eroller

Voyager’s drydock isn’t canceled.  Just being moved from when Regent originally planned.  Stay tuned.  

On 4/24/2024 at 12:49 PM, cruiseboys said:

Great review and pics!!!  Doing our first MSC sailing on Magnifica this Friday!  Your review really helps temper our expectations.  Not sure if you’re a drinker but wondering if you remember how the bottled beer is served.  Are they regular 12 oz bottles or larger cans (Carnival serves the larger cans). Wondering for koozie planning purposes.  LOL. 

Thanks again for a great review. 

Glad you enjoyed the review and pics!

I do drink but not a beer drinker so can't help you.  I can tell you that a Bacardi and Diet Coke is $10.62 total including tip.  That is more than Virgin ($6) but less than most mainstream lines like Royal, NCL, and Carnival. 

Bon Voyage and enjoy your cruise!

21 hours ago, SeaHunt said:

Wowser!  I hope everyone clicks on your "Pictures Link" in the OP, because your photos are the best ever! 😁

Thank you!  Much appreciated.  

Attached are some preview photos from taken from my full photo album. 

Attached below in a link to ship photos, menus, daily programs, and a few videos.  I tried to photograph most of the ship.  This cruise departed Miami on April 12, 2024 for three nights to Key West and Nassau.  MSC MAGNIFICA is a midsized ship at 95,000gt and 2550 pax (double occupancy).  She recently turned 15 years old so definitely not brand new. MSC has used her twice for world cruises and this is her first ever season in North America.  

Like all MSC ships she is very well maintained.  She is showing her age in the decor department but somehow I find it quaint, because it reminds me a little of how cruising used to be. One lounge flows into the next and there are an incredible amount of bars (17 I think).  Even a traditional disco. There are also 4 sets of elevator/stair towers spaced evenly along the length of the ship.  Ships are just not designed this way anymore and you’re lucky to have two sets of elevators/stairs on the mega ships of today.  This was a full sailing and she feels quite spacious and never a wait for an elevator.  There is a traditional promenade deck under the lifeboats and it’s wonderful, but it’s void of any seating which is unfortunate.  It’s great for strolling though and while not full 360 wrap-around it’s a horseshoe around the front. 

On this short 3-day cruise MSC puts on three full production shows and they are damn good. A big cast and some really excellent singers (more Broadway quality than cruise ship). MSC tends to excel at entertainment and puts on some great shows. Live music is prevalent as well and you literally stroll from one lounge to the next with a different genre of live music playing.  This ship is very alive at night. 

I was in cabin 10060, a standard balcony cabin.  As blue is my favorite color I absolutely loved the cabin.  If you like blue, pick on cabin on Deck 10 as they are all blue.  They will be a different color on other decks.  The cabin was cozy and nicely finished, with a standard bathroom with small shower and the dreaded shower curtain.  The balcony is quite narrow but large enough for a couple chairs and a table.  A/C worked great and I never heard anything from other cabins.  I also loved the location close to the forward elevators and my cabin stewardess Connie was excellent.  I was originally booked in an obstructed ocean view on Deck 8, but bid for an upgrade ($35 per person/$70 total) for a partial view balcony.  About 2-3 days prior to the cruise the upgrade came through, and I was assigned this great cabin with no obstruction.  I highly recommend it. 

Service was friendly and efficient and food just ok. It’s not superb but you won’t starve.  We ate in the dining room each evening and it tends to feel very busy.  I felt the buffet has improved since my previous MSC cruises. There still isn't the variety and selection like you might find on NCL or Royal Caribbean, but it was certainly adequate. As always on MSC the pizza was excellent as was the soft serve with unlimited toppings  I quite liked the burgers and fries as well. Cuisine has never been MSC’s strong suit and it still isn't, but it's catching up especially as the other mainstream lines dumb down their dining budget.  

Back to decor, MSC loves red, purple, blue, green, rust, brown, mustard, and burnt orange.  You will even find these colors on the new MSC ships.  Lots of suede and velour seating and plenty of shiny surfaces.  While not new any more, it's all very well kept. This style of decor is typical of MSC and some of it reminds me of Home Lines and the Italian Line from a bygone era.  The ship also smells like a true ship. It’s a combination of varnish, fuel, a/c, a hint of cigarette smoke, and MSC’s cleaning solution which I love. Carnival’s ships used to have a certain smell as well (that I loved) but those days are over.  

Anyway those are the highlights.  Overall a great experience on a nice ship for an inexpensive getaway. Lastly a very international passenger mix for a short cruise and very diverse. Again this is more typical of MSC.  They attract a lot of Europeans and South Americans but I was surprised to see so many on this short cruise.  Even India and the Middle East were represented. Everyone was well behaved and I witnessed none of that horrible behavior another nameless cruise line is becoming notorious for.  Just people from all walks of life enjoying themselves.   

Would I recommend this cruise?  Absolutely but you have to put your expectations in line with what you’re paying and remember it’s not a brand new ship.  Also MSC beats to its own drum and for me at least that is part of the charm. They are not NCL, Carnival, Royal, etc. They do things a bit differently and you shouldn’t expect a clone of those other lines. As the saying goes … when in Rome.

Pictures Link:

https://www.flickr.com/photos/eroller/albums/72177720316239370
 

1 hour ago, mrstanley said:

We can’t wait to board tomorrow!

Lucky!   I love a crossing and I love the Grandeur.  Win win!!

In NY on business and I couldn’t resist a stroll to the West Side Piers to see my girl Seven Seas Grandeur. I just got off her a few weeks ago and now she is headed to Europe.  Looking fabulous which is no surprise.  I have so many childhood memories of these piers from the 70’s and onwards.  Many an afternoon spent touring ships here and sailing in and out of these terminals.  I would drag my grandmother up to NY and we would walk through Hell’s Kitchen from Port Authority to the piers.  Then usually lunch and a play before heading home.  Some of my favorite memories of my grandmother and childhood.  I can tell you the terminals haven’t changed much.  I walked into one and I was brought right back to my childhood and the 70’s!  
 

It was these piers, touring the ships, and taking sailings out of NY that started a lifelong fascination with passenger ships and the cruise industry.  Here we are some 45+ years and 150 cruises later.  Thank you grandmom!  ❤️

9 hours ago, oceanviewer21 said:

May I ask if the usb outlets on the Grandeur are the old A type or the new C type? Not sure which cables to bring.

Both.  
 

10 minutes ago, mrlevin said:

No, I meant Voyager. 

Not from what I’ve heard.  

5 hours ago, mrlevin said:

Two new ships will be hybrid so they can go into Norwegian fjords and other protected waters.  Voyager will be gone in 2026. 

I think you mean NAVIGATOR.  

The two new ships are going to be larger but the ratio of passengers is far higher than any Regent ship. The space ratio is enormous so these new ships are going to be incredibly spacious.  
 

Seven Seas Grandeur 
55,000 gt
744 pax 
73.9 space ratio 

Newbuilds
77,000 gt
850 pax 
90.6 space ratio

On 3/27/2024 at 7:41 PM, SWFLAOK said:

Your cabin looks great. That's a great concierge cabin, and we have more than a hundred nights onboard Regent with 20 nights more coming up next week. We did 30 nights on Splendor in 2022 and really enjoyed it. We loved having 3 specialty restaurants to choose from. We previously enjoyed 32 nights on Voyager in a Penthouse B, which had a great layout for its square footage.

But our last 14 night cruise in April 23, and our upcoming cruise next week are on Navigator. We booked them based on itinerary, its small passenger capacity, and our previous Regent experience. Navigator is OK for us since we like small ships, but we really liked Pacific Rim on Splendor,

Based on your review, we will be taking a look at Grandeur cruises to book for a future cruise while onboard Navigator a week from now. Thanks for your review.

The cabin was awesome.  I think the Superior Suites/Concierge Suites on the Explorer Class ships are some of the best designed cabins afloat.  I love the bed faces the balcony, and the closet and bathroom are awesome. 

Have a fantastic time on the NAVIGATOR.  She seems to have a strong following and that small size must be nice.  So far my only Regent cruises have been on the Explorer Class.  It would be interesting to try out one of the old ships. 

Bon Voyage!

Just back a few days ago from a 10-day sailing of SEVEN SEAS GRANDEUR. This cruise was round trip Miami to Grand Cayman, Cozumel, Costa Maya, Harvest Caye Belize, Santo Tomas De Castilla Guatamala, Roatan, and Key West.  

We enjoyed fantastic weather pretty much the entire cruise. 

This was my second time on GRANDEUR and I felt she is as good as ever. I really love this ship, the crew, staff ... pretty much everything.  She is an all-time favorite ship which is saying a lot as this was around cruise 144 for me. Regent just got it right on so many levels with this ship and the entire experience. Everything was awesome with just a couple exceptions. 

Our cabin was 718, a Concierge level forward on the port side.  We were just at the beginning of the bump-out and I loved having an angled balcony. It seemed larger even though I know it was a little smaller.  Absolutely no noise from anywhere around us.  The cabin was super quiet.  Alyssa was an amazing cabin attendant and all our special requests were ready and waiting as we entered the cabin. My only complaint would be the temperature in the shower would vary on its own from chilly to boiling hot. You had to be very careful with the temperature setting. This was not an issue my last time on GRANDEUR (cabin 856) so I'm assuming it's more a problem in the forward section of the ship.  Our friends in cabin 706 had the same issue. 

Food, entertainment, service all exceptional. The entire crew really went out of their way and everyone was so friendly and accommodating ... with one small exception. 

The Pool Grill fell short to the rest of the amazing dining experiences on GRANDEUR.  Not so much the food and selection but the service.  It was the only time the entire 10-day cruise we received indifferent service.  The bar service was great, the food service not so much. After waiting about 15 minutes for anyone to acknowledge us, I got up to seek out someone. I found a head waiter and let him know.  He brushed me off but sent a waiter over to our table. The waiter seemed very put out.  Honestly this was the only negative experience the entire 10 days so really no big deal. It's just that all the other experiences were so elevated that the Pool Grill wasn't up to the standard. We dined there a few times and the other experiences were better but not great. I think it's just understaffed to be honest. Also some ceiling fans would be welcome as it gets pretty hot and steamy in there even with the windows open. I felt bad for the wait sfaff as there was little air flow. 

My only other area of opportunity is the end of cruise survey.  This had to be completed prior to the end of the cruise and using the ship's WIFI network. Who wants to worry about a survey while enjoying your cruise?  Not me.  This should be emailed and completed at home within 1-2 weeks of sailing like almost every other cruise line does.  Also the survey link was so glitchy and kept crashing.  It took me about 5 times to complete the survey and get it submitted successfully.  I'm sure many others gave up and it's a disservice to Regent not getting the feedback (good and constructive) needed to perfect the product moving forward.  And yes I did put this in the survey!  LOL  

Attached are some pictures from the cruise.  I hope you enjoy and Bon Voyage to all with future sailings on SEVEN SEAS GRANDEUR.  You're in for a treat. 

10 hours ago, sassyw said:

We are on the Grandeur now. Beautiful ship. Suite quiet. Was afraid of purported noise but so far not bothered. Find that pool lounges are too low. Hard getting out of them if elderly. Flushing system already has been blocked.

Glad to hear everything is good so far. 
 

No doubt someone tried flushing something they shouldn’t down the toilet.  So frustrating.  Even with the signs at every toilet and warning notices in Passages.  

1 minute ago, Pcardad said:

Yes, that is what I said, tips are included....but there is no rule that prohibits tipping.

I don’t think anyone ever said you can’t tip extra if you want.  That is on you.  But the gratuities are included in the cruise fare and there is no expectation to tip extra.  So yes, tips are absolutely included in the cruise fare.   

6 minutes ago, Pcardad said:

Agree 99% - except that Regent is a "tips are included" line....there is no rule or policy against tipping or against accepting tips.

According to Regent’s own advertising, gratuities are already included in your cruise fare.  Nothing else is expected. 
 

Yes if you feel compelled to tip extra that is on you.  No one will stop you.  But entirely unnecessary.  
 

2 hours ago, Pcardad said:

I have no desire to "cloud" the waters but I think people would be surprised at what Regent (really Apollo Management as 97% of the staff on board do not work for Regent) pays their people vs. what a customer contact person can make on a different line.

Pretty much every cruise line is hiring.  If crew can make more on other lines no one is stopping them.  Bottom line Regent promotes that gratuities are already covered in the cruise fare.  It’s not my place to know what the crew gets paid or feel guilted into to paying an additional gratuity.  That is their relationship between them and their employer.  They sign an employment contract knowing full well that Regent is a non-tipping line.  I assume that they are compensated to offset the gratuities that are paid out on other lines where tips are basically mandatory.  If not there would be no retention at Regent and crew would simply avoid them like the plague.  Too many other lines they can work for.    

42 minutes ago, 2SailingNomads said:

We contribute to the crew fund, helps everyone.  On our Grandeur cruise as we were leaving the last day the butler who honestly had done nothing special at all for us came running after us and when it was clear we were not passing him some $ quickly and abruptly left. Totally different than on our other 2 Regent cruises.  All Inclusive to me means that.

And honestly I think this is the risk when people tip on a non-tipping line.  It then becomes expected and people feel obligated.  It’s a slippery slope.  There are other ways to show appreciation.  
 

As mentioned earlier, for something extraordinary I can understand.  For just doing your job and even doing it well, the tips are covered.  
 

As an American where we tip for everything, it’s refreshing not to have to worry about it on a Regent cruise.  

8 minutes ago, h20skibum said:

I saw that today, so now I guess I will be on the 5th sailing of it, instead of the 4th.  Everything should be at 100% by then, and I hope everything is at 100% when we sail on Sun.

 

Of course, they have had lots of practice with Oasis class, so there should be no problems.

I wish you luck and hope everything is perfect for your cruise.  
 

ICON was a prototype design just like SUN PRINCESS, and its introduction was flawless.  Royal built in tons of buffer time which Princess should have done.  

4 minutes ago, KenzSailing said:

 

No, we don't.  Now, let's beat this dead horse some more.

 

Hey, anybody want to discuss dress codes?

The thread topic is “tipping”.  Move on if you’re not interested. 

17 minutes ago, Mom2N3 said:

Meanwhile, legions of Princess die hards are telling the affected passengers how to feel, that they’re just a bunch of negative Nancy’s, and how blessed they should all feel for the privilege of Princess screwing them over.

 

Glad some of you get it…they cancelled 2 cruises buying themselves almost an extra month…the people on what became the inaugural cruise didn’t book on the inaugural cruise.  NONE of the elements that were promoted for the past couple of years (Arena & Dome shows, Park 19 Spellbound, Love by Britto) are operational.  And they have taken minimal responsibility for not delivering on the experiences customers paid for and offered shockingly little in exchange to both the cancelled cruisers and the ones on this unfinished ship.

I’m in 100% agreement!  
 

I’ll also add I’ve sailed on quite a few inaugural sailings on various cruise lines.  Yes things are generally not perfect and that can be part of the excitement, but none have been the debacle of SUN PRINCESS.  Even with a few extra weeks to prepare they can’t get it together.  
 

Also not fair to those onboard now who are the guinea pigs not receiving a whole product but paying full price.  They never anticipated being the first.  

3 minutes ago, JimmyVWine said:

As I mentioned earlier in this thread, let’s see what the early reviews here on CC are after the first wave of guests gets off. IMO, Princess took a big gamble sailing with much of its new “groundbreaking, spectacular, never-before-seen” features non-operational. It had a choice of cancelling more cruises (probably no fewer than 2) or sailing with apologies. A no win situation. If early reviews are devastating, they chose wrong as first impressions last forever. If early reviews are largely forgiving, they chose right. We will know soon. 

What’s done is done now.  I just feel it could have all been avoided per my previous post.  Really poor planning on the part of Princess and a big fail. They really miscalculated the readiness of this ship, even with their own employees at the shipyard for the entire build.  

9 minutes ago, dog said:

Yes!

Agree!

3 of my family members disembarked on Saturday from the ICON. They are well travelled, had a blast.  I asked for photos and was sent a video of my teen gd with a hard hat on, strapped to something, walking on Crown Edge, I believe it is called. Not my kind of cruise, but they would have been very disappointed had they booked the SUN. It is STILL not ready for passengers. Princess has let a lot of people down in many ways. And now We Canadians seem to be blocked from booking online.

I’m just really disappointed with Princess.  They majorly screwed up the most anticipated new build they have introduced in years.  I feel most of it could have been prevented with better coordination with the shipyard, better advanced planning (knowing this is a prototype ship), and better communication with their customers.  Complete fail.  

17 hours ago, ho-hum said:

Appreciated eroller.

 

The future Regent voyage is expensive so I wondered whether tipping was expected too or would be included as you clarified

 

It  is also by far the largest vessel I have ever been on so I am assuming it wouldn’t feel that personal hence there would be less of a relationship to personnel and a subsequent inclination to tip.

 

However if I am contact regularly with personnel (say housekeeper and butler) then I would tip.

 

Pcardad’s suggestion of donating to the Crew Fund is an excellent and obvious suggestion and will be done assuming service is good and why wouldn’t it be (my attraction to Regent was the reputation it has).

Even if you have regular contact with a crew/staff member, no tip is required or expected on Regent.  That includes butlers.  Its all been covered, and as you mention Regent is much more expensive than your average cruise line, and in part because gratuities are included. 

As others have mentioned, a heart felt "thank you", acknowledgement on the surveys, or thank you card goes a long way.  

Americans feel this compulsion to tip even when it's absolutely not required.  Don't feel remotely pressured to fall into this trap.  Enjoy the no-tipping culture on Regent ... it's one thing that sets them apart from the rest. 

I’m just amazed that even with two cruises canceled (last minute) that so much is incomplete on SUN PRINCESS.  It’s obvious this ship was nowhere near ready from a passenger service standpoint, let alone technically.  
 

Meanwhile ICON was 99% complete and ready to go with all entertainment when the first pax stepped onboard.  The next ship is even going to be delivered early.  
 

Clearly some differences in the way these two lines handle new builds.