auldlassie

I boarded Explorer in Miami on 20th Dec a few days ago. Travelling as a party of 4, 2 of whom were in a premium suite and auldladdie and I in a concierge. Our pals in the premium suite wanted to board early so we all arrived at the terminal shortly before 12 noon. We did not expect to be allowed to board at the same time and were prepared to wait. However, we were most surprised to find a long queue of well over 100 people already boarding. I now know most of them were not in a premium suite either.

In fact, that day, there was no check whatsoever of what suite you were in. Everyone was boarded on a first come first served basis with no demur.

Is that normal or abnormal for Explorer or for Maimi?

Incidentally, the table to sign the health form was set so far from the tensa barriers/lines for boarding that many people did not sign it at all and just joined the boarding queue and were most definitely NOT checked at any point prior to boarding for that. We pointed this out to staff but it was pretty much ignored with a shrug.

Is that unusual or normal? All my previous cruises have ensured it was practically unmissable to complete a health form.

To address the question raised in the thread, I personally feel it is fine if premium suites board first, just as it is that first class airlines allow priority boarding. I think the concept of paying for these perks is well understood.

No tender port at Positano. It will be Amalfi for sure.

Travelcat2, I am confused that you mention going to St Barts and note that the OP's cruise (and mine, as I am taking this cruise too) does not go there. Do you mean you are going to it on another date this season? I thought it was badly hit and currently not taking in cruise ships.

Mr Luxury, you have tickled my funny bone. And that is not easy to do. :)

Markham, you have, from the start, been entirely damning of the Retreat and its financial concept. I'm just back from my first (and possibly my last) Encore cruise. I've now experienced for myself the cramped feel of the almost all of the open deck areas and the lack of a walking track or top deck "sports" area. I can only agree with every word you have said about it. More power to your elbow in trying to make Seabourn accept the obvious. And let's hope Seabourn spare you the horrors of such a Diamond Elite benefits quandary :)

Just back from Encore, Rome to Barcelona, having previously sailed on Quest, several times, as well as a smattering of other luxury lines. Agree with the OP on almost every point, both good and bad, other than the canapes situation mentioned, as that makes no difference to me either way - they just put me off my dinner :) . Great suite, faultless. I felt the rest of the ship too cramped in the public spaces though, particularly the deck areas and I truly missed a walking track. Retreat is a pointless and disagreeable waste of space in my opinion.

We very much enjoyed our food in all venues but the reluctance to freely make available the complimentary pour alternatives, if we didn't like the evening's offered selection, was very irritating after a couple of days. I eventually asked for the comp. wines list and it was sent to my suite same day, so I could ask to try particular ones after that. However, I really could do without some of the unnecessary and slightly argumentative attitude I got from some the the wine waiting staff (not the actual "sommeliers" designated as such) when I demurred from their offered selection. I did also purchase premium wines, and particularly liked the TK Grill premium list, which I thought much better than the standard premium list, but I don't like to be made to feel that is my only alternative in trying to find a glass of wine I enjoy, when a greater selection of comp. pours are actually available. Sadly a few of the staff did make me feel that way, just to avoid a tedious discussion/debate/lecture on what they thought our party of four should be drinking. The fact that many of them actually know very little about the wines they are pouring just makes this worse. To be fair, this is not an issue unique to Encore, but I have previously enjoyed a much more "can do" attitude from Seabourn waiting staff regarding the comp. wines. OK, wine rant over!

In response to some earlier comments, we were in a "humble" veranda suite and still received the room scent spray and also had all soaps present and correct on arrival at our suite, so any lack of same in other cabins is possible due to a housekeeping lack or mistake rather than policy.

In hindsight, I am much more likely to revert back to other Seabourn ships or other lines, rather than travel on Encore again, due to the cramped feeling of the deck spaces. I am hoping some adjustments to the deck plans might be made for Ovation. If so, I will certainly try it as soon as I can.

Just back from Seabourn Encore in the Med. Main barkeepers at their skybar and observation bar both said most popular drink by far on the ship was G&T. Horses for courses I suppose, as this drink is probably more popular in Europe than in US. My next cruise is Xmas/New Year in the Caribbean on Explorer where it will doubtless be something else entirely. I might even give a pina colada a try, even although it is something I would never drink at home. :)

I live in Scotland and as a previous poster already mentioned, Scotland is currently awash with many, many different gins - its all the rage at the moment. We are gin drinkers ourselves and friends bring us new ones all the time. In a nod to how many are flooding the market currently, one of the new ones we were given is called "Not Another Effing Gin." Yes, that is its actual name! Quite a number, like that one, are a bit same-y and bland, but our current favourites are Monkey 47 (so intense and complex) and Gin Mare (which tastes not just of thyme, but even more strongly of olives and goes wonderfully with Fevertree's "Mediterranean" tonic blend), but Hendricks will be a lovely fall back on the ship. I do like Fevertree tonic in all its forms, but Fentimans is also excellent. Perhaps neither of those tonics available on Regent though. I can survive perfectly well on others during the cruise I expect :)

Boarding Encore in August and I am delighted to read these reviews. Makes a welcome change from criticism. While I am no shrinker from honest assessments of problems, it reminds me that balance is a wonderful thing. Hopefully my own opinions of Encore will be equally good too. I am Scottish, living in Scotland, so our rather lukewarm summer this year, and much more definingly, the recent death of my father in law, has already put me in mind to look for maximum joy and warmth from both the sun and my fellow Seabourners during my cruise, to lift my spirits. They are usually such a wonderfully interesting and engaging group of people to be with. I so wish I was there already! Glad to hear you both like the ship so much and wish you happy travels.

Previous replies about the realism of travel purchases make excellent points.

If you are unhappy about taking the risk that this might happen, how about always leaving future bookings until the last minute?

If that does not appeal, then ask yourself why. The answer you would surely have to accept is that the peace of mind/security/maximised options of making an early booking normally comes at a cost. Surely the concept of "late deals" in the travel industry cannot be a surprise to you?

Two friends, both with many many years experience in the US restaurant business (and when not working they spend their time going around the world to the best restaurants) are just back from a cruise in the Med. In Amalfi they dined at the Hotel Santa Caterina and one said they had their best ever dish there - a pasta in lemon cream - by all accounts a "died-and-gone-to-heaven" dish! They absolutely raved about the place, the food, views and service. We are now going there with other pals in August for our wedding anniversary and can hardly wait. Of course I will try the lemon cream pasta -amongst other things!

Wherever you finally choose, I hope you have a very happy and memorable day.

Emperor Norton, I just wish there was a facility on here to upvote your last comment. Nail on head. Thank you.

Ha, in "breaking news" thread today -Encore Laundry open. Very glad as I am sailing on it in August !

I have travelled on several luxury lines including twice sailing on Silver Spirit (once over Christmas/New year holidays) and three times on Seabourn (soon to be 4). Loved many things on every voyage and agree there are big areas of crossover, but for me there was one main advantage/disadvantage every time.

1. I can afford a far bigger suite with butler on Silversea which I like more than the standard room onSeabourn, where the penthouse has always worked out just a bit too expensive for me.

2. Passengers on Silversea were generally older and very much quieter than those on Silversea. Not at all lively, even over Christmas/New year (the Christmas Eve disco was beyond parody really, but that is a long and possibly libellous story) and I prefer the much livelier atmosphere on Seabourn.

About to try Encore, but Silver Muse looks so lovely in its decor that I will probably give it a try too, especially if I begin to read that it attracts a livelier crowd.

Hi Keith, thanks for posting those photos of the MO. We have dinner booked at Azul, so I am hoping it will live up to its excellent reputation. Gilly, I can only say thanks for your heads up. I know it is not as expensive as some Mandarins and we shall see what we find for sure. However, given that it is rated currently on tripadvisor as no 5 in Miami, I remain comforted that it is bound to be better than Hyatt Coral Gables, currently sitting at 51, although my pals' opinions actually decided matters for me. For sure everything is horses for courses too. If only all hotels were perfect. Then they would all be called the Peninsula Beverly Hills or the Peninsula Paris -for this horse at least. :)

Here is my own tuppenceworth.

We are cruising on Explorer at Christmas /New year from Miami and we (2 couples) are booked with Regent to stay pre-cruise at the Hyatt Coral Gables. It was the more expensive of the two options Regent offered there and its historic nature sounded very appealing. I have since read many reviews of it on tripadvisor and other websites, which are very mixed. Had I done some homework earlier I might have had concerns, but not only was I very busy with other things then, I didn't expect Regent to offer anything less than excellent, given the amount of choice in Miami. The other couple we are cruising with stayed at this hotel a couple of months ago, after we had already committed to it, just to "check it out", as they were doing a couple of days in Miami as part of another trip.

The upshot, sadly, is that our friends report that although the main public areas are absolutely fine, the rooms are very dated and tired, badly in need of refurbishment and upgrading. They checked out some other rooms while there and noted that many rooms/corridors have a smell of bad drainage or something similarly disagreeable. They have spent all of their lives in high end travel and hospitality industries and know what they are talking about. They said that they were decidedly not impressed and did not want to return and knew that we would not like it either. I doubt that we can cancel that part of our outlay, so we just will not use it. We have now booked to stay overnight at the Mandarin Oriental, which has far better reviews. This is more expensive, but I'd rather a lovely start to my trip (especially after long, tiring flights from Scotland) than a night in a tired - and a bit whiffy - hotel room. I suspect many of us keen travellers have endured that experience at least once and it is not one I am keen to repeat if I can avoid it.

Hello, disembarking Seabourn Encore in Barcelona in September and need to book a reliable taxi ( 4 adults plenty luggage so probably need a van) to the airport. Guessing to looks about 30 mins to airport from port? No idea which part of Barcelona port I will be docked in but perhaps someone here can advise where Encore is likely to be?

Does anyone know a reliable pick up service we can book with? I think I want to pre-book and know this is taken care of , rather than just wing it on the day.

Very grateful for any help and information, thank you.

Wripro, my experience differs from yours. When we booked an Oceania penthouse for our Med cruise last year it was much cheaper than a similar itinerary Veranda Seabourn cruise, even with the drinks package. This possibly varies from time to time, but I did search quite a few itineraries back then and Seabourn was always more expensive.

Let's not fall into the trap of thinking it has to come down to either a bad champagne or a better non-champagne sparkling wine. What's wrong with just serving a better champagne? Seabourn is a luxury line (and an expensive one) after all. Let's keep our standards high :) Chin, chin!

Hi, I am sailing on the Explorer over Christmas and New Year. Understand the dress code, but just want to check if anyone can advise me on on formal nights over that particular period. I expect a lot of people do dress formally at that time - correct or not? Most? Don't want to feel under-dressed if the majority are formal. Thanks in advance. Husband likes to wear his kilt. Should I stop him? :)

Auldladdie and I have cruised both and enjoyed both. But they were different.

We could afford a larger suite with Oceania than with Seabourn and we enjoyed the space, especially the large balcony. We bought the drinks package on Oceania. I wouldn't like to do without that as I do not want to be counting the cost of drinks as I go along. I'd rather just pay it and then forget about it, but it was a pain having to continually show your drinks package card, albeit a small pain. We thought the food was generally much better on Oceania than on Seabourn and entertainment and lectures very similar standard on both. Service on both was generally very good, especially if you make an initial effort to engage with the staff at dinner, in the bar etc, although ultimately I'd say it was perhaps slightly friendlier on Seabourn. It is more likely that staff will get to know you and your service preferences on the smaller Seabourn ship, if that matters to you.

Despite the larger size of the Oceania ship we tried, it never seemed too crowded. In fact on our Med cruise in summer, we felt the bars were often very quiet in the evenings. Maybe Oceania folks went to shows or to bed, but not the bars post-dinner, unlike those on our Seabourn and Crystal cruises.

One difference which is very hard to pin down, or explain, was that we just felt less "in tune" with our fellow passengers on Oceania. We didn't quite completely "click" with the folks we met, neither as solidly nor as frequently, as we did on Seabourn (or Crystal). Once or twice we even felt like fish out of water. Perhaps it was us. I am definitely not laying any blame at all, just stating how we felt.

Would I cruise Oceania again? Yes. The food is outstanding and the accommodations on board excellent. Those 2 factors would probably be sufficient in themselves for us to cruise Oceania again. Meanwhile, we are looking forward to cruising on Encore in August and hopefully, once again, meeting fellow passengers that we feel very much in tune with and some we will keep in touch with, as friends, long after the cruise. Seabourn cruises for us have had that special difference. For others it might be that Oceania offers that. You have to try it to find out, I guess.

I'll be on Encore this August -after an absence from Seabourn of 3 years. I can tell from this thread alone that little has changed. :D

I'd second the recommendation for a white noise machine. I bought a Lectrofan from amazon and it works a treat. Obliterates most room creaks and rattles for me and I am a light sleeper.

If the OP searches this forum they will find a similar complaint from an earlier poster -deck 4, multi toilet noise. Sadly they were flamed a bit in some replies.

I have never heard noises from other toilets on ships of any line - including on Seabourn, although Quest is their only one I have been on and never on deck 4, sorry. So in my experience, while your own toilet does make a noticeable vacuum suction noise when flushed, any intrusive multi toilet noise is not normal for most cabins - if this was usual it would be complained about all the time, but is not - and presumably may depend on location of main drainage terminals for the toilets. I know also you can search for noises (knocking type noises) on Seabourn on deck 4. I believe it has been mentioned that the large wall beside the end of the stairwell on deck 4 is to blame -some panels flexing more than expected, as far as I can recall.

To others who mentioned Oceania boarding time by class of cabin. Yes it is listed as boarding at different times per cabin class (as is such a lot of travel) but my own experience is that this is treated in a lax manner. You can basically board when you arrive at the terminal - earliest I have been there is about 11.30am -although you have to stay in public areas (and have lunch if you wish) until your suite is ready. Not only have I cruised on Oceania myself, I know quite a few others who have done so, some frequently, and being avid cruisers we discuss all this stuff in detail. None have ever particularly stuck to a set time, as it is so often travel dependent. I have even arrived later than I intended and watched others in large numbers board earlier than their boarding time, as they outnumbered the possible available suites if sticking to the written times.

In fact, all of the boarding experience was pretty much the same as took place on my Seabourn cruises and my Silversea ones. Arrive, join the queue (or no queue) and board.

Please note, I am not cheerleading for any cruise line here and my experiences once afloat on these lines were variable in quality -but that is a long story or three. Just telling the Oceania boarding situation as I and some pals have found it.

Orchestrapal, I might have this wrong, but I thought drinks, air and excursions were all optional extras to your cruise price. They seemed to be on mine, but things can change.

But that aside, I can cure one issue many of you have because, as luck would have it, I know a very good game that keeps children nice and quiet. All you need is some sellotape, some keys...............and a few small cages.

I know some would say that is a bit harsh, but hey, it's my "dream ship" :D

I am posting this question on the different forums of the lines I cruise (in this case about to cruise for the first time) and am really keen to hear what you think. Perhaps some cruise lines will be much more inventive than others, we shall see. So please tell me, what would be added or subtracted from the current Regent ships to create your "dream Regent ship"? I don't mean free cruises, free flights, free anything, or brand new ships and cabins etc every day when you wake. No fantasy stuff. No magic. I just mean tweaks or changes or additions to what is already on offer. A sort of "build your own Explorer" almost!

In another thread about chair hogs, Suite Travels made me realise that I would love to see the creation of a "Table of Shame" for pool chair hogs. After 30 minutes of absentee chair-hogging, your stuff is gathered up and placed on the "Table of Shame" - a table very prominently set up on the pool deck (in full sun so your book page-glue melts and your suntan lotion leaks) where the hogs have to go to re-claim their belongings under the full glare of the fellow travellers' disapproval. ;)

I am still working on the small refinements - perhaps necessitating a grovelling apology, perhaps a loud (but somehow not disturbing to others) klaxon of shame going off as repeat offenders approach the table just to ensure everyone looks over to see them, perhaps community tut-tutting etc etc - Yeah, I know it needs work :D

All in the hope that it would actually soon stop the chair hogging altogether, of course.

So come on, tell me what would you like to see on your "dream Regent ship". Unless, you are a persistent chair hog. In which case, don't talk to me at all. :eek: