Explorer Review Canada/New Englad first time on RCI

[CMM]

Just back from our first Royal Caribbean Cruise. We took the Explorer of the Seas out of Bayonne NJ on the Canada/New England Itinerary. We have sailed most recently on Princess & Carnival and this was our 7th cruise. We are in our 40’s traveled without our teens this time and our friends who are in their 50’s joined us. In a nut shell we had a great time! Explorer was a nice ship and we enjoyed the ports too. Would I cruise Royal Caribbean again? Sure!

 

OK now for the more detailed commentary for anyone interested. I will be giving lots of praise for a lot of great experiences, but there will be some of my opinions that will be negative too. I have enjoyed every cruise I’ve been on, but feel there are always pro’s and con’s and I have personally appreciated hearing all sides in reviews when I prepare for a trip.

 

Cape Liberty Bayonne- Now this was a really great start for our cruise. We drove from Central Pennsylvania. It was a very easy 3 hour drive. We have always either flown or taken an organized motor coach. Not finding a motor coach service within an hour of our home, I looked closer at the option of driving. I was worried about driving in the NY city area. We had seriously considered 3 cruises this time. The Carnival Glory & the Caribbean Princess were the other two and both of them went out of either Brooklyn or Manhattan which would have been much more difficult for us non-city drivers. Our trip to Cape Liberty was completely non eventful. We left early around 7:30 am; hit no traffic driving expressways the whole way. We got off at the exit and the port was within minutes! So easy. Parking was $19 a day so it was I think $171 for the cruise for the 4 of us. Once inside the terminal they had seating with cookies, water, lemonade and coffee for you while you waited. The refreshments were nice touch we had not enjoyed with other lines before. I would experience my first “I don’t get it moment” while waiting the final few seconds to exit the terminal when our number was called. Our line passed by the cookie stand. Passengers were grabbing stacks of these giant cookies, not bothering with the sanitary tongs provided. It was as if they were getting on a bus headed to someplace with no food instead of a giant ship with a massive buffet lunch waiting.

 

We took the little shuttle from the pier to the ship and were on the Explorer shortly after noon. We enjoyed the Windjammer’s Buffet. I looked and looked for the famous Honey Stung Chicken people talk about, but there was none out! We enjoyed a leisurely lunch and they began announcing that if you were done to basically move on as people needed seats. When we got up immediately people descended on our table, one lady trying to hop over the railing beside it to beat out some others heading our way. It was pretty darn crowded by this time, so we were glad we had beaten the rush.

 

We had a Promenade cabin on the 7th floor. We were in 7255 and our friends had 7257. These were right above the café promenade. Great location for a couple of reasons. You could see the parades and festivities on the catwalk. There were a lot of people watching opportunities as well as we often saw our friends below having coffee and were able to join them. It is also close to the elevators/steps and easy to get to the dining rooms and spa/fitness areas & the solarium pool area. I like to try the different cruise lines & ships as I find the differences fun and exciting. So when I read hear on Cruise Critic about these promenade cabins, I thought this would be something different to try on RCI.

 

These rooms had some cons though too. We are very light sleepers. Yes there is noise here. There seems to be always something going on in the evening with a guitar, announcements etc. So it was fun to watch it, but there is some noise. Nothing really directly below which was good and it wasn’t really bad, but there none the less. There also was a lot of creaking and ticking noises from the walls. More than we have ever expreinced on other cruises. Especially the first 2 days when we had some pretty rough seas and we were rocking about. I overheard a lady talking to someone on her phone saying her balcony cabin had a terrible whistling noise do to the wind, so I think overall due to the weather on the first few days there was noise to be had and so maybe the interior rooms were actually quieter overall.

 

We learned after the first night to make sure the curtains were overlapping as at about 2am they switch the lighting out there to brightness and it really flooded in the first night and I woke up thinking it was time to get up. Kind of confusing in your sleep.

 

Our promenade cabins had a cute bay window looking out over the Royal Promenade with two little love seat coaches and a small glass coffee table at the window. What a cute little set up! Then the desk beds, then the closet & bathroom, and finally the hall. Reverse set up from all the the other cabins we have had. While it was great to have the sitting area by the window to take in the Promenade, it was at a cost of being able to get about the cabin a little bit. There was a small area at the foot of the bed to pass to the sitting area and the desk area cut into that too. When getting ready it seemed like I was forever asking my husband to move. Two seconds later I would need to get back etc. After a while to avoid complete annoyance on his part I would crawl across the bed. While overall I found the set up worth it as it made for a unique cabin feature of enjoying the view of the Promenade, I would NOT want this room if I was sharing it with anyone other than my spouse who I share a good relationship with. Also I would not recommend this room for anyone who is really heavy or has major mobility issues as it is somewhat limited. I couldn’t imagine what it would be like with more than 2 people.

 

Our cabin Steward did a great job making up our rooms 2X a day and greeting us constantly with her cheerful Jamaican accent! Loved RCI showers in that they didn’t have a nasty curtain to brush against you, instead a curved plastic door. It reminded me of the transports on Star Trek. Wished the bathroom light was positioned better. It was outside the bathroom on the wall next to the door hinges. This proved to be a constant annoyance for us as we kept forgetting to put the light on before we opened the bathroom door. Once inside you had to come out, close the door to get to the switch. Also if someone is sleeping there is no way to not flood the room with light. Lastly most nights we had cute little towel animals (no chocolates- which we didn’t miss with an endless supply of snacks right below our room!) We felt like this was the smallest/tightest cabin we have ever had, but were still glad to have chosen it due to the uniqueness of the location & view.

 

More later on the food, ports, shows, and things we liked most!

[grandsix]

Just back from our first Royal Caribbean Cruise. We took the Explorer of the Seas out of Bayonne NJ on the Canada/New England Itinerary. We have sailed most recently on Princess & Carnival and this was our 7th cruise. We are in our 40’s traveled without our teens this time and our friends who are in their 50’s joined us. In a nut shell we had a great time! Explorer was a nice ship and we enjoyed the ports too. Would I cruise Royal Caribbean again? Sure!

 

OK now for the more detailed commentary for anyone interested. I will be giving lots of praise for a lot of great experiences, but there will be some of my opinions that will be negative too. I have enjoyed every cruise I’ve been on, but feel there are always pro’s and con’s and I have personally appreciated hearing all sides in reviews when I prepare for a trip.

 

Cape Liberty Bayonne- Now this was a really great start for our cruise. We drove from Central Pennsylvania. It was a very easy 3 hour drive. We have always either flown or taken an organized motor coach. Not finding a motor coach service within an hour of our home, I looked closer at the option of driving. I was worried about driving in the NY city area. We had seriously considered 3 cruises this time. The Carnival Glory & the Caribbean Princess were the other two and both of them went out of either Brooklyn or Manhattan which would have been much more difficult for us non-city drivers. Our trip to Cape Liberty was completely non eventful. We left early around 7:30 am; hit no traffic driving expressways the whole way. We got off at the exit and the port was within minutes! So easy. Parking was $19 a day so it was I think $171 for the cruise for the 4 of us. Once inside the terminal they had seating with cookies, water, lemonade and coffee for you while you waited. The refreshments were nice touch we had not enjoyed with other lines before. I would experience my first “I don’t get it moment” while waiting the final few seconds to exit the terminal when our number was called. Our line passed by the cookie stand. Passengers were grabbing stacks of these giant cookies, not bothering with the sanitary tongs provided. It was as if they were getting on a bus headed to someplace with no food instead of a giant ship with a massive buffet lunch waiting.

 

We took the little shuttle from the pier to the ship and were on the Explorer shortly after noon. We enjoyed the Windjammer’s Buffet. I looked and looked for the famous Honey Stung Chicken people talk about, but there was none out! We enjoyed a leisurely lunch and they began announcing that if you were done to basically move on as people needed seats. When we got up immediately people descended on our table, one lady trying to hop over the railing beside it to beat out some others heading our way. It was pretty darn crowded by this time, so we were glad we had beaten the rush.

 

We had a Promenade cabin on the 7th floor. We were in 7255 and our friends had 7257. These were right above the café promenade. Great location for a couple of reasons. You could see the parades and festivities on the catwalk. There were a lot of people watching opportunities as well as we often saw our friends below having coffee and were able to join them. It is also close to the elevators/steps and easy to get to the dining rooms and spa/fitness areas & the solarium pool area. I like to try the different cruise lines & ships as I find the differences fun and exciting. So when I read hear on Cruise Critic about these promenade cabins, I thought this would be something different to try on RCI.

 

These rooms had some cons though too. We are very light sleepers. Yes there is noise here. There seems to be always something going on in the evening with a guitar, announcements etc. So it was fun to watch it, but there is some noise. Nothing really directly below which was good and it wasn’t really bad, but there none the less. There also was a lot of creaking and ticking noises from the walls. More than we have ever expreinced on other cruises. Especially the first 2 days when we had some pretty rough seas and we were rocking about. I overheard a lady talking to someone on her phone saying her balcony cabin had a terrible whistling noise do to the wind, so I think overall due to the weather on the first few days there was noise to be had and so maybe the interior rooms were actually quieter overall.

 

We learned after the first night to make sure the curtains were overlapping as at about 2am they switch the lighting out there to brightness and it really flooded in the first night and I woke up thinking it was time to get up. Kind of confusing in your sleep.

 

Our promenade cabins had a cute bay window looking out over the Royal Promenade with two little love seat coaches and a small glass coffee table at the window. What a cute little set up! Then the desk beds, then the closet & bathroom, and finally the hall. Reverse set up from all the the other cabins we have had. While it was great to have the sitting area by the window to take in the Promenade, it was at a cost of being able to get about the cabin a little bit. There was a small area at the foot of the bed to pass to the sitting area and the desk area cut into that too. When getting ready it seemed like I was forever asking my husband to move. Two seconds later I would need to get back etc. After a while to avoid complete annoyance on his part I would crawl across the bed. While overall I found the set up worth it as it made for a unique cabin feature of enjoying the view of the Promenade, I would NOT want this room if I was sharing it with anyone other than my spouse who I share a good relationship with. Also I would not recommend this room for anyone who is really heavy or has major mobility issues as it is somewhat limited. I couldn’t imagine what it would be like with more than 2 people.

 

Our cabin Steward did a great job making up our rooms 2X a day and greeting us constantly with her cheerful Jamaican accent! Loved RCI showers in that they didn’t have a nasty curtain to brush against you, instead a curved plastic door. It reminded me of the transports on Star Trek. Wished the bathroom light was positioned better. It was outside the bathroom on the wall next to the door hinges. This proved to be a constant annoyance for us as we kept forgetting to put the light on before we opened the bathroom door. Once inside you had to come out, close the door to get to the switch. Also if someone is sleeping there is no way to not flood the room with light. Lastly most nights we had cute little towel animals (no chocolates- which we didn’t miss with an endless supply of snacks right below our room!) We felt like this was the smallest/tightest cabin we have ever had, but were still glad to have chosen it due to the uniqueness of the location & view.

 

More later on the food, ports, shows, and things we liked most!

 

Having had a good time on the Explorer is what most of us experience.

[Poorplaya]

Glad to hear you had a great time. Will be back to read the rest on the ports, food etc.

[RM]

We're doing this cruise next year so looking forward to reading more.

[CMM]

Portland Maine ; Great time on a 2.5 hour Culinary Walking tour we booked online they have two foodies tours the other was a trolley one. There was a lot of walking which we enjoyed and the tour guide was great. She gave us lots of personal attention and included all kinds of historic, architecture, and interesting stories about Portland. We walked throughout the town stopping in a local fish market which was interesting. We sampled things and various stops like gourmet chocolate truffles, lobster, cheese, blueberry jam on hot scones, and the guys favorite... beer! I am really glad we choose this tour as it gave us a true taste of what Portland has to offer! When it was over we walked to the Shipyard Brewery and took their tour. Wasn't all that interesting since it was a Saturday and they weren't bottling then, but we sampled several beers as well as their own sodas. I took back a 4 pack of their root beer for my son, which he loved. The scanners at the ship took a good hard look at my carry on. They let me take in on after determining it was just root beer.

 

Bar Harbor & the Acadia National Park! What a great Day! Having really enjoyed taking Ollie's trolleys long tour on a previous cruise we opted to take the free shuttle called the Island Explorer. from the Village Green so we could spend more time than just 15 minutes at each stop. It was a longer walk than I had thought, but once we found the visitor center and got directions/map we were on our way on the free shuttle. They offer several different loops where you can get on and off or transfer. There is no narration like Ollie's, but it offers you an opportunity to explore.

 

We went to Thunder Hole which was gorgeous. Great weather and the waves were performing for us so we got the whole Thunderous effect. We hiked around the trails and boulders and it was just beautiful. We went on to walk a rocky coast beach, and then on to Jordon Pond. Jordon Pond was also beautiful. I highly recommend if it is a nice day to get at table outside and enjoy their famous popovers and tea! What a great ending to a perfect day! The view was fantastic.

 

We then shopped and bought lots of great stuff in all the nice stores. This is the best port for shopping and then headed back to the pier for the tenders. The line was really long, but it was no problem as we enjoyed lobster rolls & blueberry beer at a nice place that we could watch the line from. When it got short we leisurely went back to the ship.

 

 

Saint John - Well this would have to be our least exciting day of the cruise. We felt this way on our previous cruise too and had wanted to get out of the town itself and see some of the breath taking areas like Saint Martins and the Sea Caves or the Bay of Fundy etc. After doing some research, I discovered that low tides were going to be before and after our cruise was in port and I felt the drive wouldn't be worth it. So we opted to get a walking tour map after touring the little Barbor General Store and walk around. We enjoyed the market area, but walking around looking at churches and some buildings kind of made us cranky. We ended at a pub called Garrisons (I think) which really didn't have any local character to it. We had $5 moosehead drafts, since Moosehead is made in Saint John, and then bought some moosehead t-shirts at the pier shopping area.

 

Halifax- We kind of were torn what to do here, but after walking about aimlessly more or less in Saint John we signed up for the ships "Peggy's Cove and Fishing Village" tour for $59. Boy was this worth it! I was worried about a cruise tour experience. Our guide "Ellen" was fantastic. We were in a big tour bus and we were on the extension of it (it looked like a subway car how it was jointed) and it was a great tour. The big bus windows made taking in the sites extra nice and the guide filled every moment on the way to and from Peggy's cove with interesting facts and stories. The microphone made hearing her no problem even in the back. I never new that 12,0000 people were grounded in Halifax on September 11 and the huge undertaking it was to clear all 12,0000 people of terrestic activity. How town's people took in the 12,000 people since all hotels were booked until they could leave which took weeks for some. Ellen even gave us her email at the close of the tour if we wanted additional info.

 

And Peggy's Cove was just so beautiful! Our guide maximized our time by explaining the lobster fishing part of the tour on the bus and giving us the option to stay and see the lobster part or just use all our free time out at the cove. We opted to skip the lobster stuff / gift shop and spend all of our time out at the cove. We walked all around the boulders down the coast (being careful to not get too close to any wet areas or the edges) we took a ton of pictures. It was really windy that day, but sunny and clear. I hope to get a photos of this day framed.

Before getting on the bus, we made our way through the beyond packed gift shop area filled with trinkets and got two small containers of chowder that came with two rolls + one bottle of coke and it came to $20. The chowder was kind of plain, so I wouldn't plan my day around the food there per say and was glad to have spent all the time taking in the breath taking views.

 

We had considered taking the Peggy's Cove & Titanic Cemetery tour and had it booked, but changed it. Ours had one less stop and was actually more money, but the difference I think was it allowed for more time at Peggy's Cove, which we really enjoyed a great deal.

 

Then we walked around Halifax and had a lobster roll at McGarveys I think. Yum Yum.

 

Boston We decieded on taking the Old Town Trolley around Boston. The ship offers this same tour, but it does not let you off. If you do it directly through Old Town Trolley you can get off at as many stops as you want. It was a little confusing where to get it, so we asked and they walked us over the area where there were two competing trolley tours selling tickets. Make sure you get the one you want. We paid $70 for the two of us which was a bit pricey in my opinion , but ok. We got off at Quincy Market lots of shops & Cheers stuff, and the US Constitution where we took the free tour, We went on to the public gardens and were disappointed that they had just recently removed the swan boats for the season :(

 

We headed back on the trolley for the ship. We asked our driver if he could get us to Garrisons Brewing Company which is walking distance to the ship. He agreed to drop us off there. We apparently just missed the tour as they only do them at 2 & 4 PM, but we were able to jump in for the tastings. We were really hungry at this point and were sampling as much as possible in the amount of time left. Lets just say some of that beer is really potent! We had a fun time and made it back on foot to the ship in a very cheerful mood!

[CMM]

Passenger make up.

 

We have done a Canada/New England cruise 2 times before. Once on the Carnival Victory and once on the Caribbean Princess. So it was no surprise to us to find it a senior citizens crowd in September. I was a bit amazed by the crowd at times. There were a fair share of unique individuals on aboard. We watched in amazement a number of times from our Promenade room at the crowds. We joked that they could put dog food out on a table and a crowed would surely form pushing and showing to overflow their plates. Seriously, I watched people always grabbing at food with their hands. One lady picked up several sandwiches looking for the meat she liked and then putting them down. Totally ignoring the plastic tongs. There were a good number of people with mobility issues due to handicaps or their size and it seemed like it wasn't very easy for them to get around. The elevators were often to full to add more people on the floors they stopped at. Their was a 70's themed party one night and we watched the cruise video later on the cabin TV. Many people looked like they fit right into the theme.

 

If you are looking for a young crowd this isn't the trip for you. Like I said we are in our 40's and felt really young. There were 2 teens, a few elementary kids and a handful of tots. I heard there were only 16 kids on the ship and I think a number of the little ones were relations of the performers traveling on holiday with them. The flip side is that all areas are now "adult" areas and there was no fighting for hot tubs or packs of teens.

 

Food

 

We enjoyed the food very much and of course ate way too much too! We were lucky to get an excellent wait staff team of Marlon and Alex. We had My Time Dining. RCI does it a little differently we learned. It really isn't 'anytime dining" like on other ships. You have the flexibility on RCI to change your dining time, but you still basically schedule it in advance. You can just walk up and take your chances, but that would not be the norm.

 

The first night we had a just ok table and wait staff, but we decieded to eat later the 2nd night and enjoyed this table and staff that we took their suggestion and booked it every night at 8:15pm. They spent time every night talking about our food, their country, and our days. The service was very good. The hostess lady came by each and every night an sincerely wanted to know how our dining experience was and if they could improve anything. We were very impressed with our evening service.

 

Lunch on the other hand was not as impressive. The dining room is only open on sea days and they were very rushed and abrupt. You kind of felt like you were putting them out. I really enjoyed the salad bar in the dinning room. They fix whatever you want in it and chop it all up. The one day it took about 20 minutes though and by this time everyone was eating their sandwiches when I returned. The other thing is they seat you at the biggest tables possible at lunch despite the fact that there are empty smaller nicer tables left unoccupied. The menu didn't change either both days we ate lunch in the dinning room. The second day we ordered chicken noodle soup and it had no chicken and one noodle and a clear broth. I chuckled when a stranger at our table told the waitress she had ordered the chicken noodle soup and the lady informed her that was it. Just kind of odd.

 

Windjammer had a big spread out for breakfast & lunch. We were impressed the first day with all that was out. They had basically everything, french toast, pancakes, grits, waffles, omelets, fried egg etc for breakfast. This stayed the same each day down to the location of each pan of food. So while it was a good variety served it did actually start to not seem that way as it never change one bit. The same exact muffin, next the same donut, etc. Great fresh pineapples. I also really liked the sugar free flavored waters they had out each day. Seating got a bit annoying at times when there were no tables available and you needed to circle around to find a spot. They made announcements for folks to move on if finished, but it is a shame there isn't more space to just sit back and hang out if you want.

 

There were lots and lots of Indian offerings too if you like that sort of thing. Odd thing was I saw very few Indian passengers. There was one station called "Jade" that I expected to have Chinese choices. At lunch it was all Indian dishes. Every night at dinner there were 1-2 Indian type dishes listed on the dining room menu. My friend and I each had major cravings for some egg rolls etc and we didn't get our fix on this cruise. If you like sushi they have it out at the windjammer each night. It was nice to stop in befor our late dinner to try some.

 

There was a Johnny's Rocket on Board that didn't even remotely cross our minds to eat at. While we love a good burger it just didn't seem like the food to pay a sur charge of 4.95 for. We ate lobster, lobster, lobster as well as other great food all cruise long for free. Speaking of Lobster they were most generous in this area. Right away our waiter told us we could have as many as we wanted on the night it was on the menu. So we all said we would have two. He ended up bringing my husband some prime rib too. We left feeling beyond full and satisfied. The shrimp were really good too. I asked how many people order and our waiter told me a story of a guy who said he would take 3 lobsters for his starter, 4 more for his soup, 6 for his entree, and another 5 for desert. He ate something like all 16 lobsters! Can you imagine. Anyway... clearly they spoil you this night!

 

The Cafe Promenade was right below us so I often made some hot tea or grabbed a piece of cake or cookie. They had some awesome sunflower seed granola bars there. Try one. It actually tasted like Baklava with honey and on the bottom there was a layer of chocolate! I was expecting something healthy- NOT! But so good. Again the food stayed exactly the same each day here. No variation at all- maybe the cookie flavors alternated a bit. So it was a nice option, but just odd they didn't change it up at all. Many people didn't know the snacks and coffee / tea are free here. Only the specialty drinks and the Ben & Jerry's ice-cream is extra.

 

Watch out with the hot water for tea & hot chocolate. It is beyond scalding hot. Too hot for tea paper cups they have. I used the plastic mugs, but saw others tripling up the paper ones so they could hold it.

 

Didn't use rooms service as we were always way too full to sit in our room and eat more. Some day we will have to try it though.

 

My favorite meals would have to be the pasta with scallops, mussels, and shrimp. The fisherman's platter with the lobster, the Vidalia onion tart (thanks cc for the suggestion), a crab cake appetizer, and the made to order fried eggs in the morning buffet.

I had lost 38 pounds before this cruise and gained 3 back!

[CMM]

In closing some thoughts on our first RCI experience & the Explorer of the Seas

 

The ice show was really good and we all enjoyed attending it. I had read about making sure to get the tickets the first night when they distributed them, so we headed down early and there were tons of people waiting. Then early dinner people arrived and everyone started getting nasty in the line saying people were cutting etc. The lady behind me kept pushing up against me and it was making me pretty uncomfortable so I stuck my elbows back to keep her at least from pressing up against me. They started to announce that some of the shows were cancelled too, so we just took what was there when we got up to the front of the line.

 

Later I heard people say they just showed up on stand by and got in the night of the show. In a future cruise I would do just that. I would rather risk not seeing it than spend my first night in a line like that. Although while waiting to talk to a customer service person at Guest Relations, there was a man loosing his cool with the poor customer service guy. The staff kept nodding and saying yes sir , I'll do that right away sir... and the passenger was just going off saying why don't you do it now and then turned to me and apologized saying he had a bad experience at the ice show. He was on stand by and then they let all these people ahead of him( who were frequent travelers) and he did not get a seat. I don't get his hostility, I can see how this is a perk of those who travel RCI and by standing in stand by I would expect to not get in if there weren't seats. I felt bad for the worker and thought the passenger was going to stroke out over the whole thing.

 

GUEST RELATIONS & EXCURSIONS DESK A+++++++++++

 

Here is where RCI really stood out in my mind. On previous cruise lines, I have experienced either adequate service or arrogant annoyed attitudes. RCI really shinned with great service. Always eager to please and never annoyed. I changed a shore excursion around several times and they were very accommodating and helpful. But here is the part I am really impressed with. I retrieved my lost purse (left after a late night comedy show) and the staff had turned it in and they had stored it in the safe. Everything was there including my camera! The worker asked me to show me a photo of myself on my lost camera to verify it was mine. I was very impressed and grateful to the staff for their honest service!

 

One thing that I didn't get is the odd greeters at the breakfast / lunch buffet. They were always there wearing dirty wigs and goofy glasses acting like they were tripping out. Struck me odd and out of place, but the few little kids on board seemed to like it.

 

We enjoyed the nightly entertainment more on Princes/Carnival, but found the seating more abundant and comfortable on RCI. I enjoyed participating in a jewelry making class on two sea days. For $10 you get a kit and it makes a necklace, bracelet and earrings. You make your first choice the first day and if you come back on other sessions you can complete the others. It was fun and a nice souvenir. I heard some grumbling that it was just basic stringing, so if you are a experienced person it wouldn't be for you. I found it fun and made for a nice souvenir.

 

My husband participated in a Rock name that tune game. He usually wouldn't have done this, but was in Dizzies Bar when it started. He ended up winning and had so much fun.

 

We attended Quest after reading so many reviews saying how funny it was. Yes it was funny and we will talk about that one for some time. One lady on took off her pants during it and ran across the stage. She was one of the largest people I have seen- so it was quite a shock! So that was a memorable night, if it hadn't been that others in our group were there, I would still be questioning if it really happened or not!

 

The Love & Marriage show was good too. I was glad I took notes on reviews as to what to see.

 

I attended two Roll Call Events. The Meet and Greet was held in the Chambers Disco and it was pretty dark and depressing place. The slot pull was the second event and I really appreciated the efforts of those who planned it. We all put $9 in and took turns on one slot machine, cheering everyone along. Then we were to split the winnings, but we really didn't win. Towards the end we were all having a great time cheering on everyone and this guy pushes his way through and takes a turn. He wasn't part of the group at all- cracked us up!

 

Our friends liked the Royal Promenade, but my husband and I liked it when things were spread out more. While it was fun to try, we felt like we had immediately experienced most of the ship right away. It wasn't a slow exploring type thing with the Promenade. Since our room was above and we could look down, it was a fun experience to be right near the action.

 

The cushioned lounge chairs in the adult area were nice and we were able to get to it easily from our room. It was too cold for anyone really to use the pools, but the hot tubs were really nice there. My room steward was nice to get me a robe too. Even though it was cold out, there still were staff working the towel area and I found it no problem to sign out a clean towel.

 

We really enjoyed our first RCI cruise and I would definitely consider future RCI cruises. We enjoy experiencing all the different lines/ships and for those of you who have not done this, I encourage you to. I am baffled by those who write reviews saying everything is terrible. We have never had a bad cruise on Carnival, NCL, Celebrity and Princess. With our tastes we are leaning towards Princess for our next one, but will keep an eye out with RCI. If price and ports were all the same, I wouldn't hesitate to cruise with them again! We got a great deal on this cruise. Debating between the Carnival Glory and the Explorer. Per day the Explorer was the cheaper cruise. We enjoyed giving RCI a try.

 

If anyone has any questions let me know. If you have a Explorer cruise coming up enjoy- you are in for a treat!

[RM]

Thanks so much for all your thoughts on this trip as well as the ship.

[rkeate0804]

THANK YOU THANK YOU for a great review and glad you had so much fun....we are on her on oct. 28th and your review made me even more excited....kathie:p

[CMM]

Your Welcome!

 

Keep thinking of other good things- 2 more

 

1. I enjoyed the fitness area. I used the treadmills 5 mornings and it was a big help in trying to counter all the great food I was eating. There is a scale in the area too as well as a nice big indoor whirlpool. On the first sea day in was pretty rough seas. An older guy was walking behind the treadmills and lost his balance and fell onto my friends moving treadmill. He got dragged across it and dumped on the floor. Almost took out my friend too. I used the clip for the saftey stop string after that, but noticed I was the only one. They have towels available too.

I enjoyed the sugar free flavored water from the windjammer when I was done each morning. They had a kiwi/strawberry one and a mango flavored water- really refreshing.

 

2. I also would like to praise RCI with the way the handle photography. They ASKED to take your picture when getting off in some of the ports, but did not insist like on other lines. They did not hold up getting off the ship by blocking the gangplank with the photo opts delaying everyone getting off the ship. On the Explorer there were sets for you to get your photo taken if you wanted before dinners. The area they displayed the photos was not in the way of traffic either. Nice change.

 

Enjoy!

[DonnaK]

This is such a well-written, fair-minded, informative review. Thank you so much for sharing your experiences with us!

[NancyIL]

Thank you for your very detailed review. I'm glad you enjoyed your first cruise on RCI. My husband and I were on Explorer for a Canada cruise in October 2008, and all of the ports were in Canada that year.

[houlacruiser]

 

I enjoyed the sugar free flavored water from the windjammer when I was done each morning. They had a kiwi/strawberry one and a mango flavored water- really refreshing.

 

 

I don't recall this on any of my Explorer cruises, but am looking foward to it as it seems like a nice addition! Glad you had a great time, we always enjoy our time on Explorer. :)

[KeywestK]

What a wonderful review of your Explorer NE/Canada cruise, and it brought back wonderful memories of our Explorer cruise two years ago. We even had the same tour guide, Ellen, on the Peggy's Cover excursion, and also thought she was terrific and informative.

 

I'd really love to do that cruise again someday....:)

[CMM]

Thanks for all the nice comments.

 

Ellen was a great tour guide in Halifax. I now have a new appreciation for ship tours. While there are positives about going out on your own like we did with the great personal culinary walking tour we booked independently in Portland, the cruise tour was so carefree and comfortable when going the distance like Peggy's cove.

 

As for the flavored waters in the Windjammer, I do think they may be a newer thing. They had a poster when you entered about introducing new flavored waters. Our friends especially missed the drink stations. On Carnival they had big self serve drink stations at the buffets AND out at the pool areas to get ice water, lemonade, ice tea and hot drinks. On RCI they only had it in the Windjammer and we really wondered how this would be if we had been on a hot tropical cruise. Does everyone march all the way to the Windjammer for a cold drink or do they just pay for something at the pool bar? The Cafe also had hot beverages and ice water, but there didn't seem to be anything like that in the pool area.

[Bound4Bermuda]

Thank you for your detailed review. I'll be on Explorer (to Bermuda) in 3 weeks, 1 day. Your description made me even more excited...and also intrigued to see the dirty-wigged people, lol.

[Educators2]

Loved the review. We were on the same sailing. I also noticed the fried rice and Chinese stir-fry for breakfast and found it rather strange (never saw that when I was in China). It's a great itinerary and you made it come alive again.

[CMM]

Thank you for your detailed review. I'll be on Explorer (to Bermuda) in 3 weeks, 1 day. Your description made me even more excited...and also intrigued to see the dirty-wigged people, lol.

 

have a great time, we spent on day in Bermuda on a previous cruise and would love to go back!

The wigs really weren't dirty, but like something you might find in the bottom of your basement costume bin- purple afro etc. Just didn't seem to match the nice decor of the room.

 

 

Educators2 we kept seeing that at breakfast too and wished they would keep it out for lunch. There were a pretty good number of Asians traveling and I did see some taking the asian looking soups at breakfast time. Wonder why it seemed to switch to Indian for lunch?

[Merion_Mom]

have a great time, we spent on day in Bermuda on a previous cruise and would love to go back!

The wigs really weren't dirty, but like something you might find in the bottom of your basement costume bin- purple afro etc. Just didn't seem to match the nice decor of the room.

 

 

Educators2 we kept seeing that at breakfast too and wished they would keep it out for lunch. There were a pretty good number of Asians traveling and I did see some taking the asian looking soups at breakfast time. Wonder why it seemed to switch to Indian for lunch?

 

India is in Asia.

[gottagoacruzn]

Hi CMM, read your reviews on the Explorer and really enjoyed them, will be leaving on the Oct 14th, 2010 sailing out of Bayonne. Didn't know that you had to wait for your # to be called to board the ship. As you can see, I'm not any hurry to board the ship, but ya know... Also, am planning to try the Honey Stung Chicken when I get on board!:)

 

Virginia

[cruiser 2]

Like you, i will be experiencing rcl for the first time oct. 27, 2011. Thanks for the interessting review. Your assestments were informative as well as fair. Again, thank you for sharing . Can't wait til next oct. !!

[CMM]

Hi CMM, read your reviews on the Explorer and really enjoyed them, will be leaving on the Oct 14th, 2010 sailing out of Bayonne. Didn't know that you had to wait for your # to be called to board the ship. As you can see, I'm not any hurry to board the ship, but ya know... Also, am planning to try the Honey Stung Chicken when I get on board!:)

 

Virginia

 

We got there early maybe around 11:15am so maybe as the crowds get smaller you don't get them. You take a 1 minute shuttle bus from the terminal to the ship after your number is called. It was an easy organized process.

[CMM]

Like you, i will be experiencing rcl for the first time oct. 27, 2011. Thanks for the interessting review. Your assestments were informative as well as fair. Again, thank you for sharing . Can't wait til next oct. !!

 

You have a bit of a wait, but I'm sure you will find the Explorer a nice ship with a really great crew. Let me know if I can give you any helpful information.

[whit53]

Thanks you for the great review! I will be doing this itinerary next Oct.

[CMM]

Thanks you for the great review! I will be doing this itinerary next Oct.

 

Your welcome, have a great time.