RetiredandTravel

Its my understanding (from CC) that some of the rooms have a vibration issue so I'd check to make sure I didn't book one of those rooms. (I sent this before you posted the rooms info)

Great advice from mrlevin. At a minimum I would have a full day private tour for Kyoto. When we visited the Hiroshima museum (must see) it was VERY crowded. All the tour buses and school kids descended on the museum at the same time and people were 4-5 deep through most of the museum. If we did it again we might hire a 1/2 day private tour that beat the crowds. We also enjoyed Kagoshima, especially the gardens.

Our Japan cruise on Regent (Mariner) was in 2019. Our included pre cruise tours were also very chaotic. Its my understanding that Regents "farms" out the pre cruise logistics and the people in charge although very nice were very poorly organized. Every tour guide (and bus driver) we had on Regent in Japan was exceptional. They spoke perfect English, were funny, professional and well prepared. Most of the guides were retired women (one American man) and again they were great. The buses were 90-100% full which didn't bother us but some felt they were too crowded. The only issue was some venues were so crowded that we lost our guide. So I wouldn't totally discount the impact that Covid has had.

Its really not that complicated. We got a Superior Veranda (with assigned room) at the cost of a Panorama. Two category upgrade. We also have a $1000 OBC + AMEX $300 OBC. Now if they play with the prices of the lower level rooms I don't know but the prices we paid are much less than currently advertised with the 2 room upgrade.

My post wasn't intended to explain SSs reasoning on the "suite upgrade" offer. I just wanted to make sure fudge was aware of the pricing/refund difference between the fares. I would guess SS attaches some probability that people cancel and lose the money to calculate the PTP prices, not sure if there is an accounting difference for reporting earnings. There is also the present value of money of course.

Its my observation that david63 is correct that suite upgrade specials only apply to Door to Door fares (not Port to Port - cruise only). Its my understanding that Port to Port fares have a more restrictive payment (refund) policy. For example 15% is non refundable immediately. Attached are the payment / refund schedules for PTP & DTD. Of course check with your TA or SS for exact details. https://www.silversea.com/terms-and-conditions.html It looks like the Vista suites are on deck 4 on the Muse. If you go to the cruise website for your specific cruise and find the category of room you are interested in and click on "category details" (then room location) it will show the location of the rooms.

Which cruises specifically are you looking at? Regent for example includes business class airfare and often pre/post package in Japan. People here will have a lot of knowledge. They will share it if you give them more specifics. I was a little confused with your original post, unfortunately CC doesn't give much time to edit.

No

Tokyo is a very cool modern and cultured city with great restaurants and shopping. The Japanese people are fantastic. Having said that IMO its just ok from a tourist historical basis. If you have never been to Japan I'd try to take a day trip with a private guide to Kyoto. Kyoto was the capital of Japan for a very long time, there are many great historical sites to see. Kyoto was relatively unscathed by WW2 while Tokyo took an enormous amount of damage. https://www.cnn.com/2020/03/07/asia/japan-tokyo-fire-raids-operation-meetinghouse-intl-hnk/index.html enjoy your trip

We did the Regent pre cruise Tokyo package because it was included (actually "free"). Other than some logistical issues setting up the excursions we were satisfied with the package. Agree with Deep Freeze that the Tokyo Hilton was nice but very crowded at peak times. Having said that it was a Hilton and it wasn't "luxury" and if we had to pay for the pre cruise package we would probably do it on our own (depending on the economics). Tokyo is very manageable.

An excerpt from the attached article "Tipping Private Guides and Interpreters Unlike guides in many other countries, private guides in Japan are paid quite well and generally do not depend on tips for their livelihood. However, even though in the past tipping was rarer, in recent years (thanks to Japan’s emergence as a popular destination, and the accompanying influx of tourists from around the world) it has become more common for travelers to tip guides. Tipping is not required or necessarily expected, but if you feel inspired to tip your guide it will likely be appreciated and accepted. Because there is not much of a tipping culture in Japan, how much to tip is a matter of some debate. Our recommendation is to tip from the gut: if it feels right to you, it probably is. It’s hard to go wrong, since tips aren’t really expected in the first place!" https://boutiquejapan.com/tipping-in-japan/

We tipped all the tour guides and bus drivers on the excursions in Japan. Everyone was grateful, no one insulted. They were all excellent at their jobs also.

Thanks for reporting. Have a safe and fun trip.

One would think so not many people going to sell those houses with 3% mortgages. Hope this isn't pushed too far. Got ya. So its a win if the reduced interest expense's positive impact on the stock price offsets the dilution? I'm not very familiar with RCLs bond structures. If I'm a bond holder with a 12% coupon unless I'm obligated I'm only going to be interested in selling at the yield that RCL bonds are currently trading at (premium over 100). If the bonds aren't callable or maturing can RCL just pay back the bonds at par or would they have to entice the bondholders to sell with paying a premium, any differential between the yield currently and the 12% coupon? RCL did issue a private convert a while back. Hopefully they can soon just pay off some debt without refinancing. Interesting conversation. https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/royal-caribbean-group-announces-pricing-and-upsizing-of-1-billion-senior-convertible-notes-offering-to-refinance-existing-convertible-notes-301597445.html

We tip based on the tipping etiquette in the country we are visiting. Tips are included on these cruises so its totally up to the discretion of the individual. We would not tip in a manner that would garner some type of favor like the maitre de to get a better table. Considering that many cruise employees annual compensation is possibly equal to or less than what we spend on a 14 day cruise we tend to tip. That's our choice and we generally tip at the end. This isn't our practice but I don't see how tipping a porter or bar tender on an all inclusive ship is a form of bribery. Maybe the bartender gets your drink faster? Back in the day on our first Regent cruise tipping wasn't allowed you gave the money to a fund. I think this is the best policy and the cruise line should encourage it for good performance.

No FT subscription? no problem. I wish CC gave more time to edit. https://www.federalreserve.gov/econres/notes/feds-notes/recent-developments-in-hedge-funds-treasury-futures-and-repo-positions-20230830.html

How would they take out the debt with 10-12% coupon? How is diluting the stock a win for existing share holders? I'm wondering how impactful hedge funds are in recent US Treasury yield movements. https://www.reuters.com/markets/us/fed-economists-sound-alarm-hedge-funds-gaming-us-treasuries-2023-09-13/ https://www.ft.com/content/b51edf3e-3d2b-4963-9ae7-92bc69992e24 The Oracle of Columbus strikes again HPD that oil chart looks pretty similar to the 10 year note. (except this AM)

Smart move. The extra internet is nice also. have fun

People who are in Concierge suites or higher and are Regent Society Silver (21+ nights) get a priority in booking specialty restaurants, they get to book earlier. Honestly if you are not in these categories you may have to take what you can get. In both cases log on and reserve your tables at the earliest dates. One of our favorite restaurants is Sette Mari (Italian) during evenings at the La Veranda location. Sette Mari is full waiter service and menu with an extra buffet, some people think its just a buffet. Sette Mari is first come first served. Once full they will turn you away. We always get to Sette Mari when it opens at 6:30 to be guarantied of getting a table, the second seating is around 8. As mentioned, in any restaurant if you give them a heads its someone's birthday they will try an make your evening special. Restaurant menus are posted on the TVs in the afternoon to help you make your decision. Enjoy your trip.

Hopefully Regent figures this out for you Techno. I doesn't seem fair that you pay for the excursions but none are available. Thanks jlh. We have another Regent cruise on our schedule but have only done two. The Japan cruise was at or near 100% and Europe in the 50% range. Maybe there is some room for Techno.

We are staying at the Rosewood Georgia (also AMEX P) next May but have no actual experience. Thanks for the Joe Fortes recommendation. Anyone eat at St Lawrence or "Black & Blue"? Looks like a fun town.

Todays WSJ https://www.wsj.com/finance/stocks/options-individual-investors-risk-gambling-a97bee1a?mod=Searchresults_pos1&page=1

If they are completely sold out does that mean the buses are at 100% or do they target a lower number?

This is why I don't trade any more. My years of experience have been negated by my years of seeing things go wrong. Now a big picture guy. 🤠 I'm certainly not an expert on oil markets but I do know supply and demand is very important and from the news reports I'm guessing the Saudi's aren't going to make any efforts to help out #46.

My impression is that Regent has a much better offering of "included" tours. Hopefully this is because SS is newer to the all inclusive game and will improve. We do like the SALT excursions but they are generally at an extra cost.