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First Impressions of Seabourn from our Dec. '17 Odyssey Cruise: Surprisingly Mixed


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Greetings, and Happy New Year, all; below I attempt to link my review posted of our Dec. 5-17, 2017 Odyssey cruise. If I did it wrong, the review can be found in the review section for the ship.

 

A question I have is whether what we experienced with embarkation and disembarkation is the norm for Seabourn, or is it usually better organized and executed?

 

 

https://www.cruisecritic.com/memberreviews/memberreview.cfm?EntryID=602771

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ON Cruiser, I've just read your review. We sailed on the SB Encore in September (540 passengers on our voyage) and embarkation took no time at all--perhaps 10 minutes from the time we arrived at the port. We were immediately escorted to the Colonnade, and, even though there are quite a few people already enjoying their lunch, there was plenty of room for us--and others arriving later than we. It was announced that all cabins were ready BEFORE 2pm. We were surprised that they were ready early.

 

Disembarkation took only a few minutes as well. Perhaps we did have to be out of cabin by 8am, but we enjoyed a very leisurely breakfast in the MDR and then had no issues at all with disembarking. One of my suitcases was separated from the others, but it was there. It just took a moment to locate it.

 

We found service to be quite good at all locations on the ship. We never had to wait long for our menus, drinks, food, etc--yet never felt rushed.

 

I totally agree with you that food is very subjective. Overall, I am not a big fan of cruise ship food as it is too rich for my taste. And, usually too salty. You have to bear in mind that I use minimal salt when cooking at home and guests usually ask for salt. So many people prefer (and are used to) more heavily salted food and I am sure it is difficult to strike a happy medium. I am considering requesting low salt on our next cruise. I wonder if anyone here has done that.

 

One more thing---as in your case, our pre-cruise liquor order was only half delivered and in our refrigerator on embarkation day. It only took one request to guest relations and the bottle of vodka was in our hands within 15 minutes.

 

We have never taken a cruise on Holland America---and since we would have no status, I'm not sure the comparison with SB would be a good one for us.

 

Thank you for your review! It just goes to show that when everything goes right, it is the result of a lot of effort and close teamwork. When things go wrong, there is a breakdown somewhere.

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I would just comment that, in 13 cruises with Seabourn, we have never had your embarkation experience. Generally, it takes 20 minutes or less. I agree that the Colonnade can get crowded as everyone waits for their cabins. Again, we have never had to wait much after 2pm. for access.

 

I agree with you on the disembarkation time of 08.00am being very early. I suppose that we are just used to it and deal with it. We have never had a problem with our luggage getting lost.

 

For your other comments, we have not been on Odyssey for some time. Our last cruise was on Sojourn in June and it was excellent in all respects. I do agree that some servers are better than others (I suppose that is true everywhere). We quickly identified those and made sure that we sat in their sections. As to the food, we are not 'foodies' so not difficult to please. The only food related hiccup I had in two weeks was just once when my lamb chops arrived undercooked. I do not like rare lamb! That did not happen again.

 

The other hiccup was a miscommunication between head office and the ship as to on-board credit. I anticipated that this might happen and brought documentary evidence with me. As a result it was quickly remedied.

 

I don't expect everything to be 'perfect'. In real life hiccups happen. What matters is when, if and how they get fixed.

 

I am a great believer in prompt feedback both good and bad. I want the crew to know when they are doing a great job and I also want them to know when things could be better. I have always found this to be most appreciated.

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Thanks for your review. We were on the Nov 11 sailing of the Odyssey and are 4 star on HAL. This was our first Seabourn experience. I agree with your comments.

We found the service in the Restaurant very slow and twice gave up on having dessert. We ate there for early 7 o’clock dinner on 4 evenings. TK Grill was very good and service excellent. Breakfast and lunch in the Colonnade were excellent and we enjoyed the patio grill. I liked the option of ordering from the table at the Colonnade and patio buffet. The Restaurant was noisy and while the wine flowed freely it was not easy to get a refill of a water glass.

I learned half way through the cruise that I should put out the “service” request so the room stewardess knew we were out of the room. On HAL the room stewards just seem to know when we leave. We were very happy with our stateroom and our wonderful stewardess.

This was our first visit to the Caribbean and I thought the destinations staff were not very knowledgeable. I thought they were the weakest link of all the service staff. Most Seabourn clients have “been there before” I am sure. We did enjoy the ship excursions.

The ship singers and dancers were excellent and very welcoming when out and about on the ship. Great CD and assistant CD, again very visible and welcoming.

We may try Seabourn again now that we know our way around. I do understand that this crew was new to the ship and to Seabourn which lead to some of the disorganization and stress that we witnessed.

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We were on the Dec 5th sailing as well. We were the fourth couple to arrive at the port. Boarding has always begun at noon but not this time. Credit to the officer in charge of guest services who was in the terminal with us and the head bartender, Martin who brought out bottles of water.

I'm not clear what time you arrived but if it was after the bus full of obvious first timers (or maybe you were on that bus) the wait was even longer.

I believe they began around 1230 but many of the port agents were inept.

As for the collonade being"full" I attribute that to the large number of travel agents who boarded around 11 and Seabourn, inexplicably, released them to the collonade prior to the passengers boarding.

This was also the first time the suites were not available at 2. As for items in your suite, as you found out, your room stewardess took care of them. No need to call guest services

 

I never went to the club but found the observation bar, the bartender, and Katie on piano to be excellent.

 

I was aware there were newbies but we found a few from a previous cruise plus we sat in the same area every time so the servers could get to know us.

 

Except for one night at the patio grill, my only complaint with this cruise were the wretched ports we were taken to, especially the one in Dominican Republic

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Thanks all for your observations and comments.

 

SLSD, indeed, if we could have gone to breakfast in the Restaurant (main dining room) on the last morning, we would have done. Yet we were told it would be closed with only the Colonnade open. Thinking that this would be chaotic, we pre-planned for room service. Room service on that last morning was fine--as it mostly was. There was one day when we waited over 45 minutes for RS breakfast but, after I raised concerns, things did improve on that score.

 

My strong suggestion to Seabourn is that the Restaurant should be open, along with Colonnade, on embarkation and disembarkation. This will alleviate crowding.

 

Roxburgh, I agree with you that what is important is how issues are resolved. To the credit of the Hotel Director, when he read our comments on the form that was handed around on day 3 or 4, seeking feedback, he took ownership of the situation. Thereafter, things did improve. I also observe that shipboard management did not just seek opinions pro-forma. They actually read and addressed our concerns--which was positive.

 

Moreover, it was likely not the fault of the HD that he had too many newbie and insufficiently trained staff to absorb all at once, and perhaps also insufficient head-count. Again, I am guessing on that based on our experience that there were either not sufficient staff, or not sufficient trained staff during our cruise which led to some of these issues I have flagged.

 

Anyway, these issues, including what others pointed out in the informative posts below re travel agents taking up space in Colonnade on embarkation day (which space should have been for guests), all contributed to our overall first impression, such as it was.

 

Happy cruising to all!

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i agree that some of the Caribbean ports weren't great but given that the whole region had recently been slammed by two major hurricanes I thought it was a small miracle that we were able to stop anywhere.

 

As for disembarkation, the "deadline" they give is for pax to be out of their suites so housekeeping can get cracking, not necessarily off the ship. I've never understood the mad panic to get off ASAP. There's no harm n having one last coffee in Seabourn Square until the rush hour is over, then leave at your leisure.

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Sorry to hear of your problems - and other people's - which sound as if due to two issues, essentially. One, embarkation was almost certainly due to the port authorities in Miami and not Seabourn. However, slow or poor service sadly is due to Seabourn having too high a proportion of new and inexperienced staff on board, it would seem especially on Odyssey. There have been enough complaints and mentions of this problem both this year and last year before the launch of Encore for a bigger effort to have been made to sort it out by now - Head Office should do something about it.

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One thing about Seabourn that pleases us is the ease and speed of embarkation/disembaration we have alwaysexperienced. Never a queue, never any delay at check in desk, plenty of room in the colonnade, a storage room for the carry on bags, suites ready just before 2pm. Every time. It is my guess that on that particular cruise there was a problem at the port regarding embarkation.. Why did Seabourn not tell the all the passengers what was really going on, instead of letting their newbies think that this was the Seabourn "way". J

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Thank you for taking the time to write and post the review. We love HAL and have considered Seabourn many times. Haven’t sailed with them yet. I had heard the attire in Seabourn is fairly casual so was surprised to read you had a formal night. Either things have changed or I have gotten the wrong information.

 

 

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Seabourn simply changed “formal night” to “formal optional” a few years ago. So now gentlemen are required to wear a jacket and a collared dress shirt but no tie. You will still see many men with ties and some like my DH with a tuxedo.

 

 

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We had a terrible onboarding experience on a Crystal ship in Miami a couple of years ago (long lines, no seats for disabled, no water, much less champagne, offered.). We've had very smooth embarkations (and easy lunch) on all of our Seabourn trips so far, both in US and abroad. But never embarked Seabourn in Miami. So, as others noted, sounds more like a port than a Seabourn issue.

 

Usually when there is a problem embarking it is the port authorities who have delayed things and not the ship.
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Regarding speculation that the problems with embarkation were due to problems with the Port of Miami, that is possible. Yet we embarked on a Tuesday (Dec. 5) and were either the only ship, or one of only two ships in the port that mid-week day. Our cab driver remarked at how eerily deserted the port was, compared to a Sunday!

 

It may also have been due to a group of travel agents being on board, per a poster above making note of that fact of which I was not aware.

 

Whatever caused the problem, it was a problem--I have embarked in Fort Lauderdale often when many ships are present. At this busy port there are usually no hold ups. I do not know why there would thus be at Miami, especially on a quiet day.

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Regarding speculation that the problems with embarkation were due to problems with the Port of Miami, that is possible. Yet we embarked on a Tuesday (Dec. 5) and were either the only ship, or one of only two ships in the port that mid-week day. Our cab driver remarked at how eerily deserted the port was, compared to a Sunday!

 

 

 

It may also have been due to a group of travel agents being on board, per a poster above making note of that fact of which I was not aware.

 

 

 

Whatever caused the problem, it was a problem--I have embarked in Fort Lauderdale often when many ships are present. At this busy port there are usually no hold ups. I do not know why there would thus be at Miami, especially on a quiet day.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Two years ago, we sailed on Regent out of Ft Lauderdale and were horribly delayed by a major Coast Guard inspection due to suspected smuggling. The ship was not cleared until after 10:30 for passengers to leave the ship. Departing and arriving passengers crowded the sidewalks. We arrived at 11:30. There were two large groups who had arrived earlier along with a group of travel agents. We had nowhere to sit. It was bedlam. From what I have heard, Cruise lines have little control over port activities.

 

 

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It also could have been an issue with the passports or documents of some of the crew. I've heard that this can sometimes be very time consuming. The good news is that it does not happen regularly!

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I have cruised Seabourn three times and HAL 6-7 times. I find Seabourn to be much more luxurious. However, I admit we had some bad service from one team in the Collonade one night. Training problems clearly exist. I still cruise both lines however, I'll take Seabourn if I have to decide between the two

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I have cruised both HAL and Seabourne.And i have done HAL in a suite and in a regular cabin. Some aspects of HAL as a suite passenger is as good as Seabourne. But HAL as a suite passenger is different from HAL as a regular passenger.

I wonder if the OP is a HAL suite passenger? As such, he would have priority boarding and anytime disembarking. He also would have access to a special lounge and exclusive restaurant for breakfast.

So yes, HAL might have 10 times the passengers. But as one of about 100 suite passengers, they get very special treatment. But I find Seabourne is usually on par with that special treatment.

 

 

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The Port of Miami can sometimes be a flustercluck (as can the awful airport). It’s not my favorite for embarkation or disembarkation. I nearly missed a flight last year due to a delayed clearance. And I’ve been waylaid with boarding holdups as well due to the same. That said, we got the chance to go behind the scenes there last year with a purser while on a NCL back-to-back so have a bit more understanding of the process and all the things that can him up the works. Seabourn should have definitely kept you informed although they often don’t know either how long or short the delay will be.

 

Odyssey is about to undergo a couple of big crew transitions in the next two ports (Jan 6 and 16, I believe) with many crew leaving and others coming on to start new contracts. There are a few folks who definitely seem ready to go home (energy is lagging) but most of the individuals we see on a daily basis are top notch.

 

They will have had three cruise directors in almost as many sailings - Ashley left, Jim came on to temporarily replace her, and now Chris has been promoted on this cruise and thus Jim will leave at the end of this sailing.

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Jenidallas - who is Chris, CD? I don't think we have met him (or her) before. New to Seabourn? Also, do you know if Eddie is still one of the Maitre D's in the restaurant? We have sailed with him a few times and were hoping he would be on our 3rd Feb sailing. Is Onur onboard as Sommelier?

 

 

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Chris was assistant CD to Ashley on our November transatlantic, followed by the first Caribbean cruise of the season. He was fantastic and richly deserves promotion to CD. He was especially good at keeping things under control in trivia which as we know can sometimes be a bit like herding cats. He also understands that guests like to see their CD "out and about" and was always happy to stop for a quick chat without being intrusive. I think he's learned his CD skills from the great Handre.

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do you know if Eddie is still one of the Maitre D's in the restaurant?

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Sorry margbem, Eddie left Seabourn about a year ago when son Max was born. He spent some time at home with Mariana and Max. Is now Manager Catering Operations with Fred Olsen line.

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