This should have been an outstanding cruise, but, it was extremely inconsistent. The positives were: The Wait Staff were outstanding. They were efficient, professional, and an out standing group of individuals. Gilbert, thr Maitre d'hotel is a master. We had the best butler we have ever had aboard a cruise. The housekeepers were very good. The entertainment was very, very good. The "Voices of Silver Whisper" were excellent singers and dancers. A singer, pianist, and magician/comedian that were brought aboard for a few specialty shows were also great. Destination consultant Corey Sandler gave a 1 hour discussion of each port with practical comments and recommendations. He also gave some additional lectures on fun subjects. He is an A+. Herb Kaiser, who gave lectures on Broadway/singing stars was also very enjoyable. The buffet breakfast and lunches were excellent, They served a vast variety of foods, and the special shellfish buffets included lobster, crab legs and claws, oysters and shrimp. Wow The negatives that destroyed the potential high score: The temperature of our room for the first week was in the high 70"s and we were told the engineers were working on it. People requested electric fans because of the high temperatures in their rooms. After one week of sweating they fixed it for three days and than the room temperatures went down to the low 60"s. The engineers also said that they could not fix it and they never did. My wife left the ship with a head cold and an ear infection. We did not want to be in our room because of the temperatures. The thermostats were useless. There are three types of dress aboard ship. Formal, a dark suit or tuxedo on four nights: informal which is dress pants and a sport coat for 11 nights: and casual, pants and a sport shirt for 2 nights. Even on port days you had to hurry back to the ship to shower and dress with a sport coat. It made no sense. The time in ports is way too brief. Tours are rushed and important areas are skipped or ignored with apologies from literally every guide. Many tours were 1/1.5 hours from the ship each way, and total port time was approx 6 hours. On pre-tour documents we were told about wonderful places, and because of lack of time we actually voted which destinations to skip. The quality was good, it could have been great with a couple more hours on each tour. Poor scheduling: When immigration came on board they asked passengers to report to the show lounge, instead of calling people alphabetically, by floor or by group of rooms. A line developed where people were standing 20 to 45 minutes instead of doing it sensibly. We had a tour in out last port that was scheduled to return after the last night's show and in the middle of the Captains thank you to passengers and the presentation of the crew and the crew awards. When numerous passengers complained they decided to schedule the tours to leave earlier but forgot to notify the passengers on some of the tours, When asked we were told it was a communications error. Food was inconsistent in "The Restaurant." Very small appetizer size entrees to entrees that could feed two people. Bowls of soup that were not even half full. 16" dinner plates served for dessert that contained 1/2 a piece of pie. Order your meat medium and 50 % of the time it comes our rare, The ship had just come out of dry dock and the employees were not properly adapted to good upgrades and changes. The first night's dinner in the main dining room took over 3 hours to serve. Everybody missed the talk by the cruise director about the ship and the activities. Read Less

We chose this cruise as a means to pursue something different. Having boated on rivers for many years we thought cruising the Amazon would be a good extension of the activity. We looked forward to seeing the cities, wildlife and the notion of seeing piranha fish. Embarkation was very smooth and they lived up to expectations. Our room was clean and well stocked with fruit and beverages. Out butler arrived and per our wishes supplied us with our favorites. As a matter of course he was always there for us and since we were traveling with a third person in another cabin, he hooked us up with canapes or dinner for three whenever we wished. It would be difficult to come up with a complaint and we tipped him accordingly. The cruise started off well enough with a stop at Devil's Island. This turned out to be quite good if not the best stop along the itinerary. The remnants of the penal colony are still standing and testify to the harsh conditions. There is a hotel on the island but we would have been hard pressed to stay there having seen it. Other stops yielded a perspective that Brazil has quite a bit of cleanup and pollution work in front of itself. At one stop, no activity was offered and the shore concierge couldn't suggest a reason to leave the boat so we didn't. We were lucky enough to spot pink dolphins from the Panorama Lounge that day, but if there's nothing to do, why stop there. The Restaurant was our favorite dining spot although we did enjoy going to La Dame a couple of times. Having a menue that changed at La Dame while we were aboard for 16 nights would have been a great improvement. We also ate at The Grill once and decided not to go a second time. The hot stone cooking while unique, generated quite a bit of smoke. On a hot sultry night with no wind it can make one person at a table of four very uncomfortable depending on which way the smoke blows. The pool bar lunch while tasting good, lacked service. We noted staff standing around in conversation quite a bit. On one occasion we waited a quite a while, and nothing happened until we got up to go to The Restaurant. We continued on our way at that point in spite of a very apologetic server. We ate at La Terrazza 2 nights, but the food was quite repetitive from both their own dinner menu and The Restaurant's lunch and dinner menus, and we preferred the atmosphere and service at The Restaurant. Disembarkation did not go as smoothly, starting late, requiring waiting in line numerous times (each time waiting for our color to be called before being allowed to wait in line), and eventually needing to drag all of our luggage to a parking lot and load it onto the seats in a small passenger bus for transport to the cruise terminal. Perhaps it was because we were the last ship to arrive in port that morning, and were last in line. Read Less

Celebrating a birthday and an anniversary. We knew that Silversea would enable a trouble free voyage. Our Butler and Maid decorated our suite for the birthday/anniversary celbration with clever towel art and balloons. Our fridge was constantly restocked with our favorite beverages. Our every need was cared for (including some seasickness tablets on the occasion that they were needed. The food was simply amazing with the specialty restaurant La Dame serving on eof the best meals we have ever enjoyed. While we did not take part in the entertainment at night (being early to bed folks) we did enjoy the lectures. And the Bingo. And the Trivia contests. The dining options enabled us to enjoy what we wanted when we wanted it. And when the (free) WiFi went out on deck 4 and 5 we were presented with a $300 credit. A really fine gesture for a porblem that was not foreseeable. What can I say? It is Silversea.. Read Less

We prefer to cruise back from Europe rather than flying. We have been on Silversea for only four years, but it is our "go-to" cruise line. This trip fit in with our earlier plans: started with a week in Madrid in a rented apartment; then fly to Porto for an Ama Waterways cruise up and down the Douro River; then the high-speed train to Lisbon for a few days waiting to board the Whisper fro the crossing. As usual, the ship met or exceeded our expectations. The staff is wonderful and as repeat cruisers, we re-acquainted ourselves with many of them. It is such fun to walk into a bar on board and not have to order a drink. It just appears before you! The crew and the wait staff were also a welcoming sight. We have recommended Silversea to many of our friends and the feedback we get is always positive. Read Less

My wife and I like small ships rather than the large cruise ships because they are more intimate and feature the ports of call as the selling point versus the large floating hotel concept. We also focus on which ports the cruise will call on rather than the time of year or size of boat. This cruise was the second time on Silver Whisper, a Baltic Sea cruise being the first time. On this cruise we liked its origination port of Monte Carlo and conclusion in Lisbon. Portugal is a very interesting country to visit and we will go back. We also thought most of the ports would be very interesting, or provide access to exceptional Spanish cities. As we found out, Malaga and Cadiz allowed us to visit Granada and Seville, both the gems of Andalusia. Most of the tours were very good although on whole we thought Seabourn's tours are better. One tour to Granada was wait listed so we opted to use our travel agent to set up a private tour. Otherwise the ship's tours of Seville and Barcelona were excellent! Once you come back for a second cruise you become a member in their Venetian Society, and they hosted a remarkable excursion one evening in Barcelona that was very good! We normally try to book the larger Silver Suites which are similar in configuration to the Seabourn suites. Our suite, however, was better than the Seabourn suites by being wider and more spacious. We especially like their hot rock feature on the Pool deck, which we enjoy immensely! The October time frame was nice from a temperature perspective, but the captain skipped two ports due to high winds/seas so there is a trade off for booking at end of the season. Crew was very nice and the butler element is a nice touch not present on Seabourn. On previous trip in Baltic Sea we hit all of the restaurants, but this time, due to the presence of a wine tour group, most of the evenings were already booked. As such we were unable to compare with previous dining experience. We generally do not go to the Restaurant on deck 4. All in all a cruise that was very memorable! Read Less

Before going on this cruise, I read several negative reviews that made me quite nervous. We had originally chosen silversea due to reviews of excellent service and dining. Then we read the reviews criticizing just those aspects. Well, it turned out our original hope was fully realized. The service was excellent and the food was outstanding. We enjoy leisurely dining which is the style most available in the evenings when the buffet disappears; some may have felt it was too slow. However, after seeing how hard people tried to please us, I think if we had asked to have courses brought more quickly, they would have done so. The menu was varied each evening, and the ship has an "all day dining" menu that can be ordered in any restaurant venue if the daily choices don't appeal. This is also the way to get meals when restaurants are closed; the order will be served in your room or in any public venue (like the pool, panorama lounge, etc.) This allows a lot of flexibility although in a way different from many cruises that have buffets open more throughout the day. We found all the dining venues to be good, but particularly enjoyed lunch at LaTerrassa and the Main Dining Room in the evenings. Finally, we thought the Voices of Silversea, who provided several shows, were the most talented group we have seen on any cruise. The productions may not be as "big" as some larger ships, but the quality was higher. Read Less

Last year we took our first cruise on Silversea to Alaska. Since our experience last year was so enjoyable, we booked a Mediterranean cruise for this year. We weren't disappointed. The food, dining room service, cabin service, bartenders were great. We only went to the main dining room and La Terrazza. The previous cruise we tried the outside hot rock experience...which is when the passenger cooks their own steak or seafood. It looked like fun, but we prefer the chefs to cook for us! Most of the wines were good. Ports of call were beautiful. Massages were unbelievable, and I'm picky. Embarkation was flawless. Debarkation was even better...they are very organized with the luggage. We enjoy the smaller ships...no crowds anywhere! Gratuities were inclusive of our fare, which is nice. Alcohol is also included. Room service was excellent, always on time...I enjoyed Eggs Benedict almost every morning. All in all, it was a great time! Read Less

We have sailed with Silversea before and really loved it. This cruise was no different. Great Accommodations, Great Excursions, Awesome Crew and we love the fact that it's all inclusive.The captain and crew kept us up to date on all activities, embarking and disembarking procedures as well as up to date news regarding the cruise. The food was very good and the selections were great! The facilities on this cruise whether they were dining, exercising, using the library or anything else were always in clean, working order. The Reception Crew and Concierge Crew were always very helpful and informative and willing to go out of their way to accommodate your needs and requests. The excursions offered through Silversea were plentiful and covered everyone's wishes. We actually spent our Honeymoon on the Silver Whisper in 2005 on a Caribbean Cruise and even though I didn't think it could be done I think Silversea did make some slight adjustments and improvements. It was just a delightful cruise and vacation. Read Less

This particular cruise was an absolute failure in terms of delivering on any of the marketing made on their website or in their expensive shiny brochures and I do not think I will ever sail on Silversea again. Where to start? First of all, we are well experienced as cruisers, and as travelers, have refined palates and are all lovers of fine wines...so we did have a standard of expectations here, mostly as set by Silversea themselves on the website, in their brochures etc. We really did have the expectation that this would be a really high end cruise with superb food, wine and service. First of all our "personalized Butler service". Our butler showed up in the suite to say hello (our wonderful service attendant was there however with his excellent smile and unfailing good nature) at least 2 hours after boarding. Informed us he had 15, yes, 15 cabins to service so was busy. Yep, busy. Over 9-10 days he delivered breakfast twice...the second time it arrived stone cold with one rock hard cardboard waffle and cold congealed eggs..and he served it to us! There was no time to get a replacement (needed to join a tour in port) but it was obvious that our order had sat around for a long time before it was picked up. There was a nice soap selection presentation and one evening a small anniversary cake delivered with balloons to our suite, something all cruises do, which was nice. Our so called luxury mattress was just terrible to sleep on , so uncomfortable and on the day of the LAST NIGHT they informed us they were changing all the mattresses on our deck. We were NOT impressed with their ill timed announcement...they really should have saved the mattress switch for disembarkation day...because we got off this "premium" luxury cruise KNOWING that we slept badly on a mattress in need of change out. Oh, except for one night..thanks. The suite was very nice, lots of room in the bathroom, great walk in clothes storage, lovely living room space and very nice quality towels, robe etc. Slippers we referred to as our surfboards, rather giant sized for sure. We were very pleased with the space of the suite. I think our biggest let down was food quality and inconsistency. SO inconsistent. The sole exception to this was the morning walk through buffet, which was fresh, delicious and beautifully varied. The waiters took made to order egg orders. Desserts across all venues on the entire cruise were sub par to say the least (and just name ONE cruise line where gorgeous desserts aren't a feature. This ship offered mostly some form of a ganache pudding like filling served in some dessert form or another, or you could have creme brulee or cheesecake, hardly culinary dessert artistry. The four of us tried the ice creams and gelatos on two occasions, the ice creams had so little flavor and were more ice milk like as opposed to rich and creamy...we even mentioned our dismay over the desserts and ice creams to the Exec Chef one evening when he wandered by the Table. He informed us in a scolding tone that "they were all made from scratch fresh daily" well so much for that! Tasteless ice milk made fresh daily! I felt better right away! We found that the service stations were crazy noisy with drawers slammed, trays filled with dishes rattling etc. One night we asked for a "quiet table" and yes.....they sat us two tables from the KITCHEN DOOR...you know the one, the door that dozens of waiters run in and out of ALL NIGHT LONG. The Maitre D in the dining room was a grumpy fellow and not at interested in where you, the guest, might wish to sit...he had a plan and you got a growl from him if you asked for a table near a window, or away from the service stations etc. One morning we actually asked to have a waiter replaced he was just that bad. The steaks onboard were just delicious...we quickly learned that while the cook it yourself hot rock venue seems like something fun....it also comes with a fair amount of grease spattering everywhere. They do give you a large bib....but the grease is all over the table, on your sleeves, in your hair and all around you. The next time we had it grilled for us and brought over....MUCH better. On so many occassions we took lunch or ate lunch around the pool and found the service lackluster, and very inattentive..I am just not sure what was wrong here...but there were lots of staff standing around the service station or milling around the bar while plates piled up, glasses went empty and no one re-visited the tables to check. For some reason the bar staff at the pool had zero idea how to make a drink...really. They were all like first day bartenders who never made a drink in their lives. We sent back drink after drink which tasted NOTHING like what was described. Thank goodness for the lovely server, Magda who would personally take them back to the bar, and then re-make then herself for us...always perfect. How tough should that have been? This premium luxury cruise at day three started to feel like a cut rate cruise line. I know there are a lot of readers interested in the included wine service. Hope you all like Chilean wine. I asked every single occasions if there was a South African, or New Zealand or Australian wine available and always was told no...UNTIL the last two nights...lo and behold...some lovely wines from those very places magically appeared. In the meantime I racked up a few dollars buying decent wines to drink.... We did have a lovely meal in the La Dame room venue. We also asked , twice, for the sommalier to come to the table as were were wanting to purchase a very decent bottle or two of wine . The sommalier did not come although we saw him in the wine cabinets frequently, the young lady that was sent and we were told she was a sommalier, READ us the notes from the back of the two bottles we were interested in. GEE, thanks! We She also failed to decant our expensive bottle and did not replace our wine glasses when the second bottle was opened..OMG. We just gave up looking for a semblance of excellence at that point. The service however in La Dame was excellent and skilled... Of note, there was an absolutely excellent vocal band performing live in the dance lounge nightly, well worth a late nightcap and easy listen to. One evening (Portofino) we returned to find a note in our suite saying the La Terraza dining venue was CLOSED due to a "private event" . The 30-40 yr old folks on that private event dressed to the max in chic finery were on the shore to ship tender with us, so we thought something might be up. My point is this...Silversea actually CLOSED one of its very few dining venues to their PAYING GUESTS. During the evening. Some folks mused that perhaps it was a "charity" thing for Silversea...but if it was a fund raiser, then Silversea also had some very deep pocketed PAYING guests on board. just a chic private dinner party with a group from Portofino ...closed to paying guests. WOW...that IS really arrogant. At a minimum they should have closed a lunch venue off during the day when most of the paying passengers were ashore. Again...who cared? We booked three shore excusions with Silversea. We also loved the amount of time we had in port on this itinerary. First one, we were told to get on and off the bus three times, switch buses, then told to go back to the original bus...the on board "lecturer" and his wife royally buggering it up and not a Silversea staffer in site. ACK. Second one...we visited a rest/drink stop at a scenic mountain top location which was CLOSED because the local guide did not call ahead first and that particular guide felt very strongly indeed that there should never be a moment of silence on the mic over the four hours. Not a moment. Everything you never wanted to know about her entire family, and the curious mating habits of black pigs...over and over...Good one Silversea. We had a good time because we always have a good time. 99% of our fellow passengers were terrific interesting folks. The ports were mostly lovely, well once you go out of Marseille and Livorno, with enough time to really do something unhurried and wonderful in the locale, we took full advantage of that. Only once did we receive a wet hand towel upon re boarding from shore...that is SUCH a little thing but so noticeably missing on a consistent basis here. For all the reasons i have written about above....and the fact that prior to this cruise it was announced that Silversea had been sold to Royal Caribbean Cruise Line..I can only conclude that this expensive particular cruise failed to deliver on far too many cruise line basics let alone those associated with a self called "luxury" cruise. I really cannot recommend Silversea and that, is a real shame. Read Less

We chose this cruise because the ship was small, only 380 passengers and we wanted to cruise the Greek Islands which limited our choice of ships. Embarkation and disembarkation were the fastest I have ever experienced on a ship, no waiting in line. The food, service, entertainment were great. I am not a buffet person and loved that I had options of a la carte or buffet for breakfast and lunch. Our cabin was the largest cabin I have experienced on a ship. The service was over the top. Great crew. Very roomy and big bathroom. It was a Verandah suite which was the least expensive suite with a balcony you could purchase. My only complaint is the ship is old and dated looking. There are no electrical outlets by the nightstands, you have to plug your phone or I-pad in across the room which is not fun at 6 a.m. when the alarm goes off and you have to run across the run to shut it off. Our shore excursions were nice. Some of them a little longer than they needed to be. I felt the tour guide was taking longer than they needed because the tour was 4 hours and they felt they had to give us 4 hours of talking. The private tour guide through the ship was very expensive. We were able to find a private tour guide in Santorini for 75% cheaper than what the ship wanted to charge. Overall, we loved it and would travel on Silversea again but will look for a ship that is newer. Read Less