We took advantage of an opportunity to board a Silversea cruise in our hometown of Portland, Maine. This was an eight day cruise to Montréal that actually started in New York.

Overall, we give this cruise five stars out of five! When we cruise, food and service are very important to us, and both were excellent on the Spirit. Less important for us are entertainment and excursions, especially in North America. On this cruise, the entertainment was the weak link. We’d give it three stars out of five.

We could have used help with our luggage at embarkation in Portland. I realize this was something of an experiment for Silversea but we all (about 30 of us getting on in Portland) had to bring our own bags on board. Debarkation was easy with two restaurants plus room service available that morning. Read more