Cruise & Ferry Review - Autumn/Winter 2021

1 6 6 Silver Moon, which debuted in summer 2021, is sailing itineraries around the Greek Islands and Cyprus L eading the global restart of ultra-luxury cruising, Silversea Cruises is delighted to have returned to service with four ships in 2021: Silver Moon in Greece and Silver Origin in the Galapagos Islands in June, followed by Silver Muse in Alaska and Silver Shadow in Iceland in July. “All the return-to-service itineraries have been specially designed to adapt to the conditions of the pandemic and they do not follow the original published itineraries,” says Frederique Patry, senior manager of itinerary planning at Silversea Cruises. “Only touching one country per voyage (two for Silver Moon, which is also visiting Cyprus) has allowed us to concentrate our efforts on fewer national regulations and adapt our own Covid-19 protocols to each country. This has been very beneficial in facilitating a restart of cruising.” Planning these voyages has led to some interesting itinerary adaptations. “Visiting only one country gives us the option to include new or less-visited destinations and offer in-depth explorations,” explains Patry. Silver Shadow is calling at a total of eight ports during her 10-day Icelandic cruises, while Silver Moon is visiting smaller ports like Amorgos and Paros in the Cyclades Islands. To adapt to the temporary waiver of the Passenger Service Act in Alaska, Silversea has adjusted its regular seven-day Seward/Vancouver voyages to 10- and 11- day voyages out of Seattle on Silver Muse, allowing it to add more ports. Extended voyages also enable its guests to reach Alaska’s glaciers. After the initial return-to-service phase, Silversea plans to reconnect with its published voyages as soon as possible. “However, the planning will be affected due to each country following its own regulations, which can also differ per province within the same country,” says “ The pandemic has definitely forced us to be very flexible and reactive” PL ANNER PERSPECTI VE Why adaptability is key Itinerary planning is challenging during a pandemic with ever- changing travel restrictions. Susan Parker asks Frederique Patry how Silversea Cruises is navigating these uncharted waters