Mariner-Onboard-Cuba-Very very lite!

I am on the April 18th Cuba sailing. I am aware there is at least one other poster on this cruise and welcome their views. We had our first dinner at Compass Rose. The first two nights La Veranda was not changed to Sette Mari as they had a significant Cuban buffet on the pool deck. The new menu is being used in CR but the change to IPad ordering has not occurred. It will not be in place until mid June as they do not have the wifi wiring to the kitchen yet. It appeared they were not prepared for the crowd in CR. Until Alain, the head waiter was brought to our section to help out our service was poor at best including delayed ordering, wrong orders(twice for my wife), missed items, no refills of water, etc, etc. Once Alain helped out, and we have had him on previous cruises, things got straightened out. We also ate at CR tonight and everything went well, the food was good and the service excellent (whew!) We really like the new menu. Regarding destination services, it appears they received negative feedback on some Cuba tours last week and made changes to the described tours. The ticket process appeared to go smoothly. They cancelled an all day tour to a Unesco site and there were guests that had anxiety trying to find replacement tours. Our morning tour had a good itinerary the guides were average. Our afternoon tour was much better with good guides. We thought Terry Breen did an excellent job in her Cuba orientation lecture. That's it for now.

Have a great trip. Looking forward reading your posts.

Pls give our regards to Alain and his lovely wife Lei.

Thank you for your great report. It sounds like Regent is still trying to get organized in Cuba. I've read that there will be many, many cruises going to Havana next year - on all three cruise lines.

Looking forward to reading more when you have the time!

We were on the Mariner to Cuba the previous week and had a wonderful time. Cuba was very interesting, the cars in Havana truly make it seem 'lost in the fifties' but fun with all sorts of colourful convertibles that you can hire to tour the city. We had a terrific trip to the farm where Hemingway lived while in Cuba. We had one of the best tour guides ever at the site, which made it very interesting and informative. The previous day we did the rum, cigars and art tour. It was a so/so tour but we were glad we did it as we saw most of the city along our route.

The Mariner is certainly in need of the refurb though the common areas still seem to be in good shape. We were delighted to see some of our favourite Regent folks onboard. Alain, the head waiter as mentioned above, is fabulous and looked after us(and everyone else) very well. Kas, our favourite sommelier and Salvadore, our favourite waiter were delightful and attentive. We really enjoy the new Compass Rose menu, didn't even bother with Prime 7 and had a surprisingly great dinner in Signatures. Setti Mare is always a must for us as well.

We enjoyed ourselves so much that we booked the October 27th cruise from Montreal to Miami while onboard!

Sent from my iPad using Forums mobile app

We had our second day of touring with the "Art of Cuba" tour. It was very interesting and we visited a couple of art filled neighborhood/centers, Fusterlandia and Muraleando which are fascinating and doing terrific work for their local communities. The tour guide was very good today. On the ride back to the ship some passengers asked her about what is really like living in Cuba. The guide was brutally honest about the housing, food conditions and being in a socialist country. It's the sort of in depth understanding that I appreciate but I'm not sure everyone on the tour wanted to hear such a dire description. I have mixed emotions about it. At breakfast we over heard a first time Regent cruiser telling another couple that "she generally sails NCL and Royal Caribbean" and doesn't see much difference, if TC was there her head would have spinned off, LOL. I think that perhaps due to the original low pricing of this cruise (these two weeks were added late after they postponed the renovation this month), some of the passengers we've met are not as seasoned travelers as we are used to on Regent. Except for our first dinner described earlier, the service has been excellent. We had a great dinner at Prime 7 last night. The service and food could not have been better! This is our first time on Mariner and we are in a cat F suite. We are surprised that we do feel the 50 sq ft difference from the Voyager. We booked a 15 Day Mariner cruise for next year and decided to suck it up and get a Penthouse suite. Yes, we are really spoiled! We had Michael Coleman as the cruise consultant our first two Regent cruises and were disappointed he was no longer with Regent. We went to our first show this trip, a comedian Cory Kahaney, we enjoyed the show. Off to a massage as we have a leisurely sea day today.

Thank you for taking the time to post. Really enjoying reading them. Continue to have a super time.

taxare, my head is still spinning;p. Actually, I do know that the top suites on some mainstream cruise lines are over the top beautiful. And, if someone prefers another cruise line, it isn't a big deal (IMO it is better than having people that dislike Regent keep posting about it for years while not returning to Regent to see if anything has changed).

I'm personally glad to hear that the bus driver was brutally honest about the conditions in Cuba. The main thing I learned when we were there a few years ago is that they hear propaganda about the U.S. and visa versa. It is only through face to face open communication that we will come to an understanding. Also, after our first visit, we packed a suitcase full of useful gifts for the people that took care of us in the hotel, restaurant (although I doubt if one would be allowed off of the ship with a suitcase).

Thank you for taking the time to post!

I have been in Havana twice. The OP talking about the art tour is totally new to me. Neither time in Havana have I been to those areas. I was disappointed in Hemingway home as you really do not tour it, you only look in Windows. I prefer the FL home.

I had lunches in Havana and sat outside for coffee along with some touring and walking around,

Did anyone go to the National Hotel for a drink or go out at night.

Herb and I have some opinions regarding Havana. We found the city interesting.

The old town colonial section is in need of a good clean up. However, the old architecture is really magnificent. He liked this tour as well.

We went to the Parasian Caberet at the Hotel Nationale. Very entertaining show. Worth our time.

Next day we went to the countryside to the Farm to Table excursion. Farm not well maintained. Cart ride took us around the farm. Boring. Nothing to see. Long wait to have lunch, which was ok. Got back to Havana at 2:30, with enough time to explore by ourselves with a private car. (Taxi) I found the areas we were driven through was, although decaying, very fascinating. I won't get into the politics but it's too bad this city has fallen into such disrepair. It must have been a beautiful city many years ago.

Excursions not ready for prime time yet, but I really appreciated the efforts for us and liked that it is not tourist exploited at this time. Really had a good time exploring Havana by ourselves.

As for the Mariner, our penthouse suite is also in need of refurbishment. I know it will be completed next year but not up to standard today. I think I have also been spoiled by the Explorer.

Food is very good, as expected. We had no problems in Compass Rose because our old friends Risky and Alain took excellent care of us. Prime 7 food was good but not the fabulous presentations we had on the Explorer.

Personnel always wonderful.

Happy for the opportunity to explore Havana as tourism for US citizens is just beginning. Glad we went this year.

Regards

Sheila and Herb

I saw the show that was posted above.. For $38 American plus taxi's it was great. Way better than the one I saw in Jan.The decay part is what makes this city interesting. I learned a lot about Politics there as I was all over Cuba. The history or Politics is what makes havana today. you got tours also that both my land and cruise did not offer. I found the lunch I had on my own was better than any guided tour. so many places to eat and drink. Fun just doing your own thing there.

We were on a people to people tour in Cuba last November - 3 days in Cienfuegos and neighboring towns and 4 days in Havana. I found Cuba - the land, the politics, and the people - to be fascinating and beautiful. The resilience of the Cuban people impressed me the most. When I saw what people lost in the revolution, I understood more precisely,the passionate anti-Castro sentiment of many Cuban-Americans.

We went to both Fusterlandia and El Tanque -both community art projects and well worth visiting. We stayed at the Hotel Nationale which was beautiful but dated. The outdoor bar really takes you back to old Hollywood.

One guide described Havana as a beautiful woman in need of new clothes. I thought this was an apt description. There is much building and investment from Overseas, so I hope this will happen. The downside of this, of course, is that the people suffer as the tourists get first dibs on food and services.

We were on a people to people tour in Cuba last November - 3 days in Cienfuegos and neighboring towns and 4 days in Havana. I found Cuba - the land, the politics, and the people - to be fascinating and beautiful. The resilience of the Cuban people impressed me the most. When I saw what people lost in the revolution, I understood more precisely,the passionate anti-Castro sentiment of many Cuban-Americans.

 

I got to go to colleges and meet student and hear their dreams in English. Add in local companies and more.

 

We went to both Fusterlandia and El Tanque -both community art projects and well worth visiting. We stayed at the Hotel Nationale which was beautiful but dated. The outdoor bar really takes you back to old Hollywood.

 

I spent well over an hour at the hotel having a drink and enjoying the gardens and views. Dated- well a hotel from 1930 should be classy. loved the grounds. The show there at night was great.

 

One guide described Havana as a beautiful woman in need of new clothes. I thought this was an apt description. There is much building and investment from Overseas, so I hope this will happen. The downside of this, of course, is that the people suffer as the tourists get first dibs on food and services.

When Cuba changes it will not be the same. i rather enjoy it now. Places to dance and eat. great streets showing the past to where the tourists are. The classic well kept cars. We are lucky to go now.

When Cuba changes it will not be the same. i rather enjoy it now. Places to dance and eat. great streets showing the past to where the tourists are. The classic well kept cars. We are lucky to go now.

Have to agree with this sentiment. Just returned from a 12 day Globus "people to people" tour. Fascinating experience, but it was very apparent that Cuba is preparing for change.

Harvest Caye today. I know there has been several threads on this so won't get into the disagreements regarding charging for food or it is not really an opportunity to see the "real Belize". The tours they offered on the mainland were 5-6 hours and were "Mayan ruins and spice farm", "Mayan Ruins of Nim Li Punit", "Rainforest River Tubing" and "Jungle River Rafting". They also had a Langoon Wildlife and Mangrove Estuaries boat ride. On the island you could do Kayaking, Electic Float Boat, zip lining and snorkeling in the lagoon. These were all included excursions. You could also rent a pool cabana for $109 or private beach villa for $309. The cabana can hold 4 people, the villa at least six. It looked that there were approx 15 pool cabanas and they were all taken. There is no food/drink included in the cabanas, however I believe there are drinks and snacks in the villas. The island is large. I asked how many lounge chairs there were on the beach and pool and one of the staff told me approx 3000, all I know is there were a lot. The food is typical beach bar food. Soda and waters are $2, beer $5, margaritas $10, salads and sandwiches $14 plus Belize tax and a 15% service charge. Since they cancelled the snorkel trips we decided to make it a beach/pool day, got a cabana and ate lunch there. The food was decent. The local staff very nice. It is a healthy walk to/from the ship to the pool and beach. This was not a stop we would normally look for, but we had a pleasant day. To close out a couple of previous items, we really enjoyed visiting Havana and are glad we did it. We understand there are many other places in Cuba to see, but this is one we crossed off our long bucket list and will not likely return. The other day the woman that said Regent is like any other cruise line ewwas yelling at one of the pool deck food crew. I almost interceded but a supervisor took over and handled it gracefully. I have no tolerance for a passenger yelling at these hardworking wonderful crew. Also yesterday, we made a short unexpected stop at Cozumel to drop off a passenger in medical need. They made a factual announcement, made the short stop and we were on our way. Finally, regarding the refurbishment, I agree with Sheila and Herb there is a need, but overall the ship is in good shape and it has not detracted from our enjoyment of this short cruise. We have not been on the Explorer yet, so can't comment, we believe they did a beautiful job with the Voyager. Tonight Sette Mari, tomorrow Costa Maya.

Thanks for your continuing posts. I enjoy reading your comments.

I agree, but more paragraphs please! Really makes posts mucheasier to read...

Just returned from the April 18 sailing to Cuba, Belize, and Mexico.

All aspects of the trip were excellent for us, with one glaring exception, which has been mentioned before: the internet connection. We found that both the wifi and server connection would drop out frequently, to the point that we basically gave up trying to access the system in our suite or anywhere else on the ship except the business center. It was extremely frustrating. This has nothing to do with a moving ship trying to find a satellite, as this problem would occur while in port, too. And the problem was persistent on all devices, both phones and i-pads.

This shortcoming is not just something that will fail to attract millennials--I would imagine that cruise passengers of all ages have come to expect a consistent and robust internet connection to stay in touch while at sea, and not just to check e-mails but to post and view photos and videos. Regent is failing to provide this, IMHO. But I guess until Regent actually starts to lose passengers because of this, we should not expect any major improvements.

I should add that we have not sailed on other cruise lines to be able to compare what they are able to provide in terms of internet accessibility. We can only speak to our expectations and whether Regent met them or not. They did not.

iguy, you are right. The only time it was "good" was real early in the morning. I'm out of my league here, but I am guessing they don't have enough capacity on a full ship when everyone is on board. We did try to "log-out" when we were done, but admittedly I forgot once in a while.

JPR, you are right and I apologize, but it was the internet issue, I was using my iPad and I didn't want to lose what I was writing if the internet went out on me so I just typed without stopping.

I agree. The internet connections, or lack thereof, was the worst we ever had on Regent. In November, on the Explorer transatlantic cruise, it was good every day. Perhaps when the Mariner is refurbished, the Internet connections can be improved. I certainly hope so.

Sheila