Up at 7am and after I showered I ran down down to get coffees. No free coffee at this Hilton as the night time bar turned into a Starbucks for mornings. Later I ran over to Publix as Rebecca forgot the Claritin allery med. I also got three egg & potato empanadas for our breakfast.
We had a bellman come get our luggage at 11am. As we had too much for a taxi, he called a van for us. $10 per person to the port was a good price I thought. Another couple from the UK was waiting for a Uber to take them to the ship but it never showed up so they went in our van also. Plenty of room.
It was after 11:30 when we arrived at Terminal C where the Mariner was docked. Long line to check in but with our Diamond status there was a special line for folks like us. We were on board by noon. During check in we got a warm welcome from William, the Executive Concierge, whom we know well. I call him "Wild Bill".
This is the gentleman who checked us in.
It was a very long winding walk through the terminal to get to the ship. Above is photo of provisions to be boarded today.
Due to our Diamond status (over 1000 nights on Regent cruises) our suite was ready for us as soon as we came on board. Everyone else had to wait until 3pm for their suites to be ready for occupancy. First thing we had to do was go to our emergency muster station to check in and get our names marked off. Next I went to the Reception Desk and requested we get the Dallas Morning News paper every day. This is another free perk.
We then headed up to La Veranda (the buffet) for some lunch. Jorge was the head waiter there today but he will be the maitre d in Prime 7 tonight so he gladly moved our reservation time from 7:30 up to 7pm. We spent 5 months with Jorge on our 2023 world cruise. Also pictured is Bernalyn. She was working on our 2023 world cruise also and we love her.
Marcia, on right, joined us at lunch. The four of us are dining together in Prime 7 tonight.
We then headed down to Deck 5 and I got these photos of some of the Christmas decorations. We went to the internet person to get our phones and my laptop connected to the ships internet. Rebecca signed up for "streaming" at $10 per day extra so she can watch her soaps. The library was right there so she picked up a book to read.
Adrian, on left, is the Beverage Manager. We knew him from a previous cruise and he knew us. I had spoken briefly during lunch requesting our special chardonnay (La Crema) that was put on board for us. I ask for a bottle tonight be put in the Mariner Lounge (where we are going for happy hour at 6pm) and another bottle be put in Prime 7. I also had requested a bottle of Makers Mark bourbon be boarded today for me and mentioned it to him. (When we got back to our suite the bourbon was there) By the way Makers Mark will not service cruise ships any more so a Regent person had to go get this at a local Miami liquor store for me. No charge for either the La Crema or Makers Mark. YES, WE ARE SPOILED! Dominic is on the other side of Marcia. We have cruised with him several times and he is now the Restaurant Manager in Compass Rose, the main dining room. Both are great guys.
So back to our suite we went to see if our checked luggage had been delivered. One came at 3pm and the other at 4pm. We are now unpacked.
Another Diamond perk is a bottle of Veuve Clicquot champagne. This is a $50 bottle at Total Wine. And my Makers Mark. The red box is Leonidas chocolates, another perk.
Photos of our suite to follow.
The mandatory safety briefing over the PA occurred at 4:30 as we shall sail at 5pm. It is sooooo nice to be back on board our "second home", a Regent Seven Seas cruise ship. It's going to be a short week I'm sure, but we shall enjoy every minute. I got a big hug from Captain Saro this afternoon as he was coming out of a meeting. He calls me "Captain"!
We will be meeting Marcia and Jane in the Mariner Lounge at 6pm for pre-dinner drinks. I asked Adrian, Beverage Manager, if he could arrange some "pigs in a blanket" (small hotdogs in pastry) as our hors 'd oeuvres in the lounge this evening.
Tomorrow is a relaxing sea day.
As I was about to publish this post, a crew member delivered this very beautiful, fresh flower bouquet. Another one of our perks. Now about time to get dressed for cocktail time and dinner.
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