Refurbishment of Explorer

[UKCruiseJeff]

As reported, the ship was late out of dry dock, but that was not the big disappointment. On arrival all passengers were taken to the theater, and waited for an hour. We were then told to go to the cabins to get life jackets. Most cabins were a disaster. Trash all over the floors including screws, mental parts, plastic bags. Bathrooms with missing mirrors, tiles,and generally so filthy that they would be unusable. We were then called to the emergency drill. After the drill, we we told to go to dinner. Ship sailed at 9:30 PM while at dinner. We finally got back to the cabins at 10:00. Electrical crews and plumbing crews working in the halls. Trash piled throughout the ship. Got the cabin where we could sleep in it a little after midnight.

 

The crew and passengers were crying with the conditions. To be clear, the crew was doing all they could, this was a management decision that put passengers on a ship that should not have sailed.

 

Will post more later.

 

Very poor.

 

So instead of informing customers before they leave home and offer them some choices ie cancelling etc they let them all roll up and then tell them once they have arrived that they have lost two days of a cruise, and then put them on an unfinished sub-standard ship.

[Stumblefoot]

Very poor.

 

So instead of informing customers before they leave home and offer them some choices ie cancelling etc they let them all roll up and then tell them once they have arrived that they have lost two days of a cruise, and then put them on an unfinished sub-standard ship.

It's absolutely appalling. Based on what AA Flier has described, I don't believe that I would have stayed on board. It's completely unfair to the passengers.

[tgh]

I am surprised that Jeff has not commented along these lines..

The company exhibits all the hallmarks of death throes.

It's a big operation and will take a bit to implode, but all the signs are there.

Management in chaos and an owner who is perhaps a little too far apart and demands a little too high a dividend.

We were "suckered" (or add your adjective) into a 12 month in advance booking, and one concern was that the co might roll over.

I confidently opine that our upcoming cruise in a few months will be our last on Silversea, what a pity.

[UKCruiseJeff]

The handling of this situation is important because it illuminates and exemplifies the changes we have seen lately. It is about what motivates commercial decisions when there is contention between bread today or cake tommorow.

 

If you are a company who is genuinely interested in building your long-term future on both the loyalty of your existing hard-won customers and in the protection and development of your exceptional reputation for quality and fair-dealing then difficult commercial decisions always places those long-term considerations ahead of short term tactical gain. It costs so much to build a reputation but it is so easy to lose it.

 

When a complex project over-runs it is almost never unexpected. Complex project plans with time-lines shows you immediately at various points that things are slipping. SS people will be constantly overseeing the project to ensure it is up to contractual standard and it's running on time. Their engineering and management staff will be all over the light refit and would have known in advance of project completion that it was slippng.

 

SS however took the commerical decision into what is effectively deceiving the customers by withholding material information from them and not informing them that what they had bought would not be delivered. They instead booked hotel rooms and allowed passengers to arrive like "lambs to slaughter" so that SS could take their cash and avoid revenue loss. Reputation and integrity is evidently not important. It doesn't matter that they were put up in an expensive hotel and entertained. It doesn't matter that they may offer compensation. If you care about these things you are honest with the customer as early as you can be and tell them what the problem is and let them choose whether they wish to continue or "abandon ship". That is the best choice. Being honest and straight and in that way you might have dissapointment but no one has been suckered.

 

To compound that by allowing them on an unfinished craft just increases the impression of a company who simply doesn't care what their customers think about them.

 

Sadly it isn't going to harm SS. That is because they have proved to themsleves that there will always be customers that will buy the hype and false quality claims. There will always be others to replace those they lose. That is what SS are clearly relying on and sadly they are from the comments of many we read here about how wonderful they are, are probably right.

 

 

I am surprised that Jeff has not commented along these lines..

The company exhibits all the hallmarks of death throes.

It's a big operation and will take a bit to implode, but all the signs are there.

Management in chaos and an owner who is perhaps a little too far apart and demands a little too high a dividend.

We were "suckered" (or add your adjective) into a 12 month in advance booking, and one concern was that the co might roll over.

I confidently opine that our upcoming cruise in a few months will be our last on Silversea, what a pity.

Edited May 26, 2017 by UKCruiseJeff

[Fletcher]

That's shocking AA-flier. Please keep us all updated, especially regarding Silversea's idea of compensation. I'd expect, at the least, a full refund or a free cruise but might settle for a BOGOF with free flights.

 

I'm always aware that the day you board a cruise ship the most important thing in the Captain's mind is reaching the next changeover port on time. I guess that Silversea couldn't keep the Explorer in Lisbon any longer if they were to get to Portsmouth on 8 June.

[AA-Flier]

Things are getting better. We still have electrical and plumbing outside staff on board, but they are making progress.

 

I think one of the troubling aspects, is that the passengers are being required to be SS quality control on the cabins. It was apparent that the hotel management had no idea on the condition of the cabins. Just before we were able to see the cabins the hotel manager said he expected that "minor adjustments would be needed".

 

Compensation started at $1000 off a future cruise, then increased to $2000, and today they offered a refund of 1/2 of the fare. Over 80 passengers signed a letter to SS management asking compensation rather than future cruise credit.

[UKCruiseJeff]

Good to see things are improving.

 

I suggest that you ensure that as many as seem practical start exchanging email details to pool and share stuff snd be seen by management doing so.

 

Good luck, and I hope the improvement continues.

 

 

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[Stumblefoot]

Thanks for the update AA-Flier.

 

I know that if I had never sailed Silversea before, I certainly wouldn't want a future cruise credit either. While a refund of 1/2 of the current fare sounds enticing, I guess it really boils down to how much of a disruption it has been. For me, in addition to the refund, I'd also ask for a discount off a future voyage as well. Even with a 50% refund and discount off a future voyage, Silversea will com out ahead financially by choosing to inconvenience passengers as they did, rather than cancelling the voyage completely.

[UKCruiseJeff]

It actually depends more on a combination of which country you made your booking as consumer protection varies widely and the risk SS management perceive in not offering acceptable settlements. In EU and Oz for example inexpensive court actions could result in totals that when combined ie reimbursement and compensation elements. These two elements could exceed 100% of the cruise cost depending on a number of factors. Compensation might include dissapointment, vexation aggrevation and inconvenience, and maybe loss of annual vacation time.

 

That is why I suggested they are seen to be exchanging details. ;)

[rojaan19]

AA-Flier who is the Hotel Manager and Expedition Leader on board at present. And who is making these offers to you and are they done personally one to one or done at the recap in the Theatre ?

 

How much longer have you got on board ? And can you post any photos ?

[drron29]

What a shambles.Totally unacceptable.

They could have still sailed to Portsmouth with the work force on board to have things ready for the next segment but to expect passengers to put up with that is the ultimate in stupidity.A full refund plus something extra is the least that should be expected.

 

What a contrast to the experience on the Shadow in May 2011.It was a little over 2 months after the Sendai tsunami.SS were proactive and advised within days that the cruise was now going to depart from Incheon instead of Tokyo.You could cancel and get a full refund or now depart Incheon.It made little difference to the cruise with an extra sea day instead of a visit to Hakodate.

However we also got extra compensation-several times the only additional cost of a flight from Narita to Incheon.

On top of that the then head of the Venetian Society,Mark Flager,came on the cruise and I believe talked to most passengers-over the cruise we spent several hours with him.That cemented our loyalty.

 

tgh we have 4 cruises booked on the Explorer in 2018 and we are still going.All paid by CC so if SS falls over we will be doing chargebacks.It is still our favourite ship and next years itineraries are a welcome change for us.

[tgh]

I agree , the PAII is easily our favourite ship .

The apparent chaos of mangement is a stark contrast to the general run of wonderful staff who still manage that easy relaxed service that has built a fantastic base of loyal customers.

Sadly the loyalty appears to be utilised as insurance collateral for incompetent management.

 

PAII ??? I never accepted the insulting name change and opine that this , among other decisions, started the rot.

[AA-Flier]

To answer a few questions and try to do a review.

 

The offer letter of compensation came from Roberto Martinoli, SS CEO.

 

Conditions on the ship are much, much better. Frank Sansone Director of Guest Relations is now on board, and he talking to passengers about the problems.

 

I think the cabins turned out very good, they have an updated color skeme, very large HD TV, integrated headboard, and LED lighting. The rainihead shower has good volume. The only two things that I see as negatives are both related to the shower 1) the shower drainage does not keep up with the amount of water generated from the rainhead fixture 2) The glass on the shower enclosure should have been wider, the shower opening is actually wider than the bathroom door. It is very hard to take a shower without getting water on the main bathroom floor.

 

The update on the public areas are great. I asked passengers that had been on the ship before,what they thought - very positive comments,the only negative regarded some barrel chairs in lounges that used to be couches, they wanted the couches back.

[Stumblefoot]

Glad to hear that Frank Sansone is on board. I've heard great things from many who have dealt directly with him.

[drron29]

Do you know if the Medallion and Silver suites still have a tub?

[WesW]

bsugar, thanks for starting this thread.

 

rojaan16, PaulMCO, and AA-Flier thanks for providing us first hand Explorer refurb reports. Paul, speaking of the NWP & smiles--we wlll be smiling too if SS offers the NWP

in July/Aug 2019.

 

AA-Flier, sorry to hear about your unacceptable embark experience. Sincerely appreciate you taking the time to keep us posted (Ugly, bad & good).

[Erica@cruisecritic]

Curious if there are any updates to the Silver Explorer situation and compensation offered? Silversea still hasn't sent out an official release about the refurbishment and I wonder if they're waiting until everything is settled onboard.

[jpalbny]

In another four months I'll be able to report. Can't wait!

 

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[RachelG]

Curious if there are any updates to the Silver Explorer situation and compensation offered? Silversea still hasn't sent out an official release about the refurbishment and I wonder if they're waiting until everything is settled onboard.

We will be onboard in August. Hopefully the refurbishment will have happened by then. Explorer was significantly in need of an update last time we were onboard, and that was 2 years ago.

[jpalbny]

We will be onboard in August. Hopefully the refurbishment will have happened by then. Explorer was significantly in need of an update last time we were onboard, and that was 2 years ago.

If they're not done by August that will be a disappointment. Hope it's done now! Looking forward to your report.

 

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[rojaan19]

AND I will be waiting for both of you to post some photos PLEASE !!!!!!!!! :D

[RachelG]

AND I will be waiting for both of you to post some photos PLEASE !!!!!!!!! :D

definitely plan to take you on a photo tour of the ship!

[Erica@cruisecritic]

FYI...from Silversea:

 

Managersof the cruise ship “Silver Explorer” (6057 grt) report that on departing thePort of Pembroke in winds of 30 knots and strong currents, the vessel madecontact with the Traynor Harbour buoy. As a result, the port propeller becameentangled with the buoy’s cable/chain which caused the M/E to overheat. The SilverExplorer returned to Pembroke Dock Ferry terminal and later to her berth inthe Pembroke Port by 1420 hrs escorted by harbour tugs. Divers then freed thepropeller and carried out a full inspections finding no damage, as reported bythe Milford Haven Coast Guard. There was no pollution and no injuries caused asa result of this incident. The Silver Explorer has been cleared tocontinue on passage.

[WesW]

Thank you Erica for the timely Explorer update.

[Silver Spectre]

Thank you Erica for the timely Explorer update.

 

 

 

+1

 

 

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