CiMar was first created for this project and has grown along with our fleet.  The company designated an area of about 50,000 square meters – formerly a potato field – and built a special overhead crane for the construction of the Seabourn vessels.  Odyssey’s hull was built there first and then the superstructure was added at Genoa. Sojourn was mostly built at CiMar including the superstructure, and Quest’s all steel work was done there.We’re very excited about Quest — stay tuned for more updates and photos!

We are absolutely delighted to share the fantastic news that Seabourn has won top honors again.  For the second year in a row, the discerning readers of Travel + Leisure magazine have selected Seabourn as the World’s Best Small-Ship Cruise Line in the magazine’s 2010 World’s Best Awards readers’ poll.” And what’s even more exciting is that we outscored all ocean-going cruise lines regardless of size!  We’ve earned this honor four out of the last five years, winning this award in 2006, 2007, 2009 and now 2010.

We are elated and so very proud to receive this wonderful distinction.  It speaks volumes about the entire Seabourn crew and staff and the tremendous service they provide to guests.

“We are always gratified when our guests make the effort to award this honor to the staff on board our yachts,” said Seabourn’s president & CEO, Pamela C. Conover. “I always tell them they are the best,” she continued, “but I know it means so much more coming from the guests themselves. I really want to thank Travel + Leisure for giving their readers the opportunity to cast their votes for our outstanding crew.”

Travel + Leisure readers vote on various aspects of each line, and the total scores are tabulated from those votes. Seabourn’s formula of intimate guest capacity, gracious service, interesting itineraries and spacious accommodations is enhanced by a relaxed, club-like social atmosphere and an inclusive value that encompasses fine dining in all onboard venues and complimentary open bars throughout the voyage.

It is obviously a combination that readers of Travel + Leisure find a winning one.

Celeste writes, “Seabourn is about understated privileges and pampering that includes free-flowing champagne, personalized stationery and Hermès soaps.”

Read about her Seabourn Odyssey experience, which was just published in the L.A. Times.

“marvelous” with “exceptional service, delicious cuisine, and casual onboard atmosphere that past Seabourn cruisers love and expect.”

Want to see why Odyssey is so marvelous? Read the Seabourn Odyssey review and be sure to check out her photo gallery.

So if you are thinking of booking a Seabourn cruise or are just curious what Odyssey is really like, check out this article and enjoy.

“With so much uncertainty in the world, and a questionable worldwide economy, it is nice to know that there are still a few places where compromise is not an option. Seabourn is one of those places.”

The 2009 Readers’ Choice Awards are the latest accolades bestowed upon the company’s four intimate cruising vessels.  Seabourn has consistently received top honors from a number of well-respected and discerning travel publications and experts.

Seabourn continues to show why we’re the best.  This year, we were honored with two 2009 Cruise Critic Editors’ Picks Awards, bringing home “Best New Luxury Ship” for the Seabourn Odyssey, as well as “Best Luxury Dining” for the entire fleet.  In addition, the prestigious Virtuoso Travel Network, which consists of more than 6,000 luxury travel advisers, selected Seabourn as the “Best Small-Ship Cruise Line” for the second year in a row.  We also received the high distinction of the “2009 World’s Best Small-Ship Cruise Line” by readers of Travel + Leisure in its 14th annual readers’ survey.

We’re proud of the staff at Seabourn.  Job well done!

Seabourn Pride, meanwhile, will be in Asia for the full year, and in the autumn will be sailing in China, Thailand and Vietnam, with land extensions to Beijing, Guilin, Cambodia & Laos and the Himalayan kingdom of Bhutan.

Seabourn Odyssey will make a maiden circumnavigation of South America in early 2011, encompassing the Peruvian and Chilean coasts, the Chilean fjords and Patagonia, Cape Horn, the Falkland Islands, Argentina, Uruguay, Brazil and the Amazon.

Seabourn Legend’s voyages in the Caribbean are designed to take advantage of her intimate size, and features such as the fold-out watersports marina that can be deployed for a “Champagne and Caviar in the Surf” beach barbecue. Activities ashore range from snorkeling, yacht-racing, kayaking, hiking, horseback riding and zip-line adventures to visiting artists’ studios, tony boutiques or relaxing on world-class beaches. On board, deck barbecues and al fresco dining options make the most of the bucolic climate, as do Dancing and Movies Under the Stars.

Seabourn also tallies guests’ “votes” by means of a questionnaire filled out at the end of each cruise. The questionnaires ask for numeric ratings and verbatim comments, and are read by onboard management and headquarters executives as well. Then, the results are discussed in meetings of department heads on board and by the department heads with their staffs. That way, any issues are quickly addressed so they don’t continue from cruise to cruise. Seabourn takes a lot of pride in the awards it has received. They mean a lot to everyone involved. It’s just one more way of knowing our guests are happy. And that is the key to everything.

We were thrilled to be selected by the readers of Condé Nast Traveler as the Best Small-Ship Cruise Line in their annual Readers’ Choice Awards last fall.  And now, Travel + Leisure magazine has released the results of their 14th annual World’s Best survey and their readers have again voted The Yachts of Seabourn the World’s Best Small-Ship Cruise Line. Are we ever proud now! The best news, in a way, is that these votes of confidence from our guests are the results of cruise experiences before Seabourn Odyssey even joined the fleet. With Odyssey already pleasing guests and Sojourn getting set to do the same, we have high hopes for the future. Thanks to everyone who voted for us, and special thanks to the crew of our Seabourn yachts, who send everybody home happy and  ready to cast their ballots for us.