We previously sailed in the Caribbean on Silversea on the Silver Cloud, a smaller and older ship, and wanted to try a larger and newer ship. The experience was outstanding. With 1250 guests, the Riviera didn't feel too big or too crowded to us, is in beautiful condition and was decorated for the holidays. The finishes and furnishings were luxurious, yet not overdone. We loved the variety of quality art on the walls throughout the ship and we could always find a quiet place to read. We loved the expanded size of our penthouse suite, with plenty of space to relax and a large walk-in closet. The crew members attending to our suite were friendly and professional. The specialty restaurants with their varied menus and excellent service were outstanding and we appreciated being able to reserve a table for two in advance. We loved the Terrace Cafe with many delicious buffet options for breakfast and lunch....especially eating on the outside terrace at the stern of the ship. The evening entertainment shows, featuring singers and dancers, was consistently outstanding. We also loved listening to the string quartet in more quiet settings. John, the cruise director, gave concise announcements over the PA system and was a great host of the evening shows. The entire crew seemed to be happy to be working on the Riviera and to take pride in their work. We particularly enjoyed the Cozumel Highlights and Shopping excursion with Raul as our passionate and well-informed guide. The Gumbalimba Preservation Park excursion in Roatan was also enjoyable. We're already searching for our next cruise on Oceania!
We loved the midship location, the spacious sitting area with lighting for reading and balcony, the attractive bathroom and large walk-in closet.
Our Glass Bottom Reef Explorer excursion was cancelled by the operator for "operational reasons". We walked around the attractive cruise-only port for an hour and returned to the ship.
None of the excursions were appealing for us, so we just walked around the cruise-only port for an hour and returned to the ship. Two other much larger ships were docked at the same time and the port, with its touristy shops and restaurants, was packed with people. Unless you are interested in going on one of the excursions, stay on the ship!