Nigella

The Humboldt Fog cheese was served as a course in the Colonnade TK menu which included the Waldorf salad, and beef with broccolini and mashed potato. I don't think it was served with the other TK menus in the Colonnade.

 

Good to know this, thanks!

The menu you describe is the same one it was served with back in December except the broccolini was asparagus.

SB must have run out of the Humboldt Fog on the cruise my friends were on, glad to know it hasn't disappeared.

As I am counting down two weeks until our cruise I am trying to watch my caloric intake so I can still fit into a new size two dress I just purchased. Maybe I should just pour hot sauce on everything I eat until we sail!

Looking forward to reading your updates. I've heard that my beloved Humboldt Fog cheese is no longer served on the TK nights in the Colonnade. I hope not true!

Many thanks everyone. Glad to hear it has been sorted; it was only really important in the suites - not good to be woken up in the middle of the night.

I'd been very concerned about it prior to our cruise which was our longest yet on SB. It's definitely not noticeable in the suites nowadays and as I said, many people don't notice it elsewhere either.

Lincslady, you're right it is confusing because of the different terminology used in different countries to describe bed sizes. And don't get me started on centimetres!

I used 'queen size' in my reply because that's how SB describes the bed size on the website in the 'Preferences' online form but the width measurement would probably be more helpful.

I must say the beds on SB don't feel very big to me, compared to what I'm used to, but I've never measured them so it could just be my perception.

Oh I definitely wasn't recommending Regent, more just thinking aloud;)

Seabourn beds are queen size, in most suites can be separated to make two singles.

I noticed a slight vibration, but for me it was only noticeable in The Colonnade and outside on deck 5. Nowhere else on the ship.

The rest of my party on that cruise only became aware of it when I very kindly pointed it out. ;)

Wintergarden and verandah suites on current ships definitely do not. Was very surprised that the WG didn't have one .

. Regent may have king beds in some of its suites I have a feeling .

Just received my third item of unwanted mail from Regent this week.

Oh that's right, it's only Wednesday so that's one a day so far. Perhaps they're compensating in advance for the Easter break when there'll be no post delivery for 2 days?!

Have spoken to my TA who will contact Regent on my behalf.

 

That covers it very well! Dare I hope that this is the end of it?

 

 

Giving you the last word? :D

 

I can tell you (and it is just our opinion) that we became a little disenchanted about the crew fund, once, on Silversea. We were thanked after a donation and told that money was being used to get new couches and furniture for the staff lounge. I have no intention to help provide $ for something that the company should be providing! Parties, fun stuff, yes. All the policies in the world can be repeated but until it is an official rule...no harm no foul.

We had a similar experience on our final SS cruise following a donation that we made towards the end of the cruise.

I was extremely unhappy that it went to something that should be provided, rightly, by the employer.

On a cruise a few months earlier our donation went towards a party for the crew. Like you, no problem with that.

Also I know that crew fund can be used for welfare related payments to crew who may need to get home to attend to an urgent problem etc. No problem with that either.

Gogglebox is great! Not sure that it's anywhere close to being as entertaining as the Regent board though. ;)

Tc: I suspect that what nuneham probably meant was that in the same way that alcohol is included and thus not expected to be paid for again while onboard, so, too, are tips included, so why would one consider tipping again except in very special circumstances. He/she was making the point about tipping in a different way.

Yes, that's how I read it also.

We are also very interested in this. We were sent some information by our TA a couple of months ago and agree with others that it does look special, the ship is like a yacht and very attractively designed.

It will of course depend on the product delivered, if they can provide great food and service it looks like a winner to us.

On the subject of dining options, one of the reasons we left Silversea for Seabourn was the necessity on SS to make dinner reservations for all dining venues except MDR.

With SB so far, I've very much enjoyed the freedom to make up my mind about where to dine, usually doing so while I'm dressing for dinner.

It will be interesting to see how this one develops.

diebroke -thanks for your post, I needed a laugh today! I thought I'd entered another dimension when I read the trees post.

I've been following this thread with interest, as Regent has been sending me promotional mail for about a year now. I've never cruised with Regent and have never contacted the company so I'm not even sure where they found my details.

As for MD 20/20 - anyone who has never tried it, I'd say you're very sensible. I had a horrible encounter with it when I was very young. Never repeated!

The price starts at 350 per cabana per day according to the press release

That sounds far more reasonable, unless someone is cruising solo.

We did have a wedding aboard. The couple had prearranged......and all who wanted to attend were invited. The Captain married them.

Oh thanks for this! I'll let my friend know that it may be possible.

 

 

Heck... if I ever find myself a gentleman who likes cruising/travel as much as me, the idea of an onboard wedding suddenly became intriguing. Buying that space out for a day or two doesn't seem that unreasonable considering venue pricing for other things on land!

Agreed!

Funny you should mention an onboard wedding. A friend of mine asked me about that at weekend, if I knew whether SB conducted marriages onboard. I told her I don't know. I've never seen one during our cruises, but that space would be perfect for a small gathering.

This is, in fact, what was announced today at the Seatrade conference today. It seems absurd.

Yes, you're right, it came to me from a TA friend. I couldn't link to her information as it was coming to me, because it contained her TA details which of course is not allowed on CC. She checked first that SB had announced publically (hence I mentioned Twitter), before she told me about it.

Anyway, it's official now on CC. Here's the link from the Sticky at the top of the board :

http://www.cruisecritic.com/news/news.cfm?ID=6892

On the subject of The Grill, I like the drawings I've seen both of the R2 conversion ( they would have struggled to make it worse!) and the Encore.

$350 a day seems awfully steep. Even luxury spas and cabanas don't charge that per person unless it includes something else that I'm missing. And I'm not sure what it could include - right now I can order champagne and caviar poolside for what is already included in the price of the cruise.

 

Heck, I do the VIP cabanas in places like Las Vegas and we don't pay that much per person and the pricing usually includes food and alcohol credit. I've never seen a $350/day serene area pass for a spa either (unless it was a package including a spa credit).

 

I hope they come out with more details quickly - this seems insane and I can't imagine it getting much use unless it becomes some kind of new perk that can be chosen by Seabourn Club tiers as a free option.

I'm reporting all of this via someone else, so not first hand, but reliable source. I believe there will be a champagne 'menu' in there, presumably not the Feuillaté stuff, and included.

I agree about the $350 a day and I'm hoping that's incorrect, but it came from a TA .

eta - I've just been told that prices will START at $350 a day. Surely that can't be right?

Thanks for adding those pics!

On Odyssey, Sojourn and Quest :

Deck 6 forward is non smoking. As is deck 11 sun terrace/The Retreat.

Pool deck (8) is also non smoking.

I enjoy deck 5 aft, especially on sea days. Yes, there will likely be a couple of smokers there but I sit on the opposite side and the smoke doesn't bother me at all.

As others have said, outside Seabourn Square (deck 7) can be problematic, especially since cigar/pipe smoking is permitted there. It's only been a problem area for me on one cruise, also during that cruise I avoided the starboard side outside at The Colonnade as cigar smoke would often drift up there from the smoking area below.

Like many others, I wish SB would tighten up the no smoking policy in particular with regard to balcony and Observation Bar evening smoking.

I like the Obs as an alternative to The Club, especially for after dinner conversation with new friends.

All of that said, in general smoking hasn't been too much of an issue for us on our SB cruises so far.

Interested to see where the smoking areas will be on Encore.

Some of you mentioned that you had a questionnaire asking if you'd like an exclusive cabana type experience onboard.

I've just been told that SB tweeted that it will go ahead on Encore. Charging $350 per day. I think the amount of people the area will hold is 15. A "tranquil rooftop getaway" is how SB describes it.

I wasn't keen on this when it was mentioned in the questionnaires and I'm less keen now.

The TK restaurant will be called The Grill. I like the 2 pictures that I've seen.

I can't get a link right now.

Yes the ports look just right. We are familiar with some but not all. From what I

read the MDR will not be open for breakfast or lunch on this 7 day cruise. Thanks for that info. J

We aren't people who would normally repeat an itinerary but we would definitely do that cruise again, the ports were super.

Le Lavandou was a marina day on our cruise, even though the information we'd received didn't mention this, so it was a lovely surprise.

Lucky you, I'm jealous!

Trying again as this apparently didn't post the first time I tried :)

Thank you for your review, it's always good to read a review posted by someone who is new to Seabourn. Agree about TK, we found it to be a mixed bag, but overall better than anticipated. It was a very welcome addition to the MDR dinner menu, plus we wait for the full changes in R2 and getting 'our' Colonnade back !