http://www.bestcruisespot.com/ http://www.bestcruisespot.com/images/stories/toolbar_feed.png http://www.bestcruisespot.com/ http://www.bestcruisespot.com/component/content/article/55-Regent-Seven-Seas/287-seven-seas-mariner We departed Newark and flew non-stop to Vancouver on Continental the day before sailing. We stayed at the Pan Pacific Hotel at Canada Place, where the ship docked. The hotel was lovely and the room overlooked the harbor, so we could see the cruise ships arrive, as well as Mount Baker in the distance.

On sail day, we woke early and walked downstairs just before 7 am. Soon, the Pacific Princess came into view, followed closely by the HAL Zaandam, and then the beautiful Regent Mariner. They all docked at the piers on both sides of the hotel. We were able to talk with passengers on the Mariner right from the dock, and heard that they had had a beautiful sunny week on the southbound portion. As it turned out, we also had a week of beautiful weather, although we were prepared for rain because it is Alaska.

At 11:30 am we walked our bags to the terminal downstairs, and after a short wait, were taken through immigration to the waiting Mariner. We walked to the Constellation Theater, were given champagne, and checked in. Our rooms would be ready at 2, so we took our carry-ons up to the pool deck and enjoyed a wonderful lunch. Everywhere we went on the ship we were greeted with smiles and “welcome aboard.”

The ship was clean and gleaming. Mariner had just received a sanitation score of 100% for the fifth time, and the staff was justifiably proud.

Mariner is an all-suite, all balcony ship. We had booked an H guarantee and received a D category cabin 1060. It was in a perfect location, just one deck below the 11th deck which had La Verandah, terrace grill and pool. It was an easy walk up to the observation lounge on 12 also, for the naturalist talks. We had a welcome bottle of champagne chilling, and the refrigerator was stocked with beer, water and sodas. Our stewardess, Laura, also brought one bottle of Absolut and another bottle of white wine at our request. The bed was wonderfully comfortable, the suite spacious and the balcony ready for viewing the wonderful scenery as we sailed away. The walk-in closet provided ample storage. The only comment I would have about the cabin was that, at lunch time, as the special buffets were put out, you could hear food carts rolling out and back quite loudly, and people walking on the deck above the cabin. However, this only happened at lunch and early afternoon, not evening, and only interfered with a small nap we took one day. Otherwise, the cabin was great!

We sailed under the Lions Gate Bridge and away from Vancouver on our Alaskan adventure. We enjoyed the scenery that afternoon and the comments of Captain Phillipe as we sailed away. We had dinner reservations at Signatures, the Cordon Bleu restaurant,that evening and enjoyed a special dinner with attentive service. The complimentary wines poured with dinner were excellent.

Regent is truly all-inclusive and we appreciated not having to sign for anything during the cruise. If we did not like the complimentary wine offered in the evening with dinner, Daniela our sommelier, was ready with another choice or our preference off the complimentary wine list.

Passenger make-up on this cruise was international. We met people from England, Australia, Russia, Denmark, Canada, Japan and South Africa. There were about 100 well-behaved children aboard due to the kids sail free promotion.

The next day was a cruising day on the Inland Passage, so we made ourselves comfortable with the ship layout, enjoyed the gorgeous scenery, listened to the excellent lectures by Dr. and Mrs. Iliff, the naturalists, played trivia and checked out the internet. Lunch was a grilled seafood buffet with salmon, halibut and mahi mahi along with great salads and desserts. Weather was overcast, but not raining. Dinner that evening in Compass Rose was very good, again with excellent wines. We ran into Executive Chef Cornell whom we had met on the Regent Voyager two years ago. We had taken the Cordon Bleu cooking class from him, and, to our amazement, he remembered us. It was nice to catch up.

The first port was Ketchikan. John had booked a sportsfishing excursion and I wanted to see the Totem Bight state park. I left the ship on the tender and found the city bus which took me to the park and back for $1. (The ship also offered excursions here, but I preferred to do it on my own). I highly recommend this trip to a beautiful, mystical park filled with Totems and a stunning clan house. There is an information cabin with pamphlets that explain the meanings of the Totems, and the self-walking tour is on a beautiful tree-lined path that leads to the water and gorgeous views. It was stunning. I visited the fish ladder where salmon were jumping, the museum and did some shopping back in town. I easily made the 3:00 tender back to the ship in time for trivia. DH caught 4 salmon (the boat had 4 people and they brought in 14 salmon total). He filled out the necessary paperwork and brought the fish back to the ship. Chef Cornell graciously offered to cook the fish for dinner the following evening. It was a wonderful day and dinner in the Compass Rose, with our favorite waiter, Gerry, was a great way to end it. Gerry was so professional and caring, and remembered our preferences each time he saw us. Truly amazing service!

The next day was our favorite day of the cruise. It began with a 5 am commentary from the Iliffs and a whale-watching in the observation lounge. Regent provided a continental breakfast in the lounge to keep us provisioned before breakfast while we scanned the sea. A large number of hardy souls were up, and we were rewarded with seeing humpback
whales swimming nearby. We had booked the catamaran excursion to Tracy Arm. At 7:15 am the catamaran came next to the ship and 120 of us boarded for this incredible 6-hour journey. Mariner followed for a bit, then turned off and continued on to Juneau. We would eventually meet up with her about 1:30, just after she docked. But our little catamaran continued up Tracy Arm, through the growing ice fields, past deep blue icebergs up to Sawyer Glacier. We had a very informative commentary from the crew all along the way. On the sail-in we saw humpback whales and, to the amazement of the catamaran crew, orcas jumping and swimming in the water. It was a gorgeous site. The glacier itself is magnificent, with spires of ice shooting upwards. While we were stopped, about ½ hour, huge areas of the glacier calved. This included a 75 foot spire of ice, which thundered down and created large waves. This calving happened about 10 times. It was awe inspiring. Along the way there were harbor seals, perched on the ice flows, lifting their heads to watch us go by. This was the most beautiful place, and the best excursion we have taken. Highly recommend it!

We landed in Juneau, had lunch of huge king crab legs at the Twisted Fish in town and did some shopping. All in all it was a wonderful day. We had invited some new friends from England whom we had met on the ship to have dinner with us. Chef Cornell cooked John’s salmon perfectly and presented a platter of the fish for our dining enjoyment. He also went out of his way for me. Chef Cornell remembered from our previous cruise that I loved a Salzberger Nockerl soufflé, and to our surprise, Gerry brought the dessert to the table. It was delicious and a wonderful, personalized dinner gift from an outstanding chef and staff. We went to bed happy and tired.

The next day found us cruising into Skagway. We had rented a car for the day for a drive to Emerald Lake, Carcross and the Yukon. We had breakfast as usual on the Verandah deck and left the ship at 8:30 to walk about 1/3 of a mile to the tiny Avis office in town. By 9:15 we were off on HWY 2 out of town. On the way to White Pass, the fog came in and as we approached and then went over the pass, we could hardly see our hands in front of our face. We actually crossed over a bridge over a 180 foot gorge without knowing we did it. We almost turned back, but followed a small tour bus with flashers and, as soon as we came over the pass, the sun came out and we had a gorgeous drive with magnificent views for the rest of the trip. The White Pass railroad excursion was on the other side of the river and, for a short while, we could see it wind its way along the cliffs up over the pass, until it too disappeared into the fog. The weather turned warm and sunny as we continued on, and it was almost 80 degrees. We used Murray’s accurate and well detailed guide from CC all along the way (thank you Murray) and stopped often for photos of the gorgeous scenery. We reached the Yukon sign, took photos and continued on to Emerald Lake where we stopped to relax a bit and take photos. We then turned around and went to Caribou Crossing and stopped in Carcross at the Watson General Store for great ice cream in a home-made waffle cone. The drive back was relaxing with a beautiful day of sunshine. We found out that the bridge we had passed over actually is set only on one side and “floats” due to the earthquake zone it covers. We arrived back in Skagway about 2, shopped a bit, and returned to the ship about 3:30 for the 5 pm sailaway. In the pine trees just across from the ship, a bald eagle bid us farewell.

The Captain and staff held a Seven Seas Society reception that evening for past guests of Regent. It was extremely enjoyable due to our meeting with Douglas Pinkerton, Guest Relations Manager for Mariner. We had a wonderful talk about the cruise line, and he invited us to dinner the next evening. In our 25 years of cruising, Douglas is the best Guest Relations Manager we have met with any line. He is very caring about the passengers and their needs and his follow-through is exceptional. We’re sorry that he won’t be aboard for our New Zealand to LA crossing in December, because he will be sailing the Caribbean on Regent Navigator. We hope to see him again in the near future. Following the reception, we had another wonderful dinner at Compass Rose and concluded the evening early.

Sitka was our next port. It was a lovely small city with much Russian history. The shops, streets and cathedral reflect that background. We decided to do the city on our own and enjoyed walking through the parks, the fort and the small history museum. There also are some excellent shops with some fine native artwork. There is also a hands-on aquarium. It was an enjoyable, relaxing day. Our dinner that evening with Douglas Pinkerton was cordial and fun, and we took in the Broadway tunes show and some karaoke afterwards with him. He is an excellent host and made the evening special.

The following day, our last at sea, found us up early in the observation lounge for commentary by the Iliffs on Yakutat Bay on the way to the Hubbard Glacier. In addition, we had the pleasure of commentary by three Tlingit natives, who were kind enough to explain to us the history and mythology of the Hubbard Glacier area. They were in gorgeous native dress and very accommodating in answering our individual questions. The Hubbard Glacier is huge and awe-inspiring, as are the two adjacent glaciers. We were the first ship in, and our Captain Phillipe took his time and got very close in to allow us excellent time for photographs. In addition, he swung the ship 360 degrees to allow greater views. An offering of tobacco was made to the glacier in a Tlingit ceremony, ice was gathered from a tender for research, and we slowly made our way out of the fjords. It was another perfect example of the time and care Regent took to allow us a memorable experience.

We attended another excellent lecture on the glaciers and ice age that morning as we continued sailing out. In addition we were taken on a guided tour of the “back areas” of the ship – galley, crew quarters, mess, and laundry as part of an American Express Platinum extra. We were served champagne and canapés in the laundry room while chatting with the crew.

Chef Cornell and staff put together an international food extravaganza buffet that noon for lunch. It was difficult to go back to the room and think of packing, but we did. We had our final dinner of perfectly cooked chateaubriand and toasted the wonderful cruise.
When we returned back to the cabin, there were two glasses of champagne and a small cake saying, “Happy Birthday with the Captain’s regards.” The next day was my birthday and Regent remembered and surprised me. A very nice touch! We sat on the balcony having our treat and regretting having to leave this wonderful ship.

The next morning after breakfast and good-byes to the many nice cruisers and staff we had met, we self-carried off at 8:30 am and walked to the Seward terminal with no wait. We had rented a Hertz car to drive to Anchorage through the Kenai Fjords peninsula. Hertz had a shuttle waiting, and we quickly and easily were on the road. We took some time to visit the Sealife museum in Seward, The drive to Anchorage was lovely and we easily made the city in just over 2 hours. We had a wonderful lunch of halibut and explored Anchorage for a bit. Time this trip did not allow for a tour of Denali, so we will save that for next time. We returned our car to the airport and took off on our flight home.

Regent Mariner is a beautiful ship with exceptional crew. The service we received was personalized and special. I would highly recommend this cruise to anyone wishing for a 7-day luxury cruise experience to one of the most beautiful places on earth. ]]> cruiseXpress Regent Seven Seas 2008-02-23 09:14:11 http://www.bestcruisespot.com/component/content/article/55-Regent-Seven-Seas/288-seven-seas-voyager Scott had arranged for a van to pick us all up at noon for our transfer to the ship and we had a few photo stops on the way. At 12:30, we arrived at the Voyager and boarded without a hitch. It is always lovely stepping back onto the ship and being greeted by the staff. Louise, the darling social hostess was there to greet us as well as several others. We were disappointed that a new guitarist was onboard (Cesar), and although a great musician he did not have the charisma of Frankie!
The ship looked great with the new Regent logo in a few places, but the harp is still quite visible. We moved to La Veranda for lunch after getting our room cards and drinking our champagne.

Our itinerary was very port intensive so there was no rest for anyone on this cruise. Our first stop was Ajaccio, France and although we enjoyed it, would have no need for a return visit. Tom and I took the "Highlights of Ajaccio" ship tour that was worthwhile. Our next stop was Sorrento and we joined tallship (Tina and her mom) for a private drive of the Amalfi coast. Our driver Gennero, from Sorrento limo was terrific, allowing us to set the pace. This turned problematic for my husband as the stop at the ceramic shop could be repeated (and it was) and I ordered a gorgeous table! Next we stopped in Naxos, and we chose the 4X4 ascent of Mt. Etna which included a walk out to the spewing volcano! It was quite cold, including snow along the path! After this port we finally had a sea day for relaxation. Kusadasi was one of the highlights of the trip. Our day included a great private tour with our prearranged guide, Levant Solmaz. He was a perfect guide and very good at keeping to a pace that suited us. The evening started for Seven Seas Society members having a cocktail party at the Celcius Library and then we walked along a candlelit path to the theatre for the concert (with other guests from the ship). The concert consisted of ten classical pieces and it was lovely. Santorini was next and we took a taxi with Tina and her Mom to Oia before the crowds arrived. We enjoyed this lovely area and took loads of photos here with the scenic backdrop of white houses, blue roofs and many churches. Unfortunately our next stop was Athens and disembarkation.

Overall, this trip was delightful and the ship, crew and itinerary were great. The food was excellent at nearly all of our meals, with special highlights being the night in Signatures and also Latitudes. The service in all the venues was outstanding, except for the last night when we had planned an anniversary celebration for our friends. It was not a big deal, especially since Malcolm had to leave early (he felt poorly), but it still would have been nice if they had received their anniversary cake. It amazes me that the staff has such good memories. The two engineers who we dined with in June invited us to join them again and remembered my husband by name. Captain Knute was his usual jovial self, and we enjoyed lunch with him one day after he danced across the deck on his way to the outdoor grill! He definately enjoys his job. On a side note, we had two groups on the voyage: one from Toyata and another from Park West. Evidently Park West brought VERY expensive artwork (I heard one piece sold for $160,000) onboard and entertained their best customers at this special event. I bet some received a free cruise with those prices [Wink] . The groups did not cause any disruption to the regular passengers.
As this was "The President's Inaugural Cruise" in the med, we did receive some nice perks: the concert at Ephesus, all inclusive beverages and a commemorative photo album.

We stayed three nights post cruise in Athens at the Hilton. We used points for this stay and were happily upgraded to the concierge level with a lovely room that included breakfast and drinks at any time of day. With a view overlooking the Acropolis, this was very nice indeed! I had prearranged tours for our group, the first being to Cape Sounio to see the Temple of Poseidon. Although this was very intersting, our day was not picture perfect (no rain though! The next day we traveled to Delphi and this was a spectatular spot that we would highly recommend. The distance is far, approximately 200 kilometers from Athens, but definately worth it. The ruins were jaw dropping and our day was perfect with blue skies and a mountainous backdrop. The last day we stayed in town and toured the city on foot, seeing many of the sights in our "DK Top Ten Athens" guide. ]]> cruiseXpress Regent Seven Seas 2008-02-23 09:06:02 http://www.bestcruisespot.com/component/content/article/55-Regent-Seven-Seas/290-paul-gauguin
Overall Impressions
We were very satisfied with the PG last year and I think this year just about everything was a notch better. I think the food overall was a little better and bakery and dessert items were quite a bit better this year - not that they were bad before. I love the size and the casual elegance of the PG. Casual dress and open seating for dining are big pluses. I think the crew and the service are outstanding. As returning passengers, there were many familiar crew members and quite a few of them remembered us from a year prior as well. The crew is extremely friendly and helpful. Service was nearly flawless. On both of our two PG trips, we have gotten to know crew members much better than we did on the Mariner. Perhaps this is because of the smaller size of the PG, but I cannot say enough about the friendliness of the PG crew. Captain Zupan and his senior officers are friendly and accessible – they ate lunch most days in the open air grill. We received two dinner invitations – one to dine with the ship’s doctor and another with two of the ship’s lecturers. The watersports program and marina is a big advantage of this ship – very convenient to waterski, scuba dive, or take a kayak out from the back of the ship. Overall the trip exceeded our expectations which were pretty high since we had a wonderful trip one year earlier.

Every staff and crew member is great but here are some of those that really made our trip special: Waiters Elpidio, Joselito, and Junar; Le Grill headwaiter Noel; bar staff Kelly, Daisy, and Randy; and sous chef Grant.

About the weather and the seas – I’d read some reports of very rough seas on Marquesas sailings. We enjoyed very smooth sailing the whole time. December is rainy season in French Polynesia, but we were lucky with the weather. We had a few showers and short downpours, but nothing that got in our way.

Scuba Diving
On our first PG cruise, we enjoyed the snorkeling in French Polynesia very much so we became certified scuba divers earlier this year. The PG's marina is very convenient for scuba diving. The staff takes care of all your equipment - you just have to walk to the marina and get on the zodiac – couldn't be easier. The staff leads the dives in Bora Bora and Moorea. Dives in Rangiroa and the Marquesas were offered with outside operators. We did three dives - all dives were one tank dives, about 45-50 minutes and about 60 feet. Whether the dive is operated by PG staff or outside operators, there will not be more than 6 divers per divemaster. All dives were done from zodiacs.

Our first dive was Avatoru Pass in Rangiroa. Though this was with an outside operator, we felt the divemaster, Rene, was excellent and very helpful. We had not dived for about 8 months but Rene got us comfortable and helped us as needed. This was a great dive with a huge diversity of marine life. We saw black-tip sharks (about 6-8 feet, I̢۪d say), stonefish, large schools (jack), and lots of large and small tropical fish.

Next was Tapu in Bora Bora. Another nice dive – I’d say the quantity and diversity of marine life was a bit less than Rangiroa but still very nice. Our last dive was Shark Gallery in Moorea. Here we saw a large lemon shark, but the visibility was a bit less than at the other sites.

Ports
Rangiroa – an atoll with a huge lagoon. Water sports are outstanding in Rangiroa – this is the place to dive, snorkel, and water ski. Two tenders are offered – one to a beach and one to a small village. First we went to the beach – we had to walk a ways to find a decent sandy beach. You could snorkel from this beach which was OK – the water was clear and there were small reef sharks there. Grant waterskiied from the ship’s marina. The ship overnights here – the following morning, we did our first scuba dive, then we took the tender to the small village. There is really not much here, but it was interesting to walk through the small village and see how people live. As we sailed away at noon, we saw dolphins off the bow of the ship.

Hiva Oa – the high peaks and ridge lines of Hiva Oa are a stark comparison to the flat beach and palm trees of Rangiroa. We received a very nice greeting at the pier from a group of local musicians, and every passenger received a unique fresh flower lei greeting. We took the ship’s excursion to Taaoa where we toured an archaeological site. The site was very interesting and the tour was guided by the lecturers from the ship (Dr. Bob Suggs and Mark Eddowes) but the group was quite large and it always takes time to move a large group of people. I did not feel that this excursion was a very good value for the cost, but there are not a lot of options for touring Hiva Oa. I do not regret doing it as we got to see and learn about Hiva Oa, but if a private, English-speaking guide could be arranged, that might be a better option. Following the excursion, we walked through the small village of Atuona. We bought a very nice wood carving and a piece of painted tapa cloth here. There are excellent wood carvings available in the Marquesas – better quality and price than what we saw on Tahiti island later in the trip. Hiva Oa has a Gauguin museum which we did not visit, as well as the cemetery where Gauguin and Jacques Brel are buried.

Nuku Hiva – the landscape is very dramatic with beautiful peaks and high ridgelines. Some parts are very green, other parts are more arid and brown. We had arranged a private guide here, which worked out very well. Again, there are only a few English-speaking guides so it’s best to arrange in advance. Our guide, Tomas, was not quite fluent in English but did very well. Our full-day private tour did not cost much more than the ship’s 3-hour excursion, and we saw much more and could move at our own pace. First we toured the Taipivai Valley, the setting of Melville’s “Typee.â€Ã‚ (This is where the ship’s tour went as well.) We saw some nice viewpoints, including a view over the beach where “Survivor Marquesasâ€Ã‚ was filmed. Tomas lives in Taipivai and took us to see his house and his family, and then his mother’s house where he picked fruit for us. It was very interesting to get this personal insight into life in the Marquesas. Many of Tomas’ siblings and children have moved away, but he is very happy with his life in Nuku Hiva. We went to an artisan market where a nice display of fruit was available for sampling. (This is where the ship’s tour ended.) Next we went to Kamuihei, a very interesting archaeological site. There are petroglyphs here – pictures of fish, turtles, etc. We visited another archaeological site, Hikokua, where we saw an interesting fertility tiki among other things. By now we had crossed the mountains to the other side of the island, where we stopped at Hatiheu, a beautiful oceanfront village, for lunch at a local restaurant where we enjoyed some Marquesan style food. Next was a long drive back on the bumpy dirt road to Taiohae, the port, where we visited Rose Corser’s interesting museum and shop. Rose is an American who moved to Nuku Hiva many years ago, where she and her husband built a hotel. She has put together a nice museum with art and artifacts of the Marquesas. We saw the Cathedral which features large wood carvings and stones from the various islands of the Marquesas. There was an artisans market at the pier and we had a great local dance performance on the ship.

Bora Bora – the lagoon and the colors of the water were as spectacular as we remembered from our prior visit. We did a scuba dive here then took the tender to the village of Vaitape. As it was Sunday, most of the stores were closed. After lunch, we took the tender to the motu (beach) which was great! This is a very nice beach where the PG sets up beverage service and kayaks. We enjoyed the afternoon on the motu and took the last tender back to the ship.

Motu Mahana – of course we took the first tender over and the last tender back. The first tender in the morning did leave about 15 minutes earlier than scheduled, so it doesn’t hurt to check a little earlier than the posted time if you are eager to get there. Motu day is outstanding and we were not disappointed! Nice chairs for relaxing – great food and drink – and activities to keep you busy if you like. Grant snorkeled and waterskiied. Dena relaxed!

Moorea – we did our last scuba dive in the morning. The ship was anchored in Opunohu Bay this year – we’d been in Cooks Bay last year. We did not feel like doing much – wanted to relax on our last full day of vacation. After diving, we took the tender to shore and walked around a bit. There were some stalls with crafts and t-shirts set up, but not much more in this immediate area. Grant waterskiied twice this afternoon. Andy, the instructor, thought he was getting pretty good! Moorea has much to offer, but we opted to take it easy this time.

Papeete – the morning we arrived back in Papeete, we walked to the market. The market is fun to see – there are beautiful flowers and arrangements, fruits and vegetables, and fish and meats. There are also lots of souvenirs to buy. After disembarkation, we rented a car downtown and drove around the island of Tahiti. After leaving the city of Papeete, we saw a lot of nice scenery including a “blowholeâ€Ã‚, black sand beaches, and cave/grottoes.

Activities
This itinerary has three full days at sea. We enjoy relaxing and doing nothing so we were looking forward to the sea days. The staff and crew went all out to provide activities on the sea days as well as throughout the entire cruise. The enrichment lectures were excellent – we had two experts on Polynesian archaeology, history, and culture (Dr. Bob Suggs and Mark Eddowes) as well as a Cousteau Ocean Futures Society naturalist, Estelle Davies, who was excellent as well. The Gauguines offered numerous activities such as crafts, cultural activities, dance lessons, language lessons, etc. Games such as Trivia, Name that Tune, and scavenger hunts were offered. Galley tours, bridge tours, and engine room tours were offered as well. The culinary and bar staff offered cooking demonstrations, cocktail demonstrations, napkin folding, and more. On one of the sea days, the staff put on a Country Fair which was a lot of fun. Each department set up a game booth for the passengers to play. It was fun to see the crew interacting with the passengers a little more informally, and to see some of the staff such as housekeeping, culinary, etc. out on the deck! Needless to say, with all of these activities we did not get bored and I did not finish as much reading as I had planned.

All in all, it was an outstanding trip and we hope to fit in another visit to beautiful French Polynesia on the PG in the not-too-distant future. ]]> cruiseXpress Regent Seven Seas 2008-02-23 09:00:47