Live from Regal 2/4/24

[CC Rider 69]

56 minutes ago, luvseaside said:

Last night at Vines they signed us up for wine blend tasting for $45.  I failed to ask about Caymus dinner but I’ll try to ask about it

 

Churchills is an arcade now

 

 

 

Thanks for the info

[texswamper]

19 hours ago, luvseaside said:

In room before 11:30 and got our checked bag by noon.  Unpacked and had at lunch in the MDR -broiled salmon was tasty.  Ordered the Beringer Chardonnay by the glass. 🫤. Hey, it’s all they got for now!  

Back to cabin to see if we could check in with steward & Fell asleep (getting up at 3 am is a killer).  Lol!

 

Captain making announcement that we’re planning to depart and explaining how we will leave and how fast.  He’s also warning us it will be very windy. Seas up to 10 ft tonight.  Expect rough seas tomorrow.  Up to 20 ft. Eek!

Steward just checked in & that’s taken care of. Off to sail away on Lido deck!

That's impressive that you were in the cabin by 11:30!  Last year on the Ruby from Galveston the rooms announcement wasn't made until at least 12:45 and the doors to all of the cabin hallways were closed.  Your early entrance was the way we always remember it pre shutdown but happy to hear that maybe our late time was just a Ruby issue??

[luvseaside]

24 minutes ago, texswamper said:

That's impressive that you were in the cabin by 11:30!  Last year on the Ruby from Galveston the rooms announcement wasn't made until at least 12:45 and the doors to all of the cabin hallways were closed.  Your early entrance was the way we always remember it pre shutdown but happy to hear that maybe our late time was just a Ruby issue??

They didn’t announce rooms were all completely ready till 1 pm but we had no issues just going to our room.  It was not blocked off at all. 

[luvseaside]

Went by casino and popped in $100 in Quick Hits slot machine. Up $50 (yea!) and decided to do trivia in Princess Live.  Seriously Princess-retrofit this design somehow.  Seating is so uncomfortable!  Did terribly (lol!)  Walked up to Lido deck.  Hot tubs full and a couple of people in pool. Brrr.  Surprised that retreat pool area is pleasantly not too windy so sitting here with mimosa and a club soda

[luvseaside]

15 hours ago, madjohn said:

Have a great cruise.  We leave on February 25 from Galveston.

 

Do they sell any non-alcoholic beers?

 

Thanks

Joh

Here’s the option at Retreat pool bar. Have to imagine it’s same all over the ship. 

[luvseaside]

Found the info for daily PES lounge -it’s listed in activities under Future Cruise loyalty from 4:30-6 in Vista Lounge

[Paula_MacFan]

19 minutes ago, luvseaside said:

Found the info for daily PES lounge -it’s listed in activities under Future Cruise loyalty from 4:30-6 in Vista Lounge

Glad you found the info. We definitely had a separate paper in our cabin upon boarding, wonder if your steward just missed it.

[wallyj]

1 hour ago, luvseaside said:

Found the info for daily PES lounge -it’s listed in activities under Future Cruise loyalty from 4:30-6 in Vista Lounge

It is possible there is a new protocol regarding getting a letter on Day 1 if you are Platinum or above outlining where the PES lounge will be held and hours along with other info such as Grapevine wine tasting and Captain Circle party, as I have not seen the Elite Lounge hours listed in the Events listing before and I last sailed on Princess Dec 2023. 
 

In case you did not know, as of Jan 2023, Loyalty/Captain Circle issues are now handled by Future Cruises, so go by and ask if you should have received a letter on Day 1 outlining your Captain circle benefits and hours of the PES lounge, etc.

 

Long gone are the cards with the hours and special canapés by date that were delivered to your cabin. Some ships will have the weekly canapé menu for the PES lounge listed in the lounge on a sheet posted.

[luvseaside]

Walked a mile around the track on Deck 17. It was windy but tolerable.  (Mini-rant-please don’t use the track for a leisurely family stroll (4 across)to take in the view Ugh!).

Had chicken street tacos & beer at Trident grill-always yummy!  Time to relax in room & get ready for wine blending at Vines at 3 pm. 

[pompeii]

When you have a quick second, can you report back if the Regal has Lavazza coffee makers in the buffet?  When we were on the Royal in November they didn’t, but I’m hoping that the Regal has made the switch by now. 

[cruisemom67]

7 hours ago, luvseaside said:

Regal Princess officers. New captain is Gavin Pears.  

Not Gavin McLeod? 😀

[cruisemom67]

Thanks for your report. We leave March 10 on Regal. Ugh. Spring Break! But I am a teacher so options are limited!

[luvseaside]

The Silverado red wine blending in Vines was very nice.  (Had a few people show who thought it was the regular wine tasting held in Symphony dining room so momentarily had some confusion since there’s only spots for 8 persons.  Kinda confusing to hold those at same time.). Good nibbles with the tasting.  Thana is a great wine host.  He’s very knowledgeable.  

Dressing for dinner (formal night).  Not sure if we’ll fool with champagne waterfall (been there done that) but they’re having it from 6:30-7:15.  

[luvseaside]

On 2/4/2024 at 5:34 PM, CC Rider 69 said:

Please see if they have Caymus Wine/Dinner Event on the Regal, and what are they using Churchill's for now a day.

Thanks.

I saw on TV that’s it’s a special booked event , like Chefs table 

[nini]

7 minutes ago, luvseaside said:

I saw on TV that’s it’s a special booked event , like Chefs table 

 

I have seen other posts that the Caymus Winemaker's Dinner is $140.00

[KKB]

10 hours ago, luvseaside said:

decided to do trivia in Princess Live.  Seriously Princess-retrofit this design somehow.  Seating is so uncomfortable!  

I’m stunned they thought this was a good design!

We r on the Regal for 28days in April & love trivia… 

perhaps y’all could suggest Vista Lounge for trivia?!??

Sure gonna miss Explorers!

 

[beshears]

I just discovered your posting, and I plan to follow along. There are 8 of us that will be doing the Regal for the first time, the 25th of this month. I like your pictures, and also posting the Princess Platter. I was glad to see that the different food establishments, it shows the time they are open/closed/deck, which saves time, from getting there and FIND them being closed.

[beshears]

Cruisemom67, I see you are a teacher. The 8 of us plan to do the Regal the 25th of this month. Both my son/d-i-l work for the school, and it would have been better (money wise) for them to take off during school break, but at least this way, they won't have to deal with a lot of children, like they normally do on a daily basis. 🙂

[luvseaside]

Last night we heard that several Cozumel excursions had been cancelled due to wind and current issues.  Welp, captain came across intercom just now saying we will make one attempt to dock but did not seem hopeful as two other ships had to abort this morning already. So we anticipate a sea day. Interestingly this was the one port we didn’t think we’d miss.  
 

Speaking of last night, dinner in MDR was not something to frankly write about.  Crab cake had no crab. Tasted like a potato pancake actually.  Tenderloin was good and prepared perfectly.  Drinks were slow so take wine with you to dinner.  
Tried to see comedian but it was a packed house so we watched Yes/No show instead. Pretty hysterical.
 

 ABBA music in piazza was fun but the Dramamine kicked in at that point. lol!  🥱.  Ordered room service -didn’t take too long but club sandwich had very little meat and fries were cold. 

[luvseaside]

Princess Patters from Day One. 

And Cozumel is a no-go.  I’ll post the new listings when we get them.

[Paula_MacFan]

10 hours ago, KKB said:

I’m stunned they thought this was a good design!

We r on the Regal for 28days in April & love trivia… 

perhaps y’all could suggest Vista Lounge for trivia?!??

Sure gonna miss Explorers!

 

Agree 100%  We were just on Regal the week before last and even though we did attend a couple things in Princess Live we really do not like that venue and miss Explorers!  That is one of our favorite venues on the older ships.  We were on the Island in Sept/Oct and found ourselves comparing her to the Regal a lot on our recent cruise.  We had been on Regal 2X before so we did know what to expect, but after having recently been on the Island we realize how much we enjoy Explorers, a full-sized Wheelhouse and not the one cobbled onto the front of the Crown Grill like on Regal, and Crooners which had actual live music on the Island but not on Regal.  The Vista seems criminally underused on Regal and has been relegated to live sports broadcasts, movies, bingo, and the occasional comedian.  Back when we started cruising you could find live music in Vista but not anymore apparently, as everything is more focused on the Piazza. 

Edited February 6 by Paula_MacFan

[luvseaside]

20 hours ago, pompeii said:

When you have a quick second, can you report back if the Regal has Lavazza coffee makers in the buffet?  When we were on the Royal in November they didn’t, but I’m hoping that the Regal has made the switch by now. 

Saw this in aft area behind buffet so I guess the answer is yes! 

[c-boy]

18 hours ago, luvseaside said:

The Silverado red wine blending in Vines was very nice.  (Had a few people show who thought it was the regular wine tasting held in Symphony dining room so momentarily had some confusion since there’s only spots for 8 persons.  Kinda confusing to hold those at same time.). Good nibbles with the tasting.  Thana is a great wine host.  He’s very knowledgeable.  

Dressing for dinner (formal night).  Not sure if we’ll fool with champagne waterfall (been there done that) but they’re having it from 6:30-7:15.  

 🤨  rather alarming description for the malbec. Proof reader was obviously partaking in the libations.

[luvseaside]

1 hour ago, c-boy said:

 🤨  rather alarming description for the malbec. Proof reader was obviously partaking in the libations.

Can’t believe I missed that.  Yikes!

[luvseaside]

Needless to say, pool chairs were at a premium by the time we got outside from breakfast.  We lucked out around 12:15 when we moved to retreat pool and someone told us they were leaving.
 

Outdoor pool bars are slammed. Tried to order drinks through app and canceled after 20 minutes and went to bar.  Had a slice of cheese pizza at Slice.  Best pizza I’ve had in a while.  Crispy thin crust and hot.  Aperol spritz at Retreat Bar is hitting the spot.