Regent Policies, Rules & Guidelines

There are some issues that come up fairly frequently (e.g. dress code & sun loungers) where guests are obviously upset that staff on-board are not enforcing the 'rules'

Selfish passengers are ignoring rules & guidelines which, at the very least, annoys others and spoils the Regent experience

For what it is worth, let me suggest some ways in which Regent might improve matters:

1. Review each rule to ensure that they are all simple, clear, unambiguous, reasonable and enforceable e.g. to pick on an emotive subject, the definition of jeans is: "hard-wearing casual trousers made of denim or other cotton fabric". Is this unambiguous?
   
2. Be clear on what are the 'rules' and what is 'guidance'
   
3. Make sure that there is clarity on why each rule is in place
   
4. Ensure that all guests are fully aware of the rules, why they are in place and what sanctions may be imposed:
   
   • Raise the profile of the FAQs on the website; it is obvious from questions on this Board that many do not realise they are there
     
   • Include the rules and guidance with the pre-vacation documents and with the final cruise documents
     
   • On-board reminders - Passages, in-cabin handout and on the daily TV Programme; use humour, e.g. cartoons, to get guests' attention
     

[*]Ensure that all staff & crew are fully aware of the rules, why they are in place and what sanctions may be imposed

[*]Enforcement:

• Senior staff to take responsibility, rotating the enforcement duties. Training may be required in how to interact with guests on these sensitive issues
  
• Do not just delegate enforcement to junior staff & crew (on our recent Voyager cruise it was the Assistant F&B Manager who was seen enforcing the sun-bed rule)
  
• Enforcement to be regular and consistent
  

The difficulty will be for Regent to get the message across without looking as though they are treating their guests as 5 year olds...............even though some may behave as such

There will also always be some whose attitude is that the rules are there for everyone else but themselves........."I have paid big bucks for this cruise and therefore I will do as I please"............but that is no reason for Regent to abandon the rules or to be reticent in their enforcement

Flossie a good thread to start given the amount of issues raised in the past few days.

Agree with you that some people think they are above and beyond the rules , that happens in all walks of life and situations.

It's just a pity that a thread like this is discussing problems that really should be dealt with on board at the time by the management who are responsible in that particular area. It does reflect badly to Regent that they are not dealing with this in the appropriate manner befitting of the luxury brand that they are? Jean.

Thank you for taking the time to start this thread. As expected, I have a few comments: - Many people do not read the Regent website (as evidenced by the number of questions that we all answer on CC that is clearly stated on the website.

- IMO, "rules" are something that, if violated, could be cause for a passenger to be debarked from the ship (smoking is a good example). The rest of the items are policies that are need to be enforced but will not cause a passenger to be kicked off of the ship. Also, keep in mind that "rules", "policies" and "guidance" (aka guidelines) are not always understood by everyone in terms of their meaning.You gave a good example of something that I did not understand (and I am saying this respectfully and honestly)..... the definition you posted of "trousers"/jeans used the term "hard-working". This is not a definition that I have seen, read or heard relating to anything other than a living being. More importantly, I would not necessarily know what the reference means. Some men's slacks are made of cotton, are considered "casual" trousers and are fine under Regent's Dress Code (an example of this would be Dockers).

- In terms of notification, Regent already states in Passages every day that jeans are not allowed. IMO, people know what jeans are and choose to try to get around the policy - sometimes they are successful and sometimes they are not.

- What "sanctions" are you suggesting be imposed (other than going to your suite to change or having your items removed from your chaise lounge)?

As an aside, I consider the Assistant F&B Director to be a high and respected position. Crew members of this status can only be in one place at one time. In terms of Dress Code, there are multiple restaurants and lounges. IMO, the Maitre d', Restaurant Manager and even Section Managers should be able to enforce the Dress Code or Chaise Lounge issues. Should there be a problem, it could be escalated.

This thread is a good start and will likely be read by Regent management. Looking forward to hearing the opinions of others as well.

Not this again? Not a good or clear definition of jeans, for a start. And who cares, as long as the pants are clean and neat. Really.

liptastic & TC2, Thanks for your support. The idea behind starting the thread was to try to gather everyone's constructive thoughts as to how Regent might 'educate' some of their guests to have more thought for others, and thereby improve the Regent experience for all

One area I have not tried to address is whether, or how, other guests should try to educate/shame selfish guests into altering their behaviour; perhaps others may have some thoughts

The standard definition for jeans uses the term 'hard-wearing' not hard-working'; you may have mis-read

I agree that people do not necessarily read the Regent website, but IMO the FAQ section is particularly easy to overlook. I suggested to Mike Moore some time ago that they might consider putting a bold link at the top of the web page rather than burying the link in the footer

I also agree that 'sanctions' is a very difficult area; maybe we just need to stick with education/coaching/shaming

However, Regent might consider, when reminding guests of the rules & guidelines, adding a footnote to the effect that "Challenging or abusing crew members who are applying the ship's rules and guidelines will not be tolerated"

(Keel-hauling did come to mind for some people, but might be frowned upon :eek:)

The point about my referring to the Assistant F&B Manager was that I saw a senior staff member applying the rule - she did not just delegate the issue. She also made sure she did it in a very visible manner which helped spread the message

Yes, unfortunately some people are either clueless, dopes, are seeking attention or are trying to see what they can get away with.

At the Captain's farewell party, which also happened to be an optional formal night, on the recent Explorer LA/MIA voyage a man in gym shorts, a tee shirt and tennis shoes entered the Constellation Theater. His wife was in a tee shirt and washing-the-car level jeans. I said something to the attendant at the door(likely a member of the entertainment troupe)about the way the couple was dressed and got a nervous chuckle as an answer. As the program was about to begin we took our seats rather than look for a staff member in charge to report the situation.

I look at things this way. By signing on to a cruise you're making a ''social compact" to act in good faith as to the published/accepted/stated norms on board. If one does not like the "rules, guidelines, etc., then go elsewhere, stay home or work to change the part of the "system" you disagree with. Ignorance is not an excuse.

Not this again? Not a good or clear definition of jeans, for a start. And who cares, as long as the pants are clean and neat. Really.

You may have missed my point; apologies if I was not clear

The definition of jeans I quoted is the Dictionary definition. This lack of clarity leads to the debate over what is acceptable under Regent's guidelines

Personally I agree that all I want to see in the evening is everyone looking smart - no shorts, T shirts or hats - and all slacks, shirts, blouses and dresses neatly pressed

However, I hope this thread does not just turn into a debate about the rights & wrongs of Regent's dress code. It is meant to be about how to enforce/educate guests in thinking about others when they are on-board

Not this again? Not a good or clear definition of jeans, for a start. And who cares, as long as the pants are clean and neat. Really.

I really hope this discussion of enforcing Regent's policies onboard doesn't get derailed into a discussion of whether jeans are really jeans and whether the policy of no jeans is a good one. There have been plenty of those discussions in other threads.

I would hope the discussion can stay on the topic of enforcement of policies (or rules or guidelines, or whatever one wants to call them).

I think something that may help is not counting on the website to educate all of your customers. Perhaps Regent needs to include something in the cruise docs that re-states the policies that are most contentious and letting everyone know what's acceptable and what's not.Seems as if the most prevalent issues are dress code, pool chair hogs, and smoking - maybe if Regent included a document that addressed the most common infractions and what the enforcement would be, it would help get the word out. Something basic, such as "Persons in violation of the dress code will not be granted entry into dining venues, lounges, theaters, or any other public spaces. Guests in violation will be asked to return to their cabin to change into appropriate attire." Or "Chaise loungers may not be reserved or held for more than 30 minutes. Guests who leave personal property on loungers in excess of 30 minutes will have their items removed to free up space for other guests."

Ideally I'd like to see it as part of the cruise agreement that you'd need to sign and acknowledge, but I don't see that happening...

(Although I *did* like the idea of keelhauling certain people :D )

Sorry for misreading "hard-wearing". While it is descriptive of jeans, it could also describe some other long wearing slacks/trousers/pants. The U.S. dictionary definitions also did not seem specific enough. "Twilled cotton" was mentioned in several definitions but I'm not sure if other slacks are not also twilled cotton. So, I looked up "denim". Wikipedia seemed to have a fairly good description https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Denim but I'm not sure how one would put it in a simple sentence or paragraph.

Wendy, as you may recall, it was a big deal when Regent changed their Dress Code from "Formal", Informal" and "Country Club Casual". They polled Cruise Critic, their customers and other cruise groups before making the change. As has been said, we are not trying to debate or change the policy but do want to see it enforced. For better or worse, "jeans" needs to be defined before it can be enforced.

Regarding the chaise lounges, the only way to enforce it is to enforce it. Items need to be removed after 30 minutes (as stated in the policy and hopefully will be repeated daily in Passages). If someone is in what a passenger thinks is "their lounge", they need to be referred to a crew member. There may be a learning curve on each cruise for a while. However, once passengers know that they cannot reserve lounges, it should stop. It is pretty obvious when you see 80% of the lounges with someone's belongings on it and only 1 or 2 people in the pool that someone is trying to hog a lounge.

I really like Saildude16's last paragraph and hope that it is okay to repeat it: "I look at things this way. By signing on to a cruise you're making a ''social compact" to act in good faith as to the published/accepted/stated norms on board. If one does not like the "rules, guidelines, etc., then go elsewhere, stay home or work to change the part of the "system" you disagree with. Ignorance is not an excuse."

P.S. Off topic - I <3 the new "Smilies" :evilsmile:

NOTE: While Cruise Critic is working on their website, little things seem to be going on. At the moment, it is removing my paragraphs. I tried "fixing" it four times". Hoping it is working.

Flossie a good thread to start given the amount of issues raised in the past few days.

Agree with you that some people think they are above and beyond the rules , that happens in all walks of life and situations.

It's just a pity that a thread like this is discussing problems that really should be dealt with on board at the time by the management who are responsible in that particular area. It does reflect badly to Regent that they are not dealing with this in the appropriate manner befitting of the luxury brand that they are? Jean.

Greetings, Flossie. I enjoy your posts. You know, I just received my documents, and I noticed that the note about the Pool Deck makes no mention of time constraints when leaving unattended lounges. By contrast, the Dress Code note is quite specific.

As far as the obnoxiously entitled few are concerned, these people rely on bullying to get what they want. If they go too far when confronted, Captain Whoever can remove them at the next port. We have been on ships when this happened. Remarkable effect.

Mary

Warburg - I agree enthusiastically with Bill that there should be provided by Regent much more clear statements of such policies/rules/whatevers in the cruise docs so that passengers are informed of them in advance. You note that the Dress Code was quite specifically described in your docs. Could you be so kind as to let us know where that information was placed in the docs? I do not recall seeing anything like that in the docs that we received before our recent Voyager cruise in December. (Or perhaps I tossed that page when I chucked out the lovely pleather tablet case in which the docs were secreted by Regent.)

Liptastic - Where do you go for your evening meals when the Regent rules bar Jeans from the dining room? ;)

I will (try) to restrict comments to this Thread. Bear with me. First--to answer the eternal question as to evening, post-1800H dining options should one want to remain in cut-offs, tee shirt, and baseball cap, turned backward. Your suite. On Regent, the full Compass Rose menu can be ordered, course-by-course. No need to fish from the veranda.

On a more-serious note. Folks who have sailed long-enough will have experienced almost-everything from hurricanes, to civil unrest at ports-of-call which cancels those stops, to being the target of an attempted pirate assault.

An earlier comment related to keelhauling the offending passenger. Oh, so-tempting. However, and this is not a joke: The Captain is really the boss. He/she has extraordinary powers while at-sea. Specific example, which probably does not rise to the level of enforcing such action for violating a dress code or hogging a lounge chair.

My wife and I were on Seabourn's Legend in late 1998 on a Tahiti-Costa Rica extended crossing. So-extended that Legend, literally, had to limp into Punta Arenas under reduced power. Almost ran out of fuel. Here is what happened three days previously. Still in the Pacific Ocean. Full disclosure: did not witness the actual incident, as it occurred in the Casino, late in the evening. We were sleeping. However, many other passengers did. Two guys, obviously under the influence, got into a knock-down, drag-out fight with another passenger requiring Crew intervention.

We were initially informed of the situation the next morning--at about 1100H, over the ship's intercom. The Captain advised there had been "an incident" in the Casino the previous evening. He apologized for whatever strain or concern this might have caused passengers. He also stated two passengers had been "confined for the remainder of the cruise to their cabin." He also stated these individuals would be barred from any future sailing onboard any Seabourn ship. There was also a follow-up notice in the daily newsletter to this effect. The Captain advised he would welcome the opportunity to meet with any passenger who witnessed the event.

O.K. Given the reality of where and when this event happened, there was no way those miscreants could have been debarked prior to the end of the cruise. They remained confined to their suite.

Postscript. My wife and I spent two days following arrival in Costa Rica touring that country. So--we then boarded a flight back to the United States. Sitting in the next row--and with carry-on bags indicating being onboard Seabourn--were two individuals. We recalled seeing both earlier on the ship--not in the Casino. One had a bandaged arm; a patch over an eye; and another over the nose. Don't know if this individual was the "winner", or the looser. It was comforting to note those folks would not be our shipmates on any future Seabourn cruise. And--we have done several such subsequent cruises.

Any cruise line does have an ultimate sanction to refuse embarking a previous offender from a future cruise. Given realities, it is doubtful such would be applied for a dress code, smoking, or deck lounge violation. However--

By chance: do any other of our brethren recall that 1998 incident?

GoARMY!

Point:

Thank you for your service!

I spent 6 years in the Army back in the 70's

I truly enjoyed your comments! Perhaps service to your country gives a certain perspective that is hard to understand to those that have not served!

Go Army!

OK – here is a post that will no doubt be unpopular with some, but here goes ! …

I have read this thread with interest, as Mrs Machotspur andI are embarking our first Regent cruise in just over a week. Having cruised many times with Silversea and Seabourn the subject of Dress Code particularly is quite frequently brought up on these boards – and onboard.

It is interesting to read the language used in some of the posts here. The words such as ‘rules/ guidelines/policies’ do not appear anywhere in the Regent Welcome Aboard booklet that has been sent to me in advance of our cruise.

The section on dress code uses ‘appropriate/inappropriate’to try and gently guide people to dressing in the manner described. Understandably they stop short of laying down rules when people are on a vacation. I suspect that this more gentle non dictatorial approach feeds through to the officers and crew.

I can fully understand if some people, on reading the section on the Welcome Aboard booklet that I refer to, may not receive the comments as a ‘rule’, but more a ‘nice to know’. And therein lies the ‘problem’. The cruise company are understandably not laying down hard rules as to how they expect their guests to dress, in the same way that rarely does a top end restaurant give dress rules these days. Even in the more formal top end European restaurants the way people dress is unrecognisable to that of just 10-15 years ago.

I suggest that there is zero chance of the cruise companies taking a more structured, rule driven approach to this. The reality is that the world of leisure is becoming far less formal across the world and Regent et al realise that if they are going to attract those with a more contemporary approach - the emerging majority - they cannot hang on to requirements of the past. (As is occasionally said, the tiny proportion of posters on CruiseCritic are probably not representative of the cruising public as a whole).To close I again respectfully suggest that those that wish for a cruise company to implement and police more rules and regulations around things like dress code will be disappointed.

Now when it comes to hogging sun loungers, that’s a different issue all together :mad:- make the offenders walk the plank ;) NB - For what it’s worth I am someone who actually prefers the certainty of ‘rules’ when it comes to dress code – makes it easier if someone else decides what I need to pack/wear !

I started a thread a few days ago about reserving Sunbeds, which had most people in agreement that Regent are not applying the rules.Following this there was a "reminder" of the rules in Passages, sadly it was on a Port Day edition......Today is a Sea Day, our last day on this trip, it will be interesting to see if policy is observed.

I'm not holding my breath though, I had to do enough of that on our "Nightmare from Hell" tender crossing in Grand Cayman yesterday, "highlights of which included 3 aborted attempts to board Explorer, no sick bags/cups, a beaching, involvement from Police and Port Authorities and a 20 minute journey back from shore to ship that took 3h40m 😖.

Returning to the subject, on our first day on board, after the sailaway we went into the Observation Lounge still in shorts and T-shirts, completely oblivious to the time (6:10pm), at the bar we were very politely advised that we were not following dress policy for the time of day 😳.

Chastened we hastened back to our suite to correct our misdemeanour, order restored.

The rules CAN be applied, they just often are not 😡

Lorna, so sorry to hear you were one of the many affected by the rough seas tender disaster yesterday. We stayed onboard and were watching the tenders attempt to connect with the ship. We have decided that when a tender is involved we will simply skip a port. as to the sun beds, it will be interesting to see how it goes today since there have been notices regarding this for the past two days in the nightly newsletter.

For what it’s worth I am someone who actually prefers the certainty of ‘rules’ when it comes to dress code – makes it easier if someone else decides what I need to pack/wear !

Hey, me too! Maybe having spent 20 years in uniform I have a different perspective on dress and appearance, who knows? (That would be GOAIRFORCE, by the way. :D)

I also wholeheartedly agree with your assessment of the decline of dapper dress, or the 'casualizing of the world'. While I often wear shorts and t-shirts around town, if I'm going to dinner or a show or somewhere more public than my front porch, I'm dressed appropriately. Unfortunately, that's not the way most people roll these days. And I see it getting worse before it gets better (or is that just the Grumpy Old Man in me sneaking out?)

From the sound of things here, it really does seem like Regent is contributing to the problem by not properly communicating their dress code and other policies. Perhaps it's more a matter of ignorance rather than willful disobedience?

In my post on this matter the last sentence was: " Ignorance is no excuse". To that I had meant to add "...especially since dress after 6 p.m. is covered daily on the ship's TV broadcast and in Passages".

Well, as stated previously, this thread is not about changing Regent's dress code but rather communication and enforcement. It may help people new to Regent to know that Regent was the first luxury cruise line to change to the current, more relaxed, dress code. It took at least a couple of years for Seabourn and Crystal to follow suit (no pun intended) and Silversea still resists the change. Regent is typically in the forefront in terms of changes and in the opinion of most, the current dress code is just fine.

What we truly need is a way for Regent to enforce their existing dress code without Regent getting passengers angry. As I've posted a few times, there is a reminder about jeans, t-shirts, etc. every single day in Passages. If passengers do not read the website, the written material given to them or Passages, perhaps enforcement with the possibility of upsetting them is the only thing to do.

Onto the chaise lounge topic again, I was totally blown away to read that a G.M. would not address the issue with his staff. As much as I love Regent, I find this totally unacceptable.

It will be interesting to see what the experience is regarding these issues on the upcoming Explorer TA from Miami through Barcelona to Venice since on the latter segment there will be a number of senior Regent officials as part of the 25h Anniversary celebration. Between what they observe and/or hear from concerned passengers, they might understand that more reminders (why not daily in Passages?) and staff efforts (love the "your items felt lonely and we've moved them to have company" approach) may be necessary.

Wendy,

You may have missed my point; apologies if I was not clear

 

The definition of jeans I quoted is the Dictionary definition. This lack of clarity leads to the debate over what is acceptable under Regent's guidelines

 

Personally I agree that all I want to see in the evening is everyone looking smart - no shorts, T shirts or hats - and all slacks, shirts, blouses and dresses neatly pressed

 

...

Thanks for the clarification Flossie. Personally the only thing here that concerns me at all is the saved loungers on the pool deck. Let me say that this was not a huge problem on our recent cruise, although I admit that loungers in the shade were at a premium because of the tropical sun.

Well, that's a lie really. The jeans thing does concern me, but I'm not willing to argue the point any more.

Warburg - I agree enthusiastically with Bill that there should be provided by Regent much more clear statements of such policies/rules/whatevers in the cruise docs so that passengers are informed of them in advance. You note that the Dress Code was quite specifically described in your docs. Could you be so kind as to let us know where that information was placed in the docs? I do not recall seeing anything like that in the docs that we received before our recent Voyager cruise in December. (Or perhaps I tossed that page when I chucked out the lovely pleather tablet case in which the docs were secreted by Regent.)

 

Liptastic - Where do you go for your evening meals when the Regent rules bar Jeans from the dining room? ;)

Freddie not sure why you think I wear jeans of an evening on board the ship? I didn't say that I wore jeans, actually I enjoy dressing up very much for the evening, so I am not sure how you thought otherwise. It's quite funny my husband is the one managing the mega luggage with my dresses, but of course he won't complain.;):D

Not this again? Not a good or clear definition of jeans, for a start. And who cares, as long as the pants are clean and neat. Really.

Wendy, I have followed your balanced posts for a long time. Currently we are on the Crystal Serenity cruising Antarctica and we have seen dressy black jeans worn and nobody blinks an eye. I have a Versace courtier pair of jeans that are not denim but the label says jeans. Crystal has the same dress code as Regent only two BTO black tie optional or casual. Port days and overnights even after 6PM who cares as like you said they are clean no holes. For Pete sake it is only a fabric.

When I first sailed Crystal and Regent formal dress was expected and you saw the gowns on the ladies and many tuxedos on formal nights. Now younger people are cruising on luxury lines and they are changing the dress codes but they have the money and are professionals and they are not Carnival cruisers they look very nice.

If following the rules were important to corporate management, the rules would be enforced.