We selected the Ovation for our 5th cruise with Seabourn as it was a new ship with an interesting itinerary that included several less travelled ports where one did not face hoards of tourists. Our previous cruise was on Silversea as the Seabourn itinerary was sold out. Silversea fared quite favourably in terms of service and food but the Silver Shadow was badly in need of refurbishment.

The Ovation is a beautiful ship and spacious. We rarely had difficulty finding a seat anywhere. The cabins are spacious, well designed and functional with great bath and shower facilities. Our stewardess Maggie was very good and unobtrusive doing most of the housekeeping while we were out of the cabin. She did a great job of tracking down the beers and wines that we liked best and kept them well stocked. Turndown was great with nightly chocolate.

Overall food quality was very good however on several occasions in the Colonade, at breakfast and lunch, the staff was overwhelmed with the number of people they had to serve. Even in the Restaurant at dinner the staff was occasionally overwhelmed. No complaints about any individuals as most were friendly and worked hard BUT there was not enough of them to provide the level of service provided on the smaller ships. Read more