At long last our Splendor May 21 Summary

[Lonedaddy]

Finally getting to this.  

My first regent cruise and first in about 5 years. 

 

Overall, I was very impressed by regent and while some seasoned regent cruisers on board said it wasn’t quite up to regent standards pre-covid. I seemed a little overwhelming at first with all the grandeur and service and first trip post-covid, but once we settled in I could appreciate the details.   I believe there were about 620 passengers aboard.  There were a lot of new crewmembers on board as their first regent job, and at times in compass rose there were some delays, but they apologized and got right on it and fixed it.  The passengers on board were friendly polite and would engage in conversation.  There were some that had a first in line attitude, but you get that anywhere.   Whether I had a table for breakfast right on the window or in a row didn’t matter to me, as I was glad to be on board and enjoying myself and the view is still the same.  Many passengers were older than us and a few had grownup (20’s) grandkids accompanying them.  I was surprised so few people used cruise critic nor ever heard of it.  My biggest disappointment was the internet since most everything is included why not offer high speed.  The spa facility was beautiful, but very overpriced and I didn’t like the pushing of products.

As it was our first cruise on regent, I couldn’t say how splendor compares to other regent ships but to us it was stunning, it was a big step up from Celebrity in elegance.  I enjoyed meandering around on sea days to admire the art, architecture, flowers, and décor. 

The staff were top notch across the board, I was intrigued by the sense of pride and duty from the officers to the staff that cleaned the railings lounges and always greeted you with a smile.  The facilities were immaculate especially the bathrooms all decked in marble and fresh towels to dry your hands.  I had a future cruise booked and the future cruise lady gladly booked my shore excursions for me instead of me struggling with the internet. 

 

Southampton embarkation was fairly smooth, we arrived 40 minutes earlier than our 1:00 pm slot but they sent us in.  Some confusion with the queue and the process.  Told several times we didn't need our vax card or test anymore but the next person down the line asked for it.  I was like "???" but ok most of this is new to many.  Once on board we enjoyed some food and strolled though parts of the ship checked in at the muster station and before you know it room was ready.

 

THE ROOM

The ship and our PH-B 1017 were very roomy even with my sister-in-law on the sleeper.  The doors closed off to the bedroom and there was a separate entrance to the bathroom so that worked perfect.  However, the night we had rough seas the sliding doors would open and slam closed as we rocked.  They should consider a way to secure them better.   Closet had ample space and room for smaller suitcases to be stored up top and the larger ones under the bed.  Shower was spectacular and had great water pressure.   TVs on both sides were large and nice to watch a movie.   We had a larger deck unlike explorer the overhang goes most of the length of the ship, but on this itinerary, it wasn’t like we were out there a lot.  A nice touch was you can select what hors d’oeuvres you would like, and the butler brings them around 5 pm.  The girls liked bloody Mary’s in the morning and with not many bars open the butler brought an extra bottle of grey goose and mix so they could make them when they wanted.  Our butler also booked us in prime 7 and pacific rim a second time each and arrange a birthday cake for my wife’s 60^th in prime 7 and decorated our room with balloons, a nice touch.  The Girls are smokers so being on deck 10 was nice as it is only one deck up to the cigar lounge and enclosed pool lounge.  I sat with them on several occasions and didn’t smell smokey afterwards as there was very good ventilation there.  Several of the ship’s officers smoke so chatted with the captain in there a few times and the new captain who was taking over on the next leg also was in there as well as several other officers.  The service in the lounges was good also as they would bring drinks and snacks.  I had many good conversations with fellow passengers in the smoking lounge.  It would be nice if they had a small lounge on deck 5 so one could be close to the theater, pacific rim and compass rose for their post dinner pre dessert smoke, but it certainly isn’t a showstopper.   Below the itinerary and a sample daily planner

[Lonedaddy]

first time posting with pics so please excuse the format

 

Dining

Of course this is what we all want Food and Drink.  We enjoyed all the meals especially at Prime 7 and Pacific Rim and we ate at each twice at 630 pm each time.  I ate too much bread every night because the selection was excellent in all the restaurants.   Most all the wines the served were good and very drinkable.  They let you taste first and if it isn’t to your liking, they bring a different bottle.  They had a variety of cocktails to try and they was always someone ready to serve you a r

 

In Pacific Rim, the sashimi plate was excellent as were the dim sum dishes.  The soft-shell crab tempura was the highlight for me as I had it both times.  Miso cod was also excellent as was the Lobster tempura.  DW liked all her dishes as well.   I was so full after the dinner and then they bring the chocolates before dessert, ouch!  I believe I tried the coconut tapioca pudding which was lighter and finished off the meal perfectly.  The did have Sake (hot and cold), I prefer cold, which made the meal even better!  The girls shared the Don Papa rum cake one night and chocolate indulgence the other, I tried each and they were great too.   Pacific rim, amuse bouche (seaweed crackers spicy hummas and edamame), dim sum, crab tempura, prawns, tempura lobster and miso black codback againgiant prawnsbbq ribsjapanese mushrooms"just one thin mint" tapioca

 

Prime 7 was also excellent.  I wanted to try the prime rib the first night and ask if they could do it as a surf and turf.  They ended up giving me a full portion of each.  Fortunately, I could pawn off a little bit of it to my sister-in-law, who had the lobster which came deshelled.  All the steaks were prepared as ordered and were very good, not the best steak (wagyu filet) I have ever had but top notch.   I had the filet with a side of crab legs (unshelled as that is half the fun) the second night.  DW had a double steak tartar appetizer as here entrée with the beefsteak tomato salad as appetizer.    The diver scallop on the pork belly was outstanding and onion soup and Caesar salad were great appetizers as well.   I know everyone raves about the popcorn Sunday, but I was too full both nights to attempt that but the berries in cream anglaise was perfect and light, the girls shared the bread pudding and enjoyed it.  Cosmo to start

scallop and pork belly

goat cheeseshrimp coktailwedge saladonion souptomato saladdouble tartar deshelled lobstermy surf and turf prime rib and crabs deshelled 

Having enjoyed both restaurants on the first and third nights we asked our butler to get another reservation which he graciously did.

 

Chartreuse was also excellent, but we preferred the food style at the other two.  DW tried the tartar which was good, but she preferred the preparation better in Prime 7.  I had the escargot which again was good, but I again preferred the prep better in compass.  DW had the duck which was good as well I had the halibut which was good but a little bit overcooked for my taste, though the sauce helped.  SIL had the dover sole and enjoyed the deboning exercise at the table.  We shared the bavarois the apple tart and crème Brulé and they were all great.  It was day five so perhaps we were a little bit “fooded out” but I do look forward to chartreuse again on the next cruise.

Compass was also excellent although the service wasn’t quite as impeccable as the specialty restaurants.nice decorationsmore breadmixed tomatoesescargotcheese soufflebavoiscreme brule

Setti mare was good although they did pound the veal chop Milanese too thin resulting in a dryer tougher cut.   Most of it was very good but the edges were dry.  The rotated some of the dishes every so often and had the staples each night, such as the green lipped mussels which were fabulous.   The veal marsala was great and the osso bucco very tasty and tender.   The antipasto selection was very good and had variety and changed every few nights.  I mentioned it to the maître ’de and he said he would let the chef know.  Probably a newer sous chef learning the dishes.    The desserts were small so you could try a couple of different ones and they were good as well.  They had nice Italian wines and of course Grappa (they had at other bars on board too.) I indulged in a few too many grappa’s that night and ended up getting DW a Belarri bracelet for her birthday.  I was going to surprise her but I couldn’t find where I hid the bag.  Panicking I went to the reception desk and filed a missing item report.  Halfway through the report DW calls me, knowing I’m in a panic looking for something and asks what the Belarri bag was, call it women’s intuition.  Anyway, relieved I was able to enjoy the rest of the day, lesson learned don’t drink too much grappamore breadbisteccapastaveal marsalaveal milanasegnocchipanne cota and tiramisucanolliTHE GRAPPA (1st one)

 

We ate at Compass Rose several times and as mentioned earlier there were a few hiccups but nothing to spoil the dinner.  Food was good and the many choices.  The tenderloin was very good on the first sea day (glad I read the Cruise critic boards to find out they serve that on the first sea day.)   We enjoyed looking at the menu on the room TV and deciding if we wanted CR or Setti that evening.  It was nice they had same pasta of the day in CR as setti so DW would be happy at either.  I particularly enjoyed trying the different souffle’s for dessert  I think I could eat there every day and not get bored with the choices. carpaccio and tomato salad endless bread, Pasta, tenderloin souffle and cheesecake.

souffle another night

We tried room service for breakfast a couple times but being too cool and windy there wasn’t much room to spread out and eat in the room.   It was easier to just go to the le veranda and eat and the selection was great and service very good.  Everything we ordered was prepared excellently.  The Swedish pancakes with lingonberry was fabulous.  Eggs benedict done perfectly, and they had many variations of it on different days.  Again I wasn’t bored eating the same breakfast everyday as they had a multitude of options.  Eggs Benedict and table with a view and room service smoked salmon

We aren’t big lunch eaters, but I did enjoy the pool grill burgers and Nathans hot dogs on a toasted bun.  The fries were sometimes cold, but they would bring a replacement.  

 

 

 

 

Edited July 4, 2022 by Lonedaddy

[1982CruzStart]

thnak you so much for all the wonderful pictures and great commentary. Looks like you had a great time. 

[pingpong1]

LoneDaddy - Thanks so much for all the pictures and the very informative and interesting review.  We are "very close" to booking our first Splendor cruise.  Although we've done many cruises on the older 3 ships....this will be our first adventure on one of the newer ones!

 

Looking forward to meeting you next year, as well, on "Navigator" (NE/Can).  Best Regards.

 

 

[Lonedaddy]

Entertainment

The shows were somewhat late (930PM) for my wife, but she went to a couple while I went to most of the shows and my sister-in-law came to half.  The flutist they had on board played two shows the first was outstanding and accompanied by the band and great videos play songs to titanic pirates of the Caribbean and others.  David Nevin was the CD and did an outstanding show himself.  He definitely can sing.    The Broadway tribute was entertaining and the performs great.  The sleuth show so-so.  Great voices and dancing but the plot… meh. One of the shows was cancelled due to rough seas.   I missed the comedian, but heard he was funny.  The duo on board played a variety of pop music and took requests.  It would be nice to have a place to go listen to live music pre dinner while the girls got ready, but nothing really started until 6.  The piano player was good but a little lacking in his voice range and didn’t know many of the lyrics to many of the requested songs.   At first some of the tributes were a little “old” for me and I did make that comment on the mid cruise review. Mr. Nevin did leave me a message and told me about some upcoming shows that would be more suited to me, and they were good.  He also saw me in the theater and said he appreciated the comments and was very engaging.  They did bring on board a traditional Irish group and dancers for a predinner show in Dublin that was great (Think lord of the dance.)  I was about what I expected given the smaller ship compared to the variety on the mega liners, limited but overall good quality.  

 

Shore excursions

The 1^st day was a sea day which was good to get oriented to the ship. The weather was cool so very few people at the pool.  The 1^st port Edinburgh was a tender and the bus excursion to the castle and town was information but hurried and we barely had time to see all the castle let alone wander around to see the shops.  It would have been better if we could have done the town tour then the castle with an option to catch a shuttle or cab back later.  I was a bit worried if the rest of the cruise was going to be like this. 

 

The second port Ivergordon was beautiful.  The Bus took us to crower castle with ample time to see the castle and stroll among the beautiful gardens then on to a lunch in town at a local hotel.  Nice but nothing special about the meal.  Then on to Urqhardt castle ruins along Loch Ness with plenty of time to wander and see the sights.  The guide was great and sang many Scottish songs and told great stories.  Much better than the last port

 

Next up was Orkney Island it was cold windy with a mix of sun and rain.  We saw some monoliths and visited ruins of a neolitich settlement near an estate which we saw both.   There were swans, seals, birds and tons of rabbits, but the bulls and cows caught my eye as they were huge, must have good grass to eat.  Drove past Scapa Flow on the return. Only issue was they didn’t turn the heat up much on the bus, many people were cold.  The tour guide was difficult to understand. 

Our stop to ullapool was cancelled since it was a tender port and the winds were pushing 50 knots with waves to boot.  After 3 days in a row of tours It was nice to have a seaday and we already had spa appointments booked!  waves out of compass rose

 

Killybegs was a welcome port after a rough night at sea.  It was another scenic bus ride past pubs and chuches to a small pub where Enya the singer and her family who are Clannad a famous Irish group grew up.  We had Irish coffee or beer and listened to some Irish music.  We stopped along the scenic coast near a beach for a few minutes to stretch our legs before heading back to the ship.  I nodded off on the ride back for the third time in a row.  We overnighted in Killybegs since our Belfast stop was cancelled due to some holiday events going on there.  So we basically had an extra sea day before Dublin and could enjoy the ship. 

Dublin we had a bus take us to town for a river cruise and then a tour around the town with a few stops.  We had arranged to stay in Dublin post cruise so we choose this excursion.  But I would recommend going to the book of Kells if this is your only stop here.  The excursion gave you the option to stay in town and catch a cab or train back to the port which was about 30 minutes’ drive.  I nodded off again.

 

Next was Hollyhead and we had a nice day and beautiful and scenic bus ride to Longshank’s Caernarfon Castle.  It was a stunning site and a beautiful old village surrounding the castle.  I climbed a narrow steep staircase to one of the towers to enjoy the view and catch my breath.   Plenty of time to browse the shops and grab a pint at the pub before heading back and ….. you know what.

longshanks yes i climed that toweractual coronation chairjistorical chess setstairs to towerview of castle

Then on to cork and another bus ride through Cork’s sights and onto Blarney Castle.  I must say the busses were not overly crowded so room to spread out with decent seats.  (The Mercedes bus was the best of all).  Back to Blarney … I didn’t feel the need to hike up another hundred or so stairs to kiss the stone, after all I am already eloquent.  My sister-in-law did as this was the highlight of the trip for her.   Instead DW and I strolled through the vast and beautiful gardens including the poison garden and the rock close a garden of the witches, fairies and druids witch secret alcoves, the wishing steps, pools, and ancient yew tress all with the lore explained.   Afterwards we strolled grabbed a pint and shopped at the huge Irish woolen mills store…. And then napped back to the ship.

Our Final port was Portland.  We were actually docked at a military base so had no internet (not good on the last day before disembarking.  The girls were tired and just relaxed on board.  I went to the tank museum in Bovington on the tour.  It was the highlight for my as I am a history and WW2 buff.  Bovington is where the first tank was developed.   It was a very sunny and warm for UK day.  People were at the beach, even swimming, in Weymouth as we drove by.  After some scenic sights and the history of George III we arrived at the tank museum.   We had two hours to enjoy the museum, they offered an hour tour with a guide, but I elected to beeline to see the King Tiger and Jagd Tiger first.  I had a great time, and it is an amazing stop as most on the tour found out.  Afterward we stopped in Dorchester to walk and shop but most were closing as it was close to five.   Back to the port which was the naval base that D-day was launched from and there is a D-day Museum there also.  We left port shortly before dinner not to three blasts but three shots from a cannon ceremony done by the military for us. 

jagd tigerking tiger and pz II3 gun salute

In summary most of the excursions were well done.  On this itinerary I think we had seen enough castles and churches and it might have been nice to just relax and walk around on our own in a couple ports.  We will factor that into the thinking on our other cruises.  It was nice to have some sea days to break up long excursion days.

That about sums it up as much as I can remember.  In summary I’m glad we booked regent and if this was regent not at 100% good then I’m looking forward to 100% as they ramp back up.  I’m glad we have five more cruises booked.  I booked one pre-cruise using the on-board savings program and booked another on board.  Basically the future cruise lady said I could book a cruise now and re-book/change it once the new itineraries come out in August and still get the savings benefits.  Having one regent cruise under our belt will certainly help us enjoy the next one even more and really looking forward to a warmer weather cruise this time.    

 

[Linda VH]

Great read!  Thank you!

[SC Retired Cruiser]

Excellent summary with very good pictures.   I am glad you enjoyed your cruise.  We will board Splendor for the first time in November. having sailed Voyager and Mariner several times.  Based on your review, we can't wait.  Thank you!!!

 

Bob

[mj_holiday]

You did miss out on not having the Caramel, popcorn, chocolate etc sundae.  When we were in P7 I understood it to be a large dessert and asked that it be split between the two of us.  Well we each got a sundae that was about 3/4 of a complete sundae and enjoy every bit of it.

[Boats07]

Thank you for the great read! And pictures!!

We are taking our first Splendor in October for my 70th and will make sure my DH tries the Grappa and hopes he locates the gift shop!!!! 

 

[wishIweretravelling]

Thank you for the detailed summary. We'll be visiting some of those ports this fall, and you've whetted my appetite for them.

 

I agree that the spa is overpriced, and the pushing of products obnoxious. That's a new thing--I had not encountered that on Regent previously, but this new operator seems to have free rein to completely flout the Regent culture.

 

[Mudhen]

WOW!!! That was wonderful!!  You did a most excellent job on your review/summary!! We'll be onboard the Splendor at the end of the month and are so looking forward to it.

Thank you so much for taking the time to post....loved your pix of "the girls"!!! Next time, we need one of the three of you!

Thanks again!

[marco2111]

Thanks for taking the time to post a great review. we're on our first regent this fall and enjoy reading about what to look forward to 

[pingpong1]

15 hours ago, Boats07 said:

Thank you for the great read! And pictures!!

We are taking our first Splendor in October for my 70th and will make sure my DH tries the Grappa and hopes he locates the gift shop!!!! 

 

Yup - I think you've got the logical order of priorities sorted out just about right!  Lots of Grappa for "Hubby", first....then, off he goes to the jewelry boutique to find presents for you!  😉

[Lonedaddy]

16 hours ago, Boats07 said:

Thank you for the great read! And pictures!!

We are taking our first Splendor in October for my 70th and will make sure my DH tries the Grappa and hopes he locates the gift shop!!!! 

 

Check out the bellarri website before you go and make sure DH knows what you like.  

[Lonedaddy]

Trying some of the videos taking some time will have to try later

Edited July 5, 2022 by Lonedaddy

[Boats07]

2 hours ago, Lonedaddy said:

Check out the bellarri website before you go and make sure DH knows what you like.  

Oh my, I checked out the website and I will now do my best to keep my DH away from that store!!!!  😂

I would rather he spend that money on new golf clubs for me!  

[Lonedaddy]

19 minutes ago, Boats07 said:

Oh my, I checked out the website and I will now do my best to keep my DH away from that store!!!!  😂

I would rather he spend that money on new golf clubs for me!  

They do charge less on the ship and negotiate.  There are other brands too 

[snorkle lover]

Lonedaddy,

What a wonderful and detailed report on your trip. Thank you for taking all the time to put this in writing and the photos are fantastic. I do have a question about the seas and the weather. I understand  the weather in the British Isles is very unpredictable but I keep thinking about your comment “ really looking forward to a warmer weather cruise.”

We are booked on  a very similar cruise next June but now reconsidering and thinking about a London to Barcelona instead. I have always wanted to visit Ireland but might do a land trip instead. Thoughts?

[asnaleah]

We did Barcelona to London early June. Great itinerary and mostly great weather.

[Lonedaddy]

18 hours ago, snorkle lover said:

Lonedaddy,

What a wonderful and detailed report on your trip. Thank you for taking all the time to put this in writing and the photos are fantastic. I do have a question about the seas and the weather. I understand  the weather in the British Isles is very unpredictable but I keep thinking about your comment “ really looking forward to a warmer weather cruise.”

We are booked on  a very similar cruise next June but now reconsidering and thinking about a London to Barcelona instead. I have always wanted to visit Ireland but might do a land trip instead. Thoughts?

It can be iffy the weather was fine and seas relatively calm in Ireland and southern England.  The only real issue we had with weather was in northern Scotland and seas we only bad when we were exposed to the North Atlantic and 70 knot winds.  The ship handled the seas very well.  June should be warmer than when we went in may. And when I was yearning for warmer weather more so to enjoy the pool and upper deck sports.  Though some of the Brit’s were at the pool when we docked in Portland !

Edited July 6, 2022 by Lonedaddy

[Techno123]

20 hours ago, snorkle lover said:

Lonedaddy,

What a wonderful and detailed report on your trip. Thank you for taking all the time to put this in writing and the photos are fantastic. I do have a question about the seas and the weather. I understand  the weather in the British Isles is very unpredictable but I keep thinking about your comment “ really looking forward to a warmer weather cruise.”

 

Snorkel lover - unfortunately, the problem with the British weather is its unpredictability (that's why many of us, pre-Covid and Brexit toddled off to Europe or had second homes over there 😁. Spring can be beautiful with temps in the mid 20 Celsius (or it can be cold and raining), summer can be beautiful with temps in the highish 20's (or it can be cold and raining) ditto re Spring for Autumn (Fall). In winter it is just cold and rains, with snow in the north 😂😂. It must be said that our climate definitely seems drier but it is rare that you can plan a BBQ for the weekend earlier in the week - it's why our land is green and pleasant but makes packing for a vacation here a nightmare 😜

Edited July 6, 2022 by Techno123

[GeorgiaPeach51]

LOVED reading your very thorough review and seeing the great photos.  Brought back nice memories of our first Regent cruise in March, which we thoroughly enjoyed after many Celebrity cruises.  We are on the Splendor in November and your posts made me look forward to it even more!  Thanks for taking the time to share the trip with us!

 

Joanie

[Lonedaddy]

I would like to add after the cruise we stayed at Ashford castle in Cong near Galway.  It was started in  the 1200’s and is a former residence of the Guinness family.  It was at or above regent standards.  The have golf equestrian archery falconry (we did this and it was one of the best experiences we have ever done) fishing and walking with the Irish wolfhounds in the morning .  The  are wonderful and the food spectacular.  The quite man was filmed here.  King George V, Reagan Kennedy and several other dignitaries have stayed there.  If you like regent you will love it here. 

[Lonedaddy]

Finally some entertainment videos from the ship

[RetiredandTravel]

Thank you for taking the time to put this together looks like a great trip.  We were in many of the same ports, interesting stuff.  Love the Veal Milanese and the smoked salmon with bagels for breakfast.