Forget what you read...Regal Empress, the perfect 2-day getaway

[juicey03]

Sail Date: 2/11/05



We have just returned from the 2-night cruise aboard Imperial Majesty’s Regal Empress. This was a perfect gift for a Pre-Valentine’s Day weekend. If you are high maintenance or into extravagant cruise ships or hotel accommodations, this cruise would NOT be for you (please stop reading now and find another ship). The ship is a quaint diamond in the rough (built in the 50’s). My companion of six-years booked the cruise and after reading several reviews, we were somewhat skeptical, however, we went not expecting anything fancy. The food was good and VERY plentiful, the staff was excellent and very helpful, and everyone we encountered seemed to be generally enjoying themselves. The Regal features a good (again nothing fancy) show each evening after dinner, bingo, live music, karaoke, a beauty parlor and gift shops. The crew tries hard to make sure that passengers are well pleased and continually entertained. Drinks offered by the ships are pretty good; we found them to be better in the karaoke lounge. We skipped the shore excursions offered by the cruise line and decided to take a taxi tour once we got off of the ship. Taxi tour was $25 per person, lasted about 1 ½ hours, Sterling was our tour guide. In my opinion, this is the way to go. We saw more of Nassau than those who took the excursions and had the opportunity to eat some authentic Bahamian food. We also had plenty of time for shopping downtown upon our return before 5:30 pm boarding. Overall, I had a great experience and would not hesitate to do it again. I could not have asked for a more perfect Valentine’s gift.



Regal Empress Cruise tips:

Take Dramamine for motion sickness

Don’t do the excursions offered by the ship (boy, do they try and push these)

Take plenty of single bills for tips

…EXPECT NOTHING FANCY!

[pinkycruiser]

We wre on the Regal Empress last June (2004) and it was great. Friendly, courteous staff who bent over backwards making sure you had a great time. Drinks were plentiful and they kept them full however please note that you are charged for these drinks. We saw a lot of people complaining the morning we got back about their on board account bill. The ship has a photographer who takes lots of pictures we waited until late the last night to pick out the ones we wanted to cut down on expenses. It does get chilly out on deck so maybe bring a sweater or whatever. Food was wonderful- order a lot at dinner. We ordered 2nds and the chef came out to say hi. Dress code was very casual- it says no shorts for dinner but... on the 2nd night my husband wore shorts b/c the night before there were more shorts on men then pants. Something for motion sickness is a good idea as it was slighty bumpy. Shore excursions- we booked our own day in Nassau. We went snorkeling thru Stuarts Cove (the guy who helped with the sharks in Open Water) and it was fabulous. We actually swam with sharks. Take motion sickness meds with you for any boat excursions if you get motion sick at all. I got very sick on the sharks. The ship does prefer you take their shore excursios but you don't have to and yes they are pushy.
We had a great time and recommend it to all.
Enjoy
Pinky:o

[jemingway]

Thanks for the reviews.:cool:

[scamper]

How to do that is a mystery to me. Nevertheless, I noticed that nothing much was said regarding the condition of the ship itself by anyone here save "quaint diamond in the rough" comments. Even many of the negative remarks regarding this ship had high praise for the crew and service on the ship, that much seems to be true. However, to imply that someone who has expectations of a clean, odor-free, well-maintained ship and its furnishings as "high maintenance" or "into extravagance cruise ship(s)" is pretty misguided. It's obvious the consumer, more times than not, gets what they pay for. No one should expect a Four Seasons hotel experience and pay a Motel 6 rate. I'll grant you that this ship has its fan club and for that I say "brava." But it's wrong and mean-spirited to criticize the comments of the ship's detractors simply as a result of differing taste as I have seen in other posts. The whole purpose of reviews are to share one's honest opinion of their experiences, good or bad, so that potential customers can decide for themselves if this cruise product is right for them.