Live from Regatta

[Jancruz]

18 hours ago, palakika said:

I was also on Sept cruise  and have the  CD's name my notes as Carson Hunter.  I commented that he was good.

I dont believe he is on now or next trip..the CD is John Clelford

Jancruz1

Edited April 16 by Jancruz

[Jancruz]

On 4/15/2024 at 7:10 AM, palakika said:

Judi666..  thanks for your comments.  I'm also boarding on Sat in LA and wondering who is serving as cruise director?  Thanks.

Francie

 

 

I posted his name above

Jancruz1

Edited April 16 by Jancruz

[Jancruz]

On 4/15/2024 at 12:02 PM, Kay S said:

The wannabe police come in all flavors, drink policy, dress codes, deck chairs, service dogs, etc.  You'll always find someone who needs to control other people's behavior.  

 

 

How did anyone know it was vodka?  Did you taste it?

No he was with my group and bragged to me about how much money he saves..and he does it all the time..

[ORV]

25 minutes ago, Jancruz said:

No he was with my group and bragged to me about how much money he saves..and he does it all the time..

Couldn't be me, I'm more a rum and whiskey guy. 🫠

[Catboatcouple]

19 hours ago, Cruisedreamer1 said:

Does the Regatta still have a place to leave books for others in the library? I'm boarding on Saturday and wondered if I could leave my finished ones and pick up another one. Thanks!

Yes.  Library on 10 Aft… there’s a desk to leave books and they file them on an exchange cabinet.

[Catboatcouple]

On 4/7/2024 at 9:39 AM, Classiccruiser777 said:

 

Has the self-service laundry on deck 7 been removed?

No, it’s still there but only 4 washers and 4 dryers are a bit of a stretch for the entire ship…. Gets a bit competitive in there at times.

[TRLD]

1 hour ago, Catboatcouple said:

No, it’s still there but only 4 washers and 4 dryers are a bit of a stretch for the entire ship…. Gets a bit competitive in there at times.

Almost as much as trivia. Surprised they do not give our O points when anyone successfully gets a washer.

[judi666]

2 hours ago, Catboatcouple said:

No, it’s still there but only 4 washers and 4 dryers are a bit of a stretch for the entire ship…. Gets a bit competitive in there at times.

We found the 3 times laundry service that came with the Concierge Ver. Has worked well.  Since we were in Moorea a week before embarkation, we handed over the first bag of 20 items at the beginning. Just did the last bag yesterday.  The clothes are clean and folded, but not on hangers, pressed etc. They seem to be offering the same service in the currents for $24.99.  Our last cruise 1 year ago on a different line had the same offer, but the clothes came back pressed and on hangers.

It is nice not to have to use the laudrette or go home with dirty clothes.  I’m really not seeing much In the way of concierge benefits, except the laundry. We also got a bottle of champagne, which we have not used.  I believe you could select the dates of your specialty restaurants a little earlier. We ended up canceling several of the specialty reservations. Once is good, but the menus never change. I’m sure this would be more of a perk, on the bigger ships with more specialty 

restaurants.

 

 

[judi666]

On 4/14/2024 at 12:39 PM, jondfk said:

Aloha to those onboard Regatta, very much enjoying the live from reports.  With 5 sea days ahead I hope you might share any particularly noteworthy crew members be they wait staff, bar staff or others.  We board in Los Angeles on Saturday and always like to look towards staff who have demonstrated great service.

 

Aloha and mahalo,

 

Jon

 

Out cabin stewards, Putu and Ravi are just the best. The servers in the Waves grill are very nice.  I don’t recall any particular names. 
 

A real standout for me was the reallly great tender crew. We had a lot of tender ports and they handled everything perfectly.

 

The service in thd GDR had been excellant.  We have been seated in different areas, so not the same server.  We have noticed in the past, that a meal might take a long time with the various courses. In the dining venues on Regatta the food comes with little wait time, the temperature of servings has been good.

 

 

 

[Cliff-FLL]

2 hours ago, judi666 said:

"We found the 3 times laundry service that came with the Concierge Ver. Has worked well."  "The clothes are clean and folded, but not on hangers, pressed etc."

While I appreciate the convenience of the free bags of laundry - and have used it on a few occasions - it always seems to come back less-than-April-fresh.  I understand that they probably do this because of people's allergies and personal "scent" preferences, but it never smells like what I consider clean.  On the other hand, in an emergency (e.g., I'm feeling lazy), I've sent things out and haven't hesitated to wear them.  Nevertheless, from my perspective, they just don't feel clean.

[Cliff-FLL]

@judi666 FWIW, I think it's terrible the way you've been treated on this thread by a few posters/Oceania cheerleaders.  I consider them the Oceania monkeys - hear no evil, see no evil, speak no evil.  Anything that says or implies Oceania is less than perfect is heresy and the villain must be challenged and electronically pilloried.  Some people forget that the purpose this board is to provide personal insights of their cruising experience, not to be an adjunct to the marketing department of their favourite cruise line.  Despite these unfortunate interactions, I hope you'll continue to share your perspectives with the rest of us.

[judi666]

4 hours ago, Cliff-FLL said:

@judi666 FWIW, I think it's terrible the way you've been treated on this thread by a few posters/Oceania cheerleaders.  I consider them the Oceania monkeys - hear no evil, see no evil, speak no evil.  Anything that says or implies Oceania is less than perfect is heresy and the villain must be challenged and electronically pilloried.  Some people forget that the purpose this board is to provide personal insights of their cruising experience, not to be an adjunct to the marketing department of their favourite cruise line.  Despite these unfortunate interactions, I hope you'll continue to share your perspectives with the rest of us.

Thank you!

[Techno123]

@Cliff-FLL it happens on all the boards and the other site beginning with F that also has groups for each of the cruise lines is even worse 😱

 

I like to hear the good and the bad - if you go into a situation expecting amazing, anything less is going to be a disappointment 😁. The problem is, sometimes it starts to get a bit argumentative and unpleasant - everyone is entitled to their opinion even if it doesn't agree with your own.

Edited April 17 by Techno123

[vlthom]

17 hours ago, Cliff-FLL said:

While I appreciate the convenience of the free bags of laundry - and have used it on a few occasions - it always seems to come back less-than-April-fresh.  I understand that they probably do this because of people's allergies and personal "scent" preferences, but it never smells like what I consider clean.  On the other hand, in an emergency (e.g., I'm feeling lazy), I've sent things out and haven't hesitated to wear them.  Nevertheless, from my perspective, they just don't feel clean.

I completely agree with you on this.  The clothes are clean but they do not seem fresh.  They have what I'd described as a metallic odor which I find off-putting.  And so, we seldom use the free laundry service.  When we use the self-serve laundry, we never have this issue.  I've made comments about the laundry's odor in the mid-cruise comments but nothing has happened so we will continue with the self-service.  It's quick and not that much trouble.

[ronrick1943]

20 hours ago, judi666 said:

We found the 3 times laundry service that came with the Concierge Ver. Has worked well.  Since we were in Moorea a week before embarkation, we handed over the first bag of 20 items at the beginning. Just did the last bag yesterday.  The clothes are clean and folded, but not on hangers, pressed etc. They seem to be offering the same service in the currents for $24.99.  Our last cruise 1 year ago on a different line had the same offer, but the clothes came back pressed and on hangers.

It is nice not to have to use the laudrette or go home with dirty clothes.  I’m really not seeing much In the way of concierge benefits, except the laundry. We also got a bottle of champagne, which we have not used.  I believe you could select the dates of your specialty restaurants a little earlier. We ended up canceling several of the specialty reservations. Once is good, but the menus never change. I’m sure this would be more of a perk, on the bigger ships with more specialty 

restaurants.

 

 

One would think they would have laundry included with a named suite. 

 

[Sailnsurf]

On 4/15/2024 at 6:39 AM, jondfk said:

Aloha to those onboard Regatta, very much enjoying the live from reports.  With 5 sea days ahead I hope you might share any particularly noteworthy crew members be they wait staff, bar staff or others.  We board in Los Angeles on Saturday and always like to look towards staff who have demonstrated great service.

 

Aloha and mahalo,

 

Jon

 

As we are on Regatta for a 10 day Polynesian cruise in August 25 any comments on this section of your itinerary, such as what was good and what not would be very interesting to read as well.

[jondfk]

8 hours ago, Sailnsurf said:

As we are on Regatta for a 10 day Polynesian cruise in August 25 any comments on this section of your itinerary, such as what was good and what not would be very interesting to read as well.

A few comments here.  We previously sailed on Regatta from Papeete to Los Angeles in April ‘22 shortly after the restart.  Unfortunately, I had a frozen shoulder at the time which limited my abilities somewhat.  Nonetheless I very much enjoyed the swim with stingrays and sharks on Bora Bora even if I couldn’t venture far from the excursion boat.

 

As it happens we will sail on Regatta two sailings before you in July of ‘25 and will be sure to post our experiences for your benefit.  
 

If you have any specific questions, please ask.

 

[judi666]

22 hours ago, Sailnsurf said:

As we are on Regatta for a 10 day Polynesian cruise in August 25 any comments on this section of your itinerary, such as what was good and what not would be very interesting to read as well.

This was our third time on the FP itinerary.  This one was much longer, going to Hawaii and on to LA. I love the shorter itinerary, but would never do this longer one again.  Very subjective, but just too many sea days with little in the way of activities  that I have interest in. We have been on several trans Atlantics on bigger ships and the ride was not as rough ( may better stabilization).  It just isn’t much fun to walk the track or even use the gym when I am feeling unbalanced.  
 

So much to do in FP. Snorkeling or diving are fabulous. We rented a car in Moorea ( stayed 5 days pre cruise) and Bora Bora.  It’s fun and not too expensive.  

[TRLD]

I would say too few activities, too little variation in the daily schedule.

 

We have done FP by ship twice as well as land trips there. I believe in the future we will probably stick to land trips.

 

As for the things to do we have found that the aquarium area on Rangiroa to be excellent if your ship visits there. As well as the blue lagoon there. Our day was quite rainy on this visit.

 

With a 10 day loop you will probably  be visiting some islands such as Raiatea and or Huahine which we did not this trip. Other than Papeete,  Raiatea is about the other other island with a dock.

 

Moorea is probably the best for being among the sting rays and sharks. There is a nice excursion that combines that with lunch on a motu.

 

It really come down to what you like to do. Do your research and keep in mind that these stops are almost all tender ports and are mostly small towns.

Edited April 19 by TRLD

[mommykim]

Can I ask the name of the piano player in Martini's? 

[ORV]

41 minutes ago, mommykim said:

Can I ask the name of the piano player in Martini's? 

NO, it's a secret. 

[Sailnsurf]

1 hour ago, judi666 said:

This was our third time on the FP itinerary.  This one was much longer, going to Hawaii and on to LA. I love the shorter itinerary, but would never do this longer one again.  Very subjective, but just too many sea days with little in the way of activities  that I have interest in. We have been on several trans Atlantics on bigger ships and the ride was not as rough ( may better stabilization).  It just isn’t much fun to walk the track or even use the gym when I am feeling unbalanced.  
 

So much to do in FP. Snorkeling or diving are fabulous. We rented a car in Moorea ( stayed 5 days pre cruise) and Bora Bora.  It’s fun and not too expensive.  

Thanks for this. However it raises something which worries me. My wife is very sensitive to motion which has always influenced our cruising choices. That said she has been bold enough to enjoy sailing (yachting) with medication when needed. But that has been for relatively short periods. I would not want to subject her to extended periods of movement. She would not enjoy dining/eating at all if conscious of movement.

So my question is how much movement is likely when at anchorage and when moving between the islands? 

Thanks also to jondfk and TRLD for your comments. I would welcome input from others about their experiences of excursions etc on the islands.

[TRLD]

28 minutes ago, Sailnsurf said:

Thanks for this. However it raises something which worries me. My wife is very sensitive to motion which has always influenced our cruising choices. That said she has been bold enough to enjoy sailing (yachting) with medication when needed. But that has been for relatively short periods. I would not want to subject her to extended periods of movement. She would not enjoy dining/eating at all if conscious of movement.

So my question is how much movement is likely when at anchorage and when moving between the islands? 

Thanks also to jondfk and TRLD for your comments. I would welcome input from others about their experiences of excursions etc on the islands.

Usually I would say not bad between most ports since they are pretty close together. If you go to Rangiroa that is a longer distance than the others.

 

For some reason the Regatta has been very bouncy on this trip, much more than when I have been on a similar trip in FP on the exact same size ship also doing loop of a 10 day loop of FP out of Papeete.

 

Might just be the seas this time.

Edited April 19 by TRLD

[Sailnsurf]

36 minutes ago, TRLD said:

Usually I would say not bad between most ports since they are pretty close together. If you go to Rangiroa that is a longer distance than the others.

 

For some reason the Regatta has been very bouncy on this trip, much more than when I have been on a similar trip in FP on the exact same size ship also doing loop of a 10 day loop of FP out of Papeete.

 

Might just be the seas this time.

Thanks again. Are you able to say what level of movement there has been during meal times and when at anchor? What do you mean by " not bad between most ports"? Is the GDR a better place to eat wgen some motion is likely given it is at a lower level than other dining locations?

 

I really appreciate comments on motion generally because this could be a deal breaker for us-which would be a great pity because we have wanted to cruise FP.

 

Does anyone know whether kinder seas could be expected in late August compared to now?

 

 

[TRLD]

4 minutes ago, Sailnsurf said:

Thanks again. Are you able to say what level of movement there has been during meal times and when at anchor? What do you mean by " not bad between most ports"? Is the GDR a better place to eat wgen some motion is likely given it is at a lower level than other dining locations?

 

I really appreciate comments on motion generally because this could be a deal breaker for us-which would be a great pity because we have wanted to cruise FP.

 

Does anyone know whether kinder seas could be expected in late August compared to now?

 

 

Usually the 10 day cruise around FP is pretty calm. With the paths between the islands fairly sheltered because the distances are relatively short. Like sailing in the Caribbean.

 

That is how it was the last time we were in FP for the entire 10 days. We were also one of Renaissance R class ships, the exact same type as the Regatta, though with a different line.

 

The GDR being on deck 5  would have less motion that the Terrace Cafe on 9 or the specialty restaurants on 10.

 

I would expect that the ship will leave late for travel between some of the island so check the itinerary for expected departure times.

 

Do not let the sea on our trip impact your decision. Likely to be calmer then this time of year.