Silver Moon, Silversea Cruises’ newest ship in its “Ultra Luxury” fleet, was christened on Thursday in Athens, Greece. The christening took place in the port of Piraeus.
With 40,700 gross tons and a maximum capacity of 596 guests, the Silver Moon is the shipping company’s second ship in the Muse class.
The Silver Moon was built by Fincantieri at the shipyard in Ancona and is a further development of her sister ship Silver Muse, said Silversea Cruises.
“The ship benefits from redesigned public spaces, butler service in all suite categories, a crew-to-guest ratio of almost 1: 1 and Silversea’s characteristic intimacy with small ships,” said the company.
“As the first ultra-luxury cruise ship to set sail after the pandemic, Silver Moon started its inaugural season from Athens on June 18 and made a series of 10-day trips to the Greek islands,” Silversea Cruises said on Thursday.
At the ceremony, Pastor Ioannis Patsis, Vice President of Caritas Hellas, blessed the ship before the ship’s godmother Gaia Gaja – from the renowned Italian winery Gaja – broke a bottle of champagne on the ship’s bow.
Guests watched the event on screens across the ship and members of the extended Silversea family streamed the broadcast online as Silver Moon officially became the ninth ship in the ultra-luxury cruise company’s fleet.
“To witness the official naming of Silver Moon – Silversea’s first christening as part of the Royal Caribbean Group – was a very proud moment indeed,” said Richard D. Fain, Royal Caribbean Group, Chairman and CEO. “I commend the Silversea leadership team, Captain Georgiev and the Silver Moon crew, the Fincantieri team and everyone involved in the launch of the ship for their tireless efforts to achieve this long-awaited milestone.”
Roberto Martinoli, President and CEO of Silversea Cruises, said: “As the first luxury cruise ship to set sail this year, Silver Moon is leading the return of ultra-luxury cruising, representing the strength and resilience of our industry . “
Global restart of ultra-luxury cruises
Silversea said it is leading the global reboot of ultra-luxury cruises. As the first of two ships in the Silversea fleet to be put back into service, the Silver Moon will be complemented by the new ship Silver Origin, which is now sailing on completely new routes in the Galapagos Islands, the company said.
The Silver Muse will be the first ultra-luxury vessel to set sail from Seattle to the region’s glaciers on July 29th. From July 30th, the Silver Shadow will circumnavigate all of Iceland from Reykjavik, the company announced.
More Silversea ships are expected to set sail in the near future and Silversea’s third new ship since 2020, the Silver Dawn, is scheduled to make her maiden voyage in November 2021.
Silver Moon is one of six Silversea ships – others include Silver Muse, Silver Origin, Silver Shadow, Silver Whisper, and Silver Explorer – recently received Certification in Infection Prevention for the Maritime Industry (CIP-M) from the world’s leading classification society , DNV.
“These certifications underscore Silversea’s commitment to protecting the health and wellbeing of guests, crew and communities visited as part of the company’s healthy return to service,” the company said.
