Wow! What a ship! The Silver Moon was built in 2020 so everything felt brand new. We had a Deluxe Veranda, a spacious cabin with a separate seating area divided by a heavy curtain, private balcony, excellent two way shower and separate tub. Bulgari bath products and other amenities were refilled as needed. With Silversea every stateroom has a private butler who offered to help us unpack and get settled.
The stateroom also had a walk in closet that we found super helpful for changing. The balcony was roomy enough for two chairs, a table, and still enough space to walk around or stretch out. I ended up spending a lot more time there than expected, simply because it was such a lovely setting to read a book or fill out the daily ship trivia.
The minibar was stocked with beverages including still and sparkling water. Since we soon learned that you couldn't sit down anywhere on the ship for more than two minutes before a staff member would ask if you'd like a complementary beverage, we didn't find a lot of use for most of the minibar, but we did love the jugs of water and ice. I think our butler spent most of his visits refilling these for us onboard. With temperatures in the triple digits many days, the ice was a wonderful luxury. Silversea has gone completely plastic free (hooray!) and supplied us each with stainless steel water bottles to keep. For each excursion, I filled that bottle as well as a second one from home with a generous supply of ice and a sprinkle of water. Between the two, I was usually able to stay hydrated nicely for a half day excursion. There were also refillable water stations scattered around the ship, though we rarely needed them thanks to the aforementioned relentless beverage service!
In general, we found service onboard to be stellar. The staff were friendly and many learned our names and preferences, despite the ship holding nearly 600 pax. By the pool, they did an excellent job of clearing deck chairs so that travelers could nearly always find a free chair with a fresh blanket and towel waiting.
Since we tend to be fairly independent travelers, we also valued the self service laundry onboard. On an 11 day cruise, I probably did laundry four times, taking advantage of the luxury to wash our soaked clothes that seemed to get drenched within a few minutes of each excursion due to the temperatures. We similarly appreciated that bus/ tender transfers were offered regularly in every port, both for travelers on the ship's excursions and for travelers exploring independently.
Some post- Covid touches that I appreciated included a full hand washing station at the buffet and automated doors that allowed us to travel throughout most of the ship without touching services.
On the flip side, there were a couple of items that seemed outdated. First and foremost is the dress code, that, although reasonably flexible, still encouraged a level of formality that seems out of place in today's smaller ship markets. The ship also has a casino, an old fashioned addition that I was grateful not to find until my last day (thankfully it's tucked away beyond a nondescript side door so it's easy to avoid).
All in all, the Silver Moon impressed me. I found most of the ship design to be exceptionally well thought out, easy to navigate, and with lots of creature comforts built in.
