With only 421 passengers on board, what’s not to like. The ship felt small and intimate, but never confining. The design was perfect with the suites being forward and the majority of the common areas being aft. It was no good if you thought you could get a workout going from one space to the next. All that was needed usually was one or 2 flights of stairs. It might be hard going back to big ship cruising again.

I didn’t take nearly enough photos to show what the spaces looked like. I was just too busy having a good time! But here is a summary of what it was like on board.

Seabourn Air

We had purchased our flights through Seabourn, although expensive as this was a last-minute thing (certainly significantly more than a crossing on Queen Mary 2), they were half what the airlines were charging.

Our first good surprise is that they included the transfers to and from the ship. I just love it when I emerge dazed after an overnight flight and there is a smiling young man holding up a board welcoming me. No trying to search through the crowds to find the taxi rank.

The second good surprise was that as British Airways changed our flight home to a later one, destination services arranged a day room at a hotel near the airport. As everyone had to leave the ship by 9:30 we had been dreading spending the day at the airport. So instead, we spent the day relaxing at the hotel. Unfortunately the pool was closed because of a French Moroccan Jewish wedding going on there. However one of the wedding guests invited me to join in, so it was quite an experience. The music was interesting – Moroccan music interspersed with French techno and American disco, but it was all good to dance to, and I got to see the traditional henna wedding ceremony, so it was an educational experience as well.

Our Suite

We had a standard veranda suite, on deck 7. The majority of the suites are veranda suites, with a few ocean view suites, and then the fancy suites that really are suites.

The suite was probably slightly larger than a Princess Grill suite on Queen Victoria, but they were basically the same, except this one had far more storage space somehow.

The balcony has teak decking, and does not have any rust showing. It is about the size of a Princess Grill balcony.

The big difference was the bathroom. I love marble bathrooms, and this one didn’t disappoint. There were 2 sinks and a separate bathtub and shower with a glass door. There was masses of storage, and the towels were huge and soft. There was a choice of 4 different fragrances of shower gel, and all of the amenities were in large containers. It was perfect.

The fridge was stocked with drinks of our choice, and we also received a bottle of wine (for me) and whisky (for Brian). Our fruit basket was replenished daily, and the new flowers were added to the flower arrangement as needed.

On the first night we received a Seabourn tote bag. I love tote bags, so I was very happy. Maria, our suite host, was somewhat baffled by my level of excitement. I assume most people apparently just say thank you.

We received chocolates every night, but only dark chocolates. This suited Brian, but I thought it was a huge failure on the part of Seabourn. I missed my Cunard Godiva chocolates.

Promenade Deck

There is no promenade deck. The small area there is does have teak decking, but you can’t stroll along it on a warm moonlit night. I was not happy about this.

Seabourn Square

This is a HUGE improvement on any ship on which I have ever sailed. At the back of deck 7 is an area where there is comfortable seating and a great coffee shop that provides pastries and sandwiches during the day. This area is also the library, future cruise sales, destination services (tours), and customer services (pursers desk). No standing around and queuing up, the staff sit at desks and sort out your issues in a calm comfortable manner. It is so terribly civilized. I wish all cruise ships could do things this way.

Food

In a word, amazing. Every meal was a real winner.

There is one specialty restaurant, Thomas Keller. You have to book to go there, and can only dine there once a week so everyone has the opportunity to eat there. We were there the last night of the cruise, and it was the perfect way to end our holiday. The food, the wines, the service, and the atmosphere are absolutely top notch.

The main restaurant does not have the grandeur of the Britannia restaurants on the Queens, and there is no grand staircase so you can make a grand entrance, but it is still an elegant space, and you feel special dining there. There is anytime dining, so you just show up and are escorted to a table. We always asked for a table for 2 by the window, and there was always one available. Brian didn’t take any photos of the restaurant, but here is a bizarre photo looking at the reflection in the window one night. I wish we had taken more photos!

The Colonnade is the buffet restaurant at the back of the ship on deck 8. There is a wonderful buffet for breakfast and lunch, but also sit down made to order service (great eggs benedict), and just sit-down service for dinner. This is where we ate most of the time as there is a lovely open-air terrace at the back, perfect for al fresco dining.

Finally there is the pool restaurant which has the usual grill fare for lunch (hot dogs, hamburgers) but in the evenings does small plates of interesting food – skewered prawns, grilled cheese, lamb meatballs – and has the most wonderful olives, and bread with herb butter. Also a winner.

Entertainment

We didn’t actually see any of the shows, but we were told that they were very good, although not up to the same standard as larger cruise ships. There were no has been comedians, ventriloquists, or magicians, but there was a very cute boy band who played on several evenings. The show room is well laid out, and feels very cozy and inviting.

Music

I missed the live music that we get on Cunard. No harpist or string quartet, no flautists in the Royal Court Theater, or guitar concerts. However, the resident band (Eliza and the Band) were very versatile, and excellent, and we loved their music.

I also loved the pianist in the Observation lounge – I have been very disappointed in the music in the Commodore Club now that Carlo is no longer on board, but the pianist was nearly as good, and we enjoyed listening to him in the evenings.

Lounges

The main lounge, the Club, is another great area. The band plays here in the evenings and there is a small dance floor. There is also an open area at the back where they have a disco every night!

The Observation Lounge was the only real big disappointment. It is situated where the Commodore Club is, but it is a cold, dark, brash room, with no atmosphere really. We did sit there in the evenings because we enjoyed the pianist, but never went there during the day. It just had no appeal.

Internet

The basic internet is free and is great! There were no problems at all, it worked well at sea and in port, and was as fast and reliable as the internet at home. Brian had a Zoom call, but it didn’t work for that. You can pay for upgraded internet, but luckily we were in port and able to use his T Mobile hot spot so all was well.

The Card Room

There was never anyone in the card room, but it looked like a great place to play bridge and games.

Sports’ Deck

This is right at the top of the ship at the front. We never say anyone there. There was no shade for the sun loungers, so with plenty of loungers by the pool, we were not surprised that we never saw anyone up there.

The Pool

There is only one main pool, but with plenty of loungers and shade, it never felt crowded. We especially liked the mini cabanas and spent a lot of time in them!

The pool is where we went for the sail aways, champagne and caviar party, pool party, and the farewell party. In fact we really did seem to spend most of our time there!

The farewell party was great. I am not a fan of the final night in the Britannia Dining Room when there is the parade of chefs and people are waving their napkins in the air. Somehow it seems a bit tacky. However, for some reason the farewell works here. All of the officers (who was running the ship?) are there together with the staff and it is a good way to acknowledge all of their hard work and say thank you. Hamish Elliot also gave a very nice speech, and the band played great music. It was a really happening affair.

Disembarkation

We disembarked at 9:30, and the captain and cruise director Ryan (who I forgot to mention. He was really wonderful, and did a great job), were there at the bottom of the gangway to say thank you and farewell. A nice touch. And there were our suitcases waiting for us in the terminal, there was a porter there right away who took them to our waiting transfer to the hotel. All too simple and painless.

So in summary, it was the most amazing week. Everything was wonderful, we were very impressed with Seabourn. Will we sail with Cunard again? Most certainly, Seabourn is way too expensive for longer cruises, and I do prefer longer cruises. But it is time to start saving up again.

Now it’s time to sample Virgin Voyages 