Silver Spirit by Silversea Cruises
(58 Reviews)
100% Recommended
Christy Johnson
Wildomar, CA
Family and Group Cruise Specialist
I specialize in luxury and group travel and my passion is creating trips that are hassle free for everyone, regardless of age.
I love helping others live out their travel dreams whether it’s a cruise to the wilderness of Alaska or a Christm...
I specialize in luxury and group travel and my passion is creating trips that are hassle free for everyone, regardless of age.
I love helping others live out their travel dreams whether it’s a cruise to the wilderness of Alaska or a Christmastime family Disney cruise.
I love to book cruises!
- I am a Master Cruise Counselor with CLIA, an association for top cruise line travel advisors. Accreditation required personal cruising experience, qualified sells, ship inspections and both in-person and online classes.
- I have achieved Commodore status with both Princess Cruises and Cunard.
- I've attained the highest possible rankings at many of the major cruise lines' training sites including Norwegian, Royal Caribbean, Disney, and Carnival.
- I have completed CLIA's Luxury Cruise Certificate (2019)
- As of March 2024, I have sailed on 37 cruises.
- I’ve sailed 10 different cruise lines and more than 230 nights.
- I have toured numerous other ships while they were in port.
- Reserving cruises since 2009, I have lost count of the people I have sent on various ships, but many of those clients are still booking with me 15 years later.
I’ve personally sailed on several of the ships that depart from the ports of Los Angeles and San Diego, so I am very familiar with these trips and can offer personal recommendations and insights.
Other destinations I have cruised to include Alaska, the Caribbean, Hawaii, Australia, New Zealand, the Mediterranean, Greek Isles, Mexico and Canada/New England. Sailing on at least two or three ships per year gives me much experience to share with my clients. In 2019, I sailed on seven itineraries on Disney, Norwegian, Princess, Royal Caribbean and Carnival ships.
In 2022, I cruised on Royal Caribbean, Carnival, Silversea and Holland America. In addition to Baja Mexico cruises from Long Beach, I also sailed from Athens, Greece through Greece, Turkey and Israel. On Holland America, I experienced cruising from Sydney, Australia through Auckland, New Zealand with a different port almost every day.
Beginning in 2023, I have been hosting our exclusive Distinctive Voyages. These are special sailings contracted by our consortium that include added amenities such as a welcome cocktail reception, services of a dedicated host and a complimentary shore excursion. Ask me about our next Distinctive Voyage sailings!
I hope to inspire others to travel by showing you how rewarding it can be. Traveling frequently myself helps me to understand the various components of travel. My adventures this year:
- New Year's Caribbean cruise - Holland America
- Universal Studios Orlando
- Western Caribbean cruise on Celebrity
- I flew to Amsterdam and stayed on the AmaSerena river cruise boat while attending the River Cruise Expo and experiencing 12 different boats!
- My husband and I then celebrated our anniversary in Las Vegas
- The month of April found me in Fort Lauderdale attending a cruise conference and advancing my credentials
- A June trip to Tennessee resulted in visiting more wonderful places here in the United States, such as the Lost Sea and Cumberland Falls
- Merida, Yucatan - what a place! The cuisine here was amazing.
- Seabourn cruise in Alaska through the Canadian Inside Passage
- Holland America cruise in Alaska, northbound
- Savannah, Georgia to see all it can offer groups
As Hans Christian Andersen said, “To travel is to live.” I believe this is true. There is so much to see and do in this world.
Exploring the world is a privilege and I love to help people achieve their dreams of seeing new places and having new cultural experiences. The most important thing to me is that my clients have a terrific and stress-free experience on any trip. I will help you through all aspects of your trip, starting right from when you leave your front porch.
My clients can check their itineraries through a special app that can be accessed through your smart phone.
I like to make sure that you know exactly what you are doing, how you are doing it and when you are doing it.
- How are you getting to the airport or the cruise terminal?
- Where will you stay before your cruise?
- What will you do while in port?
- How will you get there?
- How will you get back home?
- What is your plan if something goes wrong?
I will work through all those details with you. All you have to do is relax and enjoy the trip!
Can Be Reached At
1-951-368-4350
In October 2022 I had the opportunity to experience my first Silversea Cruise. Some of the things I experienced during that cruise were due to the lingering COVID pandemic, but hopefully that will soon be behind us so I don't want to dwell on those policies.
I was a bit surprised at the cruise terminal, though, as all the processing for the embarkation was done outdoors and in groups of about 30 people. I'm not sure if this was a protocol by the authorities in Athens, or if it Silversea's standard method. The whole process of being cleared to board took about an hour. Arrival times at the pier started at 2pm, which is when we arrived and we were put into Group 6.
When we boarded at 3pm we were advised our rooms would be ready at 4:00. They escorted us to an elevator where we were told which decks to visit for lunch. We chose deck 9 - Pool Deck and we ate at the Grill. My husband ordered a burger and fries with some chips and salsa as an appetizer. My lunch was the Jalapeno Steak with a side lettuce salad. Oil and vinegar are staples on the dining tables, but you can always request a different salad dressing. We both agreed the food was quite good.
Since alcohol is included along with other beverages, we each ordered a cocktail. Throughout lunch we enjoyed live music from a small band of three musicians at the Grill.
My gluten allergy is noted on my record and although I ordered the chips and salsa, I was advised upon delivery that the chips were not gluten-free.
When we arrived in our stateroom we were pleasantly surprised by the chilled bottle of champagne and fresh flowers that were waiting for us.
Later on, I realized that there was an invitation on our television asking me to meet with the head chef and the restaurant manager to discuss my food allergy. I missed that appointment but went to the restaurant anyway and still had a moment to talk with the gentlemen who assured me that I wouldn't have to tell all the servers about my gluten intolerance since it was noted on my account. (That was one of the best things for me on this cruise - I could order what I wanted and the servers could tell me whether or not it could be modified for me. I never worried about being "glutened" and had no problems with this although we ate in all the different restaurants.)
Dinner that evening was at Indochine - an Asian-fusion restaurant on board. I enjoyed the best lobster tail I'd ever had in the restaurant that night. The food on this ship was SO much better than I've had in a long time on any of the contemporary cruise lines. And when we ate in the buffet for breakfast or lunch the experience was very different as well. There were no lines, for one. If you wanted an omelette, a smoothie, or a pasta dish you simply ordered it from your waiter and it was delivered to you when it was ready.
The service onboard was superior as well. Each suite had a butler and a room steward. They were there to help with so many details. I felt they could read my mind and know exactly what I wanted or needed, sometimes even before I knew what it was myself.
The mini bar is our room always had a couple carafes of water which the butler would refill often. We didn't even touch the other beverages in the mini refrigerator because we got our fill about the ship.
When we left our sunglasses out on the desk, the butler wrapped them in a soft cloth for cleaning the lenses. When we used the bath bomb in the tub, the room steward replaced it the next morning. When the cotton balls in the bathroom jar were used up, he filled it up the next day.
At the pool, the lounge chairs were monitored closely and when someone would leave the area, the pool attendants would promptly dispose of the used towels and place a rolled towel in wait on the lounger.
The ship also had self-service laundry rooms with complimentary detergent. I have been on 30 cruises and never did laundry onboard, but this was a longer cruise and I did spend one sea afternoon using this feature. Being a sea day, there were several people with the same idea and it so happened that the laundry room on my deck was out of service. However I did find availability on another deck.
There is so much I could go on about regarding this cruise experience. Please, if you have any questions just reach out to me. I am looking forward to doing another Silversea cruise in my future.