markeb

Interestingly, once you get over a certain threshold, probably $75 and definitely $100 a bottle, it's really not silly money. I did a few lookups on bottles they were selling onboard Equinox, and a couple of them were very near retail, and none were in the 2-3X retail that's normal in the US. And if you have the premium package, you get I believe a 20% bottle discount, so for some wines you could be at or below US retail. A couple of sommeliers stated with the the duty free nature of the ship they didn't need to do those markups, although it's surprising in some ways they don't. I did notice on Equinox that almost all of the wines by the glass in the premium package were in the same flavor profile. High alcohol/high fruit/high oak Cabernet sauvignon, butter and oak Chardonnay, and grapefruit Sauvignon blanc. When we cruised about 16 months or so ago, there was a better selection of "other reds and whites" that were very good. And the sommeliers seemed to know those other wines better then. Or I'm getting old and remembering good old days that really weren't...

You don't want to see my Cellar Tracker... 😱

Sure. These were all insider suggestions but none of these are insider tastings; they're all available to the public. None are free... Porter Crawford Paloma Vineyards (they're on Spring Mountain and apparently a beautiful location; I'll find out Wednesday!) Venge/Trespass (Trespass tastes at Venge) V. Sattui (Was always a fun winery to visit when we lived in the are. They only do direct sales and some restaurants so you have to buy at the winery or order from the winery.) Hendry Venge (pronounced Ven gay) is the furthest from Napa in Calistoga. Porter and Crawford are right outside Napa. You'll generally need to book ahead of time, and they all have limits on numbers for standard tastings. Most will do a group, but I suspect you're seriously paying for that privilege. If the thread's still up when I get back and Anne humors us, I'll update how they were. It's a stretch on "cruise related"!

I've had Opolo. If memory serves we had someone from the winery here for a tasting event a few years ago. Very nice wines.

DW has done this on each of our three Equinox cruises. She loved it! Purchase it online for the precruise discount and schedule more or less as soon as you can onboard. Unless you're driving home, seriously recommend looking at the "solid glass" options: paperweights, starfish, jelly fish, etc. Much less likely to break on the trip home!

Their "big boy" wine is Isosceles. It's a three grape (Cab Sav, Cab Franc, Merlot) blend. The ones I've had were very good. Paso Robles has been emerging as a premier destination for California Wines. We've never been, but it's apparently an amazing place to visit. Like I said, Paso can be pretty high ABV and pretty fruity. If you're into more of a French style, they may not appeal. But they are a great alternative to Napa in particular. I tend to find Sonoma a little more subtle (and you'll find some great Pinot Noir in Sonoma County, and Russian River in particular...). And, in lieu of a cruise, we fly to SFO tomorrow and have 8 wineries scheduled in Napa from Tuesday to Friday. Who needs crappy wine on a cruise ship...

That's not one I've used, so that sounds better. I've only used the Elite bag service which is a free, wash and fold service. If they press and return on a hanger, that could be a good deal.

Terminal 18 for sure. And it works just fine!

I suspect you’ll be very disappointed if you try the wash and fold service for those items. You’d almost certainly want to do laundry and press but that’s a piece rate. I don’t know how much confidence I’d have in chinos or jeans. When I was doing a lot of business travel even for business casual I’d do tropical wool trousers. More confidence in dry cleaning when traveling. The bag rate is great for underwear and socks and OK for polos. At least that’s my experience. YMMV.

Curious to hear your experience. We're going to explore other cruise options after our next (final booked so far) Celebrity cruise (SS southbound from Alaska). But we're also looking at other vacation options that don't involve cruising. We'll see.

Thanks. Not to hijack a Celebrity thread, but this is an issue with marketing across cruise lines. Regent does an amazing job of promoting itself as pompous and boring! From what you’re describing they should at least also promote the affluent adult space! Unfortunately the fares I’m seeing are beyond my comfort zone. But we’ll keep them in mind.

Thanks. That is NOT what I get from their web page. We may explore them. But I would like my rock…🤘

To be clear, we have one more Retreat booking from before prices increased so dramatically. We've enjoyed the Retreat for what it provided coupled with a level of activity that Celebrity provides. We're unlikely to book another at the current price point, and when we eventually decide to book another cruise it won't automatically be with Celebrity or even RCG. Land trips to Tuscany or Portugal or a flight to Iceland would win out. Maybe even returning after thirty years to a much more modern and exciting Korea. I don't know this is right thread, but the question wouldn't stand alone on a Celebrity board. What is life like on Regent? What's the evening dress? What kind of activities? What kind of music? I know when Celebrity cruisers on this board look at Celebrity's marketing, there's a certain "yeah, right" factor that kicks in. Celebrity is promoting a younger but affluent lifestyle cruiser. The reaction around here is largely "that's not me". Well, at now 61, and looking statistically, not necessarily personal perception, that pretty much is me, albeit on the high end age wise. When I look at Regent's marketing I see a degree of Thurston Howell and a level of old money country club pomposity that I'm not the least bit interested in. I'm not saying that's you, but that's what I'm receiving from what they transmit. The staterooms look amazing, I agree, but I somehow don't see a house band doing Van Halen and The Foo Fighters like we had on Equinox two weeks ago. I don't cruise to listen to lectures; I know some do. I have a doctorate and now three masters; I've been to enough lectures! But I enjoy my music and dancing with my wife, just not well. But my music generally isn't a string quartet or a piano bar. Much of what you describe sounds great, but what they project in their marketing frankly bores me to tears. Maybe in ten more years, but not now. And if Bruce is still touring at 74 and Mick and the boys are still rocking at 80, I'm not sure I'll be ready for that at 71. But some of that is perception created by Regent's own marketing. And that perception is why I'd rather sail Celebrity in Retreat, but only if prices normalize. And if you're comparing Regent's pricing to Celebrity's current Retreat pricing, I'm out either way.

I’m guessing the same since it’s almost impossible to differentiate them anymore. And from another thread I’m pretty sure they’re in Aqua and evening chic doesn’t apply in Blu (or Luminae).

I have to say this wasn't something I'd really done, but it was pretty amazing on Equinox this month how many men were wearing some form of (clean) athletic shoe for smart casual. I'll probably still throw a pair of loafers in for most cruises, but it was something I hadn't noticed before on Celebrity. Solved the last night shoe packing! Go for it!

My wife and I almost always sit at the bar. On a cruise ship, in a hotel bar, etc. We both just find it more fun. We have been to a few places that didn't have bar seating and were staffed to deal with that, but in general we'll sit at the bar. And if I'm traveling by myself (on land) I pretty much universally sit at the bar for drinks and food. And I think your two posts highlight why some love Michaels and some love the new Retreat Lounges. Glad I'm not in the business of designing ship's lounges!

I think they’ve go an AI package, so minutes won’t matter. No need to log off to save them.

Sushi on 5. Our 10 day cruise was the first time we've not eaten pretty much every dinner in Luminae (other than San Juan with the crazy late arrival time). But we really enjoyed Sushi on 5. Tuscan was fine, but the servings were just too big. Next ship doesn't have Murano.

Yes. You create a logon and password (PIN) and then share it with him. He's "you" as far as the system is concerned.

In the country, yes. On cruises, still not as much. There was an OK selection on Equinox last week. I honestly really didn't have but one or two. They had Angels, but I'm not sure of the price. Honestly, even their Scotch Whisky selection seems to have diminished. Rum and vodka, and largely gin (thanks to the martini bar, probably).

They had 101 in Craft Social on Equinox last week. Edited: Not sure if it required an upcharge or not. Whisk(e)y just isn't a big thing on Celebrity, IMHO.

I'm sure people are giving feedback when they feel reduced service. I put it on my post cruise survey. But honestly, for us, not necessarily for anyone else, we got the service we expected. Our breakfast was NOT cold. He did chill the (admittedly horrible) sparkling wine when we asked. We didn't have issues that needed resolved. For us, and again, not necessarily the same for others, the service differences we saw were things that were offered in the past (afternoon cheese plate and dropping off additional bottled water and diet coke) and HOW the service was provided. We felt we got what we paid for. Maybe we're just not picky enough...

I won't say it's all gone, but it's definitely different. Oddly enough, we probably saw our Retreat Host more last week than when we had a true "butler" but it was because he was out and about cleaning rooms. That wasn't a butler role before. But he did always say hello, ask about our day, and ask if we needed anything. But in a different setting. But yeah, we had room service breakfast twice and it was a different room service person both times. Not the butler like before.

Thanks. I seem to remember much worse fares. Or people complaining about budget carriers, which may be stuck in my memory. Glad to be wrong on that. I have had carryon concerns in the past on flights within Europe with sometimes tighter restrictions than in the US. A lot of connections from the US were on regional carriers from Munich to Prague or Naples. The checked bags transferred fine but carryons were a pain. It got complicated at times. London City does seem like a great option. Have to remember that if we fly from London to the continent in the future.

Given what can be fairly expensive checked baggage fees for air travel within Europe, this seems on the surface to be a very good option. It might take longer than flying, but the Eurostar was so nice the one time I was able to take it. Your thoughts?