AtVantage Travel Report
Regent Seven Seas Navigator
Cruise Ship Update
Sailing on “Grand Mediterranean Cruise”
Rome, Italy to Istanbul, Turkey
Cruise included ports of:
Civitavecchia (Rome), Livorno (Florence), Monte Carlo, Monaco, Ajaccio, (Corsica), France, Sorrento, Italy, Naxos (Sicily), Italy, Navplion, Greece, Santorini, Greece, Kusadasi, Turkey, Istanbul, Turkey
(Port narratives will be included in separate articles)
Seven Seas Navigator
Ship Information
Submitted on 12/15/08
We chose the Navigator for our fifteenth anniversary cruise for several reasons. We wanted an upscale cruise experience. We had sailed previously on Severn Seas Voyager on a seven night Aegean itinerary in a September timeframe which started in Venice and finalized in Athens in 2003. We raved about the cruise for years afterwards. The Voyager is the star of the Regent fleet because it is the largest (700 passengers) and newest of the ships (christened in 2002).
We wanted a ten or eleven day Mediterranean/Aegean cruise and the Navigator, however, was and offered this incredible itinerary. We decided on the Navigator even though we knew it was a smaller vessel (490 guests) and was launched in 1999.
The Navigator has a total of 252 cabins, eight passenger decks, 560 total feet. It is a small exclusive ship; all suites have oceanview cabins. The minimum cabin size is 301 square feet and the maximum suite is 1173 square feet. Guest space ratio is 67.3. 90% of Navigaor’s cabins have balconies.
Beds are full king size with feather pillows and duvets. Cabins have walk in closets, marble appointed bathrooms, a full bathtub and shower. Bathrobes are provided, hair dryers, TVS, CD/DVD players, refrigerators with your favorite liquor and soft drinks replenished daily. Penthouse A&B and all suites have butler service daily which includes 24 hour room service, pressing service, and nightly hors d’oeuvres.
The ship is in excellent condition however, there are a few quirks to look out for such as a limited amount of laundry rooms. You have to be quick and aggressive to grab a washer as they are more popular than a massage appointment during prime time on the only day at sea. The irons don’t work very well either and one of the two washers kept going on the fritz which didn’t help the situation at all. I thought I was being so cleaver and snuck down to the washer early one morning, threw in a load of dark clothes, came back 45 minutes later to find my dark underwear and pants covered in a fine down of white lint. Someone had washed their beach towel the night before and left it in the washer. I didn’t see the towel until it was too late.
Regent is known for its all inclusive policy which means once on board you don’t pay for liquor, soft drinks, bottled water. There is a no tipping policy on board as well. This makes for a very relaxed environment and it is such a relief not to constantly worry about pulling out your wallet for money or signing a check for a drink.
The itinerary was excellent. However, three things challenged our cruise. One was the exchange rate—no news here–at the time of sailing, the dollar was exchanging at 1 Euro to 1.65 dollars. During the cruise we got some relief and the Euro went down to 1.55 dollars. Another thing was the amount of children on the cruise. Whenever you cruise in the summer months, you are going to encounter children and families on board. However, the mix of families on board was not strictly American which helped, as no one group “took over” as sometimes happens when a large amount of one group or another takes over the personality of the ship. The third obstacle was the weather. Italy was experiencing a heat wave and no one can be totally ready for how incredibly hot and humid Italy can be during one of those times. Think of driving in a motorcoach with poorly functioning air conditioning for 1 ½ hours from Sorrento to Pompeii. Think of walking around the ruins of Pompeii in the equivalent of a Swedish sauna for two hours in unrelenting sun and crowds. Then another 1 ½ hours to a mediocre restaurant near Positano (billed as “lunch” in Positano). The road was so narrow and winding everyone was too sick to enjoy their food, even if it had been good. The best news was that it was another hour back to Sorrento. Once we got to Sorrento, we were dropped at a gift shop high on the hill above the port. We had to transfer once again to the port, then to a tender, and finally on board.
Needless to say, cruisers need to be extra vigilant about ship promoted shore excursions. When possible, talk to your travel agent about booking private tours, particularly if you are traveling in a small group so you can amortize the cost of the tour amongst several couples or family members. Private tours can be customized to fit the needs and interests of the participants and you will save so much time not sitting around to be called for your motorcoach, wating for the last person to board the coach, and find that one person who insists on taking too much time in the bathroom or gift shop.
The ship however, excelled in every other way. The dining room was outstanding both in food and service. I would recommend this ship to anyone wanting to get away and be pampered in style while celebrating a special anniversary or honeymoon. For more information, contact Marilyn Froggatt at AtVantage Marketing & Travel at 760-966-0173.
