Explorer vs. Seabourn Odyssey: Explorer looks gorgeous, but is it really less formal?

[dcsam]

Wow!  The Explorer is stunning! I called Regent today, inquiring about their Alaska cruises.  You know how they get you on the phone, and place a courtesy hold on the cruise? Well... I just did that.  It's a back to back, Alaska cruise.   I've also considered the Seabourn Odyssey. It looks nice, but not nearly as nice as the Explorer.  Even though the Explorer looks quite formal, I've read the dress is actually more casual than we might find on Seabourn.  We're definitely not dressy folks, and find that Viking, Oceania dress codes 'fits us' nicely.  We've never cruised with Seabourn or Regent. Just hoping we'd find Regent casual and welcoming too. 

  

[kjbacon]

We love Regent and the Explorer, while gorgeous, is both welcoming and casual. We just returned from a wonderful cruise on the Splendor and look forward to our next one later this year. We have also had good experiences on Oceania and Viking and have future cruises booked on both. The only small ship cruise experience that we have not enjoyed was Seabourn. We took the Quest last summer and found the atmosphere far too stuffy for our style. The food and wine are much better on Regent!

[alainciao]

We sail both and love both.  Seabourn's O ships are very plain compared to Explorer.  However, for an Alaska cruise the smaller ships combined with Seabourn's emphasis on exploration means their cruises may be superior if seeing Alaska is your goal. Not a hoot of difference in dress.  We find the food and wine comparable with nod to Explorer for specialty restaurants and overall quality.  But we're not big foodies.

[papaflamingo]

Here is the dress code from the Regent website.  Most people adhere to it.  There is no Formal optional nights on cruises of 15 days or less.  Even then it's optional.  I take a sport coat and tie and generally choose to wear the sport coat to Prime7 and Chartreuse as we like to make those nicer venues more of a "date night."  

 

"Attire ranges from Casual to Formal Optional. Casual wear consists of resort-style outfits; some examples are jeans, shorts, t-shirts, and tennis shoes. Casual wear is appropriate for daytime both on board or ashore. Casual wear is not appropriate after 6:00 PM, with the exceptions of while dining at the Pool Grill or Pool Bar and on the final evening of the cruise. On the night prior to disembarkation, guests may need to pack their luggage early due to morning flights the next day. With this in mind, on the last night of every voyage, we will relax the dress code for dinner to Casual.

Otherwise, the recommended onboard dress in the evenings is Elegant Casual. Dinner dress for ladies includes a skirt, or slacks with a blouse or sweater, a pant suit or dress; slacks and a collared shirt for gentlemen. Sport jackets are optional. Casual wear is not to be worn at dinner, once again with the exceptions of while dining at the Pool Grill and on the final evening of the cruise. Ties are not required."