Silversea Cruises to sail from Durban and Cape Town for 2023/24 season

Silversea Cruises will return to South Africa to sail a homeport cruise season out of Cape Town for the first time in six years for 2023/24, but will also be sailing a series of voyages from Durban for the first time.

Silver Spirit is being deployed in South Africa for the 2023/24 cruise season, offering a range of 15-, 9-, and 6-night cruises from Cape Town and South Africa between December, 2023 and February, 2024.

Voyages on offer include the cruise line’s first ever departures from Durban, both of which will be 6-night cruises along the Wild Coast to Cape Town, departing January 21st, and February 5th, 2024 respectively.

These will be port-lean itineraries with only Richard’s Bay and the rich cultural heritage and game safaris of Zululand on offer in terms of port calls, but her longer 9-night and 15-night cruises out of Cape Town will include Walvis Bay and Luderitz in Namibia, as well as Durban and Mossel Bay in South Africa.

The longer 15-night voyages also include Richard’s Bay and are the only roundtrip Cape Town itineraries on offer for Silversea’s 2023/24 South African cruise season.

The return of Silversea to South Africa comes amid Cape Town’s resurgence as a major cruise destination and cruise homeport during the last cruise season, which was its busiest on record.

The addition of Durban as a cruise departure port will also provide a shot in the arm to the city, which has struggled to re-establish its cruise tourism sector following the COVID-19 pandemic.

Silver Spirit will cruise from South Africa after sailing a series of repositioning voyages from Dubai in the Middle East. She’ll first sail an 18-night Dubai to Mahe, Seychelles cruise, and then a Mahe to Cape Town voyage of 15 nights.

Silver Spirit herself features one of the highest space-to-guest ratios in the industry and eight luxury dining options, in addition to a world-class spa, large pool deck, all suite accommodation and a range of enrichment programs during the cruise. The ship underwent a major refit and refurbishment in 2017 that saw her cut in half and lengthened, adding more passenger areas and cabins.

Fares vary depending on the voyage but range from around R86,958 (US $4,500) per person fully inclusive.

Guests who book before the end of May, 2023, guests may benefit from a complimentary upgrade, reduced deposit and other promotions.