Review of Mariner Cruise June 28 - July 10: Istanbul to Rome

[NJBelle]

Hi all, it has been two weeks since we got home from this cruise. I have been looking for a chunk of time to write about it and today was the day!

 

Overview:

All in all, it was a great cruise. For us, it had too many ports and not enough sea days (10 ports, one overnight and one sea day in a 12-day cruise) but we knew that going in. Since we wanted a cruise that started in Istanbul that was at least 12 days, and since we needed to cruise during the summer months due to the fact that our daughter is still in high school (although she was at tennis camp while we were sailing), this particular cruise fit the bill. And in the end, even though we would have preferred more sea days, we still enjoyed every port and are glad for our experiences.

 

The weather was beautiful, although very hot. No rain at all during the whole trip and that was wonderful. I would have liked it to be a few degrees (how about 20 F or so?) cooler but when I realized that it was hotter at home in NJ than in the Mediterranean, then I felt a little cooler. In any event, our next cruise in the Med will be in the spring or fall (after our daughter goes to college, I guess) since I really prefer things not quite so hot when I travel.

 

Pre-cruise:

We stayed for 3 nights at the Park Hyatt Macka Palas (located in the district north of Taksim). We had been to Istanbul before and wanted to get beyond the Old Town and sample additional areas of this huge city. Taxis were plentiful and cheap, plus we always like to sample the local transit and we also like to walk, so we did fine. We absolutely loved the Park Hyatt - we had a Spa Suite and it was unbelievable; the bathroom was 3 different rooms plus a steam room and a Turkish bath area ("our haman away from home").The whole hotel was wonderful and the amenities great. Service there was topnotch - one example: they surprised my husband with a beautiful cake and card on his birthday while we were there. We really liked the neighborhood as well - each morning we would enjoy a nice breakfast al fresco with the locals in a little cafe near the hotel.

 

During our time in Istanbul, we toured the Topkapi Palace, went to a cooking class, shopped in the Arasta Bazaar (much calmer than the Grand Bazaar), took a walking tour around the Chora Church, Balat and Fener neighborhoods with a PhD docent from Context Tours, and found various spices (identified from our cooking lesson) at the Spice Market. We walked alot, just strolling around. And we ate most of our meals outdoors, enjoying the fabulous weather (Istanbul was a nice temp actually). Since we had seen many sights before, we took a relaxed approach to our few days so we would be ready for the cruise!

 

Welcome Aboard:

We embarked a little after noon and were delighted to see Dionne Lochner as CD (we had known her from the Paul Gauguin a couple of years ago). We were warmly greeted, then moved on to get spa appointments, exchange some tickets at the Destinations Desk and look in the Library for some good trashy books for the cruise (was pleased to find Sue Grafton's latest, U is for Undertow).

 

The Ship/Suite:

After a lovely lunch (of course with champagne), it was time to head to the suite. We had just been on the Mariner last summer, so there were no big surprises, but we were happy to see lots of nice upgrades there (and other places around the ship, like new bedding, nice comfy chairs in the CR dining room, etc). Although the basic suites are smaller than the Voyager, we found the suite to have plenty of room, and some drawers and cabinets went empty (probably helped by the fact that this time our daughter didn't come with us!). Everything was in good shape and we were quite happy with the suite. Only two minor things - the safe is not large enough for a laptop and the Regent products (shampoo, etc) are of moderate quality and in containers that are hard to deal with (very hard plastic that makes it slippery in the shower to squeeze enough).

 

As far as the public rooms, we really love the Mariner's layout and overall feeling of spaciousness. While we tend to be "love the one you're with" kind of cruisers when it comes to the ships (eg, when we were on the Silver Spirit this past Christmas, we loved her the best), now in the cold light of day and more objective, we still really think the Mariner is wonderful. (Actually, the world's most perfect ship would be the Mariner's public rooms and the Voyager's suites/bathrooms.)

 

Internet:

Worked well for us - in the computer room, in the stations lining the hallway and in our suite (laptop). We love this Regent perk of getting free Internet with Silver.

 

Service/Staff:

Overall, service was pretty good. It was a bit spotty some mornings in La Veranda and occasionally around the pool deck if you were far away from the bar area, but mostly it was attentive and always pleasant and cheerful. In fact, our suite stewardess (Yani) was THE BEST stewardess we have ever had (7 cruises on Crystal, 4 on SS and 7 on Regent). She was the perfect combination of efficiency and unbelievable natural cheerfulness; we wanted for nothing.

 

Senior staff was accessible (several went on excursions, were out and about on deck, etc) although honestly, the Captain (Stan de Lacombe) seemed a little more reserved than some (although not an issue for us). We found the General Manager (Damien Lacroix) and the CD (Dionne) to be warm and engaging and were very happy with them. (And a special shout-out to Elsa, who was one of the most personable, gracious and friendly Social Hostesses I have come across).

 

Food:

Across the board, very good. We ate in Compass Rose only once for lunch and La Veranda the rest of the time (or had lunch in port). For dinner, we at in CR 7 times, Signatures once and 3 times in Prime 7 - and there was a wonderful outdoor barbeque one evening. The Maitre'Ds were very accommodating (in all 3 restaurants we ate in) - not only seating us promptly an ensuring we were happy with our table, but checking back to see that all was well.

 

Wines were nice; a good variety. Staff were more than happy to obtain another one if the featured one was not of interest. Bartenders at the pool bar were wonderful. They patiently made mojitos for happy passenger after happy passenger - always with a smile.

 

We like Signatures, but find that once there per cruise is usually enough for us. Prime 7 is a little more fun and indeed, when we were invited to join new friends for dinner, that seemed to be the "place to go". On our first visit, my husband and I shared the Porterhouse for 2 and it was just fabulous - my husband is not a huge meat eater, but he licked his plate clean that night! And the rest of our choices (too numerous to mention) were good too. Oh, and with regard to service - once at Prime 7, I found my steak to be medium rather than the rare that I had ordered. I mentioned it to the waiter, he whisked it away and I swear only a few minutes later, the new (perfectly cooked) steak was in front of me. He had to have stood there while they cooked it for it to get to me so fast.

 

Dress Code:

It was elegant casual for all the nights and in fact, people looked pretty elegantly casual. Most people seemed to take pains to look nice, not just the ladies, but also the men (I saw a number of sports coats). I really didn't see any "Dress Code Transgressors", so that was good. (One night in Prime 7, there was a man in a tuxedo with his nicely dressed wife. We couldn't figure out if it were some kind of special occasion for them or if he just didn't read the fine print, packed a tuxedo by mistake and was determined to wear it!)

 

Passengers:

It was a full ship. In fact, we had heard in advance of the cruise that some were offered incentives to change to a different cruise since they were oversold. There was one group on board (and I found out from some of those in the group that this group was supposed to have been on a cruise that left in the spring, but due to the volcano, most weren't able to make it, so they scheduled this one as well - probably why they needed rooms at the last minute since it was a group). Anyway, it was only about 80 people so it didn't really impact the quality of the cruise for the rest of the passengers as far as I could see. They had some private receptions and dinners (one night in La Veranda, so it was closed to the rest of us, but to me, not a big deal). There were a lot of "new to Regent" cruisers - and not just those on the group trip. At the Seven Seas Society Party, we heard that there were only 300 of us out of 700.

 

There were a fair number of kids, but they were pretty well-behaved as far as I could tell. No issues to report.

 

However, I do have to comment on a couple of adults' behavior. One woman absolutely raked the poor deck steward over the coals, using a lot of loud profanity, just because he didn't put the chair exactly where she wanted it. Another woman was just as bad - in the computer room, a number of us were subjected to a lengthy loud phone call by her on her cell. When it was mentioned to her that maybe the rest of us didn't really want to hear the details of her business transaction, she practically took off the head of this one poor man. (I hope both of these nasty women were some of the newbies and that they never come back on board Regent!).

 

Excursions:

Since all were included (mostly free) there were a lot of takers, such that the Constellation Theatre (meeting place) was full most mornings as the tours rolled out. Mostly this went smoothly, although on "tender" days, it was a little slower, which is to be expected, I suppose.

 

We liked all our excursions, some more than others, of course. We were happy with the quality of them, in general, and did not feel like Regent is skimping in any way now that they are free (compared to when they were not free and also compared to other luxury lines).

 

This write-up has taken a long time, but if I get another burst of energy, then I will do a separate thread on the excursions we took.

 

Final thoughts:

This was really a great cruise. We had a wonderful time - relaxed on the beautiful ship, saw new sights, enjoyed again some familiar to us, met some lovely people, ate fabulous food, drank wonderful wines (maybe too much on those last two items - I am looking for a combination Weight Watchers/Betty Ford facility to get me back in shape!).

 

For those embarking on the Mariner this summer and beyond, you will have a fabulous time!

 

NJBelle

[basedow]

Thank you for your great review! It is enjoyable to read and can only whet the appetite!

[ljk76]

Thank you for posting this complete and detailed review! We leave from Rome on the Navigator on Aug. 7, and we can hardly wait. Thanks to you I know to pack my own bath products and we're taking iPads for this cruise and hoping that works out. At any rate, I think they should fit in the safe? How was the entertainment, or am I correct that after all those ports I won't care too much anyway? (We also have just one sea day of 12.)Thanks, Linda

[mariners]

What a wonderful review to read! If the Elsa you speak of is the same Elsa who was on our last Voyager cruise, I fully agree with you. She was truly a dynamic and caring young lady.

[Wendy The Wanderer]

Thanks for the review, sounds like you had a great time!

 

As for the bad behaviour, there's always one or two, isn't there?

[piri]

Thank you for the time you took to write such a great and informative review.

 

We will be on the Mariner in December for 32 days and it really made me so excited.

 

One question re the CR dining chairs. Have these been changed again recently? We were on the Mariner, post dry dock refurbishment, last December and they had new chairs which I found very comfortable but they were very, very heavy. Many found them hard to push in and out from the table and they seemed to take up a considerable amount of room space making it tighter for the waiters to get around. I wonder if it is these you were referring to or if Regent has replaced them yet again. Would seem a terrible waste if they had for they were comfortable but perhaps not the right choice particularly for the frail.

 

Thanks again for your review and good wishes for all your future cruises.

[poss]

NJBelle: What a wonderful review. Thank you so much for posting. We were on that cruise as well (and also on Mariner last summer-- in Alaska). We've only cruised on Radisson/Regent, and we have loved every cruise. I have a slight preference for the Voyager, because of bath and shower and because of the somewhat larger suites, but we love both ships.

 

I agree with everything you said (how'd you get 3 Prime 7's??). The bath products, e.g., were maddening. It took such effort to get them opened! We, too, of course appreciate having internet access with Silver, but I must say that we thought the woman in charge of that room was a distinctly unpleasant sort. She seemed lazy, not very interested in helping. Also, one day a group of about 8-9 teenagers came in and were talking loudly, laughing and cutting up, very party-like atmosphere. She couldn't be bothered even then to get up from her seat and ask them kindly to be quiet. I agree with you, though, that except for that one incident, having the kids aboard (what? maybe 50 or so?) was no problem whatsoever. They are very lucky kids!

Oh-- the one other person on the ship who we thought was a real dud was the fellow who sits at a separate desk off to the left of the reception desk. What is his role, exactly? I never saw his head anywhere but down, and the one time we asked him a question, it turned out he gave us totally wrong information; plus he wasn't very personable.

Speaking of "persons": Did you get to know Aurelia in CR? We thought she was a hoot. And so very attentive and seemingly genuinely caring about the people she was serving. (She wants so badly to be married. But she seems to talk virtually non-stop, so maybe she kind of turns people away. We enjoyed her immensely though.)

I thought that the captain, by the way, seemed more natural, engaged, and relaxed than, e.g., good ol' Dag.

I hope that you do find the time/energy to speak about excursions. We liked all of ours very much-- except that the Costa Smeralda excursion pretty much turned us off. I.e., the coast was wonderful, and the scenery inland in Sardinia very handsome as well. But that fancy-pancy shopping center that took up the major block of time-- bleh. We don't enjoy shopping anyway, but even if we did, we thought the whole place was silly. It doesn't amuse us to see the stores and boats and houses of the ultra (ultra!) rich. Though I must say that it was interesting to see the house that Bill Gates built and then sold to Vladimir Putin (who still vacations there). The little flea market and its town that we went to after the gold coast over-kill was very pleasant. And there we actually felt that we were in Sardinia!

The very big negative for us (and it was VERY big) was the air conditioning in all the public spaces on the ship. We found it quite terrible. Were always shivering and unhealthy-feeling. Had to wear sweaters and jackets all the time-- in the summer! in the Med! We spent more time in our suite than we otherwise would have; it was the only place we were comfortable on the ship.

I look forward to hearing about your excursions. Thanks again for a great review.

[WesW]

NJBelle, thanks for the outstanding review. And Poss thanks for the added Mariner detail on this cruise

[PaulaJK]

NJBelle Thanks for your very relaxed and comprehensive review.

[neviboy]

An excellent review. We will be on our 5th.Mariner on Sept. 5th.from Istanbul. We will pack a sweater for the public areas after reading Poss's remarks. Floridians cannot stand the frigid a/c's !! This will be our first taste of the ship's excursions, and so thank you for the remarks. On our Voyager cruise in January we did not enjoy Prime 7 due to the frigid a/c. I made sure that SWMBO has a bathtub suite. Not all suites are shower only, by the way.

Just keeping our fingers crossed that a hurricane will stay away from Miami on Sept. 4th. !! Lucky to have used Regent's air.

[NJBelle]

Hi all, thanks for the kind words. Everyone is so great about sharing experiences on this board, that I felt like I needed to do my bit as well, so glad you enjoyed the review,

 

To follow up on a few points, I guess I did forget to mention a few things - like entertainment! That just shows where it ranks for us in priority.....However, I would say the entertainment was pretty good for the size ship. We normally don't go to the shows much, but did attend a classical guitar performance which was excellent. There are singers/dancers on board and they do several shows. We stopped in on a couple for a few minutes and they were pretty good, but we are really more piano bar folks after dinner. (Though I must say the shows were very well attended, so it looked like people really did enjoy them).

 

There was one lecturer who focused on the ports. He was excellent, although I missed most of his talks. As someone said, just too much going on, I think. Now having said that, I did hear some say that they wished that there were a few more options with regard to lectures and other such events. There must be a fine balance I suppose - when there are so many port days, I guess that they really don't have room to schedule talks, demos, etc. and also don't want to engage someone to play to an empty room. I do think on the sea day there should have been a bit more offered, so that is area I hope they look at for future cruises.

 

Ipads should fit in the safe, and also netbooks. Small cameras, etc also.

 

As far as iPad use, the computer woman did say that people were having trouble with thier iPads on board, but I saw a number of people using them on deck. My husband had no trouble with getting wifi on his iTouch.

 

The CR chairs were new to us, but I think they are the same ones added in dry dock at the end of last year.

 

Agree with poss about the AC in Prime 7. Now I was never cold anywhere else on the ship (so pretty much liked the temperature they kept most rooms) but that was one place where I wished I had brought my wrap.

 

Oh, and forgot to mention that several of us CCers got together at sail-away from Istanbul. It was nice to chat with everyone and then check-in from time to time, say hello and such throughout the cruise. Paul and Carol, Nancy and Stack, Susannah and David - hope you all made it home safely.

[poss]

Hi Belle-- Which one of your CC friends is Mako? He was active on the roll call, and I know he's interested in hearing others' input about the cruise; he'll be happy to see your review.

 

Question about Istanbul, where you mentioned that you've been in the past. Did you happen ever to visit Cappadocia? We love Istanbul, like to imagine that we'll be back some day, but have never seen Cap. I'd enjoy hearing your impressions if you've been there: supposed to be magical.

 

Want to second the thumbs up for John, the port lecturer. I believe that we attended every one of the lectures, and it definitely enhanced our enjoyment of the excursions. He had a dry sense of humor, and did not hesitate to share his opinions of things, negative as well as positive. A very different tone from, say, Terry Bream, but every bit as valuable.

 

And, again, we really did enjoy our excursions-- thought the guides were very good, and thought the excursions themselves gave excellent opportunities. I think I mentioned on my earlier (very brief) post that I didn't think very highly of the destination desk folks. I think that perhaps they have a tougher job than some of the others on the ship, and that may explain what I saw as lack of real interest in people's questions. Also, they didn't know a whole lot about the excursions in the various ports. (Knew some, but big gaps.) They weren't "bad," just not very impressive we thought. One of the three, though, was horrible in our opinion-- downright sour, even surly; basically just not interested.

[cruiseluv]

Thanks NJbelle and Poss for your report/ comments about your cruise. My husband and I will be boarding the Mariner in a couple of weeks, Rome to Venice.

 

Did your cruise go to Tunisia? If so, could you comment about which excursions you did there?

 

Thanks again!

[joandbun]

NJBelle - Thanks for the great review. We will be first time Regent next year on Mariner & have been soaking up the info on these boards.

Excited about it already :p

 

Jo

[poss]

We did go to Tunisia, and as with all the other stops, we enjoyed it very much. There are some great-sounding excursions, and I'd've liked to do one of the full day tours. But my husband at 80 runs out of energy after about half a day of touring; and I'd rather have one hour shared with him than a full day tour without him, no matter how terrific the tour might be. I do hope that NJBelle did one of the longer tours-- would like to hear about it. (Because I was pretty uncomfortable with the sinusitis the whole time, we didn't have the pleasure of choosing to be with people much on this tour; I missed those exchanges at dinner and such.)

 

We took the 4 hour Carthage (no way we were going to omit Carthage) and Sidi Bou Said excursion (Sidi Boo-- fun name!) Sidi Bou was interesting enough, definitely picturesque, though not as interesting as Mykonos or Oia-- just not that degree of handsomeness in our view. And since we're not into shopping, I have no idea how the shops compared. Carthage we loved. Standing, walking in a place with SO much history makes me almost swoon; I get tingly all over. Again, I was perhaps less goose-bumpy than in Epheseus (which blew us away), but seeing the ruins (extensive) was awesome. And the fact that it was on the water made it even more interesting.

Have a luvely cruise, cruiseluv!

[cruiseluv]

Thanks Poss!

[RachelG]

Thanks for the review. I do hate to hear that they keep the public areas frigid on Mariner. I am very cold-natured, so will have to bring sweaters. Seems such a waste of electricity to over-air-condition.

[NJBelle]

The feeling of coldness may depend on the person. I was only cold one time in the whole cruise and that was in Prime 7 (and only once there). I don't think that most people would have liked for Regent to raise the temps in any of the public areas; I wouldn't personally characterize the temps as over-airconditioned or frigid. If an individual is cold, it is easy to add a wrap or a sweater.

[poss]

Just wanted to say that over and over on board, we heard others speaking of the frigid temps. As an example, several times when we were on the elevators, people stepped in and said-- ah, a few moments of not being freezing. We saw folks huddled with arms around themselves, trying to feel comfortable, heard many people talking about wishing they didn't have to constantly wear sweaters and jackets, how silly it felt in the summer, in the Med.

NJBelle: Of course the feeling of coldness depends on the person; I absolutely agree. But my husband and I absolutely would characterize the ship as being over-airconditioned. (And he is seldom cold-- I, on the other hand, often am.) It's not that it's "difficult" to add a wrap or sweater-- it's just not so much fun to wear that kind of clothing in mid-summer. Anyway, we were both simply trying to be helpful: to express to others our impressions. Kudos again on a great report. And glad we both so much enjoyed our cruise. (I wonder if anyone didn't!)

[zaby]

NJ Belle

Glad you had a wonderful time. And “yes” those RUDE people seem to always turn up. How the heck did you manage to score your multiple reservations in Prime and Signatures???

We tried last yr to get an additional reservation and we like to eat late but it was like we has the plague.

[NJBelle]

Hi, sorry to let you know that there is no magic phrase or technique! We had our first dinner early in the cruise (I had made reservations in advance of cruise) and then we were fortunate to be invited by an officer later the the cruise and on the last night of the cruise, invited by some new friends (who were Titanium - that might have helped them get the reservation!). I think "last nights"- especially on a day when there is a port day (and our last day was Livorno and lots of people had gone to Florence) - are a good opportunity for last minute reservations (cancellations due to people being tired or late back to the ship). So, that might be the one trick I would offer up.