Pies4u

Piesforu,

 

I will also thank you for your review of Chatreuse. I think I would have felt as you did in the area you were seated, not being able there to gauge the atmosphere really.

Last year on Mariner we both really enjoyed our meal in Signatures. This year it was good, service outstanding but all we both said that it was good. We wouldn't have rushed back if offered another night there.

Looking forward to you cruise review. Jean.

 

Thanks for that. I completed the cruise review, submitted it and got an acknowledgement on Sunday, (2 days ago), but it still hasn't appeared. Hiw long do CC usually take before they publish reviews now? I'm pretty certain that my previous reviews were on line within 24 - 36 hours.

Why didn't you enjoy Chartreuse?

 

Our issue with Chartreuse was that it did not live up to expectations and, overall, the service and quality of food fell below the standards we experienced in other venues. I'll do a full review of what was a marvellous trip on the review forum.

 

Anyway, we were walked through the ekegsnt looking restaurant and sat at a table for 2 (there were 5 or 6 all similarly placed) facing out to the darkness. The lighting in that area is very poor too. Quite why they would arrange seats like that is a mystery. We also sat at the back of the CR and faced the rest of the restaurant, we noticed that Pac Rim and P7 tables also faced inwards. These tables are situated off the carpeted area and are right up against the windiws btw.

 

Apparently, as we discovered, we should have been provided with a cocktail/ aperitif, that was never offered to us.

 

When the food did arrive, there was no chef's special/amuse bouche - not a disaster but disappointing in luxury "French" restaurant. We were not offered a sorbet so I don't know if that was normal, it was a strain to keep turning around in order to see what was happening behind us!

 

The main course - duck - was, quite frankly, very indifferent. It was a fairly tasteless and bland offering and was barely lukewarm. It was edible and "ok", just nowhere near the heights attained in the other dining venues where we always had terrific food served efficiently and effectively.

 

I thought the service was slightly aloof and bordering on pompous at times too. That does not happen in the other venues. Yes, it is a formal dining room but exclusive French restaurants still retain a friendly and warm service level. It was not a major catastrophe just an observation but it detracted from the overall experience.

 

Chartreuse was our 1st speciality dining experience on Explorer (2nd night) & we simply compared it to Signatures on Mariner, which was considerably better in our view. Later, having eaten in Pac Rim & P7 we were able to conclude that Chartreuse lacked any of the style and ambience of the other 2 and the food was not as good as either CR or SM either.

 

Maybe, if we'd been seated in the middle of the restaurant and can get a better idea of the ambience and you avoid the duck, the impression would have Ben different - but we can only comment on the experience we had. We dined twice in PR and would have done so in P7 had the opportunity arisen.

 

Consequently, Chartreuse was not our favourite venue - Pac Rim managed to replace SM in that regard. The CR was also outstanding and far busier than its counterpart on Mariner on our April 2015 trip.

 

We had more enjoyable meals and service everywhere else. It is as simple as that really. Hope that helps.

It all sounds very grand. Looking forward to seeing the new look, but it will not be until April 2018! There may, possibly, be more minor revisions before then too. :)

 

 

I assume the suite upgrades will also. include those above penthouse?

 

Having just left Explorer I would comment that Chartreuse was, by far, the most disappointing dining venue - not only for us but for several other people we spoke with. Pacific Rim was simply outstanding both occasions we were able to dine there. The whole atmosphere, service levels and style was different class. The food was simply exceptional. Signatures was my favourite restaurant on Mariner, the general ambience, quality of food and service far exceeded that of Chartreuse tbh.

 

Thus, whilst I would prefer to see Pac Rim replicated on Mariner & Voyager, I hope that the concept of Chartreuse works on Voyager and that they can provide a more interesting layout, design and seating configuration than on Explorer. Bland, lukewarm food served at a table facing out to the darkness of the aft window (meaning that diners got no feel for the ambience or any impression of eating "in" the restaurant at all) is not a recipe to be repeated in my view.

Re:my prev post #7 - there are 4 exceptional dining venues, I miscounted!

 

It was only Chartreuse that disappointed.

I have just left the Explorer - had a fabulous steak in the CR dining room on the 1st night and it was equalled, if not bettered, by the one I had on the last night in Sette Mari.

 

No need to dine in P7 every night, at all. You will receive great steak all over the ship with Regent.

 

I would add that the filet mignon that I had in P7 was both enormous and outstandingly good too.

 

Footnote: There are 3 exceptional dining venues on the Explorer - and there is also Chartreuse, which is ok/average, at best, in my opinion. The quality of food and service in the other 3 venues was far better on our cruise.

Krka River national park

 

 

Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

 

Thanks for the updates and the pics.

 

We board on Sat in Venicecand are looking forward to returning to Kotor and Zadar as we visited them both last year whilst on Mariner. We did the Perast & Lady of the Rocks trip - really enjoyed that. We did Zadar on our own but we are on the Krka national park trip this time, looks and sounds great.

 

Enjoy the rest of your cruise.

Agreed.

 

We board in Venice on Saturday - I'm hoping all will fine tbh.

 

Crew on Mariner last year were great with occasional, minor exceptions - happy with that. They are all human after all and nobody got hurt, upset or disturbed.

Food and service are both very subjective. And to be honest, I'm not overly demanding on service, and only a little demanding on food. Pretty easy to please, in other words.

 

Are there glitches on Regent? Yes, on occasion. Is it an ongoing problem? Not in my experience. At times, the Compass. rose (main dining room) gets busy and service can slow down a bit. No worries, I just order more wine. Table service at the Pool bar can get slow as well. Worst case, I walk up to the bar for a drink. Some people complain about that...I enjoy my cocktail.

 

So I guess my answer would be "it depends." I don't know that Regent is better or worse than the other luxury lines - I've always just assumed the folks on this board are just a bit more vocal when something isn't up to their standards. :p

 

We have three more Regent cruises booked. That's how bad I think Regent is. :D

 

Agreed - 100% correct. Well, almost, we only only have 2 cruises booked, one upcoming in just over a month. If you want to find things to complain about you will do. I was hugely impressed with the service - particularly the response to a casual remark on the mid cruise comments form. Food is exceptional in my experience, different to Cunard, not necessarily better/worse just more varied and imaginative in my view. (Never had a bad meal on Cunard either tbh.)

 

Not been on any other "luxury" lines, might consider others but Regent suits us. Fortunately, people have varying requirements and priorities so Regent is not for everyone - it would be tricky getting booked if it was everybody's favourite.

We booked for April 2018 on Voyager a few weeks back. Price is fixed, no variation to be applied - quite happy with the deal tbh.

 

The increase due to "Brexit" is based purely on the immediate/current fluctuating currency exchange rates, they will vary over the next few years in any event. I wouldn't too much worry about a marginal increase. You are talking a couple of hundred quid on a multi thousand pound deal tbh - certainly wouldn't dissuade me from choosing a line, ship, itinerary or overall deal that I was keen on.

Sky S - that is interesting. We are booked on Voyager for April 2018 and we'll be in the port corner aft suite #870.

 

I have been dubious about the vibration issue, as I can't think of anything more annoying than a constant rattling/shaking. Your assessment, along with some others, provides some reassurance that this is only an intermittent and not particularly overwhelming factor.

 

Cheers.

What's wrong with the pictures from the previous pre-maiden cruise?

http://boards.cruisecritic.co.uk/showthread.php?t=2375983

 

There's nothing wrong with them - they are simply not part of any official/formal communication from Regent! That's the point. Regent do a lot of things very well and we enjoyed our maiden cruise on Mariner so much we are now booked on Explorer in Sept and Voyager (2018).

 

I am making the point that, right up to the last minute, there has been so little information, barely any images and no comprehensive communication from Regent to their known customer base, certainly in the UK. It is almost like a secret unless you are fortunate enough to have been invited to these pre maiden cruise events. That is poor in my opinion, very poor indeed.

We will be in a SS suite in Sept, so........ Any chance of a pic please?

 

There seems to be very little from Regent which is hugely disappointing. The website has been updated in part but till contains far too many "mock ups" and impressions amongst the images. There is virtually nothing about balconies or balcony furniture.

 

It has to be the lowest profile launch of a ship, particularly following all the "most luxurious ship" hype, ever - if it is that good, and I believe it is, well, let the public see it.

 

Really amazed quite how poor the PR has been tbh, it is pathetic from Regent, absolutely pathetic.

We are due on Explorer in September having only been on Mariner to date. Just booked Voyager for 2018 - looking forward to both cruises and ships with equal anticipation.

 

Mariner is an outstanding ship, the levels of comfort, elegance and service are exceptional. The spaciousness of the public areas and quality of dining are hugely impressive. You will enjoy Mariner irrespective of what Explorer has to offer.

 

I actually like the layout and design of Voyager and expect to have a great trip in 2018, even if Explorer does spoil us with the spa, extra dining venue and it's grandness. They are all terrific ships and will provide distinctive experiences. The consistent factor should be the Regent style, ambience and "feel" - we've only done it once but we are certainly hooked having been big Cunard fans previously. (Still are, I guess, but Regent has the edge for us for space and ship size).

3 most exciting things;

Spa area/infinity pool
The 2 new speciality restaurants
The whole Regent experience on a new ship

Only travelled on Mariner, April 2015, that was fantastic. Really looking forward to getting on board Explorer in Sept 16 - just a pity there is no aft lounge/outdoor area. Hope the Observation lounge doesn't become over crowded as a consequence. The 2 other bar/lounges look and sound remarkably similar to me, neither appear have the open feel of the Horizon lounge, we'll see. Can't wait.

It was announced months ago that pm tea would be served in the Observation Lounge. Well, it was in the UK, at least. I think it is actually stated in the latest brochure too because I've read it somewhere before. I'll check later.

 

Looking forward to getting aboard in Sept. Hope Explorer will be in the Baltic in summer 2018 and/or 2019 too, I note that is the plan for 2017.

Each to their own & all that but this has to be a wind up. I can't believe anyone can get that worked up about coffee! ;)

 

Breakfast coffee is, generally, heavy going but after an evening meal it is usually more palatable - in any hotel & on board any ship in my personal experience. I wouldn't start concerning myself with which type of beans they use. If I don't like it, I'd drink something else.

 

On Mariner last year there was nothing wrong with any of the coffee that I drank, either in suite or in the restaurants. In fact I'd say it was extremely palatable. It all tasted rather like........coffee tbh. Admittedly, I usually drink the tea in coffee connections but there you go. Of course, I am from the UK and we are probably more exposed to the freeze dried instant stuff, maybe?

 

"Coffee snobs" - great expression. :)

As a " Cunard addict" I really enjoyed our 1st Regent cruise on Mariner last year. So much so, we were booked on Explorer at the earliest opportunity and take our 2nd Regent cruise this coming September.

 

The overall ambience is stylish and relaxed, my wife much preferred the lack of formality and I found it less of a problem than I'd imagined it might be. Our fellow travellers, predominantly North American, were one of the reasons we thoroughly enjoyed the experience but the combination of high quality dining, outstanding service, really comfortable and spacious public areas and superb itinerary & tours made it truly wonderful.

 

Regent provides the perfect blend and balance for us. Lovely suites, not too glitzy, great range of dining options and ship size is ideal - tons of space, nowhere is crowded and the whole thing just works smoothly and seamlessly. Transfers, trips, embarkation/disembarkation - all plain sailing.

 

Nothing not to like about Regent. Go with the flow, you will have a terrific time. If I could afford it, I'd be on board half the year! :cool:

That's just one more drawback to living in the internet age. Any vendor selling services now has almost instant access to inventory, related costs, projections, etc. - and the flip side is that most of this data is also available to the consumers.

 

Look at the prices of anything - airlines, new cars, fuel, hotels, or really any goods and services - twenty years ago, we would have called our TA, gotten a price quote, paid it, and sailed. Today, we constantly monitor any change in price, even a few hundred bucks on a multi-thousand dollar cruise - and if we're unhappy, we share our unhappiness with thousands of other people at the speed of light.

 

Let's try and keep this in perspective - Regent, and any other company, really - has to juggle changes in costs of fuel, food, lodging, transportation, booze, labor, port charges, maintenance, etc. all while being at the mercy of the weather, terrorism, volcanoes, diseases, and God knows what else.

 

I'm not preaching (too much). I've done the same thing. I had my TA contact RSSC when the Bus Class Air dropped from $1,299 pp to $499. Saved me $3,200 with one phone call, so of course I'm happy. Now they've dropped it to $199 pp. Even though RSSC says it's for new bookings only, my TA got it dropped again. And on top of that, the cruise fare has dropped, too. Would I have been aware of these changes without the internet? Probably not.

 

Fact is, pricing of a global commodity is a huge balancing act, and if I can take advantage of it, great. If not, well, I had already paid my money so obviously I felt it was worth the cost before. I'm not gonna let a few hundred in OBC, which is very tough for me to use anyhow, sour my vacation one iota.

 

But that's just me...

 

Absolutely, spot on. My sentiments entirely.

QG on Victoria is a spectacular experience, particularly in warm weather when the Grills terrace and al fresco dining area can be fully enjoyed. The only slight downside for us was the Grills Lounge which, compared to QM2, is a bit tight and can get busy at times - like pm tea! No piano either, but still a lovely room

 

The privacy & intimate nature of the dining and deck spaces are brilliant on both QV & QE. The QG menu, options, service and freedom to dine when you like elevate the whole experience.

 

The suites are comfortable and spacious, bathrooms are very well equipped. The balconies are also large and ideal for breakfast, pre or post dinner drinks and generally lounging about. Service levels are very good, we appreciated the canapés but used the butler sparingly tbh. You get a choice of 2 bottles of wine/spirits, which get replenished, in your mini bar. The butler will bring anything you want - tea/coffee/fruit etc - as & when you ask. Breakfast or dinner in the suite is well worth doing, proper silver service & course by course evening dining - b'fast on the balcony is a must IMO.

 

Can't say much about the Q4 details, we have only used Q5 on deck 8 (twice!). Victoria is our favourite Cunard ship. You will have a fantastic time.

We are in a SSS1 on Explorer in Sept, deck 9. I was given the same explanation, some SSS1's are configured differently, due to their location, but ours is like the Mariner SSS we had, a separate sink & toilet in the "half bathroom".

 

I am unsure about the SSS2's, but I'm guessing they are the same.

Willie Aames was CD on our maiden Regent cruise in April 15, on Mariner. He was also on our return flight from Venice to Heathrow.

 

Never been bothered about a CD before but he was top class, very professional yet friendly and amiable. As a show compère he was superb but it was his general approach, humour, disposition and visibility that made him stand out. Enjoyed a few chats with him around the ship too - terrific guy.

 

Best of luck to him, pity we won't see him on Explorer next year, Inwashoping that we might have done. Pleased things are going well for him too.

QV for the Chart Room and the aesthetics of the stepped stern.

 

Absolutely! Spot on.

 

QV remains our favourite Cunard ship. They all provide a particular & distinct experience and serve their respective purposes well but QV exudes a very special ambience.

 

The Chart Room is a fabulous venue.

Yes, just received that too.

 

Looks impressive tbh. The suites and restaurants are due for a facelift & that seems a good move to me. Like the restaurant idea and the suite decor.

 

Not keen on the loss of deck space for extra accommodation. That area could have been better utilised for either more/better sports/activities or actually doing something useful with that pointless & ridiculous "splash pool" that nobody ever uses. That would have made a handy "adult only" pool/spa/seating area or just make it a decent sized pool!

 

More people & less space doesn't make it a more attractive proposition, at all.

 

That aside, I'd go for the new look QG - maybe not until 2018, when I retire. Booked on the new Regent ship, Explorer, for Sept 16 - now that really does look the business. Think Cunard have got to up their game to compete with Regent, Silversea, Oceania & Crystal, possibly not with QM2 - which has a different raison d'être to the others. Good to see them keeping pace, at least cosmetically & aesthetically.

I would hope that Regent can manage embarkation more effectively than Cunard did when we were in Cape Town a couple of years ago!

 

Having provided a hotel for a spot of breakfast after whisking us all off on a bus tour of the City - directly after a 12 hour flight - we then had to hang around in a huge admin building whilst they sorted out all the boarding arrangements & documentation. About 2 hours later we wer bussed to the ship - the luggage was loading on separate vehicles as and when we departed. It was pretty grim!

 

Hopefully, Regent are more organised and there will, certainly, be fewer passengers to process.

Not sure about the "technical stuff" (tilt?) but, in essence, Drib is right. It's "6 of one & half a dozen of the other".

 

On balance, starboard looks favourite for sunsets - but - you'll see plenty on either side & you can go on deck in any event. I wouldn't even concern myself on that score. The ports are a complete lottery, depends which way the ship berths & what views are on offer, no guarantees either way. Usually it is more favourable on 1 side arriving and the other when departing. Not always, of course, plenty of ports have panoramic vistas all round.

 

It would be the last thing on my mind tbh, other than to say, if available, I'd always select an aft suite and avoid all the guesswork. :)