Small boat luxury cruises are they worth the cost? Part 4: 2019 Silversea Lisbon to Amsterdam

Note this cruise was taken before Royal Caribbean Group acquired Silversea Cruises in July 2020. Some reviews from regular SC cruisers since then have noted changes in food and inclusions. But others say they’re as good as before. So always do some research if considering booking a cruise.

Spring 2019 Silver Cloud Lisbon to Amsterdam

With one delightful Silversea expedition cruise under our belt, we happily signed up for another expedition with the company.

I love Lisbon so was more than happy to visit the city again in late spring, rather than the fierce summer heat. We were relaxed and ready to sail, after a few days staying at our favourite art deco hotel in the city.

The cruise was 12 nights/13 days with tours in Portugal, Spain, France and the Netherlands, with only the penultimate day spent at sea.

When is an expedition cruise not an expedition?

The itinerary and excursions didn’t mention zodiac rides and included only one bird watching option, so was interested to see how this ‘expedition’ cruise would play out with a full complement of expedition crew on board. This was billed as gourmet adventure through Portugal, Spain and France and had three guest chefs doing most of the heavy lifting when it came to entertaining and informing the guests.

Expedition crew gave occasional lectures (not as many as previous cruise) and were mainly relegated to manning the tour desk and accompanying some of the land trips.

The Silver Cloud

This is a true expedition vessel, used on company’s Antarctica cruises. With a passenger capacity of up to 254 passengers in non-polar regions, our European tour was at (or close to) full capacity.
This ship has a few more bells and whistles than the Silver Cloud, though is much smaller than most of the vessels used on Silversea’s other European cruises. The extra amenities included 4 restaurants (three inclusive in the price, Le Dame with a US$60 charge for a six course meal), cigar/cognac lounge, observation lounge and photo studio. There was an extra bar and DIY clothes washers and driers (as well the usual laundry options).

This slightly larger vessel also included an entertainment director (though too small to have actual shows at night, except a better than expected Galician group of young musicians).  I’ve never got into the night time lounge activities before but really enjoyed playing trivia and our talented entertainer’s musical abilities.

The cabins, bars and lounges were similar to the Silver Discoverer but a bit bigger, with up to date interiors and clean lines.

The cruise

Let’s get this out of the way from the beginning. This cruise didn’t go to plan. Unseasonably rough seas meant additional days at sea with slow progress and three missed ports! Sadly these included the two big drawcards for me – Oporto and Brittany.

I’m usually a good sailor but at least half the boat was afflicted with mal de mer. Instead of feeling a little off colour, I had 17 hours of vomiting. My sister, who is prone to seasickness, had two severe episodes requiring a shot from the ship doctor. Not a good start to a gourmet cruise. Even members of the crew with many years at sea remarked they’d not come across this particular type of rolling plus back and forward motion before.

There was only one upside to the vastly redacted itinerary, we ended up having three delightful days/two nights moored up right next to the city in Bordeaux. It was such a charming town to explore and having so much time in one place is highly unusual for a cruise.

The tours

While some of the excursions were a disappointment, as many of our personal highlights were cancelled, there were two stand outs. These included a lunch in a Michelin starred restaurant in one of the Bordeaux wine regions and a very special tour of the Guggenheim museum in Bilbao.

What made the Guggenheim extraordinary, is where luxury tours like this excel. The early start (being docked almost an hour away from the town) allowed our group entry into the museum two hours before it opened to the public. Not only could we explore the art in small groups led by expert guides, with none of the thousands of visitors that come each day, but there was also a string quartet playing exquisite music in the atrium for the entire time.

Once again, Silversea treated us like adults. The local guides were of a high calibre and group sizes small. Our art historian guide for the Bilbao trip was so knowledgeable and passionate about the art, you could tell he absolutely relished having the freedom to guide his group in a sequence that he felt best explained the works.

 

Our cruise mates on the Silver Cloud

I didn’t notice any children on this cruise, with a gourmet theme it tended to attract the over 55s. There was a strong US contingent, many obviously wealthy, spending a lot of their time cruising. There were even women travelling alone, very comfortable being both part of new groups and seeking solo time.

Despite not being the best social/political match, I surprised myself getting on with a bunch of raucous Americans who invited us to join their trivia team, when we haplessly wandered in on an after dinner game. It was so fun we made a habit of joining them most nights.

Best bits

I may have been in the minority of passengers who love contemporary art (most could not fathom the value of such confrontational pieces, despite a lecture from one of the expedition crew the day before that had valiantly attempted to prepare and educate them) but I was certainly a very happy customer that day. It really was the highpoint of the entire cruise for me.

The culinary experts, especially Will Torrent – who seemed to always be in a good mood even when feeling ill, and made the dairy intolerant passengers three stellar desserts.

As always, all the crew were amazing. Cleaners, waiters, bar staff and of course our own butler. We still felt uncomfortable about having a butler and called on him infrequently, except our standing order for a morning coffee in bed. Ah…that’s luxury!

And having a free laundry!

Not so good

While a cruise is not responsible for the weather or when the unexpected happens, it’s how they deal with it that matters. On the whole the disappointments were handled well, with perhaps one exception. With additional days at sea, the was little or no extra lectures programmed. The expedition crew, most experts in their particular area, seemed to be on holiday during this cruise. As the team been a highlight on our previous cruise, perhaps our expectations had been set too high?  

However the entertainment director* did a great job all round, including some extra afternoon trivia, for those who weren’t too indisposed to attend.

* OMG a shout out to the amazing Moss Hills, entertainment director and musician extraordinaire. Not only was he stellar in his role, had the patience of a saint and is an all round delightful person, on return I discovered he is also a bonafide hero! If you’ve not heard of his Moss Hills and the lives he saved on the Oceania in 1991 – I promise you that you’ll be amazed (and want him on every cruise).

Was this Silversea luxury small boat cruise worth the price?

“If this was my first Silversea expedition cruise, I doubt we would have taken a second one” was the feedback I gave at the end of the trip, that best sums up my experience. The Sri Lankan expedition was outstanding and perhaps set our expectations too high, as this was a very different itinerary.

The company delivered a high quality product, it’s just unfortunate that so many ports were missed and some of the expedition crew so obviously appeared to be on holiday themselves.

Read my reviews of small boat cruises:
Part 1: APT river and ocean cruising in Europe
Part 2: Aranui 5 Tahiti cruise
Part 3: Silversea across the Indian Ocean

Small boat luxury cruises are they worth the cost? Part 3: Silversea expedition Thailand to Sri Lanka

Note this cruise was taken before Royal Caribbean Group acquired Silversea Cruises in July 2020. Some reviews from regular SC cruisers since then have noted changes in food and inclusions. But others say they’re as good as before. So always do some research if considering booking a cruise.

After our previous experience with APT, a friend recommended Silversea as a ‘step up’. While a white gloved butler is not our thing, it was a particular expedition cruise itinerary that caught my eye. Could I persuade my elderly father to choose a destination a bit outside his comfort zone?

2017: Phuket to Colombo, Silver Discoverer

Sri Lanka has always been on my List. I confess it’s largely because of the food. While I lived in Melbourne there was a fantastic Sri Lankan lunch bar in the CBD and I ate there at least once a week for about 15 years.

The route took us through coastal Myanmar and the Andaman Islands and included three excursions in different parts of Sri Lanka. As we’d reach our destination a few days before Christmas, and flying anywhere in the world at that time of the year is a nightmare, we independently arranged a land trip for a week after disembarking.

The journey began in Phuket, with a seamless check in. The Silver Discoverer is the smallest in the Silversea fleet. It’s a bit less glitzy than the larger vessels but I do love a good expedition cruise. The specialist crew (about 8 or 9 of them) seemed relaxed and particularly happy that the ship was not at capacity, with only 70 or so passengers aboard.

The destinations

We woke up the next day in Myanmar with a shore visit to Kawthaung, a city close to the Thai border. We were delighted to be able to free range but there was a local guide for those that wanted a tour. Kawthaung is a bit of a wild frontier, with a busy wet market, local shops, park and elaborate Buddhist monastery atop the hill with a great view of the town.

Over the next couple of days we explored the Mergui Archipelago, an incredible, untouched part of the world. This included snorkeling (gear supplied) and white sand beaches on uninhabited islands, dawn and sunset zodiac cruises, observing the bird life and Moken fishing boats and a visit to a small village.

Through the Lampi islands in the archipelago, the expedition crew really excelled, not just with interesting lectures ranging from history, geology, marine biology, to ornithology, but as nature guides and zodiac drivers.

They were a talented and engaging bunch, generous with their time and information, making the zodiac tours incredibly interesting, while immersed in such unspoiled beauty.

The Andaman Islands were not as spectacular as Myanmar. It didn’t help that I was stung by a sea creature on one of the beach stops! As an aside, the ship’s doctor had been alerted before I got back to the ship and was fascinated by the injury, and didn’t charge me for the consult (I’d basically treated myself as being an Australian I know how to treat a jelly fish sting).

We probably could have skipped the mandatory (expensive and last minute before flying out) Indian visa that allowed us to visit Port Blair.  The historic cellular jail was rather gruesome, the museum and afternoon tea underwhelming, all set within the usual chaos of an Indian city.

The two days at sea as we cruised towards Sri Lanka were relaxed and passed quickly. Every day on Silversea cruises a lavish afternoon tea is served in the lounge. There were tours of the bridge (one of the best I’ve been on), lectures and all the wonderful meals to fill the time. I was mesmerised watching the flying fish leap in our wake.

There was a choice of tour options when we docked at Tricomalee, both requiring longish bus trips into northern Sri Lanka. I chose to climb Lion Rock and wander through the ancient rock fortress of Sirigiya, as we were returning to the area on our land tour and would get another opportunity to explore the extraordinary ruins of Polonnaruwa. Lion Rock is a busy site, with a lot of tourists (and cheeky monkeys). Sirigiya is not for the vertiginous as most of the climb is up steep steps suspended on the side of the rock. Usually the best time to visit is earlier in the morning when the weather is cool as there is no shade but luckily our late morning arrival coincided with cloud cover, so the walk was bearable. The history of the fortress is fascinating and the view worth the exertion. It was followed by our first Sri Lankan lunch at a nearby hotel, a feast that did not disappoint.

Overnight the ship headed south and the tour took us to the famous Yala National Park wildlife sanctuary. Unfortunately, it poured with rain and we didn’t see any of the leopards but a lot of elephants, birds and other wild life in our rather long and bumpy 4×4 tour. Once again, a spectacular local lunch was provided enroute.

Our final stop was in the South West with a visit to a tea plantation in Akuressa, another superb lunch feast on the beach at Unawatuna and a tour of Galle – which was cut short due to another downpour. We disembarked the next day in Colombo to continue our next adventure.

Ship life

We enjoyed our time aboard this rather small expedition ship, though it may have felt a little cramped if it was at full capacity. Meals are served in the main dining room, with a smaller lunch menu available poolside and the opportunity to book the hot rock grill their at nights. As we like eating al fresco, we’d hoped for more opportunities but to do so at night, the hot rocks offers very limited choices. Food in the dining room was first class. Alcohol is inclusive in your fare and available at all hours.

We were a little uncomfortable with having a butler (butler service comes with all cabins), though appreciated being able to order an espresso on waking. The crew were friendly and professional, and tips were included, when booked in Australia.

Everything was all inclusive including excursions and snorkelling gear. Those with PADI licence had opportunities to scuba dive.

Cruise mates on the Silver Discoverer

Unlike APT, Silversea attracts a more diverse range of ages and nationalities, though predominantly from the US. We had some interesting conversations with our fellow passengers but appreciated there being no pressure to dine with others when we weren’t in the mood.

The itinerary, tours, food, expedition team, crew and onboard facilities were a stand out. We particularly enjoyed being treated more like grown-ups than on the APT tours, for those who wanted to go on a dawn zodiac cruise there were no announcements to round people up as the team respected that some people wanted to sleep in uninterrupted. No paddles to follow on shore visits!

Best bits

The expedition crew were a stand out especially the English geologist and ornithologist.

It was a well-planned tour that went smoothly. Unexploited Myanmar islands and the Sri Lankan food alone, would have made this a great trip!

Not so good

We didn’t sign the consent form to be filmed for the show reel, that was sold at the cost of USD$100 towards the end of the cruise, but appeared in it none the less. As this was a commercial venture, you’d have expected that consent or lack of, would have been respected. The young videographer was the only member of the team that didn’t engage well with passengers and could be intrusive with the locals in the few towns we visited.

Was Silversea worth the cost?

This is next level financially but certainly offered more than the Aranui or APT cruises. Those used to large liners would find the facilities limited on the small expedition ship but we are happy to forgo this for a more intimate cruising experience.

This was a memorable holiday in previously unexplored lands, with five star service and facilities and the opportunity to learn about history, culture, flora and fauna.

Read my reviews of other small boat cruises:
Part 1: APT river and ocean cruising in Europe
Part 2: Aranui 5 Tahiti cruise
Part 4: Silver Sea Europe cruise