Reminiscent of Seven Seas Explorer Nov 11th 2023 Tokyo to Bangkok cruise

[rloke]

This is our first Regent cruise. We finally made it on board an RSSC ship due to various interruptions in the past few years…

 

We did not take Regent’s air and booked our flights independently. Used Air Canada’s YYZ to HND 14-hour flight to fly in a day early. Our departure from YYZ was delayed about 2 hours due to unscheduled maintenance as per the e-mail we received on the morning of the flight. We touched down at HND at around 6:50pm instead of the scheduled 4:55pm.

 

Probably as a result of that, our flight lost its slot to a gate connected to the terminal. Instead, our plane was parked away from the terminal and we were bussed into the terminal. It wasn’t too bad as the airport staff was ready and we were in the terminal in no time.

 

Immigration and customs was super quick. Showed the blue and yellow QR codes we obtained from the VisitJapanWeb site instead of filling out the paper forms probably saved a bit of time. However, we did not notice separate lines for QR code vs paper forms because there were no lines when we got there…YMMV…😉

 

Bought our monorail tickets to get to Hamamatsucho terminal (500 yen) and out on the platform by 7:32pm to catch the express 7:34pm train.

 

[rloke]

After a short walk from the Hamamatsucho station to our hotel near the Yurikamome Shiodome station, we headed out to get a quick dinner around the Shinbashi Yurakucho Gado-shita.

 

[rloke]

Had some tuna and sweet prawn don, washed down with some house sake…delicious and satisfying after a long flight.

 

 

[rloke]

Our cruise check-in time was at 1pm…so we ventured out to a nearby yakiniku place, Oku Shinbashiten, for a quick early lunch and had some Yamagata wagyu.

 

[rloke]

After checking out of the hotel, we then took the Yurikamome from U2 Shiodome station to U8 Tokyo International Cruise Terminal (330 yen). Took about 20-30 minutes and then a short walk of about 500m.

 

 

[rloke]

We arrived at the terminal at around 12:45pm and was directed to a seating area to wait for our turn to check-in.

 

 

Once checked-in, we boarded the ship and was accompanied to our muster station for the “virtual safety drill” check-in.
 

Our room was ready, so we made our way to the room…

[rloke]

The room is very nicely appointed. Ample room in the closet and a decent sized sitting area and balcony. Bathroom has a separate bathtub and shower stall with both a wand and rainfall type showerhead…

 

 

 

[rloke]

Also lots of drawers in the room and bathroom to store stuff…and these drawers are the wonderful soft close variety that were a joy to use…

 

Another thing to note is that there are a lot of European style sockets but only one North American. So bring adapters if necessary. There are lots of USB ports for charging portable devices though…

 

[rloke]

Couple of things about the room.
 

Probably because a lot of wood is used near the bed headboard, there are a good amount of squeaks from that area while the ship is in motion.

 

Also there was an annoying whistling sound from the balcony door. After 3 attempts to “rectify” that, I believe it is “fixed” for now…fingers crossed…

[rloke]

Our first port of call was Shimizu.

 

We took the Nihondaira and Kunōzan Tōshōgū Shrine tour.

 

There were some stairs to climb up to the shrine…

Beautiful ornate intricate designs…

At the top of the hill, the burial place of the first shōgun of the Tokugawa shogunate…

 

[rloke]

From the Nihondaira lookout, Mount Fuji, which is just around 40km away, was a wee bit photo-shy…

[rloke]

At the Kobe port of call, we elected to go for the Highlights of Kyoto tour. Had been to Kyoto before but never in the fall, should be nice with the changing foliage colour.

 

The first stop was at the Kinkakuji temple.

 

After that we were driven to a restaurant close-by for a fantastic traditional Japanese lunch. 

 

The next and final stop was at Nijo Castle..

 

Edited November 19, 2023 by rloke

[liptastic]

Great photos. Thanks for sharing.  Jean.

[1982CruzStart]

Thank you for sharing your trip with us. Wonderful pictures. Have a great cruise. 

[Snowcat1]

What category of room do you have?

[rloke]

@liptastic @1982CruzStart Thanks…

 

 

[rloke]

2 hours ago, Snowcat1 said:

What category of room do you have?

We are in an F category room.

 

[annmarz]

Gorgeous photos!  Hope you have a wonderful cruise!

[rloke]

5 hours ago, annmarz said:

Gorgeous photos!  Hope you have a wonderful cruise!

Thanks…so far so good…

[rloke]

At Kochi, we did the Ryugado Caves tour. The walk through the caves was quite challenging due to some narrow passages and rather low ceiling.

 

The stairs leading up to the cave entrance…

…but thankfully we did not have to use these as there was an escalator to the right of the stairs…😅

 

[rloke]

The entrance to the caves…

Some beautiful, nicely and subtly illuminated limestone formations…

Edited November 20, 2023 by rloke

[rloke]

After the tour to the caves, we took the complimentary shuttle to the Kochi city central area. The shuttle stopped at the Harimayabashi bus terminal. From there, it was a short walk (15-20 minutes) to the Kochi Castle.

 

Along the way, we stopped by the automaton clock that plays the Yosakoi melody on the hour. Across the street from it, is the famous Harimaya Bridge…

[rloke]

The Kochi Castle…

[rloke]

Before heading back to the port, we stopped by the Hirome Market, which is just a block away from the castle, to have a quick lunch of Kochi’s favourite delicacies…

 

The katsuo no tataki (seared bonito)…

 

And the fantastic gyoza. The gyoza wrapper was very thin and fried perfectly…juicy fillings and crispy skin…perfect combo.

[frantic36]

2 hours ago, rloke said:

…but thankfully we did not have to use these as there was an escalator to the right of the stairs…😅

I'm curious if you want to take the steps can you?

 

I am doing similar stops next year in Tokyo and your report is very helpful so thank you.

 

What did you think of the Conrad as I am thinking of staying there rather than the Regent included? Mainly because it seems closer to the port and to Ginza.

Edited November 20, 2023 by frantic36