Dr. Cocktail

Much appreciated- I’m farrrrrr too lazy to post on board! I’m disappointed that there’s no live music between 7:15 and 8:30. That’s almost universally my pet peeve - no entertainment before dinner if you like to dine late.

Of MUCH interest, thanks!

It's a very nice itinerary as Newfoundland is really not a usual destination and Sydney is an excellent gateway to the Cabot trail. Sunny weather and rough seas with high winds aren't mutually exclusive! In any case, hope that everyone has a great time!

The Haven and Retreat are both YC copies.

These are astonishing numbers - they really do make RCI, Carnival and NCLHI look like rounding errors! The sniffy attitudes among many on these boards re Explora/MSC will have to face some new realities!

Current view: https://www.portnywebcam.com/

We’re very lucky in Toronto - MANY maisons d’boiled bagels with brick ovens! A delicious caloric nightmare !

If it ain’t boiled, it’s not a bagel - it’s a 🥯-oid imposter! brick oven vs electric or gas open to debate but I’ll always opt for open flame 🔥 brick 🧱 oven! No hotel or ship EVER serves a true boiled bagel.

Have a GREAT cruise 🚢!!!

I just can’t thank you enough for taking time out of your vacation to post. I’m a bit of a hypocrite - I love “live” threads but am 100% too lazy to do them myself! It all sounds pretty good to me - what you are generally describing are “software” problems that can easily be corrected. The people in Geneva don’t move too quickly- I’m hopeful that they’ll eventually “get it”.

I said this before (and I was trashed by a thankfully disappeared poster who basically insinuated that I was making it up) that in my conversations with some senior staff on Seven Seas Splendor that they were VERY aware of Explora and .... concerned. I won't name names but many felt that Regent was, metaphorically speaking, going in the wrong direction of what passengers wanted.

I can't say what applies for the grand suites ... I was just responding to Pitts27mf's post which I felt held a lot of inaccuracies.

I just phoned the Hilton - it’s 120 USD for a couple for the day pass, 1/2 of which you’ll get back in food and beverage credits - a great deal! You can call them directly to reserve.

Happy it worked for you but this is most definitely NOT how it was when we were on board. If Oceania was a fantasy novel, it would be called "The Kingdom of No". Same thing with Regent and read the Silversea boards where people have difficulty getting any reservations at all.

I saw a video earlier today where the vlogger said she had to be out of her cabin by 8 - rather uncivilized! I am planning on getting a day pass at the Barbados Hilton. I am assuming that it should be secure enough. Luggage storage is listed as an amenity.

Thank you for you excellent posts! As someone who goes to NYC a few times a year, I find these rates extortionate and frankly ridiculous. Why you wouldn't simply take a taxi or Uber to a hotel that is likely 10 blocks away is beyond me. For airport transfers, I have used Carmel for decades - they are extremely reliable and reasonable. The rates below don't include tolls and tips. https://www.carmellimo.com/General/Rates.shtml

Unfortunately, the option of "dining anywhere you choose" is not really a reality on most of the luxury cruise lines. Regent and Oceania clearly limit you to one booking at one of their specialty restaurants per cruise and your preferred reservation time may very well not be available when it is your time to book. Additional reservations are very hard to come by. There are numerous accounts on CC of the difficulties that people have on booking any of the Silversea specialty restaurants. The newer Seabourn ships have a tiny first-come, first serve sushi restaurant but Thomas Keller is again one reservation per cruise. As for Celebrity, the amount you're paying for a top suite far exceeds the per diem of the majority of E's suites. I generally second Hlitner's previous post. From the first day that you could book, Explora made it very clear that they would not have a show lounge and the usual large, click tracked production shows. The numerous smaller lounges would have live music available for the majority of the evening. That way, you wouldn't be checking your watch during dinner or adjusting your schedule to make the show. That was a HUGE draw for me! A few of the reviews in the various threads here have alluded to the available acts doing just that. I know that a favourite Broadway singer of mine will perform when the ship is in the States. Tastes are different but I generally find large cruise ship shows to be wretched - pre recorded mish-mashes of songs that they were willing to pay the rights for! But .... my sister-in-law would disagree with me!

Hon, I generally don’t fly economy….

Happy Friday!!! My stock answer is to ALWAYS use CruiseCritic’s parent company , TripAdvisor, and get an independent tour. EJ’s tours might be good but you would truly be Guinea Pigs in the matter! For Halifax and St. John, might I suggest renting a car for the day? In Halifax, you could easily drive to Peggy’s Cove and Lunenburg at your own pace and stop and eat where you wish. If the weather’s terrible, you could simply cancel at no cost! Similarly, some GORGEOUS drives out of St. John …. The city itself is …. Fine. (I’m being polite towards my fellow Canadians!) I’ve done this numerous times on my Canada - New England cruises.

I was born 10 years after Kungsholm's inaugural!!! In 1989, my bf said that we should go on a cruise - both of us were in our mid 20's. I was appalled at the suggestion but ultimately caved. We flew to Barbados and boarded Chandris Fantasy's Azur - a converted car ferry! Chandris launched Celebrity and owned them for under a decade before they were acquired by RCCL. You had to leave the cabin to change your mind and we howled with laughter (OK, 2 guys in their 20's) at all the sounds of all the people throwing up in the cabins around us. I think that this 15 000 grt ship would have pitched and rolled tied up in New York Harbour. An addict was instantly born but so much of the cruising "schtick" hasn't changed. I think that's what surprised me about Regent .... it was a lot of the "same old" of the last 20 years but tarted up. I wanted something "more" or different.

I went on Royal Viking 33 years ago as a 27 year-old and had a blast! It was 6 months after sailing on the brand-spanking new Celebrity Horizon and I was initially "what the $%#@*$ is this ancient garbage scow?" I quickly fell into the groove and loved it! I was able to afford it at the time as Royal Viking ran incorrectly priced ads one Saturday in the Toronto Star and at the time with Canadian Consumer Laws, they were forced to honour it! I still remember it was "2-for-1" (when it really was 2-for-1) and Canadian Dollars at Par" when it was supposed to be "or"!!! Totally agree on all the choices available - starting young and being able to experience all the different lines from budget to luxury has been a privilege and a blast! That's why I'm excited about Explora - I don't just want a new ship or cruise line, I want a new way of considering how things work and are done.

That's great! I didn't realize that you had rebooked!

I'm so shocked by all of I'm so shocked by all of this .... I'm 60 years old and the only Social Media I'm on is CruiseCritic ... Is that even Social Media? I'm made of fun by, well, everyone for this and chided for "missing out".... Now I'm not so sure! I've had old friends say "well, how can I contact you"? .... count to ten..... "well, we could phone each other like we used to!" OK, so now I have to avoid the influencers AND the die-hards of (insert cruise line here) on CC. The worst was on the Oceania Boards a decade ago where you couldn't criticize anything. I got into some mini-tussles on the Regent boards with people challenging what I experienced but general positive interactions.

I'm in Canada and my agent never got notification .... can't disagree. My partner and I were joking how unlike most situations, EJ shouldn't have been afraid to hit "reply all"!!! Let's split the difference - many here have been beyond angry while not fully melting down!

I'm sorry to hear about this - really no excuse for rudeness in any staff. I'm curious to see how things will change when Heiki Berdos returns - she really had zero time on board with paying passengers to have any influence. Finally, I'm CERTAIN that they will get the message loud and clear when hundreds of New Yorkers start boarding in 12 days time!!!