12 Night Cruise sailing from Athens to Istanbul aboard Silver Wind.

Silver Wind, launched in 1995, was the second ship introduced by Silversea. Much like its sister ship, Silver Cloud, the Wind is a shining example of intimate Italian cruising. Fewer guests, combined with more space and Silversea's signature six-star personalised service make for the ultimate sailing experience. This elite vessel is as a grand hotel, as gracious as a long-time friends' home. Each all ocean-view suite provides a sumptuous retreat. Each public space is intimate yet inviting. It's a warm feeling of home upon the seas of the earth.

Aboard Silver Wind you will find a most accommodating place to view our world. Whether it's delicious onboard diversions, world-class cuisine, memorable dining venues or staying connected from anywhere, Silversea's impeccable standards apply to every detail of your voyage.

Highlights of this cruise:

Athens
If you come to Athens in search of gleaming white temples, you may be aghast to find that much of the city has melded into what appears to be a viscous concrete mass. Amid the sprawl and squalor, though, the ancient city gives up its treasures. Lift your eyes 200 feet above the city to the Parthenon, and you behold architectural perfection that has not been surpassed in 2,500 years. Today this shrine of classical form, this symbol of Western civilization and political thought, dominates a 21st-century boomtown. To experience Athens fully is to understand the essence of Greece: tradition juxtaposed with a modernity that the ancients would strain to recognize but would heartily endorse. Ancient Athens is certainly the lure for the millions of visitors to the city, but since the late 1990s, inspired by the 2004 Olympics, the people have gone far toward transforming Athens into a sparkling modern metropolis.

Alexandria
Alexandria was founded by Alexander the Great in 331 BC and became capital of Egypt under the Ptolemaic pharaohs, who ruled the country from 323 BC until the arrival of the Romans in 30 BC. Egypt's gateway to the Mediterranean, its major trading port, and home to the country's most famous queen, Cleopatra, Alexandria also had the world's best library, containing thousands of texts collected from every known continent. Sadly, the library was destroyed in a fire. During the 19th and 20th centuries, Alexandria was one of the most cosmopolitan cities in the Middle East, a true gateway between East and West. Today, the city is a lively, vibrant place that has only recently begun to explore its ancient past. Advances in modern underwater archaeology now allow scientists to chart the vast bulk of ancient Alexandria that lies just a few feet under the waters of the sweeping bay, now home to a busy fishing fleet.

Haifa
Israel's largest port and third-largest city, Haifa was ruled for four centuries by the Ottomans and gradually grew up the mountainside into a cosmopolitan city whose port served the entire Middle East. In 1902, Theodor Herzl enthusiastically dubbed it "the city of the future." The city is the world center for the Baha'i faith, and the most striking landmark on the city's mountainside is the gleaming golden dome of the Baha'i Shrine, set amid utterly beautiful circular grass terraces that fill the slope from top to bottom.

Rhodes
Long considered a bridge between Europe and the East, the island of Rhodes (1,400 square km [540 square mi]) has seen many waves of settlement throughout recorded history. Ancient Rhodes was a powerful city, and its political organization became the model for the city of Alexandria in Egypt. When Rome took the city in 42 BC, it was fabled for its beauty and for the sanctuary of Lindos, which drew pilgrims from around the region. Rhodes was a crucial stop on the road to the Holy Land during the Crusades. It came briefly under Venetian influence, then Byzantine, then Genoese, but in 1309, when the Knights of St. John took the city from its Genoese masters, its most glorious modern era began. Today Rhodes is a popular holiday island for Europeans who come for the sun and the beaches.

Istanbul
Though it is often remarked that Turkey straddles Europe and Asia, it's really the city of Istanbul that does the straddling. European Istanbul is separated from its Asian suburbs by the Bosphorus, the narrow channel of water that connects the Black Sea, north of the city, to the Sea of Marmara in the south. What will strike you more than the meeting of East and West in Istanbul, though, is the juxtaposition of the old and the new, of tradition and modernity. Office towers creep up behind historic old palaces; women in jeans or elegant designer outfits pass others wearing long skirts and head coverings; donkey-drawn carts vie with shiny BMWs for dominance of the streets; and the Grand Bazaar competes with Western-style boutiques and shopping malls. At dawn, when the muezzin's call to prayer rebounds from ancient minarets, there are inevitably a few hearty revelers still making their way home from nightclubs while other residents kneel in prayer.