Just off Explorer this past Sunday

[Heatherco]

Since I enjoy hearing what people have to say about their cruises, I thought I would give some quick feedback on our recent one.  DH and I were on the Feb. 7 9 night sailing of the Explorer of the Seas and had a wonderful time.

 

We were a little concerned after some recent reviews, but we were pleasantly pleased with how the cruise went.  The ship is still in great shape getting ready to go into dry dock.  The service was terrific and we both agreed that the food was very good.  Main dining room was great the first night.  We went there a few other times, but found we preferred the food in the Windjammer more.  Desserts were very good and this was actually the first cruise ever that I have thought that.

 

I do feel the main dining room is definitely more rushed.  We were pretty much out of there in about 40 minutes at the most every time, while still taking our time to linger.  It just feels rushed to us.  Order everything at once and it all comes out one after the other.  As soon as you put your fork down they bring you the next course.  It kind of felt like they were watching to see how fast they could feed us.😀

 

They did offer the 10 drink card for $75 on day 4 I believe.  We did take advantage of that.  I also purchased the coffee card which if I have to be honest, could have been handled a little better.  When you buy it, there was no mention of certain drinks counting as two drinks.  Many people were taken aback by this.  For instance, I ordered large cappuccino and they counted it as two drinks.  If you are going to do that, post it somewhere or at least tell people.  Last time on the Freedom, they did not count it as two drinks so this took me by surprise.  Not a big deal, but still.

 

We did find some of the entertainment lacking with blocks of time with nothing going on but a classical guitar player.  She was extremely talented, but we thought another venue besides the Schooner bar would be better....maybe the R bar for example.  She also played for like three hours straight every day which we felt was a bit much without anything else going on.  Don’t get me wrong, she was terrific and talented, but whoever decides the entertainment schedule needs to do some re-working of things and add more.  Also..I wish they would have more going on during the afternoons and evenings in Dizzy’s.  It is a great spot, but totally under utilized.  Some music and dancing around cocktail and dinner time would be great as an example.

 

Best show  is the ice show!  Wonderful.  We went to see it twice.  Main theatre we were kind of underwhelmed and seemed to hear that from a lot of other people as well.  Nothing against juggling, but that did not scream WOW to us for a final show.

 

The 9  nights are awesome as are the long port days in Labadee and the ABC islands.  We enjoyed that so much we may book the same thing for next year.

 

Overall, it was a wonderful trip and I’m sure the Explorer will be even better after drydock.  

 

For anyone sailing the next couple weeks, I hope this helps put your mind at ease.  It is a great ship and I hope you have a wonderful time too!

 

[Heatherco]

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