Hello from the Grandeur. I have never done a live review before but thought I’d share my experience. About us - we’ve cruised quite a bit, in the last few years mostly on Celebrity with a couple of recent Oceania cruises on Marina and Riviera thrown in. This is our first Regent cruise. We’re a little fed up with lowered food and service on Celebrity and the feeling we were being nicked and dimed. We liked Oceania but found it a little sedate for us and we are not big partiers.
Here’s some hits, missed and fails from our first day.
We had a 12:30 check in and arrived at about noon. There was a huge line and we were told it was still the 11:30 line so sit and wait. The line moved slowly and check in seemed really old fashioned compared to the experience on Celebrity. Not a huge inconvenience but not the luxury experience we expected. We got on board around 1pm. Slight miss
I asked at checkin and again at the destination desk about checking our carry ons. No clue and didn’t even ask anyone. Turns out there was one in the casino. Big miss.
The ship is gorgeous. I heard the word stunning from several people. We are in an F1 and it is perfect. Lots and lots of storage. Beautiful decor.
We ate lunch at the pool grill. We didn’t understand the system. There were no servers. Tables were not set. We asked for silverware and the one server said we could order from her. My husband ate from the buffet- lots of choices. I wanted a Reuben with no sauerkraut. She told it would be difficult since they are pre made. Ordered a hamburger medium and it showed up rare, but my husband’s steamed shrimp were excellent. I ate a sausage from the buffet and it was cold. Got an iced tea after I flagged someone down but they never refilled. Not a great beginning. I was really expecting outstanding service but it seems something is really off on this cruise.
We went to CR for dinner at 7:30. Maitre d’ apologized for the bad location of our table, all the way in the back in front of a service area. It’s a full cruise. Location was not a big deal. However, service was not good. I got offered wine right away which would have been fine but I don’t drink. Never got offered an alternative beverage. Water was poured without asking if we wanted sparkling or still I prefer sparkling but they never came back to refill. We sat for 30 minutes before the waiter came to take our order, then he mumbled an apology. Three tables around ours got up and left before their meals were served. The food was very good, but our mains were lukewarm and my hollandaise was so cold and congealed it wouldn’t pour. My husband ordered the cheese plate for dessert and got the cheesecake.
I’m sorry, but this is not luxury cruising.
The biggest fail for me was this one. Because we don’t drink, I contacted special requests a few weeks ago to ask about non-alcoholic spirits in the lounges. I got a very nice response saying they had been able to get the “gin” but not the vodka. Then the rep said that since we didn’t drink, they would remove the alcohol from the refrigerator and have a champagne alternative in the room. That was a nice gesture that we didn’t need or expect. We don’t have alcohol issues, just choose not to drink. Needless to say, there was beer in our fridge and the bottle of champagne on ice when we arrived. Don’t make the offer if you can’t follow through.
Finally, got back from the show (where they had a big glitch) and pressed the room service button on the phone to get hot water and some ice. A few minutes later the door bell rings. Room steward wants to know what we need but meanwhile we had found the ice bucket in the fridge. We told him hot water. He said we had to call room service. We said we did. He said he couldn’t help. Then two minutes later the hot water shows up. We were laughing hysterically.
I’m just hoping things improve! Should we go talk to someone?
