johng75370

FWIW, the Amex Plat “Cruise Privileges” program for Seabourn has typically gotten us OBC + a bottle of revenue wine (not champagne), but it’s not combinable with some promotions including referral bonus. It’s a great program but has some catches and varies by cruise line.

Hi Redrob, I was very impressed with how Explora has a dedicated host for various groups (singles, non-English speakers, LGBTQ+, etc), and makes a great effort in that respect. They have single events on the schedule, and similar to the lines you are used to it is seems easy to mix with other people apart from what the line organizes. Can’t speak directly to the experience as a single traveler, but from our December cruise I observed they make a good effort. Hi B&B, what we found in a basic OT1 was they were happy to stock to your request; would be surprised if they would not stock with a Moët bottle as your wine choice (although it is not on the list, but we requested “off-list” and had no problem).

Yes, total and complete. I was on the same voyage as @travelwide, and one of our fellow passengers claimed to have gotten the absolute last one (or so they were told); maybe it was Day 4 after all, way too early regardless! Was not the first and I would expect not the last cruise where there was a provisioning issue of some form - it’s an issue many established lines struggle with and Explora is still learning on a few fronts like this.

I believe it took until Day 5 for our "journey" to run out of lamb chops...but they were the best lamb chops I've ever had!

No, did not have insurance from Seabourn (or elsewhere) for this trip. I usually travel with test kits, so did not need to purchase them from Seabourn, but was surprised that they provided me with a thermometer free of charge. Was happy with how Seabourn handled it.

In October I came down with Covid onboard Seabourn; I let guest services know and from there the process was straightforward. I was quarantined in cabin for 5 days (really 4 because we docked the last day), had the medical staff check up each day, and there was a stool outside my cabin door for trays to be left or picked up. Seabourn was kind enough to provide future cruise credit for the days in quarantine, and overall I felt they handled it very well.

Not sure how EJ runs it, but usually it is run by a crew committee for something the entire crew can benefit from that wouldn't normally be provided by the cruise line. On one voyage we were told it was going into expanding the crew fitness room with higher-end equipment, on another it was to fund special crew parties. It seems pretty standard practice for all-inclusive lines and the crew seem to genuinely appreciate it. Unlike how gratuities are divided up based on role (and some get small amounts), or how only customer-facing crew get something extra from the passengers (when was the last time you saw someone handing an envelope at the end of the cruise to engine room crew), this is something that all crew can benefit from equally (laundry staff benefit the same as the butler staff).

On other all-inclusive lines we've sailed on (Seabourn, Crystal) there is a "crew welfare fund" if you'd like to add to the included gratuities. We found out on our December cruise that EJ has a similar option called the Host Lifestyle Fund. In case that's what you're used to doing on other lines the same applies for EJ, and was appreciated by some of the hosts who thanked us for it.

My experience is that your travel agent should be able to confirm all the OBC you are due before your sailing, but Seabourn may not be able to. I would try to get it in writing from your TA unless you booked directly with Seabourn. For example, we usually get the AMEX Platinum OBC and it tends not to show up until you are onboard (or sometimes second day), likewise for travel agency provided credits. Some are not combinable, which is why your TA should sort this out (for example, we recently found that AMEX OBC and Seabourn referral OBC cannot be used together). FWIW, Seabourn referral credits seem to get posted and are visible ahead of the cruise, like other Seabourn provided OBC. Others probably know more, but it seems like the non-Seabourn OBC gets processed right before the sailing and by the staff working at Seabourn Square (on the last cruise we had an OBC issue, and the person at the Square said that they were the person who processed all the AMEX credits).

Or large buildings, like in Boston in the 1970’s: https://www.theguardian.com/news/2014/nov/12/weatherwatch-skyscraper-gusts-glass-panes-boston

@vistaman, I’ve appreciated your comments for several years. For what it is worth Explora does seem to be listening and taking action on feedback from guests like yourself. On our recent Explora cruise we did have a liter bottle of Hennessy VSOP in our cabin, no problem in getting Pellegrino in any of the restaurants or our cabin, and were able to get reservations at restaurants without being limited to just one. While the wine prices remain high they were offering some good deals while onboard, including a Dom Perignon “P2” and others at half price, making them into good deals. We also brought some wines with us, and had no issue in them being presented properly by the restaurant. Despite earlier issues they are taking action.

I respect your opinion; they definitely made some design decisions that preclude events like an on-deck dance party or having a library. We had a great time regardless recently and plan to be back, but I can see how things people might be used to on other ships are not going to be present on Explora.

Here's a link to the French Bloom website: https://us.frenchbloom.com

They have a NA bubbly called "French Bloom" in white and rose that is not bad, and an array of NA "alcohol" from Ovant. I believe they have other wines and beers but did nit check them out. Bartenders happy to mix up custom mocktails.

Hi JTor - We've seen this with other cruise lines ( Old Crystal, for example) where the preboarding experience was severely lacking compared to the onboard. Same here at Explora. Here's what I hope are helpful to put you at ease: 1. Boarding process was very smooth and well staffed. If we showed up with just passports and smiles would have been the same as showing up with extensive paperwork. As long as final payment was made you should be fine. A call to Explora directly should confirm that. 2. I would recommend prebooking restaurants, either through your TA or by calling directly. We did it through our TA and we got our booked times at Marble, Sakura, and Anthology. The onboard experience has been great for us, despite some preboarding issues, so I hope you have the same.

It can be hard to find for booking online (but I think it is there); but how we usually use it is to extend a massage; they will use it to make a 60 minute massage into a 90 minute. Hope that helps.

Currently on Explora 1 and each day there are 2 sit-down restaurants open (Asian and Med), along with the buffet offerings. Plus they now are keeping open a burger bar until 3:30pm on port days for people coming back late from excursions. While we remain big fans of Seabourn this is one area they need to step it up a bit by offering lunch in the Restaurant on all days.

Yes, it seems like they have changed their earlier policy that was reported here on CC about not providing or stocking it. In general they seem to have really taken early feedback to heart and made changes. Wish I had any feedback at this point to provide to them, but it has been pretty flawless. We even had an "Explora Moment" when we boarded - the security team at Port of Miami confiscated flowers we bought to bring onboard for our cabin because "Explora does not allow that" (and they claimed they checked with Explora on this); we realize now they were taking it for themselves. When we talked to a real Explora host they said there was no such policy, apologized, and they would have a word with POM security...we later found a nice bouquet in our cabin as their way of making up for the issue. Unexpected and left us impressed.

Correction: had dinner at Marble last night and no issue getting Pelligrino. Could be they are loosening up on that. My travel agent made the arrangements; I was able to see it in my booking as a special request.

No extra charge, but it had to be arranged ahead of time. In general (so far) it is not available at the bars or Emporium, just in your cabin if you reserved it ahead.

Just boarded, and the mineral water we pre-ordered (Aqua Panna and Pelligrino) was in our cabin in large glass bottles (1l and 750ml). Strange thing is we asked for Pelligrino and they told us only Perrier, but happy we ended up with what we wanted.

FWIW, here is the menu currently showing for Ovation on the Source app. With other culinary changes going on at Seabourn this menu should likely be updated/revisited. menu_template_-_the_retreat_-_2023 (1).pdf

I've heard from others that you get the $50 credit per day, along with a daily bottle of nicer champagne - making it a really good deal if you plan multiple spa visits and to buy revenue champagne. Hopefully others who have done that can confirm, but it is what I have heard onboard (from people who did it). A couple of considerations: if your itinerary has cold or bad weather The Retreat may not be that useful. On the other hand, there is a massage space in The Retreat, so if you want an outdoor massage it's the only option onboard. Personally, I have done it once and really enjoyed it and would do it again, but would be itinerary-dependent (and wine offering dependent) as to the value for buying it for the whole sailing. As @Mr Luxury highlighted, it used to be Bollinger as the champagne and (IMHO) better wines than are currently showing, but I would still take advantage of it depending on itinerary.

In addition to the menu posted by @Covepointcruiser if your next booking is on Encore then you should be able to access the menu through the Seabourn Source app. If you click on “view more” for Dining options, you’ll see the lounges listed including the Retreat. The bar menu you can access there is the full menu, including food and drinks, and does change from time to time.

Are they offering spa specials or discounts if you book multiple treatments? Thanks in advance.