Goldring Travel Blog – Making Waves

Cruise & Travel News, Reviews, Opinions, Deals & More

Seabourn One Week Sale! – No, Sell the Product; Not the Price Because Seabourn Just Keeps Getting Better.

You know I hate…and I mean hate…the “One Week Sale” marketing by Seabourn. Those sales are rarely “sales” that last a week, but rather lower prices forced upon not only Seabourn, but Silversea, Crystal, etc. cruise lines due to the lagging economy; especially in Europe (which has been a growing segment of the cruise market…and with new more ships around, very much needed).

Yes, there are some incredible deals. Yes, I have some deals that are even better, but you need to call me for Private Sale Pricing plus additional discounts, onboard credits and/or complimentary shore experiences.

But (yes, I know, here I go again), the reason I take issue with the One Week Sale thing is that Seabourn has an exceptional product. And, to be sure, after a somewhat rocky start that new management (which now, I guess, is no longer “new”) has begun to find their sea legs and the onboard product is improving. Yes, that’s right…Seabourn’s onboard product is improving. This is not marketing hype, but simply true fact.

For example, I awoke yesterday (Sunday) to an email from a client who has been on so many Seabourn cruises that they were awarded a Milestone Award: A Tiffany Bowl. (Which, by the way, they appreciated far more than the Tiffany pins that used to be given out.) The email read:

“We had our best ever trip on Seabourn. The captain, crew and staff were wonderful. And I need to talk to you personally. Will call as soon as I can.”

OK then. They had a great trip, but why did they need to call me as soon as possible? Me, being me and always accessible, I sent an email letting them know they could call me on my mobile any time.

And then I got the call…They were so impressed with everything Seabourn they just wanted to let me know (and to let me know of the plan for next year!) Special events for sailing 60+ days, a special anniversary celebration, and much more. They also wanted me to know they loved the Ca’Sagredo Hotel in Venice (one of my favorite hotels!) and enjoyed their complimentary upgrade to a balconied suite overlooking the Grand Canal. (I do what I can do!) As she later wrote on Goldring Travel’s Facebook Wall:

We just had our “best ever” Seabourn cruise aboard the Quest. Thank you, Eric Goldring, for all of your planning and advice. Can’t wait to book another trip with you!

Now, this is not a one-off incident. In the peak of the summer holiday season, when you would think the full ships would cause service slippages, nothing further from the truth has occurred.

Another client of mine, also very experienced Seabourn guest, was a bit concerned returning to the small Seabourn ships after having such wonderful experiences on the larger ones (most recently on the 2011 Goldring Travel Food & Wine Cruise). Presently on the Seabourn Pride they write:

The Seabourn Pride is the oldest of the Seabourn ships – we took our first Seabourn cruise on it in 2006. We both think given the years in between the ship has aged well – in fact some of the facilities look better than they did on our first trip – she has been in dry dock a couple of times since then.

Most of the crew is new to us – 3 notable exceptions – Nelson the bartender at the Sky Bar who is a legend in his own time – we were happy to see Roland from the Legend now promoted to Bar Manager on the Pride and Beatie from the Legend as the Cruise Sales Specialist. For those of you who crossed the North Atlantic with us last year – you’ll be happy to know that Eddie who took such good care of us at the Patio Grill – has now been promoted – and is Maitre De on the Legend…

Seabourn has had a provisioning issue or two this voyage – poor [DH] now has to have Johnny Walker Black – it seems they have run out of Red on board – so our cabin bar is now stocked with Black and he is offered it everywhere else onboard. We are enjoying some of the best seafood we have ever had – most of it purchased by the chef locally.

Now, with all of this wonderful news, I have to ask, “Why is Seabourn so focused on selling on price?” As I recently wrote, there are so many issues that arise – and can easily be dealt with – if you use a knowledgeable and experienced luxury travel agent (HINT, HINT: Goldring Travel ). And if you focus solely on price you are probably going to find that all the other issues: Logistics. Hotels. Recommendations in port. Guides. Flights. go un- or improperly attended.

Goldring Travel focuses on providing you with the best VALUE. Yes, we give you excellent pricing, but that is not our focus…and if you use Goldring Travel (as you can tell from the last few articles) it not because we are holding One Week Sales.

It is because Goldring Travel is that good. I stake my reputation on it!

Call us at (877) 2GO-LUXURY, +1 732 578 8585 or in UK: 020 8133 3450 or Australia: (07) 3102 4685