I was very fortunate to experience Silversea in Northern Europe in October last year. I cruised on Silver Dawn up into the Arctic Circle in autumn. I have cruised extensively in the past, mostly on larger mainstream cruise lines, and this was definitely quite the step up across all levels of the cruising experience. It started with a seamless embarkation, which was mostly done on the ship, rather than shoreside – and whilst enjoying a welcome glass of champagne, and just went upwards from there. The open bar onboard makes for a much more relaxed experience when travelling with friends, as there are no ‘who will get this round’ tussles, and it certainly makes for a fun time at trivia when many of us started on the cocktails for the evening.

As I was travelling with friends, we didn’t really hang out in our suite all that much to enjoy the mini-bar (which our butler stocked with our preferences), and the cooler weather on this cruise wasn’t conducive to relaxing on the balcony. Our suite was very spacious, the bathroom was huge (with a full-size bath and separate shower) and our butler catered to our needs nicely. We did enjoy in-room dining on a few occasions (to fit around some evening shore excursions), which was a wonderful experience. I was very impressed with the very extensive menu (accessed via our TV).

All dining experiences onboard were fantastic. We started on a high note with dinner at the fine dining French restaurant, La Dame (small surcharge applies), and while onboard I also dined at nearly all of the restaurants (including out on deck wrapped in blankets, under heat lights). My favourite restaurant was La Terraza, we had several meals there, but I feel special mention should also go to Silver Note, where although the menu is limited and the portions are smaller, the atmosphere and music were magical. The Art’s Café also deserves a mention, it’s a very casual area with a constantly changing selection of snacks and meals, and they did very nice scones for afternoon tea every day.

One excursion is included in every port, and all the excursions I did weren’t just great, they were exceptional. I may have instigated snow fights on the train platforms on the coach and train trip we did to Sweden, started with just a few of us and then many more joined in the fun (it was a bit too early for snow in most places, but we did get some on this excursion). We saw Northern Lights on two evening excursions, and from the ship, which was a very big part of why we were cruising in that location at that time, this is a truly magical experience that simply cannot be expressed in words, and photos do not do it justice. Flam was breathtakingly beautiful, the fjords in that area are very reminiscent of Milford Sound but with the addition of a gorgeous and colourful Norwegian town. I’ve been to Bergen before, so we did a Farm Tour there as it was the only excursion offered that didn’t do things I had already done. I wasn’t expecting much from this excursion, but it was delightful.

Entertainment onboard wasn’t as ‘big’ as I was used to on the larger ships I have cruised on, but the production shows were very enjoyable. Trivia was very competitive, and the silly golf putting after trivia was great for a laugh. Silver Note was a highlight for me on the entertainment front, it’s a small jazz and blues lounge, with a great atmosphere and amazing music. It was often standing room only, as it was hard to walk past without wandering in and lingering to listen for a while. Silver Dawn has a SALT (sea and land taste) Lab, Bar and Restaurant. The SALT experience is quite unique and highly enjoyable, it showcases cuisine from the area you are cruising in. I did 3 SALT Lab cooking classes during my cruise, which was a lot of fun, and the highly creative cocktails in the SALT bar were fantastic. We would have had more than one meal in the SALT restaurant if we were cruising in a different location, Norwegian cuisine is quite fish-focused, and two of my friends aren’t much into seafood.

Overall I was very impressed with my Silversea cruise experience and would highly recommend them.