MIDSHIP

LUXURY CRUISE

The comfort of sheer luxury

Regent Seven Seas Cruises’ latest ship – Seven Seas Splendor – certainly lives up to it name. Sam Ballard details the fi nest elements on board

With its plush carpets, marble tables and sumptuous fi ttings, Regent’s Seven Seas Splendor was never going to disappoint. This is a ship for those who enjoy the fi ner things in life – and can a ord the very best. Whether that means staying in the vast 410 square metre Regent Suite, or eating in one of the ship’s speciality restaurants. Seven Seas Splendor – the second Explorer-class vessel – is “luxury perfected” according to Regent’s executive team. It means that, while any di erences between this and Seven Seas Explorer aren’t drastic, they are there. The hardware has been tinkered with, a staircase turned here and a restaurant moved there, and the furnishings are less fl ashy, making the ship feel far more like a luxury hotel than a cruise ship.

It is clear that no expense has been spared in building this ship, not just in the hardware (the ship cost €422 million) but throughout. There’s $5 million worth of art on board, with the top suite having its own Picasso, while in the dining room you will fi nd plates by Versace. The higher suites have Acqua di Parma toiletries. When it comes to fi ne dining, there’s an abundance of choice. Pacifi c Rim, the ship’s pan-Asian restaurant, is a fi rm favourite. The entrance is guarded by a magnifi cent dragon statue, while the menu includes beautifully crafted dishes including miso black cod, Canadian lobster tempura and black Angus beef bulgogi. The sushi and sashimi are mouthwatering, too. Chartreuse, the French restaurant, is perfect for a night of indulgence. If the escargot doesn’t tickle your fancy then the suprême de volaille aux morilles might.

The speciality restaurants are complementary but need to be reserved. They’re also full of little touches that set them apart – such as a case of reading glasses o ered to guests who struggle to read the menu and have forgotten their own pair. There are few experiences on any ship that can match a stay in Splendor’s Regent Suite. The huge space, which is roughly the same size as the Observation Lounge that sits directly below it, is the epitome of luxury. The mattress – a Vividus – is

The stunning interior of Seven Seas Splendor (clockwise from below): the Regent Suite bathroom; the Splendor Lounge; the Compass Rose restaurant; the dragons at the entrance to the Pacifi c Rim restaurant

worth $200,000 and is known as the Rolls-Royce of Rest. And that’s only the beginning. Guests get unlimited treatments in their own private spa, have their own driver and car in every port they visit and have a private dining room in the speciality restaurant. There’s plenty more – including a tap that is programmed to pour your perfect co ee – but with prices starting at $10,000 per person per night based on two sharing, the exulted air of this domain is reserved for only the most privileged of clients. However, that’s not to say that other suites on board aren’t just as impressive, if not quite as opulent. Higher suite categories – known as Distinctive Suites – get numerous benefi ts including an earlier booking window for restaurant and shore excursions, upgraded toiletries and an in-suite caviar service, if you so require. Regent’s claim to be the most inclusive cruise line at sea is most evident in its number of free shore excursions, one of its most unique o erings. There are usually a number of tours available, which go beyond the usual hour-long bus tour or transfer. These range from wine tastings to bicycle tours. There will also typically be a paid-for option for those who want something more exclusive. The other paid-for shore excursion is with the Culinary Arts Kitchen or other culinary shore excursions such as a market tour to a guided wander through a Mediterranean olive grove. If there were to be any criticism of Splendor’s o ering it would be of the entertainment. Crossroads, which covers the “decades-long battle” between country and rock music, didn’t quite match up to the ship’s ambiance. The luxury cruise segment is developing, fast. All of Regent’s ultraluxury competitors have ships that are either launching this year or are on the order books. Each company will say it o ers something more luxurious than the last, but Regent Seven Seas Cruises has fi rmly cemented its rightful place within the top tier of cruising with this latest launch. Seven Seas Splendor is a ship for those who enjoy the most luxurious experiences life has to o er, be it hotels, dining or, indeed, cruise ships.

Five-star family fun

Premium cruise brand Holland America Line is the perfect choice for more discerning families who want to enjoy a holiday that mixes adventure and comfort

More and more families are discovering cruise as the perfect multi-generational holiday. Holland America Line now attracts more than 25,000 children and their families on board their 14 ships every year, and with HAL, everyone gets to do what they want, when they want, how they want – all while enjoying their legendary service, award-winning cuisine, fabulous live music and immersive experiences in a wide variety of worldwide destinations. On all ships staterooms and suites come in an array of sizes and confi gurations. Family-friendly options include sofa beds, pull down bunk beds and connecting rooms. Nieuw Statendam, Koningsdam and Ryndam also feature dedicated family staterooms with beds for fi ve guests, extra wardrobe space and two bathrooms. There are also interconnecting staterooms, which are ideal for larger families.

Club HAL provides complimentary, supervised, age-specifi c activities for kids aged from three to 12. Younger cruisers enjoy an imaginatively designed area where paintbrushes serve as pillars, enormous pencils adorn the walls, a paint bucket is a play area, and a huge tape dispenser serves as a slide. Creative activities take place at art tables and movies play on a big-screen television.

Tweens have their own Club HAL area with video games, air hockey, foosball, Kinect for Xbox 360, and large LED screens for gaming and movies. They also can enjoy dance parties, deck sports and karaoke.

The Loft is a place for teens aged between 13-17 to call their own. Resembling a New York artist’s loft, this lounge o ers an adult-free zone where teens can enjoy music, games, fi lms and simply hang out. They can take part in volleyball, a steel drum class and ‘mocktail mixologies’. Club HAL is also about education. A complimentary Culinary Arts programme designed just for kids, tweens and teens, o ers 45 minute classes that teach cookery skills

Talking of food, HAL o ers special menus for kids in the Dining Room, the Lido Restaurant and the Terrace Grill, which include child-friendly favourites such as lasagne, pizza, tacos, fi sh and chips and burgers.

A range of optional family-friendly shore excursions will give your clients new ways to discover destinations. At Half Moon Cay, HAL’s Bahamian private island younger guests may enjoy Waterworks, an incredible aquatic playground. In Alaska the Junior Ranger Programme allows kids to interact with National Park rangers and earn their Junior Ranger Badge. When selling a HAL family cruise, focus on the lifestyle, destinations, dining and activities on this premium value fi ve star ‘hotel at sea’.