Leisurely, up market, only 250 passengers. The crew were faultless, nothing was too much trouble. The food was terrific and unlike some cruise meals the portions were a modest size. Good choice of wines and spirits. It seemed you could have anything you wanted to drink if you did not fancy the wines presented at the dining table. Embarkation and disembarkation were queue-free and smooth. The ship was spotlessly clean. There were two good libraries. Meal times were free seating and any time you liked within opening hours. Breakfast fruit and pancakes were lovely. The pool was small but clean and fresh. There was ample storage in the cabin which is unusual, even a walk in closet. Lovely Bulgari toiletries. Comfortable beds, chocs handed out at night. The Terrazza restaurant (free option) served good Italian food, the Grill likewise good steaks. We did not try the Dame restaurant at $67 a head, menu too fancy and expensive. Read Less

We chose a small luxury vessel because we had sailed before. First time to celebrate our mother’s 80th birthday . That time was luxury and service at its maximum expression. A few years latter we chose to spend a new years with Silverseas, the we went to Alaska. Than this one. The ports were terrible, Guatemala and Belize are poor destinations with poor attractions, but we thought they weren’t as bad as the reviews we saw. Key West and Cozumel are good ports. I don’t know what Silverseas are doing in those two countries, especially Guatemala, with all the insecurity, armed police and just the general feeling that you don’t feel safe. Belize, well there is nothing there if you have limited mobility or if you are over 70. But the worst part was the service, most waiters don’t understand well English, so you ask for something and they bring you something else. Some are are bad mood and even “talk back” or roll eyes when you ask for something. After you eat, either at the dining room or at the Grill, they take more than 20 minutes to clear the table. Most time you have to ask to clear the table. This used to be a luxury cruise, well its quality is going downhill. The entertainment is great. Great pianist, musicians, singers. The food could be better. Not gourmet style like before, The ship is way too old, but clean, everything is in the galley and just the logistics are complicated, that is I think that has the waiters in a bad mood. The bartenders at the downstairs bar are amazing, the ones in the top bar are always mad. And in a bad mood. Maybe because we were 10. Not what I expected. I have salied Regent, Crystal,Seabourne, oceania, Celebrity, even Royal Caribbean And MSC. Read Less

I have been on over 80 cruises.None of them on a luxury line. This was special for my 60th birthday.Also being single, had to find one that did not break the bank.I didnt want to regret never doing a high end cruise.So booked this one.Big mistake.Definitely would have enjoyed 3 regular cruises so much more. It was a very small ship. There was so much rocking and swaying. I spent 1 day completely in bed. This was a first for me.There was mostly nothing to do all day. I was on a trivia team and met some nice people.I really have no need to be pampered or have things done for me. Most of the crowd was used to that. You could tell they were high brow and demanding. My butler was very good. He was also helpful.The ship is very outdated. I had a meal comped at La Dame. Glad didnt pay the extra 60.00. I am not a big drinker, so the ship made money off of me. Most of the others liked their liquor.The food was good, but nothing memorable. Read Less

First time I took this ship was last year and was so impressed with the service decided to book again! Called in to my contact at Silver Seas Ray Sobel and he helped me find this. Raise and he is outstanding and provides excellent service a big plus for me wanting to ask about ships etc! First they have two ambassadors /translators who take photos and greet people always there to assist..if lucky you will have Sophia on your cruise..you walk on and if like me you go to lunch if you don’t like their lunches then you don’t like good food..the staff knows you day two! La Dame..don’t know of a place as good..has the caviar they place on top of the lobster medallion salad..then had for the main course chilean sea bass with more caviar on top! The lobster bisque people had to cut the lobster! Service was incredible and the food matched it. Each room comes with a butler in mine was outstanding. He came in as I was hanging up my clothes noticed one of my jackets had wrinkles took it and asked me if I would like to wear it for dinner three hours later. I said yes and within an hour it was back in my room.he truly wanted the experience to be outstanding and Jerry delivered. The cruise Director was Colin and he was just excellent..large groups came to play trivia and he stayed to interact with us..and he too is an excellent classical pianist. The entertainment On hr ship was fun. As a low carb eater only the Italian dining venue at night I stayed away from as the others were just right up my alley..loved cooking a steak under the stars on the pool deck on hot lava stones drinking some fine wine! One I was with geared up with me as we went into the last night as we said goodby to the crew even the Boutique people were special. Felt sad that I would not see them again so in the process to soon take another to be with them..that’s how good they were and it starts with the Captain..he was visible and friendly. Read Less

Overrated., oversold..dated ship.. staff unprofessional... unorganized.. not a luxury ship at all. From the moment we boarded the ship( had to carry our carryon ourselves) we sensed something was not right. Although the weather stopped us from going to most of our ports, the crew certainly did not make up for what was lost. Finally got us to Dominican Republic( not planned) and they planned excursion only for 40 people ( ship held (295). So many of us wanted to finally get off the ship as we could not because if the weather. We asked the director to help us find another excursion and they simply would not help us. We had to find our own and transportation too Excuse was they could not get connect with any hotels or taxi service. In a manner of minutes we set everything up! It was bizarre. They just did not care. It just lacked in luxury as was advertised and sold. Compared to other ship lines we have been on Silverseas is really not top notch at all. The food was average. Service in the restaurants was very poor and communication with the staff was difficult. We had one server out of all, Jerry who was a professional and we tried to find him throughout the ship when we dined.. A wine tasting was planned one day at 11:15am? Why? Makes no sense. We even paid extra for La Dame restaurant which is highly overrated. No future trips will be planned with Silverseas. Read Less

Recommended by travel agent having been cruising 22 years with Holandamerica Asamara Majestic Princess and Celebrity we thought by reputation this could be good .This Ship is tired ,in need of refit .All staff ,food, and shows first class . Time of year for this cruise area should cease September 30th much to cold, ports missed, ports of call retailers closed for end of season Now you know research better than I. This has been the most disappointing Cruise EVER. Embarcation dreadfull .Ship late arrival due to prop fouling ship lines , force 9/11 gale, Ports missed ,other Ports we should have stayed longer like Boston 6 hours not near enough, a day and a half would have been much better.only had time for city hop on hop off bus and quick shop. We were looking forward to this Cruise and knew it was the fall and dressed accordinglay ,this was our first time on a small ship with 290 guests metting new friends and world travelers exchanging travel stories etc Read Less

This story is about the first days of the cruise, the Netherlands, Belgium and France. Sailing on a small cruise ship with the highlight sailing under the Tower Bridge .... On the Silver wind, I wanted so badly to cruise with this ship, the journey was nice and short; seven days, from Amsterdam to London. The ports of call: Amsterdam, Zeebrugge, Le Havre, Guernsey, Falmouth, Cowes on the Isle of Whight, and London Tower Bridge. Silver Wind is the smallest ship of Silver Sea, only three hundred passengers can sail, the number of crew is 210, the first ship of the fleet, planned to be converted into expedition in 2020. Pieter brings us to the Passenger Terminal Amsterdam, we board, and are again warmly welcomed by the cruise director and the entire crew. We do check in, and hand in our trolleys, and go to La Terrazza for lunch. This restaurant is one of the four on board; full Italian in the evening, morning and afternoon buffet. Within a minute Kevin, one of the waiters, is with us and asks what water we want to drink: still or sparkling, Silver Sea has its own osmosis system and the water is always fresh and cool. We start with a glass of champagne and say cheers to the cruise. We drink delicious white from Umbria and red from Valpolicella and go to our suite after lunch. There are no huts at Silversea, everything is suite and gives a spacious feel. At six o'clock we sail away, we turn on the IJ and sail past everything we know; the Eye, Amsterdam Tower, Pont Steiger, the Wijker and Velser tunnel, the blast furnaces of Tata Steel and the huge locks of Ijmuiden. Bye bye Holland! The pilot waves us goodbye while he steps alongside the pilot boat and we sail towards Zeebrugge. The nice thing about cruising with Silver Sea that you are always ashore in a port during the day and sail at night. At eight o'clock AM we dock at Zeebrugge, we disembark after breakfast, take the train and within fifteen minutes we walk into the old city of medieval Bruges. Bruges is so beautiful! Cobblestones, small canals, old churches, and age-old canal houses. It is full of tourists, so we take the back streets for our walk and choose an authentic Flemish restaurant De Vlaamsche Pot for lunch, we eat waterzooi and drink Trappist beer, and toast on Sunday. At 5 pm the bunches are thrown loose and we continue to sail, towards Le Havre in Normandy. We drink a welcome drink, captain Gennaro Arma introduces his team, then dinner in The Restaurant and choose a nice bottle of Saint Julien with the four courses. Chateau Lagrange 2007, how beautiful Bordeaux is when it gets older! Ace is our sommelier, the chef is called Jozef, of Dutch origine, and the journey is wonderful from the moment we boarded. Ace is our sommelier, the chef is called Jozef, of Dutch origine, and the journey is wonderful from the moment we boarded. After dinner we join the show where the Voices of Silversea give a beautiful Broadway impression, the theater is renovated and the seats and small tables are very comfortable. We will dock early in Le Havre on Monday, many American passengers want to see D-Day, they take an excursion to Omaha Beach. At Silver Sea you can book endless beautiful excursions, we as ex-aviation with thousands of destinations, arrange everything ourselves, within an hour we are on the bike, and yes, it is free, the municipality wants to promote cycling and invites everyone, therefore also tourists to take the bike. LeHavre is a city with a mix of fishing, industry and tourism, the difference between low and high tides was striking, about six meters, the river Seine starts there. It is the second port city of France. Almost completely bombed during the Second World War and carefully constructed under the guidance of the Belgian architect Auguste Pierre. In 2005 the city received the status of UNESCO World Heritage Site. And you see that everywhere, the city is a picture, the bike ride a success. We hand in the bikes and thank the rental, which is next to the SNCF the railway station, go back on board and eat in La Dame, the restaurant with Relais and Chateau status. I think this one is the best because this restaurant on the Muse and the Spirit has no windows and on the Wind it has huge windows Foie Gras, caviar, lobster and rack of lamb it is overwhelming, and I have to skip my dessert additional cost for the diner is $60 per person. We leave the harbor at nine o'clock on our way to Guernsey, one of the Channel Islands. The rest of the cruise remained excellent, good fresh meals, 50 open wines to choose from, and a connaisseur wine list with prices very moderate, so you can drink your grand cru or Barolo on board if you want to drink premium bottles. Highlight was the sail into the Thames with comment of a local pilot who explained a lot about the scenery we passed. The Tower Bridge openend for the Wind friday afternoon at 4 PM, all traffic was stopped and we sailed under the bridge, it was absolute the best moment of the trip. So little Silver Wind, with as always devoted and well-trained crew, we do love the ship, and are gracious to have had this experience. Read Less

To begin with this review, the cruise with the Silver Wind was fabulous as always. Food was great and the service could not be better. The ship need a renovation, but that happens nex year. Dining at eveningtime we prefer The Restaurant. Meals are very good and the service also. At lunch we prefer La Terrazza outside. It's so nice to sit there with a nice view. In St Peters Port the weather was the best, so nice then to have lunch outside. Service in La Terrazza exellent! Entertainmaint was also very nice, we liked the performance of the singers. Butler en housekeeping as always, very good service! Room was very clean. You may know, me and my partner sailed more then 400 days with Silversea. Why did a rated this cruise one ball? That's because of the price. I booked suite 439 (Vista) and pay including 10% off, because more then 250 days, and 5% on board booking Euro 2.254,- You may know, the last half year before this cruise, start the price was going up to Euro 4.000,- per guest excluding flight, transfer. In the Netherlands is a website for crew members for airlines workers and touroperator workers. They can booked a lot of Silversea cruises for VERY MUCH LOWER prices. There was a couple on board they had in the past worked by KLM and booked this cruise for Euro 1.700,- for a vista suite. Three days before boarding they get a message from the operator that they got an upgrading to suite 741, yes a Medallion suite. Almost three times bigger then a Vista suite. Also including free laundry. Is this normal? Of course not!!! Possible you know that pilots working with KLM had a year income to Euro 275.000,- The may also booking this cruise for this price. I call this larceny! Okay some people get discount, but that upgrading is far from right. Ans this was not for the first time. Last march this couple did a 13 day cruise with the Silver Muse from Singapore to Hong Kong. Price for a Vista Suite USD 1.300,- Once they came on board they get an upgrading to a veranda suite. First i was interested to do a cruise with the Silver Shadow from Rome to Venice in 11 days starting at september 22 this year. Price for a Vista Suite on the Silversea website Euro 7.700,- per guest. Price on www.insidertravel Euro 2.600,- for a Vista, per guest! NO WAY that we booked this cruise. Read Less

We disembarked the Silver Wind in early June and generally had a very good cruise. The main attraction, certainly so far as my OH was concerned, was the sail in and out under Tower Bridge (note to destination lecturer - not "The" Tower Bridge, just Tower Bridge). We had a quick and easy embarkation and our suite, a classic veranda, was fine and looked in good order. We did find an item on a shelf which belonged to a previous occupant and which indicated, perhaps, not the most thorough of inspections before we arrived. It was not a major deal for us but we received a fulsome apology from 2 senior members of housekeeping staff. I dislike the bathroom on the Wind, in particular the bath/shower combination with a fixed shower screen and I gather that most, if not all, of the baths are to be removed when she is refitted next year – can't come soon enough, though I know some will miss them. The interactive TV in the suite was excellent, with Chronicles, restaurant menus, tour information and the newspaper all on-line, and a good selection of films. The hard copy of the newspaper disappeared on the 1st June but appeared on screen, so I assume the decision has been made to provide it online only, which saves a few trees and is fine with us. Connectivity for the TV and the internet, however, was frustrating, channels were often unavailable – particularly trying where there is a huge football game and the channel showing it is as dead as a Norwegian Blue . Apart from late at night and very early in the morning, it could be a dispiriting experience to try to use the internet. We had the standard, included, package only. Food we found, generally, to be good, with plenty of variety in the Restaurant. This was in contrast to our experience on the stretched Spirit last year when we found the Restaurant menu to be limited and repetitive, though there are of course many more dining options on the Spirit. With curries, pasta and local dishes offered on the Wind on various days in the Restaurant, we did not miss the alternative venues as we feared we would, though an Arts Café style area would have been welcome. Three courses and coffee were the norm at dinner, with no separate salad course or sorbet on offer and no petits fours. I am sure you could have had them as a special request. We did not need them. We also ate in La Terrazza, which was very good on the first night but rather mediocre later in the cruise to my mind, although OH enjoyed his dishes. I had rather expected a lasagne in an Italian Restaurant on an Italian ship to be sensational. I was disappointed. Hot Rocks in the evening has consistently excellent meat and fish, if you don’t mind doing your own cooking, which we rather enjoy and the best bit is that, no matter how much mess we make, someone else does the clearing up. During the day this area is the Pool Grill, where the food was adequate but where the service, on this trip, was under par. Things took ages to arrive, service was bit slapdash, i.e. tables were not properly cleaned down between guests and food dropped on the deck lay there and provided fodder for the birds. This was a coldish weather cruise, where the Grill was probably not as well used and I got the impression that staffing levels had been curtailed accordingly. Elsewhere, service was very good and charming though perhaps not quite as intuitive as on other ships. As an example, I always have expresso at breakfast and even though we very often had the same server, I always had to ask for it, it was never remembered . I could cope with this but one of the selling points of Silversea has been how quickly crew get to know passengers' preferences. The included wine was, again, generally acceptable and there was no difficulty in obtaining something other than the daily pour. Pudding wine was provided on request but was not routinely offered. The one big, and completely avoidable, problem on this voyage was the tendering process, which was lamentable. Unusually for Silversea, only one tender was in operation at tender ports, and it ran out and back on the hour and half hour. If, therefore, you missed one tender you had to wait for an hour until the next one. The difficulty was particularly acute at Gerainger where several ship tours arrived back at the quay at the same time, filling the scheduled tender to full capacity. Guests left behind were told they had to wait until the next scheduled tender, which was over an hour later. Minor mutiny ensued –can you mutiny on a quayside?-and after a lot of hoo-ing and ha-ing, the tender came back sooner than scheduled. This should never have been an issue, the ship was close to the quay so the tender journey was only a few minutes. There was absolutely no need for any hassle, the tour concierge team know how many guests are on tour and when those tours will arrive back, and so tenders should cater accordingly In Vik, we arrived at 7 am but the first tender for non-tour group guests was at 10am, the last tender back was at 11am, which left a frustratingly short time to explore the village and to walk to the famous churches there. My only other negative comment on the arrangements was that there should have been a shuttle bus into the centre of Bergen. However, perhaps my view was jaundiced by the fact that it rained on the way back to the ship and I got very wet and very, very grumpy. Entertainment- Colin Barbiere Brown was the Cruise Director and a there was a complete change round of Voices of Silversea and of at least one of the lounge musicians in London who boarded with us. Thus, the cast were putting their shows in place on the ship and so were not visible throughout the ship to engage with passengers. I did feel that we suffered somewhat from this. Colin is a polished Cruise Director, he runs a tight trivia and he performed on several occasions, with or without other musicians. It was, however, a mistake not to have some guest entertainers on board for this cruise as the performances by the Voices were to be limited and a variety of entertainment was lacking. I am aware that one does not choose a Silversea cruise for the breadth of its entertainment but some alternatives to Colin and his piano might have been welcome, excellent musician though he is. This brings me to the demographic of guests. As it was a London to London cruise, it was hardly surprising that the majority of guests were British, some 170 out of 294, I believe. A good number were older and with a degree of frailty. This meant that, in our opinion, the ship was less lively than we have experienced hitherto, especially in the evening. A couple of lumpy nights did not help, but the bars seemed to close early and I got the impression that a fair number of people didn’t get off the ship at ports. Given the average age of the guests, I suspect that some must have been surprised to be assailed by versions of Bon Jovi and Bruce Springsteen classics from the Voices on the last night. When it got rough, the crew were excellent older guests or those with mobility issues, some of whom were helped all the way back to their suites by crew who would not let them risk walking back unaccompanied. And yes, we had a wonderful sail out of London at night but an even more spectacular sail in in the morning, accompanied in part by 50 or so hot air balloons, flying almost close enough to touch. We know that Silversea can't take the credit for that, but it was the perfect end to an enjoyable voyage. Read Less

Silver Wind is in for a full refit in twelve months time. This is probably twelve months too late. Looking tired, the ship is saved by its excellent crew. There was nothing intrinsically wrong with the cruise, probably still a good 4.5 star experience. But that is not how Silverseas is marketed. Fellow travellers were discussing looking elsewhere. Food was good but not exceptional. Furnishings slightly raggedy around the edges. Again, nothing disastorous but not the kind of attention to detail you would expect from say Four Seasons which is the type of place Silverseas clientele typically frequent. Casino crew were downright miserable, servicing a worn room with an unfathomable set of slots. Silverseas still check all the right boxes, but the fear is that the new owners are destroying the brand by their cutting of costs. Silver Wind needs sorting out and quickly. This overdue refit can only damage the brand. Read Less

I chose this cruise when it was first offered because I'd never been on Silver Seas, I liked the itinerary, and the single supplement was within reason. I was a little concerned given some of the negative reviews, but my on board experience bore no relation to what I'd read. It was wonderful in almost every respect. I loved it and will be back. I was in a veranda cabin and will say more about it below, but it was big enough for two people to be comfortable and lap of luxury for a single like me. The bed was wonderful. Dining was maybe a little disappointing as my expectations were pretty high, based on how the line is promoted. Over all, the food was good, occasionally outstanding, but now and then sub par. For example, I ordered venison on one occasion. The plate came with two generous pieces, one succulent and delicious, the other like shoe leather -- not supposed to happen. On another occasion, the wine steward told us the red was Carménère, which made me happy as I like that wine, but, in fact, he was pouring from a bottle of Cabernet. When I pointed this out, a bottle of the former quickly appeared, but it was surprising the steward didn't know what he was pouring. As to the wines, overall, I thought they were fine and, if neither of those offered appealed, a substitute was readily at hand. I ate lunch at the Terrazzo buffet several times and many items were dried out and tasteless, while others were perfect. So, food was a little uneven in quality. One thing I must note, though -- Silver Seas serves the best hot dog on the planet. I'm not kidding. It's big and comes with a slice of very crisp bacon, a house made cucumber based relish and is served on a bun that has just a hint of cinnamon flavor to it. The sides are a delicious slaw and a little pot of great fries and onion rings. Not to be missed. I must have had eight of them by the time I disembarked. I thought the entertainment was good over all, especially the three piece combo, but it was the speakers who were truly exceptional. I've done a number of expedition cruises where the speakers are tremendous and many normal type cruises where the speakers are often lamentable. The three on this cruise, though, were all interesting and well informed in their areas. I didn't miss one and was never disappointed. Service is absolutely first rate almost all the time on this ship. The butler and room attendant were terrific, bartenders friendly, skillful and responsive, wait staff very good over all. You definitely have the sense that the crew are happy to be where they are. Officers could have been a little more engaged with the passengers, but the Captain was a treat -- witty and forth coming with details. The ports were all interesting and the overnight in NYC a huge plus -- saw Hadestown and was walking distance from the ship to the theater. The sail up the Thames and under Tower Bridge to moor next the the HMS Belfast was jaw dropping. I won't ever forget it and were so lucky to have perfectly sunny skies. The overnight in London was a second big plus. I was able to host a friend for dinner on board and the food that night was superb. I did a few of the sponsored excursions and they were fine and the prices seemed reasonable enough to me. Would I sail on Silver Seas again, of course I would, if the single supplement is fair and the itinerary good. Read Less

We chose this cruise only for the sailing under London Bridge which was definitely the highlight . We haven’t sailed on Silversea for a few years (as Crystal is our cruise line of choice) and remember luxuries like Perrier Juneau being the house champagne and the crew knowing your name within a couple of days aboard, the soap menu on arrival and your mini bar being stocked with your choice of spirits or liqueurs, the flurry of napkins being placed in your lap whether in the dining room or out on deck dining , cocktails being made and offered while you lay in a deck chair outside well none of that happened this time around. Embarkation was very easy with no wait time and straight on to the ship where we were greeted with a glass of bubbly and then left to our own devices. We had lunch in the Terazzo which was a buffet which was tasty but all the food in the warmer was only tepid and we had to flag a waiter to get water or a drink and again to get coffee so not a great start. After this happening for the first two days we addressed that and a few other problems with the Hotel manager then the service was definitely improved for the rest of the cruise. The food In the dinning room and the Italian restaurant was very good and good service and a table was mostly available when we decided to go for dinner. The entertainment was very average with 3 guest entertainers a violinist,a singer and a pianist, then 2 other resident pianists plus the cruise director Colin who did piano recitals so it was all rather too much of the same and far too high brow for us.The singers and dancers were good but the sets were almost non existent and the shows were very hit and miss. We are a couple in our 50’s and felt the entertainment is aimed at a senior crowd which seems to be their market. The stateroom we had was a vista suite and was very comfortable and in good condition but still had the dated bathroom with a pathetic shower and the bath drained very slow so constantly showering in about 6 inches of water, the aircon was constantly too hot and even on the coldest setting was sweltering causing quite a few sleepless nights.The Butler and our steward were very good and breakfast was delivered on time with hot coffee and the stateroom always clean. The water in the cabins and the restaurants was desalinated and you had to ask for bottled water as it was never offered and the champagne was Monopole but Pommeroy was available but you had to request that also which was very annoying obviously another cost saving measure. The ship overall was well presented but was very dull decor throughout the lounges with mute colours and no feeling of comfort or luxury ,the pool area was brown on brown with no comfortable seating like outdoor couches or cushions or sculptures or art just a few pots with small fake plants in ,the grill area had no cushions on the seats and drinks served in plastic. Overall the ship didn’t have the wow factor we have come to expect from other luxury cruise lines we travel on like Crystal or Seabourn it was good but there are lots of good cruise lines out there Like Holland America or Oceania that you don’t have to pay the premium prices we paid for this cruise. We will not be back to Silverseas again and talking to a lot of guests onboard and on cruise critic a lot of them felt the same way. Shame as this was once a very good experience! Read Less

This was my 3rd cruise, my previous being on Silver Discoverer and Silver Shadow. When I booked the itinerary was to Central America but it got changed towards the end of 2019 to being Cuba and Cape Canaveral but Silversea hadn't done its research and so the itinerary changed swapping Cape Canaveral for the the Bahamas - Nassau and Bimini - ultimately we ended up overnighting in Nassau instead of even going to Bimini so it was all a bit disorganised from that respect. No compensation was offered for the fact that I ended up on a completely different voyage to the one I booked! Regardless of all that, Silversea was as usual a great way to travel although I believe the restaurant menu layout has been changed to encourage guests to eat less courses than my cruise the previous year (prior to the takeover). Silversea excursions are always informative and I saw some great places, I fell completely in love with Havana and plan on going back for a proper visit in the not too distant future. The one area Silversea could really work on is the show lounge entertainment. The cast are always amazingly talented but they're stuck with Luna Rossa choreography and badly fitting costumes when they do the full cast shows. The individual shows are much more fun as personalities shine and you get properly entertained. Also making opera singers join in with musical theatre style shows is just wrong! I was very lucky that we had Colin as our cruise director and as a classical pianist he was able to provide some real music to let the opera singers shine. Read Less

We cruised with Silversea twice previously and felt it somewhat comparable to Regent. However, those cruises were more than 5 years ago and having having been on a Regent cruise in December 2018, we can definitely say there is no comparison. The Silver Wind is long, long overdue for an overhaul. We paid for the Owner’s Suite and it was worn and sadly out of date. Not the “luxury” one would expect for the hefty price tag. Also, the Owner’s Suite is on deck seven, directly below active part of the pool deck. There is constant scraping of chairs during the day and into evening hours. Don’t expect a quick nap. And the workers start moving chairs at around 5:30 to 6:00 am. Customer service claimed that no one had complained before and some people have greater sensitivity. Really? It was annoying at best and believe me it was loud. We were accommodated with a lower level room as a “day suite” which helped if one really wanted to take a nap, but when you pay for an Owner’s Suite you would like to reside in it. We tried repeatedly to stay a full night in our suite after constantly alerting management to the problem and being assured that the workers were told not to move chairs in the early hours. Inevitably we put on our robes and headed to the “day suite” at 6 am. The quality of the food and dining venues were adequate, but nothing outstanding. Though the waiters and staff in the restaurants and bars were marvelous. In fact the staff as a whole was excellent. The cruise director, Colin, went above and beyond expectations. We also thought that the entertainment was quite good. Now the warning to disabled cruisers My husband uses a wheelchair, though on a cruise we rent a scooter. Our travel agent made inquiries with SilverSea to ensure that the suite could accommodate a scooter (door width, space in the room, angle of the door to the hallway, etc.). We also fully anticipated ports with tenders in which my husband would stay aboard. What we did not expect and did not receive any alerts from SilverSea in spite of their full knowledge of my husband’s disability was the embarkation and disembarkation process. Access on and off the ship was only by a steep stairway with approximately 50 steps. In order to get aboard, my husband was carried in a chair by four men. Not only was this dangerous in my opinion, but my husband was extremely embarrassed by the process. An additional note for disabled passengers: the ramp at the door way to the pool deck is not particularly wide and there is no elevator to the spa level. In spite of the staff, which was the only thing that saved this cruise, we will not be sailing with SilverSea again. Read Less

A friend told us of a "bargain" cruise on the Silver Wind sailing from San Juan. Therefore, we signed up for the cruise. The Silver Wind is an older ship which apparently is due for a makeover in 2020. Also, it is supposed to outfitted to sail to Norway and even the Arctic. In any event, I had read reviews online about how it is an older ship. Indeed it is. There are a number of pluses about the Silver Wind. It is a small ship with not too many decks. Thus, it is easy to get around without thousands of people being on board. The ship still has a nice design, and we were always able to find seating in the theater, unlike some larger ships on which we have traveled. There are basically 3 restaurants: the main restaurant, with open, anytime seating; La Dame, in which it is hard to get a reservation, and The Grill/Hot Rocks on deck 8 by the pool bar. For the most part, the food was good. The dinner at La Dame was excellent, as was the service. Dinner at Hot Rocks was also good; I like to choose the meat and cook it on the hot stone. Of course, others chose to have the chef cook their entrees. Lunch at The Grill, however, was hit or miss. My wife ordered a reuben. Anybody who knows what a real reuben sandwich is would be appalled. The sandwich had a few very thin slices of some processed meat, nothing like what a reuben is supposed to be. Even though my wife complained, the chef either didn't care or couldn't change it since the same lame sandwich was offered the whole cruise. Service in the dining rooms was usually quite good. The sommeliers are excellent, and the ship has a decent wine list, although some of the wines are a little overpriced. The serving staff was quite friendly as well. Generally, the bar drinks were good, though some were a little off. The pool had a number of lounges. Usually some were available, at least in the morning, since the cruise had no sea days. The pool was closed once for "sanitation". It is a small pool not conducive to swimming. The cruise director Colin is engaging and an extremely talented pianist. The singers were quite good; 2 of them had operatic voices. The shows were entertaining. The lecturer was John Pennycate, who gave several interesting historical lectures, although he was not allowed to talk about the controversial subject of the use of nuclear bombs during World War II. Our butler Ranni was hit or miss. For example, once we asked Ranni for a bottle of white wine, 2 diet Cokes and extra glasses. He didn't bring any of them. Other times, he brought ice as needed for me to ice my knee post surgery. Our room steward Karin was good, although she forgot to leave us wash clothes once. The ports of call were often lesser known Caribbean islands. The most well known was St. Barths. The only ship shore excursion we took was to Belle Mont Farms for lunch and an island tour of St. Kitts. The lunch was good with many ingredients grown on the site, and there was more than enough to eat. The tour was all right, but not outstanding. Also, the tour seemed a little pricey for what we got. On Antigua we had booked a tour through Costco which was much cheaper, although the lunch there could not hold a candle to the one on St. Kitts. For the most part the excursions were for snorkeling, sailing, etc. The one to the Baths apparently was somewhat risky since some people slipped going down around or through the rocks. The Silver Wind is not designed for children travelers, but several families brought children. There are not child activities on board. That having been said, this was our last Silversea cruise. The people on our deck were notified that the hot water would be turned off from 2:30 PM to approximately 3:30 PM for maintenance. Nothing else was said, and no warnings were given. When my wife took a shower later that afternoon, she noticed that her white wash cloth turned rust colored. When she dried off, rust-colored spots dotted her bath towel. Obviously, there was a lot of rust in the line, but the ship's personnel did not warn anyone of that possibility. My wife called the butler, who said that he was sorry. Then he ran the cold water. After he left, I turned the temperature to all hot water and let it run a long time. The bathtub floor was filled with dirt, sand, rocks and rust. I went to the reception desk and complained that they could have waited until the ship docked at the end of the cruise to do the work. The receptionist claimed that it was an "emergency". If it was an emergency, the work should have been done immediately, not hours later. I told the receptionist that at least the ship should have warned passengers about the possibility of dirt, rust, etc coming out of the shower and faucet and told them to run the hot water for a long time. The receptionist claimed that rust and dirt had never come out of any faucets or showers before. I told her that was extremely difficult to believe given how old the ship was, the maintenance problems and the likely result. After all, a hot water line broke earlier in the cruise, requiring the ship to move the occupants of two suites to other accommodations. Furthermore, outside of a perfunctory "I'm sorry" initially from the reception, there was never any apology from the hotel manager or anyone from the cruise line. Apparently, they felt that it was not a problem. We have sailed many cruises. While maintenance issues can pop up from time to time, we have never experienced anything close to what occurred on this cruise. The water coming out of the tub faucet at times looked like sewer water, and it left enough residue for us to start our own dirt lot. To cover my wife in rusty, dirty water was truly appalling. Not to apologize formally for such a horrible incident, however, is inexcusable for any cruise line, much less a so-called luxury cruise line. So I hope that Silversea enjoyed our dollars. They won't be getting any more from us ever again. Read Less

I have been cruising with Silversea since 2002, when it was one of the top luxury lines in the world. Since RCL bought Silversea last year, things have certainly declined (if my recent cruise on the Silver Wind is any indication). Cruising from San Juan to Barbados (3/3-3/10/2019), I was dismayed at the difference in quality. Staff caught in blatant lies regarding poor tender schedule, with no apology; inadequate staffing poolside; failure to inform me of a day pass I could have purchased at the end of the cruise at a local hotel to pass the day until my Silversea-arranged flights home; water bottles in our room filled with tap water and reused by the butler every day, instead of fresh bottled water; lack of on-board activities; very late- opening casino with only one black jack table and no players (due to the late hour); room service and concierge desk staff not fluent in English; I could go on. The main dining room had a decent menu, but the portions were miniscule. Terrazza food was good, but the Grill was not. The cabin bathroom was only big enough for one person to use at a time. There was no fan to vent odors. Shower was inside tub with very high side, making it inaccessible to those with disabilities. A fellow cruiser said Regent cruise lines has enormous bathrooms with separate stall shower and tub; perhaps when the Silver Wind is refitted AGAIN (2020) this will be done. Best part of the cruise: Our wonderful butler, Raj, and our very hard-working and always smiling cabin attendant, Neal (?). Although tips were included in the fare, I tipped both of them extra for extra-ordinary service. Sad to say, with 6 Silversea cruises under my belt, there will not be a 7th. I will be switching to Ponant and SeaDream. Read Less

Silversea was a new cruise line for us and reading some of the reports on here you would think it was a cross between old Fred Olsen and new Costa ships! Nonsense - it was quite simply one of the best cruise ship experiences we have ever had. Seven days of small islands in the Caribbean - 300 guests, super service and some of the best food and wine we have ever had on a cruise, and that was without sampling the delights of La Dame which was an $50 per head. Excellent entertainment, smaller scale and more personal excursions - what is there not to like? We got a great deal and interestingly 70% of our fellow cruise passengers were also new to the company. Would we sail with Silversea again? Like a shot, particularly if we got the price and on board credit that our travel agent negotiated. Read Less

I'll begin with what I liked about Silversea. 1) Very Nice room and pool deck area 2) Room service was very quick and food was hot I've sailed Seabourn and Celebrity previously and I'd rate the Silversea much closer to Celebrity regarding food, & service and wine below celebrity. The food/wine: fine - nothing to write home about nor was is bad except maybe for breakfast. The bacon was so salty it was basically inedible and the sausage was like nothing I've ever had before - I'm not sure what it was but very tough and dry. They couldn't poach an egg medium without me sending it back multiple times and feeling like a jerk. I asked for cream or half and half for my coffee in the mdr and it would take 10-15 every time to get it (3 different times eating there). The buffet breakfast was easier as long as you took the food off the buffet (no omelets or eggs Benedict) - waffles were like rocks and always forgot to serve syrup. If you want to eat at a specialty restaurant - good luck getting a reservation if you didn't book it weeks/months prior to the cruise. We sailed Oceania recently and they gave each passenger a set number of times they were able to eat at a specialty restaurant which guaranteed passengers a minimum opportunity to get into their specialty restaurants that were actually very good food. The wine - THE WORST RED SELECTION EVER! I don't have an expensive wine pallet however the red wine was yellowtail grade at best that I actually used $100 in credit to buy a bottle - I've never needed to buy a bottle of wine when I have a drink package or all inclusive - but they were serving Wente as a white wine option. I actually took a picture of the "rueben" sandwich they served, it was amusing - 1 slice of corned beef - there was more sauerkraut then meat. Portions were small but we like it that way as we hate waste - but I actally orded a 2nd lunch on day as the portion was so small - but again that is better than the reverse but I'm a small eater. Service - so different from Seabourn - I was actually embarrassed by the friends we convinced to join us. 1) this was mainly an asian population and though polite - they don't smile, ask how everything is and are robotic in fixing anything not right. The number of times I went to the pool bar and there was no one in sight that I had to go looking for someone. Our butler was good - he had appetizers in our room each day around 4 and even polished my shoes without me asking - though I just had them done and they didn't need it - it was very nice of him. However we had to ask 2 separate times for additional shampoo and body wash -no biggie however they pro-port to be luxury. Always Sir or Madam - Seabourn knew our names by the end of the first day - always a smile like they really wanted you there and were happy to assist you - unlike silversea where you felt like you were imposing. Excursions - so bad I don't have enough time to review them all except 2 cases. They cancelled one excursion I really wanted to do and I was told for safety reasons, another passenger was told because the company cancelled the excursion that week - we were in port with the sister ship who went on the excursion and supposed from a 3rd passenger the company was looking for us that morning. 2nd Case - a 7 hour excursion that the manager of the excursion department went on with us and took copious notes - and later sent a letter of apology for the excursion (after wasting our day and no refund). Of the 7 hours we were on a bus for 4 hours of it (this was not a tour excursion - I don't do those) and 1 hour at lunch. We did have 1 excellent excursion because of the people running it - beyond welcoming - We each gave them a $100 tip. The number of other passengers that we befriended that then asked, " so what do you think of this cruise?" - and then went on to say they weren't impressed was interesting - at least three that approach my friends an I - so you know it is much more since I was not vocal in the least - though finally spoke to the hotel director. Other notable points: my friend is a gambler - though not important to me, he was very frustrated by the lack of staff in the casino (2 people at max - a person had to come off a table to act as cashier. Again - this is NOT a luxury experience - food, Alcohol and entertainment are better on Celebrity - if you want luxury and a small ship go on Seabourn. Read Less

We like the cruise it was small ship i was shock about the jogging track it didn't look like the picture . Emergency drill was get but when the crew did there they barge in room 422 that where they keep the crew life jacket . . They block with rope between 429-431 & 433-435 other than that it was fine so you step over to get to the main dinner restaurant and elevator . For people confusion there was no 430 or 434 . The newspaper was a day behind unfortunately the sad part it was on the tv & in your itinerary . Free movie, free tv show episode , menu , live tv with 20 channel. The fitness centre was great so there were 2 separate and new machine call scale runner for kid to understand it like the the dog walker treadmill in Jetson . There no elevator to deck 9 . You can tour other sliver sea ship and eat for a day but be back on your original boat by 6pm. Not lot of kids around 6 with 2 babies what hear about the sliver spirt there was about 6-8 on that boat. Show room and card room was master so was the library and panorama lounge. Read Less

We found this trip at a great price on Vacations to go. We chose Silversea Silverwind because it was going to Cuba. We had never even heard of Silversea and were excited to enjoy this trip. We went with a group of 8 friends. We flew to San Juan and were familiar with their port and were curious as to which slip/dock we would be loading on to. We were in walking distance to the pier and grabbed our luggage and found them right away. Here we go. So excited. It was real simple getting on and off. We loved the ship. A little bit dated but I still loved it. Silverwind is the oldest in the fleet. It was easy to get around. With it only having just under 200 passengers it was very intimate. Our cabin was perfect for us. The only struggle I had was plugging in the hair dryer. The clock radio was plugged in to the only socket on the vanity. It was hard to plug in the dryer cause it was too close to the wall with only one way to plug it in I was concerned it wouldn't work. There are 2 other plugs on the desk for charging phones. No plugs hy the beds. There were however European plugs that if we had known would have brought conversions. The bath room has a small tub/shower. The bed was so comfy better than I had ever had on any of my other cruises. Our balcony was great. The price of the cruise included the drink package and our butler would bring any bottle of choice to our room The dining was spectacular. There were 4 restaurants to choose from. The Grill is up on the pool deck, for lunch you could order sandwiches, wraps, or burgers. For dinner you needed to reserve a table and their menu of many wonderful items to choose from. We got to cook our main meal on a hot lava stone right in front of us. The laDame was the French cuisine. This one is an extra fee but well worth it. Make sure you leave 2 to 3 hours for this one. The main dining has all the wonderful foods you could dream of. LaTassra for breakfast and lunch had a buffet. Nicly furnished with a variety of foods. Also need to make reservations for dinner. The main dining was also wonderful. Every evening, each restaurant served the featured red or white wine if you wanted. The activities are minimal. The ones we did participate in were great. Entertainment was spectacular. The Voices of Silverwind were awesome. The on board credit aloud us to do shore excursions and what a treat it was. We did the panorama tours of both Santiago and Havana which were very interesting. There were no children aboard this ship. There would be nothing for them to do accept swim. We had the shipwreck snorkeling in Bimini and were disappointed when it took us 45 minutes to tender in and 1 hour to tender back out. Not enough time to do any looking around really disappointed in that. We had some rough weather a couple of nights and with this ship being small we got tossed around some but I expected that. Read Less

Very nice cruise-line and lovely ship. Food, very good, and many options, coffee, delicious, wines complimentary and good. However many people were complaining that 7 PM was late for the earliest dining. I realize that in Europe, particularly the South, people eat late, but these days, many Americans prefer to not eat after 8 PM, and many older folks like eating early, as it’s hard to sleep on a full stomach, and too, many want to go to bed early, to be up early for excursions. Everything is included except excursions and Spa services, which is a big relief - not being charged every time you turn around. The cabins are lovely, the beds super comfortable, with one’s choice of types of pillows, very nice if one hates foam, (which I do). The bathrooms are lovely, marble, and superbly appointed. People seemed to enjoy the various excursions, and the entertainment. Embarkation was perfect, and disembarkation as well, with the bus to the airport, fast and pleasant. The staff are ultra attentive and kind. I only had one complaint - the swimming pool water was mostly too cold to swim. Everyone was complaining, but when I asked if they’d informed staff, they said no. I complained, as staff can’t possibly know if there’s a problem, if no one says anything. It took rather a long time, but eventually, this was rectified. Personally, along with elongating the deck mid ship, I would have put in a new, bigger swimming pool. Maybe they’ll do this eventually. And they close the pool quite early- just past 6:30 I believe. this was very dissappointing as I love night swimming - quiet and serene, under the stars- after a long day- nothing beats this! Also, the shower in the Spa Thermal Suite, the water was just barely warm, and could never get hot. Also, they have VERY bright lights all over the deck at night- I asked why, and was told it was for safety. But most ships have footlights everywhere, so people can see stairs and where they’re walking, but the atmosphere is generally romantic and low lit, so one can enjoy the moon and stars and the evening skies. I wish they would maintain soft lighting at night. One other thing- I wish all the doors opened automatically, so we don’t have to touch door handles, as everyone on a cruise is so conscious of germs. And, I wish they’d get “BritBox”, so that guests could watch British comedies, mysteries, dramas and movies. There are a lot of Brits on board, and also, they make the best entertainment in the world. I really missed these. The company offers a Solo get together, for Solo travelers, and they meet at 7 PM in the lounge, but they need to let people know WHERE in the lounge, as it’s big and crowded. This was very nice, and I noticed a lot of these folks made friends during the voyage. And they’re offering vastly diminished single supplements on some cruises, which is a great relief to Solo travelers, and very smart of them, as this is a huge market. One thing- there was a girl at the reception desk, who many felt was a bit rude and standoffish , maybe she was new and nervous, but when I first told her the pool was cold, she replied:” It’s because it’s cold outside.” (Fort Lauderdale was 71F), and pool thermostats are supposed to adjust, maintaining the same temperature despite weather changes, and 71, is hardly cold. Also, this same girl, told me that customs in San Juan, had Global Entry - they don’t- I wasted time getting out of line to rush over to someone to ask where it was, only to be told they didn’t have it. If she didn’t know- just say so. Misinformation is a pain in the behind. Oh, also, our last night was ruined due to ONE man, smoking a cigar, on the 9th floor deck outside the lounge. We were all waiting to leave the port, watch the sunset, have one last glass of Champagne, and this ONE guy, made the entire area a no breathe zone. And it went on forEVER. I think it’s great that some people love cigars, (even if they’re REALLY bad for you), but PLEASE, not in common areas. I don’t understand why some people feel their personal bad habits should be suffered by perfect strangers. But everything else was really nice. I don’t want to give the wrong impression, with my suggestions. A very nice line, and I really missed my comfy cabin and all the nice people, after I left. Read Less

The ship is not handicap friendly!!!!!!!!!!!!! NO walk in showers --have to CLIMB in a VERY TALL TUB.Ramps that are very difficult to move on a walker without - assistance. Service in the dining rooms were VERY SLOW most usaually the food was warm at best when served . When you want something HOT to eat you needed to go to the HOT ROCKS at night or during the day the buffet on deck 7 or snack area on 8. ROOM service always came with great food and served (here you could get hot tea-coffee ) all the time. Takes 2 1/2 to 3 hrs to eat evening meal -very poor service .Food not avaiable at all time like on lots of ships only during certain windows of time evening meals start at 7:00 PM make for very late night -SHOWS not worth seeing at 10PM Suites were great walk-in closet lots of storage great butler and maid--BATH leaves a lot to be desired. VERY expensive --have been on many other cruises far better for LOTs less. The experience of getting on and off were the best of the cruise very fast- Read Less

Originally chosen because of small size and all inclusive. SHIP - DEFINITELY NOT HANDICAPPED FRIENDLY. In almost all cases use of a rolling staircase of 20+ steps was needed for getting on/off ship. On board only 296 passengers was a definite plus - no lines or waiting. Smaller ship did not appear to handle rough weather as well as its larger brethren. There were 5-6 foot waves rolling end to end in the swimming pool one afternoon.... Casino has 1 Blackjack table. CABIN - Suite - disappointing - small (I do not believe the sq ft figures advertised). We were cramped with 2, would be impossible with 3. Also poor for the mobility challenged as the tub/shower requires getting over a 2 foot step in barrier (tub 2 feet deep). DINING - real mixed bag here ranging from fair at best for dinner in Restaurant (poor selection, very small portions, false advertising - prime rib was at most 1/4 inch thick and weighed about 3 ounces. Saving grace here is to ask for all day dining menu as well and get better choices (steak, fish. even pasta etc.) On the other end of the scale the dinner we had in La Dame ($60 pp extra) was the best meal we have ever had on a cruise! Buffet for lunch was the best alternative with quality and variety. The Grill was good for 1 dinner, Italian dinner got 1 like and 1 didn't like from us. CREW - the friendliest and most accommodating of any cruise line we have been on. SHORE EXCURSIONS - only took 1 (Grand Turk) as most were too long (3-4) hours. It was only fair - uncomfortable "bus" and ran over scheduled time. Majority of excursions were activity/water oriented. Read Less

Do not choose cabin 422. This backs onto where the crew work very noisy night and day, at night you get woken at 3am and it continues all day and night. This was our third Silversea's cruise and we enjoy their interesting itineraries, small ship size and all inclusive policy. They make it clear that even tipping is added to the cruise price so that you don't have to deal with that once on board. Almost all of the staff on board are very pleasant and well trained especially the service people to take care of the cabins. Also factored into the price was a ship board credit we received. We all know that these 'gifts' are not free and are instead factored into the price that we all pay, a way for the cruise line to support some of their on board amenities. Embarkation and disembarkation went smooth and easy. The included wines were good. The extra cost restaurant was excellent even though the menu did not vary, there were enough listings under the 6 courses that I ate 3 times and never exhausted the menu. Good ports of call Trip to Mustique could have done without the climb from the great Basil's bar to a small building where we were offered a make piece lunch and a drink, that most people declined, focusing on getting down again! Good food and drink Hot Rocks Le Dame La Terrazza Good entertainment The rest of the cruise was great, just that we were very tired. Read Less

Having watched the high end names keep raising prices at a clip I feel not sustainable wanted to look at another line..wanted a small ship where you could board by walking up and not have lines..greeted nicely and that attitude stayed the whole time..tradition is lunch on deck and they came quickly to serve.. The ship rooms were recently upgraded and I liked not only that but the basic size of the room was excellent..all the service around the room was as expected. By the third day their team knew what I was eating..they were calling me by name..and their smiles the real deal..you felt like you were with people who truly wanted you to enjoy and they enjoyed working there. Lobster night not to be missed..not the skinny little tali’s but real good sized ones and after I had more than normal the chef came out to smile and wanted to see my size..they wanted to know where a 172 lb person could put them..told them that was Atkins.. Loved lunch..learned right away to look at it all before loading the plate..you walk in the buffet which is not a straight line it bends around the room..fresh salads to start..they you saw the selection of hot protein and veggies. As I had a nice plate the very last thing was a sushi sashimi station and my eyes lit up! The supervisor saw my expression came over took my plate to a table so I could assemble a small plate. Each day from then on I started there! In the middle of this room they had additional appetizers and then their desserts of the day including an ice cream station. Was glad to see each day. They had plenty of sugar free options. I enjoyed the Italian type feeling from the heritage and found Wine lunch to be more than solid. One of the best parts of the entire trip was my wife said she went in with low expectations and came away impressed! They have a small stage for entertainment so they don’t have their own band for evenings but the five singers and dancers were excellent. I guess one might say that I had such a good time I was sad to say goodbye to the crew and leave the ship.. So I decided to book at least two cruises this year the first two will be on the same ship with the hope that I see some of the same excellent people. Read Less