Seabourn Unveils Line-Up of Speakers for Onboard Enrichment Program

Ultra-luxury line Seabourn announced a powerhouse line-up of speakers for its onboard Seabourn Conversations program during the summer and fall 2023 seasons.

Scheduled speakers include Apple Co-Founder Steve Wozniak; Royal Butler Grant Harrold; former head of MI5, Dame Stella Rimington; Michelin Star Chef Robert Thompson; and more.

The conversations will take place between June and November 2023 and follow several themes from royalty and wine interests to expedition and culture.

“Seabourn is known to provide extraordinary experiences for extraordinary people,” said Seabourn President Natalya Leahy. “Seabourn attracts like-minded, accomplished, and outstanding people. This program lives up to this promise, and we are so delighted to bring onboard these distinguished speakers who are leaders in their respective fields.”

Here’s a snapshot of the upcoming schedule.

-- Steve Wozniak, Apple co-founder, June 11-25, 2023, Seabourn Ovation cruise roundtrip from Copenhagen. A Silicon Valley technology entrepreneur and philanthropist for more than 40 years, Wozniak has helped shape the computing industry with his design of Apple’s first line of products, the Apple I and II. He also influenced the popular Macintosh. In 1976, Wozniak and Steve Jobs founded Apple Computer Inc. with Wozniak’s Apple I personal computer.

-- Explorers and adventurers, July 2-16, 2023, Seabourn Venture roundtrip from Reykjavik. Speakers include Seabourn Venture Godmother Alison Levine, team captain of the first American Women’s Everest Expedition who was one of only 20 people to climb the highest peak on each continent and skied to the North and South Poles.

Heidemarie M. Stefanyshyn-Piper is a former NASA Astronaut and U.S. Navy Captain, having served in the U.S. Navy for 30 years. Selected as an astronaut by NASA, she is a veteran of two space flights in 2006 and 2008, logging almost 28 days in space where she has completed five spacewalks.

Dr. Beth Healey has worked in extreme and remote environments, including Svalbard, Siberia, Greenland, and the North Pole. As a research M.D. for the European Space Agency, she overwintered in Antarctica and researched the effects of isolation and extreme environment.

-- Michelin Starred Chef Robert Thompson, Aug 1-25, 2023, on Seabourn Quest cruise from London to Quebec. Born in Bedfordshire, England, in 2007 Thompson became the youngest chef to be awarded a Michelin Star. He achieved this at Winteringham Fields, England, before earning a star at The Hambrough on the Isle of Wight. Thompson will also be sailing on Seabourn Sojourn June 29-July 13, 2024, from Lisbon to Dover and Sept. 7-21, 2024, roundtrip from Dover.

-- Dame Stella Rimington, former director general of MI5, Oct. 29-Nov. 5, 2023, on Seabourn Ovation from Barcelona to Rome. Rimington is known as the role model for the character “M” played by Dame Judi Dench in the James Bond 007 films. Appointed Director General of MI5 in 1992, she was the first woman to take the post.

-- Royal Interest Voyage, Nov. 5-11, 2023, Seabourn Encore from Athens, Greece to Tenedos, Turkey. This cruise will feature Grant Harrold, who will talk about his life as the Royal Butler and host a royal etiquette class, and Brian Aris, who has been photographer to the royals for many years.

-- Justin Van Breda, interior designer, Nov. 5-12, 2023, Seabourn Ovation from Rome to Barcelona. Van Breda in 1999 began working for Nicky Haslam at NH Design and within nine months was made creative director. In late 2001, he returned to his birthplace South Africa to curate his first furniture collection.

-- Wine Interest Voyage, Nov. 12-19, 2023, Seabourn Encore from Istanbul, Turkey to Athens, Greece. This cruise will feature the World Wine Guys, Mike DeSimone and Jeff Jenssen, the wine editors at “Robb Report Magazine.” DeSimone is also the official taster for Spanish wines at “Wine Enthusiast.” Also attending will be Will Lyons, wine critic for the Sunday Times. For more than a decade he has published a weekly column on drinks, formerly in The Wall Street Journal and now The Sunday Times.

For more information on Seabourn Conversations, click here. 

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