New York to Montreal September 2016

We are considering booking New York to Montreal next year on Mariner and am looking for some advice. Is this cruise normally popular? There have been so many offers and reductions recently that I am reluctant to commit this far in advance. If it is a slow seller there would be some inducements to come, if not I guess I should book this now.

Last year we took the Montreal to Miami cruise on Navigator.We both rated it as our best cruise ever. Wonderful ports. We did book very far in advance due to our work commitments, and also for cabin and flight choices.

It is a popular cruise but may be slower than some to be booked. Sometimes it's the weighing up cabin choice if you are wanting a specific area or waiting for a possible price reduction. I am sure you will enjoy this cruise, it felt very relaxing and such a friendly atmosphere on board. Jean.

We did this cruise a couple of years ago. It was fully booked on Navigator. I usually schedule way ahead, so I am not sure how soon it was full or what offers were made closer to to sailing time.

We are considering booking New York to Montreal next year on Mariner and am looking for some advice. Is this cruise normally popular? There have been so many offers and reductions recently that I am reluctant to commit this far in advance. If it is a slow seller there would be some inducements to come, if not I guess I should book this now.

We are also looking at this cruise and like yourselves, we are waiting to see if the price changes.

I would not wait to see if the price changes. This itinerary is a popular one - especially for people that do not want to (or cannot) fly great distances. The best "deals" that we have ever been offered by Regent are those made to people already booked on a cruise. It seems that Regent would rather "reward" loyal passengers than offer deals to everyone*. We recently accepted an offer for a 2 week cruise in a Mariner suite for the cost of a "H" or "G" suite. The offer was only to passengers already booked on the previous cruise.

*Obviously, this is not always the case as they have made offers to people in the U.K. that are incredible (which predictably made North Americans quite upset). In terms of offers in general, having one of Regent top TA's is very helpful!

Thanks to all who replied. I think we will book this now to obtain the suite and flights that we prefer. We also have a voucher given to us this week when we attended a Regent coffee morning presentation which gives us £200pp off a cruise booked within seven days, not a lot in the scheme of things but worth having. I won't look at pricing again after booking! ( Always a bad idea ).

Superb cruise. Plan to stay a couple of days in Montreal at the end.

From my experience, any of the luxury ships that depart from NYC almost always leave either at 100% capacity or close to it and are usually booked well before debarkation date.

Leaving from NYC is very popular for the many people who do not like to fly or to fly long distances.

My Mom and Dad wanted to take one last cruise and at the time my Dad was not well enough to fly long distances - although it was four months before departure, Regent and Crystal was completely booked. There was a cancellation on Crystal about six weeks before departure which they took.

I know many people that take these "leaf peeper" cruises and they almost always book far in advance.

gnomie :)

We are considering booking New York to Montreal next year on Mariner and am looking for some advice. Is this cruise normally popular? There have been so many offers and reductions recently that I am reluctant to commit this far in advance. If it is a slow seller there would be some inducements to come, if not I guess I should book this now.

We did this cruise on Navigator in 2012 and it was one of our all time favorite cruises. I would agree with JPR and stay a few days extra in Montreal. I don't think prices change much, so I'd book it now. You'll get your choice of cabin if you book early.

Thanks to all for your comments. We have made the booking.

Congrats on your booking, Swansong-- wonderful to have that happy anticipation!

May I ask whether there were reasons why you chose the northbound trip rather than the reverse itinerary? Because I have some qualms about an Alaska itinerary, I'm starting to look at this one instead (as a result of your original posting and all the good comments from others-- though many of them were about the Montreal-Miami itinerary).

Since we live in Florida now, and since we miss all those gorgeous fall colors that we experienced when we lived in Boston and in Baltimore, I thought it might be very pleasant to do the Canada/New England trip. We know virtually all the ports, some of them well, but it's a handsome area and we haven't visited in a number of years. I've done some researching about when the color is best in that part of North America, and it seems to be not until well into October rather than late September and early October. That's why I'm curious to know whether there was a special reason that you chose the earlier trip.

Enjoy your cruise!

Poss, We did this trip last year, starting from Montreal on Oct. 2, and didn't see much of any color change until we hit Bar Harbor on Oct. 9.

We did this identical itinerary a few years ago, starting the last week of September. Did not see any significant colors until we were well into Canada, but the last 3 days of the cruise in Quebec were spectacular.

I've seen several of you post that this cruise was one of your favorites - I was surprised to see this considering the ports that Regent frequents.

Could some, or all, of you please educate me on the draw of this itinerary? My wife and I have enjoyed our previous Regent cruises and wanted to treat my mother and her husband to a cruise with us, but they're not much for long-distance flights. I sent her this itinerary and she seemed to like it - but dollar-for-dollar, it's right up there with a Mediterranean cruise. Other than the reduced flight time from North America, what's the big draw on this one?

Thanks in advance for your replies...

Bill

Hi Bill, our second ever cruise was Canada New England in 2004 on Celebrity Constellation. We both decided it was one to repeat again.

Last year we took the Montreal to Miami cruise on Navigator.

We are in our mid 50s and were the youngest on board I think. It was definitely our best cruise ever. It's so relaxing and the ports are interesting and the Regent excursions were perfect. The passengers all seem relaxed and keen to interact and it was the most social cruise for us.

We are Scottish and enjoy fabulous scenery here, and its gorgeous just now in the fall. The itinerary is great and all the ports were offering places of interest and beauty.

We obviously had long flights and as always use Regent air and our TA gets them to upgrade us to business class, so it makes it expensive but with every penny or dollar for such a great cruise.

I don't think you would be disappointed. Regards Jean.

Bill: note that the Montreal-Miami itinerary has quite different (or sorta different) ports from the NY-Montreal itineraries. The latter, e.g., does not stop at Bay of Fundy, which I think is too bad as it's one of the things that's quite unique up in that neck of the woods. Also, in past years, perhaps when liptastic embarked for the Miami itinerary, Charleston was included-- a much more interesting place than Jacksonville. (St Augustine is interesting, but nowhere near so as Charleston imo.)

liptastic: It pleases me to know that Europeans choose this cruise as well as North Americans. I was wondering if those cruises are maybe pretty much all Americans, which is never as enjoyable for us as when there are more "mixed" passengers (country as well as age, etc.) I'm not sure we'd especially enjoy a cruise with just old foggies like us, and I keep hoping that others don't mind our presence (have certainly never felt that way).

Hi Bill, our second ever cruise was Canada New England in 2004 on Celebrity Constellation. We both decided it was one to repeat again.

Last year we took the Montreal to Miami cruise on Navigator.

We are in our mid 50s and were the youngest on board I think. It was definitely our best cruise ever. It's so relaxing and the ports are interesting and the Regent excursions were perfect. The passengers all seem relaxed and keen to interact and it was the most social cruise for us.

We are Scottish and enjoy fabulous scenery here, and its gorgeous just now in the fall. The itinerary is great and all the ports were offering places of interest and beauty.

We obviously had long flights and as always use Regent air and our TA gets them to upgrade us to business class, so it makes it expensive but with every penny or dollar for such a great cruise.

I don't think you would be disappointed. Regards Jean.

Hi Jean, thank you for your comments regarding this cruise. We have never been to either Canada or America and so we thought we could combine both with itinerary. Did you prefer one over the other?

Also we are Scottish, were you on the Voyager in September?.....sorry just a thought as we met a Scottish Jean on board. :)

Bill, we did this cruise when we were in our mid fifties, and I was probably among the youngest onboard. But that did not deter our enjoyment.

The scenery was outstanding. The fresh lobster and mussels brought on board at several ports were great. There were lots of places and opportunities for us to hike, which is one of our favorite things. Weather was good (but that is somewhat a gamble). And added bonus for us was not having any long flights. It is an itineray I would do again.

Bill: note that the Montreal-Miami itinerary has quite different (or sorta different) ports from the NY-Montreal itineraries. The latter, e.g., does not stop at Bay of Fundy, which I think is too bad as it's one of the things that's quite unique up in that neck of the woods. Also, in past years, perhaps when liptastic embarked for the Miami itinerary, Charleston was included-- a much more interesting place than Jacksonville. (St Augustine is interesting, but nowhere near so as Charleston imo.)

 

liptastic: It pleases me to know that Europeans choose this cruise as well as North Americans. I was wondering if those cruises are maybe pretty much all Americans, which is never as enjoyable for us as when there are more "mixed" passengers (country as well as age, etc.) I'm not sure we'd especially enjoy a cruise with just old foggies like us, and I keep hoping that others don't mind our presence (have certainly never felt that way).

Hi Poss,

I am sure you are not an old foaggie at all, you are young in mind and heart and that's all that matters. There were no old foaggies on board at all. We enjoy meeting people of all ages and nationality. There were a lot of people from the UK on the cruise. It was honestly the best social cruise we have had the fortune to be on. Everyone was so interactive and friendly, and as always the Regent ambiance helps the dynamics of the enjoyment. Hope to see you on board some time, Jean.

Hi Jean, thank you for your comments regarding this cruise. We have never been to either Canada or America and so we thought we could combine both with itinerary. Did you prefer one over the other?

 

Also we are Scottish, were you on the Voyager in September?.....sorry just a thought as we met a Scottish Jean on board. :)

Hi Pam,

I had an idea you were also Scottish. I remember you saw the Voyager in Greenock I think, as you posted that prior to your recent cruise.

We were on Mariner in June in the Mediterranean.

I think you would really enjoy this Montreal to Miami cruise. It's very relaxing and the scenery will be appreciated by you for sure.

We really enjoy going to Canada and America. We have seen more of Canada and that cruise would be a good introduction for you. It's lovely planning ahead for next year, and we need to book well in advance due to work commitments. Jean.

Thanks for all the replies. Definitely something to consider!

IMO, this itinerary goes to some of the best ports in the U.S. and Canada. Think you should go f or it :D

TC - although my wife and I prefer to range further (farther?) afield when we vacation, I wanted to take my mother and her DH on a cruise, and she's not much for longer flights and her husband used to travel extensively on business and now prefers to stay closer to home. "I've already been to most of those countries"...well, you've been to the US and Canada, too! I'm going to let them choose, but neither my vacation time budget nor my vacation dollar budget will let me take two cruises that year, so whichever one we take them on will be our big vacation as well...we'll see how it plays out!

Hi Tc,

When you mention "this itinerary," are you meaning the one that goes from Montreal to Miami, or are the back and forths between Montreal and N.Y. just as good in you opinion?

Bill, as to "farther" and "further":

-- Farther is used when you're speaking of actual physical distance. E.g.: You prefer to range farther afield. She bicycled farther than I ever could. Mnemonic: "Farther" has the word "far" in it.

-- Further is for figurative or metaphorical distance, not literal distance.

I will not discuss this further. Furthermore, if you tell me again that you're too tired to do your homework, I will not allow you to play football every day after school; I have nothing further to say.

So: farther= distance; further= extent

Ah, ha: but sometimes (of course!) there's ambiguity: What you say could not be farther from the truth or further from the truth? Dealer's choice, I'd say.

(Former English teacher here: can't help myself.) ;-)

poss: omg - I had better shut up as my "English" when I type is horrendous:D While I can type 100 wpm, my brain is not at the same speed as my fingers which causes many mistakes. Also, I use every shortcut available to me when posting (for instance............ I know that multiple dots/periods is not correct - anywhere. It is something I picked up years ago from reading too many Danielle Steele novels:-)

Back to the point. Please let me know the date of the itinerary that you are looking at so that I can take a look at it.

Thanks!