Seabourn Conversations

Walter Isaacson is the best-selling biographer of our times, with books on Benjamin Franklin, Albert Einstein, Steve Jobs, Jennifer Doudna, and Elon Musk. He was editor of Time Magazine, the CEO of CNN, and the CEO of the Aspen Institute. In 2023, he was awarded the National Humanities Medal by President Biden. He is a professor of history at Tulane.


Seabourn Ovation
14-Day West Ireland Gems & Solar Eclipse
August 8 to 22, 2026
Dover to Rekjavik

Jeffrey Archer has topped the bestseller lists around the world, with sales of over 320 million copies in 115 countries and 49 languages. He is the only author ever to have been a number one bestseller in fiction (nineteen times), short stories (four times) and non-fiction. He gained a Blue in Athletics at Oxford, was President of the University Athletics Club, and went on to run the 100 yards in 9.6 seconds for Great Britain in 1966. Jeffrey served five years in the House of Commons and thirty-one years as a Member of the House of Lords. Jeffrey is an art collector and amateur auctioneer, conducting around 10 charity auctions a year, and has raised over £51m in the last 30 years for good causes. He has been married to Dame Mary Archer DBE, Chancellor of the University of Buckingham, former Chair of the Science Museum Group and Cambridge University Hospitals, for 57 years. They have two sons, two granddaughters and three grandsons. 

Seabourn Quest
7-Day Greece & Dalmatian Delights
August 9 to August 16, 2026
Athens to Dubrovnik

Sir Ian Rankin OBE is the recipient of four Crime Writers’ Association Dagger Awards including the prestigious Diamond Dagger. Ian previously won America’s celebrated Edgar Award for Resurrection Men. He has also been shortlisted for the Edgar and Anthony Awards in the USA, and won Denmark’s Palle Rosenkrantz prize, the French Grand Prix du Roman Noir and Germany’s Deutscher Krimipreis.

His Inspector Rebus novels have sold over 35 million copies.

Seabourn Quest
14-Day North Cape & Norwegian Fjords
July 17 to July 31, 2027
Dover to Dover

Louise Penny was 45 years old when her first book in the Chief Inspector Gamache series was published. Set in the fictional Quebec village of Three Pines, that book was turned down by more than 50 publishers and agents. Still Life went on to win almost every crime writing prize in North America. Since then, she has written 21 books in the series, most of which have topped bestseller lists internationally, along with a stand-alone political thriller with her friend and co-author Hillary Clinton.

Seabourn Quest 
12-Day Newfoundland & Gulf Of St. Lawrence Reverie
September 25 to October 7, 2027 
Montreal to Montreal  

Ann Cleeves, OBE is a mystery crime writer and author of 37 critically acclaimed novels and an international bestseller translated in to over 20 languages worldwide. In 2017, she was awarded the CWA Diamond Dagger, the highest accolade in crime writing. She is the creator of popular detectives Vera Stanhope, Jimmy Perez and Matthew Venn who can be found on television in ITV’s Vera, BBC One’s Shetland and ITV’s The Long Call, respectively. During the voyage, she will offer fascinating insights into her books and characters and host two hands-on workshops:

• Crime Writing Workshops - Cleeves will offer crime-writing workshops helping budding authors write their own mystery.

• The Glass Room Murder Mystery – Hosted by Cleeves, guests who enjoy a classic mystery during this live event as a mystery plays out before them. As an audience, they must discover who the culprit is and bring them to justice.
   

Seabourn Ovation
10-Day Seville, Granada, Murcia And French Riviera
April 8 to April 18, 2027
Lisbon to Genoa

Winston E. Scott is a retired U.S. Navy Captain and aviator. During his Navy career, Captain Scott served as a helicopter pilot with Helicopter Anti- Submarine Warfare Squadron Light Thirty- Three at NAS North Island, CA flying the SH-2F helicopter. He later served a tour of duty as a fighter pilot with Fighter Squadron Eighty Four at NAS Oceana, Virginia flying the F-14 Tomcat fighter/ interceptor. He subsequently served as a production test pilot and engineering director at the Naval Aviation Depot at NAS Jacksonville, FL. Additionally, Scott served as a research development test and evaluation (RDTE) pilot and Deputy Director of the Tactical Aircraft Systems Department at the Naval Air Warfare Center Aircraft Division in Warminster, PA.

Captain Scott was selected to become an astronaut by NASA in 1992, serving as a mission specialist he flew two space shuttle missions during which time he logged over 24 days in space, including 3 spacewalks totaling over 19 hours.


Seabourn Ovation
12-Day Canada & New England Fall Foliage
September 13 to September 25, 2026
New York to Montreal

Jim Kennedy retired from NASA as the Director, John F. Kennedy Space Center (KSC) in 2007 after 36 years of service.  As Director he was responsible for 15,000 men and women who processed, launched (and landed as appropriate) the Space Shuttle, International Space Station and Expendable Launch Vehicles.   His education includes a BS Mechanical Engineering from Auburn, University and MBA from Georgia Southern University.  Retirement has brought opportunities to tour with the Mannheim Steamroller Band, consult with the aerospace industry, and lecture on Space Exploration and Leadership around the world.   Jim is married to Bernadette and they have two children and four beautiful grandchildren. 

Seabourn Encore
21-Day Pacific Passage & Jewels Of Japan
September 18 to October 10, 2026
Vancouver to Tokyo

Robert K. Wittman joined the FBI as a Special Agent in 1988. As a result of specialized training in art, antiques, jewelry and gem identification, he served as the FBI’s investigative expert involving cultural property crime. During his 20 year FBI career he recovered more than $300 million worth of stolen art and cultural property which resulted in numerous prosecutions and convictions. 

As a result of his unique experience Mr. Wittman coauthored the FBI Cultural Property Investigative Manual in 2001. In 2005, he created the FBI’s rapid deployment national Art Crime Team (ACT). Mr. Wittman has represented the United States throughout the world conducting investigations and instructing international police and museums in recovery and use of high value asset security techniques in more than 20 countries. Mr. Wittman recently concluded a series of regional security and protection of cultural heritage training lectures to government agencies representing countries in Asia, Central Asia and Serbia sponsored by the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE). 

Mr. Wittman is the recipient of numerous awards and commendations including the Order of Merit for Distinguished Service-Officer Level, presented by the President of Peru, the White Cross of Law Enforcement Merit with Distinction, by the government of Spain, Director's Award for Outstanding Contributions in Law Enforcement from the U.S. Department of Justice, Robert Burke Award for Cultural Property Protection from the Smithsonian Institution, and the S.A.F.E Beacon Award from Saving Antiquities for Everyone.

In 2010, Mr. Wittman penned his New York Times bestselling memoir “PRICELESS: How I Went Undercover to Rescue the World’s Stolen Treasures.” His second book, “THE DEVIL’S DIARY: Alfred Rosenberg and the Stolen Secrets of the Third Reich” is a worldwide best seller published in 29 languages in more than 30 countries. He was featured in the History Channel series “Lost History’ and recently filmed an investigation into the lost artifacts of General George Custer’s brigade at the battle of Little Big Horn in Montana. Mr. Wittman has served as an expert witness in multiple state and federal court cases. Mr. Wittman is now president of Robert Wittman Inc. the firm specializes in consulting in art matters which include expert witness testimony, investigation and collection management.

Seabourn Quest
14-Day Leeward Island Jewels
November 22 to December 6, 2026
Miami to Miami 

John Kiriakou is a journalist, former CIA counterterrorism officer, former senior investigator for the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, former counterterrorism consultant for ABC News, and the son of two public elementary school teachers. He was responsible for the capture in Pakistan in 2002 of Abu Zubaydah, then believed to be the third-ranking official in al-Qaeda. In 2007, Kiriakou blew the whistle on the CIA’s torture program, telling ABC News that the CIA tortured prisoners, that torture was official U.S. government policy, and that the policy had been approved by then-President George W. Bush. He became the sixth whistleblower indicted by the Obama administration under the Espionage Act — a law designed to punish spies. He served 23 months in prison as a result of the revelation.

In 2012, the Ralph Nader family honored Kiriakou with the Joe A. Callaway Award for Civic Courage, an award given to individuals who “advance truth and justice despite the personal risk it creates.” He won the PEN Center USA’s prestigious First Amendment Award in 2015, the first Blueprint International Whistleblowing Prize for Bravery and Integrity in the Public Interest in 2016, and also in 2016 the Sam Adams Award for Integrity in Intelligence, given by retired CIA, FBI, and NSA officers.

His portrait, make of Legos by the famed Chinese artist and activist Ai Weiwei, is in the permanent collection of the Smithsonian University. Another, done by Andres Serrano, is in the collection of London's Tate Museum. And third is in artist Robert Shetterly’s series Americans Who Tell the Truth, which features notable truth-tellers throughout American history.

Kiriakou is the author of eight books, including The Reluctant Spy: My Secret Life in the CIA’s War on Terror; Doing Time Like a Spy: How the CIA Taught Me to Survive and Thrive in Prison; The Convenient Terrorist: Abu Zubaydah and the Weird Wonderland of America’s Secret Wars; and The CIA Insider’s Guide to the Iran Crisis.

Kiriakou has worked with multiple showrunners as script advisor or script consultant for such films as The Bourne Ultimatum, The Kite Runner, and Kill the Messenger, and television series, including Burn Notice and True Lies.

Seabourn Ovation
12-Day Caribbean & Atlantic Passage
March 27 to April 8, 2027
Bridgetown to Lisbon

Ambassador (ret.) Marisa Lino is an Adjunct Political Scientist at the RAND Corporation. In 2019, she retired from Northrop Grumman Corporation after 10 years as a Director in Government Relations.  From 2007-2008, Ambassador Lino served as the Assistant Secretary for International Affairs at the U.S. Dept. of Homeland Security.  Prior to that, she was the Director of the Johns Hopkins University’s School of Advanced International Studies' (SAIS) Bologna Center from 2003-2006. During nearly 30 years of distinguished service as a Foreign Service Officer at the U.S. Department of State, Ambassador Lino held overseas positions in Albania, Italy, Pakistan, Syria, Iraq, and Peru

Seabourn Ovation
12-Day Newfoundland & Gulf Of St. Lawrence Reverie
September 25 to October 7, 2026
Montreal to Montreal

Rupert Wallace’s career in the Royal Navy included the Falklands War, three ship commands, heading a flotilla of destroyers and frigates, and strategic UK defense relations work throughout the Middle East and South Asia.

On retirement, he completed a Postgraduate degree in International Relations at the London School of Economics.

Commodore Rupert Wallace was awarded a Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE) in 2013 for his distinguished foreign service and international relations work while in the Royal Navy 

Seabourn Venture
24‑Day Southern Caribbean & South American Expedition
October 1 to October 25, 2027
Halifax to Rio de Janeiro

Seabourn Venture
16‑Day Trinidad to Rio: South American Expedition
October 9 to October 25, 2027
Bridgetown to Rio de Janeiro

Mandy Hickson has spent over 30 years in aviation. She joined the Royal Air Force in 1994 and went on to fly the Tornado GR4 on the front line, including patrolling the “No Fly” zone over Iraq. As one of the RAF’s first female fast jet pilots, Mandy brings a unique perspective on teamwork, courage and operating under pressure.

Since leaving the RAF, she has continued to support the next generation of aviators, serving as an Aviation Ambassador for the Department for Transport and as an Ambassador for the Girl Guides.

Her bestselling memoir, An Officer, Not a Gentleman, tells the story of her journey to become one of the first women to fly fast jets in the RAF


Seabourn Quest January
12-Day World Cruise: Panama Canal To Callao
5 to January 17, 2027
Miami to Callao (Lima)

Clare Balding CBE is an award-winning broadcaster and author. She has worked on every Olympic Games since 1996 and on every Paralympics since 2000. Clare won BAFTA’s Special Award for her work on London 2012 and continues to present major events in sport, factual documentaries, and Royal events, including commentary of the King’s Coronation for BBC One. A passionate campaigner for equality and women’s sport, Clare is also a best-selling author of numerous book and children’s novels. In June 2022, it was announced Clare had been awarded a CBE for her services to Sport and Charity which she was honored to receive at Buckingham Palace in December 2022.

Seabourn Ovation
7-Day Classic Caribbean Yacht Harbors
February 13 to February 20, 2027 
Bridgetown to Philipsburg

 &

Seabourn Ovation 
7-Day Caribbean Yacht Harbors
February 20 to February 27, 2027 
Philipsburg to Bridgetown

Jill Dougherty is an expert on Russia and the region.

She served as CNN's Moscow Bureau Chief for almost a decade. Other postings include: White House correspondent; Foreign Affairs Correspondent covering the U.S. State Department; U.S. Affairs Editor; and Managing Editor CNN International, Asia-Pacific, based in Hong Kong.

She currently is a CNN on-air contributor, commenting on Russia-related issues; Adjunct Professor at Georgetown University’s Center for Eurasian, Russian and East European Studies; Distinguished Fellow at The Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars; and a Fellow at the Kennan Institute in Washington, DC. She has pursued research on Russia and the media as a fellow at the Shorenstein Center on Media, Politics and Public Policy at Harvard University’s John F. Kennedy School of Government; at the Woodrow Wilson Center; and at the International Centre for Defence and Security in Tallinn, Estonia.

Her articles, book reviews and commentary have appeared in theatlantic.com; politico.com; wilsonquarterly.com; washingtonpost.com; cnn.com and other publications. She is the author of My Russia: What I Saw Inside the Kremlin, a book about her decades-long experiences in Russia and the region.

She is a member of the Council on Foreign Relations and the World Affairs Council.

Seabourn Ovation
12-Day Caribbean & Atlantic Passage
March 27 to April 8, 2027
Bridgetown to Lisbon

Hugo Burnand, a world-renowned portrait photographer, who captures the essence of iconic figures from diverse backgrounds, is also famous for capturing society weddings and star-studded  parties. A long-standing contributor to Condé Nast, particularly Tatler & House & Garden Magazine, Burnand has portrayed luminaries such as Queen Elizabeth II, Bill Clinton, Victoria Beckham, Michael Jackson and many others.

Holding a Royal Warrant from Prince Charles since 2010, Burnand’s royal commissions include photographing pivotal events such as the weddings of Charles to Camilla, and William to Catherine.

In 2023, he notably captured the first digitally recorded coronation, and more recently received Royal Warrant from King Charles III. Burnand is now the first ever official royal portrait photographer for the British Royal Family.
 

Seabourn Quest
12-Day World Cruise: South Pacific Explorer
February 9 to February 22, 2027
Papeete to Auckland

Adam is a British adventurer, online coach and storyteller bringing extreme global expeditions to millions worldwide.

From crossing African plains with hunter-gatherers, trekking through Guatemalan jungles to lost Mayan cities, and rowing 3,500 miles across the North Atlantic. He’s explored every continent while taking on increasingly difficult challenges in remote environments.

Seabourn Quest
23‑Day World Cruise: South Pacific Explorer
Jan 17 to February 9, 2027
Callao to Papeete

Joanne Harris OBE is the author of over twenty novels, including CHOCOLAT, which was adapted to the screen in 2000, starring Juliette Binoche and Johnny Depp. She holds honorary doctorates from the Universities of Sheffield and Huddersfield, is an honorary Fellow of St Catharine's College, Cambridge, and a Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature. Her books are published in over 50 countries, and have won many British and international awards.
 

Seabourn Ovation
12-Day Caribbean & Atlantic Passage
March 27 to April 8, 2027
Bridgetown to Lisbon

Santa Montefiore is the number one international bestselling author of thirty-four titles. Her books are translated into twenty-five languages and she has sold over 8 million copies worldwide. She also co-wrote the children’s series The Royal Rabbits of London with her husband, historian Simon Sebag-Montefiore. They live in London with their two children, Lily and Sasha, and their Labrador Simba.

Seabourn Ovation
12-Day Caribbean & Atlantic Passage
March 27 to April 8, 2027
Bridgetown to Lisbon

Suzanne Williams QPM She is an experienced and internationally renowned hostage negotiator.

She is an Associate Fellow of Saïd Business School where she teaches on the Oxford Programme on Negotiation. There she uses the transferrable skills from the world of hostage taking into the business environment.

As a London senior detective Sue was the Officer in Charge of both the Kidnap and the Hostage Crisis Negotiation Units at Scotland Yard. At the highest-level Sue has been an active contributor to the UK Government's crisis response process in cases of kidnap or abduction overseas. She has regularly advised senior ministers as part of the Cabinet Office Briefings (COBRA), the Governments crisis management structure.

Sue qualified as a Hostage Negotiator both in the UK with New Scotland Yard and in the USA with the Federal Bureau of Investigation 30 years ago. Since that time, she has contributed to the successful resolution of hundreds of kidnaps and hostage situations on land and the high seas. More recently she has undertaken cyber negotiations as a tactic for combating extortion.

Sue is a recipient of the Queen's Police Medal; this was in recognition of her commitment in the fields of kidnap, negotiation and saving of life.

Seabourn Quest
16-Day Leeward Island Holiday
December 20, 2026 to January 5, 2027
Miami to Miami

Kat joined Cloudy Bay in 2017 as Wine Communications Manager. Having spent a lot of time in cellars and vineyards around the world, Kat has extensive knowledge of winemaking and viticulture. She is a member of the Cloudy Bay blending committee and enjoys talking about the wines and the technical processes behind them. 

Kat Mason is scheduled to sail on select dates.

Seabourn Quest
15-Day World Cruise: New Zealand Explorer
February 22 to March 9,2027
Auckland to Sydney