Cruise Line: Regent Seven Seas Cruises

Itinerary: Barcelona to Lisbon

Size of ship and passenger capacity: 54,000 GRT and carries 750 passengers

Year Built: 2016

Where the ship cruises: The Mediterranean, Northern Europe, the Caribbean and Panama Canal. Inaugural Australia/New Zealand season commencing December 2021!

Currency onboard: USD

Embarkation/disembarkation: Regent provided a complimentary transfer, by Mercedes van, from our hotel to the pier so arrival was effortless. We were greeted by a porter who took our luggage and advised it would be delivered to the cabins within approx. 1 hour. We were warmly welcomed by the check-in staff who issued our cruise cards within a few minutes and then passed quickly through security and onto the ship. Staff had champagne waiting on arrival in the ship’s atrium and guided us to the lifts where (at approx. 12 noon) we were able to go straight to our staterooms.

Main features: Launched in July 2016, Explorer is an ultra luxury all-suite, all balcony ship catering to just 750 guests. Billed as ‘the most luxurious ship ever built’, she looks sparkling new and offers guests an abundance of all-inclusive choice – speciality dining, premium wines, spirits, tea, coffee and soft drinks, a wide array of shore excursions in every port, ship-wide WiFi, onboard gratuities and more.

Most suited to: 55+ singles and couples looking for an engaging and active holiday with the refinements they’ve come to enjoy – fine dining and wines, plush, art rich surroundings and spacious, ultra comfortable staterooms.

 

Atmosphere: The ship is very luxuriously appointed with stand-out bespoke furnishings, stunning chandeliers, museum-quality artworks including pieces by Picasso and Chagall and fresh flower displays throughout, yet the vibe is neither stuffy nor pretentious.

Encounters with Service Staff: The first thing I noticed about most staff onboard was their broad smile and enthusiastic greeting, followed by a genuine desire to help and add to the enjoyment of the cruise. An exception was the drinks staff in La Veranda, where we found the drinks service to be slow, intermittent and lacking experience.

Staterooms: My Superior Suite (Cat F2) was located forward on Deck 8. It included a marble and stone bathroom with double vanity, full bath, separate walk-in shower and toilet, complete with L’Occitane bathroom products. A very spacious walk-in robe with drawers, shelves and full length hanging space was complemented with bathrobes, slippers and other thoughtful inclusions such as an umbrella and padded, satin covered hangers for delicate items.
The spacious living area featured a two-seat sofa and table large enough for dining, large flat-screen television on a swivel arm and divine, sumptuous king size bed with high-quality linens. A small refrigerator with complimentary stocked mini bar, fruit basket and bottled water was replenished daily. The balcony had two comfortable reclining wicker chairs and table.

 

Dining options: Explorer features a fantastic variety of dining options, all of which are included. During our six night cruise I dined at all venues except Prime 7 and found the standards of both food and service to be excellent at all, with Pacific Rim and Chartreuse particular stand-outs. Others who I met during the cruise commented that the steaks at Prime 7 were some of the best they’ve eaten at sea.

Compass Rose (main dining room) – serving European cuisine for breakfast, lunch and dinner
Pacific Rim – Asian cuisine
Chartreuse – French fare with a modern twist
Prime 7 – a classic American style steakhouse
La Veranda – casual buffet dining inside and on the open-air deck
Sette Mari La Veranda – each evening La Veranda is transformed into an Italian style trattoria with open kitchen and choice of inside or alfresco dining.
The Pool Grill – made to order poolside burgers, grilled seafood, salads, etc with an adjacent ice-cream and milkshake bar. Also open from early morning with a selection of made to order freshly squeezed juices, smoothies, fresh fruit, bircher muesli and other healthy breakfast cereals

Room Service – I also sampled the room service menu that offers a great selection of lighter meal options. My meal was delivered within 20 minutes, with the table set and cleared by room service staff – no unsightly dinner trays to be found in the hallways here!
Entertainment: This was perhaps the most disappointing feature onboard Explorer. I was particularly surprised at the old-style design of the Constellation Theatre, with steep stairs and very poor sight lines due to the two-tier pillars around the room. The entertainment was mediocre at best.

 

Activities: Explorer is equipped with all the usual facilities we’ve come to expect onboard a modern cruise ship – a well-stocked library, small casino, gymnasium, beauty/hair salon and Canyon Ranch spa centre with complimentary access for all guests to the sauna, steam room and aft deck infinity pool.

A very well received bonus is the extensive range of included shore excursions in each port of call. I travelled on several half and full days tours and was quite happy with the itineraries and with the standard of guides and coaches used.
A new inclusion for Regent is the Culinary Arts Kitchen, a state of the art, hands-on cooking school where guests can choose from a range of classes (priced at US$89.00 per class) to hone their culinary skills and then eat what they cook.

Family Facilities: Whilst families with younger children are not excluded from cruising with Regent, Explorer doesn’t provide or offer any specific family-friendly facilities or activities.

Self Service Laundry: A self-service laundry with washers, dryers and ironing facilities is located aft on most accommodation decks and all facilities, including washing powder, are provided free of charge.

Insiders Tips: The dress code onboard was casual during the day and elegant casual in the evenings. There were no formal nights on our seven-day itinerary though guests should expect one or two on cruises of 14 days or more. I was pleased to see a USB charging point in the stateroom and conveniently located on the bedside table. This negates the need to use adaptors when charging devices such as mobile phones and laptops but for other appliances, US plugs or adaptors are required.

As many activities are ‘included’ onboard they are in strong demand so I advise guests to pre-book as much as possible via the Regent Seven Seas website, prior to travelling. Dining, shore excursion, spa and culinary school bookings can all be made ahead of your cruise and easily amended or cancelled if required once you’re onboard. That said, if you happen to miss out on something, don’t despair. There is always the opportunity to waitlist your preferences and I found there were often last minute cancellations that allowed me to slot into the available places.