Odyssey drydock

[shefinch]

Am I glad you posted, Shelagh, I was beginning to get worried.

Sorry Henry - will be in touch shortly!

Shelagh

[JaneBP]

In Civitavecchia early arrivals were assembled in the cruise terminal with the Seabourn staff keeping us informed. Then, we were processed thru security en mass and escorted to the King Olav Lounge to register. Perhaps because the Odyssey is larger some early boarding is allowed?

[claudiaYVR]

We have just returned from a wonderful maiden Caribbean cruise on the Odyssey and have yet to post a full review but I thought I would comment on some of the issues reflected on this post. First, the noise and second, the service.

 

Let me start by saying that the Odyssey is a very beautiful ship but it seems like the finishes were done in such a rushed way that it does indeed look ready for drydock! some examples of this are the buckling or bubbling wood veneer on so many of the panels and also the carpet on the cabins which seems to be coming off already in many spots.

 

We were in cabin 604 (very forward which is a first for us and this may have played a part). The first night out of Fort Lauderdale we could not sleep a wink due to the noise. There were a variety of noises (vibration, rattling, creaking, etc.) all through the night. It seemed as though everything was loose in and around the cabin. The seas were rough but not extraordinarily so and I cannot recall the speed but would assume around 19 knots. I have never experienced such noise on any other ships but the Odyssey is the smallest ship we've been on. The noise abated dramatically from the second night onward, only to get as bad (and worse!) on the last night onboard. Roughish seas again and cruising speed being a factor? We know of one couple who demanded to be moved to a different cabin after the first night and they got moved.

 

Service. My first impression was that service was spotty and rather impersonal. Fortunately this impression was overridden in a matter of days by a marked improvement. After a short two days on board we were being greeted by name on a regular basis and we never suffered any undue delays or misses at any of the dining venues.

 

There was one place on the ship where I believe some adjustments are needed in terms of service and that is Seabourn Square. It is a great place and it fast becomes a favorite spot for many. James, Samuel and Savio are great bartenders and baristas. No complaints there. The problem is, nobody seems to be picking up with any regularity and the place at times seems littered with dirty cups, glasses, dishes, etc. It is not a huge deal but it is also not something you expect on a luxury ship.

 

Would we sail on the Odyssey again? absolutely yes. It will be a matter of finding the right itinerary. I also belive that many of the current issues are not being ignored and will be ironed out in time.

[Roxburgh]

I was on the same cruise as claudia and would like to add my comments:

 

We have just returned from a wonderful maiden Caribbean cruise on the Odyssey and have yet to post a full review but I thought I would comment on some of the issues reflected on this post. First, the noise and second, the service.

 

Let me start by saying that the Odyssey is a very beautiful ship but it seems like the finishes were done in such a rushed way that it does indeed look ready for drydock! some examples of this are the buckling or bubbling wood veneer on so many of the panels and also the carpet on the cabins which seems to be coming off already in many spots.

 

I also noticed the bubbling wood veneer. Did not notice any problems with the carpet however. Maybe we were lucky in our suite (712).

 

We were in cabin 604 (very forward which is a first for us and this may have played a part). The first night out of Fort Lauderdale we could not sleep a wink due to the noise. There were a variety of noises (vibration, rattling, creaking, etc.) all through the night. It seemed as though everything was loose in and around the cabin. The seas were rough but not extraordinarily so and I cannot recall the speed but would assume around 19 knots. I have never experienced such noise on any other ships but the Odyssey is the smallest ship we've been on. The noise abated dramatically from the second night onward, only to get as bad (and worse!) on the last night onboard. Roughish seas again and cruising speed being a factor? We know of one couple who demanded to be moved to a different cabin after the first night and they got moved.

 

Agree with the noise. I also noticed a decent amount of vibration and one night it felt as if we were hitting speed bumps. I was at a table hosted by the Chief Engineer on the last formal night and he told us there was damage to one of the props which explains the vibrations. He said they were going to send divers down to try to grind out the damage.

 

He also told us that Sojourn is much further advanced than was Odyssey at the same stage of her build and that many of the lesons learned on Odyssey are being applied to Sojourn.

 

Service. My first impression was that service was spotty and rather impersonal. Fortunately this impression was overridden in a matter of days by a marked improvement. After a short two days on board we were being greeted by name on a regular basis and we never suffered any undue delays or misses at any of the dining venues.

 

There was one place on the ship where I believe some adjustments are needed in terms of service and that is Seabourn Square. It is a great place and it fast becomes a favorite spot for many. James, Samuel and Savio are great bartenders and baristas. No complaints there. The problem is, nobody seems to be picking up with any regularity and the place at times seems littered with dirty cups, glasses, dishes, etc. It is not a huge deal but it is also not something you expect on a luxury ship.

 

Personally, I thought the service was excellent and on a par with our previous experience on Pride. It was nice that some of the staff had come from Pride and remembered us very quickly. This was particularly true of Kristen who remembered us even before we had boarded, David E., Ian and Jenny (these latter two probably because we spent so much time at the bar).

 

We used Seabourn Square very little so cannot really comment on that.

 

Would we sail on the Odyssey again? absolutely yes. It will be a matter of finding the right itinerary. I also belive that many of the current issues are not being ignored and will be ironed out in time.

 

We are already in the process of booking Sojourn for next October so that is probably the best endorsement I can give.

 

There were many great things about Odyssey. The Veranda suites are excellent. We loved to have breakfast set up on our Veranda and it was great just to sit/stand out there and watch the world go by. I also liked having the separate shower in our suite and there seemed to be more closet storage available than on Pride.

 

There is a tremendous amount of deck space available. In addition to the main pool area, there is another pool with two hot tubs on deck 5 behind the club. That is where we tended to go because it was much less crowded (sometimes you got a little soot from the smokestacks but it was no big deal). There is also a large sunbathing area at the front of the ship on deck 11 equiped with Balinese sun beds. Also on deck 11 there are two putting greens and shuffleboard. There is also the hot tub in the bows where there are sunbeds too. You can also sit out on deck 7 behind Seabourn Square.

 

The SPA was excellent and the gym far better than on the sisters with nice modern equipment. I could actually use the treadmills which I could not on Pride because the ceiling was too low.

 

The food was better than on Pride largely because of the addition of the Grill. Jerry's pizza was excellent and we ate that most lunches. Other than that, the food was as good and the service in the restaurants as good. We were still able to play the game of getting to our table without being intercepted and having our plate carried for us. Next cruise we will work out a points system to see who can evade the watching waiters the most :D

 

One criticism is that they did not give enough deck space around the sky bar. I would have extended that area further out giving more shaded area around the Grill and more seats and space around the Sky bar.

 

The entertainment was also very good and very professional ... especially the comedians. However, I would have liked a bit more spontaneity as well as more from the cruise director John and his assistants David E. and Marla all of whom are very talented in their own right. That said, Liars Club was a riot :D:D

 

So, yes, Odyssey is a beautiful ship. But she is a ship and not a yacht which, IMHO, the sisters are. I admit I liked the idea of being on an exclusive privae yacht rather than on a small cruise ship. But that is just me and my delusions of grandeur.

[alfa]

Hi Roxburgh and ClaudiaYVR,

 

excellent, well balanced comments on the odyssey, which happen to agree with my thoughts on the ship.

 

As an engineer, the bubbling of the wood panels really saddened me as it cheapened the shop's quality of finish.

 

You are correct in stating that these concerns are not being ignored. I received a reply to my review of the ship posted on Cruisecritic, from Seabourn, which pleased me as they are listening.

 

I hope they continue by fixing these matters of concern, which I hastened to state, will not detract me from jumping on the ship again.

 

Regards

 

Alfa