Silversea in terms of fares paid and the free laundry benefit, here is some more perspective:

 

Seabourn gives the benefit at 250 days and Silversea at 100 days. But another benefit is it takes 350 days to get a free week’s cruise on Silversea while it takes only 250 days to get a free cruise of 2 weeks.

 

Another thing to consider if you really like these 2 lines and have lots of plans.

 

Happy and healthy sailing!

[cruiseej]

I'd also note that on Seabourn, you earn one free all-you-can-stuff-in bag of laundry per 7 nights after just 20 nights. For those of us a long way away from triple-digit nights on any one cruise line (and probably unlikely to ever earn unlimited free laundry), I find this a useful benefit; its not a lot of laundry, but it allows us to pack a little lighter and not spend time using the self-service laundry.

[Gourmet Gal]

5 hours ago, markham said:

For what it’s worth, and especially for those who want to “price” laundry services on Seabourn and Silversea in terms of fares paid and the free laundry benefit, here is some more perspective:

 

Seabourn gives the benefit at 250 days and Silversea at 100 days. But another benefit is it takes 350 days to get a free week’s cruise on Silversea while it takes only 250 days to get a free cruise of 2 weeks.

 

Another thing to consider if you really like these 2 lines and have lots of plans.

 

Happy and healthy sailing!

 

50 minutes ago, cruiseej said:

I'd also note that on Seabourn, you earn one free all-you-can-stuff-in bag of laundry per 7 nights after just 20 nights. For those of us a long way away from triple-digit nights on any one cruise line (and probably unlikely to ever earn unlimited free laundry), I find this a useful benefit; its not a lot of laundry, but it allows us to pack a little lighter and not spend time using the self-service laundry.

Really good reasons to try Seabourn before I commit to too many days on SS.  We only have 40 days on SS and tend to go for the best itinerary over loyalty to any one line.  The “free” cruise benefit with Seabourn is especially valuable if you really love to cruise.  The laundry benefit is interesting but for me not that big a driver…it’s not like we can’t just pay for laundry or do a little ourselves.

[cruiseej]

30 minutes ago, Gourmet Gal said:

The laundry benefit is interesting but for me not that big a driver…it’s not like we can’t just pay for laundry or do a little ourselves.

 

It's definitely not a driver to choose a cruise or cruise line; it's a small perk at a low level of the loyalty perks list. On past cruises when we needed some laundry done, I found I would always choose to do it myself rather than pay for it. Yes, I know it's would be a tiny cost in comparison to what we've paid for the cruise! It's just my normal nature to save money where possible, the same as using coupons at the grocery store or spending time seeking the best price for something online. 😉 So for me, the first time we used the free bag of laundry perk, it was a nice little reward which saved me checking for open washing machines at off hours and doing it myself. Unlimited free laundry is in a completely different class of service/perk!

[sfvoyage]

Regarding Seabourn Club, it's important to note that Club points, not sea days, determine your tier level:

 

https://www.seabourn.com/en_US/seabourn-club.html

 

You don't need 250 sea days to reach Diamond level and thus get unlimited laundry: you need 250 club points.  See above chart for details.

 

Also, once you reach Gold (70 club points), you'll get one bag per week.  When we were at that level, between the two of us, we used to get 2 bags per week, which was just about sufficient.  After we reached Diamond, the unlimited laundry benefit was nice, since we wouldn't have to strategize to stuff the laundry bag and could send out a bag per day, but two bags per week were also sufficient for us.

 

For Silversea, are club tiers based on sailed days or club points?

Edited June 24, 2021 by sfvoyage

[Observer]

9 minutes ago, sfvoyage said:

For Silversea, are club tiers based on sailed days or club points?

 

Silversea tiers are based on nights sailed, not income generated.

 

At least at certain points during the pandemic (perhaps consistently, I don't know), Silversea offered credits for nights sailed even if the sailings were cancelled by Silversea.

 

It's worth pointing out that at 100 nights one gets not only unlimited free laundry on Silversea but also a 5% discount (on top of any other discounts) on future bookings.  At 250 nights it's 10%.  This (like laundry) is a benefit which keeps on giving.  🙂