claudiaYVR

Well, we’re in Guayaquil and off the Moon now. Sad to miss the last few days as the ship is beautiful and we’ve had a great cruise. Still no word on whether the ship will make the scheduled stop in Salaverry on its way to Lima, in fact no communications on the situation in Peru at all. Kind of surreal to be making decisions in a total vacuum of guidance from the cruiseline. We wish everyone carrying on and those joining the ship in Lima an uneventful time. 

Nothing yet. Waiting for an announcement of some kind but we have made plans to disembark in Guayaquil instead of Lima. We had planned on spending three days post cruise in Lima but we don’t want to spend days potentially confined to a hotel and risk violence escalation in Lima. It’s just too volatile right now. We’re erring on the side of caution as we want to be home for Christmas. 

Is there a make up mirror with magnification in the suites?

Thank you for posting! We’ll be boarding in Barbados on the 5th so very interested in your impressions. 

Boarding Moon on our first SS cruise on December 5. Final documents say boarding begins at 2:00. Is this true? Just asking because on other lines they begin boarding much earlier than what’s stated in the final docs. Thanks!

+1!!!

Chris, would it be possible for you to take a few close up pictures of the upper body weight machines in the gym, in particular so we can see the maximum weight that can be lifted (bottom of the weight stack)? We are seriously considering our first Silversea cruise on either the Moon or the Dawn and my husband is a professional weight lifter who needs to know exactly what he has to work with on board.

Many thanks

I'm not clear on what portion of the Antarctica portion of the cruise was scrapped. In my opinion, there are itineraries and there are itineraries. For example, if I book a Med cruise and some of the ports are changed, I may like the new ports more or less but it's still a Med cruise. If I book a cruise to Antarctica and I don't get to go to Antarctica, a full refund would be in order (and that's not taking into account all the other aspects of the cruise that were impacted).

Sorry to highjack your thread but I didn't want to start a new one for this ship for a long shot question. Does anyone know details of the weight equipment in the Fitness Center? in particular, what is the maximum weight on the machines?

@travelwellfor whatever it's worth no one tried to upsell us during our cruise with the exception of a very soft upsell by the masseuse at the spa who had "recommendations" for other treatments. It was definitely a non-issue for us.

Also, with well over 100 nights on Crystal (which we loved) I can tell you it did not feel like Crystal to us, it felt like Seabourn "Covid Edition". Also personal preference, but we do like the Odyssey class ships much more than the Ovation class.

@travelwell I did not notice any significant changes from our previous Seabourn cruises, we are just not very fond of the buffet offerings at the Colonnade and the Patio Grill. Food enjoyment is highly subjective so if you've been highly satisfied on your previous cruises I wouldn't be particularly concerned.

We dined with 2 couples once (randomly seated at a table for 8 ) later in the cruise. Because of Covid we were not particularly keen so we didn't seek to do it other times as we would have in the past. On two other occasions we just chatted with the couples sitting next to us. I know the Restaurant was full every night, including all the large tables, but it is difficult to tell which were groups traveling together or was paired by the hostess.

I've also been considering Atlas since Crystal's demise, particularly as we were very excited to sail on Endeavour in November 2022. The reviews (almost all negative-would not sail again) give me pause but I've read them all carefully and I think most of the issues have to do with new ship shake out and/or Covid. It would be great to hear from more people who have recently sailed on Atlas to see if some if these have been ironed out.

@kjbaconsorry I don't have much info on the included wines (but others have posted the list on recent cruises) other that to say I always asked to try the wine and if I didn't like it I asked for something else (like the previous night's wine for example, or a specific one I had previously enjoyed). Never bothered waiting for the sommelier but rather asked our waiter and he would take care of it.

@Roland4 Hi Larry, just to mention that having cruised on both sizes of Seabourn ships (Odyssey, Sojourn, Ovation and Encore), we much prefer the smaller ones. I believe the only things missing on the smaller ones are the Sushi restaurant and the bar area of the TK Grill. They just seem more spacious than Ovation and Encore.

@pooch1 no ballroom at all (nor the room for it).  All contemporary music and there are actually two bands alternating, slightly different styles but basically the same type of music, lots of 70s and 80s rock (which we love). The dance floor is round and small, my guess is about 300 sf, room for about 6 or 8 couples but not much more. 

We recently came back from the "inaugural" sailing of the Encore (first after a 705 days' pause in operations). The following are our impressions of the cruise, I have not included comments related to Covid but can provide details if anyone wants. I have just posted the below on the March 1 Canary Islands thread so if you've read that you can ignore this review. 

The Ship - there were 476 guests onboard our cruise, it did not feel like an empty ship nor was it crowded. The only times/places I felt crowded was around the pool on deck 9 so we opted for the pool/hot tubs aft on deck 5 and the hot tub forward on deck 7 most of the time. This is why I believe the deck used for the Retreat was a lost opportunity to create more enjoyable outdoor space for everyone. We made good use of the truncated jogging area on deck 5 but hardly anyone else did. The ship was in perfect condition. My husband used the gym a few times and it was always very lightly attended.

Boarding - seamless and quick. We arrived at the port at 12:30 (our paper boarding pass said 12:40, the one on Seabourn Source said 4:00!), proceeded inside the terminal and after Covid testing and a 10 minute wait for our results were able to board. We were onboard by 1, had a nice burger lunch at the Pool Grill. 

Cabin - perfect. we were on a V6 on deck 9 close to the pool. The cabin was spotless inside and out. We could not find fault with any of it, nothing broken, nothing dirty. The only difference from previous cruises was the absence of fancy soap and bubble bath offerings. Mini bar was stocked as requested.

Cabin Host/Attendant - very good. Diana and Nobe (from South Africa and Zimbabwe respectively) were lovely, responsive and kept our cabin clean and orderly all the time. We did not need a rundown of the cabin but requested that our ice bucket be replenished daily and it was.

Food - good to great.  Lunch: after a couple of days trying the offerings at the Pool Grill and at the Colonnade (which we found to be blah) we opted for the Restaurant. The food was always great (except for one very salty pasta dish), we always got a table by the window and the service was spotless (always very few people there). Leanke the Restaurant hostess is probably the best Seabourn staff member we interacted with. Dinner: we had dinners at Earth and Ocean, the TK Grill, the Restaurant and at the Colonnade (but only for TK Family Style dinner x2 and for the Indian Buffet). The TK meals (both at the TK Grill and the Colonnade) were excellent. The meat was to the desired doneness, everything was tasty. We had one mediocre dinner at the Restaurant, the rest were all very good to great. I requested a specific red wine I had enjoyed on our previous cruise that was not being offered and a bottle was quickly opened for me. Other than that I either had the wine offered or requested one that had been offered on previous nights. This was never an issue. Breakfast: we ordered in-room several times, it was brought promptly and set up in our cabin or balcony as requested. One time I ordered oatmeal and it came with cinnamon, brown sugar and raisins on the side, the second time I ordered it came with nothing but otherwise everything was good and as ordered. Other than that, we had very informal breakfasts of lattes and croissants/muffins which I picked up at the Pool Grill or at Seabourn Square. Snacks: the gelato isn't my favourite but it can be found at Seabourn Square, the pool bar and in the Colonnade. Simple toppings are available. Small sandwiches and sweets are available at Seabourn Square any time and the coffee there is the best on board.

Entertainment - good. We enjoyed it all at every venue. We did a lot of dancing to the Quartet at The Club, went to the shows, listened to the duo at the Observation Bar and the pianist at the TK Grill Bar. Good quality and variety. The magician scheduled for one night did not make it to the ship. The pool deck party was a lot of fun and there were a couple more events on deck.

Enrichment - good. We attended a few and saw the rest on tv. Good quality guests, timely topics.

Crew - great. We had the captain stop by our table for a bit of a chat once, other officers greet us warmly around the ship and the serving staff we interacted with were all well trained and very personable. We were greeted by name by many from the moment we boarded the ship.

In summary, we had a really good time and did not experience anything that would stop us from sailing on Seabourn again. It wasn't spectacular but I put that squarely on Covid related issues and the fact that for us, the itinerary plays a big role in making a cruise spectacular and this itinerary was nice but not fantastic (think Antarctica, the Middle East, places like that). We are happy we went but hope that we can cruise again soon without the stress, particularly the fear of testing positive before, at boarding, or during the cruise, not knowing exactly what would happen if we did. 

37 minutes ago, crickette said:

The question: have we made a monsterous error? Any comments and advice are appreciated.

Hi crickette,

We were regular Crystal cruisers who had done four Seabourn ones over the past 10 years or so. We recently came back from the Encore (February 19 sailing) and believe I can offer you some reassurance (I will copy and past the below into a proper review afterwards). I will avoid comments about Covid (I've provided some info on other threads already) as this is an ever shifting issue and what was true for us will likely be different when you cruise.

We were fortunate to have had a very nice cruise. This is not to minimize anyone's bad experiences, simply to point out the positives we experienced. It is also not a comparison to Crystal as we were determined not to do that.

The Ship - there were 476 guests onboard our cruise, it did not feel like an empty ship nor was it crowded. The only times/places I felt crowded was around the pool on deck 9 so we opted for the pool/hot tubs aft on deck 5 and the hot tub forward on deck 7 most of the time. This is why I believe the deck used for the Retreat was a lost opportunity to create more enjoyable outdoor space for everyone. We made good use of the truncated jogging area on deck 5 but hardly anyone else did. The ship was in perfect condition and ours was the first sailing after 705 days.

Boarding - seamless and quick. We arrived at the port at 12:30 (our paper boarding pass said 12:40, the one on Seabourn Source said 4:00!), proceeded inside the terminal and after Covid testing and a 10 minute wait for our results were able to board. We were onboard by 1, had a nice burger lunch at the Pool Grill. 

Cabin - perfect. we were on a V6 on deck 9 close to the pool. The cabin was spotless inside and out. We could not find fault with any of it, nothing broken, nothing dirty. The only difference from previous cruises was the absence of fancy soap and bubble bath offerings. Mini bar was stocked as requested.

Cabin Host/Attendant - very good. Diana and Nobe (from South Africa and Zimbabwe respectively) were lovely, responsive and kept our cabin clean and orderly all the time. We did not need a rundown of the cabin but requested that our ice bucket be replenished daily and it was.

Food - good to great.  Lunch: after a couple of days trying the offerings at the Pool Grill and at the Colonnade (which we found to be blah) we opted for the Restaurant. The food was always great (except for one very salty pasta dish), we always got a table by the window and the service was spotless (always very few people there). Leanke the Restaurant hostess is probably the best Seabourn staff member we interacted with. Dinner: we had dinners at Earth and Ocean, the TK Grill, the Restaurant and at the Colonnade (but only for TK Family Style dinner x2 and for the Indian Buffet). The TK meals (both at the TK Grill and the Colonnade) were excellent. The meat was to the desired doneness, everything was tasty. We had one mediocre dinner at the Restaurant, the rest were all very good to great. I requested a specific red wine I had enjoyed on our previous cruise that was not being offered and a bottle was quickly opened for me. Other than that I either had the wine offered or requested one that had been offered on previous nights. This was never an issue. Breakfast: we ordered in-room several times, it was brought promptly and set up in our cabin or balcony as requested. One time I ordered oatmeal and it came with cinnamon, brown sugar and raisins on the side, the second time I ordered it came with nothing but otherwise everything was good and as ordered. Other than that, we had very informal breakfasts of lattes and croissants/muffins which I picked up at the Pool Grill or at Seabourn Square. Snacks: the gelato isn't my favourite but it can be found at Seabourn Square, the pool bar and in the Colonnade. Simple toppings are available. Small sandwiches and sweets are available at Seabourn Square any time and the coffee there is the best on board.

Entertainment - good. We enjoyed it all at every venue. We did a lot of dancing to the Quartet at The Club, went to the shows, listened to the duo at the Observation Bar and the pianist at the TK Grill Bar. Good quality and variety. The magician scheduled for one night did not make it to the ship. The pool deck party was a lot of fun and there were a couple more events on deck.

Enrichment - good. We attended a few and saw the rest on tv. Good quality guests, timely topics.

Crew - great. We had the captain stop by our table for a bit of a chat once, other officers greet us warmly around the ship and the serving staff we interacted with were all well trained and very personable. We were greeted by name by many from the moment we boarded the ship.

In summary, we had a really good time and did not experience anything that would stop us from sailing on Seabourn again. It wasn't spectacular but I put that squarely on Covid related issues and the fact that for us, the itinerary plays a big role in making a cruise spectacular and this itinerary was nice but not fantastic (think Antarctica, the Middle East, places like that). We are happy we went but hope that we can cruise again soon without the stress, particularly the fear of testing positive before, at boarding, or during the cruise, not knowing exactly what would happen if we did. 

Happy to provide specific details.

I think it’s safe to say there’s no such thing as a regular cold/cough nowadays. Should be taken as signs of Covid and acted upon accordingly (by both the cruise line and each individual). 

9 hours ago, sfvoyage said:

 

That's why we always wear our mask in the Grand Salon and in the Club (during trivia) even when the majority of guests do not.

 

Thanks for posting your experience.

If I could do it again I would absolutely do that. 

For those of you wondering about Covid. I'll post something more comprehensive about the February 19 Encore sailing (which we really enjoyed) a bit later but for now:

On Feb 28 (day before getting off the ship) we had PCR tests which came back negative.

On March 2 my husband started to display cold symptoms (scratchy throat, a bit of cough, runny nose, chills).

On March 4 he tested positive for Covid. He's on the other side of it now and feels fine but still testing positive.

On March 6 I started to display Covid symptoms (slightly worse than my husband's). I am still testing negative today but I have no doubt I have it.

We wore our masks (KN-95s) on the ship as per the rules. We did not take any shore excursions, did our own thing and always wore a mask inside except for eating or drinking. We did not eat at any restaurants during port visits.

On the second to last night of the cruise we were sitting in the Gran Salon for the Sir Tim Rice show and someone right behind us coughed a few times. He was not wearing a mask and neither were we. We are both boosted. If I'm right, there are possibly a few people who came off the ship with Covid.

@AtA they are fine but I don’t think they are better than Crystal’s. In particular the clotted cream was softer and lighter.  The one thing hard to tell from the picture is that everything is very petite (not a bad thing!) for example there’s nothing on the trays larger than 2 inches. Loose tea was nice. 

@AtA yes. Here’s a pic of the tea offerings at the Observation Bar

New show was good, lots of energy, good 80’s and some 70’ music. It’s a tribute to US and British bands. Enjoyed it and could sing along to every song 😁. Not a mask to be seen, I think everyone is getting really comfortable sans masks after a few days on the ship. 
 

dinner at TK Grill was excellent. Followed by some music by the piano, good times. 
 

@cruiseej not yet. Tomorrow night probably. Just wanted to get some dancing out of my system early on in the cruise 😁

@cruiseej Can’t Stop the Music. Just about to start, will let you know how we liked it afterwards.