pappy1022

I provided direct feedback to Destination Services and to the manager of that team after a horrendous botching of a scheduled tour in Edinburgh. Both the team members and the team manager were apathetic and actually lied to me about information that they said they provided. The details are in my September 2023 review of our British Isle cruise. That experience was the most disappointing event in an otherwise very good cruise.

Great to know. Thank you for posting.

Never said that they were in breach of contract. They obviously have the “legalize” in their contracts that covers their butt for most circumstances. That is what corporate lawyers do. As far as the toilets are concerned, there is enough evidence and examples that there is an ongoing issue and it’s not always that someone flushed something they shouldn’t have down the toilet. That’s the vibe I get from reading some responses. So yes, I won’t cruise on that specific ship with the toilet problem. It seems naive to use the argument, if you don’t like them, don’t cruise with them. It’s interesting that those generic arguments are used to deflect the fact that there are real issues on this ship that can’t be ignored but some choose to do just that. Let’s accept for the moment that a customer did put something down the toilet that they shouldn’t have done. Why is it that it is taking so long to fix this issue? As said in one of the posts, the seals should have been replaced years ago. Why weren’t they and why did Regent let this issue linger?

Thanks Papa for clarifying info on the toilet issue. Some people continue to insist that this is only a people problem and not a mechanical issue. Blaming the customer, blaming Regent’s contracted providers or suggesting we need to change our expectations about Regent is a faulty and tired argument.

Is there a way to go to stream yard and watch your videos on FP? I know I can click on the link you provide but can’t search (Thai i know of) to find other FP videos that you have recorded. I appreciate the information that you provide. It is very helpful and informative. Thank you.

Welcome to the new era of cruising, pay more, get less. Regent failed you and many others and there is no excuse for not doing the right thing.

This is the new Regent. More focused on cost and less focused on its customers.

Awesome for you. You beat the odds. Just prior to your dates there were 2 cyclones that hit the area. Maybe they used up all the energy in the atmosphere.

Sure if they claim they provide a 5 star dining experience. The biggest issue I experienced recently was the fact that they didn’t cook the steaks to how we ordered them. This happened multiple times. Medium rare came out well done. Medium came out rare. I would expect even the lesser steak houses to get that right. The lobster was overcooked to the point it was rubbery and unacceptable.

Reasonable expectations? I expect my steak to be cooked as I ordered it, at least warm when I eat it, and my lobster to be firm and not rubbery where it was obviously overcooked. When that doesn’t happen, I expect the server and management to apologize and to show some concern and to make it right and not to keep making the same mistakes. If those are unreasonable expectations then I guess that is my fault for being unreasonable and Regent gets a free pass again. Maybe Regent needs to tone down the marketing of a 5+ star experience so the customer sets more reasonable expectations.

All I can report is that the steak and lobster in Compass Rose was better than Prime 7. I would assume it’s the same meat and lobster in both. Neither was outstanding relative to better land steak houses.

Didn’t you just cruise with Regent in FP?

Humans feeding animals in the wild is not my cup of tea. They become dependent on being fed vs naturally searching for their own food. And no, I am not a member of PETA. It just doesn’t feel like we are helping the animals. It’s just entertainment for us humans.

The lobsters in P7 were rubbery and almost inedible on both occasions we ate there. The steaks were not cook to order and we sent them back. They came back the same way so we just gave up. CR lobster and steaks were better prepared and better tasting, although 1 time in CR we did return the lobster because it was way overcooked. I think they must have people in the kitchen who are still learning.

Unfortunately, it is the new norm for travel. Pay a lot more and get less for it because everyone is focused on cost and everyone is scrambling to hire people. The demand is back to pre COVID times but the industry as a whole can’t support that demand. Something has to give and we read about that every day that the customer doesn’t get what they were expecting. Regent isn’t alone but we expect so much more from them because of their promises (marketing) and our past experiences with them.

I agree with your assessment on the restaurants. Prime 7 was the most disappointing and Compass Rose was better than Prime 7 when it came to steaks and lobsters. Doesn’t make any sense.

Again I will ask again, How far in advance does Regent book these hotel rooms? I would think they would have known of any issues far in advance of the final payment.

It’s always someone else’s fault, not Regent’s. If Regent had contracted rooms and the hotel(s) didn’t fulfill the contract then Regent should sue them and tell their customers exactly what happened. I have personally been told by Regent people onboard that it wasn’t their fault that something didn’t go as planned. I am tired of the “it’s the other guys fault” attitude. Sorry to vent but I just had to.

Regent has a lot of explaining to do to all these folks who have posted issues on this topic. It seems like a continuation of poor communication. I guess they are too focused on cost reduction. I’ve seen this before in major companies where all the focus and incentives are based on cost and cost reduction. Everything else takes a back seat because the top of the organization determines the focus.

Also, people who have Regent excursions will be allowed off first if the port is a tender port. You need to factor in some additional time if tendering.

After the lost revenue from the COVID days and the need to go borrow a lot of money to stay in business, cruise lines have put cost cutting/saving opportunities above their customers. I see this across all the cruise lines, including the high end lines. As I have read in several places, “this is the new norm, get used to it”.

We had a gentleman on a couple of our shore excursions in September that had mobility issues. He never left the bus but still enjoyed himself and he was a joy to be around. He knew his limitations and was respectful of others. What an example he set for all of us.

Amazing that Windstar doesn’t address this question. Silence breeds doubt and rumors.

Not taking anything away from Windstar but there are so many “best of” categories that everyone gets at least 1, so they all can boast they are the best. I don’t pay much attention to the best of winners as a basis for choosing a cruise, or a hotel, or anything related to travel. I prefer to use something like Trip Advisor to see what the real people think. Admittedly, you have to get through several reviews to get to a sense of the real information. I also find post COVID that many things have changed in the tourism industry and all of them are struggling to get service and food back to the past normal. I read several articles that there is a new normal in the cruise and tourism industries and we have to get used to it and adjust our expectations because things have changed, and not for the better.

It’s a dry dock for what they call a technical upgrade. They didn’t specifically say what’s included.