annapolitan369

I've heard that a comfort pig or horse is allowed, as long as it shares the bed with you.

There are several ways to reduce call hold lines: hire more agents, better training of agents etc. What Regent has done is to reduce the service to its customers, while trying to justify it as improved customer service. I predict that we will see more of the same over time. I know that the company needs to be profitable and therefore should charge a cruise price that would ensure that, rather than bit by bit reduce the all inclusive luxury which makes Regent unique.

We have always found the best flights for us and then called Regent Air and have them book it. Well worth the $175. With the new rules, make sure you find the flights you want before you call them.

The $75 will be charged if you don't accept their proposed routing. If you accept, it will be taken off of the usual $175 fee. I do agree that this looks like part of the trend to increase fees, little by little, which IMHO flies directly in the face of Regent's all-inclusive policy and their increased cruise rates.

We've had good service from Welcome Pickups in Lisbon

We took Turkish airlines non-stop Dulles to Istanbul for our last cruise and the airline is great. However, be aware that the airport is huge and it took us almost a half hour to walk from our plane to the business lounge.

My wife corrected me, our trip around the British Isles was in August.

The cruise we missed Edinburgh was in May

We missed Edinburgh on an around the British Isles cruise and had to spend an extra day in Newcastle. Despite some nasty weather, all the other ports were fine.

Gray Lady Here is one idea in Rome that you must plan far in advance. St. Peter's tomb at the Vatican, also known as Scavi. The tour takes you to the excavations under St Peters and only a few tours of 12 people are allowed each day because of the fragility of the area. Something that you will find nowhere else and that few people actually see.

I agree that if you are on a warm weather cruise, or one where you might spend more time in your stateroom as on an ocean crossing, the extended veranda can be an important element in your enjoyment of the cruise.

No charge for anything in the spa area, except for massages etc. They are separated with the saunas in the male and female changing areas. There is a coed pool at the rear of the spa area. Enjoy!

Been to Barcelona a few times and I agree with Claranda. Sagrada Familia is unique and definitely reserve online in advance. If time is available, riding around on the HoHo bus will give you a good overview of the city, so you know what to do when you return!

One suggestion for a site that you won't see mentioned very much. If you stay in Bangkok after the cruise, look for a way to go to the Prasart Museum. This is a little know small private estate with collections of Asian art that is remarkable. It can be visited by reservation only and must be booked some time in advance as they only allow a small number of people each day. This is a great addition to the usual tours of Bangkok's great sites. We arranged this through a private tour company, not the ship.

Mary and I have multiple cruises on both Oceania and Azamara, the last two in the Owner's suite on Azamara Quest and Journey. I agree with most above comments that the staff on Azamara is friendlier than O. However, I would find the ship rather confining for a 2 week ocean crossing and would prefer the size of the Marina or it's sister ships. If you go Azamara, do the aft owner's suite, not the forward one and try for deck 7, which is the quietest.

You should not have any problem with the 1:40 departure. The last time we stopped in San Juan during a T/A. they did immigration details there and on departure we just claimed our luggage and walked out of the building. This was on the Explorer just before the Covid restrictions.

That concerto is often said to "beat the violin black and blue". Not an easy one to do well.

We were on the Explorer t/a Lisbon -Miami just before Covid was recognized and I played in the duplicate daily. It was actually a good game with quite a few excellent players and run very well. Helped to make the journey enjoyable.

If anyone goes to Flam, the Fjord Safari was the highlight of our cruise of the Norway Coast. I was hesitant to go but it was a real blast.

Santrah, Thanks for the prompt and detailed response, it is quite helpful. Perhaps some more work will be done in the staterooms before my cruise, which is a transatlantic on Feb, 28th. Our last 2 Azamara cruises were in an owner's suite, on the Quest and Journey. This time, going solo, I will be in a veranda. I can live with a stateroom that isn't like new, as long as it is kept clean and as long as the public areas in the ship are in good shape, which sounds like it is.

Santrah, I have 7038 booked for a future cruise. By any chance do you happen to have any idea what that room is like, or if most of the other staterooms on deck 7 are similar to the condition of yours? Thanks, Jay

Having been to Kusadasi and Ephesus several time, I would definitely recommend looking for a private tour. You will make better use of your time and the cost may be less that the Azamara tour, if you find a few others to come with you. We were on the May Greek intensive on the Quest and took several cruise tours, since we had more onboard credit than we could otherwise use. We mostly found them less than thrilling and, in the future, will stick to our usual of arranging private tours.

Our last t/a was from Lisbon to Miami, end of November into the beginning of December. It was warm enough to be outside most days but we missed Bermuda because of gale force winds so the Captain took a more southerly route and we went to San Juan instead. I would expect the first few days from Barcelona to be chilly and then nice temperatures after Madeira. I am also contemplating going on the Neptune crossing and should decide within the next week.

Thank you Mich3554

Does Viking have Bridge duplicates on the ocean crossings. We have been on Oceania and Regent crossings and they both have daily bridge lessons and duplicates.