Since it's a sea day and I have packed early (boo hoo), so I can enjoy it and tomorrow fully, I'll offer some retrospective views of the ship and some facts I left out from tidbits here and there..
The Navigator, for those who haven't traveled on her..strictly my opinion...not even that of Doug's...mainly because I haven't asked him...
It is lovely and doesn't feel too small. It feels much like the Voyager/Mariner. I like the fact that you can get anywhere quickly and the staterooms are like the Voyager. What I don't like is that, even though it is small, it doesn't have that large central area where you bump into folks. The library and central sitting areas are small and Galileo's is a destination spot with loud music often playing. So, except at lunch or the pool, you don't run into folks.
I don't find the food as good or offering as much variety as on the Voyager/Mariner. A pleasant surprise was Portofinos. I thought it was very nice for dinner. Compass Rose was only a B+. There was also no effort to integrate regional cuising into the menu, which would have been great.
The shows were nice for a small ship, but enrichment activities/lectures were very few. So much could have been done with ports like this.
This is a very different type of cruise than Doug and I have been on before. It is very port intensive and seems to have a quieter and older crowd. There are a few children on this trip and they have been lovely. I think this is overall an "older" crowd. I've seen no one in their twenties and I don't think there are more than a couple in their 30's. Perhaps only a handful are even in their 40's. This cruise has more retirees than any other cruise I have ever been on before. However, the ports really require some strenous walking and climbing.
Last night, we were talking to one couple and trying to look for some action at 11:45 and we were the only 4 still wandering around the ship, except for 4 other folks having a drink in Galileo's. It isn't bad, it is just a "day" crowd. This means that the port intensity, lack of late night activities and early to bed nature, leads to some of us just passing in the night and not socializing with one another as we have done on other cruises. Some of us are on private tours alone, others with groups, others on Regent tours; some are walking into town by themselves and others are treating the ship as a resort. Ngaire has a standing 2pm pooch party, but those touring were missing it and she added a post trivia version. So, some of us missed those who stayed on board for the 2pm socializing. By the time we return from our trips, it is almost dinner, so there is not a lot of time to meet and greet those who stayed on board. Additionally, we have been enjoying smaller tables so we can get to know one another. When we see one another, we have a really nice and intimate dining experience,and get to know one another, but sometimes we go a day or three without really seeing one another again. Hopefully, we'll finally catch up today...our only sea day. It's been a terrific group of people.
There have been a couple really touching stories that a few LCTers have experienced, but I'll let them tell those stories themselves. I will share a great Regent story.
One couple we met was delayed in LA because of the Lufthansa strike. Lufthansa was no help. This couple had bought tickets through Regent (coach) and got on the phone with Regent immediately while on line. Regent stayed on the line coaching them through the whole process. Luftansa said there were no seats. Regent said there were and told them to tell Lufthansa how to route them. Regent was correct and they made it to Amsterdam. All the while, Regent stayed in touch and told them they contacted the ship to ask for the ship to be held. Once in Amsterdam, even though these folks had vouchers, Turkish Air (the airline through which they were rerouted) said that they wouldn't accept the vouchers and there weren't any seats for them. I guess there were about 4 hours of hell for these folks as they didn't know if they'd ever get out of Amsterdam. All the while,Regent stayed in touch. Turkish Air finally agreed to board them and they got on the flight with only 10 minutes to take off and then there was the problem of luggage. Well, a very good supervisor found their luggage and piece by piece, they identified it and loaded it on the plane. Regent wasn't sure if the ship would wait for them. (We were told that the ship was being held until midnight, but they had only been told 10pm). They finally breathed a sigh of relief and then there was a flight delay of 45 minutes. They were sure they had missed the boat, but they got their visa, collected their luggage and walked out and their was the Regent rep waiting for them. He said "hurry, they are waiting for you." He took all sorts of side streets and they saw the ship at last. He darted in a dark alley and the driver said, " My friend here needs your Passports, please." They were a bit nervous turning over their passports, but they wanted to get on the cruise. They were whisked away to the ship without their passports and were pretty worried. The doors opened and their was "the friend" with their passports and all sorts of smiling Regent faces saying "Welcome, we've been waiting for you." Off they went, tired, happy, luggage intact, champagne in hand. We took off shortly after midnight instead of our planned 6pm departure. Yes, Regent really done everything possible to ensure that they could be there waiting for them. (BTW, these folks were really nice people!)
There were a number of people affected in different ways by this strike and Regent was very helpful. This couple was one of 4 transferred through Amsterdam. There were other couples transferred through Zurich and other cities. Some folks arrived much earlier, but got their luggage days later.
