parallax

We had a similar issue with groups on Crystal a few years ago. It seemed one group in particular, a bridge club, would follow us from dining venue to dining venue. After the fourth day, we kindly requested to not sit near any large groups when we checked in with hostess. That resolved the problem. Enjoy the rest of the cruise.

Typically, this is what cruise lines will try to push. When Covid hit, all cruises lines sought to provide a FCC for cancelled cruises. However, legally, at least in the US, we had a right to refund. I would work with your travel agent if you really want a refund.

We did a Christmas cruise on Explora last year. The day before we did a tour of the Grandeur which was amazing. On the first day at sea, we were eating outide for lunch when a passenger started berating a staff member. He wanted a glass off wine he had the night before at the Asian restaurant. The waitress had to go down 5 levels to get the wine. I guess 10 minutes was too long of a wait and hence the eruption. The staff member was close to crying. Since it was a holiday cruise, we had brought around 20 little boxes of chocolates. After seeing this display of horrendous behavior, we gave her a box of chocolates. It resulted in a big smile. I said out loud that it shame that some people can be complete jerks.

For the grill station, they will provide you a pager. On the pasta station, one usually just waits. It does not take long. Often I would get a salad and then come back and pick up my pasta. We tend to be creatures of habit and got to know the waitstaff in our area. We sat in the same place almost everyday. Initially, we would let them know if we weren't done. The staff easily picks up one habits during the course of the cruise so it we didn't even have to communicate with them by the end of the cruise.

Production show might have been a bad phrasing. On our cruise, they did a tribute to Billy Joel that had singers and dancers. There was one other similar show but it was not our cup of tea. We preferred the offerings at the Astern Lounge. Sorry for the confusion.

We had a wonderful cruise on Explora and are schedule again in December. A few of the things we really liked. 1. There is a wonderful outdoor eating area behind the Marketplace. There is plenty of shade and there are multiple servers to take your drink orders. It was very under utilized space during our cruise. 2. All the pools are wonderful but we really liked the Atoll pool the best. Plenty of seating and the staff was wonderful. Plus, steps away from the Marketplace. 3. For those cocktail lovers, the staff is really good. Many of the bartenders on our cruise bartended at 5 star resorts. They know how to make a cocktail. Over the cruise, I would sometimes do what I call bartender's choice. I would give them a profile of what I liked (i.e., whiskey, vodka, etc.) and what I disliked (sweet, gin, etc.) and they would make a cocktail. So instead of drinking an old fashioned, I had a scofflaw. It was a lot of fun and it expanded my drink repertoire. For my wife, each bartender did a variation on the espresso martini. 4. If you are old fashioned drinker, go to the malt whiskey bar and have a smoked old fashioned. 5. We really enjoyed the musicians at the astern lounge. They would do a couple 45 minute sets after dinner. We preferred it over the production shows in the Journey Lounge.

We were in 7028 on the Explora 1. It was a great room. It was also a very short walk to the stairs and elevator.

Unless you are going over the holidays or spring break, kids will be on a non-factor. We went on their Christmas cruise last year and there were kids but you would have never known. They were well taken care of in the kids club. I found most of the passengers to be sociable.

As part of the reservation, have you looked at the terms and conditions associated with your booking. Those terms would govern and tell you the implications of cancelling or changing your booking. This is also why I recommend working with a travel agent. They can address these sorts of issues much quicker.

Cape Sounion is amazing. I remember when we were driving back to Athens after visiting CS. We stopped at a cafe on the water and had an amazing meal. The crazy thing was the kitchen was on the other side of the highway and watching the waitstaff bring over the food was a sight to behold. It was like the game Frogger, as the staff dodged cars.

We were on the Christmas cruise and there were 700+ passengers. There was only one time that the staff was overwhelmed during a meal service. They quickly bounced back. The rest of the cruise was seamless. We were on a Crystal cruise a few years ago and the ship was at capacity. We had a similar experience at the buffet during the first at sea day. It was a mess. They too bounced back.

Since you are great businessman, I assumed you could provide similar insight to Crystal. If not, I can apply similar "in-depth analysis". Crystal has the smallest cabins in the luxury market. Their ships are old and require significant upkeep. The Symphony cannot sail in the U.S. For over a year, they have not been able to fill their ships. Crytal has the stigma of going bankrupt, which resulted in passengers losing significant amounts of monies. They removed the casinos. The average of age a passenger is old. Hmmm. We all get you do not like Explora. You continue to spew your invective. I do not know why you bother with this board. We love Explora and have two cruises. I see issues with Crystal and other cruise lines but I don't dump on them in their forums. I am actually a fan of Crystal and hope they do well as it gives consumers more choices.

@whipsnade I assume you are sharing the same business insight on the Crystal board. They are looking to add ships but they cannot fill the Symphony or the Serenity. At least, Explora has deep pockets and can afford to build its brand over time.

My wife bought a Rolex in December. It was very popular with many passengers. They have watches available and it is a good selection.

We are big fans and have another cruise booked in December. Great food, great service and I love the layout of the ship. There is a place for everyone. I went on the Christmas cruise and they had around 700 people. There was no deterioration in service. The one challenge was trying to get into the steakhouse and the Japanese restaurant the second time.