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

We chose Silversea due to their reputation for service and chose Silver Wind in particular due to its small size and itinerary. We had a wonderful time and overall were very pleased with our cruise. Embarkation was AMAZING. We showed up 45 minutes prior to the published embarkation beginning time and within 25 minutes were in La Terazza eating lunch! We kept staring at each other wondering how that happened...but we were so very grateful it did! We were fortunate that two weeks prior the Wind had undergone renovations to their rooms, which we found to be wonderfully appointed. The bed was dreamy and our refrigerator never ran out of champagne...how could anything NOT be good? Onboard entertainment was spotty, but we didn't choose the Wind for that...if that's your thing, choose another ship! Our only disappointment was New Year's Eve; we expected an evening of dancing and instead had a DJ playing kiddie-bop music in the theater...it was a real letdown. Dining was good. Clearly, not great, but good. We ate at La Dame twice and it was...good. Hot Rocks/The Grill gets really old really fast, but the first time was interesting and the food was...good. La Terazza was...good. I was personally disappointed by two things that would have meant so much more if they were done right: 1) We never were contacted about our preferences for what would be in our minibar. My wife had specific interests in if they stocked things, but we never were contacted and instead had to learn about it on the ship. And the answer was no...they didn't stock what she hoped to have. 2) It was my wife's birthday during the cruise and I filled out the necessary form identifying such. Her birthday came and went without any acknowledgement. It certainly didn't ruin our cruise, but it was a disappointment. Excursions were...good. Not much creativity in what they were and only one was excellent (the hiking in Bequia...it was awesome!). We chalked it up to a learning experience and will be more discretionary and inquisitive on our next cruise with SS. Our butler was very good. Sometimes not available, but overall he was available and very good. When my wife and I filled out the on-board survey for Silversea, we summarized it by saying "the service is excellent and the product is slightly above average". One final note: A BIG Thank You to my cruise critic friends for educating me about what to wear on NYE...I clearly felt more comfortable in my tuxedo! Thank you, everyone! Read Less

My wife and I are retired hoteliers/ restaurateurs from the UK so are not always the easiest to please as we tend to have too many opinions regarding hospitality! But having read some other very negative reviews from earlier recent cruisers on Silver Wind we were concerned that we could be embarking on a nightmare experience. However having cruised the same ship previously a few years ago in South Africa we couldn’t readily equate these to our own positive memories . So we feel obliged to try to convey our own feelings regarding our voyage which bore little resemblance to some of these previously negative rantings. Yes that previous cruise was a warm weather one four years ago, but in a notoriously rough Indian Ocean (even in Summer) and this was to be mainly in November in northern Canada and the North Atlantic so we always knew it was going to be a cold and potentially rough trip, but you know that before you book and we couldn’t really understand how others had clearly failed to factor that into their own planning and were then blaming Silversea and expressing surprise at rough seas and missing ports. Surely these were always situations likely to happen so please don’t moan about the elements and blame the cruise line as there is clearly nothing that Silversea or indeed any other cruise lines can do about the weather! On boarding in Montreal all went as smoothly and seamlessly as normal with Silversea, and of course, no queues. We were pleased to be greeted in reception by a number of familiar personnel including Bar Manager, Newton, who we had met on previous cruises. Also Cruise Director, Colin Brown, who as someone else stated should be cloned, as he really is one of the best that we have encountered and this was our third cruise with him in charge. He looks after all the entertainment and enrichment programmes. These included two enrichment lecturers and a superb group of Voices of Silversea who were basically six professional singers, two operatic and four more general but all with their own individual talents. Additionally there was an onboard pianist and a Silversea trio who provided background entertainment throughout the ship. Two guest entertainers, a magician and a guitarist also came on board for a few days at different times to bolster the offering as this was a 16 day cruise. We felt they were both a bit underwhelming but that is probably because the Voices on this voyage were so good. Additionally Colin, who is a classically trained concert pianist, arranged a number of piano concerts in conjunction with the two opera singers and also performed some amazing classical duets with the onboard pianist, Olga, who was also outstanding. The crew in general were of the usual high Silversea standards. As ever mostly smiling and welcoming. Though I have to say that some of the restaurant staff (only a few to be fair) were not quite as friendly as we have experienced on other Silversea Cruises where they normally get your name quickly and address you by it from very early on, which is always impressive. Ever since the introduction of their iPad booking system a few years ago this standard seems to have fallen away somewhat unless they remind themselves by looking at your picture and name which they now get by entering your suite number into the iPad system. Maybe they were a bit tired after some seven weeks of cruising since they left London, most of which had been under some pretty appalling weather conditions! Our Suite Butler, Parveen from India, however, did an excellent job of looking after us throughout the voyage and was always on hand to attend to our every need, and our suite attendant Christine, from the Philippines, kept our suite immaculate throughout the voyage. Reception and Shore concierge staff were also very friendly and helpful and a great improvement on some we have experienced on other voyages. The hotel manager however was rarely seen by us out and about the ship and maybe that reflected on some of the staff performance? Captain Arma and the navigation bridge officers did a great job. They were all frequently seen around the ship and also kept us extremely well informed about weather conditions etc and, most memorably, carefully plotted a safe way around a huge storm that brewed up over the Gulf of St Lawrence by hugging the coast of Prince Edward Island and going very slowly for a couple of days to avoid the worst of the weather and keeping the ship as stable as possible. He kept all the passengers and crew fully informed at all times and despite a bit of rocking and rolling one evening the ship remained amazingly smooth, despite the gale blowing outside, and we never noticed any passengers confining themselves to their cabins with all the restaurants operating as busily as ever! He only once had to come onto the tannoy at 11pm on one evening to suggest that it was not a good idea to still be walking around the ship anymore! But it was reassuring that he was still on the bridge so late in the evening and in fact most everyone had gone to bed anyway and we actually had probably our best nights sleep so far being gently (or not) rocked into slumber. By the morning everything had calmed down and in the end that was really the only properly bumpy bit of this cruise. The storm did indeed mean us missing two ports of call but the first only for safety reasons as we had arrived and anchored, but it was a tender port and the Captain wasn’t convinced he could get everyone safely back to the ship, and the second because the local coastguard had closed the fairly narrow access channel…so the Captain had no option anyway. Talking to some of the crew it appeared that the ship had endured some pretty appalling weather all the way from London across to Iceland and then over to Canada for approx 7 weeks on the previous four or five cruises so, despite us being the last cruise out of the north for the winter, we actually probably had the best weather....so who knows? Just guess anyone should bear this more in mind if you choose such an itinerary in any year! Yes apparently the ship had had some sort of mechanical issue in Montreal a couple of cruises before our one that delayed departure by two or three days but to be fair to Silversea everyone on that one was reimbursed a third of their fare for that incident. Yes the ship is twenty three years old now and showing a bit of age externally but that will be sorted out when it dry docks shortly. The interior however was as clean and smart as ever with the public areas having been spruced up last year. Apparently the staterooms will be getting a “Muse-ification” refurbishment update during the upcoming dry dock in December. The suite bedrooms (or at least our one) actually seemed in pretty decent shape decor wise despite previous critical comments made on other CC Silver Wind reviews, though the TV system could certainly do with an update which is apparently happening with a more modern system being installed. For some reason it appears the update will not include the bathrooms which doesn’t make a lot of sense as the bathrooms are probably the weakest thing on Wind being rather on the small side with a rather small in length bath (not great if you are reasonably tall). However it does have an excellent power shower in addition to a hand shower, but it is one that you have to climb into the bath to use so not the easiest perhaps for some less mobile guests. We have also travelled twice on Silver Spirit in the past couple of years and have always particularly enjoyed that ship but mainly due to its larger size and thus the greater choice of dining options. Having said that Wind is half the size of Spirit and you benefit from a very cosy clubby atmosphere on board. We were on Wind for 16 days this time and didn’t really get bored with the Menus as they changed pretty much daily (every few days for La Terrazza) and the pool deck hot rocks grill, which we also love, was pretty much out as an option (even though it was still available with rugs and heat lamps) given the very cold weather in Canada and the northeast US. We actually got the chance to do a shipboard visit to see the newly stretched version of Silver Spirit when it came into Montreal a few days prior to our cruise on Wind and we really liked the updated decor and new restaurants that have now brought Spirit very much up to Muse standards. Anyway all in all it was an enjoyable and interesting cruise on Silver Wind and I would suggest others should quite simply ignore some of the earlier terrible reviews posted on cruise critic which in our mind really seem to have stemmed from experiencing some dreadfully bad weather rather than the ship itself! We would certainly be very happy to cruise on this ship again and can reassure others to go for it if they might be having any doubts. Read Less

We thought the ports seemed interesting however we were not able to go to 3 of them. The daily activities were lame. Since we had to spend so much time on the boat we were often bored. The food was about a B-,most of the time. Most of the crew was helpful. Overall, the cruise was disappointing. Because the weather was so bad, we feel this trip should not have been scheduled so late in the season. On a positive note, our butler was very helpful and attentive as were waiters in the dining room. The dinner in the gourmet dining room was not worth the $60 a piece price . Also, the food in the Italian dining room was not the quality we expected, so we ate there only once. The breakfast buffet was enjoyable as the selections were vast and well prepared. We will have to give great thought to returning to Silver Seas. Read Less

We selected this cruise line because of its purported luxury features, the ports of call and the timing to see the fall colors. To start this is a very dated ship and the accommodations were anything but grand. The air conditioning did not work for the first two days, the live TV programming never worked, the door to our veranda was next to impossible to close and once the ship did get moving the door would pop open on its own (that got repaired), but we still had a whistling noise caused by the wind blowing past the door seals, the cabin floor got flooded one night during rough seas, our bathroom floor had to be repaired because of damaged (chipped) floor marble, we did had to climb into a bath tub to take a shower (kind of hard for old folks in bouncy seas), and a very indifferent customer relations desk. Our cabin was in forward part of the ship and ever time the side thrusters were employed our cabin vibrated and shook with a equal commensurate noise, kind of annoying when you are trying to sleep. But worse of all was a 4 day delay in our departure out of Montreal, which the captain insisted was because of the local port authorities, and kept promising false start times that never occurred and each day there were barges or maintenance devices attached to the ship. On the fourth day we were allowed to leave port with a tug boat shadowing us all the down the St. Lawrence River to Quebec. Due to all the mechanical problems/delays, that were never admitted to us, we lost three ports of call that we were really looking forward visiting plus some day time scenic viewing. Silver Seas did make an adjustment of 30% of our base cruse cost to make up for this loss but - - - -. We had two days of rough seas, that happens when you cruise, but in addition to the bouncing we had a loud metal on metal banging that seemed to come from the hull of the ship which kept us awake a couple of nights. The ship was late arriving in New York at the end of the cruise which was good and not so good. By arriving late we got to see the Port of New York in the early morning light, the bad news they then tried to rush to disembark us which resulted in un-necessary chaos. A verying disappointing cruise, but all of the servicee personnel were very attentive and friendly. Read Less

We chose this cruise to enjoy the fall scenery of Canada, view the whales and other sea life of the St Laurence Seaway and visit Quebec City. When we embarked in Montreal on Tuesday we were not informed of a mechanical failure that occurred when the boat was arriving. Only after awakening Wednesday to the same view did we realize we were still in Montreal and then we were informed of a "small" "technical" "problem" and repairs would allow for a prompt departure. The staff did not go out of their way to develop more excursions. They just provided a $50 credit for us to buy "hop on, hop off" bus tickets. We awoke Thursday to the same view, but the ship had been relocated to a filthy industrial pier filled with containers, among other unattractive items and a splended view of large, rusting grain elevators. They then advised that the Canadian authorities now required an ocean tug to accompany the ship up the St Laurence. So, our departure was now further delayed by "forces beyond the control of the ship" in the ill chosen words of Silversea management, because we had to await the arrival of the tug. This generated concern among the passengers. What was the nature of the "technical problems" and had they been completely addressed and repaired? Why was a tug escort required? We received no answers, but Silversea gave a 30% cash refund. Then they altered the itinerary to canceling stops at the naturalists attractions ports of Saguenay, Baie Comeau , Gaspe, and Charlottetown. Instead, we will be hightailing it to the coal mining town of Sydney and then on to the large city of Halifax. Silversea does not care to try to make amends for their mistakes of not properly maintaining this older vessel. Instead they punish the customers on top of our 3 days in Montreal by canceling the most attractive portion of the cruise. I think they want to get the boat back to a large city for repairs. I will never set foot on a Silversea ship again. As an aside, on our previous Silversea cruise , our stateroom flooded and we were moved to an inferior room Read Less