Live from Silversea Spirit Auckland to Melbourne Feb 12-24

[Catlover54]

The review which I wrote two days ago was also published uncensored today. It appears CC just prefers to take a little time to make sure the reviews generally comply with posting guidelines, rather than risk having a totally non-compliant post appear and then have to take it down. Their forum, their rules.

 

I can relate to some of what Baggywrinkle wrote RE some of the people and some of the service, and then some, though the biggest difference is that despite criticisms I would still come back to SS for the right itinerary, hoping the mild to moderate service deficits improve or that we get luckier with the next butler. I will see how Seabourn compares in a few months.

 

One other variable RE the main dining room service I forgot to mention in my review is that it appeared to us there was more service confusion and difficulty getting our drinks and wine of choice when we joined others at tables, rather than the times we dined alone, when it was easier for the assorted waiters to keep track of things.

 

http://www.cruisecritic.com/memberreviews/memberreview.cfm?EntryID=272257

[RachelG]

Just finished reading Baggywrinkle's review. Believe it or not, I agree with a lot of what he said, but i didn't let it ruin my trip.

 

I have always hated some of the decor of spirit. Particularly the theater and the panorama lounge which are furnished like a nursing home (albeit an upscale one). They really are dreary. Hate the low ceilings in the theater. Also hate the sinks in the bathrooms (which I mentioned). The tv in a mirror really doesn't bother me, and once we learned to operate our controller properly on the first day, we had no issues. Love the big closet and the rest of the bathroom though.

 

Totally agree about the sushi on the lunch buffet in La Terraza. Nasty. But lunch sushi in Seishin is very good. And the to order pizzas in La Terraza are awesome (perhaps too awesome as I ate too much).

 

The shrimp cocktail was three big shrimp. But you could order two if you want, and it tasted good. There was a huge cheese menu, so if you are only eating a chunk of Gouda, that is your own problem.

 

It was difficult/impossible to get a wine list, but if you don't like the wine presented, I had no problem getting a different one. Choice wasn't great but not terrible either. Similar to recent Regent cruises.

 

There is no buffet at night in any venue, which I think is a good thing.

 

There were a lot of really old, and grumpy, passengers. I just ignored he grumpy ones. Silversea can't control for that. George age 61 and I age 56 were probably some of t he youngest on board.

 

Yes, trivia is super competitive, and I am one of those super competitive people. And we won twice, so there. If you don't like competition, don't come. I don't like golf putting or bingo, so I don't go to those activities.

 

As far as the crew members, I found them just fine and with good attitudes for the most part. We know a lot of them from previous Silversea cruises , so perhaps that makes some impact. Our butler and room steward were among the best, if not the best, we have had on any cruise on any line. And I told them so.

 

Our room steward was sort of invisible the first couple of days, until I engaged him in conversation by asking where he was from and about his family. After that, he was my best friend and couldn't do enough. Our butler checked in multiple times per day, and almost begged us for tasks to do.

 

We know the maitre 'd in La Terraza from previous cruises, and he is my friend, not as gruff as a lot of people think. Just very serious about his job. Also know Alan, Eileen, and several others from previous cruises, and they were always happy to have us at their tables and eager to help us.

 

We had a wonderful trip, and we are really more "regent people" than "silversea people". But I would definitely cruise with silversea, and on spirit, again.

[Emtbsam]

I read Baggywrinkle's review and can't take issue with much of what was said since it was his/her opinion and reaction to things on board. I am comfortable with the decor, so that is not an issue for me, however I totally agree that the show lounge is a total failure and an unappealing room to be in as is the main bar which feels more like a waiting room in a train station. Other ships (Seabourn or Crystal) may be prettier, but I'm used to SS.

 

It is a shame that he/she had such a negative opinion of the passengers. We have greeted and been greeted by most of the passengers on board whom we pass in the hallways. There are a number of people whose first language is not English, and perhaps they are more standoffish. Overall, I thought that the passengers on that segment of the cruise were happy - maybe that just reflects my attitude. Also, since we are frequent floaters with SS, we know many of the staff and a number of the passengers from previous cruises which makes us feel very comfortable.

 

Additionally, I thought that the Captain and many of the staff were much more in evidence throughout the day which is a pleasant improvement from the past. However, I totally agree that the CD adds little to nothing to the experience. We have never seen him at the gangway greeting passengers, and he generally ignores all but a few of the passengers if he runs into them in the hallway.

 

There are service issues possibly from a lack of training, or possibly due to the turnover of staff at a number of the ports. We believe that the service issues trace back to a poorly thought out method of handling tables. Too many servers ask you the same question over and over (water, coffee, etc.) and then seem to disappear when you want to place an order. There should be a staff assigned to each table or group of tables rather than a free for all of staff trying to do the right thing throughout the room.

 

So, while I hate to say that I agree with some of the review, I do. I only wish that we could have met and possibly made at least the passenger interaction more friendly.

[Baggywrinkle99]

@ Rachel - Oh I'm pretty competitive when it comes to trivia too! In fact our team was in the top 3 most most days....... Maybe you can guess who I am now? ;)

 

As for the cheese, I asked for an assortment and got only Gouda. Go figure.

 

I admit I'm somewhat relieved that my observations are shared at least in part by others on the same voyage. It shows I'm not being completely unreasonable. I will take the advice and maybe investigate future Silversea trips in one of the smaller ships but it's too soon after this bad experience to be willing to take the risk. Our next cruise is already booked with Seabourn in early 2016 and we are also booked on the new Regent Explorer's maiden voyage in July which is more than enough to look forward to!

 

@ Emtbsam - Thank you for your support on the CD issue! I know people find an over-enthusiastic full-on CD pretty exhausting and irritating, but an invisible one is probably worse.

Edited February 27, 2015 by Baggywrinkle99

[billcrooz]

I have also read Baggywrinkle99's review, and do not recognise the Silver Spirit that we have sailed on.

 

The food and service is always going to be subjective and when it comes to other guests it may come down to who you meet and how sociable you are. Not everyone wants to be your friend, and yes some people can be grumpy.

 

The comment about an evening buffet I find odd, that is much more likely on a mass market line, as is really early dinning and shows.

 

Its a shame they didn't get to Seishen for lunch and eat the sushi there, but it has not been well advertised in the past.

 

Thanks for posting anyway.

 

 

Where did you see the review?.....can't find it

[CanadianKate]

Definitely try the smaller ships if you try SS again. I had a lot of issues with Spirit that I don't have on the smaller ships; it is as if the small increase in passengers (in my case the Spirit had only a few more than Shadow carries) completely changes the vibe. Our Spirit cruise had its share of grumpies (and the weather contributed to that - I was disappointed the one day it didn't rain because I could no longer claim it rained every day on my cruise!) but we quickly found like-minded people and ignored the rest. Interestingly, most of the friends we made were people on board for the full world cruise, not the only segment we were on.

 

BUT be forewarned that if you don't like the decor on Spirit, you'll likely like the decor less on the older ships because they are older and things are getting a bit dingy. Many of us overlook this just as we overlook the scratches and stains on loved furniture at home, but at home I'm not spending as much per day, so even I (Ms. Walmart and home decor by Sears) notices it.

 

Whisper/Shadow remain my favourite. The nicer bathrooms, a few more/larger venues, a bit more space to walk around. IMHO the best CD is normally found on the Wind and making her worth choosing just to have a chance to experience him.

 

Buffets (except galley dinners or pool bbq nights) are never part of the dinner experience on SS. The ships are too small for that.

 

Our next cruise is Crystal (for the itinerary but also due to my annoyance at the cutbacks at SS) and it will be interesting for us to try out the larger ship. In many ways I'm looking forward to all the options available due to the higher passenger count (book club, guest choir, etc.) But I remain concerned I'll miss my SS cabin space for those days when I've had social-overload and just want to hibernate on my own, and I know I'll miss the varied tables each night at dinner.

[tripperva]

The Baggy review mentions the lack of good news channels on The Spirit.We have found that true on other SS ships,most recently the Cloud.They should really spend a little more and provide a couple of widely watched networks. The review also mentions the late start to evening shows.We agree. I think more pax would attend and enjoy the entertainment if they started earlier.

Tripperva

[Catlover54]

Where did you see the review?.....can't find it

 

Baggy's review is here:

 

http://www.cruisecritic.com/memberreviews/memberreview.cfm?EntryID=272220

 

For unclear reasons, "reviews" by members are not listed when you click on "posts by" the member. You can find reviews by starting at the CC home page, then looking up "reviews" by cruise line and the ship, and the reviews then appear in reverse chronological order. Sometimes you can also find them by doing a general search on Cruisecritic by member name.

 

CC does not have the most user-friendly websit design, and inability to comment or ask Qs on th reviews such as one can on Yelp or Amazon, seems strange and limiting.

[RachelG]

I will add to a couple points which I thought of after I had written my post above.

 

I thought the selection of fruit, particularly berries, on the breakfast buffet was very lacking. Only berry was strawberry. They were good, but not there every day. No blueberries, raspberries or blackberries. I realize they are more perishable, but still would expect to see them occasionally.

 

Also thought the yogurt selection was poor. There was no unsweetened yogurt, Greek or regular, at all. I do not eat sweetened yogurt, and yogurt is what I eat most days for breakfast. So I had to substitute bacon (haha). Also no cottage cheese, which is what I have had in the past if the ship did not have plain yogurt. Plain yogurt and cottage cheese are not exotic or expensive items. They should have had them.

 

We did not have any issues with getting our inroom fridge properly stocked with what we want. They had the carafes of water in there at first, but our butler was happy to bring us regular bottled water after we asked.

[Baggywrinkle99]

Ah yes, the yogurt problem. We like it plain and unsweetened too but there wasn't any. This is a simple, basic, long shelf-life, cheap item. The breakfast buffet selection, and lunch for that matter, was more or less the same every day. And I'm still puzzled why one had to place a special order for toast which arrived several minutes after my poached eggs had gone cold waiting for it.

 

I saw a lot of cost cutting with the food and menus generally. We don't expect large portions as we don't have huge appetites and hate the waste of plates groaning with food we probably won't be able to eat; but we do like what we are served to be decent quality and well cooked and presented and too often it wasn't. Maybe they were catering more for the older demographic who prefer more "traditional" fare and who I'm sure would have complained long and loud about too much "fancy" food, eg, unsweetened yogurt! :D

 

Speaking as a diabetic trying to manage it via diet and exercise I find I'm a lot more aware of the amount of sugar in cruise food generally (not just Silversea). Everything tastes sweet to me, or maybe I'm more sensitive to it now I've eliminated it from my diet at home.

[spinnaker2]

Gotta say we have not had the berry issue. They have always been plentiful and of several varieties, except on both expedition cruises when we did run out towards the end.

I haven't seen the bacon yogurt Rachel, but it sounds interesting.

Also I realize we don't eat in the MDR at all, except on rare occasions. I find the room cavernous and impersonal, but felt the same on regent.

[Emtbsam]

There were blackberries, blue berries and raspberries available but you had to ask for them. While this may annoy some people, it did ensure that each time you got them, they were in perfect condition and had not been mauled by other passengers. They are a fragile commodity, and IMHO, better served in that manner. On that topic, while the berries were not visibly available, there was a selection of other specialty fruits such as rambutan and star fruit which was very special for us and unusual to have on board.

 

Jumbled service, whether due to poor management or poor language skills, or both continues to be my single biggest gripe with Silversea.

[Baggywrinkle99]

Agree. At any given dining venue (and some lounges/bars) staff seemed to be "busy doing nothing". Sitting on the aft veranda outside the Panorama Lounge we lost count of the times we had to go inside to the bar and ask for a coffee, beer, water, etc. because a waiter never showed up. On Seabourn, Crystal and Regent, by contrast, one almost has to shoo waiters away as they constantly patrol their domains making sure guests have everything they need.

[spinnaker2]

As many post what seems to be constructive criticism, consensus and thoughtful suggestions, one has to wonder if Silversea reads the posts and/or puts any stock in them.

I did mention something (which was in fact a very positive comment) that I read on CC to the HD who told me he didn't read anything on CC because it was too upsetting in the sense that the postings were inconsistent. I also asked the person with whom I first arranged cruises, and an employee of Silversea, if she had read something on CC that was posted which concerned the poor inspection rating. She said that she ignored CC and didn't bother reading it. So maybe that was said to mollify me, or it's the party line, but if they aren't reading the posts, shame on them. There seems to be much "food" for thought in these posts.

[UKCruiseJeff]

As many post what seems to be constructive criticism, consensus and thoughtful suggestions, one has to wonder if Silversea reads the posts and/or puts any stock in them.

I did mention something (which was in fact a very positive comment) that I read on CC to the HD who told me he didn't read anything on CC because it was too upsetting in the sense that the postings were inconsistent. I also asked the person with whom I first arranged cruises, and an employee of Silversea, if she had read something on CC that was posted which concerned the poor inspection rating. She said that she ignored CC and didn't bother reading it. So maybe that was said to mollify me, or it's the party line, but if they aren't reading the posts, shame on them. There seems to be much "food" for thought in these posts.

 

It speaks volumes that an HD would tell a customer that they ignore feedback on places like CC and don't even bother reading it. If the comments are inconsistent then perhaps the service delivery is inconsistent. Things shouldn't be a lottery. IT speaks volumes. They should be seeking out and listening to dissatisfied customers whether grumpy or inconsistent or not.

 

This means that they are not interested in how customers are talking to each other about a product he has primary responsibility for delivering through his staff, nor is he interested in how customers compare his product with other products and talk to other customers about it. He should be fired for both being so disinterested and for telling a customer he (she) is. Being so disengaged and telling customers that their opinions are ignored isn't good. How bad can management get.

 

I thought Baggywrinkle99's review read as being from a well balanced person who was being un-emotive and factual which couldn't have been easy to do. It was a very bad read. I was just surprised to see a 3 out of 5 rating.

Edited February 28, 2015 by UKCruiseJeff

[Observer]

I too found Baggie's review to be well-balanced and unemotional. That review summarized many of the issues that have made Silversea a less and less viable cruise option for me recently. I too have been told by a Fort Lauderdale-based Silversea employee that they give no credence to Cruise Critic posts or reviews.

[TLCOhio]

It speaks volumes that an HD would tell a customer that they ignore feedback on places like CC and don't even bother reading it.

 

First, wanted to thank RachelG and others from the postings from these various New Zealand and Australia sites and the many visuals and details. It brings back nice memories from our "down under" adventure from a year ago in this wonderful part of the world. Appreciate this sharing.

 

Second, Jeff makes a reference that nobody with Silversea pays attention to Cruise Critic postings. Now sure that is totally and always true. From our just-completed, 26-day Silver Cloud sailing, I was doing a live/blog and got much, very detailed feed-back from the Hotel Director and other top officers during our cruise. This included that people back at the SS Headquarters had been following closely what I was posting, etc. I will not now go into all of the details shared with me, but there is a strong awareness about what is being post on social media about their ships, the service quality, etc. Clearly, they feel a "frustration" as these various OPINIONS expressed are just that. Opinions!!

 

Not everyone agrees with ALL of these varied views. If I had followed and believed all of the various comments on Silversea and the Silver Cloud, we might not have taken these two cruise segments. Then, we would have missed some tremendously positive and enjoyable experiences. My sense/guess is that Silversea does follow many of these Cruise Critic posts. But, they are focused first and foremost on the detailed questionnaire forms completed by customers at the end of each sailing. That feed-back is really important to them and what they do and adjust for the future. Also on small ships such as Silversea has, the top staff can get closer to their customers, hear and evaluate comments in a better manner than is done by the top staff on larger ships.

 

With successful businesses, you must listen to customers, but you need to keep it "ALL" in proper perspective regarding certain "squeaky wheels". Some complainers bring up solid, legitimate points, but others just like to be sour and negative.

 

The challenge? Sort out what is important and needing attention versus the "noise" that always happens out there.

 

THANKS! Enjoy! Terry in Ohio

 

Enjoyed a 14-day, Jan. 20-Feb. 3, 2014, Sydney to Auckland adventure, getting a big sampling for the wonders of "down under” before and after this cruise. Go to:

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1974139

for many pictures from this great part of the world. Now at 100,038 views for this posting.

 

From our Jan. 25-Feb. 20, 2015, Amazon River-Caribbean combo back-to-back sailing on the Silver Cloud, here is the link below to that series of posts on my live/blog. Now at over 16,800 views for these postings. Check it out at:

http://www.boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2157696

[UKCruiseJeff]

First, wanted to thank RachelG and others from the postings from these various New Zealand and Australia sites and the many visuals and details. It brings back nice memories from our "down under" adventure from a year ago in this wonderful part of the world. Appreciate this sharing.

 

Second, Jeff makes a reference that nobody with Silversea pays attention to Cruise Critic postings. Now sure that is totally and always true. From our just-completed, 26-day Silver Cloud sailing, I was doing a live/blog and got much, very detailed feed-back from the Hotel Director and other top officers during our cruise. This included that people back at the SS Headquarters had been following closely what I was posting, etc. I will not now go into all of the details shared with me, but there is a strong awareness about what is being post on social media about their ships, the service quality, etc. Clearly, they feel a "frustration" as these various OPINIONS expressed are just that. Opinions!!

 

Not everyone agrees with ALL of these varied views. If I had followed and believed all of the various comments on Silversea and the Silver Cloud, we might not have taken these two cruise segments. Then, we would have missed some tremendously positive and enjoyable experiences. My sense/guess is that Silversea does follow many of these Cruise Critic posts. But, they are focused first and foremost on the detailed questionnaire forms completed by customers at the end of each sailing. That feed-back is really important to them and what they do and adjust for the future. Also on small ships such as Silversea has, the top staff can get closer to their customers, hear and evaluate comments in a better manner than is done by the top staff on larger ships.

 

With successful businesses, you must listen to customers, but you need to keep it "ALL" in proper perspective regarding certain "squeaky wheels". Some complainers bring up solid, legitimate points, but others just like to be sour and negative.

 

The challenge? Sort out what is important and needing attention versus the "noise" that always happens out there.

 

THANKS! Enjoy! Terry in Ohio

 

Enjoyed a 14-day, Jan. 20-Feb. 3, 2014, Sydney to Auckland adventure, getting a big sampling for the wonders of "down under” before and after this cruise. Go to:

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1974139

for many pictures from this great part of the world. Now at 100,038 views for this posting.

 

From our Jan. 25-Feb. 20, 2015, Amazon River-Caribbean combo back-to-back sailing on the Silver Cloud, here is the link below to that series of posts on my live/blog. Now at over 16,800 views for these postings. Check it out at:

http://www.boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2157696

 

Terry,

 

I think that in yet another thread you are having problems reading what was actually said.

 

I did not say nobody in SS pays attention to CC postings. You even falsely used quotation marks. I was simply passing comment on the specific spinnaker2 post was said to her by a couple of individuals. It is important to read things before replying to them so as you do not misrepresent them and go off on a tangent.

 

You clearly feel that you have some expertise in customer satisfaction programmes. However, you need to differentiate what you do as a customer with your particular needs in choosing a cruise and a cruise line and how you make a balanced decision - and what you have the luxury of ignoring - compared to what a cruiseline needs to do with all of the information available in order to reduce defections and to gain from other lines. This isn't about complacency or about being balanced this is about being appreciative of good news but placing most of your attention on negative feedback. Perhaps you cannot grasp this because you see no important problems.

 

What is important to "Terry" in terms of his needs, and priorities and the choices that are important to you and your wife - and what has produced a very clear delight with the product and a loyal customer - may not be right for all of their other customers. You are one customer the others are thousands and thousands. In essence they can ignore you for the time being. Having - for example 80% of your customers satisfied would not be something you should be content with. Not even 90%.

 

In an over-simplified summary they do not need to listen to their satisfied customers because they are presumably loyal customers, they need to spend more time listening to dissatisfied customers in order to learn what they need to focus on. This process does not require being balanced but instead spending time listening carefully to causes of dissatisfaction and disappointment. Telling Spin that the people she spoke to don't bother was the point of my post.

 

Jeff

Edited February 28, 2015 by UKCruiseJeff

[TLCOhio]

Terry, I think that in yet another thread you are having problems reading what was actually said. I did not say nobody in SS pays attention to CC postings. You even falsely used quotation marks. I was simply passing comment on the specific spinnaker2 post was said to her by a couple of individuals. It is important to read things before replying to them so as you do not misrepresent them and go off on a tangent. You clearly feel that you have some expertise in customer satisfaction programmes. However, you need to differentiate what you do as a customer with your particular needs in choosing a cruise and a cruise line and how you make a balanced decision - and what you have the luxury of ignoring - compared to what a cruiseline needs to do with all of the information available in order to reduce defections and to gain from other lines. This isn't about complacency or about being balanced this is about being appreciative of good news but placing most of your attention on negative feedback. Perhaps you cannot grasp this because you see no important problems. What is important to "Terry" in terms of his needs, and priorities and the choices that are important to you and your wife - and what has produced a very clear delight with the product and a loyal customer - may not be right for all of their other customers. You are one customer the others are thousands and thousands. In essence they can ignore you for the time being. Having - for example 80% of your customers satisfied would not be something you should be content with. Not even 90%. In an over-simplified summary they do not need to listen to their satisfied customers because they are presumably loyal customers, they need to spend more time listening to dissatisfied customers in order to learn what they need to focus on. This process does not require being balanced but instead spending time listening carefully to causes of dissatisfaction and disappointment. Telling Spin that the people she spoke to don't bother was the point of my post. Jeff

 

YES, Jeff, you are correct that I should have been a little more precise about the original viewpoint/comment coming from someone else and not you. Correctly, you have brought up many other valid points about the challenges for how to do and evaluate customer opinions, ratings, etc.

 

Professionally, over the many years, I have done over 450 public opinion surveys, plus about 250 different focus groups. There is a mix of "science" and "art" to measure customer satisfaction and future needs/interests. The biggest challenge? Asking the right questions!!! I have not studied all of the "instruments" used by Silversea. I just wanted to share that Silversea does pay serious attention to customer evaluations. And, in a growing way, social media is on their radar in certain ways. Does SS do it perfectly and make everyone happy? No!! BUT, my information and experience says it is of importance to them. They seem to take these opportunities to learn more fairly seriously.

 

My view? Don't be shy when on the ship. Tell and/or ask during your cruise about any of your concerns, needs, suggestions and/or interests. AND, express your opinions on those Silversea evaluation questionnaires.

 

THANKS! Enjoy! Terry in Ohio

 

For details and visuals, etc., from our July 1-16, 2010, Norway Coast/Fjords/Arctic Circle cruise experience from Copenhagen on the Silver Cloud, check out this posting. This posting is now at 172,810 views.

http://www.boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1227923

[UKCruiseJeff]

[quote name=TLCOhio;45774063

Professionally' date=' over the many years, I have done over 450 public opinion surveys, plus about 250 different focus groups. There is a mix of "science" and "art" to measure customer satisfaction and future needs/interests. The biggest challenge? Asking the right questions!!! I have not studied all of the "instruments" used by Silversea. I just wanted to share that Silversea does pay serious attention to customer evaluations. And, in a growing way, social media is on their radar in certain ways. Does SS do it perfectly and make everyone happy? No!! BUT, my information and experience says it is of importance to them. They seem to take these opportunities to learn more fairly seriously.

 

Thanks for your observations.

 

You might remember an earlier exchange we had about my interest in this topic.

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showpost.php?p=45126486&postcount=12

[tripperva]

Yes, but on those questionaires, THEY choose the questions.

[UKCruiseJeff]

Yes, but on those questionaires, THEY choose the questions.

 

We're you not given a space to provide open-ended comments? These would have been read, coded, counted and analysed.

 

When we were involved the owner had just spent three days in Monaco with his management team and had read the comments from memory for the previous month. You can be reassured at least then that he was obsessed with customer feedback. But that was then and now is now.

 

In terms of the closed numerically rated questions for SS we devised the whole questionnaire without interference having understood the main elements that should be measured and understood and the company did not delete or change any. They did however ask to add some and our problem was to keep it's length manageable so that response rates weren't compromised. They were seeking and paying for expertise and impartiality. A component clause in all of our contracts was also that the client senior exec could not delegate feedback down the line but the had to personally receive the results and feedback and recommendations face to face so as the information wasn't tainted or compromised by management down the line. It was always uncompromisingly and cuttingly direct and often uncomfortable but that is what sensible organisations pay for.

 

In all of the other major programmes we designed they were unique in that the closed questions were minimal but the opportunity for open ended answers was the key feature. Consultancies don't like this and avoid it because it is labour intensive to read and code and create new codes on the fly. The benefits are however that the customer talks about the issues that are important to them in their own words. Therefore the respondent was in virtually complete control over what feedback was given.

 

What the current situation is with SS I'm afraid I do not know. Bit whatever it is, it doesn't appear to be working.

[drron29]

Then again some people at SS do read and take notice of CC.Aboard the Explorer most of the Expedition crew do as often I will be told things about my cruise reports.I remember well on our Reykjavik to Churchill cruise being taken aside and being asked how I knew SS were getting another Expedition ship.It was actually known by many on board.

In the past some in more senior roles did read CC.Whether that happens now who knows.

[Baggywrinkle99]

As a way of gauging customer satisfaction (or otherwise) those end of cruise surveys are of little use and I doubt the mysterious "management" pays them much heed. If the responses are even entered into some kind of database I suspect that's as far as it's goes. They may deny checking CC or other similar forums but I bet they do - everybody wants to know what people are saying about them on the Internet!

 

I think a lot of the issues we and apparently others experienced on this cruise could have been dealt with there and then with the active intervention of an approachable onboard management, ie, the hotel director and cruise director, neither of whom made any effort to engage with their guests except maybe a few SS regulars or VIPs. Presumably these people are perfectly happy with the SS product and won't have much to complain about. But SS newbies like us might have some useful, more objective input? It's amazing what you can find out if you actually show an interest. It's all very well for the hotel manager to say "my door is always open" and it was - but he was never at his desk! I couldn't even tell you what he looked like.

 

As for the invisible CD, he is literally the life and soul of a cruise. It's a difficult job but a good CD can make ALL the difference and there are some really great CDs out there, eg, the incomparable Handre (Seabourn), Paul McFarland (Crystal), Ray Solaire or Jamie Logan (Regent).

 

I'm usually pretty good at picking up "vibes" and as I said in my review, this was not a happy ship and I sensed (and sometimes saw) a lot of chaotic management, unhappy staff and general disorganisation. My sense is that Head Office is leaning hard on operations personnel to cut costs and pare back service and hope the customers don't notice. Sorry, but we did.

 

And with that I'd like to apologise for hijacking Rachel's thread! If this discussion is going to continue maybe I should start a new thread too? It would be easier for Silversea to spot! ;)

Edited February 28, 2015 by Baggywrinkle99

[spinnaker2]

Point of clarification.

I never said that no one reads the reports on CC.

I mentioned two experiences I had regarding this website and its commentaries with two people who were affiliated with Silversea.

My remarks were in the context that people on this website are making comments and reviews that one would hope are being read and taken to heart.

I don't necessarily share all of the perceptions of the CC members, but that is irrelevant.

One would also hope that the onboard questionnaire was used ( it is given out mid cruise and at the end) and that if warranted, an in person discussion with a Silversea crew member who could assist and rectify the situation at the time and place of the "problem" would also take place. I have found that the crew are extremely receptive with assistance on any issue " in the moment", and it gets fixed.

And DrRon, you are so right, I know that my interim comment reports were read when I was on the Discoverer, as the HD came up to me to discuss them. That's fine and appropriate.

I also have a mouth and I am not afraid to express my thoughts and have done so. When I have an issue with something, I know who the people are to approach and to discuss it with, and attempt to have it fixed.

There are channels to use whilst en voyage. I supposed in the spirit ( no pun intended) of equity, I should have stated that in my own humble opinion, I would hope that an opportunity to mitigate issues be given at the time the problem arose.