Worried about being ‘trapped’ on board a cruise ship? It’s bliss

Luxury ships are always touting their upmarket attractions. Suites big enough in which to swing a tiger, walk-in wardrobes as roomy as Narnia, a wellness centre inspired by the extravagances of ancient Rome, caviar sprinkled like confetti on your lobster tails.

And yes, I have all of that on Silversea’s Silver Dawn, but the biggest indulgence is found when I rifle through my daily Chronicles information sheet and am informed that a day at sea lies ahead. Could there be a greater treat in this busy modern age?

These days, we’re expected to be always checking emails and worrying about world events. Even on holiday we’re nagged to see the sights and educate ourselves in museums. When was the last time you did absolutely nothing for a whole day?

For me, it might have been years ago. So long, in fact, that I’d become primed like a lab rat for busyness at all times, and once fretted that days at sea were an exploration chance wasted.

Now I’ve learned to let go. A day at sea is the chance to momentarily sidestep my life. I become a golden retriever, happy to bound about, flop in the sun, and eat anything that comes along.

Silversea has the well-organised, sophisticated, spacious ships to do it on, and I’m cruising a place perfect for days at sea. Norway is a stretched-out country of considerable distances. That means several days at sea scattered through our meanderings into fjords and Viking-founded cities, although we’re seldom out of sight of spectacular coastlines, and I spend happy hours on deck watching mountains and islands lurch past.

There are plenty of other ways to pass the time: the relaxed, sociable ship has a full program of lectures, classes and entertainment. The keen can kick it all off at 7am with stretch and then Pilates classes.

It seems to me, however, that another rare indulgence is a lingering breakfast, and the deck of La Terrazza the perfect perch from which to watch the scenery as I tuck into smoked salmon, omelette made on the spot, or waffles with maple syrup and plump berries.

By mid-morning I’m enjoying a lecture by one of several guest experts accompanying our voyage. It might be Mike Reiss, a producer of The Simpsons, on the secrets of its phenomenal 36 seasons. Or Steve Smith on the unique architecture of our forthcoming port Alesund, or military expert David King on wartime codebreakers.

You can learn things on days at sea. Knitting and stitching. How to improve your bridge game or cha-cha steps. In the ship’s SALT Lab, classes are given by the chefs on the Scandinavian ritual of fika, or afternoon coffee, and on Nordic food preservation (in short, funky, salty or smoky).

One of the things I like about cruising is that it takes you places you’d never otherwise think to visit – hello Alesund – and gives you a chance to do things you’d never otherwise do. Try my hand at painting a landscape in watercolours with the resident artist? Why not? Then there’s origami, something I haven’t tackled since I was in primary school, and now find curiously soothing. There’s much to be said about rediscovering your childish delight in such pastimes.

One morning Captain Johannes Tysse is present at a Q&A session on life at sea. Captains on cruise ships usually make only occasional appearances, stiff as minor royalty at hospital openings, but not this captain. Tysse is a sociable bloke who wanders around decks and restaurants to chat to guests, swap stories and show off his iPhone photos. Each day at midday he comes on the PA to make droll comments about the ship’s location and sea and weather conditions.

Lunch on the Silver Dawn is an indulgence whether it’s the full upmarket buffet experience, or a more tranquil, lingering meal in Atlantide restaurant, where extravagances run to king scallops and Baltic salmon, superior steaks and fancy salads.

By the afternoon, the ship is focused on sociable activities such as team trivia, golf-putting competitions and solo traveller get-togethers. Relaxation also calls. Norway is too frisky for the pool deck, but other choices make me dither. The Observation Library is an eyrie that sits high above the blue sea, staring out the front of the ship, where guests gather to play cards, make puzzles or drink cocktails. The Panorama Lounge looks backwards and has a broad deck beneath white awnings.

A stop by the Arts Cafe is always on my agenda. It has chic art, chairs like thrones and proper Italian coffee served with little strawberry-topped or chocolate-enrobed nibbles.

Pepped up on caffeine, it’s time to wander about. Silver Dawn’s decor is elegant and subdued, the palette rarely straying from browns and latte creams. It makes the colourful artworks all the more striking. African themed paintings or Byzantine birds, Canadian collages, photos of Moroccan bazaars: there’s always something to look at.

Then I relax on a green sofa in the golden Dolce Vita Lounge, which incorporates the reception and excursion desks at one end. Later I join other guests to perch on a high chair at the silvery bar countertop before dinner. The piano tinkles, conversation cackles, cocktail shakers clank.

On other evenings I’ll head to the SALT Bar adjacent to the specialty restaurants, which is as dark and intimate as a speakeasy, and always humming with energy before dinner.

Dinnertime on any Silversea ship brings dilemmas. For a ship with only 596 passengers Silver Dawn offers many dining choices: Japanese or French, for example. The informality of The Grill on the open deck, or the multi-course treat of Atlantide.

For me it’s La Terrazza tonight. An antipasti plate and some good chianti; marinated octopus, Tuscan vegetable soup, pappardelle with duck ragout. I have all the time in the world to linger.

After dinner, I return to my suite and find my butler Gleavin has left Belgian chocolates in a white box on my bed, as if apologising for an argument. But there are no arguments with Gleavin. He parades along the corridor all day long, toting bottles of whiskey and ironed shirts and fresh towels.

The Norwegian summer sun is still glimmering high in the sky as I close my stateroom curtains. Tomorrow there’s a new port to discover. Today has been well spent. A day at sea isn’t wasted time but time to cherish, a sliver of delight set aside from a busy life.

THE DETAILS

Cruise
Silver Dawn sails the Mediterranean in November before transiting to the Caribbean and Central America in December and crossing the Pacific in early 2026 for Australian and New Zealand cruises. By May, 2026 the ship will be back in Europe via Asia. A 10-day Norway cruise (return from Copenhagen departing on June 21, 2026), costs from $13,800 a person all-inclusive. Other Silversea ships sail worldwide. See silversea.com

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The writer travelled as a guest of Silversea.