Ok, I have finally weakened for my 1st cruise: The Silversea Cloud Expedition

[lovetravellingoz]

Well after having made it to my mid-fifties without ever having indulged in an ocean cruise I have finally weakened. My wife has clearly been cough for a while, but I am definitely not a big ship party boat type of guy.

Now it is not the water, as I love the water and messing about on boat and yachts. and over the years have also been on various large ferries such as the trip to Tasmania, or Egypt to Jordan and the like. Plus we have done a Nile Cruise and two liveaboard snorkelling trips in Thailand (On one of which a fellow pax was the Captain of the Danish Royal Yacht who became my late night drinking buddy for the trip).

But my style of "cruise" has over the years been very much one such as my just finished two week long bareboat trip where I was the skipper, and the wife and daughters the crew.



But in planning our 11 week trip to Europe next year which is mainly themed around the UK and Ireland, the itinerary and style of cruising of the Silversea Cloud Expedition was at last enough to tempt me to the dark side.

[h=1]DUBLIN to LONDON (TOWER BRIDGE)NORTHERN EUROPE & BRITISH ISLES EXPEDITION CRUISE[/h]

http://www.silversea.com/destinatio...ondon-tower-bridge-1811/?fycref=row1#overview

[FONT=&amp]If, like the national poet of Scotland Robert Burns, your heart “lies in the highlands”, then the next 14-days will fill your soul with song. Wild moors and rugged coasts, mighty mountains and hauntingly beautiful landscapes are the backdrop for birders to spot a startling variety of seabirds. Complete the trip with castles and cathedrals plus one of the greatest train rides in the world.
[/FONT]

My style of travel is often to the more off the beaten track and less crowded locations. And this trip promises to be that, and even though the ship is a larger nautical vessel than I normal favour, it still promises to provide a less crowded feel. Plus the touch of luxury will be a highlight of our trip, and will keep me in good graces with my wife fora goodly period.


An extra bonus is that the Silver Cloud is in dry dock at present and when it emerges in November 2017 it will become the Silver Cloud Expedition. Completely refurbished and enhanced for expedition type trips. But it is more than that, as for example the passenger capacity is being reduced.

 

[lovetravellingoz]

After the Silver Cloud emerges from Dry Dock in November 2017 as the Silver Cloud Expedition, it will look more like this:

 

[perthjay85]

Wowsers that looks amazing.

I'll have to start saving my pennies to take a cruise like this in the future.

I'm sure you'll have a blast as everyone I have met on cruises or been on cruises loves them. And the cruise you're going on looks next level brilliant.

 

[tgh]

sigh.. good luck.

Silversea have really messed their nest lately with half finished ships put back into service leading to much angst for crew and passengers.
For your sake , I hope they have lifted their game.

We did a similar loop a year or two ago on the Silver Explorer.
It was not "hard" adventure like some of their cruises, but it was interesting and enjoyable.
Really enjoyed St Kilda.. good hard walk up to the top for the view.

The expedition ships bear little resemblance to mainstream cruising (not at all stuffy or "flash") ; other than the usurious tarriff, it's a great way to prowl about interesting places.
The Cloud may be a bit dressier than the smaller sisters , the vibe remains to be seen.

enjoy ..

 

[Guvner]

Sounds fantastic!

On another note, that bare-boat, was it this one: Tasman Ocean 35 ?

I'd be interested in hearing about your experience with the bare boat if you have time to do a mini TR.

 

[lovetravellingoz]

Sounds fantastic!

On another note, that bare-boat, was it this one: Tasman Ocean 35 ?

I'd be interested in hearing about your experience with the bare boat if you have time to do a mini TR.

Indeed it was. Serendipity.

Just briefly.

It was perfect for 5 adults in a family. My daughters are 20, 23 and 26 now. If you were going as three couples, then you would need something slightly bigger as one berth/cabin was on the small side.
- Not as quick as the Seawind 1000s we have had on the last two occasions. The extra room compared to the Seawind was appreciated as my daughters are no longer young and small!
- But a much better social and living layout inside and out, and the galley being upstairs was major plus.
- It is getting slightly old, but still in good condition and is great bang for your buck.

It was my 8th chartering in the Whitsundays over a 30 year span and we have had a variety of yachts both monohulls and cats. Cats are ideal for the Whitsundays for a number of reasons. All in all it was probably the best yacht we have chartered there. Though on one charter the yacht we had booked got withdrawn and were upgraded to a brand spanking new Hunter 44 which was very nice too.


Feel free to PM me with any questions.

Sadly the recent cyclone has destroyed much of the best coral.

However meet Murry the Humphead (Or Maori) Wrasse.
Murry that has been at Manta Ray Bay on Hook Island on all of our 7 previous visits starting from about 25 years ago and until our last visit about 10 years ago. and we met him again! He is very friendly and swims right up to you. He is a very big fish at say about 1.5 m long and so is quite a sight.

 

[lovetravellingoz]

sigh.. good luck.

Silversea have really messed their nest lately with half finished ships put back into service leading to much angst for crew and passengers.
For your sake , I hope they have lifted their game.

We did a similar loop a year or two ago on the Silver Explorer.
It was not "hard" adventure like some of their cruises, but it was interesting and enjoyable.
Really enjoyed St Kilda.. good hard walk up to the top for the view.

The expedition ships bear little resemblance to mainstream cruising (not at all stuffy or "flash") ; other than the usurious tarriff, it's a great way to prowl about interesting places.
The Cloud may be a bit dressier than the smaller sisters , the vibe remains to be seen.

enjoy ..

Well I like their changes:
-Casino removed.
-Observation lounge re-instated (Fitness centre moved back downstairs)
-Less suites (they have removed a number of cabins completely, and others have been merged into more larger suites) and less passengers

How well they execute obviously remains to be seen.....

 

[DaveB]

Will be interested in your feedback as we like the sound of the changes being made to Cloud and will be a nice upgrade on the Discoverer.
We also didn't start cruises until our 50's with some parts of the world no better way to explore - Baltics, Alaska & Kimberleys have been ticked off our list. A moving luxury suite and losing your suitcases is a dream.
Funnily enough our next ocean cruise is on P&O who now do one annual 10 day cruise around NZ.

 

[love_the_life]

Will be interested in your feedback as we like the sound of the changes being made to Cloud and will be a nice upgrade on the Discoverer.
We also didn't start cruises until our 50's with some parts of the world no better way to explore - Baltics, Alaska & Kimberleys have been ticked off our list. A moving luxury suite and losing your suitcases is a dream.
Funnily enough our next ocean cruise is on P&O who now do one annual 10 day cruise around NZ.

P & O UK? Or Australia?

 

[DaveB]

Local on Pacific Jewel.
Extended family had for years been looking to do a Kiwi cruise not involving ditch crossings with P&O the first to offer a March cruise starting this year.

 

[Flying mermaid]

I have offered to take Ms FM and husband on a trip in 2019- either Machu Picchu or Antarctica. If she chooses Antarctica it will be our first cruise (and we are mid 60s) and we are looking at Silver Cloud. I will look forward to your report, although if she does choose this one, we will be booking in the next few weeks to take advantage of the discount. I feel totally out of my depth (no pun intended), as I just don’t know anything about cruises, but Silversea does seem to have a good reputation.

 

[tgh]

Moi , Turtlemichael and DrRon , have all cruised extensively with SS.
Suggest you ask questions here or by PM