Scb71

Sorry I didn’t follow up.

We ended up doing the Seabourn tour which was top notch; but more importantly the Alhambra and the scenery was amazing.

Very glad we did it and I would highly recommend it - even for those like us that aren’t group tour people. We probably got lucky in having a high end and small “group” tour but regardless I’d suck it up and do this one for sure.

Thanks for the input

Dancing - yes; ballroom dancing - not really.

The club has a dance floor and it is used regularly, sometimes more than others, but it is probably 15-20 ft wide if I was estimating. It is small but it works although not quite ballroom dancing.

Yes I've had I think 4 emails entreating me to book it, that's 3 emails more than I've had reminding me to book tours, which I still haven't gotten around to.

Earlier threads expressed the expectation that Seabourn would soon give up on the idea but in fact they've doubled down on it, pushing it pre-cruise, at the start of cruises and from the sound of it giving out free passes to drum up business.

I continue to dislike the entire concept as not the classless Seabourn we're used to and for the fact its location causes annoyance to joggers and walkers, however at this point I'm pretty sure they are going to push it until it works for them.

I specifically asked my 'personal cruise consultant' at Sebaourn recently if there had been any internal discussions about what to do with this obvious miscalculation and waste of space - that's the vast consensus from what I gather anyhow. And he said the same that it had not gone over well and it was being discussed.

A few points he made, they could not just offer it as complimentary because there was clearly not enough room for everyone even if just once per cruise for all and so they felt the need to have a charge for it just to pull in demand. If it were included and you could not get a reservation guests would feel as if they paid for something that they could not experience causing issues and complaints. I understand that last point but the bigger issue is that they should never had taken out the sports deck to put in this stinking mess. The up-charge concept is not Seabourn style and people are revolting against that in and of itself which I suppose they are learning the hard way.

He shared that they were still discussing it, they have dropped the price as others have noted but it still isn't gaining much traction. He suggested that he would like to see it eventually transformed into another bar or dining option which would be nice with a glass ceiling for instance but who knows if that would ever happen. That takes time and money and these ships are new so I don't imagine they are going in for dry dock and refurbishments anytime soon...

We were hesitant about going on the Encore last year but wound up - with the exception of the pool area on sea days - really liking the ship.

I will be on Encore for our first time on the new largest (600ppl) ships late next week. I imagine every week is different but we typically spend lots of time by the pool and with a couple of sea days on the agenda I am curious about your experience. Can you elaborate?

thanks

I see these spirited debates on dress code and it makes me groan - for those on both ends of the spectrum.

There are clearly those, typically first time Seabourn guests, who for some reason make it a mission to propose things should be more casual and they promote their agenda as such. Even trying to suggest after their first voyage that they were just fine being super casual even though I am sure many of the other guests did not feel the same. And then there are also those on the other end of the spectrum promoting more formality that want to remember the good old days where it was more formal even on non-formal evenings. These types roll their eyes and make nasty comments to others whose attire they don't appreciate. Just the thought of leaving the tuxedo at home or possibly not even wearing a tie on formal night is sacrilege. In my opinion neither end of the spectrum is accurate and probably not respectful of the rest of the crowd.

I have nowhere near the days at Sea of many of you but we've been cruising with Seabourn for 15 years and I have noticed it get slightly more casual over that time period as has the world in general. HOWEVER, in general the clientele and the Seabourn staff continue to promote the elegant casual vibe. The expectation is that people are on a luxury trip and that dressing in a classy and respectable way makes the entire experience more enjoyable for all. Seabourn markets itself as being a luxurious worldly culture which is more active and relaxed than a couple of other luxury cruise lines. It is not stuffy and tuxedos or suit and tie is not “required” attire every evening but it is expected that people will dress nicely and be respectful of their fellow guests and the environment the ship is trying to promote.

The boarding documents are actually pretty straightforward.

Day:

In a nutshell it says swimsuits and exercise attire during the day should be reserved for on deck or in the fitness center. Resort style attire including jeans and shorts are fair game anywhere during the day.

Evenings: (This is for the Restaurant but it sort of carries the vibe throughout the ship.)

Elegant Casual - collared dress shirt or sweater (it does say dress shirt for those that argue); jacket is optional. No Jeans in the Restaurant after 6pm

Formal – Tuxedo, a suit or slacks with a jacket required.

Ladies – match similar to what goes with above for men. Blouse, dress, pant suit, etc. More elegant on formal nights.

I wrote something similar to the below not long ago on this thread and then intended to stay out of this discussion but some of the recent posts I think are misleading so I will add some more color. On my first cruise with Seabourn I was in my later 20’s and I packed my tuxedo as well as a suit and sport coat and was pleased to wear all of them - and I probably had two suitcases with me as well ugh. Of course in my late 20’s this was not my normal holiday attire but I was on a special vacation and I was more than happy to dive headfirst into the experience and it was great. Participating in the experience as intended, and instructed by the documents, made it more enjoyable for us and for everyone else. Obviously we enjoyed ourselves because we keep Seabourn in our vacation rotation. Not every year but we keep coming back and for us it has always been the Mediterranean – both Eastern routes and Western routes so it has always been during the warmer months. With that said, the environment has gotten more casual with the 450 and now 600 passenger ships but it is still an elegant environment and that should be respected in my opinion. I try to pack lighter now but in my experience the majority of men tend to wear a jacket most evenings. It may not be a requirement but most people do because they want to and because they respect the others and want to uphold the feel of refined luxury and a special occasion. The second and a smaller group wear the same thing but just without the jacket – nice slacks and a long sleeve, dressy button down shirt. Either option can be sporty and worn with loafers but still a casual elegance look. Then there may be very few in the minority that choose not to do either and do simply what they want and wear a tropical silk shirt or a nice polo tucked into their slacks. That last group is wearing a normal country club type outfit that would be perfectly fine in most settings yet they are in the minority in this setting. They do probably get some eye rolls or groans whether warranted or not but I am sure it happens.

So if you want to push the boundaries and say that the rules just say collared shirt then I suppose you can do that if you like - although it does clearly state "collared dress shirt". Just be mindful that you will be in the minority. You aren’t going to blow up the party or sink the ship but you aren’t really adding to the experience to be fair - and for some people you are detracting. Do what you want but I think you and everyone else onboard would but happier if you just packed some nice button down shirts and brought along a sport coat or blazer. That's easy to do and still sporty and comfortable.

At the end of the day, I think those that want things to be more formal all the time and wish for the days of the old Legend, etc may need to lighten up or start to look for another line. And for those that are trying to push the boundaries and just get by with whatever they want should probably stick with one of the more mainstream lines such as Norwegian or whatever (I am guessing here as we haven't been with them). Otherwise be nice, respect the decorum, find a happy medium and stay classy San Diego.

Thanks. We ended up choosing 10 and hope it works out well. Similar to you- I liked the idea of being near the observation bar and the sky bar and pool but also not being right on 9 where all the pool traffic walks by. With that said, I’ve never had an issue with any spot so I am sure they are all good.

Which deck do you prefer and why?

We have a suite booked on 9 - but could move to 10 or 11. We had one on 8 but it was the last one right at the atrium staircase and thought that might be a little too much action being under the pool, at the very edge, but also by the stairs and the Sushi restaurant. So I moved to 9 which is the pool level. Being right by the observation bar on 11 might be nice or it could be an annoyance. 10 is in the middle on on the sky bar level. First class problems with these sorts of decisions but hence the post seeking other input.

I cannot recall the other decks we've stayed on to be frank so am sure we will be happy with whatever but since this is a here and now decision I wanted to ask for some opinions and feedback.

Perhaps it is time for cruise lines to install little meters, like for limited time street parking, that demarcate how long you have been sitting on a deck chair, pay as you go, if people cannot play fair. 🙄

Oh how I wish this wasn't the case but I've certainly been at resorts where usage meters would be a real upgrade vs the hat on one chair, last week's newspaper on another, sunscreen on number three, sunglasses on four, and on and on for the whole group.

On Seabourn I've had a few issues but typically have been able to find a spot whenever we wanted one - which for us is every day. We take summer Med cruises so we spend a lot of time by the pool. Hoping there will be plenty of space next week when we try Encore for our first time. I am a but nervous with the extra guests quite frankly...

Many thanks for all the input. Glad to see that others have had good experiences at the more mainline cruise ships. I think whichever we did we would just need to pack our patience and pare expectations for food quality and service... I saw a convenient itinerary on NCL Breakaway but the reviews are all over the place.

To be fair it is likely the other guests I am most worried about. You never know what you are going to get with thousands of people crammed into a space for a week together. You could also say that with 400-600 on Seabourn as well I suppose but for some reason the budget and the appeal of the ship seems to self-regulate that to a degree.

My wife and I cruise with Seabourn, just as a couple, but we keep saying one of these days we will take our girls on a cruise - ages 7 and 10. It won't be Seabourn for many of the reasons you might think but I don't want to start a debate about whether kids are welcomed or not on SB as that is not my intention here.

What I am curious of though is if anyone has experience on a more family friendly cruise line and how that worked out. I ask it in this forum because I am interested to hear how people with the background of Seabourn travelers feel about this - vs asking the same question on the Carnival board for instance. I hope that makes sense.

thanks in advance for your input and any experiences you can share.

I appreciate all the posts. I've looked at this periodically and really wasn't able to find any professional tours that works as they were all out of "tour operator available tickets" for the palace, etc. I did find some later tickets if I just bought myself but trying to squeeze the time in just wasn't working for our short window. I may keep looking.

I think we may just enjoy Malaga as that is certainly the easiest and it appears to be a lovely place to enjoy on our own. I'd welcome any suggestions for that too!

I came across this thread and since our experience has been so positive I felt the need to share with everyone. First though I must agree with some of the later posts in this thread. It is not fair at all to be comparing business class to economy. You must compare business class to business class and economy to economy.

In my case I have been AMAZED at the deals that Seabourn offers on air and because of that I book straight with them. I would have never considered it but I inquired once and now have done it the past two times and have saved thousands. No joke. Part of that is the $500 credit per person that they offer somewhat regularly but the other is simply that Carnival Corporation (through everything from Carnival to Holland America to Seabourn) has literally millions of passengers and they buy bulk fares which are not retail fares. So when you see their price it includes their bulk fare and any discount, $500 off for instance, but you don't see it marked as such - you just see the offered price. In my case it has been unbelievable.

As an example - on my upcoming trip they were able to offer business class round-trip from Houston to Europe for something around $2,500 per person however we were booking a little late with just 2 months to go so inventory was shrinking and the routing was just ok but not great. This compares with direct fares at that time of about $6,500-8,000 per person as I recall for the same routes and tickets. This were by far the best deal and a much better value than economy.

Economy was offered at $618 per person and that compared with airline direct fares for the exact same flight of around $2,000 per person. These were great routing and on my preferred airline as well.

So at the end of the day the rates were phenomenal for both business and economy but there are considerations you must be aware of:

- Depending on when you book Seabourn may or may not have availability on the exact flight you want. You have to work with them and challenge them to try alternative routings as their first offer may not be what you want. Often you can get something that works though.

- Even though you pay for the ticket it is technically purchased by Seabourn and it is classified as a bulk fare. You still receive whatever status level benefits you may have with the airline if you have any but there are some drawbacks. Since it is a bulk fare ticket you do not have the same ability to upgrade using miles, etc that you would on a regular fare ticket. This may or may not be important to you.

- My experience in doing this has only been twice and in both instances we were within a couple of months of departure so that might make their bulk fares even more favorable. I am not certain but if you plan a year out you could probably get better retail fares and perhaps the bulk fares are the same; but either way I’ve never seen business class to Europe for anywhere close to $2500 or $3000 or economy for $600 during the summer months.

I hope this is helpful and I would encourage you to try them for airfare – you may be pleasantly surprised.

I do miss the Legend. It was our first Seabourn experience and while we have enjoyed the Odyssey line ships we missed the small feel and higher service level of the Legend. The boutique yacht-like nature and service just seemed to be a little less than before.

We now have a cruise on the Encore in a couple of weeks and it will be our first time on the now even larger ships. I am worried about it but hoping we enjoy it. New is nice but more people is a concern. Hoping for the best!

The posters on this and other dress code threads occupy the extreme ends of the spectrum, both sides pushing for either more casual or more formality, in reality they are a very very small minority of Seabourn passengers most of whom know how to dress for which occasion, on a 2 week cruise that will be 2 formal nights, in the restaurant only, if you include the TK Grill, Colonade, Patio Grill and main restaurant that is 56 evening dining opportunities of which only 2 are formal, on a 12 night cruise the numbers change to 48 and 1, less than 5% in both cases.

 

 

All the rest are Elegant Casual, its not difficult to fit in.

 

 

 

Relax, enjoy the cruise and the Seabourn experience, I know we do.

Touche'!

That has been my experience exactly over the years. I have noticed Seabourn get more and more casual whereas 15 years ago I noticed many tuxedos on formal night, myself included, and in recent years there are very few with mostly suits and lots of men without ties. My wife and I are in our young 40's and while typically we've been on the younger end of the crowd (that is going to change as time progresses I know) but we have always felt comfortable and welcomed whether formal or less so. With luggage restrictions getting more stringent too I will probably be wearing more sportcoats with different slacks just to limit the amount of junk I'm bringing with me on our next Mediterranean cruise which is in a few weeks. I certainly won't be packing a tuxedo (only due to space) but if you are taking two suitcases and have plenty of room by all means bring one and you will fit in just as well as the gent wearing a navy suit. There is plenty of room for all as long as people are respectful and they dress sharply and within reason I don't envision any issues.

Thank you for posting this! We are boarding in a couple of weeks and I always loathe the first few days trying to figure out what our go to wines are going to be - maybe loathe is a bit strong but I do feel bad sending full glasses back any more than I have to. We've cruised with Seabourn a number of times and for some reason have never had this print out but I just printed the pics and they are going with me this time!

Just booked the July 23rd 2018 Alaska cruise, and I'm hoping someone has a referral coupon? Thanks in advance, you can contact me at chrisfog@earthlink.net.

I just sent you an email. I replied to another post but it appears that cruiser may be all taken care of already. I have credit available and would be pleased to get them in for you, and for me! Our cruise is late July so the timing is ideal.

thanks

Any certificates still available for two first time Seabourne cruisers leaving July 27 for “Spanish Magic and Morocco”?:cool: Thank you!

Yes!

I have some and we are on the same cruise so if you want to share your contact info we can coordinate! Send a PM if that is an option or whatever works best. I can email you too I suppose.

thanks!

Oops - looks like you may have already submitted one. Sorry for the double post...

We will be arriving in Malaga at 7am on Seabourn Encore and the ship departs at 5:00pm.

Should I:

1) Book bus tickets and Alhambra tickets and try to squeeze it in myself? We are not typically group tour people and like to do our own thing and are usually comfortable travellers.

2) Try to find a group tour that will bus us to Granada, do the Alhambra and return in time to board the ship?

3) Stay and enjoy Malaga?

I am really torn on this one.... I am not sure why they are not staying in port longer but they are not. We have much longer in Cadiz and in that instance it seems the trip to Granada would be more logical. I think it is doable on this timeframe but it could be a stressful mess as well.

Appreciate your comments in advance!

It's been a number of years since I have been to Monaco and Nice but will be there in a couple of months. I would greatly appreciate any suggestions and tips for transportation from the port in Monaco to Nice. We will be traveling with our luggage. I am not sure where the boat will be docked but it is Seabourn if that helps.

We will be staying one day and night in Nice and then leaving the next morning to fly out. I assume we will take a taxi from the hotel to the airport but am not sure about that either.

We are typically comfortable taking a train or a shuttle as long as it is doable with a few bags. A car would be great although I do not want to pay a couple of hundred dollars just to get from the port to the hotel.

thanks in advance!