Mariner Alaskan cruise - an occasional blog

[Bellaggio Cruisers]

Ditto!

[mrlevin]

 

It would seem that one strict directive from Regent would result in Canyon Ranch Spa changing the way it deals with their onboard customers.

 

Quite obviously no such directive has been made so Regent is condoning (or even supporting) this behavior by Canyon Ranch.

 

Marc

[coljack]

Hi Alan - so good to see that you are on another Regent cruise but sorry to hear that the food is not up to par. We have experienced this on the Mariner in the past and talking to the Food and Beverage Director helped a lot. If he/she is not available, please spend 5 minutes of your vacation to speak with the General Manager. While things should be the same on every ship, unfortunately, this is not always the case.

 

The Mariner is not our favorite ship for some of the reasons that you mentioned. We do love the size of the Penthouse suites but also think that the closet and bathroom are too small. Unfortunately, there isn't much that Regent can do about this and the Mariner is the second oldest ship and was not built by the current owners.

 

The spa has been mentioned quite a bit lately (hope that you discuss this either with the General Manager or on the mid-cruise comment card). They absolutely should not be hostile or trying to upsell anything. They are contractors and this is not the way Regent expects them to run their business.

 

I hope that you will not give up on Regent as the grass is not always greener on the other side (we tried two other cruise lines and returned to Regent...... it was a waste of money to try other lines).

 

Due to the pluses on Explorer, we have decided to only sail on Explorer and the upcoming Splendor (after our November transatlantic cruise on Voyager - our second favorite ship at the moment).

 

If you don't mind, kindly let me know who the General Manager is on your current voyage. And, if the Food and Beverage Director is Donald, we know him and know that he can work magic to make things better (although he shouldn't have to -- it should be the same as on Explorer).

 

Please keep us updated!

 

TC, I'm curious if you have tried Viking Ocean since we are considering giving them a shot.

 

Thanks.

[Travelcat2]

TC, I'm curious if you have tried Viking Ocean since we are considering giving them a shot.

 

Thanks.

 

No - have not tried Viking Ocean but have heard and read really good things about them. There was a thread not long ago that compared Regent to Viking Ocean. You may do a search and see if the thread comes up. Some posters there have tried both products.

[purpleally]

 

As I contemplate booking another cruise I wonder whether the consistency of restaurant dining across Regent’s ships (excluding Explorer) is really a plus. On one hand you know exactly what you will get in each but its makes the experience very predictable. A unique specialty restaurant on each ship would make me more likely to stay loyal to Regent in the long run. Perhaps we will try Crystal or Silver Seas next time just for some variety but its more than likely on balance we will return to Regent.

 

Try Seabourn. I have found their service/food/wine to be better than Regent

[HongKongAlan]

Try Seabourn. I have found their service/food/wine to be better than Regent

 

Thanks for the recommendation. Generally does Seabourn tend to attract an ‘older’ crowd from your experience?

[Winner]

An "older crowd" is often willing to share its lifetime experiences--and you might find them interesting. Please do not assume that anyone older than you has nothing interesting to share. Listen and you may learn something

[HongKongAlan]

An "older crowd" is often willing to share its lifetime experiences--and you might find them interesting. Please do not assume that anyone older than you has nothing interesting to share. Listen and you may learn something

 

You seem to have read some negative assumption into my question which makes your response seem impolite as I read it. I hope that was not your intent

[PaulaJK]

Alan, I do not have any statistics to lean on here, but my impression is that the four frequently labeled luxury lines attract more or less the same clientele ..and are all trying to attract a younger demographic to survive. Sometimes more ( younger, older,etc) folks are found on a particular cruise or itinerary..and summer and holiday season cruises see more families.

 

 

There is much to like about all of the lines. We used to be regulars on Seabourn until they closed their dining room for lunch. We are not fond of buffet style meals. They also have only one specialty restaurant, if that matters to you.

[Travelcat2]

In my opinion, Silversea stands out amongst the four major luxury cruise lines in that it is quite formal. The cruise line in general seems to attract more European passengers.

 

In terms of attracting younger people, it tends to happen fairly naturally. Looking at NCLH's three cruise lines, it seems that more people from NCL are trying Oceania and Oceania passengers have been sailing on Regent for a long time. The important thing is to get people used to cruising. Not all younger people want the sedate atmosphere of luxury cruise lines and some older folks love the loud craziness of mainstream cruise lines.

 

To me, the three different classes of ships under the NCLH umbrella pretty much covers most people/age groups. NCLH does not need to turn Regent into NCL or Oceania in order to attract passengers. As people age, they typically have more time to take longer vacations and appreciate the quiet, serene atmosphere that Regent provides.

[Isklaar]

 

There is much to like about all of the lines. We used to be regulars on Seabourn until they closed their dining room for lunch. We are not fond of buffet style meals. They also have only one specialty restaurant, if that matters to you.

 

 

Paula, the two new Seabourn ships, Encore and Ovation both have an additional speciality restaurant called Sushi.

 

Also, I realise we've done this to death on the Seabourn board, but the MDR isn't always closed for lunch. Opening hours appear to be mainly itinerary-driven, but to be on the safe side it is best to go with the assumption that it will be closed. Then it's a pleasant surprise to find oneself on a cruise when it is actually open for lunch most days!

[cwn]

Paula, the two new Seabourn ships, Encore and Ovation both have an additional speciality restaurant called Sushi.

 

Also, I realise we've done this to death on the Seabourn board, but the MDR isn't always closed for lunch. Opening hours appear to be mainly itinerary-driven, but to be on the safe side it is best to go with the assumption that it will be closed. Then it's a pleasant surprise to find oneself on a cruise when it is actually open for lunch most days!

 

We were on the Seabourn Sojourn for 12 days in Sept and the Main Dinning room was open every day. The time before it was open on all seas days and a couple of port days.

 

We don't care too much for the specialty dinning, but love the very casual pool deck dinning in the evening...varied menu choices plus the best fresh pizza.

 

We just got off the Regent Navigator after 137 days. I know the ship only has Sette Mari and Prime 7 and the other ships have one or two other restaurants open in the evening also. But none have a casual place with simple meal choices which after a long port day are very welcome! We do not like room service dinners, but love the open air casual dinning choice on Seabourn. The design of the pool deck is much better ventilated than what we have experienced on the Navigator or the Mariner so much more comfortable in hot climates.

 

Even though Regent has their main restaurant open every day for lunch, the menu rotation is minimal with the same choices being offered for a week or so before changing except for the three hot main plates. They did improve that on the Navigator with a separate daily list - choice of a salad and three sandwich plates.

 

Regent and Seabourn are very similar each having their good points. Silver Seas is too formal for us and Crystals ships do not appeal to us due to the cabin size.

 

Good to have choices!

[HongKongAlan]

We were on the Seabourn Sojourn for 12 days in Sept and the Main Dinning room was open every day. The time before it was open on all seas days and a couple of port days.

 

We don't care too much for the specialty dinning, but love the very casual pool deck dinning in the evening...varied menu choices plus the best fresh pizza.

 

We just got off the Regent Navigator after 137 days. I know the ship only has Sette Mari and Prime 7 and the other ships have one or two other restaurants open in the evening also. But none have a casual place with simple meal choices which after a long port day are very welcome! We do not like room service dinners, but love the open air casual dinning choice on Seabourn. The design of the pool deck is much better ventilated than what we have experienced on the Navigator or the Mariner so much more comfortable in hot climates.

 

Even though Regent has their main restaurant open every day for lunch, the menu rotation is minimal with the same choices being offered for a week or so before changing except for the three hot main plates. They did improve that on the Navigator with a separate daily list - choice of a salad and three sandwich plates.

 

Regent and Seabourn are very similar each having their good points. Silver Seas is too formal for us and Crystals ships do not appeal to us due to the cabin size.

 

Good to have choices!

 

CWN I so enjoyed your Navigator blog. Thanks very genuinely for taking the time to share your experiences with us.

 

I could not agree more on Compass Rose at lunch. Not enough rotation and I was bored after 7 nights let alone 137.

 

I will investigate Seabourn

 

Best

 

HKA