Your Cruise Questions Answered #1: Regent Splendor, Gratuities, Norwegian Fjords, River Cruising And More

In my weekly Cruise Q&A I answer questions about all things cruising. Some have straightforward answers. Others – like how cruise gratuities really work, how much you need to gamble to get a free cruise, or are luxury cruise ships are getting too big – can be more complicated. But I answer them all.

In this new series I am calling “Your Cruise Questions Answered”, I will post some of the questions asked after the live. This if the first and in this I am including some of the questions I was asked in the latest live I ran from on board Regent Seven Seas Splendor, starting with some overviews about the ship.

How Am I Finding Regent Seven Seas Splendor On This Cruise?

This cruise has been going extremely well. It is a repositioning cruise from Lisbon across the Atlantic via the Azores and Canada before ending in New York.

One unusual thing for me is that I am experiencing this voyage more like a normal passenger than I usually do. I had originally booked the cruise partly because I had not sailed on Splendor.

However, I subsequently sailed on her after cancelling another Regent trip, so I had already filmed virtually all of the ship. That has taken away much of the pressure I normally have to spend my days filming everything.

The ship is completely full, but generally it does not feel crowded. The one exception has occasionally been La Veranda, the buffet, on sea days.

I’ve found the service very good and the food excellent across the board. Compass Rose, the main dining room, is so good that I don’t feel you need to rely on the specialty restaurants. I have also been enjoying Pacific Rim and Prime 7.

One change I particularly like since my previous Regent cruise is the introduction of more casual evening dining. O

ne of my criticisms of ultra-luxury cruising has been the lack of a genuinely casual dinner option. If you didn’t want a lengthy restaurant meal, room service was sometimes virtually the only alternative. Regent now opens the Pool Grill in the evening, with pizzas and other casual food. I think that is a very welcome addition.

What Sea-Day Activities Does Regent Seven Seas Offer?

Regent’s daily programme is relatively light, particularly if you’ve come from a mainstream or premium cruise line where there can be an activity every 15 minutes.

On this sailing we have two guest speakers, usually with one or two talks during the day. There is trivia, bingo, afternoon tea and some games or activities organised by the entertainment team.

One thing I think Regent is missing is destination-focused enrichment. I would love to see proper port experts who could talk about places such as Newfoundland, their history, what to see and how to explore them independently. Considering Regent’s emphasis on destinations, I think that is a significant gap.

Overall, though, you shouldn’t book Regent expecting a packed daily programme. There are things to do, but the atmosphere is much more relaxed.

Would Six Weeks On Regent Seven Seas Splendor Be Too Long?

Splendor is a great ship and I would happily spend a long time on board, but there is one important consideration: entertainment.

This is a small luxury ship, so you are not going to have the huge range of entertainment and activities found on a large resort ship. If you need to be constantly entertained, six weeks could feel long.

On the other hand, there is a surprisingly good choice of dining for a ship of this size, with the specialty restaurants, Compass Rose, Sette Mari and the other options.

If you are happy entertaining yourself, enjoy quieter sea days and like the Regent style of cruising, I think a long voyage on Splendor could work extremely well.

But before booking six weeks, I would make sure you are comfortable with the relatively low-key entertainment and activity programme. That, rather than the ship itself, would be my main watch-out.

How Good Is The Wi-Fi On Regent Seven Seas?

Regent includes Wi-Fi, but the standard package does not include the level of streaming access I need.

I upload videos while travelling and also like to stream programmes, so on this Splendor cruise I upgraded to the streaming package. I’ve found the streaming service good, although it is expensive.

For this two-week cruise my upgraded package cost around $600. For most passengers the included internet may be perfectly adequate. I only pay for the upgrade because of the amount of uploading and streaming I need to do for my work.

Would It Have Made More Sense For Silversea Rather Than Celebrity To Enter The River Cruise Market?

I can understand why Royal Caribbean Group chose Celebrity for its move into river cruising.

They are talking about doing something different and bringing some of the newer and more innovative Celebrity Edge-style thinking onto the rivers.

However, having looked at the fares, I do wonder whether Silversea might have been a more logical fit.

I was very keen to try Celebrity River Cruises and looked at booking for 2028, including way out of season in March. But the prices were incredibly high. The per-day cost I was seeing was significantly higher than what I am paying for some Regent Seven Seas and Silversea ultra-luxury ocean cruises.

River cruising is expensive anyway, and I have always struggled somewhat with its value for money compared with ocean cruising. I know they are very different experiences and it is not always fair to compare them directly, but inevitably I do.

With Celebrity River Cruises seemingly being priced at an ultra-luxury level, Silversea starts to feel as though it might have been a more natural brand.

There is, though, enormous interest in Celebrity entering river cruising, and that pent-up demand may help explain the pricing. There has also been considerable disruption to European river cruising because of water levels, with some guests having cruises turned into combinations of ships, hotels and buses.

That may result in people shifting their plans into 2027 and 2028, adding even more demand.

For now, despite initially being very keen, the prices have made me step back from booking Celebrity River Cruises.

Where Should I Cruise In January Or February For Warm Weather Other Than The Caribbean?

If you are prepared to travel some distance, Australia and New Zealand would be high on my list. January and February are right in the middle of the Southern Hemisphere summer and there are plenty of interesting itineraries combining Australia and New Zealand.

South Africa is another possibility, although cruise schedules there can be more dependent on ships repositioning between regions.

South America can work too, but you need to pay close attention to the itinerary. Around Rio, the Amazon and the northern parts of South America it can be very warm, as can itineraries running from the Panama Canal towards Lima.

Once you get much further south towards Patagonia and Ushuaia, however, conditions can be considerably cooler and more variable.

What Is The Best Time Of Year And Cruise Line For Seeing The Northern Lights?

For Norway, I would look particularly at around October. As you move into autumn, you have the longer hours of darkness needed to maximise your chances of seeing the Northern Lights.

I would particularly look at Hurtigruten, and there are also UK-focused lines such as Saga and Fred. Olsen offering Northern Lights itineraries. Some operators even offer Northern Lights guarantees on selected voyages.

Of course, the Northern Lights are a natural phenomenon, so nobody can simply switch them on for you. But choosing an itinerary specifically designed around them and travelling when the nights are sufficiently dark improves your chances.

Are Cruise Gratuities Really Extra Money For The Crew Or Are They Used To Pay Their Salaries?

This is one of those cruise topics that can quickly become controversial.

The first thing to notice is that many cruise lines no longer even call these charges “gratuities”. You’ll see terms such as “crew appreciation” or “service charge”.

My understanding, based on how the system has been explained to me and crew payslips I have seen, is that on many lines the money forms part of the crew member’s expected overall compensation.

To use completely illustrative numbers, imagine a crew member expects to receive 100. Perhaps 90 comes from their base salary and 10 from their share of the service-charge pool. That is why removing the automatic service charge and handing cash directly to one person is not necessarily the generous solution people sometimes assume it is.

You are rewarding the front-facing crew member while potentially reducing the pool that also rewards people behind the scenes.

My approach is therefore to leave the automatic service charge in place and, if somebody has given exceptional service, give them something extra directly.

You should also check who is included in the pool.

Bar staff often operate under a separate system because a service charge is automatically added to drinks or drinks packages. Spa staff may be treated differently because cruise spas are often run by outside contractors. Kids’ club staff can sometimes be excluded, and on some lines suite butlers are not included.

Norwegian, for example, specifically advises Haven guests that the butlers are not covered by the general service charge.

Ultimately, I would prefer cruise lines simply to include these costs in the advertised fare. But one reason they don’t is that it makes their headline fares look more expensive than competitors who add the service charge later.

What Repositioning Cruise Would Be Good For A Student On A Gap Year Travelling With Their Parents?

I would look particularly at Royal Caribbean and Norwegian Cruise Line.

Both have large ships with an enormous range of things going on, so a younger traveller should have plenty to do while the parents also have a wide choice of entertainment, bars and activities.

The timing of repositioning cruises also potentially works well, with many taking place around March and April or September through November.

One tip would be not to focus on the newest ship. When a brand-new ship is repositioning from the shipyard or making one of its first major voyages, demand can be extremely high.

Instead, look two or three ships back from the newest vessel in the fleet. That is where I would expect to find better repositioning value.

If A Norwegian Fjords Itinerary Lists A Port And Scenic Cruising On The Same Day, Do I Have To Choose Between Them?

No, on a conventional Norwegian Fjords cruise you generally get both.

Once you are sailing through the fjords, the sailing itself becomes part of the sightseeing. You may wake early and watch the ship sailing into a spectacular fjord before reaching the day’s port. After leaving, you can then have hours of scenic cruising as the ship makes its way back through the fjord.

During summer, with extremely long daylight hours, you may even have scenic cruising very late into the evening or early in the morning.

Hurtigruten and Havila are slightly different because their ships can call at several ports in one day, and some excursions involve getting off at one port and meeting the ship again later.

But on a conventional cruise with Cunard, Princess, Holland America, Norwegian and similar lines, you don’t normally have to choose between visiting the port and enjoying the scenic cruising.

How Much Do You Have To Gamble In A Cruise Casino To Receive Free Cruise Offers?

There isn’t one simple spending figure that guarantees you a complimentary cabin.

One of the most important things to understand is that the casino is interested in your total play and theoretical loss, not simply how much cash you initially put into a machine.

Imagine two people both arrive with a $500 gambling budget.

The first puts $500 through a slot machine, loses it and stops. The second starts with the same $500 but keeps playing whenever they win. Through wins, bonuses and recycling that money through the machine, they might eventually put $2,000 through it despite starting with exactly the same $500 budget.

From the casino’s perspective, those are very different players.

Frequency matters too. Someone who plays regularly throughout the cruise may be more attractive to the casino than somebody who has one short session.

The cruise line knows the statistical house advantage and can calculate a theoretical value for your play. This is also why you must make sure your play is being tracked. On slot machines, always have your cruise card inserted. If you are playing table games, make sure the casino is recording your play.

On Celebrity and Princess I’ve seen information at the casino host desk showing the number of points required for various rewards, which can make the system easier to understand.

Once you get into the casino-offer system and continue playing on subsequent cruises, you can start receiving a regular stream of offers.

But I would never recommend gambling specifically to earn a “free” cruise. Decide on an entertainment budget you can afford to lose. If a future cruise offer comes from that, treat it as a bonus.

Is It Easy To Book Independent Excursions In French Polynesia?

Not always.

In some French Polynesian ports you don’t step off the ship to find dozens of independent excursion vendors waiting for you. We have independently rented e-bikes, including through Avis, and that’s been a good way of exploring.

But if there is something you particularly want to do, I would pre-book rather than assume you’ll find plenty of options once you arrive.

What Should Someone With Limited Mobility Do In French Polynesia?

French Polynesia is fantastic for snorkelling and beaches, so I would make those a major focus.

You don’t necessarily need to do strenuous activities to experience the islands. On some islands there are local open-sided buses that will take you around for relatively little money and can be a fun way to see more of the destination. Bora Bora, for example, is somewhere you can explore this way without needing to cycle or hike.

There are also ATV-style excursions that can get you to some of the spectacular viewpoints if that level of activity is suitable for you.

One thing to bear in mind is that there aren’t always large numbers of independent excursion operators waiting when you step off the ship, so I would pre-book anything that is particularly important to you.

Which Small-Ship Luxury Or Ultra-Luxury Lines Should I Consider For Alaska?

Oceania is one possibility. I haven’t sailed with Oceania in Alaska myself, but I know people who have and enjoyed it.

Windstar could also be interesting because of its strong destination focus. In the ultra-luxury category, I would look at Silversea, which tends to be strong on destination immersion.

If you want something more adventurous, HX Expeditions is another option I would investigate. The trade-off is that an expedition-style Alaska itinerary may not focus on the traditional ports such as Skagway in the way a conventional Alaska cruise does.

Azamara is another possibility, although feedback I’ve heard recently has been somewhat mixed. The most important question is therefore whether you want a conventional Alaska itinerary on a small luxury ship or a more expedition-style experience.

How Do I Deal With Passengers Who Keep Trying To Talk About Politics?

I don’t engage. If somebody expresses a political opinion, I generally don’t respond to it and won’t get drawn into a debate.

Cruising brings together people with very different political and religious views, and I don’t see any benefit in getting into arguments about either.

I’ve had very few political discussions during all my cruises. On one occasion I explained the mechanics of the UK political system to some North American passengers who were interested in how it differed from theirs, but that wasn’t really a political debate.

If someone keeps pushing a political conversation that I don’t want to have, I simply don’t participate and, if necessary, remove myself from the conversation.

Can The Cruise Industry Keep Growing Or Is There a Limit on How Many New Ships Can Be Built?

The industry’s view is clearly that there is still substantial room for growth because only a relatively small proportion of the population has ever cruised.

Shipyards are heavily booked, which is also one reason we’re seeing cruise lines invest substantial amounts in existing ships rather than relying entirely on new ones.

But I do think there is potentially a limiting factor: destinations. We are seeing increasing pressure from destinations concerned about the number or size of cruise ships visiting them.

There have been restrictions and debates in places including Greenland, Barcelona, Iceland and French Polynesia. That is also one reason cruise lines are investing heavily in their own private destinations.

Another interesting trend is that after years of building bigger and bigger ships, some cruise lines are again talking about smaller vessels. Smaller ships can potentially open up destinations that the largest ships cannot visit.

So I think the industry still sees considerable growth ahead, but where all those ships can go may increasingly become the challenge.

What Airline Do I Prefer And Which Class Do I Fly?

I focus heavily on the Oneworld alliance because I want to maximise my Avios and status benefits.

Living in the UK, British Airways is normally my starting point because Heathrow is convenient for me and BA flies directly to many of the destinations I need.

I will also look at other Oneworld airlines such as Qatar Airways and Cathay Pacific. For long-haul flights I try to fly business class, and I use Avios as much as possible.

Because I plan my cruises years ahead, I know when I am going to need particular flights. When reward flights are released, I try to book them immediately.

I also use a British Airways American Express card to generate Avios from my everyday spending and to earn companion vouchers.

There are exceptions. For example, when I needed to fly to Papeete and the Oneworld options didn’t work well, I booked United because it had a much more convenient schedule. But wherever practical, I concentrate my flying within Oneworld.

Is Specialty Dining Worth Paying For If You Have Access To Luminae On Celebrity?

If I was sailing in The Retreat on Celebrity and therefore had access to Luminae, I would mostly stick with Luminae.

I have eaten there on both Solstice-class and Edge-class ships and thought the food was very good. I have gone to Celebrity’s specialty restaurants while staying in The Retreat, but that was largely because I wanted to experience and cover them for the channel.

If I had paid the substantial premium to stay in The Retreat, I personally wouldn’t feel the need to spend even more money on specialty dining. There may be a particular restaurant or style of food you want to try, such as sushi, which makes it worthwhile. But otherwise Luminae already offers a very good dining experience.

I hope you find this “Your Cruise Questions Answered” helpful. You can ask a question on one of my future livestreams which are usually on a Sunday on YouTube and Facebook at 9am PT/ Noon ET/ 5pm UK