Fyi Silversea has posted 2010 itineraries on their website this a.m..

I've been reviewing them. Some itineraries (and prices) better than Regent for 2010. We are strongly thinking of finally trying SS.

tcat, right u are, inparticular the maiden TA
on the Spirit is a good deal..answered your
cc post with as much info as I could find...best
info on the Spirit was the letter they sent
Venetian members..but I threw mine away..r/wes

We are first time cruisers with SS...... so, we'll have to see if there are any suites left next week (I've been in contact with Julie about it). We're also looking at the end of April -- New York to Southampton.

Again, thanks for the information. At the moment, I'm driving my DH crazy with all the information:-)

Tcat, IMO SS and Regent are transparent in terms of hardware (ships) and software (service, dining). Out of seven cruises our best was on SS, but also our worst was on SS (due to 50 non-managed kids on the sailing). Regent in past became our preference with multiple dining venues, but now with six venues on the Spirit..that concern is more than answered..I also collect/enjoy wine, so their Wine dinners at Le Champagne (Wine Restaurant by Relais & Châteaux) are a treat once per cruise. The Sprit will have an asian venue.

Believe there will be plenty of suites next left week...good luck!

r/wes

To me one of the hardest things when I think of trying out SS or other lines is to give up the perks we've earned. Jackie (or anyone) have you ever heard of a competing cruise line giving status to try and woo you away and gain a new customer ? I know the airlines do it.

Tcat, am flabergasted at SS new APB bonus system..just realized my maiden TA will now cost $299 per diem(if I pay in full by Mar 31 (count on it)) vs $389 before..now a TA under $300 is a great deal on an lux line, esp a maiden voyage of the Spirit.

ps..Marcie..maybe Ngaire would know answer to your ?

r/wes

We experienced our first SS cruise last April with Ngaire. It was spectacular. There were serious inconsistencies in the food service area due to a new executive chef who has since been discharged. But in every other respect the cruise was equal to or superior to Regent. The service orientation on the ship was simply over the top. We will start to look seriously at 2010 itineraries. I fear Apollo under Mr. DelRio is trying to merge the Regent and Oceania brands with Regent offering larger standard cabins, a bit more ship space, and all inclusive but everything else the same. I think they are in the process of applying the Oceania staffing model to the Regent ships (passenger/crew ratio 1.6 on Regent until now, 2.1 on Oceania now). Pat

Wes, I can't find the Spirits 2010 schedule?

Pat, I think your analysis is spot on...Regent's
sailing azimuth is leaning toward Oceania's model for economy of scale efficiencie$...and as
Denise suggested to me last week--Regent under Apollo is RPTPP (robbing Peter (taking from one area (ie.lowering pool deck service) to Pay in others. We agree also with your assessment of SS vis-a-vis Regent...Check out SS's 2010 itineraries and then compute the Advance Bonus Payment (ABP) and there are other good deals too.

Karen..pls go the the SS website..click on voyages...click on destinations..click on what interests you (Med, Transoceanic, but look for Spirit 2010 itineraires) good luck

Finally, Susan Walsh told me an hour ago another LCT couple (from Utah) booked today our TA on
the Spirit..wonder who they are...we just need three other couples to name our cross!

r/wes

Well, we decided that if we can get a suite on the TA cruise, we'll book it on Monday (the earliest we can do so since we have not sailed SS in the past). I'm putting my concerns about smoking issues aside. . . it sounds like a great crossin!

Jackie, Great..you will love SS, bride and I are non smokers and have no problem w/SS...did u see
my computation on cross per diem with the APB computed, $299?!..I know how much u love Regent,
and, am confident u will like SS..now, for my bride, wish they would have a Viking Cooking workshop vs only Viking Cooking Demo's..as for me--am looking fwd to the Antigua/St.Maartin ports for some diving...

ps update on Spirit info--Karen..now the SS homepage has a button ("begin your journey") with picture of the Spirit..just click on the button for robust Spirit info and 2010 itineraries.

picture of
r/wes

Could someone please tell me what cabin would be equivalent to Regent's cheapest and which is the best Silversea Ship (if there is one). Ta. Lee

Lee, the best Silversea ship is the new one (maiden voyage 1/3/2010).

Jackie

Lee, on SS ships the veranda suite is equivalent to the Regent entry veranda..on SS it is forward on each deck, with mid-ship Veranda the next (more expensive choice) In case of the Navigator window only cabins these are equal to the Vista SS cabins...concur with Jackie's
assessment above and will verify for u next Jan (have been on Whisper and Shadow..and like Ngaire says, close your eyes, and it is like your on the Nav...ships were built by same
shipyard, Mariotti)

r/wes

Wes; Where did you find the deck plan layout and suite layout for Spirit?

Doug, Email Susan Walsh and she'll forward to you. They eliminated medallion suites and added more silver and veranda suites.

Doug, just got back from appointments..last night SS homepage had super Spirit info loaded..but also this a.m. it was gone...just checked, info is back up just click on button,
"begin your journey" on homepage. Have included
deck plan link below just in case.

http://www.silversea.com/uploadedFiles/Spirit_DeckPlans.pdf

I jumped in and made a booking on the new Silver Spirit for Oct., 2010.The itinerary worked with relaxing sea days for a combo of ports and TA crossing. I'm excited about SS new ship Spirit.
Thanks to Susan for her help and patience. :lct:

Yeah Suzie - smart choice. I've been looking at that cruise all day. I bet you have lots of LCT friends with you on that one.

Suzie, kudos for your new SS booking...will rpt
from the Spirit next Jan as I taste their Kobe beef in the Seishin restaurant. r/wes

Did anyone else notice that the Japanese restaurant is not free?

Debbie, yes unfortunately..but since Ida
invested all of our AMX-p credit in the Voyager gift shop last month, I will use our credit
for the Spirit for Seishin and Le Champagne.

Am real curious however, to know what the
Supper Club menu, ambiance will be like.

r/wes

We've never had any left over credit....the prices in the spa will eat it up real quick ! Curious, if you take the $400 per person, per segment cash (credit card on file) does this go against any credit you may have remaining?

Marcie,

Yes it does. On our recent cruise on the Mariner we had a $600 credit. After my wife and I got $800 cash from the Purser, our account showed a balance due of $200.

Thanks Dave....this should be good news for those who don't use up their credits while onboard.

I always get the 1000 minutes on the internet, so that eats $250. I would definitely want to do the Seishin.

I have jumped onboard with Suzie and booked the October 2010 TA crossing on the new Silver Spirit. Really wanted to try the new ship, but didn't want to gamble on rough seas in January, but what a great price that itinerary has! I liked the October itinerary, with several new ports in the beginning, and some warm weather ports at the end.

Hope we will have other lct'ers sign up to give SS a try at a reasonable price and have a relaxing and fun crossing of the pond!

Very interested Olivia as I am less thrilled with Regent right now and that SS trip looks super!!!

Here is a few tidbits on the Spirit I found out
by asking the information desk at SS...(btw, impressed with their responsiveness--within eight hours every time I ask a ?)

Thank you for your e-mail!

Yes there will be a lobby bar (Lobby Bar styled along the lines of a European hotel, featuring Italian coffees, champagne, wine and spirits)
on deck 6.

What was the demand for booking during your
first week of venetian bookins?

We had a tremendous response from our Venetian Society members during the first week of bookings on the Silver Spirit. Now all sales are open for all our ships for all cruises 2009 and 2010.


Best Regards
Information Desk at Silversea

There's nothing like a new ship to get the cruise blood pumping! Happy you're on board Olivia! :banana:

I'm looking at the 7 night Caribbean stuff on Shadow and Spirit, and only Seabourn Legend is matching those extended APBs for 2010. Fares for similar Regent cruises are over $1000 pp higher. I'm just not sure how many are going to want to pay a year in advance to get the XAPB. In the fine print, they still have the old APB 6 months out, but they sure seem to be de-emphasizing that.

I saw that too and was confused, as when looking at the Oct TA Wes is booked on, at least on the website, it states the APB has to be paid by Oct 09, if I read it right. I know it use to be 6 months out, which would be worth doing, but I'm not sure about paying in full a year ahead. So did I misunderstand? Is it 6 months or a year?

JoAnn I think Wes/Ida are on the January 2010 TA on the Spirit, but I may be wrong.

Oh - for some reason I thought they were doing the Oct TA.

Joann, Olivia, my sister & Me are on the Oct. TA so far...waiting for more to sign on. Jan. is too cold for me to do a TA

Aha, thats where I got Oct. Thanks Suzie for clearing that up. I think Jan would be too cold for me too, although Jan is too cold for me here in VA! :D

Suzie, hoping you, Marilyn, Olivia and JoAnn have a super time !!

They still have the APB at 6 months (but you have to read the fine print for that). What is at a year out is the XAPB (extended). They don't show it up there as XAPB, but that is what SS's term for it is. They are trying to move away from Silver Sailings a bit and do this scattered timeframe thing with the XAPB then APB then EBI. I've always booked almost 2 years out, but paying in full is another story.

Thanks Debbie for clearing that up, because I can't think of any situation where we would pay a year out in full. Just doesn't work for us.