-Lew-

30 minutes ago, kjbacon said:

This morning will be our third attempt to return to Florida ahead of our Grandeur cruise on Friday.

So sorry to learn of the issues you faced, Karen and Jack.  We wish you clear sailing ahead.

We fly down early tomorrow.  Looks like we'll enjoy some warm weather in Miami before embarkation.

It could be a bit demeaning to walk all the way to the summit...

18 minutes ago, wcsdkqh said:

Way too many maintenance / construction issues that need to be resolved, not to mention new employees.

I agree with your first premise.  However, I know of many seasoned crew members currently on Grandeur and look forward to sailing with them again.

We never go to a new restaurant soon after it opens...same with sailing on a new cruise ship.  There are always growing pains that will eventually be corrected.  We board in less than a week and I'm confident we have nothing to worry about...we tend to go with the flow when we travel, so little things don't bother us.  By the time you board negative issues will be minimal and you'll enjoy a fantastic cruise.

2 hours ago, talljules1 said:

A question. Do people hide ducks on Regent ships?

If you're going to hide something you need to go a little more upscale.  On a Sky Princess cruise in November 2019 I found a bottle of Veuve Clicquot behind the bedside table.  Hard to believe, I know, but the proof was in the bottle.

7 minutes ago, bebop bonnie said:

Just to add to the above, the zip code is irrelevant IMO.  My travel agent is based far away from me.

1 minute ago, bitob said:

Agree - location irrelevant.

I also agree...  Having said that, the OP had no idea how to go about locating a TA for a possible Regent cruise.  I usually suggest asking friends or fellow cruisers onboard, but in this case I noticed Regent offered a method to get a search started.

I've tried using local TAs, but gave up after no discounts or perks were being offered.  We live in Vermont and our TA is located in Central Florida.  Hope to meet her in March while we're at our timeshare at Walt Disney World.

If you go to Regent's home page and scroll down to the bottom, you'll see FIND A TRAVEL ADVISOR under the heading PLAN A CRUISE.  Clicking on FIND A TRAVEL ADVISOR will bring you to a page where you can enter your zip code to locate an agency near you.  From that point you'll need to use what you may know about the agencies presented to decide which to contact.

51 minutes ago, carolinetodd said:

Does anyone have a suggestion for lunch in Florence?

We visit Trattoria Zà Zà for lunch whenever we're in Firenze.  It never disappoints...

It was shown in the theater last year.  It was a fun time...

Why the concern about the reason a dog is accompanying a passenger?  On 70+ cruises we have seen dogs on occasion...all very well behaved.  As long as their presence does not affect our enjoyment we're not concerned.

4 hours ago, boblerm said:

I found the same thing happened to me for a different cruise.  I went on line the day after excursions became available, and everything was available except St.Barts, which was sold out.  I kept checking, and after a month or so, there was availability, so I was able to book it.

Are you Sailing the Leeward Coast on February 13th.  Our waitlist came through on that tour.

@etual324...

I'll take credit for the second paragraph you quoted, but not the first.  Be careful when you attribute text to someone.  I have no idea where the first paragraph came from.

If the first paragraph was written by you, take care to add your thoughts outside and below the quote box.

2 hours ago, bitob said:

Didn’t happen on grandeur with Stefane on board

1 hour ago, etual324 said:

I guess the Granduer did not get the letter

I received Mike's email just yesterday.  Let's give them a few days.  I'm curious whether the policy will be in place by the time we board on the 26th of this month.

Response to my email to Mike Moore regarding pool lounges...

As previously mentioned in the thread, I wrote to Mike Moore regarding what I was told was a new Regent fleet-wide policy regarding the saving of pool lounges.  The relevant portion of my email follows:

We boarded Splendor on January 21, 2023 and not long after were confronted with fellow cruisers leaving a few personal items on pool lounges early in the morning and expecting those lounges to sit unused until they return…sometimes hours later.

This issue was solved on Splendor with the assistance of Stephane Carriou, Food & Beverage Director.  He was instrumental in creating a fleet-wide policy to address the issue which included a 30-minute time limit on vacant lounges, signage near the pool bar, and a table near the bar for personal items removed from lounges by deck crew after 30 minutes.  Announcements were also made in Passages.  After all were aware of the policy the issue diminished drastically.

Mike Moore's response was that the policy is as I described and all ships will be asked to reference the policy in Passages and signage on the pool deck.

1 hour ago, SWFLAOK said:

I don't know how you can get insurance for cruises on Crystal

Easy...  Have you ever had to provide the name of the cruise line when purchasing travel insurance?  I haven't.

1 hour ago, bitob said:

Here is reason for absence of lounge chairs on balcony

 

spoke to franck

Thanks.  Any reason given for what appears to be a tiny table?

2 minutes ago, rcandkc said:

Could it depend on if you have one of the bigger balconies?

Hope that's correct!  We're sailing in the same numbered suite on the Grandeur as we did on Splendor and that one had the lounge and large table. 🤞

1 hour ago, CruzC2C said:

We are currently on the Grandeur in a Concierge D and we do not have a lounger on our balcony.  When I asked about there being no lounger on the balcony, I was told that only the higher suites now get loungers.  That this only applies to Grandeur.
 We have 2 chairs and a small table on our balcony.  I’m extremely disappointed with no lounger.  

That's disappointing.  We enjoy dining on our balcony and wonder whether that small table will work for a full meal.  My DW will be disappointed that there's no lounge.

Guess there were no funds available for guest comfort after the purchase of the Fabergé egg...

11 minutes ago, bitob said:

Doing it on one ship at the request of passengers does not make it a policy. 

True...and Stephane mentioned that management on Splendor could not institute a policy for only that ship.  It took a few days, but he told me the policy would take effect fleet-wide on February 1st.  Grandeur, being a member of the fleet, should observe the policy.

I emailed Mike Moore.  Hopefully he can go to bat for us.

6 minutes ago, bitob said:

No better on silversea or any other cruise line 

3 minutes ago, GMIAC said:

Or resort hotels, for that matter. 

But the problem was essentially solved!  Why did Regent simply not institute the policy on Grandeur?

We sailed on Viking Sky this past fall and in 55 days never had an issue finding a couple of available lounge chairs by the pool.

16 hours ago, Gpilon said:

On our TA Splendor cruise in April, there was a table set up by the pool bar with signs stating items left on chairs alone will be picked up after 30 minutes and brought to this table.

A group of us on the January 21st Splendor sailing were instrumental in getting Regent to set rules fleet-wide regarding saving lounge chairs.  Here's a link to a thread I started regarding this issue last February.

Stephane Carriou, Food and Beverage Director, was instrumental in getting the fleet-wide policy activated.  I believe he's onboard now, so I'm puzzled why the policy is not in effect.

We're on Grandeur for a B2B2B beginning January 26 and really don't want to have to reinvent the wheel.  I've written to Regent regarding this and suggest anyone who is sailing on Grandeur in the next few months to do the same.

15 minutes ago, detroit70 said:

I'm booked in a PV2 (5016) on Jupiter in August.  How do i find out if I have a slider or a door?

4 minutes ago, Ricky Chan said:

Thanks for your reply. 

 

Opening date for reservation for me is 8:00 p.m., EST on Jan 1, 2024.  I assume the link won't pop up until then, am I right?

You've assumed correctly.  It may be a minute or so after 8:00pm

On 12/26/2023 at 12:24 PM, taxman1 said:

My wife and I are gearing up for the Miami to Miami cruise leaving port on Feb 5th.

Come on over and join the Roll Call for this cruise.  We could use some activity...

6 hours ago, HUNKY said:

VNB2003 - was the rib eye listed on the menu as being "Prime"?

 

As in the US grade known as Prime.

No, the word prime is not used to describe the rib eye on the menu.  See  previously posted menu.