LIVE - Food/Wine from the Voyager 4/23

[DaveFr]

Hi TC,

 

I've dropped Regent an email but received no response. Given the time difference from Australia, it is difficult to call. I emailed this address: RegentSolutions@rssc.com . Has anyone got a better contact email for Regent?

 

BTW my husband and I have really been enjoying this thread - thanks for all the updates on the menu and entertainment. It brings back great memories of our cruise!! Glad to hear you've got Paul back, he was great fun as Cruise Director!

 

Thanks,

 

Kimberley

Kimberley,

 

Using the Wayback Machine, here's a web page for the November 2011 Barcelona to Dubai cruise. I believe the map is correct but the rest of the page still has information from the originally scheduled transatlantic cruise that was replaced by your cruise. I hope this is what you're looking for. (http://web.archive.org/web/20101020182327/http://www.rssc.com/cruises/VOY111128/itinerary.aspx)

[Travelcat2]

Kimberley: Hope that link helped. If you still need a better email address, I'll try to find one.

 

Dinner last night at Prime 7 was to die for. We asked for an appetizer portion of crab legs (normally a main course). They were wonderful. We were not in a beef mood so I had the filet of sole and my DH has the special of the day - halibut. He felt that the halibut was prepared and cooked perfectly -- better than what he had in Signatures at the beginning of the last cruise.

 

Prime 7 server a Bogle Cabernet last night. It is a wine we enjoy at home (even though it is only $10/bottle at Trader Joes). We had one of their white wines -- do not recall which one -- it was also quite good.

 

Just another mention of the pasta bar in La Veranda at lunch. There is always a "pasta of the day" with a special sauce. If the sauce does not sound like something you would enjoy, they always have tomato sauce and a Bolognese sauce (very meaty). Remember to give them your table number so it can be delivered to you (with parmesan cheese if you wish).

 

Lots of newbies on board. The beautiful sailaway with music, drinks, etc. was poorly attended - we assume that many people were enjoying their beauty rest. We did meet 5 CC'ers (1 of the 5 was there representing 4 that were asleep after muster). Lovely people. We hope to meet more this evening and will use the Observation Lounge as an pre-dinner meeting place. I'm sure that everyone will be wide awake tonight for the Captain's Reception and the lovely meal to follow. (Note: The menus did not follow us to the new suite . . . if the menu is different from last time, I'll let you know during my evening post -- about 12 hours from now).

 

We're taking today as a sea day after two wonderful but tiring days in Venice. This port just does not have much to see (IMO). The weather is beautiful - getting warmer each day.

 

I'm working on the review of our last cruise today. It takes CruiseCritic a couple days to review and post on their "Reviews" board. I may just paste it in this thread. Will see how the internet connection goes.

[English Tim]

My post is a bit O/T, as the original thread title seems to have been diversified.

 

TC, some interesting points, above, concerning cruising in general.

 

Shore Excursions

 

We rarely take shore excursions, especially those offered by cruise-lines, as we feel they are way over-priced and involve lots of waiting around. On last year's Carnival Magic TA, the routing was changed to include Freeport, Bahamas, so we were all compensated by free shuttles to town. Some people gave up waiting, after sitting around for over an hour, as so many pax wanted their free shuttle. Those who travelled independently, did so without such stress and got to their destinations much more quickly.

As you rightly say, many excursion buses arriving simultaneously cause big hold-ups and much frustration.

We enjoy using local transport, so meeting locals going about their daily business.

Now, when we take our first RSS cruise, we have booked several excursions, so we'll see how we get on, which may help us decide on future tours.

 

Are there many lines / queues on RSS cruises?

 

Do most of you enjoy the tours and do you pay extra to go on the 'paid' tours?

 

Cocktail Parties

 

I have organized cocktail parties on Carnival, where pax pay an 'upfront' fee and then drink what they like in a set time. This encourages a lively atmosphere, but people generally behave responsibly. At 'free' parties, organized by the ship for past guests, pax either attend to be recognized for their loyalty or to get free drinks.

With RSS, I assume that as alcohol is freely available, people won't generally get 'silly' and there is no need to attend a cocktail party, unless there is a desire to be recognized by the cruise line, or to meet the captain.

[Travelcat2]

My post is a bit O/T, as the original thread title seems to have been diversified.

 

TC, some interesting points, above, concerning cruising in general.

 

Shore Excursions

 

We rarely take shore excursions, especially those offered by cruise-lines, as we feel they are way over-priced and involve lots of waiting around. On last year's Carnival Magic TA, the routing was changed to include Freeport, Bahamas, so we were all compensated by free shuttles to town. Some people gave up waiting, after sitting around for over an hour, as so many pax wanted their free shuttle. Those who travelled independently, did so without such stress and got to their destinations much more quickly.

As you rightly say, many excursion buses arriving simultaneously cause big hold-ups and much frustration.

We enjoy using local transport, so meeting locals going about their daily business.

Now, when we take our first RSS cruise, we have booked several excursions, so we'll see how we get on, which may help us decide on future tours.

 

Are there many lines / queues on RSS cruises?

 

Do most of you enjoy the tours and do you pay extra to go on the 'paid' tours?

 

Cocktail Parties

 

I have organized cocktail parties on Carnival, where pax pay an 'upfront' fee and then drink what they like in a set time. This encourages a lively atmosphere, but people generally behave responsibly. At 'free' parties, organized by the ship for past guests, pax either attend to be recognized for their loyalty or to get free drinks.

With RSS, I assume that as alcohol is freely available, people won't generally get 'silly' and there is no need to attend a cocktail party, unless there is a desire to be recognized by the cruise line, or to meet the captain.

 

Excellent questions! Let me start with cocktail parties. I have rarely seen anyone who appears to have too much alcohol. I've wondered if the fact we eat so much and so frequently lessens the effect of the alcohol. Regent does have a cocktail reception for the Captain's Reception and Farewell. This is held in the Constellation theater. This gives you the opportunity to meet the Captain and other officers as well as have canapes and cocktails. Since you an have canapes and cocktails in any lounge in the evening, it isn't necessary to attend this event. In my opinion, it is lovely reception for people new to Regent.

 

Regent does have a cocktail event for their Seven Seas Society members (those passengers who have cruised Regent previously). There is a band, shrimp and caviar (I believe there is also a band at the Captain's reception). So, the short answer to your question is that Regent does have cocktail parties that you can choose to attend (or not).

 

Excursions is a difficult question to answer as it is port dependent. There has been a line/queue outside of the theater when you are waiting to exchange your excursion ticket for a bus ticket. It goes quickly and is handled fairly well. Most of the time there are not 5 buses arriving at the same time. In Dubrovnik, the roads are so narrow that you feel you should hold your breath so the bus can make it through. This was the only time I saw buses following each other up the mountain.

 

Trying out Regent "included" excursions as well as those with a cost involved is a good idea. I find the cost of the excursions in Europe to be considerably higher than in South America or the Middle East. As I mentioned earlier, so much depends upon the ports you will be visiting.

 

Not sure if I sufficiently answered your question. I just finished a review on our first cruise (Istanbul to Venice) that should be posted by CruiseCritic next week. Part of the review details a couple of the excursions we took. I'll post a link here.

[English Tim]

I am so frustrated. I just typed a long post, my finger slipped and I lost it all, but briefly thanks ever so much for all your interesting posts and the answers to my questions, which go a long way toward satisfying my pre-cruise anticipation needs!

Our first cruise on RSSC on Sept 30th is eagerly awaited and I wonder if I will get hooked!

[DeepFreeze63]

As a "Newbie" last year, we thoroughly enjoyed the tour of the food galleys. Ita amazing to see the organization and the equipment. Ask at the Reception Desk.

[newlondon]

Jackie, You seem to be spending several evenings in Prime 7. Is your cruise full and if so how have you managed the extra reservations? Our Singapore-Hong Kong next year is sold out and I'm worried about getting into the restaurants more than once each.

[Travelcat2]

Jackie, You seem to be spending several evenings in Prime 7. Is your cruise full and if so how have you managed the extra reservations? Our Singapore-Hong Kong next year is sold out and I'm worried about getting into the restaurants more than once each.

 

We actually have only been there once. I posted the menu from a menu delivered to our suite and cancelled our first reservation (maybe I posted Prime 7 once when I meant Signatures where we also dined once on the last cruise). From experience we know that Prime 7 is not full the first night (early -- 6:30 p.m.) You would have no problem getting in that night. When we boarded we were told to go to Compass Rose to make/change dining reservations for both Prime 7 and Signatures. Really do not think you will have difficulty at all.

 

Back to the newbie posts -- I have been thinking of a couple of things.

 

First, even repeat passengers can get so caught up doing things on the ship that they may not read "Passages", or, more importantly -- watch the Cruise Director on television when he/she goes through the events for the day. Included in the information is whether or not there is a shuttle to town -- and the times they return to the ship. Also, in ports like Montenegro, a photo identification (drivers license for instance) is required when you leave the ship. We typically put the television on while we are getting ready for breakfast in the morning to insure we do not miss anything important.

 

A few words about Italy. The last time we were in Italy, we were in Rome for a week. While I found the cathedrals, ruins, Vatican City -- so amazing, we were also aware of the long lines outside of the American Express office for all of the people who had wallets/passports and money stolen. I categorized Rome with Barcelona and Rio in terms of crime. I also thought of most of Italy being the same way. Now I must admit that I was totally wrong about Italy (not necessarily Rome, but the parts we are visiting now). With the thousands of people/tourists in Venice, we did not feel unsafe for a minute. We did not see or hear any evidence of picketpocketing (we spent 2 days there on this cruise). It is an incredible city -- very clean and very safe. We found Ancona, Italy (never heard of it -- they had a lot of little stands set up with souveniers, spices, etc.) also very safe.

 

W.C. (aka bathrooms or toilets). Expect to pay 1.50 Euro in Italy. They will not take American money (although many tourist shops will -- not at a favorable rate of exchange)l. In Santorini, Greece the W.C. (stands for water closet) was about 50 cents in Euros (no idea how to write that). They also would not accept U.S. money. There were so many people who needed the facility and no place to cash money. Some people were kind enough to hand out money for those who did not have any. So, another tip is to make sure you have Euro's (or a very strong bladder).

 

Speaking of bathrooms (such an odd topic for CruiseCritic), men and women do not exactly have separate bathrooms. Many times you share the sinks together. One W.C. had three stalls for women and two for men with 5 sinks. Men and women are standing in line together. Just a little advanced warning for those new to Europe:)

 

There were a few menu items in addition to lobster tails on the menu for the night of the Captain's Reception last night. Left the list in my suite. I do recall a wonderful cheese souffle on the appetizer menu. The caviar, belini, etc. is a wonderful dish. Caviar is layered on top -- below is chopped egg white, egg yoke, finely minced red onion, sour cream and belini. Even if you don't love caviar, this is a great appetizer.

 

Almost lunch time. Looking forward to eating after our trip and walk in downtown Dubrovnik.

[OrpingtonT]

W.C. (aka bathrooms or toilets). Expect to pay 1.50 Euro in Italy. They will not take American money (although many tourist shops will -- not at a favorable rate of exchange)l. In Santorini, Greece the W.C. (stands for water closet) was about 50 cents in Euros (no idea how to write that). They also would not accept U.S. money. There were so many people who needed the facility and no place to cash money. Some people were kind enough to hand out money for those who did not have any. So, another tip is to make sure you have Euro's (or a very strong bladder).

 

Speaking of bathrooms (such an odd topic for CruiseCritic), men and women do not exactly have separate bathrooms. Many times you share the sinks together. One W.C. had three stalls for women and two for men with 5 sinks. Men and women are standing in line together. Just a little advanced warning for those new to Europe:)

 

 

Very, very useful information for those new to Italy (and much of Europe)

[ChocCritic]

Kimberley,

 

Using the Wayback Machine, here's a web page for the November 2011 Barcelona to Dubai cruise. I believe the map is correct but the rest of the page still has information from the originally scheduled transatlantic cruise that was replaced by your cruise. I hope this is what you're looking for. (http://web.archive.org/web/20101020182327/http://www.rssc.com/cruises/VOY111128/itinerary.aspx)

 

Hi Dave and TC,

 

This worked - thanks heaps!!

[RachelG]

Yes, and regarding bathrooms in France at least, the urinals may be open in plain sight of women walking to the women's stalls. First time we were there ( this was probably 15 yrs ago), my husband was doing his business at the urinal when a little girl and her mom walked right by. He almost had a heart attack as in the US, he would have been charged with indecent exposure.

[poss]

TC-- again many thanks for your posts. I particularly appreciated the reminder to take euros for w.c. We oldies need lots of stops.

 

Hi back Patti-- We're thinking of doing the Aug. 21, 2013 cruise on Voyager; I think it's called Northern Lights? I hope you and hizzoner might like to join us.

[Travelcat2]

DeepFreeze63 -- wanted to mention how great your input about the Galley Tour is. It is an amazing insight into the inner workings of food preparation! While on the subject of food, we dined in La Veranda this evening where the fish was exceptional. We were told that they were able to get a lot of fresh fish onboard in Venice (yesterday). Definitely worth having!

 

Tonight we had cocktails with CC member Sharkbyte who probably does more research that I do. Such a lovely couple. Anyway, he purchased pre-paid toilet tickets through veniceconnected.com . They also have airport boat transfers and vaparetto (transportation boats) tickets at a discount online. Really appreciated his input and told himi that I would share with CC members.

 

Tomorrow we return to Kotor -- one of Paul Reynolds top five ports in the world. We will do a tour and I'll report on it on this thread.

[newlondon]

Lucky you Jackie, We thought the trip into Kotor was fantastic and the town itself way above average (like the residents of Lake Woebegone). be aware, however, the excursions are nothing to write home about:(

[poss]

Pre-paid toilet tickets-- OMG.

But hooray for Kotor. I'm looking forward to returning (though we loved Korcula more-- Regent doesn't seem to go there very often). TC-- I hope your visit is lovely.

newlondon: We're signed up for the excursion called "Town of Kotor and Bay of Kotor Heritage." Do you happen to know that tour? Are there any that are better? (I don't remember what we did last time.) I.e. I wonder which is the best of the not-so-good. Is it maybe better just to wander the town? (We're not shoppers.)

Thanks both!

[OrpingtonT]

Pre-paid toilet tickets-- OMG.

But hooray for Kotor. I'm looking forward to returning (though we loved Korcula more-- Regent doesn't seem to go there very often). TC-- I hope your visit is lovely.

newlondon: We're signed up for the excursion called "Town of Kotor and Bay of Kotor Heritage." Do you happen to know that tour? Are there any that are better? (I don't remember what we did last time.) I.e. I wonder which is the best of the not-so-good. Is it maybe better just to wander the town? (We're not shoppers.)

Thanks both!

 

 

poss.

 

Did you ever read Sailor Jack's review of his visit to Kotor with his wife, Sailor Jill? Here it is : http://cruiseforums.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1418738

[RachelG]

Poss, don't worry. You don't have to get prepaid toilet tickets in Venice. You also can pay as you go, so to speak. I actually don't mind paying for the toilets in Venice because they are clean and convenient.

[josephone]

We are planning to take the safaga to Mumbai trip. Any suggestions about which suit to choose? Do we want a penthouse or concierge or plain? All advice welcome!

 

Are all excursions so very full?

 

Thanks for all the great information!

[Travelcat2]

josephone: Penthouse suites and Category "E" suites are almost the same size -- just different configuration. Penthouse suites feel roomier and do have a butler. It really depends upon whether you think it is worth the extra money.

 

RachelG: Definitely agree with you about not pre-paying for toilet visits (as long as you have Euros), but pre-paying for the boat transfer from your hotel to the ship could certainly be worth the savings.

 

We will dock in Kotor in 10 minutes. What a beautiful sail-in. I have also heard that the excursions aren't that great. For that reason, we bypassed it when we visited Kotor last week. This time we have a desire to be in a bus on the windy road up the hill to get a birds eye view of the area.

 

I do have a bus comment. Many people try to get to the front of the bus -- particularly the front two/four seats. When there are no disabled people to occupy those seats, I can see why people try to get them. However, with the mid-bus entrance that most of the buses in Europe and the Middle East have, a lot of passengers are heading straight to that entrance. It is easier to disembark and the seats are just fine!

 

There are a few Silver and above Seven Seas Society Members posting on this thread so I thought I'd mention something that is new (at least to me). I called my daughter the other night and the next morning $65 showed up on my account. When I checked with Reception, they said that this is new and not to worry as these charges will be removed at the end of the cruise. Perhaps Regent wants their guests to see the dollar amount of the benefits they are receiving. I'm still trying to get used to "buying" complimentary minutes every time I log onto the internet.

 

This cruise is a bit different than the last one in terms of passengers that have not been given (or read) information about Regent. Many people are showing up in the Observation Lounge as late as 7:30 p.m. in shorts -- or, in one case, barefoot. The Cruise Director is mentioning the dress code every day -- hope it helps as it must be embarassing when they are told to go to their cabin and change. We love the Elegant Casual dress code but do not want to see t-shirts and shorts after 6:00 p.m. It is quite easy to put on slacks and a nice top. Speaking of dress code, no one can wear hats in Compass Rose at night -- no matter how expensive or classy they are. And, there are some rules about baseball caps being worn inside. We have seen many places in our travels that do not want to see these type of caps. They are popular in the U.S. but not necessarily elsewhere.

 

Off to the excursion that I'll report on later.

[ChatKat in Ca.]

In most of Europe a 20 Cent Euro coin is all that's required or a 50 cent Euro coin is plenty.

[swabs]

Useful stuff! Many thanks.

[Travelcat2]

ChatKat: a 20 cent euro would definitely not work in the places we visited. As an example, this morning we were in Budva, Montenegro -- about a half an hour from Kotor (newlondon -- you are right about excursions -- more later). There was a machine that required a 50 cent euro coin (would also accept 1 euro). My belief is that it is better to be prepared. If less money is required, it isn't a big deal.

 

To start at the beginning......... we took an excursion to Kotor this morning. Having been forewarned that the tours were not great, we had low expectations. This tour could have been wonderful -- if it had been 2 hours later. We arrived in Budva, Montenegro approximately 9:00 a.m. when nothing is open (also a Sunday but most businesses open on Sunday in this country). After a tour of the new and old cities, we were left on our own for approximately an hour and a half. The old city is marvelous -- tiny cobblestone streets with many places to sit outside and people watch or shop. There is also a marina with beautiful boats/yachts and a beach area. The square has a Catholic church that is amazing (we could only get a quick glimpse inside as services were in progress) The unfortunate part was simply that we were there too early. Shops opened close to the time we were to be back at the ship.

 

In the hopes that Regent management may be reading this, I have a couple of suggestions. First would be to have this tour begin at 10:00 a.m. -- later if it on Sunday. Second, and this applies to all excursions, give the guests the best information you have regarding restrooms/toilets/WC's. If a specific currency is required, or if exact change is required, let them know. At our stop in Santorini (last week) there was one bathroom area that required euros (they did give change). However, there was no place to change dollars into euros. This time, a specific coin was required. Many of us went to the tourist shops to purchase a few postcards as a way to get change. At least three shopowners claimed to have no change (we were handing them a 5 euro bill).

 

Back to the subject for a moment. Today La Veranda had leg of lamb at the carving station, wonderful lasagne, English style fish and chips with malt vinegar and several other choices. Extremely yummy! Champagne and caviar breakfast was very good. Newbie tip: It is easy to walk right by the caviar in La Veranda. It is right past the entrance. You help yourself to the mother-of-pearl spoon, caviar, egg whites, egg yolks, onion and sour cream (may be missing something). Most passsengers do not seem to indulge in champagne for breakfast. I cannot pass up a mimosa. You do need to ask your server for champagne (orange juice is available on the buffet).

 

Kotor has one of the top 20 fiords in the world. It is absolultely beautiful. The ship anchored last week (the Seabourn Quest got the dock). This week we docked -- 2 minutes from downtown Kotor.

 

The seas remain as calm as glass. No aft vibration at all. If I can think of anything else, I'll post later. Tomorrow we return to Corfu!

[poss]

Oh, boy! Sailor Jack's review! Thanks for turning me back to it Orp-- def. worth a re-read.

"Pay as you go"-- good one Rachel!

TC-- Your posts are wonderful-- so much valuable info., so many good suggestions. Btw, I'm glad that you're sneaking in info abt excursions; I seem to care more abt those details than abt. food details. But you're doing a heroic job on it all.

[claranda]

Still enjoying your posts, TC. Am quite in awe at your focus - I'd have succumbed totally to the champagne and caviar by now and given up posting!

 

One thing I find strange. If I was going on a trip to the USA, I'd make sure I had dollars, even if I was only on a cruise. Why should some Americans find it so surprising that they need Euros in Europe (or any other foreign currency in other countries)?

[poss]

TC-- Kotor excursion question if you don't mind: Any clear sense of which tour is better between the one you took (K and Budva) or the one called Town of Kotor and Kotor Heritage (Perast and Gospa islet)? It'll be a Monday.

 

What are you doing in Corfu? I'll be interested to hear, since we'll be there in August. Whatever you do, I hope it's fun or at least interesting.

 

Always thanks!