Dolebludger

Lastdance, just week or so ago, we were on the Regent Splendor and never “dressed up” for dinner beyond slacks and polo shirt.

Cruise ship dress codes do require a bit of research to get it right. Some lines we cruised a long time ago applied their dress code only to restaurants and lounges, but shorts and T shirts were fine in the theater. Maybe some cruise lines are like that now. IDK. But, of course, we know that Regent’s “after 6” dress code applies to all public areas. But maybe some don’t understand that.

We are usually Regent cruisers, but we cruised in a CS shortly before the pandemic. We liked that cruise, so we booked another in a RS on board. We liked that one also. Celebrity suites offered much of what we were used to on Regent, with larger suites and lower price tag. Checking on cruises post pandemic, we found a reduction of perks in the Retreat and big price increases that put it at a higher cost than Regent on many cruises, with fewer inclusions. So, we went back to Regent recently, and found the experience improved. Given the diversity of things other people want on a cruise, it is of course impossible to recommend Regent to all. But for us, it is currently the best for the price.

On our last Regent cruise (Splendor — 03/24/2024 to 03/31/2024) my wife wore nice slacks, tops, and shoes. I wore non-denim slacks (different material, but same cut as jeans), a collared polo shirt, and shoes exactly like sneakers but with leather uppers. No problems, and we felt we “fitted in”, as fellow guests were dressed in similar fashion. On one evening after 6:PM, I wore a dress T with a black sports coat. No problem with that either. And I think we fitted the Regent dress code as well. We live in a very informal area where dress is concerned (Durango, CO — nobody wears a tie). And that’s pretty much the way we dress around home. So I think Regent’s dress code is very reasonable, considering that it is a “lux line” — and the best one.

Here are my observations from our Splendor E. Caribbean cruise which ended a dozen or so days ago. MEN: wear pants not made of denim. It doesn’t matter if the pants are cut like jeans ( patch rear pockets, rivets, etc.) just as long as they aren’t made of denim fabric. Shirts should have collars, worn tucked in or out. Or you can wear a dress “T” shirt with a sports jacket. Wear shoes, of course, but the type doesn’t seem to matter. I wore leather shoes cut like sneakers, and nobody cared. And don’t wear a hat in any dining venue. WOMEN: wear a dress or pants with a nice top. Shoes, of course, — the exact type doesn’t seem to matter. Even on a longer cruise with “formal optional evenings”, you can still opt for the casual code, and you’ll have plenty of company.

Well, I’m happy to learn that Apple products bought on X have a warranty start date the same as the sale date to the consumer. Just another internet rumor.

I don’t need the newest iPad, so if older models are sold for the first time I do expect some discount. But what I read about shipboard purchases of Apple equipment stated that there might not be much (if any) warranty left. According to what I’ve read, Apple’s time limit on warranties begins when the store receives the item — not when the consumer buys the item. I don’t know if any of this is true, but it is the story that’s been going around

In those cases, we all need to learn how to just say no;

Well, I must confess that I am a big enemy of formal nights on cruise ships. It is sort of a “blast from the past”. Yes, part of the opposition is based on airlines charging for luggage. But most of us who cruise Regent take business or first airline. On those flight classes, luggage is included. So it comes down to the lack of airport porterage, transit from gate to gate, and all the inconviniences one experiences at an airport these days. I feel that our airports have ignored the Americans With Disabilities act. I will never fly through MIA again. But, I have no problem with Regent;s after 6:00 PM. Basically, men had to wear collared shirts (polos were allowed). Shoes were required, but I didn’t t see any see any problems with type. Men had to wear long slacks — not denim jeans or shorts. But I have slacks cut just like jeans only made of a different kind of cloth, and they (and others like me) were served on the ship with no problems.

We were on the Spendor a couple of weeks ago. Our laundry was always returned on time. I confess that I did not put a stop watch to it, but the finished laundry was always in our suite when we needed it. As far as I can determine,Regent is the only line that has included laundry for us.and it is a major reason why we continue cruising on Regent.

Yes, Bill, tipping is out of hand here in the USA. Tip jars are everywhere. And tip prompts appear on credit card checkouts — even in some retail self service transactions where tipping was unheard of a few years ago. And these prompts are above the 10% — 15% rates that I grew up with. I like to cruise Regent, for one thing, it get me out and away from these things.

I know this, Picardad. But Regent shouldn’t have different contract terms for its transfer contractors in San Juan from those in Miami. As I understand it, the only item for which we opted out (and received a credit) was the air. We didn’t opt out for transfers.

I had an interesting (but small) problem with Regent on the hotel transfer thing on our very recent San Juan - Miami cruise on the Splendor. We were told (and knew) that Regent wouldn’t provide airport - hotel transfer in San Juan because we booked their hotel for an extra night before the hotel-provided date. But we did get transfers from this hotel to the port on embarkation. We had not booked Regent air(we took the air credit) because it involved some five hour flights for which Regent would provide only basic economy. But we did not opt out of any service besides air. But during the disembarkation procedure onboard, we found that Regent would not provide transfers to the Miami airport unless we paid $70 pp! The Destination Services guy on board told me that the transfers were only good if one took Regent’s air. He had no explanation as to how and why transfers were included hotel - ship in San Juan. So we took a cab for $50 for both of us. The reason I consider this only a small matter is that I really didn’t want this transfer anyway. Regent actually lost our luggage in San Juan hotel to pier! It was found, but this delayed our embarkation. I really didn't want to use its transfer service again. This wouldn’t have happened with Regent in pre-pandemic days.

Actually, on our Splendor cruise last week, the captain made an announcement about the cancellation of the tendered stop at St. Barts — due to rough seas.

ROV, that is a good question. All the credits I’ve ever had are non-refundable, and at times have gone to waste. In such a case, I’d like to donate the unused credit to the crew fund, if I could.

The problem we encountered on 03/31/2024 at the Miami cruise terminal was that there was only one person checking passports, whereas this part of the terminal is set up for ten. Lines were long and crowds were large. Cabs were scarce. At the Miami airport on that date, we inquired about trains and busses, and were told that there weren’t any running then, and they didn’t serve the area of our gate anyway. Accurate info? IDK, as it is difficult to get info in large airports. But that’s what we were told. There were no “people movers”. We saw none of those electric carts in the over five hours we were stranded there. This did not involve a Celebrity cruise. We took another like this time. But we probably will cruise Celebrity again in the future. And the fact that Celebrity is going to other ports and airports is good news to us.

If a port change or elimination happens in the course of a cruise, it is usually easy for guests to learn the reason why — and it is usually weather and rough seas. But recently, on a Grandeur cruise of Pacific Mexico and Central America a good number of ports were skipped in fair weather. The guests were not told a reason. There was speculation that the ports were unable to offer this ship an electrical hook up, which Regent prefers to have to reduce fuel consumption and pollution. But since ships can and do generate their own electricity in these and many ports, this would be a poor excuse for missing ports.

We never like to book a post disembarkation flight that departs before early afternoon. Last June after an Explorer Alaska cruise, we had a United Vancouver to Denver flight that departed around noon. We were greeted at the airport by a very long line before we could even get inside the airport rescheduling United passengers from cancelled flights. Even though our flight had not been cancelled, we had to become somewhat hostile to even get into the airport, to check in for our flight. Other than that, we would have missed it. These days, we like to give airlines plenty of slack time, because airlines now are basically incompetent. Regent is certainly not incompetent, but has to depend on airlines, hotels, transit, and others that are.

FWIW, we just returned from a cruise on the Splendor that visited Nassau two days ago. Based on our last stop there (maybe 15 years ago) we planned to stay on the ship. In spite of that, we disembarked there and found the place most improved. BUT, I can well understand the anger and disappointment in the way cruise lines (including Regent) have been changing and eliminating ports. I understand port elimination due to unsafe weather. On our Splendor cruise, the first port was St.Barts (a tender port). The captain launched a tender, and I could see it bouncing around. I thought “I don’t want to do that”! The captain apparently agreed and cancelled the port. Good! I also understand canceling ports that have become war zones. I don’t want to pay to go to a war zone. But there have been reports right here on CC that Regent cancelled ports (sometimes with a substitute — sometimes not) not due to weather or war. I do wish that Regent, when it changes or eliminates ports, would tell booked guests why. If the guest is onboard and the reason is weather, the captain tells the guests why (and in my case) the guests could see why. But if port changes (or eliminations) are made pre cruise, I suggest booked guests deserve an explanation. From what I am reading here on CC, this isn’t always happening.

We’ve had an aft suite before (not on X) and had no soot problems at all. However, there was a rather severe vibration and shaking problem. I don’t know if any X ships have this problem at the stern, but ships of several other lines do.

Sounds like most of these items are prohibited on the ship due to fire hazard. When I have considered a cruise and searched for prohibited items on the line’s web site, it has been a bit hard to find — and in fine print. When one books a cruise, the line should send a list of prohibited items shortly thereafter — and not expect the guest to spend an hour searching for this info on the site. Further, prohibited items are not the same from line to line. We just cruised on a line (not X this time) where ordinary extension cords are allowed. So all lines should send a readable list of prohibited items right after booking — or at least with the cruise documents. This might solve problems.

How about finding the flights you want, and asking Regent for a deviation? Sometimes this works out well.

We just got back from a cruise yesterday (not Celebrity) that disembarked in Miami. That will be our last time at that port for us. The cruise terminal was way understaffed, causing the worst congestion at such a facility that we’ve ever seen. The Miami airport is also a mess. It is spread out literally for miles and has no trains, trams, busses, internal carts, or people movers. It is thus unusable by people like us with even minor mobility disabilities. We won’t be back there, either. So I would count Celebrity’s use of other FL ports as a big plus.

Possibly, but on the ship the iPad wouldn’t type accurately and correctly. Now that I have returned home, it works fine. As to the phone problem, we got instructions and followed them When we would dial a number we know well, we would only get a recording stating the number was invalid

We s phone home him numers in-the shiosph0hUSA tokiowij whijevfikiowq