Silver Whisper

Wheelchair guests must bring their own collapsible wheelchair. Please note that not all shore excursions are suitable for guests with impaired mobility. Silversea strongly recommends wheelchair guests travel with someone who is able to assist them both ashore and at sea as Silversea may be unable to offer special assistance. Please note that wheel-on and/or wheel-off access may not be available at some ports-of-call. Silversea reserves the right to deny boarding to any guest who failed to notify Silversea of such requirement at the time of booking.

Silversea welcomes guests with mobility needs and offers various accessibility features onboard. However, due to the nature of cruising, some destinations and excursions may present challenges. Below is a guide to help guests plan their journey.

BEFORE BOOKING

Do guests need to notify Silversea in advance about mobility needs?
Yes, guests should inform Silversea of any special assistance or mobility equipment requirements before sailing. This can be done via My Silversea under Guest Information / Special Request, or by contacting specialservices@silversea.com.

Does Silversea provide wheelchairs?
Yes, each vessel has wheelchairs available at the reception for temporary use, such as embarkation and disembarkation. Guests who require a wheelchair for the entire cruise should bring their own.

Can guests bring their own mobility equipment?

Yes, personal wheelchairs, scooters, and other mobility aids are allowed. However, guests staying in standard (non-ADA) suites should note that electric scooters may not fit through the doors.

Therefore, guests traveling with a wheelchair, scooter, or ECV are always highly suggested to book a wheelchair-accessible suite with a wider entrance door and an appropriate path of travel inside the room and accommodate the equipment. Regular Suites have a narrower entrance door and may not have the necessary interior space to accommodate wheelchairs and scooters.

What features do wheelchair-accessible suites offer?
Silversea ships offer specially designed suites for guests who require mobility assistance. These suites are equipped with wider entrance doors and appropriate paths of travel to accommodate wheelchairs, scooters, and other mobility equipment. All areas within these suites are reachable without the need for additional ramps, except for Silver Suites onboard Silver Moon and Silver Dawn and Classic Veranda onboard Silver Endeavour. In these suites Silversea offer ramp to go outside the balcony. The vessels also have wheelchairs available at the reception for guest use.

Where to find the information regarding the disabled access suites?
This information is visible under the Suite tab by suite category.

Also, can be found on the deck plan after clicking on the “View Deck Plan” tab on the ship page. The disabled access suites are indicated with the universal accessibility icon.

EMBARKATION & DISEMBARKATION

How do guests get on and off the ship with mobility equipment?
Silversea vessels have procedures in place to assist guests with mobility equipment during embarkation and disembarkation. When the gangway is flat, guests can drive their wheelchair off the ship. However, if the gangway involves stairs, our staff will provide assistance. The Safety Officer or Bridge must be informed whenever a wheelchair is involved in disembarkation or boarding, and our crew members are available to assist guests in need.

Is assistance available for boarding?
Yes, but guests who require full-time assistance should travel with a companion, as Silversea does not provide dedicated personal caregivers. Butlers can assist with getting to the gangway or dining venues but do not provide continuous mobility assistance.

ONBOARD

Silversea’s ships are designed for accessibility, featuring:

• Wide gangways to accommodate most wheelchairs and scooters
• Accessible public restrooms
• Wheelchair seating in dining venues, bars, and the Venetian Lounge
• Braille/tactile signage for visually impaired guests in elevators, stateroom numbers, and staircases

How does Silversea assist disabled guests in their suites?
Silversea butler can provide reasonable assistance to guest getting to and from the gangway, and to and from a restaurant, however Silversea does not offer full-time wheelchair service and/or staff fully dedicated to providing Guests with wheelchair assistance. Guests traveling on their own wheelchair should be assisted only when requested and are recommended to travel with an able bodily companion.

GOING ASHORE

Are all ports wheelchair accessible?
Not all ports have wheelchair-friendly infrastructure. In some destinations, tender boats or on Silversea Expeditions Zodiacs are required for disembarkation, and wheelchairs or mobility scooters cannot be accommodated in these cases.

Can guests arrange private accessible transportation in port?
If available, private wheelchair-accessible vehicles can be arranged. In some ports, shuttle buses may be wheelchair accessible, but availability is not guaranteed.

Does Silversea offer wheelchair-accessible shore excursions?
Until now we have been offering dedicated “Wheelchair Accessible Excursions” in some areas of the world., These tours are operated by wheelchair accessible vehicles and include only wheelchair accessible venues. These tours are mainly offered in Europe and the US. If you have any questions or concerns regarding shore excursion suitability, please contact the Shore Concierge (shoreconcierge@silversea.com) before your voyage or visit the Shore Concierge desk for more detailed information once onboard.

Wheelchair accessible shore excursions are indicated on the website with the universal accessibility icon.

Are there alternatives for guests with limited mobility?
In almost every port, Silversea offers low-activity excursions specially designed for mobility challenged guests, who can negotiate the steps on and off the coaches.

Is there any destination that is not recommend to guests with disabilities?
The more exotic destinations, like Asia, South Africa and South America it is recommended to guest to book a private vehicle due to the lack of infrastructure, for example wheelchair accessible vehicles are very rare to find and museums, restaurants and popular attractions are not often completely accessible.

Does Silversea offer wheelchair-accessible transportation between the ship and visiting site?

If available in the port yes, however this is not often available.

How Silversea assist disabled guests during excursions?

If wheelchair accessible excursions are not available, it is recommended to guests to book a private vehicle where they can have a dedicated guide and driver who can give them full attention. On regular shore excursions, the guide must look after all guests and may not be able to fully assist disabled guests.

If you have special dietary requirements, Silversea will make every attempt to accommodate your requests. Please advise Silversea of your needs on the Guest Information Form at least 75 days prior to sailing. Notification should be sent to specialservices@silversea.com.

Each Silversea ship is equipped with a Medical Centre, which is staffed by a doctor and nurse on 24-hour call when at sea. When docked, supplementary emergency care may also be obtained through local medical facilities. Guests may be charged for medical services and for medications used for their medical treatment. The Medical Centre is not intended or designed to provide on-going treatment of pre-existing conditions or for extended critical care, and Silversea is not responsible for the diagnosis, treatment or services furnished by shipboard medical personnel.

All guests are required to report in writing to Silversea at the time their reservation is made:

• Any physical or mental condition that may require medical or professional treatment or attention during the voyage
• Any condition that may render the guest unfit for travel, or that may require special care or assistance
• Any condition that may pose a risk or danger to the guest or anyone else on board the ship
• Any condition that may require oxygen for medical reasons
• Any intention or need to use a wheelchair aboard ship.

Applicable to all ships: Minors under the age of 18 must be accompanied, in the same or connecting suite, by a parent or other responsible adult over the age of 21 for the duration of the voyage and on all shore excursions and land programs. If the adult accompanying the minor is not their parent, a parental consent guardianship form must be signed by a parent or legal guardian and received by Silversea prior to sailing. Please contact our Special Services department at SpecialServices@Silversea.com for a Parental Consent Form. Silversea cannot accommodate infants under six months of age and reserves the right to limit the number of children under three years of age. Guests must be 21 years of age or older to consume alcohol. Silversea reserves the right to refuse to serve anyone who in its sole judgment may be under the influence of alcohol, or for any reason necessary to preserve the health and safety of guests and employees. Children under the age of eight years old are only permitted to participate in suitable Silver Shore Excursions / shuttle service if the vehicles are equipped with the correct safety harness and seating equipment. Child harnesses and secure seating cannot be guaranteed. Silversea reserves the right to refuse children under the age of eight years old on any tour on the basis of safety. Guests may use their own approved safety seat, booster seat or harness provided they are compatible with the local touring vehicle and can properly secure the child.

All Silversea ships are equipped to offer wireless (Wi-Fi) Internet access. You can use your own laptop to surf the Internet and check emails at Wi-Fi locations throughout the ship, or from the comfort and privacy of your suite. Computers, email and Internet access are also available on board at the Internet Café. However, it is important to understand that telecommunication services while at sea are via satellite and significantly different than high-speed connections on land back home. The signal travels in a similar manner to radio waves but at much greater distances. Therefore, onboard Internet access is not guaranteed at all times. Satellite communications are also affected by weather and the ship’s location. In particular, Internet service is extremely sporadic while in the Arctic. Guests aboard expedition cruises to/from Svalbard should be prepared to be out of communication for the duration of their time on board.

Onboard cell phone service enables you to make and receive phone calls, text messages and other select data services on your cell phone even when miles away from land. Your cell phone service provider will bill you for calls and/or messages, which may appear as roaming charges. Please note that cell phone service is sporadic at best while in the Arctic. Guests aboard voyages to/from Svalbard should be prepared to be out of communication for the duration of their time on board. Click here for more information on Silversea’s Cellular Phone service.

Will my devices work on board?
To be most successful, prepare your devices BEFORE leaving home:

• Learn how to turn ON and turn OFF both the Wi-Fi and network (mobile/cellular) connections on each of your devices.
• Contact your mobile/cellular service provider to confirm that a roaming agreement with Silversea Cruises has been established and to ask about rates. Learn how to enable your international roaming
• Set up an email account if you do not have one already.
• Be sure you know any usernames and passwords you may need.
• Switch your settings to the most basic choice that shows less graphics and loads faster.
• Make any software updates and turn off any automatic update settings for the duration of your cruise.
• Download any books, audiobooks, music, movies, games, apps, etc. that you may want during your cruise.
• Facebook users should bookmark and plan to use M.Facebook.com or Touch.Facebook.com instead as these have less graphics and load faster.
• Don’t forget to pack any power cords/battery packs, camera cables to transfer pictures, adapter cables and headphones you may need for each of your devices.

Will I be able to download videos and stream music?
Certain websites and services may be restricted due to limited bandwidth. Downloading videos, books and movies or using Skype are examples of high-bandwidth services that will be more frustrating than enjoyable and should be avoided. Plan to use the Internet only for emailing and web browsing.

How can someone contact me on the ship?

In the case of an emergency back home, friends and family should not call your cell phone. The Shore-to-Ship number provided in your Final Cruise Documents is the best way to reach you while aboard ship. Click here for more information on Dial A Ship service, an alternate option for contacting ships at sea, anywhere in the world.