For fans of Seabourn, why?

[phillipahain]

Were you on the Grand Pacific 65 days ?        

 

Certainly was not same as a med cruise on Odyssey we did before Covid 

 

Because Odyssey Grand Pacific  sure did not match Regent 5 years ago or now ....

 

 

[frantic36]

32 minutes ago, phillipahain said:

Were you on the Grand Pacific 65 days ?        

 

Certainly was not same as a med cruise on Odyssey we did before Covid 

 

Because Odyssey Grand Pacific  sure did not match Regent 5 years ago or now ....

 

 

 

 

I know you had a bad cruise but friends of ours were on that same cruise and had a wonderful time. So much so they cancelled their segment they were going to do on the world cruise and booked the 2024 Grand Voyage on Odyssey starting in February.

[phillipahain]

Can but assume your friends did not try to do any tours then as so many passengers were truly fed up with tour cancellations and our very senoir waiter frequently refused to serve some dishes because they just were not up to spec .

 

[Mauzac]

On 2/17/2023 at 9:34 PM, frantic36 said:

 

 

I know you had a bad cruise but friends of ours were on that same cruise and had a wonderful time. So much so they cancelled their segment they were going to do on the world cruise and booked the 2024 Grand Voyage on Odyssey starting in February.

 

@frantic36I envy your friends, I would do it all again like a shot!  We probably know your friends as we were on the cruise and had a totally wonderful time from start to finish.  Once we had accepted the big itinerary change dropping parts of Polynesia and adding NZ notified to us well in advance, we were ready to go!  We were disappointed of course, but soon put that aside once we boarded!

 

All the staff from the Captain down worked their socks off to ensure we had a great time.  There were lots of impromptu sail aways, plenty of interaction from all the Officers, the CD John Baron was superb, and as for the two Assistant CDs..... Ian and his wife Eva..... well, let's just say, we were very privileged to sail with them.  She has a superb operatic voice, and Ian who has worked all over everywhere.... if he is not made CD, Seabourn are missing a trick!  Every now and again he did a 'set' in the Obs Bar 10.30 at night... the place was rocking with everyone dancing!

 

Yes some excursions were cancelled, but we found our way round that in some way or another.  The food was excellent, under Executive Chef Maresh, the staff love him and it showed in the meals we ate.  It was both our birthdays and we had a special night in the Restaurant with invites sent to friends we had hooked up with, and a meal of our choosing (an Indian Banquet), the attention to detail was second to none.

 

The Gala dinners (apart from one that was not up to SB's standards but it was fun!) were superb.  The one in the Chihuly Glass Museum in Seattle was something else, a fab start to our long journey.  The farewell Gala Dinner was held in the Main Dining Room... entertainment, and dancing up and down the Restaurant.

 

We were both apprehensive of doing such a long cruise (longest one ever for us) but so glad we did it.  The memories will stay forever.  I think because it was only just over 100 doing the whole 65 day Grand Voyage, we became like a little community most of us there to have the best time ever.  And we did! 

Edited February 19, 2023 by Mauzac
punctuation

[phillipahain]

On 2/17/2023 at 5:03 PM, lincslady said:

Probably Regent would be a favourite - if you are in a top suite

Absolutely no need whatever for a top suite on any Regent Ship  and definitely always a favourite compared to Seabourn especially after recent experience ......simply genuinely cannot fault Regent 

[frantic36]

23 minutes ago, phillipahain said:

.simply genuinely cannot fault Regent 

I hope you enjoy Regent from now on. I will be sailing on them in the future and it will be interesting to see if they match the hype how you and some others describe them.

 

I enjoy my Seabourn cruises but would never say I can't find fault in some areas. 

[lincslady]

I suggested a top suite on one of the new Regent ships as I thought it seemed the sort of environment  waldorf might enjoy, being given lots of special treatment etc.  Which you don't get in an 'ordinary' one on the older ships, like Mariner, as I could testify.

[phillipahain]

49 minutes ago, frantic36 said:

 

 

I enjoy my Seabourn cruises but would never say I can't find fault in some areas. 

I will be very interested to see what you say in comparison of Regent to Seabourn in due course 

My other half gives me hell because i did not insist we cancelled the Grand Pacific on Seabourn but instead for a variety of reasons hoped it would turn out ok ....of course there were some good things like the Brilliant Chihuly Glass Venue and especially the meal they served it was perfection , i concur with Marzac about fabulous Eva and her Husband and John Barons various performances , sadly when too many tours you especially wanted to do were cancelled at last minute with zero to replace them it does seriously affect a cruise and an area you have no hope of returnjng to its distressing  ...For us the food and so much else on Regent is much better and there is no crazy Caviar in the Pool .

[frantic36]

7 minutes ago, phillipahain said:

For us the food and so much else on Regent is much better and there is no crazy Caviar in the Pool .

It will be interesting to see on Regent but overall the food on Quest has been very good with only occasional misses. I don't go to caviar in the pool but some people enjoy it and would complain about Seabourn cutbacks if it was discontinued. This afternoon is the Epicurean event with the parade and thanking of the staff afterwards. I only go to applaud the Staff but many people love the Epicurean Event. They have to cater to lots of different tastes.

 

On a happy note we donated to the crew fund today and found out the crew are having a special Indian meal after dinner service tonight. It is nice to know they are able to enjoy these events again.

[phillipahain]

Frantic 36   yes it does seem Seabourn go the extra mile for the staff 

[Westiesheepie]

I just got back from my first Oceania cruise, not my choice but since someone else was paying, I gladly went along. Prior to the cruise, I went on Oceania’s board and read all the raves with many saying they preferred it even to Seabourn, Regent and Silversea, touting O’s superior dining in the Specialty restaurants. Being a Seabourn fan, I was determined not to make comparisons. But once aboard the contrasts were immediate. I did not like how passengers were treated differently according to their cabins, basically 3 classes: Suites, Concierge Verandas and Veranda. We were in a veranda and I felt like I was in steerage. Most insulting was in St Barts, tenders were delayed several hours due to rough seas, when they finally started we had to get tender tickets and wait til our color was called meanwhile, penthouse people got to go whenever they wanted before anyone else. We wondered if in an emergency, would the penthouse people be evacuated first? 
 

I like how Seabourn treats everyone onboard as valued guests. Service on Oceania was not as good, friendly or refined, even post covid with slippage of standards (we cruised Ovation in the Med Sept 2021) Seabourn’s was better. Also don’t get why people say O’s food is better than Seabourn or other luxury lines, I disagree. Food in Main Dining room quite awful. Specialty restaurants good but not superior. Also you only get 4 reservations unless in suites, so you either eat in MDR or buffet.

[gofish]

We are just back from Seabourn Encore Singapore-Philippines round trip. Our 5th cruise in last 14 months on 4 different cruise lines. All are having staffing problems. Most obvious in the dining rooms where you have the most interaction. Some days you get the experienced staff and your wine glass is full and you are done around an hour.  next night you get the trainees, and you beg for wine and water and it takes over 2 hours.

Tours have glitches also. Encore was the first cruise ship in 3 years at some of these ports but most went well.

all of the staff is well selected for their jobs. The experienced ones anticipate your needs and soon address you by name. the new ones need improvement but are trying to learn. experience over time is needed'

 

 

[the_dylaness]

On 12/31/2022 at 1:14 PM, geoffieg said:

Interesting that several comments mention conviveality and friendly atmosphere.  On Silversea, we have always met people on the first night that became good cruise friends.  On our first Seabourn cruise this past April, we were struck by how the Seabourn regulars were unwelcoming and uninterested in first time Seabourn passengers.  That was our number one takeaway.  Having said that we are booked on another Seabourn cruise in November, with a Silversea cruise in May.  Be interesting to see the differences today and be able to live time compare.  

 

I've sailed only once each on SB and SS but my experience absolutely mirrors what you've said here.  We still talk about the friends we made on a 7 night SS cruise... couldn't think of a single one we came into contact with on SB (same cruise length).  Probably anecdotal and "YMMV" but you hit the nail on the head at least regarding our personal experiences.

[phillipahain]

7 hours ago, the_dylaness said:

 

I've sailed only once each on SB and SS but my experience absolutely mirrors what you've said here.  We still talk about the friends we made on a 7 night SS cruise... couldn't think of a single one we came into contact with on SB (same cruise length).  Probably anecdotal and "YMMV" but you hit the nail on the head at least regarding our personal experiences.

Agree with both of you ...the SB clique all gather round the bar in Observation  and dont  dare anyone to criticise SB ....staffing issues on ship are not cause of SB failures  total lack of research or ability at Head Office is plus their totally dismissive attitude when problems do arise 

[Kilroyshere]

We loved the small cruise experience. Today they are not what they were in our opinion.

 

We started with pre Carnival Cunard Sea Goddess, Radisson Song Of Flower and got hooked on SB's 208 passenger Spirit, Pride and Legend little sisters. Nearly flawless service, attention to detail and excellence were offered on all the above ships. Those were the days of small ship cruising and set a standard for us that has been lost forever...

 

In 09 SB launched Odyssey class ships: 450 passengers, followed by Sojourn and Quest replacing the 3 little sisters. Then came Encore and Ovation which to us, are Odyssey ships with added suite floors and crowded with 150 more passengers in basically the same ship hull as Odyssey. 

 

These ever growing not so small ships were no longer the experience, service and excellence we came to love. So we returned to try Radisson that became Regent and Silversea in the 500 to 650 passenger ship range.

 

Today we sail on SB and Regent. Each has their own strengths, pros and cons. SB is still our favorite.

 

If you like caviar, SB's generous caviar service at no charge is huge and why so many Belgians in our cruise experience choose SB. Some don't like the SB house wines, but they get us there. Special request dining on both cruise lines are honored with advance notice.  

 

Regent fares include air fare and shore excursions. In our experiences, the Regent shore excursions are big bus, mass market tours similar to what you'd find on Carnival or HAL tours. On SB, the shore excursions were more often small group on a micro bus and better quality with a hefty charge.

 

Regent's Concierge class suites in our experience wasn't a feature we cared for. Regent in our opinion and amongst many of our friends, finds the entertainment on Regent to be more professional big production shows akin to large ship cruising. SB tends to go for more single stage entertainers, more lecture/speakers and a lower key, but high quality entertainment venue. 

 

We found Silversea a lesser class than SB or Regent and won't return. They up-charged in one specialty restaurant, consistently slow and uncaring service, poor breakfast and lunch buffets (SB & Regent are excellent) and too many of our requests ignored.

 

Recently we tried Celebrity Retreat Class Suite. Celebrity created several classes of service on their ships with: Retreat, Aqua, Concierge and Tin level. Retreat cuisine in their Luminae dining and other Retreat amenities are excellent and up to SB or Regent standards. But the rest of the ship is mass market, crowded, hawking art auctions, jewelry sales, constant photographer solicitations, mediocre buffets and what you might expect on a big ole crowded cruise ship.

 

We believe there's a viable market for a super premium small ship cruise line that steps up to what SB, Radisson, Cunard et al used to offer. We are eyeing the Ritz-Carlton Yacht Collection.

 

That's our opinion and worth every cent ya paid for it!

 

[GonzoWCS]

Thanks for all of the information here.

 

Cheers