How does Viking Ocean Cruises compare to Seabourn?

[MarciAnn]

We have only cruised Seabourn before but really like the Majestic Iceland and Norway itinerary.  Is there anyone who can tell us how Viking Jupiter compares to Seabourn?  I know that Viking is not all inclusive but I was wondering more about the service and food.  Thx in advance

[claranda]

Hi MarciAnn, look back in these posts and you’ll find a similar question asked a few days ago and my answer to it. We’ve only done one Viking so far and a good few Seabourn. I found the service on Viking a bit more informal/friendly and, to my surprise, a bit more efficient/professional than our last cruise on Encore, which admittedly was Seabourn’s first after Covid.
 

Food - hmm. I think Seabourn has the edge with quality and choice, but Viking was fine, especially the Chef’s table offerings. Viking is as responsive as Seabourn, certainly…in my mid-cruise feedback on Viking I mentioned that I was not seeing much in the way of ‘prime’ cuts or foie gras. Well, a chateaubriand was immediately scheduled and we found it hard to escape foie gras from then on, even being offered it as an extra course in the Asian Chef’s Table menu!

[Jim Avery]

  

I wa going to say similar.  Also if you use the search function at the top of the thread list and enter "Seabourn" you will find many posts comparing the two.  Also, if you care to put in the effort to look for it I posted a fairly lengthly comparison after spending 4 months on Viking Sun and 6 weeks later Seabourn Odyssey in Alaska for 15 days.  It was in July/Aug of '18 but the ship differences would still be the same.  

[zalusky]

3 hours ago, Jim Avery said:

  

I wa going to say similar.  Also if you use the search function at the top of the thread list and enter "Seabourn" you will find many posts comparing the two.  Also, if you care to put in the effort to look for it I posted a fairly lengthly comparison after spending 4 months on Viking Sun and 6 weeks later Seabourn Odyssey in Alaska for 15 days.  It was in July/Aug of '18 but the ship differences would still be the same.  

FYI I tried doing that search and nothing shows.

[Jim Avery]

1 hour ago, zalusky said:

FYI I tried doing that search and nothing shows.

Try harder 

[CCWineLover]

1 hour ago, zalusky said:

FYI I tried doing that search and nothing shows.

Maybe you are putting the search term in the wrong forum.  If you go to the general Viking forum, and then put in the word "Seabourn" and then click the drop down box to say "This Forum".

I found 113 posts.

 

[zalusky]

4 hours ago, CCWineLover said:

Maybe you are putting the search term in the wrong forum.  If you go to the general Viking forum, and then put in the word "Seabourn" and then click the drop down box to say "This Forum".

I found 113 posts.

 

When I put in the date range Jim referenced in 2018 nothing showed.

[CCWineLover]

11 hours ago, zalusky said:

When I put in the date range Jim referenced in 2018 nothing showed.

Interesting. . .

It appeared that the search contents only go back to 2020.

So I went to Jim's posts (he has a lot), and the oldest post still showing is in 2020.

So I went to General Viking Forum and search on several common terms (i.e. "Homelands", "Barcelona", etc)  and all of them list many results and all of them only go back to 2020.

 

Wondering if they've now cut off the earlier posts.  maybe?

[Jim Avery]

There.  I don't mind doing others work, really I don't.   Hahahahaha.🥃

[purpleally]

No comparison. Seabourn is waaaaaayyyyy better. 

[zalusky]

2 hours ago, purpleally said:

No comparison. Seabourn is waaaaaayyyyy better. 

 

I don't know I agree with a lot of Jim's comments.  Although I have not sailed Seabourn yet the retractable pool cover is a pretty nice luxury especially for northern climates.

 

The idea of a pool that we can enjoy in any non turbulent weather is quite attractive.

[Heidi13]

21 hours ago, purpleally said:

No comparison. Seabourn is waaaaaayyyyy better. 

 

You are certainly entitled to your opinion, but your post is simply that, as it is devoid of facts.

 

Jim has experienced true luxury upon the high seas and so is well versed in true luxury sailing and today's faux luxury lines, serving the North American market. After completing the inaugural World Cruise, Jim & Lois completed an Alaska cruise with Seabourn.

 

His post-cruise posts were extensive, providing factual comparisons to his experience on both ships.  Personally, since Jim provides details, I tend to favour his reports as having more value, as a true comparison between both cruise lines.

 

I'll also mention the recent situation on the Seabourn exploration ship in Antarctica. The ship had a damaged stabiliser, which a pax reported happened on a voyage inbound to Ushuaia. The next pax were not advised until after departure that the stabilisers weren't operational and they would miss South Georgia. Some pax demanded the vessel return, but any pax disembarking were responsible for their own costs home. They received minimal OBC. This treatment is not what I expect from a "Luxury" line, but is consistent with Carnival, who own Seabourn.

[WNcruiser]

Seabourn had one of the best crews we have ever experienced on a ship. And like "Jim", I have travelled on most of the luxury lines. It is more intimate and of course all inclusive with all liquor and gratuities included. The entertainment is also better than Viking if that is of any importance to you. 

 

[deec]

On 2/25/2023 at 12:16 AM, WNcruiser said:

Seabourn had one of the best crews we have ever experienced on a ship. And like "Jim", I have travelled on most of the luxury lines. It is more intimate and of course all inclusive with all liquor and gratuities included. The entertainment is also better than Viking if that is of any importance to you. 

 

how do prices compare when you add in Viking's gratuities and Silver Spirit's package?

 

[Vineyard View]

Hi Deec. I wondered the same. Did extensive research on several lines with itineraries we liked. I added up everything included and not included, compared similar cabins, and broke it down day by day. 
We booked Seabourn. It was less expensive than Viking by quite a bit. The current promotion that they had helped that scenario, but even still I have looked since and Viking has certainly bumped up per day, and it opens up other lines we wouldn’t have considered in the past. We were looking at Mediterranean and we really wanted something different than what Viking repeatedly offers. 
 

I will absolutely come back afterwards and share our experience. I know that we do not have the sailing experience that many do on these threads, so I can’t have that depth of different sailings, but I will share what ours turns out to be. 
 

Hope all is well with you and yours!

[WNcruiser]

4 hours ago, deec said:

how do prices compare when you add in Viking's gratuities and Silver Spirit's package?

 

Overall we have found Seabourn to be much less. It may not be in all cases, but we didn’t feel ripped off like we did on our last Viking cruise of 17 nights. 

[CCWineLover]

On 2/24/2023 at 9:16 PM, WNcruiser said:

Seabourn had one of the best crews we have ever experienced on a ship. And like "Jim", I have travelled on most of the luxury lines. It is more intimate and of course all inclusive with all liquor and gratuities included. The entertainment is also better than Viking if that is of any importance to you. 

 

Does Seabourn allow children onboard?  (<18)

[Jim Avery]

15 minutes ago, CCWineLover said:

Does Seabourn allow children onboard?  (<18)

Yes they do.

[Vineyard View]

We travel when school is in session. Less crowds all the way around. 
 

It is definitely a bonus with Viking

[longterm]

6 hours ago, CCWineLover said:

Does Seabourn allow children onboard?  (<18)

 

6 hours ago, Jim Avery said:

Yes they do.

I'll just say upfront that nobody loves kids more than my wife and I do; we see our 3 grandchildren every week without fail, and they're the joy of our lives here in our way-way-way-way-way upper 30s.

 

I was just about to start looking into a Seabourn cruise, but while we do like kids, we don't want to be on a ship with them. That by itself is a dealbreaker for us; if  we were to go on a cruise with kids, we'd be bringing our grandkids somewhere.

I'll also mention that nightly entertainment isn't something that interests us whatsoever; I've been a professional musician since I was about 15, so I will admit to being a bit jaded and critical about the music I listen to, so we don't go to the nightly stuff. We're also very light drinkers, so having free-flowing alcohol on board is of little value to us.

 

But that's just us; I know lots of folks enjoy good adult beverages (every one of my 6 siblings, for example!), and I can see how that's worth consideration. 

 

Edited March 1, 2023 by longterm

[CCWineLover]

45 minutes ago, longterm said:

 

I'll just say upfront that nobody loves kids more than my wife and I do; we see our 3 grandchildren every week without fail, and they're the joy of our lives here in our way-way-way-way-way upper 30s.

 

I was just about to start looking into a Seabourn cruise, but while we do like kids, we don't want to be on a ship with them. That by itself is a dealbreaker for us; if  we were to go on a cruise with kids, we'd be bringing our grandkids somewhere.

I'll also mention that nightly entertainment isn't something that interests us whatsoever; I've been a professional musician since I was about 15, so I will admit to being a bit jaded and critical about the music I listen to, so we don't go to the nightly stuff. We're also very light drinkers, so having free-flowing alcohol on board is of little value to us.

 

But that's just us; I know lots of folks enjoy good adult beverages (every one of my 6 siblings, for example!), and I can see how that's worth consideration. 

 

Same here, Bob!

There's something for everyone in cruises.

We like Viking because of the things it does and doesn't have.  If it costs a bit more, then that's our decision.

[Vineyard View]

We don’t want to sail with kids either. Love our grandkids, but not on a cruise. Not on any vacation unless it’s a family one. 
Timing  is everything to a certain degree when planning travel and expected kids/families. I don’t see Seabourn as a “kids” kind of cruise. Nothing for them to do. Just like Viking. Entertainment isn’t their gig either.  If we were truly concerned about kids on Seabourn, we wouldn’t have booked. It was itinerary, cost per day, and perceived value for the investment. Time will tell on that last part! 

[longterm]

On 2/23/2023 at 3:04 PM, purpleally said:

No comparison. Seabourn is waaaaaayyyyy better. 

Without anything to back up your evaluation, it's impossible to know whether that's true. However, the choice is easy for us--Viking--because:

 

1. No children on Viking cruises;

2. No casino on a Viking cruise;

3. An included excursion with every port of call, and lots of available options; granted, some are better than others, but some of the included excursions have been lots of fun.

 

As to Seabourn being cheaper, that *might* be true if one were to ignore the additional costs of excursions, at $50 per person at a minimum (and that's low). At $100/day, it adds a significant amount to the cost of a cruise. Then, add in free airfare for some cruises (the Grand European river cruise always has free airfare) and the savings are significant.

[Vineyard View]

12 minutes ago, longterm said:

Without anything to back up your evaluation, it's impossible to know whether that's true. However, the choice is easy for us--Viking--because:

 

1. No children on Viking cruises;

2. No casino on a Viking cruise;

3. An included excursion with every port of call, and lots of available options; granted, some are better than others, but some of the included excursions have been lots of fun.

 

As to Seabourn being cheaper, that *might* be true if one were to ignore the additional costs of excursions, at $50 per person at a minimum (and that's low). At $100/day, it adds a significant amount to the cost of a cruise. Then, add in free airfare for some cruises (the Grand European river cruise always has free airfare) and the savings are significant.

Lots of very valid and good points. It’s all about what is included or not that is important to the individual traveler. We don’t generally take the included Viking excursions. We DIY or private, regardless of line, so for us that is not a carrot.

 

no kids - definitely a carrot! 
casino - a carrot as well. 
 

I can’t compare Seabourn vs Viking as we haven’t tried them yet. We have sailed several Viking cruises and definitely would again,  given the right itinerary for what we are looking for. We remain big fans of Viking. 

[MarciAnn]

I hate to burst anyone’s bubble but while Seabourn allows children I have never seen more than 2 or 3 very well behaved children on any of the 10 Seabourn cruises I have taken.  There is nothing for kids on a Seabourn cruise—no water slide, kids club, kids’ activities, etc that you would find on a mass market cruise line.  If you are not taking a Seabourn cruise because you think kids are onboard then you are really missing out.