Mariner filling up.

[OrpingtonT]

Are the days of half-full cruise ships over as far as Regent are concerned? We have heard from various posters recently about Mariner being full to capacity and even overbooking with some being asked only a day or two before travel if they would be prepared to transfer to a later cruise.
I thought I was in plenty of time when I made enquiries about the Mariner cruise, Monte Carlo to Venice on 7 April 2010. However all decks below “E” are closed already and “D” only has one or two suites left. I was told there is space for only 63 guests left! CC’s roll call is 3 pages long!
I know some TA’s take up an allocation to sell on as part of a package but it does surprise me when the world is in recession that Regent is doing so well. It must have it’s pricing and package right.
However we are now booked. For personal reasons we intend to fly into Nice from London on the day of embarkation and out of Venice on disembarkation day. Anyone able to recommend a decent transport firm to meet us (4 people plus luggage plus one wheelchair) at Nice airport and take us to Mariner in Monte Carlo. And similarly a firm in Venice to take us from our berth to Marco Polo airport by road as we don’t want to negotiate a water taxi or other boat with a wheelchair. I know of a couple of web-sites but if anyone has personal recommendations, I would be grateful.

[poss]

OT: I've found that the CC "Ports of Call" boards are often good sources for first-hand reports on transport options. Also don't forget Trip Advisor forums.
Congrats on your new booking. We did Monte Carlo-Venice (and then on to Istanbul) last year on Voyager: LOVED it!

[hondorner]

NCL just reported a $15 Million+ profit for the previous quarter as opposed to a $27 Million loss last year, and a whopping 107% occupancy, despite lower fares (or because of the lower fares, in the case of occupancy).

Frank Del Rio, the CEO of Prestige Cruise Holdings (owners of Regent and Oceania) has reported that bookings are up considerably for the 2010 season and that all signs are healthy.

There is still a long way to go to full recovery, but there is light at the end of the tunnel.

[RachelG]

Congratulations on your booking, Orpington. Sounds like a great cruise.
I have been to Nice, but I don't know any car hire places there. We just got a big cab (actually a van) to take us to the port, but we were embarking in Nice per se rather than Monte Carlo.

[Peek-a-boo]

Are the days of half-full cruise ships over as far as Regent are concerned? We have heard from various posters recently about Mariner being full to capacity and even overbooking with some being asked only a day or two before travel if they would be prepared to transfer to a later cruise.
I thought I was in plenty of time when I made enquiries about the Mariner cruise, Monte Carlo to Venice on 7 April 2010. However all decks below “E” are closed already and “D” only has one or two suites left. I was told there is space for only 63 guests left! CC’s roll call is 3 pages long!
I know some TA’s take up an allocation to sell on as part of a package but it does surprise me when the world is in recession that Regent is doing so well. It must have it’s pricing and package right.
However we are now booked. For personal reasons we intend to fly into Nice from London on the day of embarkation and out of Venice on disembarkation day. Anyone able to recommend a decent transport firm to meet us (4 people plus luggage plus one wheelchair) at Nice airport and take us to Mariner in Monte Carlo. And similarly a firm in Venice to take us from our berth to Marco Polo airport by road as we don’t want to negotiate a water taxi or other boat with a wheelchair. I know of a couple of web-sites but if anyone has personal recommendations, I would be grateful.
We just used the company below to take us from Nice Airport to Monte Carlo. We had four passengers, four large bags & 2 carry-ons. They bent over backwards to accomodate us, gave us a fair price and were very pleasant to deal with. They are quick to respond to emails.
FRENCH RIVIERA LIMOUSINE
SARL Easydrivers
Licence Grande Remise 06-57
68, Avenue Jean Medecin
06000 NICE
FRANCE
Réservation 24/24: +336 23 10 35 39/+336 29 88 67 98
E-mail: reservation@frenchrivieralimousine.com

[OrpingtonT]

OT: I've found that the CC "Ports of Call" boards are often good sources for first-hand reports on transport options. Also don't forget Trip Advisor forums.
Congrats on your new booking. We did Monte Carlo-Venice (and then on to Istanbul) last year on Voyager: LOVED it!

I did look at the "Ports of Call" and picked up a couple of web-sites from there, But I asked on here because I know and trust you guys (mostly, anyway :)).

Congratulations on your booking, Orpington. Sounds like a great cruise.
I have been to Nice, but I don't know any car hire places there. We just got a big cab (actually a van) to take us to the port, but we were embarking in Nice per se rather than Monte Carlo.

There are some good ports of call. The one in Albania intrests me and as I believe you will be calling there on your cruise, we can exchange information.

We just used the company below to take us from Nice Airport to Monte Carlo. We had four passengers, four large bags & 2 carry-ons. They bent over backwards to accomodate us, gave us a fair price and were very pleasant to deal with. They are quick to respond to emails.
FRENCH RIVIERA LIMOUSINE
SARL Easydrivers
Licence Grande Remise 06-57
68, Avenue Jean Medecin
06000 NICE
FRANCE
Réservation 24/24: +336 23 10 35 39/+336 29 88 67 98
E-mail: reservation@frenchrivieralimousine.com (reservation@frenchrivieralimousine.com)

Thanks, Peek-a-boo, that exactly the sort of thing I was hoping for. It is early days yet but I will keep that address by me.

Now anyone with any info on Venice transport. I am very familiar with waterborne transfer to Marco Polo but not road for 4 pax plus wheelchair.