ON-BOARD REPORT: Regent Seven Seas Navigator

Fleet:	Regent Seven Seas Cruises
Size:	490 passengers. 340 crew (European and International crew; Italian officers). 33,000 tons. 560 feet long. 81 feet wide. Eight passenger decks.
Accommodations:	There are 11 categories of suites. Each has an outside view. 90 percent have (55 square foot) teak balconies. The smallest suite is 301 square feet, while the largest three categories are 495 square feet, 739 square feet, and 1173 square feet, respectively. Each suite has a walk-in closet with shelves, drawers, a safe, and yards of rod space; a fully furnished living room area with sofa, coffee table, and easy chairs; a bedroom area with tall mirrors, a dressing table, bedside tables, and drawers; a writing desk area with chair; and a refrigerator stocked with soft drinks and liquors of the passenger's choice. There are glass-door-fronted display shelves for drinks and glasses. Lighting facilities allow for maximum flexibility: brightness, dimness, individual reading in bed, thoughtful floor illumination at night, and controls in several locations. An in-suite entertainment package consists of television, vcr, and a selection of classical, easy-listening, pop, big band, light jazz, and contemporary audio music channels. More than 400 popular video movies are available for free loan. Television offerings include at least three movie channels, live views from the bridge, and — when technically available — CNN, ESPN, documentary, and local channels. Port and lecture talks are often rebroadcast for in-suite viewing. There are about 15 television choices. Bathrooms are large and generously appointed in marble. Each has a full-size tub with shower plus a separate stall shower. A hair dryer and terry bathrobes are furnished. Counter space, shelves, drawers, and lighting are abundant.
Public rooms and facilities:	There are 15 public rooms, 5 passenger elevators — three of them glass-walled, an outdoor pool/pool bar/whirlpool/café complex, and fine art on display throughout the ship. Dining rooms include a main dining room, a Northern Italian specialty restaurant, a window-lined breakfast and lunch restaurant, a poolside grill, and a lounge/bar used for continental breakfast, formal afternoon tea, entertainment, lectures, and dancing. Additional public rooms include a tiered main showroom, an auxiliary showroom, a health complex containing sauna, steam, massage, treatment rooms, gym with weight and cardio machines and aerobics facilities, a beauty salon, a 12-table card room, a casino divided into separate sections for slots and table gaming, boutiques, a photo shop, and a library well stocked with books, video movies, and computers for email and Internet activity. There are several additional bars.
Itineraries:	Seasonal Caribbean, Mediterranean, and Southern Crossing in 2008
Year completed:	1999
Web address:	www.rssc.com
Toll-free phone number	800 285 1835

A premier cruise ship without cabins?

That’s right. With a minimum size of 301 square feet, each accommodation on the Radisson Seven Seas Navigator is not a cabin, but a suite — two-thirds larger than standard cabins on the current generation of megaships.

First-time Navigator passengers begin to sense the quality of their upcoming experience weeks in advance, when their cruise documents arrive. They open the package to find a rich-feeling, leather folio tastefully embossed with a Radisson Seven Seas logo. Lining the inside of the sand-toned case is a satiny full-folder trim. Thoughtfully included is an extensive guide (often more than 80 pages) tailored to the passenger’s specific trip. It covers the itinerary, expected weather patterns, excursion opportunities, history and highlights of each port, and a selection of optional pre- and post-cruise hotels. It also anticipates and answers dozens of pre-cruise questions passengers often have.

Once aboard and on their way, passengers learn that their carefully crafted initial impression was just the first element of a consistent plan that unfolds as their cruise begins.

They enter their suite to find personally imprinted stationery and envelopes. There’s a bowl of fresh fruits and often a fresh flower arrangement. Complimentary refreshments await in the refrigerator.

As they start to explore the ship, they find that while — at a capacity of 490 passengers — Navigator is not a large ship, it seems to have all the accoutrements of a large ship. For example:

• Entertainment. The scope and quality of entertainment offerings parallel those of large ships. From complex Broadway-style musicals to top-flight classical pianists to versatile bands and razor-edge comedians, the talent and the facilities they perform in are of star caliber. The comfortable, tiered main lounge allows unobstructed views.
  
• Food quality and choices. High-end items like chateaubriand, lobster, rack of lamb, and quail highlight dinner menus. Complimentary wines accompany dinners. A high-end alternative Italian restaurant also awaits — at no additional charge.
  
  Each meal includes meat, fowl, and fish choices, vegetarian dishes, pastas, healthy items, appetizers, soups, salads, and desserts. Pasta-to-order and omelet-to-order stations are open at lunch and breakfast. Daily teas are elaborate. There are no assigned dining tables or times, so passengers may choose to join different people each night, dine at a table for two, or dine with friends. Ties are optional.
  
• Library. Generously stocked with books, more than 400 video movies, Internet-ready computers, and comfortable furnishings, Navigator’s library has more resources per passenger than most of today’s new megaships.
  
• Casino. Navigator’s two-room casino offers scores of slots and all the table games available elsewhere at sea.
  
• Land tours. An unusually wide range of tours is offered at each port.
  
• Education. A number of cruises each year feature themes and well-known lecturers. They are detailed in seasonal Navigator brochures. This year theme cruises include the subjects of food, wine, great art, and music festivals. Speakers from the world of economics and current affairs are often aboard. On most cruises, tours of the bridge and galley are offered. Bridge and computer instructors are also on hand.
  
• Current events. Passengers are kept up to date with current events via a daily mini-newspaper published in U. S., British, Canadian, and French editions. There’s also a daily program that lists port information, entertainment and dining options, and on-board events. They’re delivered to each suite — not slipped under the door, where passengers would have to stoop to retrieve them, but very civilly placed into an eye-level holder on the suite door.

Is anything missing? Yes, two things.

• Navigator has no self-service coffee and iced tea machines like megaships do. They wouldn’t jibe with Navigator’s we-serve-you philosophy. Those beverages, and any others, are indeed available at any time of the day or night. But they’ll be delivered to passengers, not chased down by passengers. A call to Room Service does it.
  
• One other thing Navigator doesn’t have: it doesn’t have a nonstop diet of public address announcements hawking all sorts of goods and services. Generally, it offers undisturbed peace and quiet in greater quantities than megaships do.

Finally, at the end of the day, the Godiva chocolate on the pillow isn’t just any chocolate. It comes in a custom two-inch-square envelope with Radisson’s logo on it. Imprinted is food for thought about travel intended to lull passengers to sleep with pleasant thoughts. Sample: “ Discovering consists of seeing what everybody has seen and thinking what nobody has thought.”

The ship attracts a loyal complement of passengers, many of whom have been on Navigator before. Typically, they are well-traveled, well-spoken professionals. All ages are represented on most cruises, with middle-agers in the majority.

Tips are included in the fare and are not expected. However, most passengers add gratuities to staff members who have been especially helpful.

ON-BOARD REPORT: Queen of the West

Web address: MajesticAmericaLine.com

Toll-free phone number: 1 800 434 1232

This is not your father's sunburn/island-a-day/shop-'til-you-drop/snorkel-and-dive/2000-passenger cruise. Quite the reverse.

This is a cruise into history. On a small, up-front scale. With lots there to learn about. With guides and expert lecturers all along the route to teach and explain. With a number of passengers so manageable that each can expect to really meet each other one. This is, most of all, a cruise into the fascinating tale of Western America's discovery.

Queen of the West's year-'round seven-day sternwheeler steamer trips leave from Portland, Oregon. They cruise through ever-changing scenery, terrain, and climate for 1000 miles along the Columbia, Snake, and Willamette Rivers, through eight locks and dams, beside picturesque cities, forts, Indian reservations, forests, waterfalls, gorges, and canyons along the historic Lewis & Clark and Oregon Trail routes.

A hospitable, young American crew takes care of passenger comforts, while on-board historians/naturalists/lecturers take care of learning activities. Enthusiastic landside rangers and guides at each attraction and visitor center fill passengers in on their geographic, historic, and functional specialties. A fleet of luxury Prevost coaches precedes the ship each night and is waiting when the ship reaches the next port the following morning. The same well-versed drivers stay with passengers the whole week, making for expert touring leadership. TV cameras trained on the road ahead transmit pictures to screens in the buses, so passengers may sit anywhere and get a front-seat view.

Daily tours — sometimes several of them — are included in the tour price. On most cruises, tours visit: Bonneville Dam, where the generation and distribution of electricity and the use of fish ladders are demonstrated; Multnomah Falls, at 620 feet the second highest waterfall in America and part of the greatest collection of waterfalls in the U. S.; Hells Canyon, where high-speed jet boats whiz by petroglyphs and memorable natural landscape formations; Pendleton, where passengers visit with working cowboys who show how horses and sheep dogs are trained and how guns work; Maryhill Museum, where works of Rodin sculptures and drawings, native American carvings and artifacts, and a replica of England's Stonehenge war memorial are on display; Tamastslikt Cultural Institute, which tells the history of the region's Indian population through exhibits, dioramas, dance, and dialogue; Columbia Gorge Discovery Center, which houses a giant working model of part of the Columbia River and displays about the geologic creation of the Gorge; Mount St. Helens, whose visitor center overlooks and explains the spectacular and destructive l980 eruption; and other attractions; and Astoria's Columbia River Maritime Museum, one of the world's leading maritime museums. Additional understanding of the Lewis & Clark expedition permeates each day's travels at virtually every stop.

The history of the 1803 Lewis & Clark expedition is relived throughout the week's cruise from many perspectives. Passengers will learn that it was chartered by Thomas Jefferson, the third president of the U. S. He was eager to find and control the fabled Northwest Passage before the British could discover and claim it. He surmised that the Columbia shared headwaters with the Missouri, so he had Lewis and Clark set out from St. Louis. For more than two years, they explored, charted new territory, made meticulous notes, interacted with the native Indian population, and made the absorbing history that the Queen of the West experience is built around.

Aside from the history theme, there are other subjects that make any cruise memorable: food and entertainment

Several novel ideas mark Queen of the West's food service.

• There are no assigned tables. So passengers may choose to meet new acquaintances whenever mealtime arrives. By the end of the journey, most passengers have met and made many new friends.
• Single-sitting dining accommodates all passengers.
• Half-portions of anything on the menu may be ordered. From soup to desserts, portion sizes are up to the consumer.
• Views from the parlor-d?cor dining room are never-ending. Because the room is situated on the first deck, sight lines of the river and the banks beyond are continuous through large tabletop-to-ceiling windows. No dining room chair is more than 25 feet from a whole wall of windows; most are closer.
• An alternative dining room, the top-deck Calliope Bar & Grill, serves breakfast, lunch, snacks, chili, and desserts. Soft drinks and coffee are available 24 hours a day.
• Printed menus and recipes are freely given to those who request them. And requested they are, because passenger comments about food are virtually unanimous in praise of both the creativity and delectability of the offerings. They include fresh Northwest fish like salmon and halibut daily, different soups daily, different complimentary hors d'oeuvres in the bars daily, fresh-baked rolls and breads, prime rib, steaks, lobster, duck, rack of lamb, chicken, salads, vegetarian entrees, and scores of desserts.

Entertainment is provided by a resident band, a cruise staff, and small vocal, instrumental, dance, and comedy groups and soloists. Most nights have an entertainment theme, like Best of Broadway, Country Western, Golden Oldies, or America the Beautiful. Different entertainment is possible each evening because the ship customarily picks up entertainers on the day of their show and drops them off just after the show at one of the many landings along the route.

The boat is never more than a few hundred yards from shore. Because of a novel adjustable bow and shallow depth, it's always easy to simply walk on and off. No rough-bucking big-ship tendering here.

Information about each day's activities and highlights is provided to each cabin the night before via a Western-style newsletter titled "Queen of the West Times." It offers historical tidbits of upcoming ports, an hour-by-hour program of activities, and previews of the next day's entertainment program.

ON-BOARD REPORT: Oosterdam

Roots. Tradition. Heritage. That's what separates Holland America Line from almost all others.

In today's cruise world, Holland America is distinguished by its heritage and history. The first Holland America ship arrived in the New World in 1872, so the company has more than 1.3 centuries of experience serving a worldwide clientele.

While it's now primarily in the premium pleasure business, it came of age transporting immigrants to the U. S. By 1898, it had brought 400,000 steerage passengers and 90,000 cabin passengers to America. It added hundreds of thousands more over the next decades. As the European immigrant business trailed off after World Wars I and II, it pioneered two innovative concepts that became basics in the growth of the cruise industry: Caribbean cruising in 1926 and allowing tourist class passengers the run of the ship in 1951.

Today's fleet of 13 cutting-edge ships has been crafted with a respectful nod to Holland America's European traditions and rich maritime history. The Oosterdam is part of Holland America's newest Vista-class series, named for the four points of the compass: Oosterdam (east), Westerdam (west), Noordam (north), and Zuiderdam (south).

It's not only the Oosterdam hardware that evokes a certain graciousness. The Oosterdam's uniformly smart, well-mannered, well-groomed, and likable Philippine and Indonesian staff do, too. While the staff is now from all over the world, passengers come into contact most often with those two longest-term categories of Holland America personnel. What is now Indonesia was once owned by Holland and known as the Dutch East Indies. Holland America employed many of its East Indies colonials generations ago. And today some of the Indonesians are the second or third generation of their family to work for Holland America. That brings a tradition that newer carriers can't match.

Following tradition, the passenger-service staff shows up in many unexpected places during an Oosterdam cruise, helping to make travelers' experiences memorable: in an era where self-service has become the rule on most ships, they personally deliver after-dinner mints into the hands of departing dinner guests; they personally assemble trays with cutlery and linens and proficiently hand them to Lido diners at the beginning of the food line; they personally staff dessert displays and cheerfully dispense the goodies; they often man automatic coffee/tea machines and personally serve the beverages; they personally offer hot cocoa on cold Alaska decks; they personally play musical chimes to announce dinner; they personally provide popcorn to moviegoers; they personally prepare and serve omelets and pastas while chatting up the guests; they're up at poolside demonstrating one-on-one how favorite dishes are cooked, the many ways that the dining room's linen napkins are folded, how to carve vegetables; and more.

Then, after working hours, they enthusiastically produce a well-polished talent show for passengers and they're on stage by the hundreds in a day-before-departure thank-you-and-good-bye gathering.

Many of those personal touches have become scarce on other ships and thus tend to create a closer-than-usual bond between passengers and staff on the Oosterdam. That may be why — on a typical Oosterdam cruise — more than 50 percent of the passengers are repeaters. They're recognized with a reception on each cruise.

Cabins contain "Dream Beds," with plush mattresses and 250 thread-count cotton bed linens, bathrobes, halo-lighted magnifying makeup mirrors, hair dryers, fresh fruit, modern-design polished stainless steel ice buckets, flat-screen television sets, DVD players, massage shower heads, and fresh flowers. One well-planned touch is the placement of a supplemental panel of light switches so that they can be reached from bed. Upon retiring and awakening, a passenger need only touch the backboard to extinguish lights or brighten the room. Individual reading lamps are placed so they won't disturb others. Another design plus can be found in many closets. Hinged panels can rest either vertically against a wall or horizontally. In the former position, the closet is used to hang clothes; in the latter arrangement, it becomes a space for shelves. Making good use of air space, shelves are suspended from ceilings and attached to walls in most cabins, adding to storage capacity. Cabins are finished with light-toned woods and walls, and are highlighted with light fabrics and furnishings.

In-cabin television carries movie, cable news, and sports channels 24 hours a day. It's used also to re-broadcast lectures and shows and to preview port tours. It shows a continuous view from the bridge.

Entertainment is presented in several locations nightly. A big, tri-level showroom houses major productions of professional quality and considerable complexity. Several auxiliary showrooms present dance music, disco music, string concerts, soloists, comedians, and more. A piano bar concentrates on old favorites.

An abundance of food is served in an abundance of places: a main dining room that seats more than 1100, a Lido, a poolside grill, an alternative-dining Pinnacle Grill, a pizzeria, an ice cream bar, a dessert section, a taco bar, a pasta bar, a pizza bar, an ice cream bar, a sandwich bar, an Oriental bar, burgers and hot dogs, early breakfast, breakfast, buffet breakfast, lunch, buffet lunch, afternoon snacks, formal dinner, casual dinner, alternative dinner, and late night snacks assure that there's something available to be eaten almost all day and all night. The main dining room offers a wide selection of appetizers, salads, soups, main courses, desserts, and healthy-diet and special-diet food each night. Often soft violins or piano music accompany dinner from a balcony music pod. The alternative dining room offers premium menus at an additional charge.

To work off all that food, a first-rate health club is provided in a spacious top-of-the-ship salon. Its equipment includes most of the popular workout gear. Professional instruction is offered. Hot tubs, saunas, thermal suites, hydrotherapy pool, steam rooms, heated ceramic lounges, massage, and spa treatments are part of the complex. So is a beauty salon/barber shop. Adding to the keep-healthy theme, hand sanitizers are placed in many strategic areas of the ship

Glass is used generously throughout the ship, engendering an impression of light and space. It surrounds three sides of the two-story main dining room, three sides of the fitness center, three sides of a large observation bar/lounge, three sides of a number of interior and exterior-facing elevators and two sides of the high-up Lido dining room. Glass and light are above sun-seekers on the sliding swimming pool dome, too.

Generously in view in the Oosterdam's tasteful public areas are rich woods, carpeting, art, and brass highlights... continuously, it seems to passengers, being cleaned and polished by an army of caretakers.

Tours are a main ingredient of cruise travel. On the Oosterdam, experienced tour personnel explain each port before arrival. Using lectures and in-cabin video, they inform from both a historic and tourist perspective. Passengers are encouraged to ask questions and then choose the tours that most interest them.

Two publications are delivered to each stateroom daily. Each morning, a news digest keeps passengers aware of goings-on in the non-cruise world; each evening, a daily program chronicles the next day's scheduled events, ports, entertainment offerings, TV choices, dining and bar hours, and other events and services of interest. Typically, each day's Oosterdam program lists more than three dozen choices.

A new safety idea applies to children under 13. They must wear a bracelet containing their lifeboat number, so in case they're separated from their parents when an alarm sounds, they'll be reunited in an orderly manner. Lifeboats have satellite locating signals.

Tips: Tip fees now appear automatically on passengers' account statements, but can be altered or stricken at the passenger's discretion.

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