What Regent cruisers may want to know about Crystal

[AtA]

TC I think your impressions and thoughts were excellent and am glad you enjoyed your time on Crystal. Thank you.

[riandei]

On 9/10/2019 at 9:03 AM, TrulyBlonde said:

We will look forward to your review and comparison when you return from a non-suite cabin. It will make for a good balance. The cabin size seems very similar to a river cruise.

Not even close some of those cabins are 140 sq feet

[TrulyBlonde]

7 minutes ago, riandei said:

Not even close some of those cabins are 140 sq feet

I have taken 3 river cruises. So small that my last one on Tauck, I opted for the Suite. My DH detests them, and I wanted to be on the Danube, therefore, this was the answer. 😉  I am not a fan of river cruises and we are now done with those. I made lemonade out of lemons (small cabins).

[LHT28]

1 hour ago, riandei said:

Not even close some of those cabins are 140 sq feet

The one we booked on Crystal is 213 sq ft

But  we are peons  & used to non suites 😎

 

[TrulyBlonde]

15 minutes ago, LHT28 said:

The one we booked on Crystal is 213 sq ft

But  we are peons  & used to non suites 😎

 

Lyn,  you are hardly a peon. Looking forward to your review after your Crystal cruise. Always, appreciate your input. If we don't spend it for our enjoyment our children will. 😉

[riandei]

9 hours ago, LHT28 said:

The one we booked on Crystal is 213 sq ft

But  we are peons  & used to non suites 😎

 

I assure you the accommodations will be perfectly acceptable for a 7-12 day sailing.  Maybe someday I will understand the need for more space on a longer sailing but as we are still working and rarely sail longer than 12 nights, I see no need for a larger cabin.

 

If Crystal was to increase their cabin sizes, they may price us out of the market, so, I’ll take my 213 sq ft. 😉

 

hope you 🥰 

[LHT28]

2 hours ago, riandei said:

I assure you the accommodations will be perfectly acceptable for a 7-12 day sailing.  Maybe someday I will understand the need for more space on a longer sailing but as we are still working and rarely sail longer than 12 nights, I see no need for a larger cabin.

 

If Crystal was to increase their cabin sizes, they may price us out of the market, so, I’ll take my 213 sq ft. 😉

 

hope you 🥰 

It is amazing  how adaptable you can be  when needed

We spent 18 days in an inside  size was 84 sq ft

32 days  in 165 sq ft  Ocean View 

So the size of the cabin is not OUR priority 😉

[tubeamps]

something that has not been mentioned regarding the 213 square foot room - on Serenity if you are sitting on the tiny sofa or on the edge of the bed you cannot see the ocean. The solid white metal panel below the promenade deck rail completely blocks your view.

 

Unless things have changed you cannot enjoy a cocktail or coffee in your room and view the ocean. If you want a sea view you have to stand. The window is large enough but the seated view is non existent.

Things may have changed since I was on board 4 years ago, but if not you should be aware that the actual sea views are not there, unless you are standing.

[Keith1010]

This is the 213 Square foot room on Serenity.

 

I can't speak to sitting and I am thinking that some of this might vary by someone's height.

 

 

 

What I would note is that the vast majority of rooms are standard rooms with Verandahs, and suites with Verandahs located on decks other than the Promenade Deck.  In the case of Serenity on Decks 8,9, 10 and 11 versus Deck 7 and on Symphony on Decks 8, 9 and 10 versus Deck 7.

 

This is a view from a Serenity standard room with Verandah.

 

This is a view from one of the Serenity Suites.

 

The difference between these photos and the current configuration is all rooms on both ships received new flat screen TV's following their respective dry docks in 2017 (Symphony) and 2018 (Serenity).

 

Keith

[Travelcat2]

Keith, thanks so much for posting a photo of one of the smaller suites.  It looks well appointed!

 

Good points about cabin size and cost of the cruises.  I had not thought about that as we are used to Regent where (with the exception of Explorer), all suites are roomy.

 

I am cutting and pasting what I just wrote on the Crystal board.  I do not expect to be posting there any more.

 

"Hi again.  I've returned with some responses.  Again, appreciate the corrections to my posts.

 

There was a question about alcohol in Regent's Coffee Connection and The Bistro.  If they serve alcoholic coffees in The Bistro, I am not aware of it.  We did not see it on the menu but do not know if the menu of coffee/tea changes at night.  On Regent, the menu in the Coffee Connection includes descriptions of coffee drinks that they make.  My favorite is French Coffee (with Brandy and something else).  They have a several options - even a "Russian Hot Chocolate" which is to die for (no clue what alcohol is used in that drink).  

 

After saying how wonderful the breads were on Crystal, I would be remiss if I did not mention the ice cream on Regent.  While Ben and Jerry's is fine, IMHO, nothing beats homemade ice cream which is what Regent offers.  I did not notice sugar-free ice cream on Crystal but that does not necessarily mean that it isn't available.  They have a sugar-free option on Regent every day (my favorite is the coffee sugar free that I ruin - calorie wise - by putting chocolate syrup on it.  

 

I touched on the dress code a bit and remain surprised at how "backyard casual" (I made up that term) that some of the guests wore.  The allowed "dress jeans" have turned into sloppy jeans with t-shirts at dinner.  Just surprised - that's all.

 

Our favorite servers on Crystal were Jed, Miles and Noel (in Uma Umi) and Micky (nickname - he is from Serbia) in Prego.  There were many excellent servers but these individuals went out of their way to say hi and welcome us whenever they saw us.  There is also a man (wish I had written down his name) that is from South Africa.  He served canapés in the Starlight Lounge and was a perfect representative for Crystal.  He was very friendly and informative - definitely an asset.  Have to say that the canapés paled in comparison to Regent.  Perhaps they were better in other lounges.  We only frequented the Starlight Lounge (and Avenue Saloon when Mark was there).

 

Someone mentioned that all a person needs is a cabin the size of a Manhattan apartment.  Well, I was raised in California and am not familiar with Manhattan apartments.  However, we have stayed in tiny cabins (on a Nile river cruise and a very small ship cruise in Fiji) so I understand that they are okay.  During our 18 or so years of international travel prior to cruising (started cruising in 2004 - not counting the cruises mentioned in this paragraph which were extensions of land vacations), we stayed in all types of accommodations.  We were in Club Meds in various parts of the world and no one could possibly rave about their accommodations.  With age, we have upped our requirements (not "needs").  We have been in all categories of suites on Regent's Voyager, Navigator and Explorer (except their tiny suites which I try to put out of my mind like they do not exist).  With the exception of the Master Suite, we have been in all categories of suites on Mariner.  I'm adding this information to help explain where we have come from in the past."

[rcandkc]

In coffee connection on the Navigator, you can certainly get drinks. 

[Travelcat2]

44 minutes ago, rcandkc said:

In coffee connection on the Navigator, you can certainly get drinks. 

 

You can get drinks on all Regent ships in the Coffee Connection.  The issue was that some Crystal cruisers thought that alcoholic coffees were available in their version of the Coffee Connection (The Bistro).  If they are, we did not see them on the menu.  I do enjoy an afternoon French Coffee before a lie down - rest and read a book on the balcony.

[Kwaj girl]

2 hours ago, rcandkc said:

In coffee connection on the Navigator, you can certainly get drinks. 

We've been known to quaff a Champagne or two at the CC in the morning....or an English Mary if the mood strikes :-)

[tubeamps]

Keith, thanks for the pictures, they illustrate my point exactly, you can only see the ocean/sea when standing. This is a major drawback, size notwithstanding.

[Stickman1990]

3 hours ago, rcandkc said:

In coffee connection on the Navigator, you can certainly get drinks. 

 

As you can in the Bistro on Crystal - you can enjoy a specialty coffee or a wine 

The wait staff during the day include many of the sommeliers who work in Waterside in the evening 

Of course there are many locations around the ship you can get a beverage, including specialty coffees, during the day - but only the bistro has the Portuguese Tarts to accompany them 🙂 

[Stickman1990]

Jackie - sometime back you made a comment about the size and capacity of the Galaxy Theatre on Crystal and that you felt it lacking - I’d just like to respond to clarify just what is on offer as I think you’ve made it more of any issue than it actually is 

 

The main theatres on both ships (which are located forward on the ships) are well appointed with excellent sound and lighting systems which were enhanced on recent dry docks - they are single level with sloping floors that afford everyone a good view - most importantly there are no pillars to block people’s views (we were surprised on Seabourn Encore - a now 3 year old ship which had pillars obstructing many views as well as sound leakage into the theatre from the show band performing one deck below - but I digress). The seating available is a mixture of bench seating as well as single lounge chairs - there are tables to put your drinks on 

 

Crystal typically run two performances of main stage acts or ensemble shows - the exception usually being local cultural shows bought onboard occasionally. This means whether you dine early or late you can catch a show in the evening. I’m struggling to recall anytime that a performance has been standing room only (to be fair I typically don’t go to the early shows) although some guest speakers who do only one session on a topic can draw a capacity crowd - but should that happen the presentation is streamed live to cabins as well as being available on demand to watch at your leisure - either in your room or on your mobile device while on the ship 

 

You can also enjoy a beverage while watching and there is a beverage service operating until just before the show begins 

 

The theatres are used during the day for guest lecturers and very occasionally for groups such as larger private Bridge groups 

 

My only complaint on the theatre (well it’s not the theatre but theatre related) is that some of the guests seem incapable of respecting their fellow guests and staying off their phones during performances or insist on holding their phones or iPads up to record large tracts of shows - the light and interruption to line of sight makes my blood boil! Yes there are requests in the daily newsletter, Reflections, that guests refrain from this but I suspect that these rude people don’t have a high degree of reading comprehension. Does that happen on Regent?

[freddie]

Stickman (is it Terry??) - I will respectfully disagree with your statements regarding the theatres, at least the one on Symphony.  Unless it was dramatically re-constructed during the last drydock, it is a remarkably poor venue for an otherwise lovely ship.

First, the "sloping floors" are much closer to flat than sloping, meaning that it is quite difficult to see over the people between one's seat and the stage.  Perhaps you are confusing the sloping floors in the movie theatre with those in the production theatre.     Second, the capacity of the theatre is considerably less than half the pax capacity of the ship, resulting in "standing room only" being the rule rather than the exception on our cruise from Tokyo to Vancouver, whether at early or late shows.

 

The theatres on the older Regent ships are magnificent for ships of that size, with remarkably high ceilings, two levels of excellent viewing seating, and genuinely sloped seating levels, all while allowing the full capacity of the ship to view any show.   I have read that the theatres on the new Regent ships have sadly not followed that standard in some respects.

 

I will enthusiastically agree with you regarding the boorish practice of holding up phones or (even worse) tablets to record parts of the performance.  Perhaps the cruise lines could impose some protocols to deal with that practice (which is banned on all of the lines that we sail).   Maybe it would be appropriate for ship staff to plug a recharging cable into the offending passenger, with the helpful intent of keeping his/her offending device charged, not to mention giving the passenger a little reminder of common courtesy to other passengers.   Nothing like a bit of electricity to put one's moral compass back in line, no??

[Stickman1990]

20 minutes ago, freddie said:

I will respectfully disagree with your statements regarding the theatres, at least the one on Symphony

 

Interesting - we’ve done a lot of cruises on Symphony and go to most shows - over the years we’ve sat in the middle block as well as the port side block - both in the middle and right at the back under the control room. We’ve never had an issue seeing the stage (unless a really tall person happened to sit in front of us after the show started) 

 

The physical layout didn’t change in the last dry dock

 

Not saying it hasn’t happened to you but it’s never been an issue for us 

 

Certainly not comparing it with the Hollywood Theatre which is the cinema 

 

Re crowds and full houses - the closest to a full house I remember is one Liars Club a few years ago. Can’t say any of the speakers we have had that pulling power

 

Ironically we were on the cruise before you and we had an Astronaut from the Intl Space Station, Scott Kelly, on who had to speak in the Starlite as the Theatre was used during the day by a private tour Bridge group - while he had a full crowd it wasn’t at absolute capacity whereas we had him on a Seabourn cruise last year and the theatre there was standing room only (and yes unfortunately for us he did the same two presentations on both occasions)

Edited September 13, 2019 by Stickman1990

[BarbarianPaul]

16 minutes ago, freddie said:

Stickman (is it Terry??) - I will respectfully disagree with your statements regarding the theatres, at least the one on Symphony.  Unless it was dramatically re-constructed during the last drydock, it is a remarkably poor venue for an otherwise lovely ship.

First, the "sloping floors" are much closer to flat than sloping, meaning that it is quite difficult to see over the people between one's seat and the stage.  Perhaps you are confusing the sloping floors in the movie theatre with those in the production theatre.     Second, the capacity of the theatre is considerably less than half the pax capacity of the ship, resulting in "standing room only" being the rule rather than the exception on our cruise from Tokyo to Vancouver, whether at early or late shows.

 

The theatres on the older Regent ships are magnificent for ships of that size, with remarkably high ceilings, two levels of excellent viewing seating, and genuinely sloped seating levels, all while allowing the full capacity of the ship to view any show.   I have read that the theatres on the new Regent ships have sadly not followed that standard in some respects.

 

I will enthusiastically agree with you regarding the boorish practice of holding up phones or (even worse) tablets to record parts of the performance.  Perhaps the cruise lines could impose some protocols to deal with that practice (which is banned on all of the lines that we sail).   Maybe it would be appropriate for ship staff to plug a recharging cable into the offending passenger, with the helpful intent of keeping his/her offending device charged, not to mention giving the passenger a little reminder of common courtesy to other passengers.   Nothing like a bit of electricity to put one's moral compass back in line, no??

Speaking of offensive cruise ship audience behavior, I’d also include the people near the front who get up to leave ten minutes before the show is over. Not fair to the performers.

[Keith1010]

Oh the Galaxy Theater.

 

I love both the Crystal Vessels.  

 

There are many similarities and there are some differences.  Some of the differences I prefer on Symphony and others I prefer on Serenity.

 

Building ships is similar to building homes or commercial properties on land.  They go through lots of careful planning but when implemented there are times that something didn't work so well and the next time you improve upon them.

 

When Serenity was built they tried to take things that guests enjoyed from both Harmony and Symphony and combine them into one ship.

 

The Galaxy showroom on Symphony IMHO was improved on Serenity.  I find that the vast majority of seats on Serenity offers excellent views.  In fact, to me the last row is as good as the front row on Serenity.  On Symphony my opinion is they enhanced the Galaxy Showroom after dry dock but it doesn't offer as good a view from several seats as Serenity does.

 

The other item is because of some differences each ships utilizes some of the room a little differently.  Symphony has the wonderful Starlite lounge allowing it to offer several activities in one room which Serenity offers in two rooms Galaxy showroom say for lectures and the Palm Court for Trivia.

 

Just as Regent has different ships and they are not the same and one might have a ship they prefer and a different person might have a different favorite and some rooms might work better than others across the other ship the same is true with Crystal.

 

Personally just as I am glad that each cruise line is not a clone of one another (how boring) because we are all different I am glad there is diversity in ships.  It makes it exciting to go on another ship on the same cruise line and just changes things up a bit.

 

The good news is that since the time that many ships were deployed across most cruise lines technology advancements are allowing for better up front planning and simulation.  However, I am sure after deployment of a new ship one learns that something could have been designed differently to maximize enjoying of a particular area of the ship.  Same goes for your own home.  Same goes for a hotel.  Same goes for commercial office space.  

 

Keith

[Keith1010]

3 hours ago, BarbarianPaul said:

Speaking of offensive cruise ship audience behavior, I’d also include the people near the front who get up to leave ten minutes before the show is over. Not fair to the performers.

When you choose to sail with hundreds of people you will meet all sorts of people.

You will see the best in people and the worst in people.

 

You will see great behavior and you will see not so great behavior.

 

Of course the same takes place on land because people are people.

 

Just spend one hour driving in many countries and it is very evident.

 

Some people either never grew up or they were not taught good manners.  

 

In the scheme of things these are not third world problems IMHO.

 

Keith

[Hambagahle]

4 hours ago, BarbarianPaul said:

Speaking of offensive cruise ship audience behavior, I’d also include the people near the front who get up to leave ten minutes before the show is over. Not fair to the performers.

Not only those near the front - people who step over others to leave so they beat the rush (I suppose for the lifts!!)   The only time I walk out of a show is if I really cannot stand it and then as early as possible!

[Travelcat2]

Forgot to address one issue - the dress code (NOT trying to turn this into a dress code thread - just reporting on Crystal).  Crystal's dress code is similar to Regent's except that they allow "dress jeans" - something that some Regent passengers would like.  I saw first hand what a slippery slope allowing jeans was on our cruise (also saw it on Oceania but they are not a luxury cruise line).  

I was quite surprised to see backyard type jeans (no holes - just faded from old age and not fitted well).  One table decided that, in addition to non-dress jeans, they wore matching t-shirts to dinner at the Brazilian restaurant).  The manner of dress that we saw on Crystal reminded me more of what we saw on Celebrity.  Yes - we were in Alaska but Regent's dress code is thankfully in effect everywhere in the world that their ships sail to.  I applaud Regent for holding the dress code to the current level.

 

In terms of Explorer's theater, that was a mistake.  It seemed that no one we spoke with during the christening were pleased with how it turned out.  When we boarded, there was a table and two chairs directly behind a post (it has since been removed).  While there is plenty of seating with good views of the stage, the balcony and areas around the posts have difficulty seeing the stage.   Regent's other ships have lovely theaters and the Splendor will as well.  

[judi666]

2 hours ago, Travelcat2 said:

Forgot to address one issue - the dress code (NOT trying to turn this into a dress code thread - just reporting on Crystal).  Crystal's dress code is similar to Regent's except that they allow "dress jeans" - something that some Regent passengers would like.  I saw first hand what a slippery slope allowing jeans was on our cruise (also saw it on Oceania but they are not a luxury cruise line).  

I was quite surprised to see backyard type jeans (no holes - just faded from old age and not fitted well).  One table decided that, in addition to non-dress jeans, they wore matching t-shirts to dinner at the Brazilian restaurant).  The manner of dress that we saw on Crystal reminded me more of what we saw on Celebrity.  Yes - we were in Alaska but Regent's dress code is thankfully in effect everywhere in the world that their ships sail to.  I applaud Regent for holding the dress code to the current level.

 

In terms of Explorer's theater, that was a mistake.  It seemed that no one we spoke with during the christening were pleased with how it turned out.  When we boarded, there was a table and two chairs directly behind a post (it has since been removed).  While there is plenty of seating with good views of the stage, the balcony and areas around the posts have difficulty seeing the stage.   Regent's other ships have lovely theaters and the Splendor will as well.  

We have been on 12 Oceania Cruises. For a total

of over a 185 days. True was only on the small ships and the last was 18 months ago. Unless something has changed regarding the dress code, jeans were not allowed except in the buffet. The website still gives the following info:

“In all evening dining venues, we request that guests adhere to the appropriate country club casual dress code. Shorts, jeans, T-shirts, athletic footwear and sandals are not permitted in the Grand Dining Room or specialty restaurants.”

[Travelcat2]

18 minutes ago, judi666 said:

We have been on 12 Oceania Cruises. For a total

of over a 185 days. True was only on the small ships and the last was 18 months ago. Unless something has changed regarding the dress code, jeans were not allowed except in the buffet. The website still gives the following info:

“In all evening dining venues, we request that guests adhere to the appropriate country club casual dress code. Shorts, jeans, T-shirts, athletic footwear and sandals are not permitted in the Grand Dining Room or specialty restaurants.”

 

The issue was the people dining in the buffet in shorts and jeans.  Unlike Regent that has an outside dining venue (pool deck) where you can dress in this way, you cannot walk around the ship or go to lounges unless you change.  Because of this, on our two Oceania cruises, we saw shorts and jeans (even overalls that looked like they belonged in a farm environment) all around the ship after dinner.  Such a sloppy look for such a lovely ship (we were on Riviera).   While "Elegant Casual" is fine, sloppy jeans and shorts at night seemed to bring down the cruise line quite a bit.