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Ultra-luxury cruising promises the very best at sea – but which line is truly delivering right now, and which are slipping? I’ve recently been back on Seabourn, Silversea, Regent Seven Seas and Crystal, and in this video I reveal how they really compare today.
I put these four head-to-head on:
- Fleet + Ship Style
- Cabins & Suites
- Dining & Culinary Experience
- Service Style
- Onboard Atmosphere
- Itineraries & Destinations
- Who Each Line Is Best For
- And importantly… Where They Fall Short
If you’re considering an ultra-luxury cruise, this will help you avoid costly mistakes and choose the line that best fits your travel style.
I’m Gary Bembridge from Tips For Travellers. I book and pay for all my cruises myself at normal fares so I can give you unbiased, independent advice.
#CruiseTips #LuxuryCruise #Seabourn #Silversea #RegentSevenSeas #CrystalCruises
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0:00
If you're considering an ultra luxury
0:02
cruise, these are the four key lines you
0:05
should be considering. Seabour, Silver
0:07
Sea, Region 7C's, and Crystal. But as
0:09
you'll be spending at least $1,500 a day
0:12
per cabin, you expect near perfection.
0:15
Yet each line shines in different ways.
0:17
And sometimes, as you'll hear, they
0:19
stumble, too. I'm Gary Benbridge and
0:21
I've been back on all these lines in the
0:23
last year to see who deserves the crown
0:25
because they're top of the ultra luxury
0:27
game right now and who's falling short
0:30
and why. I'll be putting these four
0:32
headto-head on fleets, inclusions,
0:34
cabins, dining, service, entertainment,
0:36
and itineraries to help you see which
0:38
delivers a top-notch experience and
0:41
which you may want to avoid and
0:42
importantly who they're best for. But
0:45
first, what is ultr luxury cruising and
0:47
what do they all have in common? Ultra
0:51
luxury cruising sits at the very top end
0:53
of the cruising market above resort
0:55
mass, premium, and the small ship luxury
0:57
category. And they're so exclusive, they
1:00
carry under 2% of all cruise passengers
1:02
per year. They're designed for travelers
1:04
who want five-star personalized service,
1:07
no lines and crowds on board, and desire
1:09
small ships that can go to ports and
1:12
places that larger ships cannot, like
1:14
being able to dock, for example, in the
1:15
heart of cities like Shanghai, while
1:17
bigger ships are some hours out in a
1:19
commercial container port. Even the
1:22
largest ultra luxury ships only carry
1:24
around 800 guests. Most carry much fewer
1:27
and all have high crew to passenger
1:29
ratio, a boutique hotel feel, and none
1:32
of the bigger ship resort type
1:34
activities. The ship sizes, while lines
1:36
like Explore Journeys with 922
1:39
passengers, Viking with 930 and Oceanani
1:42
with 1,200, are not in the ultra luxury
1:44
category. They're in the small ship
1:46
luxury category. Ultra luxury lines also
1:49
have more inclusive fairs than any of
1:52
the other cruise categories. Although
1:53
they do have several extra charge
1:56
add-ons, but their fairs include food
1:58
including for most specialty dining
2:00
venues too. Accommodation of course all
2:02
drinks including wines and spirits,
2:04
gratuitities and Wi-Fi to get streaming
2:08
requires added charge packages. Regent
2:11
is the most all-inclusive line as they
2:13
include unlimited excursions and some
2:15
fairs and cabin grades include flights,
2:18
transfers, and pre-stay hotels, while
2:20
these are add-on charges for the other
2:22
lines. They all claim all suite
2:25
accommodation and most have a balcony.
2:27
Although I argue that most cabins are
2:29
not true suites with different rooms and
2:32
they're more kind of oversized balcony
2:33
cabins with a seating, dining and a
2:36
bedroom area. guests because the price
2:38
are affluent. They tend to be well
2:40
traveled. They want comfort, convenient,
2:42
and of course, status. These four lines
2:45
are all owned by corporations, by the
2:47
way. Silver Sea by the Royal Caribbean
2:50
Group, Seabor by Carnival Corporation,
2:52
Region 7C's by Norwegian Group, and
2:55
Crystal by Abury and Kent, which is part
2:58
of Manf Freddy Levverra Devidio's
3:00
heritage group, whose family originally
3:02
created Silver Sea. I'm going to explore
3:05
how they differ on fleet fairs, cabins,
3:07
dining itineries, and importantly, who
3:09
each one is specifically best for, but
3:12
let's start with an overview of what
3:13
each of these lines is best known for,
3:15
and broadly speaking, what they fall
3:18
short on. Silver Sea carries the most
3:20
passengers, as it has the largest fleet,
3:22
12 ships, covering both classic and
3:24
expedition cruising. They're best known
3:26
for having the widest range of
3:28
itineraries, butlers in every grade, and
3:30
their salt program, sea and land taste,
3:33
which is designed to give passengers the
3:35
most immersive regional dining and drink
3:37
experiences of all the lines. With a
3:40
salt restaurant, bar, cooking classes,
3:42
and excursions. On the downside, with a
3:44
wide range of ships of different sizes,
3:46
classes, and ages stretching back 25
3:49
years, it's a less consistent experience
3:51
based on which ship class you travel on.
3:54
Seabour is best known for being the
3:56
first small ship ultra luxury line with
3:59
ships heavily inspired by private yachts
4:01
and very yacht-like decor. They're
4:04
increasingly well known for also
4:05
offering expedition cruising with two
4:07
customuilt ships. They're probably well
4:09
known for their signature events and
4:11
partnerships. things like the marina day
4:13
when the back of the ship opens, the
4:15
caviar in the surf, evening at Ephesus,
4:17
shopping with the chef, and then
4:19
partnerships with people like Tim Rice
4:20
for entertainment, Molton Brown for
4:22
toiletries, and Dr. Andrew Wheel for
4:25
wellness and fitness. Probably the
4:27
biggest downside is the ongoing
4:30
speculation about its future because
4:31
they've been selling ships and reducing
4:34
capacity and therefore itineraries and
4:36
they actually have no new builds
4:39
planned. Region 7C is probably best
4:42
known for being the most inclusive of
4:44
the ultra luxury lines and has a
4:46
reputation of having the biggest suites.
4:49
Of all of these lines, they tend to
4:51
appeal to a more traditional cruising
4:53
clientele. They have a wide range of
4:55
itineraries on the more classic, perhaps
4:58
less adventurous side than some of the
5:00
others. Crystal is best known these days
5:02
as having come back from collapse after
5:05
being revived in 2022 under Abberro and
5:08
Kent. But they're also known for their
5:09
incredible service with most of the crew
5:12
having returned to the line and their
5:14
very strong dining including the only
5:16
Nou restaurants at sea and a really big
5:18
emphasis on enrichment. Probably the
5:21
downside, they're still rebuilding trust
5:23
and consistency after the shutdown and
5:25
their two current ships despite upgrades
5:28
are the oldest in the category. Talking
5:30
of fleets, how do these differ? As
5:34
mentioned, Silver Sea has the largest
5:36
fleet with 12 ships, and I've cruised on
5:38
seven of them. In the classic fleet,
5:40
they have four different classes. The
5:43
latest being Silver Nova and Silver,
5:45
which are very modern and unlike
5:48
anything in ultra luxury with a unique
5:50
asymmetrical design, which includes
5:53
features like the pool is on one side
5:55
and not centered. They then have other
5:58
groups of ships which are Silver Dawn,
6:00
Silver Moon, and Silver Muse. Then they
6:02
have much older ships with spirit and
6:04
then shadow and whisper all with varying
6:07
passenger numbers. In expedition they
6:09
have four ships which are very different
6:11
in type. Silver cloud, endeavor and wind
6:13
in the polar regions and the Galapagus
6:15
origin. As I mentioned there is some
6:18
inconsistency as you move around the
6:20
different ships in the fleet because
6:21
they are quite different. Seabour have a
6:25
small fleet which is reducing to just
6:27
five. two of which are expedition or
6:30
carry no more than 600 guests. I've
6:31
cruised on four of their ships. Their
6:35
most recent classic ships are Seaborn
6:37
Encore Innovation which are pretty
6:39
appealing. And the two expedition ships
6:42
are excellent and they're called Venture
6:44
and Pursuit. Very modern. Region 7C's
6:46
have six ships with one ship navigator
6:49
leaving the fleet, but it's been
6:50
replaced by a much larger ship. What I
6:53
like is all their ships have basically
6:55
the same layout and venue. So, as you
6:56
move around the fleet, you get a very
6:58
similar experience with just the decor
7:00
slightly changing and a few
7:02
modifications here and there. I've
7:04
cruised on five of their ships, and I
7:06
like getting that consistent experience
7:08
as I move around the different ships in
7:10
the fleet. Crystal has two older style
7:12
ships, Serenity and Symphony, both of
7:14
which I've cruised on, and they've
7:16
actually been significantly refurbished
7:18
and the capacity reduced since being
7:20
taken over by Abocrombi and Kent. But
7:22
they do have three new builds coming
7:24
from 2028. The two existing ships as I
7:27
mentioned had capacity cut when
7:29
Abbercoming Kent bought them and they do
7:31
have some different and inconsistency
7:34
amongst the cabins with some older and
7:35
some newer refurbished cabins. But based
7:38
on these fleets, what differences do
7:40
they have in itineraries?
7:42
Although both Silver Sea and Seabor have
7:44
expedition ships, I am going to focus
7:47
from here on only on classic cruising.
7:51
Unlike the Mass Resort, Premium, and
7:52
even the small ship luxury categories,
7:55
all of these lines sell incredibly
7:57
globally. And of course, they cover the
7:59
major regions like the Caribbean and the
8:00
Mediterranean. But when they do, they
8:02
call on less visited islands and ports
8:04
that only smaller ships can visit. And
8:06
they often call on many tender only
8:08
ports because bigger ships avoid those
8:10
due to the logistics. So it does take
8:12
you to more unusual places. If you're
8:14
looking for the widest diversity of
8:16
itineraries, Silver Sea, I think, is
8:18
best. Seaborn though have a surprisingly
8:20
good global coverage even with their
8:22
limited fleet but they do tend to focus
8:24
a little bit more on iconic ports of the
8:26
world while Silver Sea can offer just
8:28
much more diversity due to the different
8:30
ship classes and number of ships. Region
8:33
has a smaller global footprint. It tends
8:35
to focus also very much on iconic ports
8:38
but generally slightly longer
8:39
itineraries with regions like Alaska,
8:41
Caribbean, Mediterranean, Japan, Asia,
8:44
Australia, New Zealand being their key
8:46
focus. Crystal, despite having a rather
8:48
small fleet, do cover a lot of the
8:50
world, but they do that by not
8:52
homeporting ships in any region. And
8:54
they sail many more one-way routes with
8:56
fewer repeat itineraries to offer
8:58
loyalists new routes and ports. But once
9:01
on board, what is dining like? And are
9:03
there big differences? Yes, more than
9:06
you may expect. Of course, the focus is
9:08
on elevated dining with all having at
9:10
least five venues included in the fair.
9:13
But I want to get one big miss for me
9:15
out of the way before I explore the
9:17
upsides. Ultra luxury lines all assume
9:19
their passengers do not want a buffet
9:21
casual dining option for dinner. None of
9:24
those offer it requiring guests not
9:26
wanting a multicourse served dinner to
9:27
use room service or in the case of
9:29
silvery they do have a pizza option on
9:31
most of the fleet called Speak Napoli.
9:34
While all lines offer an intimate and
9:36
exclusive added charge chef table
9:38
tasting venue, Silverc is the only one
9:41
of the lines that have added charge
9:42
special restaurants, which for the fairs
9:45
and all-inclusive positioning of ultra
9:46
luxury seems a little bit off to me. So,
9:49
for example, on my recent Silver Nova
9:51
cruise, it was $80 per person in the
9:53
Asian Kaiski for dinner, though the
9:55
lunch was included in the fair and well
9:57
over $100 in the Lam French restaurant.
10:00
But beyond that, Silver Sea does have a
10:02
choice of five included dining venues
10:04
and one cafe. For example, on Silver
10:06
Nova, that was Atlantide main dining
10:09
room, Salt Restaurant with regional
10:11
focused dishes, Latera, which is a
10:13
buffet breakfast and lunch, an Italian
10:15
way to served dinner, the Grill Marquee
10:18
featuring their signature hot rocks for
10:19
dinner, Silverote Jazz and Music Dining,
10:22
and the Arts Cafe. However, the venues
10:25
and number do vary based on which ship.
10:28
So, you kind of have to check based on
10:29
which one you're going on. Overall, food
10:31
on Silver Sea, while good, I do feel
10:33
falls kind of midway in the category.
10:36
And beyond the uniqueness of salt, it
10:37
lacks for me some of the finesse and
10:39
range of some of the others. For me,
10:42
Seabor also has good luxury food, but I
10:45
actually rate it as the weakest of the
10:47
four based on my experience. Now all
10:49
dining is included in the fair and
10:50
Seaborn Ovation and Encore like Silver
10:53
Sea have five included dining venues and
10:56
one cafe. These are the restaurant, the
10:58
main dining room, the Colonade which is
11:00
a buffet breakfast and lunch and a way
11:01
to serve dinner with a kind of American
11:03
classic focused menu. Solace which
11:06
replaced the popular Thomas Keller
11:07
restaurant and is Mediterranean
11:09
inspired. Earth and Ocean on the pool
11:11
deck with seasonal menus which they bill
11:13
as eclectic flavors of the world. They
11:16
have sushi, a small venue but really
11:17
good sushi and bento box lunches. And
11:20
then they have the iconic Seabour Square
11:23
which is a coffee shop cafe but also you
11:25
have guest service and shore excursions
11:27
integrated. Regent has extremely good
11:29
food and menus and I rate them as the
11:31
second best in the category. All ships
11:33
have the same venues. There are six
11:36
dining venues and one cafe all included
11:38
in the fair. There's Compass Rose the
11:40
main dining with a vast menu. Lavaranda
11:43
which is buffet for breakfast and lunch
11:45
and dinner becomes seti mari a waiter
11:48
served Italian they have a pool grill
11:50
the prime 7 steakhouse pacific rim Asian
11:53
fusion and charterus French and my least
11:56
favorite but it has amazing 24 cart at
11:58
the end and then there's the cafe
12:00
connections cafe crystal is having the
12:03
most elevated and elegant food and again
12:05
there's six included in the fair venues
12:08
there's a wateride restaurant main
12:10
dining room marketplace buffet for
12:13
breakfast and lunch. Tried and Grill for
12:15
daytime casual dining. Nou's Umei Uma,
12:18
the only Nou restaurant with amazing
12:20
Asian and sushi. Asterio Devido, Italian
12:22
and beef bar, a street food restaurant
12:25
inspired by a chain which has its
12:27
origins in Monaco. Then there's the
12:29
Beastro Cafe. Food and dining across all
12:31
these lines is high-end, and I know some
12:33
will disagree with my assessment of the
12:34
rankings, but perhaps not with my
12:37
assessment of the service differences.
12:40
Of course, with almost 1:1 crew to
12:42
passenger ratio, service levels across
12:45
all ultra luxury lines is high with
12:48
smaller ships also meaning the crew can
12:50
usually get to know your name and
12:52
preferences too. Saying that, I find
12:54
Silver Sea Service is probably a little
12:56
bit more formal and more European versus
12:58
the other lines. And with a larger fleet
13:01
and the recent expansion, it's also a
13:03
little bit less consistent, I find
13:05
anyway, across all the crew. For
13:06
example, as every cabin has a butler,
13:09
reports of how proactive and efficient
13:11
they are varies. I've never had any
13:13
issues, but friends on recent trips
13:15
have. Also, of all the lines, that sense
13:18
of more formality, I think, shows up in
13:20
the greater emphasis on dress code,
13:22
where both passengers and the line tend
13:24
to look at people dressing up more than
13:26
on the other lines with jackets required
13:28
on some evenings. Seaborn service is
13:31
definitely more relaxed. It's more
13:32
informal. It's more casual American
13:34
style. Though my experience, it's also
13:36
the line where staff seem to be expected
13:39
and learn names and preferences the
13:41
quickest. That sense of crew interacting
13:43
with guests and informality shows up
13:45
with crew hosting dinner tables more
13:47
than any other lines in my experience,
13:50
too. Region service is also friendly and
13:52
although it has a more American style,
13:54
it's a little bit less affusive and more
13:56
reserved in line perhaps with the more
13:58
traditional guests that they tend to
14:00
attract.
14:02
Crystal is famed for having the best
14:04
service at sea, helped by a very
14:06
long-erving crew who've worked together
14:08
over many, many years. And I do find it
14:11
is the most attentive and personal
14:14
service. Definitely helped by being a
14:16
tight-knit family because crew, they
14:18
know each other so well. There's only
14:19
two ships. They work together for many,
14:21
many years. And of course, on the other
14:22
lines, there's lots of ships. There's
14:24
lots of crew who move around and they
14:26
don't know each other as well. They
14:28
don't work as a tightknit team as they
14:30
do on Crystal. But what about
14:33
entertainment? Entertainment on these
14:35
ultra luxury lines is limited and have
14:38
few entertainment staff compared to the
14:40
other cruise line categories. In my
14:42
view, there is little difference between
14:43
the lines and I don't feel there is a
14:45
standout. Nor do I think that
14:47
entertainment would or should be a real
14:51
deciding factor when choosing between
14:53
these lines. All have live music in the
14:55
evenings. They have theater shows which
14:57
are classic themed song and dance shows.
15:00
They have the standard guest
15:01
entertainers. They have guest speakers,
15:03
bridge classes, and the usual cruise
15:05
activities like cooking, demos, bingo,
15:07
trivia, and the occasional party nights.
15:10
Regent and Silver Sea have cooking
15:12
classes. Crystal are the only ones with
15:14
kids club venues with programs run major
15:17
school vacation times, but they're all
15:19
pretty much the same. So although
15:22
entertainment is so similar based on
15:23
everything else, I do though think that
15:26
different lines are right for different
15:28
types of travelers who are seeking ultra
15:31
luxury cruising. For example, Silver Sea
15:34
is ideal for those wanting more choice
15:36
of innovative wide-ranging itineraries
15:38
with the added variety of being able to
15:40
have slightly different Silver
15:41
experiences by trying and moving between
15:43
the different classes of ships each
15:46
time. They're also definitely best for
15:48
people wanting more culinary immersion
15:50
into the region because of that salt
15:52
program.
15:54
Seabour for me is a good fit for those
15:56
seeking an intimate but much more
15:58
relaxed ultra luxury yacht-like
16:00
experience and who want to see the most
16:03
iconic mustsee ports. While Regent is
16:07
for those who want the most
16:08
all-inclusive experience, they
16:10
definitely suit travelers who enjoy
16:12
probably a slightly more traditional
16:13
classic luxury way of traveling and
16:15
definitely enjoy longer voyages in the
16:18
musty and popular parts of the world.
16:20
Crystal is definitely for those who want
16:23
really high levels of personalized
16:24
service. They want really fine dining
16:26
and they're drawn to more classic older
16:29
style ships. If ultra luxury is not for
16:32
you and you're more interested in
16:33
premium cruising after all this, join me
16:35
over in this video where I dive into the
16:37
biggest premium cruise lines and find
16:39
out which of them is best, which of them
16:41
is worse, and why. See you over there.