Good job, Peggy! Glad you were able to get that done, and NOT have to prepay. The prepay thing kind of bugs me.

We only have one excursion that we're interested in, and we think we'll wait until we board to book it. If it's sold out, it's sold out. Que sera sera!

Thanks, everyone. It wouldn't have occured to me to look for excursions for our 10/30/09 Istanbul to Civittavecchia cruise until several months from now. Thanks to LCT, I've put in reservations for excursions in each port. There was even one excursion that was sold out already: Ephesus with an expert.

I've come to the conclusion that the system will only allow you to prebook if you are on a single segment (probably has something to do with the booking number). We tend to book multiple segments, so I'm not able to book online for Viking or for Dragon (which begins on 10/17) since we have multiple segments on both cruises. (If JoanandJoe can book Oct. 30, the Oct. 17 cruise should be open also, right?). I hope that problem won't apply when I try to book restaurant reservations, but I have a really bad feeling about it.
Regarding payment in advance for excursions, I'll refuse to do that. If I wanted to cruise on Oceana, I would--I do NOT want Regent to be anything like Oceana--asking for payment in advance is a mass market thing--Regent should not be doing it. It's pretty much a moot point anyway, since most of the excursions will be free for the next couple years--after that, we'll see. :mad:

Joe and Joan:

Were you able to book Rome (Civittavecchia)? That was not available when I tried to book.

I'm not able to pre-book excursions on DRAGON (10/17), and I'm only on a single segment. I just figured it was the 120 day thing.

They may not have DRAGON loaded but you are able to book excursions more than 120 days out. I know people that have booked excursions for September. I do know that the fax forms are not available past May.

Peggy...thank you for sending the forms! Like everyone else, I find all of this very annoying. Regent needs to fix this kind of snafu if they truly want any kind of luxury connotation.

You just can't fall short on so many levels when the competition for travelers in times like these is so fierce.

If this wasn't an escorted group with Ngaire I'd be tempted to say forget it - top dollar price tag, and lots of problems booking tours. There are better travel values to choose from!

Peggy, it's interesting how differently each of us sees things. While you see the pre-booking of excursions as a bad thing, I consider it an improvement. I've spent time before cruises wondering and worrying whether my advance excursion requests would be available or not, and not being able to find out until we board the ship; the new system removes that worrying months before we board by selling me a guaranteed seat on excursions. And if a desired excursion is sold out, I have time several months before the trip to look for an book an independent excursion on my own. I don't see it as mass market (although several of the mass market lines do things the same way), I see it as a better luxury experience. (I just wish the "unlimited free" excursions weren't restricted to one per port per day for advance booking, because that policy reintroduces all the doubt and worry on days where we hope to do something in the morning and something else in the afternoon.)

Regarding booking excursions when you have multiple segments, I believe Ngaire or Susan posted earlier this week that they had talked to Regent about it, and they acknowledged the problem and were working on it. Meanwhile, you can apparently call them and book your excursions by phone rather than waiting to see when they'll fix this aspect of the computer system.

Last point: although it's true that many excursions are now free, remember that people are booking them and therefore some will fill up. So even if you don't really like pre-booking this way, if you care about which excursions you go on, it probably pays to use the new system to get them booked rather than finding out after boarding that excursions you want are closed.

-- Eric

Here's something else to keep in mind about signing up for excursions. I had to call Regent because I wanted to change the excursions that I signed up for online for our Baltics cruise in August. (Changes can only be done by calling.) When I called, the excursions for the last port, Helsinki had not been loaded online, but I found out that the Regent agent could book an excursion for Helsinki so I went ahead. My invoice from B&K shows all my excursions now.

However, when I go back online, the Helsinki excursion is not showing up, which I thought might be because none was loaded, but today I saw that Helsinki excursions are available for booking online BUT not the one I booked--Helsinki Sailing Adventure.

I decided to call Regent again to see what was going on. I was told today that I was all set, but that some of the excursion listings online may not be complete. The agent said, for example, that diving excursions for the PG were not loaded for some cruises. I sure hope that Regent gets this all straightened out, because how can one make intelligent decisions if you are not even seeing all the excursions--if you are seeing any at all?

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Eugene

NONE of the excursions on VIKING are free...what a shame, they're very pricey $$ too! Thank goodness that most of the cities have Hop On and Off buses....I think we'll put them to good use.

I still can't pull up any excursions for this (May 8th) on the Regent website...thank goodness for Peggy or we wouldn't even know what is offered.

Hello Eric. I guess you misunderstood my post. I don't have any problem with the concept of booking online. I've been doing it for years with Regent and have never had a problem getting the excursions I want, nor have I had to pay for them in advance. On the few occasions when we didn't have the tickets for the excursions in our suite when we boarded, the tour desk happily and promptly issued them. Nobody else I know of had ever had a problem getting the excursions they requested online either. I would happily book excursions online now if I only could :rolleyes: I would not, however, pay for them in advance. That's nothing but a cheap ploy to improve cash flow on the part of the cruise line. The previous system wasn't broken and since most of the excursions going forward are free why mess up the works at this point????

Peggy, I've had a few different experiences with the old Regent excursion "request" system. On one PG cruise, our excursion requests, submitted online, were somehow lost -- when we arrived onboard, the ship's travel desk had no record of them -- and we didn't get two excursions we wanted because they had very limited capacity and were full. One other time, we didn't get an excursion we wanted, even though our request was submitted shortly after we got the list to fax back. So perhaps that's why, to me, being able to get a confirmed seat in advance -- even if I have to pre-pay for it -- feels like an improvement.

I do recognize it's clearly a bigger deal on some itineraries -- like our upcoming Alaska cruise, where the excursions are a crucial part of the trip -- than others where many people ignore Regent excursions and go off to explore cities on their own.

Well, I'm not convinced that's correct. After all, if the vast majority of excursions going forward are free or very low cost, then how is it going to make a tangible improvement in their cash flow? There's not a lot of money involved.

But in my original post, what I was trying to say is that although you may feel you don't want to go along with the new system by prepaying, you should be aware that by taking such a stand, you might cost yourself an opportunity to get an excursion you want. It's certainly your prerogative to refuse to use the new prepay system, but if other passengers on your cruise do book in advance, by the time you board and try to book an excursion, it may already be sold out. Especially if it's a cruise with mostly free excursions, which may lead to more excursion bookings (and more advance bookings). I'd hate to see you or anyone miss out on a desired excursion because of past experience under Regent's old system; whether one likes it or not, Regent has changed the game.

-- Eric

Thanks for the lectue Eric, but you needn't worry about me -- I'll certainly book the "free" excursions online.

Peggy, sorry you felt I was lecturing you. I was only trying to be helpful.

-- Eric

AN UPDATE:

As of this AM (Tues 10 Mar 0730 MST) I still can not get into my second or third segments of our B2B2B. Additionally, I can not even get into the first segment any more. However, my AMEX was hit for the two small additional charge tours I reserved last week.


Greg

I have a charge too from Regent. I guess I will have to contest the charge as that excursion should be paid for out of my onboard credits.

Marc, when you booked your excursions, didn't it make you put in your credit card information? Did you have any information that led you to think it wasn't going to charge your credit card?

There's been quite a bit of discussion about this here and over on the CC forum, and from what everyone has found out so far, at this point it seems Regent does not allow you to book excursions in advance and pay for them with your future onboard credits; advance bookings require on-the-spot payment. It's something lots of people are asking about, and hopefully Regent will reverse course on this policy as the dust settles after the launch of the new booking site last week. It's certainly worth calling Regent to let them know you're unhappy with the current policy -- the more people they hear from, the more likely they may change the policy.

Meanwhile, I'd be wary of contesting your credit card charge right away, as it might result in Regent canceling your excursions when they get the dispute notice from your credit card company. If you'd prefer to cancel the advance booking on the excursions to get your money back, I'd suggest calling Regent first; they may be able to do the cancellation and reverse the charge easily, rather than having to file paperwork with your credit card company.

-- Eric

Eric, you are right. I entered credit card info but did not expect the tour to be charged right away. In fact, I am (was) still hoping that there would be no charge in advance and excursion would just be charged to shipboard account.

I will give Regent Ft Lauderdale a call; I don't think Omaha will be any help. I have been able to switch non-refundable credits to cash before but I don't want to take a chance on being able to do it again. This seems like a lot of effort on my part, and the problems for Regent, for all of $98. ;)

My understanding is that this is a big issue that hasn't been resolved yet. It sure doesn't hurt to voice your concern to Regent. I just don't think any final decisions on how to handle this problem have been made. At this point, I don't know what we're going to do with our AMX Platinum credit on the 7-day Baltics cruise if we can't apply it to excursions or get any cash. In fact, this may be the last straw in my decision to cancel the card. We don't fly enough to take advantage of the access to FF clubs to make it worthwhile if we can't effectively use the cruise credit, which is why I got the card in the first place.
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Eugene

I still miss all the other features under "My Cruises". Like being able to save favorites. This is very handy when you're planning ahead and trying to compare things.

I for one am very unhappy with Regent and their attitude. We are going on the PG in less than three months and they will NOT let you use your OBC for tours. We are simply going to wait until we are on the ship and hope for the best on this one. I don't mind, but it did make a big difference to the people we were traveling with.

Then yesterday I tried to fill out the Butler Request and book tours and also the information sheet for two segments in September. I know I am early, but I was on a roll and wanted to do this as well as possibly book tours. The system will not even take my booking number.

When I called Regent this morning she was very "laid back" and "I don't care"--we have a problem, but we don't know when it will be fixed. Can't help you on the phone. The tours will probably been O.K. Someone else asked about this and maybe I should tell someone..duh, yes!" I told her I would be mostly unhappy if I couldn't book tours. This is not one of the cruises with free tours. I won't take my booking number for anything or any segment.

Frankly, I am worried. I wish they had better customer service.

I am sorry for your experience. I usually have had good luck with Regent agents--better, in fact, than with agents from Silversea or Oceania. Regardless, I think the situation with the use of shipboard credits is a cruise line (or Apollo) policy that needs to be changed. I hope you will express your displeasure about this in an e-mail to Regent as I have done.

--------------

Eugene

This morning I am not able to get into my reservation, either. Perhaps they are doing more maintenance?

Last night I got a call from a Regent agent who said that he had my two booking numbers for the B2B in September on the Voyager in the MS but just couldn't help me. Why not call my agent was the suggestion. Our board has been up and down all day. He gave me two booking numbers--prior I only had one. Said when/if it worked info would have to be entered twice. Hoped it worked by 120 days before the cruise. Gee, gosh. He did have my records for the PG cruise in the OS, still couldn't help, although I did get in that one. My only problem on that one is not wanting to pay for excursions without using OBC. The Voyager is a pay for excursions cruise, so they probably should have an office that can help you. If anyone hears that there is a breakthrough before I do--I will be looking forward to a post.

Regent has definitely been working on the Web site because this morning I noticed that I had to enter an e-mail address for the first time to get to my excursion bookings. Moreover, I looked at a cruise that we have booked cruise for next January, and instead of showing me my excursions for my August 2009 cruise (which had been shown erroneously), it now had the ports listed for the 2010 cruise, though no specific excursions yet. I think progress is being made.

That being said, I have heard nothing back from Regent concerning my e-mail about the use of shipboard credits for excursions.

-------------

Eugene

Here's a suggestion for those who don't don't plan to use their OBC's for spa, shopping, laundry expenses - why not prebook and pay for your excursions online, then when you are on board cancel for credit back to your credit card and then rebook against your on board credit.

Hmm, but then there might be a waiting list, and you would end up at the end of it!

I think I would just make sure not to book an excursion for the first day of the cruise, if there are any. Since you can't cancel these very easily, I would feel better waiting until I board anyways.

Small comment about the Butler Form. I wish they had another comment field to request things like diet tonic and other non-standard drinks for the fridge. Obviously pretty far down in the scheme of things!

It's odd, but now it gives me the option of booking Signatures the first night of the cruise (only that restaurant, and only on the first night) for our May 8th cruise. I'm not going to try to reserve anything until dining reservations for the whole cruise appear.

Well, there's hope!!! I was able to get the same Signatures option that Kristin got (even though it's more than 30 days till the cruise begins and we're booked on multiple segments), but it still won't let me book excursions . But yes, there's obviously some work being done, so maybe it will be useful one of these days.

I wonder if we're going to have to do new guest information forms. I've not done that online for years, Ngaire's always taken care of it. Guess I'll find out months from now.

Leslie, great idea!! We have just booked a $149 per person excursion for St Petersburg. As soon as we get onboard, I plan on trying to cancel and rebook in order to get our money back. I am hoping that Regent will decide it is easier just to let me use the shipboard credit for a cash advance instead. ;)

Just curious, would everyone be satisfied if they just allowed cash back on any OB credits, given that many seem to be upset over this excursion charging issue? I won't have a problem burning my credits in the spa, but if I did, would not want to spend that money just to get rid of it in the gift shop. It really doesn't apply to that many cruises, so I don't see why Regent would have a problem doing this rather than suffering a PR nightmare that is already bad enough given the difficulties with the website.

Marc, I agree with Wendy: I'd be afraid that if you canceled, others might get your seats off a waitlist and you'd lose your seats.

Here's the other possible problem I see: you cancel your pre-booked tickets, and they'll deposit the refund into your shipboard account. I can't imagine they'll be doing real-time refunds and credits to credit cards onboard the ship. If they do this, I'm sure it would be refundable at the end of the cruise if unused -- but if you re-book the tour, it might just use up this same credit in your account, leaving you with the same shipboard credit you started with!

-- Eric

Eric, I always get $400 per week cash advance (free miles). If this happened as you surmise, then the cash advance would eat up the "new" credit. As for losing our seats, I would not go through the effort without guarantee that we can get our seats.

I am hoping that by August the cruise desks on the ships will be so tired of irate passengers that I will have no need to go ballistic with Miss Kitty. ;)

"I will have no need to go ballistic with Miss Kitty"

You are so right, Marc, and please leave ballistic to TONY :rolleyes: :rolleyes: YOU were Marshall Dillon and Tony was Chester-

Here's the latest odd thing with the web site: in reading some of the above reports, I decided to log back into Already Booked to make sure nothing unexpected had happened to our previously-booked excursions. (No problems.)

But I noticed the link for Dining Reservations was now present. For our June 3 trip? Yes, even though the first line, in bold, says "Dining reservations are generally only available within 30 days of the beginning of the cruise." Once I clicked the check box to agree to the terms, it presented me the choices for Signatures or Prim 7 for any of the days of my cruise. I proceeded to make two reservations. And we're 78 days away from sailing. Go figure!

-- Eric

Thanks for the heads-up about dining reservations, Eric. My problem is that we never seem to know ahead of time what nights we want to go to one of the specialty restaurants. We definitely like to be in Compass Rose for the captain's dinner, and I have no idea which night that will be. And with our evening whale watch excursion we'll have only six dinners onboard! We may opt for Prime 7 as our only specialty restaurant this trip, since we've done Signatures several times (on Voyager). Hmmm ... so many good choices. Clearly we have not booked a long enough cruise!!!! :)

Following on Priscilla's comment, since we too like to be in Compass Rose on any "special" nights, let me ask for those who have done the 7-day Mariner Alaska trip: which day is generally the captain's welcome party/dinner -- is it the night after we sail (a sea day both northbound and southbound)? And is there also a special farewell dinner that we've had on some cruises --- or do they not do that on this 7-day trip? If so, is that generally on the last night (following a sea day), or the night before? Thanks.

-- Eric

The whole "Already Booked" feature is very frustrating to me....as a passenger booked on a B-2-B (Fort Lauderdale to Southampton) I can't book any excursions online while passengers on either segment can conveniently do so. I'm not sure the dining reservations will work either - when I logged in today I got the option to open bookings for the first segment but the only restaurant and date available was the first day of our cruise in Signatures - nothing else.

It seems like a very poor business practice to penalize the passenger with the longer booking while allowing segment passengers access. Just my 2 cents!

My other concern, as a single passenger, is how we can book to be sure we are seated with friends who will also be reserving online?

So many questions...so few answers!

For our 6/27 PG cruise, I was able to book all our excursions on line over the past 2 days with no problems even though the text says that only cruises up to the June 6 departure are available for booking.
I also read on another board that you can just claim your OB credits in cash once aboard.
Aloha,
Susan