seasickphil

2 minutes ago, SWFLAOK said:

17 minutes ago, SWFLAOK said:

Dinner reservations 3 months before sailing, at least for concierge level,  is what we normally book. Otherwise it's 75 days out.

Tours could already be wait listed 3 months out. We're gold members, and normally book concierge or penthouse, and we book our excursions year in advance. We missed out on an excursion to Pompei a year in advance, when I didn't try to book it until 6 hours after it became available with a concierge level cabin back in 2019.

So i don't think dining reservations will be available to book yet as September cruises are more than 90 days away.

3 minutes ago, SWFLAOK said:

We are make our

Sorry, i thought it was 90 & 75 days out reservations open.

1 hour ago, casperthecat said:

Hi, we’ve sailed Seabourn several times but first time on Regent. From some research today people are waiting up till 1am to book dining and tours a year in advance. That sounds crazy to me but it is what it is. So is it likely that we won’t get decent dining times in specialty restaurants and tours will be full? We plan to book tomorrow for a Med cruise in September. Thanks for your wisdom.

You will not be able to make speciality restaurant reservations quite yet anyway, not for cruises leaving in September.

On 5/8/2023 at 12:17 PM, papaflamingo said:

You said "Why can’t they tell you the truth if there is a different reason?"  Sort of means you think they are being dishonest. 😏

I bet if you call Regent they'll tell you the reason they cancelled.

papaflamingo, 

I'm not so sure about that.

We were informed last week that Stavanger has been dropped for a sea day on our Splendor cruise this July. Now we can live without going to Stavanger but i thought i would phone Regents UK office to see what the reason they would give for this, guess what, the young lady said that all the information she was given is that it was operational needs, i asked what this actually meant by this, i was told that if i wanted any more information regarding this then i would need to email Regents reservations department, i did this and this was their reply.

Please note that due to the far-out publication of our planned cruises, various operational factors sometimes result in the review and revision of itineraries as we get closer to sailing. Please accept our sincere apologies for the inconvenience caused regarding this.

Please let me know if you have any other queries regarding this and I will be more than happy to assist you.

Many thanks.

Kind Regards,

No further explanation was given, just operational needs changed to operational factors so yesterday i decided to send a follow up email to see if they can/will shed any light regarding the required change.

This was what i sent.

Operational factors can mean anything and everything, that does not give your paying customers (us) a reason for cancelling Stavanger. This far out why can’t a replacement port be found. We have cruised for many years and on many cruise lines so therefore have had ports cancelled before but we have been given either a reason (not just operational needs) or a different port substituted. Why can a proper reason not be given, do you not think we deserve one, it seems to me that Regent could treat us as adults and not what seems to be hiding behind such a general statement of operational needs as to why we must miss Stavanger. My wife and i can live with not going there but just can't see why Regent can not be upfront with the need to cancel it. What next, will further ports on this cruise be cancelled for operational needs, because Stavanger is not the only port cancelled recently by Regent recently is it.

As i have said, i fully understand that sometimes things happen that are out of control of the operator and that changes have to be made to the itinerary but surely treating us with openness and giving out a little more information which would keep us in the picture (or would you rather us not) and not kept in the dark,  or is it that Regent don’t really care about us or what we think.

I have not heard anything from them as yet but will update you if i do receive any further information.

3 hours ago, cwn said:

At least in the past in the US, when we sign up for a tour online, it list the retail value as “x”….$99, $124 or maybe even $169, then your cost “free”. Then if there is a charge they list the retail cost and the your cost what ever that is. This had not changed when we picked our tours for the Dec cruises. But things are handled differently in the UK sometimes. This causes sone confusion at times.

sorry noro messed up you cruise. That is no fun.

At least in the past in the US, when we sign up for a tour online, it list the retail value as “x”….$99, $124 or maybe even $169, then your cost “free”. Then if there is a charge they list the retail cost and the your cost what ever that is

It is the same in the UK, different prices displayed for for each of the tours available in each port. l suppose they just round that figure up to the $150 if a claim has to be made on travel insurance.

2 hours ago, papaflamingo said:

Honestly, free or included are merely semantics.  My real point was that in the U.S. Regent provides a single price for the cruise BUT allows a credit if you choose to not use Regent air or the pre-cruise hotel.  Everything else is simply part of the cruise price, use them or not.  The seemingly never ending discussion regarding "free" vs. "included" seems to be from people who want monetary reimbursement for a missed excursion.  The nitpicking argument that excursions "aren't really free, we pay for them" is the same as saying "toilet paper isn't free, we pay for it."  The bottom line is that Regent's business model has a single charge for everything except spa, flights, and hotels.  Doesn't make any difference as to whether they call it "free" or "included," it's all part of the price,  As for the $150 value if excursions, there is nowhere that I'm aware of that states that.  In all the listing of excursions for a cruise, the non Regent Choice show in price "FREE."  

 

 As for the $150 value if excursions, there is nowhere that I'm aware of that states that.  In all the listing of excursions for a cruise, the non Regent Choice show in price "FREE."  

PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE

I told you (post 38 ) that the Executive Concierge gave me paperwork for me to claim on my travel insurance for my 4 missed shore excursions @ $150 each tour x 2. If they did not have a monetary value of $1200 do you REALLY think he would on behalf of Regent give me paperwork to allow me to make a fraudulent insurance claim. My claim was paid in full, so do you really think i would have got that if the excursions were free.

Why are you so unwilling to except that, it actually happened to me, it is not hearsay but fact. I sincerely wished i didn't get Norovirus and that my wife and i could have indeed taken and enjoyed the shore excursions. You must make of this as you will as i can't make myself any clearer, this is last thing i will say on the matter (hooray everyone is saying) so i really do hope you have nice day, but for me after all this i think i need to go and have lie down in a darkened room.🤣 🤣

7 minutes ago, papaflamingo said:

No.  Here is the quote from my post #18:

"Regent charges a flat fee based on cabin selection.  The only add ons are Flights, hotel rooms, spa services, and Regent Choice excursions.  Everything else is FREE!  Including excursions, dining, drinks, toilet paper, laundry, crew members, pool towels, deck chairs.  You pay for none of those things whether you use them or not. So they're FREE."

Just like toilet paper or towels, they're supplied by the cruise line FREE of any additional charge.

We have had this discussion on angela miller's thread.

First time I have had a tour canceled nine days before cruise

Here in the UK we have different t&c's and as i said in post 42 of that thread they are not classed as free but are included like flights are.

When i had Norovirus on my last cruise (on Voyager) i was given paperwork regarding my 4 missed shore excursions because of having to isolate in my suite, enabling me to claim back $1200 ($150 x 2 for each included excursion) not from Regent but on my Travel Insurance.

Now i was told that all included excursions had a value ($150), as i said earlier t&c's are different in the UK but was led to believe that those costs would be the same if i was from USA/Canada.

Now us and others have said much about this, and i think it is 6 of 1 and half a dozen of the other as they say, but i have always believed that very few things are free in life and i certainly don't think cruising is one of them, my bank balance seems to back that up.

2 hours ago, papaflamingo said:

Did you really completely miss my point?  Really?  😏

Must have done, are you now saying shore excursions are not free?

16 hours ago, papaflamingo said:

What makes you think they're not being honest?  Have you called and asked why an excursion is cancelled and been been given a dishonest answer?  Would the reason make difference?  More acceptable to you?  We've had excursions cancel, and to be honest I never really wondered or care mush as to why.  If it's cancelled, it's cancelled.  Nothing I can do about it, no matter the reason.

And you put way too much emphasis on "gee we pay for excursions."  Regent charges a flat fee based on cabin selection.  The only add ons are Flights, hotel rooms, spa services, and Regent Choice excursions.  Everything else is FREE!  Including excursions, dining, drinks, toilet paper, laundry, crew members, pool towels, deck chairs.  You pay for none of those things whether you use them or not. So they're FREE.   

Flights and hotel rooms are included in the quoted cost.  If you choose not to use them you get money off the cost, so they're INCLUDED.

😏

papaflamingo

Everything else is FREE!  Including excursions, dining, drinks, toilet paper, laundry, crew members, pool towels, deck chair.

Seriously? are you really saying that if you did not receive any food, drinks, & excursions you would still be willing to pay thousands for the cruise. Personally i do not think there would many, if any who would follow you on this one, we will have to see won't we.

13 minutes ago, Anchorbuoy said:

Back to the itinerary change without explanation. 
 

Norwegian Escape has just arrived at Great Stirrup Cay. So, it appears we got bumped by a ship that does not offer “free” excursions.  

That is what seems to be happening, people on here say that since covid tour companies providing excursions have lost staff, this is true but if you look at other cruise line forums it does not appear there is a lot of talk of excursions being cancelled by lines that charge for them. Cruise lines where excursions are not "free" (nearly all of them) don't appear to be having the same problem, is it because they make money out of excursions and Regent do not, so therefore are not as likely to cancel, or am i being just cynical.

8 hours ago, cwn said:

But there could be a non cruise ship that was given preference over the Regent ship. You never know, one time the Princess ship we were on missed the port because a HAL ship was at the only dock, Just sailed by the HALship  and we had an unplanned sea day! 
 

If the port city is a must see for you, you need to plan a land trip. There are no guarantees on a cruise ship’s itinerary or that you will get the tour you want/like in every port. Cruising has a lot of moving parts. It is a wonderfully indulgent vacation, but the port are just icing, not the cake.

But the icing is part of the cake and without the icing then surely the cake is not as good.

There are several people contributing to this thread that are actually on this cruise, while no one can change what Regent has done and with no communication from them to give reasons, have any of you actually got in touch with Head Office to ask them what reason was behind the need for these changes.

I realise none of you on the cruise might not be at all bothered by these changes, after all you will still be on a lovely cruise, (albeit not the one originally booked) but it would after all (if they gave you a reason) put an end to all this speculation by us.

Regent do put a price on shore excursions and this is $150, but they obviously can not reimburse everyone for not taking the available ones, reason being anyone wishing to arrange their own would have them subsidised to that amount, but the ones that are cancelled (at short notice) and no other ones are available could be viewed differently by some, Regent would take a different view i would presume.

42 minutes ago, papaflamingo said:

Ok, read your other post.  My question  regarding cancellations on other cruise lines was to your comment in post #11 "I have been cruising for over 20 years and i do not have any allegiance to any cruise line but i have been on 9 different cruise lines during that time, so i do think i'm capable of making a comparison."   Your comment indicated to me that you have not seen cancellation from other cruise lines. Perhaps I missed your point.

 Your comment indicated to me that you have not seen cancellation from other cruise lines. Perhaps I missed your point.

I think you may well have missed my point.

What i said was that over the years we have had many ports cancelled but every time we have been given the reasons. Please read post again as i don't think i can make it any clearer.

18 minutes ago, papaflamingo said:

So in all your 20 years of cruising no other cruise line cancelled or changed anything other than Regent?  😏

I have only taken 2 cruises on Regent (2 more booked) and i have not said, nor did i have any ports or shore excursions cancelled  but please read what i said in post 20 on GeorgiaPeach51 thread Another itinerary change for Navigator, regarding other lines.

17 minutes ago, papaflamingo said:

I have been cruising since 1998 (Regent since 2018).  We have 84 nights on Regent, including 40 last summer.  Other than losing a port stop, we have had maybe one or two excursions cancel.  After our first few cruises we rarely used ship tours on the other cruise lines.  But yes, last minute cancellations did occur occasionally on the other cruise lines too.  ALL the issues that Regent faces are faced by EVERY cruise line.  Missed ports for weather, missed ports for medical emergency deviations (happened to us a few times on other cruise lines), Itinerary changes due to mechanical problems, port worker strikes, political upheaval, etc.  

In my experience, Regent handled these issues better than most by substituting new ports, providing on board activities for unplanned sea days, etc., even substituting new excursions when able.  

If you want to see how much this happens on other cruise lines, then cruise one or two of them and compare. Or, simply read the forums of the other cruise lines.  

If you want to see how much this happens on other cruise lines, then cruise one or two of them and compare. Or, simply read the forums of the other cruise lines.

I have been cruising for over 20 years and i do not have any allegiance to any cruise line but i have been on 9 different cruise lines during that time, so i do think i'm capable of making a comparison.  

As papaflamingo say ports are cancelled all the time for various reasons, over the years we have had many ports cancelled but every time we have been given the reasons. Sure Regent have their reasons but if they do not inform the passengers then speculation like this will always follow. People who are on the cruise should at least expect to be kept informed as to the reason why the ship can not make the scheduled stop, whatever the cause if not obvious.

2 hours ago, papaflamingo said:

The Covid shutdown seriously impacted tour companies.  Many went out of business, and of those still operating, she do so on a limited basis.  Regent also competes for those excursions with other cruise lines, many who bring in thousands instead of hundreds on board.  It's just the way it'll be in the post Covid cruise world for a while. 

Regent do have to compete with other cruise lines for providing excursions but the non Regent cruises i have taken post Covid no excursions that you have to pay for have been cancelled, not seemingly like Regent who according to other threads are cancelling with very short notice of cruise date. So if other cruise lines are not cancelling excursions (or are they?) why are Regent having to?.

1 hour ago, papaflamingo said:

In all this discussion it seems no one has read the Terms and Conditions the we ALL agree to when we book a cruise.  Here is what it says about excursions:

 

" Free Unlimited Shore Excursion reservations are on a first-come, first-served basis and are subject to availability....Regent Seven Seas Cruises reserves the right to withdraw and/or cancel a cruise or cruisetour or to make changes in the itinerary and hotel accommodations whenever, in its sole judgment, conditions warrant.   In the event of charters of the vessels, truces, lockouts, riots or stoppage of labor from whatever cause or for any other reason whatsoever, the Owner or Operator of the vessels identified in the current brochure may, at any time, cancel, advance or postpone any scheduled cruise or cruisetour and may, but is not obligated to, substitute another vessel or itinerary and Regent Seven Seas Cruises shall not be liable for any loss whatsoever to Guests by reason of any such cancellation, advancement or postponement."

 

So....there it is.  If you cruise on Regent you agree to these terms.

1 hour ago, papaflamingo said:

In all this discussion it seems no one has read the Terms and Conditions the we ALL agree to when we book a cruise.  Here is what it says about excursions:

 

" Free Unlimited Shore Excursion reservations are on a first-come, first-served basis and are subject to availability....Regent Seven Seas Cruises reserves the right to withdraw and/or cancel a cruise or cruisetour or to make changes in the itinerary and hotel accommodations whenever, in its sole judgment, conditions warrant.   In the event of charters of the vessels, truces, lockouts, riots or stoppage of labor from whatever cause or for any other reason whatsoever, the Owner or Operator of the vessels identified in the current brochure may, at any time, cancel, advance or postpone any scheduled cruise or cruisetour and may, but is not obligated to, substitute another vessel or itinerary and Regent Seven Seas Cruises shall not be liable for any loss whatsoever to Guests by reason of any such cancellation, advancement or postponement."

 

So....there it is.  If you cruise on Regent you agree to these terms.

As pingpong rightly says terms & conditions are different in the U.K and some of us do read them. These are taken from our brochures.

54 minutes ago, flossie009 said:

Is this correct?

It is not our recent experience.

 

It is according to RachelG post 15 and it happened to the OP.

7 hours ago, cruiseej said:

 

Regent is advertising that you may select an unlimited number of excursions on your cruise. It doesn't mean an unlimited number of excursions will be available to you. 

 

If you signed onto the Regent website when your cruise's expeditions first became available, you could have picked any excursion in every port, and possibly two in some ports if time allowed. If you signed onto the site days or weeks or months later, you would likely find some excursions sold out or waitlisted because others booked before you. Do you feel this is deceptive advertising? Because if you do, that means you expect them to always add more excursions in every port in order to fulfill every customer's wishes. If a bus for a tour fills up, and one more person wants to go, they would book another bus, drive and guide for that one additional person. If a boat becomes fully booked, they would get another boat for the next passenger who wants that excursion. Of course, that's possible in some cases and not possible in other cases. 

 

Having excursions canceled is just a variation on the same theme. If an excursion operator cancels an excursion they were providing to Regent, what do you expect Regent to do? They (and potentially other cruise ships scheduled in port on the same day) have long ago booked various excursions with various providers. If any local tour operator has additional capacity available, Regent can add another tour option for people whose initial excursion got canceled; if not, however, what would you expect them to do? Is Regent being deceptive because they can't manufacture a new excursion to replace one which was canceled? I don't believe so.

 

I do agree with you that if you're on a cruise where multiple excursions are canceled, and new/additional excursions are not added, it's frustrating and disappointing. (If they were Regent excursions you had had to pay for, and they was canceled at the last minute without replacements, even though you'd get back your prepayment, wouldn't it also be frustrating and disappointing?)

 

I think we are at cross purposes here, i don't think Regent is being deceptive at all i have all my excursions booked on my 2 upcoming Regent cruises. I am just putting my opinion in on this thread towards RachelG's experience of having 2 excursions being cancelled just a few day's before boarding with nothing else provided or available. Now we all know that Regents shore excursions are not free and Regent do not say they are free, they are included but we do actually pay for them in our headline fare. If they do continue to cancel shore excursions and it seems to be happening more than ever lately, surely this then detracts from your experience,so taking up Regents advertising slogan 

 Only Regent Seven Seas Cruises^®offers this extraordinary inclusion and you are encouraged to take full advantage of it.

is a bit unfair don't you? as i said before how can you take advantage of something that is not available to you. Shore excursions do have a monetary value on Regent of $150, now i'm not saying these should be reimbursed if they cancel but what if Regent told you a few days before boarding that your room steward would not be servicing your suite for a couple of days and there is no alternative (i know this is extreme and never going to happen ) would we all just accept that, after all we are paying for this service in the cost of the cruise but then again we are paying for shore excursions as well, are we not. The point i am trying to make, ( maybe not be making a good job of it ) is how much of a reduction in other services would make Regents Advertising phrases of Every Luxury Included / An Unrivalled Experience become an myth and when do a Luxury Line become a Premium Line.

These are just my thoughts and i'm not saying i'm right, for as my wife often reminds me it would not be the first time that i'm wrong.😁

8 minutes ago, cruiseej said:

 

So as I wrote above, how would you expect them to satisfy the conditions you are stating? They would have to have every excursion, in every port, available to every passenger, at all times, right?

 

Actually, the moment excursions open for a cruise, at that time every excursion is available to you, and you can sign up for an unlimited number of them (except for those which overlap in time).  But over time, some excursions fill up, of course. Are you saying that their wording is misleading because you believe they have promised that no excursion will ever sell out, and they will expand capacity on every excursion to everyone who wants to go? I think we all understand that's just not possible. 

 

(I say this as someone who booked a cruise earlier this year, 7 months in advance, and is still waitlisted for several of our desired excursions. Is that frustrating? Of course it is. But I don't think they were being deceptive with their marketing.) 

cruiseej

It is not me stating any conditions i'm quoting what Regent are advertising in their brochure's. I am not new to Regent and are fully aware of how shore excursions work but if, as post 15 RachelG says is Very common these days. We had 2 excursions cancelled after we boarded the ship. None other alternatives offered in one port, if this continues then surely this will detract from the product on which Regent are advertising/providing.

4 minutes ago, cwn said:

 No where does it say that there will be an inclusion in each and every port or that you are guaranteed  your choice of tour. Regent has a lot to offer but there are other cruise lines out there if you are unhappy with the product.

Where do i say anything about there will be an inclusion in each and every port or that you are guaranteed  your choice of tour. What i said was how can anyone take full advantage of something if it is not available. If i didn't like the product why would i be going on Splendor this July and on Voyager for 18 nights next March?. 

40 minutes ago, cruiseej said:

@seasickphil "Unlimited shore excursions" means you are free to book as many shore excursions as you want, in every port, even more than one a day if the timing allows — there is no limit on the number of excursions you can book. It does not mean they provide an unlimited number of shore excursions — there may be 3 or 5 or 9 or 14 in any given port — but it's a finite, not unlimited, number of excursions. And it does not mean there is unlimited capacity on every shore excursion such that every passenger can get a seat on every excursion offered. It's just common sense, really. (They also offer unlimited alcoholic beverages, but that doesn't mean that they will have the bottle/brand you want in every bar on every day or every cruise. Nor that you can consume them all. 🤣)

 

If the exclusion company that have contracted with cancels an excursion — whether because their boat or bus or ATV is broken, or because they can't get enough staff to provide drivers/guides on every bus or boat — what do you think the cruise line should do? They can't manufacture a bus or tour guide if one isn't available from one of their vetted and approved tour operators. Refunds aren't a viable option, because the excursions are not priced a la carte to begin with; some people sail on the cruise and never leave the ship, and they don't get money back, so why would someone whose excursion gets canceled?

cruiseej

Embark on an unforgettable journey, enjoying as many shoreside tours and experiences as you wish with our INCLUDED Unlimited Shore Excursions, from encountering majestic wildlife to sampling delicious cuisine to touring iconic UNESCO World Heritage Sites. Only Regent Seven Seas Cruises^® offers this extraordinary inclusion and you are encouraged to take full advantage of it.

How can anyone take full advantage of the "extraordinary inclusion" if there are no shore excursions available to go on.

Maybe Regent might have to think about changing their advertising to LIMITED SHORE EXCURSIONS rather than UNLIMITED. Somehow i don't think they would want to do that.