Wendy The Wanderer

On 11/26/2024 at 2:36 PM, mustangmonie said:

Archeologist Mark Eddowes used to give lectures in the Grand Salon and lead some excursions people really enjoyed.  I know he went to do a special project a few years ago.  Does anyone know whether he's back working with PG or will be anytime soon?

I'd like to know this too. Somehow I doubt it, but he brought so much to the experience aboard that I hope so.

I'd pick London to Copenhagen. London is a wonderful city and you could spend as much time pre-cruise there as you can afford to take. It's an easy start because of the language. Haven't been to Copenhagen but almost made it once and it is very attractive. Some of the ports look very nice.  A day in Amsterdam would also be terrific.

The other itinerary does include Rome, and April in Rome would be lovely--it is a truly great city. The other stops are a bit undistinguished, to me. I love Barcelona but it is overrun with tourists. Of course, so is London, as is all of Europe I guess.

On 12/4/2024 at 3:56 PM, ctinkle said:

subistuting chemicals for alcohol cant be good

That's not how most are produced. But I wouldn't expect much from Regent when it comes to NA liquor.

I was on Splendor a couple of years back and I requested specific NA beers prior to the cruise. Since embarkation was in Miami, and the brands were commonly available, I had hopes. But onboard the only one was Heineken, which is barely ok. But I had no problem with NA wines, both in my suite and in the bars and restaurants. They had a single brand (Pierre?), red, white, rose and fizzy. There were also lovely NA cocktails in the bars.

51 minutes ago, Dolebludger said:

My wife cannot swim. In the Caribbean, a life vest is a must for her. But in the Society Islands (Bora Bora, etc) she cannot sink. IDK why this is. Water temperature? Saline content? So in the Caribbean, I can understand the life vest requirement. But banning fins? I can’t see any reason for that. And, as a fairly regular Regent guest, it appears to me that the number and type of shore excursions has been shrinking and the number of extra cost excursions has been increasing. 

Banning fins could be a way of protecting the reefs? Just a thought. 

Btw, in my experience, absolutely no requirements in FP, few safety precautions in fact. In the USVI, yes, the vest was required and annoying. Not in Bonaire or another of the southern islands.

Too bad, we loved the Biltmore, but did get to drive our own car to the port. We tended to avoid buses in favour of cabs in the past.

On 11/19/2024 at 3:34 PM, Clutj said:

...As for frozen, inedible Dover Sole in Chartreuse… that was not our experience; it was excellent. ...

Just a small point in defence of Mariner. All seafood on all the ships is frozen. The only exceptions might be when the chef gets fresh fish in a particular port.

39 minutes ago, RMLLEL said:

Has anyone stayed in cabin 872 on the Splendor?  Is the balcony the same size as all the other Concierge E cabins?  Does it have a loungs chair?  It was hard to tell on the deck plan if it was a smaller balcony and I looked at the Cabin Guru and it hasn't been reviewed yet.

Thank you.

 

It looks quite normal in the deck plans at RSSC.com.

7 hours ago, kjbacon said:

We ordered the cheese plate and it came out pre selected. 

Sure not like the "good old days".

So, did you get to choose the cheeses yourself?

On 11/7/2024 at 2:44 PM, mj_holiday said:

We have stayed at the Holiday Inn Port of Miami on Biscayne Blvd.  It is an older hotel but nice and clean.  We could see the cruise port from our room.  It just across the street from several bay side restaurants you can walk to.  Next time we sail out of Miami will again use this hotel.

I was about to suggest that too. It's been a while, so you should check current reviews. Great location.

Once upon a time I was on Navigator just after a refurb. It was fine. There were workers still finishing things out on deck but otherwise everything was great.

Anyone done camps in Botswana?

And how are pax going to get to and from Whittier from Anchorage?

3 hours ago, papaflamingo said:

One event that I highly recommend if you can, go see the Aura Experience at Notre Dame Basilica.  It's about 30 minutes long and is really spectacular. It can be booked on line. 

I absolutely agree with this one. 

On 9/27/2024 at 9:41 PM, Dolebludger said:

I cannot count the number of PG cruises we’ve had since 2002

Ah, those were they days, eh? Our first was May 2000. The most wonderful experience and followed by a bunch more including the 14 day Marquesas trip that was divine. My favourite part of the planet. Can't remember what we paid for that first time, but at the time it was a huge splurge.

Sandals for women are fine, including nice thong-style ones. 

16 hours ago, dock said:

Can we arrange our own transfer to the port even though we’re accepting the hotel provided for the night? 

Yes you can. When we checked into the Biltmore, we just went to the RSSC Hospitality desk and told them we'd be driving our own car. But we were able to get our large luggage sent with the rssc group. In our case, we tagged luggage to be included and brought it to a place in the lobby, but this process will vary.

21 minutes ago, bswartz said:

Royal Orchid Sheraton in Bangkok, and Sheraton Hotel and Towers in Hong Kong.

 

Bryan

We stayed just across the river at the Hilton. The river views are fascinating!

On 9/18/2024 at 8:13 PM, bswartz said:

We are staying on the Chao Phraya River in Bangkok, in Kowloon in Hong Kong. I hope that narrows it down somewhat.

 

Bryan

Which hotel?

Perhaps they meant Virtuoso clients only? I.e., none of the normal Regent riffraff?

22 hours ago, lido1 said:

We will be on the Grandeur in October and would like to know if it is possible to get an electric tea kettle for our room.

Also, do they have THIN bathrobes like they have on Crystal ?   TIA

If you're talking about a waffle-like cotton weave, no. They are thick terry.

Good question, and one that I can't answer. But as I remember Tom Bradley, the international terminal, has a biz lounge that's shared by several airlines. I think...it's been a while.

On 9/5/2024 at 12:45 PM, cAPS lOCK oN said:

We are on Grandeur leaving from Miami in March, cruising with our daughter and son-in-law. We're all in concierge rooms and are getting the pre-cruise hotel. However, our hotel is the Hyatt Regency Coral Gables while theirs is the Biltmore Coral Gables. The two hotels are just far enough apart to make it difficult to get together.

 

Has anyone ever tried to get the pre-assigned hotel changed? Were you successful?

 

Gee, I would take this up with your TA or your Regent rep. Sounds easy to solve.

4 minutes ago, RachelG said:

oh, the stories I could tell.  Worst was a sharing table with another couple in P7.  And the reason we no longer share tables with people we don't know.  ...

We stopped sharing a table for four years ago for this type of reason. Still like tables for 6.