Live from the Odyssey

[margbem]

 

 

We boarded in Piraeus on Friday, after the ship had evidently been docked there for a week following a last minute charter cancellation.  It surprised us that Diamond and Elite passengers were boarded first. We have never seen this before, but no matter - it didn't take long until we were on board and in a very quiet Colonnade for lunch. The Montaudon champagne is a definite improvement on some of the NF we have been served over the years. Our suite was ready by 2pm and all our luggage had arrived before us!

 

We like to eat in the restaurant and so far the food has been outstanding. Our chef is the Indian gentleman whose name I can't remember but he obviously runs an excellent kitchen (or galley to be precise)! 

 

There are plenty of sun loungers available in all areas and we haven't noticed any lounge hoggers! The pool was closed for the first two days with nobody seeming to know why. It was open yesterday, a sea day.

 

Trivia is run by CD Robert and his assistant, Matthew, both great fun. And we are champions twice with our team, The Naughty Corner. We also took part in the putting competition so we are amassing Seabourn hats, wallets and now a torch. Update: we are champions again after Name that Tune. We are now proud owners of multi continent adapters with integral USB ports. (Got that last bit from my other half!) Robert and Matthew are excellent CD's.

 

The shows: the Tribute to Sir Tim Rice is performed again, this time with a new song to change it for those who have seen it before. We had a great singer named Ben Mills who has done a couple of shows, pre and post dinner.

 

The magician who should be on missed the ship so is joining us today in Malta and will perform later this week.

 

The complimentary wines are generally good with a couple of exceptions but alternatives are always available. Service is up to the usual standard with mostly smiling faces.

 

Our fridge wasn't working but was changed within an hour of it being mentioned.

 

Our first port of call was Nafplion, a really beautiful small town and the jumping off point for visiting the Corinth Canal and Ancient Corinth which we did on a ship's tour. Good trip, we recommend it.

 

Next stop was Katakolon which we have visited before. We find it a little run down but walked for a few miles on the beach. A lot of guests went to Olimpia. The train was running for 10 euros per person return if you wanted to go independently.

 

Valletta today with P&O Aurora then, unfortunately (!) the behemoth Celebrity Edge. We had tickets for the Hypogeum so got a Bolt taxi (like Uber). The hypogeum is certainly worth a visit but the tickets need to be bought months in advance. On our return to the centre we decided to go to St John's Co-Cathedral but the Edge had disgorged its hoards and the queue to enter was very long, so back to the ship for lunch. British today and the fish and chips were excellent! Another walk back to the waterfront and we got the ferry to the Three Cities. Great to walk around where it was quiet! After 9 miles of walking it's time for a siesta! 

[islandchick]

Thank you for the current report. Can't wait to hear the rest.

[SLSD]

2 hours ago, margbem said:

 

 

We boarded in Piraeus on Friday, after the ship had evidently been docked there for a week following a last minute charter cancellation.  It surprised us that Diamond and Elite passengers were boarded first. We have never seen this before, but no matter - it didn't take long until we were on board and in a very quiet Colonnade for lunch.

When we embarked the Sojourn in Kobe, Japan, there was a special line for Diamond and Elite members.  It truly did not hold us up at all as we entered through another line and were on board in no time at all.  

[galeforce9]

Thanks for posting Margbem. Looking forward to more reports. 

[Isklaar]

Really not keen on the special process for Diamond and Elite.

we talked here at length recently about Seabourn's more egalitarian values...seems this may be disappearing. 

I always enjoy the fish and chips on British lunch day. 

 

 

[shyla100]

Thank you Margbem as we are doing a cruise in that area in April next year and are very interested in all you have to report.

[Tillylovesseabourn]

Odyssey has boarded diamond and elite passengers first for the last two years in pireaus.

[raphael360]

We once saw Diamond passengers permitted to check in first in Barcelona (all "4" of them in the terminal) .  Our hotel was 100 feet from the ship so is it was the first time we got to the cruise terminal before check in started.  We followed behind the Diamond passengers to one of the other 14 check in stations and actually beat them on board. 

[Kirkiebhoy]

Hi, as you are on board now, can you advise us what the dress code is please? We are boarding on 2nd November and looking forward to it.

[margbem]

40 minutes ago, Kirkiebhoy said:

Hi, as you are on board now, can you advise us what the dress code is please? We are boarding on 2nd November and looking forward to it.

Most ladies in dresses or nice tops and trousers. Men in collared shirts, some ties, some jackets as the restaurant is cool. Quite a few tuxedos on formal night but more shirts with jackets. Hope this helps!

[Kirkiebhoy]

Many thanks for this quick and helpful reply. I hope you are having a wonderful time.

[markham]

So some have noticed that at embarkation Diamond Elite passengers board first? Diamond Elite passengers are Seabourn's most loyal and valuable customers. They have earned the status that the loyalty club- that everyone is enrolled in - delivers to them. That is why Seabourn should and does board them first.

 

What's wrong with that? How many DE and D customers are there on any cruise? 10-50 people? How long does this group require to get through the check-in? 10-20 minutes?

 

Seabourn remains egalitarian in that there are no off-limits lounges, priority tour signup or restrictive restaurant reservation standards. I see no reason for anyone to complain. Who hasn't seen airlines board do this for their top mileage customers?

 

Happy and healthy sailing!

[Mark56]

Thanks for the report! 

[TigerTony]

On 10/8/2019 at 9:53 AM, margbem said:

 

 

We boarded in Piraeus on Friday, after the ship had evidently been docked there for a week following a last minute charter cancellation.  It surprised us that Diamond and Elite passengers were boarded first. We have never seen this before, but no matter - it didn't take long until we were on board and in a very quiet Colonnade for lunch. The Montaudon champagne is a definite improvement on some of the NF we have been served over the years. Our suite was ready by 2pm and all our luggage had arrived before us!

 

We like to eat in the restaurant and so far the food has been outstanding. Our chef is the Indian gentleman whose name I can't remember but he obviously runs an excellent kitchen (or galley to be precise)! 

 

There are plenty of sun loungers available in all areas and we haven't noticed any lounge hoggers! The pool was closed for the first two days with nobody seeming to know why. It was open yesterday, a sea day.

 

Trivia is run by CD Robert and his assistant, Matthew, both great fun. And we are champions twice with our team, The Naughty Corner. We also took part in the putting competition so we are amassing Seabourn hats, wallets and now a torch. Update: we are champions again after Name that Tune. We are now proud owners of multi continent adapters with integral USB ports. (Got that last bit from my other half!) Robert and Matthew are excellent CD's.

 

The shows: the Tribute to Sir Tim Rice is performed again, this time with a new song to change it for those who have seen it before. We had a great singer named Ben Mills who has done a couple of shows, pre and post dinner.

 

The magician who should be on missed the ship so is joining us today in Malta and will perform later this week.

 

The complimentary wines are generally good with a couple of exceptions but alternatives are always available. Service is up to the usual standard with mostly smiling faces.

 

Our fridge wasn't working but was changed within an hour of it being mentioned.

 

Our first port of call was Nafplion, a really beautiful small town and the jumping off point for visiting the Corinth Canal and Ancient Corinth which we did on a ship's tour. Good trip, we recommend it.

 

Next stop was Katakolon which we have visited before. We find it a little run down but walked for a few miles on the beach. A lot of guests went to Olimpia. The train was running for 10 euros per person return if you wanted to go independently.

 

Valletta today with P&O Aurora then, unfortunately (!) the behemoth Celebrity Edge. We had tickets for the Hypogeum so got a Bolt taxi (like Uber). The hypogeum is certainly worth a visit but the tickets need to be bought months in advance. On our return to the centre we decided to go to St John's Co-Cathedral but the Edge had disgorged its hoards and the queue to enter was very long, so back to the ship for lunch. British today and the fish and chips were excellent! Another walk back to the waterfront and we got the ferry to the Three Cities. Great to walk around where it was quiet! After 9 miles of walking it's time for a siesta! 

I have to wonder if the Charter cancellation had anything to do with the Thomas Cook biting the dust? 

[SLSD]

4 hours ago, markham said:

So some have noticed that at embarkation Diamond Elite passengers board first? Diamond Elite passengers are Seabourn's most loyal and valuable customers. They have earned the status that the loyalty club- that everyone is enrolled in - delivers to them. That is why Seabourn should and does board them first.

 

I agree with you Markham.  Giving Diamond and Elite passengers their own embarkation registration does nothing to hinder the rest of the passengers.  In fact, others are being boarded at the same time.  The only difference is a dedicated line/agent for the Diamond/Elite passengers. One thing to realize is this--they do not all arrive at the same time--so you may well board ahead of them.  I understand loyalty and  frequency of sailing being rewarded.  

Edited October 9, 2019 by SLSD

[margbem]

We didn't have a problem with Diamond members being processed first - it was just a comment because we hadn't come across this before.

 

Mel Mellers, the comedian/ magician gave his first show . He is hysterically funny, insulting the audience and passing comments about people! Maybe best not to sit near the front!

 

The scheduled Opera under the Stars in Valletta was cancelled as it was very windy and raining, hence the comedian's show. We were supposed to go to Gozo yesterday but we woke up to find us still sailing at high speed. At 8am the Captain reported that we were heading for Trapani instead as it had been too rough for the tenders. So we arrived in Trapani at 3pm. Better weather here!

 

Chef's dinner last night which was excellent. More later.

 

 

[margbem]

We caught a bus to the cableway station this morning to go to Erice. It takes over 10 minutes for the journey up with stunning views. Erice is at 2500 feet above sea level so we were in cloud at times. It really is worth a visit - beautiful cobbled streets and lots of churches. 

 

We returned to Trapani for a quick lunch of arancini and an ice cream before catching the shuttle bus back. Because we arrived a day early we are docked about 3km away from town, next to the salt pans.

 

Our stewardess has set up the pampering bath. It is a lovely gesture. We really appreciate everything that Seabourn does for its guests. Sail away at 5pm today to Naples.

[Chairsin]

Margbem, 

I’m so enjoying reading your posts of your cruise to our favorite part of the world - the Med. I still fondly remember the Med cruise where we met you and your charming DH. Ironically we would have been on part of this cruise with you but we had planned to include the prior one as well to make it a longer cruise and then they chartered that leg so we decided against it. So your report of the charter having been canceled caught my attention. It’s been much too long since we have been there (three years) and we are hoping to rectify that with a three week Eastern Med cruise next September (fingers crossed Turkey stays on the itinerary and no charters pop up). Please keep the reports coming! 

 

And please tell Chef Bala thank you from a grateful passenger. He was with us on the Quest for part of our cruise this summer and was kind enough to write out a menu for an Indian dinner I plan to host on our upcoming December cruise which includes some Indian ports. 

[margbem]

Chairsin - how lovely to hear from you! I think this cruise is possibly our best yet. We have just had opera and caviar for our sail away from Trapani. It was fabulous! We are also looking at cruises next September, maybe from Venice, so we may meet up again. Or, we may take the plunge(not literally, hopefully) and do Antarctica.

[Chairsin]

It would be lovely to meet up with you again next fall. 

 

 

[Mr Luxury]

On 10/9/2019 at 6:53 PM, markham said:

So some have noticed that at embarkation Diamond Elite passengers board first? Diamond Elite passengers are Seabourn's most loyal and valuable customers. They have earned the status that the loyalty club- that everyone is enrolled in - delivers to them. That is why Seabourn should and does board them first.

 

What's wrong with that? How many DE and D customers are there on any cruise? 10-50 people? How long does this group require to get through the check-in? 10-20 minutes?

 

Seabourn remains egalitarian in that there are no off-limits lounges, priority tour signup or restrictive restaurant reservation standards. I see no reason for anyone to complain. Who hasn't seen airlines board do this for their top mileage customers?

 

Happy and healthy sailing!

I agree Markham,

why shouldn’t we get on first 😀

[wripro]

6 hours ago, Mr Luxury said:

I agree Markham,

why shouldn’t we get on first 😀

I'd rather get off last!

[Mr Luxury]

3 hours ago, wripro said:

I'd rather get off last!

I already do that 🤪

Last cruise it took them two hours to cut the chains off

[islandchick]

That menu looks different then others I have seen. Was it for a special dinner? 

 

[margbem]

11 minutes ago, islandchick said:

That menu looks different then others I have seen. Was it for a special dinner? 

 

Yes - the chef's gala dinner.