Regent First Timer Onboard - Reasonable Expectations?

[D&L Thomas]

It’s Day 3 of our first Regent cruise (Voyager). The ship is just beautiful, and we are beyond impressed at so many things - the food, the competence and confidence of the staff, the entertainment are all top notch. The cabin is beautiful!

But. We’re seeing several missteps to the point of questioning whether this is normal or if we’re expecting too much perfection. When our stateroom attendant came to introduce himself the first day we were catching a quick nap, and he said he would come back to meet us properly. He has not done so. I gave him a few requests (ice in the bucket, and to swap out beverages, and what kind of liquor we wanted per his request). Went to dinner and upon our return none of the things we asked for were there. Called and the assistant came with ice and one of the two bottles we mentioned, and after I asked again about swapping the cans she left and came back with our club soda. All good, mostly.

 

Second night, we came back after dinner and the show - just the melted ice from the night before and still no second bottle. The toilet had not been cleaned and there was no TP. The laundry we left out in the morning was not returned (as promised).

 

We still haven’t really met the steward.

I really do not want to complain and get anyone in trouble. This is a first world problem, 1,000%. And as I said so many things are truly beyond wonderful. But what would you more experienced Regent cruisers do? I’m planning to give it another day or two …….

 

Another question if I may. On other cruise lines (mostly Princess) we always enjoy sharing a dinner table and meeting people from all over. Sharing doesn’t seem to be a thing on this ship; the dining room hostess looked a little surprised when we asked. 🤷🏻‍♀️ So how do you meet people? Or is there just less casual socializing than I’m used to?

 

[mrlevin]

Definitely talk to Housekeeping Supervisor or Head Housekeeper; no reason you should feel slighted.  We have had a few "major" issues show up with initial interaction with stewards but all have been satisfactorily solved.  As for sharing tables; just ask again.  As for meeting people, I have found pool bar and trivia to be great places to meet others.

[Techno123]

No you are not expecting too much perfection. A clean toilet and a bucket of ice is the least you should expect. We also had a similar issue with the fridge and ice set up on the Navigator - we did meet our steward and told him what we wanted but it wasn't written down and in fairness they are busy. There was also no intuitive refilling of the fridge but as you say we didn't want to cause a fuss.
 

Rather than stress about it we just wrote him a note to say what we would like in the fridge, on our fruit platter and the ice and left out the things we didn't need and asked him (on the note) to take them away. We don't drink sprits so two bottles of different white wines were on our list, and as they started to run down, we left another note to request what we wanted - worked very well and I am sure as he gets used to the Regent way he will become more intuitive - there's a lot to learn 😁

 

Re the laundry, there was only one night (second to last) when it wasn't back in the suite at turn down time in its tissue paper and box.

[carolina cruisin]

Have never really had any problems sharing a table.  Every we have asked to do so - it happened.  Have met some very nice people and established some great friendships along the way.

[taxare]

Hello, welcome to Regent! In our 15 regent cruises we only had one situation where the housekeeper did not do her job well.On the second day we spoke to the head of housekeeping and it was fixed right away. I also agree with Techno, as we don't usually do PH or above, so no butler, we leave them a note with beverages and other wants, and they have always taken care of it right away. Regarding shared tables, I am surprised about that. I would speak to the manager of the restaurant you are in and they should make it happen. Sometimes people don't want to share but we have found most are pleased to meet new people. We have friends from all over the world that we met on Regent cruises and regularly stay in contact with. 

[irishwitchy]

We have had that weird dance at the start of the cruise about what is or isn’t in the refrigerator.   Writing it down, seems to work very well.   For example:    please have the ice bucket filled by 5:00 very day.  Please remove all the beer and replace with club soda.
 

 I should mention that club soda depending on where you are, may have a different name and not taste the same as the stuff in the states.  
 

As for the table sharing,  many people including myself don’t like to wing it.  Last cruise we did that one night and as much as the good doctor was interesting, it was all about him.  However,  we have shared lots of tables with the trivia team, someone we have spoken to at one of the bars or on a excursion and seem to be on the same page as us and not a blow hard about themselves.  

[flossie009]

3 hours ago, D&L Thomas said:

Sharing doesn’t seem to be a thing on this ship; the dining room hostess looked a little surprised when we asked.

We usually ask to share in Compass Rose. Obviously it depends on other guests doing the same but also we have found that some of the restaurant staff are better at arranging this than others.

Hope you are successful when you give it another try.

 

46 minutes ago, irishwitchy said:

As for the table sharing,  many people including myself don’t like to wing it.

We have met some great table companions just on the off-chance; very few have been of the "maybe not another evening" type; even fewer "never again" 😉

 

[slidebite]

Your expectations on the room steward are not extraordinary. They should be doing this.

 

We are also on Voyager right now and were told by our room stewardess (Julia) that it would be back by 9PM the following day, and it was.

 

But Voyager is beautiful as always and the food/service for us has been exceptional so far. Weather has been pretty nice too!

[RJ2002]

As many others have mentioned, just leaving a note seems to always work when we have specific requests.  We do this when we have a butler as well, primarily for selection of the afternoon canapes.

[papaflamingo]

I’m surprised that they don’t ask when you come into Compass Rose if you’d like to share.  On our 84 nights we were generally asked every night if we wanted a table for 2 or to share.   

[D&L Thomas]

56 minutes ago, slidebite said:

Your expectations on the room steward are not extraordinary. They should be doing this.

 

We are also on Voyager right now and were told by our room stewardess (Julia) that it would be back by 9PM the following day, and it was.

 

But Voyager is beautiful as always and the food/service for us has been exceptional so far. Weather has been pretty nice too!

The ship is gorgeous! And all the food we’ve tried has been excellent. Hope the weather holds. ☀️ 

[D&L Thomas]

Bit of an update, our laundry is MIA.

It’s just what we had the first night, so traveling clothes plus what we wore in the hotel. It was odd. The steward seemed like he didn’t remember picking it up from our room. At 11 he said he’d be right back with it; it’s after 2 now and no sign of him or message from him.

 

I’m trying really hard to not take it all personally. 😬. And in the big picture view it’s all minor stuff but it’s good to hear from others that I’m not expecting too much.

[Wendy The Wanderer]

5 hours ago, D&L Thomas said:

Another question if I may. On other cruise lines (mostly Princess) we always enjoy sharing a dinner table and meeting people from all over. Sharing doesn’t seem to be a thing on this ship; the dining room hostess looked a little surprised when we asked. 🤷🏻‍♀️ So how do you meet people? Or is there just less casual socializing than I’m used to?

It's definitely a thing on Regent.  I'm surprised that the maitre'd reacted like that.  

[wcsdkqh]

Pre-Covid we were asked most evenings in Compass Rose if we wished to share. On two post-Covid cruises, not so much. Wonder if that may explain the difference.

[Wendy The Wanderer]

1 hour ago, wcsdkqh said:

Pre-Covid we were asked most evenings in Compass Rose if we wished to share. On two post-Covid cruises, not so much. Wonder if that may explain the difference.

That's definitely part of it.  I noticed many more 2-tops on Splendor this January.  We did manage to share several evenings, but often they couldn't form a table so we took the table for two

[D&L Thomas]

18 hours ago, D&L Thomas said:

Bit of an update, our laundry is MIA.

It’s just what we had the first night, so traveling clothes plus what we wore in the hotel. It was odd. The steward seemed like he didn’t remember picking it up from our room. At 11 he said he’d be right back with it; it’s after 2 now and no sign of him or message from him.

 

I’m trying really hard to not take it all personally. 😬. And in the big picture view it’s all minor stuff but it’s good to hear from others that I’m not expecting too much.

First day laundry found and returned, on wire hangers tied with a bread twistie …. please don’t think I am complaining. But. Second small bag out by 9 and (again) not returned same day.

Again - perhaps I had my sights set too high.

The block party last night was fun, and today we are in beautiful Bermuda with perfect weather.

[wcsdkqh]

Do not expect laundry to be returned the same day. Unrealistic expectation. It may happen, but may not, especially if ship is full.

[D&L Thomas]

15 minutes ago, wcsdkqh said:

Do not expect laundry to be returned the same day. Unrealistic expectation. It may happen, but may not, especially if ship is full.

And that is perfectly fine. It’s just that we were told, very specifically, that if we turned it in by 9 in the morning it would be back by 6 that same day. There have been quite a few hiccups and I’m doing a check-and-adjust to my expectations.

 

[papaflamingo]

1 minute ago, D&L Thomas said:

And that is perfectly fine. It’s just that we were told, very specifically, that if we turned it in by 9 in the morning it would be back by 6 that same day. There have been quite a few hiccups and I’m doing a check-and-adjust to my expectations.

 

Your expectations may be a bit high.  Not making excuses but simply suggesting reality.  Marketing tends to promote the “ultimate” of the product.  Unfortunately the “ultimate” is not always reached.  Example, shore excursions…. Regent promises “unlimited excursions” yet we all know that in many ports you only have time for one excursion, and often the excursion you want is booked.  So the reality is they offer excursions, and you’ll likely get one, but they don’t offer ANY excursion guaranteed.  And don’t offer MULTIPLE excursions guaranteed in all ports.  In fact, there are some ports where no excursions are offered.

So, my point, it’s a ship.  It moves with the ocean, is affected by weather, has limits to supplies, etc., goes to ports where infrastructure and availability is limited, etc.  and their laundry is only so big.  Everyone sends clothes AND they also have to keep up with crew needs and housekeeping needs.  So if it takes overnight to get laundry back, that may not really be that big of a deal.  Just plan for it and if it makes it the same day you’ll be pleasantly surprised rather than disappointed. 
 

[Nachosdelux]

If they are promised same day delivery for laundry, then it should be delivered.

 

If for some reason the ship can't deliver, then they should let that be known.

 

It is NOT an unreasonable expectation to get what is promised.

 

I agree with the above posters who recommend leaving a note for you steward/butler with stateroom requests e.g. ice, drinks, etc.  IMO that works well for everyone.

[papaflamingo]

21 minutes ago, Nachosdelux said:

If they are promised same day delivery for laundry, then it should be delivered.

 

If for some reason the ship can't deliver, then they should let that be known.

 

It is NOT an unreasonable expectation to get what is promised.

 

I agree with the above posters who recommend leaving a note for you steward/butler with stateroom requests e.g. ice, drinks, etc.  IMO that works well for everyone.

Do you really believe that a cabin steward can accurately predict the time it takes for laundry to be done?  Can you show me where it is promised “same day service.”  I can’t seem to find it anywhere on the Regent website.

Edited April 8, 2023 by papaflamingo

[mrlevin]

Laundry if out by 9 is promised to be back same day.  We had one ship where there was issue with stewardess picking up laundry but leaving it in work area on our deck until she went down for lunch; thus it wasn't in by 9 to laundry.  One complaint to Housekeeping and that was fixed; never had the issue again.  If you continue to have issues with your steward just ask housekeeping to change stewards; happens all the time and not an issue.

[mj_holiday]

We were on Voyager in December.  On thing our steward told us, was that they had  changed their process on ice in the rooms.  It now is not automatic that fresh ice will be delivered to your frig every day.  (many people were not using ice everyday, the bucket also took up a lot of space in the frig.).  But if you want ice everyday let your steward know.  Or, if only occasionally, figure out how to let him/her know:  a note on the table, a phone call etc.  Notes left for our steward always worked.

[pappy1022]

A promise is a promise. If you can’t deliver, don’t promise. 

[D&L Thomas]

All advice and counsel is much appreciated. We are so pleased with so much onboard, and getting happily surprised daily. It’s jarring when seemingly simple and routine things are not handled well or as promised but most everything is pretty darned fabulous.

 

Things would have to be truly atrocious before I’d go complain to a supervisor or passenger service desk. I would talk to the steward directly but we have yet to meet him. The assistant has been by but she was not aware of any of our requests so maybe there are communication difficulties between the two of them.

I will try leaving notes.