papaflamingo

We had it on Navigator last year (2022).

Thank you... but I'm pretty sure my wife will disagree about me being a "voice of reason" (a few people on here too). 😜 Definitely looking forward to Grandeur. if you happen to see me, for sure say hello! 😎

Food is very subjective. We were on Navigator in 2022 for 40 nights and loved every part of the cruise. The food was great! Then again, I didn't get this "sexy body" by being picky. So maybe I'm just easier to please. But to your comment that you "don’t get any value out of expensive paintings and statues," I would bet that isn't true. I've sailed on Carnival and thought the food and service was wonderful. But the decor of the ships, to me, is very "Las Vegas" like. Lots of neon and glitz. No luxury at all. And I bet if Regent took your advice, sold off all the artwork, got rid of the beautiful decor, put cheaper furniture in the cabins, even keeping the comfortable beds, put in basic dining tables, no flowers, no linen table cloths, no Versace chargers, cheaper glassware, etc. but "upped" the service and food to your specifications, then you'd be wondering what's so "luxurious" about a ship with none of the above mentioned decor and luxury? So honestly, at least for me, I want all the beautiful and upscale decor. I want to feel I'm sailing in a high class ship. Otherwise I'd book Carnival.

We did Iceland in 2022 on Navigator. Started in Montreal then to NYC then to Southampton via Iceland (40 nights). Stopped in Akureyri, Isafjordur, and Reykjavik. Were supposed to stop at Eskifjordur also but couldn't get in due to winds. It was a great cruise! Lots of waterfalls and a bit chilly, but really enjoyed the cruise.

No. From the website "Irons/Ironing Boards and Steamers are not permitted onboard". But every ship has laundry rooms where you can iron if you want and laundry is included so if you need something pressed you can either iron it or sent it out to be done for no charge. Here is a link to all prohibited items, https://www.rssc.com/frequently-asked-questions/you-sail#:~:text=Guests are not permitted to,Steamers are not permitted onboard.

A few answers: "How much does picking your flights cost?" The Deviation fee is $175 per person plus any up charge that MAY occur. You can deviate 210 days before your cruise and it's highly recommended you do so. You will be charged a single $75 fee to talk to the Air Department, but that will be included in one of the $175 deviation fees if you choose to accept a deviation. If you choose to do this, research flights and have 3 or so options that you are most interested in and don't hesitate to ask the agents anything as they are very willing to help. Once you agree on flights you are booked at that point, and the agent can usually pick your seats for you on the spot. You can then enter the reservation number into the airlines website and change seats, etc. if you want. Also watch your flights as airlines very often make changes and you may not be notified as the cruise approaches. If they do and you need to change, you can call Regent air for free and discuss options. "If you don't use their air but stay in a concierge suite do you still get the hotel stay?" Yes. And if you don't want the hotel stay you get $150 per person off the price of the cruise. "The black Friday sale took about $4,000 each off the fare which made it more attractive. Having not followed Regent is this likely to occur again?" Yes, but in my experience, prices usually rise more than they reduce for a sale, and the ships sell out very quickly. So if there's a cruise you want to book, book it. Otherwise you run a very great risk that the cruise will both go up in price and also sell out. The sales seem to be on the less popular cruises only, and if your cruise does go on sale after you booked it you should be able to take advantage of the reduced price (note "should"), but you have to also factor in any OBC, etc. that you'll lose if you reprice the cruise. Remember, if you cancel a cruise your only lose $100 per person and that is available as Future Cruise Credit (one change only, then you will lose it if you cancel) if you book within a year. "What surprised you?" How much I really enjoy the small luxury cruise experience, and how incredible the crew members are. How personal the service is and I have never seen a crew member that isn't smiling or more than willing to please.

Wait.... husbands get opinions??? 😜

Thanks. Interesting.

If you haven't already, read this thread on here "Thoughts from the Current Tokyo to Bangkok Explorer Cruise." It talks about Explorer and some of the issues you mentioned. As you follow the thread the posts all talk about how after a few days of "confusion" the food and service improved. Honestly, we have noticed that the first day or two of a cruise can have slower wait times, etc. The crew has a lot to do on turnaround day and there are frequently new crew members joining the cruise. This simply leads to some slowdown in service but it only lasts a day or so, and no, I have never discussed this with anyone. I simply let it work out which, so far, it always has. But your comment that you "don’t relish having to seek out F & B managers to air concerns" should not be your concern, on the contrary, if you have issues you should definitely bring them up with the appropriate supervisors. Otherwise no one will know about the issue and you may not ever get it resolved. As you can see reading through the referenced thread, Regent "falls all over themselves" trying to correct ANY issue that a passenger has. They only have to know the issue has occurred.

Here are two links to YouTube videos of both the tours. They will show you what to expect. But as you'll see, on the Dolphin Encounter you'll be standing on a platform, and the Dolphin swim you'll be wearing life vests. Stingray Sandbar is only waist deep, so no swimming required at either event, and no snorkels or masks. I would think that one group will go to the Stingray Sandbar while the other group is at the Dolphin Cove. Otherwise I would think it'd be too crowded at the Dolphin Cove. But don't know for sure.

Thanks for the info. I really want to do the Antarctic so we look at the options. Ponant has looked pretty interesting from the shows I've seen.

I have watched a few tv shows featuring Ponant cruises. I was wondering... how did you like cruising with them? They do seem to be a pretty good way to see Antarctica.

Married flight segments are dictated by the airlines, not Regent. The only way for Regent to separate them is to cancel the booking and book each segment as separate flights. That results, generally, in large fare increases as the flights are two separate flights.

What issues did you have? We are on Explorer in Feb. so sincere question. If you started a thread can you link me to it? Thanks

We have a fairly tight connection in Feb. and I talked to Regent Air today about it. They suggested that if we miss the connection we go directly to the airlines. There is also an After Hours number on your Boarding Pass for Regent Air that you can call. It's in the "Terminal Arrival" section.

I was just curious. The OP says "How can the top cruise line have tours where every guide (except in Busan, Korea) has problems communicating in English?" I was wondering if other cruise lines have the same issues or not. Seems like a fair question, doesn't it?

I was a career airline pilot. One day we had along delay going to LaGuardia in New York. A passenger told me that it was "clear at my house." I asked "how long and wide is your driveway?" She looked at me totally puzzled. My point was, it may be clear at her house, and even the airport (it was), but the arrival and departure routes were "slammed" with horrible weather. The winds may not seem "bad" now, but I'm pretty sure the Captain knows best. That's why he's there.

Yes..... if you look at the comment above the pricing it states "Fares below reflect all Featured Special Offer savings."

You can always run a mock booking and get an idea of the cost, but really your best bet is to get your TA to quote the actual price for whatever cruise you're interested in. They will have the actual cost and any discounts that can be applied.

Yes we were able to book non stop... but on a couple of flights there was an up charge and on a couple, not. So just depends. We live in Atlanta and so we fly Delta. Delta non stops are simply more expensive than those flights with connections. We booked Atlanta- Athens and there was an up charge, but from Rome to Atlanta, no up charge. So it really just depends. The best thing to do is look at the flights you're interested in. If they offer 2 rates for Business Class, one refundable, one not refundable, then likely Regent has contract rates on those flights and there won't be any up charges.

Just for clarity, the changes to the Voyager sailing that was done in "six days" was because a war broke out in Israel and spread (same with the "six week" itinerary changes). Not exactly a "planned event" by Regent. Pretty much EVERY cruise line and all airlines changed their itineraries within "six days." I wouldn't expect the same to happen on every Regent cruise, in fact it DIDN'T happen on every cruise. But itineraries change all the time and generally for a reasonable reasons. It's part of cruising.

Book them in a verandah at the lower rate. That way they could get the airfare and they can always stay in your Master Suite.

You can book an "open booking" on board. We did it in 2022. You have a certain time frame to book a cruise (I think within a year), but you get the reduced deposit plus all the OBC, etc. You also get one "free" change of a cruise that's been booked on board without losing the perks or reduced deposit. So you could book a cruise 2 years out and then change it when your friends decide on a cruise. You also get the one time "free" change with an open booking.

Let me just add.... I don't mean to suggest you shouldn't discuss problems or be critical, only that you need to be fair in your criticism. So I apologize if you think I was being overly harsh. that wasn't really my intent.

Not to worry. If you have real expectations you'll love the cruise. Assuming you've been on cruises on other lines, you'll definitely see the difference. But keep these things in mind. Food, quality of shore excursions, etc. are subjective. I've done 84 nights on Regent, had to cancel last month for Covid (the infamous Holy Lands cruise.... "lucky Covid" for sure), are doing 10 nights in Dec. on Mariner, 16 on Grandeur in Jan. and 14 on Explorer in Asia at the end of Feb. So clearly I like Regent. I'll admit we've had our glitches, after all it's a ship, it's at sea, etc. But compared to any other cruise line (I've been on around 40 cruises) Regent food has been a level way above,. the shore excursions have been about the same but less crowded, the ships have been beautiful, and the level of service has been unmatched (I have not done Seabourn or Silversea so...). Keep this in mind regarding shore excursions.... most are about what they advertise. Some are outstanding, some are duds. But Regent uses the same vendors that other cruise lines use so you can very often find reviews of the excursion if you type the title in and do a search. As for people with mobility issues, I think I may know the "complaint" you might have read. If so, in that case the description clearly stated that people with mobility issues are not allowed on the excursion. The individual chose to try anyway and was turned away. This is not Regent's rule, but the rule of the excursion provider, most likely for legal issues. So if you have issues, then by all means abide by the description of the level of activity and you should be ok. But honestly you'll find these issues on ANY cruise line. One more comment (sorry), as to cost. if you compare equal suite, full drinks, specialty restaurants, 24 hour room service, gratuities, wifi and shore excursions to one of the major lines, you will find that Regent really isn't all that more. I did that with Royal Caribbean for our upcoming Asia cruise, and without factoring in specialty dining or shore excursions, and using a Junior Suite (with no real amenities, but I did add in Royal Caribbean air in Business Class), Regent was $2000 LESS and it was a 14 night cruise vs. Royal's 12 night cruise. So you just never know. 😎