Silver Wind

Our Silversea expedition cruise to Iceland was delayed for two days due to rough seas in the North Atlantic. The crew of Silversea did a fine job keeping us informed during the delay and took great care of us onboard as well as offering several interesting tours of Dublin while we waited. Once we embarked the seas were still a bit rough, but they eventually smoothed out, and the rest of the journey was on pleasant, calm water. The expedition cruise experience was fabulous. The purpose of the cruise was to explore and learn about Iceland, and in that regard Silversea delivered. We visited several small, remote villages on the coast and learned what life is and was like at the top of the world as well as the interesting history of the country. Each village brought a new and different perspective--we were offered a variety of tours at each stop---everything from touring ancient ruins to whale watching and hiking the wilderness. There was an offering for every taste and interest. Another area where Silversea delivered was their excellent food and service onboard. The subtle personal touches offered by each crew member from the captain to the waitstaff and cabin butler were unparalleled. For instance, one day I returned to my cabin after a long day of touring to find a small bowl of potato chips waiting for us in my cabin! The cabin itself was spacious, comfortable, and well appointed. There was adequate room for our belongings and we could easily separate the sleeping area from a pleasant sitting space by pulling a divider curtain. We departed Iceland on calm seas and enjoyed a couple interesting stops in the Orkney Islands and Isle of Iona in Scotland and great day in Belfast with a great tour guide. As this was an expedition cruise and a smaller ship, we didn't expect there would be entertainment but were surprised the lectures, game time and evening musicians in the various lounges.

Although the ship was headed to dry dock,she looked beautiful and the service was exemplary.

Trip of a lifetime--I loved it!

This was a very port intensive itinerary with only one day at sea out of the 10 total days. The weather was gorgeous and calm seas let us enjoy everything these ports had to offer. Because most people were off the ship during the days, there was little time to spend on board. Because of the active itinerary, there were also not a lot of onboard activities scheduled. However, with this level of sophisticated traveler, most people want to do their own thing anyway. Surprisingly, even Trivia, which is usually very heavily attended, was not on this sailing. The ship does a good job with offering a free shuttle bus to the main downtown area in each port. Due to high seas, we had to dock in Naples overnight instead of going to Sorrento and Amalfi where we were scheduled to tender, but the ship made arrangements so all the shore excursions could still be accommodated. Silversea is an excellent ultra-luxury cruise line for the upscale traveler

We took a late March 10-day trip in the Caribbean including the week before Easter (spring break for many schools). We had a great diversity of fellow passengers and the interactions between the passengers was far better than we have ever experienced before. Perhaps the good staff attitude helped set the tone. In any event, we seemed to be always chatting with new friends, whether on our small-group shore excursions, or at coctails, or at meals.