New to Seabourn

[Brentwood Bay]

My wife and I have been cruising with Oceania for many years but have been put off by Oceania's new Simply More program and PR fumbles relating to recent  Middle East voyages.  We are itinerary-driven and enjoy fine food and wine.  To help us decide on a 38 day cruise from Chile to Australia (March/April 2025) I would appreciate some input from Seabourn patrons relating to the cruise line. 

 

1. We are looking at Cabins V1 501 and V2 801.  We are not bothered by rocking/rolling ship motion and don't use elevators.  Any comments about either of these cabins?

2. I actually enjoy doing laundry/ironing when aboard (at home...not so much).  Are the self-serve laundries normally accessible ie. not overly crowded or requiring lineups?

3. I read that The Restaurant (which I assume is the "premium" dining venue on board) must be reserved with one (1) reservation permitted per voyage.  For a 38 day cruise this seems pretty limited.  Is this correct?

4. My wife and I enjoy interesting and knowledgeable speakers.  Are the calibre and frequency of the speakers reasonable?

5. We would normally bring a few bottles of wine with us (probably from visited Chilean wineries) but would not likely upgrade to Premium Spirits on board.  Are the complimentary wines and beers on offer of reasonable quality?

6. We are not heavy users of the internet while traveling.  Is the available bandwidth satisfactory for dealing with limited emails (no streaming required)?

7. The Formal Attire requirement is understood to be about once per week (5 occasions over 38 days?).  Is it possible to get away with a collared shirt and linen jacket without a tie?  Post-retirement my neck has become very adverse to wearing one.

 

Thanks in advance for any assistance.

 

[stan01]

 

Is this on the Pursuit?  That's important as some of the answers to your questions will be different for expedition ships Pursuit and Venture than for the other ships.

 

Edited December 22, 2023 by stan01

[cruiseej]

This appears to be an expedition cruise on Pursuit. It's important to note that expedition cruises are quite different from traditional cruises on classic ships; there's much more get-out-and-go and much less entertainment. To your questions…

 

1. We are looking at Cabins V1 501 and V2 801.  We are not bothered by rocking/rolling ship motion and don't use elevators.  Any comments about either of these cabins?

 

I'm personally not a huge fan of the very far forward suites. On classic ships, you'll get a lot of noise in the early morning hours when they drop anchor, but the Pursuit uses dynamic positioning (thrusters) to hold its place instead of dropping an ashore to the sea floor in some locations. I'd note that 801 is actually farther back than 501, and for that reason, I'd probably chose 801 over 501. Also, even if you're not bothered by rocking and rolling, the noise of the bow hitting waves in choppy seas can be significant, especially low down on deck 5, so for me that would be another vote for 801. And the suites on Deck 5 have verandas with metal at the bottom of the railings, so you have a more limited view of the sea from inside your suite than the all-glass railings on higher decks — some one more vote for 801 over 501. And 501 appears to have a slightly smaller balcony on the deck plan diagram duet the curvature near the front of the ship; I don't know if it's meaningful difference or not. I don't know if you've picked these two because you don't want the expense of a V3, but if the couple thousand extra dollars doesn't put you off, I'd pick V3 over either of these. Or I just punched up this sailing, and there are other V1 and V2 suites also available; why not 608 (V2)? I'd take that over 501 or 801. 

 

2. I actually enjoy doing laundry/ironing when aboard (at home...not so much).  Are the self-serve laundries normally accessible ie. not overly crowded or requiring lineups?

 

I believe there is only one laundry room on the Pursuit (aft of suite 528). On the other hand, it's a small ship, so the contention for machines isn't huge. Yes, you may hit the laundry room at times when all the machines are in use, but if you're flexible with your timing, it's generally not a problem. 

 

3. I read that The Restaurant (which I assume is the "premium" dining venue on board) must be reserved with one (1) reservation permitted per voyage.  For a 38 day cruise this seems pretty limited.  Is this correct?

 

No! The Restaurant is the main restaurant, but there are no reservations needed or accepted, and no limit on the number of times you may dine there. Again, the Pursuit is a small ship, so there are primarily just two restaurants (the other is Colonnade), neither of which require reservations. (The Patio is outside the Colonnade, but I believe only open for lunch.) There is also Sushi in the Club in the evening, which may be an appetizer/hors d'oeuvre or a light dinner. 

 

4. My wife and I enjoy interesting and knowledgeable speakers.  Are the calibre and frequency of the speakers reasonable?

 

Again, you have selected an expedition ship, which is significantly different than a classic cruise ship in this regard. The members of the expedition team are your guest speakers. The expedition teams typically have people with widely varied backgrounds, from sea life to bird life to history and culture or the region. Normally, there is a nightly recap and briefing in which members of the expedition team speak, and one some days, there are separate lectures by members of the team. I've never done an ocean crossing on an expedition ship, do I can't comment on how they vary the schedule when you have multiple sea days in a row crossing the Pacific. 

 

5. We would normally bring a few bottles of wine with us (probably from visited Chilean wineries) but would not likely upgrade to Premium Spirits on board.  Are the complimentary wines and beers on offer of reasonable quality?

 

"Reasonable quality" is probably a fair description. Seabourn's included wines are not very high-end — typically $12-$20 in retail stores — but most people can find wines they're satisfied with to be happy. If you only drink much more expensive wines at home, you might not be thrilled with the selection. Beers offered vary depending on what they've purchased/shipped to the part of the world they're cruising; there's usually not a huge selection.

 

6. We are not heavy users of the internet while traveling.  Is the available bandwidth satisfactory for dealing with limited emails (no streaming required)?

 

Yes.

 

7. The Formal Attire requirement is understood to be about once per week (5 occasions over 38 days?).  Is it possible to get away with a collared shirt and linen jacket without a tie?  Post-retirement my neck has become very adverse to wearing one.

 

Yes, jacket and no tie will be fine. But on the expedition ships, there are no formal nights at all. (Another difference between expedition and classic cruises.) You might still want a sport jacket to be a little more dressed on some nights, but it's not required. 

 

 

Others may offer different opinions; I hope that helps. 

 

[alc13]

We were on the Ovation last week so I can speak to the wines.  If you are a wine lover, you may be disappointed by the included wines, which averaged under $15/bottle retail.  The list is not readily available so you must simply keep tasting the offered wines until you find one you like.  The premium wine list offers alternatives, but at a cost; I saw a few at $70/bottle and the rest were higher to much higher (the prices were about twice retail, I think).  There are a few wines by the glass available on the TK Grill bar menu but they cost ~$30/glass, as I recall.  So not much available in the $20-40/bottle range.  

[alc13]

Couple of other responses.  Starlink is amazing.  You wouldn't have any trouble reading emails with the included wifi package.   

 

Food is such a complicated topic.  For us, the meals we ate in the Restaurant (main dining room) were not very good overall.  Also, since you are considering a lengthy cruise, I will mention that the breakfast offerings in the buffet were the same every day.  

[Brentwood Bay]

Thank you very much cruiseej and alc 13 for the valuable information.  We will definitely move up to Deck 6 or above to accommodate the potential hull noise and deck visibility (my wife loves her deck time) issues.  A pre-cruise week in Chile seems to be in order to collect some nice local wines for the voyage.  We will not miss Formal nights....it will certainly reduce the packing requirements.  As will access to weekly laundry facilities.  Sounds like Seabourn will be a good fit for us.  Thanks again.

[chuckncole]

On Seabourn ships that have a restaurant that requires reservations, (TK or SOLIS) you may reserve 1 night per seven days onboard the ship

[kej1]

We often bring a case of wine on the ship.  We have never been charged corkage and always offer the sommelier a bit.

[frantic36]

2 hours ago, kej1 said:

We often bring a case of wine on the ship.  We have never been charged corkage and always offer the sommelier a bit.

 

I misread initially and saw cask of wine instead of case of wine. Being Australian I wondered what type of cask wine would you offer to the sommelier to taste. My bad 😂.

[kej1]

Wouldn’t even consider bringing cask wine on board or even drink anywhere! 🤣

happy holidays!🍾🍷

[cruiseej]

On 12/24/2023 at 3:34 PM, kej1 said:

Wouldn’t even consider bringing cask wine on board

 

But what if the cask is carried by a dog? 🤣

 

[kej1]

6 hours ago, cruiseej said:

 

But what if the cask is carried by a dog? 🤣

 

That I love!  Such a cutie!  

[highplanesdrifters]

17 hours ago, cruiseej said:

 

But what if the cask is carried by a dog? 🤣

 

Now that's a service dog.

[alexandria]

16 hours ago, cruiseej said:

 

But what if the cask is carried by a dog? 🤣

 

Even though that's not a Bulldog, as we say around here...

 

That's a damn good dog!

[Cyn258]

We typically sail Azamara, Celebrity in suite class, but running out of itineraries.  Have sailed Princess, and Holland America.  Princess OK, HA not a fan.  We do like the nightly entertainment including shows, singers, dancers and some rock music in the lounge at night, not a fan of jazz or piano bar.  Guess we still think we are young even though 70.  Looking at an upcoming Seabourn and Regent cruise.  I hear the food is very good, but are there other things going on around the ship?  Or is the entertainment more socially oriented?  Also husband will wear dress shirt and khakis but not a blazer.  Seaborne says we would have to eat at specialty restaurant on formal night if he doesn't wear a blazer but cannot guarantee that we can get a reservation for that night.  Any opinions?  Silverseas said he had to wear a blazer every night for dinner, so unfortunately we ruled Silverseas out.  Has anyone been on Silverseas and can verify mandatory blazer?  I find that recently cruise lines have been became more lenient with regards to formal dress code.  Thanks for your feedback.

[stan01]

1 hour ago, Cyn258 said:

Also husband will wear dress shirt and khakis but not a blazer.  Seaborne says we would have to eat at specialty restaurant on formal night if he doesn't wear a blazer but cannot guarantee that we can get a reservation for that night.

 

Reservations are usually not taken (or required) at the Colonnade which is one of the informal sit down (and patio) dining options.  Seabourn is phasing out their relationship with Thomas Keller which was the nights reservations were previously required due to popularity (BBQ and Friend chicken nights) so in the future there may not be any nights where reservations are required there. Most nights Colonnade is sit down but a few nights per cruise there is a "market" (buffet) for Indian or local cuisine.  Earth and Ocean is the other sit down outdoor dining option poolside and they are first come first served.   

 

It won't be a problem, and the menus at Colonnade and Earth and Ocean are good (in our opinions) plus we enjoy dining outdoors anyways when weather permits.

 

Entertainment is as subjective as food preferences but there are often visiting musicians (singers, pianist) that passengers enjoy plus the ship's band.  You'll likely find some passengers dancing at midnight on most cruises.  Seaborn has moved past the big band demographic and knows most of their customers now are baby boomers.  The lounge spaces are too small with low ceilings to support extravagant dance and aerobatic performances. 

 

 

 

Edited December 31, 2023 by stan01

[Fitstylist55]

Currently aboard the Pursuit. I’ll touch on a few of the mentioned questions/concerns:
 

Took advantage of the $50/bag laundry service for my husband’s clothes. Perfectly executed.

 

I used the guest laundry for my workout gear as I’m particular about how it’s washed and was surprised how long the machines take per cycle (55ish minutes for a medium load). Four washers/dryers. There seems to be a steady flow of passengers waiting for machines. Two irons and a steamer are available for your use.

 

I am unfortunately (fortunately?) a bit of a wine snob, and as a result we have ordered off the Reserve list most nights. Head Sommelier has been wonderful though her assistant has considerably less experience and I have felt badly on a few occasions for second guessing the recommendations.
 

IMO the best option on the included list is the Penfolds Koonunga Hill Shiraz.

 

 

Housekeeping and expedition teams are excellent. Dining room staff may be a little green. Lots of empty water glasses and l o n g (2.5-3 hour) dinners.

 

Starlinks has been perfect. We upgraded ($199 for the length of the cruise) and have even been able to take calls via RingCentral. 
 

Seabourn Source is one of my favorite spots on the ship. I like that it opens at 6:15am and they make quite a nice latte.

 

High tea in the Constellation Lounge is great. 

 

Overall, the ship is absolutely beautiful and we feel very lucky to be sailing on her.

Happy to answer any other questions you may have.

 

Cheers to a healthy, happy, and adventurous 2024! 

 

As there is no Veuve Grand Dame or Krug onboard, Ruinart Blanc de Blanc will be my libation of choice this evening to ring in the new year. 😄🥂🥂

[Fitstylist55]

56 minutes ago, Fitstylist55 said:

Currently aboard the Pursuit. I’ll touch on a few of the mentioned questions/concerns:
 

Took advantage of the $50/bag laundry service for my husband’s clothes. Perfectly executed.

 

I used the guest laundry for my workout gear as I’m particular about how it’s washed and was surprised how long the machines take per cycle (55ish minutes for a medium load). Four washers/dryers. There seems to be a steady flow of passengers waiting for machines. Two irons and a steamer are available for your use.

 

I am unfortunately (fortunately?) a bit of a wine snob, and as a result we have ordered off the Reserve list most nights. Head Sommelier has been wonderful though her assistant has considerably less experience and I have felt badly on a few occasions for second guessing the recommendations.
 

IMO the best option on the included list is the Penfolds Koonunga Hill Shiraz.

 

 

Housekeeping and expedition teams are excellent. Dining room staff may be a little green. Lots of empty water glasses and l o n g (2.5-3 hour) dinners.

 

Starlinks has been perfect. We upgraded ($199 for the length of the cruise) and have even been able to take calls via RingCentral. 
 

Seabourn Source is one of my favorite spots on the ship. I like that it opens at 6:15am and they make quite a nice latte.

 

High tea in the Constellation Lounge is great. 

 

Overall, the ship is absolutely beautiful and we feel very lucky to be sailing on her.

Happy to answer any other questions you may have.

 

Cheers to a healthy, happy, and adventurous 2024! 

 

As there is no Veuve Grand Dame or Krug onboard, Ruinart Blanc de Blanc will be my libation of choice this evening to ring in the new year. 😄🥂🥂

Edit: Seabourn Square, not Source! 

[sfvoyage]

It's easy for men not to have to bring a blazer on board:  just avoid the main dining room (i.e. "The Restaurant") on the few "formal optional" nights (no more than once per week).  If you must dine at The Restaurant on those nights, a blazer is available on loan from the seating hostess.

 

On the Venture and Pursuit, perhaps a blazer isn't even required in the Restaurant on any nights.  (Are there even "formal optional" nights on the 2 expedition ships?)

[Cyn258]

Thank you.  Not an expedition ship.  We were looking at barcelona, canary islands, lisbon for 21 days in Nov and with what we are paying I didn't want to eat at a poolside restaurant, and cold nor a buffet.  Just a nice sit down meal served with a glass of wine, bit at the same time.

[CalmSea]

49 minutes ago, Cyn258 said:

Thank you.  Not an expedition ship.  We were looking at barcelona, canary islands, lisbon for 21 days in Nov and with what we are paying I didn't want to eat at a poolside restaurant, and cold nor a buffet.  Just a nice sit down meal served with a glass of wine, bit at the same time.

On formal nights, one can still dress informally and eat at the Colonnade. It is not a buffet at dinner time. It is a sit down meal served with a glass of wine.

[Cyn258]

Thank you all for your clarification.  Appreciate it.

[travelwell]

Do not be turned off by Earth and Ocean. It is outside on the pool deck, somewhat away from the small pool. This area can be charming at night with very good menus.