NCL cuts, may affect excursions

[Travelcat2]

Agree somewhat Caroldoll. It's standard and expected to see cuts after an acquisition, that is after all part of the motivation -- economies of scale. Especially in the back office and in trimming the roster of suppliers. Looking forward it's reasonable to expect consolidation of suppliers and it is in this way effects may be seen aboard Regent and Oceania.

 

I strongly feel that there will be no effect on Regent or Oceania (cutback, trimming, etc. have already been done). Cutbacks, trimming, etc. will be felt on NCL. Regent and Oceania should remain as they have been but will benefit from having contracts with a much larger cruise line.

[OctoberKat]

Okie dokie, TC, I would not dream of disabusing your steadfast loyalty.

Edited March 23, 2015 by OctoberKat

[newlondon]

Jackie, What is the $549 excursion. BTW O just lowered the price of their 3 day post cruise safari at the luxury Kapama Camp. Dw and I were already signed up so a $1500 saving was very welcome. Great reviews on TA.

[Travelcat2]

Jackie, What is the $549 excursion. BTW O just lowered the price of their 3 day post cruise safari at the luxury Kapama Camp. Dw and I were already signed up so a $1500 saving was very welcome. Great reviews on TA.

 

Elephant Camp by Air. There are two or three excursions in Port Elizabeth that go to this camp. Only the one by air has a close up and personal experience with the elephants (riding them as well as taking them for a walk, etc.) It should be a much more realistic experience than we have had in the past with elephants (these elephants do not wear saddles as they do in Thailand). Although this excursion is quite pricey, we don't plan on being in that part of the world again. The excursions on this itinerary are on the high side with the game reserve excursions running around $200/person so the excursions can really add up.

 

We are doing a pre-cruise 3 night safari that Regent offered early on at no cost. It is actually an overnight in Cape Town -- 2 nights at the game reserve (Eagles Crag in Port Elizabeth) and 3 game drives. This is probably similar to what Oceania is offering post cruise.

 

Hoping that Oceania and Regent keep the excursions separate -- only because of the number of passengers involved in combining the two ships.

 

When can you book excursions? I'm puzzled as to why Oceania does not have excursions listed. Congrats on the $1,500 savings!

Edited March 23, 2015 by Travelcat2

[golferwayne]

Elephant Camp by Air. There are two or three excursions in Port Elizabeth that go to this camp. Only the one by air has a close up and personal experience with the elephants (riding them as well as taking them for a walk, etc.) It should be a much more realistic experience than we have had in the past with elephants (these elephants do not wear saddles as they do in Thailand). Although this excursion is quite pricey, we don't plan on being in that part of the world again. The excursions on this itinerary are on the high side with the game reserve excursions running around $200/person so the excursions can really add up.

 

We are doing a pre-cruise 3 night safari that Regent offered early on at no cost. It is actually an overnight in Cape Town -- 2 nights at the game reserve (Eagles Crag in Port Elizabeth) and 3 game drives. This is probably similar to what Oceania is offering post cruise.

 

Hoping that Oceania and Regent keep the excursions separate -- only because of the number of passengers involved in combining the two ships.

 

When can you book excursions? I'm puzzled as to why Oceania does not have excursions listed. Congrats on the $1,500 savings!

 

Way off topic but I can't restrain myself. Just a minor correction re Elephants in Thailand. My wife and I visited Thailand as part of a three country "bucket list" holiday in December 2013. We visited an Elephant farm where we spent 5 hours riding "bareback". One of the attractions to this excursion. There are other Thais elephant farms offering "basket free" experiences. Seeing the mahouts caring for and guiding the elephants was equally enjoyable. BTW: while returning to home base on the ride we did encounter other tourists riding in baskets, and it did not look comfortable for the people or elephants.

 

Elephants are such majestic animals, it is a real shame to see them with a basket on their back.

[Travelcat2]

Way off topic but I can't restrain myself. Just a minor correction re Elephants in Thailand. My wife and I visited Thailand as part of a three country "bucket list" holiday in December 2013. We visited an Elephant farm where we spent 5 hours riding "bareback". One of the attractions to this excursion. There are other Thais elephant farms offering "basket free" experiences. Seeing the mahouts caring for and guiding the elephants was equally enjoyable. BTW: while returning to home base on the ride we did encounter other tourists riding in baskets, and it did not look comfortable for the people or elephants.

 

Elephants are such majestic animals, it is a real shame to see them with a basket on their back.

 

Great story - thank you for posting. What part of Thailand were you able to do this? Our "adventure" was outside of Chiang Mai. I cannot imagine sitting on an elephant for 5 hours -- quite a long time. Think that I would be sore for days:) Our Port Elizabeth ride will be half an hour plus walking through the bush with the elephant.

[Dolebludger]

I'm afraid this "consolidation" has been going on for at least six months. When we booked our Feb 14 to March 2 Mariner Cruise through Regents home office (big mistake, never again, I know) the agent we spoke with promised us all business flights out of (and back to) Denver. That didn't happen, as Denver to LA was coach, and we learned about this too late to fix the problem, and too late to cancel the cruise. This agent was also unaware of fare drops that happened after booking. We had to email him copies of the Regent emails stating the reduced fare. Then, we received a Regent email with a greatly reduced fare, and sent it to the agent. He refused to honor it, saying it was only good for residents of Tahiti. Nowhere in the email did it state that. Then the agent promised us a $300 shipboard credit. That didn't happen. Further, this Regent agent kept trying to sell us Oceania, instead of Regent! In our conversations with this Regent agent, he admitted that he had never been on Regent. We discussed this with Regent's "higher-ups" upon our return and we were offered nothing. The least thing Regent should have done was to offer us the $300 credit on a future cruise.

 

I would be saying "I'll never take Regent again, except for the fact that the cruise was excellent. Perhaps the best Regent cruise of the many we have been on.

 

But the next time I book Regent, I'll do it through a TA who lives in Fl, and who is a recently discharged Navy Seal!

Edited March 25, 2015 by Dolebludger

[JMARINER]

..............

 

But the next time I book Regent, I'll do it through a TA who lives in Fl, and who is a recently discharged Navy Seal!

 

Unless your agent (not just the Agency) is one who has done a lot of bookings on "Luxury" cruise lines for many years, you will most likely not get the best value or service. As you know booking directly is the one of worst way to go, IMO, using an inexperienced agent might be no better.

 

j

491/35

[Dolebludger]

I know that is true. Of course I can't ask for TA references here, because it is highly against the rules, but I'll check every way I can for a Regent specialist TA before I consider a Regent cruise again.

[golferwayne]

Great story - thank you for posting. What part of Thailand were you able to do this? Our "adventure" was outside of Chiang Mai. I cannot imagine sitting on an elephant for 5 hours -- quite a long time. Think that I would be sore for days:) Our Port Elizabeth ride will be half an hour plus walking through the bush with the elephant.

 

We visited the "Thai Elephant Home" which is under an hour outside Chiang Mai. While the elephant ride was more comfortable than I expected, except for the coarse hair chaffing the skin, I slightly overstated the actual duration on the elephant. We were picked up before 8:00AM, and were dropped off back at our hotel before 6:00PM with a welcome/information session, a lunch break and some time to clean up before our return to Chiang Mai. In any case it was one very memorable day even if my memory is not totally accurate re times:). It was nearly perfect when I was in my 20s.;)

[RachelG]

I know that is true. Of course I can't ask for TA references here, because it is highly against the rules, but I'll check every way I can for a Regent specialist TA before I consider a Regent cruise again.

 

Go online and Google luxury cruise agents. You want someone who specializes in that. Ours is in Dallas so close by to oklahoma.

[bamondo]

In terms of whether or not Regent and Oceania offer identical excursions, this will be easy to check soon. Regent's Mariner and Oceania's Nautica both leave on the same itinerary on November 24th. We will be on Regent and will book excursions next week. Oceania excursions are not yet listed (or were not two days ago). It will be interesting to learn if the excursions offered are the same. Choices may be limited in Africa so it is very possible they will be the same but obviously not the price.

 

I have a question about booking Regent excursions. A week after booking with my TA, I logged into my Regent account to make sure I was registered, etc., and I was able to access all the shore excursions. After that day, I couldn't find them anywhere (just the calendar) so I sent myself the pdf so I could review the excursions. I can book excursions at the end of April - will they show up on my "booked cruise" page on the appropriate date or will I have to do something else? (I took one other Regent cruise but booked after the deadline and booking the excursions was easy).

Thanks for the advice!

[Dolebludger]

Just for the information of all, we no longer live in Oklahoma. A little over three years ago, we moved to Durango, Colorado --- a retirement move.

[georg0]

I am mystified by the continual comparing of Oceana and Regent. Both were owned by the same company and now owned as parts of a much larger company. I doubt they are competing with each other for the same customer, but will emphasize different things to attract new customers from elsewhere. I am sure some will have better xy or z and the other will have better a b or c. However the bottom lines will still need to pencil out for each.

[Travelcat2]

I am mystified by the continual comparing of Oceana and Regent. Both were owned by the same company and now owned as parts of a much larger company. I doubt they are competing with each other for the same customer, but will emphasize different things to attract new customers from elsewhere. I am sure some will have better xy or z and the other will have better a b or c. However the bottom lines will still need to pencil out for each.

 

Your post is so refreshing and true. Regent and Oceania are owned by the same company and are definitely not competing. The CEO of both companies (and NCL) has stated repeatedly that Oceania is not a luxury cruise line but people continue to dispute that fact.

 

We have sailed on both cruise lines and agree with CEO, Frank Del Rio. Oceania, while lovely, is not a luxury cruise line (although, part of their newer ships are more luxurious than Regent).

 

Could not agree with you more!

[fizzy]

I am mystified by the continual comparing of Oceana and Regent. Both were owned by the same company and now owned as parts of a much larger company. I doubt they are competing with each other for the same customer, but will emphasize different things to attract new customers from elsewhere. I am sure some will have better xy or z and the other will have better a b or c. However the bottom lines will still need to pencil out for each.

On the same subject it would be interesting to hear from a regent cruiser if they were to try the (now) sister line of NCL and remark on a Haven experience. Although the ships are much bigger and not for everyone, the constantly compared O ships would not be for everyone either because of their size. The Haven is an interesting concept and not inexpensive. The marketing is targeted to those looking for an upscale experience so would clearly be just as valid a comparison.

[Travelcat2]

On the same subject it would be interesting to hear from a regent cruiser if they were to try the (now) sister line of NCL and remark on a Haven experience. Although the ships are much bigger and not for everyone, the constantly compared O ships would not be for everyone either because of their size. The Haven is an interesting concept and not inexpensive. The marketing is targeted to those looking for an upscale experience so would clearly be just as valid a comparison.

 

Do you really think that Regent passengers would care about NCL? I suppose some would (if they sailed with kids or grandkids) but, IMO, after reading the NCL board (which is mind-blowing in many ways), it would take a lot for us to even think of taking an NCL cruise. IMO, comparing Norwegian to Regent is like comparing Carnival to Regent as they are in the same "category". What I do see is NCL passengers graduating to Oceania and ultimately to Regent.

 

Suggest that Regent passengers that want to learn more about NCL, "The Haven", etc. should go to the NCL board. There is tons of information there. You can read about tips being charged on top of tips, how the children's program can handle 1,200 children on a cruise (or not -- some cruises have too many children for the program), what it costs to dine in their restaurants, etc.

Edited March 28, 2015 by Travelcat2

[OctoberKat]

I am mystified by the continual comparing of Oceana and Regent. Both were owned by the same company and now owned as parts of a much larger company. I doubt they are competing with each other for the same customer, but will emphasize different things to attract new customers from elsewhere. I am sure some will have better xy or z and the other will have better a b or c. However the bottom lines will still need to pencil out for each.

 

One reason Oceania and Regent sometimes crop up together is not everyone is convinced Regent is a true luxury line despite tsunamis of marketing to that effect deluging the cruising public. So, Oceania may look tempting in comparison. In my mind, it's not that I think Oceania offers true luxury either but why not get about the same class of service and comfort for somewhat fewer dollars?

 

Whether or not the two lines intend to compete, the reality is, in fact they do as we have seen here on CC from folk who sail both lines or have left one for the other. Indeed, it's not a binary issue; sometimes you want a nut, sometimes you don't. I expect there will be more booking across lines in future.

 

We've seen a couple announcements recently of mass-market lines building new mega ships. As capacity in the new builds comes online and increases marketing efforts on the low end to fill those ships, we may see higher demand in medium-size vessels and more differentiation than exists now.

 

As for NCL's The Haven, I could be interested some day as our needs change. It's an exciting time to be cruising with so many options and itineraries.

 

We're barging Burgundian canals in June. Caribbean/Brazil/Amazon in November on Silversea Whisper; LA-Panama Canal-Ft. Lauderdale March 2016 on Seabourn Odyssey; and again aboard Seabourn on Quest June 2016 Copenhagen/Norwegian fjords.

 

Opinions will and should vary across the spectrum so let's keep it civil.

Edited March 28, 2015 by OctoberKat

[Travelcat2]

Based on comments made for the past few years, it isn't that people aren't sure that Regent is a luxury line but rather, they feel that Oceania is as well. Oceania's two newer ships are quite luxurious, however, as Mr. Del Rio has said repeatedly, Oceania is a luxury-lite or premium plus cruise line while Regent is luxury. From what I have seen in the past couple of years, Regent customers that have tried other cruise lines stayed with luxury lines. Some of us have tried Oceania and, with a few exceptions, either returned to Regent or went on to other luxury lines.

 

In terms of NCL, IMO, it would take a certain type of person that would be happy in a luxury section of a mainstream cruise line. If they left their "area", they would be with 3,000+ mainstream cruise passengers and loads of children. On the other hand, if you want to be treated like you are better than anyone else, that would be the place to be. You get to board separately and are given priority treatment........ the "class system" is clearly in place on these cruise lines.

Edited March 28, 2015 by Travelcat2

[fizzy]

don't know where this term "luxury lite" ever came from but I find it an irritating term. All the travel print ads that exist for O use the word luxury. Cruise critic uses the word luxury. When Del Rio took over the running of NCL, he did not remove the word "luxury" from his product so therefore he must consider his Haven product luxury. Perhaps the word has been so overused as to become watered down. I would prefer that this discussion not devolve into what types of people would or would not want Regent or NCL. I was interested to hear from any Regent cruisers who had experienced the Haven, without being re-educated, and how they felt about this product that is now under del rio's watch. Nothing more. With a much bigger fleet, it is not at all surprising that there would be a great deal of activity on the NCL boards.

[Travelcat2]

fizzy: As mentioned above, there is a ton of information about the Haven Suites on the NCL board. That is where we went to learn more about NCL and what they have to offer. IMO, there is no reason to remove the word "luxury" when advertising a section of a ship that has been built to a different standard than the rest of the ship. In any case, there have been some Regent posters that have commented previously about sailing NCL with their families -- perhaps they will post again.

 

In terms of re-education, isn't that we do on cruise critic every day? Well, it isn't so much re-educating old timers but educating people new to the board. When discussing Oceania and Regent, it can be helpful to know who designated one ship as luxury and not the other. BTW, I like to use the word "premium plus" but when I use that term to describe Oceania, someone corrects me and tells me that it is "luxury lite" -- guess I can't win! As I recall, FDR used premium plus to describe Oceania.

 

Back to the subject....... it will be interesting to see if the type of excursions that Regent provides will change over the next several months. If someone is really interested in this topic, it would be interesting for them to check out NCL excursions and report back.

[fizzy]

fizzy: As mentioned above, there is a ton of information about the Haven Suites on the NCL board. That is where we went to learn more about NCL and what they have to offer. IMO, there is no reason to remove the word "luxury" when advertising a section of a ship that has been built to a different standard than the rest of the ship. In any case, there have been some Regent posters that have commented previously about sailing NCL with their families -- perhaps they will post again.

 

In terms of re-education, isn't that we do on cruise critic every day? Well, it isn't so much re-educating old timers but educating people new to the board. When discussing Oceania and Regent, it can be helpful to know who designated one ship as luxury and not the other. BTW, I like to use the word "premium plus" but when I use that term to describe Oceania, someone corrects me and tells me that it is "luxury lite" -- guess I can't win! As I recall, FDR used premium plus to describe Oceania.

 

Back to the subject....... it will be interesting to see if the type of excursions that Regent provides will change over the next several months. If someone is really interested in this topic, it would be interesting for them to check out NCL excursions and report back.

I think it is absolutely great that everybody here is entitled to their own OPINION!

[Travelcat2]

I think it is absolutely great that everybody here is entitled to their own OPINION!

 

Agree which is why I was puzzled when you suggested what we can talk about and what terms are acceptable on this thread. This is an interesting thread and there have been a lot of opinions about excursions and what people feel may be the affect of NCL, Regent and Oceania being operated under one Vice President (FDR, Jr.), whether cuts at NCL will affect excursions, etc.

 

This may be a good question to ask passengers that are or will be booking excursions 240 days prior to their cruise. Actually, we are booking one late tonight for November. The only change I see is that a very popular excursion has been dropped. We do not know whether it was related to the area the excursion was held (difficult to get to and may have been washed out during the winter) or whether Regent is trying to save $$$ as this was a special included excursion for all guests. As of last night, Oceania has not put their excursions on their website (also 240 days out -- same itinerary). I am not certain whether or not some Oceania passengers can book excursions 240 days out or not.

Edited March 28, 2015 by Travelcat2

[Dolebludger]

Travelcat2,

 

Re: NCL. Next February, there is a music cruise featuring the Moodie Blues on the NCL Pearl, and my wife is talking about dragging me along for it. It is only four nights, but I think I'd rather spend those nights in our county jail (we actually have a pretty nice and uncrowded jail)! Even if we could get "the Haven", which I doubt, I wouldn't want to go. I have researched The Haven, and I am not impressed by what I find. Several mass market lines are working on the "ship within a ship" concept to appeal to lux cruisers like us, usually at a bit lower price. From what I can see, NCL isn't making it.

 

On the other hand, we have cruised in the MSC "Yacht Club" on a music cruise last year and found it pretty good. Separate dining room with open seating, open time. Separate lounge with all beverages included. Tips included. Separate embarkation/disembarkation. Butler. Separate "front desk". All that was lacking (for us) was hot meal room service.

 

The Yacht Club" is a player. The Haven is not -- and The Haven is actually the more expensive of the two.

 

I agree with you that Oceania is not a lux line. One criterial for lux is included beverages. Oceania misses it. Also, the cabins (suites?) on Oceania are too small, unless a category is selected that costs as much as a comparable suite on Regent.

 

It scared me when NCL bought Prestige, including Regent. I feared that some of NCL's practices would spill over. We were on the Mariner a month ago, and there was certainly no evidence of NCL influence onboard. However, in our dealings with Regents "front office" NCL influence" was certainly present.

[cAPS lOCK oN]

Travelcat2,

 

Re: NCL. Next February, there is a music cruise featuring the Moodie Blues on the NCL Pearl, and my wife is talking about dragging me along for it. It is only four nights, but I think I'd rather spend those nights in our county jail (we actually have a pretty nice and uncrowded jail)!

Tell your wife that the Moody Blues are playing this May at Talking Stick, our casino in Scottsdale. Maybe you can drive down here and spend a long weekend instead of the NCL cruise.