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Discover Silversea’s second Nova Class ship, Silver Ray, offering you seamless destination connection. Silver Ray mirrors every aspect of her sister ship, Silver Nova, including a pioneering, asymmetrical design and extraordinary use of glass in both public areas and in suite for uninterrupted views wherever you are! What’s more, Silver Ray is one of the most spacious ships ever built, offering an exceptionally high space-to-guest ratio yet remaining nimble enough to offer purity in movement, as her name suggests. She is truly our ray of light.
See The World In A New Light
Building on our shining success with Silver Nova in 2023, our second Nova-class ship, Silver Ray, is a guiding light for the future of luxury travel. A bold, asymmetrical design creates wide open spaces and vast breathtaking views of your destination, everywhere you look. Innovative and indulgent luxury experiences make your voyage unforgettable, while cutting-edge technologies and a whole new approach to sustainability ensure respect for the environment, wherever and whenever you sail. Welcome to the light. Welcome to Silver Ray.
Silver Ray preserves all our trademarks and delivers a new way of luxury cruising. Her revolutionary horizontal design ensures outstanding public areas that fuse seamlessly together. Silver Ray will introduce a brand-new selection of superb, spacious suites, many of which offer a 270-degree view from sea to sky. Eight restaurants and an unprecedented choice of bars complete the experience, offering delicious drinking and dining at any time of the day.
We are Elite Plus with Celebrity and usually sail in a Magic Carpet Suite or Sky Suite (have also sailed in upper suites). We just completed our first cruise (11 nights) on Silversea on their newest ship (Silver Ray -approximately 720 passengers) so I wanted to compare the two cruiselines. We were in the second to lowest category on Silversea (Superior Veranda cabin) but all rooms are considered suites and come with a butler. No nickle and diming--We never had to pull out our card or pay for anything on the ship except for shop purchases. Ship was impeccably clean. Embarkation and debarkation were extremely quick, easy and efficient in Fort Lauderdale. Officers were personable and often out and about around the ship. Ship Vibe: Ship was airy, light and had a gorgeous, elegant design with mostly light wood and color scheme of tans and grays. Lots of windows and open areas, easy to get around and very well-designed. Felt somewhat similar to the older Edge class but with better, more comfortable furniture and appeared more upscale. Overall vibe was very serene. There were no lines anywhere, lots of quiet areas, plenty of sun loungers and no loud music except for scheduled DJ/band activities in aft lounge. Common areas often had a pianist, piano player or jazz ensemble. We never had to wait more than a few seconds for an elevator. Demographics: Average age was 70's. We only saw two or three younger couples and one toddler. Most passengers seemed pretty fit. Saw only one or two wheelchairs, one electric scooter and very few people with canes. Most passengers we encountered were polite, respectful, and chill. Virtually everyone dressed appropriately and followed the dress code. No obnoxious or overly drunk people. Stateroom: Best design of a lower level suite we have had as compared to Celebrity and Oceania. Reminded us of Edge class but was nicer, slightly bigger, and more thoughtfully designed. Closet was extremely functional with plenty of hanging space (plus a double rod), open shelves, 4-5 drawers, and an abundance of quality wood hangers. While suitcases can fit under bed, we were able to easily store our 4 suitcases in closet. Room had a vanity area with chair, a desk with another chair, loveseat, coffee table, and king bed. Had European and US outlets, multiple USB ports and very good lighting. Bathroom was spacious with a double sink, plenty of counter space and shelves plus a nice size walk in shower (hand-held shower hose and rainfall showerhead). Excellent water pressure and very good hair dryer you can use at vanity. Toilet was larger than other cruise lines we have been on. Towels were large and made of Italian cotton but were not the fluffy kind. Bed was extremely comfortable and a little on the soft side. In-room mini refrigerator was restocked daily and kept beverages at a nice cold temperature. For room service, the butler puts an expandable insert over the coffee table to make it a dining table. We were glad that we could not really hear doors slamming or hallway noise that is typical on Celebrity and RCL. Balcony was average size and contained 2 heavy metal mesh chairs, footrests and a low, small table. Luggage racks are provided on embarkation day and when packing to disembark. Laundry: We had free laundry due to loyalty status match. Service was amazing. Put bag outside your door by 9am and get it back same day (often by 2pm). Nicely folded and/or on hangers. We used this perk almost daily. Casino: Tiny!! Non-smoking, nice personable staff, quiet environment. Literally has only 1 blackjack table (min bet $10, max bet $30), one roulette table and 11 slot machines. That is it. They also do not track play. Different rules for blackjack than other cruiselines. There were several blackjack tournaments ($50 buy in). Food and Beverage: All premium beverages are included (except for very high-end wines/spirits). We felt the quality of food and wines were much better than Celebrity/Luminae and a close second to Oceania. Wines were varied and freely flowed. I was happy I could get sparkling rose (champagne/Prosecco) which was not an option available on our last 2 Celebrity cruises. Steaks and veal chops were really good quality. There were lots of fresh vegetables and the desserts were creative, varied and tasty. However, Pizza was not as good as Celebrity (fresh but tasted like frozen pizza) and, although the Silversea burgers were very good, the Luminae burger is still the best. The Silversea Italian restaurant was our favorite and had a nice variety (menu rotated there every 3 days). Some options included freshly carved prosciutto, sea bass, octopus, seafood stew, veal dishes, and variety of freshly made pastas. In the Grill you can choose to cook your own meat and fish on a hot rock. Main dining room (Alantide) was also very good with a standard menu (including lobster, fish, and several types of steaks) along with nightly specials. Servers for food and drinks were plentiful everywhere but you are not assigned to specific servers or tables. The coffee shop had excellent specialty coffees (all free) and a nice variety of sweets and savory options throughout the day. Servers and Baristas there were very efficient, whereas, on Celebrity we often find ourselves having to wait in line a bit for coffees. (We did not like Oceania coffee). You can also special order foods not on menus (such as an Indian entree or souffle) a day in advance. Room service is free and available 24 hours. On debarkation day you have the option of room service breakfast. Frozen drinks were not as good as Celebrity as they were not as thick and probably contained a different base mix. The Silver Note jazz restaurant is free but was our least favorite of all the Silversea restaurants. However, it did have the best chocolate dessert onboard IMO. I will say that Celebrity still has the best buffet over RCL, Oceania and Silversea. However, IMO Silversea's buffet had a better flow, food quality and variety than Oceania. Silversea lunch buffet did not have a fresh stir-fry or carving station but they had a pasta station, sushi, large salad bar and a nice variety of hot and cold dishes such as minute steaks, cold cuts, cheeses, lasagna, jerk chicken, Asian dishes, etc. which varied daily. Breakfast buffet had the typical items (pancakes, French toast, pastries, fruits, hot/cold cereals, yogurts etc) and servers take your order at table for beverages, made to order eggs/ omelettes and sides. There is no dinner buffet and the only casual options are the grill and pizza. One pet peeve is that there are no single-use plastic water bottles anywhere on the ship (we prefer these for excursions). They do provide two reusable metal bottles in your stateroom that you can keep and take on excursions plus the butler provides refillable glass bottles of filtered still and sparkling water daily in your refridgerator. Large bottles of Perrier and San Pellegrino are available upon request. Activities: Cruise Director was seasoned and very personable. On our Silversea 11-night cruise, the main nightly show in the theater consisted of the same 4 singers/4 dancers 7-8 nights with the live band. The several headliners were also singers/piano players. The Silversea singers were truly amazingly talented but the nightly entertainment felt very repetetive as there were no comedians and no variety acts such as acrobats, magician, etc. that we are used to seeing on other ships. Theater was modern, nice and had lots of leg room and good sight lines. Silversea had several enrichment lectures during the cruise but the topics (Caribbean trade and the Iran conflict) did not interest us. There were a number of free hands on cooking classes in the cooking lab and a couple of movies shown in the theater. During the day there were also 1-2 daily team trivias and various activities such as shuffleboard, Jenga, corn hole, golf putting and ping pong. Winners get points that accumulate for prizes at end of cruise. Daily bingo was free and for points only. Some activities were offered only once such as karaoke, silent disco, flower arranging, napkin folding, Captain's ship building lecture. No Love and Marriage show, pool games or bawdy game shows as that would not fit the vibe of the ship. One night there was a party on pool deck with singers/dancers and chocolate dessert buffet (food display did not wow us). During the evenings the aft lounge had a DJ or band and other lounges often had a pianist or violin player. Celebrity has better and more varied entertainment and higher energy. Shops: 2 small boutiques with mostly high-end jewelry, watches and pocketbooks. Very small selection of clothing, perfumes, cosmetics. You won't find things like T-shirts, sweatshirts, evening wear or "typical" souveniers. Excursions: We took 4 Caribbean excursions (non-beach related) and found these to be comparable to the mass-market cruise lines. One was awful, one was very good and the others were average. The process was well-organized though. It is hard to find "different" and interesting excursions when one has been to the Caribbean numerous times. 3 ports were tenders that were pretty rocky getting on/off. Overall Impressions: We enjoyed this cruise very much, felt well-taken care of and we booked another cruise while onboard. Food was very good, service was exceptional and we were able to really relax. No waits anywhere, everything was very easy and well-organized. It was a good value and comparable in price to Celebrity Retreat considering our cruise fare also included gratuities and excursions in every port. All staff are very professional and seemed less overworked and frenetic than on Celebrity or RCL, probably because the staff to passenger ratio is almost 1:1. It definitely felt more upscale and serene than Celebrity and is a good option we will continue to consider based on price and itinerary. However, we do prefer the nightly entertainment on Celebrity and the fun game shows. If you like to stay up late to dance and party, Silversea may not be a good fit for you.
Do not hesitate to book this ship or its sister ship. The most gorgeous, intimate yet bright and airy ship we’ve ever been on. So much space everywhere. The spaces were clean and pristine, all touch- less surfaces in the public restrooms and the elevators were gorgeous glass with views to die for. Hardly stepped in am elevator with other people. The cast and band of the entertainment were ultimate professionals though we wished the 9:30 shows started at 9. Too tired to make most of the shows though the ones we saw were very, very good. Yes, the food…we were quite satisfied and noticed a definite focus on smaller and healthier portions and choices. That’s great! Too much waste on pre-covid food in high end cruises was over the top. If you wanted to nitpick you could make suggestions on the food but we were quite impressed, especially with the SALT lab experience. The bars and restaurants left no one wanting for more and staff everywhere were amazing. I could go on and on. We booked the beautiful Silver Suite and had the most space and luxury at sea we’ve ever experienced. Our butler Jeffrey was amazing.
We just returned from a 10 night Caribbean cruise on Silver Ray. The ship is gorgeous and perfect for warm weather cruising with so much outdoor space. The cabin is perfectly designed and the standard rooms are very comfortable. The most amazing thing about the ship after its beauty is how well the staff is trained. We saw a couple of passengers make unreasonsble requests and the staff accommodated them and went out of their way to make sure every passenger was happy. We did a similar cruise on a different luxury line two years ago and this cruise was better. Because of the small size of the ship we were able to visit ports that the larger ships can’t visit. We loved the SALT Kitchen for dining. The main restaurant Atlantide was too busy for us for dinner but we enjoyed having breakfast there. Listening to Alfredo entertain in the lounge before dinner was a highlight of the trip.
This is our third Silversea cruise and the first on a Silver Nova-class ship. Compared to other Silversea ships (we’ve sailed on Shadow and Dawn), Silver Ray feels more like a trendy urban hotel, perhaps in South Beach compared to a cruise ship. Newbies who are a bit scared of having a holiday on a moving ship will feel completely at ease. The ship is very stable, and unless one glances outside, you’d never know you’re on a ship. The long corridors and walking the length of the decks will make one feel like they’re in a familiar modern hotel. Our main reason for taking this cruise was for an instant Christmas/New Year’s celebration and Silversea delivered. The holiday decorations were excellent with gingerbread houses sprinkled about and mini ones in all the top suites. Giant nutcrackers guarded major entrances and there were lots of Christmas trees spread throughout the ship and private ones in the top suites. Three multi-story trees were on board, one in the Shelter/Atrium and the other two framing the stage in the Venetian Lounge. There was also a giant menorah between the reception and shore concierge desks near Arts Café. The itinerary was interesting with a visit to the eastern Caribbean sailing from Fort Lauderdale to Saint Lucia and back. This provided a good balance between sea days and port days, which is important to us. The ship was full, with a large range of ages including some children. Silversea had a dedicated children’s hostess to keep them entertained. There was a, not unexpected, extra helping of super seniors with various accessories since it was convenient for them to board in Florida. Silver Ray has a good choice of accessible suites, including accessible Silver Suites which are quite spacious. Entertainment was impressive for a rather short cruise with pretty much every kind of shipboard activity in full swing. There was cornhole, bocce ball, giant versions of tic tac toe, chess and Jenga. There was also a shuffleboard area, and a mini-pickleball area. Bingo, trivia, bridge (including classes), puzzles, monopoly, mahjong (including classes), checkers and backgammon. Name that tune, karaoke, silent disco, and liar’s club rounded out the roster. All to win valuable points, a maybe a Silversea pen with ink, if one was really talented LOL. Formal entertainment was more typical of Silversea, and we saw a number of acts we’d seen on other cruises. The Silver Ray singers and dancers were excellent and the six-person band finally satisfied my constant gripe on other Silversea ships of a lack of horn players. It really makes a huge difference in all the acts. The Venetian Lounge is an excellently engineered theater. It has by far the best quality acoustics of any of the ships we’ve sailed. I wish Silversea could transfer that quality of entertainment to the whole fleet, but if theater performances is important to you, just stick with this class of ship. Silversea is still at the top in terms of special events. The ship repositioned itself off the shoreline of Castries, the capital of Saint Lucia for New Year’s eve. At the same time Silver Shadow anchored just a little closer to shore so from our view we saw the fireworks launched along the Saint Lucian coastline with Silver Shadow silhouetted in the foreground – pretty special. Silver Ray’s pool deck has an open view on its starboard side which lent itself to an amazing amphitheater feeling watching the show. The Silver Ray band had been playing on a special stand in front of the pool, so in this situation the open view really made the evening amazing. I’m sure the Silver Shadow also had an amazing view but in the traditional pool deck layout, one is really in a pit surrounded on all sides and you’d have to climb to the deck above to see the unobstructed view. Since this is Cruise Critic, I can’t help but point out some things that we found a bit weak. Unfortunately, the most memorable thing was that there wasn’t one cushioned chair on the whole ship that didn’t make my bum ache. I felt like I should carry one of those cushions strapped to me so I didn’t break my coccyx plopping down too carelessly. I’m afraid this tends to be a factor on newer ships since I assume the goal is to have furniture that can last at least five years after hundreds of people plop on them. Furnishings look great and inviting, but in actual use, they fail the comfy test. Then there’s Silversea food. If I was preparing for a photo shoot then everything was perfect. Wonderful plating, a large variety of dishes and overflowing abundance to make the “eating with your eyes” thrilled. The disappointment is that after eating we were often just saying “well its OK”. I’m not a drinker, so I asked my wife what she thought about the included wines, and it was the same thing, (just OK). No one will starve but its just not that memorable. I think Silversea is probably setting the bar a bit too high and broadly. We also sail on Crystal, for us, that’s the benchmark. The big difference is Crystal make favorites really well, so the bottom line, is we leave the meal very satisfied looking forward to having that again. There is one big exception to Silversea’s food offerings: Spacconapoli, their pizza restaurant (I wish it were on all their ships, but you have to sail on Silver Moon or above class ships). In my opinion, it is the best pizza at sea. The variety of cabins is extensive and unless you actually are dealing with a travel agent who’s visited all the different types it may be very difficult to discern the details from what Silversea provides on their plans. Since I was able to visit a lot of the cabins while recording footage for my walkthrough video to be posted on YouTube, I’ll try and illuminate some of the subtleties. Silversea has spread their naming all over the place basically naming a standard veranda suite several different ways. The most obvious difference is where the same layout is on each deck. The Classic Veranda’s are the furthest away from mid-ship and the Superior Veranda’s are slightly closer, as you go further midship, the same cabin gets a fancier name. There are some subtle differences between the Classic and the Superior veranda: the latter has a slightly bigger makeup table and a backlit mirror in the bathroom twice as wide as the one in the Classic Veranda. The other unique variations really happen in the higher-end offerings. There are two accessible Silver Suites which offer a nice alternative for those who need it and want just a larger space. The regular Silver Suite, IMHO, are not as nice as the ones on the Silver Moon-class ships, primarily because they eschewed the larger bathroom with its ample whirlpool tub. Oh well, guess Silver Dawn’s will still be the benchmark. The Owner’s suites are a little disappointing, only because their title sets expectations pretty high, but they are still very nice if a mid-ship location is the priority. One of the standout features of this class of ship is that it has four decks with aft facing cabins. This is wonderful and if I knew I had only twelve months to live (I want to make sure I have the most Silver Ray or Nova cruises to choose from) I would choose the Otium suite. It, not the Owner’s suite, is the largest and there are two on board in the starboard aft corners of deck six and seven. These are the only suites that have a small library, a proper living room, jetted tub and a huge corner veranda with an outdoor whirlpool tub. I’ve seen these on other ships in the bow and it makes them hard to use when the ship is moving due to the wind. Having this kind of feature in the stern makes much more sense and although I haven’t had firsthand experience with this when Silver Ray is moving, I’d feel more encouraged in actually being able to make use of it if I were on my last weeks of life. So, for the moment my kick the bucket choice for ultimate accommodations is a tie between an Otium suite on Silver Ray/Nova or the Crystal Penthouse on Crystal’s ships. As far as ship’s esthetics, we find the décor pretty typical for modern ships, with a general cool antiseptic feel rather than a warm homey feel. I suppose that’s the trend. I will commend Silversea for making a wonderful effort with its plants and flowers all around the ship, including orchids in every room. This is really one of my favorite features and I wish other cruise lines would do the same. It just adds that extra little touch of luxury. I don’t find the look of the ship from afar all that nice, and prefer the classic design, but if Silversea’s goal was to design from the inside out in order to create a luxury hotel experience which repositions itself silently to different ports then it has succeeded. I would highly recommend this class of ship for more typical short cruises, I would lean more to the classic ships for longer journeys primarily because I like a ship to look and feel like a ship and experience long ocean voyages. I’m not one who wants to stay for months at the same hotel. From a value perspective, its easy to recommend getting the cheapest cabin you can get, especially for a short cruise. We were never aware of any motion at the ship’s extremities and found the standard cabin size to be fine. While the extra-charge restaurants are a nice choice, none of them are worth the extra charge. I’d recommend La Dame, simply for its lovely décor, and it can be a nice place for a special evening (i.e. romantic). Food looks great but only satisfies your eyes – is that food porn?
All suites feature:
From fine French cuisine, delicate Asian options to relaxed Italian family-style meals, our chefs' creativity knows no limits.
With the importance of food in Italian culture you would expect dining to be a high priority at Silversea. And it most assuredly is. Moreover, gastronomic excellence is a given, thanks to our recipes that reflect heritage and revamp tradition. No matter where you dine, destination influence is readily apparent in the great diversity and freshness of your selections. And every ship also features an array of dining venues. The main dining room, The Restaurant, is an open-seating venue where you can dine whenever you please, and where impromptu dinners with new-found friends is a matter of course. After all, with our worldly crowd of international travellers, socialising is one of the things people love most about our luxury cruise ships. Per guest reservation fee for specialty restaurants.
Our voyages not only take you to the four corners of the globe but keep you entertained as you get there.
A varied and exciting enrichment program will invigorate mind, body and soul, so from the tips of your taste buds to the depths of your soul, be prepared for a sensory rollercoaster of discovery while not only aboard but also ashore. No one knows the world like we do. Our travel experience is second to none and after 25 years in the business traveling from pole to pole we truly believe that our in-depth knowledge is worth a thousand travel guides. So we have carefully sourced some of the world’s most renowned artists, experts and guest speakers who will travel on select voyages in order to offer culturally immersive experiences from a unique perspective. These carefully curated parties and performances have been designed with our partners to engage, enlighten and enrich your time with us, so that whatever your passion, you can indulge it on board.
Do you want a sneak peak of Silver Ray’s spacious public areas? More will be revealed soon, so watch this space!
Embark on a personal journey of wellness to complement your global adventures while onboard your luxury cruise.
Whether you want to work up a sweat in the state-of-the-art Fitness Centre, take a class in circuit training or enjoy Pilates in the aerobics room, our spa and wellness centre has the right option for you. Let the sauna and steam rooms work their magic, enjoy treatments that soothe every muscle or keep your personal grooming up to date in the Beauty Salon. Silversea offers a holistic approach to wellness that fully integrates exercise, fitness and spa therapies with health lectures and nutritious dining to help you maintain a healthy lifestyle, even while away from home.
Please note: Although Silversea accepts guests over the age of six months, there are no special programmes for children on board, and Silversea does not provide for the care, entertainment and supervision of children.
