Didogaribaldi

Depending on how specific your request is (decaf cups shouldn't be a problem), I would submit the request in advance. It might take some time to find the products, so with a timely request you'll be sure to find them in your suite when you arrive.

To be honest, I felt a little uncomfortable in my sparkly dress and high heels. But then again, there is no such thing as being overdressed, so we dressed up anyway. 

Are people dressing up more on cruises with a dedicated formal night?  We're not very experienced cruisers, so I was wondering. 

We just returned from a Mediterranean cruise with the Voyager and the dress code was a joke. In the Compass Rose (at dinnertime) we saw flipflops, plain white shirts, outdoor clothing, sneakers, casual jeans etc. Very few (elegant) dresses or sports jackets. This was a huge disappointment, for us dressing up (at least a bit) is part of the experience, but apparently most people just don't care.

We just got off the Voyager in Istanbul and La Veranda and the Coffee Connection are (for the moment) no longer self service. The staff worked extremely hard, they really do everything to keep the cabins and restaurants clean. 

We didn't like Istanbul at all by the way. It might have been better with a local guide, but we decided to explore the city on our own. It's really one big tourist trap, especially the old town. 

Here's my 2 cents regarding the wine. We made our frist cruise (ever) this August with Regent. We went to Alaska and we really enjoyed the excursions. Most guides were locals and worked for a family business. We think they did a great job, but we can't compare with other cruise lines, so our experience is probably not very helpful.

I was slightly dissapointed with the wines. There were lots of European wines (French and Italian). We live in Europe but we never drink French or Italian wines. White wines from Germany are great, reds from Austria and Spain as well, but in general we prefer the full bodied wines from the new world, especially from Washington State. Unfortunately, they are hard to find. You can taste as many wines as you like and we found a few wines we liked very much and we had them during the entire cruise. I'm pretty sure you'll find something you like!

Hopefully I'm not too late...I stayed at the Chesterfield Mayfair a few times and I loved it. Very British, it's in a quiet street, breakfast is great, good price for this location and the underground will take you directly to Heatrow. Hotels on the south bank are less expensive but when you stay close to Waterloo Station, you'll be close to everything. I hope this is helpful.

I'm back home after an amazing holiday in Alaska, including a cruise with the Regent Mariner. This was my first cruise and I cannot find the words to describe how much I enjoyed it. The staff, the food (absolutely wonderful for vegetarians and vegans), the restaurants, the fellow passengers, the entertainment, the excursions... I felt like royalty! I was slightly dissapointed with the way people complied with the dress code. It was more casual than elegant casual and even after 6 pm there were (dark) jeans, slippers and shirts all over the place. I dressed up anyway and I loved it. There is no such thing as being overdressed, right? I loved everything about the cruise, so our next cruise will be with Regent again! Hope to meet you someday!