New to Regent

[cburger100]

Hubby & I are sailing aboard the Voyager in December. We are new to Regent, never sailed the Voyager, only Mariner and Gaughin as Radission SS. Can anyone tell me what's changed besides all inclusive?

[Wendy The Wanderer]

Oh boy, lots. We sailed back in the Radisson days too, and on the Paul Gauguin.

 

You've never been on Voyager so you don't need to know about recent changes to that ship (mostly cosmetic.)

 

It's a lot like Mariner with a somewhat different layout, and slightly larger standard cabins.

 

Signatures restaurant is still around, but the other alternative restaurant is now Prime 7 (primarily a steak house but plenty of other options.)

 

All alcoholic beverages are now included (except for super-premium brands and wines.) And excursions.

 

You can now book excursions and restaurants online ahead of time, just sign up for an account and plug your booking number in.

 

Rooms are tended by a single stewardess now instead of a team of two. The higher level cabins have butlers (I think they did back in the day too.)

 

Just ask away. What cruise are you on? We're on the December 10th western Caribbean trip.

 

There is a roll-call section on this website. You can access various Voyager roll-calls here:

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/forumdisplay.php?f=559

[cburger100]

Wendy:

 

We are on the December 10th as well. So, please tell me, is Regent an improvement over Radission?

[Travelcat2]

Wendy will no doubt respond shortly. Just wanted to give my view as we sailed on the Radisson Paul Gauguin and Voyager prior to the name change to Regent. The change from "Radisson" to "Regent" was in name only -- it was still owned by the same company. The changes occurred after Apollo purchased Regent. Apollo also owns Oceania, both under Prestige Cruise Holdings.

 

A book could be written about the changes. The most noticeable changes are the ships themselves. Multi-millions of dollars have been spent on each of the three Regent ships. They all look wonderful. Almost everything in the interior of the ships was replaced or redone (new beds, linens, chairs in the restaurants, all carpeting). The ships look like new. On the Voyager and Mariner they added a "Coffee Connection" which, in addition to any type of coffee you can think of (with or without alcohol), has a small buffet of food and desserts throughout the day.

 

In terms of service and food. . . . you will get different responses. When we were on the Voyager in 2006 (previous ownership), our review of the food and service was quite similiar to our review in 2009 under the new ownership. What was excellent then, remains excellent now. The few weak points, in some cases, are still weak. Some long time Regent customers feel there has been a decrease in the quality of the wines and food. We, on the other hand, find less choices of food, but, similar quality. The service on our last two cruises was better than we have experienced on any prior cruise. The crew seems happy, upbeat and happy to be serving the guests onboard.

 

The biggest change in the past couple of years is the fares. I was comparing fares for 2006 - 2009 with 2010 - 2011 and cannot believe the increases. Yet, with their advertising and inclusive perks, they are filling their ships with ease. IMO, Regent remains an excellent product.

[Island Cruiser]

You will get a wide range of opinion on this topic. My answer is Regent is better. Here are my reasons. First, Regent has tightened smoking policy. No more smoking in the cabins. A significant improvement. Second, Regent is now all inclusive. A real plus with the exception of the inclusion of excursions (Yes, I know, I'm in the minority on the excursions issue.). Finally, Regent is now elegant casual only. Another significant improvement. Regent's switch from two cabin attendants per cabin to one is, IMO, a downgrade but that doesn't trump the above. And the new and better Regent is also more expensive. Not a small matter. Several of the other luxury lines, also excellent, are now, some of the time, a better bargain. That never used to be the case.

[Wendy The Wanderer]

Cberger, you'll really have to judge for yourself. As has been said, it was firstly a change in name only. There have been changes for the better, and a few arguably for the worst. But the product remains outstanding. Caribbean cruises, in my experience, tend to be a little more relaxed, which can mean service is a bit less crisp.

 

The biggies are the new all-inclusive features. Have you booked your excursions yet?

 

Here's the rollcall for our cruise:

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1193815

[Wendy The Wanderer]

Oh, and the changes to the dress code is a biggy. Elegant Casual always, with the odd "formal optional" night thrown in on longer cruises. We like this a lot, but some miss the old formality.

[cburger100]

Wow, you guys have been extremely helpful. We have been really stuck on SeaDream ( 11 times ) - it will be a hopefully nice change. Yes, I've booked a few excursions that look fun. Can we book the signature restaurants in advance as well?

[Travelcat2]

Yes -- you can book Signatures and Prime 7 in advance (75 days in advance) online.

 

It sounds like you really enjoy Seadream -- we have considered it. . . . maybe sometime in the future. :)

[cburger100]

we love SeaDream!

[bearsfolks]

I'm sorry to be a wet blanket, but we just got back from a Baltic cruise on Regent's Seven Seas Voyager, and we would never go on a Regent ship again. We had picked this cruise because it was the only one we could find that spent 3 days in St. Petersberg, plus it did all the sailing at night. We were willing to pay a premium for this cruise, despite the fact that neither one of us drinks at all. We did expect a premium experience.

 

The cabins are magnificent, and very spacious, compared to our prior (few) cruises. And the service was, almost without exception, flawless.

 

What got us at the start was having to pay for internet service. In today's world, any experience that describes itself as being all-inclusive, would, in my opinion, have to include internet service. If Regent wanted to, they could charge me (even) more up front, but I resent being charged separately for this. To jump to the end of the cruise, you have to buy packages of time, and we had supposedly exceeded our time by 2 minutes. So, our last memory of the ship was getting a bill in which they had charged us an extra $0.70! Maybe it's just me, but that is just tacky, particularly for a supposedly premium experience.

 

However, what we were truly disappointed with was the food. Maybe it was the location of the cruise, but, in general, I would have to describe the food (including at the Prime 7 and supposedly cordon-blue Signature Room, where you have to make reservations) as being tasteless. In many cases, we would take a couple of bites, and then stop eating. The surf-and-turf that we ordered had tasteless lobster, and my wife's filet was initially not done to spec, then they took it back and remade it, and the new piece of meat was tough--she ended up sharing my filet.

 

Most of the desserts were either bland, or even bad, with a couple of exceptions.

 

Also, there were times when one of us had finished eating his/her entree before the other was served.

 

The Compass Rose was a joke. The quick lunches there usually did not have anything that even sounded appetizing. The one time we did eat there, my wife ordered a turkey club, and was given, essentially, a bread sandwich, where each slice of bread was about twice as thick as the piece of meat enclosed. In fact, we ended up going to the Verandah.

 

We ate several meals at the Verandah restaurant which had the huge advantage that if you took something from the buffet to your table and did not like it, you could go back and get something else right away, which was particularly useful for the desserts. The other main "restaurant" we ate at was in our cabin with room service. Given that we did not think that the food in the restaurants was enticing, and also because, despite the supposedly relaxed dress code, to me, it is still business casual (not what I want to do when I am on vacation--yes, I know all the ships insist on this or worse--when will they learn?) and not worth the effort of changing from my shorts after a long day of tours, we just ate in our room.

 

We had hoped for a great experience, particularly as we are planning a cruise next year in New Zealand, but, we will be looking at other lines.

[Travelcat2]

bearfolks: I am asking questions only out of curiosity and an attempt to understand your review of your Voyager Baltic cruise.

 

1, Have you cruised before? If so, on what lines?

 

2. Did you read CruiseCritic prior to going on your cruise?

 

3. Did your TA (travel agent) tell you about Regent?

 

4. Did you check out the Regent website?

 

Our 2nd Regent cruise was on the Voyager in the Baltics. I do understand that food is subjective. What I like may not be to your taste. It sounds as if food was the major disappointment on your cruise.

 

How were the included excursions? Which ones did you go on?

 

You mentioned your expectation of internet being included in your cruise. That is certainly understandable. Unfortunately, it is not included on any cruise line -- whether luxury or not. However, once you reach 21 days on Regent, it is included.

 

So, after having this experience, do you plan on trying another luxury line? If you do, which one looks good to you?

 

Thanks!

[mariners]

It's unfortunate that you did not know that you would be charged for internet. The food issue is really a personal one as everyone has different tastes. Obviously, Regent was not a good fit for you. I am glad that the service was flawless.

If you discuss what you are looking for with a TA and research the variety of cruise lines on the internet before your next cruise, your next cruise might be a better fit. As I notice this is your first post, I also recommend asking questions on a variety of the cruise boards to ensure that you have a better understanding of the cruise line before you cruise. Happy sailing in the future.

[Mark_T]

... and also because, despite the supposedly relaxed dress code, to me, it is still business casual (not what I want to do when I am on vacation--yes, I know all the ships insist on this or worse--when will they learn?) and not worth the effort of changing from my shorts after a long day of tours, we just ate in our room.

 

Seems like you may want to make sure you've picked the right cruise line not just the right itinerary.

 

If you are not comfortable in 'elegant casual' in the evenings then why choose to sail on a ship with that published standard. We don't need the line to 'learn' anything in that regard, most people who choose Regent also take pleasure in dressing well in the evening rather than staying in shorts all day.

 

Nothing against your preferences though, but you might be better served elsewhere in that regard rather than complaining about the published standard and it seems not enjoying yourself much either.

[bearsfolks]

I apologize in advance for being long-winded. I was brought up under an education system that recommended to never use a sentence when an essay would suffice!

 

Travelcat2, here are the answers to your questions:

 

1. Holland America, QE2, a defunct line to Greece, and whatever cruiseline did the Yangtze before it got dammed. Those experiences met our expectations.

2. No. I did not come across cruise-critic until about 2 weeks before we took the cruise. In fact, what I had read was generally positive about the Regent line.

3. We did not use a TA. We were looking for an itinerary that fit what we wanted. For us, a cruise is primarily just a convenient way to travel in that you don't have to pack and unpack every night. So, we really would not have cared much about the experience, except that this was a premium-priced line, and so we had corresponding expectations.

4. Yes. Is there something specific that we should have noticed?

5. Food was a major disappointment. Particularly desserts, which is the main part of the meal for us. Again, keep in mind, this was relative to our expectation, given that we had had good food on the other far cheaper lines (including the QE2, which really surprised me). The Yangtze was different, but this was in 1996, and we knew what to expect, having done China in 1984--I know it's very different now. Also, in talking to others on the Voyager, many expressed that the food was disappointing.

6. The included excursions in general were excellent, and I should have said so. The only one that was poor was to Porvoo (Hellsinki port), which may have been a function of a guide who did not know the destination. The best ones were Catharine's Summer Palace and Peterhoff in St. P, Medieval Visby and Walking Tour and Concert in Tallinn (we skipped the concert and just wandered)--the last two ports were unexpectedly wonderful, and we had a wonderful time.

I understand that the Internet is not included--the literature said it was "available", and I assumed that it was for free. Interestingly, we talked to the Internet Cafe manager, and his response was "No other cruise lines are giving it away", which I mentally translated into "And I guess you're just another cruise line". Contrast that to when our cabin steward (who was wonderful--particularly notable given that tipping is not expected) informed us that the laundry was free (including supplies). A very small thing, but, in the parlance of customer service, delightful.

 

As I said, we will be going to New Zealand next year, and probably Antartica the following. Again, we are looking for something that gives us maximum time in port. Also, we would love to find something that starts and ends in NZ (and fly to the places we want to visit in Auz), but, failing that, we'll take one that does not require you to do a round trip from Sydney (as that is a waste of 4 days as far as we are concerned). Luxury is not the issue, as we will manage our expectations accordingly. Any suggestions would be welcome.

 

Mariners:

 

Please see my response re the internet above. We had not used a TA on the last trip, but will on the next ones. Also, we will use these bbs to ask questions and get peoples' experiences. I usually do so, but, for some reason, did not do it this time. Mea Culpa. In addition to this board, are there any other boards that you would recommend (if that does not violate any rules of this board)?

[Travelcat2]

bearsfolks: Thanks so much for the detailed explanation. I was asking about the Regent website and CruiseCritic just to learn how much research you did prior to your cruise. When it comes to food, no amount of research can really tell you if it will meet your personal expectations.

 

Best of luck in finding the right cruiseline and itinerary for your future cruises.

[RachelG]

Most issues have been already addressed thoroughly, bearfolks. As far as food, I agree that desserts are Regent's weak point in the food category. For me, it is a non-issue as I don't eat dessert usually. My husband likes dessert a lot but doesn't need it, so the fact that the desserts aren't that great is actually a good thing for him. But they do need to improve this area.

 

Internet is free after 21 days--one of the main reasons that we keep going back to Regent (as opposed to Silversea or Seabourn--we would have to pay extra on these lines as far as I can tell). I don't think you will find any major cruise line with free internet right off the bat. On some, it is a perk that you earn after a certain number of days sailing (like Regent). I don't think the computer room guy was being unhelpful or rude. He was just giving information. It just wasn't information that you wanted to hear.

[colomom]

This is very surprising considering this article (http://www.travelpulse.com/Resources/Editorial.aspx?n=69365) that was published in March 2010.

 

Perhaps it was an anomaly?

[Travelcat2]

This is very surprising considering this article (http://www.travelpulse.com/Resources/Editorial.aspx?n=69365) that was published in March 2010.

 

Perhaps it was an anomaly?

 

I am having a bit of difficulty opening that article. Will try again later. We have had our best meals on the Voyager. . . however, one chef we liked very much is now on the Mariner. They do tend to switch around. Food is just so subjective. . . . items I enjoy on Regent other may dislike. An example I like to use is the truffle butter in Signatures. I strongly dislike it while many on these boards rave about it. I feel that Regent does use good quality food. On some itineraries it is difficult to get certain items (fresh produce, fish, etc.) Unfortunately, lobster, crab and shrimp have to be frozen onboard. I do not like the watery texture of the cold crab and shrimp . Again, many people have no problem with it. We enjoy Regent for the service and ambience. Fortunately, we have learned pretty much what dishes are prepared to our liking and which are not. The rack of lamb, for instance, is to die for (on the other hand, you may not like it):)

[hondorner]

Over several years on Cruise Critic, several times I have seen reviews of the same cruise, on the same date, by two different people, one of whom claimed the food was too bland, with the other claiming the food was too spicy or too exotic.

 

I no longer pay much attention to other guest's statements about food, and I rarely mention it in my own reviews, unless it was universal -- as it was on my last Celebrity cruise, where nothing was served hot except the made-to-order pasta station. Because of fixed dining hours, food sat in the kitchen long enough to cool down before it was served. Fortunately, that will never happen on a Regent or Oceania ship.

 

Regarding desserts, I'll break my own rule about commenting on food -- I generally only eat sorbet for dessert, and I can unequivocally state that the homemade sorbet on both Regent and Oceania is the best, most intensely flavored sorbet I have ever enjoyed, anywhere, and was always available to me at any dining venue even if not on the menu, although usually restricted to the flavor of the day.

[noriboating]

On a vaguely related note, I was happy to see that the excursions were good as we will be on the 12 day Baltic later this month. Any other excursion recommendations? Were there long lines, etc etc or was Regent able to circumvent them? I was also happy to note that the deserts are a weak point as I love desert but my waistline does not!

[commodore2010]

Wendy will no doubt respond shortly. Just wanted to give my view as we sailed on the Radisson Paul Gauguin and Voyager prior to the name change to Regent. The change from "Radisson" to "Regent" was in name only -- it was still owned by the same company. The changes occurred after Apollo purchased Regent. Apollo also owns Oceania, both under Prestige Cruise Holdings.

 

A book could be written about the changes. The most noticeable changes are the ships themselves. Multi-millions of dollars have been spent on each of the three Regent ships. They all look wonderful. Almost everything in the interior of the ships was replaced or redone (new beds, linens, chairs in the restaurants, all carpeting). The ships look like new. On the Voyager and Mariner they added a "Coffee Connection" which, in addition to any type of coffee you can think of (with or without alcohol), has a small buffet of food and desserts throughout the day.

 

In terms of service and food. . . . you will get different responses. When we were on the Voyager in 2006 (previous ownership), our review of the food and service was quite similiar to our review in 2009 under the new ownership. What was excellent then, remains excellent now. The few weak points, in some cases, are still weak. Some long time Regent customers feel there has been a decrease in the quality of the wines and food. We, on the other hand, find less choices of food, but, similar quality. The service on our last two cruises was better than we have experienced on any prior cruise. The crew seems happy, upbeat and happy to be serving the guests onboard.

 

The biggest change in the past couple of years is the fares. I was comparing fares for 2006 - 2009 with 2010 - 2011 and cannot believe the increases. Yet, with their advertising and inclusive perks, they are filling their ships with ease. IMO, Regent remains an excellent product.

 

 

Well said and totally agree.

[bearsfolks]

Noriboating:

 

I'll try to give you as much info as I can re the excursions.

 

First, I was amazed at the number of people that hadn't bothered to make reservations on the excursions prior to the trip--this became evident as the listings of "wait-listed" increased daily on the excursions. We had made ours as soon as feasible, and so got all the tours we wanted. If you haen't done so, that would be something I recommend, as it did require a bit of juggling to make sure we got what we wanted to see, particularly in St. P.

 

Logistically, Regent handled the exccursions extremely well. You had to meet in the Constellation Lounge where there was ample seating, and the time for it was set on the basis of the tour and the floor your cabin was on. So things moved very smoothly. In the countries outside Russia, you were given your bus number in the Constellation Lounge, while, in Russia, you had to go through document control on land, and then there were buses lined up which had your tour name written on them--more on that later.

 

In all the ports, the ship was right at the dock, making things convenient, except at Visby, where there were regular tenders back and forth. I know you mentioned you want to avoid desserts, but keep some Swedish Kronner with you when you're in Visby at the dock, as there are some to-die-for icecream places (look for "Glass") right at the dock! (We had additional days on our own in Copenhagen and Stockholm, and I had done detailed Google Maps of all the attractions, and then overlaid icecream and chocolate places, particularly in Copenhagen, nearby--these accounted for half the points mapped, so that tells you how we feel about dessert.)

 

In Tallinn, there was a regular bus that shuttled you back and forth from the town to the dock, and there was a market at both ends, so you could entertain yourself and buy cards, souvenirs, etc., while waiting ffor the bus.

 

The tours that we took and our evaluation of them follows:

 

PICTURESQUE PORVOO--a disappointment as Porvoo does not have much to offer, or, at least, our guide was unable to direct us. Also, we were supposed to go to some places, like the Uspenski Orthodox Church, and we didn't. I'd try something else.

St.P.:

CATHERINE'S PALACE IN PUSHKIN--fantastic! Proves that it was good to be royalty!

HIGHLIGHTS OF ST. PETERSBURG-not bad.

EVENING OF RUSSIAN SONG AND DANCE--we had to skip this, as my wife had a really bad sinus infection, and so we rested.

HERMITAGE, A WEALTH OF ART AND HISTORY--while I would not skip it, I found it a bit of a disappointment relative to my expectations, and I'll explain why. We are primarily into the Impressionists, Modern Art, and Chinese and Japanese Art. The vast majority of what's in the Hermitage is antiquities (and coins)--something we don't care about. While the Impressionist collection they were exhibiting was good, we had seen many of the paintings in exhibitions that have come through town. Also, we were rushed through the rooms, which is to be expected, as there is a lot to cover, and the rooms were somewhat crowded because of all the tours. Thus, it didn't quite live up to what I had expected--but there's no way I would not go there again, just to see some of the rooms. However, I noticed at the end of the Impressionists that there were some rooms that had Chinese and Japanese art in them, so, with the consent of the tour guide, we broke off from the tour, and went off and did our own thing. Warning--it is very easy to get lost in the Hermitage, as it contains sweveral buildings, and there is the obvious language issue. However, despite the fact that the guards in each room looked forbidding, and seemed to still be under a dictate forbidding smiling, we actually found them to be incredibly helpful, once you made an effort--I'm very good at talking with my hands. Also, we were able to go back to the Impressionists when the rooms happened to be empty, and so were able to enjoy them at our leisure, and were able to connect with our tour---keep your earplugs on all the time. They work with bluetooth, and so have a limited range, but that's how we were able to rejoin our tour partway through.

THE LEGACY OF PETER THE GREAT--DO NOT TAKE THIS (yes, I'm shouting!). It could have been a good tour, but, unfortunately, the Summer Palace is closed for renovations--which Regent did inform us prior to the trip. They substituted the Menshikov Palace instead for it. Don't bother. Do something else--anything else, as the Palace is not interesting, Peter's Log Cabin is a 1-star attraction, and we had already done the Peter and Paul Cathedral on the Highlights tour.

PETER THE GREAT'S GRAND PALACE - PETERHOF--On a par, in its own way, with Catherine's Summer Palace. Not to be missed.

METRO RIDE AND SHOPPING--well, the St. P metro is not the Moscow Metro. However, it was a fun excursion, because it got you among the general people, particularly when they took us to a farmers' market. Then they also took us to some government-run souvenir store, which was a waste in itself. Except that I took off on my own and wandered around some blocks and found myself in some peaceful residential neighborhoods and had a ball!

TALLINN WALKING TOUR AND CONCERT. Fabulous, and a total surprise (as was Visby). We had a great guide, and the opportunity to wander down little side streets and take pictures was great. WOnderful town square--climb the tower, although it is a killer--the view, although limited, is worth it. We skipped the concert, as we were more interested in exploring the town, which was truly charming.

MEDIEVAL VISBY. Again, an unexpected gem. Lots of interesting things to see and wander through. Great views. Wonderful botanical garden. Just an amazingly beautiful place. We're talking about going back and spending two weeks there in the winter when the sun never rises.

As I had said earlier, in St. P., you are not assigned to a bus until you get to the bus, and there are usually multiple buses going to the same place. Which means, that with a little effort, you can go with a guide you want to go with. Most of the guides were good in St. P., with one exception, but there were some outstanding ones who you can try for if you want to: A gentleman named Sasha, and two women, one named Marina (perhaps the best of all--we took two tours with her), and a redhead whose name, I think, was Anastasia.

That's probably more info than you wanted, but I warned you I was verbose!

RachelG:

If you have waded through to here, I did not think that the Internet manager was being either rude nor unhelpful. However, customer service and satisfaction is my area of expertise, and anytime a client said that to me, it rang a warning bell in my mind, as it is indicative of a commodity mindset---which is fine if that's what you are selling, but not if you are in the premium business.

Folks, I hesitated in posting my original message, as I did not want to start any kind of a flaming war--the internet is an awful medium to have arguments--perhaps we have still to learn how to use that aspect of it effectively. I've tried to balance the positives with the negatives, and to be fair in my evaluation of the line. I also know that any truly customer-focused company needs to hear from unhappy customers as well as happy ones--whether they choose to do anything about it is a business decision, but they need to hear it.

[noriboating]

I cannot thank you enough! Your info is invaluable. I had not thought to do the Google map thing...hope I am capable. Ice cream is a weakness-also chocolate. We are signed up for the truffle class and the walking tour in Tallin. I wonder if there is duplication.

We selected our excursions the moment they were available online and were successful in getting everything- Catherine's, Peterhoff, Hermitage, chocolate!!! canal cruises, Medeival, etc. I heard the gift shop in the Hermitage is topnotch. Hope I can find it.

We are now evaluating how many currencies to bring as our 12 day cruise also includes Scandinavia. I assume any large purchase can be on a credit card. Have dollars lost their charm?

I am exhausted already!!!!

[noriboating]

I cannot thank you enough! Your info is invaluable. I had not thought to do the Google map thing...hope I am capable. Ice cream is a weakness-also chocolate. We are signed up for the truffle class and the walking tour in Tallin. I wonder if there is duplication.

We selected our excursions the moment they were available online and were successful in getting everything- Catherine's, Peterhoff, Hermitage, chocolate!!! canal cruises, Medeival, etc. I heard the gift shop in the Hermitage is topnotch. Hope I can find it.

We are now evaluating how many currencies to bring as our 12 day cruise also includes Scandinavia. I assume any large purchase can be on a credit card. Have dollars lost their charm?

I am exhausted already!!!!