rarefied

Day 4 - Laem Chabang (Bangkok). Simply couldn't muster the energy to make the trek into Bangkok (save it for another time), and have enjoyed a near-empty ship today, only 49 passengers apparently stayed aboard (less than 10%). Hallways, lounges and dining venues pretty well empty, and no issue catching up on laundry. Who needs a private yacht? I'm offering some further insights to compliment my earlier observations regarding the Seabourn experience (then I'll leave you alone). Food - continues to be top notch across the board, very impressed with the quality of dining. So far, the only dish that disappointed was the pistachio soufflé dessert, just didn't work for me. Of course, I should disclose I misread the menu and didn't realize the soufflé type, so that's on me as I don't actually care for pistachios. I've visited Sushi multiple times and that place is outstanding. I'm scheduled for TKR tomorrow, so no opinion to offer yet, and I haven't tried the remaining venues, and quite likely may not for the duration, since I'm using room service for breakfast, The Retreat and Sushi for lunch, and The Restaurant for dinner as I am enjoying the company offered at the hosted tables. Oh, and the food there is pretty darn good, too. Had surf and bird last evening (lobster, followed by duck a l'orange), and it was a 10/10 in my books. The Restaurant service is still a touch erratic, bless them, they work hard, but it's a bit frantic at times, and for the second dinner service in a row, beverages were messed up and the staff seem to have an aversion to offering coffee or tea with dessert. Will try again tonight, it's become a game, of sorts. Stateroom - I took a location fully forward on deck six as I hoped to be exposed to some sailing rock and roll to remind me that I'm on a ship. So far, motion has been disappointedly nominal although I've been promised a slightly rougher ride coming into, and going out of, Ho Chi Minh. Just as I'm always in search of the perfect massage, I'm also in search of the roughest seas. It's a ship, for Pete's sake. The stateroom is very quiet, as is the hallway outside, since staterooms are above, below and beside. Anchor noise is not an issue, either. Notwithstanding the lack of motion, the stateroom has a perfect placement. In terms of size, the stateroom is excellent for a solo traveler, perhaps a bit cozier for a couple. But the sleeping and living spaces are very comfortable, the verandah spacious, and the bathroom roomy for one. The provision of a bathtub has always been scrutinized as being unnecessary and I tend to agree with that, although the thought of a soak does offer an allure. The bed is super comfy with an enveloping duvet and plenty of pillows. The furnishing and finishing are somewhat muted, but complimentary, and I wouldn't have a problem being set up in this stateroom category for an extended cruise, for example, such as one lasting the rest of my life. As long as I am alone. + 1 person and I think we're into a Penthouse category, at a minimum. . Serene Facility - Great spot for expunging any lingering stressors or worries with amazing sensory showers offering varied water effects and saunas offering dry heat or salt infused steam experiences. The heated loungers are the pièce de resistance that leave you totally relaxed and spiritually elevated. Coupled with a massage treatment is the ultimate gift to your body and soul. Seabourn Square - I've never been sold on the point of the Seabourn Square, not that it's a big deal, but I think the space presents itself as somewhat of a mish-mash trying to blend a relaxation area, library, café, and front office. It just feels disorganized and incongruent. But, hey, that's me. Entertainment - As I shared in an earlier post, my self-imposed curfew precludes taking in most, if not all, of the entertainment offered. However, the feedback I've gathered suggest it is very good and most guests make a point of getting to the shows. I'm more inclined to the entertainment available on screen, in room, although so far have not made it through one Hollywood Hits film. Not that the films aren't first run, or Oscar worthy, it's just I drift off into blissful slumber only to wake during the final credits. TV off, and back to sleep. Guests - Eyeballing, here, but for this itinerary would hazard to say, by age group, some in their 50's, most in their 60's and 70's, a few in their 80's, and two under 40. With toddler in tow. As for nationalities, a lot of Brits, many Americans, a few Canadians, including myself, as well as some Asians. There is a smattering of boors, as defined and observed by me, however, thankfully, widely outnumbered. Staff and Crew - Saving the best for last. What really makes this such a wonderful experience is the responsiveness, caring attitude and genuine niceness of Seabourn personnel across all lines of business. Their commitment to hospitality and guest satisfaction is clearly evident. Consistently and repeatedly, they go to great lengths to make guests feel valued. Seabourn should be recognized for that. Well, that's all I can add to this point. I'm looking forward to the next several days aboard this floating oasis but freely admit to already feeling envious of the next group of you who will get to enjoy the Seabourn experience after I've been sent home packing. If you have an upcoming cruise with Seabourn, and aren't necessarily familiar with the experience, or as in my case had been away a while, you're in for a treat. Enjoy! I'll be thinking of you while I - likely - am shoveling March snow out of the driveway. Safe travels. Cheers!

My Retreat cabana has a dedicated dining table for two. In TKR, I was assigned a table for two, intending to dine alone, and I imagine that will be the same for the new venue.

So...for your dining and dancing pleasure (well, perhaps just dining, I can't dance) ... and in no particular order, some musings, observations and reflections. Room Service - Into Day 3 of this itinerary, at Sea, I'm primarily using room service for breakfast, pre-dinner munchies and late night indulgences. The service has been outstanding with the order-taking on point in accuracy and speedy delivery. The room service delivery staff are very open to setting up either in the stateroom or out on the balcony, which is no easy feat. Those trays are heavy! Whether a simple pot of tea, a full-on breakfast, or a double order of caviar, room service has been excellent. Perfect marks so far. Spa - I'm a spa diva, er, dova (?) and constantly in search of the perfect massage. I thought I'd found it in Singapore at the Fairmont Willow Stream spa until I had my first treatment at Seabourn's spa - a somewhat kitschy-sounding Spa and Wellness with Dr. Weil. My 75-minute deep tissue treatment was, like room service, spot on. The perfect balance of deep pressure and soothing muscle strokes, coupled with luxuriating scalp and foot massage, it was a complete "I'm-in-heaven" head-to-toe experience. Needless to say, I'm scheduled for more, including a cool sounding "bed-to-bed" where a late evening treatment in the spa is followed by someone carrying you back to your stateroom and tucking you in. Ok, I'm embellishing the transportation part, but the idea of hitting the sack (alone, I should add) after a massage is something I had often thought about but never had the opportunity. Looking forward to that! I didn't take advantage of the complimentary Serene Area before or after, but will do so in a future treatment. Now, regarding the spa cost and the such, it's not inexpensive, but I felt (literally and figuratively) that I received full value. I was a little concerned going in as I had read (and having experienced in previous cruises) there might be some tendency to "product upsell", however, that was unfounded. The treatment was the treatment, and nothing else. All good. I was also interesting in understanding the service charge. The spa adds an arbitrary 18% with the option to add further should the client choose. Spa staff were somewhat careful and guarded in their responses but I gathered that gratuities are pooled and dispersed as a policy. I normally extend gratuities on the basis of how I feel after a treatment and I think going forward anything additional will be conducted in cash before check-out. All in all, perfect marks for the spa, so far. Fitness Area - Very well-appointed with both aerobic and weight equipment, the room is reasonably busy at 6am (yes, you read that correctly, 6am). I haven't visited at any other time to see what the crowd might be like, I imagine on sea days, it could get fairly busy. At 6am, no issue getting access to equipment, so all good there. Entertainment - Embarrassed to say, no opinion to offer. I'm in bed by 9 (bear in mind the 6am gym thing). I did glean from limited conversations with other guests that the vocalists and instrumentalists are very good. And, apparently, the first trivia gathering got quite rambunctious with several reminders that it's just a game. I love my trivia but didn't make it out yesterday owing to other commitments and on this particular cruise I'm not feeling overly social, so I might just do trivia for one. Dining - Speaking of social, I did join a hosted table last evening at The Restaurant for dinner and it was, for the most part, quite enjoyable, if not slightly lengthy. Hosted tables can be a heavy lift as you need to "read the table" in short succession so as not to say, or do, anything that might be perceived, or taken, in the wrong light. I know some guests don't necessarily give a rat's behind and tend to just be themselves, but I prefer to proceed with caution. Nonetheless, my table host and his wife were very affable and engaging, and my table mates were pleasant and interesting. We slightly delved into politics (one of the three taboo subjects) and the topic was navigated with some trepidation and high-road thinking. Enough about socializing, moving to the actual dining ... I'm no Michelin star-guy, and admit to being a regular at my local Mickey D's, so I can't really offer too much except to say the food was tasty. You can't easily mess up coconut shrimp, Thai chicken and chocolate gelato. Others at the table had rack of lamb (which looked good), a baked fish dish (also looked good) and a beef tenderloin, requested medium-well (!). That didn't look so good, for obvious reasons, but, hey, to each their own. The kicker was the guest shared they had exactly the same thing the night before. Even I don't go to Mickey D's two days in a row... however, no judgement here. Everyone spoke highly of their entrees. I'll take it at face value to be an honest assessment. The wine was not the best, frankly, and for some reason I got nominated to taste the white. Can't remember what it was, doesn't matter, I accepted it as acceptable and left it at that. The red choice seemed to be more preferred and the only other white wine drinker at the table dissed my acceptance of the default and ordered a Cabernet Sauvignon, which was probably a good decision. I ultimately went with a Diet Coke. As I alluded to earlier, the dining experience was a touch lengthy, just under three hours. Service was generally good, but not as sharp as I recall. I don't make a big deal of empty water or wine glasses, although one other did, and I was surprised that at dessert time, no coffees, cappuccinos or similar was offered. No one seemed to particularly care as it was getting late and I think we were socialized out. So, the evening was concluded. I bid my goodbyes and slipped off to my stateroom where I promptly ordered (and received promptly) coffee, cheese and a banana split. Now THAT'S the way to end an evening. The Retreat - I mentioned in my first post how much I enjoyed my introduction to The Retreat. I still maintain my enthusiasm for it, it's great to have a spot, other than my stateroom, where I can stretch out in relative peace and privacy and just chill (or scribe a Cruise Critic post). Today's second day at sea finds The Retreat fairly busy. I have neighbors on one side, but not the other, and there's a couple of other empty cabanas at present. In looking at the main pool area, I'm glad I have The Retreat to call a second home. There's quite the crowd, relatively speaking, congregated around the mid-ship pool and, being slightly anti-social, I'm happy not to hang out there. Haven't seen the other smaller pool area at the back of the ship so can't comment. I'm not sure how much time I will spend ashore, probably less than the average guest, so The Retreat will be be well used. The service is excellent, I'm well taken care of. And, I also appreciate the spa credit which will help defray those treatment costs! Online Accessibility - I have to say, as a high tech person, I'm impressed with the enhanced internet package. Has been readily available, very responsive and reliable. Moving to Starlink has clearly been a good move and, for myself, being on a hybrid work-pleasure cruise is made that much easier. The Launderette - Just a short comment on the self-serve launderette. I would conclude it's probably insufficient for a ship of this size as the two times I've visited it, it's been in full use. The strategy is probably to visit early in the morning, or late in the evening. I'll be testing that theory in the next day or two as my limited wardrobe will necessitate an intervention. However, in closing of this post, if getting access to the launderette is my most significant issue, I'm doing pretty darn well. I noticed the email from Seabourn's president, Ms. Leahy, regarding improvements and changes in general so, clearly, Seabourn is committing to further elevating the experience. Probably overdue but welcomed as better late than never. So, to those of you with a Seabourn cruise scheduled aboard Encore, and likely any Seabourn ship, period, you have much to look forward to. I remain, in cruising, one happy sailor. *pics are of in-room dining + The Retreat

Well, for this two week cruise (and three weeks in all as I spent a couple of pre-cruise days in Singapore coupled with two days of travel on either side) I actually did so with a single carry-on and a backpack. Getting home will be a challenge, and am considering Luggage Forward as an option (used them before). I absolutely refuse to check a bag to face all that goes with it. one carry-on and a backpack.

I'm happy to share my musings and observations. I might even include a pic or two!

I appreciate the feedback, I am most certain you will have a wonderful time!

Onboard Encore, Singapore to Hong Kong. Been five long years since my last Seabourn experience, an Odyssey transatlantic (this is my 5th Seabourn cruise). Happy to share that so far everything has been outstanding, so great to be back. While I prefer a smaller vessel, honestly can’t say I notice many differences between Encore and Odyssey, although Encore is not running at full capacity for this itinerary. Embarkation was a breeze, from drop-off to first champagne in about 30 minutes. Evening dinner at Sushi was lovely, and breakfast on the balcony delightful. The South China Sea is relatively calm (I prefer my seas far more active) but there’s sufficient motion to give you that relaxing sway. Encore appears well maintained and looking sharp, my verandah stateroom more than suitable for this solo traveller. Bathroom is great for one, I don’t get in the way of myself, and the water pressure in the shower more than sufficient (that stuff matters to me). I decided to splurge on The Retreat full voyage package and just a few hours in can say it’ll be worth every penny. It’s like having an extension to my stateroom (just a simple and close-proximity six deck climb), and I was given my preferred cabana choice for the duration. Private, quiet, well-appointed with couch, ottoman, dining table, padded chaise lounges and fully-opening shutters with lovely views to the outside. The Retreat dining menu is yummy worthy, and the staff warm and attentive. I had been somewhat pensive about sailing Seabourn again given some varying opinions online that suggested the Seabourn standard had declined. However, well into Day 2, I can say it is as good, perhaps even better, than my previous experiences to this point. Eyes of the beholder, I suppose. I’ll share other observations, good or not so good, as this trip unfolds. But so far, it’s great to be back. Missed you, Seabourn!