Live from Mariner - July 9th Civitavecchia to Venice

[trvlrs]

positives and negatives of our cruise. I was hoping for all positives but it hasn't been the case, unfortunately.

It started with a 3 hour check-in (for others up to 4 hours). Apparently, computers were down. Did not hear it from Regents, heard of it from fellow passengers. I understand computer can breakdown but it is unacceptable to let everyone stand for hours with no explanation of any sort or any apology.

 

After check in we headed to our room on the 10th floor and what a let down. Bare in mind, I am comparing Mariner to the Voyager. The suites and hallways are in need of major update ( second disappointment).

 

I had asked the question about noise above the 10th floor suites. It's not bad and it hasn't been an issue for us. We hear the pushing of chairs and carts between 9:30pm and 11:00pm. It might bother light sleepers or early to bed people.

 

Stay tuned for more....

[RachelG]

That long for check in is ridiculous. On our recent cruise, we just walked right on and were checked in immediately, and this was at civitavecchia. So there definitely was some problem, but they should have had a person in charge dealing with it rather than making you wait.

 

I do think the carpet in the hallways needs some update, but sorry to hear about your suite as well. Ours (on deck 7 so in a less expensive area) was perfect. We were offered an upgrade to deck 10, so I'm glad I didn't take it. Though the reason I didn't take it was because I was worried about noise from above.

[trvlrs]

Indeed Rachel, my point exactly. Someone should have said something to us. We were the lucky ones as far as dropping our suitcases before getting on board. We heard from fellow passengers who arrived earlier and had to drag their suitcases past security and up the gangway while regent staff stood their watching and did not offer assistance.

I must say the nonchalance of some of the staff member is coming as a big surprise to me. Our past Regents experience was amazing and absolutely perfect. I remember how in the coffee connection, the minute they saw my husband approaching his espresso would be ready and he would be greeted by his name and with a smile. It was such a personal touch that we could not help but tip the gentlemen at the end of our trip.

On this trip, we are just a number. We are on day 5 so let's see if it gets any better.

We ate the first evening at signature. Food and service were wonderful.

The second evening was the big barbecue around the pool, as we were leaving Monte Carlo and that also was excellent.

Our third night, we dined at Compass Rose. Food was good but service went south. Our waiter must have been having a bad day. There was no interaction. He took the order, no smile, quite in a hurry....never ever had someone like him before, on any cruise line.

Fourth night, Sette Mare. We had to wait half an hour to be seated, acceptable. Service decent but not perfect. Waiters were very nice and eager to help but very awkward, not well trained. I'll give you one example, not to bore everyone. We each had in front of us a full glass of water. My husband asked for some Perrier. The waiter obliged and came back with it. He opened the bottle and stared at us as to where he should pour it. We then said: maybe you should bring another glass. Oh yes, he replied. He came back with an empty glass and no Perrier bottle and then remembered and went back for the Perrier. As I said, eager to help but no training. Definitely unacceptable for Regent standard. Food at Sette Mare about the quality of Olive Garden. Tonight we are going back to Compass Rose, let's hope for a better waiter.

[trvlrs]

I do think the carpet in the hallways needs some update, but sorry to hear about your suite as well. Ours (on deck 7 so in a less expensive area) was perfect. We were offered an upgrade to deck 10, so I'm glad I didn't take it. Though the reason I didn't take it was because I was worried about noise from above.

 

We were also offered an upgrade from deck 7 to deck 10. I do like the fact that we are close to the pool and the breakfast area in the morning but those cabins definitely need an overhaul.

[forgap]

I always found service in La Veranda to be bumpy. I think it must be the training ground for new servers. On our Asia trip, one day it seemed like all the excursions came back to the ship at 1-1:30. La veranda was a mad house and the wait staff just couldn't keep up. We asked three people for a beer, finally got the beer, no glass. I finally went to the set up station myself to fetch a glass. Another time (and another late lunch), they were closing one half of La Veranda to set up for Sette Mari. Fine - except there was not one open table on the other side. The wait staff did not know what to so until the manger intervened and let us go to the closed side. I'm sure there is considerable turnover in the industry...I'm not sure how how they can do a better job of "on the job" training.

[Cheekyrn1]

We were also offered an upgrade from deck 7 to deck 10. I do like the fact that we are close to the pool and the breakfast area in the morning but those cabins definitely need an overhaul.

 

I thought the mariner just had an overhaul?? We board in October

[RachelG]

I thought the mariner just had an overhaul?? We board in October

 

It did in the public areas and named suites, but not the rest of the suites nor the carpet in the hallways and on the stairs. The lounges are absolutely beautiful, though the seating in most is quite low. I am thinking that some of the more elderly passengers would have difficulty getting up out of those chairs, especially if they have had a few drinks.

[Eager2Travel]

I am getting a little concerned reading these reports of poor service on the Mariner. We board in October and final pay is coming up in 2days.

 

Who is the GM? The check in sounds like it was sorely lacking. This is very different from when we were last on the Mariner. Everything was perfect . One could not ask for anything better.

 

I hope things improve.

[Sunprince]

It did in the public areas and named suites, but not the rest of the suites nor the carpet in the hallways and on the stairs. The lounges are absolutely beautiful, though the seating in most is quite low. I am thinking that some of the more elderly passengers would have difficulty getting up out of those chairs, especially if they have had a few drinks.

 

I find it very odd that the carpet was not changed in the hallways or on the stairs, especially given all of the negative comments over the years about the "stained" look of the carpet on the Mariner. Not sure what they were thinking during dry dock??

[KirkNC]

Thanks for the report! Look forward to your live updates.

[RachelG]

I find it very odd that the carpet was not changed in the hallways or on the stairs, especially given all of the negative comments over the years about the "stained" look of the carpet on the Mariner. Not sure what they were thinking during dry dock??

 

I agree. I was really surprised that this carpeting had not been replaced. It looks distinctly worn in some areas. Even my husband noticed, and he never notices stuff like that.

[Responder]

I am getting a little concerned reading these reports of poor service on the Mariner. We board in October and final pay is coming up in 2days.

 

Who is the GM? The check in sounds like it was sorely lacking. This is very different from when we were last on the Mariner. Everything was perfect . One could not ask for anything better.

 

I hope things improve.

 

Interesting....We board on Oct 13 and our final pay was requested last month..

[trvlrs]

Hello again everyone

I am sorry I alarmed some of you but I wanted to give a true description. We have a regular concierge suite. We do not have a penthouse which I understand were redone. If it is your first time on Mariner, you probably would enjoy it very much. If you are a repeat guest, it is definitely not up to par with the previous cruises.

Again, hallways and suites are old but once you get over the shock it will do. I'll take pictures and post them when I get a chance.

Dinner last night at Compass Rose again miserable service. Waiters going and coming barely letting you finish your sentence, borderline rude. We finally said something around dessert time and the waiter came back and apologized for his rudeness. He must have apologized over 10 times. He saw us this morning in La veranda and apologized again. Turns out, because of the football finale that evening, most guests were coming in to compass rose around 8:00pm and expecting to be out of there by 9:00pm. It put pressure on the waiters and made a miserable experience for the rest of us. Once again, let's hope tonight will be a better experience.

I can't say much about tours since we only used the provided shuttles to towns back and forth. A bit chaotic but overall ok. We joined the bicycle tour in Lucca and that was well organized. Five tours went out and they kept each at under 20 guests.

We were wait listed for quite a few tours before getting on board and we were cleared for all of them once on board. We had to return most of the tickets since we had made our own arrangements. So, if you are wait listed do not worry about it, you will most likely clear the list.

Off to Corfu today......

[trvlrs]

Had a great day in Corfu!! Shuttle ran smoothly, no problems.

 

This was very different than the Monte Carlo stop, when upon return from the tours, the elevators were out of order. We always walk up so not a problem but felt very sorry for the elderly. All elevators were non operational for at least 3 hours....

 

Pool area: I never sat at the pool when on the voyager but did so this time on the Mariner. Here are my observations so beware because it came as a shock to me.

The lounge chairs are set up very nicely every morning. The cushions are covered with fitted towel fabric. A rolled out beach towel and a bottle of water is on every lounger. All is wonderful up until here. BUT, when a guest leaves, the towel they were using is rolled up again and set up nicely on the chair. I was shocked!!! I watched them do it over and over again. In the evening, all towels were taken away, I believe to be laundered because they weren't being folded again.

Maybe, it's normal practice on all ships but this was my first time witnessing such a thing and I was not happy

 

Off for pre dinner drinks and I'll try and capture some pictures of the ship 😊

[trvlrs]

I am getting a little concerned reading these reports of poor service on the Mariner. We board in October and final pay is coming up in 2days.

 

Who is the GM? The check in sounds like it was sorely lacking. This is very different from when we were last on the Mariner. Everything was perfect . One could not ask for anything better.

 

I hope things improve.

 

Yes this was unfortunate and probably a one time thing. My issue was that we were left in the dark and no one apologized. Unacceptable.....

[englandsrose]

Ewwww - I don't like the idea of using somebody elses towel when I go to the pool area - a place I haunt regularly on warm cruises. Thats disgusting.....

 

I will make sure I either get their early or pick up a clean towel from somewhere on my way.

 

I hope things begin to improve somewhat over the next couple of weeks - I have been counting down to this cruise for the last 12 months since we booked it - so far Egypt has been cancelled because of their issues, and now Israel looks like it might be going the same way. I can't help wondering if we have done the right thing by booking this - everything seems against it at the moment.

[JPR]

From what I read, the brusqueness of the waiter at Compass Rose was primarily caused by an influx of guests with totally unreasonable demands. In and out in one hour??!!

[Sunprince]

Had a great day in Corfu!! Shuttle ran smoothly, no problems.

 

This was very different than the Monte Carlo stop, when upon return from the tours, the elevators were out of order. We always walk up so not a problem but felt very sorry for the elderly. All elevators were non operational for at least 3 hours....

 

Pool area: I never sat at the pool when on the voyager but did so this time on the Mariner. Here are my observations so beware because it came as a shock to me.

The lounge chairs are set up very nicely every morning. The cushions are covered with fitted towel fabric. A rolled out beach towel and a bottle of water is on every lounger. All is wonderful up until here. BUT, when a guest leaves, the towel they were using is rolled up again and set up nicely on the chair. I was shocked!!! I watched them do it over and over again. In the evening, all towels were taken away, I believe to be laundered because they weren't being folded again.

Maybe, it's normal practice on all ships but this was my first time witnessing such a thing and I was not happy

 

Off for pre dinner drinks and I'll try and capture some pictures of the ship

 

I have seen them re-use the cover that goes over the chair which is something I think should be replaced (as it is in fine hotels), but I have never seen the staff re-use a towel. Usually they gather them up and put them in the bin and replace it with a new towel. Probably a matter of training of staff. I would bring it to the attend the the supervisor of the pool area.

[Wendy The Wanderer]

I certainly would complain about this--I've never seen them refolding wet towels--ick!

[LHT28]

The lounge chairs are set up very nicely every morning. The cushions are covered with fitted towel fabric. A rolled out beach towel and a bottle of water is on every lounger. All is wonderful up until here. BUT, when a guest leaves, the towel they were using is rolled up again and set up nicely on the chair. I was shocked!!! I watched them do it over and over again. In the evening, all towels were taken away, I believe to be laundered because they weren't being folded again.

Maybe, it's normal practice on all ships but this was my first time witnessing such a thing and I was not happy

 

 

OMG :eek:

On Oceania ..not a luxury line the towels are removed & a new CLEAN rolled up one is put on the lounger

I have even seen the terry cover removed & replaced with a fresh CLEAN one

 

 

 

Lyn

[trvlrs]

Ick and ewwww is right and I agree that the terry covers should also be replaced. It is definitely a question of training. Lots of novices on this trip.

 

On a brighter note, our dinner tonight in compass rose was impeccable. Our waiter (same as yesterday) couldn't do enough to please us. It's hard not to feel sorry for most of them who leave their families for eight months at a time. Can't be easy...

Entertainment was good and the late night entertainment in the horizon lounge very funny.

 

Durres, Albania tomorrow....still wondering about the port. Good night all...

[trvlrs]

From what I read, the brusqueness of the waiter at Compass Rose was primarily caused by an influx of guests with totally unreasonable demands. In and out in one hour??!!

That's exactly right which made made it very unpleasant to the rest of us...

[trvlrs]

On another good note, the veranda chairs in the suites, I believe are new. They are very comfortable and they do recline.

I'll attach pictures later....Internet is too slow for uploading pictures

[JPR]

Had the World Cup speed-diners only known that they could have taken another leisurely hour and a half or so for a pleasant dinner and still been in time for the only play in the final game that mattered...

[trvlrs]

Had the World Cup speed-diners only known that they could have taken another leisurely hour and a half or so for a pleasant dinner and still been in time for the only play in the final game that mattered...

 

Indeed what a great game!!!! The game was broadcasted in the constellation theatre on the big screen and a food buffet was set up. There was Plenty of food, drinks and a popcorn station. It was, I must say a very nice venue well decorated with the German and Argentina colors. We joined in a little after 9:30pm