Returning to Regent after many years… with a bunch of questions :)

[cruiseej]

We've happily cruised on Regent seven times in the past, but none in the past 10 years, and none since the newest ships came into the fleet. (We've been enjoying the smaller Seabourn ships and a few Silversea expedition cruises.) Now, we're looking at a Regent cruise late this summer due to itinerary and timing, so I'm trying to read as much as I can on this board to catch up on all the things I don't know — or have forgotten 😉 — about Regent! I'd appreciate if any of you can answer a few questions (or point me to answers if they've already been asked and answered many times).

 

The cruise we're looking at is a circumnavigation of Iceland on the Splendor, departing August 23.

 

1) I'd welcome any comments (good or bad) from anyone who has done this, or a similar Iceland itinerary.

 

2) As I'm seeing it online, this cruise has their "2-for-1" pricing plus 20% off, plus a 2-category suite upgrade. It also shows this cruise is eligible for Seven Seas Society discount. Is that stackable on top of the 20% off, or is it either/or?

 

3) Since it's been a long time since we've sailed on Regent, and before the newest ships, the 15 different suite levels is a little daunting. 😉 Omitting the high-end suites (Seven Seas, Splendor, and above); what advise would you offer about the value of moving up from Deluxe Verandah to Superior to Concierge to Penthouse suites? Is Superior a big step up over Deluxe Veranda? concierge seems to be the same suite size as Superior, so would you choose that because of added amenities (such as a pre-cruise hotel night)? Is the additional step up to Penthouse a game-changing experience? We're typically interested in mid-ship and low-to-mid rather than upper decks; is it correct that the higher sub-levels of each suite type are identical rooms on higher deck? Are there any suites/areas you'd avoid on the Splendor?

 

4) I know Regent includes business class air on flights for travel between the US and Europe. Is it correct assuming Iceland qualifies as Europe for these purposes? If we have to do a connecting flight from the east coast of the US to connect through Newark or Boston, is the domestic flight business class, or is that flight in economy? With Regent air, do we get any control over selecting our flights (Seabourn lets you see and select flights online), or do we throw ourselves on the mercy of their air department (which is the way Silversea works)? If we want to fly a day early, and we don't get that extra day included for being in a Concierge or higher suite, is there a deviation fee?

 

Thank you in advance for your knowledge and expertise on Regent matters. We're looking forward to coming back to Regent!

Edited January 25, 2023 by cruiseej

[daetchief]

Welcome Back!

 

Haven't done the Iceland Trans-travel but was on Splendor for a British Isles cruise in September and LOVED it.

 

I would try to book online - just short of hitting enter on the down payment - and see what the website would offer.   Then consult with your TA using the information obtained.   Surely you get 2 for 1 pricing, most likely the Early Booking reduction, after that it is a TA's world.

 

Deluxe Veranda Suites are as you probably experienced on the older ships.  The Superior Suites and Concierge Suites are identical sans the Concierge perks - very nice with a bed that faces the balcony.

On Explorer, Splendor and Grandeur the Penthouse suites have two rooms divided by sliding doors and huge walk in showers. No Tubs.  Explorer's bathroom and closet is a bit different from Splendor and assumed Grandeur.  consult the deck plans and suite diagrams.

 

Your flights outside of CONUS should all be Business Class flights.  Often if the same carrier is used for the whole itinerary, all flights will be in Business.  No guarantees.

 

Enjoy your Journey!

Edited January 26, 2023 by daetchief
Sp

[cruiseej]

@daetchief Thanks for your reply. I'm waiting to hear back from my TA about the pricing and various discounts. (Sometimes recent cruisers have better info than even good TA. 😉 )

 

We'd be happy with a no-tub/large shower bathroom. The one thing we don't like about the layout of Seabourn ships is the tiny shower and wasted (for us) space of a bathtub. But we've never sprung for a higher-level suite. The Splendor Penthouse suites look great; just not sure we want to spend that much since we're usually out and about on the ship rather than spending a lot of time in our suite. But the step up from a Deluxe Verandah to Superior or Concierge seems pretty enticing.

 

For flights, does Regent just assign them? Can we request flights via our TA? What happens if the flight they come up with is a poor routing?

 

Thanks!

[Techno123]

Although we are in the UK we have also just booked a far east cruise using our equivalent of the same offer (we never get 2 for 1 or business class but we did get the 2 category upgrade and the  very nice % discount). Our seven seas society discount was applied plus we had a future cruise deposit and the discount for that was also applied.

 

We have gone for a F1 as I had read that the F class suites provide the best value ( we did F1 over F2 as I like to be midship) and because we have to travel so far Regent fly us in the day before and put us up in a hotel (or it could be a storage container as we haven't upgraded to Concierge 😜😜).

 

I believe Regent assign the flights  (UK anyway) and you can pay a deviation fee to change. Again from posts read on here, if you research some flights that are good for you, IF Regent has a contract with those airlines you may get the good flights for just the deviation fee (or you may need to pay the difference in cost).

 

the benefit of concierge and above is they fly you in a day early and put you up in a hotel so that removes the stress of flying 'on the day' and you get 4 logins on the slowish internet.

[kjbacon]

We went to Iceland for the first time last summer and we thoroughly enjoyed it. Prepare yourself for magnificent scenery and wildlife with quaint small (very small) towns. We were not ready for just how cold it can be there in the summer so I’d recommend packing more warm clothes than you think you will need. Bring layers if you will be doing anything on the water.

[kjbacon]

Thingvellir National Park in Reykjavik is well worth a visit so if you can, go a day early or stay a day later to see it.

[RetiredandTravel]

If you have specific excursions that are important to you it may make sense to check if they are still available.   Specialty restaurant reservations start 90 days ahead, if you are Regent Society Silver from your prior cruises.   Quite sure you are past the excursion reservation window.

 

When visiting the Regent itineraries page click on the room type "view details" and then "amenities" for a list.

 

enjoy

 

 

Edited January 26, 2023 by RetiredandTravel

[DeepFreeze63]

Hi:

We cruised London to Reykjavik (via Ireland and Greenland) in July 2022 on the Voyager; also stopped in Isafordur - loved Iceland. Had only 1 full day (plus departure morning) in Reykjavik; it deserves more! We were on the Splendor for its Maiden voyage and it became our favorite ship (we've done 23 Regent cruises).

In response to your questions, I note that the cruise of interest is "port intensive" with 4 tender ports and only with a long departure day (no included Regent excursions) in Reykjavik - I strongly recommend that you go early or stay over for a day or 2.

We think that the F1 or F2 cabins are the "best" Regent value and choose between them based upon location (I want mid-ship, low in rough seas). They and Concierge have a tub (which we use only as a laundry basket) and a nice shower (but much smaller than that in a Penthouse suite). F1, F2, and Concierge suites are the Cabin size regardless of Deck, but verandahs vary by location.

You have probably been told by now, the RSS Society discount is independent of other discounts ("stackable") and depends only on the cabin category.

Coming from Philadelphia, your Regent Air Business Class flight may be on Icelandic Air - their Business Class seating is more like U.S. domestic First Class than the BC to Europe

[jjs217]

In reply to number 2 on your list.  I just booked a cruise and was given everything including the SSS savings.

[slidebite]

8 hours ago, cruiseej said:

@daetchief Thanks for your reply. I'm waiting to hear back from my TA about the pricing and various discounts. (Sometimes recent cruisers have better info than even good TA. 😉 )

 

We'd be happy with a no-tub/large shower bathroom. The one thing we don't like about the layout of Seabourn ships is the tiny shower and wasted (for us) space of a bathtub. But we've never sprung for a higher-level suite. The Splendor Penthouse suites look great; just not sure we want to spend that much since we're usually out and about on the ship rather than spending a lot of time in our suite. But the step up from a Deluxe Verandah to Superior or Concierge seems pretty enticing.

 

For flights, does Regent just assign them? Can we request flights via our TA? What happens if the flight they come up with is a poor routing?

 

Thanks!

I'll just throw my .02 in here as well. I think F is the suite spot (get it??!!)) in cabin classes for most people that don't really want a full/larger suite. They are anything but small and have all the Regent services you'd likely want, especially for a couple.

 

This likely isn't you, but as someone who typically does late-ish bookings, people generally book excursions and reserve as soon as its possible to do so. It's entirely possible your favorite excursions may be full right away so I rank them and wait list my fave. It's not entirely unheard of to have Regent throw another bus on a very wait listed excursion or have ppl cancel so don't despair if it is. They did that 2x on our Med cruise in 2018.

 

Regarding meals, our cruse departs in just over 2 months (so we were late bookers. Again.) and we booked our reservations just the other day. Getting reservations for tables for 2 at prime eating times were pretty spotty (no problem if you are ok with late dining) but we were able to snag a couple 630 or 7 on sea days for Prime 7 and Chartreuse. If you are OK sharing a table and dining with others, that will greatly open up availability in my experience and probably worthwhile doing if you meet people you click with.

 

Regarding flights,

We just got our tentative flight schedule and it was OK in that it only had 1 connection (Barcelona to Calgary) but the layover was far from ideal, ~6 hours in Montreal with an early AM arrival into Calgary on a non-layflat for that leg of the journey (still business though).

 

SO, I did some of my own sleuthing and found some codeshare Lufthansa/Air Canada flights (which I know Regent books with) and ran it past my agent to see if they were available as options since we're already paying for a deviation by coming to a smaller non-included gateway airport. Leaves Barcelona an hour earlier and has an additional layover in Vancouver, but gets us home about 3 hours earlier which after a long travel day will be appreciated.

 

TA says she gave the request to regents flight people and will let me know today if its acceptable. If it is, great. If not, or if it's a crazy upcharge, we'll just live with the layover in Montreal.

 

But the flights aren't necessarily written in stone. They do their best to come up with an itinerary with minimum or layovers and connections but you can always ask to modify/deviate. There may be a charge and they may say no, but you can always ask.

[rallydave]

20 hours ago, cruiseej said:

1) I'd welcome any comments (good or bad) from anyone who has done this, or a similar Iceland itinerary.

 

2) As I'm seeing it online, this cruise has their "2-for-1" pricing plus 20% off, plus a 2-category suite upgrade. It also shows this cruise is eligible for Seven Seas Society discount. Is that stackable on top of the 20% off, or is it either/or?

Two for one is a marketing ploy and meaningless since EVERYONE gets the same 2 for 1 fare

20 hours ago, cruiseej said:

 

3) Since it's been a long time since we've sailed on Regent, and before the newest ships, the 15 different suite levels is a little daunting. 😉 Omitting the high-end suites (Seven Seas, Splendor, and above); what advise would you offer about the value of moving up from Deluxe Verandah to Superior to Concierge to Penthouse suites? Is Superior a big step up over Deluxe Veranda? concierge seems to be the same suite size as Superior, so would you choose that because of added amenities (such as a pre-cruise hotel night)? Is the additional step up to Penthouse a game-changing experience? We're typically interested in mid-ship and low-to-mid rather than upper decks; is it correct that the higher sub-levels of each suite type are identical rooms on higher deck? Are there any suites/areas you'd avoid on the Splendor?

 

4) I know Regent includes business class air on flights for travel between the US and Europe. Is it correct assuming Iceland qualifies as Europe for these purposes? If we have to do a connecting flight from the east coast of the US to connect through Newark or Boston, is the domestic flight business class, or is that flight in economy? With Regent air, do we get any control over selecting our flights (Seabourn lets you see and select flights online), or do we throw ourselves on the mercy of their air department (which is the way Silversea works)? If we want to fly a day early, and we don't get that extra day included for being in a Concierge or higher suite, is there a deviation fee?

Iceland is part of Europe and a member of the European Union  (EU)  As far as choosing your flights, you can using the deviation process that costs $175 pp and available 270 days out.  Depending you might need to pay additional depending on your choice.   You only find out your Regent chosen flights approx 75 days out so late in the process  

20 hours ago, cruiseej said:

 

Thank you in advance for your knowledge and expertise on Regent matters. We're looking forward to coming back to Regent!

Edited 20 hours ago by cruiseej

See above add'l answers in red after your questons.

[cruiseej]

Thanks for all the answers and information!

 

We've visited Reykjavik once before, prior to a Silversea cruise to Greenland, so we had a few days in the city and driving around the southwest corner of Iceland. We'll definitely fly in a day early just because I wouldn't risk a flight on the day of embarkation, but I don't know if we'll add extra time beyond that this trip. (I'd like to come back some day to drive around the entire island so we can see the things we can't from short cruise ship stops.)

 

8 hours ago, kjbacon said:

Thingvellir National Park in Reykjavik is well worth a visit so if you can, go a day early or stay a day later to see it.

 

Thanks, We did a short drive through the area on our previous trip, but it wasn't clear what to do there for a short visit. I should add that we have limited hiking options, as this trip will be for my father's 95th birthday (!); although both my parents a pretty decently mobile, anything other than relatively flat walk of a mile or less is probably out. 😉 If there are any short walks or other things you can recommend we can see/do there, I'd appreciate it. 

 

4 hours ago, RetiredandTravel said:

Specialty restaurant reservations start 90 days ahead, if you are Regent Society Silver from your prior cruises.

 

Yes, we are SSS Silver. One question: we will hit Gold status with this cruise. Does Regent extend the next tier benefits on the cruise where you hit the next level, or only on the next cruise after you have hit the level? (I know different cruise lines handle this differently.)

 

4 hours ago, DeepFreeze63 said:

Coming from Philadelphia, your Regent Air Business Class flight may be on Icelandic Air - their Business Class seating is more like U.S. domestic First Class than the BC to Europe

 

Thank you; I was aware that Icelandair doesn't have business class lie-flat seats like most international carriers. They had been flying nonstop from Philadelphia before Covid, but apparently haven't come back.

 

So it looks like we'll have to fly Jet Blue PHL-BOS and connect to Icelandair there, or fly United Express PHL to Newark and then united EWR to KEF. The latter would get us lie-flat seats on United. I'm not sure how essential that is for the ~6 hour flight. (Update: Well, I saw a United EWR-KEF flight yesterday, with a 757 that had Polaris business class, but today, I'm only seeing United flights to Iceland from Chicago, none from Newark. Did United just drop its Newark flights to Iceland in the past 24 hours? We could fly PHL-ORD-KEF, but that seems to be a reach to get lie-flat seats!) Also, Air Canada flies PHL-YYZ-KEF, but no business class because it's a 737.  We flew Air Canada through Toronto on our prior trip to Iceland, on a 787. Now it's a 737. Sight. So are airlines not projecting pretty close to pre-Covid  international travel this summer tourist season? 

 

[rallydave]

14 minutes ago, cruiseej said:

So it looks like we'll have to fly Jet Blue PHL-BOS and connect to Icelandair there, or fly United Express PHL to Newark and then united EWR to KEF. The latter would get us lie-flat seats on United. I'm not sure how essential that is for the ~6 hour flight. (Update: Well, I saw a United EWR-KEF flight yesterday, with a 757 that had Polaris business class, but today, I'm only seeing United flights to Iceland froNem Chicago, none from Newark. Did United just drop its Newark flights to Iceland in the past 24 hours? We could fly PHL-ORD-KEF, but that seems to be a reach to get lie-flat seats!) Also, Air Canada flies PHL-YYZ-KEF, but no business class because it's a 737. 

Can confirm United has dropped KEF to EWR.  Am scheduled to fly back from REykjavak to Houston thru EWR.  Just looked at my itinerary and they now have me flying KEF-ORD then on t= IAH.  KInd of strange no seats loaded for the KEF-ORD flights but, likely because they just added that flight as you stated.  Am flying in July so no way could the entire plane be booked

[slidebite]

Airlines are predicting high travel rates as far as I know, but whether their fleet, staff, and airport infrastructure can keep up is another question. A lot of those semi-skilled jobs at the airports that were gone during the pandemic are now vacant and those employees have moved on.

 

Air Canada and specifically Toronto (YYZ) was an absolute disaster of epic proportions for 2022. I would do my upmost to not fly through Toronto if it's within my power to do so (although to be fair I loathed Toronto/YYZ even pre-covid. It's just a terrible airport). I had to fly to Halifax from Calgary earlier this year and I happily paid a premium to avoid Toronto like the plague. Hopefully it'll be better by later this year but who knows.

Edited January 26, 2023 by slidebite

[cruiseej]

3 minutes ago, rallydave said:

Can confirm United has dropped KEF to EWR. 

 

It must have happened just overnight last night. I was looking at which business class seats were available on the flight from EWR-KEF yesterday. United Today, the entire EWR-KEF routing is gone; I tried various date through the summer with the same result. Interesting that they dropped these flights — with a lot of seats already booked — this close to the summer season.

 

2 minutes ago, slidebite said:

Air Canada and specifically Toronto (YYZ) was an absolute disaster of epic proportions for 2022. I would do my upmost to not fly through Toronto if it's within my power to do so

 

Thanks for that advice. I guess it's hard to know if the airports which melted down during last summer's travel crush have been able to staff up to avoid a repeat this summer. But it sounds like our best option might be Jet Blue PHL to Boston connecting to Icelandair to Iceland. 

[RetiredandTravel]

1 hour ago, cruiseej said:

 

Yes, we are SSS Silver. One question: we will hit Gold status with this cruise. Does Regent extend the next tier benefits on the cruise where you hit the next level, or only on the next cruise after you have hit the level? (I know different cruise lines handle this differently.)

 

 

 

 

Yes on the first day of the cruise

 

from Regent

 

"If you have sailed with us before and are already a Seven Seas Society member, your new tier benefits take effect on the first day of the cruise during which you transition from one tier to the next."

 

Make sure you logon for specialty reservations the day they are available quality spots go quickly.

 

You probably know this but Icelandair Business Class is like our Domestic First Class not European Business Class.  No flat seats.  

 

 

[cruiseej]

24 minutes ago, RetiredandTravel said:

You probably know this but Icelandair Business Class is like our Domestic First Class not European Business Class.  No flat seats.

 

Yes, thanks. It just seems there aren't many options for a true business class cabin to Iceland from eastern North America this summer. Icelandair doesn't have them. Air Canada's flight from Toronto is now a 737-Max, which doesn't have them. We could fly west to go east on United, going to Chicago to connect to a 757 with Polaris lie flat seats. (Even if I was tempted to do that, I just looked and saw the business class cabin is sold out on our day or travel!) Or we could fly west on Delta to Minneapolis or Detroit, but the connecting flights to Iceland from those cities are on 757s which have first class, not business class, seats. (Delta has their Comfort One business class on a flight from JFK, but doesn't offer a connecting flight between JFK and PHL). And I'm not going to consider flying to LIH and then back to Iceland! 

[daetchief]

Don't be too rash, (Lihue) Kauai [LIH] is the best of the Hawaiian Islands, and I can guarantee no glaciers... 

[cruiseej]

34 minutes ago, daetchief said:

Don't be too rash, (Lihue) Kauai [LIH] is the best of the Hawaiian Islands, and I can guarantee no glaciers... 

 

Ah, don't know how I turned LHR into LIH. (I'm going to blame auto-correct.) And yes, we're big fans of Kauai. But it is just a bit out of the way to fly from Philadelphia to Kauai enroute to Iceland! 🤣

[rallydave]

3 hours ago, daetchief said:

Don't be too rash, (Lihue) Kauai [LIH] is the best of the Hawaiian Islands, and I can guarantee no glaciers... 

You could always drive to JFK. Only : hours based on google. IAH is almost z as n hour from my house  and fly out of there for most trips. What’s an extra hour??

[irishwitchy]

I live in Nj and flights from Ewr to kef have always been on and off(I have noticed this for years) it always appears that Boston to Iceland is more consistent on Icelandic Air and United.  

 

As for the Regent circle of Iceland we did that last year on Splendor, but it it also included parts of Norway and a few others bits.   I have been in Iceland, twice, beginning of July and beginning of September. Bring boots, it can be rainy.  Some of the small towns were just lovely and so are the views.  Make sure to find a local place for lunch.   I think everyone else covered the discounts and bedding/bathing room options.  

 

 

 

[cruiseej]

On 1/26/2023 at 10:35 PM, rallydave said:

You could always drive to JFK. Only : hours based on google. IAH is almost z as n hour from my house  and fly out of there for most trips. What’s an extra hour??

 

Yes, it's possible. Driving to Long Island is always a crap shoot with traffic. (My wife is originally from Long Island, so we know the route well.) Is it really worth us driving an extra two hours and parking at JFK versus going out of PHL, ostensibly just to get a flight with a lay-flat business class seat for a flight that's under 6 hours? Maybe; will think about it this weekend. I might prefer flying a little backwards to Chicago, Detroit or Minneapolis if that's the goal. 😉 

 

21 hours ago, irishwitchy said:

I live in Nj and flights from Ewr to kef have always been on and off(I have noticed this for years) it always appears that Boston to Iceland is more consistent on Icelandic Air and United.  

 

I'm not so much surprised that the schedule changed, but that they deleted EWR to Iceland for the summer season just this week, after having sold a lot of seats, leading into what is expected to be a busy summer. 

 

21 hours ago, irishwitchy said:

As for the Regent circle of Iceland we did that last year on Splendor, but it it also included parts of Norway and a few others bits.

 

We spent a few days in Iceland prior to an Iceland-to-Greenland cruise 5 years ago. And we did a Norway coast cruise prior to that. So this trip would cover more of Iceland than we've seen previously.

 

We were looking for a cruise that my 90-something parents could manage without too many challenges, and this relatively short cruise with shorter flights seemed to fit the bill while covering territory we haven't listed before (other than Reykjavik). And with Regent's current promotions of a 2-class upgrade + 20% discount + Seven Seas Society discount, we can get Penthouse suites for less than the regular price of the lowest-level Verandah suites. 

[Wendy The Wanderer]

The Superior Suite, midship would be my sweet spot, although we're in Concierge right now. Lovely cabin, great layout. Large shower enclosure and a huge tub.

 

[ddsun1]

Looking forward to our Splendor cruise this August, London to Reykjavik.  Booked our own air:  United Newark to London, return Reykjavik to Newark.  Just received an email from United that the Reykjavik - Newark flight has changed to Reykjavik - Chicago and Chicago - Newark.  We wanted nonstop flights only.

 

Has anyone flown Icelandair?  If so, any comments?

 

[rallydave]

9 minutes ago, ddsun1 said:

Looking forward to our Splendor cruise this August, London to Reykjavik.  Booked our own air:  United Newark to London, return Reykjavik to Newark.  Just received an email from United that the Reykjavik - Newark flight has changed to Reykjavik - Chicago and Chicago - Newark.  We wanted nonstop flights only.

 

Has anyone flown Icelandair?  If so, any comments?

 

Have flown Icelandic and was NOT impressed.  I am kind of in the same boat as you.  Was scheduled on United Reykjavik to EWR connecting to Houston  Found yesterday now flying thru Chicago and checked things and United has dropped the KEF-EWR route for this year at least.

 

Given a choice in your situation, would likely take United thru Chicago. on Polaris for the long flight.  Did not le the seating or meals on Icelandic but, the price was right and  lived with it.  YMMV