Embarkation/Disembarkation: Embarkation in Piraeus, the port for Athens, on 10 May was extremely smooth and easy. In a change from our typical “do-it-yourself” approach we actually stayed at a Silversea hotel and took their transfer from the hotel to the port. Yes, it was a large bus but only 24 or so passengers so it was a quick and easy 45 or so minute trip. Our luggage was whisked away by waiting porters and we went into the terminal to go through security and check-in. Other than the Greek officials checking passports the rest of our processing was done by ship's staff in the terminal. The check-in entailed surrendering our passports, verifying the credit card we'd be using for ship board purchases, and getting our room key cards. No waiting for group numbers or colors to be called, we were immediately escorted to the ship where staff took our carry-on luggage from us and assisted us in boarding the ship. We were greeted by Colin Brown, the ship’s cruise director, and he recognized us from our previous cruise on the Wind. The staff with our carry-on bags waited patiently while we exchanged pleasantries and then escorted us to our cabins. Amazingly, though probably not surprising considering the size of the ship, our luggage was very quickly delivered to our cabins.

Disembarkation on 28 May in Civitavecchia, the distant port for Rome, was amazingly rapid and easy. One thing we didn't like about disembarkation, and it's more of an observation than a complaint, is that Silversea asked us to leave our cabins not later than 8:30 AM so they could prepare for the on-coming passengers though our butler and cabin attendant were very patient and really didn’t pressure us. We’d had eighteen days with them and had gotten to know both of them very well. An outstanding team. As it turned out we went to one of the restaurants for a full breakfast and we were off the ship by 8:45 AM. Passing through Italian Customs and Immigration was quick and really very easy. The ship's staff, many of whom we'd gotten to know during the cruise, quickly greeted us in the terminal, helped us locate our luggage, and make connection with our transportation. Once again we used a Silversea hotel for our post-cruise stay in Rome so we were again on a partially full bus. Sadly, but efficiently, we were driven away from the terminal within 15 or 20 minutes and arrived at our hotel some hour and 45 minutes later.

Itinerary: The highlight, and main reason for booking this cruise, was the itinerary. Actually it was a combined itinerary of two 9-day cruises and our first back-to-back cruise. Fourteen ports in eighteen days, and actually three of those were overnights, was intense and exciting. We started in Athens then on to Kusadasi, Santorini, Nafplion, Katakolon, Corfu, Kotor, Dubrovnik, Hvar, Venice, Koper, Split, Sorrento, and finally Civitavecchia. At least for us this was a second cruise of a lifetime following our previous Mediterranean cruise that had focused more on the eastern Med. We'd be hard pressed to say we like one better than another as each had its own attraction, flavor, and interest. Read more