Silversea or Seabourn: fly the Drake, or sail it on a newer ship
Two all-inclusive luxury lines, six expedition ships between them and no submarines left in service. The real split is how you reach the ice — and how much of the paperwork each line puts in writing.
Book Silversea if you’d rather fly than cross the Drake, or if the Galápagos is on your list. Its fly cruises reach King George Island in about two hours from Puerto Williams, and Silver Origin works the Galápagos year round. Book Seabourn if you want a newer ship: Venture and Pursuit are 2022 and 2023 twins, both built to PC6.
Inside the fare, the two are closer than the brochures suggest. Both include the bar, Wi-Fi and the landings, and neither expects a tip. Silversea adds a butler; Seabourn adds a parka and day pack in Antarctica and charges for kayaking.
Neither line prints a fare, so the decision usually ends with two quotes. Get both for the same month, then compare totals, not headlines.
Fly the Drake, or cross it by sea
Everything else on this page matters less than this. Silversea sells the flight; Seabourn sells the crossing.
Two hours, not two days
A charter from Puerto Williams lands on King George Island in about two hours, per Silversea. Fourteen Silver Endeavour voyages fly both ways in 2026–27, most of them six nights, with a stay at the line’s own Cormorant at 55 South hotel.
Fifteen more fly one way and sail the other. Eleven sail both ways on Wind and Cloud.
A hotel night, a charter, then the sea
Most 2027–28 Seabourn Antarctic departures start in Buenos Aires, with a pre-cruise hotel night and the charter to Ushuaia in the fare; Pursuit’s Chilean Fjords voyage starts at San Antonio instead. Either way Venture or Pursuit crosses the Drake by sea, on voyages of 10 to 25 days.
The longer ones add South Georgia and the Falklands. None of the Seabourn voyages we logged flies over the Drake.
The Drake Passage is the open sea between South America and the Antarctic Peninsula. Some travelers want the crossing — the swell is part of the story they bring home. Many would pay to skip it.
Silversea built its Antarctic program around that second group. Through March 2027 it runs 40 Antarctica voyages on three ships, and 29 of them are fly cruises, per Cruise Industry News. The gateway moved from Punta Arenas to Puerto Williams in 2026.
Flying buys you days on the ice. Sailing buys you the crossing — and a newer hull.
Seabourn takes the classic route, not the shortcut, and it makes no apology for the sea days that come with it. What it adds is convenience on the way in: the hotel night and the charter from Buenos Aires sit inside the fare. Read our Antarctica guide and landing sites, then decide how you feel about the sea before you compare ships.
Six hulls, measured on one ruler
Switch tabs between guests and Zodiacs. Gold bars are Seabourn, blue are Silversea.
Silversea’s four came from four places. Silver Cloud and Silver Wind are 1990s luxury ships rebuilt for expedition work. Silver Endeavour was built for Crystal in 2021 and bought by Royal Caribbean Group for $275 million in 2022. Silver Origin was built in the Netherlands for the Galápagos alone.
Only Endeavour carries a named polar class — PC6, the same rating Seabourn builds to.
Seabourn’s pair is one design, twice. Both come from the T. Mariotti yard, both carry 264 guests in 132 veranda suites, and both are built to PC6 Polar Class standards. Seabourn’s pages give them the same figures.
So on Seabourn you choose a date, not a ship. On Silversea the region often chooses the ship for you — the Galápagos means Origin, a fly cruise means Endeavour. Compare the details in our Silversea fleet guide and Seabourn ship guide.
Where the submarines went
Older reviews of both lines mention submarines. Here is how each program ended, with the date it took effect.
Crystal Endeavor arrives
The ship that becomes Silver Endeavour is built for Crystal with a submarine and helicopter experiences, per Cruise Mapper.
Venture launches
Seabourn’s first purpose-built expedition ship arrives with a six-guest custom submarine. Pursuit follows on August 12, 2023.
Dropped before debut
Then-CEO Roberto Martinoli says Silversea won’t run the submarine or helicopter experiences, per Cruise Mapper.
The hangar becomes suites
A Genoa refit turns the helicopter hangar into two Master Suites and four Signature Suites. Capacity rises from 200 to 220, per Seatrade.
A last season of dives
Seabourn names 23 experts a ship for 2025–26 Antarctica, submarine pilots included, per Cruise Industry News.
The program ends
Seabourn tells travel partners the subs come out of service at the end of that Antarctic season, citing low participation, upkeep and regulation.
The two lines reached the same place by opposite roads. Silversea inherited a submarine and never used it. Seabourn built its own, ran them for several seasons and then stopped — with nothing named to replace them.
Martinoli’s reason, as Cruise Mapper quoted it, was that the line didn’t want “toys” only some guests could use.
Seabourn gave three reasons, per Travel Market Report: participation below what it expected, the specialist upkeep and recertification, and tightening regional rules. Its general expedition-ships page still describes the subs, which we read as stale copy.
If an underwater dive is the reason for the trip, this is the wrong showdown. Price Viking, whose expedition ships carry submarines.
The head-to-head, with the gaps left in
Every row comes from the lines’ own fare pages, terms and ship pages, read November 1, 2026. Bold marks a published figure or inclusion.
| Item | Silversea Expeditions | Seabourn Expeditions |
|---|---|---|
| Expedition ships | 4: Silver Wind, Silver Cloud, Silver Endeavour, Silver Origin | 2: Seabourn Venture, Seabourn Pursuit |
| Guests per ship | 100 to 274 | 264 each |
| Ice class | Endeavour PC6; Wind a strengthened hull, no class named; none named for Cloud; Origin is a Galápagos ship | Both built to PC6 Polar Class standards |
| Drinks, Wi-Fi, gratuities | Included: champagne, spirits, up to 50 wines; onboard gratuities | Included: premium spirits and fine wines; tipping not expected |
| Landings and gear | All landings and guided tours; parka, backpack and bottle, varying by region | Zodiac landings, tours and hikes; parka and day pack in Antarctica; kayaking extra |
| Gateway | Charter and The Cormorant stay on fly cruises; flights and hotels when the destination requires them | Buenos Aires hotel night and Ushuaia charter on 2027–28 Antarctic departures from Buenos Aires; one voyage starts at San Antonio |
| Butler | Every suite | Not stated on the pages we read |
| Solo travelers | No published supplement found | 200% standard; as low as 125% on select sailings |
| Deposit | Fully refundable on All-Inclusive Plus; amount not found | No standard deposit stated; a current sale offers a reduced 15% deposit |
| Final payment | Not found for expeditions; full payment at booking on Last-Minute fares | 120 days out for 21 days or fewer; 150 or 180 days for longer voyages |
| Insurance | No published evacuation minimum found | Strongly recommended with evacuation; not required |
| Minimum age | Not found on the pages we read | 6 on expeditions |
| Published fares | None; by quote | Only inside live search |
Read the bottom half twice. Seabourn publishes a fee schedule, a solo rule and an age limit. On the Silversea pages we read, most of those rows are blank.
That’s a gap in what’s printed, not proof of worse terms — Silversea may well match Seabourn once you have a quote in hand. Silversea’s refundable deposit on All-Inclusive Plus is a real point in its favor.
The only Silversea payment schedule we found covers world cruises and grand voyages: a 25% deposit and final payment 180 days out. Don’t assume it applies to a nine-night fly cruise.
Ask us for both lines’ terms on your exact departure, and get them on the invoice before you pay.
When each line is actually there
Dark cells are the core of a season; pale cells are shoulders or short windows. Silversea’s rows sit above Seabourn’s in each pair.
Silversea and Seabourn, month by month
Paired rows from Silversea’s voyage catalog and Seabourn’s 2027–28 and 2028–29 programs. Tap a month for the sailing behind it.
Antarctica is a mirror image: both lines run late October to early March. The Arctic is close too, though Seabourn reaches into April from 2028, when Pursuit joins Venture up north.
The Kimberley is where the calendars part. Silversea lists Silver Cloud there into September 2027. Seabourn’s 2027 departures are the last season it has scheduled.
The Galápagos row is the starkest of all: Silversea every month, Seabourn not at all. For the regions themselves, see our Arctic, Greenland, Kimberley and Galápagos guides. Pick your month first, then see which row is dark — that line is the one worth quoting.
The true-cost calculator, line against line
Price both lines the same way
Pick a voyage, type the fare you were quoted, then tick what you’ll add. Published add-on prices are filled in; the rest are yours to enter.
Neither Silversea nor Seabourn shows a fare on the pages we read on November 1, 2026, so every fare starts at $0 for you to fill in. Land-program prices are Silversea’s published “from” prices per guest. Both lines run frequent offers; your quote governs.
Look at what sits in the ticked rows. On Antarctica, both fares already carry the gateway logistics, so the real swing is the international flight and, on Seabourn, any kayaking.
Run both voyages at the same nightly fare and you’ll see how little the add-ons separate them. Then ask us for both quotes in the same week, because offers move.
The scorecard, three wins to two
Tap any row for the reason behind its score. We earn commission from either line, so the scores rest on published facts.
Fourteen Silver Endeavour voyages fly both ways in 2026–27, about two hours each way. Every Seabourn Antarctic voyage we logged crosses by sea.
Both Seabourn ships are built to PC6. On Silversea only Endeavour carries a named class; Wind has a strengthened hull, and Cloud’s page names none.
Silver Cloud runs four 15-night South Georgia voyages and Silver Wind an 18-night Falklands voyage. Seabourn’s longer Antarctic voyages, up to 25 days, add both. A dead heat.
Silversea’s fly cruises include the charter and a stay at The Cormorant at 55 South. Seabourn includes a Buenos Aires hotel night and the Ushuaia charter. Different routes, same idea.
Silversea adds the Galápagos year round and also sails the Kimberley. Seabourn keeps the Northwest Passage and adds a 96-day Pole to Pole voyage, but its 2028–29 program lists no Kimberley.
Seabourn’s 24 boats for 264 guests and Silver Wind’s 24 for 274 both work out near 1:11. Endeavour’s count isn’t stated.
Venture entered service in 2022 and Pursuit in 2023. Silversea’s polar ships date from 1994, 1995 and 2021.
Every Seabourn suite has a veranda. Silversea says 80% of Silver Cloud’s suites do, and Origin’s are balcony suites.
Seabourn sells it as a paid option with limited places and no published price. Silver Cloud carries 10 kayaks, but Silversea’s pages don’t say whether kayaking is in the fare. Unknown, not a loss.
Silversea publishes crew: 207 on Endeavour for 220 guests. Seabourn publishes no crew count for either ship, so we can’t score it.
Seabourn’s terms set a 200% standard supplement, as low as 125% on select sailings. We found no published Silversea expedition supplement.
Seabourn publishes 120, 150 or 180 days by voyage length. Silversea’s All-Inclusive Plus deposit is refundable, but we didn’t find its standard final-payment date.
Fit scores out of 10, not quality scores: our judgement of how each row serves a traveler choosing between these two lines. A “?” means a line doesn’t publish the figure on the pages we read, so the row isn’t scored for either side. Facts behind each row rechecked November 1, 2026.
Three to two is closer than it looks. Seabourn wins on hardware: the hull rating, the age of the ships and the verandas. Silversea wins on reach: the flight over the Drake and a map that includes the Galápagos.
Four rows are blank because one line doesn’t publish the figure, and three of the four are Silversea’s. That’s the honest gap in this comparison. Ask us to fill it for your departure before you let the tally decide.
Silversea, Seabourn, or neither
The Drake is the part you’d skip
Fourteen Silver Endeavour voyages fly both ways in 2026–27, most of them six nights, with the line’s own hotel at the gateway.
You want the Galápagos, or the Kimberley on Silver Cloud
Silver Origin sails the Galápagos almost every week. Silversea also sails the Kimberley, with Silver Cloud listed from July to September 2027.
You want the newest hull and PC6 on every ship
Venture and Pursuit date from 2022 and 2023, built to one design, with a veranda on every suite.
You want the terms in writing before you call
Final-payment dates, the cancellation fees, a 125% solo rate on select sailings and the age limit are all published.
You just want Antarctica, all-inclusive, by sea
Both include the bar, Wi-Fi, the landings and the gateway logistics. Pick the date, not the brand.
Both are good answers to the luxury expedition question, and the honest difference between them is the route, not the quality — how you reach the ice, and which coasts you want after it. Choose the one whose calendar has your month, then let the quotes settle it.
What people ask when they’re torn between the two
Is Silversea or Seabourn better for Antarctica?
It depends on the Drake Passage. Silversea runs 40 Antarctica voyages on three ships through March 2027, and 14 of them on Silver Endeavour fly both ways between Puerto Williams, Chile, and King George Island, a flight of about two hours, per Cruise Industry News and Silversea. Seabourn's Venture and Pursuit cross by sea, on voyages of 10 to 25 days; its 2027-28 Antarctic departures from Buenos Aires include a hotel night and a charter to Ushuaia, and one Chilean Fjords voyage starts at San Antonio, Chile. If you want to skip the Drake, Silversea is the line. If you want the newer twin PC6 hulls and don't mind the crossing, Seabourn is.
Do Silversea or Seabourn still run submarines?
Neither does. Seabourn told travel partners it was ending its submarine program in a message reported on February 20, 2026, and the subs on Venture and Pursuit came out of service at the end of the 2025-26 Antarctic season. Silversea never ran the submarine and helicopters that came with the former Crystal Endeavor: its then-CEO said in August 2022 that the line was dropping both, per Cruise Mapper, and an April 2023 refit turned the hangar into suites, per Seatrade Cruise News. For a dive, Viking's expedition ships carry submarines.
Which line has more expedition ships?
Silversea, with four: Silver Wind (274 guests), Silver Cloud (254), Silver Endeavour (220) and Silver Origin (100), which sails only the Galápagos. Seabourn has two near-identical ships, Venture and Pursuit, at 264 guests each. Neither line has announced a new expedition ship: Silversea's 2028-29 program adds none, and Carnival Corporation's orderbook, as Cruise Industry News reported it in May 2026, holds no Seabourn ship.
What does each fare include?
Both fold in the bar, Wi-Fi and the expedition landings, and neither asks for tips: Silversea includes onboard gratuities, and Seabourn says tipping is neither required nor expected. Silversea adds a butler for every suite and expedition gear that varies by region. Seabourn adds a parka and day pack in Antarctica. Seabourn charges for kayaking; Silversea's pages don't say whether kayaking is included, so ask us. International flights are extra on both.
Do Silversea or Seabourn publish their fares?
Not on the pages we read on November 1, 2026. Silversea prices by quote and shows no fare on its voyage pages. Seabourn shows fares only inside its live booking search. Both run frequent offers. That's why the calculator on this page starts both fares at $0 for you to type in the quote.
What are the payment and solo terms on each line?
Seabourn publishes them: final payment is due 120 days before departure on voyages of 21 days or fewer, and its terms describe a 200% standard single supplement, as low as 125% on select sailings. Silversea's All-Inclusive Plus fare carries a fully refundable deposit, but we didn't find its standard final-payment date or single supplement on the pages we read. Its world cruise terms set a 25% deposit and 180-day final payment for those voyages only. Ask us for the terms on your departure.
Is travel insurance required on either line?
Seabourn strongly recommends extra cover that includes evacuation but doesn't require it. We didn't find a published Silversea minimum for evacuation cover on the pages we read. Buy strong evacuation cover either way: the CDC says a medical evacuation from a remote place can cost more than $250,000.
Silversea or Seabourn? We’ll quote both for the same week.
Tell us the region, the month and who’s traveling. We’ll get both live fares, the flights each one leaves out and the terms neither prints in full, and put the totals side by side.
- Both fares for the same dates
- Silversea’s payment and solo terms for your voyage
- Whether your Silversea date flies or sails the Drake
No fee, no obligation. You pay the cruise line’s own fare. A real advisor replies, usually within one business day.
Ask about Silversea vs. Seabourn
Answers come straight from this comparison.
Answers come from our guides and are general information. Confirm details with us before you book.
Where each row came from
Ships, inclusions, terms and dates are each line’s own published figures on the date shown, with Cruise Industry News, Seatrade, Cruise Mapper and Travel Market Report for season counts and fleet changes. Every figure here matches our Silversea and Seabourn line guides. The scores, the picker and the picks are our judgement, not either line’s. Neither line publishes fares on the pages we read, so this page quotes none.
Where to go next
More showdowns: Aurora vs. Quark and HX vs. Oceanwide. For cover, read our expedition insurance guide before final payment.
The voyage, the gateway night, and the cover that matters out there.
Expedition trips have more moving parts than a Caribbean week: a charter flight, a night in a gateway city, gear lists and an evacuation clause the line sets for you. We book them together and check that the dates and the fine print agree.