Member Review-Mariner Sydney/Auckland 11/19

[geegeecruiser]

We recently returned from our first Regent cruise (although we have been on about 10 cruises with other cruise lines). From the moment we arrived at the port in Sydney to disembrking in Auckland it was unbelievably smooth. On one of our last cruises (Celebrity) we felt that once we arrived at our disembarkation port, they nearly threw us and our luggage over the railing! Gone were the "smiles and welcome" that we got on boarding. It was total confusion getting off the ship, and everyone was left to fend for themselves if they had not booked an airport voucher with the ship. It was almost hilarious in retrospect, but at the time it was a free-for-all tryiing to find a cab, drag our luggage out of the area and just generally getting out of the area.....and definitely no crew members anywhere in sight to help get us off. Not so with Regent. They continued to smile and thank everyone for having sailed with them, helped us to the taxi area, and helpful to the very end. Granted on Regent, we happened to be on the leg of the trip that only had about 435 passengers, so there was no waiting anywhere, and we hardly had to worry about making restaurant reservations ahead of time (which we had done before boarding the ship per everyone's suggestion). Also, on one evening of the cruise, my husband was having back problems so we decided to order room service. I found out that you can order from any of the restaurants (not just from the room service menu). They sent up a menu and we were able to enjoy the same wonderful food from one of the speciality restaurants! That was a pleasant surprise.

 

We did take most excursions from the ship's list. Some were quite good, some were just o.k. Considering the cost of these excursions, I agree with many of the C.C. people that doing it on your own can sometimes be a better price, but you risk getting a cab driver who doesn't know too much (happened to us one day) and just drove us around rather aimlessly. I wasn't in the mood to do the necessary pre-cruise research on tour groups in the area, so we opted on going with Regent most of the time. I would still rate the ship excursions a "7 or 8" and overall we enjoyed them.

 

The computer room was never totally full, so it was easy using them. Same for the laundry rooms, although sometimes there was a little wait. However, everyone is so friendly and helpful, they sometimes put other people's laundry into the dryer if there was a little wait for the washing machines. Again, we were traveling with a light passenger list, so maybe when the ship is full, there may be a longer wait.

 

We did not have butler service as we were in a "C" penthouse, but in our past experience, we aren't particularly impressed with having a butler anyway. Room service is quick and you can order anything you want and it never took more than 15 minutes to get the service. I would rather choose the cabin I want and if it includes butler service that is fine, but for us personally, it wasn't a high priority.

 

The ship was beautiful and well maintained, and with the exception of a couple of stains on a few areas of a hallway, I would say that they do an excellent job of trying to keep everything perfect. The Mariner is nearing dry dock time, so considering how much it has been used, I was impressed at the condition.

 

Our crossing of the Tasman sea was a bit rough for about 12 hours, but not so bad to keep most people out of the restaurants and public rooms. I understand that one of the stabalizers (?) is in need of repair (I may have the wrong ship part, but I heard this from several other people). I guess dry dock will take care of that, and notwithstanding that problem, it was a tolerable crossing.

 

Lastly, the issues of "formal wear" has sort of been talked to death. Tuxedos are nice if you want to wear one, but there were many men in dark suits and everyone looked fine and no one seems to care. As for the ladies, throw on a dark dressy pair of slacks or long skirt with a nice top and you are good to go!

 

Thanks for letting me ramble on if you are still reading this.

 

GeeGee

 

We are definitely Regent Seven Seas converts. I don't think that we will change cruise lines again! It was a fabulous cruise in every way!

[cruzndiz]

Thank you GeeGee! I loved reading your review.....less than a month and I'll be onboard that beauty of a ship!

[geegeecruiser]

Lucky You! Enjoy yourself....as I know that you will!

[Down Under]

Gee Gee: Thanks for your report. Sydney to Auckland is one cruise I'd love to take (no long flights) but have been put off by the likelihood of rough seas. I did this 40 odd years ago and it was like sailing on a pond but the trip from Wellington to Picton was an absolute nightmare - just like the film "The Cruel Sea". It put me of cruising until a few years ago. I imagine ships have improved since then! Did you sail around New Zealand and if so, do you feel you saw enough? I've always thought New Zealand needed to be seen by land.

[geegeecruiser]

Hi Down Under

You are correct...I think that NZ really needs to be seen properly by land. While the excursions do give you a thumb nail sketch of an area, there wasn't enough time to see things properly. We have some friends who did this cruise several years ago, and the following year flew to Auckland and rented a car and drove the north and south islands for three weeks. They really loved it. As for the rough seas, that seems to be pretty much out of our control. The seas were pretty calm cruising up the coast of New Zealand once we got across the Tasman sea. I found a website that gives some good information on ocean conditions around the world. I kept checking the Tasman sea a few weeks prior to our trip, but obviously it didn't do me any good! It is http://www.oceanweather.com in case you want to check it out.

 

gee gee

[c-legs]

Thanks GEEGEE for your feedback.;)

We're on that exact same cruise next year ( and the one following, AKL-LAX ).

How would you rate the food quality and the onboard service calibre ??

We'll be doing the ''land '' bit in NZ first, after flying from home ( about 8-10 days ) then, fly off to OZ land for 4-5 days then, THE cruise...!!!

Any observations on the demographics ?? I would imagine that from one year to the next, it should'nt be all that different....

Again, thanks for sharing your experience.

Cheers

:)

[jdreyfuss]

See my comments on another thread, "What has happened to Regent".

Jody

[geegeecruiser]

Hi C-Legs: I can only speak for our experience about the quality of the food and the service. The food was outstanding everywhere on the ship. The service was almost always good to excellent. Comparing it to other cruise lines we thought it was nearly perfect. Of course, everything is relative....Oceania was a close second for us on a couple of cruises (but it paled in comparison to the Mariner).

 

If you have the time and inclination to check out some of the tour companies before you set out for N.Z. you might do better on the excursions than we did.....I was just too lazy to do the research. Of course the concierge at your hotel can certainly help you with Auckland and the surrounding areas. I suggest that you continue to read the blogs on Cruise Critic...you will learn a lot from more experienced cruisers on Regent. This was our first (but definitely not our last) on Mariner.

 

GeeGee

[GJUK]

Thanks GeeGee. We are on the same trip next year at around the same time having spent a couple of weeks getting to Sydney via Bangkok and Singapore. It's our first cruise!!

 

I think we will have to rely on Mariner excursions as we are so very new at everything so any really good/bad ones would be great if that's at all possible.:)