Returning Guests

We've not sailed with Seabourn for 3 years.

We have previously sailed on the Odyssey, the Quest, and the Spirit and have 75 days or so onboard.

We have also tried Crystal a couple of times.

Our preference was for the Odyssey class ships, we found the Spirit too small but the Crystal Serenity and Symphony too large.

I've been looking at two possible itineraries, one on the Odyssey and the other on the Encore.

My queries are;

Is the Odyssey still up to scratch? It's 8 years old now and may be showing signs of age?

Does the addition size of the Encore make it too impersonal? We found the Crystal ships too impersonal due to the number of fellow passengers.

How do Seabournites like the Encore, I remember there was much wailing and gnashing of teeth when the Odyssey class came along but most (not all) fell in love with them, does it look like the larger Encore will be the same.

Any hints tips advice will be greatly appreciated.

Thanks.

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May I suggest that you read recent reviews of Odyssey and Encore to see what others have to say. That's what they are intended to offer- information for others to learn from.

Happy and healthy sailing!

I have, I've read lots but wanted some specific responses from people who have moved from the small to the large and now the larger ships.

I'm sure there are some who will help me.

Please, no more advice if it isn't specifically answering my posts queries.

Thank you.

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Sounds like an issue for Goldilocks!

I have, I've read lots but wanted some specific responses from people who have moved from the small to the large and now the larger ships.

 

I'm sure there are some who will help me.

 

Please, no more advice if it isn't specifically answering my posts queries.

 

Thank you.

 

 

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At the risk of violating your "rules" of responding to your queries, I believe your first question re the current condition of the Odyssey can be answered by those who have recently sailed her. Both Markham and I were on the ship a few weeks ago and my thread entitled "Onboard the Odyssey" (scroll down a few threads to find it) offers our opinions on the condition of the ship. I will not speak for Markham, but I found the ship in excellent condition. This is of course my opinion and I will say I have a critical eye for details. Although not perfect, it depends on what your personal standards are and what you are looking for.

As for the Encore, I have not sailed on her, but once again as previously mentioned, there have been many previous comments from Seabourn cruisers who have cruised the Ody class ships vs. Encore. I will not summarize those comments at risk again of violating your response rules, but they are readily available for you to read at your convenience.

Hope this helps.

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At the risk of violating your "rules" of responding to your queries, I believe your first question re the current condition of the Odyssey can be answered by those who have recently sailed her. Both Markham and I were on the ship a few weeks ago and my thread entitled "Onboard the Odyssey" (scroll down a few threads to find it) offers our opinions on the condition of the ship. I will not speak for Markham, but I found the ship in excellent condition. This is of course my opinion and I will say I have a critical eye for details. Although not perfect, it depends on what your personal standards are and what you are looking for.

 

As for the Encore, I have not sailed on her, but once again as previously mentioned, there have been many previous comments from Seabourn cruisers who have cruised the Ody class ships vs. Encore. I will not summarize those comments at risk again of violating your response rules, but they are readily available for you to read at your convenience.

 

Hope this helps.

 

 

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I was not going to respond because of the imposed guidelines but I agree with your comments, Sunprince.

In my recent reports in the thread "Soon to be live from the Encore" I review the Encore (very positively) along with photos.

I have also done a review of our cruise in the Reviews section of Cruise Critic but I do not know if it has been posted yet by Cruise Critic.

Sounds like an issue for Goldilocks!

You just can't help yourself.

May I suggest that you read recent reviews of Odyssey and Encore to see what others have to say. That's what they are intended to offer- information for others to learn from.

+1 I have read many reviews/comments of Encore since her launch, and almost invariably the reviewers would naturally compare her to the O-class ships. There is a wealth of information from those reviews.

I like the goldilocks story. One small matter though is that I don't remember how it ends.

Happy and healthy sailing!

It seems everyone is a little touchy.

I ask a question and get responses dripping in sarcasm.

I thought forums were places to ask questions and share impressions etc? and whilst I can see the rationale around telling me to do my own research, maybe it would be better to instead move on and let someone who is interested in helping help.

I only wanted to gauge the size increase from someone who liked the small ships but then preferred the larger Odyssey class to see if they had been taken by the even bigger Encore class.

Welcome to cruise critic!

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You might want to re-read your earlier response....sometimes in life you get what you give.

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All things being equal I'd suggest you book Encore. O Class ships are great, our next cruise in on Sojourn but we also enjoyed Encore at the start of the year, We had 30 days or so on her.

Given that you've done the O class ships & enjoyed them you should broaden your horizons and try out the latest offering. Most of the critics of Encore are fans of the smaller 3 sisters which you have already said you didn't like so their input probably wouldn't be applicable to you.

If you do book Encore tell Seabourn Henry sent you and they owe me something nice in cabin 633 over Christmas by way of commission :)

Keep smiling

Henry :)

The Encore is more personal than the Crystal Serenity and very similar to the Ody class ships.

If I had to choose between 2 similar itineraries on The Encore and The Odyssey I would choose the itinerary with less tender ports.

I like the goldilocks story. One small matter though is that I don't remember how it ends.

 

Happy and healthy sailing!

She wakes up, sees the three bears and runs away screaming.

Hopefully that won't happen to the OP.

She wakes up, sees the three bears and runs away screaming.

 

Hopefully that won't happen to the OP.

Henry, you made me spill my cup of tea!

We've been on the Odyssey, albeit about five years ago so can't remember much about it. However, we've just come back from a cruise on the Encore and thought it was fabulous. We had a V6 category suite which was very spacious. The food was excellent as were the staff and crew. The only negative we could find was the fact that there are no cushions on the sun loungers - I guess this is for "health and safety". The Collonade is much better than the bigger ships and every night they had a themed dinner. Only once did we have to wait for a table for two in the main dining room, but this was because everyone decided to eat at the same time. No problem, we just went to the bar and had another glass of champagne - as you do!!

Hope this helps.

Henry, you made me spill my cup of tea!

I hope you were properly insulated at the time, Michael.

I was on the Odyssey in January this year, and today I board the Encore, so shortly I will be in a position to compare both ships in relatively short succession. I have been on all the O class ships but came to the Seabourn party a little late, and didn't get to experience the little sisters. I have been on the Odyssey twice and didn't notice any deterioration this year, compared to our first cruise on her a few years ago.

When I get the chance, I will come back and post here. Having said that, there are some excellent reviews already on cruise critic from Seabourn regulars, so I may not have anything new to add! I may also fall victim to the Seabourn lifestyle and can't promise a speedy response.....................................

Thank you, I'm leaning toward the Encore, I read some negativity from early Encore cruises but it seems it may have just been teething problems.

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"today I board the Encore,"

I am sure that you will have a lovely time, we wish that we were onboard with you, it is freezing in Melbourne at the moment ( a bit hard to come home to after the hot weather we had onboard Encore in the Med last month)

I was on the Odyssey in January this year, and today I board the Encore, so shortly I will be in a position to compare both ships in relatively short succession. I have been on all the O class ships but came to the Seabourn party a little late, and didn't get to experience the little sisters. I have been on the Odyssey twice and didn't notice any deterioration this year, compared to our first cruise on her a few years ago.

 

 

 

When I get the chance, I will come back and post here. Having said that, there are some excellent reviews already on cruise critic from Seabourn regulars, so I may not have anything new to add! I may also fall victim to the Seabourn lifestyle and can't promise a speedy response.....................................

Can't wait to join you and finally meet on the 14th!!!!

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We've not sailed with Seabourn for 3 years.

 

We have previously sailed on the Odyssey, the Quest, and the Spirit and have 75 days or so onboard.

How do Seabournites like the Encore, I remember there was much wailing and gnashing of teeth when the Odyssey class came along but most (not all) fell in love with them, does it look like the larger Encore will be the same.

[...]

As we have many days on the O class ships and recently spent 20 days on the Encore I will try to address what we perceived as the differences. Strictly my opinions I wrote up a large comparison for some friends and will extract parts from that to hopefully answer your questions.

We both were not sure if we would like the ship after hearing / reading many opinions, including from friends whose opinions we trust. So we boarded excited to be on Seabourn but uncertain if we would like the ship. As you view it from a distance, it looks similar to the O-class ships (OCS going forward) but when we first embarked we were very impressed with the upgraded interior look.

Overall I think the majority of the public spaces are more attractive than on the OCS. The Club seemed similar to me, but I do like the U shaped bar and seating, makes it easier to have a conversation with others. We did spend quite a few nights in the Club after dinner but always sat at the bar and they have modified the bar so that the liquor is now in the bar itself, so no more bartenders disappearing to make a drink.

The Obs bar is now round as opposed to square on the OCS – no big improvement IMO. They did have the pre-dinner buffet set up there every night, with it on both sides of the back side - I prefer the little buffet to the waiters passing around canapés.

We liked the Sushi restaurant but wish there were a few more choices, especially of rolls. The beverage and food service was very good, as was the quality of the fish. The environment can be loud as there is no sound absorbing materials around. We sat at the sushi bar, but it is low so you can’t really see the chef’s work. We never did make it there for lunch.

The MDR is a major improvement in design IMO. The ceilings being lower absorb more sound and you can have a conversation with a group of people more easily. The seating layout is similar to the OCS, I think the spacing of the tables is about the same. I do like the wine racks when you first walk in adds a nice flair, and they now have a Maître ‘D at the opposite end from the main entrance to seat people coming in that way. There is a piano but I never saw / heard anyone playing it.

One of the best improvements to my mind is the Colonnade – there is more space between tables, not all the poles you have to dance around to get to your table on the OCS, and I think the flow of the stations is much improved. The outside deck also is deeper and more space between the tables.

The pool area is one place where I think the designers made a mistake, it is simply too small for the number of passengers. On the 2 sea days we had, people could not get seats around the pool after about 10:30, and of course there are the chair hogs. One in the shade and one in the sun, along w/ the “reserved but never at them”.

The Patio & Sky Bars are basically the same as on the OCS. The Patio Grill – other than being at the opposite side of the ship is pretty much the same.

The best addition is the TK Grill and Bar. We found the food to be mostly very good, loved the steaks and the sole was very good the night I had it. Was not so impressed by the chicken. We also enjoyed the ambience of the TK Bar, nice piano music, seats spaced to allow for intimate conversations and very good service. One thing I discovered the second time there is the revenue wine list is totally different in the TK Grill from the rest of the ship, and had a few nice offerings which we partook of.

Our suite seemed size wise very similar to the OCS. I had heard that the suites are narrower and I think they are a little (did not measure it, had better things to occupy my time) but it did not affect us, and the shower seemed a bit larger. I like the bigger TV and all the electric outlets so you no longer need to bring an extension cord. I thought the couch was a bit wider and the verandah deeper.

The Retreat is still there and from what we observed the couple of times we peeked not used by more than 4-5 couples. Someone told me, I forget who maybe from Guest Services, that it was getting a lot of usage, I don’t know if I believe that. We never saw anyone using the front sunbeds on deck 12, but rarely went up there. The gym is larger than on the OCS but they still keep it too warm. The Serene SPA is quite a bit smaller than on the OCS, and there are only 2 sun beds outside, we did not take advantage of that perk this time.

The 2 show times I think are an improvement, especially since the 2nd show makes it easier to get to without having to rush thru your dinner, although the entertainers do not all like having to do 2 shows with only 15 minutes between them.

The outside little pool and hot tubs on Deck 5 are very similar to the OCS, except there was only one sunbed back there. On the first segment we had about 5 tender ports,and I like the new tenders better in that the seats now face forward and backwards, seems easier to negotiate when you have to take a seat towards the front or rear of the tender instead of squeezing by people. And yes there is a self-service laundry with 5 washer/dryers, at least 3 irons, and a steamer.

I think based on what I had heard / read from earlier sailings that Seabourn took to heart the feedback and is making every effort to correct the issues. At the same time I think they are targeting a different demographic than has historically sailed with Seabourn and who may not know the differences. Quite a few people we spoke with were on their1st Seabourn cruise

Summary:

We came away impressed with the design elements of the ship and see a lot of things improved over the OCS. For us, the reason why we sail on Seabourn is the service and the experience and so long as the ships are well maintained we will continue to sail either the OCS or the Encore and Ovation.

...

The pool area is one place where I think the designers made a mistake, it is simply too small for the number of passengers. On the 2 sea days we had, people could not get seats around the pool after about 10:30, and of course there are the chair hogs. One in the shade and one in the sun, along w/ the “reserved but never at them”....

I haven't sailed with Seabourn but recently, based on a recommendation by friends whose opinions I value, I've been following this board with interest. Thanks to the many people who have been informative about this line. So far so good.

The issue with seats around the pool is a problem on every ship I've been on. I understand the constraints the architects are under since space on ships is always precious, and asking ship staff to keep the chair hogs at bay is really asking a lot of them. I suspect that if I knew what to do about this, I could sell it to a cruise line for a lot of free cruises.

Seats around the pool is rarely a problem on the Odyssey class ships. There are quite a lot of loungers in both sun and shade, and normally it is not difficult to find one. Encore is a bit different. Sadly, the loungers - at least on the O ships - are not comfortable, having no cushioning on them.

Hi 2sailingnomads

Does the club now have a barman behind the bar all the time, or is it the waiting staff getting the drinks?

Thanks