They can be opened, At least most of them. There are a few the don't.

J

2 hours ago, edgee said:

............. is it wise/necessary to book Concierge or above in order to get an earlier booking window for tours? Does same apply for choice of seatings at specialty restaurants? .................u.

IMO, No. They almost never run out of space for the popular shore excursions. Even if the website shows full,  once onboard the ShoreEx department will work hard to get more space in the closed excursion.

As for the Specialty Restaurants, I guess it depend on what you mean by "Choice" seating? If you are flexible on time, you can almost always get a seat on the night you want. The later in the evening the better chance.

J

Advice about the NAV?

Don't book any cabin aft of the elevators. The ship can often have a vibration because of the propellers cavitation that can really affect the aft cabins. Also you can hear the music from the aft Constellation theater and sometime it can be loud to the point of annoying. 

Also in the very forward cabins can you can hear the the anchor chains going out on tender days. It is very loud. Some pax (like me) don't mind the sound after the first time.

Suggest you look at the cabin chart with pax comments.

J

Facetime and other video chat methods will work, most of the time, but not all the time.  We have had good success with Facetime on almost every voyage.

J

1 hour ago, Pcardad said:

 

.... it just puts your request ahead of all the people who don't pay for it).

Doesn't work that way, you don't get to go to the head of the queue. All premium does is unlock blocked streaming video service like Hulu, Netflicks, Prime, etc. Neither the speed nor bandwidth are improved. (And anyone who knows anything about  "proxy" can easily get Regent video IP blocking.)

J

Qantas has said that they will require Covid10 vaccination proof before boarding. I assume that most international carriers will follow.

J

4 hours ago, Robyn2 said:

But also disillusioned to hear that Regent are not offering any compensation whatsoever for this cancellation.

Really? You think  Regent should compensate you for an "Act of God" that they have absolutely no control over.  Why should they? What am I missing here?

J

It is official: "suspension now includes ...all voyages on ....... Regent Seven Seas Cruises embarking between January 1 through March 31, 2021."

LINK

J

More or less. You should be able to get in 3 times in each for your 32 days. If you are very flexible on your dining times, then possibly more.  Also, if you choose certain nights, like Captain Welcome, you chances are better because many Pax feel the MDR menu is better on those nights.

But, if you step up to Regent Suite, you can go every night. 😉 

J

" ...significant customizing fees by Regent??" It is hard to know until the Air Dept runs the quote.  I have almost always found that I could get better routing, times and cheaper cost by doing the air on my own. Particularly, when the travel is to SE Asia and OZ. Our best deals have from Regent flights to Europe.

The far out and with the Covid uncertainty and unknown fight schedules 18 months out, it will be hard to get a good answer.

J

Solvensky Islands? We couldn't go on the NAV 2018. From what I have learned it seem the the ships rarely get there ever, kinda like the Falkland Island, less then 50%.

J

You can do the trip to Denali on your own for much less than Regent. IMO 2 days/3 nights at Denali lodge is enough. Pay the extra fee for the "Gold Star" service that get you into the Dome train car. It is about a 7-8 hours train trip each way, so bring a book.

But just be sure to pay for and use Regents transfer from Anchorage to the ship. I think we paid $75.00 pp and the transfer was much cheaper than we could do on our own.

J

Panama Canal which side question. IMO side which faces the middle of the locks. However, there is no way to know in advance which side (chamber) the ship will transit thru. So it is a crap shoot unless you take a forward facing suite. Like other have said, t he best viewing is up on deck. 

It is too bad that the ships no longer stop in Gatun lake for the day to do shore excursions up close on the locks or to Gatun dam. Years ago, Regent (Raddison) would put on a big shore-side BBQ at the Gatun Yacht Club.  We even got to go swimming in the Canal. One excursion took you to a viewing platform between the Gatun's two lock chamber where you could see everything up close.

J

I have had a lot of success using Viator in Europe. It is really not a big city so the sites are close, except for the Royal Palace. I would suggest you might consider a walking tour. Nyhavn district is in the middle of the city.

Want to do something different? Take a tour that goes over the bridge to see Malmo, Sweden.

J

Usually only cool weather for the first 2-3 day. Once you cross 30 degrees north latitude the weather warms up.  in January there can be winter storms out of Alaska that can make the early part rough. We once had 25 foot seas all the way form LA to Honolulu. Other times it is fairly smooth.

You would be on the Mariner. This ship rides the open ocean well.

J

Hope this helps. Here is what the website says:   Link

Here is  good explanation of how credit card vs cash surcharging works and where it is legal.

Your Complete Guide To Credit Card Surcharges

J

I was hoping that in '23 they would finally use the Explorer for the World Cruise.  Now that would truly be luxury!

J

Be sure to order the passport with the extra pages. At first I didn't know this was an option and the pages would be full after a few years requiring a new passport before the normal 10 years. Many Countries that require advanced Visa require two blank  passport pages. There is not extra cost.

Hopefully we all can start "refilling" our passport pages soon. 😉

J

I had a similar offer but for a different voyage. Turned out that it was much cheaper to just book it new as the price had dropped significantly. If I had taken the roll-over deal it I would have lost $$$$$ .  (I love my Travel Agent!)

J

My T/A says since Regent canceled the January world cruise. nothing is going to go until at least late February 2021. I think November is totally out of the question.

J

Seems like a good idea to continue this thread, rather than start a new one!

NCL Corporation Ltd. -- Moody's downgrades NCL Corporation's CFR to B2; outlook negative

Moody's•August 24, 2020

 

Rating Action: Moody's downgrades NCL Corporation's CFR to B2; outlook negative

Global Credit Research - 24 Aug 2020

New York, August 24, 2020 -- Moody's Investors Service, ("Moody's") downgraded the ratings of NCL Corporation Ltd. ("NCL") including its Corporate Family Rating to B2 from Ba2, Probability of Default Rating to B2-PD from Ba2-PD, senior secured rating to B1 from Ba2, and senior unsecured rating to Caa1 from B1. The company's Speculative Grade Liquidity rating of was upgraded to SGL-2 from SGL-3. The outlook is negative. This concludes the review for downgrade that was initiated on July 14, 2020.......

....Today's action reflects the impact on NCL from the deterioration in credit quality it has triggered, given its exposure to travel restrictions in the US, which has left it vulnerable to shifts in market demand and sentiment in these unprecedented operating conditions....

Read the full article here

J

 

Hi BillB. Long time. no posts. Glad to see you back. (No fires, I hope.)

J

I am very familiar with what Regent has to offer with their "Plant Based" and Vegan programs. You can contact me via email if you have specific questions. My email address is in my signature below.

J

2 hours ago, mrlevin said:

 

PS If they close self service laundries, what about people that like to self wash more delicate items?  What about people that like to iron?  What about singles (and others) that use self service laundries as a way to meet fellow guests?  Will they totally get rid of the laundries and turn them into additional crew quarters?

I agree. Although, due to SSS status we have had free laundry for years, there are many items that are never sent out. The main reason is that the laundry service is harsh and has damaged several items. Regent is good about compensating  for the damage, but the loss of the item for a long cruise becomes problematic.

Regent has offered free laundry in the recent  past for some of the Grand voyages. This resulted in having several days added to the laundry turn around.

J