Seabourn Odyssey Transatlantic, December 7, 2016

[rafinmd]

Thank you Margaret and Jacqui. I think there will be another familiar event late in the voyage.

 

After my half hour walk on deck 9 I went into the Observation Bar at 6 and the coffee was ready with the steward just finishing setup. When I returned after 7 for refill a man was in the hallway wondering if it was just his cabin or everyone’s toilets were not flushing. It sounds like someone still must not be getting the message about what to flush.

 

Sunrise was about 7:30, again with clouds partially obstructing. The morning program was a cooking demonstration by Executive Chef de Cuisine Tomasz Borucki. I don’t usually go to those but had heard he was a bit of a comedian. He prepared deserts with quite a humorous touch, at one point claiming he would make sorbet by spraying the bottom of the pan with a CO2 fire extinguisher. It seemed dangerous that he recruited a guest to hold the bowl while he sprayed it but at the last moment he claimed a broken fire extinguisher and didn’t do so.

 

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There was nothing new in Captain Bathgate’s noon update; we are still doing 13 kt and the nearest land is still Bermuda. He concluded his update with a poem, Christmas at Sea by Robert Louis Stevenson: https://www.poets.org/poetsorg/poem/christmas-sea

 

Fifty shades of gray hair had another fair day at trivia, still in 3rd place but a few points further behind the leader. The afternoon Conversation was Phil Bye speaking on Desert Storm. Afternoon tea in the Observation Bar continues to be very nice. There was a picture perfect sunset just after 6.

 

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Jason Ridgway had a pre-dinner performance in the Grand Salon of music appropriate for a transatlantic crossing, ending with Stars and Stripes Forever. Dinner was hosted by Molly from the Seabourn Singers and Dancers. Most of the table went for the Duck A L’orange while I tried the New York Steak and the pineapple upside down cake.

 

Kaitlyn Carr had a repeat performance in the Grand Salon; it was a little too late for me. I’ll take my parting shot from the daily news summary. I was rather shocked to see the death of Alan Thicke. He seemed awfully young to leave us, I have heard him quite recently doing radio spots, and his death was just a total surprise. Rest in Peace, Alan.

 

Roy

[rafinmd]

After my half hour walk on deck 9 I was in the Observation Bar at 5:55 with no sign of coffee. The steward showed up a couple minutes after 6, apologizing for being late (he’s a real saint, the published time is 6:15). The weather has taken a slight downward turn, nothing drastic but we did have a couple of brief showers during the day. Official sunrise was a few minutes before 8 but with the clouds on the horizon I didn’t see it until I was in the Colonnade for breakfast 15 minutes later.

 

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There were again “Conversations” at 11 and 2:15. The morning one was Anthony Cooke with “Sailing to a new life”, a look at the less luxurious side of ocean travel, especially the migrations after WW2 largely away from war ravaged England and Europe.

 

It was a tough day for Fifty Shades of Gray Hair, falling from 3rd in the standings to 4th. Captain Bathgate presented one series of questions.

 

The afternoon Conversation was Paul Deegan with “Islands, Tribes, and Water Horses” with extensive footage on the Galapagos. That was followed by a program of Christmas music on the

pool deck and (for me) afternoon tea. So far the ship has not been decorated for the Holidays.

 

https://getawaysfrom21044.files.wordpress.com/2016/12/christmas1.jpg

 

The Seabourn Singers and Dancers had a pre-dinner show, Irish Soul. I opted for this evening to have dinner at the Patio Grill. The ribeye was excellent but way too huge. The listed desert options did not suit me; it didn’t look like it from the menu but the ice cream bar was open and that hit the spot perfectly. Fortunately, the returned to what we have had for most of the cruise, a lovely night on the deck. I was actually seated under the walkway above the pool so the weather would have been a minimal issue.

 

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When at sea I normally use my own laptop for the internet. A report came today that I needed to print and review. I found the computers in Seabourn Square easy to work with and the printing apparently free.

 

We gained another hour overnight to be just one hour away from Eastern Time. The show after dinner was the Liars Club. The contestants were Assistant CD Ross, Singer Andrea, Rikki Jay, and John Lenahan. It still turned out to be a bit late for me and I dozed through most of it.

 

https://getawaysfrom21044.files.wordpress.com/2016/12/liars.jpg

 

As a parting shot it looks like the Northeast is getting it’s first real dose of winter. Stay warm and safe.

 

Roy

[Ithaca]

Thanks, Roy, from Syracuse, NY, which, together with Buffalo, are Queen and King of the snow capitals of New York state. I am following your post with great interest, and some understandable envy. Thanks for your kind words.

[rafinmd]

Thanks, Ithaca. I'm a bit curious. Is it a coincidence or did I mention somewhere growing up in (North) Syracuse?

 

It was a bit cloudy for my morning walk and the seas had come up so I mostly staggered around deck 9 before heading to the Observation Bar for Coffee. We had one of the earliest sunrises of the voyage although with the clouds the sun actually appeared about 15 minutes later. While the seas remained a bit busy the weather returned to the very pleasant.

 

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Phil Bye started “Conversations” off with a “Shock and Awe”, his personal experiences in the second Gulf war and some followup. At noon Captain Bathgate reported our nearest land was now Bahamas rather than Bermuda. We will be there about 4PM Sunday. Fifty Shades of Gray Hair had another rough day although we are not quite as far in the hole as thought; there was a mistake in the leaders’ score in Friday’s reports.

 

It was a perfect day for lunch at the Patio Grill.

 

The afternoon Conversation was Anthony Cooke with “Famous People, Famous Ships” looking at private yachts. Much of the afternoon involved the start of packing.

 

There were 2 shows. The pre-dinner show was DavidE with his Tribute to Nat King Cole.

 

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Dinner on the final Formal night got off to an awkward start. At the entrance I had agreed to share a table and was seated at a 6-top. Fifteen minutes later I was still by myself and nobody else was coming into the dining room. The Maitre’d moved me to a small table for a fresh start. I went tonight for the Rack of Lamb and the Strawberry Frozen Yogurt. I was finished about 9.

 

https://getawaysfrom21044.files.wordpress.com/2016/12/dishes17.jpg

 

The late show was comedian Rikki Jay. We gained our final hour overnight to return to US Eastern time.

 

https://getawaysfrom21044.files.wordpress.com/2016/12/jay.jpg

 

As a parting shot, sometimes being a crew member must take a really thick skin.. This morning a man at the next table was complaining about waiting a half hour for his dish–less than 15 minutes after the Colonnade opened.

 

Roy

[Happily@Sea]

Roy - How many are in your trivia group? I can't believe this long trip is almost over. I'm guessing you'll be in too early tomorrow for me to see sail-in, I will be travelling during sailaway time. I will get to see your temporary home in port though.

Edited December 18, 2016 by Happily@Sea

[kazu]

I can't believe your voyage is nearly over. :(

 

It has been so much fun following along with you.

[markham]

So 15 minutes - or most probably less - turned into 30? Some might say that time is elastic. This punter wouldn't know any better if the maitre d' time stamped the original breakfast order and showed it to him upon delivery of the scrambled eggs with spam.

 

Happy and healthy sailing!

[Mr Luxury]

Roy,I think the complainer in the Colonnade should get a watch for Christmas.perhaps the staff can have a collection and get him one

 

 

Sent from my iPad using Forums

[rafinmd]

Thank you Kazu, markham, and Mr. Luxury.

 

Nothing terribly unusual about the morning. I took my walk on deck 5 and while I watched for a sunrise it was too cloudy. I mostly worked on packing until the first “Conversation” at 11, Paul Deegan with “Frozen: The Ancient Path to a Himalayan Kingdom”.

 

The final team trivia was not kind to Fifty shades of Gray Hair. We ended up just above the middle of the pack. Each player on all 11 teams was given visors and pens and the winners also got tote bags.

 

The 2:15 Conversation was Phil Bey on his travels with Queen Elizabeth II. That was closely followed by a boat building competition in the main pool. This is apparently done just on transatlantics; not sure if it is just the Westbound or not. There were about a dozen boats of widely varying sizes and designs, all but one of which floated reasonably. Along with an overall winner there were several categories. The judges were 2 of the entertainers and the Security officer. We were almost close enough to the Bahamas to see land as the launching ended.

 

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From 4 to 6 it was more packing along with watching my favorite non-Crystal ship sail from Port Everglades on a Holiday cruise. A Farewell “wave” was held on the pool deck at 6 with Amber and the Band providing music and culminating with a massing of the ships crew around deck 9.

 

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https://getawaysfrom21044.files.wordpress.com/2016/12/theband.jpg

 

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Dinner was hosted by Kaitlyn Carr and Rikki Jay. The final evening I went for 2 of the classics, the chicken consume and chicken breast, along with Mint Chocolate Chip Ice Cream. Packing was completed just at 11.

 

I’ll take my parting shot from today’s worship service. Not to pass my beliefs off on others I’ll just say that I do like the thought, which would be appropriate for an interfaith service as well as an interdenominational one: Religion is a candle inside a multi-colored lantern. Everyone looks through a particular color, but the candle is always there.”

 

Roy

[rafinmd]

My final morning on the Odyssey came with it’s highs and lows. I was out on deck 5 about 5:10 and walked until we were in the harbor.

 

https://getawaysfrom21044.files.wordpress.com/2016/12/arrival1.jpg

 

I think we were originally slated for terminal 4 but we actually backed into terminal 21. A white pickup truck on the dock indicated the line handlers were ready for our arrival.

 

https://getawaysfrom21044.files.wordpress.com/2016/12/linehandlers.jpg

 

The disembarkation information had indicated “Breakfast 7-9 in the Colonnade”. It said nothing about coffee and going up to the Observation Lounge about 6:10 was greeted by a totally blank space, no trace of the steward who had been so faithful during the crossing. Going down to Seabourn Square there was already a long coffee line at 6:15. I decided to wait until breakfast.

 

https://getawaysfrom21044.files.wordpress.com/2016/12/coffeeline.jpg

 

Once 7 came breakfast was not the same. I sat down at a table with no waiters scurrying around. A crew member asked about drinks and I inquired about the possibility of an omelet. He checked and reported that much of the crew was still undergoing immigration checks. Also unexpected was that the buffet serving dishes were turned around so we could not help ourselves.

 

We were supposed to be out of our suites by 8. As I left for the club the bow camera showed the 17th street bridge on it’s hourly opening. My pink 4 tags had an 8:15 estimated departure availability but my car reservation was at 10 so I was in no rush. I picked up my stuff and left at 8:30. Terminal 21 is clearly designed for more than 450 people and the luggage was well spread out. Mine was at the far end of the hall, closest to customs.

 

There are now 3 lines, a mobile passport lane, a general lane, and a Global Entry lane. The general lane had a line of perhaps 20 people, barely making a dent in the waiting space, but I headed for the Global Entry Line. My NEXUS card was readily accepted (I was asked about the card but don’t think I actually had to show it), and there was one person ahead of me in the line. I was through the process and in a taxi at 8:45.

 

I will spend most of the next week in the Orlando area but stopped short for a couple of days in Lake Wales. One of my favorite Florida spots is Bok Tower Gardens and I can see the tower from the Hampton Inn parking lot. In the evening I watched the Odyssey head out to sea.

 

https://getawaysfrom21044.files.wordpress.com/2016/12/adieu.jpg

 

As a parting shot, this will conclude my regular posting on Cruise Critic. Much of the next week will be family time but there will be a few reports at http://getawaysfrom21044.wordpress.com.

 

Roy

[Keith1010]

Roy, I enjoyed experiencing your voyage with Seabourn and your prior one with Cunard through your own eyes, commentary and photos. Welcome back to the USA. It's been unusually cold where we live and winter doesn't officially start until tomorrow. :eek:

 

Anne Marie and I are looking forward to our upcoming cruise and hope to enjoy warmer weather in comparison to what we have experienced the last couple of days.

 

Roy......enjoy your time in Florida, safe travels and Merry Christmas.

 

Keith

[ricki]

Thank you, Roy, for taking us along on all your journeys. Enjoy your time in Florida, and don't be in too much of a hurry to return to the very cold mid-Atlantic states.

 

Merry Christmas!

 

Ricki

[kazu]

Thank you so much for taking the time to share with us Roy:)

 

Really enjoyed following along.

 

Have a fabulous time with family and friends in Florida.

 

And all the best in the New Year to you :)

[lincslady]

Roy - your experience on disembarkation was nothing like ours usually are, but ours are in Europe. There is always room service for coffee or breakfast, and normally although the Colonnade is full there is the normal service for food etc. Certainly not the buffet dishes being the wrong way round. Could this be connected to the fact that you had sailed from Europe and were disembarking in the USA? Probably a lot of immigration, customs, and perhaps health and hygiene questioning?

 

Thank you for the reports and photos. Do you think you will cruise with Seabourn again?

[secoma4]

We disembarked from the Encore in Dubai this morning. The Colonnade offered all the usual dishes this morning, table service was offered and All the usual staff were there, so that we could say our goodbyes. The Square coffee service was in full swing as well. Very easy to get through immigration and pick up our luggage. I understand that there was to be a full ship face to face for both staff and passengers here in Dubai.

[SKP946]

Quote"The disembarkation information had indicated “Breakfast 7-9 in the Colonnade”. It said nothing about coffee and going up to the Observation Lounge about 6:10 was greeted by a totally blank space, no trace of the steward who had been so faithful during the crossing. Going down to Seabourn Square there was already a long coffee line at 6:15. I decided to wait until breakfast."

 

It must be U.S.A. regulations, we had exactly the same situation when we sailed into Boston on Quest last September.

[rafinmd]

Thank you Jacqui, Keith, lincslady, secoma4, and skp496. This is longer than I expect and there will be 2 or more parts. lincslady, I'll hold your question for my final installment.

 

For the last 5 years I’ve been saying 2 things: My cruise line of choice, hands down, is Crystal and (2) my favorite non-Crystal ship, hands down, is the Prinsendam. I’ll do a bit of a comparison of those ships with the ones I’ve recently sailed, Seabourn Odyssey and Queen Elizabeth. While QM2 does function as a cruise ship, I look at it mostly as a ship uniquely suited to crossing the North Atlantic.

 

Before going into details I’ll revisit my 2 long held beliefs. (1) Favorite cruise line, hands down, no change there. (2) Favorite non-Crystal ship, the Prinsendam. I’m retiring the second hands down. Prinsendam, overall, slightly edges out the Odyssey as my favorite non-Crystal ship.

 

1, Check-in. I claim to follow a religious leader who said “as you’ve treated the least of these, you’ve treated me”, and I try to live that way. Tied for 3rd are HAL and Cunard. On each I’ve encountered long lines at the terminal checking in far more people than they have the staff to handle. It’s not entirely a matter of ship size; I’ve encountered these lines on Prinsendam which carries fewer passengers than either Crystal Ship. I now have the record with both companies to get priority checkin, but it should be easy for everybody. Tied for first are Seabourn (based on my very small sample) and Crystal. In each case we typically have security screening in the terminal but then go directly to the ship where full checkin is done by ship’s crew in one of the public rooms and there has always been ample staff allocated to the task to make it painless for everybody.

 

2. Room turnaround:

(4) Odyssey - Rooms are not available until 2PM on embarkation day. At least some of the hallways leading to the rooms appeared to be closed off. We were requested to vacate our rooms by 8AM on the last day. There was a place to leave bags until the rooms are ready. Also, the only option for the first and last meals was the Colonnade.

(3) Crystal - Rooms not available until2PM but it is easy to drop a bag off in the room before that. Disembarkation instructions said nothing about a need to vacate room before leaving the ship. On embarkation day the Dining Room is open until 1:30 and the Trident Grill all afternoon, but the Lido buffet is closed. On disembarkation morning all dining venues are available.

(2) Cunard - Rooms are available on embarkation but must be vacated by 8:30 when leaving. Only the Lido buffet is open on embarkation day (except for Grills) but both the Lido and Restaurant are open the final morning.

(1) Prinsendam - Rooms are ready on boarding and may be occupied until we leave the ship the last day. Both the dining room and buffet are open for both the first lunch and the final breakfast If HAL can do this why can’t others.

 

3. Walking

(5) Odyssey - just a short section around the aft of the ship, falling short even of the 15,000 ton Wind Surf.

(4) Queen Elizabeth - Very nice but a little below the others because the view is obstructed going around the bow and it’s pretty narrow in some spots.

(3) Prinsendam - A pure delight

(2) A step up from the Prinsendam in elegance

I’ve exhausted my 4 ships without a number one. I’ll break my own rules; number 1 is Queen Mary 2. A step below Crystal’s decks in elegance it more than makes up for that small shortcoming in practicality. QM2 provides far more suitability in a much greater variety of weather conditions with a bulkhead around the bow that can be closed off in high winds to make moving around it easy, high enough above the water to be less suseptable to spray and with double doors with an air lock which makes access much easier in windy conditions. A deck truly appropriate for a North Atlantic Ocean Liner.

 

4. Dining

 

(4). Odyssey - Very nice but two for me critical deficiencies. First, no choice of fixed dining. Also, way too late for my liking. It starts in the morning with only room service for coffee before 6, and nothing more than pastries before 8 most days. Dinner is the real challenge and several factors conspired to make it very undesirable for me. Starting out late, I found the dinners also very long, typically 90 minutes when dining alone and 150 minutes at a hosted table. Then follows a late show. I found it especially awkward to be at a table hosted by an entertainer and say “no, I missed your show”. Finally, a little administrative item on the Odyssey. Notice of time changes was very inconsistent. I pretty much said I would watch the late shows on nights where we gained an hour. One night it was in the Herald, a second the Captain mentioned it at noon. On the other 3 I saw nothing until there was a card on my bed after dinner. One night my hosted dinner ended about 9:40. I wanted to watch at least a little bit of the show and went right up to the Grand Salon, leaving by 10. When I got to my room, the card was on my bed and I returned for the rest of the show.

(3) Queen Elizabeth - Overall, very nice. A little bit less extensive menu than the other ships but still plenty of good choices. Could be downgraded slightly because the assignment of fixed vs flexible depends on cabin grade but Britannia Club is less expensive than any of the others than HAL.

(2) Prinsendam - High quality food and attentive service.

(1) Crystal - All the above plus the ability to order anything off menu with a day’s notice (I believe also on Seabourn). The Maitre’d is especially good at matching people up, will make changes if the very rare instances where things do not work out, and the staff is generally very quick to intervene when things go wrong.

 

Roy

[Suite Travels]

Dan and I do not do hosted tables and we are basic eaters on Crystal and in and out within 90 minutes which is reasonable for two and we do DBR on Crystal. I don't think this will be an issue for us on Seabourn.

 

We are late risers if you consider 8AM late and we only want coffee. I go to the gym around 9ish and then go shower and get dressed for lunch or other activities/lectures. What I just said is only about sea day's in port we may have an early tour which may require us to get up earlier.

 

We love to socialize and meet new people and perhaps join them for dinner which can be problematic on Crystal at the last minute because of the fixed dining and DBR. Speciality venues are very difficult to add another party at the last minute.

 

Crystal does have the advantage of having the best singers and dancers at sea. Well, we have seen them all and we now prefer a nice piano bar like the Avenue on Crystal which Seabourn seems to offer as well.

 

With all that I said it appears that Crystal and Seabourn fit our bill and looking forward next year to to being on the Encore. The videos we have seen are beautiful as well as the positive feedback.

[Isklaar]

The quote function won't work for me this time, but for anyone new to Seabourn who may be wondering about dining options, I just wanted to make a couple of points about Roy's dining experience on Odyssey, reference this part of the post :

 

"4. Dining

 

(4). Odyssey - Very nice but two for me critical deficiencies. First, no choice of fixed dining. Also, way too late for my liking. It starts in the morning with only room service for coffee before 6, and nothing more than pastries before 8 most days. "

 

The Colonnade opens on port days at 7am. I know this was a crossing with many sea days. It usually opens 7.30am to 10.30 am on sea days, I don't remember it ever opening at 8am on any of my cruises. I have many nights on SB but I haven't done a transatlantic so Roy's experience may well be typical for this type of cruise but it's not the norm on most other itineraries.

 

Another point about The Colonnade, on Roy's cruise the MDR apparently wasn't open for breakfast on disembarkation day. This is very unusual IME, every SB cruise I've taken I've been able to have breakfast in the MDR on the last morning. Disembarkation day breakfast in The Colonnade can be a something of a zoo so I always prefer the MDR on that day. I'm going to take a guess that preparations were being made for a possible inspection on arrival, but it's unfortunate that those preparations take precedence over guest services.

 

I've enjoyed reading your posts Roy, and definitely agree with you about notification of time changes on SB. It's always a nice 'surprise' to return to the room after dinner and become aware of losing/gaining an hour's sleep!:rolleyes: I wish there is a little more notice given.

Edited December 22, 2016 by Isklaar

[Suite Travels]

Actually we had an inspection on Crystal a few years ago during embarkation and the lounges and food service was suspended until they finished. It was just over an hour before everything was back to full operation. Sometimes these inspections are unannounced to the crew which happened on SS and got them into some trouble.

[lincslady]

Roy - your comparison reviews so far just reinforce to me the fact that we are all so different in our (awful word) lifestyles, even though people generally manage to get on well on board ship. Personally, I really enjoy morning tea in bed about 7 a.m., and never want to have breakfast before about 8 or 8.30. I have no need (though I am sure I should) for a good area for walking on board. I like to dine fairly early, but 7 is plenty early enough, and as we usually arrive fairly early and like a table for two we do not need to spend all evening at the dinner table. But occasionally like to share, or accept a hosted table. We also very much prefer a ship with fewer than about 500 passengers.

 

From this, it seems pretty obvious that we would not enjoy Crystal or Cunard as much as Seabourn. CC does work very well to help people to find out where they can find out the things which matter to them on a cruise, when good souls like you are prepared to spend time describing the details of days on board.

[oregon50]

Good post! I could not begin to notice some items that most hold so dear. Coffee/tea on top of the list. Dining times and what happens in MDR of any ship close behind on the list.

Edited December 22, 2016 by oregon50

[rafinmd]

Thank you all.

 

(V) Public rooms

 

(4) Prinsendam - 3 Very nice rooms, Showroom, Crow’s Nest, and Wajang Theater but only one of the rooms is large enough to support a big event.

(3) Odyssey - The Club and Grand Salon are both very nice, and the Observation Bar is great but a bit on the small side. It looks like the Grand Salon was the only venue suitable for movies, and was very heavily committed. The Grand Salon also is a bit awkward due to the many columns and many obstructed view seats.

(2) Queen Elizabeth - Again 3 main rooms. The Royal Court Theater is one of the best theaters I’ve seen. Queens Room is great for Tea and Social Functions, and can double as a movie theater. Commodore Club is big enough to be a real gathering place

(1) Crystal - 4 superb rooms, a great theater, really 2 rooms suitable for social events, Starlight/Stardust Club, and the lovely and large Palm Court with spectacular views. Finally, the Hollywood theater, a great place for movies, lectures, and other events. I prefer the Symphony’s Starlite Club to Serenity’s Stardust but love each. The only other ship I remember with 4 such rooms is QM2 adding Illuminations, the Planetarium/Movie house, and lecture hall.

 

VI Cabins

 

(4) Queen Elizabeth - Except for the Grills, Cunard cabins have only a shower.

(3) On the smallish side, but well laid out. From my point of view the biggest weakness is limited computer work space.

(2) Prinsendam - Very nice. I think it had the nicest facilities on any ship I’ve been on for using my computers.

(1) Odyssey - Big, separate tub and shower, and a walkin closet. The nicest of my cabins but I’d give it up in a heartbeat for a slice of a Hollywood Theater or real promenade Deck.

 

VII - Service

 

(4) Queen Elizabeth - Very good service. The number 4 ranking is attributable to what the other 3 ships offer rather than any QE shortcomings.

(3) Prinsendam - Superb service, more personal than any I’ve seen on any other mainstream ship.

(1) and (2) - Crystal and Odyssey - While nothing human can be perfect, about as close as humanly possible. I used to consider being recognized by name as important until I sailed the other “S” luxury line where everybody knew my name but it stopped at that; while I had a name the crew seemed to have no concept of my individual needs or preferences. I got a bit more name recognition on Odyssey while staff recognition of my preferences was probably a bit higher on Crystal. Overall each were equally sublime.

 

VIII - Enrichment

(4) Prinsendam, generally a significant HAL weakness. I’ve seen a speaker or two on very long or special cruises but very little in general. The one bright spot in that area is what they call the “Location Guide”, a person who provides information on the areas we sail and the ports; while a member of the permanent crew his advice is very independent.

(3) Odyssey - 3 good speakers for our 10 sea days, one or 2 “Conversations” per sea day. The talks were apparently broadcast live on our suite TV, but I never saw any indication of a rebroadcast if a talk was missed.

(2) Cunard - More presenters and usually 3 per sea day. If a talk was missed, the day’s programs were broadcast over cabin TV later in the day on a rotating basis.

(1) Crystal - The variety of programs and speakers was actually quite similar to Cunard but Crystal added 3 enhancements. There is usually time allotted in each talk for audience feedback and participation. The talks are both broadcast live and repeated on TV each on a separate channel so you don’t need to wait through 2 other talks for yours to come up. Finally, it’s not on every voyage but Crystal often offers “Ocean Views”, panel discussions of topics from 2 or 3 of the onboard presenters.

 

IX Afternoon Tea

(4) Prinsendam - Very nice but it is done in the dining room and feels a bit morel like an opportunity for another meal and less as a social occasion.

(3) Odyssey - In the lovely Observation Bar. Music was always a pianist, and I downgraded it slightly one day because it appeared to be a fashion show by the shops.

(2) Queen Elizabeth - Absolutely first class with varied musical accompaniment including a harp, string quartet, and piano.

(1) For me, an upgrade over QE because while the Queens Room is lovely, Palm Court is equally elegant and adds sweeping ocean views.

 

Every ship has it’s good and not so good points. I start with Crystal as my measuring stick. I have several “go to” cruise lines, not necessarily because they are the best, but all of them offer something I do not get on Crystal. Some are far less than Crystal like NCL where the Studio cabin has some unique pluses or Royal Caribbean with by far the best itineraries out of Baltimore. I will talk more about HAL’s pluses on the HAL forum but there are several. Cunard’s main strength for me is the quality and frequency of transatlantic sailings.

 

Seabourn has fantastic service and a very high quality cruise experience. However for me there were only a few very minor areas where I said “I like this but I don’t get it on Crystal”. Perhaps the biggest one was the TV channel with a bridge view on a background of silence except for ship’s announcements. The 2 weaknesses conspire to make it difficult to find a Seabourn cruise that’s really attractive. A westbound transatlantic has enough time changes to somewhat mitigate the late dining schedule but makes the lack of a decent place to walk more of a problem. A port intensive cruise would allow walking on shore but heighten the impact of the late dining schedule. I probably will sail Seabourn again but it will likely be some time from now.

 

Roy

[Isklaar]

Actually we had an inspection on Crystal a few years ago during embarkation and the lounges and food service was suspended until they finished. It was just over an hour before everything was back to full operation. Sometimes these inspections are unannounced to the crew which happened on SS and got them into some trouble.

 

I've experienced that also, but I was referring to this comment by Roy :

 

"Also, the only option for the first and last meals was the Colonnade. "

 

My point being that the 'last meal' would have been breakfast and the MDR is usually open for breakfast on disembarkation days.

The only reason I can think it would have been closed is in preparation for an inspection. ie I suspect the inspection wasn't actually taking place at that time otherwise as you say food service overall would be suspended.

If it wasn't actually taking place at that time then I think SB allowed service to slip on this one if the closed MDR in order to get ready for an inspection. On the other hand if the inspection was actually taking place during breakfast service, I fully understand SB's position.

 

 

Hope this makes sense, I'm struggling to multi-quote! At least I can single quote again today.

[Isklaar]

Can't single quote again now! Good grief.

 

About the enrichment talks, they are recorded so they can be viewed on your in-suite tv at a later date. It's on the Entertainment menu on the tv but it does take some exploration of that menu to find them.

 

Thanks again Roy, it's always good to read a new Seabourn guest's thoughts.