GrJ Berkshire

Any update on % passengers on each of the 4 operational Regent ships at present.? I know that Voyager is not currently sailing with passengers on its way to Abu Dhabi .

How many have cancelled as a result of the reassurance deal. At which point does a cruise not become viable? 50% of passengers? More or less?

At a UK Regent promotions event this week - lots of questions to answer 

Just heard from Regent that to get to Tahiti or board Navigator for our cruise, you will have to have a medical certificate of good health if you have been through Asia at any time since January 1st this year, not just on your way to embarkation but any visit or transfer. This must affect the % of cruise capacity that occurs on all ships. This is on top of pre-embarkation health checks.

Just read that re our cruise from Tahiti that anyone who has been through Asia since January 1st this year will have to have a medical certificate of good health to be allowed to board the Navigator. We have not been out the UK this year and fortunately going to the ship via LA from London and in good health, but this will affect some of the passengers.

You wonder what the % of the capacity will be on the ships in the next few weeks?

You want miss out on Shetland as it's a docked port. Guernsey is more likely as you moor between Guernsey and Herne, and then you tender ashore, always more of a risk than docking.

Auto correct  strikes again , it should be 'pashtima'  not pastime!!!!!! In last response.

8 hours ago, ronrick1943 said:

Truly it's a personal thing.  I think it just right, my partner thinks it's cold.

Totally agree, it depends what you are used to. My wife always has a pastime re shoulders as some locations you are sitting under air conditioning vents , however I always travel with a formal jacket which can be worn over a smart collared short sleeve shirt and gives you pockets for key pass wife's glasses etc.

As Brits we are less used to air conditioning, in Britain this is opening the windows and keep our home at 18/19°C  (68°F ) wearing jumpers in winter. We find that some US buildings are kept at 73/ 74°F or that the air conditioning is quite harsh and drying on the skin.

You can keep your suite at whatever temp you desire, we turn ours to a low as we find we sleep better in a cooler environment, again used to a bedroom with a small window open 95% of the time.

3 hours ago, mrstanley said:

What is the reason for the abrupt cancellation of the cruise? 

I would have thought that the answer to this question is quite obvious, if you read other threads. Regent was about the last cruise line to cancel out in this area, and with access via Singapore and Hong Kong airport impossible to allow for boarding , most travel logistics were not possible.

15 hours ago, Kwaj girl said:

We are on Splendor now and SO miss the cheese cart in Chartreuse.   We were told that the cart "is too big" to bring to the tables so we were served plated cheese selections of the day

Need to buy/ make a smaller cart?

21 minutes ago, Kwaj girl said:

We are on Splendor now and SO miss the cheese cart in Chartreuse.   We were told that the cart "is too big" to bring to the tables so we were served plated cheese selections of the day

So disappointing the Cheese cart is one of the few redeeming features of Chartreuse. My wife is not a blue cheese fan and so the daily selection does not give her the range she would select herself.

9 minutes ago, Mr Rumor said:

As I think I may have been the first to harp on the Explorer’s terrible balcony sight lines in the Explorer Maiden Voyage live blog, I think it’s fitting for me to document—in photos—the much-improved balcony sight lines on the Splendor.  All photos were taken this morning at Steven Rivellino’s lecture on “The Playwright (Arthur Miller) and the Goddess (Marilyn Monroe).”  (By the way, Rivellino, a theatrical producer, has delivered a string of superb illustrated talks on subjects ranging from the Bolshoi “scandal” to Broadway trends.)

 

View from the first row of the rear balcony:

 

Second row rear balcony view:

 

Third row rear balcony view:

 

The side balconies have two rows compared to the Explorer’s three, and the chairs swivel:

 

Second row side balcony view:

 

To be honest, there is minor view obstruction from hanging speakers and lights, especially from the side balconies, and from each of the two balcony pillars in the rear balcony. . .

 

. . .  but I haven’t heard anyone complaining.  And I’m seeing lots of occupied seats upstairs:

Great to see such an improvement, and that Regent listened to the CD and theatre people in designing Splendour. Hopefully they will be able to amend Explorer in the future, as at the present it can't be the worlds best cruise ship with such a fault .

Great pictures its what I and many others needed to see. Looking forward to sailing on Splendour in the future. Our next 2 cruises are on Navigator and our favourite ship the Voyager.

Still awaiting a direct answer, have the problems in the theatre re ( no) sight lines to the stage been corrected from the Explorer theatre. Hope Splendour has solved this and downstairs seats under the balcony having limited sight lines above shoulder height.

Hopefully corrected  !!!

Regent shows why so many of us rate the service so highly.

An amazing tale.

57 minutes ago, boblerm said:

eliana, not only am I not tired of the menus, there are many items that I have not even tried yet.  I agree with Jackie, I could eat in CR alone and not tire of it.🙂

Agree, with the specials and the always available, I don't know what else could be on the menu!!

Had 22 days on last cruise, never repeated a meal. CR is often better than some specialist restaurants , I would want to see improvements in Chartreuse first, we have been disappointed in its menu, we don't eat foie gras for ethical reasons.

46 minutes ago, Zach1213 said:

 

If you're a US citizen, there's almost no such thing as a "hassle" at immigration or customs when you're going to most countries (and by most, I mean the places most Americans go...such as Europe). You may or may not encounter a slow-ish line (which is fairly rare, most Schengen airport have very streamlined immigration checkpoints) but that's about it. 

Shame it's not the same for Brits into the US, we often get hassle  at immigration into the states.

42 minutes ago, Belfast Taxman said:

Sounds a bit too Cunard for my taste. That is about 50% what attracted me to Regent. That there were only limited differences of services  between cabin types (after all you do get the bigger cabin). The other 50% is the lack of formal nights on Regent.

Totally agree!!! Cunard to me sounds like the film Titanic with steerage and first kept apart-  ugh

After all where you eat which restaurants depend on your cabin, one reason we dislike the sister line Oceania is the suite lounge, not for all, would hate having to show ID to get into a lounge and being told 'this area is not for you sir' even SS events are not that monitored by Regent.

5 hours ago, Caroldoll said:

Bob is really spot on.  We cruised on X in the best suite (can't remember the name) and the same for Princess, but no butler on Princess.  I don't mind that Regent includes tours since we have traveled so extensively, we frequently use the tours to get where we want to be and leave the tours, do our own things, and meet them to go back to the ship.  One thing I do not like on Regent as we travel in the Master Suite is that they don't differentiate in how they treat you no matter the class of suite you are in.  Personally, if I am paying 3 to 4 times I would like some perks.  I have heard that they are doing a little better now, I don't know.  We have several coming up.  Their food and entertainment is better, except Crystal who has better speakers.  

Can see where your coming from, having paid for the master suite. However for me, one of the delights of Regent is the way that everybody is treated the same, not a ship within a ship. The haven concepts, or the class system of Cunard put me off. You do have the study on Explorer and Splendour, plus unlimited prime7 etc and the Captains table guarantee. Meeting and mixing is good, some upper suites do, others keep themselves to themselves.

Best way to book excursions is to ring up Regent and book with a human quicker and no stress, they will then advise if some excursions are not coming up .

No comparison, apples and oranges( not pears!!)

Size, space, service, food, drinks, no tipping, no nickel and dime costs everywhere, relaxed approach, no set dining,, no tuxedos at dawn, everything Regent is manageable and feels like luxury. Cost upfront may look high but in reality that's it, last year 22 days to Norway, ships bill at the end £0.

Great posts from the Splendour.

Question, what is the theatre like? Has it eradicated the poor seats with no stage view especially upstairs ( found in the Explorer ) We thought the sight lines were poor, Ray Solaire agreed with us on this.

We often eat later 7-45ish so got into  routine on the other ships, of slipping in at the back of the theatre 9-25ish, this is not possible on Explorer  where many of these seats don't give a view or you are under the balcony overhang.

I do hope this has been addressed.

Like the look of outside seating, also not yet sailed with Captain Serena, look forward to this.

2 hours ago, bubbachief said:

Are Northern Ireland pounds and English pounds interchangeable?

Yes, all pounds in the UK are interchangeable. The only difference is Jersey and Guernsey where their notes need changing as they are not legal tender in the UK. However Northern Ireland and Scotland notes are hard to use to get other currency in foreign countries. All pounds have the same value .

Also went to Acadia national park last October, beautiful fall colours. We stopped and had pop-overs which are cold Yorkshire puddings with jam and cream on, the local delicacy. Thoroughly enjoyed Bar Harbour area.

3 hours ago, TheBear60 said:

I have heard from other sites that they travel the Baltic recently with US $1 bills that are accepted for small purchases, tips & can be exchanged for local currency re WC entry, etc.

This is incorrect, very few places in Europe accept $ notes especially not toilets.

Dollars for tips?  ,no way firstly its Europe not a tipping culture for everything and if you do tip, would you give Euros or zloty in NY as a tip? So do not think about it in Europe.

Purchases are either cc or local currency anything else the exchange rate will be very poor. In Sweden especially its almost cashless, but you will need a chip / pin card. In Norway last year saw a great sign - we do not take any foreign currencies  $ £ € .

Radisson Edwardian in. Leicester square has charm, is central , near the tube, theatres, Trafalgar square.

Another good choice is at Seven dials, the Radisson blu ,nearer to Covent garden However small rooms..

Really depends what's on your to do list on these 3 days, how mobile you are, what age you are, and how busy you want to make these days. Do you want to do history, iconic buildings, theatres ?

I would say that your to do list is the key, few London hotels are the corporate blocks in the states, most central London hotels have history and also very variable types of room, most much smaller than is standard in the USA. Also AC is not generally included , also most UK hotels include breakfast and are not room only. So how are you considering food?

I really do not understand the issues here. It is very clear that the earliest possible flights are after 12noon, depending on where the port and the airport are located. Why ruin the end of the holiday from a quality cruise like Regent, costing you thousands to save a little on an earlier flight . This would just make the last day crazy and take away the positives of the cruise. Miami seems to be different , will a much more unionized port and rules on luggage handling different to most ports. It is the only place you need to tip the porters, to a European an outrageous concept, you would not even think about here.

Equally we have found the theatre meeting for excursions no issue at all, far better than the queues for tenders on other ships, or meeting up on the pier. The only issue we have is when people do not listen to instructions or do their own thing and jam up the process, destination services do a great job. Most of the issues are around fickle passengers or those who do not follow the rules.

Don't get stressed on this, the way to do this is to phone, not online. When you speak with a human, rather than rely with the internet you usually get what you want. Especially when its the first day that excursions have opened on the cruise. In UK phoning Southampton is the best way to do this.