New Suite design for Regent

We are on the Voyager and found out that suite # 714 has been modified to what all deluxe suites will look like going forward. Starting with the Navigator before the World Cruise. The entire cabinet where the TV and desk has been was replaced with a new one with NO upper cabinet . A larger flat screen TV is in the center, a refrigerator on one side of the lower cabinet and shelving for glasses on the other. I believe a new couch and chairs plus a new table that is rectangular and maybe big enough to serve on without the added table top. The bed and headboard w/night stands and 2 lamps are installed. It is my understanding is that the bed is a new one and then I saw this ( see link ) about Oceania.Thinking this will be the same for Regent.

http://www.seatrade-cruise.com/news/news-headlines/oceanias-sirena-will-have-custom-designed-mattresses-from-italy.html

Before we leave the ship in 2 days I will try to get some pictures and post.

John

Here are 2 photos from last month. The suite is a prototype, and hopefully the upper cabinets will be returned. Otherwise, very nice.

Lots of very useful storage space gone. We used some of the wall cabinets for books (we still like physical guidebooks and maps) and having the glassware there allowed some very handy drawers for storing stuff. If this is the final design then form will have won over function.

In the new brochure for Regent, picture are available. We too said they took away a lot of storage.

When the upper suites on the Mariner were refurbished last, drawer space definitely decreased - even the size of the drawers in the closet are smaller.

Looking forward to seeing pictures!

Oh, I hope that those wonderfully flexible bedside reading lights do not become some of the 'disappeared'.

We also utilized those upper cabinets to store a variety of items from books to purchases to floppy sun hats, and on & on. The photo

above does not give me a feeling of 'space' but rather absence.

On our last Voyager cruise (last month) I had the opportunity to view the new mock-up and I was less than impressed - it seems to me that they were looking for a "clean, modern" appearance without taken into consideration that people actually live in the suites, some for long periods of time.

My Mom always took the drawers in the closet and I would use the drawers by the desk and we always utilized the shelves and cabinets on top. The new setup may be acceptable for a seven day cruise, not so for a 30 day cruise where more items are necessary and more items may be purchased and they need to be put somewhere.

One thing we really enjoy about Regent - the comfort, esp in the rooms. With the new setup, there is no place to neatly put belongings and neither my Mom nor I like a cluttered room.

Seems to me this was designed by individuals who have either never taken a Regent cruise of if they do so, it was for a very short period of time. If Regent were smart, they should actually open up the room for inspection by current passengers and ask for their feedback before going to dry dock and spending big money on refurbishing the suites, only to learn later that the new setup is not functional and need to be redone - just my two cents.

gnomie :)

Hopefully someone from regent is reading this and will take action. I don't want to lose that good storage space.

In my opinion, those new suites are a great mistake. Form over function indeed. And, in fact, I really liked even the look of all that good storage space above the desk. The look now is so spare and unwelcoming. I know that people have different tastes, but to create a living space (even for a short time) that lacks good functional amenities seems awfully thoughtless.

This link (hopefully it works) is a video of the mock-up suites for the Explorer. As you can briefly see, there are plenty of drawers. For those of you that have actually seen the suite on the Voyager, are the colors, design, etc. different from this?

Note: The video shows concierge and above suites - is the suite on the Voyager a "regular" suite or ???

We have just returned from a cruise on Mariner in an Horizon Suite.

The 'upgraded' suite is very comfortable and looks good (lighter colours etc) but we noticed the disappearance of some useful storage from our previous stay in an Horizon.............and is the safe even smaller than before?

There definitely appears to be an imbalance of appearance over functionality in the thoughts of the Regent design team these days (e.g. low chairs in some of the lounges). Hopefully they will listen to informed feedback from their loyal customers before it is too late.

In my opinion the old format had form as well as function. The glass doors above provided an elegant look as well as wonderful storage. The picture of the mockup does not come close to what I percive as luxurious. It looks like something you would find on a NCL ship not Regent. (Sorry for the snide remark but design is very important to my enjoyment of my surroundings.)

Maybe the idea is to push people into higher priced cabins.

On our last cruise on the Mariner, we had the aft suite. We noticed that the desk area was different than in the other suites that we had.

This desk area only has one "upper section" (where glasses are kept), and did not have drawers on the right side of the desk. That is where I used to store Passages, my laptop, etc.

See photo of desk area: http://www.billbishofberger.com/2014CruisePhotos/EDIT4_Small.jpg

We have just returned from a cruise on Mariner in an Horizon Suite.

 

The 'upgraded' suite is very comfortable and looks good (lighter colours etc) but we noticed the disappearance of some useful storage from our previous stay in an Horizon.............and is the safe even smaller than before?

 

There definitely appears to be an imbalance of appearance over functionality in the thoughts of the Regent design team these days (e.g. low chairs in some of the lounges). Hopefully they will listen to informed feedback from their loyal customers before it is too late.

As I recall, the Mariner safes have always been too small (as well as their closets) compared to the Voyager or Navigator. As mentioned, the storage has diminished.

In terms of listening to customers, Regent regularly meets with customers in different parts of the world to get feedback. Also, a couple of years ago there was a long thread that discussed what we would like to see on the new ship. Plus, Regent management reads these threads. The difficulty is no doubt that each of us have preferences and they cannot please everyone. For instance, we do not care for the low chairs in all of the lounges or the very high stools in the Observation Lounge on the Mariner (not sure if they are on other ships). Others people may like them.

This makes me think of our recent visit to Oceania's Nautica. While I can certainly appreciate the décor, it is definitely not our taste. Some people find Regent's décor (colors, etc.) rather bland while we like it very much. One poster found Regent's Navigator "glitzy" - something that puzzles me to this day. IMO, most things on Regent are the opposite of glitzy but again, that is my/our opinion.

So far, everything I've seen in photos and videos of the Explorer is beautiful (even though I think that they have low chairs in at least one lounge). I suspect that the lower category suites on the Explorer are not only smaller in size but have smaller closets, fewer drawers, etc.

I remember when Regent began the "Concierge" program (a program that I am not fond of to this day). Although I dislike the program, I do understand that it was difficult to sell all of the categories below Penthouse because they were identical. Why book an "E" category when the "G" category is the same? It appears that the Concierge program, along with changing categories of many suites (i.e. mid-ship suites, in most cases, are a higher category than aft, for instance) has encouraged passengers to book a higher category suite.

Perhaps, after refurbishment, the furnishings on the existing ships will be less in terms of storage, etc. in the lower categories than in the concierge suites (just a guess). If this is the case, I would love to see the designation of "Concierge" suites disappear altogether as it gives Regent a "two class" feel. Then, maybe, everyone could book dining reservations and excursions on a first come, first served basis. The differentiator will be the furnishings of the suites, whether or not it includes the pre-night hotel or a butler, whether it includes Business Class air in Europe or not, etc.

While I do believe that everyone should be treated the same once they step outside of their suite, I also believe that when you pay more you should get more.

Oh, I hope that those wonderfully flexible bedside reading lights do not become some of the 'disappeared'.

The old reading lamps have been replaced with a newer design. I also like the existing lamps, but the new one is nicer and seems more durable.

Also the night stands next the bed are new, and an improvement.

This link (hopefully it works) is a video of the mock-up suites for the Explorer. As you can briefly see, there are plenty of drawers. For those of you that have actually seen the suite on the Voyager, are the colors, design, etc. different from this?

 

Note: The video shows concierge and above suites - is the suite on the Voyager a "regular" suite or ???

One stated redesign criteria for the new suites on Voyager/Navigator is to make them "brand standard" with the new look and feel of Explorer. That way, guests should feel at home on any of the Regent ships, regardless of which vessel, and the age of that ship. That said, the concierge suite shown on the youtube video is similar in colors and patterns of the prototype suite.

The wallpaper, carpet, and drapes on suite 714 are all new, as compared to the legacy furnishings. The redesign will apply to all standard suites (deluxe and concierge, D thru G). Suite 714 is a generic deluxe Veranda, cat F.

The bathroom and closet have zero changes.

Suite 714 did have revenue passengers each week. Hopefully those guests are being surveyed as to their opinions.

Hi Tc, Just want to say that if it becomes the case that the former "low" suites (which Regent still calls "luxury suites"-- at least I think that's still the nomenclature-- and they are certainly plenty commodious and "luxurious" for us)-- anyway, if in order to get decent storage for books, etc., one has to book a higher category, that would be a very unfortunate and peculiar manifestation of a "class system" aboard Regent. In other words, if "lower categories" means nowhere to store journals, dvds, books, wine bottles, etc., I think that will say something not very pleasant about whether Regent welcomes the "lowly" passengers like us.

Hi Poss - I don't think that any Regent passengers are "lowly". No one should be judged on what level suite they book. We know people that book the lowest category suite so that they can cruise more (much more that we do when we book higher category suites). Also, some passengers do not pack enough for 5 elephants like I do and don't need a lot of space. Actually, most of our clothes hang in the closet so if we complain about drawer space, I'm only talking about needing 4 or 5 drawers for our stuff (good size drawers - not the tiny drawers we've seen in the upgraded suites on the Mariner). IMO, the current suites on the Navigator and Voyager are just fine --just need a bit of updating.

I always think back to suite 1125 on the Navigator - the former hair salon (from years ago). It is set up like an apartment and has over 30 drawers (there were so many that we had to count). We figured that a person could live in that suite indefinitely (it is a one-of-a-kind Navigator suite). Our favorite suite on the Mariner (Seven Seas Aft) has a huge living room, nice sized bedroom and almost no storage space -- go figure!

We will probably need to see the suites before making any determination as to whether or not they would have enough storage space.

Anchorbuoy: Thanks so much for explaining the updates on the new suite on the Voyager. It is disappointing that the yellow/gold marble in the bathrooms is not going to be changed. I realize that it takes too much time to replace them during dry dock but I really feel that it makes the suites look dated - even if the rest of the suite is beautiful. There should be a way to put new granite or marble over the old (if it isn't too thick). That is what they did in our house several years ago - for kitchen/bathroom counters and the backsplash (but we were putting granite over laminate on the countertops and over a tile backsplash). While one contractor said that it couldn't be done, it was done successfully - with no problems at all!

If you have time for more pictures, would love to see them!

The more this is discussed, the more it becomes quite obvious that Regent seems to be making important decisions without really considering their end user, who is the paying passenger. While the appearance may appear clean and modern, the utilization factor is not being taken into account.

Not sure how other people feel, but as far as I am concerned, the "dividing panel" in the Explorer penthouse suites is just an accident waiting to happen, esp for someone who is not blessed with perfect vision. The removal of storage space (and to begin with, the storage space outside of the closet in the lower level suites is not particularly generous) would actually become a deal breaker for us (and no, we would not consider paying for an upgrade just to get more storage space) because as I mentioned before, I am not a fan of clutter and I use the drawers for my clothing, medications and first aid supplies, computer, tablet, camera, reading material, and many other things that I do not want out in the open. If storage facilities were to disappear, I think so would we.

gnomie :)

I just went to look at the suite set up for the concierge suite on the Voyager and the Explorer and noticed that unlike the Voyager, the Explorer only has a small couch and no chairs.

We did not notice this before - my Mom and I really utilize those chairs, esp when we have room service. From the pictures, it appears that the couch was selected more for appearance than for comfort (as where some of the new chairs selected for the Mariner after its most recent dry dock).

I actually spend a great deal of time in my room, esp on sea days. If there is no where comfortable to sit and work, that could be a problem. We will find out for certain in 10 months.

gnomie :)

I am sure that if you ask your stewardess/steward/butler that a couple of chairs can be brought in. I noticed that there is one very nice looking chair by the desk. Keep in mind that these "layout" images are deceiving. The concierge suites, for instance, are 32 sq. ft. larger than the concierge suites on the Voyager but appear smaller in the "layout" image.

Anyone booking one of the three levels of "Veranda" suites are definitely going to be in a suite much smaller than on any current Regent ship. Perhaps the smallest Veranda suite would work for passengers traveling solo. That suite on our March '17 transatlantic is $11,998 (this is assumes that you would pay double the listed price). It would be fine for me if I was traveling alone.

We'll all learn a lot more in 6 months and 4 days (but whose counting?) There will likely be hundreds of posts and many photos from Explorer's earliest cruises.

I have been thinking about this subject over the last few hours (I was sharing photos of Explorer suites with my DH over dinner), it is disappointing to read Regent regulars assuming the worst about the Explorer's suites. Were any of you part of the group that visited the shipyard where the Explorer is being built and toured the "mock-up" suites? From what was said on the video (already posted earlier), guests are very impressed and happy with what they see. And, most importantly, Regent absolutely took comments from their loyal customers when designing the suites.

Hopefully we can take a "wait and see" stance and not try to judge what we think we see too harshly. I noticed that the "layouts" on the Regent website are a bit old and are not precise. For instance, there is no difference in the "layout" for the three different (different sized) Veranda suites.

On our Mariner cruise last year I was shocked to see that there was not a proper desk chair, just some type of "beauty stool" one would expect to see by a make-up mirror. It took way too much time and effort to get a "real chair" so that I could actually work at the desk, and in the end, they brought up an old chair from CR which really was not suitable but better than nothing.

It is the little things such as this that we find annoying - we are paying and traveling on a "luxury ship", yet the more we travel, the more cut-backs we see. On our trip last year, whenever we had guests in our suite, one of the first questions would be - "where did you get the chair from?"

I am not fortunate enough to be retired, therefore I spend considerable time on the ship "working". I know that is not standard, but one does expect a comfortable working environment.

A comment was made that people are bashing the new Explorer without even seeing it - yet, in a way, we have. Some of us have seen the mock-up on the Voyager, which unless there are some major changes, will be the new standard.

gnomie :)

My only comment to the last post is to please look at the Regent website -- at the chair at the desk of a lower category suite. I wish I were sitting on a desk chair right now that looked as comfortable as that one. Please do not confuse the mock-up suites on the Explorer with the one suite on the Voyager. Here is a photo (albeit a back photo) of the desk chair:

In a few months I will have actual photos of the Explorer that I will share with everyone (if it has not done before we board the Explorer).

P.S. The desk chair we had on the Mariner last month was lovely. Perhaps this was a difference in the suite level. However, while I do not know this as a fact, it is possible that the suite categories, as they go up in price will also go up in amenities (including furnishings). How else can Regent sell the non-concierge suites when the square footage is identical?

I know these pic's are not very good but you will get the idea. Went into room after the guests had gone so room is the way they left it.

https://photos.google.com/photo/AF1QipMhk875XzYmUjpNRkV35VBcAsGgwlUIwEvx63pc

https://photos.google.com/photo/AF1QipPCkSO6sWPBB1wui4y57drOsKczSOwQOgJLOpb5

https://photos.google.com/photo/AF1QipPBNL_1gCJAqSkIGTJymcf8iNpmzInylz-WfHjl

https://photos.google.com/photo/AF1QipP5t1IwJu8wqkhAP3lR0UJyjiyxcITM9anXORth

https://photos.google.com/photo/AF1QipMbpJuI_Cn2GXQw-Xi94qAVTl6UnoDQ7RynZDLz

https://photos.google.com/photo/AF1QipP6OhOtrvcTqmJ6V1svgkOQrSLw9qFs_93Z4-oc