Silver Galapagos- any updates?

Glad you had a great time and looking forward to more details - but hope you have a chance to get some rest these next few days. Was Juan Carlos a geologist with the last name Restrepo, perchance? He was with us in Svalbard a few years ago - was great.

Happy cruising!

Concerning drinks at the talks-everyone on our sailing stopped by the piano bar on the way down so we had plenty of drinks-some had the waiters bring them diwn

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Concerning drinks at the talks-everyone on our sailing stopped by the piano bar on the way down so we had plenty of drinks-some had the waiters bring them diwn

 

 

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Oh dear-the elevator issue would have been critical on our cruise-we had several disabled folks who would not have been able to get around.

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We returned from our trip last week, and agree with the reviews that have been posted. Great trip, not quite great ship.

The ship will be refurbished in October this year, and they know the A/C is a major issue. The weather was exceptionally hot, but we didn't find the ship rooms too warm. On every previous cruise the lounges were freezing cold. This is the first time we were comfortable all the time.

The staff tries hard, but not all are fully trained yet. They are changing scheduling from 9 weeks on, 3 weeks off, to 6 weeks on, 3 weeks off in hopes of retaining more of their crew. All crew members are required to be Galapagos residents, so their job pool is quite restricted.

GETTING THERE- We flew from Miami to Quito, arriving after 11 pm. A SS rep was waiting, with car & driver, to take us to the hotel. Unfortunately the city is 50 minutes from the airport, so we didn't get into our room until after midnight. Then up before 6 am to go back to the airport. The room was wonderful- a huge suite with two full bathrooms and enough seating for a dozen people. Of course we never had time to use anything but the bed.

SS took our bags at the hotel, and we didn't see them again until on the ship. Everything was very easy. But another 45 minutes back to the airport, then a 45 minute flight to Guayaquil, 30 minutes sitting on the plane while people boarded, then 1:40 flight to Baltra.

If you can, fly into Guayaquil directly from Miami. The hotel there is only 15 minutes away ( a very classy place!!) and you'll sleep 90 minutes longer in the morning, then get on the same plane from Quito. I don't know why they fly us into Quito first. On the trip home, we did fly Guayaquil to Miami.

What to Wear- as others have said, don't bother with fancy clothes. No one wore a jacket. Bring plenty of t shirts- one for the early morning hike, one for the afternoon excursion, one while you're snorkeling, x six days.

Bring a high quality sunscreen, and USE IT carefully!

Don't forget to get all your stuff out of your luggage the first day. On the second day the room steward took our bags somewhere for storage (there isn't any room for them in your cabin).

The water was very comfortable for snorkeling w/o a wetsuit. Around the far western islands, it was about 5 degrees cooler, but still not bad.

We didn't see anyone having trouble with the zodiacs- the crew is very careful to get us in and out safely.

Getting home- We had no trouble getting from Baltra back to Guayaquil to our day room at the hotel, then back to the airport for our midnight flight. We arrived in Miami at 5 am, with an 8:00 connection. There were endless long lines, immigration checks, customs checks, baggage checks, security checks.

We arrived at our gate after 7 am, 15 minutes before boarding.

If you are going thru Miami, be sure you have AT LEAST two and a half hours. Three hours is safer.

A great trip. No rain, warm water, HOT air temps. And millions of wildlife, up close and personal.

I just started on cipro last night (I went for the testing & started right after), I had it with me on the trip but hubby's episode passed within 36 hours, so I thought mine would too. Mine was being keep at bay with immodium & got worse after returning home. Who knows the when, where or why, but it is common in S America.

5waldos, how was your trip???

Our trip was great, with a few bumps and bruises. It being our first SS cruise, we had no preconceived ideas of what to expect. We were quite content with the food and in general the ship. The excursions were great and well done, except for forgetting to mention to us that there might be jellyfish.

If I had a complaint it would be our "butler". She was sweet, and generally tried but our rooms were not made up until late in the day- one day it never got done at all despite us being gone for both the morning and afternoon excursion. I spoke with her about it which helped some, but it was still not done as early as I would like. On this count, Carnival does a much better job- they have "spotters" who note when you were going for breakfast and they are in and out before you return. On the other hand, she turned up with appetizers every afternoon at about 5pm, and this without us asking.

We were pretty undemanding and no- I never went to the front desk about it. They were not up to snuff either- I asked one day for the current itinerary for another SS ship which they promised to get me- they said they had access to the information. Late the next day I asked for it when one of the SS "spies" was there. He had it for me in minutes. And one evening another passenger was trying to find out what had happened to her duvet which had been taken in the morning and not returned. The phone rang and rang and nobody answered. The passenger had been injured just before boarding the ship and could barely get around so I went down to the desk and there was someone there. A very stern talking to got people up to the cabin within the alloted 5 minutes. And the phone got answered promptly from then on out.

But other than that, we did not have problems with waiters or food- our food was always served in a timely manner, hot, and more than decent. We had a bit of trouble getting butter- it never seemed to be out. And they ran out of baguettes by Weds and didn't have the supplies on board (what- white flour and water?) to make more. Which was sad as I was quite attached to it. Probably just as good!

We discovered we were not fond of the hot rocks- perhaps a single cooker for a table and plates to put the cooked food would have helped- my steak was in great danger of being seriously overcooked. And there was not a lot of space for a plate. But the area at the deck bar at night became quite the hot spot- there was something quite endearing about a dozen or more geriatrics (I include myself in the group) rocking out and singing Twist and Shout at the top of our voices- and most of us were astonishingly sober! And somebody here was worrying that their congo line might be over the top!

As I read back on this it sounds a lot more complainy than I mean it to- in general we enjoyed our trip immensely and both the other passengers and the crew. The crew in particular was very available and interactive- we met the captain several times, had dinner with the hotel manager, the expedition crew were all pleasant and very knowledgable. We liked it so much in fact that less than a week after I returned I booked a b2b on the Discovery- which is obviously the real test.

Thanks for the update, mrsm88. We aren't the nitpicking type, so we won't be looking for things to complain about. Poor AC or malfunction is a worry though. The schedule of cruises for the Silver Galapagos shows that there are none on Apr 26 and May 17. The ship might be chartered those weeks or hopefully laid up for repairs and upgrading. Let us hope! Do you think that the stomach problems were from food on the ship or from the prior tours?

 

findacruise - We're flying Miami to Quito on American 939 on June 5th, but not going on to another tour afterwards.

Sorry JoeK, the 26th of April is a Charter from Canada with a medical conference on board. :-)

That's just how we felt 5waldos, we had minor issues, but I did want my travel agent to let SS know. In the scheme of things, they were insignificant details in exchange for the rewards of the Islands.

Flipturn- we also flew into Quito through Miami & it was a long day. But we stayed 2 days in Quito & that helped that we weren't running right back out to another flight early the next day. On the return trip we were able to fly direct from Guayaquil to NY via Lan, but we had to spend the night to catch the flight the next day- that was perfect- Lan biz class was luxurious & a great end to our trip:)

Beachbook, thanks for the news about the charter on April 26th. We'll just have to hope that the maintenance staff correct the ship's problems.

Flipturn, 5waldos and mrsm88, thanks for the updates.

I understand the reluctance to have one's TA let SS know about the lack of certain service quality but in the end SS is marketing and promising a luxury product. Wouldn't this feedback help them to deliver? One doesn't need to name names but one can make generalized comments on how certain aspects of the SS experience were lacking. jmo.

Good point. I did make reference to it, and of course, they also read here.

Thank you for your reports. We arrive in the Galapagos 4 weeks from today. Our docs were delivered on Monday and we can hardly wait. We are pretty easy to please so we are going into this experience excited about the Islands but not expecting great things on the ship. With this attitude we should be pleased with everything. The countdown begins! :)

Laurie

Thanks to the recent cruisers for the updates, information about the ship and their adventures. As our June 4 cruise gets closer I continue to get more excited and more aware of what to expect on board ship and during the excursions.

Lauranne and findacruise, I am interested in what the suites look like. If you have time, could you take a few photos in your suite and share them with us on your return? Any other ship photos would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks

Sailed on Silversea G. On Mar 7. Good move to stay 2 days prior to sailing

Can't say much good about ship. Loved expeditions. Rooms hot and noisy. Food not up to par but crew excellent

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I understand the reluctance to have one's TA let SS know about the lack of certain service quality but in the end SS is marketing and promising a luxury product. Wouldn't this feedback help them to deliver? One doesn't need to name names but one can make generalized comments on how certain aspects of the SS experience were lacking. jmo.

I forwarded my TA every review I read prior to sailing- the good, the bad & the ugly & she sent them off to her SS rep. My attitude was that is I had an issues to complain about after our trip, I wanted all the others on record.

Fortunately, any of our issues were small things.

My hubby & I are now curious to experience what Silversea is really known for & what their prior cruisers are attempting to compare this trip to. We are thinking about trying them for another trip in 2015.

I forwarded my TA every review I read prior to sailing- the good, the bad & the ugly & she sent them off to her SS rep. My attitude was that is I had an issues to complain about after our trip, I wanted all the others on record.

Fortunately, any of our issues were small things.

My hubby & I are now curious to experience what Silversea is really known for & what their prior cruisers are attempting to compare this trip to. We are thinking about trying them for another trip in 2015.

Likewise,I have sent comments from this board to my TA who is escorting our group. This will be our first SS cruise, but I know an expedition ship will be different than a regular SS ship and cruise experience. However, the air conditioning is probably the primary concern.

It has been good to read all the posts, as my expectations have been calibrated. Now I must calibrate DH and the couple we convinced to go with us. :)

I will try to remember to take pictures of our stateroom and post as soon as we get home.

Lauranne and findacruise, I am interested in what the suites look like. If you have time, could you take a few photos in your suite and share them with us on your return? Any other ship photos would be greatly appreciated.

 

Thanks

Follow link, it takes you to previous owners of ship. Furniture is the same but soft furnishings have changed. The hull has also been painted black, but at least it will give you an idea.

http://www.mvgalapagosexplorer.com/Cruise_Ship_Profile.asp

Interesting that the postings on this thread generally seem to be positive whereas those put up on the members reviews are not. The members reviews are predominantly from guests who have sailed with SS before and are critical about the state of the ship, the service and in particular the food quality.

I just wonder whether SS have made a misscalculation in not holding off on launching until they could have offerred something much closer to the existing luxury product.

I will try to remember to take pictures of our stateroom and post as soon as we get home.

Thanks, Lauranne and Amber.