Emdee

Great hope he is on for September 8 th. Is Slavko back?

Will miss Paolo. Hope to see other familiar faces!

Any idea of the chef’s name. Not that it matters but just curious. Hope you will post waterside menus. Bags are packed ( almost) Cannot wait for September 8 th sailing. A bit bittersweet as we are sailing the Endeavour directly before.

Happy Anniversary Anne Marie and Keith. Have a fabulous cruise.

Enjoy your time on board. Will enjoy reading your updates and posts while awaiting my turn to be on board.

Went ahead and booked the Mariner. I think we have Grandeur before and Splendor after!

I loved the Mariner when I was on it as I do the other Regent ships. However as a ship ages it needs more frequent drydocks. I am a veteran cruiser so am fully away that things happen. However, many of the WC passengers mentioned the problem.

We have enjoyed the Mariner in the past but recent reviews haven’t been great. I am particular concerned about the sewage smells and toilet flushing issues. Is it scheduled for drydock before next year? We are looking at a fall cruise plus a crossing. Would appreciate any input.

The ex Crystal crew I spoke to were very eager to return and even gave me their date of return. They were chefs and bartenders. I know personally that Regent passengers give rather large gratuities to butlers and housekeeping staff. Plus many donate to the crew fund,

We visited while on Regent.

Regent is doing this too…I don’t think they are mass market!

I always ask for a dish of ginger candy. Works well for me. For extreme weather I take the meds given out at reception or the medical centre.

I would as it is the icing on the cake. The available cakes can be run off the mill but the icing can make a true difference.

If you want one of the top restaurants in Portugal than Belcanto(2 michelin and on best 100 restaurants list) or for amazing seafood in lisbon- ramiro(famous from anthony bourdain). Personally we prefer porto for the food particularly taberna dos mercadores. in lisbon make sure to try the pasteis de nata- the original belem is always good but my favourite is manteigaria. Also, our favourite hotel in lisbon is avenida palace(old world charm and close to the heart of the city). The four seasons is about 30 to 45 minute walk though close to a beautiful view of the city. Emdee’s foodie dd.

As our second we tried an expedition ship which was less formal. But I think it is likely 2 and done for us though their itineraries continue to entice.

No this is cruise critic! It is true though that some posters always want to burst our bubble. My plan is try a couple of the new crystal cruises and reach a personal assessment. My first Crystal cruise was not perfect but the second one was fabulous.

Well….we have sailed on SS twice, SB 4 times and Regent once in the last few years. Only Regent bothered to note preferences. SB quality was up and down. So we have booked 1 Crystal and 3 Regent , also a couple of SB. DD is on some but not all of these cruises. Like others we will wait and see. For us the staff is most important as well. So after we do our next 2 Crystal …we will form opinions. Meanwhile we can wax eloquent on the attention to detail the former Crystal provided! There is no point in already shooting them in the foot even before they start down the track.

My DD is a millennial and loves Crystal. Their care to detail is unmatched. Unfortunately their itineraries haven’t matched with her plans especially since she has limited vacation.

I too admired the line up of scooters on the Explorer for my future needs. Am planning on taking these cruises from nearby ports in the years to come. For now we are still booked on port intensive trips but picking our excursions carefully.

What you say is ok for the immediate term but I would book anything long term only on AMEX which they won’t take so as someone who got reimbursed by AMEX for the old Crystal non compliance of contract I feel the need to use my AMEX, pay in US$ and take the exchange hit.

Will do.

Tried SB and booked on three more. While their itineraries are good each of the 4 we did in the last three years were different. One was excellent, two middling and one a holy mess. We have travelled the world but still enjoy some sightseeing so now booked on 4 Regent, the SB ones which I may or may not take and 1 Crystal. The cost is one thing but I want to travel and sightsee when I am able. When I am not I will board in Miami and rent a scooter.

Since time is running out and no chance to book a Panama Canal cruise I will be booking on Regent. The lack of itineraries of my choice is my biggest bugbear. Maybe the new Crystal is planning to position themselves as an Ocean Liner and not be itinerary driven. If so they should provide information on planned activities, enrichment, entertainment etc. While we love the old ships and staff this is a new company and they are providing very sparse information. I may have hyped myself unnecessarily. Time will tell.

We don’t get the AMEX plat OBC anymore as they don’t give it on Canadian cards….used to until last year , though.

I asked the Ovation Captain why Seabourn was not impacted by the NZ requirements. He thought it could be because they paint their hulls with a very expensive protective paint from Japan.