Regatta Cruise Booked--- Should We Take It?

The Regatta's reviews are all over the map. We have booked a cruise to Alaska and our final payment is due shortly. Should we take it? Any input is appreciated.

Reviews are very, very subjective and are not a valid sample. When one has some negative experiences there is more motivation to post. I would not hesitate to book on the Regatta.

We have just booked a second Regatta/Alaska cruise for this summer..we took one back in August 2014. Everything was excellent. My mother has cruised on Regatta several times before as well

Reviews are very, very subjective and are not a valid sample. When one has some negative experiences there is more motivation to post. I would not hesitate to book on the Regatta.

Not always simple, but there are so many bad reviews about Regatta that I am thinking where there is smoke than there is fire. We were going to book Alaska, but not now. I would totally think about not booking until can get a clear picture about what is going on. No reason to start out thing it may be a lousy cruise. We can do that for a lot less money than Regatta. At the moment I am just taking about Regatta, not Oceania in general. Just came back from a Marina T/A and that was wonderful. Food Staff Ship all great. I know there is a Noro problem now on Marina but I know that will be cleared us soon. I guess we will see how things turn out. :):)

allyg,

We have two months booked on Regatta coming up so have studied the recent propulsion problem reports very carefully.

As far as the overall experience goes, we do not have any doubt the crew and the food will be as good as always. We have always had good service and we have cruised every ship in the fleet, except Sirena.

If things have gone totally wrong on Regatta I will report back.

allyg,

We have two months booked on Regatta coming up so have studied the recent propulsion problem reports very carefully.

As far as the overall experience goes, we do not have any doubt the crew and the food will be as good as always. We have always had good service and we have cruised every ship in the fleet, except Sirena.

If things have gone totally wrong on Regatta I will report back.

Good luck to you. Seems many people have doubts after reading a lot of the reviews on a few different threads in the last few weeks. I read these reviews so I can find out what other people think of their cruises so we do not make a mistake with the ships we cruise on. That is one of the great thing about cruise critic. Gives us a heads up and is right most of the time.

Sounds like you have read enough to make an informed decision.

Whatever you decide, have a great trip.

whatever you do, have a great trip.

+ 1

We were on the Regatta for 2 weeks in October. Had a fabulous time and would sail her again without hesitation.

DH and I struggling to find something nevative to say.

The Wi-Fi wasn't ideal.

We didn't always love the entertainment.

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We were on the Regatta for 2 weeks in October. Had a fabulous time and would sail her again without hesitation.

DH and I struggling to find something nevative to say.

The Wi-Fi wasn't ideal.

We didn't always love the entertainment.

 

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Wifi strength can be problematic. Otherwise, we've never had any issue of significance on Regatta.

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Allyg,

I see you have 79 posts, but I do not know the following:

1) Have you sailed on Oceania before?

2) Did you use a travel agent ?

3) What size ships - think maximum passenger size have you sailed before?

4) Are you traveling with friends or family ( and if family, children )?

5) How late do you like to stay up?

6) What cruise line features are most important to you and least important to you?

7) Many cruisers look at the itinerary, both for stops and time in port.

Most people, including me, find the Regatta quiet and slower paced. For the ship size, in my opinion, it has a large library and a small showroom. Usually, again my opinion, not much happens after 10:30-11:00 pm. The show lounge is small (no balcony) with no large production shows due to the small stage and probably a small entertainment budget.

Food should be good to excellent. The terrace (buffet) has a grill to order "while you wait" and I found the Waves (again my opinion) superior to the pool grill on Viking (my last cruise).

If you like to meet people, with the smaller ship you will get to see new friends frequently.

This probably raise more questions than it gives answers. If you used a travel agent to book this cruise, ask their opinion about your concerns.

Hope your next cruise is great, whenever and to wherever it goes.

I was booked on Regatta 16 day 11/11/18.

But gave Cbb's and Aussiegal's recent thread about serious problems on Regatta some heavy consideration. And Susans14 and a few others word as well. These are people who have been loyal O customers for years. When they mention things about the ship needing an overhaul and terrible odors in hallways and staterooms, I know something very problematic is happening. My TA just had clients who returned with similar complaints. I love Regatta and have not been on her in years, but did a Sirena cruise in June which was spectacular. I'm not well heeled enough to be able to risk it, so booked a Tahiti cruise with Windstar that was mildly similar to what we had on Regatta. Pained me to do it but there will be other O cruises.

Could never advise you Allyg, just letting you know what I did with info from those whose opinion I value highly. Have you talked to your TA about your concerns?

I have no concerns, awaiting my Cuba visa docs.

Four cruises on Regatta, all great. We’re booked for Alaska at the end of June on her.

We didn't notice any odors.

Ship looked in fine shape to us.

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We were on Regatta to Alaska last summer. Wonderful cruise, great staff, great food. Never noticed any problems with odors.

Mary

Never judge a cruise line or ship based on poor reviews of a single cruise.

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Never judge a cruise line or ship based on poor reviews of a single cruise.

 

 

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You are right about that bitob. Once we booked a cruise because of the itinerary and after booking it, looked at the reviews. The last ones were terrible, but we went ahead anyhow. We had a very good time.

Ivi

I wonder when it will be refurbished. I saw one article saying in October this year, but I couldn't find that anywhere else.

But see this - Regatta ranks #1 out of 6 Oceania Cruises Cruise Ships based on an analysis of expert and user ratings, as well as health ratings.

https://travel.usnews.com/cruises/oceania-cruises-297/regatta-444/

I haven't been on Regatta - just on Nautica, Sirena and Marina. The negative reviews though are worrisome. I will stay tuned.

I must admit that we were looking at the circumnavigation of Australia in December but after reading the feedback about that cruise and the ship we've booked a shorter (and much dearer per night) Azamara cruise.

Four cruises on Regatta, all great. We’re booked for Alaska at the end of June on her.

June 29? I'm booked one that one

I wonder when it will be refurbished. I saw one article saying in October this year, but I couldn't find that anywhere else.

April 2019. If things have declined onboard as much as some say, and drydock is not until then, makes me even speculate that NCL might be planning to sell her.

June 29? I'm booked one that one

Yes, see you then.

April 2019. If things have declined onboard as much as some say, and drydock is not until then, makes me even speculate that NCL might be planning to sell her.

Regatta had a major dry dock refurbishment in summer 2014. Five years sounds about right.

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So a couple questions, please:

We've been thinking it's time to (finally) go to Australia, but not the unusual circumnavigation cruise but one of the more mainstream ones. Those would be in winter 2018/2019, i.e., Dec./Jan. I have to admit I've been waffling a little on whether to book now or wait. We also like Viking a lot, and they have a few Australia/NZ cruises, but they're more expensive, so I'd prefer to go on O unless it's going to really be a disappointment. Of course, on any cruises, itinerary and off-ship experience is quite important, so it's possible I wouldn't really care if the ship's quality is failing. Or perhaps I'd overlook a few negative things (like the somewhat poor upkeep on another line we've used on occasion) but not overlook the food and service.

I agree that it's a bit risky to be terribly swayed by a few bad reviews, especially of the exact same sailing. That's why I'd love more SPECIFIC comments here from people who have cruised on Regatta RECENTLY, along with whether they have cruised on Oceania before.

To the person who is cruising "soon" - how soon would that be?

And to the people who have posted saying they feel quality has not dwindled, when did you last cruise on Regatta?

At one point I had a link to the food inspection reports by cruise line. If anyone has that handy, I'd love to have it. If not, I can probably find it with a little more effort. I'm curious if Regatta has had any major problems.