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The cruise which promised all and then did more |
| Reviewed By: Daniels, Woking on 26th Nov 2008 |
| Cruise Line: Regent Cruises |
Times cruised before: 6-10 |
| Cruise Ship: Seven Seas Mariner |
Sailed:
January,
2008 |
| Destination: South America |
Age: 65+ |
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Seven Seas Mariner from Fort Lauderdale to Callao (Lima) or twelve nights of bliss.
Regent do everything they say; the all inclusive price which covers, tips, drinks (of all kinds) and speciality restaurants is really a bargain when the 'normal' cruise extras are added up. We were especially fortunate in receiving enough on board credit to cover my wife's spa treats AND all our shore excursions.
The cabin was spacious with sufficient storage to allow our four large cases to be emptied and hidden away. The mini-bar was stocked with the drinks that we enjoy and although the mini bar was also included in the price we generally used one of the many bars for our night-caps. Frequently on cruise ships that offer all inclusive drinks the wines and spirits on offer are from the lower end of the market. On Regent this is definitely not so, all drinks are what would normally be called 'premium brands' and should these be inadequate for the discerning traveller then, for a small ($30) supplement, really exotic and normally expensive wines can be had.
The speciality restaurants - which should be booked early as they do fill up - were Viet-Namese, French and Italian. The main dining room is large enough to allow 'free' dining with no allocation of tables, companions or timing. If one should want to share with friends, or meet some new people, then the Maitre De will encourage this.
The entertainment was adequate to good and the lectures were some of the best we have have ever attended. The lectures in particular were always relevant to the places we visited.
There is a free, large DVD library to allow a personal choice of entertainment in your cabin. The daily quizzes were entertaining enough and the prizes were adequate (not as good as Holland-America but far, far superior to cunard-transatlantic/">transatlantic/">Cunard).
Shore excursions were well organised and always allowed that little extra touch of luxury which Regent is famed for.
The extra efforts Regent make is best shown when problems arise; and, as example, due to fog our arrival at one port was delayed by eight hours which meant some of the shore excursions could have been seriously curtailed. In the event Regent chartered private aircraft to overcome the late arrival and all the passengers had the excursion they had booked. Late return to the ship, due to local conditions, again was no problem with Regent opening up the Italian restaurant until two in the morning so that any hungry passengers could return to a proper meal. Regent even kept the local band on hire for these additional hours to allow late returning passengers a musical welcome.
This attention to detail and extra special service shows in everything and at all times on board. The cruise was faultless.
There was a special shore excursion, to see the workings of the locks on the Panama Canal, included in the price, although with our on board credits price was irrelevant, and again Regent magically transferred the luxury and quality of the ship to the shore excursion food and drink.
Despite trying hard to find a 'down-side' there was none. This is our third Regent cruise and was the best.
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| Quality of Food |  |
| Main dining room 50% speciality restaurants 50% | | Entertainment |  |
| All entertainment was good but not Broadway which is what we expect on board a ship. | | Shore Excursions | |
| Worst excursion was into Panama City - it is just a collection of high-rise apartments with tourist-trap shops. There were other excursions but we just picked a bad one.
The best was the 'Hiram Bingham' train to Machu Picchu | | Staff | |
| The cabin attendant for always being cheerful and respectful. | | Children's Facilities | n/a |
| | Onboard Activities | |
| Too much to do, We borrowed a DVD but never found time to watch it. | | Cabins | |
| More than enough space for all our clothes, shoes and hats and the cases (emptied) could also be stored. | | Overall Rating | |
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Happy HOLIDAY's
Qeen Mary 2 cruise dec 2008
Queen Victoria - Caribbean 2008
MSC Fantasis Christmas Cruise
