Luxury Cruise Bible

Regent Mariner Repositioning to Alaska

Submitted by: Travelcat from Washington, USA

Cruise Details

• Cruise line: Regent Seven Seas Cruises
• Ship Seven Seas Mariner
• Date of sailing: 5/26/2008
• Number of nights: 9
• Embarkation point: San Francisco
• Debarkation point: Vancouver, Canada
• Ports of call: Rhodes, Astoria, Seattle, Prince Rupert, Juneau, Skagway, Ketchikan
• Stateroom category: D and Penthouse C
• Stateroom number: 932 and 910
• How did you book your cruise? Traditional travel agent
• Travel agent: Brown & Keene
• How many times have you sailed with this line? 4
• What other cruise lines have you sailed? Disney and small cruise lines in Egypt and Fiji
• What is your favorite cruise line? Regent Seven Seas Cruises

North to Alaska

Ratings

• Overall Rating 4
• Ship Condition 4
• Public Rooms 3
• Stateroom 4
• Food & Wine 4
• Spa, Gym, and Salon n/r
• Entertainment 4
• Enrichment Program 5
• Internet & Phone Service 5
• Excursions n/r
• Service n/r
• Value 5

This was our first cruise on the Mariner and the first time to visit Alaska. We thought the 11-night cruise that repositioned the Mariner to Alaska for the summer had a good itinerary. This was a Seven Seas Society Summit, which meant we would have a Town Hall meeting with some Regent/Apollo executives as well as opportunities to speak with them. It was also a West Coast departure, which was convenient for us.

Pre-Cruise and Embarkation

We flew from Seattle to San Francisco the morning of departure and took a taxi to the port. Easy & simple! As usual, embarkation at noon was very organized and fast.

The Ship

The Mariner is a beautiful ship. This cruise was approximately six months prior to dry dock. With the exception of the carpeting, the ship was looking great. It was difficult for us not to compare the Mariner with the Navigator. The dual hallways on the Mariner came across as being awkward. I believe this is the reason they did not have a “block party”.

The public areas were spacious, but, in my opinion, there was some wasted space. I understand that Stars Lounge is used for children during the summer, for meetings, etc. On this cruise, passengers went in there to smoke. The smoke wafted under the door into the hallways. This was one area that we tried not to breathe while passing.

The coffee bar has been a big hit with many. It is directly next to both the library and computer area. In the library, you hear the noises from where the coffee is ordered and prepared (lots of banging of cups, etc.) The computer area is next to the tables and chairs where people sit to eat, drink their coffee, play board games, or just chat. The area is great, but it should not be next to areas where people are reading or trying to concentrate.

In the Observation Lounge (where most of the activity for the Alaska cruise takes place) is lovely, yet a bit small (that’s that wasted space again—Stars Lounges sits empty while the Observation Lounge overflows).

It is fairly easy for me to see that when the Voyager was built, they were fixing all of the space problems on the Mariner. In fact, the new Voyager coffee bar is nowhere near the computer or library.

The Suite

Our first suite was 932 (D category). Compared to other suites we have been in on the Voyager and Navigator, this suite seemed tiny. Very small bathroom and closet. It was a shower-only suite, which was nicer than the other option (tub/shower). We were sorry we had booked the suite. The ship was full, so, there was no opportunity to change categories.

On day three, I overheard a man making arrangements to get off of the ship. He wanted to go to Las Vegas instead. He disembarked in Prince Rupert. The following morning we received a phone call regarding Penthouse C suite 910. We moved into that suite immediately and really enjoyed it. This suite had the bathtub/shower combo. This is the last time I will mention “wasted space”. With the same small closet and bathroom, the suite was very large—most of which was not utilized.

Food

We dined in Latitudes the first evening. As usual, the food, wine and service were impeccable.

Our meal at Signatures was very disappointing. The quality and preparation of the halibut was poor (see more about halibut under La Veranda). We did not even attempt to make a second reservation in Signatures.

La Veranda does a good job—not great, but good. The space where the buffet was set up was too narrow—difficult to get by one another. The service was very good. In the evening, it switched to Alaskan cuisine. There was an obvious delivery of seafood at our first port in Alaska. The next evening we had truly excellent Alaskan halibut! Why Signatures was serving inferior halibut is puzzling.

The first couple of days we were served barely warm soup wherever we chose to dine. The food was also being served lukewarm. We did not want to complain, but did speak with other guests that were having the same issue. It was surprising to get served food that was consistently not hot. Somehow, through the grapevine(?), the Food and Beverage Manager, Frank (cannot recall last name) invited us to dine with him. There were only the three of us at dinner in Compass Rose (you can bet the food was hot that night). After our dinner, the food temperature did improve.

Service

This is rather hard to judge because we became known by so many people on board. We were greeted by name in Compass Rose all the time. The service was impeccable. Everyone was friendly and trying very hard to please. I would hope that the service would have been just as good if we had not met with Frank, changed suites, etc.

Ports/Excursions

We did not do any excursions in Alaska. We did, however, walk around all of the towns, took a local bus around, etc. Juneau and Skagway are wonderful ports. The people of Alaska depend upon tourism during the summer and do everything they can to make the experience a good one.

Tracy Arm was not yet open for the season. The Captain did take us down Hamilton Arm, which was really breathtaking. I have no idea how he maneuvered the ship around small icebergs, “groaners” (even smaller icebergs) in such a narrow passageway. It was truly wonderful!

Debarkation

The ship docked approximately 50 miles from home. Debarkation was extremely fast for us. We took a taxi to a car rental agency and drove home (later dropping the car off at Bellingham International Airport).

Summary

It has taken me 10 months to write a review on this cruise. Being on a Regent cruise with Regent executives on board made the experience very different than anything we have done in the past. I still do not know how relevant this will be to people reading the review. During the Town Hall Meeting, they shared a lot of information with us regarding the upcoming dry dock of the Mariner and Voyager. We were able to express our concerns with them. In terms of Alaska, we simply did not see enough and are booked for a San Francisco, Alaska, Vancouver cruise in May 2010.

For More Information…

…talk with your travel agent, call Regent Seven Seas Cruises at (877) 505-5370, or visit their website.