Random Notes from the Navigator LIVE

[Mr Rumor]

Having an uneventful journey home, just the way we like it. Only surprise here at the Dallas airport was a terminal change for our second and last flight while we were eating. This has happened before to us, so I always check and recheck the departures board.

 

Jackie, Z and TB and 555lavan1t, thanks for your nice words. Blogging a cruise is usually a "sailaway decision" for me, but if I make a decision to do it, I'm all in! It was my pleasure to share the cruise with you.

 

555lavin1t, I recall your being a fan of dancers Alan and Barry. They are in fact still connected with Dancing the Stars, and will return to coaching two of the coaches this fall, after their upcoming Voyager stint. But they will definitely be on the Navigator for your cruise in March.

 

In addition to his dancing prowess, Nathan is a real hoot of a character--reminds me of a taller (he's 6'5"), skinnier (as in rail thin), and younger Jim Carrey. He was a total cut-up at the James Bond pre-dinner cocktail party, slithering around the audience and stage as the "bad guy," and keeping things just slightly zany at the Beatles bash with his mugging.

 

Regarding the Beatles program in Galileo's, CD Lorraine joined lead singers David Hicks from New York and Elaine Gray from Scotland on the vocals, and was great. We've sailed with five CDs on Regent, each so different from the next, and have enjoyed them all--but none more so than Lorraine. Love her warmth and enthusiasm, and appreciate her obvious love for her work. We're already looking forward to seeing her again in May.

 

Rich

[RachelG]

Really enjoyed following along with you cruise! Thanks, Rich.

[Mr Rumor]

Thanks, Rachel--again, my pleasure to share my thoughts and notes. It's also fun to do a little digging for info. Takes me back to my early reporting days.

 

Before this thread begins to sail off into the distance, I'd like to share a few favorite snaps. Enjoy!

 

Rich

 

 

DW Ginny laughed off a vicious surprise Maya attack in Costa Maya, Mexico.

 

 

The magnificent High Temple at Lamanai in Belize. I can't recommend the Lamanai Mayan Ruins and New River Cruise excursion highly enough.

 

 

The Navigator and Riviera, docking cheek to cheek in Cozumel. The Navigator's big cousin had the same itinerary as we did through Georgetown, Cayman Islands.

 

 

Our wonderful stewardness Ni Wayan is one heck of a dancer/performer, too! Here she and bar waiter Elvis go for the big close on the Krew Kapers' cruise ship parody of "There's No Business Like Show Business."

 

The cruise ended on a high (and sweaty!) note with an hour of twisting and shouting in Galileo's, as CD Lorraine, and lead singers David and Elaine blasted through the Beatles repertoire.

[rcandkc]

We will be getting on the Navigator in 2 weeks😃. So excited! It has been a hard winter in more ways than one. Reading your posts is so much fun. I can feel the warmth of the people and the sun.

[WesW]

Rich, thanks so much for you wonderful Navigator posts--wonderful digital Valentines cake--then your outstanding Navigator pix above--made the perfect digital icing.

[Lvtocruize2]

Rich, you are a master of description. I enormously enjoyed your review! Thank you for taking precious time from your days to report and particularly, find the answers I was looking for! Enjoy your next cruise....Patty

[journeyfan]

Rich,

 

We were on the ship that was shadowing you on your just completed cruise. Although we are diehard Regent fans, we decided to give Oceania a try. We enjoyed our time on the Riviera and loved reading your experiences of the ports that the Navigator and Riviera visited and especially the one port that we both missed.

 

We also were very surprised when our captain announced that we couldn't dock in Roatan. It seemed like such a perfect day with very little wind. My DH and I had booked a private tour in Roatan that we were very much looking forward to. When we passed up the port, I wrote the tour operator and was told that ships are frequently unable to dock at Mahogony Bay because the entrance to the harbor is so narrow that even a moderate breeze is enough to discourage pilots from entering. Apparently they knew this when the harbor was being built but Hondurus would not allow the builders to expand the mouth of the harbor due to environmental concerns - it would kill too much of the reef. So sadly, that's the reason you and I had to bypass Roatan.

 

We also very much enjoyed reading your review of last year's Navigator cruise originating in Montreal. We have booked this cruise for this coming October: several of the excursions we will be taking on this cruise are ones that you wrote glowing reviews of last year.

[JPR]

We're on the October 12 Navigator cruise from NYC to Montreal. Can you post the link to Rich's thread?

[journeyfan]

JPR,

 

Here's the link to Rich's thread.

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1933228

 

You'll be getting on the day we get off.

[Mr Rumor]

rcandkc, I'm happy my posts have helped to further stoke your excitement for your upcoming Navigator cruise. Wishing you the same sunny weather and calm seas we savored.

 

Hey, Wes--want to know something? It was your terrific live cruise reporting that inspired me to have a go at blogging myself. Glad you enjoyed!

 

Patty, thanks for your kind words. I was happy to research the staffing question for you. Little "assignments" like this one helped keep me out of DW's hair for at least a few minutes each day, a good thing!

 

journeyfan, like you, I thought the conditions were just fine for tendering into Roatan until the very second we heard the port stop had been cancelled. So I was interested to read your explanation regarding the challenges cruise ships face here. As for Montreal-Miami, you've picked a wonderful cruise (so wonderful that Ginny recently mentioned she wants to do it again with our daughter--maybe 2015?). I checked your upcoming itinerary and have noted a number of tweaks. Saguenay, Charlottetown and Bar Harbor are out, and St. John, Portland, Norfolk and Port Canaveral are in.

 

In closing, a few more freshly resized and cropped photos. Thanks again for coming along!

 

Rich

 

 

At the Chocoholic Tea Time in Galileo's, Jean Ann Ryan stand-out dancer Alan Grundy stuck to his new, less-fattening hobby--needlecraft--while partner, and JAR company manager Nathan looks (and mugs!) on.

 

 

Cats descended from Ernest Hemingway's first cat, Snowball, have the run of the Hemingway Home and Museum (and, here, the gift shop) in Key West, which we toured on our own.

 

 

OK, guys, play us out!

[sevenseassailor]

Totally agree with TravelCat. We love Goran, F&B. Always a big smile and gets things done. We are in process today of booking Navigator on April 11th after learning he will be the F&B.

[2SeaAll]

Rich, you are a master of description. I enormously enjoyed your review! Thank you for taking precious time from your days to report and particularly, find the answers I was looking for! Enjoy your next cruise....Patty

 

Rich,

 

I'll add my thanks. We did a rather late sign-up for Navigator (Western Caribbean) and then broke into a cold sweat when shortly thereafter a group of very negative reviews were posted. Your thread helped us get to our cruise much more relaxed and positive then we might otherwise have been.

 

Sometimes it seems that only people who are angry and feel cheated or taken advantage of go to the trouble of posting reviews. It's mostly been that way for Navigator specifically and to a degree for Regent overall for several months. I have no doubt that the very negative comments were mostly earned by Regent; however we also personally observed situations when irate cruisers turned small issues into major issues. A cruise is a highly complex and personal service-based product - things go wrong occasionally, and sometimes when they go wrong they get compounded for an unlucky few. The number of people so affected seems very small in relation to the silent (satisfied) majority who never post reviews; luckily we've never encountered continuing and on-going major issues that became our Waterloo, either beyond our control or because of us.

 

My review attempts to interject a balanced scorecard into the equation. We are not Regent first or unabashed Regent only loyalists, and we returned feeling that Regent shortchanges its cruisers in some important value for the money areas and wondering why menus and food preparation cannot meet or exceed its (lower-priced) sister line, and why both sister lines cannot do a much better job on shore excursions (whether purchased or included). There are nonetheless areas where Regent excels and a very good or outstanding cruise experience is highly likely when taking Regent.

 

My review is titled: "The Never-Ending Pursuit of Perfection: Not This Time". Thanks again for creating this thread and populating it with such good and relevant information.

[Mr Rumor]

Howard/2SeaAll, thanks for the heads-up on your Navigator Caribbean cruise review (the kind words, too). I have to remind myself sometimes that there is a huge Cruise Critic website beyond the Regent message board, and I should explore it more often. Your review was great reading, so very well thought out and written, and scrupulously fair. If we were both on the Pool Deck of the Navigator at the moment--I'm fantasizing, as it's cold and drizzly here-- I'd join you for lunch as I'd love to follow up with you on many of your points and observations.

 

Rich

 

P.S. As for the four cruises you have booked in the next nine months, you are truly endeavoring 2 Sea it All! That's our plan, too. . .

[2SeaAll]

Howard/2SeaAll, thanks for the heads-up on your Navigator Caribbean cruise review (the kind words, too). I have to remind myself sometimes that there is a huge Cruise Critic website beyond the Regent message board, and I should explore it more often. Your review was great reading, so very well thought out and written, and scrupulously fair. If we were both on the Pool Deck of the Navigator at the moment--I'm fantasizing, as it's cold and drizzly here-- I'd join you for lunch as I'd love to follow up with you on many of your points and observations.

 

Rich

 

P.S. As for the four cruises you have booked in the next nine months, you are truly endeavoring 2 Sea it All! That's our plan, too. . .

 

Rich,

 

We ARE both on the pool deck at the same time -- only it's a virtual pool deck. Yes it's somewhat cold and drizzly here while I'm on our virtual pool deck.

 

You can contact me by simply clicking through on the link below my name; it takes you to my dedicated cruise e-mail. I suspect from your postings that we probably share many views and standards. BTW, we haven't made all our changes yet, but it's likely that we will only do three of the four next listed cruises. We do have an unusual and very exciting early 2016 cruise in the confirmation process that is not yet listed; if we knock off our bucket list too quickly I fear that life could get boring!!

 

I look forward to hearing from you.

[LoonCall]

Like Mr. Rumor and journeyfan, we missed Roatan on a prior cruise. It was a port we were anticipating partly due to the excursion. The question I have is why continue to place this on an itinerary if likelyhood of getting in is slim only to create disappointment?

[purpleally]

 

Oh, oh--breaking news! Lorraine just came over the PA to announce that due to strong winds and big swells we can't tender to shore safely, and, thus, will be bypassing Roatan! She continued that the captain is looking for a "solution for the day." The options: find another port "with an opening," or have a sea day. Stay tuned!

 

Rich

I am WAY behind on reading your latest adventure (I was on the same cruise with you and your family in Alaska last May)

From what I have been reading about Roaton you are lucky they skipped it. Many violent crimes against tourists.

[2SeaAll]

I am WAY behind on reading your latest adventure (I was on the same cruise with you and your family in Alaska last May)

From what I have been reading about Roaton you are lucky they skipped it. Many violent crimes against tourists.

 

We were lucky enough to access the port in Roatan - Mahogany Bay. Mahogany Bay in Roatan is well set up, accessible, and interesting in the way it displays the history of the people of Honduras. There is a man-made beach in a direct, nearby walk from Mahogany Bay (West Bay Beach) that provides an easy diversion for the day; we saw the beach fairly close-in as the ship left the port. I'm not sure whether or not there is an entry fee for West End Beach, but would assume there is. There was a substantial security contingent in Mahogany Bay, and would have to assume that to be the case in West Bay Beach.

 

We went on a Regent excursion to Tabyana Beach. The ride through the countryside was interesting and informative as to the local culture. The beach itself was gorgeous and very tourist friendly with beach security guards ever-present. While Regent did nothing to enhance the excursion - mostly just transportation and beach - it was a very enjoyable day.

 

We consider ourselves lucky; it's a shame that some cruises miss this scheduled port, and there is info that Honduras is constructing an alternative port that will be much more accessible. As to crime - it's a Caribbean Island and experiences have a strong relationship to the risks taken and the precautions exercised. We did not observe any incidents of any kind whatsoever.

[petlover]

Prime 4, never hear that one before. But when we got to eat there, it was before Prime7 was a Regent concept, back in '08.

 

Radisson/Regent used to have special events in the crew bar and crew mess for passengers called the "Truck Stop Diner." Food was of course hamburgers, hot dogs, fries, malts, etc. The entertainment staff would dress in 50's attire to entertain in the crew bar and the officers, Captain(McNeil), Staff Captain, GM, F&B, CD (Paul) etc would act as waiters. These events were only open to full voyage passengers,(30-40 persons) such as full world cruise, discovery, ring of fire voyages (80-110 days).

 

AFAIK, Regent stopped theses 4 or 5 years ago. Reasons unknown. But they were a hoot. And great photos op's.......

 

j

31/425

 

We use to love going to the Truck Stop Diner in the crew quarters on longer cruises such as World, SoAmerica. There was a great turn out and almost everyone dressed in 50's party theme. Unfortunately, these no longer are possible due to insurance reasons. Apparently insurance does not cover passengers in the crew quarters. I recall hearing that a female passenger was hurt down there (someone who probably didn't have the mobility to be there in the first place). It's sad but true, thank goodness for the great memories.

 

We've been to what was offered as a replacement (think it was called "Jamie's Truck Stop") in La Veranda but it didn't compare, I think we were about the only ones dressed up and the turn out was only so so.