Crooz_N

On ‎2‎/‎23‎/‎2019 at 5:23 AM, WesW said:

Also, agree with both Malbec and GOARMY, but when my wife says we are  bringing formal wear, I salute and pack accordingly.  Plus, for us it is a chance to wear our pride (wearing minature medals earned over decades of military service) on a dress jacket or Tuxedo jacket.

 

Tho am much more comfortable wearing nice slacks and a Tommy Bahama shirt to dinner; don't mind putting formal duds on once or twice a voyage. Still trying to get Ida to wear her miniature medals (incl Bronze Star) but she won't give up her formal dresses for a ladies tuxedo.

Found on our 17 WC a higher percentage of tuxes and gowns. Like some, we enjoy getting dressed up. Don't do it ever in Tucson so enjoy the opportunity.

We've sailed with Oceania a number of times but, for a very special voyage, just booked the Mariner World cruise for 2020. We'll be in a Mariner Suite #916. Any pros or cons you can provide are gratefully sought about our accommodations and/or the ship ... plus this is our first World Cruise (131 days) so are looking for tips in that area too. As we are a bit on the elderly side, thought if we're ever going to enjoy a World Cruise, this would be the time ... but is this the right ship and accommodations to do it on? 1000 thank you's for any info you can provide! Catherine

Catherine, we also sail on the 2020 WC as Mainer is our personal favorite ship in the fleet after having been on all of them. We are also booked in a Mariner Suite on deck eight. You will definitely enjoy have a separate bedroom and additional half bath.

We did the Navigator WC in 2017 in a Grand Suite albeit the GS locations on the Navigator are not optimum as they are all the way forward. We never felt it was too long establishing a "shipboard" routine quickly. Enjoyed every minute.

If you provide your email address I'm happy to forward a preparation list I used and have enhanced since returning from the first WC.

See you on board!!

Thanks for replies. Yes, having the Grand Suite on the Navigator spoiled us with the separate bedroom and extra half bath and why we opted tor Mariner Suite over Penthouse. I would speculate shower stall in Mariner Suite a little larger than on the Navigator due to age difference. Hope so at any rate.

Originally booked Penthouse but moved to Mariner Suite, Suite 827. Does anyone have any photos? Am giving up the large shower for a tub and separate shower stall. After four and a half months on the Navigator, I can only hope the shower is larger. Thanks ever so! :)

It definitely sounds like Visa Central is the way to go. One week is an amazing turn around.

Strongly recommend Visa Central. India Visa is a pistol just a notch below Brazil. Interesting that each state in India has different entry and exit passes. Found this while there and on our overland trip to Agra and Taj Mahal.

Good Morning! We survived the ships gyrations. We never left our room yesterday. We had a dinner that consisted of grilled chicken and white rice. It was delicious.

Yesterday was very hard for us. We lost 3 friends in the Santa Barbara mudslides. It is unbelievable! Our home and our 2 boys and their families are all safe.

The seas are much calmer. I even went to the spa. I had reflexology with Chetan. He is amazing. We know him from the Mariner. It was nice to de stress with him.

So sorry for the loss of your friends. California has experienced a disasterous your this year.

Well a lot has changed since last night. We woke about 2:30am bobbing like a cork. I put a Scop patch on last night so feel okay. Many things fell down in our bathroom.

We have room service at 8:00. The coffee seems better. I brought my peppermint mocha creamer so that helps. Our butler says the seas will be like this for 2 days :eek: We are in the front of the ship on deck 10. He says we will feel the motion the most. It is now 10:00 and the seas are pretty bad. Too much movement to shower.

Our room has lots of storage. Much more than the Explorer had. I will be happy to answer any questions. Looks like I'm staying in room for now.

Captain Atanas Kostadinov

GM Davor

CD Jamie & Dana

Chef Michael

Food & Bev. Ricky

Cruise Consultant Bruce

We were on the WC on the Navigator this year. I know it is a popular ship with some but was not ours. We still love the Mariner and have booked her WC in 2020.

We were in a Grand Suite,700, and found the storage less than desired. Fortunately Davor installed a clothing rod across the tub since we did not use it. For tender ports the anchor was a great alarm clock but definitely felt the pitching. Out of San Diego I felt as though I was levitating. LOL!

Love Davor, Ricky and Jamie and Dana. The Concierge Daniella on board this trip? They all were fantastic on our trip.

Crooz_n, I'm so glad you revived this thread because I was very curious how the rest of the voyage went and your impressions of the World Cruise. Our segment was 28 days and I was ready to get off the boat. Did boredom or routine diminish the journey? It seemed like there were a lot of sea days...was this a plus or a minus? Looking forward to your response!

This was a special "dream" trip specifically to check off so many "bucket list" ports coupled with the ease of no long flights and while we are in very good health, agile and in good shape physically. Could not have done the trip without the comfort of the separate bedroom and additional half bath. Hubby is early to bed and I enjoy entertainment, etc. However, we are now spoiled for life.

Also, on such a long itinerary (last year we did 72 night Grand South America on the Mariner; our precursor to the WC) you really develop routines. It does become a second home.

There were a lot of sea days but were expected given the full WC itinerary. They were all doable but five days across the Atlantic even got to me. However, on the other hand, it allowed us to pack seven suitcases leisurely.

Worst seas were out of Funchal. Sixty knot winds and 28 foot swells so I really went "airborne" a few times. The GS is not located in the best part of the ship. The lack of a second alternative restaurant made dining become a little monotonous. We had the Prime 7 menu memorized. That is NO relfection on the quality of the food or presentation but much like eating in the same restaurant at home for 128 days in a row. Toward the end several of us fantasized about a simple grilled cheese sandwich, meatloaf and mashed potatos, etc. LOL!!

All in all we enjoyed the trip immensely. A few new places are on our horizon while still able comfortably to travel.

We arrived home late Saturday after 30 hours in transit from Aukland to Atlanta. Remarkably, we seem to have missed winter completely and returned to tulip magnolias and azaleas in full bloom!

 

We spent a week in NZ after disembarking - three days in Waitomo and Rotorua before the leisurely drive back to Aukland. This is not cruise related, but we went on the "Spellbound" tour of the glow worm caves which I highly recommend. It is low key tour of private caves and we saw some remarkable things. Feel free to ask me questions, if interested, in the highlights of our post-cruise. One last thing, though, we rented a fabulous Airbnb in Aukland. Two bedrooms with a large patio with a view!

 

 

As you know, this cruise was part of the world cruise and I don't think I would do that again. I would say that 75% of the passengers were doing the entire World Cruise. We were traveling with friends so we had our own group, but I did think that this cruise was less friendly than previous cruises. This held true even on excursions where you can usually strike up some friendships. The passengers also skewed much older and many were on walkers, canes, or scooters. (And one passenger hung a large Trump banner from the balcony at every port, which just seemed inappropriate no matter where your politics lie.)

 

The big negative, though, was the weather which is just the luck of the draw. We had wind and waves for many of the sea days so the upper decks were closed and even sitting on the balcony was unpleasant and a little scary. I was also seasick on many days and finally discovered that wearing 1/4 scopolamine patch all the time seemed to do the trick.

 

My final negative was the ship itself. This was our second time on Navigator, all other cruises on Voyager. Even in calmer waters, the Navigator bobbed like a cork. In rough waters, she was a fun-house ride. The public spaces are crammed with furniture and too much real estate is allocated to the card rooms and casino, in my opinion.

 

On to what I liked! I loved the new menu and I never grew bored with the food. They even mixed up the venues, offering pool side dining with special menues at night. The deck BBQ in Papeete was spectacular! The staff in all venues was professional yet friendly and personal. Even the waiters in training were delightful. There was a particular odd looking, somewhat shy waiter in Compass Rose who spoke very broken English who was teamed up with a more experienced waiter. Initially, his job was to give us the menu and offer us water and bread. My best friend is very gregarious and started joking and laughing with him. You could see his confidence grow and he practically skipped to the serving station.

 

We had our favorites, of course. Anthony, one of the wait staff, was wonderful (he designed an Indian menu for us on our last day) and Ley remembered us from a previous cruise (always nice) and never steered us wrong on a menu special. Laksman, one of the sommeliers, was thoughtful in his wine pairing selections and never steered us wrong. Alex (bar staff) was a delight and seemed to be everywhere, pitching in when needed and always with a smile. Finally, what can I say about our lovely General Manager, Davor? He is the consummate gentleman, always greeted us with a smile and conversation, and saved the day on our difficult and delayed disembarkation.

 

We chose this cruise expressly because of the itinerary. We had dreamed of sailing the South Pacific and this ticked all the boxes. We did not have one bad excursion. I'm not a huge fan of mob tours and I often moo under my breath when I encounter tours of which I am not a part. That being said, there always seemed to be room on the busses, and we got to do and see things that would have been difficult to plan on our own. The excursion staff was wonderful, especially Anna, who always seemed to have a thumb drive loaded with pictures that she graciously shared with us when our own devices failed!

 

I've rattled on for quite a bit. If you have any specific questions, I'll try my best to answer. I'll leave you with a beautiful sunset.

 

We were one of those "301" world cruisers on board and now home almost a week still reeling with adjusting to reality. Finally unpacked all the luggage and the laundry task at hand.

Enjoyed reading your posts on this segment and, yes, we did have some lousy seas. You should have been in our Grand Suite forward. When that bow came up and slammed down; a few time during the night felt as though I would go "airborne".

Understand why some prefer to not do a WC segment however we befriended several along the way and missed them terribly when it was time for them to disembark. Sometimes it comes down to choices between a segment and itinerary. Also, fortunately, we were not among those who relied on wheelchairs, walkers and canes and a significant reason why we did this trip now. So respect their continuing endeavor of travel however some tours were imnpacted by those who should not have attempted the tour. Don't know how Regent or any line can manage that any better. If a passenger believes they are able to do a tour it's a dicey situation for Regent. Clearly on some tours there were those who should have never attempted the tour.

Davor is, IMHO, the best GM in the industry. We also enjoyed Elvis as we have on previous trips. So many to mention. Daniela, Concierge, is a saint and should be the highest paid on the ship with the challenges she deals with daily. Juliana in Destinations was magnificient and Jamie and Dana were on top of eveything as usual. Very professional folks. Alex, Elena, Satush, Georgio and on and on and on. Douglas is a first class DR Manager, Rickie a class F&B Manager. Look forward to sailing with them again.

Thank you for taking the time to post the review. Very interested in any info on the Navigator as we board in January for WC. Am trying to confirm informatin I received from GM, Davor, on the Mariner while on our Grand South America voyage earlier this year who indicated Regent had reversed their decision to eliminate the Connoisseur Lounge but relocate it instead up one deck near the Casino. Any info is appreciated.

Disappointed as well but will withhold final judgment until the itinerary is revealed. Currently booked on the Voyager BCN to SYD in November 2016 specifically for Taj Mahal; on our "bucket list". Depending upon that being included and more ports in New Zealand/Australia will determine a decision.

We did this trip in May 2014 also including pre and post in Madrid and Lisbon. Our experience was very enjoyable including some great wine especially the various ports we tasted. We booked the evening Tapas Tour in Madrid with four stops the last being in the Crystal Market and it was well worth it. We especially enjoyed the two dinners off the boat in an old monastery and the other at a winery. Both gorgeous hilltop locations. This was our fourth trip to Portugal as it is a country we love and believe it is often overlooked in Europe travel. People could not be more welcoming and it is not as expensive as other countries.

Of the river cruises we have done, this boat was among one of the nicest with more room in the cabin than previously experienced. Lots of storage and very small outside deck. Great shower! AMA is our favorite. Looking at Budapest to Prague next year.

Sevenseas, as the trip gets closer we should touch base in order to get together for a glass of wine. So looking forward to this long trip. Many years had aging Dad and not comfortable leaving for extended travel and risk having to cut short and return home. Question about open WiFi on board and accessing personal accounts. Always understood that risky. Any insight?

Oh so right. It is the Mariner. Confused it with a cruise we have booked on the Voyager November of 2016 from Barcelona to Sydney. Thanks again. Question arose as this will be the first time we have cruised for this length of time. Catpow, great post. Also I never take any jewelry off ANYWHERE! Just to be on the safe side.

Thanks to all who replied. Yes, as a Regent past passenger I am aware tips are included but we often tip a little extra to some of the staff. We plan to take a credit card but was just trying to mentally calculate, due to length, in addition to extra tips we extend on board what the incidentals might be in cash. Thanks again.

Is there anyone out there sailing this voyage? Just contemplating how much "cash" to consider taking. We usually tip a bit above those included to some of the staff.