Beware: 5 Star Cruise - 1 Star Flights

[flossie009]

flossie gave me a better understanding of what "holiday packages" are in the U.K. This type of thing does not exist in the U.S. Now I understand where your expectations are coming from. In the U.S., we are basically paying for an all-inclusive luxury cruise with hotel and air add-ons. We understand that the hotel and air will not be the same level of luxury as our onboard experience. In fact, once we leave the ship, everything is a bit of a let down compared to what we just experienced.

Notwithstanding what the regulations are regarding holiday bookings in the US and the UK, the point is that with Regent we are booking an all-inclusive end-to-end experience and most of us expect all aspects to be of similar quality where practicable.

Rather than bickering about differences between what is offered to US and UK customers surely all of us should be lobbying our favourite cruise-line, Regent, to up their game with respect to the 'luxury experience' of the portions of our holiday not on their ships but still arranged by Regent.

 

 

So, while I understand that "holidays" are done differently in the U.K. than "vacations" in the U.S., one must understand that the majority of passengers are from North America and it would be difficult (if not impossible) to have one set of air contracts for only 20% of their passengers and another set of air contracts for the rest of their passengers.

As I understand the way Regent operate, there are totally different air contracts set up by Regent (UK) air department in Southampton to those set up by Regent in Miami

 

 

Have to agree completely with your expectations nigelc. You have the holiday packages that include hotel and airfare and on a luxury line all three pieces should be luxury at least for the prices we pay. There is no difference between holiday packages in the UK and inclusive cruise lines that include hotel and air fare and people in the US/Canada also expect a luxury experience from end to end and both UK and US/Canadian customers are paying for an all inclusive holiday experience no matter the side of the Atlantic we live on. There is no difference in expectations.

Perfectly put, rallydave.

There may be a difference in regulations between the UK and the US, but our expectations are the same.

If we book a luxury cruise with a cruise-line that boasts free (i.e. included) air it is not unreasonable to expect to be booked on the best available routing (i.e. with regard to this thread a non-stop flight between LHR and Miami)

In the UK, up until recently, the air department of Regent UK had fulfilled this expectation with good flight timings, non-stop routings, premier airlines and very reasonable prices to upgrade. However they now seem to be seeking to charge their guests extra to fulfil what should reasonably be expected to be included in the price that was agreed at time of booking.

 

 

If you feel that there is an airline/flight where you can fly coach and have a luxury experience, please let all of us know about it as this is what is the TS is having difficulty with.

You appear to be deliberately misinterpreting what nigelc was complaining about.

As far as I read the original post it had nothing to do with flying economy (coach).

The complaint was about having a 5 hour layover in Newark when plenty of flights & seats were available for a non-stop flight between London and Miami.

Ultimately Regent fulfilled nigelc's reasonable expectation of a non-stop flight between LHR and Miami but charged additional money above that which had been agreed for the package at time of booking.

This is not the kind of sharp-practice customers should expect from a reputable luxury cruise-line.

[Purplelady1]

We just booked a land trip to Asia on Singapore and used our Kris Miles and we have two First Class seats $200 each that's all and round trip.

 

AMEX does charge a small fee for the 2-4-1 plus airport taxes and still a good deal if you cannot use your miles. Emirates and Singapore are still part of the program as well as well as Lufthansa and others.

 

With AMEX you just transfer miles to the airline. We just learned that if you have miles they can be transferred to a cash credit on your bill as well to us we just use a service that will or shall I say try to grab the seats using miles. You also can buy miles on some airlines and AMEX. So many tricks to beat the airline game but it will save you so much money.

 

As my mother would say, knowledge is power.

[rallydave]

As a followup to my comments about the high cost of the US Deviation Fee, just came across a recent post regarding the Deviation Fee in the UK:

 

"According to the Regent UK Ts&Cs (Clause 17), the Deviation Fee for UK customers is "£50 per person plus any applicable fare increases fees/penalties charged by the airlines".

 

50 UK Pounds equates to about $65 USD pp compared to the cost for US customers of $175 pp or 37% of the US price. That appears to be a much more reasonable charge and supports my previous comment about the US Deviation charge.

 

 

In this day and age, the job of booking a deviation is about the same world wide and about $65 is a much more reasonable price especially from the same cruise line.

[Quack21]

Regent falls short of being an all inclusive "luxury" line when it treats its passengers poorly on their business class offers.

 

As I posted previously in this thread, we are going to Southampton from Chicago in September. Easily a direct flight. Instead Regent put us on a flight though Amsterdam. That adds three hours including two hours in an airport and a plane change to an eight hour direct flight - hardly luxury. There is a direct flight available on that date that gets into London 30 minutes earlier than the circuitous route that Regent picked. For an eight hour direct flight we would instead gladly take a premium economy or even (gasp) an economy flight.

 

I am not happy looking at the minutia on Regent in order see what hoops you have to jump through to get a good flight and therefore Regent can save a little money. This will be our sixth cruise on Regent using three different travel agents and none have warned us about Regent's poor air routing and indeed it was not a problem until now.

 

Yes Regent should have some reasonable latitude in selecting flights but adding three hours to an eight hour flight is not reasonable.

[UUNetBill]

I can't help but think that a large part of the problem is Regent's move from all-inclusive ECONOMY air to all-inclusive BUSINESS air - I think we can all agree that there are a lot more economy seats than business on any given aircraft, and it's got to be more difficult contracting the most favorable routes for everyone with fewer seats to choose from.

 

 

Remember, Regent just shifted to the Business Class model earlier this year, so I'm honestly not surprised that there are some bugs in the system (especially considering how their website runs - if their internal booking system is as shaky, I'm surprised anyone gets anywhere at all). Call me crazy, but I'd rather take a business class flight with a layover in Amsterdam than an economy flight non-stop. I'll take a few more comfortable hours on a plane rather than suffer in economy for 6-9 hours sitting bolt upright. I figure I'm not gonna let a few extra hours on the road sully a few weeks of Regent pampering.

 

And I'm not completely defending Regent on this - their home office support could definitely use some polishing. Most of the issues I've had with Regent in the past have eventually been corrected with some pushing and griping - but - a true luxury line should take care of these issues without ANY pushing and griping. I think if enough of us contact Regent corporate and let them know about these problems, they'll eventually get corrected. Just as I think the routings on their flights will eventually get smoothed out after they've had more time to figure out their contract levels and whatnot.

[rallydave]

I can't help but think that a large part of the problem is Regent's move from all-inclusive ECONOMY air to all-inclusive BUSINESS air - I think we can all agree that there are a lot more economy seats than business on any given aircraft, and it's got to be more difficult contracting the most favorable routes for everyone with fewer seats to choose from.

 

 

Remember, Regent just shifted to the Business Class model earlier this year, so I'm honestly not surprised that there are some bugs in the system (especially considering how their website runs - if their internal booking system is as shaky, I'm surprised anyone gets anywhere at all). Call me crazy, but I'd rather take a business class flight with a layover in Amsterdam than an economy flight non-stop. I'll take a few more comfortable hours on a plane rather than suffer in economy for 6-9 hours sitting bolt upright. I figure I'm not gonna let a few extra hours on the road sully a few weeks of Regent pampering.

 

And I'm not completely defending Regent on this - their home office support could definitely use some polishing. Most of the issues I've had with Regent in the past have eventually been corrected with some pushing and griping - but - a true luxury line should take care of these issues without ANY pushing and griping. I think if enough of us contact Regent corporate and let them know about these problems, they'll eventually get corrected. Just as I think the routings on their flights will eventually get smoothed out after they've had more time to figure out their contract levels and whatnot.

 

Bill, while there is a bit of truth in what you said, especially about the home office, IMHO before any company makes a change like going from all economy to business for long haul flights that they would study hard that change in order to not have problems in the execution of that change.

 

Yes, there are fewer Business Class seats than economy but, the same goes for premium economy yet when the $99 and other promotions for economy plus seats occurred, there were not the current problems. Remember, contracts with the airlines are written before bookings are made for future flights and could be multiple year so the number of available seats for the contracted carriers are known way before these problems occur. And, there are many flights to meet the demand although they all are probably not contracted carriers. There are times a company must bite the bullet and take a monetary hit in order to provide what the customer pays for and expects.

 

Fiscal responsibility is understood for all companies but, sometimes the customer needs to come before the fiscal responsibility. IMHO there is more to the problem than the smaller number of business seats and while we certainly hope this is a short time occurrence, contracts are good for a year or more so this could be more long term than people want. Have already seen in the last few days several people saying "no mas" and remember, CC is only in the area of 5% of the passengers so we will have to see what happens in the near term and on.

[UUNetBill]

Bill, while there is a bit of truth in what you said, especially about the home office, IMHO before any company makes a change like going from all economy to business for long haul flights that they would study hard that change in order to not have problems in the execution of that change.

 

Yes, there are fewer Business Class seats than economy but, the same goes for premium economy yet when the $99 and other promotions for economy plus seats occurred, there were not the current problems. Remember, contracts with the airlines are written before bookings are made for future flights and could be multiple year so the number of available seats for the contracted carriers are known way before these problems occur. And, there are many flights to meet the demand although they all are probably not contracted carriers. There are times a company must bite the bullet and take a monetary hit in order to provide what the customer pays for and expects.

 

Fiscal responsibility is understood for all companies but, sometimes the customer needs to come before the fiscal responsibility. IMHO there is more to the problem than the smaller number of business seats and while we certainly hope this is a short time occurrence, contracts are good for a year or more so this could be more long term than people want. Have already seen in the last few days several people saying "no mas" and remember, CC is only in the area of 5% of the passengers so we will have to see what happens in the near term and on.

Dave, I understand that a company would have put a bunch of research into this before it was implemented, but there are always unforeseen issues that crop up. You also bolstered my point a bit about how these seats are contracted way in advance...but until the bookings are filling up you have no way of knowing where your customers will be flying in from. So there may be excess capacity in one region and no easy availability in another. Of course, you can influence the origin points of your passengers by running specials in the UK vs the US (or vice versa) but then you have people complaining about unfair pricing for folks across the pond.

 

Like I said before, I'm not making excuses for Regent, but they really do have a lot of chainsaws they're juggling at any given time - I don't think any of us really have a firm understanding of the inner workings of the industry. But I'll reiterate what I said earlier - the home office really does need to step it up...

[flossie009]

As a followup to my comments about the high cost of the US Deviation Fee, just came across a recent post regarding the Deviation Fee in the UK:

 

"According to the Regent UK Ts&Cs (Clause 17), the Deviation Fee for UK customers is "£50 per person plus any applicable fare increases fees/penalties charged by the airlines".

 

50 UK Pounds equates to about $65 USD pp compared to the cost for US customers of $175 pp or 37% of the US price. That appears to be a much more reasonable charge and supports my previous comment about the US Deviation charge.

Dave, From what I have read the Regent "Deviation Fee" in the US provides a subtly different service to the "Deviation Fee" in the UK, albeit I do not disagree with other posters that for most people an additional $175 per person to obtain reasonable flights is not just a drop in the bucket.

In the UK, it is not the deviation fee that is the problem but rather the additional charges for non-stop flights that Regent have recently introduced, whether in Business or Economy; these far outweigh the deviation fee and have been introduced without prior warning and well after booking.

 

 

I can't help but think that a large part of the problem is Regent's move from all-inclusive ECONOMY air to all-inclusive BUSINESS air - I think we can all agree that there are a lot more economy seats than business on any given aircraft, and it's got to be more difficult contracting the most favorable routes for everyone with fewer seats to choose from.

Bill, You may well be correct for those booking in the US, but remember that Regent UK has not yet moved from economy air to business air ............. so this is not the root cause of the problem with Regent UK.

[Travelcat2]

Notwithstanding what the regulations are regarding holiday bookings in the US and the UK, the point is that with Regent we are booking an all-inclusive end-to-end experience and most of us expect all aspects to be of similar quality where practicable.

Rather than bickering about differences between what is offered to US and UK customers surely all of us should be lobbying our favourite cruise-line, Regent, to up their game with respect to the 'luxury experience' of the portions of our holiday not on their ships but still arranged by Regent.

 

 

 

As I understand the way Regent operate, there are totally different air contracts set up by Regent (UK) air department in Southampton to those set up by Regent in Miami

 

 

 

Perfectly put, rallydave.

There may be a difference in regulations between the UK and the US, but our expectations are the same.

If we book a luxury cruise with a cruise-line that boasts free (i.e. included) air it is not unreasonable to expect to be booked on the best available routing (i.e. with regard to this thread a non-stop flight between LHR and Miami)

In the UK, up until recently, the air department of Regent UK had fulfilled this expectation with good flight timings, non-stop routings, premier airlines and very reasonable prices to upgrade. However they now seem to be seeking to charge their guests extra to fulfil what should reasonably be expected to be included in the price that was agreed at time of booking.

 

 

 

You appear to be deliberately misinterpreting what nigelc was complaining about.

As far as I read the original post it had nothing to do with flying economy (coach).

The complaint was about having a 5 hour layover in Newark when plenty of flights & seats were available for a non-stop flight between London and Miami.

Ultimately Regent fulfilled nigelc's reasonable expectation of a non-stop flight between LHR and Miami but charged additional money above that which had been agreed for the package at time of booking.

This is not the kind of sharp-practice customers should expect from a reputable luxury cruise-line.

 

First, no one is "bickering" - we are sharing information.

 

Second, I understand what the TS was discussing - non-stop flights. However, when you say that you want a luxury experience that includes your flights, IMO, this should start with flying Business Class - not coach. Coach is simply not luxury.

 

In terms of contracts, when I suggested that Regent may have to raise fares if they contracted "non-stop" flights, someone thought that raising prices for these flights is a good idea. OTOH, others think that $350/couple is too much money to get the flights that you want (less money in the U.K.)

 

In terms of expectations, I disagree that there are the same in the U.K. and U.S. based on threads and posts (not only this thread). People in the U.S. know that there are few "non-stop" flights and accept that. We just want Business Class flights and would love to have them within the U.S. People in the U.K. seem okay with flying Coach or paying to upgrade but want non-stop flights. The main complaints that I've read about Regent Air from U.S. and Canadian customers is the lack of Business/First Class flights within the U.S./Canada. We want the luxury of Business Class and are paying for it through our fares. So, I fail to see where our expectations are the same.

 

Bill and ralllydave: The "Business Class" model that you refer to is to is not in effect in the U.K.. The only included Business Class seats are for PH and above within Europe (hope that I got that right - I'm repeating what a U.K. poster wrote). U.K. residents pay extra for international Business Class . We are not having problems with it in the U.S.

[Boatmans Lady]

I have read this thread with mounting horror.

We are booked on the LA to Tahiti leg of Navigators round the world in January '19 and booked this 21 months out in 2017

We were told that our flights would be confirmed at the 11 months before mark as we are coming from the UK.

Knew that the homeward flight would include one stopover, as there are no direct flights, and looking at this years flights, we are expecting 20-24hrs travelling, but if we are then allocated a stopover on the LA [presuming this is airport used] to Heathrow/Gatwick the flight really would become a nightmare.

We were kind of expecting that the UK to LA leg would be direct, but not at all certain now.

Think a phone call to our TA is in order, but will probably get told that they can't do anything until our flights are notified.

 

On an aside, we have asked about business class flights and wondered if anybody from the UK can give any indication on how much we will be looking at? Thanks

[Travelcat2]

I think the point was that if flights are that important to you, you should just factor in the extra $350 US (even less in the UK) as part of your cruise fare. It's like when I book on Navigator, I just automatically factor in an upgrade to an F or higher because I want a balcony - it's just part of the cost of doing business.

 

If you look at the deviation fee on an average cruise, it's about 1-2% of the total cruise fare, which really is a 'drop in the bucket', especially when you have the endless discussions about tipping - where people are basically tossing away that amount of money (or more) and posting about how they'll do what they want.

 

I'm still amazed how quickly people jump on others over a perceived slight. Sometimes it's better to just skip a post and not comment (as I should have done here). I'd gladly share a table with TC before I'd sit down with some of the judgmental people here (who I'm sure wouldn't be nearly as outspoken in person as they are online).

 

:mad:

 

You hit the nail on the head - when discussing deviation fees (which are surprisingly low in the U.K.) it is a matter of the cost of the cruise vs the minimal cost to get the flights that you want. Passengers pay much more than that for some excursions on Regent. If people are going to complain about flights, perhaps it is in Regent's best interest to do away with included flights and be like the other luxury cruise lines (except perhaps Crystal that I think includes Economy flights).

[Travelcat2]

I have read this thread with mounting horror.

We are booked on the LA to Tahiti leg of Navigators round the world in January '19 and booked this 21 months out in 2017

We were told that our flights would be confirmed at the 11 months before mark as we are coming from the UK.

Knew that the homeward flight would include one stopover, as there are no direct flights, and looking at this years flights, we are expecting 20-24hrs travelling, but if we are then allocated a stopover on the LA [presuming this is airport used] to Heathrow/Gatwick the flight really would become a nightmare.

We were kind of expecting that the UK to LA leg would be direct, but not at all certain now.

Think a phone call to our TA is in order, but will probably get told that they can't do anything until our flights are notified.

 

On an aside, we have asked about business class flights and wondered if anybody from the UK can give any indication on how much we will be looking at? Thanks

 

It is interesting that you can book 11 months in advance of your cruise. Are you deviating? If you are flying Coach, there should be no issue getting a non-stop fight to LAX (much easier than getting a flight to Miami since very few cruise ships sail from there). However, since you will have your flights so far in advance, if they are not non-stop, you can deviate and get a flight that you want. Booking flights that far in advance gives many more options than when flights are booked 75 days in advance.

[flossie009]

You hit the nail on the head - when discussing deviation fees (which are surprisingly low in the U.K.) it is a matter of the cost of the cruise vs the minimal cost to get the flights that you want. Passengers pay much more than that for some excursions on Regent.

At the risk of repetition:

In the UK, it is not the deviation fee that is the problem but rather the additional charges for non-stop flights that Regent have recently introduced, whether in Business or Economy; these far outweigh the deviation fee and have been introduced without prior warning and well after booking.

 

 

Comparing costs for some excursions with the charges for a reasonable air routing is meaningless. The customer knows the cost of the excursion at the time they choose and book it.

 

 

 

 

If people are going to complain about flights, perhaps it is in Regent's best interest to do away with included flights and be like the other luxury cruise lines (except perhaps Crystal that I think includes Economy flights).

I agree. If Regent cannot, or will not, supply reasonable flights for the advertised cruise price that proudly "includes free flights", then it would be more honest to advertise and sell the cruise without flights.

This would be a shame and would undermine their USP (unique selling point) of being truly all-inclusive, but would allow them to concentrate on the part of the package that they are good at i.e. the cruise itself

[flossie009]

I have read this thread with mounting horror.

We are booked on the LA to Tahiti leg of Navigators round the world in January '19 and booked this 21 months out in 2017

We were told that our flights would be confirmed at the 11 months before mark as we are coming from the UK.

Knew that the homeward flight would include one stopover, as there are no direct flights, and looking at this years flights, we are expecting 20-24hrs travelling, but if we are then allocated a stopover on the LA [presuming this is airport used] to Heathrow/Gatwick the flight really would become a nightmare.

We were kind of expecting that the UK to LA leg would be direct, but not at all certain now.

Think a phone call to our TA is in order, but will probably get told that they can't do anything until our flights are notified.

 

On an aside, we have asked about business class flights and wondered if anybody from the UK can give any indication on how much we will be looking at? Thanks

It is worthwhile contacting your TA and Regent to ensure that your flight expectations are clear.

However, it is unlikely that Regent will be able to confirm until they make the flight arrangements at around 11 months prior to your cruise.

Regent may be able to give an estimation of Business Class upgrade costs based on what they have charged previously but again will probably not confirm until the 11 month mark.

 

 

 

It is interesting that you can book 11 months in advance of your cruise. Are you deviating? If you are flying Coach, there should be no issue getting a non-stop fight to LAX (much easier than getting a flight to Miami since very few cruise ships sail from there). However, since you will have your flights so far in advance, if they are not non-stop, you can deviate and get a flight that you want. Booking flights that far in advance gives many more options than when flights are booked 75 days in advance.

This is one of the significant differences between Regent flight arrangements in the UK and the US.

In the UK, flight arrangements are normally confirmed around 11 months prior to the cruise (This is not dependant on payment of a deviation fee). However the flights will not be ticketed until after cruise final payment.

[Boatmans Lady]

Just to confirm, in the UK we often get to book cruises on a prelease basis and you register to book when bookings open around the 21 month in advance mark of the cruise sailing.

We booked over Easter 2017 for this cruise, and on talking to our TA they expected our flights to be non stop outward and one stop, possibly changing carriers coming home. But nothing would be confirmed till February'March time 2018 when scheduled flights open their booking window and they couldn't give me an upgrade price till then.

 

My worry now is, that the outward leg may well be routed via an European hub like Frankfurt or Amsterdam which could see us, travelling for 24hrs+ to get to LA and a similar routing home, could mean us travelling for two days.

I don't mind flying for example, Heathrow-Chicago-LA as have often had one stop in the USA flying to the west coast, and these layovers only tend to be 2-3 hours, but to fly East to then fly West, just doesn't make sense to me.

 

Will have to wait till New Year and see what we are offered, but will discuss it with my TA in the meantime.

[nigelc]

You hit the nail on the head - when discussing deviation fees (which are surprisingly low in the U.K.) it is a matter of the cost of the cruise vs the minimal cost to get the flights that you want. Passengers pay much more than that for some excursions on Regent. If people are going to complain about flights, perhaps it is in Regent's best interest to do away with included flights and be like the other luxury cruise lines (except perhaps Crystal that I think includes Economy flights).

 

Sorry, Travelcat2 but I think you are missing the point of the initial post. First of all, it has nothing to do with Business Class flights, I knew that the price of the holiday only included Economy flights (with an option to upgrade) and was happy with that. Secondly, nether Regent or my TA bought up the subject of the need for "deviation" to get a direct flight. Indeed, as I booked over a year before the departure date there were no flight details available. The key point here is one of choice. If I had known before I booked of the none-direct flights I would be offered, I simply would not have booked the holiday - lets be honest, at this price point there are lots of options available.

 

But lets not forget that Regents promotional material (and prices) raises a certain expectation and, in relation to flights, in my opinion this means a none-stop flight (where possible) from one major city to another. In my case, Regent holds my 20% deposit and it is a case of these are the flights that we are going to put you on unless you pay us more money or cancel and lose your deposit - little choice there. Indeed, the choices being offered are made even worse, as the none-stop flights I am being charged for appear to be the standard offering for any new customer booking at this time. So its not a case of no seats available or cost, because this is the current standard offering. While I appreciate your loyalty to what I presume is your preferred cruise line, I cannot understand why you do not appear to see that at best this is Regent "nickel and diming" its customers and, at worse, booking customers on in-direct flights so that they will upgrade them to a direct flight for a fee.

 

In relation to Regent not offering flights as part of the price. I have no problem with this at all. But if they are going to attract customers by offering a "package", then they should offer better flights - hence the title of my initial post "Beware 5 Star Cruise - 1 Star Flights".

[Travelcat2]

Sorry, Travelcat2 but I think you are missing the point of the initial post. First of all, it has nothing to do with Business Class flights, I knew that the price of the holiday only included Economy flights (with an option to upgrade) and was happy with that. Secondly, nether Regent or my TA bought up the subject of the need for "deviation" to get a direct flight. Indeed, as I booked over a year before the departure date there were no flight details available. The key point here is one of choice. If I had known before I booked of the none-direct flights I would be offered, I simply would not have booked the holiday - lets be honest, at this price point there are lots of options available.

 

But lets not forget that Regents promotional material (and prices) raises a certain expectation and, in relation to flights, in my opinion this means a none-stop flight (where possible) from one major city to another. In my case, Regent holds my 20% deposit and it is a case of these are the flights that we are going to put you on unless you pay us more money or cancel and lose your deposit - little choice there. Indeed, the choices being offered are made even worse, as the none-stop flights I am being charged for appear to be the standard offering for any new customer booking at this time. So its not a case of no seats available or cost, because this is the current standard offering. While I appreciate your loyalty to what I presume is your preferred cruise line, I cannot understand why you do not appear to see that at best this is Regent "nickel and diming" its customers and, at worse, booking customers on in-direct flights so that they will upgrade them to a direct flight for a fee.

 

In relation to Regent not offering flights as part of the price. I have no problem with this at all. But if they are going to attract customers by offering a "package", then they should offer better flights - hence the title of my initial post "Beware 5 Star Cruise - 1 Star Flights".

 

What I was missing was how strongly people in the U.K. feel about non-stop flights. Apparently, at least in your case, it is more important than flying in flatbed seats or in the comfort that Business Class provides. Most (not all) of us in the U.S. and Canada feel differently - we want the comfort, food and service that is provided when flying Business Class. Having a stop (due to the airlines) has become normal. We hated it at first and complained but the airlines were not going to change so we accepted it. As I posted previously, we cannot even get a non-stop flight to places 1,200 miles from here.

 

As stated earlier, your definition of offering a "package" is not the same as mine. Regent is a cruise line that offers air and hotel. Some people take advantage of it and others do not.

 

In terms of the modest fee for deviated flights, IMO, it is not in Regent's best interest to raise their fares in order to accommodate some of their passengers that want non-stop flights. In the U.S. people either book their own flights using frequent flyer miles, use Regent air (and are generally happy with it) or pay the fee to deviate. This is not a big deal.

 

Yes - I am a regular Regent customer that has tried another luxury cruise line (3 times) and a premium plus cruise line (twice). IMO, what Regent offers is not available on other luxury cruise lines without paying more money (assuming again Business Class air). I do not always defend them as there are some aspects of Regent's policies that we do not care for (and have voiced my opinion about them on Cruise Critic more than once). In this case, I defend them 100%.

 

As you know, Regent is a U.S. based company with the majority of their passengers living in the U.S. and Canada (about 20% British residents sail Regent). People in the U.K. get more attention and benefits from Regent than people in other parts of the world excluding the U.S. (Australia, for example, does not include any air -- unless this has changed recently). Now I have learned that people in the U.K. have their fights at least reserved months before those of us in the U.S. People in the U.K. get better pricing on some itineraries than even we do. I'm not complaining about these issues - only bringing up the differences.

 

While we can express our dissatisfaction, Regent is going to do what makes financial sense. As has also been mentioned, Cruise Critic members represent about 5% of cruise line customers. So, in the case of the Voyager (one sailing), there are about 35 CC members. Of that number, approximately 20% (or 7 people) are from the U.K. We do not see/read the feedback that Regent receives from the other 95% of their customers. These numbers speaks volumes.

[Boatmans Lady]

Travelcat2, I totally understand your point of view having been a frequent traveller to the US for around 40 years. My family live in the Midwest and sometimes the routes they are offered seem very odd, but with the exception of overnighting in NYC most of the layovers offered are around three hours.

When we travel East into Europe our layover can be as long as our flight, which to the West Coast of the USA can be anywhere between 10-12 hours depending on the route taken and head wind. So an 11 hour non stop flight, now becomes a 1-2hr flight to Europe, a 8-10hr layover [cannot use the lounge this long] then a 10hr flight to the West Coast. Total time without travel time to airport [and we have to be at the airport 3-4hrs before a flight] equals 22hrs which isn't conclusive to a good start to your trip.

 

This is what we Brits are on about.

[flossie009]

What I was missing was how strongly people in the U.K. feel about non-stop flights. Apparently, at least in your case, it is more important than flying in flatbed seats or in the comfort that Business Class provides. Most (not all) of us in the U.S. and Canada feel differently - we want the comfort, food and service that is provided when flying Business Class. Having a stop (due to the airlines) has become normal. We hated it at first and complained but the airlines were not going to change so we accepted it. As I posted previously, we cannot even get a non-stop flight to places 1,200 miles from here.

 

For many people non-stop flights are not available to all destinations because of the location where they are starting from.

The important questions when it comes to flights arranged by Regent are:

1. Are they booking flights with stops and lay-overs because non-stop flights are unavailable?
   
2. Are they booking flights with stops and lay-overs because guests want that type of flight arrangement?
   
3. Are they booking flights with stops and lay-overs because Regent makes a better margin on those flights?
   

1. and 2. above are perfectly acceptable; 3. is not.

 

What UK customers are complaining about is the fact that in the UK we have a flight hub (London Heathrow) from where you can get a non-stop flight to virtually anywhere in the world; certainly to most ports that Regent use for embarkation/disembarkation. We are therefore aggrieved that Regent have recently taken the decision to use inconvenient, indirect air routings whereas in the past they have always tried to route their customers on available non-stop convenient flights (without additional costs or deviation fees).

 

Whether the customer chooses to fly Business or Economy is irrelevant to the issue of routing. Class of travel is the customer's choice and in the UK Regent still offer us that choice (for a price).

 

I am sorry that in the US Regent offer what seems the bizarre combination of Economy (Coach) on long internal flights with Business only over international waters ........ when they advertise free (i.e. included) Business class flights. I wonder which bright-spark in marketing thought that was a good way to "exceed customers' expectations" :rolleyes:

[nigelc]

What I was missing was how strongly people in the U.K. feel about non-stop flights. Apparently, at least in your case, it is more important than flying in flatbed seats or in the comfort that Business Class provides. Most (not all) of us in the U.S. and Canada feel differently - we want the comfort, food and service that is provided when flying Business Class. Having a stop (due to the airlines) has become normal. We hated it at first and complained but the airlines were not going to change so we accepted it. As I posted previously, we cannot even get a non-stop flight to places 1,200 miles from here.

 

As stated earlier, your definition of offering a "package" is not the same as mine. Regent is a cruise line that offers air and hotel. Some people take advantage of it and others do not.

 

In terms of the modest fee for deviated flights, IMO, it is not in Regent's best interest to raise their fares in order to accommodate some of their passengers that want non-stop flights. In the U.S. people either book their own flights using frequent flyer miles, use Regent air (and are generally happy with it) or pay the fee to deviate. This is not a big deal.

 

Yes - I am a regular Regent customer that has tried another luxury cruise line (3 times) and a premium plus cruise line (twice). IMO, what Regent offers is not available on other luxury cruise lines without paying more money (assuming again Business Class air). I do not always defend them as there are some aspects of Regent's policies that we do not care for (and have voiced my opinion about them on Cruise Critic more than once). In this case, I defend them 100%.

 

As you know, Regent is a U.S. based company with the majority of their passengers living in the U.S. and Canada (about 20% British residents sail Regent). People in the U.K. get more attention and benefits from Regent than people in other parts of the world excluding the U.S. (Australia, for example, does not include any air -- unless this has changed recently). Now I have learned that people in the U.K. have their fights at least reserved months before those of us in the U.S. People in the U.K. get better pricing on some itineraries than even we do. I'm not complaining about these issues - only bringing up the differences.

 

While we can express our dissatisfaction, Regent is going to do what makes financial sense. As has also been mentioned, Cruise Critic members represent about 5% of cruise line customers. So, in the case of the Voyager (one sailing), there are about 35 CC members. Of that number, approximately 20% (or 7 people) are from the U.K. We do not see/read the feedback that Regent receives from the other 95% of their customers. These numbers speaks volumes.

 

Sorry, but again I do not think you are understanding my point about choice. Regent are free to offer whatever price and services they wish - all I ask, is that they are open about what it includes so that I am free to chose whether or not I book with them. As I have already said, I knew that the price included "economy" air and that if I wished to upgrade it would be at a cost - a choice. What is not fair, is being put in a position that you have to pay more or lose your deposit for something that should be included - in this case, none-stop flights (especially, when they are being offered as standard to new customers and there are plenty of available seats). I, like you, do enjoy flat beds etc on planes and I am happy to pay for it. What I am not happy to pay for, is something that I feel should be included as standard.

 

While I agree that we only tend to hear from around 5% of cruise customers, and I am normally in the 95% who do not contribute to these type of "threads". It does make me wonder how many of the 95% vote with their feet and never sail with them again? Clearly, we don't know and cannot take their silence as being satisfied or unsatisfied customers. As you say, Regent will clearly do what makes financial sense to them. All I would say is, "nickel and diming" customers on their fights does not make sense to me. Surely the type of customer that can afford to sail with Regent is not going to be the type of person who is happy sitting around airports for hours - better to put up their prices by a few £/$100s and give them decent flights as standard. Yes, there are times when there is not a none-stop flight, but that's not we are talking about here. Indeed, we are talking about one of their advertised preferred partners providing a none-stop flight.

 

However, good news :D. Following one of your earlier posts about contacting Miami directly, I e-mailed them and have been informed that in this instance the charge for the none-stop flight with BA will be waved. While this is appreciated, I still feel that it should never have been charged. That said, I plan to enjoy the holiday and not let this issue spoil it.

 

Can I thank all those who have posted and/or read the thread. I have learnt a lot - thank you all.

Edited July 12, 2017 by nigelc

[flossie009]

However, good news :D. Following one of your earlier posts about contacting Miami directly, I e-mailed them and have been informed that in this instance the charge for the none-stop flight with BA will be waved. While this is appreciated, I still feel that it should never have been charged. That said, I plan to enjoy the holiday and not let this issue spoil it.

 

Can I thank all those who have posted and or read the thread. I have learnt a lot - thank you.

Excellent news.

Glad to hear that someone in Regent saw sense at last. Pity you had to go through hoops to get there.

 

Perhaps Regent UK's air department might now reverse their apparent recent policy change :confused:

[aussieb33]

First time poster - very excited to be going on my first ever luxury cruise soon - have only been on a handful of cruises to date and am super amped. Have been reading lots of the posts to get some tips and just continue to get me excited for the trip... and then I came upon this one and after reading it just have to say it makes me sad. #firstworldproblemsarereal

 

I felt compelled to respond because of the negativity and means of trying to sway people from using Regent around something which in the big scheme of things will likely represent about 2% of a total cruise experience - it is jarring. To see other posters being scared off by this as if it is some huge dastardly deal is disconcerting - as everyone has pointed out there are ways to get the flights you want with deviation so you aren't a hostage to situation and I'm pretty sure what Regent hangs their hat on on the actual cruise part of the trip - not the flights. Also if you don't like the flights being included you aren't forced to book Regent as your cruise line either. If you booked on an assumption you'd get what you want flight wise when it is clearly a deal breaker that isn't on Regent.

 

The fact you don't have control over the flights from the get go should be an indication if you want something specific you should take the steps (deviation) to get what you want even at a slight cost - the reason they have this is they know folks have very specific flight needs/wants and they are giving a means to accommodate it outside of what they have available to offer based on deals they have in place.

 

I just don't think it is fair to be bashing them and trying to scare people off when you haven't even been on the cruise yet because your upset about something you have the actual means to change if you like - and overall it is a pretty small gripe.

 

I'm one of the 95% and my return flight has a stop over and my group didn't even blink when we saw it! We are just ecstatic to be going on what will surely be an amazing trip and don't sweat the small stuff.

[Travelcat2]

First time poster - very excited to be going on my first ever luxury cruise soon - have only been on a handful of cruises to date and am super amped. Have been reading lots of the posts to get some tips and just continue to get me excited for the trip... and then I came upon this one and after reading it just have to say it makes me sad. #firstworldproblemsarereal

 

I felt compelled to respond because of the negativity and means of trying to sway people from using Regent around something which in the big scheme of things will likely represent about 2% of a total cruise experience - it is jarring. To see other posters being scared off by this as if it is some huge dastardly deal is disconcerting - as everyone has pointed out there are ways to get the flights you want with deviation so you aren't a hostage to situation and I'm pretty sure what Regent hangs their hat on on the actual cruise part of the trip - not the flights. Also if you don't like the flights being included you aren't forced to book Regent as your cruise line either. If you booked on an assumption you'd get what you want flight wise when it is clearly a deal breaker that isn't on Regent.

 

The fact you don't have control over the flights from the get go should be an indication if you want something specific you should take the steps (deviation) to get what you want even at a slight cost - the reason they have this is they know folks have very specific flight needs/wants and they are giving a means to accommodate it outside of what they have available to offer based on deals they have in place.

 

I just don't think it is fair to be bashing them and trying to scare people off when you haven't even been on the cruise yet because your upset about something you have the actual means to change if you like - and overall it is a pretty small gripe.

 

I'm one of the 95% and my return flight has a stop over and my group didn't even blink when we saw it! We are just ecstatic to be going on what will surely be an amazing trip and don't sweat the small stuff.

 

First, a warm welcome to the Regent board!

 

Apparently the people in the U.K. are looking at things differently than we are. They still have non-stop flights to most places. If I were to make a prediction, this will not be the case in the foreseeable future as the U.S. used to have many more non-stop flights. Actually, it may already be happening since some poster indicated that some non-stop flights are not available on flights within Europe. On the other hand, in order to get to the U.S. there are few places to stop so perhaps that is the reason. I do wonder if they have as many flights to the U.S. as we do to Europe?

 

I do feel that some posters are a bit overly critical of Regent and accuse every little thing as not being "luxury", however, everyone is entitled to their opinion (which is why my signature contains the words "tolerance and patience......".

 

While I am not upset that the TS had the fee waived, IMO, posting about it on a public board will likely cause expectations from other passengers that would like to do the same thing. As they say, "no good deed goes unpunished".

 

Anyway, hope to see you more on the Regent board. Your positivity is nice to see!

[Boatmans Lady]

I'm one of the 95% and my return flight has a stop over and my group didn't even blink when we saw it! We are just ecstatic to be going on what will surely be an amazing trip and don't sweat the small stuff.

 

OK, I'll hold my hand up to being one of those that are a little upset with the changes to the flights to and from the USA.

NO it isn't a deal breaker, and if it means over doubling our travel times, we will deal with it, BUT the issue is there are non stop/direct [with layovers on route home] available that are cheaper, but Regent appear to be routing us out of the way, even in the wrong direction and then wanting extra money to deviate to the cheaper more direct flight.

 

I don't know where you live, but it is like someone living in Salt Lake City, being routed via Newark, with a 6 hour layover in Newark to get to LA.

 

Yes, it might take the shine off travelling. Yes we may need those first 5 sea days to get over travelling. Yes it may impact on returning to work, BUT it won't stop us enjoying every minute of or trip and hopefully it will be a fantastic cruise with great fellow cruisers :D

[wcsdkqh]

BINGO, AussieB. I have a Mediterranean cruise booked next Spring, and was planning on going over a day early and staying a day late to see the sights in Monte Carlo and Barcelona, so I knew I was going to have to pay the deviation and lose the transfers anyway. Checked with Delta, and can fly Business (overseas) and First Class (domestic) for $2500 per person with the exact flights I want. Will get a $2700 credit back from Regent. Don't always assume the airfare thru Regent is always a better deal than you can get on your own.