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Often called "Rolls Royce of the cruise industry" the intention of Seabourn Cruise Line has always been to offer the most luxurious top-of-the-line cruises onboard the most elegant ships to worldwide destinations to satisfy the demands of the most discriminating passengers. The ships fall into a special category - small enough to be exclusive and large enough to offer all the facilities of a large cruise ship. Guests in general are very high income experienced and sophisticated travelers accustomed to the highest standards of service who know and understand quality and have very high expectations for the amount of money they pay for cruising. The bulk of the passengers come from North America with the rest mostly from Britain, Germany, Switzerland and all over the world.
Seabourn Cruise Line was launched in 1986 by a consortium of Norwegian investors headed by industrialist Atle Brynestad as an ultra-luxury cruise operator. Originally the name Signet Cruises was planned, but later the company decided to change it to Seabourn Cruise Line after a name trademark dispute with Signet Oil. The company's original two cruise ships (Seabourn Pride and Seabourn Spirit) were later joined by the similar Seabourn Legend. In 1991 Carnival Corporation acquired a stake in Seabourn Cruises and later took over the line. In 1998, in partnership with a consortium of Norwegian businessmen, Carnival purchased the remaining 50% stake in Seabourn, as well as acquiring the venerable Cunard Line from Kvaerner ASA, and merged the two brands into an entity called Cunard Line. In 1999 the ships Royal Viking Sun (to become Seabourn Sun) and the two Sea Goddesses (to be renamed Seabourn Goddes I and II) joined the fleet from sister company Cunard Line (another brand of Carnival Corporation & plc). In 2001, Carnival bought out the Norwegian shareholders, and Seabourn's parent company became a wholly owned subsidiary of Carnival Corporation. In mid-2001, Seabourn Goddess I & II were sold again (to become SeaDream I and II of SeaDream Yacht Club neaded by the original Seabourn founder Atle Brynestad), and the larger Seabourn Sun was transferred to sister company Holland America Cruise Line in April, 2002. The same year Seabourn was demerged from Cunard Line and reorganized as a stand-alone operating brand of Carnival Corporation & plc.
In March, 2011 Seabourn ceased operations from Miami, Florida and the transferred operations to the Holland America Line HQ in Seattle, Washington. In 2014 Seabourn Pride Left the fleet and was transferred to Windstar Cruises as Star Pride. In 2015 Seabourn Spirit and Seabourn Legend Left the fleet and was transferred to Windstar Cruises as Star Breeze and Star Legend. There are also the two relatively new-build sister ships in the Seabourn fleet - the 450-passenger Seabourn Odyssey and Seabourn Sojourn.
Seabourn markets its cruise ships as "The Yachts of Seabourn" and the ultra luxury ships do in fact feel like private yachts, creating an intimate environment where wealthy passengers can unwind with their peers, enjoy fine dinner cuisine and solicitous service, and visit exotic ports around the world.
By reading the company's and guests' profiles, it is not very hard to figure out how strict the requirements are when it comes to selecting new employees for Seabourn. Whoever has the qualities and experience needed though, will enjoy some of the highest salaries, the most prestiges working conditions and the most interesting itineraries within the cruise industry. As the other leaders in the ultra-luxury cruise market (Crystal Cruises, SeaDream Yacht Club, Hapag Lloyd Cruises and Silversea Cruises), Seabourn Cruise Line is one of the highly recommended companies for employment.