Want To Take a Mediterranean Cruise? This Is What It Means To Sail in Luxury

You want to travel. Not just a road trip, not just a weekend away, but something luxurious, maybe even bordering on decadent. An unrivaled experience. The Mediterranean. Not just one country or culture, but several. Business class flights. Spa time. Daily cocktail hour. Ocean breezes. After so many canceled gatherings and getaways, it’s time to get back to travel, to unwind, to return to the joy of far-flung adventures.

You decide you want an experience beyond that of a standard cruise. Looking for an all-inclusive luxury experience—from free round-trip business class air on international flights to unlimited shore excursions to free unlimited beverages—you see Regent Seven Seas Cruises. You find Regent offers all the above and more (even free laundry). So you decide you’ll take a Regent vacation to explore the Mediterranean with a 10-day cruise from Athens to Rome. Your experience will look something like this.

Your welcome aboard

After your business class flight to Athens and complimentary transfer to the ship, you board the Seven Seas Explorer. A flute of Champagne greets you, brought to your ocean-facing suite. And speaking of your accommodations, you particularly love suite details like the walk-in closets, cozy seating areas and dual sinks. (At some point in your research, you stumbled upon the fun fact that 98% of Regent suites offer a private balcony—the perfect place, you think, to unwind and watch the Greek sunset.)

With an itinerary that includes Santorini, Corfu and Taormina in Sicily, you anticipate the upcoming shore time. Still, though, the onboard experience is full of allure. Think starting your morning with coffee overlooking the ocean from your balcony. A hands-on cooking class in the onboard Culinary Arts Kitchen. A vinyasa yoga class with sea views or maybe a hydrothermal experience including a collection of thermal chambers, a sauna and an aromatic steam room at Serene Spa & Wellness.

And once you’ve worked up an appetite? You know you can choose from one of the many culinary experiences onboard. If a seafood craving strikes, you’ll indulge in king crab legs at Prime 7 (don’t miss the 14-layer Valrhona chocolate cake for dessert). For the refined flavors of Paris, you’ll relax at a table at Chartreuse. From comforting Italian to delicious Pan-Asian cuisine, there’s a restaurant for every mood on board (and there are more options than ever for travelers seeking plant-based and paleo-inspired meals)

Of course, your day wouldn’t be complete without some evening entertainment. You ponder whether to try your luck at the casino, catch a performance (such as a musical revue) at the Constellation Theater, listen to resident musicians at the Meridian Lounge or sip a nightcap in the Observation Lounge. Whichever choice you make, you’ll know that, after it’s all over, the ship and Mediterranean Sea will rock you to sleep.  

Getting immersive

The Seven Seas Explorer is a gateway to all the culture, flavor and history that waits on shore. When you step off the ship, you’ll choose between a wide range of shore excursions broken down into categories like Eco-Connect, Behind the Design, and Wellness and Gourmet Explorer (chef-led tours).

Between Athens and Rome, you find you can immerse yourself in a variety of experiences. In Mykonos, you board a ferry for a relaxing sail to Delos, at one time the religious center of the Aegean. You wander through an open-air archaeological site and visit three Hellenic temples before returning to the ship. In Kusadasi, Turkey, you explore one of the largest archaeological sites in the eastern Mediterranean at the ancient city of Ephesus.

Next, you decide you’re ready for some sand and surf. In Corfu, you kick back at Glyfada Beach, known for its golden sands, tree-covered cliffs and sparkling sea. There, you can choose between an afternoon of water sports or some sunbathing between trips to the beach taverna.

In Sicily, you can travel to the top of a volcano, Mount Etna, and visit a winery where you’ll relax over a traditional Sicilian lunch. When you’re ready for a nap, you return to your suite on the Seven Seas Explorer.

Slowing down onboard

Back aboard the Seven Seas Explorer, you decide to slow your pace. Some guests, you find, want to spend an afternoon playing trivia games, bocce ball or board games in the card room. Others may want to head straight for the infinity edge plunge pool, located just outside the Serene Spa, for a relaxing soak overlooking the Mediterranean. With the ship’s well-stocked library, putting green and shuffleboard court, you find there are many ways to unwind.

And of course, what vacation would be complete without a little pampering? At Serene Spa & Wellness, you can select from a spa menu that includes facials (you find the calming rose facial worthy of recommendation), massages (including side-by-side options for you and your significant other) and body treatments (the Mediterranean seaweed wrap is a serious tension releaser). There’s also an on-site beauty salon for manicures, pedicures and more.

You complete your afternoon by sampling from the Regent Signature Cocktail Collection. Along with beloved classic drinks, you find original concoctions, such as the Ginger Bite, a gin-based cocktail with a hint of ginger zing.

During your 10 days at sea, you’ve had plenty of time to try all these different cocktails before the Seven Seas Explorer pulls into your last port, Rome. Before you leave the ship, you raise a glass—this was an excursion to remember. You want to do it all over again—or at least come back next year. But then you remember: With five other ships in Regent’s fleet, there are plenty of new—and equally luxurious—adventures out there.

Insider Tips

• Course-by-course room service: One of the best ways to utilize your suite veranda is to take advantage of room service. Available 24/7, room service lets you dine on your balcony, with dinner served one course at a time, to allow for an especially relaxed and intimate dining experience.

• What’s new: To streamline check-in even further, Regent has launched touchless check-in. Regent is also set to launch a new ship, Seven Seas Grandeur, which will sail for the first time in 2023.

• Getting organized: After booking your cruise, you can maximize your trip with a little additional organization. At the concierge category and above, guests can book shore excursions 365 days in advance (or 300 days for other categories). Guests can also make one reservation for a specialty restaurant prior to boarding, so check out the options and pick between casual French, Pan-Asian and more.

• Group fun: Groups of 10 or more can utilize Reconnect on Regent, a group program that offers private shore excursions and fun options for multigenerational families. Regent also offers sailings for group interests, such as genealogy, history, wine tasting and bridge playing.

• Before and after: Many guests choose to extend their trip either before or even at the end of sailing. In addition to taking advantage of available free one-night pre-cruise hotel packages, you can also choose to add on pre- or post-land packages. A Sacred Treasures of Greece prepackage, for instance, is a four-day experience that includes the Acropolis of Athens, the magnificent site of Delphi and the Meteora monasteries—all before you even board the ship. Alternatively, the Rome and Tivoli Treasures post-package offers a three-day itinerary that includes the Vatican Museums; St. Peter’s Basilica; and the charming town of Tivoli, home to the UNESCO-listed Villa d’Este gardens.
  
  
• Value onboard: Many Regent guests choose to take advantage of special onboard savings and book another cruise for additional value before disembarking.