Welcome, Jim&Ann! An RSSC cruise would be a wonderful gift to yourselves for a 50th anniversary. My husband and I never thought we would be cruisers, and we just happened upon RSSC and now have withdrawal pangs if we don't have a cruise booked. We cruise Regent every year or two and truly love the experience.

As for your questions, I would say to go ahead and book a cruise whenever you have decided on an itinerary. There is no real reason to wait. The suites lower on the ship (and lower-priced) tend to fill up first, and the rooms are all the same size and quality until you get to the penthouse level. (Plus, for our taste, we actually prefer to be lower and closer to the water.) So there's no real advantage, in my view, of booking higher on the ship unless you plan on a penthouse or larger room, which of course is a nice choice too. Booking early has no disadvantage that I can see. Also, if your plans need to change you can change or cancel a booking. You don't enter a penalty phase until 120 days before the cruise.

As far as a travel agent, I strongly recommend using an agent that has lots of experience with Regent. It will come as no surprise that we use Brown and Keene (the sponsor of this forum), a top producer for Regent, and we believe we have gotten many advantages because of our choice. Ngaire Keene and the others on her staff know the ships intimately and always are ready to answer questions and make recommendations based on your personal preferences. I can't say enough good about them. Even if you choose otherwise, however, I recommend using a travel agent with extensive experience with Regent. I firmly believe the choice of a Regent expert is more important than being across the desk from the agent when you make your booking.

Hope this helps. Again, welcome to LCT -- and Regent!