Is Regent worth the extra $$$$?

[MV21]

Not in a well-meaning way, unlike the two couples, who, when we joined the line for Business Class check-in in L.A., in our jeans and t-shirts, turned around and pointed out the Economy line to us. We got a good chuckle out of that, and did get to be snobs ourselves for a few minutes.

 

This made me laugh out loud! As someone who likes to travel comfortably even when we splash out on business class I found it very funny. Thanks

[MV21]

This one for Travelcat:

In a previous post in this thread you said that Regent didn't play music at the swimming pool but on our October cruise on the voyager I was surprised to hear constant music while by the pool. Were we just unlucky or has the policy changed?

[poss]

Not that I wish ill luck on anyone-- but MV21, I hope you were being unlucky!

[Emperor Norton]

Regent, like any other line can be a box of chocolates when it comes to passengers, you... (apologies for the Gumpism).

 

For the most part the passengers are easy to get along with. On my last Regent cruise there was only one passenger I ran into that felt the need to pump himself up and was constantly trying to discuss his business (thankfully also the only bore who wanted to talk politics). The only other person that was a blip on my radar was a world cruiser who got off the ship to throw an inauguration party back home then flew back to the ship (darn). To peoples faces she was the epitome of polite. However, behind their backs the knives, scissors and other shredding implements arrived. She was also a VERY sore loser at trivia.

 

On that cruise there was another world cruiser, a man that I labeled the drunken perv. He tried asking women back to his cabin to give them massages (why his wife put up with this I have no idea). On one of the tours he got plastered on wine and then chased the staff to get him grappa. At a later stop he was sitting on the arms of a roped off chair and got into a shouting match with the tourguide after she told him the chair was roped off for a reason.

 

The worst I've heard of was a universally disliked Canadian woman who the other passengers and crew had given the moniker "the beached whale".

 

While the ship never did reach frat party levels of energy/activity the other passengers did seem more energetic and engaged than on Crystal and about equal to SilverSea.

[RachelG]

Do you have their next cruise planned yet?

 

Yes! Older one and I are doing a Baltic cruise end of July because he missed going with his brother, hubbY, and me 4 yrs ago. He has never been to northern europe. George sr. Was invited too but declined as he has to work at least occasionally.

Then we are doing a big family trip Dec 28th on navigator in Caribbean. Yes, I know--will probably be full of kids, etc, but it is the only one that works for everyone's schedule.m and who knows when we will be able to travel together again. I am sure we will make a good time. And I sure hope they have trivia-- with both boys, we should be unstoppable.

[Travelcat2]

This one for Travelcat:

In a previous post in this thread you said that Regent didn't play music at the swimming pool but on our October cruise on the voyager I was surprised to hear constant music while by the pool. Were we just unlucky or has the policy changed?

 

Oh my gosh. . . . was it piped music or live? They do occasionally have live music but generally it is quiet because if passengers want noise in their ears they have iPods. If I hear anything by the pool on our cruise next month, I will question it and report back to you.

[gcmv]

If you ask to be seated with other people in the main dining room (Compass Rose), then you will meet a cross section of those people--that process tends to be self-selecting--the snobs don't ask to be seated with others!

 

Uuups - i.e. I'm a snob! :confused:

 

Sorry, but there are evenings, where I only want to talk with my DW and so I don't want to be seated together with other guests ... ;)

[grapejuice]

Been on Regent several times and a few other lines. The bottom line is Regent is the BEST - no point discussing, everyone knows why, end of story!!!

[Wendy The Wanderer]

Uuups - i.e. I'm a snob! :confused:

 

Sorry, but there are evenings, where I only want to talk with my DW and so I don't want to be seated together with other guests ... ;)

 

Of course--we always consult each other on that as we approach the dining room. If we're not feeling social we ask for a table for two.

[newlondon]

Wendy, You and TC2 are people I enjoy. Where are you coming from on this one. Because you prefer your spouse to other people you are a snob; give me a break. We on occasion ask other cruisers to join us, but 95% of the time enjoy each others sole company: are we snobs-I don't think so!

[Travelcat2]

We tend to be more like newlondon on this one. While we are quite social in the lounges, with our trivia team, etc., we enjoy dining alone the majority of the time. We do have dinners with people we've met on board or have known previously. . . . but no longer seek out a table with passengers we don't know. Not sure why preferring the company of your spouse/partner would make one a snob:confused:

[MV21]

Oh my gosh. . . . was it piped music or live

 

it was piped and quite a surprise!

[A Tucson Guy]

+1!!

 

wendy, you and tc2 are people i enjoy. Where are you coming from on this one. Because you prefer your spouse to other people you are a snob; give me a break. We on occasion ask other cruisers to join us, but 95% of the time enjoy each others sole company: Are we snobs-i don't think so!

[Wendy The Wanderer]

Wendy, You and TC2 are people I enjoy. Where are you coming from on this one. Because you prefer your spouse to other people you are a snob; give me a break. We on occasion ask other cruisers to join us, but 95% of the time enjoy each others sole company: are we snobs-I don't think so!

 

No, I don't think we're snobs for doing this, I didn't mean to imply that. It just depends on what kind of mood we're in. But I do generally like meeting people, since we spend almost every normal night "dining alone".

[azkitty]

We are new to Regent and will be taking our first Regent cruise in Dec., a Caribbean, holiday cruise. This will be our 9th cruise over quite a number of years. We started with RC, Princess and Celebrity before trying Oceania and Crystal several times. We loved Oceania for the size, congeniality and casual dress code. We also loved Crystal for the ambiance, food and interesting fellow cruisers. I especially liked Crystal's casino where I won $2,500 on 3 quarters and kept it. I am not a big gambler so it was exciting. I don't know if Crystal's dress code has changed recently, but we did not like having to bring all that formal wear, especially cumbersome are suits for my husband.

 

I did not think the cruise price was out of line considering the all inclusiveness. We like knowing and paying for our vacation ahead and not being nickled and dimed and surprised. We would prefer to take one really nice cruise every few years rather than many. It is nice having the air fare included and a pre-cruise hotel night. We also like having shore excursions included. I know these may not be the extra special ones for which there is an extra charge but we don't always want a big full day excursion in every port. Between Regent and our TA, we are being given $900 to spend so if there are some extras, I am sure that will cover it and more. If not, than we don't need it to have a good time.

 

We chose this particular cruise because of the timing (over the holidays) and port stops as well as the all inclusive nature, size and high ratings. Since we liked Crystal and Oceania so much, we thought Regent would also be to our liking and maybe better in some ways. We like the smaller ships and since we are not night time people any more, we don't care about night entertainment. We like being in a port almost every day and having a really good dinner and maybe an after dinner brandy but then to bed..... just boring old people I guess.

 

 

As for fellow passengers/cruisers, snobs don't bother me as they are easy to ignore. Loud, boorish people are difficult to ignore and can make for a very unpleasant atmosphere overall. I guess one finds these people every where, but hopefully fewer on cruises that cost a little more, which I am sure sounds snobbish. I am not a snob but rather a soft spoken individual with an objection to loud voices and bad language and not ashamed of that.

 

We are a retired couple and enjoy meeting, chatting and eating with others since we have lots of "togetherness" in our every day, home life.....however I think it is fine if some others wish to eat alone, a personal choice. Some people, I am sure, take vacations/cruises to spend more time together especially if they are working or just have busy every day lives.

 

It will be interesting to see how Regent compares.

 

Azkitty

from Tucson, AZ

[newlondon]

azkitty, You'll love Regent! Your response to the eating thoughts was well thought out and right on:)

[TedC]

azkittty, after your cruise report back and compare your Regent experience with Oceania and Crystal. Cruise Critics love comparisons.

 

If you like onion rings Prime 7 has the best I've ever had.

 

 

Most importantly, have a wonderful cruise!

[mortgagemaster]

We've been tempted to try Regent, Crystal and Seabourn. We have friends who love Azamara (although they admit it is not quite like the other 3 lines but close). Silversea has impressed on 2 trips so far, and when I price Regent compared to Silversea, it seems higher. And there is no shipboard credit. We like to use the shipboard credit toward spa treatments, then we arrange small private tours with 1-2 other couples. Azamara does appear to be an excellent value for the caliber of the ships, food, etc.

[Wendy The Wanderer]

The shipboard credit can depend on your TA, and on the specific cruise. My TA gives a cash rebate, which is better than a credit, but then my May 1st sailing includes an OBC as well.

[Nitrodog]

I've got a question for you all. Having cruised on Princess, Celebrity and Oceania several times we are looking at an Asian cruise of 18 days or longer. RSSC has a 18 day cruise while HAL has one for 28 days both having similar ports. Correct me if I'm wrong but I believe RSSC includes the airfare and if that's the case and everything else is included the RSSC price is only $275 more per day per stateroom albeit it's a shorter cruise. Comments please?

[Wendy The Wanderer]

Not sure what the question is. Is the shorter Regent cruise worth it, for a similar price. There are questions and issues to consider:

 

- most excursions are included on Regent, as is alcohol and tips

- how do the ports compare? Sea days?

- how about the cabins--are you comparing similarly-sized accommodations?

[Travelcat2]

I've got a question for you all. Having cruised on Princess, Celebrity and Oceania several times we are looking at an Asian cruise of 18 days or longer. RSSC has a 18 day cruise while HAL has one for 28 days both having similar ports. Correct me if I'm wrong but I believe RSSC includes the airfare and if that's the case and everything else is included the RSSC price is only $275 more per day per stateroom albeit it's a shorter cruise. Comments please?

 

Agree with Wendy, there is a lot more to consider. We are booked on the 18 night Asian cruise and are pleased with the number of sea days and port days. Yes -- airfare is included in the price as is one night at a hotel pre-cruise. The size of the ship is closer to Oceania than it is Princess or Celebrity. Again, it depends upon what your priorities are. There is less to do on a smaller ship. It is true that you could go on Regent and not pay another penny out of pocket (assuming you use included tours rather than ones with a pricetag).

[Nitrodog]

It is true that you could go on Regent and not pay another penny out of pocket (assuming you use included tours rather than ones with a pricetag).

 

Thanks for the feedback. We like the small Oceania ships and aren't concerned about less extravagant entertainment. The ports are very similar (not as many on the shorter RSSC cruise) but we want to see the Orient and it will probably be our only trip there. What do you mean when you say "rather than one's with a pricetag. Are not all excursions on RSSC included? As far as length of the cruise being longer with HAL, wouldn't the RSSC experience make the shorter cruise more enjoyable?

[forevertravel]

Travelcat2, I couldn't have put it better myself. We have only been on three Regent cruises and I have never met any snobby people or people looking down on anybody. We have met very nice passengers and we are all the same on the ship. No, Regent does not have the wet T-shirt contest, or who can jump on their belly on the pool, etc. If by sedated the previous post meant this, yes, Regent is not for you. Regent passengers are fun passengers without getting obnoxiously drunk (in spite of fact drinks are included) or being loud and obnoxious. After our first Regent cruise we knew we always wanted to cruise with Regent unless we had a location in mind that wouldn't work with Regent. For example, Regent's cruise to Panama Canal is over 16 days. We wanted a shorter cruise because we are doing two weeks (with Regent) in August. So, we have booked a cruise to Panama Canal with Holland America. I just pray we'd like it and won't be too disappointed.

[Travelcat2]

Nitrodog: Unfortunately not all Regent excursions are included. On a 10 day cruise, there are approximately 34 included excursions. How many there are sometimes depends upon the area you are sailing to. Europe tends to have expensive excursions. When we were in the Middle East, there were wonderful included excursions -- some even included lunch. Yes -- I do feel that the shorter Regent cruise would be more enjoyable. . . . but you must consider how prejudice I am. The one downfall I can see is that you will be spoiled and may not want to go back to Princess or Celebrity.:)

 

forevertravel: You understood exactly what I meant by "sedate". We definitely have fun. Not sure if you have been on a Regent cruise with several sea days in a row. They do a Country Fair that is really funny. It is definitely not sedate. . . but still no wet t-shirts, etc.

 

Where are you going on Regent in August?