Live from the Regal Princess 11/16-11/23

[azdmelani]

For the first time, we are going to try dinner at 6:00. You mentioned that the early dinner is at 5:30. Is there one at 5:30 and another one at 6:00?

 

And, if we choose to change to anytime dining because we decide that early dining is not for us, can we change? I don't mean going back and forth between traditional and anytime, but making a change for the remainder of the cruise?

 

Not the OP, but the Regal has the 5:30 seating in one of the anytime dining rooms. The traditional dining room has the 6/8:15 (or whatever the exact times are) seatings. The anytime dining room with the 5:30 seating will open up to anytime dining guests around 7/7:30 once the early seating has finished.

[Host CJSKIDS]

Sounds like you are enjoying your cruise as much as we did last week.

 

If you get the chance, please tell Jonathan and Bo that "Sweet Carolyn" says hello. They would have a martini glass waiting for me the last few nights with that written in chocolate. The last night they had one with that and "We miss you written in it". It sure made it special. Make sure and ask Jonathan to play his Ukulele for you. He's quite talented.

[metairiegal]

I hope you are having a fantastic cruise. We were on-board on your first day, 11/16, for our Bon Voyage Experience! Wish we could have sailed with you, but our trip is in December.

 

I was wondering, have there been any peel-n-eat shrimp or crab legs in the buffet so far?

 

Looking forward to hearing more about your cruise.

 

P.S. During our BVE, we noticed a smoke smell in the atrium that was coming from the casino (which was closed). Have you noticed this?

Edited November 20, 2014 by metairiegal

[lovevacadays]

Thank you for posting your live from thread. I am enjoying reading it. The Regal sounds wonderful!

[FritzG]

Not the OP, but the Regal has the 5:30 seating in one of the anytime dining rooms. The traditional dining room has the 6/8:15 (or whatever the exact times are) seatings. The anytime dining room with the 5:30 seating will open up to anytime dining guests around 7/7:30 once the early seating has finished.

 

Thanks for the info. On the Ruby TA in September the only first seating was at 5:30 which was much too early for us. We'll be doing a b2b on the Regal in March and look forward to a 6pm dinner.

[ar1950]

Thanks for the info. On the Ruby TA in September the only first seating was at 5:30 which was much too early for us. We'll be doing a b2b on the Regal in March and look forward to a 6pm dinner.

 

 

Sign up for the 6pm quickly if you haven't already. It tends to get wait-listed right away (ask how we know:cool:).

[HRPro]

Another beautiful day in Paradise aka St. Thomas. We docked at Crown Point, and I went over to Water Island via the ferry. It was $10 round trip. I met a friend and should have spent the day with her. Water Island has a beautiful beach--Honeymoon-- and great snorkeling. You take the ferry from the Crown Point Marina, which is about a five minute walk from the pier. Very easy to do.

I had already reserved a princess excursion for the afternoon to go snorkeling at Trunk Bay on St. John. The beach is beautiful, but you only have about an hour there, which is not much time for all the traveling back and forth. The snorkeling was not very impressive even on the underwater trail. The reef was healthier and we saw more fish when snorkeling off Princess Cays. Trunck Bay is beautiful and it was not crowded at all. I just wish we had had more time there. Fortunately, we were on a princess excursion because we didn't make it back to the ship until after all aboard time.

 

It was Italian night in the MDR, and once again the food was outstanding and service was excellent. We didn't have a reservation tonight, but got a table for two at 6:30 with no waiting. Highly recommend our entrees--DH had sea scallops and shrimp, and I had the veal. I will doublecheck on early dining times,mbut there has been no mention anywhere of a 6:00 pm early seating. Both the Allegro traditional DR has 5:30 early seating as does Concerto, which has anytime dining starting at 7:30. I haven't actually checked out the Allegro DR, but the times have been posted in the Patters, so I assume that's accurate.

 

Entertainment tonight was 50's rock and roll, and a fabulous performance of Fiera. WOW, what a performance! Don't miss this show-- staging, costumes, vocals and sets were all top notch. It was a full house at the 10:30"show, and they got a standing O. Haven't seen that many times for a Princess production show.

 

A few comments on issues raised on CC to share my personal experience:

Elevators have not been a problem and we're mid-ship and use them all the time as DH has some mobility issues. The only time they were really problematic was during embarkation and after muster drill. Otherwise, they have been fine and seem better aligned than they were in the Royal last year. Towels are rough--I don't remember this being an issue in the Royal last year, but the towels are not soft on the Regal. The hairdryer has worked fine. This is the first time I haven't brought my own, and I have thick hair but the dryer in the drawer has worked fine. I did bring my own shampoo and conditioner as the new product makes my hair feel like straw. I tried it again this cruise with the same result. the bath gel works fine and lathers up as well as soap, so no problems there. The toilet tissue placement is definitely not an issue. We did have one issue with the safe--after setting up our security code, it suddenly stopped worked on day 3 and we had to call maintenance. Turned out that it needed new batteries. I've never had this happen before, so thought I would mention it in case it happens to you. You can walk behind the lifeboats on the promenade deck from aft almost to the front, but you can't get all the way around. it's a narrow corridor and you have to walk single file, but I guess it's better than nothing. There are great seating areas mid ship and aft on the promenade deck, which helps some, and people are really using those spaces. I prefer the walking deck on top, but you do need to go early or late because it does get hot since there is no shade.

Service has been friendly and prompt throughout the ship. Staff seem to be genuinely glad to serve and provide great customer service.

 

Time for bed and to get ready for St Maarten tomorrow.

[Carolyn R]

Hi Sue! I am following along. I was just on the Royal and the towels were kind of rough too, very absorbent though. I love Water Island! We docked at Havensight this time so not so convenient. I tried Secret Harbor for the first time. Very nice.

 

A few questions:

What was different about the Caribbean menus? On the Royal this fall the area on deck 17 that has the aft pool on the Regal was a very heavily used smoking area. What is the smoking situation in that area on the Regal?

 

You should join us on the Emerald TA next year!

 

Have fun!

[Saram1976]

Love reading the threads! Getting me so excited for our cruise on the Regal, just a week from Sunday. I have a question for all you already on the Regal.. What kind of international food offerings do they have at the Horizon Buffet? My only other cruise experience was last year on the Caribbean Princess, where they had international themed nights. I enjoy international flared foods such as Indian, Thai, Brazilian, ect.. I know Bavarian nights and Italian nights are common, would just like to know what menu options are offered daily on the buffet? Thanks

Sara L

[shopperwhite]

Was o cruise before you. Towels were awful. Beds still hard. Did not like Ron goodman this time northe last time I was on a ship with him. Tom in crooners was just way over top. Just lode him. The place was always packed. Hated how loud the music was in the theatre shows

Got locked out onthe balcony didn't realize that could happen. The ship is beautiful though.

[HRPro]

So frustrating just lost my entire post. Internet is very slow even at off times.

I'll try again late tonight when hopefully things will be faster.

[bunzini]

What is Secret Harbor??

[ar1950]

What is Secret Harbor??

 

Probably this: http://www.secretharbourvi.com/

[Starfish10]

Another beautiful day in Paradise aka St. Thomas. We docked at Crown Point, and I went over to Water Island via the ferry. It was $10 round trip. I met a friend and should have spent the day with her. Water Island has a beautiful beach--Honeymoon-- and great snorkeling. You take the ferry from the Crown Point Marina, which is about a five minute walk from the pier. Very easy to do.

.................

 

What facilities are available on Honeymoon Beach ie Restrooms, Refreshments, etc?

[SF]

Thanks for posting live from Regal. Really appreciate you taking time while on vacation to share your experiences and answer questions. We can't wait to board Regal in less than two weeks.

As for the entertainment and the production shows are they scheduled twice in one evening? Besides the trivia you mentioned what other activities do they have during the day?

Edited November 21, 2014 by SF

[lyntony]

Wondering what kind of dance music is played at the Piazza -- and do they play during the day?

[azdmelani]

[quote name='Saram1976']Love reading the threads! Getting me so excited for our cruise on the Regal, just a week from Sunday. I have a question for all you already on the Regal.. What kind of international food offerings do they have at the Horizon Buffet? My only other cruise experience was last year on the Caribbean Princess, where they had international themed nights. I enjoy international flared foods such as Indian, Thai, Brazilian, ect.. I know Bavarian nights and Italian nights are common, would just like to know what menu options are offered daily on the buffet? Thanks
Sara L[/QUOTE]

Yes, lots of international foods. There is always some sort of Asian food (stir fry, miso soup, rice) but also a great deal of Indian foods too. The buffet is fantastic on the Regal/Royal! Enjoy your cruise!!

[bunzini]

[quote name='ar1950']Probably this: [url]http://www.secretharbourvi.com/[/url][/QUOTE]

Thank you!

[RotaryMike]

[quote name='HRPro']So frustrating just lost my entire post. Internet is very slow even at off times.
I'll try again late tonight when hopefully things will be faster.[/quote]

thanx for taking the time and effort to post all this info, would you mind posting some info about the 50th anniversary dinner when you get a chance. thanx.

[HRPro]

[quote name='lyntony']Wondering what kind of dance music is played at the Piazza -- and do they play during the day?[/QUOTE]

All kinds of music is played for dancing in the piazza. They had two dance bands, Evolution and Solplay--one played more contemporary rock and the other played soul music. The Rick Kilburn quartet played more of the dance bans music of all kinds--waltz, cha cha etc. there was a steel drum band that played jazz and Latin numbers.

[HRPro]

Dance music usually was played in the afternoon and evening. The Beatlemaniacs played one night in the piazza and the dance floor was packed!

[HRPro]

[quote name='RotaryMike']thanx for taking the time and effort to post all this info, would you mind posting some info about the 50th anniversary dinner when you get a chance. thanx.[/QUOTE]

It's a fantastic menu. The appetizer is mushroom soup and a duck terrine with brioche. Wonderful salad next and then a delicious blueberry sorbet as the intermezzo. You have a choice if filet of turbot or beef tournedos for your entree. We both had beef--perfectly cooked and very tender. We has the best beef in the MDR on the Regal that we've had in any Princess ship. Dessert was a Norman Love Raspberry Mousse with Chocolate. All his special desserts were fabulous. They also served special petite fours on each of the formal nights.

Enjoy! The 50th anniversary menu was served on the first formal night!

[HRPro]

[quote name='sunsetbeachgal']Appreciate your comment about the aft pool....it sounded like a positive addition to me, and I prefer sitting in the shallow splash area over the pool, so sounds like this is a nice alternative. Regardless of whether it is small or not, it is an improvement.[/QUOTE]

The aft pool was a popular place this week. It is elevated so you get great views. Pool depth is four feet and it is smaller than the midship plunge pool. I estimate it will hold eight adults but there is plenty of space to sit in the shallow water.

Carol, you asked about Ron's schedule, but I didn't get a chance to ask him. Since he just came back to the Regal in mid October, I assume he'll be in through January.

You'll love the regal since I know you enjoyed the Royal.

Susan

[HRPro]

[quote name='cjskids']Sounds like you are enjoying your cruise as much as we did last week.

If you get the chance, please tell Jonathan and Bo that "Sweet Carolyn" says hello. They would have a martini glass waiting for me the last few nights with that written in chocolate. The last night they had one with that and "We miss you written in it". It sure made it special. Make sure and ask Jonathan to play his Ukulele for you. He's quite talented.[/QUOTE]

Carolyn, I saw Jonathan and gave him your message. His face just lit up when he heard your name. Didn't meet Bo, but Jonathan said he'd give him the message.

[HRPro]

[quote name='metairiegal']I hope you are having a fantastic cruise. We were on-board on your first day, 11/16, for our Bon Voyage Experience! Wish we could have sailed with you, but our trip is in December.

I was wondering, have there been any peel-n-eat shrimp or crab legs in the buffet so far?

Looking forward to hearing more about your cruise.

P.S. During our BVE, we noticed a smoke smell in the atrium that was coming from the casino (which was closed). Have you noticed this?[/QUOTE]

No smoke smell in the atrium, but you could occasionally smell a slight odor at the top of the stairs coming up from the casino. It wasn't a major issue and not all the time. The ventilation system in the casino seemed to work well.