Regent Seven Seas Cruises® unveils new shore excursions

Regent Seven Seas Cruises has launched two new shore excursion concepts to further expand the impressive destination experiences the luxury cruise line is known for. The Behind the Designand Eco-Connect tours invite travelers to explore destinations and sights from unique and original perspectives.Online Editor: Mical Joseph
Image: Regent Seven Seas CruisesRegent Seven Seas Cruises, the world's leading luxury cruise line, has been delivering an unparalleled experience for more than 30 years. With room for up to 732 guests on board, the spacious and stylish ships - Seven Seas Explorer®, Seven Seas Mariner®, Seven Seas Navigator®, Seven Seas Splendor®, Seven Seas Voyager® and, beginning in 2023, Seven Seas Grandeur™ - of the world's most luxurious fleet sail to more than 450 iconic destinations worldwide. With unmatched space at sea™, guests can enjoy personalized service at the highest level as well as luxurious all-suite accommodations, which are among the largest at sea and nearly all feature private balconies. Included are shore excursions, all meals at an array of specialty and alfresco restaurants, quality wines and spirits, entertainment, unlimited Internet access, valet laundry, gratuities and a hotel night prior to the cruise for guests staying in Concierge suites and above.

Behind the Design

Behind the Designtours offer incredible insights into some of the world's most fascinating and brilliant architectural gems, including the Royal Library and Blue Planet aquarium in Copenhagen, Denmark; the Equinor office building and Munchmuseet in Oslo, Norway; and the La Villa Mediterranée and MUCEM in Marseille, France. There are a total of 10 Behind the Designtours for the initial launch, which is exclusive to European destinations in the summer of 2022. Each tour offers special stories and information from expert guides about the inspiration, reasoning and genius that brought these marvels to life. Other Behind the Designtours launching focus on locations in Barcelona, Spain; Belfast, Northern Ireland; Glasgow, Scotland; La Coruna, Spain; Lisbon, Portugal; and Sète, France.

Eco-Connect

With a choice of more than 150 Eco-Connect toursaround the world, guests can connect with local groups and businesses to learn how they are working to conserve and preserve their environment. The tours, many of which offer an educational element, give guests the opportunity to participate in a variety of experiences, including tasting organic wine at a sustainable vineyard in Bordeaux, France; helping to create a paradise for sloths to roam in Puntarenas, Costa Rica; or gaining a new appreciation for the diverse flora and fauna around Hue, Vietnam while hiking through the beautiful Bach Ma National Park. Eco-Connect toursspan the globe and include a wide variety of destinations such as Africa, Alaska, Asia, Australia and New Zealand, the Caribbean, the Mediterranean, the Middle East, Northern Europe and South America.

Behind the Design tours

Behind the Design: Copenhagen, Denmark

Royal Library & Blue Planet

Wander through two radical, modernist buildings with an architectural historian who will reveal unknown facts about the extraordinary designs. The Black Diamond extensionof the Royal Library is as revolutionary as it seems. The irregularly shaped monolithic prism is clad in black granite and faces the river to capture as much natural light as possible. The building's considerable slope, undulating balconies and expanding form, presented a host of design challenges that the guide will explain. The Blue Planet is perhaps even more striking because it is the largest aquarium in Europe and resembles a giant whirlpool - a design inspired by the shape of water in endless motion. The exterior of the building is covered with aluminum panels reminiscent of fish scales, while the curved interior ceiling evokes images of the ribs of an enormous whale. The guide elaborates on the technological challenges of constructing the Blue Planet coast.

Behind the Design: Oslo, Norway

Equinor & Munchmuseet

Discover how two extraordinarily modern buildings transformed Oslo's skyline and pushed the boundaries of design. An architectural historian's guide will delve deeper into the buildings' cutting-edge technologies and present a rare insider's perspective on their construction. The iconic Equinor office building consists of five separate rectangular modules stacked on top of each other at different angles, all to optimize daylight and views. Guests will also hear fascinating details about how the atrium's propeller-shaped glass roof was designed to withstand months of extra weight from snow. The Munchmuseet, a 13-story museum dedicated to the works of Norwegian artist Edvard Munch, was also influenced by climatic conditions. It is built with low-carbon concrete and aluminum cladding that reflects bright sunlight and is cooled with seawater. The top of the building intentionally tilts forward, as if in homage to Oslo.

Behind the Design: Marseille, France

La Villa Mediterranée & MUCEM

Get insider insight into the challenges of building two avant-garde monuments by exploring them with an architectural historian. La Villa Mediterranée, located along the waterfront, was designed to symbolize Marseille's deep connection to the sea. This three-level public space is immediately recognized for its prominent cantilevered structure and also features a conference center with portholes under the sea. As guests will discover, that first floor offered all sorts of unusual conditions that pushed the boundaries of architecture. The building overlooks MUCEM, a national museum dedicated to Mediterranean civilizations. Its bold design includes elements such as tree-like columns, a lace facade resembling a fishing net and a slender walkway connecting it to the towering ramparts of Fort St. Jean. The square-in-a-square shape of MUCEM is classic in a sense, but radically different because of its building materials. The concrete filigree that shields much of the structure is particularly stunning.

Eco-Connect tours

Bordeaux wines and sustainability: Bordeaux, France

On this Eco-Connect tour, guests will discover how the conversion to biodynamic and organic farming has further enhanced the quality of Château de La Dauphine 's prized wines. The first vineyards in the Fronsac region of Bordeaux were planted about 2,000 years ago, so this appellation has a long history. Yet in 2015, the new owners of Château de La Dauphine sought to improve their wines by adopting sustainable biodynamic practices that go far beyond pesticide-free organic farming methods. Biodynamic farming follows a holistic, ethical approach that follows the harmonious cycles of nature, particularly the movement of the moon and planets. During the tour of the vineyards, guests will learn more about biodynamic farming and its influence on the terroir and taste of the wines. The tasting that follows will provide even more insight. The exact wines will be chosen upon arrival, but will likely include an elegant, deep red Merlot.

A sloth's paradise - Give back to nature: Puntarenas, Costa Rica

When visiting a sanctuary for sloths that have been orphaned, injured, or have lost their habitat due to deforestation, guests can get a closer look at the animals. This, while they are being rehabilitated in hopes of returning the animals to the wild. Sloths are the world's slowest animals, hanging upside down in trees almost all day and rarely traveling more than 38 meters. If their habitat is disturbed or destroyed, the sloths are at great risk. Guests can observe baby sloths and many adults in various stages of rehabilitation. The guide describes the habits of sloths in the wild and how they easily adapt to the environment of the reserve that mimics a tropical forest. Deforestation is one of the biggest threats to sloths, so to support their cause, travelers can plant a tree in a nearby forest reserve.

Ecosystem Bach Ma National Park: Hue, Vietnam

Guests can hike through Bach Ma National Park with a naturalist who will point out and describe the remarkably diverse flora and fauna. As an introduction to the natural wonders, travelers will first view exhibits in the visitor center that describe the park's mountainous topography. Bach Ma means "white horse," a reference to the clouds that drift with the wind around the granite peak. As the trail climbs, the forest becomes denser and the air cooler. Although the ruins of houses built by the colonial French to escape the summer heat are still visible, almost every other sight will be natural. Birds abound, including red-headed trogons and scarlet minivets, which are easy to spot because of their bright colors. One-fifth of all plant species found in Vietnam reside in the park, and rare orchids can be seen. The summit offers panoramic views of the Tam Giang lagoon mountains and Hue.