jimmyw9

My TK Grill bookings just cancelled out (for the Lisbon to Miami TA)....so I guess Seabourn are making the adjustments now.

Just got word and it all appears to be sorting itself out now!

We are very much cheerleaders of Seabourn. We love it. We have been on the Encore and enjoyed it, everything was to the Seabourn standard. Our last cruise was on the Odyssey in April..... I think you can safely say "they weren't on it"........ All you can do is judge by the last cruise you were on.

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We were told it was the Hotel Directors office.

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I can see the Encore is going to full of lots of nice people! [emoji849]

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"...the current cost for a V2 suite based on our UK agents figures is £220 per diem for the 16 days ex Athens, and £517 per diem for the 10 days ex Singapore. It is enough of a difference to expect wonders, IMO."

 

Most of the difference in your per diem comparison above is not due to the inaugural aspect of the second cruise; rather, it's due to the routing. Europe to SE Asia (and v.v.) routings are re-positioning cruises that are historically priced inexpensively.

I agree re-postioning cruises are often cheaper compared to other cruises, but lincslady is correct there is a premium attached to the Inaugural cruise on the Encore. You only have to look at the same cruise the ship is making in March 2017 when it heads back to Europe. We know what we paid for the Inaugural and there is a premium....... anyway as linclady says.....lets leave the vulgar bit.

But as kevnzworld has the proof in black and white as he has his cruise documents the "show" as it were isn't happening on the ship but on the dock......... so indeed what was the premium for?

Anyway, the cruise is not the main reason for our holiday as for us our "show" as it were gets going when we reach Bali.

Well that makes sense to have the event off of the ship as there are so many guests to accommodate "maiden and inaugural"

But that said it is a shame nothing is happening on the ship.

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I didn't notice the asterisk. My bad. Yes, restaurant 2 is now The Grill on Encore.

The sushi restaurant is new, and open for lunch.

The Athens to Singapore sailing isn't the official inaugural cruise, but it is the maiden voyage...and for us a better itinerary.

I agree that itinerary is good, but we have done that twice.

I wonder how Seabourn will distinguish between the events of the Maiden Voyage and those of the Inaugural Voyage. As other posters have noted it seems the norm now for cruise lines to stretch these celebrations/introductions of new ships to their fleet......who wouldn't to leverage a few more $$$ in its opening season.

The maiden voyage guests get their name on a plaque in Seabourn Square, so there must be some kind of celebration as the ship departs Athens. I suppose then the party really gets going when the ship gets down route to Singapore as frantic36 and markham state.

Enjoy your cruise.

jimmyw9

Well, I think it is too late for that. Looks as if they are following suit! I guess it means they max out the $$$$ on the cruises in the early days. At least everyone then from Athens can say they were on the Inaugural sailing! It will be interesting to see what Kevnzworld has to say about how his cruise has been pitched to him and what is disclosed in his cruise documents.

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Thanks Julie.

Yes Seabourn do really know how to launch a ship. The Quest Barcelona was spectacular. Apart from the actual evening in port with fireworks orchestra on board etc, a couple of days later all the guests in Monaco were taken to Salle des Etoiles for dessert, concert, Monaco ballet and then the roof of the auditorium opened at the end whilst music was playing to reveal the sky, stars and Monaco skyline......truely amazing!

But, I am sure the "pre maiden" guests will be expecting a "show" as it were. As Kevnzworld refers to it as Inaugural, so I guess that's the basis the cruise was sold to them on and he has his cruise documents now saying that too.

When we boarded the Quest in Barcelona it had done a couple of short cruises before and the crew told us that guest were expressing their displeasure. So I am sure they are under pressure to do something big as it leaves Athens.

Looking forward it whatever happens. Any cruise on Seabourn is great anyway...... only 4 weeks until we are on the Quest so that should help pass time.

Jimmyw9

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Does your cruise information contain anything about the special events taking place for the maiden voyage? We sailed on the Quest maiden voyage and it was spectacular! Unfortunately we do not join until Singapore so all the pomp and ceremony of the new ship would have passed by the third sailing I suspect!

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Unfortunately Chairsin is wrong it will be located on deck 9

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We got ours on board. We have a UK Passport.

It is very easy now to obtain information on countries that issue visas on arrival and in fact if you email Seabourn they are very helpful too.

Of course you do not state where you hold your passport from, so that could throw a whole different light on the matter.

No, I'm not part of a wedding party!!

It still shows on my bookings this morning.

I'm not sure what factors are affecting this. I'm Diamond if that matters and also the suites we have booked are OW, PS and SS. Maybe that's the influencing factor. But as I say I don't know.

And Markham, I will deal with you offline......I know where to find you [emoji12]

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According to the NY Cruise Terminal schedule its Brooklyn.

I have a reservation on the Quest shortly, then Encore, then Odyssey and it shows up on all of them.

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I am seeing a new option when I log in and view reservations I have made (but it is greyed out)......

Priority Embarkation for everyone in reservation (Therefore a suite benefit)

Have i missed something? or has this not come into effect yet?

I guess it is something that will be particularly relevant with the Encore due to launch later this year with more numbers of people to deal with.

jimmyw9

I know many don't like the new system of not being able to reserve a spot for Shopping With The Chef when they board but I think it's definitely fair to make it fair game for all onboard as opposed to those who are in the know and therefore book ahead.

 

If it continues to be in high demand, I could easily see Seabourn converting this to a paid event (like the premium wine tastings), especially since in some ports it requires not only the chef's time but also a couple of runners to carry items back. In some ports they even rent a bus for the passengers.

 

It truly is a fun experience... it's a shame that they can't accommodate all who are interested.

I am glad of the new system of booking SWTC.

We have been sailing with Seabourn regularly since 2009 (over 200 days, 2 or 3 cruises per year) and it was only on our cruise in February that we were able to secure our first space for the market visit in Phuket (which was outstanding and throughly enjoyable)

I had not been aware of the ability to book SWTC once you were onboard and I only ever made contact to book a space once I saw it advertised in The Herald (what was the point of placing this advert if all spaces were already reserved anyway???)

I am sure I would be shot down for this, but I would be happy for this to be a paid for excursion. That way you are sure to limit this preferential booking which has existed for the few in the know.

jimmyw9

we submitted ours on July 7th and got a mail back from guest relations a few days laters telling us everything we'd submitted was reimbursable, so they were very reasonable about what was reasonable (and I think we did the best we could to keep the change costs to a minimum). We then had to fill in another form with bank account details and send that to HAL reimbursement division and that's where it's been for the last two weeks.

Well we were originally booked on BA to Istanbul and same back from Athens. I wasn't about to book on to Easyjet and did what was easiest for me. I therefore booked BA to Athens and in fact booked exactly the same flight that I was originally booked on back from Athens. Obviously BA would not allow any changes to my original booking as that was non refundable. Needless to say, at this late stage BA was not cheap (in Club). Maybe mine will be rejected as I did not show any effort in trying to "be reasonable".......... Anyway, I guess it will be interesting listening to stories of who was and who wasn't successful once on the ship.

On the plus side, received a check today for the change fee expenses which I submitted only 10 days ago. So ready for some Seabourn pampering.

Thats very good. I submitted ours on 1 July and no response yet and not even sure it will be successful as "Reasonable Expenses" gives plenty of scope for get out.

jimmyw9

Just got an email saying all Turkish ports cancelled on our cruise. Now off to Patmos and Cyprus!

Well.....it is hardly a secret as it is all over Facebook now!

jimmyw9

Sorry Jimmy. Not true. We are travelling on Odyssey now ex-Athens on 27 August and have recvd email both from Seabourn Reservations and our T/A confirming Seabourn will meet all reasonable extra costs resulting from the changes. They have also sent a reimbursement claim form to fill in with these details. Plus they are adding $300 per suite OBC as compensation for inconvenience. Suggest you contact you T/A or email seareservations@seabourn.com

Have you or anyone submitted their Change Fee Reimbursement Form yet?

I did, but did not receive any kind of acknowledgment. I know it is going to take them many weeks to sort this, but thought even a bounce back email saying thank you for your email would have given some reassurance that it had been received.

Sorry Jimmy. Not true. We are travelling on Odyssey now ex-Athens on 27 August and have recvd email both from Seabourn Reservations and our T/A confirming Seabourn will meet all reasonable extra costs resulting from the changes. They have also sent a reimbursement claim form to fill in with these details. Plus they are adding $300 per suite OBC as compensation for inconvenience. Suggest you contact you T/A or email seareservations@seabourn.com

Sorry I should have been more clear.

Yes all of the above is true.......

What Seabourn are not allowing is you the option to cancel and rebook onto another cruise.

This came directly from my TA this morning.

jimmyw9

What's wrong with easyjet?

 

Happy and healthy sailing!

Had original flights booked with BA to Istanbul, so naturally would revert back to them, wouldn't you?

Seabourn are not offering any rebooking or cancellation benefits for Istanbul cruises affected after 2 July. So you have no option but to take it and pay for the new travel costs and hope they repay something towards them.

jimmyw9