Cruise & Ferry Review - Autumn/Winter 2021

1 6 7 Patry. “For example, some countries still have a ban on cruise ships, some have prohibited travellers from certain nations, others have limits on the number of people allowed in groups, and so on. And we must keep in mind that the situation is always evolving – when we define a feasible itinerary, we’re never sure that we’ll be able to operate it as such when the cruise starts.” Silversea usually works two or three years ahead to develop and sell its voyages, but the pandemic has forced the company to work on a totally new production for the next weeks or months. “It has definitely forced us to be very flexible and reactive,” says Patry. “With no possible prediction on when the future will bring us all back to our previous normality, it is extremely challenging to take the right decision. This is why we need the local authorities and partners to be very proactive and keep us closely informed on all specific regulations, even though they are also depending on the fast fluctuation of the situation.” Meanwhile, Silversea is monitoring the situation daily and keeps developing new scenarios. “Considering that our guests are mainly from USA and UK and that our usual itineraries touch many different countries, we find ourselves in front of a giant puzzle,” says Patry. For example, operating Silver Moon in Greece was relatively easy but Silversea’s Mediterranean voyages this autumn will include calls in several countries, each of which has its own regulations. “Greece will not accept direct sailings from Turkey, and Malta will only accept a maximum of two people ashore per tour group,” says Patry. “Portugal will require a test at least 12 hours before each call. Monaco is closed for the whole 2021 season. Italy is restricting entry to the territory to certain nationalities. Turkey is not recommended by the US and UK Governments. And when our UK guests come back home, they might need to quarantine depending on the countries they visited during the cruise.” Silversea is proud of being a destination-focused luxury cruise line, but the pandemic has introduced frustrating new limits on its previously almost limitless portfolio of itineraries, says Patry. “While the strength and resilience of our industry has been demonstrated during this period, we’ve had to remain versatile to adapt our plans if required. Last year, our challenge was to find a place where we could lay up the ships. Now, our challenge is to select the available ports for the restart of our operations and have our guests back onboard.” CFR Guests will be able to visit eight ports while sailing onboard Silver Shadow in Iceland