Gray Lady

We saw that Regent has a pre-cruise package for 3 nights that includes tours and transfers. As of now there is nothing offered in Rome, but it is early.

Thank you for the tip. We will definitely look into doing that. Having a year to plan helps with this. Thanks again!

I have enjoyed reading everyone’s insights into the tours on Regent cruises. We have decided to take a 10 day cruise next year from Barcelona to Rome on the Splendor. We plan to add pre and post-cruise days to see Rome and Barcelona. Since we have never been on a cruise before, the included excursions will be fine for us. We want to see the highlights of each place. Ignorance is bliss in this case because we have never been on cruise excursions. The only time we have used excursions to see places, they have been buses. Knowing how much everything will cost in advance is a plus for us along with not having to make arrangements in places we are unfamiliar with. This is a bucket list trip, so please keep giving your thoughts and insights into all things Regent and the Western Mediterranean. Everything is appreciated!

Irishwitchy, you bring up some good points to ponder. We are more interested, right now at least, in a Western Mediterranean cruise. We would like to experience Greece on a possible future cruise and also Spain, Portugal, and Morocco (God willing we stay healthy enough). We want to concentrate on the French and Italian Rivieras. As a previous poster said, we would like a “sampler” of the area. We would like to see the main sites in each port, and then we can possibly come back in the future to explore those areas that we find enjoyable or interesting. I know we don’t have time to see much of the museums or historical sites, but we can at least experience a bit of each. We are thinking of a 14 day Barcelona closed loop tour or else 12 day Rome to Barcelona. We haven’t even looked at the ships themselves, only the itineraries. We hope to add on a few days at the beginning and end of our cruise. Having never been to Europe or on a cruise, we feel better having the excursions and everything taken care of for us. We also don’t want mass market huge ships. We could go to the Caribbean for that! From what I have read, you seem to get a better experience on luxury cruise lines, plus all the add-ones with other lines make the prices very similar. Hope this helps!

We are looking at a Silversea cruise of 12 days with 10 ports and a Regent cruise of 14 days with 12 ports. All are in the Western Mediterranean next May. It is good to know that either one is a good choice! Thank you so much!

Along the same vein as the OP, we have never been on a cruise, but want to do a Mediterranean bucket list cruise (before we are unable to travel). We have narrowed down our itineraries to one from Silversea and one from Regent. Both are pricey, but we will spend for this once in a lifetime cruise. Any advice on which line is preferred and why? Appreciate all insights and suggestions!

That makes perfect sense, and something we hadn’t thought about. Luckily, Easter is the end of March in 2024, so we will look for later in April. Thank you!

My husband and I are in our late 60’s to mid-70’s. We would like to take a dream cruise to the Mediterranean. We have never cruised before or been to Europe. This trip would take a lot of our savings, so we want to are sure it is right. We are thinking of the spring of 2024. It may be our one and only time going. Would Regent Seven Seas be a good line for us? They have some very nice itineraries and we like the idea of everything being included in the price, including excursions. The pricing seems steep, but is it justified for what you get? I appreciate any opinions that can be offered. Thank you in advance!

Thank you for the good information. We are hoping to do a 14 day cruise. We would love to include Lisbon if possible. Thank you for the advice on Rome. If we could do the Coast of Spain and French Riviera, then we will save Greece for hopefully another trip. We are willing to invest in a better cruise experience, so we will look at Hal, Seabourn, Oceana, etc. I would rather know most of our costs up front. From what I can see, a base price plus excursions, food, drink, etc. can add up quickly. Lots of cruise lines and itineraries to look at! We just want to avoid the main summer rush.

I want to thank everybody for their insights. We have decided to not spend our money on a Caribbean cruise at this time. Instead, we will roll it into our dream cruise next year to the Mediterranean. We will use our COVID refund from our non-cruise last year and find a good itinerary on a smaller ship. We can then splurge a bit and get a nice cabin. Fingers crossed that it can all come together. I have never been to Europe, so it will all be an adventure of firsts! Any opinions on a Mediterranean cruise would be much appreciated!

We have never been on a cruise, so we wanted to take a small one before embarking on a long, expensive one. Our TA suggested a 7 day cruise of the Caribbean on MSC Seascape. He said he could get us a good deal on a balcony. From what I have been reading, I am unsure if this cruise line is for us. Is the experience okay without upgrading into the Yacht Club? I know food is subjective, and we can usually find something we like to eat. Would this ship be too large for us? We don’t have great expectations, but we are unsure if this would be better than going to an all-inclusive for a week. We live on the West Coast, so big air fare is involved. We know the cabins will be small. Is it true that you are nickel and die ‘d for everything? Is there any TV to watch? We had originally booked a cruise on Holland America to go to Alaska, but COVID reared its ugly head. We are in our late 60s and early 70s. Any insights or comments would be appreciated!

We finally received refunds for our excursions in mid-December for our June COVID “experience”. Then, a miracle! We received full reimbursement for our quarantine hotel and per diem right before Christmas. We are very relieved, but right now have no desire to attempt another cruise with any line. When we do, I will look thoroughly at other lines to find good customer service.

Yes, and keep track of time waiting on phone, who you speak with, and what they say. That makes it easier as you go up the chain of command. You should have your money by now. The next question is if you would ever sail with HAL again because of this.

Did you have other trip insurance at all? We needed to submit copies of their payouts before HAL would even take our claim. Waiting for that was a two month process first. We needed to be reimbursed for our excursions also. I kept calling about those, and they were finally refunded earlier this month. I am very happy to be reimbursed, but the process itself is very convoluted. Do you have a TA who could help you at all? Right now we are burned out on the thought of cruising with anyone, anywhere. No one should have to wait six months to receive all of their money for reimbursement.

We never received an email telling us our claim was approved. They told me when I called that it was, but couldn’t tell me when we would receive it. We submitted our claim in September, but that was after we waited to received our AON reimbursement. I called HAL at least 7 times about it. Have you used the magic phrase that you may have to get your attorney involved? If I remember correctly, you contacted COVID in Fairbanks? We were there about the same time, only we were pre-cruise and you were post-cruise??

We finally received our check for reimbursement for our quarantine hotel AND per diem meals. It took six months and lots of phone calls, but we have been paid everything we were owed. Thank goodness! Makes for a Merry Christmas.

Reimbursements for our excursions finally arrived on our credit card! Now we are waiting for quarantine hotel and per diem check to arrive.

We are still waiting for hotel and meal reimbursement from our quarantine in June. It is impossible to get a straight answer other than it will be sent to you soon.

You are very lucky. DH tested positive and I didn’t until we were in a quarantine hotel. I tested myself with a home kit, so nothing official. Our AON policy had a limit of $500 for hotel per person (quarantine hotel charged $550 per night). They would not pay for me because I didn’t “officially” test positive. We are still waiting for reimbursement from HAL as promised. It is possible policies for longer cruises (ours was 7 days with a platinum plan) may pay more. Also policies purchased on your own, not through HAL, can have larger allowances for those things.

Yes, if you have trip insurance and are eligible for reimbursement, then you must have positive test results.

At least AON paid all of your hotel. They would only reimburse us $100 per day, up to $500 total, because DW had the positive test, not me. HAL will reimburse us the rest, but we were charged $550 per day. HAL says our claim is approved, but who knows when they will send us a check. No cruising until we are made whole….including our excursions from June which they have not yet refunded! Next step may be state department of consumer affairs.

We are still waiting for quarantine reimbursement from our June cruise tour. AON gave us our refund quickly. HAL just continues to kick the can down the road.

I am so, so sorry! I caught COVID because they made me quarantine in the same hotel room as my hubby. It took about 3 days for me to test positive. In hindsight, it was a small price to pay to stay with him. We both had mild symptoms. At least you have a balcony (we didn’t) and can look out at the ocean and ports. We looked out at a Home Depot parking lot ( we can laugh about it now). I have cousins who caught COVID on a cruise this past month and had to isolate the entire time. Not a fun way to enjoy a vacation and spend your travel dollars. Has HAL given you the letter explaining how things work or communicated that to you yet?

I am so sorry to hear about your situation. I have come to two conclusions: HAL is terrible at communication which makes your isolation/quarantine worse than it needs to be AND most people are selfish and will not do what they should. Everyone else pays the price. You did the right thing and hopefully it will be paid back to you someday. May you recover quickly and have no lasting symptoms. Please let us know how things go for you. Sending positive thoughts…..

I called HAL about our shore excursions from June that have not been refunded to us. They had to open another claim (we sent in our reimbursement form beginning of September). Apparently no one had bothered with the shore excursion part. Now it has to be approved by shore excursion management. When, who knows! Our claim for hotel and per diem has been approved, but no email sent to us yet letting us know when to expect payment. I told them we didn’t want to get attorneys involved and expected a quick outcome. I will give HAL until after Thanksgiving and then may have to get an attorney involved. They are sitting on our money using the interest for themselves. Obviously, retaining customers is not a priority. I always judge a company by the way they treat their customers when something goes wrong. This shows their integrity and will earn my loyalty and goodwill…..or not.