Seabourn Ovation Review May 2022

[thebigcruiseguy]

As an avid reader on CC, I wanted to contribute by sharing a brief review on our recent Seabourn Ovation Mediterranean itinerary.

Itinerary: Monte Carlo to Barcelona, 7 Night

 

Context: I believe context is important to any review. We have experienced 5 Mediterranean cruises over the past few years on Celebrity, Crystal and now Seabourn. Given Crystal’s recent financial demise, our bookings were sadly cancelled which caused us to explore elsewhere. We absolutely loved the Crystal experience and booked Seabourn based on the itinerary and comparable product to Seabourn.

 

Highlights: Overall, Seabourn delivers a fantastic luxury oriented experience. In terms of quality, it was indeed impressive. The staff shines, as does the physical product. We absolutely loved the boutique nature of Seabourn as most everything was effortless, high class and personalized as you would expect for this segment. Having sailed Crystal in the past, Seabourn does have some areas for improvement in our opinion including food & beverage, but it’s not enough to overshadow an otherwise very good experience. 

 

The Ship: Seabourn Ovation truly shines with its tasteful design and finishes throughout. Ovation is understated, nautical in terms of aesthetics and Seabourn has stuck with its traditional yacht like history which we really appreciated compared to some of the newer more model “hotel like” cruise ships. You will not be disappointed with the ship itself in any way. It’s small yet benefits from enough venues to the point you won’t get bored easily. Everything on board is very well laid out and easy to navigate.

 

The Staterooms (We were in a V4 Verandah): Again, Seabourn has really hit it out of the park with it’s entry level staterooms, “Suites” as they call them. Ovation benefits from an all verandah stateroom format so no room is bad. Note that Deck 5 Verandahs do not have full glass like all the others- we were on deck 6 with the normal glass verandahs which we quite enjoyed. Standard staterooms are spacious at around 300 sq. ft. and very well designed- there’s plenty of storage, walk in closets are a nice touch and the bathrooms are exquisite with dual vanities, glass showers and a separate tub! The Molton Brown amenities are great, and the stateroom attendants are AMAZING!

 

Dining/Cocktails: Ok, here’s where Seabourn needs to step things up. Again, Crystal was our reference point for luxury cruise dining. We had read mixed reviews on Seabourn dining but I was skeptical as dining experiences are so subjective. I will agree that Seabourn F&B needs improvement. Here are some specifics that we took away from our overall dining experience:

 

- The “Restaurant” venue was by far our least favorite; dinners were mediocre at best. In fact, we never had a “fantastic” meal in this venue which was very disappointing for the Seabourn brand, and quite a contrast to our main dining room experiences on Crystal. Service was friendly but not well organized. While the menus offered decent variety, the overall flavors and perceived quality of the main courses were just down right disappointing. We expected so much more from Seabourn. To have one disappointing main course would be understandable, but all 6 in our party never felt that any of our dishes were impressive. We weren’t expecting fancy for every single dish, but things appeared bland in both taste and appearance and looked more similar to what you might find on premium tier lines like Celebrity. We avoided this venue to the extent possible after 3 bad meals.

 

- Thomas Keller Grill was by far the very best dining venue on Ovation! We experienced the Grill twice during our voyage and while we understood this was the “speciality” dining experience on board, THIS is what the Restaurant should be in terms of feeling special and elevated. TK service was dynamite in every way- comparable or even better to some of the finest dining we’ve had on land. The quality of every dish was remarkable, the presentation of dishes was incredible. Seabourn should model the “specialness” of TK and try to extend this type of feel to other venues. The variety of dishes were plentiful and the quality was apparent, we LOVED TK Grill!

 

- Sushi was also a favorite for us. Lunchtime offers Bento Boxes only (minimal sushi rolls) with dishes such as Teriyaki Chicken, Gyozo or Miso Salmon- all were fantastic! Dinner time offers a wide variety of sushi only. Our only criticism was that there were no hot dishes whatsoever for dinner which we thought was a bit of a miss. For example if they offered tempura and one other hot item at dinner it would make it a more democratic venue for those who don’t appreciate Sushi. The Staff at this venue were AMAZING as well.

 

-Collenade did a really nice job for breakfast and lunchtime- we were impressed with the variety and quality of food on display.

Dinner is primarily a la carte but we found the menu to be very limited with max 3-4 mains per night. We had the lobster dinner and it was sadly very disappointing.

 

- Earth & Ocean at The Patio- we wanted to dine here our last night, however Seabourn fails to announce that this venue is closed on the last evening of the voyage as they do their closing party. We wished that Seabourn would have been more clear about closures etc. so we could better plan.

 

- Bars Overall (Observation, Casino Bar, Sky Bar, Pool Bar, TK Bar) While the bar venues were nice in terms of overall appearance, Seabourn has really dropped the ball with cocktails overall. Yes, you can get a basic martini, margarita, mixed drink etc., but speciality cocktails are very much lacking and not well publicized. Cocktail menus are hard to come by, and when they are available, the drinks just aren’t that good. For a luxury line you would expect speciality drinks to have flare, fun garnishes for example and higher end mixers. Seabourn doesn’t offer Fever Tree or other speciality tonics etc., and I really think this is a big miss. Schweppes Seabourn? Come on! How about some speciality G+T’s? Martinis with creative garnishes or appearances? Nada. Perhaps this is in line with their overall more understated luxury vibe but beverages were very underwhelming. It was also difficult to know what they had in terms of variety of spirits as they only would place a limited number of “included” spirits out. Included wines overall were quite nice and they offered a good variety but again it was confusing without a published menu to know what was on offer by glass, and typically they would only show you one option as though it was the only option (unless you pushed/asked).

Observation Bar as a venue is indeed lovely, but service was hit or miss as the staff seemed overwhelmed with the sheer demand. Seabourn does put out a nice spread of light food in the evenings which was a nice touch, but no nuts or other things we had expected.

 

-Service was very personalized and the staff clearly are very happy and it shows. Given the number of venues I’d say it was difficult for the staff to remember preferences but understandable for a ship with a capacity of ~600 passengers (although our sailing was around 425). There were definitely some standout crew members and we were really impressed with the smaller touches such as the staff goodbye appreciation event on the last evening as well as select members of the staff lined up to say goodbye as we disembarked.

 

The Crowd: as you might expect for a luxury tier - the crowd did skew older, mostly 60/70 somethings but the crowd was quite active overall. We did feel at times that this loyal Seabourn passengers weren’t particularly welcoming to the newbies. In this respect it did feel a bit country club vibe at times- a large contrast to Crystal.

 

In Summary we would definitely book another Seabourn cruise but are hopeful that Seabourn will make some improvements to the dining and cocktail experience- we were expecting a lot more but with a few changes the experience would be complete. More info to come and happy to answer questions!

 

[Xerxes10]

Big Cruise Guy, thanks so much for the review. Very informative. We are coming from another cruise line as well (Regent) and will be on our first SB trip this Fall.

[SLSD]

43 minutes ago, thebigcruiseguy said:

As an avid reader on CC, I wanted to contribute by sharing a brief review on our recent Seabourn Ovation Mediterranean itinerary.

Itinerary: Monte Carlo to Barcelona, 7 Night

 

Context: I believe context is important to any review. We have experienced 5 Mediterranean cruises over the past few years on Celebrity, Crystal and now Seabourn. Given Crystal’s recent financial demise, our bookings were sadly cancelled which caused us to explore elsewhere. We absolutely loved the Crystal experience and booked Seabourn based on the itinerary and comparable product to Seabourn.

 

Highlights: Overall, Seabourn delivers a fantastic luxury oriented experience. In terms of quality, it was indeed impressive.

 

The Ship: Seabourn Ovation truly shines with its tasteful design and finishes throughout. Ovation is understated, nautical in terms of aesthetics and Seabourn has stuck with its traditional yacht like history which we really appreciated compared to some of the newer more model “hotel like” cruise ships. You will not be disappointed with the ship itself in any way. It’s small yet benefits from enough venues to the point you won’t get bored easily. Everything on board is very well laid out and easy to navigate.

 

The Staterooms (We were in a V4 Verandah): Again, Seabourn has really hit it out of the park with it’s entry level staterooms

 

Dining/Cocktails: . We weren’t expecting fancy for every single dish, but things appeared bland in both taste and appearance and looked more similar to what you might find on premium tier lines like Celebrity. We avoided this venue to the extent possible after 3 bad meals.

 

 

 

- Bars Overall (Observation, Casino Bar, Sky Bar, Pool Bar, TK Bar) While the bar venues were nice in terms of overall appearance, Seabourn has really dropped the ball with cocktails overall. Yes

Observation Bar as a venue is indeed lovely, but service was hit or miss as the staff seemed overwhelmed with the sheer demand. Seabourn does put out a nice spread of light food in the evenings which was a nice touch, but no nuts or other things we had expected.

 

 

 

In Summary we would definitely book another Seabourn cruise but are hopeful that Seabourn will make some improvements to the dining and cocktail experience- we were expecting a lot more but with a few changes the experience would be complete. More info to come and happy to answer questions!

 

Thank you for this well balanced report.  I have to say that I agree with you on all counts--and have not sailed post pandemic yet.  We have always been somewhat disappointed in the cocktails available--and in the cocktail service as well.  I have rarely been bowled over by a meal in the MDR.  The TK Grill has not really impressed us either.  Fortunately, we are not food centric in our cruising.   At the same time, we have loved our Seabourn experiences and plan to sail with them again--if the line holds together.  

Edited May 30, 2022 by SLSD

[Jimmycruiser]

Thebigcruiseguy - Thanks for your well balanced review. Glad to hear you would still book a future Seabourn cruise. We are also ex Crystal cruisers looking for a close replacement. We are booked on a B2B in Nov. on the Seabourn Quest and looking forward to it as we have friends that recommend Seabourn.  We also just booked a Silversea Muse B2B Alaska cruise for August to compare the two.

[tryber]

We are booked on our first Seabourn cruise in the Fall on Ovation (14 nights around the UK and Ireland).  As another Crystal refugee, I have found it hard to get a balanced report on what to expect.  Food and wine quality is toward the top of the list of things we care about, so I appreciate the thorough report.  I'm disappointed to hear your report on the Restaurant, though I have to say that I was rarely blown away with any of the dishes in the main dining room on Crystal, unless it was special ordered (any dining room that serves hundreds of people a preset (and usually prepared) menu is rarely going to have memorable food).  Did you ever try making any special orders in the Restaurant? 

 

I thought the two main specialty restaurants on Crystal were fantastic, so I'm glad to hear positive reviews of TK Grill and the sushi restaurant.  And my wife will be very happy it is open for lunch, as the sushi restaurant on Crystal never was.  

 

As long as they can make a good vodka martini and have good quality wines, we will be fine on the drink front.  

 

Entertainment is one reason we were loyal to Crystal and avoided the smaller ships.  I have seen almost no reviews of the entertainment on Seabourn, so anything you (or anyone else) have to offer on that and how it compares to Crystal, would be appreciated.

[Mr Luxury]

Thank you for your review of the Ovation.

You raise some interesting points.

I always find that the MDR is hit and miss in fact on my last Encore cruise I ate in TK grill most nights as it offers much better food and service.

The TK bar is also the best bar for drinks and offers a selection of cocktails whilst you listen to a pianist playing.

Sushi and E&O are great but the colonnade is only good for breakfast and lunch.I always avoid for dinner.

Overall it is good that you will book another cruise with Seabourn.

Edited May 31, 2022 by Mr Luxury

[thebigcruiseguy]

9 hours ago, tryber said:

We are booked on our first Seabourn cruise in the Fall on Ovation (14 nights around the UK and Ireland).  As another Crystal refugee, I have found it hard to get a balanced report on what to expect.  Food and wine quality is toward the top of the list of things we care about, so I appreciate the thorough report.  I'm disappointed to hear your report on the Restaurant, though I have to say that I was rarely blown away with any of the dishes in the main dining room on Crystal, unless it was special ordered (any dining room that serves hundreds of people a preset (and usually prepared) menu is rarely going to have memorable food).  Did you ever try making any special orders in the Restaurant? 

 

I thought the two main specialty restaurants on Crystal were fantastic, so I'm glad to hear positive reviews of TK Grill and the sushi restaurant.  And my wife will be very happy it is open for lunch, as the sushi restaurant on Crystal never was.  

 

As long as they can make a good vodka martini and have good quality wines, we will be fine on the drink front.  

 

Entertainment is one reason we were loyal to Crystal and avoided the smaller ships.  I have seen almost no reviews of the entertainment on Seabourn, so anything you (or anyone else) have to offer on that and how it compares to Crystal, would be appreciated.

The entertainment on Seabourn was truly first rate, it’s evident they have invested heavily in the quality of shows etc. The venue itself is both technologically advanced and intimate- we really enjoyed the setup and caliber of talent. You will not be disappointed in the variety and quality of shows!

 

 

[Asquare]

14 hours ago, tryber said:

Entertainment is one reason we were loyal to Crystal and avoided the smaller ships.  I have seen almost no reviews of the entertainment on Seabourn, so anything you (or anyone else) have to offer on that and how it compares to Crystal, would be appreciated.

We recently sailed on the Encore and thought the evening entertainment was hit or miss depending on the day.  The nights that featured the Seabourn Singers backed up with the party band were quite entertaining.  Our Cruise Director, Robert, and his Assistant CD, Luperci, did a show of opera and show tunes that was outstanding, there was a magician/illusionist who was quite good and used the audience as his assistants which was fun.  The worst entertainer was a comedian who performed at the end of the second week, so dreadful that people walked out.  We thought that the lounge entertainers were hit or miss as well, since they did not rotate venues we felt like we didn’t get to experience the Observation Bar as it was envisioned because the duo that played there was not very good.  The bands at The Club and the party bands were both very good.  The pianist in the TK Grill did his job and stayed in the background.

[Hlitner]

Thanks for posting your review.  We were especially interested in your comments on cuisine which do mirror our own experience on 3 different SB ships.  We have always found the Restaurant to be just minimally acceptable for a luxury line.

 

Hank

[MightyQuinn]

@thebigcruiseguy I agree with many of your observations, especially that Seabourn has dropped the ball on cocktails/bar service.  Their offerings are comparatively weak and sorely lacking for a luxury line.  I can offer this tip when/if you sail Seabourn again: you can request Fever Tree and other specialty tonics in advance and it will be on the ship when you arrive.  We've special ordered many times and having what we prefer makes all the difference.  I know it shouldn't be this way but it is an effective workaround until Seabourn gets with the program.

Did you try the Kaiseki menu at Sushi on formal nites?  I seem to remember that some of those courses were hot but my experience was on Encore in 2019 so I could be mistaken.  I agree that Seabourn could revamp that menu and make it more exciting to appeal to a wider audience than sushi lovers.

 

Thanks for your balanced review!

[fdnycruiser]

Every time I’m on Seabourn, I keep on saying that I really want to like the restaurant. However, I’m always left disappointed. Perhaps they could change their concept to something like the Compass Road on Regent .In the meantime, I’ll try it again in October on the Quest.

[ciaoYacht]

I’m on Ovation right now as a first time Seabourn cruiser. I’ve waited until the 5th night to try the Restaurant because of all the reviews here. Tonight was the Chef’s tasting menu and my first night trying the restaurant. My novice observations:
 

1. Staff were amazing and professional. Knew our names on arrival despite not having dined there yet. Very attentive not letting any need go unnoticed, including helping us take a photo. 

2. Menu was impressive in my opinion. I know it was the tasting menu night and not the usual choices, but I was very impressed nonetheless. 
3. Loved the little touches like bread service with offers for refills, always making sure wine glass wine was full, and staff going out of their way to grab speciality teas with dessert. 

4. Food quality far surpassed my expectations. Some things like the beef entree admittedly weren’t as good as TK grill (which i would expect since that is their steakhouse), but it was still delicious. And other things were better than other dining venues. Based on what I've read here I was expecting wedding quality catering food (like you’d get at a large chain hotel), and that couldn’t be further from the truth.

5.  When taken as a whole The Restaurant was an overwhelmingly pleasing dining experience. I liked the change of pace to more formal venue and service than the other dinne venues on board. The decor was stunning, the food and beverage very good, and it felt like a special occasion kind of place to me. The Restaurant was a solid offering. 

While my opinion is based off one night only, if the other nights in the Restaurant are as good as tonight, I’d be more than ok with that. 
 

Regarding the other comments, I think the bar service has been wonderful. Any speciality cocktail I’ve asked for they’ve made to perfection. Even sent staff running to fetch alcohol that wasn’t available at the bar, if necessary. I do agree they should put menus out to make guests aware of their specialty signature cocktail offerings. These are available on the menus in the app, but nothing widely published at the bar. Also strongly agree bar snacks/bar mix would be a major plus. I hope they add this because IMO nothing makes having cocktails more enjoyable than a salty snack (at least during daytime hours, not necessarily after dinner). 
 

I’ve attached my photos from The Restaurant. 

Edited June 1, 2022 by ciaoYacht

[Xerxes10]

On 5/31/2022 at 2:25 PM, fdnycruiser said:

Every time I’m on Seabourn, I keep on saying that I really want to like the restaurant. However, I’m always left disappointed. Perhaps they could change their concept to something like the Compass Road on Regent .In the meantime, I’ll try it again in October on the Quest.

I think you mean Compass Rose, which I love. How does The Restaurant differ?

[Xerxes10]

ciaoYacht, thanks for the positive review. We are booked on our first SB sailing in October. It's discouraging to read the many complaints about The Restaurant on this board.

[Hobar]

5 hours ago, ciaoYacht said:

I’m on Ovation right now as a first time Seabourn cruiser. I’ve waited until the 5th night to try the Restaurant because of all the reviews here. Tonight was the Chef’s tasting menu and my first night trying the restaurant. My novice observations:
 

1. Staff were amazing and professional. Knew our names on arrival despite not having dined there yet. Very attentive not letting any need go unnoticed, including helping us take a photo. 

2. Menu was impressive in my opinion. I know it was the tasting menu night and not the usual choices, but I was very impressed nonetheless. 
3. Loved the little touches like bread service with offers for refills, always making sure wine glass wine was full, and staff going out of their way to grab speciality teas with dessert. 

4. Food quality far surpassed my expectations. Some things like the beef entree admittedly weren’t as good as TK grill (which i would expect since that is their steakhouse), but it was still delicious. And other things were better than other dining venues. Based on what I've read here I was expecting wedding quality catering food (like you’d get at a large chain hotel), and that couldn’t be further from the truth.

5.  When taken as a whole The Restaurant was an overwhelmingly pleasing dining experience. I liked the change of pace to more formal venue and service than the other dinne venues on board. The decor was stunning, the food and beverage very good, and it felt like a special occasion kind of place to me. The Restaurant was a solid offering. 

While my opinion is based off one night only, if the other nights in the Restaurant are as good as tonight, I’d be more than ok with that. 
 

Regarding the other comments, I think the bar service has been wonderful. Any speciality cocktail I’ve asked for they’ve made to perfection. Even sent staff running to fetch alcohol that wasn’t available at the bar, if necessary. I do agree they should put menus out to make guests aware of their specialty signature cocktail offerings. These are available on the menus in the app, but nothing widely published at the bar. Also strongly agree bar snacks/bar mix would be a major plus. I hope they add this because IMO nothing makes having cocktails more enjoyable than a salty snack (at least during daytime hours, not necessarily after dinner). 
 

I’ve attached my photos from The Restaurant. 

I do not favor The Restaurant, but only because I don’t love the course-by-course and formality (and not supposed to wear jeans, although I do), but have never had a bad meal.  Service is always top-notch - even on our holiday cruise when so many staff were in quarantine, and food always superb.  We only go with others when we would like a nice, long and relaxing meal.  Thanks for your positive review.  I agree with all you say.  

Edited June 2, 2022 by Hobar
Punctuation.

[Mahogany]

10 hours ago, Hobar said:

I do not favor The Restaurant, but only because I don’t love the course-by-course and formality (and not supposed to wear jeans, although I do), but have never had a bad meal.  Service is always top-notch - even on our holiday cruise when so many staff were in quarantine, and food always superb.  We only go with others when we would like a nice, long and relaxing meal.  Thanks for your positive review.  I agree with all you say.  

Well, there are other venues to wear jeans.

[markham]

They’re probably in the blue jeans business. Just sayin’…

 

Happy and healthy sailing!

[SLSD]

13 hours ago, Hobar said:

I do not favor The Restaurant, but only because I don’t love the course-by-course and formality (and not supposed to wear jeans, although I do), but have never had a bad meal.  Service is always top-notch - even on our holiday cruise when so many staff were in quarantine, and food always superb.  We only go with others when we would like a nice, long and relaxing meal.  Thanks for your positive review.  I agree with all you say.  

It's the course by course and formality that we enjoy.  We seldom dine at the Colonnade in the evening as it tends to be a bit noisy at times.  I always know that I can choose the great tomato/basil soup in the MDR and very good salmon.  

[cruiseej]

16 hours ago, Hobar said:

I do not favor The Restaurant, but only because I don’t love the course-by-course

 

You prefer to get appetizer, main course and dessert served at the same time? 😉

[Hobar]

We think it's so funny her simple comment about The Restaurant and her love of high class jeans generated so much interesting curiosity on her eating habits. Truth be told, she'd be fine with just a salad at every meal. and that's probably why I love the way she looks in her jeans.

[markham]

Eating habits and high class jeans? Too too much!

 

Happy and healthy sailing!

 

 

 

[cruiseej]

20 hours ago, Hobar said:

We think it's so funny her simple comment about The Restaurant and her love of high class jeans generated so much interesting curiosity on her eating habits. Truth be told, she'd be fine with just a salad at every meal. and that's probably why I love the way she looks in her jeans.

 

Wait… is this Barry posting about Hope, on Hope's account? Or have I somehow missed a chapter? The first mention of jeans in this thread was from @Hobar, so I'm confused! 🙂 

[johng75370]

1 hour ago, cruiseej said:

Wait… is this Barry posting about Hope, on Hope's account?

I think from their handle it’s a shared account for both Hope and Barry (Ho - Hope, Bar - Barry).  FWIW love that approach!  My partner is not on CC, I am not on FB - often our posts in each forum reflect views from both of us. 

[frantic36]

Can we get back on track people. I am more interested about thebigcruiseguy and ciaoyachts current observations about the ships since I have a cruise coming up soon. 

 

Talking about jeans or not jeans can go into the other discussion on formal dress. And then I can skip over that thread since it is a rehashed topic. 

[Hobar]

2 hours ago, cruiseej said:

 

Wait… is this Barry posting about Hope, on Hope's account? Or have I somehow missed a chapter? The first mention of jeans in this thread was from @Hobar, so I'm confused! 🙂 

How do you know?? This is Hope now responding (the “Ho,” although I’ve been called worse 🙂 ) But the post about “high class jeans” was Barry (I would much rather have a moniker of Bar than Ho), and I said to him, ***** - now you’re going to set off a firestorm of people who clearly have nothing else to do!!  I don’t know what “high class jeans” means (other than he’s probably referring to the charge he sees on AMEX and thinks it means high “cost”).  Anyway, no chapter is missed.  All I did was to agree with the poster who liked The Restaurant; but rather than focus on my positive comments, some dissected it and hijacked the OP, and that in turn annoys others who just want to stay on topic.  Can’t please everyone, and hence I don’t try.  Anyway, it’s not Hope‘s account - it’s OUR account.  Anyway, must be the alcohol talking.