2023 Grand Asia Cruise, Final Report

• By Barry & Allyn Shulman
• On March 28, 2023
• 6 Comments.

Today we finished our 75-day Grand Asia cruise on the Regent Explorer. Notwithstanding our bags being almost two weeks late, Allyn having the medical scare of her life, Destination Services being incompetent and rude, food being inconsistent and many shows dreadful, we had a great time.

So many passengers love this line and other high-end lines. Clearly most of those people never had the privilege of sailing with Crystal Cruises. They will be back this summer, remodeled, and with new owners. Our fingers are crossed.

 

We had quite a wonderful sendoff last night. Beside the normal entertainment with the crew cast, they had a fun Beatles Tribute in a rotunda area. Old folks can have fun too!

A couple things happened because of covid. Over and over ports we went into had not received ships for three years and they were delighted to see us. There was much local press and ceremonies along the way.

An unintended consequence was that the tour guides had not escorted for three years and generally their English was poor and accents extremely difficult to understand. They learn English in school and were totally out of practice.

Leaving the ship today was as smooth as any we have ever experienced. People were there to help with bags and there was no wait at customs or immigration. That was the same all over the county.

We flew home from Tokyo Haneda, a very large airport. Again, we were totally impressed. Customs and Immigration were a snap with much help and extra people to move things along. Baggage check was virtually instant, also with extra folks to help throughout the airport. Even the coffee server and foreign exchange person were terrific. It’s a culture thing and we could learn from them.

And more immaculate restroom facilities.

In conclusion, we arrived SFO for our layover. The U.S. Customs and Immigration were as fast as I have ever seen it. Global Entry is the only way to go.

The SFO restroom was ok, but not close to as clean as all in Japan we visited.