A suite, a butler, and ships that reach the ice

Every guest on every ship has a butler, not just the ones at the top of the deck plan. Suites are spacious and nearly all have a private veranda. It is the detail that changes the week most: unpacking, reservations, a drink poured the way you like it, all handled without being asked twice.

S.A.L.T., short for Sea and Land Taste, is Silversea’s culinary programme, and it changes with the itinerary. The S.A.L.T. Kitchen cooks the region you are sailing through, the Bar mixes its drinks, and the Lab runs classes and tastings. Ashore, it turns into market visits and meals in local kitchens.

Silver Endeavour carries the highest ice rating in the fleet, twenty expedition experts, guides and scientists, and enough Zodiacs that landings do not run on a waiting list. The same butler, the same suites, in a ship designed to sit off a glacier rather than a marina.

These are among the most spacious ships at sea for the number of guests they carry. Silver Nova takes it furthest, with an asymmetrical design that gives almost every venue an ocean view and an outward facing pool deck. Otium, the Roman inspired spa and wellness programme, runs across the newer ships.

The most radical ship Silversea has built. The asymmetrical layout puts an ocean view in almost every venue and turns the pool deck outward rather than inward.

Every suite has a balcony and a butler. The Marquee, S.A.L.T. Kitchen, La Dame, Kaiseki and Atlantide cover the dining, Otium Spa handles the wellness, and the ship runs on hybrid power with liquefied natural gas.

The ship where S.A.L.T. began, and still the clearest expression of it. Menus, tastings and shore experiences all take their cue from the region you are sailing.

Eight dining venues, from Kaiseki and La Dame to the Arts Café, plus Silver Note for jazz and tapas late on. Suites throughout, butler service throughout, and a high number of crew for each guest.

The expedition ship, and one of the most capable in luxury travel. The highest ice rating in the fleet, twenty expedition experts on board, and a Zodiac fleet sized so that landings are not rationed.

Below deck it is still Silversea: all suites, all balconies, butler service, and a two storey solarium with a pool. The Restaurant, Il Terrazzino, La Dame and The Grill keep the dining closer to a hotel than a research vessel

One of the most spacious ships at sea for the number of guests aboard, which shows in the width of the corridors as much as the size of the suites.

Eight dining venues including Atlantide, La Terrazza, La Dame and Kaiseki, Silver Note for the evening, and Zagara Spa for the mornings. Cosmopolitan in feel, and a favourite for longer Mediterranean voyages.

A sister to Silver Moon, and the ship where Otium was introduced: a wellness programme that runs from the spa through to the menus and the suites themselves.

S.A.L.T. Kitchen, La Dame, Kaiseki, Atlantide, Silver Note and The Marquee give eight venues in total. Intimate, well staffed, and an easy first Silversea ship.

The smallest and most yacht like of the ships here, and the one regulars name when asked for a favourite.

Nearly every suite has a veranda, every guest has a butler, and four dining venues keep it simple: The Restaurant, La Terrazza, La Dame and The Grill. Whisper takes on the World Cruises and the Grand Voyages, so it is the ship for anyone with months rather than weeks.