loriva

Looking forward to your reports and impressions, Karen.  Have a great cruise!

No Planks nor Steamers on the Sky Princess in February.  Not sure if they are victims of COVID (like the Chef's Table and Winemaker's Dinner) or if a result of ships still sailing at reduced capacity.

On 3/2/2022 at 7:35 PM, larrybritt said:

Yep just curious how it might be. You know how just trying to find a place to sit at the pool was so tough, hoping maybe a little easier than getting there at 8am

Even at 60-percent capacity, it was a challenge finding a lounger around the pool (many "claimed" by a towel and bag) or table outside.  Better luck at the Retreat pool and, sometimes, the aft pool.  Plenty of tables inside the World Market.  They only had half of the buffet lines open on our cruise, so there were sometimes lines.

I also heard from a TA who was able to get some information from Scenic via a telephone call.  The Scenic representative confirmed its IT system had experienced a cyber breach, but claimed Scenic caught it before any clients' information was accessed.  They claim clients should not worry about data loss as they did catch it early in the process.

Scenic expects to have the system back up and running late NEXT week, i.e., sometime late in the week beginning 07 March.  They cannot do anything with any of the bookings until the system is back up.  In the interim, they are doing is taking down numbers and questions to get back with people when the system is up.  So, while there is no policy of delaying payments due at this time, on a practical basis payments are being delayed.

Many thanks,

9 hours ago, UUNetBill said:

Explorer shows 8 total, one aft on deck 6, two on decks 7, 8, 9, and one forward on deck 12.  So while there's not one on each passenger deck, three decks have one both fore and aft

 

At least according to the current deck plans...

 

It appears the deck plans for Explorer have not been updated.  There was only one laundry room available on our deck, 8, in the aft.  On 9, I recall only the one forward being available.  (We were on the holiday cruise, so I walked all the suite decks all the way around aft to forward to see what folks had out for door decorations and also noted where laundry rooms should have been based on the deck plans.)   It was reported on the Regent board that some laundry rooms were converted into crew cabins to provide more solo space during COVID.

We were at about 60 percent when we sailed 05-12 February, if that helps.

On 2/28/2022 at 12:04 PM, Haysiedaze said:

 

From a travel agent and it has been verified by them. The link above has the information.

Thanks, Haysiedaze.  I read over the document from Scenic in the link and do not see anything about Scenic delaying final payments.  Although perhaps one can infer this if their systems are offline. 

But, those who have booked through a TA will likely have payments taken by the TA on the original schedule--unless you contact the TA and ask them to delay.  The TAs we use generally take payment 10-14 days prior to the cruise lines' final payment date to ensure payment goes through.

14 hours ago, flossie009 said:

If the laundry bag is picked up from your room before 9am it should be back with you, laundered & pressed, that evening.

That was not our experience on a 14-night cruise on Explorer in Dec 2021-Jan 2022.  We sent out laundry one third into the cruise and then at two-thirds, both times well before 0900 hours.  The first batch came back the next day, after 2100 hours in the evening.  The second batch did not come back for two days--and we had to call twice to locate it.

I also used the self-serve laundry rooms for delicates.  Remember the number of self-serve laundry rooms has been reduced--at least on Explorer--with some decks only having one instead of one each at the front and aft.  Even so, no one else used the laundry rooms in the two times I visited.

On 2/12/2022 at 10:24 AM, Lonedaddy said:

I haven't used regent air as I usually book with milage.  How far out do they start booking and is there a list of preferred airlines to New Zealand and from bali back to the states (hopefully with a stop in Singapore?)   Do I work directly with them on the deviations or does my TA?

You can book your air 270 days prior to the embarkation day of your cruise (not 270 days before you want to fly--270 days before the cruise departs.)  Prior to that, however, you can call the Regent Air Concierge at 1-877-722-7772 and ask them who they use as contract carriers between your departure airport and your embarkation and disembarkation ports.  (Have pen/paper or the notes application on your phone ready as, in my experience, they rattle off the list of airlines really fast.)  Then you can research options available to you.  (I like to call Regent about 330 days out for the carriers, do my research on Google Flights, and then set up to track prices there on my desired itineraries.  If you really have a preference on routing or airlines, you can set up a notional itinerary to track prices for the current year--just remember to adjust for the days of the week you anticipate flying, not the same date.  In theory, prices for international flights are lowest 120 days before the flight.  Then I can compare prices purchased directly or via Regent Air.)

In theory, you are supposed to work via your TA for flights.  But, I've worked directly with Regent without issue--they send whatever itinerary we decide upon to my TA.  Based on comments from folks here on CC.com, you can also ask your TA to mark your record to allow you to discuss some aspects--like flights--directly with Regent.  (I did not, and it worked out--but your mileage may vary.)

You can also check with consolidators.  They usually start selling fares 330 days prior.  Sometimes their fares are really good and sometimes they are not much different than the airlines are offering.  Remember you may or may not get full frequent flyer credit for flights purchased through consolidators--especially if you are looking at an open-jaw itinerary as the consolidator likely buys two round trips and sells the unused legs to someone else or uses its stash of frequent flyer points to upgrade a lower-class fare.

Finally, some premium credit cards offer flights at a discount.  I've found deals about 10-percent off this way. 

Is there a difference between what is included in "all-inclusive" between Seabourn's traditional cruises and their new expeditions on Venture (launch now delayed to July 2022, it appears)?  We've been on expedition cruises with National Geographic/Lindblad and Quark before and they offered a full slate of hikes, visits to see wildlife, Zodiac cruises, and lectures by the naturalists on board included in the price.  (I don't remember any kind of extra excursions available for purchase, such as what Seabourn is setting as their policy for use of the kayaks onboard.)

Considering a Svalbard cruise on Seabourn in July 2023, my first with the line.  I've tried to find more information on Seabourn's website on just what "all-inclusive" means for these new cruises.  (Realize I have the inaugural season to have some of these questions answered.)  If anyone can provide insight into where this information resides on Seabourn's website (link, etc.), this potential newbie to Seabourn would be grateful.

Many thanks,

Thanks, notamermaid, for your report for 2022.  We are booked with Scenic along the Rhine from Basel to Amsterdam in June.  Looking forward to learning more about this great river, its history, and the communities along it via your posts.

It looks like this might be Regent's long-term plan.  Our cruise on Splendor--not departing until October 2023--shows up on the schedule for Marghera.  (Obviously, will continue to check as departure draws closer!)

2 hours ago, wowzz said:

On Sky in November,  we just had a photocopied sheet of paper showing a few wines, nothing like the normal wine list shown above.

I wonder if they did not have a full wine cellar due to supply issues, hence just issuing a temporary list.

Sky still has just the one-page wine list, at least as of last week.  Provided wine list had bottles as well as about 10 different wines available by the glass.  Most were under the $13 limit of the PBP, but a couple were over.

Just off the Sky yesterday.  The two assistant CDs (Oz from Honduras and Maria from Serbia) we saw hosting trivia seemed to try to make it fun, not cut throat.  There was a morning and afternoon general trivia and a themed trivia in the evenings (TV show Friends, Broadway, Science, etc.)  

On 1/22/2022 at 11:39 AM, postit1111 said:

My husband and I travel in 5 days and still have not received our travel documents.  We called a few weeks ago and were told they were mailing them UPS...  Is this lateness normal?  I traditionally register travel with the State Department and most of the info is within the package...  

 

Ours came about 10 days before we traveled.

On 1/25/2022 at 3:15 PM, DebsteveTravel said:

Thanks for the detailed information.  My wife and I are going on the same cruise in a couple weeks.  Was the cruise full?  How many passengers were on your cruise?

In early December, there were more passengers--I counted 75 on the passenger list Lindblad provides.  I'm not sure if the count is completely accurate--I think you can ask to have your name not included, for example.  I did not count two passengers who left the ship on the first day.  Also heard a good-sized number missed the flight into Guayaquil when American Airlines cancelled it.  (Try not to book the last flight of the day into GYE.)  There were not many empty seats in the lounge for the daily review/previews nor at meals.  Capacity for all ships are limited to 100 passengers by the Government of Ecuador, so in theory we were at 75-percent capacity.

Just received an email from my TA.  As of 01 February, Viking will be requiring passengers to have had the booster shot.  Looks like that is how they are approaching the "expiration" of COVID vaccine validity.

1 hour ago, sharkster77 said:

Was the Crystal Ravel not a river ship?  Here's what someone else posted, that my comments were based on:

 

It says optional tie, not optional sports jacket.  Again, not my document, but one submitted by a fan of Crystal.

The relevant word is OR.  Yes, you could wear a sports jacket if you liked.  OR you could wear a collared polo shirt.  AND some sort of non-jeans trousers.  The only night DH wore his sports jacket was the night we went to the special concert at the Belvedere Palace.  And he was not required to wear it--it was his choice.

We were first-time cruisers on both Crystal and a river in October 2021 when we took a Danube cruise with Crystal.  We looked at a variety of lines, using information in the CC.com stickies as guides.  At least for our cruise the price--when considering included excursions, drinks, gratuities (both for on board and excursion guides/drivers)--ended up in our estimation to be equal to other lines we looked at.

We did not find our fellow passengers stuffy, dressed to impress, or different in any apparent way from passengers on the mainstream lines (Princess, Celebrity, MSC) we've sailed with for decades.  DH took a sports jacket and I took a couple of nicer tops, but nothing I'd consider fancier than I'd wear to a nice restaurant or the theater at home.  (Even on our Galapagos expedition with National Geographic/Lindblad we found many people changed out of their shorts and tee-shirts for dinner--even though there was no dress code for dinner.)  People on Crystal seemed to be comfortable in their own skins and wore what made them feel good--whether that was khakis or a dress.  We'd looked forward to sailing with the line again, either ocean, river, or expedition as we found the ship very well designed and equipped and the staff wonderful.  Our hearts go out to all the officers, staff, and crew. 

And the menu and wine pairing from our Vintage Room dinner on the Ravel.  Let's hope we can enjoy one in the future on a Crystal ship.

Here's the "Welcome Aboard" Reflections

This may all be moot now, but I promised to scan and post the Daily Programs from our Danube cruise on Crystal Ravel for the edification of others.  So, at least, promise kept.

11 minutes ago, Pcardad said:

It is because of this that dinner reservations now have to be made at the Dining Desk and not at the entrance to any restaurant.

You can make reservations for Compass Rose at the Dining Desk?  Not just for the specialty restaurants?  What about for Sette Mari?  And to OP's question--could you make a standing reservation in Compass Rose for the same table or time for the entire cruise?

On 1/20/2022 at 5:51 PM, Mike Moore said:

Excellent question - thank you for bringing it up. Assuming that the PDF included the tours for ALL of the ports on the cruise, is having it download immedediately preferable to having it sent via email? Or if the only way to receive all of the tours for all of the ports is via e-mail, waiting a few minutes for it is preferable? I welcome any and all thoughts on the subject from the group!

Another vote for creating a way to obtain a full list of excursions for all the ports on a cruise, both previously offered shorex and the full list once shorex are finalized.  Either an immediate download where one could cut and paste the link of the new window that opens or email as currently done would be fine.  We travel with others who live in another state and having access to the full list to share makes it easier to compare and coordinate shorex. 

Given need to book popular cruises long before shorex is finalized an ability to download and share ALL of the previously offered excursions would also be very useful.  On the current site, one can only download (or print) one port at a time and the ability to email all excursions does not work until shorex are finalized.

Thanks again for this effort, Mike, and for sharing here.

On 1/20/2022 at 9:35 AM, kimlovesfl said:

My husband and I have started thinking about a Christmas market cruise on the Rhine in December 2023. I called Viking yesterday to get some info, and was told final payment would be due in June 2022 for a cruise in December 2023. Is this common? When I questioned it, she said the cruises were selling out, but they will work with someone. 

 

Also, their cancellation insurance was over $400 pp. I've only done ocean cruising, and I found that cost very high. I'm sure I could purchase insurance through my TA for far less. 

 

We would love to do this, but there is no way I will pay for a trip 18 months in advance.

From my experience with Viking--which is limited to one river cruise and one ocean cruise booked--this is very common.  We had to pay for our Christmas market cruise upcoming in December 2022 at the end of December 2020--almost TWO years in advance.  And this is with a travel agency that does lots of business with Viking.  When we subsequently booked an ocean cruise with them (Baltic in May 2023) the TA was able to push back on the initially requested payment at the end of December 2021 to August 2022 (nine months prior to the cruise). 

A search of the River Cruising board will pull up other frustration with Viking's desire for final payment long before the cruise and much out of line with other companies.  Our first (and only) river cruise was in October 2021 and Crystal required final payment just three months prior to sailing.  (Of course, Crystal has now had to suspend all its sailings due to financial issue while Viking just keeps bringing more ships online so perhaps there is something to the difference in payment policies.)