Gilly

I believe I know the restaurant you mean - delightful place! I think it's where the RHS entertains us to lunch during Chelsea Flower Show 😀

Don't forget to request a glass of Sauternes from the Sommelier to accompany it if that appeals 😉

Whooop whooop!! I think I could cope with a lack of bananas as long as the wine holds out 🤣 However, I'm not sure how long I could keep smiling without part of my luggage and consider Jim's patience to be severely tested so far. I hope it is rewarded.

Having been following Chrisy's post here, I eagerly opened this article in this morning's Times about a very different World Cruise and knew immediately why we choose to sail with Regent. Haven't quite made it onto the full WC yet so continue to enjoy Chrisy, Jim and Cathy's adventures - thank you for sharing!!

What a magnificent sky! There's nothing quite like the skies at sea, is there?

Clearly @lprp and I think along the same lines - living a similar distance away but in the opposite direction. We're also Sofitel overnighters, preferring to check in the evening before (after 4pm for a BA flight the following day). That means we can get up and go straight through to the lounge the next morning with no hassle or queues. We used to make use of the Valet Parking at LHR too, but found that since Covid (and resultant staff shortages?), their Meet and Greet service is as good if not better. So, we leave the car with them, wander over to check in at whatever time we arrive, offload our bags and go off for a peaceful evening and a good night's sleep before starting the journey in a calm and relaxed frame of mind.

We also do this and choose which flights we want.

Oh, now we really feel we're missing out! Lucky ducks - have a wonderful time 😎

Goodnight Chrisy, Jim and Cathy. Your lunch looked magnificent - shame we couldn't share it for real!!

The water looks a little calmer in the canal, thank goodness 🙂

Chrisy, it's going to be hard to keep up with dining in such style but I know that if anyone can, you can do it!! Thanks for giving us the insider's view and putting up with envious followers like me 😉 By the way, I will be looking in frequently with fingers crossed in the hope that your luggage turns up somewhere way before you reach San Diego...🤞

We were told that Cunard made the same mistake with (I think!) Queen Mary 2, which was built as a transatlantic vessel but at the time was used to operate much longer cruises. Re the original topic, we are booked on the PL to CT itinerary in 2026 having seized the chance to visit Madagascar and Tanzania, so thank you @briar14 for asking that question, without which we would know none of this!

Sending heartfelt best wishes to you both and hoping for a smooth journey through the next few months. Hopefully you'll soon be in a position to look forward to a cruise again x

@kentishman11 we had trouble finding flights from London so booked via Madrid and are arriving a day early. We were fairly late booking because of switching cruises (we expect our first Grandchild in February and didn't want to miss out on cuddles) but sorted it out with Regent UK, thankfully. We'll look forward to seeing you on board! (Have you found the roll call for our cruise?)

@kentishman11 it's on "My Itinerary" when you open your rssc.com account page for your cruise. Shown here on ours:

We are also in the JW Marriott before joining that cruise 🙂

The idea of that pre-cruise tour being offered on a Mediterranean itinerary comes as a surprise because Azerbaijan is a fair few miles from any of those ports! But yes, go for it! We were in Baku in 1987 (!) and would love to return, for the city has undergone so many changes since then. But we recall a city in a spectacular location on the Caspian Sea, stunning architecture, warm hearted people and fascinating places to explore. What a wonderful opportunity to see somewhere a bit out of the ordinary.

Lucky ducks!! (Yes, I am green with envy 😉 )

There was a widely available scheme using these volunteer guides, accessed through tourist information centres and we found a student, Tetsu, to be charming and an invaluable ambassador for his country on our first visit to Japan, some 25 or so years ago. I am not sure if the scheme still operates but would certainly feel it worth investigating.

@mj_holiday my apologies, I may have been incorrect about the discontinuation of Suica cards. If they are still in use, having one of these in your pocket would be really useful!

@mj_holiday please don't be put off using the subway system, which is clean, safe and very efficient. Most signs are now in English too and station staff and fellow passengers are incredibly helpful (in our experience). Travelling on the subway is an experience and can be fun, especially at rush hour 😉. The Yamanote (circle) line (from Shinjuku) is a useful means of getting to many of the places you might wish to visit and if you miss your stop, simply stay on board and you'll soon be back where you started! But that's unlikely to happen, for the signage and live real-time displays will ensure you always know where you are and the name of the next stop. I hesitated to add (another) link to my blog but I wrote one specifically about taking the subway train which may be of interest here Though it was written some years ago, it's still pretty accurate excpt for the Suica cards which have been discontinued. As for the Shinkansen bullet train, you'll find a visit to the ticket office in Shinjuku station really useful, for there you'll be able to reserve your seats and get good advice about your trip. Once again, the staff there are incredibly helpful, you can sit and ask whatever questions you may have and leave with confidence. Read about one of our experiences here if you're interested. Maybe you'll find a service operated by one of these...😎

I will add that the department stores in Shinjuku have several floors of restaurants, usually right up at the top. These are "proper" restaurants, not food court arrangements and offer a variety of cuisine (not just Japanese). Easy and pleasant to walk around them and choose which you fancy. Also, many Japanese restaurants have plastic models of the menu items which can be useful! We stay at the Park Hyatt in Shinjuku when we're in Tokyo and I love to drop in the convenience stores in the area, usually when returning to the hotel in the evening. Whilst there we usually buy a convenience store umbrella by the way...handy because it rains a lot in Japan and those (clear plastic) umbrellas are really very good.

I had a feeling I'd written a post about that fab evening on my blog but didn't find it immediately. I looked again and found it here - and share it because it also describes a second evening we enjoyed with you @briar14 on that cruise with an alternative menu to the Indian one. Aaah, happy days...and quite some time to wait till our next Regent cruise too 😞

There's a recent thread here with @Guerncruising and my own comments amongst others, about our experience of requesting special menus and an example of the menu we enjoyed most recently on board Splendor.. It's a super way to enjoy the company of friends over some really special dishes and something we really like to do. Thank you @briar14 - here's to the next time!!

An interesting conversation @forgap and one that has made me think about our recent experience on board Splendor, just a few weeks before you. Our was a first B2B pair of cruises, with different captains and GMs and a sudden change of CD when the scheduled CD and Social Hostess (Andy and Tammy) had to return home for family reasons. There was a distinct change in atmosphere on board on turnaround day which we attributed to a different clientele - the shorter cruise which ended in Southampton had, unsurpringly, more British people on board than the next leg, which seemed more popular with guests from the USA. I'm not sure the change in officers made a difference or not. A cooler weather cruise, we weren't surprised to not have a pool party. Instead, there was an ABBA dance party in the Atrium on each of the two cruises, which was fun. I can't recall if we had just one block party or if there were two and we missed the other one! But I do recall that, as the first cruise drew to a close, people were beginning to cough and sneeze and once the second cruise had got going, there were quite a few people suffering from cold/flu symptoms - I can say no more than that. It's hard to imagine how staff members can avoid catching anything going around like this and I'm wondering if this escalated staffing problems during the next few weeks? But one previous experience springs immediately to mind. It was a cruise in the run up to the launch of Splendor or Explorer (we can't recall which one!) and there was a large number of new, inexperienced staff who seemed to be lacking leadership and floundering in their roles. We recall that as a sub-optimal cruise and one when we found ourselves sharing many of the same thoughts as you are now. Given the post CV staff shortages worldwide, finding experienced staff must be trickier than ever especially with the relaunch of Crystal and other completely new brands like Explora seeking people with skills at a similar level. So yes, I can "picture the scene" and am sorry to read that your cruise was less than spectacular. I know that, like us, you have experienced Regent at its best and having done so, that's the standard we expect, isn't it? It's all very well launching a new ship but not so good if it's the cause of a decline in the existing service, however temporary. We have another four Regent cruises scheduled and look forward to, including some long ones, so I'm hoping this is just a blip.