How Can Regent Corporate Improve???

[LoonCall]

I retract my comments about automobiles - I seem to get in trouble every time I bring that subject up.

 

IMO, Radisson/Regent under private ownership was not only due to international uncertainty as much as it was due to mismanagement. As the CEO of the company that purchased them has said, the ships had threadbare towels and other soft goods and the ships had not been refurbished in a timely manner.

 

I do respect your opinions but strongly disagree with them. IMO, we need to be in the "now" - not in the past and not even in the future. Also, IMO, you sound very frustrated with Regent and seem to prefer other cruise lines which is your right. However, comparing non-luxury cruise lines with Regent is difficult to grasp sometimes. I know that some mainstream and premium cruise lines may have certain things that are better than Regent but that doesn't mean that luxury cruisers would want to sail on them.

 

I do not believe that Regent is going to change their policy regarding reimbursement to passengers that have already booked a cruise that has since had a price reduction unless they booked onboard (and I agree with this policy). I also do not believe that Regent will start offering Business Class/First Class flights to their passengers that are going across the country (the U.S. and Canada). And, no matter how much I'd like to see it, I do not believe that people that do not like included excursions will get a credit for opting out. This is my reality.

 

Without rereading this entire thread, it seems that the biggest issues from Regent customers is communication between the ship and corporate as well as miscommunication from Customer Service to customers. Then there is their website which has improved somewhat but is not where it should be (IMHO). The internet issue also remains. Ever since Regent mistakenly (IMO) gave everyone included internet, it has been slower than it has ever been (most of the time). And, my personal issue with Corporate is the included laundry for everyone.

 

Last, posting about the same subject over and over doesn't seem to change anything (I should know since I post so much). Must say that I try not to bring up the same subjects unless/until someone else mentions them. I am not always successful!

 

"And, my personal issue with Corporate is the included laundry for everyone. "

 

Did I miss something? I thought the included laundry was a promotion on a select number (29) of Med cruises.

[liptastic]

LoonCall you are correct. The included laundry is a promotional offer on selected cruises for a limited time. Jean.

[LoonCall]

LoonCall you are correct. The included laundry is a promotional offer on selected cruises for a limited time. Jean.

Thanks for the confirm.

[UUNetBill]

IMO, Regent moving to 'all-business class' airfare has created an obnoxious price hike. I preferred the option of upgrading, if the price was realistic.

 

We feel blessed and thankful to even have the opportunity to entertain the idea/reality that we can go on these cruises. However, after the "included" business class policy change we have switched to Silversea. It has offered the same care and service we loved with Regent. We still upgrade to business class and the pricing is still way below Regent on comparable destinations.

 

I, personally, think the luxury cruise industry is changing also because of young, successful professionals in their 30's/40's who want to enjoy the luxury experience.

I may need to check again, as I always seem to come up pretty close price-wise when I compare the Big Four. Some sailings are more, some are less, but they’re all pretty similar in my experience. Of course, you need to factor in excursions, tips, transfers, alcohol, specialty restaurants, etc. to get a realistic comparison.

 

Also, I believe you can request economy seats as well as taking the air credit. I don’t think either of those approaches are economically sound on a lot of sailings, as the air credit can apparently vary greatly.

[Kiwifromkiev]

 

Itineraries are over 14 nights. The passenger mix age wise is from the 30's - 80's with around 75% repeat customers and 25% newbies. Passengers are active - polite - well traveled and are a happy - easy to approach group. They do not hog chairs by the pool nor would they climb under/over the ropes that were meant to keep them out of the boarding area. They understand and follow the dress code. This is how almost all of our cruises are now that we have learned which areas and months to avoid.

 

I like the sound of this! :)

[Kiwifromkiev]

IMO, Regent moving to 'all-business class' airfare has created an obnoxious price hike. I preferred the option of upgrading, if the price was realistic.

 

We feel blessed and thankful to even have the opportunity to entertain the idea/reality that we can go on these cruises. However, after the "included" business class policy change we have switched to Silversea. It has offered the same care and service we loved with Regent. We still upgrade to business class and the pricing is still way below Regent on comparable destinations.

 

I, personally, think the luxury cruise industry is changing also because of young, successful professionals in their 30's/40's who want to enjoy the luxury experience.

I am surprised - Silversea appears to be more expensive to us. Mind you, we in NZ don't have air fares included so I am comparing cruises only

[fizzy]

I have some thoughts in relation to Travelcat2s question. We have so often been told that Regent carefully monitors all of the posts on CC, so I wish their verified CC rep would occasionally intervene when a thread gets out of hand or contentious and simply clarify the exact company policy on what is being battled about. The discussion would not have to stop but the official line would be known and then people could voice their opinions about what actually is a corporate fact.

[Travelcat2]

I have some thoughts in relation to Travelcat2s question. We have so often been told that Regent carefully monitors all of the posts on CC, so I wish their verified CC rep would occasionally intervene when a thread gets out of hand or contentious and simply clarify the exact company policy on what is being battled about. The discussion would not have to stop but the official line would be known and then people could voice their opinions about what actually is a corporate fact.

 

Really wish that this thread had remained dead and buried. However, if I were Regent Corporate (and they do not have a dedicated person for CC) I wouldn't get into the fray either. In my opinion, they do not owe us an explanation for every single thing that they decide to do (promotions, etc.). They read the posts and probably understand that this represents about 5% of Regent guests (and some posters have not sailed on Regent for a long time so their information is not up to date). The other 95% of Regent guests communicate with Regent through onboard questionnaires. At least they know that the person(s) writing the review/comments are actually sailing on Regent.

 

So, if you want to be heard, fill out your questionnaires.

[fizzy]

Really wish that this thread had remained dead and buried. However, if I were Regent Corporate (and they do not have a dedicated person for CC) I wouldn't get into the fray either. In my opinion, they do not owe us an explanation for every single thing that they decide to do (promotions, etc.). They read the posts and probably understand that this represents about 5% of Regent guests (and some posters have not sailed on Regent for a long time so their information is not up to date). The other 95% of Regent guests communicate with Regent through onboard questionnaires. At least they know that the person(s) writing the review/comments are actually sailing on Regent.

 

So, if you want to be heard, fill out your questionnaires.

What an odd response. What if someone is not currently ON a cruise making them unable to answer a mid cruise comment card? What if they are trying to learn from someone who is actually an official if, for instance, an abhorrent boarding policy is really in place?................Who, in your opinion, is the Regent Seven Seas, verified account, Cruise Critic poster who seems to have their name tied to company information? If you are the official spokeswoman for all things Regent, then I apologize.Why would you wish that your own thread was dead and buried?

[Travelcat2]

What an odd response. What if someone is not currently ON a cruise making them unable to answer a mid cruise comment card? What if they are trying to learn from someone who is actually an official if, for instance, an abhorrent boarding policy is really in place?................Who, in your opinion, is the Regent Seven Seas, verified account, Cruise Critic poster who seems to have their name tied to company information? If you are the official spokeswoman for all things Regent, then I apologize.Why would you wish that your own thread was dead and buried?

 

When someone is actually on a ship is the time to make comments and/or ask questions. When off the ship, that is what your experienced TA is for.

 

In terms of who is official/verified account at Regent, if they wanted us to know, they would tell us.

 

When a thread becomes argumentative, it is best to go forward to a new thread or subject rather than going backwards. JMO.

[fizzy]

[quote name=Travelcat2;55672902

 

In terms of who is official/verified account at Regent' date=' if they wanted us to know, they would tell us.

.[/quote]

I'm quite sure you know that I wasn't asking for the person's legal name. I was pointing out that there actually is such a Regent rep on this board. Perhaps you had forgotten while insisting that there was not one. If I'm not mistaken, I believe that Foregap had asked a similar question on a current thread so maybe others are confused also,

[LoonCall]

I have some thoughts in relation to Travelcat2s question. We have so often been told that Regent carefully monitors all of the posts on CC, so I wish their verified CC rep would occasionally intervene when a thread gets out of hand or contentious and simply clarify the exact company policy on what is being battled about. The discussion would not have to stop but the official line would be known and then people could voice their opinions about what actually is a corporate fact.

Good idea, fizzy.

It would be great if Regent had one person who monitored this forum and other social media. It’s fairly common these days that corporations have a person dedicated to following twitter, Facebook posts and other media. When questions arose it would be helpful to have accurate information from the source rather than relying on conjecture and assumptions from customers .

I know Jason O’Keefe has been kind enough to post information in the past which has been beneficial but doubt that he has a whole lot of time to dedicate to CC.

[ronrick1943]

Your right, United has one on for FF-I'm sure other companies do the same. It would be nice to have an official person from Regent on this Board to help get it "right" when you have an over zealous poster giving wrong and or miss guided information regarding Regent. It seems like some people try to post on every post many times to argue their position.

[Travelcat2]

Your right, United has one on for FF-I'm sure other companies do the same. It would be nice to have an official person from Regent on this Board to help get it "right" when you have an over zealous poster giving wrong and or miss guided information regarding Regent. It seems like some people try to post on every post many times to argue their position.

 

Would you care to elaborate? Some posters, like myself Wes and a couple of others post information that we have learned onboard the ships and/or from Regent corporate. Sometimes General Managers give information which they believe is correct (speaking to communication between corporate and the ships) but it ends up not being true. In the interim, some of us have posted the information in an attempt to help posters on the Regent board. Most of the posters on this board are appreciative of our efforts.

 

Back to the topic..... United Airlines?????? Regent is a teeny tiny company compared to United so I don’t understand how comparisons can be made. Regent does have a customer service number that one can call to ask questions. And, as mentioned, many of our TA’s are a wealth of information about Regent.

 

Maybe we can discuss topics - whether we agree or disagree with opinions and not bash other posters? Just a thought.

[ronrick1943]

Sure it would be easy, every company small a or large have a PR department--it's always better to get facts direct from a company--other wise it's only hear say---sometimes it's right, other times it's wrong. And one should remember only someone from the company can and should speak for the company. People can give their opinions/information to others---but not policy unless it's a fact written someplace that can back up what is stated. I've gotten a lot of good information from this Board about my trips--however when I need real time policy/facts I call my TA or Regent. If Regent had a person on this Board reviewing, how great would that be. Yes, get it right before it gets into you said, he said, she said and so on. Just my opinion, and I give my opinion from time to time-I don't bash like some. I sometimes end my post with Regent knows what they are doing and have the people can do it right and correct the wrong. Rick

[Boatmans Lady]

I have read this whole thread with interest and as I have not yet sailed on Regent, I can only comment as a UK cruiser to be and my experiences with my booking.

 

Firstly, embarkation. I know that some cruise lines in England allocate boarding times. Perhaps this would work for ports like Miami, then you wouldn't have everyone turning up at the same time. After all from what I read on here, you are allocated [request] a disembarkation time.

 

Secondly, including our enforced pre cruise stay and the two whole days travelling to get home, our cruise is 25 days and even with upgrading to business class [no automatic business class for UK clientele] we only have one piece of luggage at 23kgs each and to add extra bags is $100 a bag!! If we had been routed on BA we would have had 2 bags each at 23kgs. I see careful packing ahead, as compared with other airlines over here, $100 a bag is a rip off.

 

Which leads me to laundry. Whilst I don't mind doing some laundry, I don't want to spend hours doing it, so why can't the longer cruises include a bag of laundry [even limit it to say 20 items] for cruises over 14 nights. I will say I have no idea of Regents prices, but our recent cruise had a special offer for laundry halfway through our cruise.

 

The only other comment I can make, is the updating of your forthcoming cruise on Regent's website. Despite us being notified of our flights for almost a month now and us choosing our seats, these still don't appear on our itinerary. The section for flights, still says TBD.

Edited March 29, 2018 by Boatmans Lady
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[Travelcat2]

I have read this whole thread with interest and as I have not yet sailed on Regent, I can only comment as a UK cruiser to be and my experiences with my booking.

 

Firstly, embarkation. I know that some cruise lines in England allocate boarding times. Perhaps this would work for ports like Miami, then you wouldn't have everyone turning up at the same time. After all from what I read on here, you are allocated [request] a disembarkation time.

 

Secondly, including our enforced pre cruise stay and the two whole days travelling to get home, our cruise is 25 days and even with upgrading to business class [no automatic business class for UK clientele] we only have one piece of luggage at 23kgs each and to add extra bags is $100 a bag!! If we had been routed on BA we would have had 2 bags each at 23kgs. I see careful packing ahead, as compared with other airlines over here, $100 a bag is a rip off.

 

Which leads me to laundry. Whilst I don't mind doing some laundry, I don't want to spend hours doing it, so why can't the longer cruises include a bag of laundry [even limit it to say 20 items] for cruises over 14 nights. I will say I have no idea of Regents prices, but our recent cruise had a special offer for laundry halfway through our cruise.

 

The only other comment I can make, is the updating of your forthcoming cruise on Regent's website. Despite us being notified of our flights for almost a month now and us choosing our seats, these still don't appear on our itinerary. The section for flights, still says TBD.

 

Hi Boatsman Lady - while I agree with some of your sentiments, the airline issue is not within the control of Regent -- it is solely at the discretion of the airline that Regent selects (or, if you deviate, you can select your own Regent contracted airline which includes BA).

 

We are currently on the Voyager. Below is a sample of the cost to have your clothing laundered and pressed:

 

Men's polo shirt - $4.95

Men's dress shirt - $5.95

Men's Slacks/trousers - $8.95

T-Shirt - $3.95

Bermuda shorts - $4.95

 

Women's blouse - $7.95

Women's jeans - $7.95

Casual dress - $14.95

Pajamas/Nightgown - $7.95

Swimsuit - $4.95

 

So, would $50/bag be fair? After all, in order to get one bag of laundry done for Gold Seven Seas Society members requires quite a few nights on Regent. Even 20 items - if they were mens shirt and blouses would normally cost about $140. To give it away at a small price doesn't seem fair - especially when free do it yourself laundry is available to all guests.

 

In terms of embarkation - I respectfully do not know where Regent or some posters are coming from. The absolute maximum number of passengers waiting to board at noon in our 31 cruises has been around 60. This number of passengers can be processed fairly quickly. A key to shorter embarkation lines is not to take the bus from the hotel but to take a cab (assuming that it is not too far). We do this all of the time - even if we are in a Master suite.. In Bali (where we embarked last week) we were boarding at 11:50 a.m. - no special lines - just a handful of of people.

 

In my strong opinion, Regent has caused more grief with this special pre-boarding policy than if they had left well enough alone. There simply aren't enough passengers on Regent to necessitate special boarding (or segmented boarding).

 

Hope that this helps a bit.

[fizzy]

Hi Boatsman Lady - while I agree with some of your sentiments, the airline issue is not within the control of Regent -- it is solely at the discretion of the airline that Regent selects.

What in the world does this mean?

[flossie009]

Secondly, including our enforced pre cruise stay and the two whole days travelling to get home, our cruise is 25 days and even with upgrading to business class [no automatic business class for UK clientele] we only have one piece of luggage at 23kgs each and to add extra bags is $100 a bag!! If we had been routed on BA we would have had 2 bags each at 23kgs. I see careful packing ahead, as compared with other airlines over here, $100 a bag is a rip off.

Out of interest, what airline and routing did Regent UK put you on, and how much extra did they want to put you on a BA flight?

With BA Business Class you would have been entitled to 2x32kg each.

 

Anyway, hope you have a good cruise despite the initial difficulties.

[Boatmans Lady]

Out of interest, what airline and routing did Regent UK put you on, and how much extra did they want to put you on a BA flight?

With BA Business Class you would have been entitled to 2x32kg each.

 

Anyway, hope you have a good cruise despite the initial difficulties.

 

We have been routed Heathrow to LA direct with United, then Air Tahiti to LA (but cannot access this flight as our TA says it is a Regent charter and even business class isn't confirmed yet) then LA to Heathrow with United. The two flights with BA were coming up around £2500 each extra.

 

Please don't get me wrong as none of these are problems, we are very much go with the flow people and I'd rather travel economy than not do the trip.

We are both really looking forward to our first cruise with Regent and are well aware that what is a minor inconvenience or minor problem to us, could be a major problem to someone else.

 

As you have all been patient with me, answering my sometimes trivial questions and have made me very welcome, once we have had our cruise I'll do a post on about our observations on our first cruise with Regent.

[Kiwifromkiev]

What in the world does this mean?

 

 

 

I believe TC was saying that a number of bags, cost for extra bags etc has nothing to do with Regent - it is an airline’s matters.

 

 

Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

[fizzy]

My suggestion for how Regent corporate could improve would be that they should read the CC threads devoted to Regent topics by supposedly valued customers who are trying to communicate in real time vs. only on board comment cards. There is clearly a frustration level with this company that they are choosing to ignore.

[Travelcat2]

My suggestion for how Regent corporate could improve would be that they should read the CC threads devoted to Regent topics by supposedly valued customers who are trying to communicate in real time vs. only on board comment cards. There is clearly a frustration level with this company that they are choosing to ignore.

 

Given the fact that we do not use real names, how is Regent suppose to determine who "supposedly valued customers" are vs. posters visiting the Regent board from another cruise line. We are anonymous. For all Regent knows, advertisers for a competing cruise line could be posting on the Regent board. From what I can see, all long term valued customers regularly cruise with Regent and therefore have the opportunity to fill out questionnaires.

[Anchorbuoy]

Given the fact that we do not use real names, how is Regent suppose to determine who "supposedly valued customers" are vs. posters visiting the Regent board from another cruise line. We are anonymous. For all Regent knows, advertisers for a competing cruise line could be posting on the Regent board. From what I can see, all long term valued customers regularly cruise with Regent and therefore have the opportunity to fill out questionnaires.

 

One way is to sign up for a Meet and Mingle.

Via CC, you give Regent your real name, booking number, and CC identity.

[nigelc]

Hi Boatsman Lady - while I agree with some of your sentiments, the airline issue is not within the control of Regent -- it is solely at the discretion of the airline that Regent selects.

 

 

Er ...... How is it not in Regents control if they select the airline? In nearly every case, there is a number of airlines Regent could use. As I have said in a previous "thread", it sometimes appears that Regent use certain airlines so that customers will pay extra to change airlines so that they get a direct (non-stop) flight or higher baggage allowance.