honumaui

Back in 2000 on the old Westerdam, in the Carrib. on Half Moon Cay the waiters waded into the water with a champagne tray, wearing a tux top, and we took pictures being served  in the beautiful turquoise water . It was a cute photo op. I doubt they will be doing that on Regent or Oceania but you never know.

I understand that Norwegian's big ships stop there.   We are booked on Oceania in Dec.They just cancelled a stop in the Dominican Republic and changed it to GSC too. They are not all inclusive ..the food is included on the Cay,  but the drinks only if you buy their package. The cabanas are available for rent. I wonder if Regent will include any as a tour choice? You should get more info on their web site for your cruise. Since NCL , Regent & Oceania are all under the NCL brand it makes sense. Don't know the reason for cancelling the DR.

Tours were very important to us as we were on our first med cruise (Voyager) which was port intensive. Glad we got the concierge level with advance choices. Got every tour we chose and they were all very well organized. Also, having never been to Italy, the hotel package was also important to us. If you are a frequent European traveler and these things are unimportant, the other suites are the same and equally spacious and comfortable. Only difference may be location preferences.

We had planned this cruise as a substitute for two cancelled crossings on Regent . Didn't care about the ports. We all still don't know if all the ports will be open. Hopefully by December things will be closer to normal. Had our shots but still nervous about testing and flying. Hated flying even before covid. Need to make a decision by Aug. to not have a cancellation fee.

Things are starting to look better for the industry. Wish they would leave it up to the cruise lines as to require all passengers to be vaccinated.

I agree the private limo is a good idea..but I differ with you on one matter.  We were on a bus to Civitavecchia  but it was a pleasant trip and nobody was "schlerpping along all their bags". Except for our carry ons Regent took care of all the luggage. Maybe you were on a different cruise line.

We've been on the voyager twice in the Med. Booked concierge because we were new to Europe and wanted the hotel overnight & transfers. If you are already in Italy and don't need the hotel, the deluxe veranda suites are the same. If you are on your own, the port is quite a distance from Rome.

On the Voyager there was an Espresso maker in concierge level.

Me too, but not for breakfast. Maybe we should petition them to keep it in stock.

yum..I am booked on the Splendor but not until 2023. ( my 2022 cruise on the Voyager was cancelled.)  Luckily I also managed to book a cruise on Oceania for Dec. Hope it goes. I am starving. 

I am ready for lunch now. Any suggestions?

I am on the Dec 3 cruise and don't really care where it it goes..as long as it goes and the cruise is somewhat "normal". It will be our first post covid vacation.

When we are on vacation I prefer a casual sit down breakfast in the main dining room. Most of Regents tours allow time for a nice breakfast. When offered we will opt for a later tour time. We have always  had good service and menu choices  ( you can only do so much with breakfast) .   Never had any luck with room service for breakfast. Never sure what time we will get up!

How was the trans Atlantic? Haven't done one yet. We were scheduled for three different ones on Regent. All were cancelled. Now we are on the Splendor Miami to Lisbon with a post cruise land tour. It was supposed to take place next year but the itinerary was changed. Now we have to wait til March 2023. If we last that long.

We must have been on one of the last cruises before covid shut everything down. Returned from 2 weeks on the Wind Surf  Feb 29, 2020. Have you been on Oceania before? I assume you are on the Riviera. We sailed with them once...Alaska cruise & Denali land tour on the Regatta ( 684 passengers) in 2017. It was great. Also did Alaska again in 2018 on the Star Legend.

The Riviera has 1250 occupancy if they fill all the cabins. Largest ship we will have been on since 2010 ! Hope we don't get lost!

Our quality travel years are long gone. We are into "whew...we made it to the ship" years. Will be 79 & 80 for next cruise in Dec..if it takes place. Prefer Windstar but booked Oceania for the carib because it is round trip Miami. Last flight from St Maartin almost did us in.

Booked Windstar for fall east coast next year. Third trip there but WS has two new ports in Canada.

Out of our 10 Windstar cruises we only had a port change once..It was only one of several ports..We got an OBC for the "inconvenience". Didn't mind as all the other ports we wanted were still planned. If all the ports had been changed I would want to cancel too. Our exception is the Surf. We don't care where it goes as long as they open the sails,

We just cancelled a crossing on Regent for next year as they re positioned the ship and changed the whole itinerary .  Now we have to wait until 2023 to get the one we wanted for 2022. And we are not getting any younger. Covid has messed up the whole industry. But we are very thankful we have not gotten sick.  Good luck.

Several years ago we caught colds ( the old fashioned stuffy nose & mild cough kind) probably from flying to Barbados or on Barbados. We were on the Surf. Didn't want to spread our germs so for several days stayed on board and ate alone. Still enjoyed ourselves! Our appetites were normal and as usual the meals were great. Just enjoyed sailing and being on the ocean. You could make believe you are on a crossing without ports and still really enjoy just being aboard . Of course we had been to the carib. multiple times before. I would be really dissapointed if it was our first time there and we missed the ports. Hope all gets better soon for all ou us. Enjoy the new Breeze.

Hawaii

Some consider Windstar a level below luxury but we love the size of the yacht and the sails. They are magical. As we left St Kitts one year two giant ships were in port. We left early, the sails were opened and people on the giant's balconies started taking  pictures of us!

Don't know anything about your itinerary but we did two Mediterranean cruises on Regent and were very happy with the service, food, etc. Loved that they flew us across the pond Business class. All the included tour choices were well planned and organized.   We had planned to do a west coast Europe cruise and a crossing with them but covid cancelled that. We are booked for a crossing and Lisbon land extension with them for 2023.

Are you headed to Flagstaff? It is beautiful there. We are having record heat here.  But as we sat in AZ "it is a dry heat"

Are you in AZ now? We live in Oro Valley north of Tucson. We lived in So Cal (San Diego) for over 40 years but retired to AZ 5 years ago ( although my husband still works part time from home.)  Spent time in Maui every year since 1999. Not going again until all is open. Maybe this fall. We have one cruise scheduled for Dec .(Carib) on Oceania , two for next year (Alaska & East coast)  on Star Pride and one for 2023 (Europe)on Regent.

Can't compare with Celebrity as we haven't been on any "big" ships since 2010, but all our experiences on Windstar have been very positive both in Alaska and East coast/Canada.

 Mamma Fej..looks like you have the same problem..and we don't "plant" to give up cruising or cursing either.  PS...what cruise do you have booked in 101 Days?

Only sigh of getting old i have is not being able to spell.....Oh nerver mind..I was never able to spell !