Excursions (again) but with a different focus.......

[Travelcat2]

There is a current thread that is discussing issues with excursions. I asked the TS to start a thread and they indicated that they would start one "later". However, since they are on a cruise, I'm starting it as I am not one to wait around for things to happen.

 

So, for anyone that could have missed my view of "included excursions" in general, I have been quite vocal against them since they were implemented and have asked for a opt out option. However, this is not the focus of this thread. Rather, this is about safety of buses/vans used by tour companies, the handling of excursions by Destination Services before you leave the ship to go to the bus/van/boat and whether it is necessary to have Regent Representatives on each bus.

 

First, my views......

 

1. We rarely have Regent Representatives on excursions. When we do, they are generally members of the cast (singers and dancers). In my opinion, the main reason to have a Regent Representative onboard is in case of an emergency and/or if it is necessary to reach someone on the ship. As of now, I have no idea if these "representatives" have the ability to contact the ship. We have had the Manager of Destination Services on two excursions but her only interest was eating (on a very expensive Regent Choice excursion) and hanging out with the tour guide . Very little interaction or interest in the passengers. Someone does need to check out the quality and safety of these excursions on a regular basis.

 

2. How many different ways can pre-excursions be handled? I ask this as it is typically different every time we are on a Regent ship. The best we have seem was in Alaska where most tours met onshore rather than in the theater. The rest of the time there are various ways that they are handled in the theater.

 

Sometimes you can check in on time and receive a bus ticket and are asked to wait until your bus number is called. The problem here is that people leave before the bus number is called and often remove the handicapped placeholders on the seat and take the front seat (which is another whole conversation). Other than that, this is the most efficient way that I've seen it managed.

 

Too many times, you walk in the theater, go up to the desk only to be told to sit down. So, you sit and watch 100+ people do the same thing (walk up to the desk and then sit down). By the time your excursion is called (same time as the bus is ready) there is a mad dash to get in line (while others that have not yet been called) are hanging out by the desk. Some passengers are in one line while others cut in from the left or right of the desk. In other words, a total mess.

 

2. Safety. I do understand that there are several places in the world where they do not have newer buses/vans or even vehicles with operating air conditioning. Passenger are given information about this issue prior to taking an excursion. The question is how safe these vehicles are and how Regent can monitor them. Obviously, an ugly, even rusty in places bus can be perfectly safe (we were in one in the Amazon and it was fine - despite the issues).

 

This brings up the fact that Regent visits "over 300" ports. If they offered five excursions in each port, that would be 1,500 excursions. While they use the same tour company in many places, most times the transportation is local and can change from day to day (depending upon how many other ships are in port that also utilize the same company). So, while I strongly agree that the tour operators, vehicles, tour guides and drivers need to be thoroughly checked out, I'm not sure how Regent can do this unless they had a full time person circling the world all the time and visiting the 300+ ports. Even then, if a vehicle is being fixed, how does Regent know what it is being replaced with?

 

These issues have been ongoing since "included excursions" were first introduced. I truly do not see how Regent can handle excursions for up to 2,600 passengers almost every day and do it in a way that would be considered "luxury".

 

So, this isn't "my thread" and there are no rules (other than CC's rules). Every opinion is welcome. My personal hope is that there will be suggestions instead of simply complaints since that is what is really needed (In my opinion).

 

While there may be some debate, from my end, I'll keep them to a minimum.

[Onkel_Ken]

Travelcat2,

 

Thank you for bringing this issue to the forum's attention. Some folks like myself have been to the Caribbean multiple times and would most likely plan to stay on the ship if we took that route. Included excursions simply add cost to a cruise no matter how you look at it. Being "Free" allows a cruise line to minimize quality since it was "free" however if you take a luxury cruise you would expect the excursion to be special if not somewhat luxurious.

 

The fact is that luxury costs! But knowing that, one is prepared and expect luxury when on a luxury cruise. Better to pay an appropriate price for an excursion than sweat in a crowded un-airconditioned bus driven by who knows who with a guide when neither one understand what luxury travel should be like.

 

As always, we can depend on you to provide a honest opinion on how Regent can improve their cruises not only for experienced Regent travelers like yourself and Dennis but for those of us that are considering taking the Regent plunge!

Edited May 1, 2018 by Onkel_Ken

[Kiwifromkiev]

I am not sure I quite follow your sentiment - how would any of these issues (safety, organization etc) be different if excursions were not included? Even if you book separately (independent tours) you kind of rely on trust, and even more so if you pay for an excursion through a cruise line? ....

 

 

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[RustyRollock]

If we choose to visit third world countries, which many of these destinations are, with first world expectations like, say, a bus with aircon, then prepare to be disappointed. That's not to say that we should be driven around in a rusty death trap with minimal brakes and rusty holes in the floor which I'm pretty sure was being used as a henhouse the night before (a tour in Tonga springs to mind) but one has to make allowances, sometimes a lot of them.

 

Perhaps if tours were optional extras then Regent could be more selective and offer more specialised tours to specific museums, nature reserves, historic monuments, hikes, etc rather than the current more generic offerings so people almost feel obliged to book something, anything, because they've already paid for it and want "value for money".

[flossie009]

Travelcat2,

 

Thank you for bringing this issue to the forum's attention. Some folks like myself have been to the Caribbean multiple times and would most likely plan to stay on the ship if we took that route. Included excursions simply add cost to a cruise no matter how you look at it. Being "Free" allows a cruise line to minimize quality since it was "free" however if you take a luxury cruise you would expect the excursion to be special if not somewhat luxurious.

 

The fact is that luxury costs! But knowing that, one is prepared and expect luxury when on a luxury cruise. Better to pay an appropriate price for an excursion than sweat in a crowded un-airconditioned bus driven by who knows who with a guide when neither one understand what luxury travel should be like.

 

As always, we can depend on you to provide a honest opinion on how Regent can improve their cruises not only for experienced Regent travelers like yourself and Dennis but for those of us that are considering taking the Regent plunge!

It is sad that the included excursions don't match even in a little way the luxury setting of the cruise itself. Hopefully input from Regent cruisers will prompt Regent to take more effort in making the included excursions somewhat better than have been reported recently.

Ken,

Perhaps you could help this debate by giving some examples of the Regent included excursions you have been on that did not meet your expectations.

 

In your opinion, what qualifies as a “special” or “luxury” excursion experience?

Has Regent, or any other cruise line, met your obviously high expectations in this regard?

[wishIweretravelling]

I am not sure I quite follow your sentiment - how would any of these issues (safety, organization etc) be different if excursions were not included? Even if you book separately (independent tours) you kind of rely on trust, and even more so if you pay for an excursion through a cruise line? ....

 

 

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I agree. The pay-extra excursions that I've taken on Crystal are indistinguishable from the ones (included and premium) that I've taken on Regent. Except that the boarding of the tours seems better organized on Regent.

 

On both, there's a problem every so often. And, yes, sometimes a serious one. On Crystal, an apology for a serious problem came with a refund for the tour. On Regent, it came as an OBC.

[papaflamingo]

One of Regent's problems is that they tend to cruise to places once or so, i.e. the World Cruises. Alaska is different as there are a great number of Alaska cruises every year, Regent included. In some of these ports, tours are very limited. In some, they are committed to cruiselines that call on the port every week or so. It would be interesting to find out how Regent researches the tour companies they use in ports that they don't frequently call upon. I highly doubt that someone flies to each port on the World Cruise to book excursions.

I know some of you are long time Regent cruisers. I am not. My first cruise is in Nov. But for info, has anyone considered trying to set up a phone interview with the head of the Dept. that is in charge of Shore Excursions? I'm willing to bet that someone with a significant number of cruises would easily be granted to a person that could explain the process of booking shore excursions. It would be interesting to know how they do this.

[mj_holiday]

Not sure what the topic really is, but here goes.

 

On at least 6 excursions I have been on (I do not look around and check names etc) have had Regents' reps with us, the ones I know for sure were from destination services and the cruise consultant.

 

I really don't see any differences between the Regents' included excursions, excursions I have purchased on other cruises, and private excursions I have booked. The main safety issue we had came from a private excursion.

 

As noted above, the thing that impacts the excursion the most seems to be the location. Example - the buses we had for excursions on Burmuda were very uncomfortable (no padding on the seats). But I bet there aren't any other types of "tourist" buses on the island.

 

I like and appreciate the included excursions. There are ones that I would not think about experiencing if I just looked at travel info for the location. I think handling of the passengers in the theater is done pretty well. Regents has found many ways to get the passengers to follow instructions (not counting the hard of hearing people that keep talking to each other). However this does seem to be an opportunity for process improvements, such as a display that shows what status each of the tours is at - i.e. waiting, handing out tickets, called to busses, for example.

 

We will continue to enjoy Regents included excursions on our upcoming cruises

[rallydave]

I agree. The pay-extra excursions that I've taken on Crystal are indistinguishable from the ones (included and premium) that I've taken on Regent. Except that the boarding of the tours seems better organized on Regent.

 

On both, there's a problem every so often. And, yes, sometimes a serious one. On Crystal, an apology for a serious problem came with a refund for the tour. On Regent, it came as an OBC.

 

Unfortunately not recently complaints about Regent extra costs excursions were met with comments like there were no problems, nothing could be done, and nobody else had issues. Unfortunately the onboard staff who are on the firing line have no authority and only the home office can provide any response or solution from thousands of miles away and opposite time zones.

[DeepFreeze63]

Unfortunately not recently complaints about Regent extra costs excursions were met with comments like there were no problems, nothing could be done, and nobody else had issues. Unfortunately the onboard staff who are on the firing line have no authority and only the home office can provide any response or solution from thousands of miles away and opposite time zones.

 

Yes, lest we forget: 1) Regent bills itself as the most luxurious and charges us accordingly; 2) when Regent was acquired by NCL, we were assured that the buying power of NCl would improve excursions; the excursion operations are headquartered together in Miami for NCL, Oceania, and Regent (Destination Services is not the contracting organization).

 

On our 13 Regent cruises, we have had many terrific excursions but also two Horrific "included" excursion experiences (DaNang and Phuket). On the first I (and several others) wrote to Regent corporate but got no reply; on the second, I informed the GM immediately and later sent a complaint through my TA to Regent corporate. Both excursions are still being provided with apparently the same content as I disputed. It isn't obvious that "Regent" follows up to rectify excursion issues.

Also, I think the "comment cards" are an ineffective way to get feed back to "Regent" on excursions. Electronic surveys, just after the excursion would be more effective.

 

I am a big fan of the work of Destination Services. Most issues attributed to them, I see as due to US, the passengers!

 

Thanks TC2 for starting this thread.

[coljack]

Last time I was in Danang, people were shooting at me. Hope your experience wasn't that bad. (-:

[Travelcat2]

Unfortunately not recently complaints about Regent extra costs excursions were met with comments like there were no problems, nothing could be done, and nobody else had issues. Unfortunately the onboard staff who are on the firing line have no authority and only the home office can provide any response or solution from thousands of miles away and opposite time zones.

 

This is really not true. Firstly, if the home office had such a tight hold on Destination Services, there would not be such a discrepancy in how things are handled - there would be a policy that had to be followed. This is not the case. The Manager of Destination Services onboard does have authority and uses it as they see fit (which could include saying that they don't have the authority - just to end a discussion ..... not the best way to handle a complaint but I've witnessed passengers getting super angry - yelling at the crew, etc. when excursions have issues).

 

Kiwifromkiev - you are correct. Safety would not be solved by not having included excursions. There would simply be less of a demand. Instead of 500+ people going on excursions every day that the ships are in port, there would likely be half that number. The rest would arrange their own small group tours -- as is done on their sister cruise line, Oceania. This would enable Regent's onboard staff to spend more time checking out the quality of the excursions, etc.

 

Ken - sorry that you are being questioned for your response as you have made it clear that you have yet to sail on Regent. IMHO, this is one area where potential passengers can get a very good idea of how well things are handled by Regent and the quality of the excursions. It is clear - especially from posts this week that everything is not perfect with Regent excursions.

 

wishIweretraveling, agree with your post but want to add that even though the Regent Choice excursions are the same as on other cruise lines, the cost is generally less. We did an identical Regent Choice excursion on both Regent and Oceania (yes - it was that good) and the cost on Oceania was double. A Silversea excursion that appeared to be identical to the one we took on Regent was close to double the cost. In the interest of full disclosure, these two examples occurred 2-3 years ago and things may have changed.

Edited May 1, 2018 by Travelcat2

[ronrick1943]

Safety is one thing, I believe every bus, van and car should be looked at during boarding. It's an easy check and doesn't take that much time. If Regent is making a profit they need and should have the standard they are selling.

I think one must decide what they want and go with the company that offers and meets those needs.

I would like to see an opt out plan, but if Regent feels they need to offer tours why not give each person a nonrefundable "TOUR CREDIT" that each person can pick an choose. If someone wants a private car tour, a deluxe bus tour of 12 people or full size bus tour---let each person pick what they want. If you need to add money that's OK. If you only want one, two,three or four tours (high end) that's what you get for the amount of credit you have in your account. Some people really want high end and others don't care. That way it works for everyone including Regent (they get to keep the profit they now get).

After all each of us are paying for it, why not get what you want. Rick

[wripro]

If Regent can't verify every excursion they include under the umbrella of "six star luxury" they should not offer them at all. Saying they can't be responsible for local tour companies is no excuse. Either they are a luxury line or a partial luxury line.

[mikenbob]

Perhaps in the minority, but we have traveled with Regent numerous times and have only had a few minor issues with excursions. We have adjusted our expectations based on port and have just rolled with offerings that may be a bit less luxurious than what we would have liked (for example, air conditioning), but were in keeping with local standards. It seems as though the excursions offered are generally the same for all cruise lines as most are handled by local companies who sell them to the cruise companies. In fact, if you Google the name of a particular excursion you will likely get several responses using the same descriptions other than the name of the cruise line (and may also see the local company providing the same tour to non-cruise patrons). It seems unreasonable to expect Regent to have total control of excursions in ports where they may only visit once a year.

 

All that said, I do believe that Regent must take responsibility for ensuring that their excursions are handled safely at all time and it seems like they do pay attention to the safety of their passengers. On several excursions on a recent Panama Canal cruise, we were required by Regent to wear life preserver vests in excursion company boats even when we did not want to wear them. Buses and vans in far away places are generally never as comfortable as in big cities, but we travel to try different experiences than we can get in these cities...right?

 

Personally, we have always been treated with respect by Destination Services and they have almost always been able to accommodate any last minute changes for us. We have witnessed passengers yell and berate them unnecessarily....on the last cruise we even saw one couple rant and rave to the point of demanding that other "lower cabin passengers" get bumped from the list to make room for their last minute needs...they eventually stormed out of the theater empty-handed.

 

So, not posting to cheerlead for Regent or dismiss legitimate issues with poor customer service or lapses in safety, just a different point of view.

[flossie009]

As I understand things, all cruise lines use the same tour operators to arrange their excursions. So, whoever you cruise with, you will be offered a similar range of excursions.

The only difference with Regent is that many of the excursions offered are included in the up-front cruise price; others are offered at a discounted price.

 

Included excursions does not mean that quality suffers as a result.

Some feel that, being a luxury line, Regent should only offer high-end tours with lavish transport. This of course would just serve to push up Regent prices.

 

Some Regent guests book the longest tours they can find on offer, in their mind to enhance value-for-money, only to find that the excursion does not suit them. Who do they blame for this bad decision making?

Other guests book as many tours as possible in advance, then do not bother to cancel them by the cut-off date; yet another contributory factor to increased prices caused by unthinking Regent guests.

 

We like the Regent product and have enjoyed many good excursions with them, mostly the included tours.

We find the staff at Destinations Services to be polite, helpful and efficient. The main issue at tour check-in is some of the rude & pushy guests who either fail to read or listen to clear instructions and/or ignore those politely waiting; I certainly would not be as patient as most of the staff at Destinations.

We have been on many tours where a Regent representative has been in attendance, often a member of the Destinations team.

 

If you cruise to the same ports multiple times then there will be a limit to the number of totally different tours that are available on subsequent visits, especially in ports where the number of tours available are limited.

 

I will refrain from suggesting that those who object to Regent offering included excursions, or who want a credit for opting out, should find another cruise line that is a better match for them.

Many people cruise with Regent because they like the ambience on board. We do not hear constant calls for a credit from the non-drinkers, or those who do not use the Pool, or those who do not use the gym, or those who do not like a particular Speciality restaurant.

[flossie009]

Regent Excursions - Safety & Maintenance of Vehicles

 

I am not sure that racing across the desert in the back of these Toyota pickups was the safest means of travel .................. but it was so much fun! :D

 

 

 

 

 

............. and would this form of transport, used on a Regent tour, pass a rigorous inspection? ....... but again I would not want the type of transport to be changed.

 

 

 

 

Having just returned from a Regent cruise, I would say the worst vehicle we encountered on a Regent arranged tour was the Miami HO-HO bus :eek:; old, filthy, wobbly seats - far from a luxury experience

 

 

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Edited May 2, 2018 by flossie009

[HotRoot]

Yes, lest we forget: 1) Regent bills itself as the most luxurious and charges us accordingly; 2) when Regent was acquired by NCL, we were assured that the buying power of NCl would improve excursions; the excursion operations are headquartered together in Miami for NCL, Oceania, and Regent (Destination Services is not the contracting organization).

 

On our 13 Regent cruises, we have had many terrific excursions but also two Horrific "included" excursion experiences (DaNang and Phuket). On the first I (and several others) wrote to Regent corporate but got no reply; on the second, I informed the GM immediately and later sent a complaint through my TA to Regent corporate. Both excursions are still being provided with apparently the same content as I disputed. It isn't obvious that "Regent" follows up to rectify excursion issues.

Also, I think the "comment cards" are an ineffective way to get feed back to "Regent" on excursions. Electronic surveys, just after the excursion would be more effective.

 

I am a big fan of the work of Destination Services. Most issues attributed to them, I see as due to US, the passengers!

 

Thanks TC2 for starting this thread.

 

 

Could you share with us the two bad excursions so we do not book them?

[WesW]

Flossie009/Susan & David; well written posts (we concur) that assisted with the context of this excursion thread, thanks for sharing.

[forevertravel]

We have cruised with Regent many, many years and like having the excursions included. It saves me from having to look up excursions on my own, book them or book private guides. I would say, 97% has been excellent. Some are included and some are choice tours we paid for. Maybe we are not too picky and go with the flow. I remember one excursion in Namibia, S Africa. It was an old bus (maybe a school bus can't remember) and one couple decided it was not to their expectations and wanted to get off. It was on a Sunday and most businesses were closed. There were no taxis around for them to take. I felt bad for the guide because it was not his fault. The couple finally decided no transportation back to the port was available and stayed on the bus. It was not that bad. We actually enjoyed the tour. We have always have good relations with Destinations dept and I find them personable and polite. That said, I have seen passengers yelling at them which shows the passenger has no class or manners. I hope Regent continues to include the tours. It's a choice we have whether to take them or not. Our tours in Egypt, Jordan, Dubai and other parts of middle east were excellent with great guides.

[flossie009]

I think handling of the passengers in the theater is done pretty well. Regents has found many ways to get the passengers to follow instructions (not counting the hard of hearing people that keep talking to each other). However this does seem to be an opportunity for process improvements, such as a display that shows what status each of the tours is at - i.e. waiting, handing out tickets, called to busses, for example.

Excellent suggestion.

Some would still ignore the information given, but more simple clear advice would certainly help.

 

Regulating the routing of guests through the theatre (e.g. starboard door in; port door out) would also help. This is sometimes done, but not always.

[tripperva]

I think the Regent "representatives" out on the tours stay at the back of the groups with handicapped folks and possibly slower seniors so they do not get separated. A good service. Having done 12 Regent cruises with 2 more booked, I agree with TC about the unfortunate behavior assembling in the theater, cutting in line, taking the handicapped seats, etc. This has been true on Silversea as well. Must be human nature. Is it also the case on less upscale cruise lines? I don't know.

[DeepFreeze63]

Could you share with us the two bad excursions so we do not book them?

 

Sure! In both cases, the problems were not sudden; the Tour Companies were surely aware of the potential safety problems.

 

1. Phuket: During a magnificent cruise last November/December (see CC review that I wrote about 12/23/2017), we had a very bad experience during the "Spectacular Phang Nga Bay" excursion. The excursion had pluses and minuses BUT the ISSUE was the "at a local resort you will have a buffet lunch". The "resort" was a derelict hotel - NO overnight guests anywhere in the building; auxiliary restrooms (there were 5 Regent buses) were 2 floors of the hotel rooms with no electricity; no one at front desk. The buffet/eating area was an open, but covered, porch about 50 yards from both the river/marsh and the former swimming pool where the tiles were being removed by jackhammers. About 50 of us arrived about 1:30; I found out that much of the food had been exposed on the porch since just after Noon. The bottle and cans of drinks were being cooled in tin tubs of ice water and no paper cups were available. My complaint to Regent focused on putting the health of so many of us at risk.

 

2. Da Nang: Again we had a terrific Sydney to Hong Kong cruise (loved Hoi An). In Da Nang, we did an excursion to the mountain area popular during the French colony period and the site of a giant blue/white Buddah It turned out to be a construction site for a future Disney-like venue. Once off the cable car access,we were taken to the summit via small vans that passed within 3 feet of a cliff without guard rails. Leaving the vans, the Regent excursion was the only people without HARDHATS; walking on a dirt road next to moving concrete mixers. We then found out that our tour guide had never been on this tour before and we were lost. We had to exit the site via a 50 step fire escape stairway (we had a 90 year-old in the group) to the cable car station. As noted in post above, at least a dozen of us wrote letters to Regent. The wife of the 90 year-old had a vigourous discussion with the GM of the Voyager.

[Got2Cruise]

Interesting thread. Even though I’m new to Regent I do notice that they do offer luxury experiences that you won’t find on mass market ships. For example visiting Andre Boccellis private vineyard and having lunch there. The lucky pax the other day actually met Andre and he posed for photos.

 

On the other hand I’m expecting quality control and safety assurances from any excursion offered by the cruiseline. It doesn’t matter if it’s Regent or Carnival. We also expect well run excursions no matter which cruiseline.

 

 

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[MalbecWine]

Sure! In both cases, the problems were not sudden; the Tour Companies were surely aware of the potential safety problems.

 

1. Phuket: During a magnificent cruise last November/December (see CC review that I wrote about 12/23/2017), we had a very bad experience during the "Spectacular Phang Nga Bay" excursion. The excursion had pluses and minuses BUT the ISSUE was the "at a local resort you will have a buffet lunch". The "resort" was a derelict hotel - NO overnight guests anywhere in the building; auxiliary restrooms (there were 5 Regent buses) were 2 floors of the hotel rooms with no electricity; no one at front desk. The buffet/eating area was an open, but covered, porch about 50 yards from both the river/marsh and the former swimming pool where the tiles were being removed by jackhammers. About 50 of us arrived about 1:30; I found out that much of the food had been exposed on the porch since just after Noon. The bottle and cans of drinks were being cooled in tin tubs of ice water and no paper cups were available. My complaint to Regent focused on putting the health of so many of us at risk.

 

2. Da Nang: Again we had a terrific Sydney to Hong Kong cruise (loved Hoi An). In Da Nang, we did an excursion to the mountain area popular during the French colony period and the site of a giant blue/white Buddah It turned out to be a construction site for a future Disney-like venue. Once off the cable car access,we were taken to the summit via small vans that passed within 3 feet of a cliff without guard rails. Leaving the vans, the Regent excursion was the only people without HARDHATS; walking on a dirt road next to moving concrete mixers. We then found out that our tour guide had never been on this tour before and we were lost. We had to exit the site via a 50 step fire escape stairway (we had a 90 year-old in the group) to the cable car station. As noted in post above, at least a dozen of us wrote letters to Regent. The wife of the 90 year-old had a vigourous discussion with the GM of the Voyager.

 

Inexcusable IMHO.