flossie009

1 hour ago, Tucruisers said:

I also wonder if we would be deemed to have accepted the change to terms by going ahead and accepting the £300 and OBC.

The £150pp and OBC has clearly been described in writing as a goodwill gesture not reimbursement for unfulfilled services.

No doubt this was written in error but it is what it is.

1 hour ago, Tucruisers said:

So for us, it looks to be either agree to stay in an airport hotel in Keflavik (if this is even offered) or cancel and seek a refund.

I can fully understand your feelings but it seems a shame to cancel a cruise that you were obviously looking forward to.

Also under the U.K. Ts&Cs, Regent will probably  seek to retain your deposit on the basis that the change is not significant ……….. leading to a further dispute.

1 hour ago, SellaVee said:

I have tried several times to look at the terms and conditions on the UK website and I always get an error message.

Your TA or Regent should have sent you a copy at time of booking.    

The website link appears to be broken

Not sure that I understand the point of this thread since Celebrity and Regent are different products; price being only one aspect of the appeal of the respective cruise lines.

1 hour ago, DaveA said:

............. the US office have been in contact and they will unfortunately not able to offer any additional funds

In our experience the Miami office of Regent has no knowledge or interest in UK consumer laws and never bother to read the UK version of their own Ts&Cs (which align with UK law & nominate ABTA as dispute arbitrator)

However you booked with Regent(UK) through a UK Travel Agent.

Suggest you avoid "banging your head against a brick wall" at this stage and just express your rejection of their "offers" and then proceed as posts #56 & #60

Try not to let this poor decision by Regent spoil your cruise or its anticipation.

9 hours ago, Dolebludger said:

by initiation of direct air service from the UK to that island.

Direct flights from the U.K. and other European cities have been available for decades (including Concorde in the 1970s)

7 hours ago, CardowMD said:

seafood lunch with caviar on Sundays

If you are referring to the “Sunday Sea Day Brunch” then that event is only regularly held on the new class of ships.

On Navigator, caviar & champagne is available without additional charge at breakfast every Sunday in La Veranda or Compass Rose.

If you are booked in a Navigator suite or above then “1 Sumptuous In-Suite Caviar Service” is also included according to the list of suite amenities.

Otherwise enquire with the F&B Manager when you are on board.

I think you can only waitlist for grades of suite not for specific suite numbers

5 hours ago, fizzy said:

how would you make it work?

Simply submit an expense claim for the unfulfilled part of the Contract (i.e. pre-cruise hotel & transfers), backed up with receipts, to Regent.

This could either be initiated on-board through the Executive Concierge or to your local Regent office as soon as you return from the cruise.

If Regent were to refuse reimbursement of reasonable costs then UK guests would have the option of referring the case to ABTA or escalating to a Court Claim.

Obviously none of this will be necessary if Regent "does the right thing" and either reverts to providing the hotel rooms & transfers as booked or gives a reasonable level of credit for the services that it is unable to provide. 

The end of cruise questionnaire is completed on-line while still on the ship, but if you have any specific comments, positive or negative, just give the Regent office in Southampton a call.

Regent have clearly stated in writing that the £150pp($200pp) is a ‘gesture of goodwill’ rather than a refund for the services not delivered.

Therefore guests have the right to simply book a suitable hotel (inc breakfast) and transfers; then submit an expense claim, with receipts, to Regent for reimbursement.

@DaveA & @Tucruisers,

Just a thought that you may wish to put to your TA and Regent:

You have paid a premium to book a Concierge suite rather than an F grade. F suites are exactly the same size & layout and give the same access to all services on board; the principal advantage of booking a Concierge suite being the pre-cruise hotel & transfer.

The premium you have paid for booking Concierge is probably around £800 - £1000 per person.

IMO, the £150pp being offered in lieu of Regent’s cancellation of this element of the booked package is derisory, and to call it a ‘goodwill gesture’ is misleading.

Also I note that all the July Splendor Reykjavik cruises are still being  falsely advertised on the Regent(UK) website as including the pre-cruise hotel for Concierge suites:

“CONCIERGE SUITES AND HIGHER INCLUDE: Included 1-Night Pre-Cruise Hotel Package and more”

1 hour ago, flossie009 said:

approx $480US total

Sorry, should have read $380 to $400

8 hours ago, DaveA said:

It goes on to offer us £150pp

27 minutes ago, Bruce61 said:

my critical post assumed all they were getting was the $300

£150pp equates to approx $480US total

Interested to see whether this is on top of the hotel credit and how much OBC is given

6 hours ago, redraider1966 said:

We are currently on our 18th cruise on Oceania

I am glad you enjoy cruising with Oceania. We enjoy cruising with Regent. 
 

I am not sure why you are obsessing with the dining arrangements on Regent  🤔 

Have you ever sailed with Regent ?

Do you have a future Regent cruise in mind ?

Of course NCLH/Regent could adopt a zealous ultra-safe approach to keeping all  infectious diseases at bay ............... 

................... but I sincerely hope they continue to take a pragmatic & measured approach and that guests play their part by adhering to basic hygiene rules

We were on deck 14 of Splendor (same class of ship) and had no problems with movement.

However, we did meet a guest on Explorer who was troubled by noise from the Culinary Kitchen immediately below suite #1215

29 minutes ago, redraider1966 said:

Fine, so you are still prepared to experience documented outbreaks of noro and extended code red periods just to have your precious self-serve buffet . . . .

Are self-serve buffets really the cause of noro outbreaks?

If so we must have dodged many bullets in our many years of cruising and enjoying buffets on land & sea.

15 hours ago, redraider1966 said:

outbreaks of noro or worse, such as what has led to the quarantining of NCL's Dawn over this weekend

..... the quarantine having proved to be unnecessary and simply based on unfounded rumours

Seatrade report

1 hour ago, zak477 said:

The survey: Will not work on IOS devices, iPad or iPhone

This must be a recent issue, or one particular to Grandeur, as we have always completed the survey on our iPads on the other Regent ships.

Hi Crisy,

Loving your blog.

Were there any special measures taken before entering New Zealand waters to avoid the debacle that a number of cruise ships suffered last year with biofouling issues ?

2 hours ago, frantic36 said:

when last we visited we organised a taxi to The Sanctuary of Truth.

This is one of the included excursions being offered by Regent during our day in Laem Chabang

1 hour ago, QuestionEverything said:

What is obvious to me is Oceania's overt, published decision to take an hour off each port is for their benefit, not the customer, and certainly not the "environment".

Slowing a cruise ship's speed between port stops will definitely reduce emissions (as well as saving fuel costs)

Thanks @labonnevie. Interesting photos 😮

According to Regent, the port now has the opposite problem.
Regent’s recent communication states:

“Due to insufficient water depth in the river/channel at the Bangkok, Thailand port, we have rescheduled embarkation and overnight on April 5, 2024 to the near-by port in Laem Chabang, Thailand"

IMO, referring to Laem Chabang as "nearby" is somewhat inaccurate since the journey time between Laem Chabang and the centre of Bangkok is 2 hours plus.

18 minutes ago, Gilly said:

<<Of course if I was a conspiracy theorist>>

But you're not, are you?  😉

Heaven forbid 😉  😂

12 minutes ago, edgee said:

they had to pay a settlement to aggrieved passenger who had a valuable item which was lost after being removed from a chair by a crew member.

Why? 

More fool them for leaving a valuable item unattended .......... and for a long period 🤨