Gilly

An interesting conversation @forgap and one that has made me think about our recent experience on board Splendor, just a few weeks before you. Our was a first B2B pair of cruises, with different captains and GMs and a sudden change of CD when the scheduled CD and Social Hostess (Andy and Tammy) had to return home for family reasons. There was a distinct change in atmosphere on board on turnaround day which we attributed to a different clientele - the shorter cruise which ended in Southampton had, unsurpringly, more British people on board than the next leg, which seemed more popular with guests from the USA. I'm not sure the change in officers made a difference or not. A cooler weather cruise, we weren't surprised to not have a pool party. Instead, there was an ABBA dance party in the Atrium on each of the two cruises, which was fun. I can't recall if we had just one block party or if there were two and we missed the other one! But I do recall that, as the first cruise drew to a close, people were beginning to cough and sneeze and once the second cruise had got going, there were quite a few people suffering from cold/flu symptoms - I can say no more than that. It's hard to imagine how staff members can avoid catching anything going around like this and I'm wondering if this escalated staffing problems during the next few weeks? But one previous experience springs immediately to mind. It was a cruise in the run up to the launch of Splendor or Explorer (we can't recall which one!) and there was a large number of new, inexperienced staff who seemed to be lacking leadership and floundering in their roles. We recall that as a sub-optimal cruise and one when we found ourselves sharing many of the same thoughts as you are now. Given the post CV staff shortages worldwide, finding experienced staff must be trickier than ever especially with the relaunch of Crystal and other completely new brands like Explora seeking people with skills at a similar level. So yes, I can "picture the scene" and am sorry to read that your cruise was less than spectacular. I know that, like us, you have experienced Regent at its best and having done so, that's the standard we expect, isn't it? It's all very well launching a new ship but not so good if it's the cause of a decline in the existing service, however temporary. We have another four Regent cruises scheduled and look forward to, including some long ones, so I'm hoping this is just a blip.

We too - also the JW Marriott. We'll look forward to seeing you there!

I read this article about Hotel des Artes yesterday just after I'd caught up with posts here! You may find it interesting too.

Yes, UK/European Ts and Cs are different from those in the US because of our consumer law. I can't explain detail because I'm no expert but hopefully someone here can offer a better/clearer explanation.

@Mudhen I shall look forward to sailing along virtually with you lucky ducks, for we too had a Grandeur cruise to look forward to in February...until we had the news that our first Grandchild plans to arrive around then and guess what? Suddenly a cruise on Grandeur became less important 😉 So we'll sail on Voyager in late April instead and be with you in spirit!!

@bookbabe I apologise for sounding a little curt there! It's interesting that Viking include a different "flavour" of entertainment, I agree.

Oh, the entertainment isn't *that* important to us and we wouldn't give up everything else we love about Regent. It's a preference rather than a requirement.

Personally, I think we would have done the same. A bird in the hand is worth...quite a lot!!

I understand. We have hoped for more classical music, but then on the odd occasion when there's a pianist or similar, people sit chatting throughout - so that doesn't really work. (Maybe in one of the smaller venues?) Songs from the shows are a bit hit and miss...and comedians even more so. If I'm honest, I'm just glad I don't have the task of booking entertainers!

That's the one! Isn't he great? We thought it might possibly have been the first time someone strutted around a Regent stage wearing a Union flag 😉 But yes, he hit the spot with our crowd on Voyager too.

On Voyager this time last year, there was a Freddie Mercury tribute act who had the crowd in the palm of his hand for a couple of evenings. A bit different, but I'm not sure how well Queen's music goes down with an international audience?

For those of you who haven't heard them, or for those who'd like a reminder of the joy, try this... Santiago de Compostela Apr 22.m4a

@Zqueeze1 we are most certainly not fit enough to walk the Camino but enjoyed a wonderful week or so in Galicia and Asturias last Spring and can recommend it as a region to explore in a car. The roads are good, the Autovia Cantabrico is a fast motorway connecting the whole area and it's easy to fill the days in small towns, charming villages and taking in that stunning coastline, fuelled by fabulous food and the occasional drink 😉 Highly recommend (and yes, it's all on my blog!) We loved chatting to those walking the Camino in the evening and met some fascinating people from all over the world.

It is indeed, though the playing of Catalan bagpipes under the window for maybe 18 or 20 hours a day can get a little wearisome!! (Understatement 😉)

Our Splendor experience during July and August was really great but if there was a weak spot, it was the Destinations department and we noted this in our end of cruise feedback. What bothered us wasn't so much the incorrect information we were given on more than one occasion (identical tour descriptions were shown for three tours each of which was in a different location - which means at least two of them were going to be wrong) and on another occasion, a letter offering advice was sent to us "and others travelling on to Barcelona" (Errmmm....we thought we were sailing to Greenland?) As @pappy1022 notes, mistakes, typos and oversights happen but it's in the resolution where the quality of the service really shows - and quite honestly, on every occasion we followed errors like this through, shoulders were shrugged and it was I who felt in the wrong for seeking reassurance or the corrected information. We felt they simply didn't care - and that is so very much out of the ordinary for Regent, that it was noticeable and worthy of mention. An apology or some gesture of concern would have cost nothing but would have gone a long way to placating confused and irritated guests but a grumpy and v-e-r-y slow correction of the tour information ("Would you like me to print it out for you?" *sigh*) was all that was offered. Thank you for sharing your tour of our islands, @pappy1022 Do come again!

That would be along the runway we walked across I guess? 😅 (we waited till the traffic light was green of course!)

A shame if you miss Dutch Harbor, in particular the excellent local museum there. Sure, there isn't a great deal to see in the town but what there is, we found fascinating.

"Now Then" is a greeting from Yorkshire, for me, it's always associated with my Dad, who used it long before the awful JS guy!

We were on board Splendor in Greenland, during August, when several people had "cold symptoms". General consensus was that it was exactly that and having heard a few express the wish that they had thought to bring simple cold/flu medication with them (because such things are surprisingly difficult to obtain at reasonable cost whilst on board) I left a little note in the roll call for the cruise following ours. We never thought it was anything more than that and saw/heard nothing more suspicious or alarming. It's hard to work out what more "they" can do about such things, beyond the general, everyday advice to maintain sensible hygiene - wash hands frequently and to be responsible and stay out of public areas when feeling poorly. Whatever the reason, the general advice is the same.

Our experience of the Miami MO is proof that not all MOs are created equal! We received a credit for two of our three nights there 🙄

@RachelG Cincinnati is a relatively new destination for BA from LHR but it sounds like it was a timely introduction for you! Here's hoping all goes smoothly from here onwards.🫰

@forgap Bravo for finding Kingly Court!! A shame you're missing Bath and the Cotswolds on a beautifully fresh and sunny morning, but I agree, it's a bit of a stretch for a "day out"! Never mind, come and see us next time 🙂

Yes please!! I'm with you all the way, wearing my mask, washing my hands and on best behaviour (of course!) Please say hello to Billy and Jesus in CR and just wait till Ikon starts to sing 🥰

@lprp it's interesting you note the low stock levels in the shop, for it seemed pathetically low (and uninteresting) when we were on board some weeks ago. It appears that some skincare brands are being discontinued (Clarins was always my go-to means of spending those last on board $$$) but it was the collection of second hand bags that I found most surprising! What a weird thing to sell 🙄

Oh my word, I have nothing to add to this amazing catalogue of disasters, but credit you all with such good spirit in the face of adversity!