Luxury line Silversea to add more expedition cruises

Get ready for more off-the-beaten-path adventure sailings from Silversea Cruises.

The luxury line on Tuesday announced it would add a third expedition ship for 2014 that will cruise in remote areas of Micronesia, Melanesia and Polynesia in addition to the Russian Far East, Southeast Asia, New Zealand and Australia.

To be called Silver Discoverer, the new Silversea vessel originally was built in 1989 and has been sailing under the name Clipper Odyssey for Seattle-based Zegrahm Expeditions. It holds 128 passengers.

Known for traditional luxury cruises, Silversea has been moving aggressively into the expedition cruising niche since 2008, when it launched Silversea Expeditions with a single ship, the 132-passenger Silver Explorer.

The Silver Discoverer joins the Silver Explorer and another recently added expedition ship at the line, the 100-passenger Silver Galapagos. The Silver Explorer sails to Antarctica and other off-the-beaten-path locales, while the Sliver Galapagos is permanently based in the Galapagos Islands. Read more about Silversea's new Galapagos trips

Silversea says the Silver Discoverer will undergo a major refurbishment before entering service for Silversea on March 1, 2014. The vessel carries 12 motorized Zodiac boats used during explorations of remote areas as well as a glass-bottom boat for viewing underwater wildlife.

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