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21 March 2018 by Scott Anderson
Silversea Cruises have embarked on a rare project where they cut Silver Spirit in half and inserted another section to make it larger.
Called a lengthening, the 49ft section will increase the size of the ships pool deck and allow the creation of 26 Veranda Suites, 6 Silver Suites and 2 Panorama Suites. The extra space will also increase the dining options from six to eight; allow the creation of a new Arts Café and the ships tonnage will increase from 36,009 GRT to 39,519 GRT.
Silver Spirit lengthening
A total of 10 decks had to be meticulously cut before the two sides of Silver Spirit could be moved apart and the new pre-built section inserted.
The ship will be updated to reflect the modern décor of Silver Muse, the new flagship of Silversea Cruises.
Taking 1,000 workers over 450,000 man hours, Silver Spirit will emerge sleeker and looking like new from the dry dock on 6 May to embark on her Rome to Barcelona voyage.
Peter Shanks, managing director, UK & Ireland, said: “Seeing this feat of engineering gives me enormous pride and a sense of excitement that we are able to demonstrate Silversea’s resurgence, growth and investment.”
“Witnessing these breathtaking phases of the Silver Spirit lengthening project has filled us with pride and excitement,” added Barbara Muckermann, chief marketing officer of Silversea. “This ambitious project will amplify the onboard features that matter most to our guests. We are taking our flagship, Silver Muse – which was delivered by Fincantieri in April last year – as the point of inspiration for a fleet-wide renovation programme; the lengthening and refurbishment of Silver Spirit will replicate the modern elegance of our latest vessel to make for a more luxurious travelling experience. We are eager to share the new and improved layout of our cherished ship with our valued guests.”
