Which seaborn trip and advice

[ralphf]

My wife and I are considering one of 2 seaborn trips in Nov.

 

Mediterranean Mosaic Nov13, 2010 - 7 day

Seaborn Legend

Civitavecchia, Italy - Livorno, Italy, Barcelona, Spain Valencia, Spain Palma De Mallorca, Spain Malaga, Spain

 

OR

 

Greece & Italian Odyssey Nov 13, 2010 - 9 Day

Seabourn Odyseey

Piraeus, Greece Patmos, Greece Crete Pylos, Greece Catania, Italy Valletta, Malta Trapani, Italy Naples, Italy Civitavecchia, Italy

 

Does anyone have any experience with these cruises at this time of the year? Are these trips typically fully booked?

 

I read in one review that someone got bumped up a couple cabin classes is that typical or a rarity? Would it be better for these itinerary to book lower end cabin and hope or just go ahead and get the bigger cabin?

 

Is it worth it to upgrade the suites in your opinion or do you not really spend time in the suite much.

 

How are the seas in the med during this time of year in regards to the ship... Is there significant motion on the ship? Would one iten or the other be more/less prone to rough seas? My wife gets slightly seasick, but as long as it isn't to rough she should be able to handle it with the little pressure point wrist bands and/or pills unless it is really bad.

 

 

I know some of these questions the answers are going to vary person to person, but I am just looking for opinions and specifically if you have experience with the particular ships and/or these trips during this time of year.

 

 

Any other advice or insight you can give me would be much appreciated.

 

Thanks,

Ralph

[dalliowner]

A lot will depend on what you like to see. The greek cruise will have more ancient history places to see where the the Med cruise is visiting more modern cities with more shops and Art galleries etc.

 

As to up grades always choose the cabin you are happy with and if you are lucky to get an up grade all the better. As you are travelling late in the year and the weather could be inclement I would choose a cabin towards the center of the ship and remember that the lower the deck the less movement is felt.

 

In the end I would choose the Odyssey cruise as it is two days longer and two days on Seabourn is heaven

 

Best of luck

 

John

[lord of the seas]

Book the Odyssey if your wife does suffer a little,although I much prefer the smaller ships,having done both.

Always book the suite that you want,it is not worth gambling when you are spending money,you might get a good grade suite but in a poor location.I would suggest that you book a lower deck in the middle of the ship.A balcony is a must if you do decide on the Odyssey.

[melanie99]

Hello

We were on both of the ships and they are the best you can get the Odysseey have 450 people the Legend 208 and every cabin is a beautyful suite So I advice you to take the cheapest one

And because of the weather take the Odyseey on the east of the Mediterrainie, I am sure it wil be at least 5 degrease more then the Legend in the north

Seabourn is always fully booked.

I am sorry to make many mistakes in this comment but I live in the Netherlands

We are on the Odyseey the 5th of June

When you have more questions you can mail me anytime

Greetings from Holland Melanie

[JaneBP]

>"In the end I would choose the Odyssey cruise as it is two days longer and two days on Seabourn is heaven."

My sentiments exactly, but I think the itineraries are so different, that should be your decision. That being said, I love the Legend and that cruise is lovely. Can you go early and stay in Rome for a few days?

[lord of the seas]

So I advice you to take the cheapest one

 

Why? :confused:

[wripro]

If you choose the Odyssey I would definitely choose a suite with a verandah, not the cheapest one. The difference in price is not that great but the difference in enjoyment will be.

[Grace Smith]

Hi, Ralph!

 

First, whichever trip you choose, you will love it! Seabourn is an extravagant addiction. The Med is the Med! Can you go wrong?

 

We have been only on the Spirit (4 weeks) and the Legend (2 weeks) so far in three different cruises. This Summer will be our first time on the Odyssey. I didn't choose to go on the Odyssey, I chose the Itinerary and it just happened to be on the Odyssey. I love the smaller ships and I'm not sure the Odyssey will live up to those standards of intimacy and service.

 

Given the mid November departure, I agree with Melanie. Your chance of good weather will be better in Greece & Sicily than further North. Last October & November were beautiful in this part of the world and with any luck, you might be able to use the balcony.

 

I also agree with Melanie, however, when it comes to booking the least expensive suite. My husband & I spend very little time in the suite. We don't have breakfast there, we don't have dinner there and we don't watch the TV! For the last three years we have booked what is called "A Guarantee" which means that you might end up in the least desirable suite or you might be upgraded. I would suggest to you that if you go this route hoping for an upgrade that you should book with a good TA that does a lot of business with Seabourn. That should improve your chances of a good upgrade. For example, we were upgraded to a V-2 Suite on the Odyssey in June. The balcony is not clear from the bottom up in this suite, so the minus is that if you are laying in bed you do not have a good view of the sea. I do not believe this will be an issue for us. The way we look at it is that the more we save, the more vacations we can take!:D

 

On last year's 3 week stint on the Spirit, a fellow cruiser from the U.K. said, "The more you pay, the more you sway!" My personal experience is that I would rather be at the top in the middle than at the bottom in the front!:eek: I am very prone to motion sickness, so this is also a particular concern of mine. I have managed in very rough seas with the arm bands and in dire cases with the candied ginger at the entrance to the restaurant. It's a lot "mind over matter", as I have found out! ;) We have also been lucky in that our bed always has faced forward (feet first). I think I might have to sleep upside down if I had the adjoining suite.

 

So, to recap:

 

Odyssey Pros:

Maybe warmer weather

9 days instead of 7

possibilty of a balcony

 

Legend Pros:

It will be refurbished in Fall of 2010 (so maybe in tip top shape)

A smaller more intimate ship

 

It is virtually impossible to make the wrong decision! Have a great time and be sure to keep us in the loop. We all love to live vicariously through each other's cruises.:)

[ralphf]

ok Greece & Italian Odyssey it is

 

Can you provide any insight on the how they do the airfare? better to book thru them or do it yourself. Also I have lots of miles on continental airlines so would like to be able to upgrade ticket to business class with miles if possible. Is this something i can do if I book thru the cruiseline or is that not normally possible?

 

Cruise fare for this is

Veranda Suite V1 $4,049 to V6 at $5,349 What is the difference in V1 to V6. is it just location? As far as location I haven't seen any kind of map of the ship to see what suite is located where. What types are midships lower deck? I read that v1-v2 has partially obstructed balcony view.. are thier any other differences?

 

This cruise is in November and while it might not be super cold I think it might be a bit chilly so don't know if will use balcony much so thinking that might as well book the cheaper regular suite. Any other thoughts on this?

 

btw from what I have read it appears we will probably be about the youngest people on board. 36 and 37. celebrating our 15th anniversary.

 

Ralph

[Grace Smith]

ok Greece & Italian Odyssey it is

 

Can you provide any insight on the how they do the airfare? better to book thru them or do it yourself. Also I have lots of miles on continental airlines so would like to be able to upgrade ticket to business class with miles if possible. Is this something i can do if I book thru the cruiseline or is that not normally possible?

 

Cruise fare for this is

Veranda Suite V1 $4,049 to V6 at $5,349 What is the difference in V1 to V6. is it just location? As far as location I haven't seen any kind of map of the ship to see what suite is located where. What types are midships lower deck? I read that v1-v2 has partially obstructed balcony view.. are thier any other differences?

 

This cruise is in November and while it might not be super cold I think it might be a bit chilly so don't know if will use balcony much so thinking that might as well book the cheaper regular suite. Any other thoughts on this?

 

btw from what I have read it appears we will probably be about the youngest people on board. 36 and 37. celebrating our 15th anniversary.

 

Ralph

 

Congrats on your anniversary! What a wonderful way to celebrate.

I think the V-5 suites on Deck 6 might be good. Again, this is where a great TA is invaluable. They will have already sailed on the Odyssey. They will know which suites to avoid because they are under the pool area! etc.

 

I think you made a beautiful choice as to the cruise. We would all love to hear about your travels and if you post pictures, even better!!!

[marchanxiety]

We did a mid-october cruise from Athens to Alexandria on the Spirit. It was rather cool--we didn't go outside at night. It wasn't rough. But I have had one of the most forward cabins on a little sister. I got sick. If this is a problem at all for you, get to the middle of the ship! Location matters the most! I would much rather be in the middle of the ship (above or below the dining room vertically) than in an owner's suite far forward. If you are paying forthe Seabourn experience, pay a little more if necessary to keep your meals down and be happy!

[dalliowner]

If you go to the Seabourn site or indeed look in the brochure you can find a map of the ship showing where every cabin is.

 

I do not find a balcony is important to sit out on, especially not in November but I do find it is good to be able to open the door at night if you are like me and do not like air conditioning.

 

I am sue you will enjoy it whatever you choose

 

 

John

[ralphf]

ahh found the map... Must be going blind in my old age :)

 

So to stay in the middle would need to stay with A1 V2 or V5.

 

V5 seems to be a bit much of a jump in price for me to justify so looks like will either be A1 or V2.

 

Thanks for the advice.

[shedridt]

We thoroughly enjoyed our stay on the Legend - just arrived home from Iberian Spring. Although my husband said he enjoyed testing the air each morning the balconies on Legend are very very very small - a person with a large shoe size would exceed their width in a single step & I'd be hard pressed to argue for it when you've got such lovely deck space on Decks 7 & 8. THAT SAID - I loved opening the door just a notch to hear the waves against the ship each night.

 

The larger new ships apparently have significant decks & I look forward to trying them out, itinerary appropriate.

[Chairsin]

Two caveats --

if you book a specific suite you will not be upgraded -- that only happens when you book a "guarantee" suite,

and

 

while I have not been on the odyssey I undestand that the V1 and V2 balconies are partially obscured.

[lord of the seas]

if you book a specific suite you quote]

 

Get the one that you want.

[Chairsin]

Yes, that is usually our choice. We prefer not to risk getting one of the few suites without a bathtub. If you don't care you may want to take a chance. We only booked a guarantee suite once because we booked near the depature date and that was all the was available. As it turned out we were upgrated quite a bit to a 300 level balcony suite. But we are unlikely to do that again. It really is a matter or what matters to you.

[N51EC]

We thoroughly enjoyed our stay on the Legend - just arrived home from Iberian Spring. Although my husband said he enjoyed testing the air each morning the balconies on Legend are very very very small - a person with a large shoe size would exceed their width in a single step & I'd be hard pressed to argue for it when you've got such lovely deck space on Decks 7 & 8. THAT SAID - I loved opening the door just a notch to hear the waves against the ship each night.

 

The larger new ships apparently have significant decks & I look forward to trying them out, itinerary appropriate.

 

 

Shedridt - we were supposed to be on the Iberian Spring cruise and were unable to get to the ship due to the Iceland volcano. Although not germain to this posting I would love to hear from you how the cruise went, particularly recommendations from your port experiences. We will be be trying to rebook a similar itinerary within the year and would appreciate any feedback!