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What is Christmas & New year like on board ?


Suzez
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I would love to hear from anyone that has enjoyed Christmas & New Year on board. If anyone has any photos, that would be appreciated. We have just booked a cruise over Christmas & New year 2018/2019. What might we expect?

Thank you

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We have thoroughly enjoyed our last two holiday seasons on board Regent - once on Mariner and once on Voyager. Which ship will you be on and what part of the world will you be in?

 

The ships are decorated throughout and the main 'party' is on New Year's Eve. Much of the atmosphere is driven by the mix of passengers together with the energy of the Cruise Director & entertainment team; on Mariner we were fortunate to have Jamie logan as CD with his wife Dana, who helped make a very memorable cruise

 

Our experience over the last two years has been that there have been very few children on-board; albeit you will read on another thread that Explorer appears to have suffered from one or more obnoxious families with no thought for others

 

Have you spent Christmas/New Year on board any of the other cruiselines on which you have sailed and, if so, what are your expectations of Regent ?

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We have thoroughly enjoyed our last two holiday seasons on board Regent - once on Mariner and once on Voyager. Which ship will you be on and what part of the world will you be in?

 

The ships are decorated throughout and the main 'party' is on New Year's Eve. Much of the atmosphere is driven by the mix of passengers together with the energy of the Cruise Director & entertainment team; on Mariner we were fortunate to have Jamie logan as CD with his wife Dana, who helped make a very memorable cruise

 

Our experience over the last two years has been that there have been very few children on-board; albeit you will read on another thread that Explorer appears to have suffered from one or more obnoxious families with no thought for others

 

Have you spent Christmas/New Year on board any of the other cruiselines on which you have sailed and, if so, what are your expectations of Regent ?

 

Hello flossie009, We have booked on Explorer to South Africa.

Yes we have enjoyed one Christmas cruise a few years ago. It sounds like a similar affair. We would expect some children on board and know how they can be. I do think children add something to the occasion.

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I've spent 1 New Years & 6 or 7 Christmases on board Regent and I LOVE them! I always miss the festivities when I'm on a cruise another time of the year. Like the previous poster said, there's lots of decorations, special dinners, and seasonal events.

 

I just got off the Explorer's Christmas cruise and we had a Christmas Choir open to the passengers with an opportunity to perform twice for the whole ship. The singers and dancers joined us and it was a great time. John Barron was our CD and has done many Christmases at sea, so much so that he made his own variety show including not only the entertainers but wait staff, officers, etc. in a Christmas show. Santa comes for the kids and yes, you will have at LEAST one, depending on where in the world you are. We were in the Caribbean so we had about 50. I've witnessed up to 100. They will more likely than not be a problem at all. ~*Most*~ parents do a great job at keeping them under control.

 

Christmas Eve was a special goose dinner and Christmas was turkey with all the fixings. They play Christmas music in the atrium over the speaker, huge beautiful trees and gingerbread houses everywhere....I always run into people that say "I don't know if it will feel like Christmas!" but i promise, it will. Not only is it a 1-2 day celebration, it's practically the entire cruise.

 

New Years is a lot more elegant and so much fun with a huge countdown in the atrium, music, champagne and tons and tons of balloons. Regent does a phenomenal job with these celebrations and from what I've seen, they go a little more above and beyond on these two more well-known holidays than more traditional American holiday. You'll have a great time no matter what ship. Let me know if you have any questions! I also live-blogged my Explorer cruise so if you want to read about any specifics let me know!

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doyouseawhatisea did lovely postings and photos while onboard the Explorer.

 

My view of holiday cruises is a bit different...... we avoid them! For us there are two issues:

 

First is the number of children onboard the ship. So, when you are dining at night you are not just dining with your friends/family but it sounds like everyone's children are dining with you - very loud (and some think that it is cute to crawl around under the tables). Since Regent ships have little to do for children during the holidays, they utilize the pool which pretty much keeps adults away.

 

To be fair, not all cruises have 50 children. On our Christmas/New Year's cruise we were on a longer itinerary - Bali to Sydney and the 20 children onboard were between the ages of 10 and 18. The first few days were fine. Once they started getting bored and became acquainted with each other, they became a small gang - hanging out on stairs and being extremely noisy. There was a constant flow of passengers going to Reception to complain (no - we were not one of them as our suite was as far aft as you can go and we didn't hear them while in the suite).

 

The second reason we do not care for holiday cruises are the people that were given the cruise as a gift by family members. While it is an amazing gift, some passengers had no real desire to cruise on Regent - had no understanding of what to expect and had little if any appreciation for the ship (or the passengers onboard). While I'll likely be blasted for this, when you take a mainstream cruiser and put them on a luxury line (when they prefer the huge ships, party atmosphere, etc.), everyone is unhappy.

 

Just thought of another thing that may or may not affect your cruise. December/January is a time when many people are ill (colds, flu, etc.) On our cruise, even the Captain and G.M. were sick. On doyouseawhatisea's cruise, her Dad became sick and she did towards the end of the cruise. Germs are spread so easily on a ship and, as we know, children are not always the best at washing their hands frequently, not touching food on the buffet, etc.

 

On the positive side, Christmas Eve, Christmas Day, New Year's Eve and New Year's Day are magical onboard. In terms of decorations, we do sail on Regent before Christmas and see how incredible the ship becomes overnight when the staff are out decorating.

 

P.S. I like children - not necessarily other people's children - especially when the parents are not watching them 24/'7 and insuring that they are not impacting other people's enjoyment! In terms of my own family, I found Disney Cruise lines to be a perfect fit!

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doyouseawhatisea did lovely postings and photos while onboard the Explorer.

 

My view of holiday cruises is a bit different...... we avoid them! For us there are two issues:

 

First is the number of children onboard the ship. So, when you are dining at night you are not just dining with your friends/family but it sounds like everyone's children are dining with you - very loud (and some think that it is cute to crawl around under the tables). Since Regent ships have little to do for children during the holidays, they utilize the pool which pretty much keeps adults away.

 

To be fair, not all cruises have 50 children. On our Christmas/New Year's cruise we were on a longer itinerary - Bali to Sydney and the 20 children onboard were between the ages of 10 and 18. The first few days were fine. Once they started getting bored and became acquainted with each other, they became a small gang - hanging out on stairs and being extremely noisy. There was a constant flow of passengers going to Reception to complain (no - we were not one of them as our suite was as far aft as you can go and we didn't hear them while in the suite).

 

The second reason we do not care for holiday cruises are the people that were given the cruise as a gift by family members. While it is an amazing gift, some passengers had no real desire to cruise on Regent - had no understanding of what to expect and had little if any appreciation for the ship (or the passengers onboard). While I'll likely be blasted for this, when you take a mainstream cruiser and put them on a luxury line (when they prefer the huge ships, party atmosphere, etc.), everyone is unhappy.

 

Just thought of another thing that may or may not affect your cruise. December/January is a time when many people are ill (colds, flu, etc.) On our cruise, even the Captain and G.M. were sick. On doyouseawhatisea's cruise, her Dad became sick and she did towards the end of the cruise. Germs are spread so easily on a ship and, as we know, children are not always the best at washing their hands frequently, not touching food on the buffet, etc.

 

On the positive side, Christmas Eve, Christmas Day, New Year's Eve and New Year's Day are magical onboard. In terms of decorations, we do sail on Regent before Christmas and see how incredible the ship becomes overnight when the staff are out decorating.

 

P.S. I like children - not necessarily other people's children - especially when the parents are not watching them 24/'7 and insuring that they are not impacting other people's enjoyment! In terms of my own family, I found Disney Cruise lines to be a perfect fit!

 

Thank you for your input. We tend to use our balcony to relax. We don't use the pools as I feel this is a place for germs. Fully aware of the type of people you mention' those that don't have a clue how to cruise' type. We will be on Explorer. We chose this cruise for the itinerary, ship, then time of year just happens to be over Christmas & New year. Hopefully we will remain well. If that happens then I will be happy :) Fingers crossed.

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doyouseawhatisea did lovely postings and photos while onboard the Explorer.

 

My view of holiday cruises is a bit different...... we avoid them! For us there are two issues:

 

First is the number of children onboard the ship. So, when you are dining at night you are not just dining with your friends/family but it sounds like everyone's children are dining with you - very loud (and some think that it is cute to crawl around under the tables). Since Regent ships have little to do for children during the holidays, they utilize the pool which pretty much keeps adults away.

 

To be fair, not all cruises have 50 children. On our Christmas/New Year's cruise we were on a longer itinerary - Bali to Sydney and the 20 children onboard were between the ages of 10 and 18. The first few days were fine. Once they started getting bored and became acquainted with each other, they became a small gang - hanging out on stairs and being extremely noisy. There was a constant flow of passengers going to Reception to complain (no - we were not one of them as our suite was as far aft as you can go and we didn't hear them while in the suite).

 

The second reason we do not care for holiday cruises are the people that were given the cruise as a gift by family members. While it is an amazing gift, some passengers had no real desire to cruise on Regent - had no understanding of what to expect and had little if any appreciation for the ship (or the passengers onboard). While I'll likely be blasted for this, when you take a mainstream cruiser and put them on a luxury line (when they prefer the huge ships, party atmosphere, etc.), everyone is unhappy.

 

Just thought of another thing that may or may not affect your cruise. December/January is a time when many people are ill (colds, flu, etc.) On our cruise, even the Captain and G.M. were sick. On doyouseawhatisea's cruise, her Dad became sick and she did towards the end of the cruise. Germs are spread so easily on a ship and, as we know, children are not always the best at washing their hands frequently, not touching food on the buffet, etc.

 

On the positive side, Christmas Eve, Christmas Day, New Year's Eve and New Year's Day are magical onboard. In terms of decorations, we do sail on Regent before Christmas and see how incredible the ship becomes overnight when the staff are out decorating.

 

P.S. I like children - not necessarily other people's children - especially when the parents are not watching them 24/'7 and insuring that they are not impacting other people's enjoyment! In terms of my own family, I found Disney Cruise lines to be a perfect fit!

 

 

 

Travelcat2,

I am not someone who is posting to blast you however I am posting to get my personal experience and opinion across.

Your opinion of "main stream cruisers " is totally unjust.

We started our cruising adventures in 2003 with Celebrity cruises, first being Alaska. This was on a smaller ship the Mercury. We subsequently sailed on Century another of the smaller ships and then the Milenuim class ships.

We so enjoyed those cruises, and know how to conduct ourselves and meet lots of new friends who we have since cruised with together on Regent.

Since 2009 we have sailed exclusively on Regent and have blended in completely to the "luxury " cruise style.

Your opinion of different cruise line passengers is certainly not accurate or justified in my opinion. Jean.

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Hopefully we will remain well. If that happens then I will be happy :) Fingers crossed.

 

 

Also hope that you remain well. I don't want to put this thread off topic but there are now peroxide based wipes that hospitals use and are proven to kill norovirus germs. If you are careful about not touching handrails, door knobs, menus, salt and pepper shakers and serving utensils on the buffet and then touching your nose or mouth, you should be fine. It is also a good idea to wipe down airplane food trays and arm rests and in the suite the remote control, light switches and door handles. I sound like a germophobe:eek: I'm really not - just want to take precautions.

 

 

P.S. Jean - do not want to argue - my opinions are my opinions and the TS (Thread Starter) seems to understand my point of view. It is fine that some people will see it differently than I do. I could give a further explanation but this is not the thread to do so.

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We were on The Explorer for New Years and it was wonderful. Very few children.

 

 

We have done Christmas cruises on Crystal and Oceania and both were very, very nice. There were some children on Crystal. No problem though.

 

We were on the same cruise and the New Years celebration was great. Terrific program, music and ambience.

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I would love to hear from anyone that has enjoyed Christmas & New Year on board. If anyone has any photos, that would be appreciated. We have just booked a cruise over Christmas & New year 2018/2019. What might we expect?

Thank you

 

Hi Sue, we are booked on the same cruise and there is a roll call started so please sign up. We have never been on a holiday cruise and think it will be an amazing experience! Did you book the pre-safari? It will be our first cruise on the Explorer.

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Hi Sue, we are booked on the same cruise and there is a roll call started so please sign up. We have never been on a holiday cruise and think it will be an amazing experience! Did you book the pre-safari? It will be our first cruise on the Explorer.

 

 

Hi :) I will look at the roll call. We have booked the 3 day post cruise. :)

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We were on the Navigator this past Christmas/New Years. One morning I left my suite to go to the gym and magically the stairwells had been adorned overnight by the elves! The next morning all of the Christmas trees were out in the various locations and the it was the gingerbread houses. Absolutely magical. We only had one very well-behaved little girl on this voyage so Santa of course had a gift for her. The only thing missing (for us, anyway) was our Midnight Mass celebration at our home church so that was a bit of a downer. But we did get to celebrate Chanukah with our friends onboard and they celebrated the Feast of the Seven Fishes and Chirstmas with us, so that was very special,

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