Early morning sunrise for Silver Spirit, en-route to
Philipsburg, St. Maarten.
Photo © Aaron Saunders
Welcome to Philipsburg, St. Maarten!
Half Dutch, half French, St. Maarten/St. Martin offers cruise passengers the best of both worlds : a major Eastern Caribbean cruise port with a European flair. Philipsburg is a major shopping mecca for arriving ships; expect to see stores like Tommy Hilfiger interspersed with street vendors selling their wares.
There are five other ships in port with us today: Liberty of the Seas, Ruby Princess, Carnival Liberty, MSC Poesia and the gargantuan RMS Queen Mary 2. Long-time readers of this blog will know by now that I like my big ships; QM2 is a huge favourite of mine, and we’ve sailed on Ruby Princess’s sister, Crown Princess, twice.
The Pool Deck at 5:30 in Philipsburg.
Photo © Aaron Saunders
But today, I’m happier than ever to be aboard Silver Spirit. As we ate a relaxing breakfast on the terrace at La Terrazza, we watched throngs of passengers disembarking Carnival Liberty, queuing up, getting jammed up on the dock, posing for photographs, jostling, pushing, shoving…all in the soaring heat and humidity. And none of it looked like much fun. Yet here on Silver Spirit, our waiter Boyke is asking me if I’d like another coffee or fresh-squeezed orange juice. We’re eating with some friends we’ve made during the cruise, and numerous people we know – both staff and passengers – are popping by our table to chat.
Silver Spirit tied up in Philipsburg.
Photo © Aaron Saunders
I’ve taken 19 mainstream cruises, and I love them. Overall, they provide a good cruise experience at a very affordable price, and I’m sure there’s plenty more in my future. But today – I’m very glad to be right here, not battling lines and crowds.
The six ships docked here, including us, have just pumped roughly 12,000 people into Philipsburg. All of them will be funnelled through the shopping mecca that is the cruise pier, and from there they’ll descend on the town, the beaches, and the attractions.
The beautiful beach in downtown Philipsburg.
Photo © Aaron Saunders
Having never been here before, our tour of the island was a simple one: we elected to take a water taxi from the cruise ship pier into downtown Philipsburg in order to do some shopping and hit the beach. While the incredible deals on electronics are touted by many guidebooks, I have to say I didn’t find anything that enticed me: an Apple iPad, for example, was actually just as expensive in Philipsburg as it is back in Vancouver. Alcohol is probably the big attraction, but again, bars and liquor stores in port are sort of wasted on you when you’re on an all-inclusive ship.
The streets of Philipsburg during a rare, quiet moment.
Photo © Aaron Saunders
The other problem was one I alluded to previously: people, and lots of them. The streets in Philipsburg were jam –packed, so we decided a dip in the aqua-blue sea was just what the doctor ordered. The beaches here are pristine, though not as nice as Bequia. Still, we had a great time until a large wave caught us broadside and dragged us along the beach for a few hundred feet. I’m still getting the sand out.
One of the first churches in Philipsburg.
Photo © Aaron Saunders
After roughly three hours ashore, we made a beeline for the Silver Spirit. Why? We were just tired of being jostled around in the crowds. It was so nice to step back aboard the ship to a friendly “hello” and reclaim our personal space. If Silversea has a downside, it’s this: being aboard the ship is so relaxing you’re likely to find trips to crowded ports will push your buttons in all the wrong ways.
The amazing balcony of our Silver Suite on Deck 11.
Photo © Aaron Saunders
Like the rest of our afternoons, we spent time enjoying our Silver Suite and its fantastic balcony. There was a brief moment of excitement when one of MSC Poesia’s stern lines snapped clean off in the heavy swells that had all ships bobbing up and down for most of the day. Fortunately, the line sheared off at the ship end, and no one was in any danger.
High Tea delicacies.
Photo © Aaron Saunders
We also managed to take in High Tea. Held in La Terrazza on Deck 7 from 4pm to 5pm, High Tea aboard Silver Spirit has everything you might expect, from your choice of tea to a wide array of finger sandwiches and small desserts. Just one more highly relaxing offering that we chose to take outside in order to enjoy the warm weather. After that, it was off to Trivia in the Panorama Lounge on Deck 9, where we managed to not loose as badly as the last three days.
Queen Mary 2 departs Philipsburg at 6:00pm.
Photo © Aaron Saunders
This ended in time to catch Queen Mary 2 departing Philipsburg to a rousing horn ‘salute’ from all ships berthed near her.
Very cool: Silversea's innovative (and unique!) Black Rock Dining.
Photo © Aaron Saunders
But it was tonight’s dinner that was the real highlight of the day: we dined outdoors under the stars (and a little rain) on Deck 10 at the Pool Grill – featuring Black Rock Dining. Originated on Silver Spirit, Black Rock Dining is a totally unique dining concept and best of all, it carries no additional charge – just a reservation.
Here’s how it works: the tables on the upper pool deck, Deck 10, are all dressed up and set just as they would be in The Restaurant. On the menu: a wide array of beef and fish that comes grilled to order – literally.
You start with a salad, in addition to taco chips, guacamole and salsa. Red or white wine is served to accompany your meal. Finally, the true star of the show arrives: the Black Rock. The stone is heated to act like a personal grill, and your meat and fish come to you primed, but essentially uncooked. You then grill your own food, on the Black Rock.
The whole process is a lot of fun; I was impressed I managed to not burn my prawns, but I was surprised my Filet Mignon took as long as it did to cook to my liking. Still, it was great fun to be dining out under the stars while cooking your own meal to order. The Black Rock dining has become so popular that Silversea has plans to add it to the rest of the fleet; Silver Whisper currently offers it as well. This evening, every table was taken, and people were thoroughly enjoying themselves.
Oh, and the apple pie served for dessert is to die for.
After all that frivolity, another evening comes to a close, and I’m left to reflect on how interesting the dining situation on this ship is. You can dine when you want, with whomever you want, in whatever venue you’d like. The Silver Spirit offers more dining options than some cruise ships twice her size. But seeing the Black Rock Dining in action was a real eye-opener for me. I’d read about it, I’d written about it, and yet it was just a lot of good old fashioned fun, and judiging by this evening’s turnout, I’d say many people agree with me.
Tonight, we have some moderate seas that are causing the ship to pitch up and down quite a bit. I couldn’t be happier – I’m going to sleep like a baby.
Stay tuned tomorrow as we report Live from the Silver Spirit in Charlotte Amalie, St. Thomas, USVI.
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