countflorida

If they have Guinness, what about Smithwicks? Otherwise, I guess I'll have to ask them to put on some Killians Irish Red.

The bright lights in Regent bathrooms has always startled me wide awake when I have to go, now several times each night. Does the new ship have a nightlite in the bath, or does the shaver outlet stay 'hot' when the lights are out? This would allow one to plug in a nightlite you bring with you, and/or keep your razor or toothbrush charged up without having to leave all the lights on? We usually travel with a couple of nightlites as hotels often don't have nightlites in the baths, but the shaver outlets don't usually go out with the lights like they do on many (not all) of the ships.

 

We really appreciate all the great information and interesting comments you've made in this thread. They'll be helpful as we've got two cruises booked on Explorer in the next six months, one the 24 day trans-Atlantic-Med cruise next spring with our TA and a group, both in G-2 cabins which we picked for the cost and the walk-in showers. However, your comments have convinced us to see if we can upgrade to an F or E for the longer cruise, although it looks chancy as the ship is almost full.

 

Great info, much appreciated.

This thread has been most informative. Anchorbuoy, we particularly appreciate the G2 suite photos - we've booked that level for both of our upcoming cruises and wondered if we should try and upgrade to an F, but the pics and the fact that G2 suites are the same size as standard (H-D) Mariner suites is reassuring. This thread has been a wonderful font of useful information and commentary!

BRAVO:)

Did the Archbishop of Monaco give an invocation or blessing, and if so, how long was it? In what language?

 

When the Voyager was christened there, the Archbishop, who was expected to speak for just a couple or at most a few minutes, bloviated on for ±a half hour, all in French, which few present understood!

 

Just curious.

The last time Regent christened a ship, also in Monaco, they first had several shakedown cruises to which a number of past guests and loyal travel agents were invited - NO CHARGE! You just had to pay to get there, and perhaps pay a small tax and/or port fee; I don't recall for sure. Then, if you were on the (I think) third shakedown cruise AND were booked on the maiden voyage, you were invited to stay on for two extra nights to enjoy the christening which, except for one minor glitch, was a wonderful, just marvelous affair - first use of Monte Carlo's then-new cruise terminal, we had a magnificent lunch with Prince Albert and 300+ of his closest friends (by distance only), and got the opportunity to spend the extra time in that delightful city.

 

The little glitch was that the Catholic Archbishop of Monaco stretched the brief blessing he was supposed to give into to a lengthy (30± minutes?) sermon, all in French which few of the guests could follow. My lovely wife loves all that pageantry and hi-society stuff; she went down and sat, in the hot sun, through the whole thing. Our suite was on the dock side of the ship; I stayed there and enjoyed part of the christening from our veranda but bailed out about 5 minutes into the Archbishop's tirade. Much nicer inside our lovely air-conditioned suite on the Voyager. After it was over, we really enjoyed the great lunch and the other extravaganzas put on for the occasion.

 

We would have booked the maiden voyage again had they invited us to a free or even well-priced shakedown. We might have booked the maiden voyage even if we'd been invited to the christening. We'll wait to check out the Explorer over Christmas, and get to really know her when we sail from Miami to Venice via Barcelona next spring, God willing - after all, we're >13 years older and in my case, not nearly as healthy!

How many accessible suites are available, and in what categories are they. Other than this, what provisions have been made for handicapped guests. Of particular interest is information about Regent's policy about, and provision for, accommodating handicapped guests on the shore excursions, the cost of which is included in the fare on the nearly all-inclusive Regent.
Thank you

One thing to know about the Mariner: most suites have either a tub or a walk-in shower, not both as the other two Regent ships do. The tub is European-style with the bottom slightly higher than the floor of the bathroom, a potentially slipry situation, and the overhead is lowered, so that from the bottom of the tub to the overhead it's about 6' or maybe 6'1". If you are taller, you'll get to learn how to shower while crouching as I did on a long cruise around South America a number of years ago.

 

Originally, all suites had tubs, but they proved problematic and unpopular, so most of them have been converted to the walk-in showers. On the deck plan, suites with walk-in showers are designated with a star, and fortunately (at least for me) there are many more of them than those with tubs. Make sure you know (AND WANT) what you're getting.

 

Our preference on Mariner is a shower, and on all ships, we prefer a cabin or suite on one of the lower decks, amidships. Not a problem on Mariner, which is an very stable ship, but on the other two ships, there have been recurring issues with vibration in aft parts of the ships.

 

ENJOY!

The main differences between the Mariner and the other two ships in the current Regent fleet are the size and bath layout of the ship's standard rooms. Those on the Voyager (and Navigator) are ±50 sq.ft. larger than those on the Mariner, and their standard baths have both a tub and shower, while the baths on the Mariner have either a strange euro-style raised tub or a large, walk-in shower. Since we almost never take a bath (myself never ever if any kind of shower is available) we don't mind the slightly smaller room to get the larger walk-in shower.

 

One other difference is how the ships handle rough seas. Both the Voyager and Navigator tend to move around a good bit in rough seas, but the Mariner is really good and steady in a storm. Years ago we went around So. America in the Mariner, calling in the Falkland Islands after 'rounding the Horn'. The night we left Stanley there was a huge storm, then during breakfast the captain reported we would be late into the next port because he was forced to run directly west to the coast, then north as opposed to running diagonally northwest as they had encountered 100 MPH winds and 40' seas overnight. Since most all passengers had slept right through the storm, not even realizing there was bad weather about, they made jokes about it, to the extent the captain retaliated by playing images of the bridge instruments during the storm for hours on several of the TV channels the ship could control, and sure enough, we were (not) entertained by several hours of documented big waves and high winds.

 

We've been on all three of Regent's ships recently, and like the two larger ones about the same. The Navigator is fine for shorter, port-intense cruises, but we wouldn't want to take a long cruise or one with many sea days in her; too small and not enough public spaces.

Lots of very good info on this thread; really great.

 

We still like Regent; we think its best for us, but in part that's because we have a really terrific agent and we're Platinum nearing Titanium, so we get lots of extras. But we've tried all of the other luxury brands except SeaDream at least once, and have good (and a few not so good) things to say about all of them.

 

Seaborne Quest has outstanding service, the suites are fine, the service near impeccable, and the Antarctic cruise, particularly the one over Christmas-New Years when they go to South Georgia, near unbelievable; spectacular! Unfortunately, their food is too fancy for me; nouvelle cuisine to the ultimate and I'm a meat and potatoes man, allergic to fish. Also, Seabourn Square takes some getting used to; I never quite made it, sorry to say. Otherwise, the best of the rest, IMnsHO.

 

Crystal is good but as noted has the fixed dining with optional 'by reservation' which didn't work so well for us. We liked the Symphony better than the Serenity, which was just a bit too big for us. We did a crossing last year for our 50th Anniversary, sprung for a Penthouse because of the occasion, and enjoyed the cruise, our suite and the service, but it's unlikely we'll go back unless they figure a way to offer open seating for dinner or have some exceptional lecturer we just have to hear; their lecturers are world-class.

 

Silverseas is also good, but we had trouble booking an on-board credit a few years ago - they chartering the ship right in the middle of the cruise we'd booked - twice. Then we heard, from a local reliable source that the ships were badly in need of refurbishment and "other things have slipped", so we took the offered full refund and gave up. Haven't had any reason to try them again, although we might now for the right deal and itinerary.

 

We've done a couple of Oceania cruises, and very much prefer a Penthouse, which with internet and liquor, makes them about as expensive as Regent, where we get all those perks, so it's unlikely we'll go back there unless there is an itinerary we just have to try. I compared a Baltic cruise we took on the Marina and figured out we could have done the same itinerary on the Regent Voyager with subsidized business air and liquor, internet and excursions included (we got Russian visas and did a lot of private excursions, including the Sapsan train to Moscow, while on Oceania) for less money overall!

 

We also tried Holland American's Prinsendam back when it was new to HAL - see the review here on Cruise Critic (by count Florida) to understand why we really, really don't like them. Cunard's Grills are much too class-conscious for us, particularly on the World Cruise we took 16 years ago. We might try a crossing if it fit our plans and saved a long flight, but otherwise NO. We thought Princess was good before Carnival bought it, and we enjoyed a Panama Canal cruise in a top suite shortly after the takeover, but then had a disaster of a short cruise where we had talked friends into joining us - very bad, and never again.

 

One last thing, for ChatKat - you should check out Odysseys Unlimited for your Ireland tour. Not as upscale as Tauck, but Gerry O'Brien the tour director is unbelievably good and OU limits tour sizes to 24, for which they use a large bus with tables, extra leg room, and plenty of storage. A really great itinerary and tour, just make sure you go with Jerry; that tour is so popular they now have two tours at peak times, and I can't imagine how or where they would find anyone to match him! The price is fairly reasonable as they use first class and deluxe accommodations, with a castle and elaborate wrap dinner party the last night. Our best tour ever, and we've used both Tauck (New Zealand) and A&K (SE Asia).

I've enjoyed your posts on this trip very much TC, and the pictures have been great too.

 

First, on your transfer in Rio, take the private transfer and pay the $80 bucks; as I gather you know Rio can be a really dangerous place! Keep ALL your jewelry and fancy goods out of sight, don't look too up-scale, and be alert and street-smart every moment. We've been going to Rio for more than 30 years, at least 6 or 7 times (lost count) and it gets scarier and scarier. The first time, in 1985, we went at Carnival. My wife failed to follow the recommendations and had a very thin gold chain and chip stone ripped right off her neck by a kid. Things have gone downhill from there, but we've avoided any repetition by scrupulously avoiding risky areas, no jewelry and 'dressing down'.

 

Second, your opinion of Destination Services is right on, IMnsHO. I'm older, heavier; un-steadier and less well than formerly, and can only take 1-walker and seated excursions now. On our 20 day Voyager North Cape - Spitsbergen - Murmansk cruise last July, there was only one 1-walker excursion I could honestly qualify to take, and on that whole cruise, not one seated-only excursion. I did consult with DS, and signed up for a couple I really couldn't meet the stated conditions for. On one, I got off the bus and found a cafe where I had a leisurely coffee while my DW went on a walking tour. On the other, from Geiranger, I was able to get from the bus to the area from where you could see down into the fiord, a fantastic sight. That day we were lucky; we had gotten on the first or second bus and got up top about 10 minutes before the fog started rolling in. Later busses, and there were several I think, missed the beautiful view down into the fiord with the two cruise ships looking like toys floating there. Getting from the ship on the longish dock was a problem, but they had a wheelchair waiting when we returned, so that worked our OK. Their excuse, that there isn't much available to book up there, seemed legit, but several of us were interested in hearing and seeing more about Murmansk and it's important role in World War II, but even after a number of inquiries, nothing could be done we were told. And they stone-walled on disembarkation arrangements until it was too late to make any on our own; luckily, we had a lot of OBC and used that for a hugely expensive private transfer to the airport hotel, where we got a day room. We booked a SUV, but got the transfer in a sedan with our luggage filling the trunk and the front passenger seat, and one carry-on in back with us. I admit, i don't know how to pack, so we always have too much stuff.

 

Assuming all continues to go well, we'll see you on the March 2017 Explorer crossing and Regent’s 25th Anniversary cruise which, if things go well, will be our first as SSS Titanium members. Looking forward to it!

We cruised up to Spitsbergen and over the North Cape to Murmansk and the White Sea in Russia on the Voyager in July this year, and felt that most everything north of Trondheim wasn't worth it, except perhaps the White Sea stop. I have limited mobility and that may bias my judgment. There were very few "1 walker" excursions I could handle, and no "seated" ones at all on the whole 20 day cruise; the territory just doesn't lend itself to limited mobility touring. The fiords and excursions in southern Norway, particularly at Geiranger, made the trip worthwhile however; that particular one was glorious. As for the north, I guess the best reason to go is to say you've made the "Murmansk Run" (see WWII history).

 

For me, the interesting thing about Spitsbergen was the requirement that everyone going beyond certain points be armed with a powerful rifle - polar bears! In an Air Force survival school we learned polar bears are the only mammal that will naturally hunt and eat humans, or so an instructor told us back in 1959 or '60. Unfortunately, we didn't see any bears, either there or later on the Arctic ice pack, which was pretty broken up.

 

Having been to Antarctica and So. Georgia on Seabourn over last Christmas/ New Years, the Arctic trip was by comparison a notable disappointment. One man's opinion, of course.

The earlier use of $2 bills wasn't on Azamara; this will be our first time there. It was on Princess. The Purser person did actually accuse us of counterfeiting, but rather implied it vigorously.:p

 

I'm not worried about the crew members who get the tips being able to spend them; they will be in 3 US ports (Big Easy, Key West and Miami) on this cruise. The only thing I do worry about is remembering to bring the bills. And now, getting more (they usually come in $100 packets; way more than anyone would need on a 12 night cruise) as they are scarce around here. We only have about 5 or 6 left from our last packet.

 

Exceptional service deserves exceptional recognition and rewards these days!

I didn't see where to vote in a poll or answer the question. We typically don't tip day by day, but if the experience has been good, overall, we are generous at the end of the cruise. On some lines (e.g., Regent and Oceania) we usually donate something substantial but not over the top to the Crew Welfare Fund.

 

On lines where tipping is not included, we have brought $2 bills and used them for individual tips where warranted. It has gone over big most of the time, but on one occasion, one of the purser's staff came with the $2 bill and accused us of counterfeiting! He even sort of threatened to have us arrested. I threw him out of our stateroom and later complained to the Hotel Director, who looked the US currency up on the Internet and apologized. That was on a US port to US port cruise!

We've now been on board the SB Quest for five days, and are still enjoying a marvelous cruise, but are forced to report that, either our choices have been poor and uninformed OR SB has dropped the ball in the food area over the Christmas holiday. Last night we both had the Christmas Goose, which was unfortunately dry and tough. Tonight, we again ordered the same entre, Tom Turkey, this time dry and un-appetizing. A significant disappointment, as we expected the holiday offerings to be 'over the top'; they weren't even worthy of the table, IourHO.

 

Breakfasts and lunches (when we have lunch, about every other day) are still top-notch, and service continues to be excellent, particularly in the Restaurant, where it has been superior to our recent experiences on the larger Regent Voyager and Mariner. On our last Navigator cruise, Franco was on board as Dining Room Manager; anything he touches exudes excellence, he's just terrific. But service here is nearly comparable to the exceptionally high standard he sets, and certainly very satisfactory.

 

A surprise is that the stewardesses are mostly European, something notably absent from Regent for eight or nine years. In fact, a large segment of the SB staff seems to be European. We were told that, because of the unfavorable euro: dollar exchange rate, European staffs are just not available any more. Our Swedish stewardess is an absolute delight; pleasant, knowledgeable, quick, thorough and always willing to get or change something after just a hint. Europeans know how to serve without being servile, something many others have not learned or do not practice. Personally, I'm not comfortable with servility; we're all just humans with different roles to play, not superiors and inferiors. We find the entire experience better here on Seaborne, and this young lady is a key part of the reason why.

 

There are a few minor disappointments though. One example: we both prefer French Burgundies, particularly reds. We can get Pouilly-Fuissé and one or more Burgundy pinots and Beaujolais as standard (no-charge) offerings on Regent. Seaborne hasn't a single French Burgundy on its standard list, not even a Beaujolais, although it does offer a white Sancerre from the Sauvignon Blanc grape, which I like much less than the chardonnay grape generally used in Burgundy. A minor regret, not a disaster, as they are offering the very nice Santa Margareta Pinot Grigio, which makes my lovely wife happy; it's her favorite this year. Prices for the reserve wine packages seem unreasonably high despite the absence of taxes at sea, although it’s hard to make exact comparisons due to 'package' size and groupings.

 

More when there is something notable to add.

After just two days on board the SB Quest: We have a handicap room. I asked about the shower and was offered a "shower-only suite", which turns out to be full handicap-equipped and (I believe - can't tell because the ship is sold out, everything saleable is taken) significantly different from the standard veranda suite. Example: no walk-in closet, rather a mickey-mouse sliding-door contraption opposite the bed which has the tendency to crush fingers when closing, which it does by itself regularly when the ship rolls. Also, the handicap staterooms are way forward, a long hike for this old, somewhat infirm gent, from nearly everything - Club, Seaborne Square, casino, show room, restaurant, etc. in the aft end of the ship. Bad design, IMnsHO.

 

Having said that, everything else seems as good as Regent, except dining service, which is very noticeably better. Food is at least as good, perhaps better, although it seems (impression!) to offer slightly less choice. But things are spread out in a multi-page menu; we might be missing some options. Sending around the next day's menu highlights with the evening turndown chocolates is a very nice touch. And speaking of chocolate, I love the stuff but don't notice any real difference between that on the two lines. I know, that's because I'm a tasteless barbarian, so save your breath (or snarky remarks). We do like our coffee, and to both of us it is clearly better here on SB than any on Regent except in the Coffee Corner, which does compete with the coffee in all parts of the Quest.

 

We've been this way before, having rounded Cape Horn on the Radisson Mariner about 10 years ago, so we won't be taking many of the excursions offered; we came for the Antarctic experience. The ordinary excursion offerings seem expensive to us, but who knows, maybe its because they're included on Regent so we haven't noticed the inflation. Included excursions are mostly a waste for us, because we like to go off on our own or with a few kindred spirits, avoiding busses and crowds. The excursion prices here on SB seem a bit high, perhaps because they're better? We'll sample a couple and give an impression if warranted.

 

Enough at this point. More if/when there's something to comment on or report.

We'll check out the ship's offerings early, during the cruise down to Ushuaia, and complete our outfit there as/if necessary. Thanks again.

We've sailed with Radisson and now Regent 300+ nights, and have enjoyed most of them, but lately, under Premier Cruise Holdings, things - service, food, willingness to say 'yes' and do the right thing in questionable circumstances, cleanliness and state of repair - have slipped, in our opinion. Tomorrow we board the SB Quest for our first SB experience, and we'll let you know.

 

Some things Regent does very well: the standard suites on Voyager and Navigator are probably the best at sea, and we've sailed with Silverseas, Crystal, Oceania, HAL (Prinsendam- the former Viking and then Seabourn Sun, one of the finest ships afloat in it's day, before HAL ruined it taking out part of a dining room to put in more cabins while also reputedly cutting the crew), Cunard Grill class, and Princess, so we have a good basis to compare. The Mariners standard suites are 50 sq.ft. smaller, and it's noticeable. But the Mariners Penthouse suites, which often come with an included business air upgrade, are really great - amid-ships, some (the most reasonable) on lower decks. Never did understand how they all get away with charging more for higher decks which really move around a lot more, uncomfortably - we prefer low and in the middle.

 

I do agree with the comments on Prime 7; it's a fine restaurant, and Signatures, Regent's other specialty eatery, is also good although it has gone down a bit since it lost (Regent dropped?) it's affiliation with Cordon Blu. We'll have to see how the specialty restaurants on Seabourn compare. The Regent air business upgrade deals are usually very good, and if you pay $150 each for an air deviation (or sail with them 200 nights and get it "free") you can usually get good flights and connections at a real savings, a big plus in our minds.

 

With our Platinum Regent status, we get a lot of benefits, but the changes and cutbacks there have sent us looking for a new 'favorite'. Appolo, which owned Regent and Oceania, had been spiffing the books in preparation for a public offering or sale, which has now happened - sold to NCL. We're watching with much hope for a return to better times; we've even got a couple of Regent cruises booked over the next 16 months, but we're trying Seaborn starting tomorrow and Azamara in March. The jury is out!

 

Give us a few days and we'll let you know how we think Regent and Seabourn stack up against each other.

We're in Santiago and board tomorrow. This has been a most enjoyable and informative thread. Too bad some of the advice came too late - it's really hard to find hand warmers in Sarasota, even in December. But having survived a near-lifetime in upstate New York, I guess we'll live thru this without them. We did find thermal underwear, on the Internet with 2-day shipping!

 

Thanks!

Less than two weeks ago (Nov 19) it was announced that Kamlani had just signed a new contract with a $750K annual salary, that he was ‘guaranteed’ a $562K bonus for 2015, and he had earned a $500K 'transaction bonus' to be paid half in 2015 and the other half in 2016. It was only a one year, auto-renewal contract whereas his boss, Frank del Rio got a contract through 2018 with a $1 million higher annual salary. Maybe he was pissed off?

 

Whatever happened, I doubt we'll ever know the real facts. I have felt that things are not real good at Regent, starting with the Prestige takeover or even a bit before, but clearly exacerbated recently by them appearing to spiff the books to get ready for a public offering (now knocked out by the Norwegian purchase). I had hoped things would improve now that the transaction was done. It isn’t clear what role Mr. Kamlani had in this, but I suspect it wasn't vital as he wasn't even around part of the time; he left and went to a 'wealth management' job at Merrill Lynch.

 

A recent rating of top cruise ships right here on Cruise Critic left Regent without a ship in or even near any # 1 spot. In fact, only the Navigator showed in the Top 10 in any category, # 8 in the Small Ship area. Overall, among all cruise ships, only the Mariner ranked in the top 100 at # 96. The Navigator was at # 128 and the Voyager way down at # 173! Really poor for a line that promotes itself as the very best, and certainly seems, at least to me, to have the highest prices. This may have had something to do with the personnel changes; who knows?

We've booked the Seabourn Quest for this holiday season's Antarctica-South Georgia cruise, with a possible six days to explore the 7th continent, our final one! Also give us a chance to try Seabourn's newer ships, which we've long wanted to do. Only 100 can go ashore in Antarctica at a time, so they will divide us into groups for the shore excursions. If I am able to get ashore half the times, I'll be happy:).

24 pages worrying about whether or not you or someone will wear jeans in the dining room some evening!? It boggles the mind, it really does.

 

Editing to add: I do know how to spell 'unbelievable', but you can't change the title once posted. And yes, I did actually flunk typing in high school. Anyway, that's my story, to which I'm sticking.

While I do not know Chatkat's reason, I disagree that a "whole segment" of loyal cruisers left Regent for other cruise lines. I do agree that some Regent passengers switched cruise lines - not specifically long time loyal cruisers.

 

I've seen more the usual amount of passengers leave twice. First was when the "concierge" level program was put into place. In the opinion of some, all Regent passengers were no longer being treated equally. Unless you are in a certain level cabin, you could no longer book excursions and dining reservations with everyone else. More recently, passengers in certain cabin categories were no longer eligible for the included one night pre-cruise hotel stay.

 

The second time some passengers left Regent is when excursions went all-inclusive. There are CC members today that still post that they would return to Regent if they could opt out of excursions. In all fairness, included excursions brought many new passengers to Regent. This is a very contentious subject so I will withhold any further comments on excursions (lest I get blasted from other posters:-)

 

While I agree, the two segments described by Travelcat (who doesn't go back quite as far with RSSC - both versions - as we do) were not the first or even the second mass exodus from Regent. The first I'm aware of was earlier than either of those when Radisson went all-inclusive on alcoholic beverages, and many clients who either didn't drink or didn't drink much decided to cruise elsewhere. One significant group in this segment were the Friends of Bill W, for obvious reasons.

 

The next notable group who left for other venues were those who smoked, when that deleterious habit was banned in the suites and on verandas. Mark Conroy recounted the (monetary) pain that change inflicted on Radisson during a town hall meeting on one of the Presidential cruises, I think around 2005 or '06 - a lot of cancellations on the following year's world cruise among other losses, but it turned out he was a pioneer; most all of the other lines have since copied his lead.

 

I'm not sure how many left for other lines when Radisson cut back from a stewardess and steward for each group of suites to one or the other for a smaller (but according to the survivors, not a half-sized) group of suites. About this time, I recall there was (or at least seemed to be) a reduction in the number of choices available on the menu, particularly in soups, salads and appetizers. In other words, traditional cost-cutting had set in. I must be quick to add that this happened while the Carlson group was still the owners. I do know that a number of friends we'd regularly sailed with but no longer see at sea on Regent mentioned (in Christmas cards or e-mail messages) that the steep increase in prices, particularly after PCS took over, coupled with the noticeable decline in quality "ran them off".

 

In all honestly, I had personally thought for some time that RSSC needed to do something to fill the ships rather than cut costs, but they have seemed to survive and to be thriving these days. We don't cruise with Regent as often as we used to, trying other lines and diversions, but do try and cruise with them at least once each year. Thus I do worry about the decline in ratings by those who have reviewed Regent ships and cruises here on Cruise Critic over the past couple of years. I tallied the overall ratings for the last 100 reviews posted, from October 2012 to April 2014, giving one star a score of 1 and five stars + scoring 6. The average for the entire almost two-year period was 4.29, not so good for a six-star line, right?

 

The scoring looks much worse when you break those one hundred reviews into two segments, the most recent 50 reviews vs. the earlier 50: the earlier 50 scored 4.73, while the later 50 scored only 3.86. That's a really big decline, almost a full star, and to someone who's about to make final payment on an overly expensive two-week Regent cruise with numerous excursions I wouldn't be able to enjoy if I wanted to (I have limited mobility), somewhat of a worry. Not a scientific poll, but rather an indicator of something happening, from just those people who went out of their way to write up their experience, good or bad or somewhere in between. It wasn't that there were more 1s and 2s in the later group, just fewer 5s and 6s and more 3s and 4s. A disturbing trend or indicator, me-thinks.

Just noticed (on Seatrade) that Regent has just last week completed a multimillion-dollar upgrade to suites and lounges on the Mariner, so it should be good to go for your cruise, trvlrs. ENJOY! Take a look at the Mariner (somewhat live) thread at http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2021790&page=2 for what they have done to her; Very very nice!

 

(It was too late to add this to my earlier post above)

Hambagahle, it really wasn't the French that was the major issue; it was the near-45 minute length of his talk. I gathered, from remarks afterward, that few if any of the Carlson family, who at the time owned Radisson, understood French. One of them, I think Barbara Carlson, the "godmother" of the ship, commented that her few (two?) years of high school French helped not at all. Very few of the others attending the christening did either, apparently, as both the language and length of his talk were the main topic of conversation at lunch that day.

 

But all was forgiven, at least forgotten, as they served an excellent Champaign with the caviar, an outstanding Montrachet with the fish course and a very good first growth Burgundy with the Kobe beef entrée. A marvelous menu for a spectacular event which regrettably began a bit discombobulating. By the way, at lunch the Archbishop demonstrated he could speak passable English, and he was the only one on the christening program or in public remarks during the lunch, including Prince Albert and a local official of some stature, who spoke more than a word or two in French.

 

I'm just glad we were able to be there. It was one of my more memorable lunches, if not the most memorable.

We were on the Mariner a long time ago (2002 or '03) and sailed a segment from Ft. Amador, Panama to Lima with just 73 paying guests. These days they more often over-book than sail with many empty cabins.