Silver Moon Iceland 17 August Trip Blog

[LDaQuirm]

Day 0 Travel Day

Manchester to Keflavik Icelandair

Check in was a bit chaotic as Saga Premium lane was marked with an Etihad Business sign which most of us ignored. Fortunately we got speaking to a seasoned traveller who put us right. The flight however was great drink service, with gin menu for my wife and Icelandic beers for me. The meal, smoked lamb was inventive, the crew attentive, the seat comfortable and better than BA short haul Club Europe.

[jpalbny]

Really liked the G&T menu last time we flew Saga Class - glad to know it's still there. Enjoy your trip!

[LDaQuirm]

Day 0 Transfer

Transit through the airport was exceptionally smooth I always feel a bit guilty when staff hold the economy passengers as we debark though. A bit of a trek to passport control but no queue when we get there and they are obviously investing a lot. 

 

Silversea agents were waiting for us and we had a short wait for one other couple. As usual the vehicle was a little small for cruise passengers luggage he did Jenga it all in just! Unfortunately this meant my leg room was a bit compromised but it's a short trip.

 

There's the rub, we've been put in Hotel Berg Keflavik not the City Centre Reykjavik hotel the SS site promotes. Despite being early bookers we didn't make the grade and even appealing to Barbara Mukermann didn't help, plenty of excuses about allocations and Reykjavik being busy, this is not our first let down by SS for pre/post cruise. Also the Berg is not 4/5 star it's 3 at best and much cheaper. I'm sure they could have thought out of the box on this and booked hotels directly as spaces were available.

[LDaQuirm]

Day 0 Hotel Berg & Keflavik 

As said this is not a what we'd expect as a 4* Hotel the rooms are basic the beds look unmade (the fitted sheets are too small) and lack what we see as essentials like safes, despite them being mentioned in their advertising they only come in suites. The towels are thin. I guess it could be Scandi style but only having one chair was annoying. The room was also very very warm and we had to jerry rig a way of keeping the window open .. 

 

Staff were friendly though we did manage to get extra pillows for the bed. Its basically clean unless you look closely or under the bed..

 It'll be a 3 on TripAdvisor.. 

 

There is not much to do in Keflavik! We took a wander up the main street and had a few cocktails at The Library in the Park Inn, it was Happy Hour so they were about £7.50 each, well made and friendly staff. 

 

 

Edited August 17, 2023 by LDaQuirm
Grammer

[LDaQuirm]

Day 0 Dinner Rain

Keflavik has a few well rated dining venues and we chose to try Rain with it's great sea views. We were not disappointed.

 

The food was inventive my wife had Blue Ling and I had the Lamb both were tasty and came well presented we then shared two desserts the Chocolate Lava cake was fantastic but the real surprise was the liquorice and frangipan mousse it shouldn't work but it does! We had a bottle of wine (not cheap in Iceland) and the total came to £118 which we felt was fine for location, quality of food and excellent service and pacing. 

[LDaQuirm]

A few Keflavik pictures and apologies to those who noticed Grammar not Grammer I'm doing this on my phone! 

[spinnaker2]

Looking forward to your updates!

[LDaQuirm]

Day 1 Embarkation

 

Breakfast at The Berg was interesting the food itself is nice but it is a tight squeeze in the dining space especially when full! We arranged for 1500 isk to keep our room until noon and headed down to reception for 12:30 departure. In fact we were all on the coach and on our way for 12:15.

 

We got some interesting commentary on the coach which kept us entertained until we reached the port, Hafnarfjörður not Reykjavik.

 

Here things got interesting as there weren't enough people staying at The Berg we didn't warrant luggage tags or medical forms. We needed to collect them from a tent on the quay as it was raining we were advised to stay on our coach and then watched the people on the coach following us get off and form a queue! We then mutinied and got off and queued..

 

I'm sorry Silversea irrespective of where you have put people we should get equal treatment watching passengers from the inner city hotels who had tags and porterage strolling directly to collect their room cards made us feel somewhat second class.

 

However boarding did start early and we were onboard before 2 and even better our suites were ready for us, JP the cruise director even tipped us off as he came past on his way to make that announcement! 

[LDaQuirm]

Day 1 Onboard

In a change from our usual experiences there were a number of restaurants open and we'd decided because it was a little wet and cold to try Atlantide for lunch, and nice it was, if I had one criticism there was maybe too much butter in the mash on the shepherds pie! 

 

We then did our safety film, unpacked, met our room steward and butler and settled in. The only downside of our cabin being a bit of a urine pong from the bathroom which has yet to be rectified.

 

After hanging about in La Dolce Vita for life boat drill we headed to Salt Bar for drinks and we got in! The cocktails were great but we only had one each as we were due at La Terrazza .. 

 

This is our normal first night venue and it met expectations, we did trip them up on our starters as we wanted to share one and it came out for me alongside my wife's pasta course but probably we shouldn't try be clever! The food was nice, the lasagna a little lacking in substance but my wife said it tasted good, my steak was soft and tasty but the sauce needed more oomph.

 

We got Limoncello with our dessert and then headed out intending on an early night; but we were seduced by some smooth tunes coming out of Silver Note, so ended up drinking a few more Limoncellos at the bar there listening to the singer/guitarist play some popular numbers.. It was the jazz musicians night off... 

[LDaQuirm]

Day 2 Patreksfjörður

 

Our plan to breakfast early in our room almost didn't work out as our poor butler was a bit late, he has more rooms than normal to look after a trait we're starting to see on Silversea. Fortunately there was still time for us to enjoy before we headed off on the tender for the bird cliff tour.

 

Be warned this is a long coach ride c1.5 hours each way over at times some rough ground. Also by this time of the year a lot of the birds have left! We did however see puffins! If not in numbers, our tour guide was knowledgeable and scenery stunning! Btw if you want to maximise your chances there are steep climbs at the cliffs.

 

The only down side was the stop at the museum on the way back was mostly taken up by the queue for the WC! Another 15 minutes would have been great. 

 

Dinner back onboard was pizza, or for me Calzone in Spaccanapoli prompted by a post on Silversea Passengers on FB. Dessert was taken in Arts Cafe. Staff were fantastic in both.

 

After a nap we did pre dinner cocktails in Salt Bar before a wonderful meal in Salt Kitchen. Off for an early night we sidetracked via the observation lounge and the staff pointed out some Minke Whales off the bow of the ship.

[Catlover54]

I am enjoying your blog.  A few comments: 

As usual, I am envious of European cruisers who have such short (not to mention low cost) flights to so many great ports.  One could even fly coach, if bz is sold out or non-existent,  and endure the contortions,  as it is just a couple of hours. 

 

We loved Iceland!  We had flown bz class to Iceland from the U.S. a couple years ago, and even though the seats did not go flat, we enjoyed the friendly service, the food, and the gin. It is the airport in Iceland that we greatly disliked (especially coming back -- long lines, bz lounge pre-security, etc., but that is another story). 

Another concern is the shortage of WC access for tourists (the supply has not kept up with the demand over the years), as you experienced.

 

I would not have been pleased to have been assigned that motel in Keflavik on a "luxury" cruise  instead of a proper hotel in Reykjavik (even though the latter would also likely not have had AC and required window propping to get air).  

 

I really like the SALT restaurant on the Moon, and your pictures bring back fond memories.

 

". . . .

We then did our safety film, unpacked, met our room steward and butler and settled in. The only downside of our cabin being a bit of a urine pong from the bathroom which has yet to be rectified. . ."

 

What is a "urine pong"?  Is it an ongoing urine smell, a smell with flushing, or something else?

 

Thanks in advance for your blog, I know it is a lot of work.

 

[ARDXXX]

Interesting reports, we will be joining the ship next Sunday, flying from Newcastle to Amsterdam and then Iclandair to Reykjavik, we will be staying at the Radisson Blu ( according to our paperwork ) which seems as if may be a better option even though it is just overnight. The reports about the ship are handy and looking forward to the experience. We will be on until Lisbon so some nice times ahead.

[LDaQuirm]

Day 3 Siglufjörður

 

A lie in this morning! Followed by a relaxed breakfast in Atlantide, we then killed a little bit of time until our SALT Lab reservation. Now a comment here if you've booked SALT Lab turn up! It's very rude to book and not arrive on time or just not arrive. Also if wait listed check your TV. Chef was very patient and phoned around but she shouldn't have had to. However once all stations were filled we loved it!

 

Having had a big breakfast plus cod croquettes in SALT Lab 😃 we just had cookies and coffee in Arts Cafe before heading ashore for a walk around in the pretty little town before joining the Chocolate and Beer walking tour.. Which was great both in chocolate and beer plus with an excellent guide.. 

 

Back onboard our butler delivered some wonderful canapes and we enjoyed them with champagne as we prepared for formal night. 

 

All dressed up we headed for the captain's cocktail reception, what a change this captain is from our usual SSea cruises, a sense of humour and engaging manner his senior staff introductions we're great.

 

Cocktails in La Dolce Vita afterwards then dinner in Atlantide was good, very busy but we like that.

 

A final drink in SALT Bar and we were off to bed. Our butler had found some strawberry flavoured sweets for my wife which she is loving! 

 

Finally they have worked hard to reduce the smell in our toilet, it's much much less obvious now! 

[LDaQuirm]

18 hours ago, Catlover54 said:

 

What is a "urine pong"?  Is it an ongoing urine smell, a smell with flushing, or something else?

A strong ammonia like smell it is getting better, definitely not a cleaning issue as our steward is scrupulous, engineering has visited!

18 hours ago, Catlover54 said:

 

Thanks in advance for your blog, I know it is a lot of work.

 

I can't promise I'll be in depth every day but thanks!

[jpalbny]

30 minutes ago, LDaQuirm said:

A strong ammonia like smell it is getting better, definitely not a cleaning issue as our steward is scrupulous, engineering has visited!

 

Look to see if there is an overflow drain somewhere in the bathroom floor. If so, the odor may be coming from there. If so, pour a glass of water in it to fill the trap.

 

The traps in these overflow drains can dry out, because hopefully you're not flooding the bathroom floor on a regular basis. When they dry out, unpleasant smells can come through. 

 

Might not be the case in your suite but worth a look.

 

ETA I learned this from a poster on another forum who I think must have a background is shipbuilding. His knowledge of how the innards of ships are put together is astonishing. I think his avatar is kpcheng75 but I must have remembered it imperfectly because I can't tag that name to give him proper credit.

Edited August 20, 2023 by jpalbny

[Catlover54]

4 hours ago, jpalbny said:

 

Look to see if there is an overflow drain somewhere in the bathroom floor. If so, the odor may be coming from there. If so, pour a glass of water in it to fill the trap.

 

The traps in these overflow drains can dry out, because hopefully you're not flooding the bathroom floor on a regular basis. When they dry out, unpleasant smells can come through. 

 

Might not be the case in your suite but worth a look.

 

ETA I learned this from a poster on another forum who I think must have a background is shipbuilding. His knowledge of how the innards of ships are put together is astonishing. I think his avatar is kpcheng75 but I must have remembered it imperfectly because I can't tag that name to give him proper credit.

 

I think he is chengkp75, and is on Viking forum a lot.  I believe he had been (or maybe still is ) an engineering Chief on various ships for many years, and supervised mechanical issues.  

 

[jpalbny]

2 minutes ago, Catlover54 said:

 

I think he is chengkp75, and is on Viking forum a lot.  I believe he had been (or maybe still is ) an engineering Chief on various ships for many years, and supervised mechanical issues.  

 

 

Yes! Thanks for understanding my lysdexic attempt at remembering his name. 

 

PJ

[Mr Luxury]

12 hours ago, LDaQuirm said:

A strong ammonia like smell it is getting better, definitely not a cleaning issue as our steward is scrupulous, engineering has visited!

I can't promise I'll be in depth every day but thanks!

Could it be an aim issue?

[Tothesunset]

9 hours ago, jpalbny said:

 

Yes! Thanks for understanding my lysdexic attempt at remembering his name. 

 

PJ

It's really mean that dyslexia is such a hard word to spell. 

[LDaQuirm]

2 hours ago, Mr Luxury said:

Could it be an aim issue?

Fortunately it was there before I used it or my wife would have said that!

[LDaQuirm]

Day 4 Akureyi 

 

Docked in port today, and had a simple breakfast in the suite all good our butler wasn't quite as overworked! 

 

We then headed out on the 8 hour Jewels of the North tour, it was misty to start but as we came over the mountain pass the sun came out, but this is Iceland so throughout the day we had many types of weather! 

 

Our first stop at the false craters made us glad we'd researched and brought midge nets to cover our heads it is the Lake of Midges after all! It was then off for lunch at 11 am! This was way too early and while the food was fine they failed to serve the drinks with the meal meaning people had to choose between the walk around the lava columns or getting a drink.. Not good, also our guide was quite rude and kept changing the times to meet up very confusing. She also route marched us through the columns not easy for some of the elder tour members. We probably could have spent 30 minutes less at the food stop though and certainly got there later. 

 

The next stops at the mud pools and Godfoss we're fun, although Godfoss could have been 15 minutes shorter and it finally started to rain. 

 

All in all the trip was not well paced and also the fact there were 3 other cruise ships in port probably didn't help.

 

Back onboard we had room service treats of spring rolls, cheese and red wine as we were due to eat later. We then kicked back for a few hours.

 

Finally going out we had drinks at SALT Bar ♥️ before heading to Silver Note for what was the most disappointing meal so far, the restaurant felt under staffed we had to wait ages for wine and water and while our mains were tasty the vegetables were stone cold. Also the promised Jazz did not appear, this was the second time this cruise we've seen this happen.

 

 

[LDaQuirm]

Day 5 At Sea ☹️

Sadly we couldn't tender due to weather which meant no Whale watching or chance to get off the ship.. Breakfast was in our favourite Atlantide.

 

We settled into a reading day, swapping between The Observation Lounge, La Dolce Vita and our suite. The sea was a little unkind but we didn't lose our food! We crossed the Arctic Circle something we'd not done before.

 

We braved lunch at the Grill under the heat lamps with a little water sloshing out of the swimming pool. The burgers were well cooked but we headed to Arts Cafe for dessert and coffee..

 

The evening saw us in SALT Bar again followed by SALT Kitchen food and service was great although my poor wife's appetite was a little impaired. We retired early to our suite, sadly the ice we ordered didn't turn up so we had to drink our Disaronno neat! 

 

[LDaQuirm]

Day 6 Seydisfjordur

 

After a leisurely breakfast we headed ashore to have a wander around this lovely little town with its rainbow pathway. We then headed back to the dockside to join our Treasures of East Iceland tour which basically saw us ride over the scenic mountain pass to visit the local administrative centre, a craft shop and the small museum, the museum was great the craft shop stop maybe 10 minutes too long. On the way back we stopped at a small waterfall.

 

Back onboard we had some delicious room service spring rolls, champagne and Crème Brulé

 

At dinner we found Frederick one of our favourite SSea bar men in the pool bar! This enhanced our hot rocks experience and we ended the night catching up.

 

[LDaQuirm]

Day 7 Djúpivogur

 

Breakfast in Atlantide was followed by a bit more of a wild tender into the port where we found we'd been joined by Viking Star .. A busy crowd on the dockside we joined our nature walk.

 

This was, after an initial climb an easy amble around the outskirts of the town with a local. Plenty of local knowledge was shared. Retuning to the harbour we then wandered out to see the famous eggs .. An interesting installation the surroundings leave a little to be desired especially as they are doing some major roadworks.

 

On coming back to the harbour we found a long queue for the WC! We then had another wild tender ride back to the Moon for lunch which we chose to have in Kaiseki. The beef ramen bowl was awesome as was the sushi and service. 

 

After another leisurely afternoon we joined the Venetian Society reception then dinner in Atlantide followed, again very acceptable. We ended the evening having one too many in SALT Bar... 

 

So far this voyage is making us feel more positive towards Silversea, service is excellent, staff are smiling. The only downside is the loss of the Voices of Silversea has meant we've found evening entertainment a little lackluster.

 

[Mr Luxury]

41 minutes ago, LDaQuirm said:

Day 6 Seydisfjordur

 

After a leisurely breakfast we headed ashore to have a wander around this lovely little town with its rainbow pathway. We then headed back to the dockside to join our Treasures of East Iceland tour which basically saw us ride over the scenic mountain pass to visit the local administrative centre, a craft shop and the small museum, the museum was great the craft shop stop maybe 10 minutes too long. On the way back we stopped at a small waterfall.

 

Back onboard we had some delicious room service spring rolls, champagne and Crème Brulé

 

At dinner we found Frederick one of our favourite SSea bar men in the pool bar! This enhanced our hot rocks experience and we ended the night catching up.

 

Were the fries cold after the steak was cooked.