Mini Blog from the Mariner - 8/30 - 9/8/2017

[Travelcat2]

Must correct one sentence in my review. What a difference reversing two words can make. The sentence "My DH saw him in the sauna and they did chat and was he friendly". The sentence should end "and he was friendly". Did not mean to imply anything else.:o Oops!

[RachelG]

must correct one sentence in my review. What a difference reversing two words can make. The sentence "my dh saw him in the sauna and they did chat and was he friendly". The sentence should end "and he was friendly". Did not mean to imply anything else.:o oops!

 

lol!

[swansong]

TC that was a great and honest review knowing your passion for Regent.

 

 

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[BarbarianPaul]

Weird/Interesting/Different cruise – Review - Vancouver to San Francisco

 

Arrived home after a 2 hour flight from SFO to Vancouver. When we left the ship we were hoping that the code red will be ending tonight. Passengers that wanted to wash their clothes before flying home were likely disappointed that they could not do so.

 

I noticed that the bathrobe situation was being discussed on this thread. Paul Reynolds made it clear that it is completely against the dress code. It likely isn’t mentioned in the dress code because who would think that anyone would wear a bathrobe around the ship? There is no need to spell out that no nightgowns, pajamas or walking around in your underwear is not allowed as it is simply understood that people don’t do this. As I mentioned earlier in the thread, there is clothing made to walk around the ship after going in the pool, the spa, etc. During the day we can wear almost anything – shorts, torn jeans, t-shirts, tank tops, etc. Let’s leave the bathrobes inside of the suite which is where they are meant to be worn.

 

Let me address service on the ship first. It was top notch – excellent (with one exception! I could go on and on about how good it was but would rather mention one area where it was not up to par. A cruising friend that we’ll cruise with in November gave me “homework”. It was to find a good bartender that would still be onboard in November so that we could stop by their bar every night – meet and have a drink. Almost every single bartender was “okay” but nothing special. One was sour one minute and sweet the next and one didn’t know what Harvey’s Bristol Cream Sherry was and insisted that Regent doesn’t carry it. Finally, at the end of the cruise, a bartender (Alex) that we recognized from a previous cruise was in the Observation Lounge. He was running circles around the other bartenders – not just in making drinks but giving great customer service and smiling (something most bartenders were not doing). I asked why we haven’t seen him and learned that he was in the crew bar. In my final questionnaire, I suggested that they not hide their best “current” bartender. Hope that they listen.

 

Internet – this is part ofthe weird/strange/different part of the cruise that also touches on the different passengers. As I’ve mentioned,the internet was the best we have experienced …… until the last day when people started using it. Then it was as slow as everyone talks about. This is the first Regent cruise that we have taken where people stayed off of their tablets, laptops, phones,etc. Stange! The internet guru did put a sign on his desk on the last day when he was away from the desk simply stating that the internet was slow because of maximum usage. IMO, it was a good to let us know what was going on.

 

The passengers were about half newbies. Many were new to cruising and seemed to have not done much research about Regent . I suspect that this was part of the PBS group. Even Barbara Boxer hadn’t taken a cruise in 55 years (on her honeymoon). People were wandering around without a clue where they were going (we gave directions several times). For the most part they did not attend the shows. Surprisingly, even the lectures were not heavily attended – nor were the Q & A sessions that took place in the Observation Lounge. So, where was everyone? I have no clue!

 

We met a lovely couple that is new to Regent and have sailed “all of the Queens”. Their disappointment was that Regent didn’t have a class system (really – I couldn’t make this stuff up) and there wasn’t enough to do during the day. They did like their suite and the food on Regent. Apparently people on some cruise lines that are repeat cruisers and/or book upper suites want to be treated extra special and be permitted onto the ship before others, given special disembarkation privileges when they disembark at a port, etc. Being both a long time repeat customer and ones that often book upper suites, one reason we love Regent is that any special benefits we receive is in the suite and, once we step foot out of the suite, everyone is equal.

 

As discussed earlier (and in my final questionnaire, the food in LV was consistently bland, dry and lukewarm. Some of their soups were very watery. Favorites that are always in LV was nowhere to be seen (whole turkey or even a turkey breast to carve at lunch – fish and chips – my favorite “Opera” cake).

 

CR had great food but lukewarm side dishes (and one time I had lukewarm and undercooked risotto). However, the food that was good was fantastic (lobster, Beef Wellington, chicken, fish, etc.)

 

We don’t care for Signatures (yes Signatures is still alive and well on Mariner) but totally enjoyed our rack of lamb (twice). P7 is our least favorite dining venue but I had an amazing Filet Mignon and lobster tail. The “American” Onion soup was hot and very tasty.

 

There was someone form Corporate onboard that didn’t seem to talk to anyone – he just looked and walked around. He seemed quite unapproachable. My DH saw him in the sauna and they did chat and was he friendly. To me that is just weird (the whole thing – not just the sauna part). We recognized the gentleman from the christening cruise so knew that he was from corporate.

 

I want to mention the bathtub/shower combo suite which we haven’t been in for years. I decided it isn’t as bad as I thought except that it really is dangerous to get out of. I like the position of the tub (which is pretty narrow) and the shower was fine. We still prefer the shower-only suites.

 

The ship looks okay if you don’t know better. The suites are really in need of refurbishment.

 

Getting back to passengers…….. why doesn’t anyone listen and follow what is being said? We had a face to face with U.S. immigration in the theater (in Astoria, OR). Groups were being called by excursion. We were due to get off of the ship in the first group at 8:00 a.m. There was a delay and all I could see was people getting off of the elevator, cutting into line and they had not been called yet. The exact same thing happened when we were disembarking the ship – passengers whose luggage wasn’t even ready to be picked up (not in the pick-up area) felt that they had to go out there and crowd the fairly small area where luggage was being in set up. Is this because they were new to Regent and didn’t know that they could have arranged to disembark at any time that was convenient for them (if they didn’t have Regent transportation)?

 

While the above does not sound like a big deal, it shows what could happen if there was a real emergency. It would be chaos!

 

Aside from strange passengers, sour bartenders, and the food issues, we had a good cruise. As usual, we cancelled most excursions. We are extremely happy that we cancelled the one in Sitka where the passengers ended up cold and wet. Many became stranded and it took up to 3 hours in the pouring rain to get back to the ship (the road was blocked and they had to be transported back to the ship by boat). It is no wonder that so many passengers became sick.

 

I know that this review is all over the place but it is what it is. We still look forward to our November Mariner cruise but do not plan any further cruises on Mariner. We are confident that the food issue will be greatly improved when Donald, F&B Director, returns to the ship. He would not put up with lukewarm, tasteless food. We can only hope that there will be another executive chef – one that will watch over and taste what is being prepared before it leaves the kitchen..

 

 

 

Agree with swansong. A smart and frank review all the more impressive knowing your long term loyalty to Regent. Seems like summer cruisers tend to be more first timers, who should have known better anyway than to wander around the ship half dressed, like it's their own personal space. How annoying! The food issues are surprising, considering how delicious my wife and I thought it was on the Explorer. Will be interesting to see if it will be corrected by November. As you said, I bet it will.

 

Sounds like you had fun despite a few hiccups. Onward to the next adventure!

 

 

 

 

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[Pirouette]

On board now for SF-NY. Code red continues. One passenger go sick last night around 6pm. Hope this isn't a situation that worsens.

[wcsdkqh]

I will certainly have my flu shot before Mariner cruise later this month.

Edited September 11, 2017 by wcsdkqh
correct spelling

[mrspie]

I was on this Vancouver/SFO cruise and had great service in the Observation Lounge. My husband and I had cocktails there each night before dinner and always commented on how pleasant the staff was. We've sailed Seabourn many times and have never seen women bartenders, so to have two ladies working the Observation bar was a real treat. Not only were they pleasant, they were competent and interesting! They knew what we liked and always served our drinks with a smile and pleasant comment.

 

As for food, we had no issues at LV with temperature. Maybe we are from a different side of the buffet? Also, our favorite waiters worked LV and Sette Mari. I think if you form a bond with certain staff it makes all the difference. We preferred Sette Mari to any of the others, even CR. At CR, my lobster was over cooked, but the Chilean Sea bass I ordered the second time there was one of the best. Both times I ordered a side of green beans that never appeared. We found it funny and said if we ate there again (which we didn't) we would keep ordering them and see if they ever came to the table. No biggie at all.

 

We read the disembarkation instructions, which were quite clear, so I can't comment on other passengers. We kept our minimal suitcases in our cabin the last night and walked ourselves off the ship first thing after a light breakfast in LV, hugs to certain staff, and took a taxi to SFO. We were at the Airport at 8:06 am! Unfortunately our flight wasn't until noon so sat in the Admirals Club for a few hours.

 

Regent and Seabourn are neck and neck as luxury lines. I think the staff on Regent is friendlier and more plentiful. We never waited or wanted for anything. I feel situations evolve in how a person behaves and/or "sees" the world. After reading WAY TO MUCH on CC I was very apprehensive about sailing Regent. Then, I went into my mental mode of "life is what you make it" and has a grand time from the moment we stepped on board. Nothing is perfect, and if it was, how boring! Go with the flow, be polite, smile and use good manners. A smile and a kind word does wonders.

 

This cruise was better than I expected and would recommend Mariner without hesitation. I look forward to sailing Mariner again and feel lucky that I can!

 

I hope all that sail her enjoy themselves. Happy sailing!

 

 

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[ronrick1943]

I was on this Vancouver/SFO cruise and had great service in the Observation Lounge. My husband and I had cocktails there each night before dinner and always commented on how pleasant the staff was.

As for food, we had no issues at LV with temperature. Maybe we are from a different side of the buffet? Also, our favorite waiters worked LV and Sette Mari.I went into my mental mode of "life is what you make it" and has a grand time from the moment we stepped on board. Nothing is perfect, and if it was, how boring! Go with the flow, be polite, smile and use good manners. A smile and a kind word does wonders.

I hope all that sail her enjoy themselves. Happy sailing!

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Mrspie; Looks like you had a great time and know how to cruise---You didn't go on the ship looking for problems or why you wouldn't enjoy your cruise. Good for you! This just goes to show you every person should think for them self, and enjoy the time you have-you have a great outlook on life. Rick

[mrspie]

Mrspie; Looks like you had a great time and know how to cruise---You didn't go on the ship looking for problems or why you wouldn't enjoy your cruise. Good for you! This just goes to show you every person should think for them self, and enjoy the time you have-you have a great outlook on life. Rick

 

 

 

It was greaaat!!!! Especially after doing loads of laundry today!

Enjoy your next cruise[emoji16]

 

 

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[Travelcat2]

mrspie - I appreciated reading your review - especially since you were a first time Regent cruiser. I definitely look at things differently when on Regent since I have cruised with them for so long and about 27 out of 29 cruises have been almost perfect. While this cruise was nowhere near as bad as our Bali to Sydney cruise almost 4 years ago, it is a solid second in terms of disappointment. However, I must emphasize that the crew was amazing - even better "normal".

 

We rarely had cocktails in the Observation Lounge due to how crowded it was. The blonde bartender there was both "sweet" and "sour". When she was good, she was great. On the other hand, I saw two passengers sit at her almost empty bar and get ignored for five minutes. Both left - one in a huff. IMO, this is not good service. (even if the majority of passengers saw the "sweet" side, no one should have the endure the "sour" side).

 

While food is subjective, the lack of certain items that are always served on Regent that were missing from this cruise is not. It is great that you enjoyed Regent and I hope that you book another cruise -- either on another ship or on Mariner after she has been refurbished. My main issue with Mariner is the small bathrooms, closets and safes. You might be surprised at how spacious suites are on the other three ships (particularly Explorer).

 

We are always polite to the crew (as most posters know, we prefer the crew to the passengers as they are so much more interesting and have amazing and varied backgrounds). I have never raised my voice to a crew member but did yell at a passenger who was screaming her head off at a crew member in La Veranda. I shocked myself by doing that but someone had to speak up and let the passenger know how inappropriate she was being. I also reported the situation to the Restaurant Manager. Unfortunately, we have seen numerous cases of passengers acting rudely to crew members.

 

Ron - your comment was interesting. As most people on the Regent board know, I look at everything in a positive way and have been criticized on the Regent board for over 10 years for defending Regent. Then, when I have a cruise that was not quite as good as others, I once again get criticism. So, I will continue to do what I do (try to give both positive and not as positive reviews). It was difficult for me to mention the food issues. For people new to Regent, they would not notice how inferior the food in La Veranda was to previous cruises (on all Regent ships).

 

swansong, RachelG and Paul - Thank you for your kind comments. Yes - I am very positive when it comes to Regent. However, I am also honest. Most of my posts praise/defend Regent because almost all of us cruises have been wonderful. My positivity has caused some posters to be upset with me. When we do have a less than positive experience, I post about it (although you would have to go back to late 2013 to find another review where there is as much criticism as this one.

 

wcsdkqh and Pirouette - I just posted about the flu shot, etc. on another thread but it bears repeating: IMO, it is important to follow the procedures that Cruise Director Paul details during his daily reports on the television each morning. In case you haven't seen it, he talks about touching elevator buttons, handrails, the self-service coffee machines, computers, etc. and the need to wash your hands afterwards. I use the knuckle of my index finger to punch buttons on the elevator and sanitize my hands multiple times a day. We have purchased the peroxide based sanitizer that is used in hospitals. We disinfect the telephone, door knobs and remote control when we arrive in our suite. This product protects against almost everything - even norovirus. I highly recommend it. (available on Amazon.com). My DH did get a bad cold onboard but I was fortunate enough to avoid it. The Mariner has had disinfecting wipes in the computer room and sadly, many people didn't bother to use it.

Hoping that the Mariner does not have another case of influenza so that they can be off of code red tomorrow night.

[ronrick1943]

TC2 (quote)

Ron - your comment was interesting. As most people on the Regent board know, I look at everything in a positive way and have been criticized on the Regent board for over 10 years for defending Regent.

 

TC2, wasn't talking about you--I just think most if not all people know what they like or don't like, they don't have to be told. And I really hate people talking about newbies on Regent---Most of us have cruised many time before and we know what we like and don't like-being on Regent is something we want to do. If we don't like something-we'll know and we'll know how to handle it. I really don't think Regent wants you to decide if we should cruise Regent or not. At least every time I've talked to Regent about something (just 2 times) they we're helpful, taken care of the question and thanked me for choosing Regent. I'm thinking they want me to try them out and make up my own mind about the cruise. You've told me a few times I won't be happy on Regent and should stay with Oceania and you don't even know me. I look a CC for help on questions about Regent and I believe my opinion has just as importance as anyone else. If Regent likes what I think, that will be up to them-if they don't that will again be up to them. If they like what someones else thinks, great-but everyone should be able to say what they think and feel. What would cruising be like if everyone had the same opinion.

Rick

[PinkMEB]

I was on this Vancouver/SFO cruise and had great service in the Observation Lounge. My husband and I had cocktails there each night before dinner and always commented on how pleasant the staff was. We've sailed Seabourn many times and have never seen women bartenders, so to have two ladies working the Observation bar was a real treat. Not only were they pleasant, they were competent and interesting! They knew what we liked and always served our drinks with a smile and pleasant comment.

 

As for food, we had no issues at LV with temperature. Maybe we are from a different side of the buffet? Also, our favorite waiters worked LV and Sette Mari. I think if you form a bond with certain staff it makes all the difference. We preferred Sette Mari to any of the others, even CR. At CR, my lobster was over cooked, but the Chilean Sea bass I ordered the second time there was one of the best. Both times I ordered a side of green beans that never appeared. We found it funny and said if we ate there again (which we didn't) we would keep ordering them and see if they ever came to the table. No biggie at all.

 

We read the disembarkation instructions, which were quite clear, so I can't comment on other passengers. We kept our minimal suitcases in our cabin the last night and walked ourselves off the ship first thing after a light breakfast in LV, hugs to certain staff, and took a taxi to SFO. We were at the Airport at 8:06 am! Unfortunately our flight wasn't until noon so sat in the Admirals Club for a few hours.

 

Regent and Seabourn are neck and neck as luxury lines. I think the staff on Regent is friendlier and more plentiful. We never waited or wanted for anything. I feel situations evolve in how a person behaves and/or "sees" the world. After reading WAY TO MUCH on CC I was very apprehensive about sailing Regent. Then, I went into my mental mode of "life is what you make it" and has a grand time from the moment we stepped on board. Nothing is perfect, and if it was, how boring! Go with the flow, be polite, smile and use good manners. A smile and a kind word does wonders.

 

This cruise was better than I expected and would recommend Mariner without hesitation. I look forward to sailing Mariner again and feel lucky that I can!

 

I hope all that sail her enjoy themselves. Happy sailing!

 

 

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Love your attitude!

[Carnevale]

Does anyone know when Donald, Food and Wine, returns to Mariner?

 

Can anyone on this or other recent sailings tell me if there was any ballroom dancing onboard?

 

And TC, I agree with the need to wipe down the room when you arrive. I also carry wipes and use them on the plane on armrests, food trays, seat belts, etc. I travel for business and since I started doing this the number of colds/etc. I have had have greatly decreased. As you noted, the key is to get ones strong enough to make a difference.

 

 

Thx for this blog - very helpful info!

[Travelcat2]

Rick, the term "newbie" is one used on CC, is not derogatory in any way and is a term that I like to use. When i first cruised Regent, this is how I described myself. You are a newbie to Regent and there is nothing wrong with that.

 

Not sure how you would know what Regent would want me to say. Several years ago, CEO Frank Del Rio and I had a disagreement on CC. The end result was that he encouraged me to "take Regent to task" and, when necessary, that is what I do.

 

I do not think that Regent is for everyone. For some reason, many Oceania passengers have preferred Oceania to Regent. Based on what you have stated is and is not important to you (a couple of areas where Oceania happens to excel) I wondered if perhaps your expectations of Regent were too high. I wish that someone had been as honest with me as I was with you when I considered Silversea.

 

People come to the Regent board to have questions answered. Some have cruised many times but not on Regent. If they knew everything I don't think they world be on CC. Just saying........

[lindsay_claire]

I am overcoming my slight hesitation in posting a review because I feel indebted to many other CC members for all of the information I have gleaned over my years as a lurker (-: Seriously, the information I have learned over the years reading the Regent and Crystal boards is staggering. (Number 1 tip? The four magnets I purchased on Amazon which stick to the cabin walls and hold our itinerary, tickets, etc.!)

 

My husband and I were also on the Vancouver-San Francisco Mariner sailing and I’ll just add my comments as an addendum to TC’s excellent review. My husband and I are in our early 50’s and this is our second Regent cruise (the first was with our then-teenage children from Istanbul to Venice in 2011, also on the Mariner). We cruised on the Crystal Symphony in 2015 and the Crystal Serenity in 2016, so although we aren’t complete “newbies,” we are not experienced cruisers. I am not going to make this a Regent vs. Crystal review, as we enjoyed all 4 cruises immensely and will most likely sail both lines again. I definitely think each line has its strengths and weaknesses and maybe I’ll even do that comparison in another post—Cruise Critic may have created a monster!

 

In 2011, we stayed in a PH and our children stayed in a connecting Category D. This time around, we opted for a Concierge D suite for the two of us. I understand that many people don’t think the “Concierge” benefits are worth the extra price, but because we have no “status” on Regent, the opportunity to book excursions and specialty restaurants a little earlier was well worth the price. This was mainly true because our travel agent told us that the Alaskan excursions that we were interested in booking tend to sell out quickly (even the paid excursions). And we didn’t think that the 10% concierge discount on reserve wine would be applicable to us, but keep reading...

 

Overall, we enjoyed an outstanding cruise. The staff was as friendly as we remembered from 2011. The Mariner was definitely a little more dated and could use some sprucing up, but overall,it was very well-maintained and clean. As previous posters have noted, there is always some sort of maintenance, painting, deep-cleaning, etc. going on so that the ship is not being neglected. Our stewardess Czarina was excellent and kept me well stocked in Diet Cokes. So, in no particular order, here are some highlights and lowlights from our week:

 

We booked one extra night at the Fairmont Vancouver and the second night was included as a Concierge benefit. This seemed very confusing to the hotel, which was perplexing, as I’m sure we aren’t the first to do that. They had trouble distinguishing between the breakfast “credit” included in our booking that the travel agent made versus the breakfast vouchers included in the Regent room. My husband and I got a big laugh the first morning we went for breakfast and were informed we could only get “cold items" on the buffet—hot items weren’t included in our breakfast credit but would be included the next morning with the Regent voucher! We wondered if someone would police our breakfast plates but we were law-abiding breakfast eaters and stuck to the cold items. (I still wondered if cold bacon counted as a cold item?!) The next morning,with vouchers in hand, we were ready to really splurge and dig into the hot items, but were put off by the 50+ people in line for the breakfast buffet. We instead ate at an excellent brunch spot called Medina a few blocks from the hotel.

 

I have to say the shopping at the Fairmont was very tempting, but my husband wasn’t buying the fact that our US dollar would go a lot further at Louis Vuitton or Gucci in Canada, so I left empty handed (-:

 

We opted to have our luggage picked up and taken to the ship,but walked to the ship instead of doing the transfer. We boarded the ship around 2 pm after about 45 minutes of lines/customs, etc. Maybe this was a long boarding process in comparison to other cruises, but it didn’t bother us.

 

When we boarded, one of our first observations was the age of the other passengers. I would say the majority were over 65, and many were in their 70s and 80s. This is not a criticism; merely an observation. Of our four cruises,the passengers in this group skewed significantly older, and it’s not just attributable to the time of year because our two Crystal cruises were in October and the first week of December. This was a little unexpected because we thought the Alaskan excursions would be more taxing, but this clearly did not deter older guests from booking.

 

We had booked our two specialty restaurants back in June when we were able to book on-line, but we stopped by Compass Rose the afternoon we got on the ship. The concierge told us that the only way we would be able to get another reservation throughout the week was if we were willing to share a table. We said we would prefer a table for two, and the concierge had a little bit of attitude and said something to the effect that “Regent passengers are nice and won’t bite.” I’m sure this is true, but we prefer eating at a table for two, so we politely declined. We checked back several times throughout the week with the concierge and were supposedly put on a wait list, but never got a call about any openings during the entire 10 nights. We also stopped by both Signatures and Prime 7 around 7 pm on several nights, but no luck. When we were on Regent in 2011, we ate at both Signatures and Prime 7 twice, but perhaps it was easier because we were a table of 4.

 

Our first night in Compass Rose was delightful. Our waiter Remo was outstanding, and as TC has pointed out, Preston is a rising star. In fact, he was the friendliest, most personable and helpful member of the staff that we met during the entire cruise. He definitely has the “it” factor, and hopefully, it is being noted by the Regent higher-ups. Our food was served promptly but not too quickly, as we like to linger. It was hot and delicious, and we thought this boded well for the next 9 nights.

 

BUT, the second night in Compass Rose was pretty darned horrendous. First, our waitstaff from the night before told us it was okay to “request” to sit in their section. Knowing this was the Captain’s reception, we arrived at 6:45 pm to avoid the rush. When we asked for Remo/Preston, we were told there was no room in their section, and we were seated in the “middle” of the dining room where every other table was empty. We were perplexed to note that there were 4 empty two-tops in the section we requested, which gradually filled up over the next half hour. We still have no idea how these tables were allotted. If it was to spread out diners amongst the various waiters, they should tell people this, as we would happily have waited another 10 or 15 minutes to sit with waiters we had gotten to know. In fact, people on CC talk about creating bonds by sitting in the same section, but we tried several nights to no avail. Our waiter was very friendly, but definitely overworked. He apologized at least 4 times for our long wait between courses, and actually told us that he had to take care of the larger tables first. It was a little galling to see Senator Barbara Boxer and her table of 8 walk in 15 minutes after us and see them enjoying their entrees before we got our first course! We are not complainers and just figured this was an aberration due to the Captain’s reception. However, we finished our meal at around 9:10 pm, which is way, way too long, even for a couple who likes to linger over our food and wine (2 hours, 25 minutes).

 

Speaking of wine, this was probably our biggest complaint of the entire trip. Since we live in the San Francisco Bay Area, we do enjoy our wine but drink a wide range of varietals and price points. However, when I tell you that Sterling Chardonnay is the best included wine I drank on the entire cruise, that is saying something (and it’s not positive). On our previous 3 all-inclusive cruises, we have NEVER purchased a single bottle of wine. On this cruise, we bought a bottle of red wine 7 of the 10 nights onboard. We bought the Masi Amarone most nights, and it was delicious, but we definitely depleted our on-board credits in an unexpected way. I know all reviews are subjective, but Regents just can’t claim to have “fine” included wines and serve the wines they are serving. Ten to twelve dollar wines (or less) are not “fine,” no matter what scale you are using. Also, I would have gladly paid $10-$15 per glass to have some of the “reserve” wine each night but this is not offered on Regent. Some nights, I really wanted one glass of good white wine before moving onto the red, but this wasn’t possible as we weren’t going to buy 2 bottles of wine per night! (Well, we might have if we had more OBC!!)

 

We ate in Sette Mari 3 of our 10 nights, and thought it was fabulous. We had very attentive service, and liked the combination of buffet-style salads and desserts while ordering pasta and main courses from the menu. As Travel Cat noted, it is a little trickier under the Code Red (which was instituted our second-to-last day due to people getting the flu) to choose salad items from a buffet when you can’t choose yourself and you are trying to tell someone else what you want. The only good thing about this is that it made me a hold back a little more at the dessert buffet when I wasn’t holding the tongs and had to direct someone else to fill my plate! This could be the reason I only gained 4 pounds instead of 5?

 

My husband was very impressed with the Artful Traveler talks. He attended every single one except for one in person and was highly complimentary of the speakers and subject matter. I attended several and was also impressed. The two Broadway singers put on fantastic shows, and the audience seemed very appreciative. The Mariner performers were also entertaining, although their routines are very much what one would expect from cruise ship entertainment. The country night was my favorite because it seemed to have a little more “pep.” Perhaps it is hard to compete when two Broadway performers are also on the ship and it is difficult not to compare.

 

Now to the excursions—the main reason we booked an Alaskan cruise! I started out with Bear Watching by Floatplane to Neets Bay and my husband did Guided Fishing and Shore Lunch. We both had fabulous experiences. We also loved the Juneau excursion by helicopter to Mendenhall Glacier and then dog sledding. This exceeded our expectations and was well worth the extra charge. Unfortunately, it poured during our catamaran to view wildlife on Sitka, but we were able to see many whales breaching. Eco-biking in Victoria was a first for us—hard to go back to a regular bike after having been on an electric bike! And the bike ridein Astoria was fine—not much to see there but still an enjoyable day.

 

My only disagreement with Travel Cat’s review is about robes-LOL! Well, just a semi-disagreement. I am an avid spa-goer—not just on ships, but at any resort, land or sea. And I think it’s fine for people to go to and from the hot tub/pool or spa to their rooms before 6 pm in a bathrobe—it might beat the alternative by covering more skin (-: I personally hate getting back into clothes or a cover-up when I’m wet or covered with massage oil. Also, I’ve had many facials and I always wear a robe because they don’t just do your face—they slather that lotion on your shoulders and even your legs if you’re lucky! Maybe it’s

because we only took the stairs between the hot tub or spa to our room and never the elevators, but it didn’t seem that egregious to see a few people in their robes. Also, there was some kind of “hall party” one of the nights where they served drinks and appetizers in the corridors and people were encouraged to come in their robes. We couldn’t make it, but I looked out and saw several people in robes enjoying some wine!

 

But on that note, we saw MANY dress-code offenders which to me seemed way more note-worthy than a few robes. We saw at least half a dozen men in blue jeans (one dancing in one of the lounges) and one man who wore Champion sweat pants to dinner each night with running shoes. We were quite surprised that the dress code wasn’t enforced—is this a common occurrence? It seems like a slippery slope to let blatant dress code violations go unenforced.

 

More random thoughts:

 

TV—I missed seeing any of the US Open tennis but Sky Sports is the only sports channel (mostly European and soccer-oriented). They did add the Weather Channel near the end of the cruise because of Harvey and Irma. Movie selection was fine, but don’t watch “A Dog’s Purpose” if you don’t want to bawl your eyes out—don’t say you haven’t been warned!

 

Cabin size—fine for 10 days, but we don’t spend much time in the cabin. We are big over-packers and still had room for all of our stuff, so we were pleased with the size of the cabin. We definitely were fighting over the outlets, though. I counted 4, but with the size of plugs, you could usually only use 2 at a time.

 

Casino—luckiest Blackjack dealers I’ve ever run across—enough said )-: And I don’t think they closed the casino after the Code Red—cleanliness only goes so far!!

 

Karaoke—what people lacked in talent, they certainly made up for in enthusiasm. Even had a “ringer” who sang “Sweet Caroline” both karaoke nights—must have enjoyed the sound of his voice so much the first night, he came back the second night and sang the same song!

 

Spa—Very small locker room. No scale (maybe a good thing?!) Services ok but not excellent. We had read that a 20% service charge was included which included gratuity and there was no “line” to add a tip when you signed. But when I signed my receipt, my spa therapist had left the previous client’s ticket right next to mine, and that person had written “ADD $20 TIP” on the bill. I’m not sure if this was a subtle hint, but I didn’t add any extra because I already thought the spa services were priced on the higher side and a 20% service charge is sufficient in my opinion.

 

Trivia—I went one day and tried to find a team but everyone said their team was full. I left with my tail between my legs and went back to my cabin. My husband said I sounded like “Forrest Gump” trying to get a seat on the bus—seat taken! Their loss since I was once on “Who Wants to Be a Millionaire”! Maybe there should be a table of designated singletons so it’s not so awkward to be by yourself.

 

Announcements—I frequently missed the Captain’s announcements because I was in the cabin or somewhere where you couldn’t hear them (or sometimes I just couldn’t understand him). I would love it if they transcribed each day’s messages and put them on one of the TV channels so we could read them at our leisure.

 

Internet—Very spotty and slow. The minute we got to a port, we used our own data. We had 2 log-ins (1 per person). We were frequently “kicked out” of the wifi and had to log in again. The IT guy was a saint—the line was out of the door most days in the computer center.

 

Fitness Center—My husband went to a few of the classes with just a couple of guests and most of the Mariner dancers (who he enjoyed!)—he thought the classes were tough and good, but was underwhelmed with the fitness center in general.

 

I know I’m forgetting many aspects of the cruise, but overall a fantastic experience. It was also so nice to get off the ship and Uber home in 25 minutes! I doubt we will be so lucky on other cruises, but a great benefit. Cheers to the helpful CC Boards and all of the informative posters—thanks for helping to make our trip even more enjoyable! Maybe I'll chime in again soon one of these days (-:

[Mudhen]

WOW! Nice job....very comprehensive!

[flossie009]

Trivia—I went one day and tried to find a team but everyone said their team was full. I left with my tail between my legs and went back to my cabin. My husband said I sounded like “Forrest Gump” trying to get a seat on the bus—seat taken! Their loss since I was once on “Who Wants to Be a Millionaire”! Maybe there should be a table of designated singletons so it’s not so awkward to be by yourself.

Did you win the top prize on Millionaire? If so, we are more than willing to be your guests on your next cruise and will find further people as required to make up a quiz team :cool: :D

 

Thanks for the reviews, lindsay_claire, mrspie and TC2. Very interesting to read the slightly different views on the same ship and cruise.

 

Must admit that I also find that the term "newbie" tends to grate; it seems overly condescending IMO, but I know that some people love the term.

[Travelcat2]

lindsay_claire - thank you so much for posting your review on this thread. It is always good to have different perspectives and yours were detailed, balanced and very interesting.

It is good to hear that you enjoyed Preston as much as we did. He is definitely a rising star. It was upsetting to hear that you could not get the table that you wanted the night of the Captain's Reception. Since tables cannot be saved, it make me wonder what was going on. If this happens on a future cruise I would ask to have a quick word with the Restaurant Manager.

We don't disagree quite as much as you think about bathrobes. While I don't like to see them, it doesn't seem quite as bad before 6:00 p.m. But, seeing two separate people at 8:30 p.m. was, IMO only, inappropriate.

Just a side note - we gave us Trivia after years of playing it onboard for many reasons -- people were playing it cut throat - too many people thinking that they "owned" the seats - even when no one was sitting in them and yes, difficulty finding a team unless you go n the first day.

[UUNetBill]

Must admit that I also find that the term "newbie" tends to grate; it seems overly condescending IMO, but I know that some people love the term.

No worse than 'rookie', 'greenhorn', 'beginner', etc.

 

And I would definitely prefer 'newbie' to 'oldbie'... ;p

[1982CruzStart]

Thanks to all of you for your great reviews.

[ronrick1943]

No worse than 'rookie', 'greenhorn', 'beginner', etc.

 

And I would definitely prefer 'newbie' to 'oldbie'... ;p

 

But you'd be the "OLDBIE"!!!!:eek:

[Travelcat2]

I'm older than Bill so I'm the oldie:halo:

[Mudhen]

I'm older than Bill so I'm the oldie:halo:

.....but of course, a goodie!

[Bellaggio Cruisers]

Just a quick word- always love to read reviews. All were the best I have read. Very honest. When we were on the Mariner in April, I too mentioned two items that I considered important.

We were disappointed in the suite (PH), which we had been in the year earlier. It needed renovation. But we still love that suite.

We were disappointed in our dining room experience. Service and food was lacking, even though we enjoyed our favorite server. She kept apologizing for it. However, these bumps in the road don't deter us.

Would we cruise Regent again? You bet. Now have five booked to anticipate.