TechnoBill

It is also very easy to get the train from Gatwick to Southhampton. It is then a short cab ride to the pier.

Cheers

Bill

DuffysMom: How much did you pay for your iPhone? How much did you pay for the "waterproof" case? Do you really want to risk it?

I was on the Great Barrier Reef last winter. They had waterproof cases for sale there. When I questioned the people about the results others had had with them, they basically advised against it. They weren't just concerned about the potential of water getting in, but the crush factor on the phone as the pressure goes up as you go down.

Cheers

Bill

If the east gate is open, it is a short walk to a Holiday Inn, just past hang a left and head into the main part of historic Southampton. Lots of shops, department stores and pubs.

Cheers

Bill

HAL sends the form to your travel agent/agency. It is called a Special Requirements Information Form. Perhaps your TA returned it on your behalf. It covers dietary, mobility, respiratory, diabetes issues of clients as well as the need for a service animal.

Look at the excursions you are interested in. Those after the first two days that are not limited in capacity you could book on the ship and use your OBC to pay for them. Hopefully that will eat up the remainder not used for gratuities and internet.

If you booked with a travel agent, have them record the allergy on your reservation. If you booked directly with HAL call them to tell them about the allergy. When your reservation has the allergy noted, their system will automatically send out an email with a form attached that you can fill out with further details about the nature of the allergy and return to HAL. Even though you have completed all this, you must discuss with the head waiter and wait staff at each meal until it becomes automatic. You should request the menu for the next night so that your son can choose what he would like and they can ensure it is properly prepared.

With regard to Princess, I have been on two cruises with them - one was excellent regarding tending to allergy issues, the other was rather spotty in getting us the next night's menu and getting the order right.

I think all the cruise lines try to deal with food allergy issues, but some crews seem to be able to deal with it better than others. We have found you must be firm and prepared to wait for them sometimes to get to you each night. But be persistent and after a night or two they will improve.

My wife and I are booked on our first Regent cruise for Feb 2015. We both enjoy dancing while on cruises.

Can anyone comment on the venues where dancing is available on Voyager? Size of dance floors, types of music played, etc.

Many thanks,

Bill

You can call Regent Air Deviation Dept, pay $175 per guest and arrange flights as far ahead as about 270 days before your cruise (should be a note in your booking confirmation on the actual number of days).

If you don't then Regent will finalize your flight arrangements about 70 days before your departure date.

We have an Asia cruise booked for Feb 2015. I called the air deviation department to see if I could arrange non-stop flights Toronto-Beijing and Tokyo-Toronto on Air Canada. I initially I was told it would be an extra $1000 per person per direction on top of the $1900 per person per direction I had already paid to upgrade to business class. So I asked for other options and was told we would have to go through Detroit. On asking for the flight details the agent put me on hold for a couple of minutes and when she came back said a supervisor approved my requested non-stop flights on Air Canada with no surcharge other than the $175 per person deviation fee. So I am a happy camper and looking forward to our cruise in Feb.