Mariner Review – April 2-12 Barcelona – Istanbul

[tallship]

Gerry-

Wish you could have been there too

[crooz4fun]

Really enjoyed reading your review -- thank you for taking the time to post it. There is one comment you made (probably the best that I have read on these boards) that bears repeating:

 

"The Regent staff take pride in what they do and demonstrate genuine care for their passengers. Many of the crew showed such kindness to my mom and I am always in their debt for making a contribution to her(our) happiness. This is the reason why we keep coming back and it is the secret sauce in the Regent Experience."

 

I couldn't agree with you more. My wife and I sailed on the Mariner from Fort Lauderdale to Barcelona, but switched to the Oceania Marina on April 2nd because we much preferred the itinerary (fewer repeat ports for us).

 

Although the Marina is a beautiful ship and we found the food to be every bit as good as the Mariner, the service didn't come close to comparing to the service on the Mariner. That was true accross the board, from the housekeeping staff to the dining staff and to the bar staff.

 

A very striking difference, made all the more noticeable because of the direct comparison of one cruise to the immediately following one.

[tallship]

Crooz4fun-

That is a very interesting observation. A few years ago, 8 of us went on HAL over the holidays and we had 2 top end suites with access to their Concierge Club, etc.

The food, etc was great but the service and cruise ambiance we experience on Regent is far superior and made us never go back to HAL

[Mr Rumor]

crooz4fun, not everyone has the opportunity to do a Mariner-Marina back to back, so I, too, was interested in your comparisons. You have an unique perspective with which to make them!

 

I have to say, the Marina was a beauty to behold in Barcelona on April 2 as the Mariner began to depart the port:

 

More than a few Marina passengers took notice of us:

 

Before I knew it, the Marina was in our rear-view mirror. Monte Carlo, here we come!

[tallship]

Rich-

The pics are great. I was just sitting here thinking....i have never had a bad cruise on the Mariner.....

[Mr Rumor]

Rich-

The pics are great. I was just sitting here thinking....i have never had a bad cruise on the Mariner.....

 

Me neither, Tina, although we have only had three. Our one Voyager cruise (Northern Europe) wasn't half-bad either! Again, no desire at this point, to look beyond Regent.

[tallship]

I only ever had one bad one and that was immediately after a major drydock

[jhp]

Rich, thank you for your photos! I didn't notice what was next to us in Barcelona!

 

Both ships are lovely from the outside, just your experience "inside" that counts, and I have never cruised Oceania. Know they have a loyal following. Just got an email that the Riviera is about to launch its inaugural cruise. Maybe one of these days. 1,200 sounds like a lot of people, but not as many as the Disney cruise I just booked for next year for my sons, wives, and grands.

 

Maybe next time it will be Regent's turn to get a new ship! I sure hope so.

 

Gerry, I forgot to tell you, but the night we got to Istanbul (before you arrived on the Mariner), we went to have dinner at the Hotel 1898 across the street (tallship's hotel, but the night before she arrived). There was a couple having dinner, it was not crowded, who were dead ringers for the picture you have on your avatar of you and your husband. I was about to go and introduce myself, until I remembered you were not yet in port. Maybe someday we will meet on a cruise.