Regent's included excursions

[swansong]

I guess this subject has been done to death but in the hope that eventually the management might just take notice I am reviving the topic. Having cruised Regent for many years I, like many others, bemoan the fact that most excursions are included. ( NOT FREE Regent! ) Over time since their inclusion the quality of these has declined to the point where many of us just don't bother anymore. The guides seem to be getting less able to communicate in a clear manner and many tours are not thought through in as much as too little time is spent in some places and too much in others. Regent staff used to accompany tours but not any longer so little feedback is given.

 

This has been brought home to me as I have just reserved a couple of excursions on a forthcoming cruise one of which I had to pay extra for. Whilst I appreciate that Regent will not give refunds for not taking their included excursions I do not think it unreasonable that if at one port no excursions are taken and at some point one that attracts an extra payment is taken some credit should be given towards this.

I know that the included excursions are a cash cow for Regent as everyone pays and they profit from customers not taking advantage, however from my experience this is the biggest gripe of their loyal customers. Come on Regent do something about it!

[wripro]

Don't hold your breath! And the worst thing is that Silversea is now considering doing the same thing.

[Wendy The Wanderer]

Hear, hear!

[Suite Travels]

I love how the FREE word is always tossed around on Regent. Nothing is free you are paying for it in the cruise fare.

[Paint Horse]

After a number of cruises with Regent I have been reluctant to book another one due to concerns about these included excursions. I would rather see a lower fare, and just pay for them.

[gnomie1]

Currently on the Mariner on the Miami to Tahiti cruise and I must say, each excursion that we have taken has been excellent - each had great guides, nice transportation and interesting things to see and do. My one complaint, on the excursions that cost extra, Regent is charging much more than if we had planned the same excursion on our own.

 

BTW - apparently 80% of passengers use the included excursions

 

No doubt, this is a HUGE cash cow for Regent and we are quite anxious to see what happens in the future now that NCL is in charge. We have decided to take a wait and see attitude - we are quite reluctant to book a cruise many months away, pay significant amounts of money and be disappointed. We figure, let's wait a year and see what happens over the next year - at $1000 per day per person not including airfare, there are many other options which we will explore in the meantime.

 

gnomie :)

[Travelcat2]

Our experience with excursions depends upon the part of the world you are in:

 

1 Africa - excellent

 

2. Middle East -- best we have experienced

 

3. Med. - overcrowded -- many excursions have a cost associated with them. Would opt out if I could.

 

4. South America -- worst we have experienced.

 

5. Alaska -- a mixed bag. There are so many newbies that most of them appreciate the excursions.

 

6. Caribbean -- forget about it!

 

7. The current Tahiti cruise-- this is a new itinerary -- wonder if they will repeat it??? IMO, there is no way that Regent can compete with the PG.

 

Also, people moving up from main stream and premium cruise lines tend to like them more than the majority of Regent cruisers that are long time customers.

 

Just my opinion.

Edited December 1, 2014 by Travelcat2

[wripro]

Even if they are good they are still on a bus with forty others and cannot compare with a private tour.

[TWG_ag]

What I like about Regent is All Inclusive (and yes I agree the use of the word Free is stupid). Do I use everything that is included, no. But where is Regent to draw the line. They do allow a credit on Transport (airfare and transfer) but that is an industry standard to book a cruise with or with airfare. I have opted out at times and other times I have used it. However on ship if is probably all or nothing. If you can opt out of excursions, then do you allow passengers to opt out of included liquor and or wine. What about tips, sodas and water. I moved up to Regent to be on smaller ships, with smaller crowds and to sign fewer chits. Are the excursions worth it? The "free" included ones are the same you would get on any other line. Some of the additional cost ones are better. On my Navigator next month, I will be doing normal Caribbean tours offered by Regent, nothing special. However, I will have something to do at the four ports that I am taking advantage of them. Sometimes, I stay on the ship, sometimes I do my own thing. Make no mistake cruise lines (all of them) make money on tours, and Regent is making money on these, but what I am buying is All Inclusive. I do not measure the alcohol I drink, the special restaurants I eat at or the excursions I take to determine if I "break even". I gauge the vacation I had with the expectations I had and determine if I will come back.

[Jay23]

We have cruised with Regent only once. It was great and we would go with them again. However, the included tours we took, were disappointing. The only disappointment we experienced. We felt they had not been researched, and Regent did not know exactly what the tours involved. These tours are not Free, we have in fact paid for them. With a bit more care, the tours might have been much better.

[gnomie1]

Even if they are good they are still on a bus with forty others and cannot compare with a private tour.

 

Except for the Med, I have never had more than 28 passengers on any excursion. Of course it cannot compare to a private tour, but I happen to enjoy the excursions because it provides a nice opportunity to meet fellow passengers.

 

Do I use all the excursions - no way, I only pick ones that might be of interest to me, and if necessary, arrange a private tour if there is something I want to see that is not being offered. Having included excursions (no, NOT FREE), is a BIG selling point for Regent and is not going away anytime soon, esp considering what a money making operation it is. They have your money whether you use it or not, at this point where there is great incentive to show profit, they are not going to d/c the included excursions anytime soon.

 

gnomie

Edited December 1, 2014 by gnomie1

[flossie009]

What I like about Regent is All Inclusive (and yes I agree the use of the word Free is stupid). Do I use everything that is included, no. But where is Regent to draw the line. They do allow a credit on Transport (airfare and transfer) but that is an industry standard to book a cruise with or with airfare. I have opted out at times and other times I have used it. However on ship if is probably all or nothing. If you can opt out of excursions, then do you allow passengers to opt out of included liquor and or wine. What about tips, sodas and water. I moved up to Regent to be on smaller ships, with smaller crowds and to sign fewer chits. Are the excursions worth it? The "free" included ones are the same you would get on any other line. Some of the additional cost ones are better. On my Navigator next month, I will be doing normal Caribbean tours offered by Regent, nothing special. However, I will have something to do at the four ports that I am taking advantage of them. Sometimes, I stay on the ship, sometimes I do my own thing. Make no mistake cruise lines (all of them) make money on tours, and Regent is making money on these, but what I am buying is All Inclusive. I do not measure the alcohol I drink, the special restaurants I eat at or the excursions I take to determine if I "break even". I gauge the vacation I had with the expectations I had and determine if I will come back.

 

 

Hear, hear.

Regent is offering an all inclusive product. If passengers want a different product then there are plenty of other options on offer in the ever expanding cruise market.

[Island Cruiser]

On my recent 21 day Regent cruise, half the excursions were on 2/3 full busses. The other half were on full busses. But there was an additional highly negative twist to at least three of the excursions. The tour buses were scheduled to stop at small places able to accommodate no more than one bus load at a time. Delightful stops. But SMALL. Instead of staggering bus departures twenty minutes apart so each bus load could enjoy the SMALL stop, Regent departed three busses at the same time. So 100 passengers converged on the same SMALL stop at the same time. Worse than Grand Central Station at rush hour. Very unpleasant. And all the busses, therefore, ran late and returned to the ship too late for a decent lunch. We will be very very reluctant to book another Regent cruise where we are forced to pay for tours like this.