Regal Soot Problems circa 2016 -2017

[Rocknie]

I have been investigating the soot problems associated with the aft facing cabins on the Regal. However, the latest information I can find is from 2014 - has the problem been resolved or is it still continuing. Would like to hear from CC's who have sailed within the last year. Thank you for your help.

[reedprincess]

I have been investigating the soot problems associated with the aft facing cabins on the Regal. However, the latest information I can find is from 2014 - has the problem been resolved or is it still continuing. Would like to hear from CC's who have sailed within the last year. Thank you for your help.

 

Sailed in aft suite Oct 2015, no soot problems at all that we noticed. Sat outside numerous times without a towel or anything and clothes were fine, feet weren't blackened, etc. Whether it's been resolved or our ninja room steward kept it immaculate, who knows. But we had no probs..loved it.

[RocketMan275]

We were on Regal in March 15. We noticed small amounts of soot but nothing that was worth bothering about. Soot is very much dependent upon various parameters such as the wind, wind direction, wind speed, ships direction of travel, ships speed, humidity, temperature, etc.

 

We would not hesitate to book another aft suite. In fact, we wouldn't book any other cabin on Regal/Royal since these are the only suites with a balcony worthy of the name.

[Jeremiah On a Cruise]

I've never been on the Regal or Royal, but did a ton of research on the topic over the last few weeks. Here's what I've learned:

 

1- The soot issues do exist, though the frequency and intensity of them seems to have plummeted since 2014-15.

 

2- There are very few major complaints over the last ~2 years about soot.

 

3- Insofar as I can tell, there was never a major "fix" installed. If I had to guess, the engineers have simply learned to consider other factors when making soot-based decisions.

 

4- Virtually all major soot complaints were on the cabins facing the aft. The impact of those issues on other cabins not immediately facing the aft were negligible. Note that I would not book one of these cabins due to the sloping aft design (the level above you can see onto your balcony).

 

5- Soot is a fact of life in the aft. And while the Regal/Royal get a lot of press about it, it can be a factor on virtually all ships.

 

6- I've heard that Princess takes care of those who complain about soot.

 

7- I seem to recall reading an account that basically said the soot issues on the Royal/Regal occurred when an alternate (non-stack) exhaust was used.

 

8- The issue was always more documented on the Royal than on the Regal. The issue did impact the Regal, but the majority of the horror cases were from the Royal.

 

In short, the soot seems to be only a minor and infrequent issue as of today. However, if soot is going to bother you (and it would bother me), I wouldn't book immediate aft cabins.

[cheeseclan]

We were on the Regal for the May 23, 2016 Baltic cruise in D726. Never had any soot whatsoever. It was an awesome cabin!

[decamp303]

We were on the Regal June 3 - 14, earlier this month. We had cabin B735 and our friends were in B734. Neither of us experienced any soot to speak of.

[Poulsbo Cruisers]

We were on the Regal for a Baltic cruise last July. We had a premium deluxe balcony cabin (D730). We loved it and never had a problem with soot. We would book it again.