Mariner vs Voyager

[Winters Gate]

We did a cruise on the Voyager last year and just loved the ship. When I look at the 2021 cruises there is a cruise on the Mariner that looks really interesting for us, now how does the two ships compare? What are the pros and cons?

 

/P

[flossie009]

Suites:

• Mariner basic suites are smaller than Voyager
• Mariner Penthouse suites are larger &, IMO, far superior to those on Voyager
• Horizon suites on Mariner are excellent
• Voyager bathrooms have both a bath and separate shower; Mariner bathrooms either have a large shower (preferable IMO) or a bath with shower over.

General:

• Mariner is a very stable ship with no vibration; Voyager has some vibration towards the aft
• IMO the public areas are better configured on Mariner than on Voyager
• IMO the Pool Deck layout on Mariner is better than on Voyager

Both ships are very similar in general layout and we would sail on either given the right itinerary.

 

If you liked Voyager I am sure you will not be disappointed in Mariner. Happy cruise planning 😀

 

[DavidTheWonderer]

50 minutes ago, flossie009 said:

...

• IMO the public areas are better configured on Mariner than on Voyager
• IMO the Pool Deck layout on Mariner is better than on Voyager...

..

This is a consequence of the fact that more of the space on Mariner is devoted to the public areas, which is why their cabins are smaller than Voyager.  There is so little to choose between them that I would ignore which ship and instead concentrate on itineraries and dates.

[GOARMY]

Key distinctions between, and aspects common to both ships, have been well-covered.  Second the motion as to itinerary and time of year being the tie-breakers.  You will be happy on either.  

 

GOARMY!

     

[Travelcat2]

We prefer Voyager to Mariner due to the suite size (that includes Mariner having a small bathroom and closet). Speaking of bathroom, there is an issue with the bathtub/shower combination on Mariner (which is why Regent changed about 50% of the suites to shower-only).  The bathtubs are high - difficult to get into and out of.  If you are tall or raise your arms to wash your hair, you will likely be touching the very low ceiling.  

In my opinion, the Mariner has wasted space (like Stars Lounge that is rarely used (sometimes used late at night if passengers stay up late an is used during the summer for the children's club).

 

The Voyager does have an aft vibration which is easy to avoid -- just do not book an aft suite if the vibration will bother you.  While Mariner does not have a vibration, we once stayed in an aft Seven Seas Suites (may be my favorite suite on Mariner) and my DH heard "harmonic sounds" from the engines that really bothered him.  So, if you book an aft suite on Mariner, I would go for a higher deck (but not under La Veranda as it would be noisy).

 

As those of us that have sailed Regent for a long time, we used to say that they built the Mariner first - looked at what worked and what didn't and then they built the Voyager (that debuted only 2 years after Mariner).  

 

As has been said, you cannot go wrong with either ship.  We just have an issue with smaller suites so the Voyager works better for us.

[DeepFreeze63]

5 hours ago, Winters Gate said:

We did a cruise on the Voyager last year and just loved the ship. When I look at the 2021 cruises there is a cruise on the Mariner that looks really interesting for us, now how does the two ships compare? What are the pros and cons?

 

/P

What a thought provoking question! We have done 7 cruises on the Voyager and 4 (including the most recent) on the Mariner.  We loved every cruise. Like the other posters, we would decide future cruises based upon itinerary, dates and cabin availability. We would never take a "guaranteed" cabin on either ship.

Disclaimer: Explorer is our favorite ship; yet we have booked 51 and 22 nights on the future cruises on Mariner and Voyager, respectively.

[Hambagahle]

We have cruised on both, several times.   We far prefer the PH suites on Mariner to those on the Voyager.  They are a lot larger.   The nicest suite we had on Mariner though was the Seven Seas Aft suite which we had for a TA crossing.

 

On balance - I think we prefer Mariner but NOT in a normal suite.  Had one once (husband was worried about the stock market!!) and it was awful.   PH C is just great.  No need for PH A.  But if you can - Seven Seas Aft is terrific!!

[mrlevin]

I have well over 100 nights on both Voyager and Mariner.  Mariner is still my favorite Regent ship (I have sailed on all except Song of Flower).  Here are my pros for both ships:

 

Mariner:

 

Grand Promenade and Coffee Bar are fantastic; great place to mingle with people any time of the day.

 

Having Stars as a nightclub means that Mariner Lounge is open and inviting; because Voyager lounge has to do double duty as pre-dinner lounge and night club it means that it needs to be closed off to minimize late night noise.

 

Stairwell from casino into Stars provides another way to get from great cabins on Deck 7 to Deck 6 (or quickly back to my room after a late night nightcap).

 

There are outside decks on both sides of Observation Lounge so you can quickly go outside to take pictures even in inclement weather.  On Voyager you need to go up to Deck 12 and wind your way forward.  (On Explorer there is no forward facing weather deck.)

 

Voyager:

 

Larger cabins.

 

Better balcony seating in Constellation theater.

 

Automatic doors getting out to pool deck.

 

Back stairwell from Deck 6 aft cabins direct into Horizon Lounge.

 

My personal ranking of the current Regent fleet is Mariner, Voyager close behind, Navigator a little behind that, and Explorer far below the Navigator (primary complaint is Compass Rose too loud and Cat H cabins too small).

[Wendy The Wanderer]

Sigh, I have to agree, as someone who books 'normal' suites, the Voyager ones win hands down.  But love those public spaces on Mariner.  I do agree that the Star Lounge/Casino area seems wasted.  But other than that, lovely ship.  We will make do in one one of those smaller suites for 117 days for the 2021 WC! 

[SWFLAOK]

Looking back at our recent Voyager Concierge E compared to our previous Mariner F,  we did not find Voyager 842 to be any wider than our Mariner F cabin. In fact, we found it very uncomfortable because there was only a sofa and table across from the desk chair, and there was no room to easily pass between the sofa and table or the desk chair and table, and unless the desk chair was pushed all the way in, it prevented the mini-fridge from being opened.

Has anyone else stayed in 842 on Voyager? The living room area bears no resemblance to what's shown on the RSSC website for a Concierge E.

[SWFLAOK]

Looking closer at the RSSC site, the virtual tour of a concierge E shows how tight it really is. The layout map of that room is totally misleading. It shows a much larger living room area than the Voyager actually has. There were definitely no chairs opposite the sofa. There was just a small sofa and a table, with the desk chair immediately next to the table and almost no room to walk on either side of the table. Voyager has a bigger bathroom than Mariner, but since we only used the shower, and only hung a few wet items over the tub, the bigger bathroom was not an advantage. On Mariner, we had a combined shower and bath tub, which some might find harder to get in and out of, but it works fine for us, allows us to hang wet stuff, and takes less space.

On our next cruise on Voyager, we're in a Penthouse B, and after that, we're looking at Explorer and Splendor for their larger suites. For a short cruise, I would rather be on Mariner than Voyager if you're looking at a basic suite.

[Travelcat2]

3 hours ago, mrlevin said:

 

Having Stars as a nightclub means that Mariner Lounge is open and inviting; because Voyager lounge has to do double duty as pre-dinner lounge and night club it means that it needs to be closed off to minimize late night noise.

 

 

 

The issue with Stars Lounge is that there is rarely anyone in there.  We have sailed Mariner and Voyager approximately the same number of times.  Even after dinner, Stars is usually empty or has a handful of people in it.  

 

Mariner is a beautiful ship but the suites are just too small for my DH.  In terms of the "G" and "H" suites on Explorer, they originally were meant to be for solo travelers.  Not sure why but Regent changed their minds.  The F1 and F2 suites on Explorer are the really the equivalent to "G" and "H" suites on other ships.  

[mrlevin]

1 hour ago, Travelcat2 said:

 

The issue with Stars Lounge is that there is rarely anyone in there.  We have sailed Mariner and Voyager approximately the same number of times.  Even after dinner, Stars is usually empty or has a handful of people in it.  

 

 

 

Stars doesn't open until 9pm so not surprised few people are there when you walk by.  Go there when the duo is playing at 1030 and it is often crowded.  Also a great place to go for a late night drink with lots of songs on the jukebox; you can turn it into a country honkytonk.

 

Marc

[Wendy The Wanderer]

16 hours ago, Travelcat2 said:

Mariner is a beautiful ship but the suites are just too small for my DH.

 

I'm surprised that that is a consideration since you don't sail in regular suites, usually in named ones, isn't that right?

[Travelcat2]

17 minutes ago, Wendy The Wanderer said:

 

I'm surprised that that is a consideration since you don't sail in regular suites, usually in named ones, isn't that right?

 

We decide what category of suite that we will stay in based on the price.  For instance, on Explorer, we have stayed in an F1 suite, a Concierge suite, a Grand suite and a Master suite.  In the future - on Explorer we have booked a Concierge suite and a Splendor suite (on two cruises).  Rather than itinerary, we look at the ship first (Explorer or Splendor) and then the price.  

 

I have told the story before on CC about the one time my DH and I had a big argument on Regent.  It was about the regular suite on Mariner (our first time on the ship).  He hated it and was upset that I didn't warn him about the size.  He asked about paying to upgrade but there was nothing available.  Then, lo and behold, the second night I was sitting near a man in the computer room.  He was on the computer -- trying to figure out how to get off of the ship (ASAP).  I helped him with the computer which is how I knew what he was doing.  The next morning we received a call from Franck Galzy asking if we wanted to move to a PH suite since someone had just left.  This made everything all better but it left a bad taste in my mouth about Mariner entry level suites (anything below PH).  

 

I am glad that we have experienced several categories of suites on all Regent ships as it gives me the insight to respond to questions accurately.  Even when a ship goes through refurbishment, the sizes of the suites do not change so that is a constant.

 

We have been in all categories of suites on Voyager and enjoyed them all (except maybe the tiny master bath in the Grand suite).  I understand that many people love Mariner.  It is a beautiful ship but Voyager is much more comfortable for us.  

Edited August 5, 2019 by Travelcat2

[Wendy The Wanderer]

Yes, I remember that story.  Didn't know you still chose normal-sized suites at times.  But why wouldn't you just choose a larger suite on Mariner, rather than choosing not to sail on her?

[Travelcat2]

31 minutes ago, Wendy The Wanderer said:

Yes, I remember that story.  Didn't know you still chose normal-sized suites at times.  But why wouldn't you just choose a larger suite on Mariner, rather than choosing not to sail on her?

 

Interesting question .... one that I had to really think about.  When Explorer debuted, we did 4 sailings within a short period of time.  Then we did 3 Mariner cruises over the next year or so and then 2 Voyager cruises last year.  Both of us really missed Explorer - the layout of the ship, Pacific Rim, the very large bathrooms in the Concierge suites (larger than some of the named suite bathrooms) and the general vibe of the ship.  Since we are cruising for the ship rather than itinerary, we both decided to stick with Explorer for a while.  We had no intention of going on Splendor as we knew it would be super crowded and more expensive.  Once our booked Explorer cruise changed to a Splendor cruise, we thought that it would be fine (and, as I mentioned), the cruise was not expensive.

 

While my DH is getting up there in years, we hadn't book beyond 2020.  However, when the itineraries came out for the rest of 2021 and part of 2022, we decided to book a couple of cruises.  I would love to go back to Cape Town (for the third time) but the Voyager is doing it.  There was another interesting itinerary that the Mariner was doing.  Since we are not ready to return to the older ships, we booked a cruise on Explorer and a transatlantic on Splendor (because you cannot beat the price on a transatlantic cruise).

 

If I could stay in a Grand Suite on Mariner, I'd be happy.  Not sure if/when we will go back to either Mariner or Voyager (We have not sailed on Navigator for many years and do not expect to sail on her again).   

 

Hmmmm, that was a very long way of answer what seemed like an easy question!

[Floridiana]

As a Regen newbie, I was reading some Mariner reviews. The most positive remark for me was that the ship rides well in rough seas. The negative remarks included a curious item about the reentry of the ship from South Korea to Japan and the ensuing 'chaos' at immigration.  We have done this on other small ships and there were orderly procedures, also on Ponant where drinks were included and not all passengers followed instructions at all times.

"When you have a group of people who's average age is 70-75 and the alcohol is free you need to be very specific, disciplined and communicate clearly. :)" There is a smiley at the end, but still, does the writer really insinuate that people were too drunk to follow instructions? After all, it's not the only ship with included alcohol. 

[alwaysonaship]

I pulled the plug for a Mariner cruise in 2020 and booked a P3. It just seemed so much nicer than the standard cabin, which is small . I love the layout and we have the shower. 

[Travelcat2]

5 hours ago, Floridiana said:

The negative remarks included a curious item about the reentry of the ship from South Korea to Japan and the ensuing 'chaos' at immigration.  We have done this on other small ships and there were orderly procedures, also on Ponant where drinks were included and not all passengers followed instructions at all times.

 

Would you mind letting me know where you read about 'chaos' at immigration when the ship reentered Japan from South Korea as we booked an itinerary this morning that will be doing that. Thanks much! 

[Floridiana]

It was in one of the newer Mariner reviews, but I don't remember which one. It's a negative review.

 

We reentered Japan in Hakata (2018), immigration was on shore and the Amsterdam crew (800 passengers) called by deck as far as I remember. It was slow and we were asked to remain on the ship until called. Hakata has a relatively small immigration hall that you enter from the outside through movable plastic walkways.  We did not have an excursion, just took the shuttle into Fukuoka. Excursions might have been called separately and together.

 

From Russia, we entered Japan in Hakodate (northern Japan) and immigration was on the ship by deck. I think there were 5 immigration officers. 

 

The Japanese control passports more often than any other country, sometimes even from one Japanese port to the next. This is new. In 2015, they only controlled when entering the first time. The immigration officers are friendly and efficient. You need to keep your passport on you at all times when you are ashore. 

[Johnthesailor]

2 hours ago, Travelcat2 said:

 

Would you mind letting me know where you read about 'chaos' at immigration when the ship reentered Japan from South Korea as we booked an itinerary this morning that will be doing that. Thanks much! 

Jackie,

 

We did it earlier this year and had no issues.  We are going back in '21 having just booked like you . Did you book the 12 day or the ten day?

 

Best,

John & Jan

[Travelcat2]

3 hours ago, Johnthesailor said:

Jackie,

 

We did it earlier this year and had no issues.  We are going back in '21 having just booked like you . Did you book the 12 day or the ten day?

 

Best,

John & Jan

 

We booked the 12 day with the pre-cruise.  Hope that you and Jan are on the same cruise.  It would be great to ail with you again.

 

Jackie