papaflamingo

I wasn't "blaming the victim." But how would you like it if someone came into your business, purchased your product, smiled and said "thank you" and left, only to go on social media and complain to literally thousands of future consumers of your product, that the product or service is not up to standards without ever giving you any warning or opportunity to correct the problem? Do you think that's a fair way to handle the situation? I'm not "defending Regent," I'm only saying that in most everyone's experience Regent will "jump through hoops" trying to correct any issue, real or perceived. If they refuse to fix the situation, THEN bring it up on social media.

And therein lies the problem. If you don't discuss your problem with the appropriate people and give them a chance to correct it, it simply compounds the problem for future cruisers. Nothing is "endemic to Regent butlers." Regent always strives to correct issues. But can only do so if given the chance. When you say nothing and then come on social media insinuate the unsolved problem is "endemic to Regent" it gives people the impression that Regent doesn't live up to it's hype and doesn't care to. Most here have experienced the opposite, that when Regent doesn't live up to their hype, and is notified on board, the issue is usually resolved to the highest level possible. If your butlers gave you poor service, and you didn't let anyone know, they can't correct the service. In my opinion only, and not trying to be snarky, but saying nothing to the cruise line at any point, either on or after the cruise, then you are part of the problem, not part of the solution.

We all prefer to commend people for superlative service, and in general that's the service we've had on all our Regent cruises. But when someone fails to live up to the standard of the job it needs to be dealt with. Either mention it directly to the person so he or she can correct the issues, failing that their supervisor, failing that put it on the survey. That's sort of the point of the survey, to reward good and correct bad. Only placing it on social media does nothing but create a bad impression of the cruise line with no way for the cruise line to respond or correct it.

I know they charge per person, but really fares are more per cabin. Just ask solo cruisers. The website clearly states that internet access for less than a Concierge suite are "per cabin," "FREE Unlimited WiFi includes one log-in, one device, per suite. Concierge Suites and higher receive up to four logins, four devices, per suite."

Here is the dress code from the Regent website. Most people adhere to it. There is no Formal optional nights on cruises of 15 days or less. Even then it's optional. I take a sport coat and tie and generally choose to wear the sport coat to Prime7 and Chartreuse as we like to make those nicer venues more of a "date night." "Attire ranges from Casual to Formal Optional. Casual wear consists of resort-style outfits; some examples are jeans, shorts, t-shirts, and tennis shoes. Casual wear is appropriate for daytime both on board or ashore. Casual wear is not appropriate after 6:00 PM, with the exceptions of while dining at the Pool Grill or Pool Bar and on the final evening of the cruise. On the night prior to disembarkation, guests may need to pack their luggage early due to morning flights the next day. With this in mind, on the last night of every voyage, we will relax the dress code for dinner to Casual. Otherwise, the recommended onboard dress in the evenings is Elegant Casual. Dinner dress for ladies includes a skirt, or slacks with a blouse or sweater, a pant suit or dress; slacks and a collared shirt for gentlemen. Sport jackets are optional. Casual wear is not to be worn at dinner, once again with the exceptions of while dining at the Pool Grill and on the final evening of the cruise. Ties are not required."

We were on Navigator in June and July and hardly anyone wore masks on board. Some would wear them on tour busses, but that was about it. So if you don't want to wear a mask there is, at this time at least, no requirement to do so.

A couple of comments. Often Regent only visits a port once or twice a year, so building a steady supply of excursion operators isn't an option, so they end up with limited excursions. However as to a rating system, most ports they seem to use the same excursion companies as all the cruise lines use in those ports. Likely because they are part of NCL so they seem to book the same companies that NCL uses (makes sense anyway). I have found that often if you simply put the description or title of the tour in a websearch it will bring you to one of the review sites, or another cruise line site, that will show reviews of the same excursion. You have to read carefully to make sure it's the same, but it is one way to find reviews on some of the excursions, especially in ports that cruise lines always visit. Also if you go to the Ports of Call section here in CC you can often find the same excursion or something close. You have to weed through a lot of comments unfortunately, but you an often get good info. I've found it very helpful in getting reviews.

Although I haven't contacted anyone to verify this, I believe, based on the letter, that all you have to do is administer a test to yourself and follow the "verification" steps outlined. Yes, this certainly can lead to abuse, but we're all adults and the theory is we're honest. If they wanted one of the internet monitored tests they would specify that. Those aren't actually "self tests," they're "monitored tests."

WOW! We spend 40 night on Navigator from May 28-July 7 and had a completely opposite experience (except entertainment. Agree on entertainment). But the food was good to excellent, service was on spot, including bars. Had a wonderful time and have Navigator booked for next month.

We've only waitlisted for one tour in 82 nights on Regent. It cleared while we were on the cruise (actually I think they added to the cruise). So I can't speak with authority, but it seems that if there's enough interest and have the ability they'll add busses to the tours. Obviously boat tours and other small venues can't add capacity, but busses can often be added. Covid did impact shore excursions as many companies ceased operations so that is a big limit that can't be overcome quickly. If there are no more seats and no more busses, then nothing can be done. Unfortunately if access to all excursions is a "deal breaker," then you need to decide if the Regent experience is worth it to you.

As noted the Butler will do just about anything you want, including unpacking and shining shoes. We have only had 1 butler and we loved him. We, too, are low maintenance, but found it nice to have a single source for all questions and requests. We did the canapés a few times and enjoyed them. One day when he brought the canapes he asked if we were having a drink. I said yes so he asked if he could get it for me (I drink bourbon on the rocks). I said "that would be very nice, thank you," at which point my wife chimed in with "it's only bourbon poured in the glass, you can get that yourself." 🤣 One of the really nice uses was when we had back to back shore excursions. We would have our butler place lunch in our cabin at a specific time so we could eat while we were changing for the second tour. Saves a lot of time so we wouldn't have to rush lunch. Our last cruise, no butler. We did miss him, but I will only book a Penthouse for cabin size, not the butler. But he/she sure is a nice perk to have.

We did some of these ports this past summer on Navigator. In Kirkwall we did ORKNEY'S ARCHAEOLOGICAL WONDERS and enjoyed the tour. Did not do Small Group and wouldn't since a lot of the tour is done on your own. For us the small group wasn't worth the upcharge. In Belfast we did THE TITANIC TRAIL and really enjoyed the tour. Again, no need for small group. But it was interesting to see the museum. It focuses more on Belfast's building of the ship rather than the sinking,. I'm a "ship junkie" so seeing where the Titanic was build was really interesting for me. Glasgow we went to Sterling Castle. Again, don't think small group is necessary as you can basically tour the castle on your own,. We enjoyed it. Beautiful castle. In Liverpool we did the Small Group In the Steps of the Beatles. Here we were very happy we did the Small Group as the guide was excellent and we were able to spend more time at each stop having only around 12 on the bus. As a Beatles fan, we loved this tour. If you're not much of a Beatles fan you might want to look at other options. Waterford we did KILKENNY CASTLE & WATERFORD CRYSTAL and enjoyed this tour also. Only glitch was one lady wandered off after lunch and we had to search for her. Almost missed the Waterford Crystal but made it anyway. Again, not the small group, and other than the lady wandering off, don't really think the small group is necessary. Small Group vs regular tour is really dependent on both the tour and the interest level you have. I won't book a small group unless it's a tour that will have a lot of narration and I'm very interested in the tour, like the Beatles tour we did. On a tour where there is a guide the small group is better for time, questions, narration, etc. On a tour where you are stopping for an unguided tour, don't see the need. But that's really up to you. The small group is nice being limited to 16 people, however keep in mind you might be trading a large bus with 30 or so on it for a small bus filling all the 16 seats.

This is becoming a more and more expressed desire. For me, it means the beginning of a slippery slope downward. Next to go will be included alcohol and wine, replaced by a drink or wine package. Honestly, what I like about Regent is being the most inclusive cruise line out there. I don't like to have to research ports and tour vendors anymore, I simply pick a tour that sounds good to me. I also agree that the rebate for excursions will not be all that much. Honestly, other luxury cruise lines offer more of an "Ala carte" cruise. By removing included items you are simply making Regent the same as the other cruise lines. In my opinion it will change the business model and become the beginning of a down hill slide.

Agree... so I'll extend an olive branch. Sorry this got heated. We all have our opinions and that often gets in the way. So I apologize for my part in the "insanity." Hope to meet one day on a cruise and have a toast to happy cruising. 🍹😎

Ok...whatever.

If you check, pre-departure Covid testing is required for Japan Departures by the other cruise lines too. This seems to be a Japanese requirement, not Regent's. If it wasn't mandatory, why would they suddenly impose it only on Japanese departures?

Take 2 tests. If the first one is positive, wait a while and test again. If you're positive, you're positive. Then you claim it on your Cruise insurance. This testing is the rule for Japan departures. Why would Regent, Royal Caribbean, Princess also only require testing in Japan and no where else?

Have you called Regent and checked to see if they're willing to set up testing? If they say no, then I'd go with "govt. regulations" and simply ignore it and show up at the port and see what happens. Not really, I'm being sarcastic. Take a home test and self administer at the hotel and follow Regent's requirements for self testing. There you go...done.

Do I think they "imposed a higher standard for those leaving Japan?" Don't know. Canada did last summer. We could fly, drive, or train to Canada with no testing but to leave on a cruise required a negative test. So maybe Japan hasn't caught up to its own regulations. Don't know. But I DO know that Regent, Princess, and Royal Caribbean all require testing and accept self-tests for cruises in Japan. So it might be Japanese policy or simply cruise line policies. But it's someone's policy.

I guess I'm just tired of absurd conspiracy theories for everything that happens in the world. The idea that Regent purposefully ignored NZ laws and acted in total bad faith to what.... grab some money... is ridiculous. I'm not defending Regent, and personally I hope all the conspiracy theorists do leave for another company. That way there'll be more cruises for me to book and likely better deals. I'm not trying to talk anyone into sailing on Regent. And truly couldn't care less who sails them. What I don't want is the constant spreading false conspiracies without any evidence. I tend to believe what I see. Regent DID clean the hulls on the first cruise. That's why it didn't do anything other than wander aimlessly at sea. They had to hire a hull cleaning service that could do the cleaning at sea. There was no dry dock in that part of the world available. The company was advertised as approved by NZ which is why it took so many days until they could even get the hull cleaned. I don't know for sure, but I imagine that they were certified as clean when they docked in Aukland. Likely the NZ govt came out upon docking in Auckland and inspected the hull and found it insufficient, so they couldn't hit the highly sensitive ports. Consistent with that, why would Regent pay what is likely a heavy cleaning fee knowing full well it won't help? Why would Regent lie and risk pissing off nearly 2000 passengers? They fully refunded the first cruise PLUS gave FCC, PLUS kept them on the ship using fuel, food, alcohol, etc. which is the majority of their cost of a cruise. Why would they lose so much money when they simply could have pulled into Australia and disembarked everyone and tied up to a dock? Nope, the conspiracies of purposeful lies doesn't seem to have any purpose or reason, so sorry, I don't buy it. As to a fair refund? Well, we booked a cruise last summer specifically to see Greenland and Iceland. Greenland was a no go for weather. Since that was half the reason we booked it, do I get a 50% refund plus FCC? Nope. I got to see an extra Canadian port and and extra Icelandic port. It was a great cruise even with the disappointment. Anyway, I do hope all the angry customers flee. I would like the opportunity to book future cruises at a reduce rate to fill them up. That actually works for me.

Princess Cruises also have the same requirement and on their website it says this is Japan's "protocol." They made the latest post on this on Feb. 14, so only 3 days ago. I would say it doesn't appear that Regent suddenly placed the requirement on anyone, but Japan did,

Just to be sure I fully understand, they gave a 60% refund of the cruise cost for missing 4 out of 9 ports, PLUS 50% of another cruise on the list and you don't think that's enough? What do you think ANY other cruise line would offer? If missing ports puts you into a position that you demand huge refunds, you should probably not cruise. Ships miss ports all the time for a variety of reasons. Their contract is specific so all offerings are over and above their contractual responsibilities. You used the air fare and travelled round trip, right? You spend the entire scheduled cruise on board using fuel, food, drink, and other luxury amenities, right? You made over 50% of your ports, right? You are aware that contractually they owe you nothing, right? So how much SHOULD you get?

Seems to be a pretty good variety of choices. But what would you rather they do? Offer you cruises that are sold out? How would that work? I can see your post now "this is pitiful, come sail with us on cruises that are fully booked and have no cabins available." 😏

I can't say positively, but the smallest number you can reserve is a table for 2. If you do that, I'm fairly certain that would mean you will dine alone unless you specifically bring someone with you. But when you get on board, go to the restaurant and check and tell them you do not want a tablemate.

I'm not exactly sure what you're saying here. Final Payment, along with Flight Deviation dates are written in stone, no matter when you make your reservation not dependent on "the further out we make reservations." Final payment for less than a 15 night cruise is 120 days out and 15 nights or longer, 150 days out. Flight deviation is available 210 days out. it doesn't matter if you book your cruise 2 years before the cruise, or 2 months before the cruise, these are the hard and fast dates. Regent has always increased prices as the years roll on. There's no secret here, if you book a cruise 2 years out you will probably get it at a better rate than one year out or 1 month out. If your friends decide "gee sounds fun let's go" 2 months prior to a cruise that you booked 2 years ago, do you really believe they should get the same deal and price you did? As for specials like 25% single supplement, etc., they pop up now and again. If you were lucky enough to get a special 2 years early then great. But if a special pops up prior to final payment you are generally able to reprice your cruise under the new rate guidelines. You seem to be an experienced cruiser, but you don't seem to have much grasp on how the industry prices their products. These are standard industry wide and have been so since we first cruised 25 years ago.