New Seabourn Cruisers - Any tips on how to prepare?

[ineffable]

Hello all - I've been lurking here for a few weeks since booking my first cruise in fifteen years. My wife and I will be on the Odyssey in September (Istanbul - Athens). It's my wife's first time cruising ever, and I want to show her how awesome cruising is, which is why I chose Seabourn after much research.

 

My questions are mainly about whether there is anything we can do since we have about 8 months until sailing. Should we book shore excursions now? Book a night or two at Restaurant 2? Also, we chose to get a guaranteed cabin (V2 - 521). Is there some chance it will get upgraded? I have heard about that happening to some and was curious.

 

Thank you all in advance and very much looking forward to sailing Seabourn.

Edited January 5, 2015 by ineffable

[lincslady]

Welcome to Seabourn on CC!

 

If you have not told your TA (who should have asked you) if you wanted to be put down for a possible 'automatic' upgrade, this could happen. Just bear in mind that there are spots on the ship you might not like so much, such as under the pool deck which can transmit noise to the suites below early morning when chairs are moved etc., and you would have to take what was offered if it was an automatic upgrade. Worth careful thought.

[Chairsin]

First of all welcome to Seabourn. I hope you and your wife enjoy it as much as we have for the last 14 years.

 

Also, just to avoid confusion you might not want to say you have a guaranteed suite -- just say you picked a specific suite. GTY suite means you have selected a category where a suite will be assigned to you shortly before you cruise.When I book my UK based TA asks if I wanted to be considered for a possible automatic upgrade. I always say no and when my booking documents are printed it states that I have declined. Your selection should also be printed on your documents. Read them closely and if it is not there call you TA and tell them your preference. As Lincslady noted there are reasons why some of us select specific suites instead of opting for a GTY or optional upgrade even though the V suites are basically identical.In my case I don't want to end up with a handicapped suite without a bathtub. I also don't want to end up with a connecting suite because the soundproofing is less than adequate, especially by the door between the suites. I had one experience on the Quest where, well, let's just say my next door neighbors had a set pre dinner activity where from our suite little was left to the imagination. Others have said they do not like suites under the pool deck but I have no direct experience with that. And do remember that if you tell your TA you would like to be on the upgrade list if they upgrade you you cannot turn it down and must accept it.

 

As to tips I would use the time to research your ports of call and see what in the area is of interest. Then you can decide if you just want to wander around the port town, take in the sights on your own and maybe have lunch on shore or you might decide to set up a private tour to go somewhere nearby or book a Seabourn tour (rarely my preference as I don't like traveling with a large group on a bus).you might want to go to the roll call on Cruise Critic and see if the cruise is there. If not start a roll call so you can connect with others on your cruise. Having done about a dozen Med cruises on Seabourn ( our favorite area to ruse though we have gone to Asia, Norway. The Baltic's and Caribbean as well) I can tell you the advantage is that the ports are usually perfect for those who want to get of the ship and wander soaking in the views and atmosphere. If you have any questions about specific ports I be happy to try to answer them.

 

My biggest suggestion for prep -- start dieting now!

 

 

 

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[Roxburgh]

I had a look at what I think is your itinerary.

 

If you have not been to Ephesus before (Kusadasi) then you definitely want to book a tour. Make sure it includes the terraced houses which are still being excavated.

 

Patmos. We walked up the hill and to the monastery. It was well worth it. If hiking is not your thing then do book a tour. The little town where the tender drops you off is pretty and nice to wander around for some shopping.

 

Mykonos. The tour to Delos is well worth it if you like ancient sites. No tour needed to just wander around Mykonos town.

 

Your other ports I have not been to.

[Shellback2014]

I like to practice sitting on my balcony while sipping a glass of wine.

[ineffable]

Lincslady and Chairsin - thanks so much for telling me about the automatic upgrade option. I think I said yes to that but perhaps I should call my TA back and ask her to just leave that particular suite reserved. (Incidentally, she did say we would get that exact suite after I requested something a bit closer to "mid ship" just in case my wife gets sea sick - not sure if there is a real difference in suite location for the purposes of stability but figured I'd try.)

 

Chairsin, really appreciate the tips on shore excursions too. We do typically prefer to wander or see what we feel like on that day so maybe we'll book a tour for one or two ports but leave it at that. Thank you. Oh, and we'll make sure to start our diets too :p

 

Roxburgh, thank you for the shore excursion thoughts. I will show this thread to my wife later so we can start thinking about what we'd like to do.

[wripro]

You do not need to reserve R2 in advance, you can do that on board. The other restaurants do not require a reservation. Since you can special order dishes 24 hours prior you might want to start thinking about what you'd like to have.

[Winner]

Welcome to Seabourn! Do post on the referral "sticky" board at the top of the page; as first-time Seabourn cruisers you are eligible for $400.00 on-board credit, as are your referrers. Extra spending money always comes in handy and may even be applied to any excursion you purchase on board.

[ab21au]

We did Istanbul to Venice and many of the ports for the leg you are doing are probably the same. The link below is to my posts at the time.

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1910832

 

A couple of tips others gave me, take a power board to charge phones etc and a night light with auto sensor, placed in the bathroom, it was great at night. Pitch back in the suite at night.

[secoma4]

Booking tours in advance is usually not necessary. If you do you have to pay at the time of booking and can't use OBC. I agree with the suggestion re an Ephesus tour and the Apartments. Seabourn sometimes include an evening event at Ephesus for all pax but this is not a tour of the site and does not provide an opportunity for that.

[Spree75]

Upgrades can happen a number of different ways. I know our first cruise on Seabourn, our TA was contacted by the company and asked whether or not we wanted a free upgrade. This was relayed to us and after I triple checked the "free" part we gladly accepted since the upgrade was from a V2 to the Wintergarden Suite... That was a wonderful way to get introduced to Seabourn.

 

As for the ports you are visiting:

 

Istanbul - If you have the option, try and stay an extra day or two in the city. The old city is amazing (Haggia Sophia, Blue Mosque, Topkapi Palace, Grand Bazaar, Spice Market) as are the palaces on the Bosporus (on either side) as well as the more modern Taksim area. We had a private guide for the 2.5 days we were in the city. As many people will say it is a very easy city to do on your own but we found it useful to have a guide.

 

Mykonos - I agree with Chairsin that the city doesn't really require a guide. Just wander around and you'll find the windmills, plenty of shopping, and cafes galore. If you are beach people there are plenty nearby that you can reach by private car, taxi, or even bus. Delos was amazing for us but you have to be interested in ruins. If you only want one set of ruins to look at then I would suggest Ephesus instead. Also be aware that there is no shade on the island and not very many places to rest. We took a ship's tour to Delos.

 

Kusadasi - Find a tour to Ephesus as Chairsin recommended that includes the Terrace Houses. You can either do a ship's tour or find one of the private companies (which is what we did). If you are religiously inclined you may want to visit the House of the Blessed Virgin. If you do this then I would highly recommended a private guide and getting off the ship and going IMMEDIATELY to beat the insane number of tour buses that head there. There should also be a complimentary concert in the evening held by Seabourn. Definitely take it, as it's amazing seeing Ephesus at night.

 

Patmos - We took this as a rest day and we only wandered around the town for an hour. The flora is beautiful on this island with azaleas and all sorts of fruit trees in every single house. A very sleepy village

 

Rhodes - The old city is very compact and convenient to the ship. We did this town without a guide and just followed our guidebook. The layout is easy to navigate and you won't get lost easily.

 

Athens - Plenty to do in the city. Hopefully you can take an extra day or two to explore. We pre-hired a taxi driver for the day and he was great getting us to and from the various sites while adding commentary between sites.

 

We didn't stop at Myrina or Santorini.

 

One other thing you may want to do before you leave is set your preferences on the Seabourn site. This includes what alcohol/sodas/water that you would like stocked in your room as well as the type of pillow.

[GLAMMAS]

Does anyone have the name of the private guide that you used in Ephesus and Rhodes?

[ab21au]

Does anyone have the name of the private guide that you used in Ephesus and Rhodes?

 

For Ephesus we booked through ToursByLocals Our guide was Ertunga Ecir. He was excellent. We booked him because we found he had many good reviews and we were very happy we did.