Back from Seabourn Encore 27 May - 3 Jun, ROM - BCN

Hello Seabourn fans,

I'm still in Spain, so the photos will have to wait, but I wanted to share my recent experience on Encore before the memories fade.

I've been following threads on the Encore quite closely right from the start but only a change in circumstances made me book Encore during her maiden season.

I was expecting embarkation to take a little longer since Encore has more passengers, but enough were staying on from the previous leg that this was my fastest embarkation in 12 years of cruising. (I've only been on Seabourn once before on the Odyssey.)

My first impression was "what no champagne or Prosecco?" We were only offered a fruit punch while filling up the health questionnaire. It was only later while we were settling into our suite that the sparkling wine appeared with our stewardess. She also came armed with a selection of solid soaps but the Molton Brown tubes in the bathroom were standard. Although magically a different "flavour" of shampoo in a bottle rather than tube also appeared later.

My other first impression of the suite was that while the balcony is deeper and the new sofa is extended, the reduction in width means the console at the foot of the bed is now a joke. You can put exactly one shoe in sideways on each shelf. I thought to put my collection of chargers there but the drawer at the make up table turned out to be more convenient. The bathroom felt roomier too. Yes, the walk-in closet seems a little narrower but we still managed to use it as a changing room and there were so many hangers we asked for some to be removed.

The ship is defintely bigger and the larger numbers of passengers and crew do make a difference in the familiarity. Yes, the difference is quite noticeable. You just don't bump into the same people over and over again.

The other downside to having a bigger ship is that it's now a long walk to the front for the hot tub, which is expanded and improved! And also the observation lounge where they now serve you the scones at tea time. (The sandwiches and cakes are still self-service though. Seems a bit half-hearted?)

Bigger ship means bigger public spaces. Most are an upgrade from Odyssey. Especially the Observation lounge with its skylight and the Restaurant. I'm not so sure about the Collonade, the larger size gives it a more mass market feel.

Food wise, I'm one of those who enjoyed the Restaurant 2 concept and Thomas Keller is very different, but the night we had reservations there turned out to be the night I had almost two complete dinners!

Food in the Restaurant I would describe as safe and dependable. Nothing really wow! But equally nothing to complain about.

For all the negatives I have mentioned there is one huge positive on Encore. The addition of Sushi. I was worried they wouldn't do it right, and again if you are picky there are always things that could be done better. But I would sail on Encore again just for Sushi. It's small and intimate so we got to know the Chef and servers very well. And the quality of the food compares favourably to many land Japanese based restaurants. It was very popular.

For those who have complained about long waits and crowded venues, I had little experience of that because we like to eat early. (One comment on mid-week how are we doing card was that the Collonade didn't open early enough for breakfast!) There was never any rush at dinner in the Restaurant to make the earlier show.

One area where Encore did not meet my expectations was the Seabourn Singers. With more passengers couldn't they have added a couple more? Three were good while one suffered in comparison. But there's only so much you can do with 4 singers. I enjoyed An Evening with Tim Rice but in the end it is the quality of singers that make the show.

In the end 7 days was too short to spend on Encore. 10 or even 14 days would perhaps have been more ideal for a ship this size.

BTW whoever asked about Handre, he is back from leave as is Captain Mark Dexter.

Thank you for the feedback!

Sent from my SGH-M919 using Forums mobile app

Thank Photosg for your review. You gave a good measured overall experience of your cruise on Encore . I wonder if you know who the Executive Chef was on your voyage? I had asked this on an other "Encore thread" and had no response. We are cruising early July on the "new girl".

Thank Photosg for your review. You gave a good measured overall experience of your cruise on Encore . I wonder if you know who the Executive Chef was on your voyage? I had asked this on an other "Encore thread" and had no response. We are cruising early July on the "new girl".

Hello Koalapanda,

the Exec Chef was Kurt.

Enjoy your cruise!

Hello Koalapanda,

 

the Exec Chef was Kurt.

 

Enjoy your cruise!

This is what Chef Kurt served for desert on the night of the chefs dinner. I was amazed they could prepare 200 of these. Also great to see Handre is back and Mark Dexter. Looking forward to 3 weeks aboard in 4 weeks.

Thank you photosg and ab21au for your responses and photo. I am pretty sure we enjoyed Kurt's delicious cuisine on our first Seabourn cruise. Stunning desert ab21au my mouth is watering in anticipation.

Thanks for the observations photosg, we join in a little over 5 weeks. Will be interesting to try her out for ourselves. Here's hoping Handre is still on-board then.