DocJames

3 hours ago, Hambagahle said:

I think it fair to say that a high percentage of women on cruises use the spa at least once during the cruise.  Massages, hairdressing, manicures etc.  Lower percentage of men I suppose.  On Regent the "spa people" do not approach passengers to use their services.  There are ads - "reminders" really - and specials from time to time in the daily "newspaper" but unlike main line cruising no "sales announcements" at all.  If you want to go to the spa you do so.  If you don't want to no one is going to chase after you.  (But I think you are missing out on something...)

 

I had not heard of Steiner but I have heard of Elemis.  They (I think) run the spa in the First and Business class lounges at LHR.   And I suppose on other shipping lines too.  I won't miss Canyon Ranch which I considered overpriced both on Regent and Oceania.  But I will be trying the new spa out.

Yes, the experience we've had with Steiner -run spas on other cruise ships such as Silversea, Disney, Seabourn and Viking, for example, is that you can make your reservations online, just as you book excursions or dinner reservation(instead of calling and faxing a list of appointments and services requests as you do with Canyon Ranch). Glad to see Regent switch to Steiner.

43 minutes ago, Isklaar said:

Can one of the posters who has been on board recently please clarify something for me.

 

i believe that under this new system, water bottles/carafes supplied to the suite are not sealed. If that is the case, are they at least brought to the suite with some sort of stopper in the top or are the delivered completely open at the top? 

Just off the Ovation.  The water that was brought to my suite was the same size water bottle that is placed on the table as one departs the ship. It is not in carafes.  So, yes, it has a screw on/off cap.  Two of these are replaced everyday (and the stewardess places it on the bed table in the evening).

If you want to find a travel agent/agency that can provide you with the best information and perquisites for Regent, Google "Regent Seven Seas Council Members."  A variety of entities both agencies and individuals will pop up that you can explore.  This is a good option if you don't have a personal recommendation and since we are not allowed to post the names of our personal TAs/Agencies. 

1 hour ago, ronrick1943 said:

I agree and on this the shows just aren't up to par---this is a big area that Regent needs to step up and make changes in management or it will never get better.  All thought this isn't way we cruise it would be nice to go to a show an enjoy what you are seeing.

My biggest beef with Regent and their shows is the repetitive nature.  While I understand there is a cost to purchase the rights for their productions,  and they want to maximize it, it doesn't please the customer when we keep on seeing the same shows over and over again. (eg. Revolution, Broadway, for example). If you take several cruises on Regent per year, you might wind up seeing the same shows 3 or more times each over a 2 year span.  

19 hours ago, Travelcat2 said:

It has not been offered in the years that we have sailed with Regent (2004).  Silversea had some type of deal that is similar to what is being described.  

 

With the price of Regent cruises as high as they have become and the fact that we book upper suites, I'm not sure that we would want to put that much money at risk.  On the other hand, my DH may be interested if we were booking something that wasn't too far in the future.

Agree that Silversea has a similar program that offers a 10% price reduction if you pay in full.  But, the total fare is refundable up to their normal 121 days out from sailing date (minus the $100/pp booking fee)- a much better and lower risk program than paying in full and nonrefundable as Regent has introduced.

1 minute ago, gnomie1 said:

Payment more than five months in advance would be a deal breaker for me - reading the threads on the Viking boards, people have reported having their travel agent negotiate payment six months in advance, but I do not like having to ask for special favors for rules that I believe are ridiculous in the first place.

 

gnomie

We wanted to try Viking and booked a cruise well over a year ago through our T/A.  He told us that Viking would ask for full payment immediately but said he thought it was an absurd policy.   Since his agency is one of Viking's top bookers, he was able to move it to six months out from sailing otherwise we were not going to book it.  I agree that it is ridiculous policy but they seem to be getting away with it given many of their cruises are full and sell out quickly and well in advance.  Our cruise departs from Auckland in less than two weeks so we will see how it compares to Regent (and also find out why Viking loyalists are willing to part with their monies so far out from a cruise).   

26 minutes ago, Travelcat2 said:

 

Guess my infant memories aren't so good.  So, it is fair to say that most of us have not had the Yellow  Fever vaccination in their life?  

 

Thanks for your post (note:  just started a new thread on this topic in hopes of getting actual experiences instead of reading obsolete articles on the internet).  

Yes, fair to say unless we lived in or traveled to places (including military) where yellow fever is prevalent.  Good idea to start a separate thread as it is an important topic.

2 hours ago, Travelcat2 said:

We have been to the Amazon and South America on Regent (going to South America again in two weeks) and have not had issues with Yellow Fever vaccinations or certification.  In fact, many people on our Amazon cruise were upset that they spent the money and risked their health by having the vaccination.  We also did not have issues in Africa.

 

In terms of an 'expired' Yellow Fever certificate, this vaccination was given to babies when I was born.  Many of us do not have any type of proof that we have had this vaccination (except for the scar on our arm).   

 

Note:  Local doctors in our state do not carry nor can they get an "official waiver form".  There are special places where these forms are available.  If it is convenient to get one, by all means get one.

I think you may be referring to a small pox vaccination, not yellow fever, TC2.  Yellow fever has always been a single intramuscular shot for over 70-80 years so no scar, and to my knowledge, was never given to babies (in the U.S.)

58 minutes ago, Travelcat2 said:

We have dealt directly with a few hotels after Regent has booked them.  At the Four Seasons in Sydney, we paid a nominal amount to upgrade to a club suite where they had fabulous food for breakfast and in the evening (plus an open bar).  

 

So, if you are an elite member of a hotel chain, I would send them an email.  They should get back to you before you arrive.

 

Have a wonderful cruise ..... the itinerary you are doing is one of our favorites!

Thanks for the tip, TC.  As always, your advice is so useful and I appreciate it.

Regent says they don't provide reservation numbers, so I assume just by contacting the hotel and providing our names that they would have the Regent list of bookings?

If Regent books a pre-cruise hotel, what kind of accommodation does the hotel provide?  Does the level of accommodation depend on the category of one's cabin?  And, if you are an elite member of the hotel chain, do you receive the benefits (eg. upgrade to club floor, etc.) even though Regent booked the hotel.  We have never used the pre-cruise option when sailing on Regent and would like to know what to expect on our upcoming Cape Town trip next week. 

25 minutes ago, Travelcat2 said:

 

Gerry, thank you for giving us the final word on the subject.  Very happy to hear that one cannot smoke inside of pubic places!  

 

We are doing a tapas tour in Cartagena. We have been there previously but do not recall much about it.  Our favorite port in Spain in Malaga due to the food.

 

eliana - the smoking rules on all Regent ships are strictly adhered to and/or enforced.  No smoking issues at all.  Must say that Explorer has the best area for smoking on the pool deck.  It is a "mostly" enclosed glass cage (I like to think of it as a cage😉) that keeps the smoke away from other passengers.  As someone that has not smoked since I was 35, this is an important factor in cruising on Regent.

I travel to Spain often, both the mainland and the Canaries. And, we have immediate family members who live in Spain.    If you ask a Spaniard about the smoking rules they will tell you that there is a "collective disregard" for the anti-smoking law that was enacted in 2011.  Yes, there is no smoking allowed in public places which includes restaurants, workplaces, hospitals, etc.  Hotels can designate a fair percentage of their rooms as smoking and smoking is allowed on terraces of hotels and restaurants as long as it has 3 open sides.  In certain regions of Spain, the restaurant owners seem to think that they can comply with the law by designating one of two areas as non-smoking which means they might decide that smoking is inside and non-smoking is outside.  It really isn't compliant with the law but most Spaniards seem not to care and there also does not seem to be much enforcement of the law although monetary penalties can be applied. 

Great photos of our favorite CD, John Baron.  Wes, you mentioned he is leaving the ship in NZ.  Does anyone know if he is then off through the holidays or onto another ship?

cwn: Are you actually able to use OBC's as a "cash source" and also get your OBC's put back on your credit card?? We often have an "excess" of OBC's, and I feel so wasteful spending them on way over-priced items in the boutique or in the spa.

I wonder: Do others of you also have the option of receiving credit back, or receiving cash?

Yes, our TA provides a percentage of total costs and is very generous depending on the cruise line. We usually sail on Seabourn, Regent or Silversea. We can chose a rebate, OBC or combination of both. If OBC, anything not used I am able to cash out before disembarkation.

As a side note, the way the above explanation was worded at the end it sounds like dry cleaning and pressing are also complimentary. We believe it was just meant to read that dry cleaning and pressing are available.

Dry cleaning and pressing are complimentary in the Silver Suites, as well as regular laundry.

+1 for Bruges....I'll toss out another idea. Rent a car and go to Waterloo.

Agree. We took an Uber to Waterloo as we are history buffs. There is a lovely restaurant, gift shop and museum on the property and interesting tour where you can walk to the top of the hill (or not). It is a very pretty countryside drive, for sure.

Thank you, IndiTraveler, for your report. We leave next July from Southampton on Navigator and are trying to decide what is reasonable for us to do if we go 3-5 days early. I will add the Historic Portsmouth Naval Yard to my evergrowing list. And, thank you for the car service name and the ports CC board tip. CC is so useful!

Most certainly, do not miss the Naval Yard. It is incredible and also the home of the Mary Rose museum which contains the raised remains of a sixteenth century warship which was part of the English Tudor Navy. It sank in 1545 north of the Isle of White during an attach of a French invasion fleet. If you have visited the Vasa in Stockholm, this is comparable.

It is because of Poss' example mentioned above that when we ship luggage from a ship to our home we prefer to use the luggage shipping company that is affiliated with the cruise line. This way if we have an issue I look to the cruise line to get it corrected for us. I also feel this increases the odds that others will be using the same service as we do which to me increases the odds that they will show. I have heard of other cases where the company didn't show up on time or did show up but a couple of hours later. If you have a flight to catch the latter might not work.

 

As to sending luggage most companies use the same carriers. The odds say that at some point if you have not had a problem you will whether that is a delay in luggage arriving home, the attempted delivery of luggage to your home when you asked for it to be held, damaged luggage, etc. It happens. Thankfully not very often. Of course if you have the luggage with you there is always the chance your luggage will be lost or delayed. Things happen.

 

One thing I learned from experience is whatever company you consider ask how they deal with situations after hours. If you have an issue you don't want to just get an answering service.

 

Again when we ship luggage to a ship we are not concerned with which company we select. When we ship luggage from the ship to our home we are and prefer to use the one affiliated with the line even if the cost is higher.

 

 

 

 

Great advice, Keith. We always use the preferred luggage shipping company of the particular cruise line. Sometimes it is difficult to determine who that is without a telephone call to customer service(as it is not obvious on the cruise line website). This way, the charges are made to your respective cruise line invoice and you have their assistance if some goes awry.

This is very good to hear. Anecdotal evidence here has told a different story, a story of no changes being permitted after the booking was made. This is the first time I have read here of Viking permitting a change of final payment date. I hope we will be hearing more such reports.

I think it depends on the TA and how much business the agency does with Viking. In my case, the TA and his agency is a top booker for Viking. (I didn't know that fact at the time I turned over the booking to my TA because I am fairly new to Viking. He was quite upset that they asked for payment so far out from the sailing and called it "ridiculous." It was quickly changed to 6 months when he assumed the booking.) Lesson learned in dealing with Viking: Don't be so willing to part with your money. A good travel agent is worth their weight in gold (and dollars).

My husband and I were on a Mediterranean trip in May and dry cleaning was included in the promo. My husband had his sport coat cleaned.

Hope this helps!

B

Same here- we had the laundry promo on a recent Med cruise, too. Sent out several items for dry cleaning and was not charged extra.