Free unlimited valet laundry on 2018 mediterranean voyages

[Travelcat2]

And then there are people like us who will be sailing on the Voyager for 34 days with NO valet laundry service included in our cruise fare. So where does this all start and stop.

 

I do agree with the suggestion that Regent include more of a pricing perk for loyal Seven Seas Society members vs these other amenities that are give aways.

 

I do feel sorry for the laundry staff onboard as there will no doubt be a lot of extra work for them. And of course if Regent has to staff up to deal with the extra demand, won’t we all end up paying for it in the end....

 

 

Sent from my iPad using Forums

 

The good news is that if you keep sailing Regent for 34 days at a time, you will reach Gold level quickly (and will have 1 bag of laundry per week.

 

While I agree that we all end up paying for in the end, Regent cannot staff up to deal with the extra demand because, unless something has changed, there is no room for more crew members. If I recall correctly, Regent built more crew cabins a few years ago to accommodate more crew. They also use passenger suites for some crew members which takes revenue away from Regent.

 

We will try to avoid cruises where laundry is included because, after many years of sailing on Regent, we are used to not only having laundry service included but one day turnaround. With up to 750 passengers onboard, I cannot imagine how this would/will slow down service.

 

I am really trying to figure out what is going on with Regent right now. It reminds me a bit of when PCH (Prestige Cruise Holdings) purchased Regent and appeared to not understand luxury cruisers. It had been a couple of years since NCLH purchased Regent and things were better than before....... until now. Now it seems that new policies are creeping in ....... ones that indicate that loyal customers no longer are appreciated as much as they once were.

[Johnthesailor]

I too am a bit dismayed at some of the actions Regent has implementented recently. I can understand priority boarding if it is discrete and I can understand giving free laundry as a promotion but not at the expense of degrading the timeliness of the service and not when it makes a hard earned loyalty benefit now of no incremental value. Maybe these are necessary changes but I find that hard to believe. I dislike the thought of trying other cruise lines after accruing a fairly high level of loyalty benefits but if those benefits are being devalued (as they seem to be), maybe there is little reason not to try other lines. While tthey are not perfect, I've liked Regent but I read pretty good reports of some of the other luxury lines. We have three booked Regent cruises but we may begin looking for a substitute for one of them since none are unique. Maybe we will find that the Regent product is still better than others (or maybe not) but it is unfortunate that they seem to be telling us that loyalty is not valued and thus we should try others. A shame really.

[mrlevin]

I too am a bit dismayed at some of the actions Regent has implementented recently. I can understand priority boarding if it is discrete and I can understand giving free laundry as a promotion but not at the expense of degrading the timeliness of the service and not when it makes a hard earned loyalty benefit now of no incremental value.

 

Who said it would degrade the experience for the rest of us? Laundry for seven or twelve day voyage is no big deal; I bet it won't hurt the time for our laundry. In fact, laundry today usually arrives faster than prescribed times; do I plan on it? No. As long as it makes it back by promised time I am fine.

 

As for boarding; there are so few big suites that I can't imagine this holding the rest of us up more than a minute or two. In fact, I am sure today there is already a "special" boarding process for those that like to avoid publicity; this is just adding a few more people.

 

I often disagree with Regent front office decisions; however, this laundry looks like an experiment and Regent has not committed to offering this on all cruises; let's see how this experiment works.

 

Marc

[xrvlcruiser]

Laundry was a perk on the '17WC for all Full Cruisers - close to 300 people. There was no difference in service on that cruise than on any other for the time it took to get our laundry/cleaning/pressing returned.

Peggy

[poss]

Marq mentions "laundry for seven or twelve day voyage." Am I correct that (on non-Med cruises) Gold receives same (i.e. just the one bag) whether it's 7 or 12 days?

[Travelcat2]

Marq mentions "laundry for seven or twelve day voyage." Am I correct that (on non-Med cruises) Gold receives same (i.e. just the one bag) whether it's 7 or 12 days?

 

Yes poss, that is correct. You get one bag per week. Had it been a 14 night cruise, it would have been two bags.

[journeyfan]

I'll be Platinum on my next cruise, scheduled for May 2018. It's taken me many years to earn my right to free laundry. I'll be most upset if that perk is now extended to everyone. If all passengers were to get free laundry, the turn-around times would be significantly longer than they currently are. It might take a week to get your laundry back. Ugh!

[Travelcat2]

+1 - sometimes it takes someone that has spent time to earn the benefit to understand the effect of this "promotion"!

[taxare]

First of all for those who celebrate Christmas, I wish each of you a very Merry Christmas and all a Happy and Healthy New Year!!! I have been a frequent traveler for many years and the perks from a particular travel provider have been very important to me as it makes traveling several days a week easier. We will be gold on our next cruise. We generally have cruised around 14-17 days a year. If included laundry becomes standard we will get no benefit from the gold level as we were grandfathered with included wi-fi for both of us. So from 21 days as silver to 200 days as platinum there would be no additional perks for us. If the SSS perks are supposed to offer incentives, they wouldn’t for us.

[TravelnAl]

Actually, the promotion is much better than Gold. On my upcoming back to back of 9 & 12 nights, I would get two bags of laundry. For the same situation under this promotion, a cabin would get around nineteen bags. That stings.

[journeyfan]

There is a huge difference between the free bag(s) of laundry you get with Gold vs the free laundry with Platinum. With Gold, your laundry is only washed and folded..... no ironing so it's mainly useful only for laundering underwear. With Platinum, you get ironing as well as washing and the ironed clothes come back on hangers.

[Travelcat2]

There is a huge difference between the free bag(s) of laundry you get with Gold vs the free laundry with Platinum. With Gold, your laundry is only washed and folded..... no ironing so it's mainly useful only for laundering underwear. With Platinum, you get ironing as well as washing and the ironed clothes come back on hangers.

 

My friends on our cruise earlier this month are Gold and said that their bag of laundry came back ironed (not sure if they were on hangers). Maybe someone else can chime in but I hope that you are right. The "promotion" is advertising the same level of service that Platinum and above receive. Still can't wrap my head around this.

[poss]

Definitely ironed. And shirts on hangar, as I'd requested.

(This was last summer on Voyager.)

[IndiTravler]

Definitely ironed. And shirts on hangar, as I'd requested.

(This was last summer on Voyager.)

 

 

As a first time as gold in May, I'll confirm, the one bag came back pressed and either folded or on hangers as you requested.

[doc47]

I reached Plat on the Dec. 9th Explorer cruise in the Caribbean. While I am a bit annoyed at seeing the perks diluted, I think it is important that the programs are always re-evaluated-and creatively so. Just off the top of my head: a premium bottle of wine per week (or premium liquor), priority laundry, priority offers for suite upgrades, etc. Also, I'd love to see some sort of plan where we could "crossover" to Oceania and still accumulate days, or at least not have to start at the bottom rung.

[Travelcat2]

Regent and Oceania looked at crossover benefits and, fortunately, it was not doable. After all, the two programs have no similarities. One is based on nights and the other is based on cruises. And, while Regent has different fares for suites, Oceania's staterooms (particularly their inside suites - something that no luxury cruise line has) are considerably less money than on Oceania. I have ask this and I'm not asking sarcastically....... why do people keep bringing up Oceania on the Regent board?

 

In terms of what would be acceptable as a replacement for included laundry. For us, a bottle of premium wine is of no interest whatsoever although it may be for others. Most of us get on board credits that easily pay for premium wines if that is how one wishes to spend them. Upsells are becoming rare and only work if you happen to be in a suite that someone else wants. It is not a benefit available on every cruise. Priority laundry -- hmmmm, I would have thought that higher Seven Seas Society members would automatically receive this.

 

Perhaps Regent could send an email to all Gold and above Seven Seas Society members asking for ideas to take the place of the diluted internet and laundry services. IMO, this is the only way to guarantee that Regent is hearing from affected customers.

[flossie009]

Seasons Greetings to all Regent cruisers; whether past, present, future or prospective future :bottle-pop:

 

Just thought I would chime in to say that the offer noted in the original post on this thread is not universal.

Unless someone knows otherwise, I do not believe that the 'unlimited laundry for Mediterranean voyages' offer is being extended to those of us who live in the UK.

 

So this is just one of the range of enticements that Regent marketing use in various parts of the world at various times to encourage guests onto cruises that are not selling as well as they might. For example, in the UK some of the Explorer 2018 Med voyages have been discounted to a very reasonable rate.

 

As far as SSS benefits are concerned, we are very happy with the Platinum benefits that we receive. However, I know that Jason O'Keefe is always very interested in hearing from guests with suggestions for new/alternative SSS benefits at the various levels.

[Johnthesailor]

Flossie,

 

Welcome back to you both. We have missed your input (from both of you). Hope you will stay.

[liptastic]

Flossie welcome back. You have been sorely missed here on this board. Also hope you are back to stay put!

Best wishes Jean. :)

[Travelcat2]

Very disappointing to learn that the included laundry has been extended. It will be interesting to watch as Regent goes down this path. OTOH, I understand trying to sell the Med. to people in the U.K. since it requires minimal airfare. As most of us remember, Regent has done things to entice people in the U.K previously - by lowering prices. I also understand that Regent is trying to get people to book cruises in these areas without lowering prices since when you lower prices too much you get new customers that may not be able to afford a Regent cruise at the regular fare and therefore are not likely candidates to become long term cruisers.

 

The issue that I have a problem with is obviously giving away earned benefits. I'd rather see Regent give away on board credits or a Regent Choice excursion. There are other options. IMO, this was not the best one to devalue.

[Focused1]

Very disappointing to learn that the included laundry has been extended. It will be interesting to watch as Regent goes down this path. OTOH, I understand trying to sell the Med. to people in the U.K. since it requires minimal airfare. As most of us remember, Regent has done things to entice people in the U.K previously - by lowering prices. I also understand that Regent is trying to get people to book cruises in these areas without lowering prices since when you lower prices too much you get new customers that may not be able to afford a Regent cruise at the regular fare and therefore are not likely candidates to become long term cruisers.

 

Actually, the marketing ploy attracts new customers from a variety of socioeconomic backgrounds. Don’t assume that all new customers attracted by lower prices and additional perquisites can’t afford regular prices if they have a good experience on their initial cruise. Haven’t you ever purchased an item or service at a “special” price and continued to purchase it due to a positive experience.

[Dolebludger]

There is no reason why Regent couldn't offer a flat rate laundry package at less than the per piece price total to all without degrading the benefits of the upper tier SSS members. Other lines have this. But isn't the real problem here Regent's high fares, poor, non-upgradable included domestic air, skimpy credit for booking your own air, and the overall high resulting price of a Regent Cruise? In other words the total cost of the cruise?

[Travelcat2]

There is no reason why Regent couldn't offer a flat rate at less than the per piece package to all without degrading the benefits of the upper tier SSS members. Other lines have this.

 

What other luxury lines have a flat rate for laundry? Just curious and it would be good for other luxury cruisers to know.

[BBfromCA]

Holland America offers unlimited packages. Last I heard, it was $7 a day for North America/Caribbean cruises and $9 for European cruises.

[Dolebludger]

TC2, I personally know Paul Gauguin has a laundry package, and MSC has it in their Yacht Club class. Those who have never cruised in an MSC Yacht Club are in for a pleasant surprise. About everything Regent offers except included excursions at a fraction of the price. Also I personally know Scenic River Cruises offer included, unlimited laundry in their suite class. I am not including lines I have merely heard about -- only ones I have experienced.