Reflections from the 14 day Odyssey Greek islands cruise

[Pavovsky]

 Overall we had a good cruise, which had a poor start and a great last week.

 First off, we are new to Seabourn but not new to cruises. We have sailed on Star Clippers, Celebrity, Azamara and Cunard. We are more interested in a nice meal than Broadway entertainment and had reasonably high expectations for our Seabourn adventure.

The the bad bits (admittedly these problems pretty much came together so individually they should not have bothered us but the cumulative effect did not give a good impression):

• Check-in process was way too low-key. No information other than the ship is that way. No information on what to do or where to go when we got on board – around 1pm. The ship was also in a different terminal to that which we had been advised.
• The food and service in the Patio was abysmal on day 1 – not through crowds or lack of staff but through inefficiency/lack of training./salty unappetising food 
• The first night in the Restaurant was poor in terms of both food and service. A dry overcooked meal should not be met by ‘I will tell the chef’ nor should the cheese be practically frozen. No manager checked on us during the meal nor did anyone notice the food was not been eaten. Despite coming down to dinner at 8:40pm, we had warnings that the kitchen would be closing and would need to hurry up. 
• Some staff members arguing in public. 
• The Grill was not great – service was disorganised – the dover sole was exceptional but otherwise not impressed with other courses. Basic requirements not delivered. Heavy push on the additional charge wines. A request for a post meal drink was met with the response that the bartender had gone but we could go to the Observation Bar.
• Service staff on a luxury ship should know what a Kir Royale is or what an IPA beer is. Also, when asked what beers you have the answer should not be ‘tell us what you want and we will tell you if we have it’.  
• The overall sense on the first few days was that the ship is in transition with lots of training going on. 
• The salt content in some foods was crazy high – I know that they need to cater for different tastes but one can add more salt but not take it away. 
• To cap it off there was a very bad smell in the shower and air conditioning not working well.

Thanks to the forum posters who gave great advice on how we should tackle these issues, and as confirmed already things did get better with the helpful intervention of the Hotel Director, the F&B Manager and Guest relations. Tip: the onboard app is a great way to communicate. Good and bad.

Now to the positives:

•  There are some exceptional staff members on board with an excellent service ethos. The sense I had was that they really cared.
•  Special mention to Kristof and his team (plus the visible Italian chefs) in the Colonnade. Really on top of things. Noted when we were concerned with the fast pace of the meal and sorted it. 
• In terms of restaurants, there is no where I would rather be than the Colonnade on a balmy evening in the Med. The food was generally great and occasionally exceptional. 
• We also had many lunches in the Colonnade – great choice and chefs very visible. The Seafood Pasta special is up there with my favourite dishes of the summer.
• We had three more meals in the Restaurant after the ill-fated opening night. It was definitely a better experience – food and service, but the Colonnade had drawn us in at that stage.
• Again, the patio did get better after the first poor experience but much preferred the Colonnade. 
• Housekeeping was exceptional – our attendant was very concerned with the drain issue and conveyed the options to address it properly.
• The Observation bar post dinner was usually excellent – had some quiet nights and a few more lively ones into the early hours…Great drinks and service.

 

Some suggested improvements

• Better quality teas are needed. In the square and for breakfast. You can request but perhaps having these available 
• The square could be used better in the evening and later service.
• Snacks would be nice (in the square?) – perhaps a midnight snack like they did on star clippers. Would cut down on room service.
• More variety on casual music would be great. 

 

Overall, as I said we will sail again. And the response to real problems meant that we walked off the ship content and relaxed. 

[SLSD]

Thank you for your report Pavovsky.  I'm glad your cruise improved as time went on.  A few comments:  We have sailed on Encore and Ovation , but not on the smaller ships.  We'll do that in May.  We have experienced the excessive salt in food.  The saltiest thing we had was the roast chicken in the TK Grill.  It was touted as excellent, but I found it inedible.  Sadly, we won't be trying it again!  

 

Like you, we have, on a few occasions experienced chaotic service in the MDR.  We've had only two evening meals in the Colonnade on two cruises.  Your experience encourages me to try it more often.  

 

I agree that more casual music would be great.  

Edited October 18, 2018 by SLSD

[freddie]

SLSD - We, too, found the roast chicken (along with most other items in the TK Grill) to be wildly over-salted.  Apparently, his excellency, TK, really likes a lot of salt in his dishes.  As you might note from my somewhat snide reference to TK in the previous sentence, I am not a fan of celebrity chefs dictating to cruise lines regarding every aspect of how to serve "their" food on the ship.  

[SLSD]

freddie,  We have probably had about six meals in the TK Grill now--and have enjoyed the Dover Sole and the steak.  I have to say that I do love the colossal prawns as an appetizer. And, a number of the side dishes and desserts are very good.   They would be more than a full meal for me in my regular life.  I did not care for the Eggplant Parmigiana as it was not like any I've ever had and was not that great.  All that being said, I have enjoyed dining in the TK Grill as it is a different venue.  

 

For our upcoming cruise, we made all of our reservations for four---expecting to make new friends to share a dinner with.  We have found that we could not always change our reservation from two to four on previous cruises.  

[Ovener]

Thanks for a very useful post, Pavovsky. We did the (same itinerary) Odyssey 14 night Greek Islands Cruise at the beginning of September and had a similar experience recorded at the end of this post here:

 

https://boards.cruisecritic.co.uk/topic/2553210-europa-2-v-seabourn-odyssey/

 

Kristof in the Colonnade made it our go-to restaurant. It’s amazing how a professional like him and his team can make it all work like clockwork. (Unlike the MDR where everything went wrong each time we visited). Agree with you that when in the Med you just have to sit outside! 

 

However, we had a much better experience than you in the Grill and loved the chicken! I guess I enjoy salt 😞.

 

Like you, we found housekeeping was exceptionally good but that it took some days for the crew to gel. There was a slight smell in the shower, as you mentioned. The Observation Bar was great for early drinks but got rammed by about 7.30pm with nowhere to sit, to the shrug of the shoulders of a waitress...Agree that Seabourn Square would be rather useful if open for drinks and snacks then and much later. 

 

All that being said, great itinerary and good enrichment, didn’t you think? Glad it hasn’t put you off Seabourn. I think its hits outweigh its misses, but it does need to keep on its toes as the choices become more varied. 

 

 

[Kevnzworld]

Overall I find your critique fair. 

I’m on the Odyssey now.   I’m enjoying the food and the service.  

Of course there’s always a few issues, which for me so far are minor. 

We’re all different...I happen to like my food well seasoned, so salt has never been an issue.  

[Tom504]

Pavovsky, thank you so much for a wonderful review! We will be on that cruise about the same time next year. 

 

I suspect the salty tastes come come from over-brining, just a guess though. 

 

On the Caribbean cruise we took in a February, 2017, on the Odyssey, my bride massively preferred the Colonnade to any other venue. We loved eating outside and early. The Restaurant was fine but you have to be in the mood for the dress up and the whole gig. On that cruise R2 was still open and more of a treat, to our tastes, than TK. Often as not we enjoyed a good burger by the pool. 

 

The problem we had is that we tend to eat early and get to sleep by 10. So when we’d start at 7 and be with lovely newly met people and then it was time to wander down to the show and then people wanted to wander up to the O Bar ... whew. If that was followed by an early departing excursion we were toast. 

 

My my favorite part of most days was afternoon tea in the O Bar. 

 

Overall, I also agree with Ovener, that Seabourn hits more than it misses. It’s the country club casual with typically greet service. We have not tried the larger new ships because we don’t see any upside to having more people around. Maybe we will venture out someday. 

Edited October 24, 2018 by Tom504

[SLSD]

Tom504,  You and your wife are much like us in that we prefer dining early and going to the entertainment and then to bed!  We also really enjoy afternoon tea--often with new friends--a great time to chat.  

 

However, I need to tell you--we have sailed both Encore and Ovation and loved them.  We'll be trying Sojourn in May.  (Previously we had sailed on one of Silveursea's smaller ships)  I have to admit, we have just a bit of trepidation about the smaller Sojourn.  I know we will have a great time, but we may miss the lovely TK Grill Bar.  

[Tom504]

And as odd as this may sound to you two, we are hesitant to try the larger ships! I suppose one gets used to what one gets used to. Very much want to hear about your further travels!

[SLSD]

Tom504,  Our Sojourn cruise this coming May will begin in Kobe Japan, visit two other ports in Japan, and, after several sea days, go to the Kamchacka (sp) peninsula.  Then, about four sea days across the Pacific, arriving in Alaska for several ports, then ending in Vancouver.  

 

From my perspective, you have nothing to fear from the larger ships.  We first sailed on the Encore a little over a year ago and I was worried.  We booked the cruise late, did not really want a larger ship, but really wanted to go somewhere.  From the moment we boarded the ship, we had so much fun.  I hope your experience will be the same.  We liked the Encore so much that we booked a cruise on the Ovation right away.  We had an equally great experience.  The Sojourn has a lot to live up to!  We'll board expecting to have a wonderful time.  You should do the same on your next Seabourn cruise.  I don't think you will be disappointed.