I cancelled my Alaskan concierge cruise on the Wonder to go with Seabourn instead

[Kwami]

I've priced it out multiple times, verandah to veranda but no concierge (because that doesn't exist on Seabourn) and it was $6K less than a DCL cruise for our most recent Med cruise. Calling it cheapest is a bit weird as the OP didn't mention what category they booked only that they booked a verandah. In Verandah (which is the majority of the ship they would be on though all rooms have verandahs) you have V1-V4 categories. To put it another way you can't go lower than a Verandah on the ship they will be on so sure you could, depending on the cruise, save money by doing an inside room or an oceanview room on DCL but it wouldn't make the point any less that when comparing like for like it can be, depending on the cruise, a significant difference in costs.

I think my post was fair. The 2A on the Wonder is one of the most expensive room categories on the ship and there are only a few of them. It's a much larger room with an extra half bath, a whirlpool tub, larger verandahs, upgraded soft goods, and concierge perks. The verandah rooms on the Encore are pretty much the same as the verandah rooms on the Wonder in terms of square footage and layout. So, a better comparison would be verandah to verandah, not 1-bedroom suite to verandah.

 

[Kwami]

Not in the least, sea days are where they do tons of activities

I'm very skeptical, but you've sailed with them, so I'll have to take your word for it.

Well this seems utterly silly to even mention. Disney is the only one who would have Disney characters so that feels like a duh moment. It's luxury/ultra luxury market so yes resoundingly of course it's going to be more adult. As far as the casino pfft it's not at all the focal point of the ship, you pass it as you enter The Club but it's hardly a thing. Most people conjure up Vegas when they think of casinos on cruise ships but that is something you might see more on a large mega ship.

I don't think it's silly at all. The OP was asking what they might miss out on by choosing Seabourn instead of Disney, so I made some comparisons. What's wrong with that?

There's more to a cruise than price and itinerary.

 

[Mackenzie Click-Mickelson]

Do you agree with the assessment that Seabourn is luxury without being stuffy?

Yes, of the 3 main companies (Regent, Silversea and Seabourn) although Explora Journeys joined the market I'm not sure how people would describe that part (people are impressed with Explora though). Ritz Carlton is there but most don't have a favorable view of them.

You will likely encounter some people who are but that is a personality thing that is normally frowned upon by other passengers. These are people who cruise a ton (although Alaska may or may not have that as much) as in on our most recent cruise they were celebrating people who had 800-1500 sailed days on Seabourn.

For Seabourn they try to foster a more intimate crew/passenger thing going, personally I still understand that the crew are the crew and it's their job so I am not trying to make things more difficult for them but the environment is more meant to make it feel more casual but still up there in categories and they are trying to adjust with the times and how passengers respond. For example, while hotly contested (because really no one knows what they mean) they added a few years ago "elegant jeans" to the acceptable list of attire under elegant casual for after 6pm. That's an adjustment meant to reflect that attire is less and less formal-like on ships than in the past.

We've always had an easy time conversing with people. On our most recent cruise we spent most of our time with this lovely couple (whom we met the wife in the laundry room...trust me that's where it is at lol) who the husband turned out to be the former CEO of Hyundai American, Mitsubishi Motors and J.D. Power. But they were so down to earth people just lovely you'd never have guessed.

 

[Kwami]

Additional considerations:

I can only find one 8-night cruise that leaves from Vancouver and visits Glacier Bay and no 7-night cruises that do. So, I'm basing everything on that 8-night cruise.

It looks like every port, including Ketchikan, requires a tender. That cruise visits Klawock, Sitka, Inian Islands, and Icy Straight Point instead of Juneau and Skagway, so the itineraries are pretty different, anyway.

And for a V2 verandah, the cost with their fake "sale" is $10,316. There are no V1s available at this time, but based on the pricing for V3 and V4, a V1 would probably still be about $10K. So, $10K is indeed for the cheapest room category, as expected.

 

[Mackenzie Click-Mickelson]

I think my post was fair. The 2A on the Wonder is one of the most expensive room categories on the ship and there are only a few of them. It's a much larger room with an extra half bath, a whirlpool tub, larger verandahs, upgraded soft goods, and concierge perks. The verandah rooms on the Encore are pretty much the same as the verandah rooms on the Wonder in terms of square footage and layout. So, a better comparison would be verandah to verandah, not 1-bedroom suite to verandah.

I think you're getting stuck on just the OP's specific exact example. I already gave you my own information as well stating I was comparing verandah to verandah with it being $6K less on Seabourn. You can find cruises for less on DCL without concierge, without doing high categories, etc. Most people on this board may realize DCL is quite expensive but think mostly about either downgrading in cruise line categories or upgrading in room categories when they do price comparisons in order to justify why DCL would still be better but not realizing that's not how it has to be just to be less in price. And just because it's less in price doesn't mean a person has booked the cheapest room, that on Encore would be Deck 5 (lowest room deck) and even then it depends on what sales are running and how they are trying to fill the ship.

I'm very skeptical, but you've sailed with them, so I'll have to take your word for it.

I'd say the crossings (transatlantic and transpacific) have the most activities because there's usually only 1-2 port days so you're on the ship to be on the ship. They do special activities when they cross certain lines like the International Date line and whatnot as well. You have to keep in mind the two largest ships for Seabourn are Encore and Ovation that have 600 passengers max, they aren't the size of Disney ships and don't have to have things to occupy several thousand passengers.

Here's our 2 sea days as an example.




ETA: not a sea day thing but bridge tours and galley tours also happen. We didn't make it to a galley tour but we did do a bridge tour.

I don't think it's silly at all. The OP was asking what they might miss out on by choosing Seabourn instead of Disney, so I made some comparisons. What's wrong with that?

There's more to a cruise than price and itinerary.

It would have been different if you had chosen to compare things that are like for like. Like mentioning that there wouldn't be Disney characters is like uhh yes but only DCL has that so presumably someone who books any other cruise line but DCL is going to understand that. The OP was already looking outside of DCL before finding Seabourn. Of course there is more than price and itinerary but the OP mentioned they expected (like a lot of people) that a higher up category would surely cost really up there and was happy to find it wasn't, I think that's primarily why they mentioned price.

And for a V2 verandah, the cost with their fake "sale" is $10,316. There are no V1s available at this time, but based on the pricing for V3 and V4, a V1 would probably still be about $10K. So, $10K is indeed for the cheapest room category, as expected.

What do you mean by fake sale. For some clarification you do need to understand these cruises have been released for a very long time, much much longer than DCL releases their schedules. Presently you can book out to mid-2027 at the moment. Alaska 2025-2026 cruises have been out since gosh I'm not sure but sometime early 2024. We booked our most recent cruise 14 months in advance with Seabourn. I know one of the DISer friends I talk with was waiting anxiously for Alaska cruises to be released for DCL when Seabourn had had them out for forever at that point.

I find your comments quite strange as they are in such the negative way all for you to be like "I'm just comparing"

 

[Lewisc]

I can only find one 8-night cruise that leaves from Vancouver and visits Glacier Bay and no 7-night cruises that do.

I gotta Seabourne brochure in today's mail. The sailings have a *. The footnote indicates which cruises Glacier Bay substitutes for Hubbard. It's more then 1

 

[FrancisK7]

In my case its the 7 days Sept 11-18 2026 cruise and Glacier Bay is specifically listed on Day 2. I will call Seabourn to confirm.

Comparing room category alone is not enough to get an indication of overall value in my eyes. What is included in that room category matters a whole lot more than the category label in my opinion. It’s about the experience and what you get for that money that matter to me.

 

[Kwami]

I think you're getting stuck on just the OP's specific exact example. I already gave you my own information as well stating I was comparing verandah to verandah with it being $6K less on Seabourn. You can find cruises for less on DCL without concierge, without doing high categories, etc.

I'm only comparing the rooms mentioned in the OP because that's on topic. Why would I compare other rooms? The overall point is that of course the verandah on the Encore is cheaper than the 1-bedroom suite on the Wonder. It's a much smaller room with fewer perks and amenities.

And for what it's worth, an unobstructed verandah on the Wonder (5B) for the May 11, 2026 cruise is currently going for $7,428.50, which is significantly cheaper than the Encore verandah.

Most people on this board may realize DCL is quite expensive but think mostly about either downgrading in cruise line categories or upgrading in room categories when they do price comparisons in order to justify why DCL would still be better but not realizing that's not how it has to be just to be less in price. And just because it's less in price doesn't mean a person has booked the cheapest room, that on Encore would be Deck 5 (lowest room deck) and even then it depends on what sales are running and how they are trying to fill the ship.

Again, my pricing was for a V2, which is the second cheapest room category on the Encore. The cheapest (V1) wasn't available for the sailing that I chose. The different V categories were each approximately $500 apart, so a V1 for two would be about $1K cheaper, putting the price somewhere around $9.3K.

What do you mean by fake sale. For some clarification you do need to understand these cruises have been released for a very long time, much much longer than DCL releases their schedules. Presently you can book out to mid-2027 at the moment. Alaska 2025-2026 cruises have been out since gosh I'm not sure but sometime early 2024. We booked our most recent cruise 14 months in advance with Seabourn. I know one of the DISer friends I talk with was waiting anxiously for Alaska cruises to be released for DCL when Seabourn had had them out for forever at that point.

Seabourn's website tells me that the 15% off sale ends in just about 9 hours. I bet it'll be there tomorrow, though, or else they'll have another sale with a different name and largely the same benefits. Most of the cruise lines do this to pressure you into booking right away instead of waiting. It's really scummy.

Maybe I'm wrong, though. Maybe this is a real sale and Seabourn is different. If so, then I apologize for spreading misinformation.

I find your comments quite strange as they are in such the negative way all for you to be like "I'm just comparing"

I'm not trying to be negative. I'm trying to find differences. I have no idea what the OP cares about other than what was written. So, I'm finding other differences in case one of them matters since that's apparently the point of this thread. That's all.

 

[Kwami]

I gotta Seabourne brochure in today's mail. The sailings have a *. The footnote indicates which cruises Glacier Bay substitutes for Hubbard. It's more then 1

Weird! The website is only showing the 8-night as visiting Glacier Bay. The 7-night cruises all say Hubbard. I wonder why they didn't update the website.

 

[Mackenzie Click-Mickelson]

In my case its the 7 days Sept 11-18 2026 cruise and Glacier Bay is specifically listed on Day 2. I will call Seabourn to confirm.

Comparing room category alone is not enough to get an indication of overall value in my eyes. What is included in that room category matters a whole lot more than the category label in my opinion. It’s about the experience and what you get for that money that matter to me.

The brochure I got back in January or February (surprising I could still find it as I've recycled most of what I've gotten already) lists that cruise as going to Glacier Bay, other ones in that specific brochure lists specific ones either on Encore or Quest that go to Tracy Arm/Endicott Arm in lieu of Glacier Bay but the Sep 11 2026 Encore shows it should be doing Glacier Bay. Certainly contact Seabourn if you want to just to make sure.

You should also be getting Helly Hansen jacket provided by Seabourn for Alaska voyages but you can also contact Seabourn to verify that, I know 2025 cruises that was still included but 2026 should be as well, still I would contact them to make sure in case they've changed that.

 

[Kwami]

In my case its the 7 days Sept 11-18 2026 cruise and Glacier Bay is specifically listed on Day 2. I will call Seabourn to confirm.

Ah, that one isn't on the website. It might be sold out, then. The 7-night cruises on the website all list Hubbard and not Glacier Bay.

It's there! I was only looking at cruises that depart from Vancouver and that one departs from Juneau. Yes, the website also says Glacier Bay for that one.

The HH parka is still listed as an extra perk for cruises to Alaska, too!

 

[FrancisK7]

I think my post was fair. The 2A on the Wonder is one of the most expensive room categories on the ship and there are only a few of them. It's a much larger room with an extra half bath, a whirlpool tub, larger verandahs, upgraded soft goods, and concierge perks. The verandah rooms on the Encore are pretty much the same as the verandah rooms on the Wonder in terms of square footage and layout. So, a better comparison would be verandah to verandah, not 1-bedroom suite to verandah.

I agree my comparison of a V1 Verandah vs 2A on DCL isn't really fair.

However for a basic concierge verandah on DCL, the only hot food you can get delivered to your room are burgers and chicken wings. Zero hot breakfast items. The same room service room menu as the entire ship. Unlike Triton class concierge lounges, no hot galley there either. That is not at all the same experience, even if the layout is similar.

So a fairer comparison would be comparing to a 2B, which for my sailing is currently listed at 15,926.50. After the 8% Costco cashback, $14 652. After gratuities you're looking at 15k.

After you consider Seabourn is open bar at all times versus DCL concierge's limited happy hour in the small concierge lounge (that isn't even a proper bar on the Wonder), it looks like an ever better deal. With 5k in my pocket that is a lot of quality excursions I can do. I'm sure tendering is a PITA, but the Encore can hold 600 guests, so I can't imagine the experience will be very excruciating.

Am I correct into thinking that because the Encore is a smaller ship we will also sail closer to the coasts and the glaciers?

 

[Mackenzie Click-Mickelson]

I'm only comparing the rooms mentioned in the OP because that's on topic. Why would I compare other rooms? The overall point is that of course the verandah on the Encore is cheaper than the 1-bedroom suite on the Wonder. It's a much smaller room with fewer perks and amenities.

Your last comment that I bolded tells me everything. Perks and amenities are wholly what the cruise line designates it is. You have zero idea what Seabourn offers and to be fair that was us in 2022, I even asked on the DIS but very few people here have sailed them much less heard of them. BUT you have to look at things in a different way when you are talking about perks and amenities because you're thinking about it from DCL viewpoint and at the most basic level you get more included in the price than DCL gets you because that's the business model of Seabourn. That's why I pushed back on your of course comment. It's not because they were looking at a verandah vs whatever and that's why the price was lower, that feeds into the mentality that DCL couldn't possibly be more expensive...just because...when we all know that's how they can be.

Personal choice though in the bathrooms on Encore/Ovation I wish they would remove the bathtub and have a larger shower but enough people like the bathtub. I do love the double vanity.

Like the OP mentioned the price isn't the be it all when comparing so I do get you mentioning size but yeah just because X room on the Wonder has Y doesn't mean that's why the Encore verandah was less.

Seabourn's website tells me that the 15% off sale ends in just about 9 hours. I bet it'll be there tomorrow, though, or else they'll have another sale with a different name and largely the same benefits. Most of the cruise lines do this to pressure you into booking right away instead of waiting. It's really scummy.

Maybe I'm wrong, though. Maybe this is a real sale and Seabourn is different. If so, then I apologize for spreading misinformation.

They do frequent sales for sure, they vary in what they are from category upgrades to on board credits or reduced deposits. I don't see that as fake in the least. That cruise we just did booked at 14 months in advance was a really good deal but they were trying to sell it, a 12 day one in the first parts of the season to the Med (end of march/to mid-april) where weather is cooler and as time went on while there were future sales they weren't not as low as we got. And quite a few months in advance of our cruise the cruise had sold out. Typically when cruises are released are when they are at their lowest so normally the longer you wait the more expensive it will be which is why it's hard to even compare pricing at the moment for a September 2026 cruise when that cruise has been available for booking for quite a long time already.

Depending on the sale you can get the lower price if your booked cruise is now lower it just depends on the terms and conditions of the sale.

I'm not trying to be negative. I'm trying to find differences. I have no idea what the OP cares about other than what was written. So, I'm finding other differences in case one of them matters since that's apparently the point of this thread. That's all.

On the surface I get that perhaps its in the tone and the wording you use. There's not really an overlap in customer base between DCL and Seabourn so it's understandable you may be coming from just the DCL experience but the way you've framed your comparisons is heavily on "here's how DCL is better" but without having the info on how it would be on Seabourn.

Like that there's only one-ways well that IS pretty much vastly what Seabourn does all over the world but it's also because they do cruises on average so much longer than DCL (or the more main stream ones). You're not going to find a 7-day RT cruise because that's not the market base for the line. These cruisers sail long cruises, first night we were there a woman in the elevator had already been cruising for 6 months. So yes mentioning that they do 1-way and yes Juneau isn't a particularly easy end or start place I totally get but the way you made it sound was more on the negative side when typically what it means is you get to see more on your cruise because they aren't having to account for a return journey time.

Totally fair to mention a casino, but are you conjuring up a smoke-filled casino that you can't avoid and have to walk through to get to the food? Asking is even having a casino a dealbreaker (like it would be for my mother-in-law) is completely fair but thinking about a casino as an immediate con kinda different.

This is the casino on Encore, first cruise we saw 1-2 people max there, second cruise 2-3 people.


You can't smoke inside the ship. The casino is up against a wall so no going technically through there. To me at least on the Encore and Ovation the casinos feel like an afterthought. I haven't been on Quest, Sojourn or the now gone Odyssey (all three are sister ships of each other) to know what they feel like there. We toured Venture and I can't even remember seeing the casino so that tells you how much it was not in your face.

These are kinda more what I'm getting at, yeah you're trying to flesh out things so the OP can get more of an idea but it's also heavy on the implied "are you sure you're getting a better ____" thing.

 

[FrancisK7]

I'm only comparing the rooms mentioned in the OP because that's on topic. Why would I compare other rooms? The overall point is that of course the verandah on the Encore is cheaper than the 1-bedroom suite on the Wonder. It's a much smaller room with fewer perks and amenities.

And for what it's worth, an unobstructed verandah on the Wonder (5B) for the May 11, 2026 cruise is currently going for $7,428.50, which is significantly cheaper than the Encore verandah.

If you compare a 5B to a V1 on Seabourn the DCL has FEWER perks because you get ZERO hot breakfast options and very limited, cafeteria-level room service options.

If you do a fairer comparison of a 2B, then it's 5000$ more than Seabourn for EQUAL perks.

The private Glacier viewing on the concierge deck with Mickey and Minnie in their Alaskan outfits is the only big perk I see on the Wonder. The lackluster lounge is a far cry from Triton class lounge and with a limited happy hour and no hot galley, I don't see the concierge lounge as a valuable perk.

I guess if you don't care at all about in-room dining then a 5B would be a great experience.

If I won the jackpot I'd be sailing in the Roy or Walt suites and get Palo delivered to my room all the time. Alas I haven't lol.

 

[Mackenzie Click-Mickelson]

Am I correct into thinking that because the Encore is a smaller ship we will also sail closer to the coasts and the glaciers?

It depends on the laws (for how close they can get) as well as weather but certainly they can maneuver easy enough if they can get closer.

After you consider Seabourn is open bar at all times versus DCL concierge's limited happy hour in the small concierge lounge (that isn't even a proper bar on the Wonder), it looks like an ever better deal.

The only time I've ever heard a bartender tell someone no and believe me we were shocked was in the Observation Bar during Afternoon Tea Time, you could get alcohol anywhere else on the ship so it's not like they were saying no no it was just that particular bar was not open during tea time.

When you do your check in process (assuming you stick with Seabourn) they'll ask you for your room preferences and you can select what alcohol you'd prefer in your mini fridge/room. This past cruise they put a bottle of wine in our room in addition to what we requested though we didn't ask for that additional bottle of wine. While we haven't taken them up much on their offer many of the bartenders also like to make up drinks for the passengers (that also goes for non-alcoholic versions as well). Truth we find their hard alcohol bottles that they give you for your room to be too big to really drink it all considering how easy it is to go out and get your own so I think the next time we'll likely not ask for whiskey, bourbon and the like.

Example below is this most recent cruise where I asked for just ginger ale my husband tequila and where they gave us the bottle of wine


Our first cruise I went for beer and my husband went for whiskey

I'm sure tendering is a PITA, but the Encore can hold 600 guests, so I can't imagine the experience will be very excruciating.

On our first cruise we had four, our second cruise two tendering ports. They all went extremely well. However, weather in Alaska is different so there's that. On the other hand ships even anchored tied up to ports have had issues there. But if you're thinking about the actual experience it's as painless as possible. If there are excursions through Seabourn they do try to prioritize those and by that I just mean you're free to go any time once the ship has been cleared to go but they may hold you back if there's an excursion trying to head out at the same time. There's no complicated system as far as X room category goes first or whatnot.

because you get ZERO hot breakfast options and very limited, cafeteria-level room service options.

I confess I never took a photo of what the breakfast options were on the door slip it never dawned on me but it felt like a good variety and they were always prompt in the morning actually sometimes earlier than what time we had selected.

Probably my favorite thus far has been belgian waffles, the eggs were pretty good, I've had oatmeal, pancakes, bacon (that's my husband fav), hash browns, I think that's the hot options we've personally had unless you count toasts and croissants (loved the almond one). And if you are wanting something you don't see on there honestly you can request them to make it. They like advance requests on special requests but just because something isn't listed doesn't mean it's not an option to you.

 

[John VN]

A simple ENJOY!!!

Cruising choices are simple for DW and myself, *NO Butler = No cruise*

 

[FrancisK7]

A simple ENJOY!!!

Cruising choices are simple for DW and myself, *NO Butler = No cruise*

What do you ask of your butler and which cruise line has had the best butler service in your opinion?

 

[John VN]

What do you ask of your butler and which cruise line has had the best butler service in your opinion?

We really do not ask for much since we are extremely low maintenance. My reply is more in-jest due to being spoiled with having an *All Inclusive Experience* that we will not sail another line unless they provide a similar experience for similar pricing.

 

[katyringo]

Yeah but- how are you going to meet Mickey Mouse? I mean seriously, how could you give that up.

 

[ShaneDJ]

We really do not ask for much since we are extremely low maintenance. My reply is more in-jest due to being spoiled with having an *All Inclusive Experience* that we will not sail another line unless they provide a similar experience for similar pricing.

The reason that your cruise line's staterooms and the "All Inclusive Experience" is priced so low is because that cruise line is MSC.

There is always a reason for the pricing (high or low). Not saying MSC Yacht Club is bad...just that there is a reason for the pricing.