Price Comparison For The Same Category 2018 versus 2024

[Mr Luxury]

3 hours ago, bitob said:

Everyone has different priorities. 
at this point in my life I want it all

 

business class

huge cabin

butler

gorgeous ship

i care less about ports than I used to. We’ve been everywhere on land and sea. I want to love the ship as much if not more than the itinerary 

 

Time is getting shorter 

Exactly what I think.

[May B]

20 hours ago, Cruise-y said:

I couldn’t care less about a butler. But I agree flying economy is agony if it is more than a few hours. 

To fly over the pond, we often get two alone together in an exit row. Sometimes it’s economy plus, sometimes it’s just best available for Mr B’s status on DL.

 

Coming home from Stockholm this July it’s on a 757 (😳) and we couldn't even get aisles across. We’re one row behind one another. Luckily, I’m short and Mr B is thin, so we can survive better than others. We’re now up to spending about .003 of our net worth this year on travel, angter having booked a Crystal for Nov., and we aren’t interested in spending any more for that flight. 
 

We are blessed.

[ak1004]

On 2/28/2023 at 4:08 AM, Jayayeff said:

 

Well, I'm pleased to see I wasn't the only one whose past and currently available similar cruises show such a significant increase.    It would appear that the biggest increases affect those of us who previously booked in the OV categories whereas those in Penthouse and above are noticing little change.    I have my suspicions as to why that should be the case, but I'll keep them to myself rather than start yet another hostile debate on here!!!

 

Anne..

 

Maybe they don't want "cheap" customers like us anymore?

 

Meanwhile "cheap" customer like myself already referred 8 couples to SS. That's 16 new customers who went to SS instead of Crystal because of Crystal absurd pricing. We might be the "cheap" customers, but all of us are in our late 50s early 60s and still have many years of travel ahead of us. Some of us already booked second and third cruise with SS.

[AtA]

3 hours ago, ak1004 said:

 

Maybe they don't want "cheap" customers like us anymore?

 

Meanwhile "cheap" customer like myself already referred 8 couples to SS. That's 16 new customers who went to SS instead of Crystal because of Crystal absurd pricing. We might be the "cheap" customers, but all of us are in our late 50s early 60s and still have many years of travel ahead of us. Some of us already booked second and third cruise with SS.

And to us SS was a huge step down. Even the cabin compared to our OC PH wasn’t as good and our butler was useless.  Even commenting when i couldn’t get a cookie in the afternoon (we were on Whisper) that on the other ships I could. No offer to go get me one. On OC the butler would have been back with cookies before I finished my sentence. LOL. And don’t get me started about service on the rest of the ship or the lack of entertainment and enrichment 

[bitob]

8 minutes ago, AtA said:

And to us SS was a huge step down. Even the cabin compared to our OC PH wasn’t as good and our butler was useless.  Even commenting when i couldn’t get a cookie in the afternoon (we were on Whisper) that on the other ships I could. No offer to go get me one. On OC the butler would have been back with cookies before I finished my sentence. LOL. And don’t get me started about service on the rest of the ship or the lack of entertainment and enrichment 

There seem to be a far greater number of former crystal cruisers who loved their silversea experience than those who share your view. Maybe your cruise was a one off. Everyone I know who tried ss after crystal’s demise has booked multiple future cruises on ss. Your experience sounds nothing like mine. 

Edited March 3, 2023 by bitob

[AtA]

26 minutes ago, bitob said:

There seem to be a far greater number of former crystal cruisers who loved their silversea experience than those who share your view. Maybe your cruise was a one off. Everyone I know who tried ss after crystal’s demise has booked multiple future cruises on ss. Your experience sounds nothing like mine. 

And I know plenty who will not sail SS again

[bayonejoe]

We will be on our first SS in two weeks. This cruise was booked looking for an alternative to the OC.  Hopefully, a better experience than the one we had on Regent Navigator last fall.

When we sail on Serenity in July, we feel that we can then have a basis of comparison for for future cruises. Remember, the best cruise line is the one you like.

Happy sailing to all.

[Stickman1990]

1 hour ago, AtA said:

And to us SS was a huge step down…

Since it seems to keep coming up regularly I thought it relevant to comment on our very recent experience

 

Interestingly we just completed 16 nights on Silver Muse earlier this week and had a fabulous time - great service, food and yes even entertainment. Credit where credit is due

 

The range and quality of restaurants was great - our favourites were Spaccanapoli for pizza at lunch time and Indochine for dinner - the best Indian and Thai curries and breads to accompany them at sea (we always struggled to get good Indian on old Crystal despite special request meals). The other restaurants including Atlantide, La Terrazza, The Grill and Hot Rocks as well as the specialty restaurant Kaiseki were all excellent. We didn’t try the French specialty, La Dame, as it’s not our preferred cuisine and frankly we wanted to get back to a number of the other restaurants. Service was excellent - all restaurants being overseen by Mario G who is ex Crystal. Similarly the bar staff were great and our favourite lounge the Dolce Vita, was an excellent replacement for our old Crystal favourite, Palm Court 

 

Our suite was spacious - 50% larger than our usual entry level ocean view or veranda on old Crystal and our Butler was excellent - nothing was too much trouble. We were always amused by how every Silversea crew member raced you to open your suite door when they happened to see you heading to your suite - it was almost a game to see who could get there first

 

The entertainment was a welcome surprise - an excellent and talented ensemble, the Voices of Silversea, a small band and good guest entertainers including Steve Stevens who appeared on old Crystal plus a very talented modern violinist Jakob Trasak. The enrichment lectures were often packed out, standing room only - testament to the quality and skills of the guest lecturers. The social activities like bingo and trivia were well run and a lot of fun and the leisure games like golf putting were excellent. Oh and trivia prizes were Silversea points which we redeemed at the end of the cruise for Silversea merchandise - no silly worthless discount vouchers for photos or the shops as we had on old Crystal

 

We were so impressed with our experience and the overall package we and 3 other couples (yes all Crystal cruisers) all swapped over from another lines Tokyo to Vancouver itinerary in 2024 to a longer one on Silver Muse (10 days more and $10,000 lower cost - what’s not to like) - we can’t wait to return to Silver Muse

 

BTW I found plenty of cookies in Arts Cafe which is a very pleasant bistro type location 

 

A quick note on smoking areas which some have made a big noise about on Silversea. We don’t smoke and smoking was never an issue for us and we spent a good amount of time around the pool - not saying there isn’t smoking but just that it should not be an issue 

 

No idea what the fitness centre is like on Silversea as it’s not important to us - similarly no paddle tennis courts either but a lovely large pool and surrounding area 

 

In summary we could not have had a better cruise experience than we just had on Silver Muse

I know some others have sailed Muse and didn’t like it - all I can report on is our experience and for us it really worked very well

 

We will sail Silversea, new Crystal, and Regent going forward - its great to have choices both in terms of the shipboard experience and a wide range of itinerary options - life is indeed great 

 

My bags are almost unpacked….but won’t be going into long term storage!

 

I’m certainly happy to answer any questions about our experience 

Edited March 3, 2023 by Stickman1990

[Stickman1990]

9 minutes ago, AtA said:

And I know plenty who will not sail SS again

And I know lots who will sail Silversea again or try them out to make their own judgement of the product 

 

Everyone’s different and what works for some won’t work for others - that’s why it’s important to try these things out for ones self 

[Mr Luxury]

Good report thank you.

Did Mario G mention that he would return to NC or is he happy working for Silversea.

[Stickman1990]

Just now, Mr Luxury said:

Good report thank you.

Did Mario G mention that he would return to NC or is he happy working for Silversea.

I didn’t ask him as I simply don’t want to know - and to be honest if I did know I wouldn’t share his plans with others unless he asked me to

 

He seemed very happy doing what he was doing and it was good to see him out and about around all the dining locations 

[bitob]

20 minutes ago, AtA said:

And I know plenty who will not sail SS again

Are they going to post and share?

 

Those I refer to have posted

[PaulMCO]

 

17 minutes ago, Stickman1990 said:

And I know lots who will sail Silversea again or try them out to make their own judgement of the product 

 

Everyone’s different and what works for some won’t work for others - that’s why it’s important to try these things out for ones self 

 

Thanks Terry -- good to know -- we will have our first post pandemic SS cruise in November.

Choice is good.  its is good to have 3+ cruise line one can look for a great itinerary.

[Cruise-y]

19 minutes ago, Stickman1990 said:

 

I’m certainly happy to answer any questions about our experience 

Thank you for your report. I was glad to hear about the enrichment. What were some of the subjects? Did they have cooking classes? Did you find the food equally good/inventive in the MDR (whatever they call it)? How much shade was in the pool area compared to Crystal?  Thanks

[Stickman1990]

16 minutes ago, Cruise-y said:

Thank you for your report. I was glad to hear about the enrichment. What were some of the subjects? Did they have cooking classes? Did you find the food equally good/inventive in the MDR (whatever they call it)? How much shade was in the pool area compared to Crystal?  Thanks

One enrichment speaker was an Australian who was part of Lindy Chamberlains (the dingos took my baby”) legal team who did a series on her case. Another was a good destinations lecturer who covered ports in good detail (as good as the late Ken Rees used to do)

 

They didn’t have cooking classes like on Regent but the Executive Chef (who should have been a standup comic he was so funny) did two cooking demos in the Panorama theatre - one on Indian (yum!) and one on Italian - they were excellent. The dishes were then available in the restaurants at lunch time 

 

There isn’t a MDR per se - there are Atlantide and Indochina which are similar. The menus change and there’s a good selection of dishes 

 

Plenty of shade around the pool and shelter for dining in bad weather - pull down blinds. We were in the tropics so the pool and loungers were in demand but it was never full and is a very big pool. They use the pool area and the deck above (11) very well for dining options - we loved both the The Grill which turned into Hot Rocks at night and Spaccanapoli and there’s plenty of capacity and shade there too. The head waiter there, Donavon from South Africa really runs those places well - a friendly chap who won an award last months for his efforts - well deserved  

 

 

 

 

 

This will give you an idea of some of the loungers around the pool 

 

 

Edited March 4, 2023 by Stickman1990

[Cruise-y]

@Stickman1990Thanks much for the pics and additional info. And for the recipes! Not to belabor this because I’m sure nobody else cares, but it looks like you can sit at tables and dine in the shade but not much lounging in the shade? Love being able to dine al fresco!

[bitob]

There were cooking classes on both my cruises on Moon. It’s part of the s.a.l.t program. Classes were great

[AtA]

Stickman there was no Arts Cafe on Whisper which is why our butler made his comment.

And our lecturer was one single travel lecturer. Entertainment at least 4 of the nights was a movie and on the other nights was the ensemble which consisted of 4 singers and not even alive band. I agree trivia was excellent and the prizes were better but that still left many hours on sea days. 

And no classes. No Japanese restaurant and you could get the same meal in the main dining room as in La Dame and save yourself $60 pp

[Roland4]

54 minutes ago, bitob said:

Are they going to post and share?

 

Those I refer to have posted

I don't disagree with anything Terry posted about the ship, we are on Moon, the facilities and the staff. They are all top-notch. The food has been generally good, though the only way to get a steak cooked the way I want it is in Hot Rocks. Atlantide is hopeless in that regard, and in La Dame my medium-rare steak still had a pulse!!!

 

Where we diverge is in the dress code, which is archaic! When the entire industry is going more casual, how can SS justify Formal/Informal/Casual, and have every single sea day be either Formal or Informal? I don't mind the beginning/end of cruise Formal nights, but if I want to put on a jacket every night, I will sail on Cunard!! For those disembarking in Barbados on Monday, the Sunday dress code is Informal! No line does that!

 

The other problem we have is the requirement to make a resrvation every single day for dinner, with the only exception being Atlantide or the pizza place. Atlantide would be the equivalent of Waterside, and it would be okay if the menu ever changed, but for the most part, it doesn't, or changes incrementally.

 

The other issue is SS smoking policy. I was raised in an family of smokers, amd I am not a militamt non-smoker, but I have a problem with a smoking policy that says smoking on your balcony is "discouraged". Say what?? It should be banned after the Star Princess disaster, just like every other line does! Add to that the Concierge Lounge is not sealed, and open to the sitting area on Deck 9 aft, so when the wind is in the wrong direction, the entire area is uninhabitable, especially when a cigar smoker is there.

 

In the last six months we have sailed Seabourn Quest, Regent Splendour and Silver Moon, and our experience with Silver Moon will be "one and done" until they change the dress code and tighten up the smoking policy.

[bitob]

The smoking would bother me too I honestly didn’t notice on either of my 2 cruises but perhaps there weren’t as many smokers on those cruises 

 

you are right about the dress code but we seem to find workarounds. Not a deal breaker for us. After all we’re doing round trip transatlantic on Qm2 in September lol

[Stickman1990]

Larry - we agree on the dress code needing a review and pronto - I’d much prefer no nights where a jacket is required - as is the case on Regent which has a good dress code. I could live with the jacket requirement on most nights as I just took it off once seated

 

We also learnt a good trick from the Cruise Director who told us where you dine sets the dress code for the night - so a booking at the poolside Hot Rocks meant no jacket required and we carried that standard on when going onto the show and bars 

 

Re dining reservations we had Atlantide and Indochine (but I know Indochine isn’t on a lot of the ships) that don’t require reservations. Having said that this was the one thing we used our Butler for to get reservations for our group of 4 - he didn’t have any problems if we gave him some notice

 

Atlantide’s menu did change for us - obviously there are some stable items but they had a variety of specials which changed nightly 

 

For us there were so many restaurant choices we never got bored and we certainly went away wishing to return so we could try other dishes on the menu at almost all of the restaurants 

 

I just remembered I forgot to mention Silver Note as another dining option - we enjoyed that too but do think it should really be turned into an Avenue Saloon piano bar! 😂😉

 

We never had an issue with smoking and I don’t recall anything being said about smoking on suite balconies - if it is allowed I agree it should not be. Re smoke on certain outside areas didn’t old Crystal allow smoking in some outside areas as well - so the same issue would have happened there (not on suite balconies) 

 

There were too many great things about Silversea for us not to return and in our case we will sail again on Silver Muse so we know the product - but we’d always review the specifics of the ships and their facilities - you’re unlikely to find us on some of their smaller vessels which lack the range of facilities we enjoy on cruises. I think that’s just a case of doing your homework before booking

 

[Stickman1990]

38 minutes ago, AtA said:

Stickman there was no Arts Cafe on Whisper…

Silver Whisper is only 392 pax capacity - I suspect you won’t find the same selection of facilities on many ships with that capacity as you would on a 600 pax capacity luxury ship (maybe one or two luxury expedition ships excluded) 

 

I don’t think you’re comparing apples with apples 🍎 🍏 

[bitob]

31 minutes ago, Stickman1990 said:

Silver Whisper is only 392 pax capacity - I suspect you won’t find the same selection of facilities on many ships with that capacity as you would on a 600 pax capacity luxury ship (maybe one or two luxury expedition ships excluded) 

 

I don’t think you’re comparing apples with apples 🍎 🍏 

The muse class ships— muse moon dawn— provide a very different experience from the smaller ships. We are booked on the spirit next year because of an amazing itinerary. We are prepared for the differences.  The muse class ships can be compared to crystal. Not the others 

[ak1004]

7 minutes ago, bitob said:

The muse class ships— muse moon dawn— provide a very different experience from the smaller ships. We are booked on the spirit next year because of an amazing itinerary. We are prepared for the differences.  The muse class ships can be compared to crystal. Not the others 

I believe the Spirit is similar size after the 2018 stretch as muse moon and dawn, similar number of dining venues.

 

the main difference is the SALT restaurant on the muse class.

Edited March 4, 2023 by ak1004

[bitob]

12 minutes ago, ak1004 said:

I believe the Spirit is similar size after the 2018 stretch as muse moon and dawn, similar number of dining venues.

 

the main difference is the SALT restaurant on the muse class.

Yes. Closer to the muse class but doesn’t have everything. I’m happy either way.