Our Final Word on EJ

[Hlitner]

We spent 18 wonderful days on the EJ1 (Sept-Oct).  Like many others, we were impressed with the cuisine, the decor, the hard-working crew.  Was everything perfect?  Or course not!  But the overall product was darn good, and the food among the best at sea...anytime, anywhere.  And since that cruise we have booked several future cruises on Seabourn, Oceania, Princess, etc etc.  We have not booked anymore EJ cruises.  Why?

 

To be blunt, we simply do not trust EJ.  We do not trust that any future itinerary we would book will happen without massive changes.  We do not trust that the product they offer in a year will even be close to what they have today.  While our time on the EJ1 was fine, DW and I found ourselves thinking that we have enjoyed our cruises on Seabourn a lot more than on EJ, despite the fact that EJ has better cuisine, a more gorgeous ship, etc.  Why?  Not sure.

 

In early December we spent 14 days on packed (to capacity) Sky Princess.  We were in a smallish mini-suite, had to deal with the crowds, had to fight to get reservations in the alternative restaurants, and had to deal with 1 week (out of two) of the worst weather we have ever seen on a Caribbean cruise.  And yet, we both had more fun on that Princess cruise than on the EJ!.  Why?  A simple answer is that EJ spent much of their effort trying to convince us they were not a cruise line...and we truly love cruise lines and cruises.  I am not impressed by 3 Steinway pianos, but can be impressed by somebody who can play any kind of piano and be entertaining.  When I see a decent Steinway, I expect to hear a decent pianist playing classical music or great jazz!  We did not get much of that on EJ (although we did have a couple of decent jazz singers).  The lobby bar on EJ1 has amazing decor, and the bar is truly a lousy place for socialization.  The Whiskey Bar is great for social folks, but there is only room for less than a dozen folks.  The indoor pool is absolutely gorgeous, but only has enough comfy loungers for less than 25.  On a ship that is supposed to have 900 passengers!  Really?

 

Perhaps the attitude of EJ (towards its paying customers) was best stated when we were told, "your reservation at Sakura is cancelled because we have lots of VIPs coming aboard for the Naming Ceremony."   They just pushed all the paying folks into the Emporium for our last dinner while VIPs and many free loading travel agents got dinner in Sakura and the other venues.  While I can understand what they did, it was the attitude that spoke volumes about this company.  When some big time cruise agents asked us our opinion I suggested that they should recommend EJ to other cruise agents, but send their clients to Seabourn, Regent, Crystal, or Silverseas. 

 

Today we tacked on another 14 days, to a previous 2025 Seabourn booking.  Before doing so, I decided to pull up the EJ itineraries for that same time (July 2025) and got nothing!  Most of our SB cruise is sold-out!  EJ does not even have an itinerary!  That speaks loudly about this company and its upper management.  I do think they will eventually get their act together and, when that happens, we will be back (if we have not already succumbed to old age).  

 

Many of us remember the early words of EJ that they were not going to have sales, not going to discount, and that they would not compromise on price..even if it meant not filling their ships.  Like much of what we heard from EJ, that has already proven to be false!  The sales and discounting are already happening, and at this point they are just a company that seems to have already lost their way and does not know whether they want to be a short itinerary ferry line (like many MSC cruises) or a real luxury line with decent itineraries.  It they stick to short itineraries; they will be just one more short trip cruise line with better food.  That may suit some folks and we do wish them the best luck.

 

Hank

[saminina]

It is unfortunate to have been on the earliest segments.   Passengers being at different stages in life, your comments make total sense.  Lots of errors on corporate level, but on board management is empowered and has been spectacular IMO.

 

Way too early to predict how this plays out.  Suits me fine at the moment.  Looking forward to being on board Crystal Serenity next month which for my purposes is the only real competing product today.

Strong emphasis on TODAY.

 

[frankhi]

I booked a cruise last January before the price increase, and then was able to apply the 2 cat upgrade and get 500 euro OBC. Then during the black friday sale, I booked 3 more cruises online at 40% off, without any problems. I have an EJ agent that promptly takes care of my requests, (although other EJ agents, well, no so much). I'm really happy with EJ.

[Arizonasunshine]

I'm in the don't trust category. I had a cruise costed while on board in October. EJ's policy, as I was told by the representative, was that I had seven days to place a deposit and keep my on board booking discount. I paid for the cruise in full in EJ's window, two days later the cruise line that would " never lower prices " reduced my cruise by 40%. New bookings only. Being in their seven day window to cancel a cruise at no cost I tried to cancel the cruise and rebook. No way,  EJ considered the first day of the quoted price as the date booked, even though I had no deposit made. That put me outside EJ's no penalty timeframe, I had to pay the $200pp penalty. 

I too worry about changed itineraries, a downgrade in food and service. They have backtracked and changed many of the features that made EJ interesting. Clearly they have lost confidence in their original strategy and are sailing in a fog.

[frankhi]

1 hour ago, Arizonasunshine said:

I had to pay the $200pp penalty. 

The $200 pp penalty can be applied as FCC to your next cruise. I had it done twice.

[commodoredave]

I have yet to begin my first EJ cruise on March 1, but I am already in the "don't trust" category based on what I have heard from others. My attitude may change after sailing with EJ for a week, but some of the issues raised by Hank and others cannot be fixed on board a ship -- they are shoreside management issues. As I book cruises well in advance, that means our next 6 cruises after March will not be with EJ, but with cruise lines I already have experience with and trust. 

Edited January 3 by commodoredave

[Dr. Cocktail]

1 hour ago, commodoredave said:

I have yet to begin my first EJ cruise on March 1…. My attitude may change after sailing with EJ for a week

We’ll discuss in person over a drink (or five)(you’re buying) but ….

 

One down, one Boarding Pass printed and three more to go … so far!

[commodoredave]

6 minutes ago, Dr. Cocktail said:

We’ll discuss in person over a drink (or five)(you’re buying) but ….

 

One down, one Boarding Pass printed and three more to go … so far!

I look forward to it!!!

[Waltershipman]

3 hours ago, commodoredave said:

I have yet to begin my first EJ cruise on March 1, but I am already in the "don't trust" category based on what I have heard from others. My attitude may change after sailing with EJ for a week, but some of the issues raised by Hank and others cannot be fixed on board a ship -- they are shoreside management issues. As I book cruises well in advance, that means our next 6 cruises after March will not be with EJ, but with cruise lines I already have experience with and trust. 

EJ is extraordinary in so many postive ways. Yes there are flaws mainly from my experience in the paperwork back of the house area. Front of house including ship, crew, food FANTASTIC and truly enjoyable.  My comments come from over 43 years of cruising on 18 different cruise  lines.  Once you give it a try you will hopefully be lovely surprised

 

I do find that on every cruise ship  and line I begin the cruise for better or worse with expectations. The more i drop expectations and settle into a ship the more wonderful it becomes pretty much always

 

ENJOY HAPPY CRUISING 

[commodoredave]

2 minutes ago, Waltershipman said:

EJ is extraordinary in so many postive ways. Yes there are flaws mainly from my experience in the paperwork back of the house area. Front of house including ship, crew, food FANTASTIC and truly enjoyable.  My comments come from over 43 years of cruising on 18 different cruise  lines.  Once you give it a try you will hopefully be lovely surprised

 

I do find that on every cruise ship  and line I begin the cruise for better or worse with expectations. The more i drop expectations and settle into a ship the more wonderful it becomes pretty much always

 

ENJOY HAPPY CRUISING 

Thanks. 
I suspect we will have a great time. But not sure I have enough confidence in EJ to book another cruise with them until they clear up their shoreside issues, particularly with itinerary changes. However, once things start running more smoothly, EJ will come back on my cruise radar.

[Waltershipman]

3 minutes ago, commodoredave said:

Thanks. 
I suspect we will have a great time. But not sure I have enough confidence in EJ to book another cruise with them until they clear up their shoreside issues, particularly with itinerary changes. However, once things start running more smoothly, EJ will come back on my cruise radar.

Points well taken particularly on itinerary.

We had some issues with accounting that needed clearing up both pre and post cruise wherethe  back office missed some of our paper work. 

Otherwise truly wonderful.  We sail late this month  on the new Oceania Vista and i hope we are not disappointed.  I suspect that in some areas they will exceed EJ and in others not so much. Its the not so much areas I wonder about. However since my DW and i love cruising I can be fairly  certain we will have a wonderful time

 

As you probably  have seen the food on EJ is excellent including all venues. Even Emporium at dinner was special. We did enjoy sharing 7 lobster tails there plus great shushi 

 

Wishing you well

[commodoredave]

7 minutes ago, Waltershipman said:

Points well taken particularly on itinerary.

We had some issues with accounting that needed clearing up both pre and post cruise wherethe  back office missed some of our paper work. 

Otherwise truly wonderful.  We sail late this month  on the new Oceania Vista and i hope we are not disappointed.  I suspect that in some areas they will exceed EJ and in others not so much. Its the not so much areas I wonder about. However since my DW and i love cruising I can be fairly  certain we will have a wonderful time

 

As you probably  have seen the food on EJ is excellent including all venues. Even Emporium at dinner was special. We did enjoy sharing 7 lobster tails there plus great shushi 

 

Wishing you well

Oceania is one of the few cruise lines we have yet to try. I look forward to hearing about your experience. 

[maggie.1008]

Our close friends just came off the Oceania Vista and raved about it. 
Hopefully we won’t be board on our Hawaii cruise on EJ as we do enjoy traditional cruises.We

 have been on 12 different lines and ready to try something new.

[maggie.1008]

Sorry,bored 

[Waltershipman]

8 minutes ago, commodoredave said:

Oceania is one of the few cruise lines we have yet to try. I look forward to hearing about your experience. 

I will post there is already a roll call set up January 31 to February 11

 

Be well thanks 

[Waltershipman]

Just now, Waltershipman said:

I will post there is already a roll call set up January 31 to February 11

 

Be well thanks 

I was on Sirena in 2020 just as Covid hit and we got home safely on March 8 and previously on Regatta two times prior. They were all excellent 

[as3369]

We normally cruise on all the mainstream cruise lines (Celebrity, Royal, Princess, etc) but took our 1st luxury voyage on Regent Splendor in July.  Thoroughly enjoyed the food, beautiful ship, service and cruise line "all-in" amenities.  Understandably the entertainment and activities offered were sparse compared to the mainstream lines.  However, we appreciated the pros and dismissed the cons and really liked the Smaller ship size (750 passengers compared to 3,000+ on mega ships).  The smallest ship sailed was the Celebrity Flora (100 passengers) to the Galapagos.  Again, really enjoyed the experience but the ship is too small for most itineraries to be enjoyable.  We expect the Explora (sailing in 4 weeks) is similar to Regent and will appreciate the fact that no matter what, we will have a wonderful time at Sea.  Bon Voyage!

[Waltershipman]

45 minutes ago, as3369 said:

We normally cruise on all the mainstream cruise lines (Celebrity, Royal, Princess, etc) but took our 1st luxury voyage on Regent Splendor in July.  Thoroughly enjoyed the food, beautiful ship, service and cruise line "all-in" amenities.  Understandably the entertainment and activities offered were sparse compared to the mainstream lines.  However, we appreciated the pros and dismissed the cons and really liked the Smaller ship size (750 passengers compared to 3,000+ on mega ships).  The smallest ship sailed was the Celebrity Flora (100 passengers) to the Galapagos.  Again, really enjoyed the experience but the ship is too small for most itineraries to be enjoyable.  We expect the Explora (sailing in 4 weeks) is similar to Regent and will appreciate the fact that no matter what, we will have a wonderful time at Sea.  Bon Voyage!

Absolutely true  A wonderful time for sure ENJOY 

[cruisr]

On 1/3/2024 at 7:46 AM, Arizonasunshine said:

I'm in the don't trust category. I had a cruise costed while on board in October. EJ's policy, as I was told by the representative, was that I had seven days to place a deposit and keep my on board booking discount. I paid for the cruise in full in EJ's window, two days later the cruise line that would " never lower prices " reduced my cruise by 40%. New bookings only. Being in their seven day window to cancel a cruise at no cost I tried to cancel the cruise and rebook. No way,  EJ considered the first day of the quoted price as the date booked, even though I had no deposit made. That put me outside EJ's no penalty timeframe, I had to pay the $200pp penalty. 

I too worry about changed itineraries, a downgrade in food and service. They have backtracked and changed many of the features that made EJ interesting. Clearly they have lost confidence in their original strategy and are sailing in a fog.

What an awful way to handle your booking and the price decrease.

[jeffyd]

Just wanted to let everyone know we just boarded today and the ship is amazing! It was the fastest embarkation we’ve ever exoerienced and we’ve cruised a lot. We arrived at 11:45 AM at the Miami port and were sitting down having lunch by Noon. And the choices and quality of food in the Emporium Marketplace were some of the best we’ve seen. Suites were ready around 2:00 and our OT1 is comfortable with plenty of storage space. Ate at Fil Rouge and the service and food were excellent. The show after dinner with a few singers and the Explora band was very good. Caught the Explora Trio doing Classic Rock and requests in the Astern Lounge and they were also really good. Our first day has exceeded our expectations and we’ve done Regent, Seabourn, Silversea and Oceania all within the last year. Explora so far ranks up there with them all and better in some aspects but it’s still early. I’d say give this cruise line a chance. They have a lot of potential!

[Waltershipman]

2 minutes ago, jeffyd said:

Just wanted to let everyone know we just boarded today and the ship is amazing! It was the fastest embarkation we’ve ever exoerienced and we’ve cruised a lot. We arrived at 11:45 AM at the Miami port and were sitting down having lunch by Noon. And the choices and quality of food in the Emporium Marketplace were some of the best we’ve seen. Suites were ready around 2:00 and our OT1 is comfortable with plenty of storage space. Ate at Fil Rouge and the service and food were excellent. The show after dinner with a few singers and the Explora band was very good. Caught the Explora Trio doing Classic Rock and requests in the Astern Lounge and they were also really good. Our first day has exceeded our expectations and we’ve done Regent, Seabourn, Silversea and Oceania all within the last year. Explora so far ranks up there with them all and better in some aspects but it’s still early. I’d say give this cruise line a chance. They have a lot of potential!

We cruised 9 nights in October and have extensive cruise experience and found Explora journeys to be extraordinary great and enjoyable

[gymfreak]

2 hours ago, jeffyd said:

Explora so far ranks up there with them all and better in some aspects but it’s still early. I’d say give this cruise line a chance. They have a lot of potential!

Great start! Hope it continues for you and you have an unforgettable experience. Is the ship now sailing at capacity? We sail on January 19th and would love to know the potential passenger count for our cruise. 

Thank you for your encouraging post 

[Bongomeme]

Jeffd, glad you are enjoying so far…we were aboard for 3 weeks in September and had a great time (despite many teething pains). The recent sale is too good to pass up so we sail again on 1/31.  I would also love to hear about numbers for your sailing and any guesstimates for next few “journeys “. Thanks and have a wonderful trip.

[Waltershipman]

50 minutes ago, Bongomeme said:

Jeffd, glad you are enjoying so far…we were aboard for 3 weeks in September and had a great time (despite many teething pains). The recent sale is too good to pass up so we sail again on 1/31.  I would also love to hear about numbers for your sailing and any guesstimates for next few “journeys “. Thanks and have a wonderful trip.

Loved EJ in October  and will be trying out oceania vista in January.  Hope it compares well as EJ was splendid 

[jeffyd]

When we boarded we were told the passenger count was in the 600's but not sure how accurate that is. There was no line for dinner at Fil Rouge last night around 7:30 and today it doesn't seem too crowded around the ship. Don't have any counts on future journeys. Did trivia today and that was well attended but not crowded. So far we are very pleased. Good luck on everyone's future trips!