JPH814

I posted a review of my Quest cruise back in October. It was a wonderful cruise. Many many more highs than lows.

Interesting to hear the two very different accounts of conditions on this cruise. My only advice to the readers: Read them all and make up your own mind. One way to evaluate the posts is to look at the number of posts from the person making the comments. I tend to put more weight on comments from people with 3000 cruise critic posts than someone with 75. But that is just me. I also like to read the comments on other topics from the poster. Some people have negative comments constantly. Others are pure cheerleaders. I put more stock in comments from a poster who report good and bad

Is it perfect. No. Is it intuitive to use. No. And it relies on a very inconsistent Wi-Fi system on board. But it has many more pluses than minuses. I love no paper. One place to see daily activities and menus. Constantly updating availability of excursions. if you are the least bit experienced using apps, you will be fine. The problem is older folks - who make up a good percentage of Seabourne customers- are less likely to have that experience.

You can see my cruise history below. The food on Our most recent Seabourne cruise was just as good as previous cruises.

You have received a lot of good advice here. The only two things to add: We had a wonderful guide in Athens. If you need a guide to consider , let me know. Are you aware of the "refer a friend" program from Seabourn? First time cruisers get a $250 on board credit if a current seabourn person "refers" them. (All it means is filling out a form). Let me kn ow if you are interested.(Really, it is not a scam) https://www.seabourn.com/en_US/refer-a-friend.html

Can you share the "announcement" from Seabourn please

My suspicion is that cruise line executives are well aware of the opinions regarding breakfast and lunch on "all days/" They can easily see it in the number of people who eat in the MDR when it is open. Most likely they are making a business decision: the cost of staffing vs the disappointment of a few customers. Are they willing to incur extra costs spread out to all passengers to satisfy the few?

I sense a tone of disbelief I can say that any BAR I went to had lemons for all 12 days of the cruise. In fact, one of my usual drinks is a lemon drop at the observation bar. The COFFEE BAR had lemons. I know because I frequently got a tea in the morning there. There were lemons at the afternoon tea at the observation bar. However, the first time we had the problem was in the colonnade for breakfast about halfway through the cruise. My wife asked for her usual hot tea with lemons for breakfast. No lemons came. I asked again, They brought slices of lime. The server said they had no lemon. Being the good hubby that I am, I walked down to the coffee bar (Literally one floor directly below the colonnade) and brought up several slices of lemons. The same thing happened the next morning. After that, I brought my own lemons from the coffee bar to breakfast. The last morning we had an early departure. We ordered ROOM SERVICE . Hot tea with lemons. none came with the order. I reminded the steward. He returned with limes. Do people think limes and lemons are the same thing? (This happened to us on a Caribbean cruise on another line as well - limes instead of lemons) Was this the worst thing that could have happened on a cruise? no. Did it spoil our cruise? No. I do wonder how - if it was so easy for me to get lemons from one part of the ship- how come a crew member could not do so?

This was our second trip on this (almost) same itinerary Quebec City was gorgeous Bar harbor ( and Acadia park) was great Halifax has a lot to offer. We have been there 5 times now. Boston is Boston. A great city for history We enjoyed the zodiac trip to the fiord other stops were less exciting. I would highly Recommend the itinerary and Seabourne.

My wife and I drank gallons of that water on a recent 12 day cruise. Tasted fine to us. We drink bottled water at home.and this tasted the same.

I enjoy formal wear. I also enjoy gym pants and a sweatshirt. I enjoy a 7 course tasting menu. I enjoy the galley lunch. But that is not my point. My point was to question a "definition" of 6 star service. It was stated as if there was a book written on the subject - a Roberts Rules of Order for high class cruising. Who made this definition? Where is it written and prescribed? I'll help you out in the "debate"...."Of taste there can be no dispute". What I like is what I like. What you like is what you like. And when I can closely match what I like to what is offered at a price I am willing to pay, I will give that 6 stars.

And whose definition is that? I googled six star service and did not see a definition. (Try it - but don't look for the definition of six stars in the the Urban Dictionary. 🙂 yikes! ) De gustibus non est disputandum.

If you believe the dessert display or the bread displays were "thrown in" you do not have much appreciation for the creativity of the kitchen staff. Several of the displays were complex and impressive. The advantage of any buffet is the ability to try a range of things, some things you might never had tried before. So one person's disdain for "everything" is someone else's opportunity to try something other than meat and potatoes.

that is the cruise I was on

it seems like Seabourne matches your idea of an accommodation

FWIW: we arrived at 1:15. Traffic was favorable. Despite being “assigned” 3 pm we boarded immediately. No one asked about outer board it time nor seemed to even notice it on our docs. We would have willingly waited if told to do so. But there were few people being processed and moved through in about 10 minutes. of course, this was one person’s experience on one ship on one day. As the saying goes- Your mileage may vary,

Maybe the cost savings for those few lunches it is not open are already included in the fare calculation. Maybe all of us would have to pay more to keep the MDR open for the very few people who use it. This is just one of the many decisions businesses make every day.

agreed!.. My wife is an expert at stuffing the bag (There are youtube videos with tips). I actually added up what the cost would be if we paid per item and it was over $125 worth of clothes. $50 was a bargain - and the "free bag as a perk for silver member - made it even better.

Just off 12 days on the Quest. Yes the MDR was open every day and it was EMPTY! We had one breakfast there - we were one of 3 tables being served. Frequently walked through during breakfast (often the disembark was on the 4 deck) and never did we see more than 3 or 4 tables occupied. We were there once during a sea day for lunch for a special wine lunch, We had 10 involved. Saw one other table occupied. Does it really make sense to continue to staff it?

Please view my lemon “problem” in the context of my entire post. It was clearly an exceptional issue on a overwhelmingly wonderful experience.

The problem was not that the ship did not have lemons. The colonade and room service said they had no lemons. One morning when I was at the collonade and was told they had no lemons, I walked down to seabourn square coffee bar. ( one floor directly below collonade!!) They had lemons. I brought them back to my table. again, not a huge problem. ( unless you really want lemon in your tea). Just a surprising - albeit rare- lapse of good service.

We were told on multiple occasions in the colonade and room service “we have no lemons”. How would a “regular order” help?

Over the years, I have traveled quite a bit. You can see my cruise history in my signature below. I plan my travel carefully, whether it is a cruise, a trip to Las Vegas or any other vacation. I am an avid reader of websites like Cruise Critic, Trip Advisor (and others) to help inform me on my plans. I listen to all opinions, positive and negative. I also contribute to the discussion when I have information or opinions I feel will be of value to others. What follows are my observations and opinions regarding my recent 12 day cruise on the Quest, from New York to Montreal. It is not a full “review” nor is it a day-by-day description of everything I did, or ate or experienced. I rather have put together a list of the things that I enjoyed – kind of a “top ten list” of my experiences. And also a (shorter) list of complaints or negative observations. Hopefully some will find the information interesting or valuable. Countdown of my Top Ten experiences 10. Coffee Bar in Seabourn Square. The service here was outstanding. I have a rather specific order (low fat milk, four scoops of mocha, three shots of expresso- two regular, one decaf). I gave this order once and the rest of the trip it was remembered by the barista, with a smile and a “thank you Mr. Henry.’ I use this as one example of the service I routinely received on the trip. 9. Galley Lunch – One day the restaurant served a buffet lunch. The buffet was set up in the galley – you actually walked through the kitchen to fill up your plate. Almost any conceivable type of food was available. A huge display of lobster tails, crab legs and shrimp. Prime rib, Asian foods. A roast pig. Cheese display. Incredible desserts. Do not miss it. 8. Hosted Dinners. We were invited to three hosted dinners this cruise – once with the HR officer and one with each of the two lecturer on board. We were joined each time with other couples. It was a good way to meet other cruisers and engage in interesting conversations. 7. The lounge chairs in Seabourn Square. There are about 8 of these along the aft window and are a great location to settle in with a book or an ipod listening to music. 6. Daniel – the star of the colonnade. This guy gave us our first glass of wine during lunch on the first day and greeted us – by name – with a smile every time we were there for breakfast or lunch for the next 12 days. 5. Iyan - The wine sommelier. In general, the wines that were offered at meals were generally good. We were always offered one red or one white but could – and did – request something different. For example, we are not big fans of Pinot Gris that was offered, but we could ask and receive a chardonnay or sauvignon blanc if we preferred. But for a few dinners we decided to buy a bottle of premium wine for a special dinner. Iyan was knowledgeable and fun. He gave us good recommendations and opened and poured the wines for us and spent time telling us about the wines. And the premium wines were not tremendously marked up. Most restaurants will charge 2 to 3 times the retail price. These wines were less than twice the retail price. 4. Wine Pairing Lunch. We decided to pay for a special lunch offered one day in the dining room. It was a 6 course meal paired with 6 different wines. It was hosted by Iyan. Salmon, Fois Gras, Lobster Risotto, Beef Tenderloin, Dover Sole, Grand Marnier Parfait. The food was beautifully plated and the wines (generously poured) were outstanding. It was a special experience shared with only 5 couple other couples. It was a little pricey, although less than the average excursion (-$115 per person) but well worth it. Highly recommended. 3. Grill Dinners. Dinners in the Restaurant were consistently very good and occasionally impressively special. The colonnade was good, occasionally very good. But we had two dinners in the Grill that were as good as almost any restaurant on land. The room was attractive, the food prepared very well and the service was spot on. 2. Our Room Stewards (Patrician and Mugabe). These two were outstanding. Room serviced twice a day and all details attended. Replaced water bottles. Replaced sodas in the refrigerator. Replaced my vodka and wine when emptied. Bathroom sparkled. Always greeted us by name with smiles. 1. In general – service throughout the ship! In twelve days I can maybe identify 2 or 3 crew members who I felt was not on top of their game. Virtually every staff – whether an officer, a bartender, a waiter, or a maintenance worker in a jumpsuit - would smile and say good morning and would provide a fine service. Now – for those few things that I feel were lacking or could be improved. None of these were deal breakers, but I provide them so you don’t think I am a cheerleader ( I will not mention the Seabourn Source app since I started a separate post about that.) 1. Wifi – The free wifi is barely serviceable. There were times it just did not work. After a couple of days I splurged for the “streaming wifi” at $20 per day. It was somewhat better – when it worked. But about 30 percent of the time it was not functioning. Eventually I was given a refund. This is something all cruise lines will need to figure out. 2. TV. Why is there no US based sports channel? I was onboard during the football season and the baseball playoffs and there was no way to watch any of it. But three stations were dedicated to European sports networks 3. Breakfast service it the colonnade. Despite being a buffet, you still rely on staff for ordered items and bring juice, coffee or tea. And this was painfully slow – I mean 20 -30 minutes for a pot of tea or an omelet. It seems so disorganized and very frustrating. 4. And speaking of tea, why can’t a cruise ship provide lemon for hot tea? Occasionally you got it, but half the time you might get a slice of lime and often we were told that no lemon was available. This was a problem in the colonnade and room service. But somehow, it was never a problem in the coffee bar or in a bar. We started bring our own lemons from the coffee bar to breakfast. 5. Snacks. This might sound weird with so much food available breakfast, lunch and dinner. But wouldn’t it be nice to have a slice of pizza available at 4 in the afternoon or 10 o’clock at night? Or maybe a display of cheese and crackers or pretzels or popcorn somewhere virtually 24/7? I don’t want to call room service. Again, these “complaints” are really very minor. None of them would keep me from booking Seabourn again or recommending Seabourn to someone else. If anyone has any comments or questions, I will be happy to respond

Interesting. I just got off 12 days on the Quest and had absolutely no flyers in my cabin for the so or the boutique. As for the need for reminders? That is just silly.

I am aboard the Quest now. As per my signature I have a pretty broad set of experiences. I have to disagree. “ quite a bit of unrest”. Not really. An occasional hiccup but wonderful staff, exceptional food and beet personalized service “ high level of dissatisfaction “. Check out the posts and you may find many stem from a very few people. And the positives far outnumber the negatives dining room? Had breakfast one day ( not a sea day). And lunch was open yesterday ( sea day? Pulled into port at 1:30)