SDuckers

The patio grill also had lamb chops available some days at lunch. I would have them with those wonderful crispy french fries! Did not try for the mint jelly though.

The Source App also works on an iPad. I don't know about a laptop, but I can't imagine that it wouldn't. You lost me on not wanting pockets! Even long before smart phones I hated having pants or dresses without pockets! I still do and it's not primarily for my iPhone either!

Maybe it's because DH and I are early risers, so we are at the Colonnade for breakfast not long after it opens on most days, but it has never seemed all that hectic or noisy then (although I do prefer sitting outside if the weather is good, just because I love the view). Or maybe before I have my coffee, I just don't notice as much, LOL. Lunch, I totally agree with you about the Colonnade, and we rarely if ever eat lunch there because of that. I am perfectly happy with the Patio Grill for lunch most days (again, weather permitting).

I don't know where people have gotten the idea that there is only buffet for breakfast. The Colonnade does have a breakfast buffet, but you absolutely can order table service for pretty much whatever you might want for breakfast -- pancakes, french toast, omelets, eggs benedict, etc. As far as attire, I would consider Seabourn "country club casual" in the main dining room for all but formal nights, and even then it's really not very formal at all. Maybe a few more ties and slightly dressier dresses by most folks.

Like you, I bring home all the little chocolate bars, and give them to my kids and my business partner who loves chocolate. But keep your hands off my nightly caviar in the Obs. Bar! LOL

One of our fellow passengers on the Odyssey Alaska cruise in September used a walker (and sometimes a wheel chair) and she seemed to manage just fine. There are door thresholds when you go to the outside areas of the ship (like to the pool deck or to your balcony) but they are not terribly high if you had to push a walker or wheel chair over them. There are some automatic doors as well. The Colonnade does offer menu service for breakfast and lunch, in addition to the buffet. The lunch menu is rather limited, however. Dinner there is table service only.

I am curious why Earth & Ocean is closed? Inadequate available staff? Also, usually the Colonnade has the "traditional" menu that is the same every night that is always available, in addition to the specials of the day. Is that not an option on your cruise? If not, that is very disturbing.

Trip conclusions: I had been a little concerned whether Seabourn's quality had deteriorated based on the posts I had been reading here about the service folks were getting on the Quest. I have to say Odyssey's staff & crew are much better than what has been reported on the Quest. But I did notice little things that are not quite as good as they once were. In particular, it seemed to take awhile for staff to learn our names, even in places where we were regulars. Not a big deal, but that used to be somewhat of a Seabourn hallmark. Food and service in The Restaurant was extremely variable. Sometimes it was excellent, other times entrees or appetizers were lukewarm, and sometimes it took awhile to flag down a server to either correct a problem or refill water or wine glasses. I was really struck by the much more aggressive attempts to up-sell to the premium wine list, particularly in the TK Grill and the Colonnade. I didn't mind as much at the TK Grill because we had already intended to order off the premium list there (and they have a very nice selection of half-bottles at decent prices) but at the Colonnade it was a little annoying. I am perfectly happy with the included wines for meals there. The reliance on the Source app for everything is also frustrating at times. As I have noted elsewhere, we asked twice to get a printed copy of the Herald delivered to our suite, with no success. When I tried to read the Herald on the app on my phone, it constantly would jump back to the top of the page as I tried to scroll down. Maybe user error, but it would jump back to the top even when I wasn't touching my phone. Also, the Source app didn't always work well when the internet was down (which was rather often during the second week of the cruise). The food was mostly very good to excellent. My clothes really shrunk during the trip! Both DH and I are particularly fans of Earth & Ocean now. We would have eaten there more often but some of the days it was just too rainy/cold to be able to enjoy it, even with the provided lap blankets. The Napa Burger at the Patio Grill, along with their wonderful french fries, were a regular lunch treat for us. The selection of live TV channels continues to suck. I find it hard to understand why the only US news channels offered are Fox News and MSNBC. I don't watch a ton of TV while cruising, but I do like to catch up on current news events (and particularly when Hurricane Fiona and Hurricane Ian were out there) and those two channels are both just horrible. I also was surprised that there was no channel on the lineup that would provide any college or NFL football games. I understand they can't show all of them, and probably ESPN charges too much to carry that network. But there were multiple channels showing European futball, cricket, tennis etc. And I couldn't even find a station to give US college or football scores. OTOH, I was impressed by the large selection of on-demand movies and we enjoyed several of them. DH and I aren't really that into the nighttime entertainment, and it's a good thing. We went to the Tim Rice show (again) and it's still fun but something new would be good at this point. There was a comedian during the first week who was just awful. We actually got up and left. He wasn't offensive. Just not funny. DH went to see a pianist perform and thought she was quite good. I opted to lose money at black jack instead :-). All of the Seabourn excursions we went on were very well done and fun. The only frustration was how many excursions had sold out by the time we got on the ship. I was glad I had pre-booked the ones we got. We have put down a deposit for the Dover to Lisbon cruise next fall on Ovation and I can't wait to sail again!

The last two days onboard were sea days. Alert Bay was not *supposed* to be a sea day, and we had booked to go out on the Zodiac tour, but all Zodiac tours ended up getting cancelled due to heavy fog. I was really bummed about that, because we never did get a chance to go out on a Zodiac this cruise, and this was the one I really wanted to do, because of the likelihood of seeing Orcas. Ah well, weather can't be helped. Chef's dinner was delicious. Final night on the ship was the sail away farewell from the crew. I am glad the weather ended up turning out nice for that event.

Next stop was Prince Rupert island. Again, all the excursions were sold out, other than a tour of the town. We decided to just do our own walk-about. A really cute artisan collective gift shop where much gift buying occurred. Not touristy stuff -- really nice local-made items. We also walked to the Courthouse and around downtown. Not that much to see. While we were out and about, the ship was doing their mandatory emergency drills, so it is just as well we were off the ship during that time. At breakfast, the Colonnade staff celebrated our anniversary with a nice surprise of heart shaped pancakes and mimosas. A very nice touch! Our room team also decorated our bedroom.

Next up was Wrangell. All the excursions that day were already sold out, so DH and I went to church in town. It is the oldest Catholic Church in Alaska. The people there were very welcoming and friendly. We also did a quick walk-through the museum in Wrangell (not all that impressive). I can't remember now where we ate for dinner. See what happens when I can't post each day? Next day was a cruise of Misty Fjords via catamaran. The "ribbons" of waterfalls were really a sight to see. We also saw a number of bald eagles and fledglings. They served small cups of clam chowder and vegetarian chili. I had the chowder and it was delicious. Dinner again at Earth & Ocean. DH had both the vegetarian paella and the fish (Mahi Mahi, I think) with bok choy. I had the chicken with white beans (I know the menu had better descriptions than that!) And of course we had the baked camembert for dessert! IMG_0906[1].MOV IMG_0927[1].MOV

After Juneau, we travelled back for a second view of Glacier Bay, this time spending more time at Marjorie Glacier. Still didn't get lucky enough to see a glacier calving, but the weather was beautiful. We had dinner at Earth & Ocean (I think it was this night) and I had the ribeye steak topped with seared foie gras. It was SOOO good. Rajeev Kumar is in charge of E&O and also the Patio Grill in the day time. He is fabulous!

I gave up trying to post from the ship for the second half of the cruise. Internet access was incredibly slow and often non-existent. Really the one truly negative thing I have to say about the trip. But to catch up, here are a few more pictures. In Juneau, we went to the dog sled musher camp, where we got to ride on a wheeled vehicle pulled by the sled dogs, plus meet some sled dog puppies. Weather was really lousy -- steady rain and cold. But it was still a lot of fun. Sled dogs.MOV

We just got back from the Alaskan cruise on the Odyssey. We twice requested to receive hard copies of the Herald, but never could get it delivered.

Keller fried chicken for sure. I love the Napa Burger for lunch on the patio with wonderful French fries. we had the cowboy rib eye at Earth & Ocean, topped with seared foie gras, two nights ago and it was to die for!

Internet connection has been absolutely horrible the past few days. And periodically I get logged out for no apparent reason. Seabourn needs to get that fixed. So, to catch up on my reports, our stop in Haines/Skagway was wonderful. DH opted to do a “Tours by Locals” guide in lieu of a Seabourn excursion. I think he made the right choice, although the folks who did the train from Haines to Skagway seemed to enjoy it. That’s a full day jaunt (6 hours) and we didn’t want that. Our guide gave us a solid 4 hours and drove us to places bigger groups wouldn’t go. Dinner in the Restaurant . Service is good but the aggressive selling of premium wines gets a bit annoying. Sometimes the entrees aren’t as hot as they could be. IMG_0862.MOV Last night on the ship for those doing the 7 day cruise. I’m glad we get another week! Will miss some new friends we made this week.

Yesterday was Inian Islands in the morning and Icy Strait Point in the afternoon. Morning had Zodiac excursions but canceled the kayak excursion due to fog. Weather was heavy overcast and rainy all day. I did the Zip Rider zip lining and it was exhilarating and amazing. I bet if it wasn’t raining it would be even better. The gondolas up the mountain are also awesome. Dinner in the restaurant. I had the prime rib and it was perfect. They even got horseradish for me! DH had the seafood soufflé, which he said was very good once he got it served hot. He also had the slow roasted poussin. today we are in Haines

Yesterday was Glacier Bay. Amazing day. 42D0A075-5661-4B9E-B097-2AF7928CF71A.MOV

Looks good!

IMG_0813.MOV Yesterday was Sitka. Again we were Incredibly lucky with the weather. Clear sunny skies and temps in the mid 60’s. In the afternoon lots of folks pool side and using the hot tub. Our excursion was a boat out to see sea otters and other wildlife. Saw bears catching salmon, a raft of sea otters, and many humpback whales. Really outstanding. Cocktail hour had caviar and music poolside as we sailed away. Dinner was Keller fried chicken night at the Colonnade. One of my favorites! As delicious as always. Today is Glacier Bay. It’s very foggy so far this morning. I hope it clears off enough to see things.

IMG_0813.MOV Yesterday was Sitka. Again we were Incredibly lucky with the weather. Clear sunny skies and temps in the mid 60’s. In the afternoon lots of folks pool side and using the hot tub. Our excursion was a boat out to see sea otters and other wildlife. Saw bears catching salmon, a raft of sea otters, and many humpback whales. Really outstanding. Cocktail hour had caviar and music poolside as we sailed away. Dinner was Keller fried chicken night at the Colonnade. One of my favorites! As delicious as always. Today is Glacier Bay. It’s very foggy so far this morning. I hope it clears off enough to see things.

Yesterday was Ketchikan. Incredibly lucky with the weather. Sunny and about 65 F and a light breeze. Given that it typically is very rainy here in September, it was a nice surprise. We went on the excursion to an oyster farm. The boat trip out there was lovely and seeing the process was very interesting. Then we got to eat freshly shucked oysters, raw and grilled. Trivia was well attended again, although a bit fewer people. Lots of fun. Dinner at TK Grill. It was ok, but some disappointment. The oxtail consommé with truffle was devoid of truffle flavor and really just tasted like a salty bouillon cube soup. The Caesar salad was excellent as was my veal chop. The side of Mac and cheese was just meh. I forgot to take pictures. Entertainment was a comedian. He wasn’t very good. Today we are in Sitka

Sea day yesterday, and really lucky with the weather. Other than an hour or two of fog, it was mostly sunny and clear. Team trivia had a big crowd turn out. Jan (CD) is quite fun. Formal night in the Restaurant. Service was spotty at times, but the food was delicious. I had the goat cheese soufflé and beef Wellington. DH had the consommé and duck a L’Orange. We shared a side of truffle risotto. The entertainment was the Tim Rice show.

We are in Queen Charlotte Sound right now and seas are quite choppy with more ship motion than I recall ever having on Seabourn. I’m guessing anyone susceptible to motion sickness is really feeling it. but skies are clear and bright blue and it’s a lovely day