Suite

Silversea

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Athens (Piraeus)

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Monaco (Monte Carlo)

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Excellent

Average

Very Good

Silver Whisper

Kauai

My wife and I like small ships rather than the large cruise ships because they are more intimate and feature the ports of call as the selling point versus the large floating hotel concept. We also focus on which ports the cruise will call on rather than the time of year or size of boat. This cruise was the second time on Silver Whisper, a Baltic Sea cruise being the first time. On this cruise we liked its origination port of Monte Carlo and conclusion in Lisbon. Portugal is a very interesting country to visit and we will go back. We also thought most of the ports would be very interesting, or provide access to exceptional Spanish cities. As we found out, Malaga and Cadiz allowed us to visit Granada and Seville, both the gems of Andalusia. Most of the tours were very good although on whole we thought Seabourn's tours are better. One tour to Granada was wait listed so we opted to use our travel agent to set up a private tour. Otherwise the ship's tours of Seville and Barcelona were excellent! Once you come back for a second cruise you become a member in their Venetian Society, and they hosted a remarkable excursion one evening in Barcelona that was very good! 

We normally try to book the larger Silver Suites which are similar in configuration to the Seabourn suites. Our suite, however, was better than the Seabourn suites by being wider and more spacious. We especially like their hot rock feature on the Pool deck, which we enjoy immensely! The October time frame was nice from a temperature perspective, but the captain skipped two ports due to high winds/seas so there is a trade off for booking at end of the season. Crew was very nice and the butler element is a nice touch not present on Seabourn. On previous trip in Baltic Sea we hit all of the restaurants, but this time, due to the presence of a wine tour group, most of the evenings were already booked. As such we were unable to compare with previous dining experience. We generally do not go to the Restaurant on deck 4. All in all a cruise that was very memorable!

Very Nice Iberian Cruise!

Last year we took our first cruise on Silversea to Alaska.  Since our experience last year was so enjoyable, we booked a Mediterranean cruise for this year.  We weren't disappointed.  The food, dining room service, cabin service, bartenders were great.  We only went to the main dining room and La Terrazza.  The previous cruise we tried the outside hot rock experience...which is when the passenger cooks their own steak or seafood. It looked like fun, but we prefer the chefs to cook for us!  Most of the wines were good.  Ports of call were beautiful.  Massages were unbelievable, and I'm picky.  Embarkation was flawless.  Debarkation was even better...they are very organized with the luggage.  We enjoy the smaller ships...no crowds anywhere!  Gratuities were inclusive of our fare, which is nice. Alcohol is also included.  Room service was excellent, always on time...I enjoyed Eggs Benedict almost every morning. All in all, it was a great time!

Excellent!

Before going on this cruise, I read several negative reviews that made me quite nervous.  We had originally chosen silversea due to reviews of excellent service and dining.  Then we read the reviews criticizing just those aspects.  Well, it turned out our original hope was fully realized.  The service was excellent and the food was outstanding. 

     We enjoy leisurely dining which is the style most available in the evenings when the buffet disappears; some may have felt it was too slow.  However, after seeing how hard people tried to please us, I think if we had asked to have courses brought more quickly, they would have done so.  The menu was varied each evening, and the ship has an "all day dining" menu that can be ordered in any restaurant venue if the daily choices don't appeal.  This is also the way to get meals when restaurants are closed; the order will be served in your room or in any public venue (like the pool, panorama lounge, etc.) This allows a lot of flexibility although in a way different from many cruises that have buffets open more throughout the day. We found all the dining venues to be good, but particularly enjoyed lunch at LaTerrassa and the Main Dining Room in the evenings.

       Finally, we thought the Voices of Silversea, who provided several shows, were the most talented group we have seen on any cruise.  The productions may not be as "big" as some larger ships, but the quality was higher.

Best cruise to date

I choose my cruise for the service and itinerary.  We sailed from Monte Carlo, stopping at Livorno, Sorrento, Taormina, Malta, Croatia and ended in Venice. Embarking was very quick and flawless.   Cabin was as expected..... clean, spacious, with the most comfortable bed and soft bed linens. I was on Deck 5, which made getting to anywhere on the ship easy.  My butler was sweet (Demba) and efficient and kind.  I never waited more than 5 mins for a response. He and the room attendant (Jennifer) made me feel well cared for the entire trip.

My cruise was all inclusive, and the food was beyond delicious. Varied menus was great. Desserts were below the standard in my opinion.  They should have sourced locally from all the ports we were stopping into to offer more authentic local delicacies.  

Clean and tidy is what I saw everywhere on this ship.  With that said, it was an older ship, so the wear and tear and dated aspect was present.  Pool towels were very poor and beat-up looking.  Pool lounges were very, very comfortable.

Spa was a crashing disappointment.  Steam room was cracking and old.  Massage therapist I had was more interested in talking about her self and avoided one of the two areas I had expressed I wanted her to work on during my 50 min session.   I don't believe she had much experience in the massage arena.   Pedicure was fine, but very over priced for what I received.  Blow-out was typical, but the hard sell was annoying on adding all sorts of extra treatments I did not want.  I had to keep repeating that I just wanted a basic blow-out.   Gym was horrible and small.  Under whelmed with the spa.

Entertainment was " one note".   They pandered to folks over 65.   Not much variety. 

The boutique was also "one note".  Very, very expensive, mostly jewelry with diamonds, and stones. Clothes were high-end clothes we could buy at home in USA at anySaks, Niemen Marcus or Nordstroms.  Boring.....   No variety.  No local, unique productsor clothing with a variety of prices!!!!   No sundries to choose from either. None.

The few tours I did go on were great.  Local tour operators were excellent, buses wereclean, air conditioned and in good shape.  Silversea canceled two of my tours ( due to lack of interest) night before and did not extend any other offers to join other tours. 

Now, my biggest piss-off, was the stop in MALTA.  My tour was cancelled to the gardens, so I read up on the internet on how to get there on my own, and also plotted out shops I wanted to stop into to see the local speciality, which was gold filigree and  lace making, and found a museum I wanted to go to.  With that said, I set off the ship onto MALTA to enjoy my day.  After walking around for three hours, and asking many locals that mostdid not speak english, I discover ALL OF MALTA CLOSES DOWN ON SUNDAY due tothe fact they are mostly Catholic.  So it was a complete waste of time. 

I was so disappointed, Silversea did not say one thing to anyone and did not make a big announcement that most,  if not all businesses, were closed on sunday.   WHY ARE YOU STOPPING AT A PORT ON SUNDAY IF MOST THINGS ARE CLOSED.  

Jipped on that stop.:(

On a high note, getting on and off the ship was sooooooo easy and pleasant.  So quick,10 minutes or less.  I think they are very organized in that area and there were only300 people on the ship made the process efficient. 

All in all, great service, food, liquor choice.  I would do another one in a heartbeat.  

But you have to "save - up", it's not cheap and check stops for religious closures.

Thanks  Silversea

Lovely and Relaxing with Excellent Service

We joined a golfing group of 8 people for this cruise. The embarkation process was quite smooth but as soon as we boarded it was evident that this ship is very tired and badly in need of refurbishment.

We had a Silver Suite so that our accommodation was quite spacious. The butler and room attendant were both excellent, but that is where excellence stopped.

The restaurant is staffed mostly by Filipinos who are very obliging but who have been saddled with the idiotic requirement to record on their tablet each passenger's room number as well as the order for the meal. If there is a slight variation, the waiter has to input this information. In the case of our table of 10, it took one hour from the time we sat down until we received our first dish.

I went to complain to the maitre d', and found him sitting at a corner table with other crew members enjoying dinner rather than supervising his waiters and other staff. Service improved somewhat after discussion with the maitre d'.

The quality and variety of food left much to be desired. Put simply, the food was ordinary.

The Terazza self service restaurant did not have a particularly wide selection of foods and the food stations are confined to a very small area. This is clearly a design issue.

Entertainment was generally poor, although the cruise director was a very lively lady who was also quite funny, performing her own show. The lectures were quite poor.

The ports were all fine and the shuttle buses provided were all OK.

A Tired Ship With Patchy Service

WE choose this cruise because of the itinerary, and because we were traveling with a group of friends from "La Chaine des Rotisseure," which was a great experience  on previous cruises.

I wish we would stay in some places over night, considering how close the ports were from each other. 

Food was not so great comparing with previous cruises, except for the Grill. 

I think, there  were not many activities on the ship, partitionary due to busy schedule I assume, but any way.. 

Performers were the worst, except for the piano player Alexandra, the most intelligent person from the whole crew. "The Voices" sound so harsh that it hearts the ears. Guests performers were fine though.

The bartender in the Grappa bar was rude and behaved too familiarly with the guests and rude to the crew members, acting superior. She never smiled. Our cabin and cabin service was very good.

Itinerary was good, food was not great, some people were rude

This was our second voyage on Silversea, the first was last September on Shadow doing the inside passage in Alaska. While we immensely enjoyed that trip we thought the ship was a bit tired and the weather (clearly not under Silversea control) was not very accommodating. This trip was to celebrate my retirement and our wedding anniversary. We embarked at Monte Carlo after spending two nights at the Fairmont Hotel there, a completely satisfactory hotel. We opted for early embarkation and took a taxi to the ship around 12 Noon. We were met at the gangway by a young man who escorted us to the reception area on the fifth level of Whisper. In moments we had our pictures taken and our silver key cards issued. Our cabin was ready and our escort took us there directly. We found everything in perfect order -- from the welcoming chilled champagne to the specific liquors we had ordered on our pre-boarding information form. We had a Silver Suite on Shadow and, while the Veranda Suite was just fine, we missed the extra space provided by a Silver Suite. We went to lunch in the dining room, where there were a few other early boarders, and had a delightful lunch. This was the first of many excellent dining experiences. My wife went back into Monte Carlo for some last minute shopping and I explored the ship. I recalled that some areas on the sister ship, Silver Shadow, were a bit worn. Not so on Whisper. There was not a torn or faded carpet or piece of upholstery to be found. 
By the time my wife returned the luggage had arrived and we unpacked. I also set out to make reservations for dinner at La Terraza one evening and at Le Champagne for the evening of our anniversary. These could both be booked at La Terraza after 3 PM. I also asked to be put on the waitlist for a second evening at La Terraza. It turned out that did not develop but we were not disappointed to eat the other five evenings in The Restaurant. I do find the reservation process for the two alternate restaurants a bit odd, but I knew it worked this way from Shadow and went along with their system. The meals in each of the dining rooms were excellent. Le Champagne was way over the top and a real special treat for our anniversary. The wait staff through out were most friendly and charming and, much to our delight, Leanne who had been our favorite waitress on Shadow was on this cruise and we sat in her area each evening in The Restaurant. For lunch we alternated between the buffet in The Terrace (odd how the name changes for the breakfast and lunch buffets) and eating by the pool. Great hamburgers, there. Each evening we began with drinks in the bar or, our preference when it was open, The Panorama Lounge on deck 8. 
Shore excursions were a mixed experience. We did a lovely tour of Rapallo and Santa Margherita. The weather turned nasty for our drive on the Amalfi Coast. Pisa was interesting and well worth the drive. And we loved the guides who took us to the ruins at Pompeii. The weather the last two nights at sea was very rough with high seas and much tossing and turning (both the ship and yours truly). And then we were at the port near Rome, where we left Silver Whisper for a few nights in the city of Rome -- which we arranged on our own. Disembarkation was smooth as silk. All in all, a wonderful cruise on a most lovely vessel. 


Silver Whisper - Western Mediterranean

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