Silver Wind Review
Not what we were told to expect - Not the honeymoon we wanted
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Additional details
So we chose SilverSea after hearing from a colleague about the level of service and the overall quality of his cruise. After doing some more research, we decided to forgo having a large wedding reception in order to spend the $18,000 + to sail with SilverSea. I am going to write this according to the guide on this site. Then at the end I will add several other experiences we had during our cruise.
We chose the Silver Wind and the 14 day Mediterranean cruise from Monaco to South Hampton, England. We went back and forth between this and the Silver Muse (their newest ship) due to the locations and it being a longer trip, also flight was included in the price.
The flight out (which we upgraded to first class) was very well done and the travel to the ship was well done. The embarkation process was well managed and we made it to our cabin just fine. Shortly after that we had the mandatory muster and safety briefing. That's where the missteps began. The drill was a joke. We were told that in an emergency they wanted us to muster in a small room so we will be comfortable and still be able to experience luxury. Not what I want in an emergency, I want to be safe. There was a drill several days later where the captain accidentally left the ships mic on and was heard saying, "This is not good, or what's supposed to be happening." as well as, "What's going on?". Not what you want to hear from the captain of the ship. As a former Marine who has served on ships I told my wife that we would be better off doing our own thing than following their instructions.
Cabin Review
Midship Veranda Suite
I think the cabin number is correct. See my review about the cabin. They are tired and in desperate need of updating. Our room also flooded and had some stuff rattling in the walls. Don't expect to watch much either. They played the same 4-6 movies the whole 14 days.
Port Reviews
Monaco (Monte Carlo)
Monaco is beautiful. As with most ports I wish we had more time or information.
Barcelona
This was an area we were excited to see. But with only having a short port we just walked around a little. We did get to see several of the monuments. This should be a night port as Barcelona is known for their nightlife.
Valencia
Another nice looking port. Nothing stood out as overly impressive. Nice small town.
Cartagena (Spain)
Nice small area. Good food at the local markets
Lisbon
We expected to get to go to the beach that day. When we got off of the ship the lady running the bus told us that they weren't going to the beach (on the ship they said they had a bus going there), and that we could walk in a general direction and find the train station that may take us. Very rude, and no help.
Porto (Leixoes)
Nice town. Some great food at some of the restaurants. This port more than most made us feel that SilverSea didn't care what happened to us since we didn't pay their outrageous excursion prices.
Honfleur
We wanted to go to Normandy as I am a Marine veteran. However, with the price SilverSea wanted and how poorly planned it looked we passed. I will be going back on my own to spend some time there. The town is nice.