My wife and I have been on two Silversea cruises in the last year and two Regent this year. We definitely prefer Silversea and have booked for next year. The biggest disappointment on Regent was the quality of the food and bar service.
We were on this cruise with you and were impressed by your low key approach. We pretty much agree with everything you say although we did meet some excellent staff especially in Arts Cafe. If you think communication was poor you should have experienced their awful communication ( nil) with Grand Voyage passengers when it was decided we were stopping at the Seychelles and not going towards the Red Sea. It was awful,often incorrect and quite unsettling when they did ultimately gave us information - one day out of the Seychelles.
How was your experience with them? I'm thinking about doing South Africa, seashells, and Mauritius cruise and I'm thinking that this cruise ship would be the best one. How was the all inclusive excursions and everything go for you?
I do not know what date these videos are shown. Why ? My reply is dated 28 July 2024. Have just finished cruise Silver Moon.19 to 26 July 2024. Being a Solo traveller I took advantage of nil supplement, in my opinion paid top dollar. The quality of the food was as best average, the wines cheap plonk. There are many negatives. To many to go into. I ask a question "Why don't you explain to us video viewers the actual truths?😢😢😢 Never again Silver Seas. NEVER AGAIN!
Travelled with them last year on their oldest ship, Whisper, and it was amazing. Compared to Cunard, our usual line, we thought it was surprisingly good value given how dramatically better every aspect was and how absolutely everything was included. Customer service was exceptional (especially compared to Cunard).
Not sure what it was like before, but we did a Greek idle cruise on the Spirit last summer and fell in love with Greece and SilverSea. Can't wait to cruise with them again.
While I have not had the pleasure of any ultra luxury cruises, I do understand the point about it becoming "corporatized". I find that usually comes when the crew lose autonomy and are now expected to follow orders from a central body that is usually not on the seas with their guests. It may bring some consistency, but you lose the special touches that an autonomous crew could give.
Thanks for the information Gary. You had me worried when you started your video, as we have our first Silversea cruise in February next year aboard the new Silver Ray (Lima to Buenos Aires). Thankfully none of your points are deal-breakers for us. One of our biggest fears is the dress code. We are not big dress up people and were told by our TA and Silversea that the dress code is beginning to be somewhat MORE relaxed specially on the newer ships. Whether that is true or not remains to be seen (). But thanks again for this informative post.
A blazer with tie is acceptable or a suit and tie. For ladies, black dress slacks and a black cashmere sweater gets you through nicely with good jewelry. I did the first Atlantic crossing for the Nova and it was very very nice. BUT Yes, many of Gary’s criticisms are valid. The staff is not as polished nor are the officers not the staff as friendly. The old smaller ships were so friendly and THAT is why Silversea had that amazing reputation!!! The new Arts cafe is very well placed for meeting people. The Trivia game venue on the Nova is MUCH too small for the number of enthusiasts of that activity. And there is a lot of wasted space going too and from the venues in the fore and aft areas. The lectures in SOME cases weren’t top notch as they had been. And there was nothing in the shops worth Looking at, much less buying. Still catering to the extremely thin passenger….. But the main gripe nowadays is the painfully slow communication between our cruise specialist who was well known to the old head office and the new bureaucratic types of the new company. And for what they are claiming to be:a super luxury line, that is inexcusable.
We’re taking our first cruise on Spirit next month to celebrate some missed out on big birthdays and anniversary from lockdown so this was a real treat for us to splurge on. Really helpful video Gary, thank you. We’d read such a lot of negative reviews recently which worried us a bit but will keep everything in perspective and some fingers crossed for a great cruising experience! 😊
I’m really seriously looking at Silversea at the moment. With only a 25% Solo Supplement on some cruises, they wouldn’t cost me much more that Celebrity with their new punitive Solo Supplement (I did a comparison recently of one specific cabin on one specific Celebrity cruise and and found that the all-inclusive price for three in the cabin was less than solo occupancy. In fact, I could have paid for several shore excursion for all three pax with the price difference). So, if I’m going to be forced to pay top dollar, I might as well go for top product.
We travelled on Silversea last August and although we had never travelled with them before, I have to agree with you about the service. For a high quality service ship I was a little disappointed in the service in particularly in La Terrazza and that the waiters were not as attentive as I have had on other ships. The same with the butler service. I was not aware of the things you mentioned that you could ask for but we're not told about. Having said that we did enjoy our cruise and overall felt we had value for money for our cruise.
I always enjoy and appreciate the quality reviews you provide Gary. You have reassured us that our 1st cruise with the Silver Nova in June to Alaska will be fabulous. Thanks to your previous great advice I booked all our included excursions right at the beginning and was able to secure all our 1st choices. I now know to ask the butler for certain treats, so that is useful too.
I sailed on Silver Spirit and Silver Whisper. Both excellent, exquisit food and service. That was before Silversea changed owners. There was even someone who cleaned our eyeglasses while on the pool deck. Also there were no anklebiters on either ship.
Great review and insight Gary!! I think it is important to distinguish what you expect for a higher class of cruise line from a more main stream of line. I think I will check out Regent or some of the other luxury lines. And compare these to the "ship within a ship" like the haven on NCL. Thanks!
A very good, and fair, commentary. We have enjoyed SSea three times with a fourth scheduled next year, our second in the “adventure” class. Galapagos on a ship designed for that sole purpose, the Silver Origin, should be on your bucket list. We have found the door-to-door experience seamless and worry-free, although there can be airline hiccups at any time. The butler service is marvelous if you take advantage of it and use it. I could provide example of their beyond expected personal attention, but that’s another video in itself.
I have an upcoming cruise in April. It will be my first with SSsea, I hope they will iron out the rough spots. Although I am not as demanding or want super attentive service.
I have to add (just to show how different things are now) that the best service 'thing' that ever happened to us was on our first cruise in the 80's on Carnival's original Mardi Gras, the second-hand ship that they started the line with. At that time, you were always served ice tea at dinner rather than water. The first night at dinner my wife asked if she could have iced coffee instead. The waiter offered to make it for her and she said he didn't need to do that. But he insisted he would and in less than 5 minutes, she had her iced coffee. But not only that, he had the iced coffee ready for her every night when we showed up for dinner, this still being when you had the same table at the same time with the same staff every night.
Poor Communication & interesting port/tendering decisions have been an issue on all 3 of our SSea cruises. Restaurant staff have been less attentive. Excursion offerings are good, but you have to lock them in as soon as you get a booking number, which can even be before a deposit is paid! After 3 cruises, only on our last one did we have a butler that did more than a steward on any other line. She was fabulous and really made us feel like we were getting our money's worth. Too bad the rest of the issues dropped that feeling down!
Loved this report Gary .. I'm a silversea girl since my first cruise with them in 2005 .. have never looked back .. have over 40 plus cruises mostly in the early days royal Caribbean ( 1989).. I have been on dawn & moon & Agree with you on several issues you mentioned since take over but I still enjoyed my last 2 cruises & have 2 more bookings..
We're avid cruisers & have been on 31 cruises on 11 different cruise lines. In addition, we are at Platinum level on Carnival which gets us a lot of perks. What you had to say about asking for things that they used to offer it even true here. I always check before any cruise, but especially on Carnival, for any perks that are supposed to be available & I take that list with me.
Great review. I have sailed over 25 times with Silversea (full disclosure as a guest lecturer each time) since 2011 both before and after RCI’s purchase of the line. I think the overall quality has been consistent through the years. Each ship and each voyage has its own unique feel based upon the staff. Originally the first four ships were about 290 and 386 guests. The more recent four ships are about 600, which gives the eight restaurants with the Silver Moon and Silver Dawn with the new SALT restaurant which has been excellent in my experience on cruises in the Caribbean and Norway with regional cuisine. I am booked on the two new builds, the Silver Nova and Silver Ray which are about 700 guests and have an axial deck layout instead of the “wedding cake “ layout of the other ships. Perhaps some of the online opinions have been the result of the line growing and that the newer ships are 600 guests instead of 300 or 400. Have sailed on Regent four times and agree that Silversea is more formal and “European” in feel and Regent perhaps more “American “ in feel
You nailed it! We’ve cruised Silversea before and after as well. It’s still lovely. Our challenge was we’re non-drinkers. We understood there’s no reduction on fare - but on a 2 week tran-Atlantic trip we were hoping the servers might learn this - instead we had to refuse wine at every meal. It makes you feel a bit like a fun hater!
Hi Gary, nice to see your videos again. Just want to let you know Silver seas door-to-door is not Business Class! I priced it out and found that if I did their door-to-door I would be paying about an extra $8000 more than booking it myself Business Class. I’ll be going on Silver Silver Muse January 5, 2025 Auckland to Sydney. When I booked the door-to-door I found they were charging me almost $40,000 for two of us. I was able to book the cruise (port to port) for $14,700 (superior balcony suite), and buy my Business Class airfare from a consolidator for a total of $16,700 far cheaper than their door-to-door “upgrade” to business class. My total is a little over $30,000 compared to their price of $39,000 and change. An Uber to and from the airport is a heck of a lot cheaper, and I was able to get discount hotel rates for the JW Marriott Auckland and the Marriott in Sydney. Also, so you know, they’ve just introduced a budget fair which is absolutely no refunds and does not include shore excursions. Speaking with shore excursions, on my cruise Jan 2025, the choice of short excursions Australia, and New Zealand is very basic & limited! I have only two options for free, the rest cost money that’s a big disappointment to me. I understood before booking the cruise that they were all free. examples of included excursions are a bus ride around town, a tour of a garden sanctuary. The other thing that’s disappointment is there are no excursions included for the departure city, Auckland, or the Arrival city of Sydney, even though we’re docked. Given that we have three overnights on this cruise, I may book my own shore, excursions and pay for them (regrettably) but I’m disappointed to understand that you have to ask for things and they’re not automatically given. I booked this cruise with the understanding that they were absolutely top shelf, and they were very personalized get to know your name get to know your preferences without having to pull that information from them. I’ll let you know how my cruise goes. I’m starting to have regrets about booking this. Silversea Cruises makes it hard, Should you change your mind and canceled there is at minimum 15% cancellation fee. Well, I’ve given up on the mainstream cruise lines like Princess and Holland America due to overcrowding and poor quality, I will research with a fine tooth comb all high and cruise lines to make sure I’m making the best decision possible. All the reviews I read, said Silver seat was the best, we shall see.
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We have travelled SS 3 times and have 3 more booked. On our last trip (Silver Cloud Antarctic expedition), I did notice a drop in service at the restaurants, particularly La Terrazza. Failure to provide tea and coffee in anything like a timely manner / slash only received when asked. The head waiter reprimanding staff in hearing distance of guests. Most staff seemed very new and unsure (possibly scared of the boss). As it was a 15 day cruise the staff did get to know us and were lovely. I am not sure whether it was my memory but I felt there was more variation on the nightly menus previously.Our butler service was impeccable especially compared to our Silver Spirit cruise in 2019, however, I wondered if this had anything to do with being in a silver suite this time. Also, never go on SS for entertainment, enrichment seems to be the thing. Like Gary I am in my 60s and thought that maybe my 90 year old parents might have enjoyed the shows more than me, they were dated back in 2019. My 2024 on ship review basically said that SS does the actual cruising well but their communication and land based organisation is a bit of a mess. The last 2 cruises just got all the disembarkation information wrong and also had everyone going to the hotel wrong. I think the lovely reception staff had not been told about amendments made months prior to the cruise. We are on Silver Ray next and very excited about the new ship so hopefully restaurant staff training is successful as we have become a little addicted to SS. I am not writing this to complain but commenting based on the fact that this was a video on SS post Royal Caribbean. BTW I used to be hesitant about asking the butler for something, now i am comfortable with the service and don’t hesitate.
Would suggest you try the Nova, their newest and biggest ship. The Arts Cafe has been changed dramatically , now it’s $160 pp for La Dame, the Grill and the pizza are on the same level and the same venue and all of us were inconvenienced on the last trip for a photo op with RCL’s two other new ships. Definitely see the influence of a big corporate owner. Still a great 39 day BA to Ft. Lauderdale cruise we were just on. Booked on another, but it’s not the same as the smaller family owned line.
Great review - we have just returned from our first Silversea cruise on Silver Muse and although it wasn't awful it did not feel 'ultra luxury', lots of small things like cold food, limited choice, poor entertainment - while none were a major issue on their own, the overall experience wasn't that much better than normal cruise lines - definitely not worth the huge leap in price
Your point about ask and you shall receive is exactly what we experienced. We never heard of the caviar, they never mentioned the bottle of liquor in the room and never provided a list of available liquors. Also failed to tell us we could have more than one. Halfway through the cruise, my daughter saw in one of the spa brochures that there was an additional list of things, like available chocolates and bath shower salts. We all loved the ship, just not sure how many of these easter eggs we missed.
We did Silver Moon about 2 years ago. Butler was useless. Bar service was excellent. Food was usually just satisfactory; La Terrazza: once pasta was very good, twice more complex meals were very unsatisfactory. Much prefer Seabourn.
This is a great and very fair review. We hadn't sailed with Silversea before the change but were very impressed with the company and SilverSpirit staff.
We have done 4 ocean cruises with what was our favorite line Celebrity and one river cruise with our favorite river line AMA since returning from Covid. All were still good but none were as good as pre Covid. And as he said it is hard to put your finger on just doesn’t seem quite up to the previous standards. It seems everything was cut back just a smidge.
A passenger sailing next month said this in a forum, "dress code on May 2nd departure on Dawn will be either elegant casual or formal optional. No more formal"
It's very interesting that you describe the service as "aloof." Maybe that differs by ship? I was on the Muse not too long ago, and the crew were definitely encouraged to socialize (to the point where I felt awkward, but I could see how others might appreciate it). Like the dancers were made to walk around the pool deck around lunch time for the purpose of having conversations with guests (stopping at every table at The Grill), and crew members at some bars had researched our names, and would greet me by name the very first time I saw them.
I think it's true that (I assume) the newer crew maybe haven't been trained as well in service, so that's probably the direction the line was going. But almost every restaurant manager and many servers I regularly interacted with remembered me and my preferences, and there were several who were stellar and had the uncanny ability to know what I wanted and offered those things, and only upon hearing it did I realize, yes I do want that.
I think I’ll get a t-shirt that says “Socially Awkward” so they don’t hover around when we go. We’re not used to being waited on, and don’t care for it. Maybe I should get another t-shirt that just says “Introvert.”
The fact that most ocean liners or cruise ships are charging extra for specialty dining is yet another reason why I prefer river cruises. All inclusive for 1 price ( drinks, excursions, meals, etc…).
We cruised a lot on all luxury lines. Seabourn declined and in the last four years we cruised 4 times on different ships. They have always special rates for past passengers
I have been on several since RCCI took over and really haven’t noticed the changes people complain about. The service was always comparable to Seabourn and still is (btw on Seabourn I only found out about the caviar service from another passenger where it is on the Silversea room service menu).
We were on the Silver Muse in February. We found that the food was not as good as previously experienced on this line’s other ships. And it definitely has not been as good as it was when the Lefevre family was in control.
We were on Silver Nova over Christmas/New year. I did enjoy myself but my biggest concern were the shore excursions. Some were in a very industrialized area and you had to walk over 20 minutes to get to a bus that was not at the port, but outside.
Surprised to hear about the service slips since I have sailed on Celebrity (also owned by RC and definitely NOT an ultra luxury line) and we even had waiters at the buffet remember our drink preferences.
I just came off Endeavor. They definitely have communication issues on the front and back end (off ship). I found that most of the crew remembered everything I liked etc - or at least were nice about it - and they all knew my name. I agree I didn't know how to use our Butler, but he did offer to do a special dinner for us and asked what we wanted - we did an Indian dinner one nite and an Asian dinner during the last week - both were the best of all the food we had on board. We are sailing again on Endeavor in 2025 because we loved the ship and the staff. If you ran into the senior staff, they were very nice and would talk with you - but since they were sailing through icebergs and sketchy weather, I get it. Thanks for your video!
Silversea screwed me over 3 years ago and have lost my business--not only will never cruise with them but will tell everyone I know to be very careful in dealing with them. They don’t do their research amd have last minute cancellations of cruises-and make it YOUR problem to solve when it comes to costs you’ve incurred. Sure they will reimburse cost of cruise -but no bump up, and no reimbursement of air/hotel costs incurred for embarkation/positioning. They are the worst of the luxury lines. Buyer beware.
Thank you @tipsfortravelers ! Very helpful. The age of the travelers in this Silversea video appear to be 60s 70s . Is this the case for this line generally?
We took a Silversea Cruise in 1923 to Alaska, our first cruise ever, and it was WONDERFUL. Wouldn't know about 4 years ago. What would be your top 3 luxury cruise lines. Need to make a video on your top three and the diffrences between each. Keep up the good work. We have learned a lot from your reviews etc. 😊😊
Family members including my Mom were loyal to Silver sea but after their last cruise they were disappointed. They booked a cruise on the new MSC luxury line Explora so it will be interesting to see if they like it.
Very interesting, Gary. I'm a Silversea devotee (although I can't afford to go too often), and I understand the points you made. My most recent experience was Silver Origin in the Galapagos, where the staff were extremely attentive and friendly, learnt my name and were very positive. That may be cultural: all crew on the Origin have to be Ecuadorian, and they are nice people. On the trip before that, a traditional cruise on Silver Moon, I definitely recognised some of the points you made, including the food being all right but not astounding. I suspect a lot depends on the management, as in any hospitality enterprise
I enjoyed the same route on board of Silver Spirit in January 2024 and would like to share experience concerning included excursions. In general they were very reasonable. Though by reservation 6 months in advance for quite a few of them only waiting list was available. As far as my next Silver Dawn cruise Mumbai - Singapore in December 2024 is concerned, the list of included excursions turned out to be very disappointing in spite of price hike.
In my mind, staff remembering your preferences is a hallmark of ultra luxury cruising. We'll be sailing on Silversea in Asia in 2025 and hope all goes well . . . .
In the main I agree with your assessment .We traveled on a 17 day cruise September 2023 Lisbon to Lisbon on the Nova as a full fare paying passenger and there are some very unusual features on this Silversea ship.I’ve been cruising since the 50s and have the following comments.There are many dinning options but the menu choice is similar in each restaurant and is not varied much .Silver-note is the usual Silversea tapas more like canopies than a meal .I found the food not up to the usual Silversea standard I’ve experienced for many years with them . Since the takeover by Royal Caribbean this is my first experience and noticed a big difference in the dining experience and general standard of service. The ship is a big departure from their other ships in the fleet but personally found it a bit large for the amount of passengers and a lot of empty spaces with repeated uninspiring decor throughout .Somehow I found it too much of a departure from the previous privately owned Italian company and certainly could feel and notice the influence of RCCI in the Silver Nova.Personally disappointing.The entertainment was really poor mainly one or two people acts and RCCI in the old days had great entertainment.I prefer their other concept ships , the other ships were more classy.
I see I commented when the video was new, but this popped up and I rewatched it because I'm considering going on a second silver seas cruise. This time I noticed Gary mention he didn't see many senior officers on his two week voyage. Again, this probably differs by ship and even by voyage, but in addition to the restaurant managers greeting by name on sight, I felt like I interacted with both the hotel manager and the cruise director enough that they seemed to recognize me, but maybe they're just good at being friendly and pretending. But also pretty early in my voyage I was near the reception desk and there was a crew member working at a computer terminal directly in front of the reception desk. So my travel friend and I went to ask that person our question, and he didn't know the answer, but he did stand up and introduce himself to us, because he was the Captain. And I saw him a few more times, including once on a shuttle in the port, and he definitely recognized me by sight those several days later. Maybe it was a chance meeting, but I do feel like the captain choosing to sit in front of the reception desk was really making himself available to interact with guests when he could.
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After 10+ SS cruises (latest was Singapore to Hong Kong in January 2023), I agree with Gary on most of his observations. However, the $1300 pp is very high; we typically pay around $600-650 pp, per day, on a Port to Port basis (expedition cruises are higher). Just be aware that cabin sizes are the same (quite large, actually) until you get into the really expensive suites. You can almost always save money by handling your own airfare (especially if you're doing business class). Compared to pre-covid, they now include excursions (worth $150-300 per day, per couple). We've tried the "premium "dining venues several times; concluded they're not worth the cost. Included dining is still very good. Only post-RCL negative was boarding process in Singapore was a bit clumsy; may be a port issue rather than SS issue.
We chose Silversea a few years ago because Viking did not have the itinerary we wanted. It was more expensive than Viking but for a few extra perks, not that great. We were particularly annoyed over the extra fee specialty restaurants and that smoking was allowed in areas where the smoke would easily pass to the non smoking areas. It is a very good line but we still prefer Viking for its value, consistency, and its beautiful ocean ships which are all of the same design.
Gary, you’re in your mid 60s? You are proof age really is just a number, I was honestly surprised to learn that because I figured you were about 15-20 years younger than it turns out you are! Clearly you’re taking care of yourself and your zest for life on your own terms is paying off. Good for you- and that’s an inspiration to the rest of us!
Hey Sir Gary. Great video as usual. Beautiful ship. Dont always need the mega Icon of the seas ships. Do you think you’ll sail Royals new Icon? Thanks for sharing 🤗
Hey Gary, I am on silver Muse in January 2025. I have to respectfully disagree about shore excursions. The ones that were "free" were basics city tours nothing extensive all the expensive tours to wine tasting were not included in the free excursions. I wonder if that ruin the trip but just an FYI only.
You did your March 10 Q & A from the Oceania Vista. You mentioned that the sound proofing between your cabin and your neighbours was not very good and you could hear them and their music. Did this persist through the entire cruise? I was thinking about the Panama Cruise on Vista but am pausing taking action until we hear from you on your next Q & A or UA-cam show about the noise on Vista. I have been on the Marina (3x; 2 B2Bs) and Insignia (1x). No noise issues. We are on Serena on a B2B Baltic cruise in Aug/Sept. It is an R class ship like Insignia (older) and do not expect cabin noise. I look forward to hearing your comments on your Vista cruise.
Yes, it was really poor. I could hear exact conversations (luckily they dod not play music or watch TV much but others had big issues with that). The video on early release covers this that hopefully you have seen
Thank you for this video. Early on you show a visual that says the door to door includes pre cruise hotel, business class air and post cruise hotel. We just had to pay extra for that for a cruise on the Silver Ray in October. Has this changed?
Fully agree, though the personal touch may depend on the specific crew on board. In February on the Muse, everything you missed was there (adressed by my name almost instantly, waiters remembered my preferences, butler volunteered all you had to ask for, ...). Communication on board non-existent, though, and "entertainment" just embarrassing. The enrichment speakers were unacceptably bad. So it really is perhaps the growth that redistributes things less evenly. BTW, there are even zero supplement cruises for solo travellers, and this puts this into a much more affordable range in comparison.
As someone who has only cruised 5 times I don’t really see value for money compared to Viking. Am I missing something or just wrong? Thanks for the advice
You don’t. Viking is a better value for sure. Fun fact the Italian restaurant on Viking is named ‘Manfredi’ after the previous owner of Silversea Manfredi. The owner of Viking literally took everything he didn’t like about Silversea and made it on his ships. No casinos, no kids, no butlers. Also it’s pretty similar ship just Norwegian themed vs Italian themed.
Viking also doesn't require you to pack black tie. I was thinking of going on Silversea but the dress code puts me off. Smart casual is fine but jacket and tie is over the top.
@@double_joseph327 I've been on Viking Ocean twice and have another booked with them. Only a few nights needing a jacket on Silversea means you're packing something that takes a lot of space up and only gets worn a few times, which is madness.
I've only been on one Royal Caribbean cruise and was very disappointed, so I was sorry to see they bought Silversea. Nevertheless I went ahead and booked my first Silversea cruise recently, totally blowing our budget (don't tell my wife). So I was horrified to see this video appear in my feed, and almost too afraid to watch it. Phew! I am somewhat reassured now, thank you.
brilliant video very informative. Can I ask are all pre hotel stays included in the price for d2d. I ask because we fly from the UK and it looks like we will have to fly out the day before to Barbados.
You really can’t compare them, because Ponant is so much smaller and only have two restaurants. But whilst Silversea is my go to, I love Ponant. Ponant cabins are also much smaller than Silversea.
This was so helpful. I was going between Silversea as i have been on Royal and Celebrity and Ritz Carlton. Have you been on The Ritz Carlton as of yet? Would you recommend them or Regents or Seabourn?
Always great info Gary! Thanks. But at $2,600 for a standard balcony per night, that's far too much for us as very frequent cruisers but Silversea would most likely be our first choice if we were doing a cruise/holiday of a lifetime based upon your comments.
Having sailed on Silverseas several times we recently sailed out of Fort Lauderdale in the Nova The quality of the meat was definitely lower than previous SS cruises This was confirmed by the chef who had a dish removed from the menu after several complaints Having lived in the USA getting a decent steak is a given Not on that cruise 10:07
Could it be that the waiter not having your decaf coffee w/skim milk was less about a corporate decision to tell waiters not to remember vs. the waiter not actually remembering? My recent sailing on Celebrity showed that my waiter did remember that I liked had brought it to me without being asked. If it were a corporate mandate or simply something that was removed from their training guide then I would expect that, if it were a 'change' from before, than that level of service would not have been provided to me on Celebrity.
It seems on several cruise ships, the line officers have come down with a terrible illness, called “passengeritis”. It is an allergy to passengers. My feeling is if they don’t want to interact with passengers, they should transfer to freighters, where there aren’t any passengers.
Trouble is people with more money than sense will pay these crazy prices. They seem to have no idea of how normal f amies exist I think they live in a different world than the rest of us.
If most things are the same and a bit better food and the bed is comfortable and the cabin attendants excellent what are you actually getting for these ridiculous sky high prices er night and also take into consideration the cruise lines get all drinks fd etc duty and usually tax free which reialers on shore do not get.
We cruised on the Silver Nova June 2024 and La Dame was $160 per person and Japanese Restaurant was $80 per person. Have they lowered their prices or raised them?
My wife and I have been on two Silversea cruises in the last year and two Regent this year. We definitely prefer Silversea and have booked for next year. The biggest disappointment on Regent was the quality of the food and bar service.
I like the look of these ships. Very classic. They look like ships, not hotels skyscraper theme parks on water!!! Thank you for the video.
Our experience was wonderful on a smaller ship. I didn't see the value in the premium restaurant b/c the main dining areas were very good.
I could watch Gary talk about the weather, he has the best voice. The excellent cruise reviews are a bonus 😂
We were on this cruise with you and were impressed by your low key approach. We pretty much agree with everything you say although we did meet some excellent staff especially in Arts Cafe. If you think communication was poor you should have experienced their awful communication ( nil) with Grand Voyage passengers when it was decided we were stopping at the Seychelles and not going towards the Red Sea. It was awful,often incorrect and quite unsettling when they did ultimately gave us information - one day out of the Seychelles.
How was your experience with them? I'm thinking about doing South Africa, seashells, and Mauritius cruise and I'm thinking that this cruise ship would be the best one. How was the all inclusive excursions and everything go for you?
I do not know what date these videos are shown. Why ?
My reply is dated 28 July 2024.
Have just finished cruise Silver Moon.19 to 26 July 2024.
Being a Solo traveller I took advantage of nil supplement, in my opinion paid top dollar.
The quality of the food was as best average, the wines cheap plonk.
There are many negatives. To many to go into.
I ask a question "Why don't you explain to us video viewers the actual truths?😢😢😢
Never again Silver Seas.
NEVER AGAIN!
Travelled with them last year on their oldest ship, Whisper, and it was amazing. Compared to Cunard, our usual line, we thought it was surprisingly good value given how dramatically better every aspect was and how absolutely everything was included. Customer service was exceptional (especially compared to Cunard).
Not sure what it was like before, but we did a Greek idle cruise on the Spirit last summer and fell in love with Greece and SilverSea. Can't wait to cruise with them again.
I'll be on this ship in 9 days. I'm looking forward to it. Thank you so much for the fair commentary!
While I have not had the pleasure of any ultra luxury cruises, I do understand the point about it becoming "corporatized". I find that usually comes when the crew lose autonomy and are now expected to follow orders from a central body that is usually not on the seas with their guests. It may bring some consistency, but you lose the special touches that an autonomous crew could give.
Good video. I think I would have been happy enough with that line. And how nice to see cruise-ships that don't resemble apartment-blocks.
I learn so much from your videos it’s fascinating I am quite well travelled but never cruised until I stumbled upon ur videos
Happy to hear that!
Thanks for the information Gary. You had me worried when you started your video, as we have our first Silversea cruise in February next year aboard the new Silver Ray (Lima to Buenos Aires). Thankfully none of your points are deal-breakers for us. One of our biggest fears is the dress code. We are not big dress up people and were told by our TA and Silversea that the dress code is beginning to be somewhat MORE relaxed specially on the newer ships. Whether that is true or not remains to be seen (). But thanks again for this informative post.
Yes I am sailing with them on Dawn soon and don’t own a tux. I hope a suit is enough
A blazer with tie is acceptable or a suit and tie. For ladies, black dress slacks and a black cashmere sweater gets you through nicely with good jewelry.
I did the first Atlantic crossing for the Nova and it was very very nice. BUT Yes, many of Gary’s criticisms are valid. The staff is not as polished nor are the officers not the staff as friendly. The old smaller ships were so friendly and THAT is why Silversea had that amazing reputation!!!
The new Arts cafe is very well placed for meeting people. The Trivia game venue on the Nova is MUCH too small for the number of enthusiasts of that activity. And there is a lot of wasted space going too and from the venues in the fore and aft areas. The lectures in SOME cases weren’t top notch as they had been. And there was nothing in the shops worth Looking at, much less buying. Still catering to the extremely thin passenger…..
But the main gripe nowadays is the painfully slow communication between our cruise specialist who was well known to the old head office and the new bureaucratic types of the new company. And for what they are claiming to be:a super luxury line, that is inexcusable.
We’re taking our first cruise on Spirit next month to celebrate some missed out on big birthdays and anniversary from lockdown so this was a real treat for us to splurge on. Really helpful video Gary, thank you. We’d read such a lot of negative reviews recently which worried us a bit but will keep everything in perspective and some fingers crossed for a great cruising experience! 😊
I’m really seriously looking at Silversea at the moment. With only a 25% Solo Supplement on some cruises, they wouldn’t cost me much more that Celebrity with their new punitive Solo Supplement (I did a comparison recently of one specific cabin on one specific Celebrity cruise and and found that the all-inclusive price for three in the cabin was less than solo occupancy. In fact, I could have paid for several shore excursion for all three pax with the price difference). So, if I’m going to be forced to pay top dollar, I might as well go for top product.
The low solo supplement is a big reason why I’m definitely looking these sort of line.
We travelled on Silversea last August and although we had never travelled with them before, I have to agree with you about the service. For a high quality service ship I was a little disappointed in the service in particularly in La Terrazza and that the waiters were not as attentive as I have had on other ships. The same with the butler service. I was not aware of the things you mentioned that you could ask for but we're not told about. Having said that we did enjoy our cruise and overall felt we had value for money for our cruise.
There are many negative reviews of the so-called luxury or ultra-luxury cruise ships on Cruise Critic.
Just booked our first Silversea cruise for next year. This was very insightful, thank you!
Thanks so much for sharing. Your reviews are greatly appreciated.
I always enjoy and appreciate the quality reviews you provide Gary. You have reassured us that our 1st cruise with the Silver Nova in June to Alaska will be fabulous. Thanks to your previous great advice I booked all our included excursions right at the beginning and was able to secure all our 1st choices. I now know to ask the butler for certain treats, so that is useful too.
I sailed on Silver Spirit and Silver Whisper. Both excellent, exquisit food and service. That was before Silversea changed owners. There was even someone who cleaned our eyeglasses while on the pool deck. Also there were no anklebiters on either ship.
Great review and insight Gary!! I think it is important to distinguish what you expect for a higher class of cruise line from a more main stream of line. I think I will check out Regent or some of the other luxury lines. And compare these to the "ship within a ship" like the haven on NCL. Thanks!
Thanks for a review that was thoughtful and made me realize how this level of service looks great but not on my horizon just yet.
A very good, and fair, commentary. We have enjoyed SSea three times with a fourth scheduled next year, our second in the “adventure” class. Galapagos on a ship designed for that sole purpose, the Silver Origin, should be on your bucket list. We have found the door-to-door experience seamless and worry-free, although there can be airline hiccups at any time. The butler service is marvelous if you take advantage of it and use it. I could provide example of their beyond expected personal attention, but that’s another video in itself.
Thanks Gary - really interesting. Important that when there are included excursions they are good value. Liked the range of eateries.
I have an upcoming cruise in April. It will be my first with SSsea, I hope they will iron out the rough spots. Although I am not as demanding or want super attentive service.
I have to add (just to show how different things are now) that the best service 'thing' that ever happened to us was on our first cruise in the 80's on Carnival's original Mardi Gras, the second-hand ship that they started the line with. At that time, you were always served ice tea at dinner rather than water. The first night at dinner my wife asked if she could have iced coffee instead. The waiter offered to make it for her and she said he didn't need to do that. But he insisted he would and in less than 5 minutes, she had her iced coffee. But not only that, he had the iced coffee ready for her every night when we showed up for dinner, this still being when you had the same table at the same time with the same staff every night.
Poor Communication & interesting port/tendering decisions have been an issue on all 3 of our SSea cruises. Restaurant staff have been less attentive. Excursion offerings are good, but you have to lock them in as soon as you get a booking number, which can even be before a deposit is paid! After 3 cruises, only on our last one did we have a butler that did more than a steward on any other line. She was fabulous and really made us feel like we were getting our money's worth. Too bad the rest of the issues dropped that feeling down!
Loved this report Gary .. I'm a silversea girl since my first cruise with them in 2005 .. have never looked back .. have over 40 plus cruises mostly in the early days royal Caribbean ( 1989).. I have been on dawn & moon & Agree with you on several issues you mentioned since take over but I still enjoyed my last 2 cruises & have 2 more bookings..
Hi Gary! I really would love to see your review of a cruise on Evrima from Ritz-Carlton Yacht Collection.
I pulled up your channel, saw the title of this video and LOL 'd!
We're avid cruisers & have been on 31 cruises on 11 different cruise lines. In addition, we are at Platinum level on Carnival which gets us a lot of perks. What you had to say about asking for things that they used to offer it even true here. I always check before any cruise, but especially on Carnival, for any perks that are supposed to be available & I take that list with me.
Great review. I have sailed over 25 times with Silversea (full disclosure as a guest lecturer each time) since 2011 both before and after RCI’s purchase of the line. I think the overall quality has been consistent through the years. Each ship and each voyage has its own unique feel based upon the staff. Originally the first four ships were about 290 and 386 guests. The more recent four ships are about 600, which gives the eight restaurants with the Silver Moon and Silver Dawn with the new SALT restaurant which has been excellent in my experience on cruises in the Caribbean and Norway with regional cuisine. I am booked on the two new builds, the Silver Nova and Silver Ray which are about 700 guests and have an axial deck layout instead of the “wedding cake “ layout of the other ships. Perhaps some of the online opinions have been the result of the line growing and that the newer ships are 600 guests instead of 300 or 400. Have sailed on Regent four times and agree that Silversea is more formal and “European” in feel and Regent perhaps more “American “ in feel
Sounds like they’re creeping up in size … going on first one in June to fjords - disappointed to hear things are not as they once were
You nailed it! We’ve cruised Silversea before and after as well. It’s still lovely. Our challenge was we’re non-drinkers. We understood there’s no reduction on fare - but on a 2 week tran-Atlantic trip we were hoping the servers might learn this - instead we had to refuse wine at every meal. It makes you feel a bit like a fun hater!
Hi Gary, nice to see your videos again. Just want to let you know Silver seas door-to-door is not Business Class! I priced it out and found that if I did their door-to-door I would be paying about an extra $8000 more than booking it myself Business Class. I’ll be going on Silver Silver Muse January 5, 2025 Auckland to Sydney. When I booked the door-to-door I found they were charging me almost $40,000 for two of us. I was able to book the cruise (port to port) for $14,700 (superior balcony suite), and buy my Business Class airfare from a consolidator for a total of $16,700 far cheaper than their door-to-door “upgrade” to business class. My total is a little over $30,000 compared to their price of $39,000 and change. An Uber to and from the airport is a heck of a lot cheaper, and I was able to get discount hotel rates for the JW Marriott Auckland and the Marriott in Sydney.
Also, so you know, they’ve just introduced a budget fair which is absolutely no refunds and does not include shore excursions. Speaking with shore excursions, on my cruise Jan 2025, the choice of short excursions Australia, and New Zealand is very basic & limited! I have only two options for free, the rest cost money that’s a big disappointment to me. I understood before booking the cruise that they were all free. examples of included excursions are a bus ride around town, a tour of a garden sanctuary. The other thing that’s disappointment is there are no excursions included for the departure city, Auckland, or the Arrival city of Sydney, even though we’re docked. Given that we have three overnights on this cruise, I may book my own shore, excursions and pay for them (regrettably) but I’m disappointed to understand that you have to ask for things and they’re not automatically given. I booked this cruise with the understanding that they were absolutely top shelf, and they were very personalized get to know your name get to know your preferences without having to pull that information from them. I’ll let you know how my cruise goes. I’m starting to have regrets about booking this. Silversea Cruises makes it hard, Should you change your mind and canceled there is at minimum 15% cancellation fee. Well, I’ve given up on the mainstream cruise lines like Princess and Holland America due to overcrowding and poor quality, I will research with a fine tooth comb all high and cruise lines to make sure I’m making the best decision possible. All the reviews I read, said Silver seat was the best, we shall see.
We have travelled SS 3 times and have 3 more booked. On our last trip (Silver Cloud Antarctic expedition), I did notice a drop in service at the restaurants, particularly La Terrazza. Failure to provide tea and coffee in anything like a timely manner / slash only received when asked. The head waiter reprimanding staff in hearing distance of guests. Most staff seemed very new and unsure (possibly scared of the boss). As it was a 15 day cruise the staff did get to know us and were lovely. I am not sure whether it was my memory but I felt there was more variation on the nightly menus previously.Our butler service was impeccable especially compared to our Silver Spirit cruise in 2019, however, I wondered if this had anything to do with being in a silver suite this time. Also, never go on SS for entertainment, enrichment seems to be the thing. Like Gary I am in my 60s and thought that maybe my 90 year old parents might have enjoyed the shows more than me, they were dated back in 2019.
My 2024 on ship review basically said that SS does the actual cruising well but their communication and land based organisation is a bit of a mess. The last 2 cruises just got all the disembarkation information wrong and also had everyone going to the hotel wrong. I think the lovely reception staff had not been told about amendments made months prior to the cruise.
We are on Silver Ray next and very excited about the new ship so hopefully restaurant staff training is successful as we have become a little addicted to SS. I am not writing this to complain but commenting based on the fact that this was a video on SS post Royal Caribbean. BTW I used to be hesitant about asking the butler for something, now i am comfortable with the service and don’t hesitate.
Would suggest you try the Nova, their newest and biggest ship. The Arts Cafe has been changed dramatically , now it’s $160 pp for La Dame, the Grill and the pizza are on the same level and the same venue and all of us were inconvenienced on the last trip for a photo op with RCL’s two other new ships. Definitely see the influence of a big corporate owner. Still a great 39 day BA to Ft. Lauderdale cruise we were just on. Booked on another, but it’s not the same as the smaller family owned line.
Btw, major design flaw in the Grill. Looks beautiful, but no shade in the middle, and since the middle is opened, can’t sit there iwhen it rains!
Great review - we have just returned from our first Silversea cruise on Silver Muse and although it wasn't awful it did not feel 'ultra luxury', lots of small things like cold food, limited choice, poor entertainment - while none were a major issue on their own, the overall experience wasn't that much better than normal cruise lines - definitely not worth the huge leap in price
Dissapointing so..
Top notch video, as usual! Thank you, Gary!
Your point about ask and you shall receive is exactly what we experienced. We never heard of the caviar, they never mentioned the bottle of liquor in the room and never provided a list of available liquors. Also failed to tell us we could have more than one. Halfway through the cruise, my daughter saw in one of the spa brochures that there was an additional list of things, like available chocolates and bath shower salts. We all loved the ship, just not sure how many of these easter eggs we missed.
We did Silver Moon about 2 years ago. Butler was useless. Bar service was excellent. Food was usually just satisfactory; La Terrazza: once pasta was very good, twice more complex meals were very unsatisfactory. Much prefer Seabourn.
There is NOTHING picky about wanting the free caviar!
This is a great and very fair review. We hadn't sailed with Silversea before the change but were very impressed with the company and SilverSpirit staff.
Oh my gosh the Silver Spirit looks 49 feet longer than when I cruised on it last!
We sailed from Greenland to Montreal and we got leftover food and the same leftover menu. No variety in the menus, good thing I like tomato soup.
We have done 4 ocean cruises with what was our favorite line Celebrity and one river cruise with our favorite river line AMA since returning from Covid. All were still good but none were as good as pre Covid. And as he said it is hard to put your finger on just doesn’t seem quite up to the previous standards. It seems everything was cut back just a smidge.
A passenger sailing next month said this in a forum, "dress code on May 2nd departure on Dawn will be either elegant casual or formal optional. No more formal"
It's very interesting that you describe the service as "aloof." Maybe that differs by ship? I was on the Muse not too long ago, and the crew were definitely encouraged to socialize (to the point where I felt awkward, but I could see how others might appreciate it). Like the dancers were made to walk around the pool deck around lunch time for the purpose of having conversations with guests (stopping at every table at The Grill), and crew members at some bars had researched our names, and would greet me by name the very first time I saw them.
I think it's true that (I assume) the newer crew maybe haven't been trained as well in service, so that's probably the direction the line was going. But almost every restaurant manager and many servers I regularly interacted with remembered me and my preferences, and there were several who were stellar and had the uncanny ability to know what I wanted and offered those things, and only upon hearing it did I realize, yes I do want that.
I think I’ll get a t-shirt that says “Socially Awkward” so they don’t hover around when we go. We’re not used to being waited on, and don’t care for it. Maybe I should get another t-shirt that just says “Introvert.”
The fact that most ocean liners or cruise ships are charging extra for specialty dining is yet another reason why I prefer river cruises. All inclusive for 1 price ( drinks, excursions, meals, etc…).
We cruised a lot on all luxury lines. Seabourn declined and in the last four years we cruised 4 times on different ships. They have always special rates for past passengers
I have been on several since RCCI took over and really haven’t noticed the changes people complain about. The service was always comparable to Seabourn and still is (btw on Seabourn I only found out about the caviar service from another passenger where it is on the Silversea room service menu).
Thank you for the balanced and informative review!
We were on the Silver Muse in February. We found that the food was not as good as previously experienced on this line’s other ships. And it definitely has not been as good as it was when the Lefevre family was in control.
We were on Silver Nova over Christmas/New year. I did enjoy myself but my biggest concern were the shore excursions. Some were in a very industrialized area and you had to walk over 20 minutes to get to a bus that was not at the port, but outside.
You chose where you went. Silversea doesn't build ports and just docks where they are allowed to park. My troll warning light is flashing. Bye.
Surprised to hear about the service slips since I have sailed on Celebrity (also owned by RC and definitely NOT an ultra luxury line) and we even had waiters at the buffet remember our drink preferences.
I just came off Endeavor. They definitely have communication issues on the front and back end (off ship). I found that most of the crew remembered everything I liked etc - or at least were nice about it - and they all knew my name. I agree I didn't know how to use our Butler, but he did offer to do a special dinner for us and asked what we wanted - we did an Indian dinner one nite and an Asian dinner during the last week - both were the best of all the food we had on board. We are sailing again on Endeavor in 2025 because we loved the ship and the staff. If you ran into the senior staff, they were very nice and would talk with you - but since they were sailing through icebergs and sketchy weather, I get it. Thanks for your video!
Thanks. I am on Endeavour at the end of the year to Antarctica and really looking forward to seeing the ship!
@@tipsfortravellers I hope you are on the Falkland/SouthGeorgia/Antarctica trip - it was the best! Really enjoy your channel
Silversea screwed me over 3 years ago and have lost my business--not only will never cruise with them but will tell everyone I know to be very careful in dealing with them.
They don’t do their research amd have last minute cancellations of cruises-and make it YOUR problem to solve when it comes to costs you’ve incurred.
Sure they will reimburse cost of cruise -but no bump up, and no reimbursement of air/hotel costs incurred for embarkation/positioning.
They are the worst of the luxury lines. Buyer beware.
Just looking at the photos/videos I will stay with Seabourn.
Thank you @tipsfortravelers ! Very helpful. The age of the travelers in this Silversea video appear to be 60s 70s . Is this the case for this line generally?
We took a Silversea Cruise in 1923 to Alaska, our first cruise ever, and it was WONDERFUL. Wouldn't know about 4 years ago. What would be your top 3 luxury cruise lines. Need to make a video on your top three and the diffrences between each. Keep up the good work. We have learned a lot from your reviews etc. 😊😊
1923? Wow are you 150 years old? 🤣
😂😂
Family members including my Mom were loyal to Silver sea but after their last cruise they were disappointed. They booked a cruise on the new MSC luxury line Explora so it will be interesting to see if they like it.
Very interesting, Gary. I'm a Silversea devotee (although I can't afford to go too often), and I understand the points you made. My most recent experience was Silver Origin in the Galapagos, where the staff were extremely attentive and friendly, learnt my name and were very positive. That may be cultural: all crew on the Origin have to be Ecuadorian, and they are nice people. On the trip before that, a traditional cruise on Silver Moon, I definitely recognised some of the points you made, including the food being all right but not astounding. I suspect a lot depends on the management, as in any hospitality enterprise
I enjoyed the same route on board of Silver Spirit in January 2024 and would like to share experience concerning included excursions. In general they were very reasonable. Though by reservation 6 months in advance for quite a few of them only waiting list was available. As far as my next Silver Dawn cruise Mumbai - Singapore in December 2024 is concerned, the list of included excursions turned out to be very disappointing in spite of price hike.
In my mind, staff remembering your preferences is a hallmark of ultra luxury cruising. We'll be sailing on Silversea in Asia in 2025 and hope all goes well . . . .
Same here the Dawn
In the main I agree with your assessment .We traveled on a 17 day cruise September 2023 Lisbon to Lisbon on the Nova as a full fare paying passenger and there are some very unusual features on this Silversea ship.I’ve been cruising since the 50s and have the following comments.There are many dinning options but the menu choice is similar in each restaurant and is not varied much .Silver-note is the usual Silversea tapas more like canopies than a meal .I found the food not up to the usual Silversea standard I’ve experienced for many years with them .
Since the takeover by Royal Caribbean this is my first experience and noticed a big difference in the dining experience and general standard of service.
The ship is a big departure from their other ships in the fleet but personally found it a bit large for the amount of passengers and a lot of empty spaces with repeated uninspiring decor throughout .Somehow I found it too much of a departure from the previous privately owned Italian company and certainly could feel and notice the influence of RCCI in the Silver Nova.Personally disappointing.The entertainment was really poor mainly one or two people acts and RCCI in the old days had great entertainment.I prefer their other concept ships , the other ships were more classy.
I see I commented when the video was new, but this popped up and I rewatched it because I'm considering going on a second silver seas cruise. This time I noticed Gary mention he didn't see many senior officers on his two week voyage. Again, this probably differs by ship and even by voyage, but in addition to the restaurant managers greeting by name on sight, I felt like I interacted with both the hotel manager and the cruise director enough that they seemed to recognize me, but maybe they're just good at being friendly and pretending.
But also pretty early in my voyage I was near the reception desk and there was a crew member working at a computer terminal directly in front of the reception desk. So my travel friend and I went to ask that person our question, and he didn't know the answer, but he did stand up and introduce himself to us, because he was the Captain. And I saw him a few more times, including once on a shuttle in the port, and he definitely recognized me by sight those several days later. Maybe it was a chance meeting, but I do feel like the captain choosing to sit in front of the reception desk was really making himself available to interact with guests when he could.
After 10+ SS cruises (latest was Singapore to Hong Kong in January 2023), I agree with Gary on most of his observations. However, the $1300 pp is very high; we typically pay around $600-650 pp, per day, on a Port to Port basis (expedition cruises are higher). Just be aware that cabin sizes are the same (quite large, actually) until you get into the really expensive suites. You can almost always save money by handling your own airfare (especially if you're doing business class). Compared to pre-covid, they now include excursions (worth $150-300 per day, per couple). We've tried the "premium "dining venues several times; concluded they're not worth the cost. Included dining is still very good. Only post-RCL negative was boarding process in Singapore was a bit clumsy; may be a port issue rather than SS issue.
Great review. I agree when it comes to the small details for the pricing so good on you.
We chose Silversea a few years ago because Viking did not have the itinerary we wanted. It was more expensive than Viking but for a few extra perks, not that great. We were particularly annoyed over the extra fee specialty restaurants and that smoking was allowed in areas where the smoke would easily pass to the non smoking areas. It is a very good line but we still prefer Viking for its value, consistency, and its beautiful ocean ships which are all of the same design.
Gary, you’re in your mid 60s? You are proof age really is just a number, I was honestly surprised to learn that because I figured you were about 15-20 years younger than it turns out you are! Clearly you’re taking care of yourself and your zest for life on your own terms is paying off. Good for you- and that’s an inspiration to the rest of us!
Hey Sir Gary. Great video as usual. Beautiful ship. Dont always need the mega Icon of the seas ships. Do you think you’ll sail Royals new Icon? Thanks for sharing 🤗
Hey Gary, I am on silver Muse in January 2025. I have to respectfully disagree about shore excursions. The ones that were "free" were basics city tours nothing extensive all the expensive tours to wine tasting were not included in the free excursions. I wonder if that ruin the trip but just an FYI only.
You did your March 10 Q & A from the Oceania Vista. You mentioned that the sound proofing between your cabin and your neighbours was not very good and you could hear them and their music. Did this persist through the entire cruise? I was thinking about the Panama Cruise on Vista but am pausing taking action until we hear from you on your next Q & A or UA-cam show about the noise on Vista. I have been on the Marina (3x; 2 B2Bs) and Insignia (1x). No noise issues. We are on Serena on a B2B Baltic cruise in Aug/Sept. It is an R class ship like Insignia (older) and do not expect cabin noise. I look forward to hearing your comments on your Vista cruise.
Yes, it was really poor. I could hear exact conversations (luckily they dod not play music or watch TV much but others had big issues with that). The video on early release covers this that hopefully you have seen
Thank you for this video. Early on you show a visual that says the door to door includes pre cruise hotel, business class air and post cruise hotel. We just had to pay extra for that for a cruise on the Silver Ray in October. Has this changed?
Fully agree, though the personal touch may depend on the specific crew on board. In February on the Muse, everything you missed was there (adressed by my name almost instantly, waiters remembered my preferences, butler volunteered all you had to ask for, ...). Communication on board non-existent, though, and "entertainment" just embarrassing. The enrichment speakers were unacceptably bad. So it really is perhaps the growth that redistributes things less evenly. BTW, there are even zero supplement cruises for solo travellers, and this puts this into a much more affordable range in comparison.
I’m booked on an expedition cruise on Silversea in 2025. Hopefully their expedition cruises are still amazing 🥺
That food looked awfully good! Especially those pancakes.
As someone who has only cruised 5 times I don’t really see value for money compared to Viking. Am I missing something or just wrong?
Thanks for the advice
You don’t. Viking is a better value for sure. Fun fact the Italian restaurant on Viking is named ‘Manfredi’ after the previous owner of Silversea Manfredi. The owner of Viking literally took everything he didn’t like about Silversea and made it on his ships. No casinos, no kids, no butlers. Also it’s pretty similar ship just Norwegian themed vs Italian themed.
Thanks
That is what I thought
Viking also doesn't require you to pack black tie. I was thinking of going on Silversea but the dress code puts me off. Smart casual is fine but jacket and tie is over the top.
@@owensmith7530 the jacket and tie is only a few nights. Yep Viking knows this. It’s why Viking is so popular now.
@@double_joseph327 I've been on Viking Ocean twice and have another booked with them. Only a few nights needing a jacket on Silversea means you're packing something that takes a lot of space up and only gets worn a few times, which is madness.
I've only been on one Royal Caribbean cruise and was very disappointed, so I was sorry to see they bought Silversea. Nevertheless I went ahead and booked my first Silversea cruise recently, totally blowing our budget (don't tell my wife). So I was horrified to see this video appear in my feed, and almost too afraid to watch it. Phew! I am somewhat reassured now, thank you.
Love your reviews. Where do you place Viking in the cruise line up. We really enjoy but haven’t done these other lines yet!😊
brilliant video very informative. Can I ask are all pre hotel stays included in the price for d2d. I ask because we fly from the UK and it looks like we will have to fly out the day before to Barbados.
So how would you compare this to Ponant? We did a cruise on Ponant and absolutely love it and want to see if there's anything like it.
You really can’t compare them, because Ponant is so much smaller and only have two restaurants. But whilst Silversea is my go to, I love Ponant. Ponant cabins are also much smaller than Silversea.
This was so helpful. I was going between Silversea as i have been on Royal and Celebrity and Ritz Carlton. Have you been on The Ritz Carlton as of yet? Would you recommend them or Regents or Seabourn?
Your cruise must have been a while ago. La Dame is now $160 pp and an additional $90 pp for a premium wine pairing.
Do you realize that at 8:35 the quick video clip shows them grating Parmesan cheese on spaghetti alla Vongole-a real Italian no-no! 8:35
Excellent. this review is very helpful.
Always great info Gary! Thanks. But at $2,600 for a standard balcony per night, that's far too much for us as very frequent cruisers but Silversea would most likely be our first choice if we were doing a cruise/holiday of a lifetime based upon your comments.
Yes, this is definitely a huge budget stretcher..........
Fantastic review. Thanks.
This looks great but I presume anyone who needs to ask the price can't afford it?
Thank you for sharing.😊😊
Having sailed on Silverseas several times we recently sailed out of Fort Lauderdale in the Nova
The quality of the meat was definitely lower than previous SS cruises
This was confirmed by the chef who had a dish removed from the menu after several complaints
Having lived in the USA getting a decent steak is a given Not on that cruise 10:07
Could it be that the waiter not having your decaf coffee w/skim milk was less about a corporate decision to tell waiters not to remember vs. the waiter not actually remembering? My recent sailing on Celebrity showed that my waiter did remember that I liked had brought it to me without being asked. If it were a corporate mandate or simply something that was removed from their training guide then I would expect that, if it were a 'change' from before, than that level of service would not have been provided to me on Celebrity.
Constructive criticism that Royal Caribbean should take note of.
I love Silversea. Still the best cruises ever
Question about CAVIAR. So it is to be requested from the suite butler ?
It seems on several cruise ships, the line officers have come down with a terrible illness, called “passengeritis”. It is an allergy to passengers. My feeling is if they don’t want to interact with passengers, they should transfer to freighters, where there aren’t any passengers.
Would love to see you do a review of Ritz-Carlton Yacht cruises.
I would love to but I keep looking at them and the price is so high I am not sure that I will!
Is seabourn THE one then ?
1200 and day per person and they have a extra fee for specialty restaurants?😮
Trouble is people with more money than sense will pay these crazy prices. They seem to have no idea of how normal f amies exist I think they live in a different world than the rest of us.
Gary, what do you think about Viking ?Seem Silver sea is getting toward like Norwegian .
Can't ever see paying over $2,500 per night for me and my wife to cruise.
We Pay, on average, $50pp/pn. And like 14+ day sailings.
If most things are the same and a bit better food and the bed is comfortable and the cabin attendants excellent what are you actually getting for these ridiculous sky high prices er night and also take into consideration the cruise lines get all drinks fd etc duty and usually tax free which reialers on shore do not get.
in addition smaller cabins.
We cruised on the Silver Nova June 2024 and La Dame was $160 per person and Japanese Restaurant was $80 per person. Have they lowered their prices or raised them?
80 USD per person ?? OMG
Is the caviar tasting at least included ?
Thanks Gary, as always, great info.
Glad you enjoyed it