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Would we be crazy to sail on the new Ovation next June?


SLSD
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We are still trying to decide on our next cruise. One of the itineraries we are considering is a Northern Europe cruise next June---on the Ovation. This would be one of the earlier sailings of this ship. What do you think? Are we foolish to sail on such anew ship before all the bugs are addressed?

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I don’t think so. I sailed on the Encore in July this year and loved it, so much that I have just booked the Ovation for next October. The food, service etc were as good or better than my previous Quest and Odyssey cruises.

 

If you are the type of person who likes to sunbake by the pool all day (I’m not), you may not like it. That is the only negative (for those who like sun baking) I can see with the Encore/Ovation. The fact that the retreat takes the top deck also does not stop me from liking sailing on the ship.

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If you understand and accept that there will be inevitable glitches, most of them minor, with the new ship itself, new staff, etc then you'll be fine. I hope that Seabourn has learned from the Encore experience and made the necessary adjustments on Ovation. Just go with realistic (and fair) expectations. I have to say that some of the criticisms I've read here have been neither.

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We just disembarked from Encore last week and the staff was great. My only quibble might be the stocking of our refrigerator minibar---but all I had to do is ask. I do have realistic expectations and never expect everything to be perfect. My best guess is that they will take some of the crew from the Encore and put them on the Ovation.

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Fortunately, we don't like to bake in the sun--so a crowded pool deck doesn't bother us. We did take advantage of the hot tub at the bow on Deck 7 and enjoyed it. There were just a few people there and we had a good time. It would be nice to have some shade there. Since there was no shade, we could not stay for an extended time--even with sunscreen. I am happy to report that a waiter came to this location several times while we were there. I had a great Long Island Iced Tea while in the hot tub.

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We are on the Ovation's second sailing in May. We are going in with our eyes wide open. I am expecting the glitches of a brand new ship without the panache of a maiden voyage. We have been on 9 Seabourn cruises, all but one on the Odyssey class ships, with only one on the Legend. However, I have also sailed on Regent's Voyager and Mariner, although it was a long time ago, so I am familiar with a slightly larger luxury end product. I am expecting I will end up preferring the smaller ships, but I want to give the newer class a try. I can't help thinking, when I read all the comments about the Encore, of the comments when the Odyssey first debuted, versus the sisters. Although longtime Seabourn sailors still miss the sisters, most of them seem to have warmed up to the Odyssey class ships. I am hoping I will feel the same way about the Encore and Ovation, but only trying one will tell.

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As I mentioned above CLOU, we just returned from a voyage on Encore. We booked the cruise very late and initially I was very disappointed that the smaller ships were not going on the itinerary I preferred. I was afraid I would not enjoy a larger ship. That is NOT what happened. We loved it. Now, I am worried that I might not like the smaller ships as much as I liked Encore. I would not want to give up the expanded bar outside of the Thomas Keller Grill. This was our favorite bar. It was large enough, but still cozy. We went there most evenings before dinner even when our dinner venue was elsewhere. Please stay in touch---I want to hear all about your May voyage. We are still seriously considering a June 21 day Northern Europe trip on the Ovation.

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SLSD, I was glad to hear that you enjoyed the Encore. You do not appear to be alone, although there are definitely many negative comments. I am excited to try the new product. One thing the Encore has going for it, is Handre. I think he alone can make any cruise enjoyable. My cruise is still 7 months away, so it will be a while before I can report back on my experience, but I will do so.

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I think the negative comments are from those who love the smaller ships. I totally understand that and was one of them having sailed on one of the smaller Silver Sea ships. But now---I'm not so sure I would prefer them. As I mentioned above the Thomas Keller Bar was one of our favorite spots and we would miss it on the smaller ships. We only went to The Club one time and did not return. We didn't like the music or ambience there that night--and should have probably tried it again.

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We sailed the first 2 cruises aboard Encore and would have no hesitation in booking the same on Ovation. We took the cruise as it came and didn't expect a carbon copy of our Sojourn journeys.

 

I'm sure some elements have settled down and tightened up a bit but for us the added sense of occasion being the first paying guests in the cabins is something that will never be repeated.

 

I think Ovation will be a smoother roll out as Encore has paved the way with minor tweaks finding their way on to the second ship.

 

Henry :)

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Well, we are now booked on Voyage 8835A--the 21 day Scandinavian Summer cruise aboard Ovation. It was hard to tear ourselves away from the Mediterranean, but we did it. I can't quite figure out how many voyages the Ovation has before ours, but it can't be that many as I believe the Ovation sails in May (?) for the first time and our cruise begins June 9th.

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I was on the Encore recently and talked to a few of the senior staff about the Ovation. In particular I was interested if they had specific plans to avoid the service issues that affected the fleet when the Encore was first released. There was widespread acknowledgement that lessons had been learned and things would be differently this time in respect of staff training, crew deployment etc. so let’s wait and see, I hope they are right!

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CD Handre said he was going to the Ovation which can only be a good thing. He is the best CD we have had.

 

Agreed. He is outstanding and such an asset to Seabourn. I would hate to think what he went through with the Encore post launch. Hopefully he will have a long holiday and a fat bonus before doing it all again!

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Did Handre say he would be on the Ovation for its initial sailings? I was hoping that might be the case because I agree he is the best and therefore Seabourn might want him to help with the inauguration of the

Ovation like they did with the Encore. We have sailed with him twice and he always make the cruise experience better.

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Handre has a great personality, besides being a talented musician. He remembers us between cruises, even if it has been a few years, greeting us with a hug as we board. He has the right balance of enthusiasm for his job, with a good sense of humor, and even a little sarcasm when warranted. When he hosts trivia, it is great fun. For example, telling us how fortunate we were to be winning this valuable "pleather" vanity pack. He is out and about getting to know the passengers and really seems to enjoy his job.

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That's a great endorsement of Handre. I hope he will be on the Ovation for our cruise! I did think that the CD we had on the Encore was quite good as well. I don't remember his name at the moment, but maybe it will show up in my file of cruise papers.

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