Thinking of 7/29 Istanbul cruise

[GoBestBunnymoon]

Can anyone give me some tips, feedback, advice? Thinking of taking the cruise on 7/29/14 from Istanbul. Air tickets are included? Do I get to pick airline etc?

[Travelcat2]

Welcome to the Regent board:)

 

Regent picks the airline and routing. However, if you pay a deviation fee of $150/person, you can select the airline and routing from the airlines that Regent has contracts with. Alternatively, if you decide to do your own air, you will receive a credit from Regent.

 

We have sailed out a Istanbul a couple of times. I looked at your itinerary and it looks great. My only comment is that it is extremely hot in July -- not only in Istanbul but in the other ports as well. If you could do a similar itinerary any other time of the year, I would recommend it.

 

If you have other specific questions, we'd be happy to answer them for you.

 

P.S. If you do not already have a good travel agent, I suggest you get one - preferably with experience in booking luxury cruises. There are many things that they can assist you with and you may get a rebate as well.

Edited November 27, 2013 by Travelcat2

[GoBestBunnymoon]

Welcome to the Regent board:)

 

Regent picks the airline and routing. However, if you pay a deviation fee of $150/person, you can select the airline and routing from the airlines that Regent has contracts with. Alternatively, if you decide to do your own air, you will receive a credit from Regent.

 

We have sailed out a Istanbul a couple of times. I looked at your itinerary and it looks great. My only comment is that it is extremely hot in July -- not only in Istanbul but in the other ports as well. If you could do a similar itinerary any other time of the year, I would recommend it.

 

If you have other specific questions, we'd be happy to answer them for you.

 

Thanks for the welcome and the info! So, the airfare is free with Regent choosing? Or I pay an extra $150 and can choose any airline/routing? And if I don't want air, how much do I get off? Thanks!

 

Unfortunately, the time of year is locked as it is a honeymoon!

 

What kind of advantages does Regent offer over other cruise lines? If its my first time, should I start with Regent?

 

How much time would you expect would be in ports versus on the ship?

 

Thanks again!

[Travelcat2]

Regent is the most inclusive of the luxury cruise lines. While a few of their excursions have a cost, most of them are included. They offer some great included excursions in Israel. The excursions in Israel are long ones so you would be away from the ship most of the day. We tend to do half day tours in some ports so that we can enjoy the ship. How much time you spend in port is really up to you.

 

The Mariner is an all-suite ship so you and your new spouse can sit on the balcony - order breakfast and have it delivered -- white table cloth and all. There is no charge for specialty restaurants where you can have some romantic meals together. There is also 24 hour room service so you will never go hungry (or without a drink).

 

Regarding the air -- when you deviate, you do choose your flights and airline but they do have to be ones that are contracted with Regent. Contracts depend upon where you live, etc. The "non-use" air credit for categories D - H is $1,100 per person. Categories C - MS is $2,500 per person. When you opt out of Regent air, you also lose your transfers to and from the ship.

 

I would not hesitate to recommend Regent for a first cruise.

 

Hope this helps.

Edited November 27, 2013 by Travelcat2

[GoBestBunnymoon]

Regent is the most inclusive of the luxury cruise lines. While a few of their excursions have a cost, most of them are included. They offer some great included excursions in Israel. The excursions in Israel are long ones so you would be away from the ship most of the day. We tend to do half day tours in some ports so that we can enjoy the ship. How much time you spend in port is really up to you.

 

The Mariner is an all-suite ship so you and your new spouse can sit on the balcony - order breakfast and have it delivered -- white table cloth and all. There is no charge for specialty restaurants where you can have some romantic meals together. There is also 24 hour room service so you will never go hungry (or without a drink).

 

Regarding the air -- when you deviate, you do choose your flights and airline but they do have to be ones that are contracted with Regent. Contracts depend upon where you live, etc. The "non-use" air credit for categories D - H is $1,100 per person. Categories C - MS is $2,500 per person. When you opt out of Regent air, you also lose your transfers to and from the ship.

 

I would not hesitate to recommend Regent for a first cruise.

 

Hope this helps.

 

What are the excursions generally like? Is it a large group? What do they cost if they arent included? We really arent in general the type of couple that would do guided tours or excursions but we are curious!

 

Think I got the airfare. So, if it is not the preferred carrier its +150 and only if its contracted. If we dont use then we get $1100 back. Is there a standard list of which air carriers are included? ANd we will be able to earn the miles and status miles for the flights, right?

[Travelcat2]

What are the excursions generally like? Is it a large group? What do they cost if they arent included? We really arent in general the type of couple that would do guided tours or excursions but we are curious!

 

Think I got the airfare. So, if it is not the preferred carrier its +150 and only if its contracted. If we dont use then we get $1100 back. Is there a standard list of which air carriers are included? ANd we will be able to earn the miles and status miles for the flights, right?

 

Excursions are usually around 25 people on a bus. The excursions we took in Israel included lunch. Here is a link to the Regent website where you can look at excursions for the cruise you are looking at http://www.rssc.com/cruises/MAR140729/activities/regent-choice-plus-free/day-1/default/default.aspx . You pick a port and scroll down (hope this works). The Regent Choice Excursions have a cost. The only excursion with a cost in Israel is Masada -- $129/person. This is a fraction of the cost of the same excursion on other cruise lines.

 

We have been able to earn miles on Regent flights. However you cannot use existing miles to upgrade to Business Class. I suggest that you ask a separate question below to see if anyone has used Regent Air from New York to Istanbul - returning from Athens. They can give you an idea of which airline Regent will use.

 

Note: We do not like bus excursions in general but found it very necessary in Israel. When we can, we do our own thing or try to arrange a small group tour with others. Not sure if this is your thing..... but we found this 5 hour excursion a lot of fun in Rhodes -- it is even included http://www.rssc.com/cruises/MAR140729/activities/regent-choice-plus-free/day-4/RHO-004/default.aspx#Excursions .

[Catpow]

Congratulations on your upcoming wedding! We were in your space cruise wise (not marriage wise!) 18 months or so ago deciding on what cruise line to choose for our first cruise. We were actually reluctant to take any cruise as we'd heard so many horror stories and weren't that keen on the type of people we knew who took cruises. But you can't circumnavigate South America by car, train or plane...

 

We went with Regent because of its all inclusive nature - we left the ship after 72 nights with a bill of $61.

 

Travel Cat is the doyenne of Regent on Cruise Critic and she can tell you so much more than I can, were are just newbies - but we absolutely loved our cruise. We loved the people we met, the staff at all levels were friendly, not obsequious, extremely able and most of all fun.

 

The excursions were great or you could take the provided shuttle bus and wander around on your own if that's what you felt like.

 

Why we chose Regent?

• No fixed dining times or tables - we could eat when we liked and with anyone we chose to even at short notice
  
• Everything's included - well bar the laundry, it doesn't cost you anything to use the machines but you've still got to make the effort
  
• Free WiFi was included on our cruise
  
• The food and drinks - with the minor exception of some of the wines - were fantastic. The bar staff get to know your preferences. They were happy to accommodate my allergies without fuss, and their 'destination dishes' incorporating local ingredients were stand outs. Regent also took on board local beers and wines at some ports which added to the 'feel' of being in the country you were visiting
  
• They were big enough to provide full on service yet small enough to be flexible
  
• Once you were out of your cabin, it didn't matter whether you were in the cheaper or most expensive cabin, you were treated the same. No exclusive lounges, no dinner supplements - yet if you wanted a coffee and a slice of pizza that was OK too.
  

The trap? Once you have had it all - moving to a less inclusive cruise line might be hard. We were warned of this before we boarded - and I think they're right.

 

The mood was quite casual during the day, quite understatedly dressy in the evenings yet we had some fun nights in the Disco - with a quite modern range of music. Formal wasn't too formal, but you do have to be 'elegantly casual' after 6pm. It was only really an issue once or twice when we were just back from excursions and we just wanted to relax with a few drinks around the pool, but couldn't.

 

We also appreciated the attention to detail in fittings such as quality linen, glassware, cutlery and crockery. Even the glasses in the cabin were Riedel. I liked the Italian Sambonet cutlery so much I've since bought some for everyday use:o. Daily newsletters of items of interest to us as Australians was a surprise - and I understand all passengers received a similar daily newsletter regardless of their country of origin. In house movies were up to date and relevant to our destination; in house lecturers were superb.

 

We have friends who are just off their first cruise too - with Holland America. It was just a link in a much bigger holiday to the US and Canada from Australia - but they disliked the crowds (and they were on a smaller HAL ship), the noise - piped music of dubious origin everywhere and of course the constant hard sell or having to sign for everything. None of this happens on Regent.

 

Hope this helps -good luck!

[rarin2go]

We only started cruising 4 years ago and were very uncertain it would be 'for us'. We had heard horror stories of crowds, queuing and constant small (and not-so-small) charges adding up throughout the holiday.

So we started at the top to avoid all those things which prevent genuine relaxation - and Regent delivered exactly what we needed!

But as others have warned - it is addictive and I can't see us going elsewhere!

[rallydave]

Think I got the airfare. So, if it is not the preferred carrier its +150 and only if its contracted. If we dont use then we get $1100 back. Is there a standard list of which air carriers are included? ANd we will be able to earn the miles and status miles for the flights, right?

 

Not exactly correct. If you go with the Regent flights, they will get you there and back on their choice of flights routing, and price. May not be a non-stop or direct flight and might have a long layover. You won't know until 75 days prior to your flight and at that point, most likely too late to deviate.

 

If you want to choose your own flights, it is $150 per person that is non-refundable but, you only pay when you accept the routing they provide and you can go back and forth until you agree on their routing. In addition to the $150 there may or may not be additional charges for the routing you agree to. You can get flights on contracted and non-contracted airlines and the extra cost, if required is dependent on the price Regent gets. If you choose to do your flights on your own, you get back a set amount from Regent as a discount to your cruise fight and you book whatever you like.

 

No list of of air carriers included and some people will tell you who they have used but, there are always changes so it really could be any. As to earning miles and status, that again depends on the airline and the fare basis that Regent books you in. Many times you will get the miles and status but, no guarantee. Have heard of some who don't get the miles due to the policies of the airlines. Hope this answers you flight questions.

 

Regent is a great on=board experience, the customer service in the home office often leaves something to be desired.

[GoBestBunnymoon]

the responses are great all around, thank you for such detailed information.

 

right now our concerns are the cost relative to what we get. the price is certainly within range of what we are comfortable paying but if that includes airfare it is a lot different than if it doesnt. we would need to credit miles to one specific alliance so if airfare comes out then it changes the value proposition. also, if we dont plan on the excursions it may be cutting into some of the value as well.

 

we love the feel of regent so far and what they offer just need to make sure it all works out....

[nana541]

DItto the HOT HOT HOT, in that part of the world! Thank god the AC works well on board.

Pay the deviation fee ASAP to pick your preferred airlines and flights, fly in a couple days early and stay a couple days after the cruise.

Istanbul is magical and a real favorite of ours.

Welcome and prepare yourself for a great cruise :)

Edited November 27, 2013 by nana541

[IndiTravler]

We just did the Istanbul to Rome cruise in October. We flew in 4 days early to see Istanbul. Would highly recommend it to you too. Such an amazing city.

[GoBestBunnymoon]

now thinking we may push the trip back a week or so which would open up some other options. i personally would prefer the Istanbul itinerary but my fiance wants a more traditional type of cruise such as Amalfi coast or something of the such. if we go that route, is Regent a good bet? are there other similar all-inclusive luxury cruises?

[Travelcat2]

The major luxury cruise lines do itineraries in this area during the summer. My definition of major luxury cruise lines are Regent, Silversea, Seabourn and Crystal. The most inclusive of the luxury lines is Regent. The largest ships are Crystal and the smallest Seabourn.

 

I would suggest taking a look at their websites or take a look at their Cruise Critic board.

 

The experience on any of these cruise lines should be excellent. Let us know what you decide.:)