Thursday, September 21, 2006

Regent's Penthouse B and Butler Service

Day 2 aboard the Regent Seven Seas Mariner (Alaska to Russia to Japan).

Here's a bit of information about our stateroom aboard the Regent Mariner. We booked a Penthouse B suite on Deck 10, mainly because we wanted a bit more room. (I needed space to exercise; I use the Leslie Sansone in-home walking DVD series and wanted to be sure I could do this workout every day.)

The room itself is 376 square feet with a 73-square-foot balcony. The sleeping area with a king bed is set off from the living room with heavy blackout curtains that tie back during the day so you can sit on the bed and gaze out the sliding-glass doors to the balcony. The sitting area is outfitted with a L-shape sofa, chair, TV/DVD, writing desk/chair and mini-fridge.

This stateroom category comes with the services of a butler. We really didn’t need the extra assistance since we’re the type of people who like to take care of things ourselves (restaurant reservations, laundry, etc.).

However, Laxmesh was terrific and it was nice to talk with him each day. Every afternoon he brought a tray of hors d’oeuvres around 5:00 pm and he was available via phone anytime we needed anything. Some of the evening appetizers included tuna sashimi, shrimp cocktail, a cheese platter, antipasto, caviar and foie gras.

Laxmesh immediately learned about my predilection for Diet Coke and made sure the fridge was stocked at all times. He also made sure my husband had sliced lemons and limes for his afternoon libations.

Our stateroom was just around the corner from the elevator and stairs, and across the entry hallway to the laundry room. This was a fantastic location because it really didn’t take any time to get from our room to any other location on the ship. It was especially convenient to get to the Constellation Theater on Deck 5, the Observation Lounge on Deck 12, as well as the Coffee Corner, library, Internet cafe and Stars nightclub, all on Deck 6.

I would have loved our cabin to be a few decks lower, however. We did encounter some rough weather as we left Kodiak, Alaska and another night sailing the Sea of Okhotsk. We never got sea sick (maybe thanks to our Sea-Band wrist bands and Bonine… which we used religiously), but it was still rocky. One night it was really difficult to sleep, so we just got up and watched some DVDs we checked out from the library earlier. The Mariner really responds well in rough seas though. During most of our voyage, we could barely feel the ship moving. (Photo courtesy of Regent Seven Seas Cruises.)

The bed in our suite was AMAZING (albeit a bit high for my 5-foot height). It was incredibly comfortable and, combined with the gentle rocking of the ship, I felt like a baby bear nestled in for a long winter’s hibernation!

The balcony was terrific and we used it quite a bit; we were blessed with smooth seas and warmer-than-expected temperatures for many days of the voyage.



The suite was incredibly quiet, but that may have to do with the fact that this leg of the cruise was underbooked. I don’t think there were any guests in the rooms next to us. From what we heard, many more people were joining the Grand Asia Pacific voyage when the ship docked in Tokyo (our disembarkation port).

If you book a penthouse suite on any Regent cruise ship, you're sure to love it! Our stateroom was the perfect basecamp during our voyage across the International Dateline.

Photo credits (top to bottom): Leonard Hospidor (first four photos), Regent Seven Seas, Andrea Rotondo

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