This was our first Regent cruise but by no means our first cruise experience having previously completed sailings with Cunard, Holland America, Celebrity and Princess. Regent market themselves as a luxury 6 star, all inclusive cruise experience and you pay a premium for this. The problem with setting the bar so high is that unless you can actually deliver on ALL levels then you are only ever going to disappoint which was in part what we discovered. Embarkation following coach transfer from Anchorage to Seward was efficient. The ship itself was refurbished in March this year and common areas are beautifully appointed. The Mariner is a small ship which has both advantages and disadvantages. On our cruise it was only 2/3 full with approximately 480 passengers on board. Advantages were no queuing, better opportunities for dining in restaurants of choice and smaller tour groups. However, the reduced numbers of passengers resulted in sparsely populated bars and theatre, many empty tables in the main restaurant at any one time and a situation where early one evening we walked the length of the ship on an inside deck where there were bars and did not pass another person apart from the bar staff. It was for us a ship lacking in atmosphere. Sadly the improved ratio of staff to passengers was not obvious. Service was simply not 6 star. In the main Compass Rose restaurant it was rather hit and miss. A number of evenings we had good service but this was also matched by evenings where despite few customers, the service was slow and the staff rather dismissive. One evening my husband was half way through his dessert when a waiter appeared and literally plonked another component of it on the table explaining it had been missed off his plate. Another evening I did not like the white wine being offered with dinner and when I explained this the response was a curt “well what do you want?” rather than a suggestion of what else was available. In one of the Signature Restaurants Chartreuse we ordered green beans and asparagus as side dishes The asparagus was brought but not the beans. When my husband asked if they had forgotten them the waiter pointed to my husband's plate and said “there they are”. We had to point out that was in fact asparagus and not green beans! Also in Chartreuse my dessert was served 5 minutes before my husband who had ordered cheese. We also experienced poor service at the pool bar where despite there being a number of bar staff and ourselves being the only customers one afternoon, we were dismissively told our drinks couldn't be provided because a screen had broken and they couldn’t access a bottle of spirit they needed. No offer from any of the staff to attempt to obtain a bottle from a nearby bar, we were simply told these things happen and left. As we walked away we passed an area piled with dirty plates and remnants of food from earlier. There were occasions throughout the cruise when we placed drinks orders that were incorrectly delivered and occasions where having placed an order the waiter returned a short time later to ask again what we wanted as they had forgotten. On occasions Room Service food took in excess of half an hour to be delivered for the simplest of orders and despite after one meal asking a number of times for our used plates etc. to be cleared from our cabin no one came. We ended up loading up the tray and putting it outside our cabin door. We noticed other feedback has highlighted that the staff are possibly not so well trained/experienced and we would agree with this. In addition to the above, little things like used glasses not being cleared and replaced, nothing available to serve the ice in our cabin, our mini bar not being restocked and our coffee maker was sometimes not emptied. A bottle of Rose wine provided on request was left out on the side at room temperature rather than being placed in our mini bar fridge to chill. Basic mistakes that should not happen on a 6 star cruise! Food on board was a mixed experience. Our food in both of the Signature Restaurants, Prime 7 and Chartreuse was very good. In the main restaurant Compass Rose the food was sometimes good sometimes not so good but the biggest disappointment was the lunch time buffet in the pool bar area which was by far the poorest buffet experience for both choice and presentation we have encountered on any cruise. We overheard a number of passengers comment on how bad it was. Entertainment was poor. You do not expect the big productions you see on larger cruise ships but with a premium price and 6 star billing should come premium entertainment. With the exception of one music show performed personally by the ship’s Cruise Director (nothing like saving money by using your Cruise Director to also entertain!) and one of the 4 shows performed by the Mariner singers & dancers entitled Blazing Boots which were good, the remaining Mariner productions were at best average and at worst amateur. It comes to something when the ship’s Crew Show outshines the professional entertainment! A magician brought on board for 2 shows was good but doing close up magic, was better suited to a smaller bar/ lounge area than the main theatre. Tours were varied and we personally had no issues obtaining the tours we wanted. (Most were included in the price but there was also an opportunity to choose some more specialised tours for a surcharge). As far as quality, again some were good some not so good. This was no different to our experience of other cruise lines. The only advantage was that with a smaller ship, the tours had smaller groups which was nice. Disembarkation in Vancouver and transfer to our hotel was efficient and uneventful. So could we recommend Regent to our friends? In all honesty probably not. This is not because we did not have an enjoyable time, Alaska was beautiful, but simply because the marketing of Regent as a cut above, luxury cruise line does not match the reality. They fell short and we felt we had paid a premium for a less than premium experience. Would we sail with Regent again? There was nothing so awful to make us say definitely no and now at least we are aware of the reality and not just the hype. However, because of our experience it would only be in a circumstance where we could look to obtain a last minute/discounted price deal where we were not paying a premium. Failing that we would choose another cruise line. Cunard are also a more expensive option but we felt offered a much more luxury, premium experience. Holland America, Princess and Celebrity are comparatively less expensive but the quality of our experience on-board was in some cases better than our experience of Regent. Read Less

My family (which includes two teenagers) wanted to take a summer vacation in Alaska. The date of this cruise along with the size and luxury of the boat fit the ticket for us and that's how we chose the RSSC Mariner. We booked the cruise directly with RSSC. I found our travel agent at RSSC to be very easy to work with. My only complaint with RSSC was several of the excursions that we would have enjoyed had been booked prior to our booking the trip and some of the excursions were just OK (that is the reason for the 4 star vs 5 star). Perhaps it was bad choosing on our part. We would have enjoyed having more flexibility with the excursions. But perhaps that is an impossibility in the nature of cruising - we were new to cruising. The food on the boat was excellent and my kids require gluten free diets which the culinary staff was amazing, They had wanted us to pre-order our gluten free meals ahead of time however many times my kids decided what they wanted at the meals and they couldn't have been more flexible. The complete staff on board could not have been more welcoming. There was a youth club - but my kids weren't interested in joining. There was a great game room with lots of games that we were able to use anywhere on board and a pool. We were lucky with wonderful weather and the pool deck was used often. Our room was very nice and the housekeeping staff was wonderful. The fitness facility was small and we did have to wait for treadmill/elliptical when we went. The spa was nice - we enjoyed massages and a manicure for me. The on board entertainment was enjoyable. We needed to see the doctor (for pink eye) that was contracted before cruising for medication and the medical facility/doctor/nurse were wonderful. I would highly recommend cruising with RSSC - but do some homework on the excursions! Read Less

We booked an Alaska cruise only three weeks out!!! George Ramos was our booking agent and he was fantastic. He really worked hard for us on the airline arrangements, and we could not have asked for more. The cruise was just for my wife and I. We have cruised before on Seabourn and NCL. Overall we were really happy. They really do include almost everything in the price and that makes this style of cruising very relaxing. We booked into a Penthouse A suite on Deck 11. Check-in and boarding were pretty smooth. It did not quite have the personalized touch that Seaborn did with someone waiting for you in your room, but our Butler, Bejoy, was amazing. He really could not have been nicer or more competent. The room was very spacious, well-kept, and in good shape. The included excursions were really good. We just stuck with those. You have to pay an upcharge for some of the more high-end ones. The included wi-fi was a really nice perk. The one disappointment was the food. Granted my wife and I are pretty spoiled / lucky, but I just felt the food was a notch below where it should have been. There were some standouts like the king crab legs in Prime 7 and the filet / tenderlon was always good. But in general, although it all looked good on the menu, it just fell short. The foie gras (which I had twice) was well-cooked, but just completely bland. Same with the schnitzel one night. I had a porterhouse in Prime 7 and it was tasty but maybe just a 1/2 inch thick. Other examples would be the brussel sprouts in Compass Rose which were just served steamed with zero seasoning, a lobster bisque which was incredibly thin, or the lobster tails which always looked like they'd been under the heat lamp for a bit too long. I think we had our best experiences at Sette Mari with Efrem as our server. We were able to order canapes in our room but the timing (5-7) put it too close to dinner for us and the selection didn't vary and was kind of so-so. Enough on the food! We do enjoy wine and we found the selection included to be fine with us. Decent selection and all pretty good. We ordered a bottle of Groth one night and IMO they offer you these extra-cost wines at below-market prices (plus no tax and tip on them). We went to the show almost every night. They were very well done. One thing I noted though was there there was very little diversity in the cast, and that's not something I normally notice. As far as the clientele, it was mostly English-speaking. There were a number of kids on board (I think over 100!) and a number of multi-generational groups travelling together. I did notice that the ship never really felt crowded though. You could almost always get a seat at whatever bar, lounge, or restaurant you wanted. (Exceptions were Prime 7 and Chartreuse, but that's to be expected.) All in all, this was a five-star cruise that I think was let down by the quality of the dining experience. And even then, the menu, the setting, and the service were all great, it just came down to some pretty bland dishes from the kitchen. We would do Regency again if the schedule drove us there (like this time), but may try Seabourn again or Crystal next time. Read Less

We have Cruised with Regent before and always found it great, however this Alaskan Cruise left a lot to be desired. We stayed at the Regent recommended Anchorage Hilton which certainly was not up to the standard we would expect....Most passengers arrived later in the day but there was little or no food available as the Coffee Shop was closed and the restaurant only opened for restricted hours in the evening....when we asked at Reception we were told to go along the road to a bar that served food.!!!!! Not what we expected from Regent. Regent forgot to mention that the ship does not actually sail from Anchorage, but from Seward which is 140 miles away!! Yes there was a coach available (at an extortionate price)...but 3 hours on a coach was not the way we expected to start our trip. Embarkation was fast and efficient and the stateroom was almost what we expected....on previous Cruises our bathroom had a bath and a separate shower...not on the Mariner...a shower inside the bath....disappointing! There was bulb out in our Bathroom for 4 days and despite asking repeatedly for it to be dealt with, it never was. Food was acceptable ..all sounded and looked good but a little lacking in seasoning...just a little bland...perhaps 7 out of 10. Entertainment was surprisingly good for a small ship. The biggest problem was an outbreak of GI (Nora Virus) on board which shut down and curtailed many things. The Laundry, Library, games areas and food areas were all affected as, according Regent, the Virus could be transmitted by touching....however the Casino (which makes money for Regent) stayed open with people touching Chips and cards. I have since contacted Regent about this and received a very standardised response which did not answer my questions, and when I asked again for answers to specific questions...I have been ignored...no response at all and that is now well over 2 weeks. We always wanted to visit Alaska...just once, to tick it off our "bucket list", so this was a once in a lifetime Cruise for a Special Birthday which was disappointing and Regent's lack of responses are even more disappointing. Read Less

We did a considerable amount of research for our Alaskan cruise before choosing the Seven Seas Mariner. The ship presents itself with such class and attention to every detail.The embarkation was organised and stress free. The suite was more than we expected for three of us ( our adult daughter shared the suite with us in the ‘lounge area’ of the suite. The bathroom was a good size with lovely complimentary toiletries and shower over bath. The staff were friendly and we were greeted several times a day by a sunny smile and a good morning or good afternoon or good evening. The lectures were informative and offered a good entry level into learning about Alaska. The evening shows were relaxed and entertaining. All of the restaurants offered a wide choice. We ate at Chartreuse several evenings where the food was beautifully presented and delicious. The other à la carte restaurants we enjoyed were Prime 7 and Compass Rose all of which were exceptional. We enjoyed breakfast at La Verenda where it was self - service. We also enjoyed lunches at Coffee Connections where there was a wide range of light snacks to choose from. Had there not been Gastrointestinal infection on the ship it would have been perfect. Because of this, all the self service laundries were locked and were not made available for the balance of our cruise - 6 days. We were not offered a complimentry laundering service and when asked were told that we would have to pay. I felt that we could have had a bit of help in this regard as after all we had paid for a commodity and there wasn’t any option offered to us. Other than this, it was amazing. The best part was not having to pay for your meals, drinks, and tips in the ‘all inclusive’ fee structure. Looking forward to our next cruise with Seven Seas. Read Less

Itinerary. We’ve cruised with Regent 3 Times before and enjoy the all inclusive pricing. The food, specialty beverages, wines, cabin spaciousness and shore excursions were top notch. Our butler was outstanding and offered excellent tips and info each morning with room service breakfast and in the evening when we brought us canapés. The ship has been in dry dock recently and every area of the ship was in excellent condition. The Compass Rose renovation was needed and the result is gorgeous. We enjoyed the new dining options Chartreuse and Prime 7 several times during our cruise. Terrific food and excellent service. The only downside was an outbreak of norobirus which impacted about 30 of the 700 cruisers and 450 crew. When the outbreak was reported the crew immediately implemented an extremely rigorous cleaning protocol all over the ship. We were affected by the virus but did notice how diligent the crew was. Their efforts restricted the outbreak to only a small # of passengers and crew. Read Less

I should start by saying that this is my first cruise experience. We booked using a travel agent. We had the following requirements: great food, not a lot of kids, and not a "party" boat. This cruise definitely checked all the boxes for us! Cabin:We upgraded to a concierge Suite on the 10th floor. It was so spacious. We had a king size bed, walk in closet and even a sitting area. We had a bathtub with wonderful Loccitane products as well and even a balcony with enough room to have two chairs and a small table. Dining: The food was fabulous! We ate at all the options that they had! The pool bar had burgers, etc. Prime 7 has steaks and seafood. Compass Rose is open Breakfast lunch and dinner and has a great variety. And Sierra Mar ( My favorite) is italian and Chartreuse is French. I HIGHLY recommend making dinner reservations at Prime 7 and Chartreuse. These did book up on our 7 day cruise and the others are first come first served. ALL THE FOOD AND DRINKS were included. Not just the beer and wine but everything! Service: This was unlike anything I have experienced. Everyone that works for this ship is very nice and so accommodating. Pretty much anything that I asked for, they would make happen. For instance, we had a steward named Gregory that we met on the first day. He asked if there was anything that we needed for our room or mini bar. I asked for wine for the mini bar and he even asked what kind that I preferred and made sure that the mini bar was stocked with my favorite wine the whole trip. This was a nice touch. Ship: Was very clean, and very well appointed. It had a luxurious feel without feeling stuffy. Shore excursions: We did the Bering Sea- Crab Fishermans Tour in Ketchikan. I would HIGHLY recommend this! It was one of my favorite excursions that we did!!! Very informative and it was interesting to see what the day and the life of a crab fisherman would be like. We also got to see A LOT of bald eagles! Mendenhall Glacier and whale Quest in Juneau. Very fun! We got some great pics of the glacier and it was a beautiful day so it was nice to be on the water. We didn't get to see a lot of whales though. Venture to Glacer Point was amazing but I wouldn't not recommend to someone who doesn't like to walk a lot. It is a pretty far walk to the Glacier after the canoe ride but for myself who likes this, it was great! It was really cool to be soo close to the glacier. The Sea otters, Raptors and Bears, in Sitka was a little disappointing. We thought it was a little more like seeing Bears and Eagles in the natural habitat but it was more like visiting a zoo. We did see Sea Otters but couldn't get close enough to get good pictures. I do have to make clear that ALL the excursions were NOT free. There are a lot that are but those ones didn't really appeal to us. We were given a discounted rate but still, that was a little misleading. Overall, this was a great experience! It was an expensive cruise, but we felt that it was worth every penny! We are already looking forward to booking another cruise with Regent! Read Less

Chose Regents Seven Seas Mariner because we wanted to tour Alaska and the time of year and schedule were perfect. Recently we had sailed on Oceania so wanted to give Regents a try. Alaska is great if you want beautiful and amazing scenery and seeing landscapes you cannot see anywhere else in the world. It is pretty cool to see moose, bear, bald eagles, porpoises and whale living in the wild. We did the pre-Denali tour and our guide, Lane, did a great job pointing everything out and making sure we stuck to the schedule. He also gave great recommendations for restaurants and he does a nice job figuring out your likes and dislikes. A common theme to this review will be that I wish many of the tours were more active. I expected the hikes to be more challenging and that we would be outside of a bus a little more than we were. I wanted to spend more time in Girdwood which a great little town and the Hotel Alyska has a lot to offer. We didn’t have enough time there. We arrived at the Mariner on sailing day at about 3:30. The lifeboat drill was at 4:00 so there was very little time to explore. The Mariner is beautiful ship with great flow. It did not look old at all and I think it recently had been refurbished. Our cabin was a Penthouse level 1. Great size for two people. Plenty of room with lots of drawers and a good size closet. Although not as big as Oceania. Suitcases had to (and fit fine) go under the bed. Room was always clean and Butler was always available if we needed anything. Refrigerators always had plenty of soda and there was wine there as well. And beer. It was very comparable to the suite on Oceania Riveria. There was Lily express maker but no cappuccino maker like on Riviera. Also the afternoon canapés were always better on the Riveria. Restaurants and food were better than NCL, Royal Caribbean, Disney and Carnival. But not as good or as varied as the Oceania Riveria. There is one main dining room, Compass Rose, which has half the menu same every night and the other changes daily. Lots of choices. There is also La Veranda which is an Italian restaurant which has a set menu with some daily specials. In bed th restaurants Food was good, but not great. Desserts were almost always disappointing. Service for certain things was not good. Constantly had to ask someone to refill water glasses and at time difficult to find person for more wine. All were very pleasant. Tomas at La Veranda was the next waiter on ship. Very knowledgeable and friendly. Neither of those restaurants took reservations. However, for two nights we could not get seats at La Veranda at 7:00 because it was full. There are two reservation restaurants. Prime 7 had the best food in any steakhouse we have been on in any ship. Chartreuse, the French restaurant was very good as well. Unfortunately, with my class of Penthouse 1, you can only reserve them online at each one time per cruise before the cruise. On the second night I tried to book more nights and they were already filled for every night. Entertainment was basically 4 Review shows - Broadway, country, crooners, and a mix. Singers were very good. The dancers were fantastic. William was especially great. Really really amazing. Felt shows were comparable to Oceania. One show at 9:30 which was kind of late. Excursions were good but not for the younger generation. My wife and I are 50 and we had our 18 and 19 yo old children. We were all on Oceania last June touring the Mediterranean. We knew Regent was an older crowd but it was quite different than Oceania. Not sure whether that was because of cruiseline, Alaska, or being in May as opposed to June. However, even the tours that were the “most” strenuous were not tiring at all. Lots of bus tours and slow walking. We were hoping it would be more rugged and descriptions of tours seemed more active than they actually were. Alaska is beautiful and wildlife is incredible. Our biggest complaint was the lack of activities on the ship. No organized games except for one trivia each year. No real interesting lectures on any day. We all wished there had been lots more to do like there were every other cruiseline we have been on. Overall the Mariner is a great ship if you want to relax and drink and eat with a quiet group of people. And it is an excellent ship but probably would not cruise on Regent again. I think we will opt for Oceania. Read Less

We wanted to go through the Panama Canal. We chose this itinerary because we LOVE Regent - all inclusive, never have to swipe your card or take care of anything. Air arrangements included and taken care of. First class all the way, in shore excursions and transfer arrangements, included a pre-cruise stay at the Kimpton Epic hotel in downtown Miami. Mariner just got out of dry dock in early April, all the public areas were completely redone, and cabins received a minor face lift. It’s a beautiful ship - we were in a Concierge E level cabin, large enough to be comfortable for our 18-day leg of this cruise. Embarkation in Miami was frustrating - computers were down and they could not register us. We sat in the cruise terminal (over lunchtime, so everyone was hungry and Impatient), with little information and only cookies to eat. They finally started to bring out a few trays of sandwiches which were snapped up by the first people they passed - none for the rest of us. We were finally called up by cabin category to have them register us by hand. Not a good way to start our vacation... Our cabin was very nice, although we sailed on the new Explorer last year and this is not quite that nice. This cabin’s bathroom had only one sink, but the shower was large enough and the bathroom worked just fine for us. Ship activities were low-key as the average passenger on this line is retired and does not need on-board climbing walls and surf pools. The pool area has cushioned lounges, a warm salt pool, a couple of spa tubs, and best of all - waiter service from the bar, and an attendant who comes around to clean your sunglasses. I used the spa twice for massages - pricey but very good therapists. Food on this cruise has to be experienced to be believed. It is like dining in a fine restaurant every day. There is a buffet for breakfast and lunch, but also a white tablecloth, fine dining alternative as well. For dinner, there is the Compass Rose main dining room, complete with sommelier, wine stewards, and impeccably uniformed waiters. While there seemed to be more new staff on this sailing (perhaps because the ship just got out of dry dock) who were less experienced, I am sure that will be addressed in the days to come. We did have issues with getting water and coffee refilled, and the wait staff was evidently learning to use a new ipad type ordering system that made ordering slow and occasionally incorrect. Food was fresh, cooked to order, and we typically spent 2 1/2 to 3 hours at dinner every night - we traveled with friends and made new friends as well, so dinner conversation was interesting and lively. Disembarkation was organized and smooth, with plenty of porter help for luggage. We have signed up for a cruise on the new RSSC Splendor in 2020, and look forward to another wonderful vacation with Regent. Read Less

We thought Regent Seven Seas was a "premium" cruise line. It's not. From the first day there were problems. In our cabin, we tried to turn on the tv to see the safety information. The tv didn't work, so we tried to call someone to fix the tv. The phone didn't work either. One night we turned on the bathroom faucet and muddy, dirty water came out and didn't clear up until the next day or so. Another night the toilet didn't work. Our bathroom door wouldn't shut. After workmen came to fix it, when they left we tried to open it and the handle fell off. The food was mediocre. The waitstaff in the restaurants kept getting the orders wrong, or forgot to bring orders at all. The reception clerks were perfunctory and didn't seem to know what they were doing. The "unlimited" wi-fi either didn't work at all on some days or on other days it was intermittent and slow. There was a big leak in our bathroom. Our shower didn't drain, so we showered in pools of water. The women's public rest rooms had broken toilet seats and doors. The wallpaper on one of the walls in our cabin was peeling off, so workmen had to come in and replace it. We had hoped for a relaxing and pleasant cruise, but with the constant stream of workmen coming in and out of our cabin to fix things, it was one interruption after another. By the end of the cruise, I had a serious eye infection and both my wife and I had severe allergy problems, probably from exposure to all the work dust and fumes. Maybe things changed when Regent was taken over by Norwegian Cruise Lines and Apollo Mgt. That's what other passengers told us. They are obviously trying to cut back and have turned what may have once been an upscale cruise line into a mediocre one, certainly not worth the money they charge. Read Less