Tips for a Regent Newbie

[Kwaj girl]

@klkaylor78 you mentioned having a butler?  He/she could have definitely "clued you in" k owing you were a newbie.

[Nachosdelux]

44 minutes ago, klkaylor78 said:

After chatting with lots of folks on the ship it was clear that knowing the Regent process in advance was very helpful and may have changed our opinion a bit. There were other issues that impacted my opinion. If first time sailors have unfortunate events the first few days due to not knowing the process then as the say you only get one chance to make a first impression..... they made one that was not too good.

 

Just to end the discussion - dont like web arguments-gave my opinion and my plan. Agree that it was not a "dire" experience just one I did not like that much. As we have other options for luxury cruising we will pass up the great looking ship and use one that fits our lifestyle a bit better.  

 

I hope my tip of knowing your table number was helpful. 

 

I agree that there is a lot of "corporate knowledge" for each cruise line, and often for specific ships.  It is helpful to do a bit of research, but I still find that I have missed out on something special, or some helpful information.  That said, I feel that complaining about having to remember your table number at a buffet is a bit petty.  Hopefully you will find a cruise line/ship that better suits your needs.  Safe travels.

 

 

 

[ToxM]

Any other tips to grease the newbie learning curve on Regent? I think I got the message about taking the table number now (this is quite normal in gastropubs and the like in the UK so I don’t think I will be phased by it). I am a noob for Regent but an experienced cruiser (mostly Oceania). I am not scared to ask for things, and respectful enough to not make a nuisance of myself to other guests, or be unkind to staff.

 

We embark on the 12th. I will probably do a Live From (that may well peter out halfway through dependant on how much of a good time I am having!). 

[1982CruzStart]

57 minutes ago, klkaylor78 said:

I hope my tip of knowing your table number was helpful. 

Thanks for taking the time to provide the tip. I am sure it will be helpful to other newbies. 

I hope you find a cruise line that better suits you. That is the great thing about having so many choices. Every cruise line is not for every person. 

Happy future cruising. 

[1982CruzStart]

4 minutes ago, ToxM said:

We embark on the 12th. I will probably do a Live From (that may well peter out halfway through dependant on how much of a good time I am having!). 

 I look forward to reading all about your experiences from a newbie perspective as your time permits. Have a wonderful cruise. 

[mj_holiday]

We have always found the servers and the runners in LaVeranda and the pool grill very observant and helpful. They could always find our table to deliver our food. When DH serves himself from the buffet line they noticed him right away and come and carry his plate to our table, we enjoy eating at LaVeranda and Pool grill. 

[GMIAC]

7 minutes ago, ToxM said:

Any other tips to grease the newbie learning curve on Regent? I think I got the message about taking the table number now (this is quite normal in gastropubs and the like in the UK so I don’t think I will be phased by it). I am a noob for Regent but an experienced cruiser (mostly Oceania). I am not scared to ask for things, and respectful enough to not make a nuisance of myself to other guests, or be unkind to staff.

 

We embark on the 12th. I will probably do a Live From (that may well peter out halfway through dependant on how much of a good time I am having!). 

 

Have you made your advance dining reservations yet? If not, I'd prioritize Pacific Rim if you're interested in that restaurant, especially if you want a two-top. They're rare.

[cAPS lOCK oN]

Depending on the cruise's duration you'll probably eat a lot of dinners Compass Rose. If you find a waiter/waitress and location that suits you, ask to be seated in that station when you check in for dinner.

 

We prefer a quiet spot off to the side, and once we found a waiter in that area that we really liked we asked for him every night.

[ToxM]

1 hour ago, GMIAC said:

 

Have you made your advance dining reservations yet? If not, I'd prioritize Pacific Rim if you're interested in that restaurant, especially if you want a two-top. They're rare.

We are on Voyager so sadly no Pacific Rim (am a big fan of Red Ginger on Oceania) I have managed to secure 2 tops for Chartreuse and Prime 7 🙂

[taxman1]

I want to thank all of my fellow cruise lovers for sharing your tips.  I always find these boards extremely helpful and make the cruise experience that much more enjoyable.  Based on feedback from these boards we made our SD reservations as soon as they opened online and had no issues reserving tables at the venue and evening of choice.  To be honest we are most excited for Compass Rose as the pictures recently provided online are stunning.  Regarding the tours we only have a couple selected and prefer to venture on our own or enjoy the ship.  For the one poster who is a Florida neighbor we typically do the trip in 3-3.5 hours.  We are fortunate enough to have a place on Miami Beach and plan to park at the condo and Uber to the pier.  I will be posting during the trip and share some thoughts.  Thank you all again.  Happy New Year!

[DaveFr]

1 hour ago, ToxM said:

We are on Voyager so sadly no Pacific Rim (am a big fan of Red Ginger on Oceania) I have managed to secure 2 tops for Chartreuse and Prime 7 🙂

The lunch menus in Compass Rose on the Voyager feature dishes from the specialty restaurants including Pacific Rim. Hope this helps.
 

Dave

[ToxM]

8 minutes ago, DaveFr said:

The lunch menus in Compass Rose on the Voyager feature dishes from the specialty restaurants including Pacific Rim. Hope this helps.
 

Dave

 

Dave that is an absolutely top tip - thank you!

[labonnevie]

9 hours ago, flossie009 said:

On Mariner at present and at the Pool Grill servers will take your order at the table - no need to go to the serving station

 

 

Our experience as well on all Regent ships including Navigator in November. Also has always applied to La Veranda if memory serves correctly. 

[hamasgirl]

Just an add-on to what has already been said.  Since we have the majority of our dinners in the Compass Rose we try and find a waiter/tress that we like and then ask for a table in their area going forward.  They quickly learn that we are requesting them and go the extra mile after that to make our dining experience even more special, remembering our like/dislikes and making sure that we eat at the pace that we prefer.  Makes all the difference in the world for us enjoying our dining experience.

[-Lew-]

On 12/26/2023 at 12:24 PM, taxman1 said:

My wife and I are gearing up for the Miami to Miami cruise leaving port on Feb 5th.

 

Come on over and join the Roll Call for this cruise.  We could use some activity...

[irishwitchy]

We are wine drinkers, not the stuff is free, the wine that you order.  We have found,  ordering a couple of nice bottles the first couple of nights,  seems to set the stage for the rest of the cruise. 
 

Sommelier knows us, extra reservations in the speciality restaurants,  specials on some wine they are trying to move off the menu because they are down to one bottle, etc.  Also,  we get the details on the wine or champagne lunch and sign up for it.  

[acstall]

On 12/29/2023 at 10:57 AM, klkaylor78 said:

We did not find the crew helpful with "finding us" when we forgot our number and we were not the only passengers having that issue. May have been variable by ship.

Agree that all ships have a process but our feeling was that the process was more important than the passengers.  

Not really an issue in the long term as if you like the processes on Regent stay with Regent. We on the other hand will vote with our feet/$. I do think that as knowing and joining the process is more important on Regent and perhaps a newbie FAQ might help or even a handout so that we know our roles on the ship. It was a rough few days  figuring out our role in our own happiness.  

I do have to say the ship was beautiful so and the room and butler wonderful.  

I so agree with your assessment but have hesitated to share my thoughts about our cruise on Regent.  In our case, the server taking the special eggs order was very rude about indicating we should get our table first.  Even when we did that, there always seemed to be an issue with our orders.  Although I did a lot of research prior to our Splendor cruise, I did not learn about this "process" until our first morning for breakfast.  On our cruise in December 2022, we did not feel that key staff leaders were open to feedback about the uneven experience both in food quality and service in the restaurants.  Our cabin was elegant and our butler was also wonderful - that side of things couldn't be better.  However, the overall feeling of being dismissed kept us from booking another cruise on Regent, although if there's an interesting itinerary in the future I would consider it.  We cruised for the second time in December 2023 on Crystal and it was as wonderful and welcoming as ever.

[Mahogany]

3 hours ago, acstall said:

I so agree with your assessment but have hesitated to share my thoughts about our cruise on Regent.  In our case, the server taking the special eggs order was very rude about indicating we should get our table first.  Even when we did that, there always seemed to be an issue with our orders.  Although I did a lot of research prior to our Splendor cruise, I did not learn about this "process" until our first morning for breakfast.  On our cruise in December 2022, we did not feel that key staff leaders were open to feedback about the uneven experience both in food quality and service in the restaurants.  Our cabin was elegant and our butler was also wonderful - that side of things couldn't be better.  However, the overall feeling of being dismissed kept us from booking another cruise on Regent, although if there's an interesting itinerary in the future I would consider it.  We cruised for the second time in December 2023 on Crystal and it was as wonderful and welcoming as ever.

Every time someone praises Crystal, I have to ask. Were you in a Penthouse? Because that's what you have to pay for to get the same suite space as Regent, Silversea and Seabourn's entry-level veranda. I know from experience.

[acstall]

Entry level suite, Aquamarine. Slightly smaller suite than Regent but not by much. Price comparable.

[Nachosdelux]

10 hours ago, Mahogany said:

Every time someone praises Crystal, I have to ask. Were you in a Penthouse? Because that's what you have to pay for to get the same suite space as Regent, Silversea and Seabourn's entry-level veranda. I know from experience.

 

I have cruised Regent (in entry level room, thru PH) and Crystal (entry thru PH) and frankly, the level of service and the quality of food were nearly identical, in my experience.  

[pappy1022]

I felt the food on Crystal was better but that was before bankruptcy. I am reluctant to sail with them, although I loved my previous cruises, until they prove they can exist and succeed financially for a bit. I am not concerned about the size of the cabin. I’m not sure how the service is on Crystal post COVID because it seems like Regent service has taken a hit since then.

[John Cruise]

Go to the Crystal board and read the comments.

All sounds good.

[bitob]

3 hours ago, John Cruise said:

Go to the Crystal board and read the comments.

All sounds good.

There may be a bit of bias in those posts. Caveat emptor

[pappy1022]

2 hours ago, bitob said:

There may be a bit of bias in those posts. Caveat emptor

Of course there isn’t any bias on the Regent boards. 

[GMIAC]

Just now, pappy1022 said:

Of course there isn’t any bias on the Regent boards. 

 

Food and service "reviews" are so subjective everywhere that they're all but unreliable.