My review of Seabourn Quest

[ak1004]

41 minutes ago, johng75370 said:

FWIW, here is a link to a comparison I did recently between SB and Explora:  conclusion was that despite it being a beautiful new ship with amazing food, we simply just prefer the smaller environment, more personal service, and many itinerary choices SB has to offer.  What I think sums up the corporate attitude on Explora of wanting desperately not to be a cruise ship and instead be a luxury hotel is that they initially told the cabin attendants not to interact and make small talk with the guests.  Also, when SB christens a new ship they have a permanent plaque on the ship with the inaugural passengers; Explora 1 naming ceremony had the guests kicked off the ship "unceremoniously", and Explora 2 had no passengers invited. SB has loyalty program, Explora does not. SB seems to actually care a bit about the passengers, Explora makes it clear they do not.  We've been on Crystal a few times, but won't be back on New Crystal until next year (but based on feedback from friends, it's as good as ever).  Great to have choices, but Explora just didn't work for us.  

 

 

This whole topic is brilliant, thank you for the link!!

 

None my cruises has been absolutely perfect, but we had a wonderful time on all of them. We always embarked with the attitude that we would have a good time and we always did.  We enjoyed SB, but we also enjoyed SS (despite their ridiculous dress code), we enjoyed O (booked 3 more with them) and many others.

 

I see any cruise ship as a floating hotel, so I'm a bit struggling to understand what does it mean exactly that "Explora wanting desperately not to be a cruise ship and instead be a luxury hotel". Can you explain please?

[johng75370]

1 hour ago, ak1004 said:

I see any cruise ship as a floating hotel, so I'm a bit struggling to understand what does it mean exactly that "Explora wanting desperately not to be a cruise ship and instead be a luxury hotel". Can you explain please?

It’s a great question, and thank you for calling me out on it.  When I go to a hotel (a few days at most) I have a different set of expectations versus going on a cruise ship (a few weeks at most).  I don’t expect to interact much with the person servicing my room, I don’t expect the hotel to offer me much in terms of entertainment, I don’t to see and have access to the “officers” of the hotel, but I do expect to have responsive service and local knowledge, and the very same level of experience each time I visit that property.  Maybe most important is that a hotel treats it’s guests as transients; SB and it’s peers treat it’s guests as part of a bigger family. I have an affinity for some hotels, but I have a love for some cruise lines.  That’s why Explora building and launching a new hotel concept is great, but now they are in the midst of several changes because many of what makes a great hotel are 100% opposite of what some cruisers (me included) expect.  

 

Last point:  when I casually chat with someone at a hotel I would be shocked to cross paths with that person again.  When I travel on SB, I always have travelled with both guests and crew I’ve sailed with before.  Just a different scale, and I don’t think Explora embraces how different the customer experience is with that aspect. 

Edited October 1 by johng75370

[CurlerRob]

On 9/28/2024 at 10:23 AM, ak1004 said:

My review of Seabourn Quest - https://www.cruisecritic.com/memberreviews/memberreview.cfm?EntryID=720514

 

First time on SB, and we were really impressed. 2 days after we returned we already booked another one.

 

One thing I forgot to mention in the review was the cruise director Aimee Lake. A really talented lady, who is also a great performer. She had her own show one of the evenings, and it was the best show of the whole cruise. 

 

Two small negatives which I'm sure are well known to SB regulars: the shower is a bit small, especially considering the suite size, and the dining options are a bit limited compared to O and SS. But the food quality is very good, and the lunch buffet was probably the best we had on any ship. 

 

Any questions, please ask. I will be more than happy to answer while the experience is still fresh.
 

 

Thank you for the review. We were on the same trip, also first time Seabourn pax - this was a 'test drive', as we booked a 2026 long haul, but needed some experience with the line before that.

 

My notes from the cruise look like I stole them from your review, so I won't restate what you expressed so well.

 

I'd add just a few items: the ship lacks a really good walking area (useful for voyages with many sea days). Deck 9 is OK, but you have to dodge the lounge chairs and the bar patrons ( the good news is that it's easy to rehydrate there!). Deck 5 allows you to traverse 1/2 the ship, but you can't walk all the way around. The Colonnade aft terrace is outstanding - even surpasses Regent's due to its size, overhead protection and heaters. Finally, Deck 6 has access to a bow area that was almost constantly open - superb for photos! 🍺🥌

[travelwell]

I am quite late to this thread. My DH and I were also on this cruise and enjoyed hanging out with AL1004 and CalmSea. Quite frankly we love the fellow passenger interaction and interaction with the very excellent crew. Emin, at the coffee bar at Seabourn Square really stood out. He was a popular man at 6:15 and took pride in the coffee. He told me how he cleans the machines often and it showed. His coffee is the best on the ship. Food was very good. Service was equal to the service we got back in the days of the triplets. I feel Aimee Lake was one of the best cruise directors we have ever had.

[ak1004]

On 9/29/2024 at 2:27 PM, nancygp said:

Pricing on everything has gone up the last few years.  For the most past, we typically stayed in the standard verandah cabins and felt they were well priced up until Covid.  We would not do that anymore on the new crystal.  Yes, There were some itineraries, mostly on the symphony, that were half full.  Things have changed since that time and the ships are sailing at capacity or near capacity.  However, there are always the few outliers.  Also, the new crystal has a much lower capacity than the old crystal as many of the standard verandah cabins were eliminated during the dry dock/reimagine in order to add a significant number of aquamarine and sapphire cabins etc. this was done to be competitive suite-wise with the other lux lines.

 

We love seabourn and loved crystal.  While there are a few things we miss from crystal, there are a few things on seabourn that we like better.  Both are great lines for us. We feel so blessed to take wonderful cruise vacations.

 

good luck and glad you enjoyed seabourn as mulch as we have.

nancy

 

So going back to comparing C and SB and their pricing:

 

We booked a 10 nights Med cruise on SB for $6,070 CAD - that's $440 USD per person per night. This is the entry level OV cabin, which is 295 sqft. And they have many itineraries with similar pricing.

 

Comparing to Crystal, their cheapest 10 nights sailing is $590 USD, and some sailings are over $700. Their OV cabins are 210 sqft. And the ships are almost double age.

 

How does it make sense that C is 40-50% more expensive, even when comparing entry level cabins which are 40% larger on SB ? And SB also has more interesting itineraries.

[nancygp]

14 minutes ago, ak1004 said:

 

So going back to comparing C and SB and their pricing:

 

We booked a 10 nights Med cruise on SB for $6,070 CAD - that's $440 USD per person per night. This is the entry level OV cabin, which is 295 sqft. And they have many itineraries with similar pricing.

 

Comparing to Crystal, their cheapest 10 nights sailing is $590 USD, and some sailings are over $700. Their OV cabins are 210 sqft. And the ships are almost double age.

 

How does it make sense that C is 40-50% more expensive, even when comparing entry level cabins which are 40% larger on SB ? And SB also has more interesting itineraries.

Yes, there’s quite a difference in the pricing.  With the reconfiguration of crystal’s entry OV and the veranda suites, we would want an aquamarine suite…much higher price.  Crystal has periodic promos with some better pricing and I’ve also found my best pricing with SB typically is when the itineraries are released and occasionally on promos.  Overall, seabourn offers us a better price.  As the crystal ships are larger than SB, they offer more dining options and I give them a slight edge on the food.  
 

while pricing is a factor for us, we are primarily focused on itineraries.  This is where SB shines for us.  While I haven’t sailed yet on the new crystal, the feedback I’ve received from numerous friends has been excellent.  Given the right itinerary and price, we certainly will consider booking crystal in the future.  For now, we are happy with our SB bookings and the line works well for us.

 

Nancy

[Vineyard View]

33 minutes ago, nancygp said:

Yes, there’s quite a difference in the pricing.  With the reconfiguration of crystal’s entry OV and the veranda suites, we would want an aquamarine suite…much higher price.  Crystal has periodic promos with some better pricing and I’ve also found my best pricing with SB typically is when the itineraries are released and occasionally on promos.  Overall, seabourn offers us a better price.  As the crystal ships are larger than SB, they offer more dining options and I give them a slight edge on the food.  
 

while pricing is a factor for us, we are primarily focused on itineraries.  This is where SB shines for us.  While I haven’t sailed yet on the new crystal, the feedback I’ve received from numerous friends has been excellent.  Given the right itinerary and price, we certainly will consider booking crystal in the future.  For now, we are happy with our SB bookings and the line works well for us.

 

Nancy

I have heard on multiple lines that the best pricing often is with new releases. I looked at the new 2026 itineraries in the Mediterranean, Spring 2026. First one is not until late May, and there is only one. This can not be all they will be releasing? 

[nancygp]

33 minutes ago, Vineyard View said:

I have heard on multiple lines that the best pricing often is with new releases. I looked at the new 2026 itineraries in the Mediterranean, Spring 2026. First one is not until late May, and there is only one. This can not be all they will be releasing? 

Looks like the sojourn and quest will be in the med in the summer and beyond.  They are coming from the far east and pacific region…you can check the website to see this

 

Nancy

[2SailingNomads]

Having spent over 450 nights on SB and 18 on EJ, the mentality of EJ approach is baffling but there are many good things about the ship. Emporium is a great idea and implementation. All the various pools and outside bars, you can sit outside at their observation bar at a table and be served and the coffee at the coffee bar is actually decent. But the we are not a cruise line approach is strange, no loyalty program, focus on7 day itineraries and nothing of interest means while I liked the one experience no plans to return soon, which is unfortunate.