- Start of day: Rome, Italy
- End of day: Tyrrhenian Sea, between Rome and Livorno
Embark day! Today I’m boarding a 7 night Mediterranean cruise aboard the Silversea Silver Spirit. It’s my first time on Silversea, an ultra-luxury, all-inclusive cruise line known for its small, intimate ships, butler service in every suite, and destination-focused itineraries. It’s also my first time cruising solo.
The itinerary:
| Date | Place | About |
|---|---|---|
| Friday, May 8 | Rome (Civitavecchia), Italy | Cruise port serving Rome |
| Saturday, May 9 | Florence / Pisa (Livorno), Italy | Tuscan port, gateway to Florence and Pisa |
| Sunday, May 10 | At Sea | |
| Monday, May 11 | Valencia, Spain | Mediterranean coastal city, home of paella |
| Tuesday, May 12 | Cartagena, Spain | Ancient port city in the Murcia region |
| Wednesday, May 13 | At Sea | |
| Thursday, May 14 | Portimao, Portugal | Beach town on Portugal’s Algarve coast |
| Friday, May 15 | Lisbon, Portugal | Portugal’s capital; disembark and fly home |
I’m sad to bid farewell to the Hotel Campo de’ Fiori, but excited to start the next phase of my adventure.
I was initially planning to leave the hotel around 11am and take the ~11:30am train to Civitavecchia. That would put me in Civitavecchia around 12:30pm. However, I saw a mention of a possible train strike that day starting at 11am, so I accelerated my plans and set my transfer in motion.
I paid my hotel bill and had them call for a taxi, which arrived within a few minutes. Stazione San Pietro was the closer of the two train stations I was considering (with the main Termini station being the other). We made it over there in about 10 minutes. Oh, and I tried to give the taxi driver a €20 bill to cover the €12 fare, only for him to be confused, flipping it back and forth inspecting it until we both realized I’d accidentally given him a 20 Swiss Francs note. I paid with a €50 instead, and swore I wasn’t trying to trick him. He thought it was funny.
I was already scoping out train tickets in the Trenitalia app prior to arriving:
While I could’ve used the app to buy my ticket, I wanted to see how the ticket machine worked. Icons on a sign next to the machine and on the screen itself indicated that it only accepted cash or coins. No problem, as I had a €5 note in my pocket for the €4.60 ticket.
The train was pretty busy. I had to stand with my luggage in the entrance area for the whole ride to the port (about an hour), next to a Dutch guy with the largest bicycle I’ve ever seen. Still, it was more tolerable than leaving Wengen for Zermatt last year.
Once in Civitavecchia, the weather was nice and luggage manageable, so I decided to walk to Largo della Pace, the bus stop plaza for boarding cruise ships – about a 25-minute walk.
For future travelers, the walk to the cruise port bus area from the Civitavecchia train station isn’t too bad (if the weather’s nice), even with a rolling bag, but don’t put Largo della Pace as your destination. You’ll end up a block away and it won’t be obvious where to go. Instead, set your destination to Statua di Poseidone and that will get you much closer to the mark. Plus, you get to see a statue. Or more, actually.
Once you get to Largo della Pace, you’ll see signs directing you to the bus that takes you to your particular cruise ship. The bus drivers seem to be aiming for 110% full.
Funny enough, our ship was docked at a pier pretty close to downtown. We bussed all the way back to near that Ferris wheel, then hooked right toward a pier for smaller ships like ours. Eyeballing things, I expect I could’ve walked directly to the ship from the Civitavecchia train station in about the same amount of time as walking to Largo della Pace and skipped the bus entirely. It didn’t look like it was in a port-secured area, either. Possible tip for next time.
The cruise terminal itself was nice enough. You start by checking your bag, then going to the next room over to go through security. Once past that, you fill out a paper health form, and then proceed to the actual check-in. It’s not quite as streamlined as other cruise lines, with manual typing of passport info by the agent, and signing a credit card authorization slip, but it didn’t take long. Compare these scenes to what you find when boarding a ship with 3500-7000 of your closest friends:
Check-in was fairly painless, and check out my nifty card holder:
Boarding was super casual. Up until I hit the terminal, the entire trip felt very much like my usual cruise experience. The more relaxed pace of check-in was nice, and then this is how you casually board the ship:
Once onboard, you’re greeted with cold towels, champagne, canapés, and caviar, if you wish to partake. I skipped all that and headed up to La Terrazza on deck 7 for lunch. It’s really going to take some time to get used to the one-on-one service they have on board.
After lunch I explored the ship a bit. This was the Silver Spirit’s first voyage after emerging from 61 days in dry dock. One of the major areas renovated was the theater:
This interesting staircase was steps from my door:
The coffee bar would become a favorite over the span of the cruise:
After lunch and exploring, I spent time on the top deck getting some sun. At 2pm the staterooms were ready so I headed there. I’m in suite 757, which is a Deluxe Veranda with ~311 square feet of interior and a 64 square foot veranda (for ~375sf total). It feels a bit wider than our typical Celebrity rooms, and it’s definitely longer. Upon walking in, the bathroom is on the immediate right, and is a nice size. Past that is a full walk-in closet, with ample hanger space and a 6 or 7 drawer dresser. I’ll do a proper room tour in a future post.
Around 3:30p I met my butler and housekeeper in the hall when I was heading out for coffee. They asked if this was a good time to give me a tour of my room and its features. I said that it was, and they invited me to sit on the couch while they went over the room and available services like morning breakfast, laundry, and such. The preferred method of reaching the butlers is via WhatsApp using a QR code (which is wild to me) but the phone also works. There is a laundry room down the hall from my room where I can iron my shirt or pants.
For the safety drill, I need to watch a video on my TV, then visit my muster station on deck 5 in the show lounge between 4pm and 6pm. Life vest not required.
Sailaway was at 6:30pm. On other lines I’ve sailed on, like Disney Cruise Line, Celebrity, or Royal Caribbean, sailaway is treated as an event, with a dance party, pool activities, and the works. That doesn’t seem to be a thing on Silversea, or at least this ship or itinerary. I say this because we had a cocktail hour for our group right at the sailaway time; it’s also when the solo cruisers meet up for their cocktail hour. I didn’t miss it, per se, but found the contrast interesting.
As mentioned, I met up with the other members of our group (and their partners) at 6:30. They are all accomplished travel advisors. Besides being the only person in the group traveling solo, I am also the newest to travel advising, leaving me feeling a bit out of place heading into the cruise. As usual, my anxieties and doubts were completely unfounded, as they couldn’t have been nicer, more gracious, more welcoming, and more helpful.
Our first cocktail hour in La Dolce Vita:
Our group dinner was at S.A.L.T. Kitchen. S.A.L.T., short for Sea And Land Taste, connects you more closely to the cuisines of the places you’ll visit during the voyage. It was a lovely meal. Food, service, and company were all top notch.
