Why is Odyssey Bigger than Other Seabourn Yachts? The Answer Might Surprise You.
Guests who have sailed on Seabourn Pride, Spirit and Legend will notice differences in Seabourn Odyssey right away. Odyssey is, after all, quite a bit bigger than her older sisters. But it’s important to remember what all that extra size is being used for. Odyssey wasn’t designed to be bigger just for the sake of the size. The new yacht includes features and amenities that a lot of guests have been suggesting for years.
Probably the most prominent wish fulfillment feature is the verandas. Ninety percent of the suites have private verandas, and they are really big. (Big enough to dine on.) So you take a suite that is about the same size as the suites of Pride, Spirit and Legend (OK, they are a little bigger, too!) and add a veranda, and guess what? The vessel gets bigger.
So why make the suites bigger? Well, how about a separate tub and shower in the bathroom? A lot of guests asked for that, and now they will have it. But we needed to keep the walk-in closet, and the bar and refrigerator, and the separate seating area. And there are some extra-size suites on Odyssey, too. There are 23 Penthouse suites that are half-again the size of the veranda-category suites. And then, like the existing yachts, there are a few that are even larger. (OK, actually, way larger!)
So now we begin to see why Odyssey was planned to be bigger than the existing yachts… and it turns out that the reasons have a lot to do with what Seabourn guests want. Over the next few posts, we’ll explore some other differences and how and why they came to be included.
Tags: Seabourn Odyssey, Seabourn Odyssey Construction, Seabourn Odyssey Services, Seabourn Odyssey suites
June 1st, 2009 at 4:12 am
But that still does not explain why you have more than doubled the number of passengers, couldn’t you have done all of the above and kept to 200 or so passengers?
June 2nd, 2009 at 8:59 am
A fair question. Yes, they could have built a yacht for 200 guests. But there’s nothing magic about that number, really. The world’s leading experts on the Seabourn experience ( the people who invented it and have maintained it ever since) think that Odyssey is going to be a fabulous experience for guests. It has more and more variety of public areas, it has more hotel crew per guest than the existing sisters and way more space. They thought a lot about how many guests there should be, and the number they came up with was 450. In a few days we’ll know if they are right–but I have to tell you they have a really good record!
June 4th, 2009 at 2:29 pm
Thanks for the response Bruce, my only experience is that we have sailed the small (nearly 300 guests) and large (450 guests) Silverseas ships and there was a distinct difference between the 2. As we have done 3 Silversea and way over 30 (sorry lost count!) Seabourn cruises you know where our loyalties lie. We are just concerned that the differences found on silversea will be similar on Odyssey and the 3 beautifully sized ships Seabourn already have. But as you say we will all know in a few weeks time. I only questioned it as this article came over as the increase in size was what the current seabourn passengers were wishing for and none of the ones we have spoken to are happy at the increase in capacity, as in all things people resist change so good luck but please keep the sisters for a few more years yet!!
June 9th, 2009 at 7:25 pm
We’re so excited to be sailing on one of your world cruises next winter on the Seabourn Odyssey. We sailed twice on the Seabourn Legend in 2008, and will probably never sail on a competitor cruise line. Looking forward to the Odyssey and happy it’s a bit larger. I don’t think a world cruise on the Legend would have been realistic.
We love Seabourn!
June 17th, 2009 at 9:22 am
Our past guests are enthusiastic about Odyssey’s arrival – simply because they have come to expect verandahs. 450 passengers are still going to be thrilled by the attention to details. As for our Regent, SeaDream and Silversea guests – we’re excited to introduce them to the Odyssey.
August 24th, 2009 at 10:49 am
the Odyssey cruise ship looks awesome, having a private verandas is really a good idea. It is mentioned the suites are bigger, are they family friendly? Say if i have 2 adults and 2 children traveling, will we find the suite big enough?