Khareef

How about the cabins? They look pretty small

I need to look for something at Xmas time, anyone done any Xmas cruises that they would heartily recommend?

Care to give a few details?

Any bad experience?

Ponant really seems to have the most interesting innovative itineraries. Cabins look very small though and the "French first" culture is what keep preventing me from booking with them.

I like the pacific itineraries of the Pursuit, I might hit the trigger on the Santiago-Sidney through Polynesia.

Good thing about Amex I guess, they usually take care of the issue promptly. Bue yeah their customer service is a disgrace, I asked about travel insurance for Europeans and they got back to me 1 month after my email when we had already sailed....Pre/Post cruise service is embarrassing for an ultra luxury service they claim to provide. My guess the CCL mass cruises culture finds its way into Seabourn.

It seems to me on the Venture/Pursuit most suites are actually connected, maybe things are different on the bigger SB ships

They must have some real issues filling those ships, they have been offering all sorts of things for months now... If you can afford it why not? I would ask them to throw some OBC as well....

Age and nationality?

Nah, don't be careful about it. It is being too careful that pushes and give impunity to this bully behavior,When properly confronted most of the time they stop doing it. I understand the staff can't really confront her unless it is a senior official, but the other passengers can easily do it.

What I find bizarre is the thousand of dollars more Seabourn ask for choosing your room as opposed to the random placement for the same category. I talked to people very angry about it because they had done that and then figured out that people that didn't do it were actually placed in better decks/position.

Even the thai center I go to block clients from further booking at the first sign of inappropriate behavior...I mean it is pretty easy these days...

Why no other passengers confronted her? Just get a bunch of people shouting back at her....

Things have really moved on in the gastronomical world over the past 20 years here in Europe. Maybe things are still more traditional in the USA. I personally prefer a more contemporary design and a more environmentally sustainable alternative to tablecloths. I think that Seabourn is doing a pretty good job finding a compromise between the taste of the older generations and the more informal laid back environmentally aware philosophy of the newer ones, especially on their new explorations ships.

The letter didn't mention the restaurant open for lunch every day....or did I just miss it? A few things that I would personally improve: - Order room service via the App so no need to wait for the line to get free (also no need for one person to waste time on the phone) - Dessert in the Sushi (Not sure why it is missing) - GET RID OF THE WHITE TABLECLOTH in the restaurant, it is so dated and extremely bad environmentally (how many they have to wash everyday...), just put some nice design table like in all fancy modern gourmet restaurant (at least here in Europe). It felt like I was going to a wedding in the 80es every time I stepped into the restaurant (I ended up eating more often in the sushi and colonnade) - Improve the wine quality already included in the fare, it was real bad when we were on board last November -I would extend the restaurant hours, I mean nobody 50 or less eats that early anymore...

I think it was JetSmart Argentina, the flight left pretty early in the morning. Just a poorly maintained fairly dirty low cost charter, of course there is no business class and seats are arranged randomly. The food (sandwich) was pretty bad so I didn't actually eat any of it (but the snacks were ok). The one good thing is that the seat in the middle was left empty so it didn't feel too cramped. It is a 3 hours flight I think so not a big deal. It is what it is, you just need to get to Ushuaia, the real thing starts from there. I mean most domestic flights in the USA and Europe are pretty mediocre as well. To be honest I took some 10 hours + international flights that were a disgrace (Iberia being the worst airline company ever) so I can handle almost anything for just 3 hours. Especially with nobody in the middle. The real thing to worry about is the drake passage 🙂 Have fun and be patient at the Buenos Aires airport, you might have to wait a bit before being picked up.

You can always go on the Square on deck 6 and enjoy coffe and cakes or a sandwich with pretty much nobody around...Actually they make way better coffee and cappuccino there.

I really don't understand the need for a lot of packing especially in Antartica. You are provided with Parka and boots and binoculars, all sorts of bathroom amenities, there is no formal night and it is a less than a 2 weeks cruise. Plus you have free laundry on deck5. Merino wool stuff as a base layer is great because you can wear it multiple days. BTW Nobody really cared about how people were dressed up, actually those who dressed up formally the first few nights ended up wearing more casual stuff as the days went by. I think I had way less than 20 kilos all together and I actually did overpack (I did 1 laundry). Light luggage is indeed the key for a good healthy trip. There were some people with tons of stuff at the Ushuaia airport and they did look a bit like fools and out of place. Plan ahead what to wear and add 1 laundry and you really need clothes for 1 week. Heavy jackets are useless since you'll be wearing the orange Parka all the time. You can even ditch the blazers all together, or just bring 1. Economy of forces...

We should all write to Seabourn and complain, hopefully they will change the system.

A weird thing has happened to me recently. I already paid the total cost of my cruise but a few days ago I received an email saying I still have to pay 6k by June 17 2023 (I guess I need to take a Time Machine)....... The total price has also been changed in my account... Not sure what to make of it, I guess it is a system glitch of some sort. I tried to contact Seabourn but they are always so slow to reply.. Their customer service especially for European Guests is a bit of a disgrace

Uhm you are all wearing those wet landing rain proof pants...I was hoping there would be no need for them this time around, I find them pretty uncomfortable for walking

yeah most people I talked too in antartica told me the sub was a waste of money, some people felt really ripped off, some others liked trying something new although they did not see much.

Thanks for your post. One thing: Do you have to wear a layer of waterproof pants on the zodiac for all landings? O just normal trekking pants are ok for dry landings? In out crossing in Antartica we had 8-10 meters waves, the ship was absolutely empty that day..most people just stayed in bed I guess. I was told stabilizers were a great help...dunno know about it, but it was a pretty wild crossing for us passengers not used to that kinda of movement.

When we were in Antartica they had real troubles recovering one of the subs after a dive (passengers still inside), strong wind and rough sea made it complicated apparently, there were like 10 zodiacs around the sub trying to figure out a way to deal with the issue and you could sense some real anxiety about it. I'd say it took them about 1 hour to do it. The captain was following closely the sub drifting away thanks to the great agility of the Venture. So just like everything there is always something that can go bad. The Viking ship that was in Antartica with us was hit by a rogue wave that killed one woman... they were going back early because a zodiac exploded and injured a passenger...How unlucky can you possibly be.... This does not mean you should exaggerate the risk associate to any of the activities but if you don't feel comfortable just don't do it. But comparing these subs with the prototype that exploded is really apples and oranges. By the way what insurance does cover international waters accidents?