BaileyMJ

Good Morning from Seward - just waiting for message that we can leave ship! On the Daily planner it stated free but limited shuttles to town center so stated the at 7:30am Rolling Stone to obtain tickets for the shuttle. Last shuttle 2pm back to ship and all aboard 2:30pm.

Thank you for sharing your cruise! I am on Nieuw Amsterdam and you are so correct about 2024 Great Cracker Shortage. Yesterday I attended a wine tasting no crackers and one little piece of bread. Also the 2nd white was the Laurenz Gruner Veltliner 2022 it was excellent

May 6 my beverage day report continued Yesterday was dressy night and saw quite a few tuxedos. I started my evening in Tamarind Bar at 5:30pm - such a wonderful setting and it is the Martini Happy Hour venue. Ocean Bar was packed vs relatively empty TB - I love the seating and views. My pre dinner beverage was Momokawa Pearl Sake an unfiltered cold sake just wonderful. Now the ship was pitching so that may be reason for the sparse attendance. I just could not capture rocking and rolling on my iPhone but tired. IMG_4717.mov Due to the sea swells the evening show scheduled was Step One Dance Company Musicology canceled and they had a comedian perform. I have fixed late seating - I was told when I booked the cruise last week it was at 8pm but once on board it is at 7:30pm but either way I never make it to a show. Meals have been good but even better company. What I noted in the MDR is a-lot of floor vibrations and vs the Westerdam we had plenty of rocking and rolling in South Asian sailing but I never felt floor vibrations. Perhaps different engine room locations.

May 6th my beverage day report continues 2pm Wine Tasting in MDR - this is my 2nd HAL cruise and first wine tasting on HAL but I an admitted wino or but not wine snob. It was a well attended event they said over 120 attendees but I was probably the only paid attendee - it was free for 4/5 star mariners. The cost was $29 but I throughly enjoyed the experience. The presentation was excellent and entertaining and it always a treat when I learn something new about wine or taste a new or different wine. What I learned is Sect is a sparkling wine varietal from Germany - they did not have but I go home snd find a bottle to try. We sampled 5 wines Sparkling Wyclef - not a fan Chardonnay Kendal Jackson vintners reserve Gruner Veltliner - I love Gruner Veltliners but had never this one so looking forward to buying it back home Reds were pinot noir and Desora Malbec Also of note evidence of the Great 2024 Cracker shortage continues - you can read thread from merry widows on Volendam - see below one tiny slice of bread!

May 6th continued fresh OJ finally arrived but I had finished Prosecco- the server was so apologetic for delay he said no charge. After breakfast about 10:30am all intention of a quick walk but it was so cold just by door to the deck plus you could hear the wind so I passed on that and went up to the Tamarind Bar early for the 11am Meet & Great. I have bonded with the Tamarind Bar and it has become my favorite space. Others were early and it was so nice to meet such a nice group of fellow travelers including solos. Had planned to attend Lunch in MDR they were have a solo lunch tables but with such a late breakfast I had to pass. Close to 1pm I went to lido and lido pool bar did sample a delicious paella and my beverage was a wonderful beer - I had never had before and 2 thumbs up

Having a wonderful cruise so let me share some of my experiences. I have been enjoying so many live threads for years so very different to finally give back. Here goes some of my experiences and thank you Roger for the roll call and a wonderful Meet & Greet! May 6 - day 2 - Sea Day Yesterday May 6th was National Beverage - learned this from HAL World Cruise thread - Bill & Mary Ann - did not know till I read their post early today but you could say I did spend the day celebrating all beverages thanks to having Have it All! Started day Crows nest Latte - posted that yesterday. 8am Daily Mass with Father Shad - he had been sharing some of his experiences of Alaskan parishes- one of which was Wrangell. After mass MDR for breakfast - long line and they announced no tables for 2 but had room for sharing which for me was perfect being a solo traveler. Now the MDR was packed - many apologies for slow service but I was fine sea day. It was 90 min breakfast - I had the passion fruit yogurt my beverages glass of Prosecco hot tea and a glass of fresh squeezed OJ - I was set to make my own mimosa. Food and drinks subjective but the sparkling brut poured on this ship is not to my liking but the Prosecco is very good. Well they had run out of fresh squeezed OJ but they said they were making more - they repeated apology for over 1 hr but I replied I am in no hurry - had wonderful table mates.

If Fairmont Vancouver Hotel just love that Grand Dame Hotel - its across from Hyatt Regency great location- you can walk dow a few blocks and watch ship arrive! Have a wonderful trip!

They take credit cards - I have been very pleased with taxi service in Vancouver. Also note if you need transfer from hotel to Canada Place cruise pier - it may be old school but find it so much easier to have the hotel doorman hail the cab and especially if extra luggage or person they will get you a van and they van:car not supplemental. I transferred from Hyatt Regency to Canada Pier yesterday with Vancouver Marathon road closures - taxi cost with tip $15 CAD vs Uber $22

OMG - same for me since yesterday - I show signed in but nothing if I click boards ••this is happening with safari on my iPhone but can access the forum/boards if I use the google app on my iPhone I have searching everywhere for help Hoping we get help soon!

Regent is great for solos - there is a hosted get together at 6:45pm in one of the lounges and then option to dine together. I have travel solo on many cruise lines but have found RSSC the most welcoming.

I have to state that Regent is excellent for solos - very welcoming! They have a social host or hostess on every ship and they have a solo meetup at 6:45pm on Voyager it is in the observation lounge and nice way to meet others and everyone has option to eat together in Compass Rose. I am sure you will love Regent Seven Seas

I have 3 cruise lines that I consistently book Regent Viking & Silverseas. I book based on itinerary and price. I love Viking because of the following: 1) I have never encountered a chair hog on a Viking Ship 2) Viking had the best Thermal Spa no extra charge opposed to SS which charges or Regent that have small sauna 3) Viking has World Cafe - dinner option so you don’t have to dress up 4) I love the heated bathroom floors Think you should try different cruise lines and figure out what you like and what works for you.

I was on Westerdam last year disembarked on March 27 and purchased the HAL transfer /tour Yokohama to Haneda - it included Tokyo panoramic tour with 2 stops Meiji Temple and Askuba. It worked very well - luggage was with us on the bus and bus was not even half full. If I recall correctly it was stated for passengers with flights after 5pm and dropped us off at HND around 2pm. Only drawback some passengers were still too early to checkin for evening flights.

Correction Rio to Santiago cruise!

I just got off Voyager Rio to Buenos Aires and I will post a honest review - this was not my first Regent Cruise and I love Regent but if this had been my first Regent Cruise it probably would have been my last Regent Cruise. There was something wrong on this cruise and it was not the staff but I would blame management. I know I will get hate from Regent fans but I am one of those fans so when I complain it was from love and hope to make better. I know you can’t be perfect but you also can’t call yourself a 5/6 star cruise and have the problems encountered on this cruise! Because I have been a Regent Fan I booked 2 Regent cruises onboard so just hoping this is a one time problem cruise.

This is just my opinion based on my current experience - I am currently on Voyager on Rio to Santiago - I also had the free land tour and opted for pre cruise tour Passion for Rio - it was a fine and it was my first visit to Rio and loved Rio but I was glad I had chosen to arrive earlier than the tour and go to see and experience more of Rio. The cons of this package: 1) The Sheraton Hotel was fine but not a good location - you have free time in afternoon and evenings and it was pretty much agreed better to be at one of the hotels in the center - where you could walk around to stores and cafes. 2) Please be aware that Brazil has this ongoing plan to require a tourist visa for US Canadian and Australians and it is the worst visa process - they keep postponing - only good part is if visa obtained good for 10yrs. Many posts on CC regarding the Brazil eVisa Fiasco. Now for Buenos Aires Argentina a city and country I love &have visited many times - I like Evita cry for for Buenos Aires - it is a mess and crime is rampant in Buenos Aires - its very depressing to have extensive list of were not to go etc. we had a overnight in Buenos Aires and almost everyone just stayed that night on board and the next day the embarking passengers were just happy to be on board. Its a wonderful big city but best to be aware problems. I totally agree with others Iguazu Falls is a wow and I have visited from Argentine side but flight delays and cancellations are common so best to have a day or two extra on ones travel plans on cruise or international flights.

While I have not heard an official explanation but the following was told to me by passengers on the transatlantic portion The outbreak began on the cruise segment before the Capetown to Rio and the first people affected was some from the entertainment production group - it was inferred that they pick it up on shore perhaps from an excursion. It just spread from that point on and it seemed that once they proceeded to transatlantic crossing the protocols seem to help mitigate the spread I embarked in Rio and per the Captain they thought the numbers were good and you needed x amount of days with no new cases reported to lift code red and that was achieved but sadly just for 1 day I have been diligent to avoid any possible contact and it has worked and I am having a wonderful cruise I pray we all can stay safe for the next segment

Agree love the SS backpacks sadly I have only them on the their expedition ships.

Norovirus

I will start by apologizing if I am off topic but sense I will get a quick and correct answer so here goes: I am on Voyager and booked this cruise on board Navigator (August 2023) and received $200 OBC for booking on board. Fast forward I booked my next cruise this past Sunday onboard with Cruise Consultant Sweet and I received $100 OBC and he was adamant that the offer is and has been $100 per person and since I am a solo traveler that is all I get period kaput not going to keep arguing but on yesterday Jan 30 Passages page 2 - advertisement for onboard booking stating $200 OBC - no mention on $100 per person. Here is ad and I went to Sweet and he repeated the perk is $100 and I ask who can I ask for clarification and he gave card with Regent Guest Relations email so I emailed them and they promptly replied Thank you for choosing to sail with Regent Seven Seas Cruises. We are in receipt of your email below and we sincerely apologize for any inconvenience r have experienced. Kindly note that Guest Relations is equipped to assist with post-cruise concerns however, we rely on our onboard team to be the best point of contact while guests are currently sailing. In an effort to better assist you, we have provided your details to our onboard management team so they may be in contact with you in regard to your concerns. Please also feel free to reach out to the Concierge desk on board if that is more convenient I attached ad - I ask the longtime Regent cruisers do you know is it per person? I only know what I received on my previous onboard booking.

Your pictures are fabulous- don’t process for us! Thanks for sharing - I will be doing the Antarctica sail by on another cruise ship in February so your trip reports (and others on HAL) have been wonderfull!

I was solo on Navigator this summer and the vibration is real but for me it was not a problem - I only noticed it with 1) room service tray - don't leave the cutlery on the plate 2) the vibration was terrible in the theater during talks/seminars that had power point presentation - had to close my eyes at times 3) bars which have the glassware touching - think crew has become so accustomed they don’t notice but it was annoying! Navigator is old and showing her age but now after sailing on Splendor & Explorer solo for me Navigator was so much better - maybe its smaller size but I felt more welcomed and while yes Regent has great service it just seemed on Navigator it was it was more elevated or maybe vs on Splendor I felt more class system.

I have to get on a flight to Rio to get on the Regent Voyager and Delta will not allow boarding without the visa so only hope is that Brazil gets the visas issued! Day 5 and still under check! I did read that the Brazil government is aware of the problems and they may be considering delaying the visa requirement - they definitely have a problem and with Christmas approaching you know that is just going to increase delays. Plus Carnival is huge and I would think they really don’t need cancellations.

Think I may have been scammed because I haven’t gotten the e- visa so I stopped my credit card - luckily my visa has good protection- shouldn’t be in such a hurry