Our 5th Silver Sea Cruise

This was our 5th cruise with Silver Sea (in 5 years). Our second time on Spirit. The best things about this cruise were the condition and cleanliness of the cabins, our butler and room attendant were so accommodating, friendly and professional and the Captain letting us stay longer in Elba to experience the holiday's firework display! The Elba experience really was the highlight of the cruise!

As far as the dining experience, the wine selection was great as usual. Dining in the Main Restaurant, Seishin, Le Champagne, Stars, La Terrazza and in-suite dining were excellent. Dinner at the Pool Grill was poor and really needs to be addressed. The steaks and shrimp were very disappointing. Nothing impressive!

The shore excursions in Palma, Alghero, Elba and Florence were good to excellent. The local tour guides can make or break the tour experience. I think evaluations by customers should be completed and submitted after every tour to provide Silver Sea with feedback.

We did have a "tainted" water event, where the water running from the bathroom sink and in the toilet were discolored. We reported the situation and upon return from our excursion, a note was posted on everyone's door about what happened and what was done to correct. It would've been nice if someone personally came by and spoke to us about it. Our Butler checked in with us, but to us, it should've been someone in charge.

For whatever reason, we feel that our experiences on the smaller ships (Wind and Whisper) were much better and really exemplified luxury cruising. It felt cozier, friendlier and the quality of service and food was so much better on the smaller ships. We will take this into consideration when planning our next cruise on Silver Sea.

The cabin was comfortable, clean and everything worked. Thank you for the movies! The bed is so awesome! What happened to the orchid plant and binoculars?