Embarkation in Fusina, Italy
Ship: Silversea Cruises’ Silver Ray
Itinerary: 11-Night Venice to Athens
Silver Ray docked In Fusina
Today is embarkation day for our 11-night cruise aboard Silver Ray. After a very restful night’s sleep at our hotel, Palazzo Veneziano, in Venice, we inquire at the front desk about the best way to get to the cruise terminal from the hotel. One option is to walk, which would take about 25 minutes. If not for our luggage in tow, this would have probably been our first choice. The second option is a private water taxi, which only takes about 10 minutes, but costs 90 Euro (about $98 US).
The hotel ordered a water taxi for us and when it arrived, the bellman grabbed all of our luggage and escorted us to the dock, less than 200 feet from the hotel entrance. After all of our luggage was loaded onto the water taxi, we boarded for the short ride to the cruise terminal
A Private Water Taxi To Cruise Terminal
When we arrived at the cruise terminal, Silversea crew members were on hand to tag our luggage, which will be delivered to our stateroom after embarkation. We were then directed to walk or take a shuttle to the cruise terminal building for check-in. The terminal building is only about 300 yards from where we dropped our luggage, so we decided a short walk would do us good. However, Silversea does provide a complimentary shuttle for guests with mobility issues, or those who simply choose not to walk.
Walking to The Cruise Terminal Building 107
Once we arrive at Building 107, there is signage everywhere, as well as Silversea staff, to direct us to the proper check-in area.
Even though our pre-cruise documents claimed embarkation began at 2:00pm, we were not the only guests to arrive early, as you can see in the photo below. We checked in at around 1:00pm. The line was short and moved very quickly. The entire check-in process only took a few minutes.
Checking In AT Cruise Terminal
After we received our stateroom key cards, we are directed to the security checkpoint where our carry-on luggage is scanned.
Shuttle busses were waiting for us outside the terminal building to transfer us to Fusina, where the ship is docked.
Shuttle to Fusina
The shuttle drive to Fusina took about 20 minutes and soon we were alongside Silver Ray.
Embarkation In Fusina
Shortly after embarkation, we were informed that lunch was being served in La Terraza, the ship’s breakfast and lunch buffet restaurant. La Terraza is located aft on Deck 4. Since our suite would not be ready until 2:00pm, we decide to have a quick bite at La Terrazza.
Late Lunch at La Terraza
Even after less than one hour on board Silver Ray, we become aware of many changes that Silversea has made. The most notable was that there was no Champagne offered as we boarded the ship. It may be a small thing to some, but it was always a nice little touch to make you feel like you are not just boarding a cruise ship, but that you were boarding a Silversea ship.
Safety Video
After lunch, we head to our Superior Verandah Suite (6099). Upon entering our suite, we noticed yet a couple of other things missing from past Silversea sailings. There was no bottle of Champagne on ice waiting for us in our suite. No flowers, no fruit and no chocolates. These may seem like small items to most, but they are details that we noticed and in a luxury product, details matter.
We did later learn from our butler, that there is a bottle of champagne in the mini bar fridge.
Where’s The Champagne?
After less than one hour on board, we felt this ship has a completely different vibe than Silversea ships from our past. I am not suggesting that different is necessarily bad, but we are careful to take note of all the changes we notice during this 11- night cruise.
Soon after we arrived in our suite, our butler did stop by for a meet and greet. He showed us many of the features of the suite and asked if there was anything he could do for us. Silversea is one of the few cruise lines that offer butler service in every suite category.
After our butler, Sajan, briefed us, it was time for us to participate in the mandatory muster drill. Our muster station is in La Terrazza. The drill basically involves a demonstration of how to put on one of the life vests. Hopefully, that will not be necessary.
Muster Drill In La Terraza
After the muster drill, we decided to enjoy a pre-dinner cocktail in La Dolce Vida lounge. We were pleased to see that Silversea still offers canapés.
Canapés Served At La Dolce Vida
We only had time for one cocktail (probably a good thing) before it was time to head to Deck 10 for our 7:00pm dinner reservation at The Grill. The Grill on Silver Ray (and Silver Nova) is located in what’s called “The Marquee”, a beautiful open-air venue that is home to The Grill and Spaccanapoli Pizza.
Joseph Explains The Menu At The Grill
The meal begins with a starter plate of tortilla chips, guacamole, grilled shrimp and olives and feta.
Starters At The Grill
The Grill menu has changed from our last Silversea cruise. While they still offer the Hot Rocks experience, they now offer a pizza selection and a few new appetizer choices. There are also a variety of other entrees from which to choose that are prepared in the galley.
The Menu At The Grill
I ordered the 10 oz Rib Eye which was brought to the table raw and placed on one of the 500 degree Hot Rock stones for cooking. If you enjoy cooking your own steak, shrimp or lamb, the Hot Rocks experience is something everyone should try at least once.
10 oz Rib Eye On The Hot Rock
The welcome aboard show tonight in the Venetian Lounge is Emotions. However, we are still fighting off some jet lag and will be going to bed early tonight.
Welcome Aboard Show At Venetian Lounge
Tomorrow, Silver Ray will be in Trieste, Italy, where we plan to disembark and do some exploring on our own.
