Silver Whisper

Mediterranean Cruise Review: Silversea Cruises

Archived Review

ABOVE: The Silver Whisper in Katakolon, Greece, the port for Olympia (site of the ancient Olympic Games).

By Durant Imboden

August is the worst possible month to visit the Mediterranean. You can't escape the tourist crowds, air conditioning may be unavailable or unreliable, service often suffers because of overworked staff, and you're likely to go home more exhausted than you were before your vacation. Or so we'd always thought.

A few years ago (in August of 2002), we went to Southern Europe for a different kind of summer holiday--a 12-day Mediterranean cruise aboard the M/V Silver Whisper of Silversea Cruises. Despite our apprehensions about visiting Greece and Italy in August, the experience was a pleasure for several reasons:

• Our cruise took us to several fascinating, out-of-the-way places that were uncrowded--even in August--and which we might never have made the effort to visit on our own.

• In Venice and other popular tourist areas, we could retreat to our air-conditioned ship when we needed to escape the crowds and the heat.

• Getting from place to place was easy--no crowded roads, no jam-packed trains, no hauling luggage or hiring taxis. We could sit in our deck chairs, relax on our veranda, or sleep in our comfortable suite while Captain Igor Bencina and his crew took us to our next destination.

• Service was attentive, friendly, and unhurried, with no tipping expected. Overall, it may have been the best service we've experienced aboard a ship or on land.

• At the end of our cruise, we went home relaxed and wishing we were booked on the Silver Whisper's next voyage. The ship and its crew had exceeded our expectations--something that's all too rare in an era when hype is seldom matched by reality.

In this article, we'll tell you about our Mediterranean itinerary and life aboard the Silver Whisper. We'll help you decide whether a Silversea cruise is right for you, and we'll point you to cruise reviews and other Web sites where you can find more information on the Silver Whisper and Silversea Cruises. We've also put together a Silver Whisper Photo Gallery with captions that go into detail about the ship and the Silversea cruise experience.

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