Meeting the Regent Reps - Anything you want me to ask/tell them?

[room010]

I'm baaaaaack! Bit of an anticlimax really. As I predicted, and unsurprisingly, it was a sales pitch for 2013 cruises and unsold 2012 ones. Nothing about 2014 I'm afraid although I did ask! There were quite a few loyal Regenteers there (100+?) so it wasn't the time or place to pin our hosts down on our bouquets and brickbats but I did leave them the typed list of our questions/comments/requests and asked for a more detailed response which they agreed to do.

 

They are throwing in a lot more "free" excursions in 2013, ones we previously had to pay extra for, and a couple of interesting Christmas/New Year itineraries this year which I don't recognise but may not be new. I'm particularly interested in Bali-Melbourne (natch) on Voyager over Christmas with plenty of sea days, yay, which then continues to Auckland via Tasmania. Some good air/hotel deals too.

 

I did say if they want to lure more solo pax they need to look at the single supplement, especially on undersold cruises, and they did say they would "see what we can do". I think it will pay to ask at least.

 

I will let you all know when (if? LOL) they get back to me.

[xrvlcruiser]

Thanks room010 . . . any/all help is appreciated!

[WesW]

Echo Peggy's/xrvlcruiser words above, thanks room010 for your Regent due diligence efforts.

[dlouise]

Travelcat2,

 

As I stated above, the boarding time for all passengers on "O" is 11AM, no matter what type of cabin you have. I don't understand why you keep on harping on misinformation. You have never sailed on "O" but continue to malign the ships.

 

The food is way better on "O" than Regent, we have been on the Voyager 5 or 6 times including the Asian sections of the world cruise twice before the change of ownership. We sailed once after the change over, Panama Canal, and never again. The choices in the MDR on "O"are much more varied, and the specialty restaurants are much better. "O" is a foodies delight. The only thing that we felt was better food wise on the Voyager is the tea....more of a selection of cakes etc. We found no need to for special orders in the MDR as the choices were much greater on the Riviera.

 

We never felt the need to tip on Regent, and we did not feel that the crew was looking or expected tips on the Riviera. We are not big drinkers so a tab or two each night was not a big deal to sign.

 

The suites were beautiful and tastefully decorated with more outlets and better lighting. There was no need for chair hogs as we have experienced on Regent as there is more than enough seating at the pool.

 

I think you should sail on the Riviera to experience the great food and ambiance before making anymore judgements.

[Travelcat2]

Travelcat2,

 

As I stated above, the boarding time for all passengers on "O" is 11AM, no matter what type of cabin you have. I don't understand why you keep on harping on misinformation. You have never sailed on "O" but continue to malign the ships.

 

 

We never felt the need to tip on Regent, and we did not feel that the crew was looking or expected tips on the Riviera. We are not big drinkers so a tab or two each night was not a big deal to sign.

 

I think you should sail on the Riviera to experience the great food and ambiance before making anymore judgements.

 

I repeated myself because of the post at the top of this page. That poster seems to disagree with you. Really hoping that you are correct and that the policy has changed.

 

Please reread my posts. I did not "malign the ships" -- my issues are with policies. I also wondered why Oceania posters feel the need to tell Regent customers so much information regarding Oceania when no one asked the question.

Don: Yes -- you did tell me three or four times that Oceania does not have a "class system". That is your interpretation of the policy. My interpretation is different. Even my DH (who likes the Concierge program) thinks it is a class system. Don't think we'll ever agree on this.:o

 

room010: Thanks for the feedback. It seems they are doing these sales pitches all over the world. They have explained previously why they do not discount for singles. They basically do not need to. I'm personally not too excited that they will offer more "free" excursions in 2014. It is just another reason for increasing the fares when many of us would prefer that they hold the prices for a while and add a cost to the excursions (and also increase the quality)

[dlouise]

Travelcat2,

 

I was stating our experience with the boarding process last June in Lisbon.

 

I also understand that you are a Regent cheerleader, but there are other lines that compare to, or exceed Regent in certain areas.

[Travelcat2]

Travelcat2,

 

I was stating our experience with the boarding process last June in Lisbon.

 

I also understand that you are a Regent cheerleader, but there are other lines that compare to, or exceed Regent in certain areas.

 

dlouise:

 

Post #41 was stating a different boarding process. I believe they sailed fairly recently as well (although I could be confusing their recent cruise with a Regent cruise).

 

Yes -- I am a Regent cheerleader that also sails on Silversea (they do exceed Regent in certain areas but overall, they are equal). Generally, when comparisons are done it is between the luxury cruise lines: Crystal, Regent, Seabourn, SeaDream Yacht Club and Silversea. I see a lot of comparisons between the two high level premium cruise lines -- Azamara and Oceania. IMO, it is easier to compare similar lines. For instance, some mainstream cruise lines have much more beautiful (and larger) suites than any of the luxury cruise lines ...... however, the ships are large to huge and can accommodate 3,000 sq. ft. suites. They are very class oriented and once you leave the area allocated for passengers in top level suites, you are on a mainstream cruise line -- with everything that goes along with that (not putting down mainstream -- just different in many respects from premium or luxury experiences). Anyway, my point is that comparing apples and oranges doesn't work too well.

 

I do think that Oceania is a wonderful cruise line. Lots of positives. If I were to choose between Azamara and Oceania for a cruise, we would definitely select Oceania (only the two new ships). Frank Del Rio and his staff did an extraordinary job with the ships and apparently the food is to die for. However, when we compare pricing on Oceania (including the drink pachage), they are approximately the same price as Regent (comparing Regent penthouse suites with equivalent suites on Oceania). I hesitate to state that the loyalty perks on Regent are dramatically better than Oceania as I fear that they will be taken away. Actually, I hesitate to say that anything on Regent is better than Oceania because of the consequences. Again, IMO, Regent does not need to adopt any more of Oceania's policies:o

[RachelG]

I hope you meant "bated" breath; bait has a bad effect on one's breath. :D

 

Haha, autocorrect at work again.

[Wendy The Wanderer]

If I had the "luxury" of taking four or five cruises a year, I would try all of the luxury and near-luxury lines--Oceania, Azamara, Seabourn, SilverSea. Then I could speak definitively about all of them. I have one set of friends who do take that many trips each year, and they have largely switched to Oceania from Regent, although they also like Seabourn.

 

I don't have this luxury, alas. But on the strength of their recommendation, and others, I am trying Oceania.

[ededmd]

But on the strength of their recommendation, and others, I am trying Oceania.

 

Wendy, warm wishes for a successful experiment. I'm much looking forward to your thoughts when you return and hope you post on the Regent board so that I and others who value your opinion don't miss it.

[PaReader]

Travelcat2,

 

I was stating our experience with the boarding process last June in Lisbon.

 

I also understand that you are a Regent cheerleader, but there are other lines that compare to, or exceed Regent in certain areas.

It may be that Oceania will permit all to board at any time if there are enough agents to accommodate them. We have seen this occur at some ports, and I believe it doesn't represent a change in Oceania's policy of early boarding for certain cabins.

[VODKAMARTINI]

Let the m know that many of their seasoned passengers want to sail without all included hotels and excursions and we are going elsewhere to have that.

 

ChatKat in Ca,

 

A friendly note to you:

 

La Reserve and PRIVEE reservations are now being accepted on our Riviera Cruise next Nov. Check it out and let me know if you are interested in joining the table at PRIVEE.

 

Thanks,

 

Sherry:)