Experiences - Seven Seas Splendor

[LadyVirgy]

Hi, everybody! My dad and I booked our first ever cruise: 24 nights (departs 12 Nov 2024) with Regent Seven Seas Cruises, Seven Seas Splendor ship (Lisbon to Cape Town) at the recommendation of a friend. With this being our first ever cruise, we don't really know what to expect. What have your experiences been like with this cruise line / ship (if any)? Curious about everything. Thank you in advance! ♥

[Chateaunole-du-pape]

You are in for a treat!

 

The first-ever cruise for both me and my wife was last summer, also on Splendor. We had never thought of ourselves as "cruise people" before - too many visions of crowds, tight, noisy spaces, cheesy activities, bad food and the like. But last May, we found ourselves worrying that yet another summer was going to pass without an international trip for us; we are highly seasoned travelers, as I work in the airline industry and my wife is a French teacher, yet we hadn't left the country since before COVID. For whatever reason, since COVID, we've found the idea of travel planning exhausting, and last summer it seemed like we were running out of time yet again, so  the idea of a cruise, where so much of the planning is taken care of, actually sounded appealing.

 

We knew we wanted a nicer line, and while we knew nothing about Regent, we found an attractive last-minute deal for a 7-night Baltic criise, and we thought Regent "looked pretty good," so we booked it. Little did we know how fantastic it would end up being. We loved it so much that we're going for another Regent cruise in a few weeks, this time on Navigator.

 

A few thoughts after our one voyage:

 

Don't overpack. The on-board, included laundry service is great. They'll even follow instructions - we like everything washed on cold, and either dried on low (socks, underwear, athletic wear) or line dried (everything else). They appear to have followed our directions to a T, as everything came back in perfect shape, with no shrinkage. You can also send items out just to be pressed, which we did a number of times.

 

Pacific Rim is our favorite of the restaurants on the ship. We managed a second reservation there by asking at the restaurant office by the main reception desk. We had to share a table with another couple, but they turned out to be delightful, and we wouldn't hesitate to share again. The other restaurants are also very good, but Pacific Rim was easily our favorite, and we'll miss it this summer, as Navigator doesn't have it.

 

Trivia in the Observation Lounge is great fun. If your schedule allows, you should go!

 

I have heard great things about the cooking classes on board.  Our cruise schedule was so packed that we didn't manage to try one, unfortunately, but on a cruise the length of yours, it'll definitely be a good option.

 

The suites are so comfortable and extremely well laid out with tons of thoughtful storage. You'll never feel crowded.

 

I could go on and on, but have to get to work. Perhaps I'll chime in again a bit later ! 

 

[DeepFreeze63]

Wow! What a way to start cruising. First, best wishes for a greatly enjoyable adventure.

We have sailed on the Splendor 3 times (total of 36 nights); it’s a gorgeous ship. Also, we did the same itinerary as yours but on the Regent Voyager just after Africa reopened in 2022 following COVID – we had a marvelous time. My thread was “An Adventure on the Voyager” with the last post on 12/22/2022.

If you haven’t already, start a “My Account” on the Regent web site and reserve your excursions

You’ve already made a good start. Search through this Cruise Critic board using the search engine for such as “tips” , “Splendor”, and “advice”; there lots of threads and posts. As questions arise, post your specific questions – specific questions get the more relevant answers.

[2012_Alaska_bound]

If you are also on FB, search "Tom Little" in the RSSC group. He did a terrific "Tips" post awhile back.

[GMIAC]

Splendor will be in dry dock next year at this time. Maybe some updates/changes are coming? Time will tell. 

[DeepFreeze63]

1 hour ago, GMIAC said:

Splendor will be in dry dock next year at this time. Maybe some updates/changes are coming? Time will tell. 

????       Their cruise is in November 2024.

[PaulMCO]

We have been looking at this cruise or the similar one on Voyager.

 

Book your included excursions as soon as you can.  Regent tend to sell out of the more desirable one early. Pay attention to the activity level of the tours, especially if high physical activity is an issue.

 

Same for the specialty Restaurants.  We tend to book these on the sea days.  Book early as you can.

 

Regent has no mandatory formal nights. Dress nicely at night.  Laundry is included.  You do not need 4 suitcases of clothes (although some may disagree 🙂 

 

Make sure passports have enough blank pages.

 

Think about a post cruise land excursion that Regent is offering.  Great place to do a 3 or 4 day safari, while you have flown all that distance.

 

Enjoy -- Regent is one of our favorite cruise lines.

[papaflamingo]

Just a couple of  comments about booking specialty restaurants (you don't book Compass Rose or Sette Mari, they are walk up only)... if you can't get the desired nights in Prime 7, Chartreuse, or Pacific Rim, then try with "share a table" when you book.  You'll end up sitting with another couple, but that can often lead to meeting new friends.  AND don't hesitate to walk up to one of the specialty restaurants on Boarding Day.  Our last 2 cruises, Grandeur in Jan. and Explorer in Feb., the Compass Rose Maitre d' told us we could get into Pacific Rim immediately as opposed to a small wait for Compass Rose....we "beat feet" to Pacific Rim both times!!!  People tend to eat in Compass Rose on Boarding day.  AND TRY THE TEMPURA LOBSTER! 

As for "normal dining," both Compass Rose and Sette Mari will ask if you want to share a table or not when you approach.  We do both.  Sometimes we just want a quiet dinner together, other times we want to meet new people.  It's really a great system to simply walk up whenever you're ready to go to dinner as opposed to "scheduled" eating times like the larger cruise lines.  And you'll rarely, if ever, have much of a wait.  

[Mudhen]

The only time we've encountered  a somewhat lengthy wait is when the "parties" break...Repeaters entertainment in the theater, or some such special event. Usually when they end, the mob beats it to the dining room. Not a big deal as we'll have a "treat" in one of the bars until the crush is over. This will only happen occasionally, but something to keep in mind

[Aloha 1]

We spent 17 nights on Splendor in February and had a fabulous time. Food was excellent, staff were over the top. As others have said, you are in for treat!