Ship Review

Seabourn, Seabourn Odyssey

www.seabourn.com

 

OVERVIEW: Together with sister ships Seabourn Sojourn and Seabourn Quest, the stylish Seabourn Odyssey, which debuted as Seabourn’s first new ship in nearly 20 years, signals a more relaxed approach to high-end cruising, giving the ultra-luxury operator a less stuffy, more contemporary image and a broader passenger appeal. More than three times the size of Seabourn’s original boutique yachts, Seabourn Pride, Spirit and Legend, Seabourn Odyssey has the highest passenger/space ratio in the industry (71.1). All that extra space has been used to great effect.

 

CABINS: IOf the ship’s 225 all-outside suites, 199 have balconies, and passengers who don’t have their own private sunbathing space will find plenty out on deck, particularly on Deck 8, which is roomy enough to accommodate the Patio Grill dining area as well as a substantial pool and two whirlpools – with more sun bathing space available one deck up.

 

DINING: Adults aren’t forgotten either with The District; a collection of adult-only nightspots on Deck Four, including the novel Pink cocktail lounge; the Skyline metropolitan bar with changing cityscapes along the wall; and Evolution, the line’s first nightclub. On Deck 11 is the Senses Spa where couples’ spa villas cost a cool $449 for two hours, plus an adult pool and deck area.

 

DINING: The Patio Grill offers barbecue-style fare by day and waiter-served steaks and other cooked-to-order goodies in the evening. It features an array of excellent help-yourself salads and puddings and is popular with guests who like to watch the sun sink over a relaxed alfresco dinner, without fuss or the need to dress up. Travellers who enjoy a bit of glitz will find it at The Restaurant, the ship’s 450-seat main dining room which, with its billowing white curtains, silver décor and white rosebud table centrepieces, has all the glamour typical of a 1930s Hollywood nightclub. For serious foodies, bagging a reservation at Restaurant 2 should be top of the must-do list. This 40-seat restaurant has red-and-black décor as funky as the food it serves, which includes fabulous dishes like shellfish cappuccino with beef crostini and ginger jello. A waiter – or `food guide’ – talks you through it all, and the presentation, on oddly shaped dishes, some like porcelain test tubes, others like bikini tops, is as imaginative as the food and great fun too. The final dining option is The Colonnade, a very pretty indoor/outdoor restaurant which offers excellent buffets by day (including a Chef’s Table where you can watch signature dishes being produced) and a range of themed dinners in the evening. This wider range of restaurant styles reflects an awareness that high-end cruise travellers don’t necessarily want formality every night. “The newer ships are attracting today’s more youthful-minded travellers who’ll happily spend £300 on a pair of designer jeans but don’t want to wear a dinner jacket every night; people for whom luxury simply means relaxing in elegant surroundings,” says Seabourn's sales and marketing vice president UK and EMEA, Andrew McGowan.

 

DATE: 2011