Able Seaman H

The problem with Bangkok is it’s a reasonable distance from your port and the traffic can be horrific. I wouldn’t venture there independently and that’s saying something from someone who picked up a hire car from Suvarnabhumi airport and drove down to Krabi the other day. You dare not risk the ship leaving without you.

Bangkok is a great city, getting up at the crack of dawn and sitting on a bus for hours just to scratch the surface of tick it off a list isn’t worth it. Linking BKK to Singapore at the start or end of that cruise (depending which way round you’re doing it) would make more sense in my humble opinion.

I always look for low hanging fruit when planning what to do with a port day. 

Thanks for the kind words. I’ve just come back from travelling in Thailand for a few weeks. Chiangmai up north, then back down to Bangkok and we drove down from BKK to Krabi via Sam Roi Yot (lovely area). Krabi was as wonderful as ever

its a very long day to drive from Laem Chabang to Bangkok to merely scratch the surface of a city that needs several days of your attention. Similarly Pattaya only really comes alive at night. The temple of truth however is a cheap taxi ride from the ship and I spent the best part of a day there. I had a simple bit of lunch there. There is a beach at Pattaya but you’re far better off enjoying Koh Kood. A brilliant day. 
 

Vietnam was a private taxi rented on arrival from the port and excellent. Ho Chi Min city for us was an overnight, I presume the same here. Wonderful city without the panic of having to rush back to the ship.

My pleasure ❤️

A video I made on that route a few years ago. The large marble “Moment of Enlightenment” Buddha now takes pride of place as you drive into our property in the UK. Definitely not carry on when boarding the plane !!

There is absolutely no correlation between the submersible vessels Seabourn use and the one which suffered failure whilst exploring the Titanic. Using your logic you would stop flying after every space rocket failure.

The Seabourn submersibles are well proven commercial items used at a depth where humans could dive and survive. The Ocean Gate submersible was exploring the outer space of our oceans. It’s telling just how long it took to get an unmanned ROV on scene capable of operating at that depth.

I think you’re confusing elephants with tortoises.

Yes, who would rent me on my own…. 😂

For the 8 hours of a charter it can be his boat if he wants it to be….

You pay your money you get me until it runs out 😉

I know to choose my battles and on this occasion I bow to your superior guests.

If I get a major celeb on board before the weekend I’ll let you know.

I really liked Ephesus. Had a private quire during the day and obviously returned at night with the ship.:

H 

😂

You’re a very bad influence…….

Father Christmas has never got over you raiding his sack and whilst I can’t condone your actions we still use the travel adapters.

H

A good item to sell. I’d rather that than some unknown brand.

I remember buying a lovely antique military tantalus from Fortnum & Masons many years ago. It sits in our dining room. Might bring it onto the new motor yacht when she arrives !

Do they gave any nice SB logo wear in the shop or will you just steal the towels & bath robe again ?

H. 🙂

Tell Wendy to brief Sharon on the morning coffee run…..

The worrying thing is I can just imagine being on board with you guys. Nip back to the cabin for a quick snooze on the balcony before preparing yourself in readiness for amusing your adoring fans with tales from your seafaring archive.

I’ve had to pop the A/C up a notch on the boat today…..

H.

That’s not what I wanted to hear John. I was hoping you’d say the job’s gone to pot, the cruise is nothing without us and you were desperately trying to get flights home 🙂

You and I would make the most of all the many opportunities on board.

Have a wonderful time but lay off that rich food in TK. Limit yourselves to a modest salad in the Colonnade…..

H.

On a somewhat deeper level this is probably more a question about how you live life.

You see two sides on here. A terrible cruise, standards slipping, penny pinching versus had a great time, so and so went above & beyond, really enjoyed the new…..

I always work with what I’ve got and try not to waste energy swimming against the current. Instead I turn round and let it take me in the direction of flow. Our travels in Thailand are a perfect example, we plan to go green but blue turns up so rather than rant & rave we see what blue has to offer. Maybe we’ll get to try green tomorrow.

A lot of people seem to rock up on Seabourn with very fixed expectations. Things have to be done in a very specific way be it food, drinks or other aspects of their vacation. Given the international clientele and staff there’s a high chance you’re laying yourself up for a fall. Throw in the fact you’re thousands of miles away from home in the middle of the ocean with the nearest shop more than a quick taxi ride away you do have to work with what you’ve got.

Take a morning coffee in the cabin before facing the world. We could order one but if we pre-order it takes away the spontaneity and the choice is limited to whatever the room service kitchen can rustle up. Instead I pop down to the square, grab exactly what we want then return to wake up properly. I’ve cut out all the possibility of being upset and annoyed.

On every single Seabourn cruise there have been stand out crew members and venues which we utilise in our menu of pleasure. Maybe it’s a particular bar that really runs well that cruise so we switch things around from our normal routine. On some cruises the club has been a bit dry and lacking, on others its been top drawer, so we adapt to our surroundings.

Food venues are the same, sometimes mood on the day or the style of cooking dictates we swap around a bit. We’ve had a couple of abject failures over the years - I can still taste the salty scallops, but we’ve had far more absolute treats. It helps that I really like the speciality offerings. 
 

I don’t drink these days but when I did we always managed to find a cheeky bottle of something from the house pour to ease us into the evening. If wine is your sole purpose for living then you will undoubtedly have to buy in but you must really struggle when travelling the world. 
 

It helps that I don’t start my cruise from the perspective of it being hugely expensive and so needing to be a once in a lifetime memory. It would be easy to spend your Seabourn fare renting a suite on a mainstream cruise line where the bulk of the ship is geared to $150 day cattle herding. I appreciate the space, the little extras, not being asked for my sea pass billing card on every corner and staff who, for the most part really do want to ensure your time aboard is enjoyable.

Those staff can’t change the world stage, the shortages, the pinch points, the health implications and so on but they can also work with what they’ve got. Let them use the ingredients at their disposal rather than asking for suff they don’t have and being disappointed.

I’ve said it before on here several times if you can’t enjoy your time onboard a Seabourn ship you’ve probably given up on life. When things have gone wrong I’ve always managed to speak directly to the hotel director who ensures action is taken, follows up to make sure all is well and we get treated like royalty from then on, sometimes embarrassingly so. Again it helps that I make a point of thanking and complimenting when things go well or someone adds to your day. Let them know they’re appreciated with equal energy and effort to when you complain.

It’s been a while since we’ve been on board. Good friends of ours are finally celebrating a belated honeymoon on board at the moment and I look forward to our return.

Godspeed everyone, not just on Seabourn but in life….

Henry 😎

Our charter boat is based in Portsmouth and as we stared a charter the other morning I was surprised to hear quest on the radio to QHM, the harbour control asking permission to do some hull touch ups using environmentally friendly paint.

At the end of the day I was giving the boat a quick wash down in readiness for the next day when who should give a few blasts on her horn but Quest.

A pleasant surprise and it made me sad not to be on board again…..

Bon voyage and Godspeed to all.

Henry 

No worries.

We need to get back on board at some point.

A good Seabourn Cruise would be ideal now.

Henry

Holy thread revival Batman...... 🙂

The song is River by Emeli Sandé. A wonderful artist.

Definitely give Seabourn a try, for me they offer a great balance between price and exclusive experience. I also find the on board staff incredible. They combine professionalism with a human touch. As I've said before, if you can't enjoy yourself on a Seabourn Cruise you've given up on life because all the ingredients are there.

Henry

Saw her coming into Portsmouth yesterday. Only had my phone on me so please forgive the poor images.

I didn’t recognise her so had to let Google be my friend, turns out she was finished early so they are doing a few short cruises based around the UK. 
 

looks like 400 PAX for Antarctic expeditions, around 440 PAX for regular cruises.

Anyway, something a bit different coming into the harbour.

11 hours ago, Isklaar said:

 

 

Thanks for this. We've tried to get Seabourn air quotes several times but so far we've had no luck. I know that others who fly out of the UK have had good prices from SB so we will keep trying!

I wasn't sure how the air credit worked, but did know about SB only being able to use certain ticket classes when they book the flights on a fare they've quoted.

 

As for air fares around Christmas and not being able to get home in early January,  we usually take a Seabourn cruise at that time, often a Caribbean cruise. Because of uncertainty about work commitments we aren't usually able to make our booking until July or later in the year, and trying to get available flights in business class with only six months to go is a nightmare. Barbados in particular is not easy to get flights so that's why we always try to be on a cruise that's departing from Miami. Loads more flight options from there. Obviously this information is no help to you if your cruise is departing from Barbados.

 

We're not even considering SB for Christmas this year, which is hugely disappointing,  because the Holiday cruise on Sojourn (from Miami) is too short and the other option is Odyssey which means flights to/from Barbados or St Maarten and I know they'll be hard to come by when we're able to book later in the year. 

It's as though you've been inside my mind as I plan our trips 😁

I pretty much ignore cruises which start or finish in more obscure ports not served by a choice of airlines. If you travel economy and are happy to book through Seabourn then all is well, but I find their business class fares very expensive. We probably have an upper limit of £3,000 per person and like to be around £2,500 for the air element. As people are discovering places like Barbados come in at closer to £6,000 per person. When you're booking 3 seats that makes a big dent.

Somewhere like Miami is easy. On a good day we can get Vigin upper class on miles but that needs military prescision. I've actually got the end of this year covered in and out of Hong Kong returning early Jan. Connecting flights to both Singapore and Thailand are easy and sensible so we have options but the Seabourn fare is a bit punchy so Thailand looks favourite but lets see how the next few months pan out...... I suspect we may see some flexibility as ships strive to re-establish the market !

5 hours ago, SLSD said:

Henry, I think you could change your post into a letter written to the head beverage person at headquarters.  You state your position very eloquently and persuasiveness.  While I do consume alcohol, I like to keep it at two drinks a day on a cruise and would welcome low calorie non-alcoholic choices.  

When all’s said and done it’s Carnival’s toy and not for me to tell them how to use it. If they’ve got any sense they would keep an eye out on here. It’s not the most active forum on the web so doesn’t require a massive amount of resource.

I’m afraid I don’t have huge faith in the shore side team. We’ve had a few heated words over third person fare implementation and whilst eventually they see sense it’s like drawing teeth.

Ship side, a totally different story and you can have really constructive time with senior officers and crew who are for the most really switched on particularly when you praise as well as discuss less optimal experiences.

Industry wide non alcoholic drinks are a huge growth as is avoiding waste, environmental considerations and healthy eating. The days of swimming in champagne whilst feasting on the midnight buffet are numbered. 
 

Remember when people used to smoke cigars whilst relaxing in a bar or lounge......

Henry  

I find it interesting reading people's thoughts on Seedlip. 

I have their Grove 42, Spice 94 and Garden 108 at home which I pair with different Fever Tree tonic waters, usually Aromatic and Cucumber.

They each have a unique flavour, it's subtle as with different Gins rather than a cordial type mixer which is sickly and powerful. The result is a delicate and refreshing drink served on ice which happens to be low calorie and of course alcohol free.

I'm convinced much of the resistance to Seedlip stems from the lack of alcohol. We live in a society which revolves around booze and normally balanced adults have an almost childlike obsession with the stuff. 

Ultimately you guys do what you want and I'll gladly join you in the bars for sparkling conversation but I don't drink alcohol. So with that in mind I seek out something other than Diet Coke or acidic fruit juices and Seedlip fits the bill perfectly.

Why is it a rip off any more than a bottle of gin is? It's produced on a far smaller scale than your favourite gin, still distilled, and removing alcohol without impairing subtle flavours is quite a difficult process to master with several patents and very expensive hardware to invest in.

imagine you don't drink booze. A vast swathe of Seabourn's reason d'etre has just been stripped away. No bottles of champagne, no deciding which spirit to have in the mini bar, no drinks in the Sky Bar or Observation pre-dinner cocktails. No wine pairing at dinner and no relaxing with a nice Brandy or Cognac.

if Seabourn have been swayed by alcohol drinking experts commenting on a product designed for tee totallers then that's a shame. I wonder if they do the same with their vegetarian or specialist foods, "nah, not as good as pork chops and some crackling". Well some people don't eat pork my friend.....

i pay between £20 and just under £30 for a bottle of Seedlip and I pay a premium for the Fever Tree tonics. So the added value to me of having them on board would be quantifiable. One hopes that the mighty Carnival buying team will be able to negotiate hard but I will value each drink as I would do in a venue on land and yes, ever more forward thinking venues are choosing to get on board.

I could ask head office to get it on board when we next cruise but I'm afraid I don't have a lot of faith in head office. The ship's crew work miracles, head office don't. Our next cruise isn't with Seabourn. We've decided to spread our wings a little. The price tag for 3 passengers just tipped over the line when balanced against that lack of opportunity in the bars. A bit like the the people posting on here asking if their favourite brand is carried. 

Would Seedlip and some Fever Tree really make a difference when pulling a £20k trigger? Yes, I think it just might.....

Henry

Seedlip and a good tonic like Fever tree would be be a very welcome addition. I have a bottle of Spice 94 on the go at present. A "grown up" alcohol free drink.

Henry 🙂

The TK Rib Eye is, for me one of the finest steaks in the world. It presents more like a fillet than a traditional Rib Eye due to the butchering process which is somewhat luxurious, they keep the good bit and discard the less premium elements.

You almost have to view the TK Rib Eye as a separate cut all on its own.

Henry

On mainstream lines like Royal Caribbean a cruise critic gathering is almost always organised. Play your cards right and you come away with a key ring !!!

But I've never come across such a gathering on Seabourn unless organised via the Roll Call. To publish it in the Herald is a great idea. The number of times people on here have retrospectively said they were on the same cruise as us.

Henry 🙂

How interesting. A $40 checked shirt with a $30 polo shirt sewn on the back in such a way that you can pretend to be superman with your own cape as you walk around.

I don't think people would make fun of you at all either on the ship or elsewhere. Crack on and get that money spent. You're going to make a shop keeper somewhere very happy. 😂

Just before you press the buy button take advice from an English gentleman and Google "Thomas Pink" of Jermyn Street, London. A great starting point when developing an adult wardrobe.....