imcpa

That sounds great to me, but IRRC on this 16 night Muse cruise, the only casual nights were the first and last nights. There were 3 formal nights and the rest were informal (jackets required in MDR). We do like to dine outside, but we also like Atlantide.

My wife & I recently cruised Silver Muse for 16 nights from Bali to Yokohama, Japan. After spending two weeks in Japan, we then cruised Seabourn Odyssey for 23 nights from Kobe, Japan to Vancouver. These are my silly observations and thoughts in random order. · This was our fifth SS cruise (Cloud 2010, Spirit 2015 & 2017 and Moon 2022) and fourth SB cruise (Sojourn 2018, Ovation 2022 and Encore 2023). We will on SB Venture late this year. We love SS but love SB more now. It is a better fit for us. · The SB cruise was the last leg of the Grand Voyage. I was told there were 220 on board for that and that 100 people boarded in Kobe when we boarded. Everyone we spoke with was nice and we never felt like we were invading their party. · The worst part of SS ships is the lack of a lively, quality Observation Bar. The worst part of SB ships is the lack of a quality outdoor running track. We use the gym every day. I ran outdoors on SS many days, but never did on SB. · The worst part of the SB Odyssey class ships is the small gym with a weird layout. It can easily seem crowded. Lucky for us on this cruise, we were the only ones in there most days. The gym on Ovation/Encore is a huge improvement. We do tend to go to the gym at odd times compared to others. · We loved the SB sail away events. SS did nothing similar. · From the outside looking in, I think SB has the coolest looking ships. · The SS cruise director was Bob (don’t recall his last name). He was rarely seen around. The SB CD was John Baron. He was easy to talk to and visible every day as were many of the SB officers and entertainment staff. Not so much on SS. · The captain on each cruise was visible most days and easy to talk to. The SB captain was more outgoing in that he would approach people to start a conversation. · The guitarist (a big deal for me) on SS was good but used too much backing tracks. The piano player on SS was terrible with a worse voice. I still can’t believe SS hired him. · Mike Lee was the entertainer in the SB Observation Lounge and was excellent. The trio in The Club was excellent too. · Jobert on SS was the best butler we have ever had (including two Crystal cruises with a butler). Our suite attendants on SB did a great job and were friendly. · On both cruises, we used room service for a simple, light breakfast. It was nice having the butler deliver it on SS, but the room service staff on SB are excellent too. · On SS, we ate most of our lunches at La Terrazza and had a standing order of plain salmon wraps with the salmon cooked well done and blackened and a side of steamed broccoli instead of fries. It was always delivered timely and tasted great and we also would sample some food on the buffet. We dined outside as much as possible. · On SB, we ate most of our lunches at Colonnade and had a standing order for a veggie burger (Impossible Burger) served plain and cooked well done with steamed broccoli instead of fries. It was always delivered timely and tasted great and we also would sample some food on the buffet. We thought the food quality and variety was better on SB than SS. We dined outside as much as possible, many times with multiple blankets and had the whole area to ourselves. · On both cruises, we ate most of our dinners in the MDR (Atlantide on SS). For both, we had a standing order of grill salmon cooked well done and blackened with a side of steamed veggies (extra veggies). Both did a great job with dinner and service was great in both. · On SB, we dined at TK Grill (since it is still on Odyssey) five times. We ordered the excellent crab cakes as our appetizer then again as our entrée. Service was always great. · We ate a few dinners at Hot Rocks on SS but had the same standing order and had them do all the cooking in the back. · Put me in the category of those who think SS has too many informal nights (vs casual), especially on warm weather cruises. A nice pair of slacks and a nice, collared shirt should be enough most nights. · We had a standard balcony suite on each cruise. The SS suite was great but I prefer the layout of SB suites. I love having the fridge and extra drawers/storage stacked on both sides of the suite between the sleeping area and the living area. With this layout, there is also a large couch and dining table. · On SS Muse, I think the idea of the TVs in the mirrors is a great idea. There is one in front of the bed and one on the living area. When they are off, you see nothing but a mirror. · On SS Muse, I hated the TVs in the mirror. The remote was very iffy and if there was any light coming into the suite it created a terrible glare on the screen. · IMO, SB should stop the CD morning announcements at 9:30 AM to go over the highlights for the day (as if we can’t read the paper Herald, read it on our TV or read it on our phone). · It seems SS has a new policy (at least on this cruise) for serving champagne at La Terrazza during lunch. Instead of keeping a bottle in the ice buckets outside, they kept it at Silver Note. When we would order a glass of champagne (which we did every lunch), it seemed to take close to 10 minutes to arrive and even then, the glass was barely half full. After finishing that, it seemed to take many more minutes to get a new glass that was barely half full. After a few days of minor frustration, I trained Rodger and Jayson (two great Sommeliers) to just grab a new, cold bottle and bring it to the ice buckets as soon as we entered La Terrazza. They then did a great job of keeping the glasses full. · We did two included excursions on SS and they were adequate. We did not do any SB excursions. · SB did an officer Q&A (including the captain) on the Venetian lounge one day and it was very interesting and fun. I don’t recall this on prior cruises. · Both cruises had a guest comedian do two shows and we enjoyed all of them. The other guest entertainers on SS were OK and the other guest entertainers on SB were good to great. That’s all for now. I may add more if I think of more worth adding. We loved both cruises and hope to cruise SS again (as well as Regent) and new Crystal for a first time (since we loved old Crystal).

My wife & I recently cruised Silver Muse for 16 nights from Bali to Yokohama, Japan. After spending two weeks in Japan, we then cruised Seabourn Odyssey for 23 nights from Kobe, Japan to Vancouver. These are my silly observations and thoughts in random order. · This was our fifth SS cruise (Cloud 2010, Spirit 2015 & 2017 and Moon 2022) and fourth SB cruise (Sojourn 2018, Ovation 2022 and Encore 2023). We will on SB Venture late this year. We love SS but love SB more now. It is a better fit for us. · The SB cruise was the last leg of the Grand Voyage. I was told there were 220 on board for that and that 100 people boarded in Kobe when we boarded. Everyone we spoke with was nice and we never felt like we were invading their party. · The worst part of SS ships is the lack of a lively, quality Observation Bar. The worst part of SB ships is the lack of a quality outdoor running track. We use the gym every day. I ran outdoors on SS many days, but never did on SB. · The worst part of the SB Odyssey class ships is the small gym with a weird layout. It can easily seem crowded. Lucky for us on this cruise, we were the only ones in there most days. The gym on Ovation/Encore is a huge improvement. We do tend to go to the gym at odd times compared to others. · We loved the SB sail away events. SS did nothing similar. · From the outside looking in, I think SB has the coolest looking ships. · The SS cruise director was Bob (don’t recall his last name). He was rarely seen around. The SB CD was John Baron. He was easy to talk to and visible every day as were many of the SB officers and entertainment staff. Not so much on SS. · The captain on each cruise was visible most days and easy to talk to. The SB captain was more outgoing in that he would approach people to start a conversation. · The guitarist (a big deal for me) on SS was good but used too much backing tracks. The piano player on SS was terrible with a worse voice. I still can’t believe SS hired him. · Mike Lee was the entertainer in the SB Observation Lounge and was excellent. The trio in The Club was excellent too. · Jobert on SS was the best butler we have ever had (including two Crystal cruises with a butler). Our suite attendants on SB did a great job and were friendly. · On both cruises, we used room service for a simple, light breakfast. It was nice having the butler deliver it on SS, but the room service staff on SB are excellent too. · On SS, we ate most of our lunches at La Terrazza and had a standing order of plain salmon wraps with the salmon cooked well done and blackened and a side of steamed broccoli instead of fries. It was always delivered timely and tasted great and we also would sample some food on the buffet. We dined outside as much as possible. · On SB, we ate most of our lunches at Colonnade and had a standing order for a veggie burger (Impossible Burger) served plain and cooked well done with steamed broccoli instead of fries. It was always delivered timely and tasted great and we also would sample some food on the buffet. We thought the food quality and variety was better on SB than SS. We dined outside as much as possible, many times with multiple blankets and had the whole area to ourselves. · On both cruises, we ate most of our dinners in the MDR (Atlantide on SS). For both, we had a standing order of grill salmon cooked well done and blackened with a side of steamed veggies (extra veggies). Both did a great job with dinner and service was great in both. · On SB, we dined at TK Grill (since it is still on Odyssey) five times. We ordered the excellent crab cakes as our appetizer then again as our entrée. Service was always great. · We ate a few dinners at Hot Rocks on SS but had the same standing order and had them do all the cooking in the back. · Put me in the category of those who think SS has too many informal nights (vs casual), especially on warm weather cruises. A nice pair of slacks and a nice, collared shirt should be enough most nights. · We had a standard balcony suite on each cruise. The SS suite was great but I prefer the layout of SB suites. I love having the fridge and extra drawers/storage stacked on both sides of the suite between the sleeping area and the living area. With this layout, there is also a large couch and dining table. · On SS Muse, I think the idea of the TVs in the mirrors is a great idea. There is one in front of the bed and one on the living area. When they are off, you see nothing but a mirror. · On SS Muse, I hated the TVs in the mirror. The remote was very iffy and if there was any light coming into the suite it created a terrible glare on the screen. · IMO, SB should stop the CD morning announcements at 9:30 AM to go over the highlights for the day (as if we can’t read the paper Herald, read it on our TV or read it on our phone). · It seems SS has a new policy (at least on this cruise) for serving champagne at La Terrazza during lunch. Instead of keeping a bottle in the ice buckets outside, they kept it at Silver Note. When we would order a glass of champagne (which we did every lunch), it seemed to take close to 10 minutes to arrive and even then, the glass was barely half full. After finishing that, it seemed to take many more minutes to get a new glass that was barely half full. After a few days of minor frustration, I trained Rodger and Jayson (two great Sommeliers) to just grab a new, cold bottle and bring it to the ice buckets as soon as we entered La Terrazza. They then did a great job of keeping the glasses full. · We did two included excursions on SS and they were adequate. We did not do any SB excursions. · SB did an officer Q&A (including the captain) on the Venetian lounge one day and it was very interesting and fun. I don’t recall this on prior cruises. · Both cruises had a guest comedian do two shows and we enjoyed all of them. The other guest entertainers on SS were OK and the other guest entertainers on SB were good to great. That’s all for now. I may add more if I think of more worth adding. We loved both cruises and hope to cruise SS again (as well as Regent) and new Crystal for a first time (since we loved old Crystal).

Steam room and sauna are open to everyone. Hot tub on back of deck 10 open to all. Spa hot tub is not.

My DW and I are currently on the Muse (16 nights Bali to Yokohama, began March 18). All is great. This is our 5th SS cruise (Cloud (2010), Spirit (2015 and 2017), Moon (last year)). This may be my favorite SS ship.

I cruised out of Terminal J on the Regent Grandeur christening cruise. It is a "private" terminal but the signage to get to it is somewhat confusing because there is a decent amount of construction near the port.

I assume you are also on the christening cruise.

Open toe or closed toe???

IME, depends on the itinerary and time of the year, not the cruise line. I have sailed SB, Crystal, SS, Regent, Viking, Windstar & Paul Gauguin and hope to continue to cruise all of them (except PG, only because of limited itins).

I agree overall. I have cruised old Crystal, Seabourn, Silversea, Regent, Paul Gauguin, Windstar and Viking (three ocean cruises on Viking). I prefer Crystal, Seabourn and Silversea, but hope to cruise Viking again. We also purchased the beverage package (which now includes Jacquart champagne, one of my favorites). The DV rooms are little small and lacking in storage, but they are good enough. Our last Viking was in a PV, which was great. I enjoy the relaxed dress code in warmer climates and the buffet for dinner at times. I know Viking is not in the luxury category, but the service and food are first class IMO and the ships are beautiful. Of course, YMMV.

My wife and I were just on deck 5 on the Ovation for two weeks. We cruised the Encore in November 2022 on deck 9 for two weeks. The deck 5 railing did not bother us at all. We liked being close to the laundry and being that close to the water. We are now booked for 36 days on deck 5 on the Encore in April 2024.

I cruised the Sojourn in 2018. Last November I cruised the Encore and just disembarked the Ovation on July 9. The Ovation and Encore are now my favorite ships (after also cruising Crystal, Regent, Viking, Paul Gauguin, Windstar and Silversea). My problem with the Sojourn is the gym. It is way too small with an awkward layout. The gym on the Encore and Ovation is much bigger and better. I do wish however that the Encore and Ovation had an adequate outdoor running track.

OMG. How did I not know this after four SS cruises beginning with Cloud in 2010 and ending with Moon in January/February of this year, and various hotel stays with Bvlgari? Thanks so much for posting this. In between those four cruises, I also squeezed in five on Crystal, three on Viking ocean, two on Seabourn and once on Windstar, Paul Gauguin and Regent. Two more Seabourn cruises coming soon too!

I think they should put out suntan lotion for people to use. They do this on Seabourn. I think it is a great touch and agree SS should do it as well.

Wait. You're not allowed to run on the jogging track? That's news to me. I ran on it many days on my February cruise from Rio to Bridgetown.

I know that. My point is that even without official butlers, the suite service on Seabourn was great. I have sailed SS four times and all of the butlers were great. My short answer was I hope SS does not phase out butlers, but if they do it will still be great.

I hope not. I will admit though that the two in charge of our suite on Seabourn Ovation in November were great too ( just cruised the Moon in March from Rio to Barbados).

IMO Bowmore is the best offered.

Favorite to less favorite based on our cruises (keeping in mind we love them all and will hopefully cruise them all, except PG, for years to come) ... old Crystal Seabourn Silversea Regent Viking Windstar Paul Gauguin

..and paper in some in addition to cloth.

We have cruised Viking three times (once since Covid) and Seabourn twice (last being November 2022) and will be on Seabourn in June. We have also cruised Silversea, Crystal, Regent, Windstar and Paul Gauguin. We love Viking but would choose Seabourn over it 100% of the time.

IRRC, one is labeled "high power" and one is not. The one that is not did not charge my iphone or ipad.

Me too.

Oh yea. I was on the Encore in early November last year (round trip Athens) with only 350 or so on board. I played a couple of songs every now and then on the "jukebox" when I was alone in the Club. It has a great selection of metal.

Same thing I listed to on my iPod when in the gym (yes, iPod...I don't bring my phone to the gym)...heavy metal. I assume I am alone one on this.