Brummijam

Hi Prestonscotty. Boarding passes and luggage labels are usually emailed to you after online check in about seven to ten days before your flight. When your coach drops you at the port cruise terminal you usually check in before you get onto the ship. Once you are onboard you have to confirm that you have watched the muster video and you will get your cabin key card, The buffet restaurant is usually open and also the snack shack and maybe other eateries. Some bars are open on deck and also the onboard pub. You can get off the ship for a wander outside as long as you return in Time for sail away, the security officers at the gangplank will confirm sailing time. Hope this helps. Hope you enjoy your trip.

One of the positives from that review and quite correct.😉

One of the reviews off this board from January this year on Explorer.🤷🏻‍♂️ Oh dear. A disappointing experience. The ship is kept very clean. The balcony was large and the hammock was a nice touch. Muster drills are now on video and are faster than before. But: Tui/Marella has now sunk so far downmarket that I am surprised they don’t market this as a submarine. The ship is now so mediocre and lacking in character, charm or features that it now resembles a floating Travelodge at best. The food on board is purely functional. With the exception of the steak restaurant, don’t bother paying for premium restaurants as the food and accompanying service is clueless and scripted. The “Dining Club” was almost hilarious in its incompetence and we felt it was like attending a cooking evening by well meaning but untrained primary school kids role playing a fine dining setup. Terrible! The staff often lack initiative, confidence or experience and I witnessed some worrying bullying behaviour between them. We sat next to crew meetings held in the coffee bar where this was being discussed a few inches away. Unprofessional in the extreme. Weird really. Most staff mean well but many seem to be to be frightened of showing any independent thought. Amazing deterioration post-Covid. Since we last travelled on the Explorer, all signs of luxury have disappeared. The former Champneys Spa is now an anonymous sales-led treatment business and there are no cabanas on deck to rent any more. The wine selections are pitiful and the named choices absent while the choice and quality of the food onboard now resembles that found in a typical motorway service station. The accountants have taken over and there is a meanness everywhere in our opinion. It is like a low-rent wedding party really. A week spent in an airport terminal. There is a lack of joy on this ship. Guests seemed muted. Long waits at under-staffed bars too. The bean counting is sad. Food portions outside the buffet are tiny (2 prawns in a paid for premium prawn cocktail for example!!!) They even charge £5 for shuttle buses now to get you out of ports where it would be a 25 minute walk to just get out of the industrial docking areas. Mean. You get what you pay for I guess, but this is now almost a third-world experience compared to the past. The library (The Attic) had literally zero books left and the deserted gamer’s zone features some broken Playstations and derelict seating. Several areas of the boat seemed unused compared to last time and the entertainment consists of a couple of lounge singers and the theatre shows are threadbare imitations of the past efforts. Most of the guests seemed to be first time cruisers and seemed happy (relieved even) with the free booze and pile it high burgers, sausages and chips. The cruise attracted a 60+ crowd of almost entirely British people who seemed friendly and quiet and who hailed predominantly from a Northern English/Scottish working-class background. Embarkation was efficient, the cleaners are very swift and good and while the cabins are old, they are clean and offer some great balcony space for the money. It feels like Ryanair have gone into the cruising business and I guess that’s fine. It’s a cheap cruise but we were sad to see the decline in standards. We did not enjoy the experience, hated the food and it was a joy to get off the boat. Cabin Review Ok. Knackered. But nice terrace with hammock. Fridge.

What are your thoughts regarding the current standards on Marella ships. On our last trip we were of the opinion that cost cutting was taking its toll with poor food, sub standard drinks/ mixers and poor quality house wines. The Explorer was looking grubby and the staff were overstretched. On this board there seems to be some discontent from contributors regarding poor service etc. I was reading reviews for Explorer at the top of this board and they don’t paint a very good picture with poor ratings. Whats your opinions?

Just had a look online and it’s ten pounds per person per night, I believe that all adults in the cabin have to upgrade if you decide to go for it.

Fair point.👍

On the last trip that we did we took the upgrade and to be honest it wasn’t value for money for us, the beers and the vodka that I prefer are on the included package anyway and the few cocktails that my wife ordered that weren’t on the included list only had a small upgrade price per drink. We did drink more coffee port drinks than we would normally but only because it was included in the upgrade. As for the bottled water in the cabin we used it for making tea and we’re giving bottles away to the housekeeping staff.🤷🏻‍♂️

You are correct Paul. But if all of the drinks that you like are on the standard package except for cans of fizzy drink they can be purchased for one pound per can.🤷🏻‍♂️

HimPJs good advice from Dronnygirl. 👍 Also on the last couple of trips TUI sent electronic boarding passes to my email on my phone a couple of days before embarkation. Enjoy your holidays.

This is the correct per person allowance.👍

Which is why I said “ Cans of coke are charged at a pound each if you Aren’t on the upgraded package.“😉

I purchased rolling tobacco at the duty free shops at corfu airport, They had a good selection of tobacco products at decent prices. Ok as a last resort if you don’t get them onboard or on your travels. I am assuming that you are flying to and from Corfu.

Cans of coke are charged at a pound each if you aren’t on the upgraded package.😉

Great review Becky. Congrats on your award 🏆👍

Proper rinsed us RR.😂🤦🏻

As I recall the spirit had a self service laundrette and it was always in use by someone. If you are doing a two week cruise or a cruise and stay it would be very useful.😉

We did the transatlantic repositioning cruise on Explorer and there were no children on board. Explorer2 is always child free.

After all that was very thirsty so had a drink before heading to cabin This is a must ⬆️ Hydration is so important.🍺😉

I was under the impression that Explorer 2 was the only adults only ship in Marellas fleet.

I think that Marella are overpricing their trips at the moment. (apart from the few special offers) Perhaps trying to recoup money they lost during the pandemic.?

That’s a good price RR.

All good here PC😉 M in law had Lloyds travel insurance linked to her premier account but they don’t insure over eighties. This will be her first trip in five years because of the price of travel insurance.🤷🏻‍♂️

Hi PC.hope you and mrs PC are keeping well. Mother in law is doing a saga cruise, two weeks western Mediterranean and it has cost £850 insurance for the single trip. She is 85 years old.🤦🏻‍♂️

Does travel insurance get more expensive when you reach certain birthdays? The reason I ask is I got one year cover including the carribean for approximately £300 back in 2019 when I was 63 years old, I applied for the same again last September and was quoted £2,500 to cover the same destinations. Just after reaching state pension age (66) These quotes are to cover existing medical conditions.

As Dronnygirl has posted the £300 off deal finished a couple of weeks ago,it doesn’t really matter because the cruise price does usually drop after the deal ends.