Can't understand why so much vacancy left on this cruise.........

May 13th Mariner to Alaska...This is FANTASTIC 11 night cruise out of San Francisco. This itinerary is only offered once a year as it is the repositioning for the Alaska season.

We did it last year. Alaska is incredibly beautiful and I think going out of San Francisco a plus. It ends in Vancouver.

I know there are still a few months left & it is a longer cruise but there is A LOT of cabins left.

Well, longer does mean pricier, but it looks like a nice itinerary. That said, it's missing Glacier Bay, as well as the more scenic inside passage route out of Vancouver.

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What you see on Regent's website can be deceiving. There could be one or two suites available in each category and it would show "available". We have done that itinerary twice and it is amazing (particularly in May) and it generally quite full.

Your TA could likely tell you how full the ship is. Other than that, if you do a "pretend" booking on the website, you can see how many suites are available in each category (time consuming but it can be done).

Have a great cruise:D

As far as I know, Regent never does Glacier Bay, but the itineraries are still wonderful. I'd definitely like to see Glacier Bay though.

We considered doing that cruise as well. I have a site which must remain nameless, that will give a pretty good idea of what cabins, in which catagories are left....As of a couple of days ago, there were 80+ cabins available. That may have changed some but as of Monday that was pretty much the case. Since this site deals in selling cruises, I have no doubt that the listings are fairly accurate. I agree....that's a lot of cabins left. I don't understand why either....

Hmmm. I have a site as well. I just checked Concierge D--21 available-- and F---36 available. Curious.

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Hmmm. I have a site as well. I just checked Concierge D--21 available-- and F---36 available. Curious.

 

 

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Not to mention that ALL other categories have availability including 21 Penthouses.

Bet there will be some nice upgrades for some people !

We're in the midst of a pretty unprecedented explosion of Alaska as cruise destination. Lots of competition, with the ginormous Norwegian Bliss and it's more-expensive-than-Regent Haven suites coming in a year. There are a ton of options, all of whom visit pretty much the same ports. The Mariner's itinerary is a little different, true, but it's scenic cruising isn't as spectacular as the typical 7 day Anchorage to Vancouver route.

Frankly, I think all the available cabins might be indicative of a simple supply and demand issue. Too high a price and not enough perceived value.

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Agree that there may be upsells (but this also assumes that someone wants the suite that you are in....... if there is too much availability, the upsells become less likely.) I'm assuming that this is the first cruise in Alaska this year. Passengers on the cruise before yours may be given an opportunity to continue on to Alaska at a discounted rate. It is amazing how Regent manages to book their ships as the departure time nears.

Last year there was an offer of "double nights" (for Seven Seas Society members) for Alaska itineraries. If that were to happen, we would book a cruise immediately!

A tiny part of me wonders if the Mariner is less enticing because she is the only ship that has not been refurbished. We visited her last summer when she was in Vancouver and she looked great (but, unfortunately, not as great as the Voyager - even if it only has to do with the new décor).

A tiny part of me wonders if the Mariner is less enticing because she is the only ship that has not been refurbished. We visited her last summer when she was in Vancouver and she looked great (but, unfortunately, not as great as the Voyager - even if it only has to do with the new décor).

That's possible, although I think the majority of passengers booking on Regent don't follow the refurb schedules closely - or at all. I got a kick out of the posts a while back asking if people should book Navigator or Voyager cruises right before their drydocks - like they were decrepit hulks doing their best Black Pearl impressions...I wouldn't hesitate to book a cruise right before a refurb, especially if the itinerary was what I was looking for and the price was right.

We haven't sailed on Voyager in about 6 or 7 years (we're currently booked on her in January '18, if we can make it work) and I'm looking forward to seeing her new look. But truth be told, I'd book any Regent ship at any time as long as the itinerary, fare, and schedule worked for me. They're all good, it's just that some are 'more gooder' than the others. :p

As always, I admire your version of the English language:p

You're right that most passengers do not follow dry dock schedules. Plus, a very high number of Alaska cruisers are new to Regent.

Almost agree about booking any Regent ship........ but my DH still won't sail on the Navigator. Reports from the world cruise isn't doing anything to make him look more favorably at the ship.

We have two Voyager cruises next year. It will be nice to get back on my 2nd favorite ship (don't tell her because she thinks that she is still #1)

As far as I know, Regent never does Glacier Bay, but the itineraries are still wonderful. I'd definitely like to see Glacier Bay though.

That is correct. Princess and, I believe, Holland America, are the only 2 cruise lines approved by the National Park Service to actually enter and cruise in Glacier Bay.

I wonder what the reasoning is behind the National Park Service's

restrictions.

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I wonder what the reasoning is behind the National Park Service's

restrictions.

 

 

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I'm not sure but do know that Alaska is very environmentally conscious. Prior to Seabourn building their new ships, they were not permitted to sail in Alaska. I believe that the issue is the number of ships that can be accommodated in Glacier Bay. Hubbard Glacier (my personal favorite) only permits one ship at a time to enter the area where the glacier is. I recall waiting quite a while until the HAL ship left and we were allowed to enter. It was definitely worth the wait.

Unfortunately, Alaska has almost too many ships in sailing in the summer. The joke around here is that if you parallel parked the ships, you could walk from ship to ship and see all of Alaska. Alaska is not a place that we want to cruise during their peak season (mid-June - mid-August). As beautiful as Alaska is, having thousands and thousands of people in port with you takes away some of the enjoyment.

Totally understand! Too many people, and it's only going to get worse in the short term. Yet it is still indeed beautiful. We love it. All the towns have such wonderful character as well, but I'm sure we could all do without the same dang diamond store in every port.

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I wonder what the reasoning is behind the National Park Service's

restrictions.

 

 

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https://www.nps.gov/glba/learn/management/cruise-ships.htm

I was wrong. There are actually 5 cruise lines approved (but only 3 corporations, as Princess, HAL, Carnival are under the same corporate ownership). Of the 5, Princess and HAL are probably the 2 most active in Alaska. The link above has more info.

If Norwegian is indeed one of the approved lines, I'm surprised Regent doesn't offer at least one Glacier Bay itinerary. The Tracey Arm Fjord visit is always a bit of a shell game, in that conditions, I believe, can frequently prevent passage...requiring a reroute to Endicott Glacier. Of course it's all amazing, but still...

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If Norwegian is indeed one of the approved lines, I'm surprised Regent doesn't offer at least one Glacier Bay itinerary. The Tracey Arm Fjord visit is always a bit of a shell game, in that conditions, I believe, can frequently prevent passage...requiring a reroute to Endicott Glacier. Of course it's all amazing, but still...

 

 

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Note that in the link I provided that individual cruise lines, not parent ownership corporations, are who the approvals are given to.

Hmmm. I have a site as well. I just checked Concierge D--21 available-- and F---36 available. Curious.

 

 

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We're on the June 21 Seward to Vancouver cruise. As of today they still have 89 vacancies including 37 Concierge and 21 Penthouse.

Interestingly in the last 11 days the CatC availability went from 9 to 11.

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I wonder what the reasoning is behind the National Park Service's

restrictions.

I suspect it was first come-first served since compared to HAL & Princess (for sure), Regent was a late comer.

Back to the original post: yes, we think this is a great itinerary. We did essentially the same trip in 2005 and will be reserving the 2018 version in a few weeks once we are on-board the Explorer.

We considered doing that cruise as well. I have a site which must remain nameless, that will give a pretty good idea of what cabins, in which catagories are left....As of a couple of days ago, there were 80+ cabins available. That may have changed some but as of Monday that was pretty much the case. Since this site deals in selling cruises, I have no doubt that the listings are fairly accurate. I agree....that's a lot of cabins left. I don't understand why either....

Hi, Mudhen: Hope you guys are doing well. We miss our daily Margarita and Bloody Mary Society meetings on the Explorer! Any chance you could share your nameless site with me at Zqueeze1@yahoo.com? Thanks!

Z and TB

Email on it's way to you!

We're on the June 21 Seward to Vancouver cruise. As of today they still have 89 vacancies including 37 Concierge and 21 Penthouse.

 

Interestingly in the last 11 days the CatC availability went from 9 to 11.

 

 

 

 

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Think you hit your final payment due in a couple of weeks....you will then notice MORE vacancies as people cancel for whatever reason. Also some agencies hold 'blocks' of cabins on some cruises that they will release.

I would love to do the San Francisco to Alaska trip! Mark and I had it booked, but he lost his fight with cancer right before our cruise date. Thankful for cruise insurance and our TA who helped us with it.

I would love to do the San Francisco to Alaska trip! Mark and I had it booked, but he lost his fight with cancer right before our cruise date. Thankful for cruise insurance and our TA who helped us with it.

So very sorry to hear of your loss. When you are ready, you'll find another trip that I hope, will bring some happiness.