Voyager to hades.

[TomTN]

48 minutes ago, cwn said:

 

Agreed also. They offered something. Your choice as to giving Regent another chance. 

If they would give me a 10% FCC that could be used on another cruise line that would be fair.  What good is a FCC for a cruise on the worst cruise line I have sailed on?

 

[Smitty A]

On 4/11/2022 at 10:16 AM, seasickphil said:

It is our 7th day into the cruise and I’m sorry to say things have not improved much if at all. The food has been hit and miss, the wait times for drinks is patchy, only this morning at breakfast in La Veranda it was busy but was eventually found a table, it was quickly made up with all the necessary utensils, we asked for 2 teas with skimmed milk, the waiter took the cups off the table disappeared in the kitchen and over 5 mins later reappeared with same 2 cups, 2 pots of tea but no milk. We were not having any food so we could only sit and wait.

 

You had to wait five minutes?  Five whole minutes?   Five?   That is your complaint? With all due respect, what is it you expect?    You also mentioned that “a couple of times”  your meat has been over cooked.   Three meals a day is 21 meals and “a couple of times” your meat was over cooked? ( a subjective complaint if there ever was one)  As wonderful as Regent is, it is not perfect, which is what it seems like you expect.   I know of no experience at sea that is perfect.  Your experience is what you make of it.   Having to wait a while for a drink in a lounge during the busy times before dinner?  For this you expect some compensation?   I am sad to say unless things are much worse than this, you have no sympathy from me.   Just my two cents.  I wonder what you expect as compensation IF things would really go wrong.   

[Gpilon]

2 hours ago, Pcardad said:

Agreed.

Put me in line for the “agreed” thing.

 

[alidor]

Smitty A - well said!  Totally agree with you!

[Wendy The Wanderer]

2 hours ago, TomBeckCruise said:

If they would give me a 10% FCC that could be used on another cruise line that would be fair.  What good is a FCC for a cruise on the worst cruise line I have sailed on?

 

Well obviously you've made up your mind.  We had a serious glitch on one cruise in 2005 and were compensated with a nice FCC and we used that on what turned out to be one of our favourite cruises on Regent (then Radisson.)

[Dolebludger]

I think this highly defective cruise was an “outlier” and not representative if Regent quality, which is almost always great. It sounds like a shortage of qualified staff was the main problem. I can’t go anywhere or do anything without running into this problem. Despite thi world-wide problem, Regent has other ships in the water right now, and reports here seem to be good, except for ever-changing Covid protocols, which are largely beyond Regent’s control.

[seasickphil]

2 hours ago, Smitty A said:

You had to wait five minutes?  Five whole minutes?   Five?   That is your complaint? With all due respect, what is it you expect?    You also mentioned that “a couple of times”  your meat has been over cooked.   Three meals a day is 21 meals and “a couple of times” your meat was over cooked? ( a subjective complaint if there ever was one)  As wonderful as Regent is, it is not perfect, which is what it seems like you expect.   I know of no experience at sea that is perfect.  Your experience is what you make of it.   Having to wait a while for a drink in a lounge during the busy times before dinner?  For this you expect some compensation?   I am sad to say unless things are much worse than this, you have no sympathy from me.   Just my two cents.  I wonder what you expect as compensation IF things would really go wrong.   

I don’t know where you get 21 meals from, you might, but I certainly don’t eat meat for breakfast, shore excursions have got in the way of lunches so that leave six evening meals, two of those I had fish leaving four so 50% were overcooked, you think that is acceptable do you? 
I was talking about inexperienced staff which is what a lot of this thread has been about.I have never had a waiter take the cups off the table and then bringing them back with the pot of tea in over 20 yrs of cruising.You are right over 5 mins is not very long but we just popped in for a quick cuppa  without having food before going on a shore excursion, so not having a cup of tea was no big deal.

You are perfectly entitled to have your 2 cents worth this is a forum after all, but when having a go or as you say your 2 cents worth please make sure you get your facts right first. Please reread my post and show me anywhere you can see anything about me expecting any form of compensation.

[Medeba]

41 minutes ago, seasickphil said:

You are perfectly entitled to have your 2 cents worth this is a forum after all, but when having a go or as you say your 2 cents worth please make sure you get your facts right first.

Well said.  

[Smitty A]

I have no intention of going tit for tat with you.   I stand corrected it was not you that expected compensation……long thread…..my apologies.    I hope your future cruises are up to your expectations.  

[Dolebludger]

In no way does it appear that this Voyager cruise would be acceptable to anybody, considering the cost, plus the need we have to avoid long domestic airline legs in economy increases the cost. And I do not think a 10% FCC is adequate compensation in this case.

 

I do think this was an unusually BAD Regent cruise and was not representative of what Regent usually provides in a cruise. I don’t criticize anybody for never cruising Regent again after this terrible and costly experience. I have been looking at cruises on the web sites, in hopes that the unknown factors will soon be history. I can find no way to take any Regent cruise for us for under $20K, including air acceptable to us. And for that cost, we certainly wouldn’t find this Voyager cruise acceptable. But I just want all to know that this Voyager cruise was not an accurate example of the typical and usual Regent cruise. And again, I do not feel that a 10% FCC is adequate compensation for this mess. 

[Dolebludger]

Look at my post #49 above. On a “problem” cruise — not as bad of this one —  we got more than 10% refund in CASH1  now that was from Radisson, not from Regent. I hope Regent hasn’t,  forgotten it’s “roots” from it became successful.  For a “problem cruise” to the extent described above, I would suggest a 100% FCC or a 50% cash refund. 

[Smitty A]

14 minutes ago, cruiseluv said:

I’m just curious, have you been on any Regent cruise? I find it interesting, a poster with just 7 posts decides to firebomb a poster with legitimate complaints .

Yes I am titanium

 

Edited April 14, 2022 by Smitty A

[cruiseluv]

24 minutes ago, Smitty A said:

Yes I am titanium

 

Well, welcome to the Regent Cruise Critic board, had never seen you around

[Boatmans Lady]

We were also on this cruise and had so many expectations but feel sorely let down as it certainly wasn't 'An Unrivalled Experience"

Even taking into account the Covid situation, there was so much not right with this cruise. 

To weigh in with the food, we personally had 3 out of four meals one night served stone cold. Mine was returned after being microwaved as you could see where I had taken my mouthful. 

The 4th meal was steak that had been requested well done and was rare with blood running out of it. 

The people behind us got up and left after being served, in their words "inedible" food. 

Having all the meal cold or part of it cold, was the norm rather than the exception. I think we only had two meals in compass rose that we didn't have issues with. 

We also experienced drink orders that had drinks missing and then never receiving the missing drinks. Ordering a Samuel Adams and the waiter not knowing what it was, never saw him again and asked another waiter who did the right thing and asked someone else what it was we wanted. 

On ordering room service (food was hot and good) our mayonnaise pot had been opened and was partly used. 

Service was dire some nights taking 3½ hours for two of us to have 3 courses (no sorbet or coffee offered) no sommelier visit, just the two featured wines offered and when I requested a rose, we had to ask two more times before any was forthcoming and we had eaten our starter and received our main. 

The list goes on from the completely luck lustre welcome aboard, to only one waiter and one bartender working a busy venue, to a glasses not being cleared away when people left, so the tables were left with dirty glasses on, sometimes all evening. 

Having to ask for things like the creamers to be replaced in our cabin, our soft drinks to be replenished, to things not being there full stop including toilet roll on the holder. I got caught out more than once after returning from a tour!! 

 

I'm sorry, it wasn't a good cruise and it certainly wasn't the experience of other cruises we have taken and unfortunately the entertainment side was severely affected by 'illness' and technical issues. The main show was a 1953 black and white film. 

No regent orchestra for most of the cruise, no production cast shows after the unfortunate accident halfway through the first show. 

 

But saying that there were some good points, the production cast were fab and we enjoyed joining them for the games. 

The speciality restaurants were on point. 

The tours we took were all very good and the guides we had were excellent and so happy to be back. 

The staff that were experienced returning Regent staff were lovely and did their best and gave glimmers of what it should have been. 

 

Regent charge for an unrivalled experience and as customers that should have been what we received but this cruise was left sorely wanting. 

I don't think I spoke to anyone who was happy with the cruise. 

 

A last thought, a similar cruise next year is roughly 50% more than we paid for this cruise, so 10% fcc  really doesn't cut it. 

If we had been served cold meals on eating out, I would have expected all our meals to have been replaced so we could eat together and possibly the cost of the 'bad' meals taken off the cost of the bill, so on that basis alone, the offer should have been more. I have been following the 'World Cruise' and their experience is so very different to what we experienced on this cruise. 

 

 

[Gilly]

Oh @Boatmans Lady it's so disappointing when your long awaited and hugely anticipated cruise turns out to be a dud.  It's happened just once to us and if its any consolation, the cruise we booked with the "apology FCC" (I can't recall the exact amount but probably much the same as yours) was one of the best we've ever enjoyed.  I agree, the "world cruise" is very different from the experience you describe with experienced Regent staff members providing that "unrivalled experience" we know and recognise.  Here's hoping you can find a way forward.  If you feel as we did, you'll have that horrible feeling of needing to find an alternative - I guess you already know how far we got with that...

[seasickphil]

11 hours ago, Smitty A said:

I have no intention of going tit for tat with you.   I stand corrected it was not you that expected compensation……long thread…..my apologies.    I hope your future cruises are up to your expectations.  

You certainly don’t have to apologise it is not needed. After all you got 9 likes & alidor totally agreed with what you said, so either like you they didn’t read my posts correctly or if they did then it’s obviously me that is completely wrong. I was just going by what Regent say.

Allow us to take care of every detail, every luxury included, exquisitely prepared food from around the world etc etc.

Well on this cruise Barcelona to Lisbon and by the sound of it the previous one these claims for me have not been met.

Anyway enough of this as the Doctor is soon coming to see me and take my temperature and hopefully release me from my cabin where I have been confined in from Monday afternoon with Norovirus so fingers crossed I can get ashore with my wife sometime today.

[Medeba]

50 minutes ago, seasickphil said:

I have been confined in from Monday afternoon with Norovirus

Oh no!  That's all you need!  Hope you manage to get ashore.

[TomTN]

15 hours ago, Dolebludger said:

I think this highly defective cruise was an “outlier” and not representative if Regent quality, which is almost always great. It sounds like a shortage of qualified staff was the main problem. I can’t go anywhere or do anything without running into this problem. Despite thi world-wide problem, Regent has other ships in the water right now, and reports here seem to be good, except for ever-changing Covid protocols, which are largely beyond Regent’s control.

I believe that you are correct, although I suspect that Regent put very little time or effort into training their employees on this ship.

[Azamazingal]

I had been debating whether or not to join this conversation but, as Regent has not asked for feedback, I have decided to share my thoughts. This was my 43^rd cruise, my first with Regent and the one I enjoyed the least. It was, by far, the most expensive.

 

It started badly with transfers to the Rome hotel and to the ship poorly organised. We had an 11.30 check-in time but arrived at the port at 14.30 and just managed a snack at the pool grill before it closed. Breakfast in Rome before that was mediocre.

 

The best thing about the cruise was the suite. It was very nice. Next best was the amount of champagne, caviar and lobster available (although I am more of a beer and burger type of person so was not that interested). The crew were friendly, eager to help but not always fully trained or experienced.

 

Evening meals were generally not hot and service was slow. They did improve. The first buffet breakfast was chaotic. Too few crew and too many passengers. No queueing system. It did improve but, even when relatively empty, we had to find a used table and guard it whilst it was being relaid. I often had cereal and coffee in the coffee shop rather than endure the buffet with its array of exotic dishes. At first we lunched at the pool grill rather than endure the buffet chaos. Later we went there and were not impressed by the (often lukewarm) food.

 

There were far fewer onboard activities that we have been used to. We managed one trivia and no shows. They did not appeal.  Maybe that is us rather than them.

 

We missed three stops and three excursions (my favourites) due to bad weather but I did wonder if we could have remained in Livorno (or make the short hop to Genoa or La Spezia) rather than cruise aimlessly for two days.

 

We tested negative (at no cost) on the final evening. But we were covid positive when we got home. We still are.

 

[cruiseluv]

7 hours ago, Boatmans Lady said:

We were also on this cruise and had so many expectations but feel sorely let down as it certainly wasn't 'An Unrivalled Experience"

Even taking into account the Covid situation, there was so much not right with this cruise. 

To weigh in with the food, we personally had 3 out of four meals one night served stone cold. Mine was returned after being microwaved as you could see where I had taken my mouthful. 

The 4th meal was steak that had been requested well done and was rare with blood running out of it. 

The people behind us got up and left after being served, in their words "inedible" food. 

Having all the meal cold or part of it cold, was the norm rather than the exception. I think we only had two meals in compass rose that we didn't have issues with. 

We also experienced drink orders that had drinks missing and then never receiving the missing drinks. Ordering a Samuel Adams and the waiter not knowing what it was, never saw him again and asked another waiter who did the right thing and asked someone else what it was we wanted. 

On ordering room service (food was hot and good) our mayonnaise pot had been opened and was partly used. 

Service was dire some nights taking 3½ hours for two of us to have 3 courses (no sorbet or coffee offered) no sommelier visit, just the two featured wines offered and when I requested a rose, we had to ask two more times before any was forthcoming and we had eaten our starter and received our main. 

The list goes on from the completely luck lustre welcome aboard, to only one waiter and one bartender working a busy venue, to a glasses not being cleared away when people left, so the tables were left with dirty glasses on, sometimes all evening. 

Having to ask for things like the creamers to be replaced in our cabin, our soft drinks to be replenished, to things not being there full stop including toilet roll on the holder. I got caught out more than once after returning from a tour!! 

 

I'm sorry, it wasn't a good cruise and it certainly wasn't the experience of other cruises we have taken and unfortunately the entertainment side was severely affected by 'illness' and technical issues. The main show was a 1953 black and white film. 

No regent orchestra for most of the cruise, no production cast shows after the unfortunate accident halfway through the first show. 

 

But saying that there were some good points, the production cast were fab and we enjoyed joining them for the games. 

The speciality restaurants were on point. 

The tours we took were all very good and the guides we had were excellent and so happy to be back. 

The staff that were experienced returning Regent staff were lovely and did their best and gave glimmers of what it should have been. 

 

Regent charge for an unrivalled experience and as customers that should have been what we received but this cruise was left sorely wanting. 

I don't think I spoke to anyone who was happy with the cruise. 

 

A last thought, a similar cruise next year is roughly 50% more than we paid for this cruise, so 10% fcc  really doesn't cut it. 

If we had been served cold meals on eating out, I would have expected all our meals to have been replaced so we could eat together and possibly the cost of the 'bad' meals taken off the cost of the bill, so on that basis alone, the offer should have been more. I have been following the 'World Cruise' and their experience is so very different to what we experienced on this cruise. 

 

 

It does sound as a Voyage to Hades indeed. Sorry about that, hope you get some sort of compensation 

[Gpilon]

35 minutes ago, cruiseluv said:

It does sound as a Voyage to Hades indeed. Sorry about that, hope you get some sort of compensation 

Have said it before and will say again…..if Regent wants to charge a premium for a “luxurious cruise”, it has to fulfill that pledge. Just off Splendor March 17 in a Grand Suite, and we fully believe Regent kept their “pledge” to us. But reading through these posts…..i would have been quite vocal as to how the cruise went.

[pnsnkr]

11 hours ago, Gpilon said:

Have said it before and will say again…..if Regent wants to charge a premium for a “luxurious cruise”, it has to fulfill that pledge. Just off Splendor March 17 in a Grand Suite, and we fully believe Regent kept their “pledge” to us. But reading through these posts…..i would have been quite vocal as to how the cruise went.

 

I think that the creme de la creme of Regent cruise lines crew are on the Splendor as we are having a blast in our TA cruise.  The issues raised in this thread sound quite alarming and don't sound like a 6-star experience at all.  That's a shame.

 

 

 

Edited April 14, 2022 by pnsnkr

[Pcardad]

2 hours ago, pnsnkr said:

 

I think that the creme de la creme of Regent cruise lines crew are on the Splendor as we are having a blast in our TA cruise.  The issues raised in this thread sound quite alarming and don't sound like a 6-star experience at all.  That's a shame.

 

 

 

Crew was rotated off Splendor and Explorer a couple of months back to staff Nav and Voy...but so many experienced crew were not available after so long onshore that this was to be expected to some degree. Patience people...

[asnaleah]

While I agree that time will solve these issues, I would not want to have paid full price for these first few cruises. Regent should do more than a 10% FCC in my opinion. With a sub-par experience and so many other choices, why ever would I chance a repeat (non) performance? That said, I’m still looking forward to our June B2B!

[UUNetBill]

Not having been on this cruise I can't really weigh in other than to say that in a dozen Regent cruises, most - but not all - have been stellar.  The ones that weren't stellar were overall good with a few issues, mostly around slow service, subpar excursions, the rare bad meal, etc. - but never have we had ALL of those issues on one cruise.

 

I've also been on cruises I thought were spectacular and when I got home I read reviews from others on the same cruise who hated it.  Different people, different experiences, different opinions.

 

This particular cruise, however, seems to have a LOT more people criticizing it and there seem to be a lot of common threads in the complaints which leads me to believe that something wasn't right on this ship.  While I agree with posters who say Regent will get this right, it sure doesn't help the people who took this cruise and were dissatisfied.  But honestly, what do you expect them to do?  A 10% FCC is a nice gesture but it doesn't begin to cover the cost of a bad cruise.  But you honestly can't expect a cruise line to offer huge cash refunds - I'm sure they're still operating in the red and will be for a while.  I don't want to see Regent go the way of Crystal, that's for sure.

 

For those of you who are willing to give Regent another shot, I'm gonna go out on a limb and say that your next cruise with them will be like the ones we've been on previously, the ones that keep us coming back again and again.  And for those of you who are done with Regent and want to move on - best of luck to you.  I hope you find a line that meets your needs.

 

Happy sailing either way.