Venice-Istanbul thoughts from a Regent newbie

[jklc123]

It only took about 2 hours on the Voyager, before we even sailed, for DH and me to decide it would be hard to go back to “main stream” cruise lines.

 

We loved the spaciousness of our aft suite (878). The vibration was negligible and we loved the view. The Regent agent I spoke to, before turning our reservation over to our TA, recommended 878 because the balcony wraps around to the port side, as it does with more expensive Seven Seas suites on other decks, so we had a great view to the side.

 

Heeding the advice of Cruise Critic posters, we used little battery powered tea lights as night lights, which worked well on the ship as well as in pre- and post-cruise hotel rooms, and I used magnets to attach a map of the area we were sailing and our excursion schedule to the walls.

 

The food was excellent, except for the one breakfast we had in Compass Rose, and the service was friendly and efficient in every restaurant. We used room service for most breakfasts, which worked out well.

 

We missed one port (Zakynthos) due to a thunderstorm and very high seas. I was seasick for about 24 hours and had to cancel our reservation in Signatures and a galley tour. Our butler kept me supplied with ginger ale, crackers and green apples because the Bonine and ginger tablets I had been taking didn’t quite do the trick! Our steward came and checked our balcony furniture because he said in the storm a lounge chair flew off the ship from someone else’s balcony!

 

We took included excursions and had excellent guides, with only one exception. We never had to wait long in the theater for our bus tickets. There were usually about 20 people on our bus. We appreciated the free time to explore after the excursions.

 

I did use the laundry room, although I had not planned to do so. It was located close enough to our suite for us to usually find machines open without waiting too long. We ended up using our OBC, intended to pay for laundry and internet, toward paying the ship’s doctor as DH came down with a respiratory infection and needed inhalation therapy sessions. He wasn’t alone – something must have been going around.

 

Regarding the evening entertainment in the theater (which was very cold, by the way), I most enjoyed the folklore group of singers that came on board in Dubrovnik. The new show, “Come Sail Away,” was OK but not special in our opinion. But we spent pleasant evenings in the theater enjoying a Bailey’s and the music.

 

If we are fortunate enough to again sail on the Voyager, we would want the same suite. Having a butler was a nice touch but not necessary, and we would probably arrange our own airfare to have more flexibility, but the overall Regent SS experience was wonderful.

[Travelcat2]

What a lovely review -- thank you! We have done that itinerary twice and have really enjoyed it. Just a hint for your next Voyager cruise...... instead of doing the air yourself, try doing a deviation for $150/person. This will allow you more flexibility and also will keep the included transfers to and from the ship. You have definitely whetted my appetite for our upcoming Voyager cruise ..... one month from tomorrow. The Voyager is our favorite ship:)

[jklc123]

We did do the deviation to accommodate arriving 3 days early to Venice and staying several days in Turkey. Our flight home was changed on us after we had arranged a tour of Cappadocia, which complicated things. But it all worked out in the end.

[OrpingtonT]

I nearly didn't bother reading this because I thought from the heading that it would be a review of the ports. However I was pleased I did. It is always good to read the opinions of a first-timer on Regent especially when the review is so up-beat. Thank you for spending the time letting us know what you felt.

[jhp]

I love hearing from first time cruisers with reviews like this. Thank you jklc123. I just visited Cappadocia in October before boarding the Mariner, and loved it.

[UUNetBill]

We just did this itinerary last summer, but in reverse. As others have said, the air deviation is worth every nickel. We did a few days on each end and it made the cruise that much more enjoyable. Good to know that others get as hooked on Regent as we did on our first Regent cruise a few years back...

[UUNetBill]

And now that I think about it, I'm pretty certain we were in Suite 878 the first time we sailed on Voyager, too! You're right - it's a great place to spend a few weeks. :D

[Jay23]

We are staying overnight in Venice after travelling independently to join Mariner in April.

Do the Regent ships usually dock in Marittima? There is another dock called Santa Marta which apparently takes the smaller ships but is much more difficult get to without pre arranged transfers. We have been to Marittima twice and so know how to get there from the Piazalle Roma.

Is there a way to find out which quay will be used? :confused:

[scuba diver]

The Venice cruise ship terminal schedule shows that Regent ships use Berth VE 25, Zone Santa Marta, Terminal San Basilio. This is the smaller cruise ship area. However, this was 2013. I would assume they are going to use the same area through 2014. There is a vaporetto stop very close to the pier area. (Line 2 from San Marco Square)

 

 

http://www.vtp.it/calendario/ricerca.jsp?CercaNave=OK&password=null&CodNave=&CodArmatore=178&Giorno=&Mese=&Anno=

 

Use google maps street view to see if you can walk that distance with the amount of luggage you intend to carry. There is on small bridge/ramp that has to be navigated.

[DrHemlock]

Travelcat2:

 

Are you sure about keeping the transfers to/from the ship when booking a flight deviation? That has not been our experience when we deviated, despite having a TA well-known to many on this board who surely (?) would have advised us if keeping the transfers were an option. Especially after I asked specifically.

 

Not refuting your statement; just questioning.

[freddie]

Jay23 - We boarded Mariner a month ago at San Basilio/Santa Marta. It appeared to us to be far better than boarding at Marittima, as it does not require any long walks or use of the People Mover. Taxis (i.e. from the airport, train station, or Piazzale Roma) can drive right up to the little check-in building at San Basilio, while water taxis can come to the dock immediately adjacent to the building. We used a water taxi, as we were staying in the old city. There were porters at the water taxi dock to take all of our luggage, leaving us with only our carry-ons to take through the very easy check-in procedure in the little terminal building and the very short walk to the ship. It couldn't have been easier, unless the water taxi had taken us to the gangway of Mariner. ;)

 

The link that scuba diver provided is the same one that I intended to give you, although it is only for 2013. I would agree with scuba diver that it is a reasonable assumption that in 2014, small ships (Regent) will continue to use Santa Marta/San Basilio. As scuba diver pointed out, there is also a vaporetto stop quite nearby to San Basilio. Here is a link to a good brochure from the Venice Port Authority showing details of the passenger port, including San Basilio (on page 18):

 

http://www.vtp.it/risorse/allegati/brochure_navi.pdf

 

DrHemlock - Your point is well taken, regarding transfers. We have deviated several times using Regent Biz air, the most recent of which was a month ago. As we were not using the Regent hotel package (preferring not to pay the shocking Regent rate for a hotel, usually about twice the tariff that one can get easily by reserving directly with the same hotel), the transfers were not included. As it turned out, doing our own transfers by private water taxi pretty much gobbled up all of the "savings" we'd made by booking the hotel on our own. However, it was great fun to use the private water taxi (very James Bond) for the transfers, rather than deal with whatever transfer system Regent uses in Venice.

Edited December 2, 2013 by freddie

[RachelG]

We did the private water taxi our first time in Venice, and it is very cool James Bond. But way expensive.

So the second time, we used the alilugana water bus, and it is much more reasonable,especially if you area taking at the hilton.

[Jay23]

I do thank you all for your information about the Quay that Mariner will be using.

We have not booked our hotel yet, so we may have to revise our choice of a hotel near to the Marittima, and do something different.

 

We do not have transfers with Regent, as we are not flying with Regent or using their hotel. Our booking says "no transfers".

 

We have plenty of time to research this, but forewarned is forearmed as they say!

[countflorida]

The link http://screen.yahoo.com/broken-news-daily/tourists-charged-135-coffee-013833439.html will take you to a clip about a gigantic swindle - not unusual, in our personal experience - in Venice. The Voyager's 2003 maiden cruise from Monte Carlo ended in Venice, and we disembarked there and stayed a couple of days, experiencing a similar (in our case, attempted) rip-off. But nothing like $130. I refused to pay the music fee and was able to flag down a passing policeman. I was fortunate; the music was actually at the next restaurant over, and I hadn't been warned about the fee (although the waiter claimed his assistant had done so, but that notable fellow didn’t speak any English, it turned out!), so we just had to pay for the coffee and a "service charge".

I will say that, although we had wanted to see Venice, it was one of the most disappointing places we've ever visited or spent time in. A shame; it is an interesting place, but everyone there seems to be trying to surpass the (original) Merchant of Venice in avarice.

[Travelcat2]

Travelcat2:

 

Are you sure about keeping the transfers to/from the ship when booking a flight deviation? That has not been our experience when we deviated, despite having a TA well-known to many on this board who surely (?) would have advised us if keeping the transfers were an option. Especially after I asked specifically.

 

Not refuting your statement; just questioning.

 

Hi - just noticed your post. We do get transfers with our flight deviations but we arrive the same day as other passengers and get transferred to the Regent hotel and the ship and then transfer back to the airport after disembarkation. I probably should have stated that we receive transfers with most of our deviations. For our upcoming March cruise, we deviated our flights but also changed the date we leave. So, although we have a transfer to the hotel and ship, we have forfeited our transfer to the airport by departing a day early.

 

Hope this clarifies the deviation/transfer issue.

[Jay23]

Yes, we have forfeited our transfers TO the ship, but we are booked with Regent FROM the ship so we will get the transfers, in our case, to Rome Airport.