Regent Seven Seas Navigator - Disappoint

[Travelcat2]

Wow, this old January thread came back from the dead today for some reason, like a horror movie monster.

 

My understanding is that the Navigator is Regent's most profitable ship. Fine for cruises on relatively calm waters, I agree with the views that she sails the oceans like a cork....

 

Agree with your "take" on the Navigator!

[rallydave]

Wow, this old January thread came back from the dead today for some reason, like a horror movie monster.

 

My understanding is that the Navigator is Regent's most profitable ship. Fine for cruises on relatively calm waters, I agree with the views that she sails the oceans like a cork....

 

Have to wonder what the definition of profitability per ship is and how a customer who has no privity to the Corporate books and records can know what the profitability of any of their ships is and which ship is the most profitable?

[DaveFr]

To put things in context, the new OP has cruised regularly on Crystal since 2003. His or her only Regent cruise on the Navigator took place in December 2008. IMO, a post about a Navigator cruise in 2008 is basically irrelevant to the Navigator today and should not be given much weight, if any.

[Kwaj girl]

"Corky" or not, we love her, too. Enough so that we are on the full '18 World Cruise and again in August '18 Copenhagen to Amsterdam. BUT we also love the Explorer....and the Voyager....and the Mariner.....

[JMARINER]

I have 168 nights on the NAV. Been on her across the North Atlantic, South Atlantic and length of Indian Ocean, both before and after the "duck tail." Booked for another 10 Days in Jan in the Pacific and 20 Days next Aug on the North Cape/Arctic. (Just not in the last 5 cabins)

 

Am I concerned about the ride? Nope. Great sized rooms, smaller passenger load and great service staff, that is what I like.

 

J

41/602

[Travelcat2]

To put things in context, the new OP has cruised regularly on Crystal since 2003. His or her only Regent cruise on the Navigator took place in December 2008. IMO, a post about a Navigator cruise in 2008 is basically irrelevant to the Navigator today and should not be given much weight, if any.

 

Thanks for putting things into context. Want to add that, IMO, the Navigator is not the best ship for someones first Regent experience on Regent if they have sailed on other luxury cruise lines. No matter how good the food and/or service is, IMO, it can't compete with cruise lines like Silversea. We have sailed on the Whisper and Shadow - both the approximate size of the Navigator with 50 less suites and no vibration - much better public spaces. Having said that, although we prefer Silversea's two ships, we prefer Regent over Silversea. We just avoid the Navigator

[Kwaj girl]

I have 168 nights on the NAV. Booked for another 10 Days in Jan in the Pacific and 20 Days next Aug on the North Cape/Arctic. (Just not in the last 5 cabins)

 

J

41/602

 

Be sure to join the M&Ms for these voyages if you are so inclined. Hope to meet you on board one or the other.

[Bellaggio Cruisers]

I have 168 nights on the NAV. Been on her across the North Atlantic, South Atlantic and length of Indian Ocean, both before and after the "duck tail." Booked for another 10 Days in Jan in the Pacific and 20 Days next Aug on the North Cape/Arctic. (Just not in the last 5 cabins)

 

Am I concerned about the ride? Nope. Great sized rooms, smaller passenger load and great service staff, that is what I like.

 

J

41/602

We are also booked on the Navigator - August 2018 - 20 days - sailing North Cape/Arctic. The Navigator was our introduction to Regent. We had a great time and met some very interesting people. Following everyone's advice, we always book Penthouse B category. Almost mid ship. Never had a problem with the vibration or brown water. It's a wonderful small, lovely, intimate ship. After our wonderful experience, we continue to sail RSSC.

However, we are a bit nervous about the NorthCape cruise, if we hit rough waters. But, always adventurous. Loved the itinerary. Except for Transatlantic cruises, which are for relaxation, we are always looking for new, interesting places to visit.

Regards

Sheila

Edited July 1, 2017 by Bellaggio Cruisers

[warburg]

Greetings, Everyone, from South Beach. Our first Regent cruise in 2011 was on Navigator, in the Caribbean and we really enjoyed it. I spent several of my childhood summers on a small cruiser, so bouncing around is normal to me. In fact, if it happened, I didn't notice. The ship has a classic, old movie charm. It is strange that a post from 2016 has received so much attention. In a way, it's like an old movie, too.

 

Mary

[Travelcat2]

Have to wonder what the definition of profitability per ship is and how a customer who has no privity to the Corporate books and records can know what the profitability of any of their ships is and which ship is the most profitable?

 

It is fairly common knowledge that the Navigator is the most profitable ship. Any of the officers onboard will tell you this (as will Regent Corporate) - especially when you ask them why in the heck they don't sell the ship.

[RachelG]

I know I am in the minority here, but I have to speak up for Navigator. She is my 2nd favorite ship in the fleet. I like that she is smaller. I makes it more likely we can visit interesting small ports. I like that even the basic cabin is spacious. I am not that bothered about movement or vibration, but I realize some are.

[rcandkc]

We have been on 4 cruises on Navigator and have 5th booked. We have always been happy with the friends and connections we make on board. My least favorite is Mariner. Just shows how individual it is.

[Travelcat2]

While our least favorite is the Navigator, the Mariner is right behind (due to the small "H" - "D" suites - the only suites that my DH refuses to sail in)) and the set-up of Compass Rose. We love the Voyager and think that the Explorer's "F" and Concierge suites are the best or any luxury cruise line!

[TWG_ag]

Five trips on the Navigator, I have never experienced the horror stories of brown water, smells, or crowds. I find the vibration no worse than the Voyager and for me, the ride is fine. Have been in 15 foot swells and it rolls just like a 130,000 ship in fifteen foot swells. The ship rocks. The regular suites are better than Mariner and Voyager (have not been on Explorer). Still I have traveled with people on the Navigator when I had a great time and they did not like the ship due to its small size and limited dining options. Everyone's experience is different and if you do not like it, feel free to do other ships. Still, choice is important and the reason Regent, should keep her, because some of us do like smaller. I have my sixth Navigator booked and assume I will enjoy it as much as the first five.

[Travelcat2]

Five trips on the Navigator, I have never experienced the horror stories of brown water, smells, or crowds. I find the vibration no worse than the Voyager and for me, the ride is fine. Have been in 15 foot swells and it rolls just like a 130,000 ship in fifteen foot swells. The ship rocks. The regular suites are better than Mariner and Voyager (have not been on Explorer). Still I have traveled with people on the Navigator when I had a great time and they did not like the ship due to its small size and limited dining options. Everyone's experience is different and if you do not like it, feel free to do other ships. Still, choice is important and the reason Regent, should keep her, because some of us do like smaller. I have my sixth Navigator booked and assume I will enjoy it as much as the first five.

 

Glad that you enjoy the Navigator - many people do. Just wanted to make a small correction to what I highlighted in red from your post. The regular suites on the Voyager and Navigator are exactly the same size (and have almost an identical layout) except that some suites on the Navigator do not have a balcony. It is the Mariner that has the smaller suites - I think about 49 sq. ft. smaller but it feels like 100:). Also, the Navigator PH suites are at the same size as "regular" suites. On the Voyager the PH suites are 15 sq. ft. larger (doesn't sound like much but the square configuration makes it appear much larger). The Mariner has very large PH suites (59 sq, ft, larger than the Voyager and 74 sq. ft. larger than the Navigator).

[powlan]

Five trips on the Navigator, I have never experienced the horror stories of brown water, smells, or crowds. I find the vibration no worse than the Voyager and for me, the ride is fine. Have been in 15 foot swells and it rolls just like a 130,000 ship in fifteen foot swells. The ship rocks. The regular suites are better than Mariner and Voyager (have not been on Explorer). Still I have traveled with people on the Navigator when I had a great time and they did not like the ship due to its small size and limited dining options. Everyone's experience is different and if you do not like it, feel free to do other ships. Still, choice is important and the reason Regent, should keep her, because some of us do like smaller. I have my sixth Navigator booked and assume I will enjoy it as much as the first five.

 

Hear, hear. We're going on the 7/20 Panama canal from SF to Mia. I know it will be great even though we're in a Guaranteed cabin and have no idea where we'll end up.

[Dolebludger]

A little history on the Navigator, for those who do not know it (or have forgotten it). The basic "hull and bones" of the ship were purchased by Radisson (now Regent) early in the last decade from Russia. The ship was designed to be a Russian military ship. From day one after Radisson fitted her out as a cruise ship, she has had rather bad vibrations that no dry dock seems to have been able to fix. We have cruised her several times over the years, and find the vibrations to be worst low and near the stern. For that reason, there is actually a "roar" in the theatre, and considerable vibration in the CR. And we have found the vibration to be actually worse in calm water than in choppy water. The chops seem to break the vibrational pattern this ship sets up. We have found that the Category E balcony cabins near the bow on Deck 6 to be free of vibrations, but some other suite locations can be pretty bad. And even though suite selection can eliminate or reduce vibration in the suite, it is very much there in many public areas.

 

Our experiences on this ship are too old for us to say anything credible about the ship's condition and quality of food and service. I can say that I have never seen her interior condition as poor as in the review from the former Naval Officer cited above. And I have known people who cruised this ship who were so "turned off" by the vibration that they criticized features of the cruise that were actually good. That may be the OP's situation here.

 

Bottom line, if I had a car that vibrated like this ship, I would immediately have it fixed or get rid of it. Regent has known about this problem for around 15 years, and it is way past time to "fix or sell".

[Travelcat2]

Dolebludger, Regent has put millions of dollars into the Navigator over the years and, while the vibration cannot be fixed, it is better than it used to be (IMO, she still vibrates more than the Voyager). Based on the many photos I've seen of the recent refurbishment, the Navigator looks beautiful - absolutely stunning. We miss having a forward Observation Lounge and do fin the ship to be too crowded (on sea days when the weather is too cold or rainy to be outside -- otherwise it is okay).

 

The bottom line in my opinion is that you can have a great experience on any Regent ship but first time cruisers may think that the rest of the fleet is like the Navigator which could not be less true.

[LadyandtheTramp]

We did a trans-Atlantic from CapeTown to Miami this past December, and did not encounter any of the problems detailed above in this thread. We had a "Guaranteed" cabin, which turned out to be stern on Deck 8, but if there was vibration, we did not notice (or didn't think anything about it). The food was above average to excellent, and the change to the "Always available" selections was fantastic. In fact, I probably selected those more than the daily specials. The lack of a forward Observation Lounge was not a big deal, since there was the equivalent at the stern of the ship. Water is water, and coming into ports -- we could always go outside. The only drawback from the most recent refurb was the missing extra chair, and the missing storage around the desk/TV, but we compensated by putting things into the glassware cabinets. But overall, we loved our cruise (and it didn't hurt that we scored enough Regent points from winning Trivia to gather five Regent tee shirts).

[Dolebludger]

I'm glad to hear that the Navigator vibration problem has at least been improved upon. Because otherwise I like the ship due to its smaller size.

[powlan]

We are definitely looking forward to our cruise on the Navigator! I don't know who we'll meet, what we'll eat, (we live in San Francisco) what the weather will be like, if there'll be vibration, the carpet dirty. the water yucky. Water I assume can be fixed. We've sailed Mariner, Voyager as well as Seabourn, Crystal etc and loved them all. Some 7 day and some 18 day. We always travel expecting the best whether its safaris or cruises or just local getaways and have always had great times. We have a great TA who (I believe) gets us the best deal and gives us a large OBC. I wouldn't say we'd always sail Regent or never sail with Regent I simply hope that my wife and myself stay healthy and have enough resources to cruise in a luxury style. Reading CC keeps me informed as well as excited. See some of you on the 7/20 SF to MIA journey.

[UUNetBill]

We took our third trip on Navigator last year right after her refurb and we loved the ship and the cruise. Yeah, there's aft vibration and comparatively few dining options - but we still love Navigator. The smaller, more intimate environment always makes for a nice relaxing cruise...until the seas get to, oh, about 30' or so...then it can get bouncey.

 

Explorer just moved to the top of our 'favorite ship' list, but Navigator is still a good choice in our book.

[Dolebludger]

powain,

 

As I understand the vibration problem has been significantly reduced, that was the only problem we ever experienced on this ship. And as we understand she is "ship shape" inside now, I'll bet the cruise will be great.

[TWG_ag]

Glad that you enjoy the Navigator - many people do. Just wanted to make a small correction to what I highlighted in red from your post. The regular suites on the Voyager and Navigator are exactly the same size (and have almost an identical layout) except that some suites on the Navigator do not have a balcony. It is the Mariner that has the smaller suites - I think about 49 sq. ft. smaller but it feels like 100:). Also, the Navigator PH suites are at the same size as "regular" suites. On the Voyager the PH suites are 15 sq. ft. larger (doesn't sound like much but the square configuration makes it appear much larger). The Mariner has very large PH suites (59 sq, ft, larger than the Voyager and 74 sq. ft. larger than the Navigator).

 

I do not wanted to debate with you, but allow me to clarify. All opinions on this board are subjective, including mine and yours. I agree the basic suites on Voyager and Navigator are similar in overall size and layout, however I believe the Navigator rooms are a foot wider while Voyager suites are a little deeper. Similar size and layout aside, that foot between the bed and wall is significant. That, in my subjective opinion, makes it better. Your comment on non-balcony cabins is understood, but actually some people do not want a balcony and this is the only non-balcony option in the fleet. I have been told by the booking specialist on Regent ships that these cabins frequently sell out first. As for upper cabins, I again acknowledge that Penthouse are better in Mariner and Voyager, but I was only referencing basic cabins. Indeed, below Navigator Suite level all the cabins on Navigator are the same size, which is why I have never done a PH on Navigator, not enough value for the extra $$$'s. On Mariner I have only done PH and on Voyager I actually like the PH C's in the back that many people hate due to that ship's "vibration".

 

I guess us Navigator fans, will just have to trust that the company has enough sense to keep the old girl going. The comments that she is old and cannot maintain "Six Star" quality, is just other people's subjective opinions which do not sway me.

[Travelcat2]

TW - I "get" what you're saying now. We like the PH suites on the Mariner (and, to my knowledge, there is no vibration on the Mariner - we've stayed in an aft suite and it was fine) but do not like the "regular" suites. I accidentally booked one - thinking that the difference in the regular suite on the Mariner and Voyager would not make much of a difference. Boy was I wrong, My DH and I rarely argue but we had our only big argument ever on vacation when he saw the suite. He walked out and we didn't see each other until dinner. The ship was full so there was nothing that we can do. That night I was on the computer (naturally) and the man next to me asked for my help. He wanted off the ship the next day for a variety of reasons. The next morning we received a call from the G.M, advising us of the availability of a PH suite. Thankfully the suite was perfect for both of us.

 

In any case, your observation about the width of the Voyager and Navigator is interesting. The only suite that we like on the Navigator is 1125 which one of a kind (former beauty salon).