flare3192

can you get Regent to ticket earlier -- when you have paid instead of their normal 60 or so days out? I know you could request that on Viking

One of the advantages to me of a cruise is not having to pack and move every day. One of the disadvantages is that it is so short a time -- When I spend a few days somewhere I have the opportunity to see more of the location. Some days one day is enough to see most of what is there but many destinations have a lot to offer. And without having to rush back to a ship you can have a more leisurely excursion. I understand that many of you have been cruising for years and gone back to the same place multiple times so over time you have seen more of the area. I think it is a difficult thankless job to figure out the itineraries and how long to stay in a port. I personally welcome multiple nights in a port BUT I think that needs to be disclosed before you book so that you can decide if it is a good fit for you. Changing the itinerary after people have booked them is not a fair way to do business.

Splendor

Cooking Classes.I am trying to choose between these two. Has anyone taken these and what would the menu be potentially? Thanks

his favorite is angels envy

I notice there are several days with optional cooking classes. What are they like -- do you watch someone else cook or are they hands on? Have you taken one you thought was great and what was it? Thank you

my husband will be happy Thanks

what bourbons are included on Splendor thanks

Thank you wishiwastravelling. This has been very helpful. Yesterday we put a deposit down on the Splendor for July

thank you

I don't understand If, for example, we arrive July 20 and do our own thing for 4 days and then come back to Reykjavik July 24 and want that night in the hotel for a cruise that starts July 25 -- would that night in the hotel and the transfers the next day to the ship be included in the concierge suite? If we had taken their air without deviation the night in the hotel would have been included but if we take their air but come in early and do our own thing can we come back to the hotel for the night before the cruise and would that be included. I understand there would not be a transfer to the hotel from the airport but wanted to know if he hotel and transfer to the ship would be included. Thanks

Thank you all for your help in answering questions. We are going to book the Reykjavik to Southampton. I know that Regents has pre cruise tour but it included things we were not interested in so we are going to do our own pre 4x4 tour for 3 or days before the cruise. If we take a concierge level room that includes one night hotel would we be able to have that for the night before we sail? We would fly in 3 or 4 days early and do the tour. Then we would come back to the hotel and want the overnight and the transfer to the ship the next day. Would that be allowed? Or if we go early do we lose that benefit? Thank you

What do you wish you had known about Regents -- good or bad: Thanks

Thank you. I am reading all you suggest and am looking at what will work. I admit it seemed too good to be true to let them handle everything! The only part of not having them do our air that I will miss is the transfer from London to the cruise port in Southampton. I have done my own air a lot of the time but cruising is relatively new to us. I do think that we would need to arrive at least a day early if we do our own air. I can arrange a car to Southampton and maybe a tour for the next day. The ship sails at 7 pm so we would have a whole day and Southampton would be less expensive to stay than London. We have been to London before and I don't have a big desire to see it again. I found some tours to Salisbury and the Magna Carta from Southampton which would be interesting. We would fly from Atlanta but I found I could not find business class air to London with the return from Reykjavik. I guess that is because Delta does not fly business to Reykjavik but I found it odd that they did not allow me to pick business one way. I agree economy is never fun but hated to spend $3200 for both of us to fly that segment for 5 hours.I would like the equivalent of delta comfort though. And we would still be on regular economy from the gateway city to Atlanta We do want to deviate at the end of the cruise and spend some more time in Iceland -- before we looked at SS we were looking at Regent and they had a 4x4 4 day pre in Iceland we would like to still do and there appear to be a lot of companies that do this type of thing. I believe having them take care of the air with a deviation would incur an additional fee as well. If anyone has experience with this type of thing we would appreciate recommendations. Thank you for all your help.

We are looking at the Southampton to reykjavik. Silver Seas includes air and I am wondering about that. We are coming from Atlanta. I was planning to upgrade to business class to London but there is no real business class from Reykjavik so did not think it would be worth it. There are no direct flights so we would need to fly through NY or Boston. First question is, if you let them fly you economy today there are so many economy classes of economy -- do you have to pay for checked luggage? Can you choose your seats ahead of time? How much input do you get. My experience with cruises is limited. We did do Viking to Antartica and were able on our own to upgrade to either comfort or business which we did. But the carrier with the most flights to Iceland is Icelandair and I am do not know anything about them. Is this who SS uses? I have done a little bit of googling and I am concerned we may have to check bags (we always do carry on only) and that would cost extra. There are several types of economy each with different restrictions and I did not know which type SS uses. How far in advance do you receive your flight information and how much input can you have in it? Thank you

Hello! We are thinking of doing the pre tour in Iceland -- Superjeep and would like to know if any has done it and the feedback you have. Thank you

We are looking into an Icelandic cruise for 2024. I know that Regent is not Viking with no children but read that they have a program geared to children and I wondered if there would be a lot of children on the cruise. It said they had professional youth counselors overseeing a program with movie nights, dance contests, mini putt putt contests and more. That sounds more like the large cruise ships we avoid. Please let me know your experience. I realize this cruise is in the summer when children have off and is within the 2 week time period most people vacation for. I just want to know so that I can make an informed decision as to whether or not we would like this cruise. Thank you

Thank you I am reading all your comments and appreciate each one. Has any one done Iceland?

Hello! We are new to cruising. Our recent (last 30 years) experience consists of two Viking cruises this year and we enjoyed them. I am wondering how you would compare Viking to Regent. What is better or worse? How do the guests compare? How many people are on a tour? What about the entertainment? The dress code? We like this itinerary and are trying to figure out if what you get with concierge is worth the price difference. It is about $2,000 more but, if we use their air we would come in a day early and have the hotel stay included as well as the additional wifi devices that would cost about $500 extra with a superior suite. The black Friday sale took about $4,000 each off the fare which made it more attractive. Having not followed Regent is this likely to occur again? Do they do many sales less than the 2 for 1 they always advertise? How much does picking your flights cost? I have been confused with that. If you don't use their air but stay in a concierge suite do you still get the hotel stay or is that only if you let them do the air? What do you wish you had known before you chose Regent? What surprised you? We are looking at the July 25 Iceland to London trip on the Splendor Thank you

my experience within Europe is that the business class seats to fly from one European city to another are regular economy class seats but the middle seat is left open. So where you woule have a 3 seat configuration the 3 seats are there but the middle seat is left open.

thank you.

Does anyone know if Turkish Air is an airline Viking uses?

i would consider all others have said but also using a travel agent to check often for you

when we were on the cruise in May we booked an Egypt cruise for Oct 2024. When I returned home I realized that the pre to Israel would coincide with Rosh Hashana which meant that three days of the 4 days in Israel would be closed down. The person who suggested the dates to us worked for Viking and was from Israel. I think he should have considered that . In that month the fare went up $500 and we have to pay it to have the date moved 3 days earlier. Since then it has increased $1,000. I think they are getting greedy. I also think that the $25 deposit causes people to claim cabins they will not fill just in case and that hurts the rest of us by making it more difficult to find a cabin and therefore the price increases as cabins appear scarcer than they may be. Just thinking out loud.

I personally like the trip insurance store. You always get the same people when you call and they know their stuff. I am most concerned about medical issues when I am away. So, for me, having primary medical coverage with high limits is important. Once I have paid for my trip, the money is gone. Sure if I can't go it would be nice to get my money back but what matters more to me is not to have a huge unexpected expense. So I always insure the minimum -- which is $500 a person--as soon as I make a payment. It gives me peace of mind. Then I can increase it as I want to -- If I pay $10,000 for the trip I decide to insure all of it or perhaps half of it or somewhere in between. I know that my medical is covered no matter what. And since my husband is 10 years younger his cost is less so I may cover his 100% and mine 50% and be willing to leave something on the table if I can't go. Sometimes I increase it over time -- Add $3,000 one month and then $3,000 another month to help even out the cash flow. There are a lot of companies that require you to have covered everything in order to waive the preexisting conditions coverage but they have some that do not require you cover everything. It is a personal decision -- how much are you willing to lose if you can't go for what would be a covered reason.