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The last two times we have been to Japan we got yen before we left home. We could not find a working ATM the first trip and needed some local cash upon getting off the ship. So lesson learned… DH ordered some yen and made a day trip to the big city bank to get it. Japan has some great things and we are great shoppers at small local markets and not all take credit cards.

That is not necessarily true. I have mobility issues and have had for the whole time Regent has had free tours. We have over 200 days on various R ships including a WC. We probably do the R tours about 70% if the time. We also do private tours or DIY if we have visited the port before. (We have cruises various lines for over 40year.) We have done some great wine and food tour and sailing tours all over the world though R and Did two great port day Safaris in Durban and New London SA. We had done self drive safaris, private guide safaris, safari camps in three countries …of course they were better, but the day safaris provided by R were full if great animal viewing also. My husband can walk and stand and climb steps with no problem, so if there is a tour (a city walk) with things I can’t do I sit on the bus and read or find a cafe I can wait for that part of the tour. The D Staff is always willing to help with this. Just like the free air you need to do your homework,,,read about where you are going and places you might like to see so you know the lay of the land then read all tour descriptions as they usually mention standing, walking and steps most of the time including time in the bus also including the print out you get when you get in the ship as it is more up to date. If you do have issues you should also talk over the tours you are planning with the D staff. They have been a good guide when I wasn’t sure I could do the tour.

What is wrong with the bathrooms. They have a shower and tub on the Navigator and you can get a nice big shower only on the Mariner. They are marble and more roomy just not the black and white and shiny chrome or the new ships.

Very good description of the difference. The bigger ships are more impersonal and we love the intimate feeling of the Navigator.

Over the years, we have found the experience on the ship is luxury most all the time. The port experience, sometimes the tours and the hotels and now the air are hit or miss. Seems like anything Regent staff does not have total control over can have real misses. But that seems to be the way of the world with subcontractors. Regent is at the mercy of what is available when they go “off ship”.

We used every bit of our time talking the the kids and grands ….. great perk not having to deal with a bad contectiob.

The only real advantage to the concierge is if you are new to Regent as you get the earliest opening for booking tours and Prime 7. The hotel and transfer are easy to do yourself and we find we can get a nice hotel and transfers for the credit giver on both tickets. If you are flying, deviate at 210 days for best flights. Deck 6 is well located to bars, dinning room and the elevators with no vibration. It is not a big ship so any suite midship or forward will not have any vibration. The ship does have some vibration at certain speeds.m, but we have never been bothered by it. There is only one reservation only restaurant, but Comoass Ross is excellant and will offer many of the favorite dishes that are served in the reservation only resultants on the other ships. You can also special order things you like like lobster tempura, my all time favorite. The Navigator also has the Sette Mari Italian which many people love no reservations required. But the staff truly shines on this ship. The smaller passenger load makes all the difference.

We were on the Splendor for two weeks and then in the Navigator for almost 2 weeks BtoB earlier this year. While as you say the Splendor is shinny new, we enjoyed our time on the Navigator much more. The Navigator suites are bigger in the lower levels and the theater is wonderful, the best of all the ships with no bad seats. She is very well maintained and just had some things refurbished. She is small and that gives her an advantage of personal service that is lacking on the new builds… shinny yes but if you cruise for personal attention from the staff 24/7 and good itineraries the Navigator is the best. We went around the world on her and would do it again!!

Tours can be good or bad on any cruise line at any time. It has been hard for all segments of the travel industry to recover from Covid. Given that and what we experience daily in the service industry at home, I feel your statements are a bit harsh. There have been good reports and mixed reports about Regent’s Japanese cruise on this board since Japan opened to cruising. The Japanese cruises seem to be improving recently. But since you think the Explorer is dated… it is one of the newest ships and a favorite of many….your expectations mat be a little to high. Regent might not be a good fit.

You are so right! I want excellent service and food, fancy expensive decor is wasted money.

Everything boils down to money!

You said the facts much better than I did in another internet regard. Location location location and of course the bandwidth available to you. We have traveled all over the world on Regent and other ships. I have posted daily blogs here and on blog spot on all the trips. DH ran his business from the ships months at a time. Sure some places had a bad/ no connection, big deal, I waited a day to post and if it was important DH made contact the old fashion way, by the ships phone. We used the ships phone to check on family before internet all the time. We had to pay for it then. Now Regent gives you some free time. So we still use the phone . My bet is people will still complain with the new system😂

Enjoying your report! Pictures are great. Thanks for taking the time! Carolyn

NO! 😟 For the cost of the class that would have been a nice gesture. But you could buy them at the end along with a cookbook.🙄

When did you cruise on the Splendor. We were on over the Holidays this year. Yes, there are stools at the back and you can use them at the back, but not at the work station, I did. You had to stand at the work station during food prep for safety reasons they said. I pointed this out because I asked on CC before I signed up for the class. Told I could use a stool at the station. I have problems standing long periods. We also pick the back row workstations. We were not allowed to move the stools from in front of the windows to where the stations actually are. DH is standing at a back row stations . The stools are about 4-6 feet behind him against the windows. The demonstration counter is up by the TVs and the chef had us gather at that counter for the demonstrations.I sat down at the back during that part and watched in TV. Not perfect but doable.

Never had any problem with Regent supplied tags over 200+ days of cruising. No need to waste the money. You will get nice name tags on the ship at some point as you cruise with Regent.

Thanks I forgot you had a chance to cancel on board. I thought on earlier Navigator cruises they had some form of shopping with the chef, but I didn’t remember the details. Glad that is still being done when they can. I think it use to be noted in Passages and not a bookable shore excursion.

If you like tempura dishes, you can special order veggies. Shrimp or lobster for the Compass Rose with a 24 hour lead time. Just arrange with the head waiter what and the day you would like it severed. That is my favorite dish… a few veggies and some shrimp! I also order a daily green salad of lettuce, tomatoes, spinach, carrots and broccoli, they have a salad choice every night, some to my liking others not. I eat a lot of fresh veggies, so I just ask for standing order of my special salad every night.(I tell them a head of time if we are eating in one of the other restaurants). It not much of a problem as there are only 2. We also try to sit in the same area every night. That way the wait staff get to know our likes.😀

When we did the Splendor cruise in the Caribbean the cooking classes, I think there were three or maybe four different ones, most had a topical/creole fare except the brunch one. Ours was a full meal, I am not a big fan of that type of food, but my husband is, he could make his food very spicy and I could dial mine way back. And as I said earlier all the tedious prep is done for you, after all the class is only 2hours. I read what we were cooking as there is a description in the info on the classes offered. Somewhere on the Regent website I was able to read about the different groups of classes offered and what was to be fixed. It is a set offering (was at least in Jan) geared toward to a broad region like the Med, Asia etc not the the port or even a country. Always read the descriptions be it tours or activists, that will cut down on disappointment. When we sailed Seabourn’s little sisters years ago, they had a shopping with the chef that was very popular, but the ship only had 200 passengers. Ship size makes a difference not only in the ship’s feel but in what is/can be offered, as in the Navigator compared to the Splendor.

We bought tickets after final payment was due last Oct and took the air credit as we do our on. We don’t book the suites have have a free one night hotel package. In the current airline situation, if you opt to use Regent air you have to book early to have a chance at Regents best flight options. Even pre Covid I had the be careful of connection times when booking tickets with a plane change. You need a minimum of 2-3 hours to make a safe change and some routes sold by the air lines have only around 60 min which is allowed. When things are perfect that fine but we do not live in a perfect world!

Actually it was fun….what we cooked was good and it was nice fixing something fancy that I didn’t have to do all the prep work for. My DH and I worked at two stations on the back row. He went up to the counter to see what she did and I just rested on one of the stools in back watching on the overhead TV. I can stand for short periods of time so it worked out OK for me. You just need to know how it is done.. if you can not stand at all unaided skip the classes. The food being done is somewhat determined by the region you are in. We were in the Caribbean so the dishes had a Mex/ tropical vibe.

It probably is. Things on the Belize NCL island were all extra charge unless it was something that came with the ship’s tour like the rum punch. It is just like any other stop but newer and not as crowded unless you are docked with the Bliss😂

You husband will have the up graded service with his log in. You will have the regular service with your log in. You can both use your computers at the same time as you have different log ins.

The last time my DH paid for the extra fast service, he used this on his computer with his log in. It didn’t affect my ability to use my log in (no up grade) and I used my computer and phone while he was solving company problems his up graded service. Though it wasn’t much difference.

When we were on the Splendor earlier this year we didn’t like the service in Compass Rose. I had made the three guaranteed reservations for early in the cruise then checkied for more the first, day none were available. We ate in the French restaurant last and really enjoyed it . I made the comment that too bad we couldn’t get more nights there. The head waiter told us the restaurants had three tables that were never booked ahead of time for the use of the named suites, so to check with him when the restaurant opened and if he had one of the suite tables open we could have it. We ate there three more times that way. There was always at least 1 of the 3 tables open when the restaurant opened when we checked. We split our time between there and Setti Mari. Prime 7 was packed and loud and the food was just OK. I have a soy allergy so couldn’t eat inPacific Rim. We usually really like Compass Rose but not this time. Thankfully the pool grill was still open at night….they had the best BBQ short ribs I have ever had. We also love the Italian so we didn’t go hungry! This thread is 4 years old and the world has changed. But based on what we were told tables are set aside for the use of the named suites and if not taken by those passengers they are then opened that evening first come. Also you should always check your reservations both tour and dinning when you first board. On the 2018WC the computer somehow dumped most or all the world cruiser reservations before the ship got them. The first segment they were madly trying to get them sorted out. Don’t feel much has changed except there are a lot people new to Regent!