Live from the Navigator

Hello everyone,

Just a note from my perspective.

The service on board the Navigator has exceeded my expectations.

Now, part of this is because I travel with my DH ( he is in a wheelchair). So the minute we enter a room he is taken from me ( which is a welcomed treat)and is handled with care. They can not do enough for us pertaining to his disability.

Have not had to wait for anything. Restaurant has been excellent as well as pool service and cabin attendent. Pool server knew our names and our preferences the second day.

Last night was formal and this is the first cruise ( have been on around 25 )were the majority of the men were in Tux'es. Although as was advised by CC'ers on this board, my DH wore a dark jacket, dress shirt , no tie, was not turned away or even made to fell uncomfortable.

Tonight we have res. at Portofino. Looking forward to a new dinning experience.

Hopefully will post again.

BTW, have won over $300.00 at the casino.

Have a great day!

Joannie

Joannie, I'm thrilled that you're having such a wonderful time, on my favourite ship! You'll have to let everyone know whether or not you enjoyed Portofinos. As you've read, it's 50/50 on this board, kind of "love it or hate it". I hope you'll love it, not because I do, but because I want every minute of this trip to continue on in the same delightful fashion - you sound like you're having the time of your life! Relax, refresh, enjoy!!! And keep up the seamail, we all love reading live reports!

Hi Joannie,

Thanks for reporting in. Glad to hear that you are beging treated royally. The Navigator really is a nice small ship. Continue to enjoy and report back to us on your cruise.

Beth

Thanks for the live report. I will be on the December 14 shortie and am glad to hear things are good. I hope you share some more details during or after your cruise.

I too am looking forward to your perspectives on Portofinos. I am also on the December short cruise. I have already requested a reservation at Portofinos, but I'd love to hear what you think of the experience.

Hi, we love the Navigator. Is Tonee Valentine in the Navigator Lounge? If so, tell him that Janice, Eric and Katherine say hi!

Best, Janice

How in the world could anyone not love the Portofino experience?

From the tasting ( wine..cheese ..specialty meats )to the entertainment.

We did not find the room to be noisy or obtrusive. We were seated directly in front of the entertainers and after all the negative reporting on CC was expecting the worse. However, everything was delightful. Vincenzo was fantastic!

Maybe it's an "Italian Thing"..you must appreciate Italian food,,song,,and sense of family. Would even love to go back another night.

NJBelle, Tonee is on and if I get the opportunity I will say Hello from Janice, Eric and Katherine.

Well that's it for now and will try and post some more later.

Joannie

Joannie, Glad you enjoyed Portofino's. Don't you just love Vincenzo? What a cutie... and such a great voice. I hope he will be on the ship in mid January when I'll be on the Navigator.

We, too, love the Navigator -- but are not fans of Portofino. We enjoyed the food and entertainment the first time. The second time, the food was still good but the entertainment was the same as the prior night. For us, the only real negative on the Navigator was the lack of restaurant choices. The Voyager and Mariner hold 700 people and have four restaurants (plus the one by the pool). The Navigator with almost 500 passengers, has only two choices -- one of which can be difficult to get into (reservation wise). Guess it is truly a "love it or hate it" situation.

Keep the reports coming.......

I signed up today for the last niight on the "shortie" for Portofino. I am going to check the situation out when on board and cancel if it doesn't sound to my liking. I hope it is something I want to experience.

Ah Portofino's.....as I said, Joannie, "love it, or hate it". I love it, and usually go twice when I'm on board. But then, I'm easily amused - LOL. And as you pointed out, that could be because I'm Italy obsessed. It's my favourite country in the world. I'm Canadian of British descent, but I learned the language just so I could try to speak a little of it when I visit Italy. My dream is to retire there. We'll see how THAT goes (financially!)

Agreed, Vincenzo is a doll (what a voice!), and so is Roberto (and Gerry when he's there). I'm so very glad you had a great time. In fact, I'm so glad you're loving every little thing about your Navigator experience. I wish I was on board with you. Aren't the crew spectacular? They are what makes it so fabulous, in my eyes.

Charlene

I'm glad you enjoyed Portofinos. I'm really looking forward to trying it when we are on board the Navigator next month. My husband and I tend not to like entertainment while dining, but this sounds like fun.

.... My husband and I tend not to like entertainment while dining, but this sounds like fun.

mpb43, You won't find a lot of audience participation unless you want to. You can eat and listen and hopefully laugh.

mpb43, You won't find a lot of audience participation unless you want to. You can eat and listen and hopefully laugh.

Sounds great. We are really looking forward to giving Portofinos a try. I hope Vincenzo is there!

Joannie, I'm so glad you're having a positive experience on the Navigator.

I'm breathing a sigh of relief. :p

Would love to hear about your itinerary.

Judy

Love it or hate it. We actually like it. We have it booked for the first night out on the New Years cruise this year. You have to understand it is not a high-end speciality restaurant like on most ships including Regent. It is a fun alternative night. You do not have to do the participation and I have never seen anyone picked on for not participating. Actually the pre-dinner with anti pasta and wine is my favorite part. So go and have fun, and don't be disappointed because it is not better than Compass Rose which is plenty good for all the other nights.

Sorry that I didn't post yesterday. I've had some unfortunate news from home, regarding my daughters twins pregnancy which will more than likely require us to depart from Jamaica on Friday.

Would have left sooner but today we are in Guatamala, no chance of getting any flights to Phila,. and the same thing for tomorrow in Roatan then one full day at sea before we arrive in Ocho Rios. Am waiting for word from home today and will decide what to do this evening.

However, with that said, we are still trying to have an enjoyable last few days on board. There is nothing else that I can do from here.

So, what can I say... the entertainment was a pleasant surprise last night , a comedian named Kenny Smiles that was very funny and had a great singing voice.

Will give a full review when I get home and have had a little time to digest everything that is happening.

Joannie

Joannie,

I am so sorry to hear there are complications with your daughter's pregnancy. Prayers go out to your family.

So you have experienced Kenny Smiles. What a hoot! Those who don't know Kenny... don't sit on the front row.

Joannie, I'm so sorry that you and your husband are faced with this worry. I hope all goes well, for everyone. Good luck in your travel arrangements, have a safe flight home. And as you said, until that time, you must try to enjoy the rest of your cruise as best you can under the circumstances, even with dampened spirits. What a shame, you have clearly been having the time of your life on this cruise. I'm sure the crew of the Navigator will see you both again, maybe I'll be on board as well!

Charlene

Hi Everyone

Thanks for all your prayers and well wishes for my family.

I just spoke to my daughter from the ship to her hospital room and I am pretty sure that although the outcome was devestating she has assured me that she'd be OK with us staying on till the end which is Monday.

Now , since then, we have had to have our cabin changed due to flooding from the shower, we were in a HC cabin, and although they tried to dry the rug, the room STINKS.

They switched us to deck 9 ( we were on deck 8) and I much prefer the cabin we are now in since it has a larger sitting area and a CD player although the balcony appears to be just a little smaller. No big deal.

But, they never say no. And never hesitate when a problem arrises.

You may have wondered why I have not posted anything in reference to the food. OK, so now I say that I have not been wow'ed and keep thinking that

it will happen the next time. I am not saying that the food has not been very good, it's just that I was expected fantastic.

That's about it for now.

Joannie

Joannie, I'm so glad you've decided to "finish off the cruise", and I hope there haven't been any more floodings! I'm glad the staff were so quick to relocate you, and that you're happy with your new cabin. Some people would really concentrate on that kind of unexpected inconvenience and let it get them down. I can see nothing is going to get you down, you're my kind of gal!!

With all the obstacles being thrown your way, and the fact you're still having a fantastic time, it speaks volumes about your character and personality, and I wish I was on board enjoying your company! Keep up the seamail.

Charlene

What a beautiful island and such warm and friendly people that we have encountered in the shops.

I could not believe it when the Regent tender guys carried my DH in his wheelchair on and off the tender today which allowed us to go ashore and get some great bargains on perfume and liquor.

We don't do any of the excursions due to his disability but I do like to shop and he likes to sample the flavours of the islands.

I should have said before, when mentioning the food, that DH is thrilled with the main restaurant for lunch and I just love the pool offerings especially the burgers, which I don't usually allow myself but this is a definate worthwhile splurge. I can only compare the pool grill with other lines that I have been on and this by far is actually superb.

We had a great lunch today in the main restaurant ( DH did the pool grill for me yesterday..we kind of take turns) since we finally got halibut which is one of our favorites. I was hoping that sooner or later we would have halibut for dinner.

Kenny Smiles is on again tonight and we are looking forward to another great show.

The Regent orchestra is the best !

BTW, my daughter just called me ( boy am I glad that I switched to Verizon, have been receiving calls almost everyday from family) and she is doing much better.

Charlene, I would love to be able to sail with you too, you sound like a very caring and pleasant person. Thanks again for your support.

That's it for now.

Joannie

Joannie, I hope you continue to enjoy your cruise. I am about to become a gandmother twice over within a week in mid-December, so your daughter's problems touched a nerve, so to speak. Hoping for the best for her. Glad Regent has been so wonderful to your husband!

Flooding...I've never seen a cruise ship with such recurrent flooding problems. It's really inconvenient to have to move even if your clothes stay dry. But they always try to make it as painless as possible.

But I'm glad you've enjoyed your cruise and were able to stay on.

JoAnne B

Houston

First, I, too, am so glad that you were able to continue enjoying your cruise and that your daughter is a bit better. Good news:)

I am curious about the recurring flooding problem that was referred to by "JoAnne B". I must have missed something -- haven't heard anything about flooding on the Navigator before (only the vibration issue which comes and goes). Is this something that started occuring recently?