ChucktownSteve

If it makes y'all feel better, on our recent 16 night Regent cruise, they experienced the same staffing and supply chain problems that Azamara has been having. They were still going through training issues of new crew as well.

So it appears that Gary's suggestion it is probably new crew who haven't quite reached the Azamara service level is why we're getting differing reports/opinions. I wish Ryszard had been on our December Quest sailing. I don't even know who the HD was; she was never visible.

Same for me but I'm 3 points away. Then I don't know that jumping through these hoops will ever get me to the next level.

I appreciate your candidness. I'm conflicted, hoping for positive things about Onward because we did book her. While we've usually sailed in a veranda cabin, I stepped up to a suite. So I'm now trying to mentally justify that decision. Ryszard was the Hotel Director on the best cruise we've sailed to date. It was an incredible experience. He was everywhere and arranged such out of the box events including an onboard talk by Lech Walesa. (Our sympathies to Mr. Walesa's family on his passing last month) Ryszard's was one of the things that made that cruise exceptional. Now Sycamore wants to hide the HDs? Sorry to hear that. I too hope my fears are unfounded. A Greek Isles intensive is on my bucket list and Azamara itineraries are the best at immersion, IMO.

We are booked on Outward next May. I'm not as concerned about the maiden voyage because all ships sailing maiden regardless of the cruise line have adjustments. What I am concerned is how the new owner, Sycamore Partners, handles the cruise line going forward. I was not wowed on my December 2021 Quest sailing. There were supply chain problems for common liquors and food items on the cruise. I'm still getting the run around with the ship's store for a defective Mary Francis purse for my wife. It was the last month Starboard Cruise Services, had the gift shop before they transferred to a better company. However Azamara after a few months of my emailing them sent me to the current vendor not the December one. It's still a cluster. I'm hoping Sycamore gets their act together. The Azamara pre RCG sale was very good. My jury is till out on the new owner. There are some positives but many negatives. Perhaps it's a learning curve. Perhaps covid related. Who knows the reasons? Without the clout of RCG, the Venice port is now two hours away for our May Greek Isles cruise while the bigger cruise companies are closer to Venice. My bottom line is every review has some validity based upon their current cruising AZ experience. I'm going to read them all and weigh them on credibility of detail. The previous Azamara experience is moot even though the best cruise we ever had was on Azamara. Just MHO. YMMV.

We had rain a few days on our last month's cruise. I left the Regent umbrella in the closet and grabbed one by the elevators as we left the ship. It was more convenient and we didn't have a wet one in our closet. 😁 Oh and if you happen to break your leg, the umbrella can double as a splint!

Better than using it on the overpriced ship stores.

GOARMY, We'll be disembarking Mariner the day you embark. We had final payment as we embarked Navigator to Montreal. I too hope the ripples dissipate by our cruise so you'll have smoothe sailing too.

Hi Bayonejoe, Sorry I just returned home today. No longer have access since we disembarked Saturday morning. I would have been able to retrieve that had you asked earlier. Since I can't drink wine, I didn't pay any attention to the offerings. Perhaps someone on a subsequent cruise could assist you. Bon voyage.

Not a problem. You still earned PUP while sleeping. 😁

The other night Cruise Director Ray performed the show. Besides signing, he's also a ventriloquist. Very entertaining he is. These are some of the dummies.

Going back in time on this voyage, because I neglected to post these in a timely fashion. Halifax was socked in all day. I took the Lobster and lighthouses excursion with 85 or so other people. It was a hefty walk. Let me correct that, a VERY hefty walk to the tour boat. It was windy and cold. Here you can see our view towards shore. We never could see any of the four lighthouses we were supposed to. This was the included excursion lunch. It's a 1 1/4 pounder. Then about a mile or more walk back to the ship. Then sailing out of Halifax while we were dining in Compass Rose, I looked across the dining room to observe the mast and lights from a tug guiding us out in the fog

We're not having problems with reception. However the choices are extremely limited. Have you tried feeding the hamster that turns your TV generation wheel?

Here ya go royallondon Last nights entertaining Krew Kapers show. Lots of fun by a talented crew. Sailing into Saguenay this morning.

This is a very good itinerary. I booked this cruise for the same reason. I hope you'll have a great cruise. Perhaps the problems on this cruise are just a passing post covid situation trying to staff up with new Regent crew.

I am doing well. Thank you for asking. My recent experiences on Navigator is not what a lot of loyal Regent Navigator fans or some others on this cruise have experienced so I tried not to be negative. I have mixed reactions. Some positive, some negative. However we shared a table with another couple tonight who said they've sailed five Regent cruises and rated this 65% of their regular Regent experience. I expected more from a luxury line after following the threads the last year. Two examples just this evening for me were: I order the New Zealand lamb chops which I loved the last two times I ordered it and had come out perfectly cooked. Tonight not so much. I ordered Medium rare but they came out Medium well. My excellent waiter noticed and retrieved me another pair. He came back within a couple of minutes with more Medium well chops. Nothing major but not Luxury. On the way into the show, I stopped at the bar and ordered a Walker Black on the rocks. They poured red and said the black was empty but if I wanted it, I should go to the Navigator lounge to get it. They were even out of Bailey's for few days. Luxury? There are a lot of positives, but many negatives. Sorry I forgot to bring rose colored glasses But at this price point, I expected a better experience than Celebrity or Azamara. Even our Oceania cruise was overall better. They offered to move us to a Navigator suite late last night but we declined. It wasn't worth the effort for just the final four days. Plus I didn't complain looking to gain one up. I'm hoping our next two Regent cruises, one past final payment, will redeem this voyage. Otherwise Regent may not be for us at this value proposition. I didn't mind stepping up at this price point for the concierge suite. However I would have felt the same had we been in a lower category suite. Things are too inconsistent. I'm not the only one who's felt this way after speaking with several others on the cruise. Glad for you if you had different Regent experiences. Wish I did too.

Hiya UUNetBill, Here ya go for Navigator. 160380534_CCRatingTemplate Navigator chucktownSteve.xls

Takemewithyou, I typed a nice reply before dinner but the WiFi went down and I lost the whole thing. I'll try to remember some of it. I was trying not to compare the two cruise lines because they are apples and oranges. Azamara occupies the premium space, Celebrity claims "luxury" (hahahahahaha yeah right) while Regent does reside in the luxury segment. The two main differences is overall feel. Both have bands. Azamara is more for the show while Regent is more atmosphere. We enjoyed being able to speak with new friends last night without having to shout over the music. While the food on Azamara's White Night is good, it is nothing compared to Regent's elevated selections. There were huge platters of Shrimp, sliced in half Alaskan King Crab legs, whole pigs and meat fresh off the grill offerings. Not to mention the sides and salads. If you couldn't find something, you were either not hungry or not able to be satisfied. lol The service on both are good but Regent is a cut above. We just got back from dinner in the Compass Rose restaurant. It was the best we've had in there to date. We requested a more experienced waiter and the service was impeccable. The food came out quickly and was sooooo good. My DW had the Dover sole. Anthony was a master of the preparation. When he was done it reminded me of the old cartoon when I was a kid where the cat swallowed the whole fish and pulled out just the skeleton. Absolutely nothing left on the bones. What an art! I had the New Zealand lamb chops. They were more like lollypops. Perfect MR temperature and flavorful. The scallops were neither under cooked nor over done. Perfect. The vegetables were good to the bite too. What I"m enjoying is the understated elegance. They don't have to be in your face with it. It just happens. As Janieb1962 appropriately pointed out correctly, little touches make the difference.

This morning we had a leisurely sail between ports in Bermuda. Here are a few of the wonderful views from our veranda. Our excursion this morning was to the Crystal Caves. They said there were 81 steps down 120 feet below the surface. That's true. I counted them. However they neglected to mention there were 18 additional steps down from the gift shop to the opening of the cave. I counted those also. Oh don't forget, what goes down, must come up! This is a stalactite working towards a stalagmite it helped form. These two pictures are the two underwater stalagmites. Those were formed before the cave filled with water so they can't grow any higher since stalagmites are formed by water dripping down from the stalactites. Now that water with minerals just drops into the water or your head and shoulders as you navigate the floating walkway. At 3pm we sailed for Halifax, Nova Scotia. We arrive 11am Sunday.

Depends upon where you eat. Prime 7 has been cooked to temperature ordered. I like my meats medium rare. In the Compass Rose even though I ordered duck or steaks MR, it has sometimes come out medium to medium well. At the Pool Grill the hamburger cooked to order was served at proper temperature. But meats on the buffet or in La Veranda tend to be cooked well done. Same with the self serve meats at Sette Mari. The exception is the carved meat of the day can be received as desired by which part they carve from. It's nothing earth shattering. I realize they have to feed the various types of preferences plus it's just easier to make sure it's DONE. So one either accepts the way it's cooked or passes it by. That's called personal choice.

Last evening was the Grand Deck BarbeQue around the pool deck and above. It reminded me of a similar event we experienced on Azamara but different. People began staking out their seats long before the event officially began. But there were plenty of drinks served while waiting. OK I succumbed to the request once. Here's your food porn. One of the nakkid roasted pigs. There was also lots of shrimp, Alaskan King crab, the whole roasted pigs and lots of other things that filled our stomachs while satisfying our need for copious amounts of MORE food. We set sail this morning about 6am. We will be docking on the other side of the island at St George about 8am. Then it's time to gather for our caves excursion.

Ran into Ray last evening at the Grand Deck BBQ. He mentioned he knows Jim and Sue well then returned the How do you Doooooooo!

hahaha sorry. I don't do food porn. And I'm either drinking scotch or vodka on the rocks. Nothing to see here lol Food is mostly very good. We have a wide choice so finding something to like isn't hard. I just wish some things weren't cooked as well done as they are. But not up to the point of needing a complaint.

This morning first thing room service delivered two pots of coffee right on time at 6:30am. Then we assembled for the excursions at 8:15am. We were originally signed up for the Boat excursion -Scenic Southern Shores. My DW wanted to exchange it for the Quintessential Island Drive Good choice. Winston, the driver/guide, was very informative with good personality. Our first stop was Fort Hamilton which was originally built with no installed cannons. It had a great view overlooking Hamilton and where we docked so close in. The other two larger Royal Caribbean and NCL ships had to dock at the dockyards...a long way away. We also stopped at John Smith Bay Park for a bathroom break. No we didn't pee in the ocean. But it did make for a beautiful postcard photo op. Another place we passed was the unfinished church. We met a couple yesterday that told us they were getting married there today at 2pm. No guests invited. lol Pool deck is closing at 3pm today to set up for the Grand Deck BarbeQue..the feast under the stars from 7-9pm.

Marc, I don't know the answers. They haven't even announced the detected cases and I haven't cared to ask further. I may bring it up in a future conversation if I get the chance but I''m confident they're doing the right thing. Nobody else seems concerned. Some wear masks, most don't.