First time on a luxury cruise - Ovation March 2023

[ejincali]

I've learned a lot about Seabourn from these boards, so I figured I'd give back some info and opinions from my recent cruise.  DW and I are empty nesters and were celebrating our anniversary.  We're not really big cruisers, previously we've been on Carnival, Costa, and NCL.

Senior Staff on board this cruise was Captain Emilian Cygan, Hotel Director Kevin Huxham, Cruise Director John Barron.  John mentioned he had just joined Seabourn from Regent.  

Ship - Beautiful understated elegance throughout with interesting but not over the top art work.  I liked the arrangement, basically cabins forward and public spaces in the back with a circular staircase in the middle.  My only criticism would be that the pool areas are too small for a warm weather cruise like this one in the Caribbean.  Our favorite hang-out was the rear facing pool on Deck 5.  

Suite (V3 740) - Fantastic!  Bathroom is amazing.  Two sinks, separate tub and shower.  Nice vanity and tiled walls, great water pressure supplied through high-end fixtures.  One caveat, the shower is nicely tiled with a heavy solid glass door, but it is quite small.  My wife got overheated in there while enjoying all that high pressure hot water.  The tub was sized perfectly for us, but we are fairly small people.  They use Moulton Brown toiletries, we'd never seen them before and really liked the shower gel so we bought a bottle in the ships store to bring home.  The bed was soft and cozy, just as we like it.  We liked that the balcony chairs could recline a bit and there was a foot stool for each chair.

Food - Mostly wonderful.  We really enjoyed our meals in The Restaurant.  Highlights were Prime Rib, Beef Wellington, Rib eye, and the potato cake with caviar appetizer.  Enjoyed the daily souffle.  My wife didn't care for the strong flavors of the Quail stuffed with Mushrooms (I liked it), but that was replaced with a Risotto that she liked.  Liked the Patio Grill (lunch by the pool), the Napa Burger and fries are absolutely stellar!  We also enjoyed caviar and champagne by the pool to start with at lunch.  The caviar takes a while to get there, but its a fun treat while dining outside.  Seabourn can't match the variety of caviars at Le Bernardin, but Le Bernardin doesn't serve poolside 😁. Room service breakfast was always punctual and all items were at the appropriate temperatures.  A couple of times we ate breakfast at the Restaurant, also very good.  We were disappointed with Sushi.  The place is beautiful and the service stellar.  We began with two scallop items that we thought were M Sushi (Durham, NC) good.  But, it went downhill from there.  The fish didn't seem great and the sauces a little odd.  Also disappointed with TK Grill.  The New York Steak was awesome, but that was it.  The Cesar salad tableside service was entertaining to watch, but the dressing didn't taste quite right.  The crab cake was just OK.  The Dover Sole, well, I've had better.  We don't like buffets while on vacation, so never went to Colonnade.  The farewell event the last night was an assortment of tasty treats that we enjoyed.

Beverages - We were very happy with the included wines.  Our favorites were the Raymond Cab, Legendes Bordeaux blend, and the NZ Sauv Blanc (sorry I don't remember the winery).  They poured two champagnes on our cruise, Montaudon and Cattier.  Both were new to us, and we enjoyed both.  The Cattier, like many other champagnes, has a lot of minerality on the finish--some may not like this.  We really didn't care for the ships water, both the still and sparkling tasted brackish to us.  Fortunately, when I filled out our preferences pre-cruise I requested Evian and Perrier (they subbed Panna and Pellegrino, just as good) for the room and we always ordered club soda when dining.   The pot of coffee they bring with room service is just OK, but the coffee stand in Seabourn Square makes good espresso.  The first couple of days the espresso tasted a bit off, I wondered if that was due to the water, but then I noticed them refilling the grinder with Segafredo beans and after that all was good 😀.  My wife didn't like the fruity drinks from the bars except for one day when they were using fresh fruit by the pool.  I loved the Gibsons in TK Bar.  

Entertainment - John Barron is a great cruise director, engaging, funny, and a pretty good singer.  Neal in the TK bar is a fantastic piano lounge artist.  Music Society's lead female singer has an absolutely perfect voice.  Coyote 80s performance was music I like, but didn't care for their renditions.  The latin show, we found the dancers talented, but amateurish choreography.  

Service - Mixed.  Our room attendants were stellar.  The way they surprised us with room decorations for our anniversary made my wife cry.  When we arrived, there was no top sheet under the duvet cover, I guess that's the Seabourn standard, but we found it strange.  We called housekeeping (it was late) and within 3 minutes the top sheet was being installed--that was impressive.  In the restaurant, some evenings we had great service, other times poor.  TK Restaurant and bar had great service as did Sushi.  Pool service was poor.  Staff wandering around, not inquiring if people needed something.  One overworked bartender at the pool bar.

Ports - St. Lucia, took a taxi to Reduit beach with another couple from the ship.  Beautiful beach, chairs for rent, but crowded and lots of vendors.  Dominica - Bad excursion for river tubing.  1.5 hour maniac driving on windy roads, they added a waterfall and dancing which we didn't want.  The tubing was OK except the water level in the river was low and we all kept getting stuck on rocks.  We complained, as did others, and got 25% of the price paid back.  I thought we should have gotten more back.  Carambola Beach - The beach itself is not as nice as the private cruise line islands in the Bahamas.  Instead of fine white sand there is coarse brown sand.  Bad drink service again, like by the pools.  The lunch was great, yummy lobsters, salads, lots of choices.  I like the white tablecloth service for a beachside lunch.  The caviar in the surf "ceremony" was entertaining.  Antigua - Fantastic Catamaran trip.  Two beaches visited and a lobster lunch with open bar.  Boat crew very entertaining. Tobago - Loved Charlotteville, a small port only small ships can go to.  We took a water taxi with another couple from the ship to Pirates Bay, in my opinion the nicest beach of the trip.  Chairs are available for rent there even though its small and uncrowded.  Martinique - Just walked around Fort de France which seemed like a mini Marseilles.  My wife bought some custom made sandals.  

Worth it? - Yes, we will consider Seabourn again, hopefully with another two category upgrade 😁.  We really liked not having to present a card to get drinks, not having to pay extra for any food items including caviar.  I can't imagine a more nicely appointed cruise ship cabin, and I believe they are trying to fix their service issues.

 

[ejincali]

Here are the dinner dining guides:

file (6).pdf file (5).pdf file (4).pdf file (3).pdf file (2).pdf file (1).pdf file.pdf

[robertmartha]

ejincali - TY for the review and all the menu's. 

 

Bob 

[Vineyard View]

Ejincali - thank you for these details. We have sailed on a number of lines but are looking forward to our first time as well on Seabourn this May!  Your descriptions are very informational and appreciated. 

[whogo]

That is a beautifully written review. Thanks, ejincali.

[SLSD]

10 hours ago, ejincali said:

  Also disappointed with TK Grill.  The New York Steak was awesome, but that was it.  The Cesar salad tableside service was entertaining to watch, but the dressing didn't taste quite right. 

 

I totally agree with you about the dressing for the Caesar Salad.  We only tried it once, because the dressing did not taste right.  Others have said they love the dressing, but it did not taste like any Caesar Salad dressing I've ever had and I have probably had it scores of times in various restaurants.    

 

I'm glad you enjoyed your first Seabourn cruise.  

Edited March 29, 2023 by SLSD

[nowornever]

This is great information - thank you for taking time to post the menus & write such a comprehensive review.

[Mr Luxury]

The dressing can often be slightly different depending on who is in charge of the wooden bowl.

[SLSD]

3 hours ago, Mr Luxury said:

The dressing can often be slightly different depending on who is in charge of the wooden bowl.

 I can imagine that it is, but the dressing we had was so bad that I never wanted to try the Caesar salad again!

[ejincali]

3 hours ago, Mr Luxury said:

The dressing can often be slightly different depending on who is in charge of the wooden bowl.

That could be, in our case we found the dressing too lemony and that is an ingredient that they mix in.  However, I think the main culprit is the "anchovy emulsion" which is pre-made.

[SLSD]

1 hour ago, ejincali said:

That could be, in our case we found the dressing too lemony and that is an ingredient that they mix in.  However, I think the main culprit is the "anchovy emulsion" which is pre-made.

The dressing we were served was too mustardy.  WAY too mustardy.  

[Dunnedg]

On 3/28/2023 at 4:03 PM, ejincali said:

We don't like buffets while on vacation, so never went to Colonnade.

You missed out not going to Colonnade. It is nothing like the large ship buffet you would have been used to. Self service is not compulsory and waiting staff are happy to get anything you want at breakfast or lunch. Certainly more comfortable than lunch at the Patio. Cant beat sitting at the back of the ship for lunch with a lovely glass of chilled Rose.

[ejincali]

5 hours ago, Dunnedg said:

You missed out not going to Colonnade. It is nothing like the large ship buffet you would have been used to. Self service is not compulsory and waiting staff are happy to get anything you want at breakfast or lunch. Certainly more comfortable than lunch at the Patio. Cant beat sitting at the back of the ship for lunch with a lovely glass of chilled Rose.

Point well taken...next time 😀

[Dunnedg]

11 hours ago, ejincali said:

Point well taken...next time 😀

And if you go for dinner in Colonnade it is all served. Hope you do have a next time👍

[caviargal]

Thank you for taking the time to write such a detailed review!  We are on Ovation in three weeks and I will share our thoughts upon return.

[cruisinfamily7609]

Our first cruise with Seabourn is still well-over a year away, but reading your review makes me wish it were sooner! 🙂 Your trip sounded lovely, and I appreciate all of the points and tips given. Thanks!