We chose this cruise when it was shortened from 18 to 12 days, ending in Lima rather than Valparaiso, which became an optional 5 day extension. We knew that there would be 5 days at sea, and assumed that those days would essentially be like staying at a 5 star hotel, and they were in some ways. There were 4 ports of call, but we will return to this. The cabin was beautifully appointed as was the entire ship. One could dine in any of the 6 restaurants, with 2 having a surcharge. All but one were excellent and commensurate with a ship of this caliber, with the exception of La Terraza, which served breakfast and lunch, but became an Italian venue for dinner - clearly inferior on all levels, with poor timing (forever) and average food. As for entertainment and activities, fair at best - clearly subpar. On prior voyages with Silversea, there were activities on the deck - pilates, yoga, etc. Here they were relegated to an interior stretching room and limited to 8, which filled immediately. Lectures were in a dark theater at 3 pm rather than in the Panorama lounge, a large space that could accommodate large numbers, with windows as well as a darker corner for slides. Earlier cruises had one night of Dinner Under The Stars, a wonderful buffet on deck - not here. I think that you get the message. The main pool deck even lacked background music - there was one afternoon with live music as background . As mentioned the service was excellent.

Last but not least, the ports were fair. Cozumel, where we arrived on a Friday, along with four five thousand person boats. A tour that we bought from the cruise line was SO horrible that the cruise line refunded the cost of the 12 hour debacle. The other ports were fine.................clearly more thought and vetting needs to be done with the subcontractors.................so that's it. I certainly will research the passenger population as well as the ports for the next voyage. I hope that the "kinks" will be ironed out, as the line becomes more familiar with the ship.............