Northern Swan

I suspect everyone has very good reasons for asking questions posted on the discussion forums. In our case, our query had nothing to do with what to wear but is related to timing of activities or excursions and narrowing down which nights we prefer to dine in a specialty restaurant vs the main dining room. I appreciate the useful info that’s been posted here and thank everyone for sharing their insights.

Hello… I did search the forum and the Seabourn site before posting this question, and while I found lots of great info about dress codes and the number of formal nights per cruise, I haven’t been able to get any estimate of when the formal nights will be. We are going on a 14-day Alaska cruise in June 2024 on the Odyssey. If anyone has done this itinerary, it would be great to hear from you as to which evenings we might expect the formal nights to be scheduled on. Many thanks!

We are receiving excellent service in our family cabana on Deck 11 on Nieuw Amsterdam and have had no issues with other guests being loud. Food and beverage service is excellent, and each day at 2 pm they serve sparkling wine with a small plate of chocolate covered strawberries and frozen grapes. The servers provide menus for breakfast and lunch (from the Lido and the burger bar) and they will also bring you drinks from the bar or coffee bar, according to whichever drink package you have purchased. The cabanas are open from 9am to 5 pm, and they do remove all of the cushions from the loungers and wicker chairs every day at closing. There really is no place to sit comfortably in the off hours. I am very pleased with the service provided and would book a cabana again without hesitation.

If you are thinking about booking the thermal suite on the Nieuw Amsterdam you should do so online before you start your cruise. The cost for the thermal suite pass for our cruise was $149 per person pre-cruise but booking on board the cost increases to $50 per person per day. Likewise for all spa treatments and drink packages - everything is significantly less expensive when booked pre-cruise.

I know this has been debated many times, but currently the HAL FAQ page states the packages are limited to 15 alcoholic drinks daily: The Signature and Elite packages have a daily limit of 15 alcoholic beverages, which includes all alcoholic beverages with a menu price of $15 or less (Elite Beverage Package), or $11 or less (Signature Beverage Package). The Quench Beverage Package includes unlimited non-alcoholic beverages and bottled waters 500ml and under. The packages exclude purchases made in the Mini Bar, Honor Bar, Chocolate Seduction, In-Room Dining, beverages purchased on Half Moon Cay and any self-service draft beer.

Not sure if there has been a recent change, but the FAQ on the HAL site states the following (emphasis is mine): The Signature and Elite packages have a daily limit of 15 alcoholic beverages, which includes all alcoholic beverages with a menu price of $15 or less (Elite Beverage Package), or $11 or less (Signature Beverage Package). The Quench Beverage Package includes unlimited non-alcoholic beverages and bottled waters 500ml and under.