Just off the Sojourn

[Princess123]

I do intend to do a more detailed review on Cruise Critic as reviews for Seabourn ships, or at least the Sojourn, seem to be few and far between but thought a brief note on here might be useful. I did read some of Seabourn Traveller's posts before we cruised (my husband and I, in our mid 50s) which I found helpful but I can see why people would be worried about the 'zoo-like' comments. Don't be!

 

We were on the 8 night Civitavecchia to Lisbon cruise (as was ST). We booked a V1 guarantee and were lucky to be given a V6 amidships cabin on deck 7. The cabin was great (and as a Brit I was particularly taken with the walk-in wardrobe!). Embarkation was painless. There were 409 passengers on board our cruise so it was not full and, apart from one night in the Patio Grill when the staff were struggling to cope (it was the night of the deck party), we had superb service and never came across any problems in The Colonnade at breakfast or lunch. We always found a table outside and thankfully never came across anyone pushing or shoving, and at breakfast you can order hot food with the waiters (possibly at lunch too but I never noticed this). A couple of nights we chose to eat on our own (once in The Colonnade where I had the best Castilian steak, but otherwise in The Restaurant) but other nights we chose to eat with others and met some really lovely people from all over the world.

 

We have cruised on other lines (P&O, Carnival, RCI) but this was our first Seabourn cruise and we loved everything about it from the smaller size of the ship (our original reason for choosing her), the friendly and professional crew, the food, the all inclusive aspect etc etc. If you are looking for exciting entertainment then you will be disappointed, (we had three musical shows - four singers & two dancers - and a magician during our cruise). One night 10 of us met up for dinner and it makes a very relaxed meal when you can order whichever wine you want, without having a 20 mins discussion about who wants red, white etc!

 

Neither of us were ready to disembark and were jealous of ST extending his trip to the next two cruises. There were a lot of us on board in our 40s, 50s and 60s and some of the older ones were great characters and well worth taking the time to talk to.

 

If you've already booked, go and have a great time, and if you haven't then go ahead and book!

[Tony & Trevor]

Thank you.

 

Very interesting.

 

 

Kind regards

 

 

Tony

[alexandra cruiser]

loved everything about cruise,,ex.a few minor complaints(like smoking policy..please,,,just explaining ,,no nasty comments AGAIN). Even with those ,,,I LOVED THE SHIP,,FOOD, SERVICE,CABIN and would go again in a heartbeat. In fact, looking at booking Black Sea cruise next yr.:)

[Ithaca]

We, too, are off the Sojourn (Rome-Lisbon leg), and very much enjoyed our cruise. I thought the crew was particularly attentive, polite, and interesting to interact with. The food ranged from very good to excellent, and the wines were acceptable and pleasant, especially the sauvignon blanc. We did have a rattling noise problem in our cabin; thankfully it happened only two days before the cruise ended. I did not particularly like the minimalist decoration of the ship, especially in the MDR, but, then, other people would not share my taste for "opulence". My preferred sites were Seabourn Square and the small pool area off the bar in Deck 5. Although I did not enjoy Portimao in Portugal as a port of call, I trust I was not the "Grande Dame" that Seabourntraveller referred to as bellowing her complaint!! Actually, I made the best purchase deal of the trip in a small shop in Portimao...cannot complain! Looking forward to your upcoming review. Ithaca, from NY

[Cruisin Simon]

I heartily endorse everything that Princess123 said. We thoroughly enjoyed the cruise from Civitavecchia to Lisbon. I am amazed that so many CC members were on board that week!

 

I posted the following on ST's ongoing blog a few days ago:

 

We're back in a very cold and wet UK after enjoying last week on the Sojourn. We thought the ship was lovely and the service second to none.

 

I had been worrying about how I would find the larger ship after only having cruised on the smaller sisters, but I was amazed to find that Seabourn have managed to preserve the same feel, level of service and degree of it being a personal experience.

 

We found all the staff to be so hard working, friendly and able to provide just the right level of service for us. So many of them knew our names, just like on the small ships.

 

We also loved the extra facilities on the Sojourn, including the Patio Grill where we ate every lunch time, Seabourn Square for our daily coffee fix (mochaccino for me), the Retreat (when it wasn't too windy) and the small pool and sunbathing area at the back of the ship.

 

We never had to queue for anything and no matter what time we decided to eat in the evening, there was always a table for two available immediately.

 

Like a few of the other posters, we didn't think much of Portimao, but a quick glance at the map that they handed out showed that Praia da Rocha was right next door, so after a quick refreshment stop back at the ship, we walked there in 10 minutes and were able to enjoy a beautiful long sandy beach interspersed with rocky headlands. It was just a shame it was too windy to sit there for too long.

 

All in all we had a fantastic time and wouldn't hesitate to go on one of the larger ships again. Our next planned cruise is on the Spirit, but if a good deal comes up in the meantime, well who knows....?

 

Simon :)

[cwn]

Thanks Princess123 for your great review.

 

We too first sailed with Seabourn because of the small ships...only the "little Sisters" at the time. Loved the cruises! Absolutely the best we have ever done. Except we prefer a balcony but can't cruise as often if we have to pay for the most costly suites on the ship everytime.

 

The Sojoun and its sisters seem like they will be perfect, still small but lots of balconies and new! After reading you review and the other recent posts we can't wait!

[Yorkiebargirl]

Thank you all for telling us about you lovely cruise, Simon pleased you re- posted. These are the sort of post that we used to get telling it like it is without the "drama". Obviously there will always be some hiccups but that is life. Ithaca what did you buy? my first purchase in Portimao was a ladies Swiss army knife, pink, about 10 years ago and use it frequently.

[ajpeter]

Thank you all for telling us about you lovely cruise, Simon pleased you re- posted. These are the sort of post that we used to get telling it like it is without the "drama". Obviously there will always be some hiccups but that is life. Ithaca what did you buy? my first purchase in Portimao was a ladies Swiss army knife, pink, about 10 years ago and use it frequently.

 

 

Right. A girl can't go anywhere without her pink swiss armyknife in her purse nowadays.

[Mr Luxury]

Thanks to all that posted after their Sojourn trips.

Some very different stories to another poster that is on the Sojourn.

So ,no Zoo onboard as suggested and nobody killing anything.

[Ithaca]

Thank you all for telling us about you lovely cruise, Simon pleased you re- posted. These are the sort of post that we used to get telling it like it is without the "drama". Obviously there will always be some hiccups but that is life. Ithaca what did you buy? my first purchase in Portimao was a ladies Swiss army knife, pink, about 10 years ago and use it frequently.

 

I bought a fine linen tablecloth for only 33 euros, which was selling for more than double in Lisbon. I would've loved to have seen and purchased a "pink cutie knifie" like yours!

[Seabourntraveller]

Thanks to all that posted after their Sojourn trips.

Some very different stories to another poster that is on the Sojourn.

So ,no Zoo onboard as suggested and nobody killing anything.

 

Would you at least get it right....they "ATTACK" not nobody killing anything:rolleyes:

[Mr Luxury]

Would you at least get it right....they "ATTACK" not nobody killing anything:rolleyes:

 

Perhaps the Chablis was being killed earlier.

 

Is there any still alive onboard

 

Do they have any NZ Sauvignon Blanc as a regular pour?

[Seabourntraveller]

Perhaps the Chablis was being killed earlier.

 

Is there any still alive onboard

 

Do they have any NZ Sauvignon Blanc as a regular pour?

 

Yes they still have the Petit Chablis in stock onboard and also the StoneCreek , New Zeland Sauvignon Blanc is being served instead of the Wingspan.

[Ravenscroft]

We're booked on the Quest later this year on a cruise that will be full and some of the comments we've read on the Seabourn board have left us feeling rather unnerved, to say the least.

Thank you princess123 for your comments.

[alexandra cruiser]

the one we were on ,,,Sojourn,,was full too..and had GREAT service,and never had to wait.Such a small ship with 400 passengers,,but with many places to escape and never feel crowded.

 

For some shows,we got there early to get good seat,,but never saw it completely full.Always had table for 2 at dinner ..relax..no problems at all.;)

[Yorkiebargirl]

Right. A girl can't go anywhere without her pink swiss armyknife in her purse nowadays.

Oh that is soooo right I "lost" it a while ago and had to buy another, no where near as pink as the #1, it was tranluscent, then low and behold #1 turn up. So my daughter became the owner of one.