With 24 cruises under my belt, across the spectrum of markets, it’s fair to call me discerning and, when it comes to luxury cruising, picky. So, having read some of the reviews on Cruise Critic, I was concerned about sailing on Seabourn Quest.

Reports of a product that had fallen in recent years, that had become “Carnivalized”, were alarming, especially since my wife and I were spending a small fortune for a Penthouse suite on a 24-day cruise to Antarctica, Patagonia, and South Georgia Island. We kept reading about a staff that no longer went out of its way, a “never say no” ethos that had been abandoned, and food that had become mediocre.

Bottom line: we needn’t have worried — this cruise, especially the service, exceeded almost every legitimate expectation we could have had, and satisfied most of the others — but because nothing is perfect, the details are worth reading. Read more