We started the evening last night at the Observation Bar. It appears we have officially established a routine of having caviar as soon as we arrive. Last night’s pairing was caviar with ridged potato chips and honestly, not bad at all!
This venue continues to be a very social spot. We met a fascinating British couple and enjoyed a lovely conversation, and we also caught up with our solo friend, C. The three of us eventually made our way back to The Restaurant for dinner. Once again, the food and service did not disappoint. Another menu, another big hit.After dinner, C headed off to the show in the Grand Salon while we returned to the Observation Bar to listen to Charlie, who plays guitar, piano, and sings. He is fantastic. His song repertoire seems endless, and he has a great voice to match. 🎶
This morning, we actually slept in until 8:30. That is late for us, as we are usually up by 7:00 at home at the latest. The seas are still a bit rocky, but we are hoping things smooth out as we get closer to Bora Bora.
After a very light breakfast, I headed to the Fitness Center while Debbie returned to our stateroom to do her nails. Priorities. 💅
We are now poolside, where we plan to stay for the day.
Breaking News!!! We did it! We booked a 40-day Japan voyage on Seabourn Encore for February 2027! 🎉We had originally been booked on a very similar 42-day voyage on the Diamond Princess during the same time frame. The big difference? Seabourn’s itinerary covers much more of Japan, actually circumnavigating the entire island. And the best part—our Seabourn fare in a mid-ship V3 Veranda is identical to our Diamond booking, in an aft Vista Suite with the Plus Package! And, the current onboard 20% off promotion sealed the deal.
As we’ve discovered, there are significant differences between the two cruise lines. In many ways—too many to list—Seabourn definitely has the edge over Princess.
That said, we still see ourselves cruising on Princess, perhaps alternating between the two lines (we have a 44-day Med voyage booked on Princess for this October). With only three ocean ships (once Sojourn is handed over to Mitsui Cruises in May), Seabourn simply can’t match Princess when it comes to the sheer number of itineraries. And of course, we have long-time relationships with Princess staff and crew that we very much want to maintain.
Best of both worlds, right? 😊
