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Sadly, it sounds like there has been no improvement to F&B since our Explorer cruise in March-April this year. We had a long discussion with Jennifer and hoped things would improve. We are reluctant to book any future cruises with Regent due to the last two cruise experiences, even if we lose some FCC sitting in the “bank” due to canceling other booked cruises.

No use of showers at the intercontinental, even with the purchase of a day pass - they will hold your luggage. The airport is closed until about 2 hours before the first flights leave. You can’t check in or go through security, and the lounge doesn’t open until security opens. we reserved a day pass but didn’t use it. The upscale restaurant menu did not appeal to us and no one seemed to be interested in taking our money. Even with a day pass you do not get WiFi. They gave us the code because we stayed at the hotel before our cruise l We ended up hanging around the hotel pool on loungers, then ate in the main restaurant instead and sat in the main lounge until we went to the airport. Recommend renting a car or booking a day tour unless you like to hang around a pool all day.

You made me laugh! As a fellow cruiser born in NYC, I worked at a Nathan’s between HS and College. Still enjoy a Nathan’s hot dog after so much time cooking them for customers!

Ponderosa… remember them?

“But those times usually are fairly short before it comes back enough to send a simple email (no pics or anything)” unfortunately, on our RT Tokyo cruise earlier this year, the internet NEVER worked enough to send text only emails.

On the 95+ page tips thread I saw that if you don’t like hard beds, ask your TA to submit a request for a foam mattress topper… and I have, great info! Are there any other tips for requests to make prior to boarding? Thank You!

Calls to anywhere in the world. i had to call Miami from somewhere in Japan when at sea. Worked fine. Had to use their option- the internet was so abysmal that WiFi calling did not work. Couldn’t send an email - text only emails took over 2 days to send. It was a total nightmare trying to take care of some urgent issues unless we were ashore using our mobile phones, or ship to shore calling.

15 minutes doesn’t last very long if you want to be in touch. It is great if you are at sea and need to manage an emergency situation. If you want to stay in touch on shore it is better to get an international cell plan.

Thank you Jim! My mouth is watering at the food porn… I will definitely try the lamb at Toscana in February. looking forward to trying Viking in December and will do my own comparison.

Thank you!

Brand new to Viking Ocean! what beverages are stocked in the cabin for PV cabins? Trying to decide if we bring a bottle of Gin on with us. Thanks!

Hi Jim- I want to let you know that you have convinced us to try Viking Ocean as an alternative to Oceania! We are still doing a cruise on Vista, but may book a “last minute “ Viking later this week.😁

Jim- looking forward to reading your final thoughts- hope your flight goes better than the rental car snafus.

Fabulous photos! Brings back memories of being a teenager hanging out in Central Park and walking around Manhattan 😊

You summed up very well why our preferred cruise lines are now Oceania, and in the past Regent. The one issue that you may experience is regarding the personalized experience. While we usually see that an effort is made by the crew to treat all guests well, they do have a fondness for past that they recognize. If you choose to cruise a second time and run into staff that you interacted with on a previous cruise, it is amazing that they remember you 😊 The only way to avoid any “class” aspect to a cruise is to choose a line where all cabins are the same (sea dream, wind spirit, etc). However previous guests returning will still be treated slightly differently, with some amenities or gifts…

Jim- thank you for this… I will have to try it when we cruise on Vista. if you are willing to eat without your entire group, find the Maitre d of Toscana and ask if they have any sharing table openings.. often if you are flexible with date and time you can get another reservation.

We did 17 days in Tahiti this July on the Wind Spirit, and have plenty of experience with Regent. this ship is leaving Tahiti at the end of the season and they are replacing it with one of the motor ships. We had a fantastic experience. The entire crew from the captain to the deckhands and cabin stewards were wonderful. The food was excellent. And of course the size of the ship (approximately 150 guests) makes for a great experience. The ship itself was in bad shape, being several years overdue for a complete refurbishment/drydock. The crew did the best that they could but many areas were in poor condition. We were told by a seasoned Windstar passenger that not all ships have the same vibe, so you need to check the specific ship on the Windstar boards.

Hi Jim- we cruised with you and Kathleen on Azamara wayyyyyy back when from Singapore to Hong Kong (Beth and Kevin). We will be on Vista in February, so really looking forward to your perspective on the ship. do you think that you might get to sound the ship’s horn again 🤪? Glad to see that you both are still cruising!

We did the post cruise upgraded Hakone tour and based on feedback about the “included “ Tokyo tour, it was definitely worth paying for the upgrade.

I don’t think so. They set up for tenders after arrival and anchoring is completed, and we did not arrive “early “ on either of our two stops at Bora Bora.

Definitely casual… I wore capris with a nice top, Hawaiian shirts and dresses, rayon pants. I never saw a woman turned away and asked to change. I did see men asked to leave and put on pants when they wore shorts. the exception is the Bora Bora dinner and the deck bbq - comfort there since it is hot and outdoors.

I recall that everyone said Ia Orana (like politely saying hello, good morning, etc) first before asking or saying anything. It is the standard greeting and said by everyone as you walk by them on the street, enter a shop, arrive at the hotel…. Maruru is thank you. Windstar provided a nice phrase list once on board.

Yes… the tender pier is Maroe. There is nothing there. our first visit there were a few taxis. Our second stop was a larger number of people on board and I didn’t see any available. If you want to do something you will need to plan in advance.

Yes, they have tours available however there is no way to get there except on the tenders. I can’t recall that there was much to do on your own as there is a very small population there. have a wonderful trip!

Keep checking the Regent site for additional slots in tours.. you can also ask your TA to contact RSSC if there are specific tours that you want to reserve or get waitlisted. There is also Mike Moore on the Regent board- he has been really helpful with issues in the past. we saw few or no tours offered at the tender piers in July. Don’t rely on this as an option.