Mini Blog from the Mariner - 8/30 - 9/8/2017

Got off to a rocky start due to boarding in Vancouver. What a nightmare. There are two other ships in port - Princess and HAL. Vancouver must be one of the most dysfunctional ports in the world. When you add the new(ish) U.S. requirements, it a double nightmare. In fairness, we did stop at the Pan Pacific Hotel to meet with friends that just disembarked from the Mariner (with a whole lot of kids onboard). Anyway, we arrived at 12:45 p.m. and it likely took close to an hour to get on the ship.

Once onboard, things slowly began to change. For those of you that are long time Regent cruisers, we first saw Francisco (now a Maitre 'd in a Veranda). I had to put my food down in order to give him a hug. He is a lovely man. I have predicted that he may become the first G.M. from the Philippines (fingers crossed). We have not seen him since FDR's birthday cruise almost 3 years ago. After that we spent time with the Captain and G.M. I hear that Paul (Reynolds) is looking for us but I prefer to sneak up on him sometime after muster.

For newbies that may be reading this, we are no more special than other cruisers but have spent time getting to know the crew because we have an genuine interest in their lives. As a result, we are warmly welcomed "home" whenever we board a Regent ship. Even our stewardess and butler were happy to see us and have served us previously. Anyone can have the same type of experience (and many do). However, if you are the keep to yourselves type, there is absolutely nothing wrong with that.

Onward...... I have taken three pictures of our suite but won't attempt to post until tomorrow. The Mariner has our favorite PH suite of the fleet and I'll show you why.

Lunch in La Veranda was yummy. The sommelier remembered that we like a Mexican Butterfly with Don Julio and they were perfection (as was the food and the service).

I need to start unpacking but wanted to check in. The ship is beautiful and, if you hadn't been on the refurbished ships (or the Explorer), you would likely not see the things that need to be refurbished (unless you are a bit picky).

More later. I'm posting from my suite so hope that it goes through.

Have a great cruise and looking forward to your reports.

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Looking forward to your posts. My wife and I will be boarding the Mariner on Sept 27 for a New York to Montreal adventure.

Got off to a rocky start due to boarding in Vancouver. What a nightmare. There are two other ships in port - Princess and HAL. Vancouver must be one of the most dysfunctional ports in the world. When you add the new(ish) U.S. requirements, it a double nightmare. In fairness, we did stop at the Pan Pacific Hotel to meet with friends that just disembarked from the Mariner (with a whole lot of kids onboard). Anyway, we arrived at 12:45 p.m. and it likely took close to an hour to get on the ship.

 

Once onboard, things slowly began to change. For those of you that are long time Regent cruisers, we first saw Francisco (now a Maitre 'd in a Veranda). I had to put my food down in order to give him a hug. He is a lovely man. I have predicted that he may become the first G.M. from the Philippines (fingers crossed). We have not seen him since FDR's birthday cruise almost 3 years ago. After that we spent time with the Captain and G.M. I hear that Paul (Reynolds) is looking for us but I prefer to sneak up on him sometime after muster.

 

For newbies that may be reading this, we are no more special than other cruisers but have spent time getting to know the crew because we have an genuine interest in their lives. As a result, we are warmly welcomed "home" whenever we board a Regent ship. Even our stewardess and butler were happy to see us and have served us previously. Anyone can have the same type of experience (and many do). However, if you are the keep to yourselves type, there is absolutely nothing wrong with that.

 

Onward...... I have taken three pictures of our suite but won't attempt to post until tomorrow. The Mariner has our favorite PH suite of the fleet and I'll show you why.

 

Lunch in La Veranda was yummy. The sommelier remembered that we like a Mexican Butterfly with Don Julio and they were perfection (as was the food and the service).

 

I need to start unpacking but wanted to check in. The ship is beautiful and, if you hadn't been on the refurbished ships (or the Explorer), you would likely not see the things that need to be refurbished (unless you are a bit picky).

 

More later. I'm posting from my suite so hope that it goes through.

Sounds wonderful...Cant wait to hear about an adventure or two, and see a little of the ship!

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TC2, have a great trip and I'm looking forward to hearing what you think--we'll be on her in April. Rick

Have a great cruise. Thanks for sharing your observations.

Have a great cruise! We just finished Svalbard to Reykjavik on Silversea Explorer or we would have joined you! ( I have a report on the Silversea board if you have a chance to check it out)

Once your cruise is underway, can you please tell me how much dance (ballroom) time there is onboard Mariner? Does the daily program list times/places to dance?

We have sailed often but will be Regent newbies in February so I am looking forward to your posts. Thx in advance for sharing your experiences.

So, we had dinner and are now in our suite. I tried the internet at 8:30 p.m while people were still at dinner and could not post anything on CC. It was horrible. Suddenly, in our suite, everything was great with WiFi. Wondering if crew members were online and that was the problem.

Dinner was delicious (great salad with stilton cheese, walnuts and butter lettuce, mushroom risotto, steamed lobster, etc.). Great service with Risky.

Carnevale, will check Passages to see what dancing is going on.

Learned a couple of interesting things at dinner. First (rumor only - not confirmed), when the Mariner starts doing world cruises in 2020 (or is it 2019?), the Voyager will be doing Alaska. Also learned that the crew is happy that "Alaska season is over". I can understand that since the ship goes back and forth to the same places all summer. Also, most of the guests are newbies and families which changes the whole "Regent Experience". This cruise has a lot of Platinum and Titanium guests and the crew is happy to see familiar faces (not trying to imply that the crew does not enjoy the new guests and families -- just that it is nice to see their "extended family)".

Many crew members were on Explorer when we were onboard and it is great to see them on the Mariner. Some of them are hoping to be transferred to the Voyager next year for "Asian season since the ship makes stops in their home towns.

"Z", will try tapatalk tomorrow (although it may be the wrong day to test it since it is a sea day). If I fail, I may come begging again.

As mentioned, we love the layout of the living room in the PH suite but find everything else in the suites to be "mini". For instance, on Explorer, I can throw my medium size handbag in the safe, my DH's wallet and passport and still have room. On Mariner, it fits my DH's wallet, my wallet and an envelope ...... that's it! And, the bathroom and closet is small (compared to the Voyager, Navigator and the concierge and "F" suites on Explorer). While the public spaces on Mariner are lovely, it will never be our favorite ship.

So, rather than just babbling, I have a question for posters. Is it more important to you to have a spacious suite (especially on long cruises) or more pubic areas than exist on Voyager and especially on Navigator. I'm truly interested in your responses.

Think I need to relax for a while. Although we didn't travel great distances as some people have (only 50 miles), the mess in Vancouver was exhausting. I could not help but think that some people would blame Regent for the checking in mess, customs, immigration, etc. even though they have absolutely nothing to do with it. This brings me to another question. Is it easier to board in Miami or Los Angeles? Tomorrow at 3:00 Pacific time we will be booking a cruise for 2020 that either goes from L.A to Miami or Miami to L. A.

Thanks for any responses!

No problem with posting pics for you. Just email them to me and we'll take it from there. Please give Risky a warm hug from us.

Z and TB

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The 2020WC is on the Mariner.

The safes have always been smaller on the Mariner - hopefully an upgrade will be part of the upcoming drydock.

The crew/staff is always friendly to everyone - it is one of the things which makes Regent so special!

Have fun Jackie!

Peggy

I'm closing my eyes now and pretending that I'm having my coffee on my Mariner veranda...or as John calls it "the porch"!

Hope you're enjoying good weather for your first sea day! Please continue to keep us all posted on what's going on!

... I have a question for posters. Is it more important to you to have a spacious suite (especially on long cruises) or more pubic areas than exist on Voyager and especially on Navigator. I'm truly interested in your responses.

We sail on the Mariner later this year (first Regent cruise), but I will say that on other lines, particularly on cruises +7 days, we much prefer more spacious accommodations. On sea days, we like to relax in our suite and enjoy the balcony, and find ourselves spending more time in the suite than lounging in public spaces (unless, of course, if we are thirsty or hungry ;) ).

RJ2002, I agree. I know as I get older (and most Regents cruisers are) we like a larger suite and like you spend more time within the suite. Younger cruisers tend to be out and about more. We cruise to enjoy the time on the ship, being everything we need isn't to far away. Touring isn't something we do a lot--some tours but when we want. We cruise Regent and "O" because of the smaller ship's, but nice suites. Could we stay in hotel, not really because it's nice to see what passes you by.....Rick

Sorry I forgot to say and it is important: We enjoy the perks, extras and the service that comes with larger suites.

Rick

I got a tour of the Mariner in Vancouver last month and booked our first Regent cruise the next day! (To be fair, the CAD at par sale had a not insignificant impact on my decision making...)

Just sent two pictures to "Z". While I have successfully used Tapatalk on my iPhone, I cannot figure it out on the iPad. Hope to take more photos with the phone.

The lecturers from PBS are amazing - the best that I have seen. Senator Barbara Boxer is onboard and was in the audience during the lecture and asked some really good questions (discussion was the Middle East). So far I am quite impressed and look forward to not only the speakers and casual get togethers but also the special performers on this cruise.

The lecture was in the Constellation Theater. This was the first time we've been in the theater in almost two years and I immediately compared it to Explorer (still our favorite ship). How nice to have no stairs to trip over (it is like a long ramp). The site lines are excellent.

Some people seem surprised that we are in a PH suite. This has been our choice of suites since 2006. However, due to upsell offers, we have stayed in the upper level suites (and for Explorer, we booked both a Grand and Master suite). We enjoy staying in suites with more than 1 bathroom but don't mind the PH suite on Mariner.

In terms of benefits in upper suites, due to our Seven Seas Society level, the only benefit is having a larger suite. I suppose that some people would think that having the ability to dine every night in a specialty restaurant is a benefit but, IMO, one dinner in each specialty restaurant is sufficient - especially on shorter cruises. Note: It is different on Oceania since we never want to dine in anything other other than the specialty restaurants.

It is a sea day so not much to report. We went to the wine tasting but only stayed about 2 minutes.

More later. Fish buffet for lunch.

So, we had dinner and are now in our suite. I tried the internet at 8:30 p.m while people were still at dinner and could not post anything on CC. It was horrible. Suddenly, in our suite, everything was great with WiFi. Wondering if crew members were online and that was the problem.

 

Dinner was delicious (great salad with stilton cheese, walnuts and butter lettuce, mushroom risotto, steamed lobster, etc.). Great service with Risky.

 

Carnevale, will check Passages to see what dancing is going on.

 

Learned a couple of interesting things at dinner. First (rumor only - not confirmed), when the Mariner starts doing world cruises in 2020 (or is it 2019?), the Voyager will be doing Alaska. Also learned that the crew is happy that "Alaska season is over". I can understand that since the ship goes back and forth to the same places all summer. Also, most of the guests are newbies and families which changes the whole "Regent Experience". This cruise has a lot of Platinum and Titanium guests and the crew is happy to see familiar faces (not trying to imply that the crew does not enjoy the new guests and families -- just that it is nice to see their "extended family)".

 

Many crew members were on Explorer when we were onboard and it is great to see them on the Mariner. Some of them are hoping to be transferred to the Voyager next year for "Asian season since the ship makes stops in their home towns.

 

"Z", will try tapatalk tomorrow (although it may be the wrong day to test it since it is a sea day). If I fail, I may come begging again.

 

As mentioned, we love the layout of the living room in the PH suite but find everything else in the suites to be "mini". For instance, on Explorer, I can throw my medium size handbag in the safe, my DH's wallet and passport and still have room. On Mariner, it fits my DH's wallet, my wallet and an envelope ...... that's it! And, the bathroom and closet is small (compared to the Voyager, Navigator and the concierge and "F" suites on Explorer). While the public spaces on Mariner are lovely, it will never be our favorite ship.

 

So, rather than just babbling, I have a question for posters. Is it more important to you to have a spacious suite (especially on long cruises) or more pubic areas than exist on Voyager and especially on Navigator. I'm truly interested in your responses.

 

Think I need to relax for a while. Although we didn't travel great distances as some people have (only 50 miles), the mess in Vancouver was exhausting. I could not help but think that some people would blame Regent for the checking in mess, customs, immigration, etc. even though they have absolutely nothing to do with it. This brings me to another question. Is it easier to board in Miami or Los Angeles? Tomorrow at 3:00 Pacific time we will be booking a cruise for 2020 that either goes from L.A to Miami or Miami to L. A.

 

Thanks for any responses!

The day we boarded our ship in Los Angeles for a quick "local cruise" to Mexico on the Star Princess last spring, it was the only one at the older terminal and things went relatively smoothly. That said, none of the hotel choices near the port are particularly good, which doesn't bode well for whatever Regent's choice would be. And assuming you'd just take the credit and stay elsewhere, it would be a forty minute drive or longer.

I'd start off in Miami. The port is easier to get to and I think it would be a more fun and festive departure point. And I'd rather have a longer flight pre-cruise than post cruise.

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The day we boarded our ship in Los Angeles for a quick "local cruise" to Mexico on the Star Princess last spring, it was the only one at the older terminal and things went relatively smoothly. That said, none of the hotel choices near the port are particularly good, which doesn't bode well for whatever Regent's choice would be. And assuming you'd just take the credit and stay elsewhere, it would be a forty minute drive or longer.

 

I'd start off in Miami. The port is easier to get to and I think it would be a more fun and festive departure point. And I'd rather have a longer flight pre-cruise than post cruise.

 

 

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Thanks Paul! We have family in L.A. and I was raised there. For the most part I would rather be anywhere on earth other than there. OTOH, if we book L.A. to Miami there is a $500 OBC from our TA. I know that we don't like disembarking in Miami so it isn't an easy decision. Will try to find out if either cruise has a Seven Seas Society discount.

In terms of the fights, Miami is the longest fight (from Vancouver) and there are no non-stops. We can go non-stop from Los Angeles (we will do our own air on whichever cruise we decide upon because Regent's uncharge for Business/First Class within the U.S. is extremely expensive.

Back to the Mariner. The Captain says that we may have gale force winds tonight and 100% chance of rain. Apparently the weather has not been optimal all summer. This won't affect us since we've been here before and will likely still be able to do the Crab Feast (the only excursion we are truly interested in) - even in the rain. Unless it starts snowing, we will be able to see Hubbard Glacier which is our favorite!

Internet is great - even on a sea day. Last night was apparently unusual. I do know that we will not be able to post when we go to Hubbard Glacier -- unless things have changed from the last time we were in Alaska.

In addition to lots of PBS folks onboard, there is someone from Corporate. He was on the christening cruise but I don't really know him. If the opportunity presents itself, we'll chat. I did overhear him saying that La Veranda will look like the one on Voyager. However, when we were on Explorer, a NCLH Board of Directors member (whom we know from previous cruises) said that La Veranda on Mariner will look like Explorer (without the open kitchen). Unfortunately, we do not have anything booked on Mariner after the $50M refurbishment (at least not through the first quarter of 2020).

So, rather than just babbling, I have a question for posters. Is it more important to you to have a spacious suite (especially on long cruises) or more pubic areas than exist on Voyager and especially on Navigator. I'm truly interested in your responses.

We like good public areas, and only need sufficient room in the suite such that we do not trip over each other.

Our ship and suite preferences are in order as below:

1. Mariner; Penthouse C; shower only. We still put Mariner first as we like the Pool Deck layout, Mariner Lounge and Horizon Lounge. Should be even better after refurb from the visualisations we have seen.
   
2. Explorer; D, E or F; a very close second. Plenty of positives but enough negatives to push the ship out of pole position
   
3. Voyager; G or PHA; unfortunately all the basic suite grades were spoilt during refurb by removal of storage (insufficient drawers, cupboards & shelves - especially for a long cruise)
   

Cannot rate Navigator as we have never sailed on her and would only give her a try if a very special itinerary came up.

Glad to hear you are enjoying your cruise on Mariner. How are you finding the combo tub/shower? Not a good arrangement IMO - be very careful especially if you encounter bad weather.

Interesting that Regent do not handle check-in at the port of Vancouver. Sounds very frustrating.

Thanks Paul! We have family in L.A. and I was raised there. For the most part I would rather be anywhere on earth other than there. OTOH, if we book L.A. to Miami there is a $500 OBC from our TA. I know that we don't like disembarking in Miami so it isn't an easy decision. Will try to find out if either cruise has a Seven Seas Society discount.

 

In terms of the fights, Miami is the longest fight (from Vancouver) and there are no non-stops. We can go non-stop from Los Angeles (we will do our own air on whichever cruise we decide upon because Regent's uncharge for Business/First Class within the U.S. is extremely expensive.

 

Back to the Mariner. The Captain says that we may have gale force winds tonight and 100% chance of rain. Apparently the weather has not been optimal all summer. This won't affect us since we've been here before and will likely still be able to do the Crab Feast (the only excursion we are truly interested in) - even in the rain. Unless it starts snowing, we will be able to see Hubbard Glacier which is our favorite!

 

Internet is great - even on a sea day. Last night was apparently unusual. I do know that we will not be able to post when we go to Hubbard Glacier -- unless things have changed from the last time we were in Alaska.

 

In addition to lots of PBS folks onboard, there is someone from Corporate. He was on the christening cruise but I don't really know him. If the opportunity presents itself, we'll chat. I did overhear him saying that La Veranda will look like the one on Voyager. However, when we were on Explorer, a NCLH Board of Directors member (whom we know from previous cruises) said that La Veranda on Mariner will look like Explorer (without the open kitchen). Unfortunately, we do not have anything booked on Mariner after the $50M refurbishment (at least not through the first quarter of 2020).

Glad to hear you don't really care about the rain. Neither do we! We get so much sun down here in LA that it's usually a welcome change. It rained all day on our golden circle tour in Iceland, but that only added to the forbidding, exotic severity of the place. Just so long as it's not a monsoon, right?

We're doing Alaska next summer. Where is the crab feast? I remember some crab restaurant on the dock in Juneau which had a long line, but it seemed too touristy. Does Regent use a local establishment we can try as well?

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Reply to suites, would place in this order

1- Mariner especially PH C like the forward suite, separate shower, space and quiet location 902 been in 3 times. Also the observation lounge and outside viewing area.

2- Voyager ,again in an aft PH C . Lots of space, no issue under la veranda and 1055 has a massive wrap around balcony with side / back views. Like the public spaces, lounges, surprised the observation lounge does not have the map location displayed, also good on top deck for viewing. Don't like the new Chartreuse menu on here this summer CR much better.

3- Navigator, like the suites, but lack of space is the issue, no real lounge space apart from Galileo, lack of front observation lounge and area around coffee café too cramped. Equally la veranda is not easily able to cope at busy breakfasts

4 -Explorer, booked and due to go in spring 18, booked in a concierge D on deck 10, so give judgment then.

So glad that you have the opportunity to be on an "Artful Traveler" cruise. Our cruise in the middle east last year was one of these. We had filmmakers and a lyricist on board with us and we could sign up for cocktail parties and dinners with them. It was very interesting - lively conversation and a lot of laughter! It really was one of the best cruises we have ever taken?

forgap, this is definitely one of our better cruises - made so by the PBS group as well as the current crew on the Mariner. While I am not making any political statement, I am happy to see a Senator onboard - just to hear the questions from the passengers and what is going on in Washington from her point of view. Senator Boxer will do a presentation "The Art of Tough" on September 5th in the morning. At 4:00 pm. there will be "Cocktails and Conversation with the Senator in the Observation Lounge.

One event that I'm particularly interested in is the screening of "Into the Amazon". This has yet to be shown on PBS but will in the future. Since we go to the Amazon on Mariner in November, this is a must-see.

In other news....... all of our excursions in Alaska, Oregon and Victoria will be meeting "On The Pier - Ashore" - not in the theater. Huge congratulations to Regent for putting this in place. I also notice that, when there are multiple groups going on the same excursion, there is more time between departures - this is a great thing IMO..

Service onboard has been as good as it could be -- excellent! We have not attended a show yet but hope to go to a new one put on by the Mariner singers and dancers.

One nit-picky thing that will likely only be noticed by British guests (like my DH). They changed the beans that they serve in the morning (which have always been out of cans). They now add garlic pieces - not chopped finely - and sauce them with the beans making them inedible (at least in my DH's opinion). Wanting to please their guests, Francisco (Maitre 'd in La Veranda) arranged for him to have "plain" beans in the morning. Even with this change, the beans are not as good as they were.

Another food comment - IOO (in our opinion), the lobster tails on the everyday menu in CR are far superior to the special "steamed Maine lobster" served last night. Food is subjective and we are finding most of the food to be great - just a couple of things that we did not care for.

Service in CR is excellent - even after the Captain's Reception (note: we got there at 6:30 p.m. so our experience may be different that the crowd that arrives at 7:00 p.m.). Another reason to find a server and stick with them is that they remember your preferences. My DH does not like red or green bell peppers in his food. So, when we ordered a salad and were not aware that there were red peppers in it, Risky made sure that his salad did not have the peppers. Such attention to detail is appreciated.

In 45 minutes we leave for the Crab Feast. As mentioned on another thread a couple of months ago, we have done the Regent's Choice excursion where you fly to the location of the Crab Feast and sit in a separate room from the others, this time we are doing the included excursion. It will be interesting to see the difference (besides for the fact that we will be paying for wine if we wish to have it). We are in Ketchikan and it is not raining (very unusual). Temperatures are in the 50's which is perfect for me.

Today I will start taking photos with my phone so I can post a few. Hoping that "Z" got my email with the suite photos. If not, I'll take photos with the phone and hopefully will be able to post them.

Before I go I need to talk about Wi-Fi - it has been amazingly good. The interesting thing is that it is much better in our suite than it is in the computer room. Last night, after dinner, I tried posting downstairs and couldn't even get into Cruse Critic. After returning to our suite, I had no difficulty connecting. This is the case with both my laptop and iPad. I've also used the iPad in La Veranda with no difficulty.

Bye for now:wine-glass::wine-glass:

P.S. - GrJ Berkshire, thank you for your assessment of the suites. Agree completely about the PH suites on Mariner. They are the best PH suites in the fleet. While we no longer sail on Navigator, their PH suites are the same size and configuration as lower category suites. On Explorer we prefer the concierge suites over the PH suites.

Sounds like you're having a great time so far! I'm sure it'll continue. Food is sounding good as well. I'll be interested to hear your report about the crab fest....hey, crab in Alaska should be about as good as it gets! I need you to take notes on " Into the Amazon" !!! Also need a bar/bartender/drink report....don't shirk your assignment! (giggle!!!)