Seadream Yacht Club

Counter Cruise: SeaDream Yacht Club SeaDream was the only cruise line to rank as one of Conde Nast Traveler’s top travel experiences, but will the company’s twin ships, both more than 20 years old, top your list? n 2006 readers of CONDÉ NAST TRAVELER ranked Welcome Aboard Seadream Yacht Club as one of the top 100 travel SeaDream II is the former Sea Goddess, built in 1985 Iexperiences worldwide. In fact, SeaDream was the and operated by Cunard Line and later by Seabourn only cruise company to be included in the ranking. The Cruise Line. Before launching in 2001, SeaDream’s other 99 winners were all hotels and resorts. owners performed major upgrades on the vessel (and her Readers also ranked SeaDream “World’s Best Small twin SeaDream I) and continue to make improvements. Passenger Shipping Line,” and the company achieved the SeaDream II is exquisitely small, topping out at 110 pas- highest overall score for all cruise companies — large or sengers, and thus can get into ports that big ships can’t. small. “Some of the tenders on the big ships carry more passen- “It’s lovely to get such recognition, especially when gers than we do,” jokes Captain Valter Berg. you’re a company that essentially in its history has not Indeed, from Barcelona to Nice, SeaDream II dropped been not an advertiser with anybody,” Larry Pimen- anchor in some of the Mediterranean’s most idyllic ports tel, president and CEO of SeaDream Yacht Club, tells — St. Tropez, Cannes, Portofino, Villefranche, among The Avid Cruiser. He barely pauses before adding that them. SeaDream also scored 100 percent in both service and Back in Barcelona, boarding time for SeaDream II was cuisine, the “first time,” he adds, “that’s ever happened in at 2 p.m. I passed through security at the terminal, handed the context of Conde Nast.” my passport to SeaDream II’s purser and, after receiving No doubt that SeaDream has had lots of worthy praise a squirt of antibacterial soap dispensed by staff, stepped heaped upon it, but the only cruise line to be included in aboard the open gangway onto the ship at 2:05 p.m. the top 100 travel experiences? How can that be? This past It was an impressive embarkation, not only for its ease spring, I boarded SeaDream II in Barcelona to answer the but also for its warmth. One of the lovely Thai masseuses question: How can a cruise company operating two small handed me a cold towel to refresh my face and hands. Photos courtesy of SeaDream Yacht Club and Ralph Grizzle Yacht Photos courtesy of SeaDream ships, both more than 20 years old, outperform all others? A waiter stepped forth with a glass of champagne. The FALL 2007 Avid Cruiser 11 cruise review captain, the activities director and the hotel manager were more than there to greet passengers. It was all a precursor of the ser- half a dozen vice and hospitality that would come to define SeaDream times, remark- II during the week. able when you “Can I take you on a tour of the top deck?” Zoltan, consider that the ship’s friendly bartender, insisted that he stop what SeaDream is he was doing to show me the upper deck of the ship. only six years He seemed glad to do so. What was surprising about the old. service and hospitality was that none of it seemed con- SeaDream trived or given begrudgingly. Later that afternoon, when I does seek to excused myself for devouring a bowl of nuts by explaining differentiate I had missed lunch, Zoltan handed me a menu and set itself from tra- a place for me at the bar for a SeaDream salad of greens, ditional cruise mozzarella, avocado, pesto sauce and pine nuts. vacations. The On another occasion, when the bar crowd was still company’s hanging out at 2 a.m., Zoltan disappeared for a few min- slogan — “It’s Yachting, Not Cruising” — suggests a utes and returned with two giant bowls of popcorn. “He separation from cruising. Cruising, for example, is an doesn’t have a game face,” says Jim Moskos, a SeaDream indoor product, says the company’s Pimentel; yachting is regular from Toronto. “Or if he does, you don’t see it. He an outdoor product. seems to really love what he does.” Not only can you sleep outside, but both vessels carry toys that make SeaDream an active outdoor travel experi- SeaDream Staterooms ence: personal watercraft such as Wave Runners, kayaks SeaDream I & II are more than 20 years old. Both have and Sunfish Sailboats. Zodiacs pull skis and Banana boats. had extensive refits, but they lack some of the features of Passengers snorkel and dive from an “inflatable island.” modern ships. Staterooms, which measure 195 square feet, On the ground, Hummer mountain bikes are avail- have no balconies, for example, though in fairness, most able free of charge; Segway demonstrations are available for passengers spend their time on the upper decks, lounging $49 for 45 minutes (the bikes can be taken ashore when in Balinese beds that were in some respects better than tendering; the Segways cannot). balconies. On several nights of our cruise, the delightful Adding a personal touch, Captain Terje Willassen Filipino room stewardesses prepared the beds for couples hikes and bikes with passengers. During my cruise, eight to sleep under the stars. (A nice touch is that SeaDream of us hiked from Portofino to Santa Margherita — and also provides custom-embroidered cotton pajamas.) back, a 3.5-hour hike. The captain does not soft-peddle his Stateroom baths are not as big as on new ships, though hikes. “When the captain says it’s a walk, it’s a hike,” says it must be said that SeaDream II’s bathrooms are wonder- one passenger. “And when he says it’s a hike, it’s a trek.” fully appointed, with marble surround, three showerheads and Bvglari amenities. Shopping With The Chefs There is no wireless internet, but those who bring A less-strenuous walk also at no cost was with Jes Paskins, their own laptops — or borrow one of the several made executive chef on SeaDream II. In St. Tropez, during what available — get broadband-speed wired internet access is called a Crew Shoreside Casual, we walked with Jes and in their staterooms for $35 per day. Two terminals are pastry chef Gerben Land to sample regional specialities available in the library for those who prefer not to burden and purchase fresh local foods to complement lunch and their vacations with electronic gadgetry. The cost at the dinner back on board. See a video clip of the walk at terminals is $5 for the first 10 minutes of internet access; www.avidcruisertv.com. and $3 for each 10-minute packet thereafter. Upload and Equally impressive were the late-night departures. In download speeds were blazingly fast for a ship. St. Tropez, Cannes and Santorini, we sat down to dinner on the upper decks as other ships sailed away. Typical Counter Cruise departure times were around midnight during our cruise. Some of the other passengers who I talked with during the As you might expect, dress is casual; tuxedoes and formal cruise thought of themselves as non-cruisers. Therefore, dress simply aren’t seen. it was a surprise to learn that many of these same people The itinerary also is casual. While the captain’s job is also were frequent SeaDream repeaters. Some had cruised to get passengers between the published embarkation and 12 Avid Cruiser FALL 2007 european cruiseriver cruising review disembarka- ing dining, the quality of the cuisine, and the fact that al- tion ports, cohol and gratuities are included mirrors what you’d expect what he does on small luxury ships. SeaDream’s ability to get into small in between ports, its wide expanse of deck space and its marina with is up to him. all of the toys reminds me of a ship that sailed along beside When several us during much of the week: Windstar Cruises’ Wind Surf, big ships were a special ship in its own right (pictured with SeaDream II in Santorini on page 11). last summer, But there are some areas where SeaDream stands apart. the captain an- The company’s late nights in port combined with outdoor nounced that dinners appears to be unique. And while yachts may offer the Greek is- opportunities to sleep under the stars, SeaDream makes a land would be luxury experience out of it, even down to the custom-em- unpleasantly broidered pajamas. congested with Seabourn Cruise Line offers something similar to the tourists, so he steered away to a quieter island and returned Crew Shoreside Casual, but SeaDream takes it one step to Santorini the next day when no ships were in port. further with the Captain’s hike. In Port Vendres, France, ours was the only passenger Nearly all cruise lines claim excellent staff and cui- ship in port. In fact, it would be hard to imagine a bigger sine — they better; their reputations depend on it — but ship being able to even enter the harbor (though Oceania SeaDream II really did shine in these areas. The crew and possibly others calls here). Cycling the waterfront, exhibited a friendliness and enthusiasm that went beyond I stopped what their jobs required. They had a sort of spirit. More- to watch over, with 94 crew members, the 110-passenger SeaDream fishermen II boasts a nearly one-to-one staff-to-guest ratio. roast freshly Should SeaDream should be the only cruise company caught in Conde Nast Traveler’s top 100 travel experiences? Of sardines on course not.

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