NYC-London

I have been on many cruises where a specific passenger has offered to "teach and host" a class in a craft they are well versed in, sometimes having brought enough supplies for a large crowd, and each time the answer is no! I do not understand why - it seems like a great idea to me, esp on cruises with lots of sea days. I recall being on a cruise with a woman who was an expert in origami, her creations have adorned Christmas trees at the White House and she offered to teach some classes. The cruise director vetoed the idea - she did informally teach some of us and it was great fun.

I was on the Grandeur last month and can confirm they had needlepoint kits - finished my project on the plane ride home. They are Stitch-in-Zip kits and some are specially made for Regent. Usually the first opportunity to obtain a needlepoint kit is during the first sea day and it will be listed in Passages. They usually have an assortment which can include scissor cases, passport covers, eyeglass cases, coin purse and cosmetic cases. For longer cruises, they also have pillows. If you google Stitch-n-Zip, it will provide you an idea of what is available. Depending when the new supplies come in, the selection is either great or very slim pickings. I have been on a couple of cruises where there was no needlepoint since someone forgot to order the kits but since Grandeur is sailing in and out of Miami, I don't expect that to be a problem.

For the two category upgrade, one has to book an F1 suite to get a D suite

If you really want an exercise in frustration - try to get a refund!

Congratulations - losing that much weight in one year is not an easy task!

take away the two chairs and keep the current small table that is currently on the balcony, there is room for two loungers. How do I know - because I am so analytical, I measured the lounger that was on a penthouse balcony of our friend's suite and measured out using blue tape (do not ask me why I had blue tape in my luggage) and there was clearly enough room for two loungers, at least on the larger concierge balcony.

I will disagree with that statement - the balcony on our concierge suite was large enough for two recliners with room to spare

If I had known, I would have invited you over to my house for dinner! My home has become the rest and refueling stop for long EWR layovers since I don't live far from the airport.

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I was recently on the Grandeur and don't recall any fitness activities as such as was available on previous Regent cruises, however my favorite fitness activity is walking on the top deck as the ship sails - I find this extremely relaxing and keeps the pounds off.

So, in a nutshell, Regent is rewarding and encouraging bad behavior and indirectly telling the passengers who do follow the rules and do not save loungers for later use - too bad for you!

I'm not a lawyer but not sure how far that case would go if you leave items out in the open unattended for anyone to take

Do what my club (and many others that I have visited) does - between the hours of opening and noon - any lounger that is "saved" without any BIS (butt in seat) for more than 30 minutes, all items are collected and put into a zippered tote bag to be picked up in the managers office. Works like a charm - after it happens once, never happens again. I have also seen this enforced at some public pools. As I mentioned before, it is not rocket science. Last year I stayed at a resort - if you wanted to reserve a lounger, there was an additional fee. Otherwise, there were no towels on the lounger, only available once you sat down and put all of your stuff out an employee came to "make up the lounger" and it was clearly stated that if you leave within the first hour for more than 15 minutes, your items will be removed and the lounger will be provided to someone else - they were quite strict and it worked out well - loungers were rarely empty.

Same here - one of our biggest disappointments about the Grandeur - in so many areas they seemed to have "cut corners" to save money (and this is what I do for a living - provide guidance to companies in the food and hospitality industry as to how to reduce costs without negatively affecting the customer experience) when in the long run it seems to have been not a very smart decision. The balcony of the concierge is more than large enough for two loungers, instead there are two chairs. While they do recline slightly, there is no where to put your feet. If passengers had proper loungers on their balcony, I believe that the lounge hog issue would be less of a problem.

On the previous seven day segment, a number of passengers were complaining about the chair hogs, including myself, and were told they are "addressing" the situation. Their solution - putting a small notice in passages asking passengers not to save chairs and "warning" that items would be removed - I never saw that happen. I have many Regent cruises under my belt and I had never before witnessed so many lounges "saved" with no one using them for hours - to me it appeared that people would put their stuff on the chair, go on their excursion and upon their return to the ship, finally put their butt on the chair. I do not know why Regent refuses to take the lead and stop this once and for all. It is not rocket science.

I just signed on to the RSSC.com website and before one can even enter the site, the following message comes up: Global Alert Brazil e-Visa To assist those guests that are required to submit an application for a Brazilian e-Visa, please click here for examples of the photo requirements, and please click here for an affidavit that can be uploaded in lieu of bank statements. If you have begun the application process and have been issued an application number, please provide Regent with that application number by sending it along with your full name and reservation number to RSSCOps@rssc.com as soon as possible.

Review this thread which has lots of good information: How to find out online what suites are available?

Airlines often release "redemption seats" shortly before the departure date - they hold on to the seats as long as possible in the hope that they can be sold, but as the departure date nears and there is still significant unsold seats, that is when one is more likely to find availability, especially for seats "in front of the plane" at the "saver rate" Just be aware - redemptions of points for flights that land at LHR are subject to significant taxes and fees, especially for BA.

The other site is correct with regard to what cabins are currently available and not sold/held waiting for deposit

I also received a similar postcard with the telephone number of: 800-245-8993 I encourage anyone who receives such a mailing to just google the telephone number and lots of interesting information is available - including audio recordings of individuals who called the number. It seems that this telephone number is used for all types of travel related scams, what doesn't work one day, may work the next! Any solicitation without clearly indentifiable company information, i.e. name of business, physical location (not a PO Box) and requiring one to call to get the information all point directly to a scam. And for those people who do chose to attend the presentation - your personal information just became gold and will be sold over and over again because you have demonstrated at least a willingness to participate - buyer beware!

While everyone is talking about the "egg", the real showstopper on the ship is the cherry blossom tree outside of Pacific Rim - pictures do not do it justice - one has to see it in person to get a true appreciation of its beauty. Each blossom is made of glass and no two are alike - I would have liked to see some type of description about the artist and the process of making such a magnificent piece of art.

The Christmas decorations are quite elegant - unlike other Regent ships which decorates the entire ship for the holidays, the decorations on the Grandeur are more subdued but stunning to look at, esp the trees located throughout the ship. All done in gold and silver and other than for the amazing gingerbread house display with a working ferris wheel that lights up and plays Christmas music, hard to find any red/green/white decorations.

Wishing you and your husband all the best - I know exactly what you are going through, I was in a similar situation a few years back and at the time things looked very bleak but with determination and the genius minds and brains at the Mayo clinic, I am now enjoying the wonderful and spectacular Grandeur. I would like to offer your husband one piece of advise that helped me tremendously - during the bad days, and sadly, yes, there will be bad days, put all your thoughts and energy into something positive that you are looking forward to when the treatment is completed. For me, that is travel and during my chemo sessions I would watch videos of great travel adventures to my bucket list places. I also kept a weekly journal and documented my progress of accomplishments and goals achieved during the previous week and during down periods when it felt that I was not getting better, I would refer back to my journal to remind me of how far I have come. I also enjoyed reading the various "live from" reports, especially from Zqueeze, Rachel and others. Remember, this is just a blip in the road and praying both you and husband will soon be able to enjoy many more cruises.

Seem to be lots of younger people (in their 30's) some traveling with their parents - also some younger children aboard. There are many first time Regent cruisers which gives the whole cruise a different vibe. I think one of the main problems is that there are so many new passengers who do not know "the ropes" and unless someone is available to help them, it leads to some confusion. As an example, some passengers were confused about ordering breakfast in LV and ended up with three breakfasts! Also there are some who seem to be going overboard with the ability to order without flashing your room key each time - seems to be much more waste than I remember. And what is really irking me - people leaving their garbage wherever they happen to be instead of picking it up and disposing of it themselves. Today we were at Harvest Caye, NCL private island and upon returning to the ship, we witnessed two different individuals just throw their garbage on the ground near the entrance to the ship. There is no doubt, a seven day cruise has a different vibe and tone than all the other Regent cruises I have taken but it hasn't affected my enjoyment.

Same here - have been on all the Regent ships and this is the first time we can clearly hear conversations from the adjoining suites - at first I just thought our neighbors talk loudly but we can hear EVERYTHING, including once the lights go out - if you get my drift.