sail1658

1 hour ago, Lois R said:

there always seems to be a wedding go on somewhere on the trip.

Hi Lois,

Yes we always see weddings, especially in Italy, such a romantic place.  Sorrento is one of our favourite places, and we hope to post another of our favourites soon, - Taormina, Sicily, - hopefully next week.

For those of you who love Italy, especially Sorrento, I've just posted my Silver Muse video on YouTube of our day in Sorrento. I can honestly say it was our most perfect day on a cruise ship and one of our best memories.

10 minutes ago, Lois R said:

your hotel looked really lovely.....ISA?

Yes. Lois. we loved that hotel. It's in the historic centre of Rome in the Prati district and within walking distance of the Vatican and Piazza Navona. It will definitely be our first choice if we go back to Rome.

9 hours ago, Lois R said:

I so miss being on the water...

Hi Lois, Thanks for your comment. We feel the same as you, and we look forward to hearing your thoughts on Silver Moon which we hope to sail on in the future.

I can't believe it's nearly two years since we sailed on our last Silver Spirit cruise in 2019, and three years since our Silver Muse cruise. So to keep our cruise memories alive I've been re-editing my cruise videos and posting them on YouTube.  

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCbYW-Y1IjRSD9MECilTBG5A

Silver Muse was our best ever cruise - Rome to Venice via Sorrento, Taormina and Dubrovnik, with a pre-cruise stay in Rome and post-cruise stay in Venice.

The ship and staff were amazing, and especially so as we'd booked a cruise on Silver Spirit for April 2018 which was sadly cancelled due to the extended dry-dock so that it could be cut in half and lengthened, and this was its replacement booking.  

 A stand-out memory was one evening in La Terrazza whilst anchored off Sorrento. It was one of the most magical evening meals ever. We dined outside on a warm balmy evening, with a spectacular sunset, excellent service, food and wine. The evening ended with fireworks over Sorrento after dinner. We thought we were in an advertisement for the Italian Tourist Board and Silversea!  It could only have been topped if Andrea Bocelli had serenaded us at the table and George Clooney had brought the coffee!

I can't wait to make more cruising memories, hopefully on Silver Moon or Silver Dawn. 

I've just posted Part 1 Pre- cruise stay in Rome and Part 2 sailing from Civitavecchia of this cruise with more to follow. 

I've now uploaded another Seabourn Encore video of one of the most amazing evening sailaways we've ever experienced. 

We were leaving Cartagena, Spain with a Classical concert given by the Seabourn singers around the swimming pool. The sun was setting on a warm balmy evening with champagne and caviar, not to mention the luxury vodkas! 

That's a magical memory I can't wait to repeat, but have to be content with reliving it for now.

I've now uploaded another Seabourn Encore video and it feels like looking back at a bygone golden era. It almost seems like something I'd imagined, except I recorded it.

Our day in the Retreat was just the two of us as we were in port. So we felt like VIPs with unlimited Moet Chandon and the two to one service ratio. Then we loved our dinner in the Thomas Keller Restaurant followed by dancing under the stars at the deck party. 

The next day's lunch around the pool was prepared by the chef and later we enjoyed dinner in the Colonnade watching the wake of the ship as the sun was setting.

Looking at past cruises now, we feel that we took travel and cruising so much for granted with so many amazing experiences. So it's really good to relive them.

So we all hope we'll get back to that golden era very soon, but until then we just have to be content with our memories.

Yes, Techno123, it was Captain David Bathgate and Ross Roberts, the Cruise Director .

Thanks, rkacruiser, for this comment.

It's still a work in progress and there's lots more in the pipeline for Seabourn and Silversea, as well as more vintage memories from 1989 onwards! But once we tried Seabourn or Silversea, it spoils you and we've found it difficult to go back to other cruise lines.

But then again, at present, we'd be happy just to be sailing on anything!

17 hours ago, fdnycruiser said:

You really captured the essence of sailing on Seabourn 

Thanks for these kind words. We need to be content with the essence at present until we can experience the real thing!

I am editing my videos to focus on the ship and destinations and make them more watchable – hopefully!

After a year of lockdown without travel and cruising it's starting to look like our next cruise experience is moving further and further into the future.  So the only way I'm able to cope is by watching some of our cruise videos whilst enjoying a glass of wine.

I've loaded a number of them onto my YouTube channel  - Cruise Video Memories so that I can watch them on my laptop and TV without looking for the DVDs. 

                                                                https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCbYW-Y1IjRSD9MECilTBG5A/featured

The most recent one I watched was Seabourn Encore. It was a day at sea and the Captain's Welcome Party with cruise director,  Ross Roberts in the Club.  It seems strange looking at past cruises now, when you think how we took travel and cruising so much for granted. We marvel at a cocktail party, with no social distancing, no masks, a full restaurant and front row seats at a show, and dancing in a club!!!  It's like looking back at a bygone golden era. 

So we have to hope we'll get back to that golden era very soon, but until then we just have to be content with our memories.

40 minutes ago, rkacruiser said:

What nationalities--for the most part--are the crew on a Silverseas ship?  

The main percentage of crew are Filipino and South Asian. We've also met wonderful individuals from Bali and Myanmar.  All of the crew are so friendly and can't do enough for you, whether they're serving in the restaurants or the bars or out on deck. They remember your name and your drink preferences, and often have the drink ready as you walk into the room if you're a regular there. They even recognise you from previous cruises. This has been our experience and I'm sure other members will verify this.

10 minutes ago, Mayflower1 said:

We would return to Seabourn if there was nothing we fancied on Silversea but for us the wonderful Crew on Silversea cannot be beaten - we also prefer the slightly more formal approach and with the onset of more Dining choice on Silversea for us there is no real contest.

We agree wholeheartedly with this comment, especially "the wonderful Crew on Silversea cannot be beaten" - Absolutely true!!  And also "the slightly more formal approach" which creates a very special atmosphere when everyone seems to have made an effort to enhance the evening.  

2 hours ago, Randyk47 said:

 Fully hooked on Silversea so if and when we cruise again it will probably be Silversea.   

Our first Silversea cruise was Silver Spirit in 2015 and we weren't too impressed, but maybe we'd expected too much. We had a bad start when another passenger who sat next to me on the flight to Nice actually took our private Silversea transfer to the ship. He'd asked how we were getting to Monte Carlo as he had nothing arranged. We waited at the airport for some considerable time before ringing to ask where the car was, and we were told that we'd already been collected!!! When we actually arrived in a replacement transfer some hours later, there was just a shrug of shoulders. Not a very good first impression!! That seemed to be the attitude throughout the cruise. The friendly passenger who I suspected from the plane totally avoided me throughout the cruise at all times. 

So we tried Seabourn Sojourn which we loved and then Seabourn Encore which we liked but didn't love.

We were tempted back to Silver Spirit by a good deal and itinerary, so we gave them another try. With more realistic expectations and an uneventful transfer to the ship we were very impressed and we then tried  Silver Muse which was our absolute favourite. We feel that Silversea just pips Seabourn to the post, but would travel on either cruise line, given the chance. 

14 minutes ago, Lois R said:

in 1989 there was still that "BIG HAIR" on the women

Yes, Lois. My wife said it was the days of the perms and big hair which went out of control in the Caribbean humidity. All the women in formal dress looked like they'd escaped from the set of Dynasty! 

45 minutes ago, spinnaker2 said:

I have been watching the videos and feeling elation and then close to tears.

Thanks for these kind words. I'm really surprised but pleased by all these reactions. I wasn't sure if anyone else would be interested. I only started the project and posted the videos online so that I could watch them myself on TV and laptop without having to dig out the DVDs. It's the only way to experience cruising at present. But it keeps me occupied and I'm trying to post regularly on YouTube each Wednesday.  

12 hours ago, foodsvcmgr said:

Enjoyed a Bermuda cruise from New York in the late 80’s.

We also did this cruise in May/June 1989 and loved it. It was our first visit to both places and was so exciting, but unfortunately we didn't have a video camera at that time so only have photos.

We only docked in Hamilton as there was a tug strike so we couldn't dock at St Georges. The three days in Hamilton meant we could tour the island on the local buses and enjoy the beaches.  The other large ship in photo 3 is Bermuda Star of Commodore Cruise Line.

15 hours ago, rkacruiser said:

What entertainment was offered on Silver Spirit? 

Entertainment on both Seabourn and Silversea is low key in comparison to the mega cruise ships where you can see Las Vegas style shows.

Silversea has the Voices of Silversea, usually six singers who provide shows in the theatre as a group and also some of them do individual shows there. They're accompanied by a backing track, not a live band.  They also sometimes sing in the Panorama Lounge to get the party going. There's a small sample of this around 5 minutes into this Part 7 video

Also in the Panorama Lounge there's usually a Filipino trio who play live music for dancing or just listening. Their singing is not usually as good as their musical skills, but they're very good at creating a fantastic atmosphere.  Later on there's a DJ providing the dance music.

There's also the Silver Note dining venue which has a jazz and blues singer or duo where you can just listen or dance after dining.

There are some examples of the Voices of Silversea towards the end of Part 5 of my YouTube video

Hi Karin

I totally agree with your comments. Some of the main pleasures of cruising are just being on the ship, seeing different parts of the world, and only unpacking once. So as long as it's clean and safe, what's not to like!

And after this last year we're just pleased that we did so many and made so many memories.

We loved Song of America and it's amazing to think that she's still sailing on short cruises around the Mediterranean as Celestyal Olympia. Yet, sadly Sovereign of the Seas is no longer with us.

59 minutes ago, njkruzer said:

We sailed her out of New York to Bermuda in 1993

We did that same cruise in 1990 and loved it,  except it was on Cunard Princess and we didn't have a video recorder then.

3 minutes ago, silkismom said:

I still have some of the same tops, pants gone long time ago. 

So does my wife!!!

4 minutes ago, silkismom said:

As they say "we've come a long way, baby".

As you say - compared to Silversea and Seabourn, it's a long way from an inside cabin with bunk beds to Silversea Suites.  We enjoyed Song of America and it's amazing to think that she's still sailing on short cruises in the Mediterranean as MS Celestyal Olympia. Still working on the rest of the Mexican Riviera cruise videos.

Thanks, Brimary, for your kind words. I too have really enjoyed this exercise of reliving old experiences as it's all we can do at present until things resume safely. Also I just did a comparison of Silver Spirit with Seabourn Encore 2019, as we sailed on both in that year. There are videos of both cruises.

Silkismom, we were on Song of America in May/June '92 and I've just posted the first two videos this afternoon on my channel Cruise Video Memories - Long Beach Sail-away and Cabo San Lucas

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCbYW-Y1IjRSD9MECilTBG5A/videos

In 2019 we were fortunate to cruise on both Silver Spirit and Seabourn Encore sailing from Barcelona around the Mediterranean.  At the time I thought I was being a bit extravagant but after last year's lockdown and the prospects of cruising this year receding I'm glad I did.

So which did we prefer?  Well the differences are wafer thin really. Each ship had things I preferred over the other. Food was similar.  I preferred La Terrazza on Silver Spirit for lunch,  but I loved The Colonnade in the evening as there were varied menus and theme nights  Entertainment was better,  I thought, on Seabourn, - live music in the shows with a house band and singers,  plus live music in the Observation Lounge. I personally prefer the slightly more formal dress style on Silversea. I think it adds atmosphere to the evening. 

Butlers on Silversea are great. They'll get you anything you need, while Seabourn cabin staff are good but are always very busy. I didn't like the Retreat, as it was a real  waste of deck space. Even when we tried it  I wasn't impressed, except by the comfortable sunbeds, which highlighted the cheap sunbeds around the pool. On Silversea all sunbeds are padded, and there was more space around the pool. All the staff on both lines are equally excellent and go out of their way to please you.

But after all is said and done, these are first world issues and I'd jump at the chance to sail on either of them as soon as possible.

I've uploaded some Silversea and Seabourn videos to my YouTube channel, Cruise Video Memories so you can compare experiences -

    https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCbYW-Y1IjRSD9MECilTBG5A

Silversea videos are completed but Seabourn is a work in progress and I'll upload more each week.

In 2019 we were fortunate to cruise on both Silver Spirit and Seabourn Encore sailing from Barcelona around the Mediterranean.  At the time I thought I was being a bit extravagant but after last year's lockdown and the prospects of cruising this year receding I'm glad I did.

So which did we prefer?  Well the differences are wafer thin really. Each ship had things I preferred over the other. Food was similar.  I preferred La Terrazza on Silver Spirit for lunch,  but I loved The Colonnade in the evening as there were varied menus and theme nights  Entertainment was better,  I thought, on Seabourn, - live music in the shows with a house band and singers,  plus live music in the Observation Lounge. I personally prefer the slightly more formal dress style on Silversea. I think it adds atmosphere to the evening. 

Butlers on Silversea are great. They'll get you anything you need, while Seabourn cabin staff are good but are always very busy. I didn't like the Retreat, as it was a real  waste of deck space. Even when we tried it  I wasn't impressed, except by the comfortable sunbeds, which highlighted the cheap sunbeds around the pool. On Silversea all sunbeds are padded, and there was more space around the pool. All the staff on both lines are equally excellent and go out of their way to please you.

But after all is said and done, these are first world issues and I'd jump at the chance to sail on either of them as soon as possible.

I've uploaded some Silversea and Seabourn videos to my YouTube channel, Cruise Video Memories so you can compare experiences -

    https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCbYW-Y1IjRSD9MECilTBG5A

Silversea videos are completed but Seabourn is a work in progress and I'll upload more each week.

In 1992 we sailed on Song of America to the Mexican Riviera. We had a great time on our first experience of California and the west coast. Royal Caribbean had offers in the UK including free flights, one night pre-cruise stay in the Beverly Hilton, transfers and a day room at the Marina Del Rey hotel post cruise.

So we took a deviation on the flights and flew out to San Francisco a week before our cruise. We hired a car and travelled down the Big Sur to Los Angeles. We managed to cram in Alcatraz, tram tours, Fisherman's Wharf and Sausalito on our first day!  Then over the next six days we saw Monterey, Carmel, Hearst Castle, Santa Barbara, Queen Mary at Long Beach and Universal Studios!  What great memories and what stamina we had!  Wish we had even half of that now.

Also those were the days before sat navs, mobile phones and Trip Advisor, and we found our way with just an AAA atlas. We relied on those brochures in the foyer in Dennys and Sizzlers restaurants with discount coupons for hotels and motels. We got some good hotels, and some "Bates" Motels, but we had great times followed by a relaxing cruise on Song of America. I've posted on my YouTube channel, Cruise Video Memories, the first two, Long Beach Sail-away and Cabo San Lucas.  Mazatlán and Ensenada will soon follow.

 Hope these bring back some memories of good times for you too. 

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCbYW-Y1IjRSD9MECilTBG5A