pingpong1

LoneDaddy - Thanks so much for all the pictures and the very informative and interesting review. We are "very close" to booking our first Splendor cruise. Although we've done many cruises on the older 3 ships....this will be our first adventure on one of the newer ones! Looking forward to meeting you next year, as well, on "Navigator" (NE/Can). Best Regards.

P7

Tango - The biggest advantage we could see (on occasions when we have purchased travel insurance in the past) was that Regent's insurance was not "age-based". The premium seemed to be only/directly based on the actual cruise fare that was being charged...irrespective of individual demographics or health conditions. This was the "best deal" for us at the time, when insuring my 92-year old Dad, when he was sailing with us.

Chris, I completely agree about the crab legs! It's inexplicable to me that Crab legs (Especially - "Fresh") on a Regent Alaska cruise (or fresh crab AND fresh lobster/clams/oysters on a Regent New England/Canada Maritime Cruise), would not be available for Breakfast, Lunch, and Dinner...with "snacks in between" on those itineraries! 😉 Can't they/won't they provision that "fresh and right off the docks" when they're operating in those areas? Or must it all be ordered/frozen/packed/delivered well in advance of initially getting underway? Best Regards. I really enjoyed reading your travel report. Thanks.

From personal experience, I can attest to the fact that even the most scrupulous wearing of masks, whenever and wherever proscribed by Regent onboard the cruise, is NOT going to guarantee you or protect you from possibly testing "positive" for Covid while onboard. Relying upon mask wearing, by you and others, to "absolutely protect you" from Covid might only provide you with a false sense of security and is probably more "bother/annoyance" than it's worth. If testing "positive" and/or becoming symptomatic for Covid while cruising, along with the attendant/required quarantining regimen, is worrisome, stressful, or unacceptable to you, then you should probably seriously consider delaying any upcoming cruises until conditions further clarify and resolve themselves. Regards.

Hi, Joe - The standard/complimentary wines offered are very dependent upon whether/if the ships can get restocked in the particular areas where they're operating. We've certainly never gone thirsty on any of the cruises we've sailed on. And we've also found there to be a very acceptable selection of complimentary reds, whites, and sparkling. Of course, it's also very dependent upon where your own individual "bar/standard" of acceptable wines is set at, as well! 😉 We also found that the mark-up for the premium wines was quite reasonable, fair, and moderate, too! We have only ordered "premium pours" a few times, "just for a fling", and found them all to be quite good and very reasonably priced. Best Regards.

Correct....No Expectation.

Asnaleah - Just to clarify...are you talking about needing a "converter" or an "adapter"? A "converter" actually changes the voltage from European 240V 50Hz down to U.S. 120V (and still remains 50Hz if that's what's coming out of the wall to begin with). On the other hand...An "adapter" just lets you plug a U.S. (Canadian) plug into a European receptacle/outlet. Many/most devices that you would (today) need next to your bedside table (like a CPAP/BiPAP) are internally built to run on either U.S. or European voltage (120 or 240). The voltage conversion is automatically done inside the device itself. So all you really need is a plug adapter. A whole "other problem" is that the older ships (Navigator and Voyage) don't have the multiple different-sized receptacles (outlets - U.S./Canadian and European)) at the bedside table. If an adapted isn't available it sometimes necessitates the need for a long extension cord to reach from across the room over to the bedside. One of those "first world problems" encountered while sailing on a luxury cruise...but it's certainly an actual "real world" problem to cope with for those of us that need to sleep with a functioning CPAP/BiPap at night. Regards.

Asnaleah - Interesting that you should make that observation. I experienced the very same thing on Mariner in January....at Prime 7. I ordered my (usual) Filet Mignon...Something I've done in P7 for the past 12 years...and what I was brought/served was definitely NOT a Filet...either in size (thickness/shape) or in quality (tenderness/flavor). It was thinner, a little fat in it, and was not what I would consider to be a "Prime Filet". I've bought/and buy far better beef at my local Costco than what was being served on (at least) that particular cruise. It did indeed seem to be "some version" of a ribeye or even a sirloin - just "re-shaped" and thinner/less tender. I didn't let it ruin the cruise....however, I thought to myself at the time (and still do) that "I eat better filets in my own home", than what Regent was serving on (at least) that particular cruise. It definitely was not the same quality of what normally would be thought of as "Prime grade"...or what I had always experienced in the past. Regards

Hi Kwaj! 😉 You're definitely correct! It shouldn't happen on any cruise line...and particularly not on one at Regent's price point! Best Regards.

Hi Lonedaddy - We'll certainly look forward to meeting you on the Navigator next May 31st ('23)! If you haven't experienced it before, the evening sail away out of the lower Manhattan cruise terminal and passing by the Statue of Liberty just before sunset can certainly be one of those "Kodak Moments" (Yes, I know I'm dating myself)! We've done the Manhattan evening departure before on Navigator and it makes this itinerary quite memorable. It also sounds like your alternative plan this month (if necessary), for the car tour around UK and Ireland to be a good clear case of making lemonade out of lemons, too! 😄 Best Regards.

Mrstanley - I completely sympathize with the uncertainty that you and others are now having to (still) deal with for your upcoming cruise/s. This is why many folks (including us) cancelled our previously-booked spring/summer '22 cruise/s before entering the cancellation (penalty) period. DW and I (along with 2 other travelling companions) had more than enough of that worry/testing/attestation regimen to deal with, before and during our Dec '21 Mariner cruise - with multiple scheduled ports cancelled after the cruise began and with many added "sea days" to the itinerary once the cruise had actually started. We're not blaming Regent for any of that, but it still didn't make for a "normal" Regent cruise...and not worth the money that we were spending. And despite all the pre-cruise testing, masking, social distancing, inconvenience, etc., that we (compliantly) put up with before and during the cruise... DW and I (but not our travelling companions) STILL wound up testing "positive" on the very last day "at sea" day of that cruise (the testing was mandated at the last minute, and was involuntarily imposed on the entire ship by the Health Board of SF prior to our ship's docking). Despite us having gladly and scrupulously followed ALL required Regent masking and social-distancing protocols throughout the cruise, and having been fully vaccinated and "boosted" before beginning that cruise, we still tested "positive" on that last day of cruising. And we were completely asymptomatic throughout the entire cruise and even after returned home, as well. Regent quarantined us in our suite (they and us really had no choice in the matter) for the final 24-hours of the cruise. Fortunately, being U.S. citizens and disembarking in the U.S., we were able to disembark (well...we were actually kept onboard in our suite until all the "non-positive" passengers were allowed to leave the ship first) and immediately drive (a rental car) home from San Francisco back to Phoenix (where we "self-quarantined"). It was fortunate for us that the itinerary began and ended in the U.S. (our home country). It would have been a "whole other story" (and far more unfortunate, expensive, and inconvenient) if we had found ourselves "stuck" in a foreign port during that cruise. As we were (happily) leaving Mariner and driving out of San Francisco/California (as fast as the law would allow), we (unanimously and immediately) decided that we were simply not going to put ourselves through all of "that" (risk/uncertainty/inconvenience) again on an already-booked Navigator TA Cruise this coming August '22 (BCN to NYC). The money, the overseas travel involved, the long flights, the foreign ports with constantly changing local rules, the constant worry, and the "getting in and out" of foreign countries, accompanied by the whole "shadow of uncertainly" (along with the still/now very real potential for more "positive" test results in overseas locations) would have just simply over-shadowed and ruined any excitement or anticipation we might have had from that next cruise. In retrospect, and after reading many of the recent experiences that others have had (Covid-related), subsequent to our Dec/Jan cruise....we have absolutely no regrets whatsoever for having cancelled that next booked cruise. We now still have a May/June '23 Navigator cruise to look forward to (NYC to Montreal) and have the "hope" that with it still being more than a year from now, this whole "Covid thing" will (by then) be treated more like "seasonal flu" or a "winter cold"....than as a pandemic - like it still now continues to be handled (pre-testing, masks, and quarantines). If the Covid protocols still remain in place by next January '23 (when our final payment is due for the NYC/Montreal cruise), we'll have no hesitation in cancelling that cruise as well, before penalty. Best Regards to all.