Considering T/A on Silver Wind Nov 16

[Kwaj girl]

Just not sure of the lack of good recent reviews. The per dime rate is quite decent but would like options of recent pax on this vessel. We previously sail on the Shadow and understand ship differences.

[Observer]

I was on the ship not so many months ago and found it up to Silversea standard in every way. (True. I did not write a review. I have been on many Silversea cruises, and may have reviewed one or two. I find that most reviews are written by people new to the line *or* people very unhappy with this or that. Regular guests do not seem to review each voyage.) Yes, the Wind is a bit older and smaller than other ships in the fleet, but that may be part of the charm. Food and service were excellent.

Edited September 22, 2014 by Observer

[specialcruisegirl]

Just not sure of the lack of good recent reviews. The per dime rate is quite decent but would like options of recent pax on this vessel. We previously sail on the Shadow and understand ship differences.

 

I've enjoyed two voyages on Silver Wind in the last year and found everything just fine. She handles bad weather admirably well and both service and food were excellent. If you are lucky enough to have CD Colin Brown on board you'll have a wonderful time as he is always to be seen around the ship chatting to one and all and has a keen eye for perfection and ensuring guests are happy.

 

Sophia :)

[Observer]

If you are lucky enough to have CD Colin Brown on board you'll have a wonderful time as he is always to be seen around the ship chatting to one and all and has a keen eye for perfection and ensuring guests are happy.

 

Sophia :)

 

Fully agree. Brown is a real pro and *appears* to greatly enjoy his work as CD. He is my favorite current SS CD and a huge credit to the line.

[Kwaj girl]

Past-guest input is always appreciated. If anyone has more comments - they will be sincerely appreciated.

[susan8231]

I'm hearing reports from a friend on board the Wind right now (first time) that the food is generally excellent and service very good, but the ship itself seems "tired" and the decor not in the best of condition. Fellow passengers delightful and shore excursions good.

[duct tape]

The ship is an old dame! It is what it is...charming.

 

 

Sent using the Cruise Critic forums app

[derbylane]

The ship is an old dame! It is what it is...charming.

 

 

Sent using the Cruise Critic forums app

 

 

Perfect comment, what a wonderful Lady she has been!

 

By the way, a wonderful sail to you. Partner and i will tip a glass to you and mr dt on the silver spirit in a month.

[Kwaj girl]

Many thanks to all for your comments - I, too, like the 'old dame/charming' reference.

[beckaboo]

We've sailed twice on the Wind... Sept 2012 and March 2014. Really enjoyed both sailings (we've also been on the Cloud in 2013 and Spirit in 2011).

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums mobile app

[derbylane]

We've sailed twice on the Wind... Sept 2012 and March 2014. Really enjoyed both sailings (we've also been on the Cloud in 2013 and Spirit in 2011).

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums mobile app

beckaboo, first love you name, second your comments are really nice. It is funny I have always loved the Cloud and Wind and the Spirit. Always felt Shadow and Whisper the wrong size, they never seemed to have a real character. The two little ones and the big one seemed to have a good feel.

[1901Phil]

We sailed on Silver Wind in August. Fully agree that Colin is a real pro.

This was our first cruise on Silversea having been on Regent, Chrystal, Seebourn, Azamara and Hebridean Princess in the last few years.

 

What did surprise us was that we met many fellow guests who had never sailed on any other line.

 

We enjoyed our time on Wind. Thought the first meal we had in Champagne was one of the best we had had afloat but that the food in the MDR was inferior to that on Chrystal, Seebourn, Azamara and Hebridean.

[cruisingfor4]

Past-guest input is always appreciated. If anyone has more comments - they will be sincerely appreciated.

 

Hi Kwaj Girl

This is now our 7th cruise, and most certainly we are not "experienced" cruisers, but do know the differences between the various lines, expectations for prices paid, etc. Try Seabourn...their attention to detail at every level is far superior to Silversea. I have sailed on both, at the same "penthouse" level (Silver Suite on Silversea), so am able to compare apple to apple. Heed to the recent reviews, and safe travels :)

[flydc]

9 night cruise from Barcelona around the Med to Rome.

Second time on Silversea - first was this March on the Silver Shadow.

 

Felt that the Silver Wind was in MUCH better condition. Public areas looked fine. Cabin was fine. Nothing looked overly worn. All areas were kept very clean.

 

The only issue we had was gift shop construction on deck 5 - all day, every day from 7am to 10pm. Yup. It opened the last night of the cruise and it looked great - but they still had to finish the other side - so yup more noise. Lots of noise. Hammers and saws, dust and sawdust. Really quite unacceptable.

 

Staff on the Silver Wind were great - other than the Hotel Director who avoided contact with everyone due to the construction and not having anything good to tell us.

 

New Cruise Director - Monya - was nice. English was a bit tough to understand but she had great personality and really tried to provide a great cruise experience.

 

Was the last cruise Artists of the Silversea. They did a good job. We met them all and they seemed ready to go home.

 

Food on the ship was great. Really enjoyed La Terrazza. Ate there twice during the cruise - to sample both menus. Grand Dining Room was great too. Service a little slow at breakfast. (Room service has become my new breakfast favorite.)

[Observer]

9 night cruise from Barcelona around the Med to Rome.

Second time on Silversea - first was this March on the Silver Shadow.

 

The only issue we had was gift shop construction on deck 5 - all day, every day from 7am to 10pm. Yup. It opened the last night of the cruise and it looked great - but they still had to finish the other side - so yup more noise. Lots of noise. Hammers and saws, dust and sawdust. Really quite unacceptable.

 

Were you given advance notice of this construction and opportunity to cancel? If not, what compensation did SS offer? They apparently provided generous compensation to passenger on Whisper transatlantic?

 

It is (in my opinion) appalling that SS would elect to disrupt a cruise and inconvenience passengers for entirely elective (and revenue producing) work. Isn't this what dry-docks are for?

[badgerdee]

We are boarding Wind in Piraeus on 31 October, sailing to Dubai.

 

I probably won't do a live trip report as I'm not patient enough to cope with the patchy Internet service but I will post our perceptions of the ship at some stage, if that helps.

 

We have sailed Wind previously (Black Sea, if I recall correctly) and also Cloud and have good memories of both. My favourite ships however are Shadow and Whisper.

[Ken_W]

All very nice to hear as I just made my first-ever Silversea booking on the Wind for the 2016 transoceanic from Lisbon to Ft. Lauderdale. Lisbon has been on my list of places to visit and coupled with the chance to relax on a transoceanic voyage, well, the temptation was too great to resist.

[dusababy]

All very nice to hear as I just made my first-ever Silversea booking on the Wind for the 2016 transoceanic from Lisbon to Ft. Lauderdale. Lisbon has been on my list of places to visit and coupled with the chance to relax on a transoceanic voyage, well, the temptation was too great to resist.

 

Congratulations! Lisbon is my second favorite city in the world after Barcelona. Highly recommend you go at least a couple of days early to explore this beautiful, easy to navigate and get to know, city -- and environs. And if you do - I can recommend a wonderful tour guide.

 

And T/A is great. You've made a wise decision/booking!

Dusababy aka Mary Ann

[Ken_W]

Thanks for the welcome, Mary Ann. Here's hoping the time flies by!

[flydc]

They sent us an email a week or 10 days before telling us the gift shop would be closed for renovation. No offer to rebook or any offer of compensation other than a discount in the temporary gift shop.

 

They didn't tell us anything about the active noise and construction that would disrupt our vacation.

 

The hotel director on the ship really couldn't care less.

 

There were alot of Venetian Society members (including one couple with 650+ nights) located close to the construction and all were livid over how it was handled.

[johnnycruise]

Just read your review. Quite surprised you rated your voyage 5 star with the construction noise starting at 7 every morning :confused:

[Silver Spectre]

The hotel director on the ship really couldn't care less.

 

And please tell, who was the above mentioned HD?

[harbormaster]

We have sailed on the Wind in the past, in Scandinavia, the Mediterranean and in South Africa, which was one of the best cruises we ever have taken. We particularly love the crew who are so loyal to the ship.

We will be boarding her again in December for our cruise to Vietnam and looking forward to it. Would appreciate any feedback on cruises before that, including who the CD, maitre'D and Captain will be. We love the size of the Wind and can't wait to board.

 

As to construction noise, this appears not to be the first time Silversea has done this mid-cruise. In 2010 when the Spirit was still fairly new, we did a Med cruise on her. Since we booked fairly late and had a military rate which Silversea then offered, we had a guarantee cabin. We found ourselves above the bar located on deck 5 in a midship verandah on deck 6. There had been comments about the noise from the music in that bar so we were prepared for some noise.

However, upon boarding the ship, we noticed that the bar area was enclosed in curtains with scaffolding and construction workers milling about. About 10:30 that first evening, we were awakened by the sound of drilling and hammering coming through our floor. Went to the desk and they said they were putting in insulation so that the bar noise would not be heard in the cabins. The drilling and hammering continued well past midnight. The next night the same thing happened and the hotel director refused to discuss it. The construction ended that night, and we happily anticipated a good night's sleep. Well, when the band started up, the music noise, especially the base and the drums thundered through the floor of the cabin. The "insulation" apparently did not work. After many attempts to see the hotel director, (we never did) we were moved - to a cabin very forward next to the anchor. Our reward for asking for a quiet room. You can read my full review in these threads. So, there is a precedence for mid-voyage construction without notice.

We believe Silversea should notify passengers about construction projects before they board, or offer compensation for disturbing the cruise. Drydock is the place for these projects, not mid-ocean.