2012 Another Banner Year For Seabourn Awards

Readers' Polls, Critics, Travel Agents and Experts Agree on Top Rankings

News provided by

Jan 17, 2013, 02:33 ET

SEATTLE, Jan. 17, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- In 2012, Seabourn continued to occupy the top ratings of the most prestigious awards in the travel industry. In annual surveys, high-profile consumer publications Conde Nast Traveler and Travel + Leisure discovered their readerships to be unified in naming Seabourn the Best Small-Ship Cruise Line, for the third and fourth consecutive year respectively. Cruise-specific consumer magazine Porthole's annual readers' poll showed Seabourn honored as Best Luxury Line, offering the Best Accommodations and Seabourn Sojourn named as the industry's Best Small Ship. Seabourn also maintained its perfect record of inclusion on Conde Nast Traveler's "Gold List" of top global vacation choices every year the list has been published, and became a charter inductee of the magazine's Platinum Circle of the most consistent winners.

"We truly appreciate these magazines giving Seabourn's customers a venue to express their support and endorsement," said Seabourn president Richard D. Meadows. "These awards are absolutely a testament to the hard-working hospitality professionals who serve our guests on board. Of course everyone likes to be told they are the best," he continued, "but in truth there is no greater honor than to see past guests returning up the gangway to sail with us again. Nothing makes our staff more proud than that."

The ultra-luxury line also garnered some more specialized accolades in 2012. The Spa at Seabourn has twice been awarded a SpaFinder® Wellness Readers' Choice Award as Best Spa on a Cruise Ship, including this year. The newsletter Ocean & Cruise News, published by the World Ocean & Cruise Liner Society cited Seabourn cruises as the Best Cruise Value in the highest, Ultra-Deluxe, 6-Star+ category.

Professionally edited cruising guidebooks concur, with Stern's Guide to the Cruise Vacation awarding the Seabourn fleet Six+ Black Stars, its highest rating, and the Berlitz Guide to Cruising and Cruise Ships awarding Five Stars and listing the Seabourn fleet among the highest-rated ships in the world.

With so many of Seabourn's guests utilizing the convenience and expertise of a travel agent to handle their travel arrangements, it is important to note that the travel trade publication Travel Weekly's annual Readers' Choice Awards named Seabourn as the Best Luxury Cruise Line.

Finally, the prestigious American Academy of Hospitality Sciences has once again awarded Seabourn its highest honor, the Six Star Diamond Award.

Seabourn's ships carry between 208 and 450 guests, exclusively in ocean-view suites. Complimentary open bars throughout the voyage and open-seating dining add to a relaxed, club-like ambience that encourages an easy sociability among the guests. Well-crafted itineraries attract travelers interested in authentic experiences, and any gathering of people with those sorts of shared enthusiasms is bound to provide entertaining and enriching interaction. Award-winning cuisine is graciously served in a variety of venues, and the onboard entertainment options are varied as well. Along with beautiful, understated elegance in design and thoughtful, quality furnishings and materials, the Seabourn ships provide one of the world's finest vacation options and represent an exceptional value to travelers.

For more details about the award-winning Seabourn fleet, or to explore the worldwide selection of Seabourn cruising options, contact a professional travel agent, call Seabourn at 1-800-929-9391 or visit www.seabourn.com.

Notes to Editors:
Seabourn is consistently ranked among the world's top travel choices by professional critics and the discerning readers of prestigious travel publications such as Departures, Travel + Leisure and Conde Nast Traveler. Its stylish, distinctive cruising vacations are renowned for:

Six intimate ships with just 104 or 225 suites
Unique itineraries visiting must-see cities and hidden gems where larger ships cannot follow
Intuitive, gracious service provided by a staff passionate about pleasing our guests
Spacious all-suite accommodations with sweeping ocean views – many with verandas
Gourmet dining experiences as fine as the best restaurants anywhere
Open bars throughout the ship and fine wines poured with lunch and dinner

Seabourn is a proud member of World's Leading Cruise Lines. The exclusive alliance also includes Carnival Cruise Lines, Holland America Line, Princess Cruises, Cunard Line and Costa Cruises. Seabourn is a brand of Carnival Corporation and plc (NYSE/LSE: CCL andNYSE: CUK), and supports the Ocean Conservation & Tourism Alliance, dedicated to education and promotion of best practices for protecting the marine environment.

SOURCE Seabourn