Silversea officially named Silver Nova recently at an intimate ceremony in Fort Lauderdale. Attendees were treated to a bagpipe performance—a customary tradition of Royal Caribbean Group—followed by the U.S. national anthem by Rachel York. Reverend Sanford Sears and Rabbi Adam Watstein blessed Silver Nova, while Barbara Muckermann, president of Silversea, and Jason Liberty, president and CEO of Royal Caribbean Group, announced the ship’s godmother: Chef, restaurateur and television personality Nina Compton. Rounding out the ceremony, Compton, accompanied by Captain Cosimo Pontillo, officially named Silver Nova and triggered a magnum-sized bottle of champagne to smash on the ship’s hull, before Liberty led guests in a toast to mark the occasion.
Nina Compton’s values of human connection, cultural discovery and the honoring of heritage, tradition and identity align with those of Silversea’s S.A.L.T. culinary program. The owner of two restaurants in New Orleans, Compton is a practitioner and advocate for the food of the Caribbean, and was named a Culinary Ambassador for her home country of St. Lucia, where her father served as the island nation’s first prime minister.
“I am honored to have been named godmother of Silver Nova,” said Compton. “Throughout my life, I have explored the many ways in which the world’s cuisines—especially that of my home nation, St. Lucia, and the Caribbean more broadly—strengthen human connections, facilitate cultural discovery and honor heritage, tradition and identity. I believe food and drink have the power to bond people, providing insight into a community’s customs as a unifying language. I hope that my journey inspires Silver Nova’s guests to connect meaningfully with the destinations they visit and their people, forging strong relationships, broadening horizons, and providing self-enrichment.”
The environmentally conscious ultra-luxury ship Silver Nova hosts up to 728 guests in 13 different suite categories. Every suite offers a private veranda. The ship departed on its inaugural voyage from Venice on August 14, 2023. Following its naming ceremony in Fort Lauderdale, Silver Nova has undertaken its first Grand Voyage, the “Grand Voyage South America 2024,” during which it will circumnavigate the continent, calling in 38 destinations in 18 countries over 71 days.
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