Review of 5 day Explorer 9/17

[Sue L]

As promised I posted the photos if anyone is interested.

 

 

Here is the link

 

 

http://travel.webshots.com/album/554314395NtDPrz?start=0

 

 

Sue

[bbspin12]

As promised I posted the photos if anyone is interested.

 

Great Pictures!

:)

[Sue L]

Sue,

 

As an exit 61 person myself...your estimate drive time would be the same for me.

 

 

That is really funny that you are on the same exit, I am in Holbrook.

[bbspin12]

That is really funny that you are on the same exit, I am in Holbrook.

Right back at you...

I am over by St Johns Lutheran Church.

And my husband thought I was the only cruise addict in holbrook to use these boards for info and to see everyone else's experience :)

Nivea

[MrPete]

I was!

 

Great shots!

 

Reminds me that in 5 days, I never got to see the whole ship.

 

One of the many reasons I rebooked!

[Sue L]

Right back at you...

I am over by St Johns Lutheran Church.

And my husband thought I was the only cruise addict in holbrook to use these boards for info and to see everyone else's experience :)

Nivea

 

 

You can tell your husband you are not alone. We are off Inverness.

[trishwos]

My DH and I were on this sailing and loved it as well. We never got to the unofficial meet at mingle in the Viking Crown lounge and I often wondered about if the people I was seeing around the ship were the people from our Roll Call.

 

Our embarkation was smooth. We arrived at around 11:00 and did have to wait in a line of cars for about 15 minutes before dropping off our bags, but the rest went very quickly and we were on the ship before Noon. We noticed no residue on our cars on return on Friday.

 

We were in cabin 9590 and our bed was terrible as well, and so was the bedding! The blanket felt more like sandpaper than cloth. I was very uncomfortable the 1st night and asked our room attendant for an egg crate. Although the egg crate helped, it was just as worn down as the bed. Other than that, we found our room to be comfortable and loved having the balcony to sit out on.

 

We enjoyed all of our meals in the DR and went to Portofino the same night you were there Sue! Maybe we were sitting next to eachother. The food there was excellent and the service was superb.

 

In the main DR we had requested a table for 2. Upon arrival on the ship, we went and checked to see if it was granted. It was not, we were placed at a table for 8. We were told our table mates were all around our age (38,39) so we decided to just go with it. Well, when we went to dinner the first night we found our table mates were in their 50's and 60's. They were absolutely lovely people and we had a very nice time and good conversation, but not much in common. We had met some couples our age during the cruise who were also placed with older couples and I'd wondered why, if they do try to match people, they hadn't put us with them.

 

We rented motor scooters the first day in Bermuda and loved it. You do have to be very careful, but they offer so much freedom! We took them into Hamilton and walked around and had lunch. The 2nd day we went to Horseshoe Beach and LOVED it. We got some great pictures of waves crashing into the rocks.....spectacular. The water was warm, and although the water was rough, it made the swimming more exciting.

We also spent some time at the snorkle park by the pier and, although it was expensive to rent equipment there, I found the snorkeling to be great!

 

We went to most of the shows, the same ones as Sue and felt the same way. They were terrific! "Dress lady" and her husband were quite the pair and were certainly the talk of the ship which I believe is exactly what they were hoping for!

 

Didn't mean to take over this thread with my own review. Sue....I'm so glad you had a good time. Was Trish enjoying herself?? I'm so jealous she is still on the ship right now!

 

Looking forward to hearing more reviews from more people on our ship!!

 

Trish (#2 for purposes of the roll call board)

[Sue L]

Hey Trish 2 ,

 

I don't mind you chiming in at all, wasn't the dress lady a hoot. It became a daily activity to see what she was wearing. I was dying to take her picture but couldn't figure out how to do it discreetly. Though looking back on it now she probably would have posed for them.

 

Sorry you didn't make it to Dizzy's we had a great time and actually did another one on thurs. where everyone again showed up and it was really fun.

 

What time were you at Portofino's, we were there at 7 because we wanted to go to the Dockyard Festival. The food was amazing.

 

Sounds like you had a great time but it was WAYYYYYY too short. Luckily our next is a 11 day and I can't wait.

 

Sue

[mdgary]

I will post my review and pictures on a different thread but please refresh my memory about the "dress lady". Did I miss something or is it just cause I'm a guy and saw it but didn't think anything wrong with it?

[Sue L]

Hey Gary,

 

Glad you got back ok. The dress lady was tall blond, with very skimpy dresses on. Believe me you would have remembered her. Did you go to the Love and Marriage show? They were the middle couple. I saw more than one husband getting slapped by their wives/girlfriends for staring at her.

 

 

It was great meeting you

 

 

Sue

[mdgary]

Sue,

Thought that was who you were referring to but wasn't sure. We didn't go to the show but did watch it on TV. It was great meeting you as well.

[Seabreez]

Really enjoyed viewing and reading your thoughts on your Explorer Bermuda cruise.

In the group photo at the end are you in it or did you snap the pic??

Sue, identify yourself, for me. Your soon to be "neighbor" on the BOS cruise next March.

Pat

[Sue L]

Really enjoyed viewing and reading your thoughts on your Explorer Bermuda cruise.

In the group photo at the end are you in it or did you snap the pic??

Sue, identify yourself, for me. Your soon to be "neighbor" on the BOS cruise next March.

Pat

 

 

I am in the first standing row, 2nd from the left with the short dark hair.

[ribarfly]

Hi Sue:

Great review, we are so glad you enjoyed your first RCL cruise and it was so nice to meet you guy's onboard, I still can't get over the dress lady. I saw Gary & Traceys review before yours and I elaborated a bit more about her. I also agreed with them about the food, I really wasn't impressed, we have had much better food on other RCL ships. Other than the food it was a great cruise.

[Sue L]

Hey Ron,

 

I saw your reply to Mdgary's and was stunned. Our food was fantastic and so was the service. Everything was cooked to perfection and the service was wonderful. I agree that there could of been more choices but we never had a problem finding something we liked.

We were talking to some people at breakfast on thurs morning and they were complaining about the lobster. Ours was fanstastic and we had seconds.

I am not sure if it would matter but what floor of the dining room were you on? We were on the 3rd floor.

 

Sue

[ribarfly]

Hi Sue:

We were on deck 4 for dinner, the service was excellent! I am a beef lover and always order it med rare. The first night the so called Prime Rib was tough, the second night the beef tenderloin was tough. Both nights I asked for another one which they brought out right away but still it was tough. I had prime rib at the Windjammer and its was great! Go Figure! As for the lobster well, It doesn't come close to the lobster we get here in RI so its not even an issue for us. The pasta was great in the dinning room but they were making it fresh at the Windjammer, frying different things in oil and adding the sauce and pasta while you waited. Sue, please don't go by my opinion, I can only judge the food based on other RCL ships, I can not say that I have ever a bad food experience on RCL, but some ships have been better than others. You have other cruise lines to base your opinion on and I am so glad that you enjoyed the food and the cruise. Have you planed another cruise yet???

[Sue L]

Hi Sue:

We were on deck 4 for dinner, the service was excellent! I am a beef lover and always order it med rare. The first night the so called Prime Rib was tough, the second night the beef tenderloin was tough. Both nights I asked for another one which they brought out right away but still it was tough. I had prime rib at the Windjammer and its was great! Go Figure! As for the lobster well, It doesn't come close to the lobster we get here in RI so its not even an issue for us. The pasta was great in the dinning room but they were making it fresh at the Windjammer, frying different things in oil and adding the sauce and pasta while you waited. Sue, please don't go by my opinion, I can only judge the food based on other RCL ships, I can not say that I have ever a bad food experience on RCL, but some ships have been better than others. You have other cruise lines to base your opinion on and I am so glad that you enjoyed the food and the cruise. Have you planed another cruise yet???

 

 

Hey Ron,

 

I guess we lucked out as all the beef we had was melt in your mouth tender and the lobster was great. The food far surpassed our last three Carnival cruise. We have two more booked one on the Brilliance to the Panama and the Serenade to Alaska.

 

 

Sue

[shirleygr]

As of when we got off none of the balcony rooms had the beds. We had an unofficial meet and mingle with the people from our roll call and we had people on 6,7,8,9,10 and no one had the new beds. We did see alot of beds going on as we were getting off.

 

The snorkel excursion was through the ship and they don't book privately when the ships are in port. The difference in their private price and the ship's price was $3 and they come and pick you up right at the pier.

Thanks for the update. I'm really hoping for the new bedding, but I've never had a problem sleeping on any of the RC ships. Either way, I'm sure we'll be fine.

Your pictures are great. Thanks for posting the link.

[Linecas]

Hello. I have a question for you. If you had to do it again, what time would you arrive to the pier? We leave on the 1st and are thinking about arriving about 10:15 or so. What tdo you think? Thanks, Ronda

[Sue L]

Hello. I have a question for you. If you had to do it again, what time would you arrive to the pier? We leave on the 1st and are thinking about arriving about 10:15 or so. What tdo you think? Thanks, Ronda

 

 

We arrived at 10 and it was perfect. Those from the boards who arrived at 10;30 had a very long wait in the traffic to the terminal. We breezed through with no lines at checkin and we had the #2 shuttle. Granted we spent more time inside the terminal but I didn't care. They had chairs and drinks. We brought books to read and the time passed quickly. I would definitely go at the same time again.

[Seabreez]

Hi Sue

Again, your Bermuda pictures are so nice. When we went June, 05, we also arrived early and we were #1 to get on the shuttle bus to the Voyager.

We chatted with a 1st time cruise couple and always ran into them on board.

I also got lucky and won about $150 in the casino (quarter machine).

Be seeing you in 6 months. Maybe at the pre-cruise hotel, or at our Meet & Greet. Or at the back aft cabin balconies!!!!!!!!!!

Pat

[LG123]

What time does the first shuttle leave? We were thinking of arriving around noon. Does anyone know if the traffic has died down by then? We don't want to wait too long in the terminal. The kids tend to get bored.

[jab47]

My wife and I were on the 9/17 Explorer cruise to Bermuda. We booked it last minute to celebrate my birthday. Couldn’t pass up $399 a person. We actually had done this same cruise in July so it was like a home coming of sorts. Since there have been a number of reviews I’ll just throw out some thoughts.

 

I read one review who complained how rough the at sea days were. Compared to our trip in July this trip was like sailing on glass. Yeah you felt a little motion but you’re on the Atlantic ocean in-between two hurricanes. Entering Bermuda waters around 6 a.m. we felt a sudden turn which actually knocked some items off the counter in the bathroom. Other than that it was as smooth as I would want.

 

No one at our table (early seating) ever had anything negative to say about the food. Our servers were fantastic and my wife’s drink was always waiting at the table when we arrived.

 

Our room was an interior interior one. First time with out a balcony. Wasn’t bad but small. I can tell you Room 9467 had the new mattresses. I don’t think the frame was new nor the sheets, pillows or covers. If you like a hard mattress you’ll like these. At the Crown and Anchor reception the hotel manager (I think) said it would be another month before it was totally completed. The suites had old bedding and it looked like the new frames were going into the interior rooms.

 

We drove down from central Connecticut and it took us 2 hours coming over the GW bridge. We arrived about 11:30 and went straight to parking. We wheeled our luggage to the terminal with no problems other than the suitcase wheels occasionally hitting a rock on the tarmac. Got on the ship immediately. Upon return we just wheeled our luggage to the car and avoided the "pick up your luggage" car line.

 

We had no paint over spray on our car and we were in the second row closest to the Dry dock. Having said that the car was very very dirty so a car cover isn’t a bad idea. It took a couple of trips to the car wash but the car came clean.

 

For those of you who were on the cruise yes dress lady was certainly the talk of the cruise. I never really heard any guys talking about her but the women had more comments than one could repeat here. And its rare that an answer gets bleeped from the cruise review but one of his did.

 

Lastly on another tread I read some one complain about the ferry / bus system. This trip we used it exclusively. First day we bought a one day pass. Took the ferry to St. George’s, walked around there then took the bus to the Swizzle Inn. Then walked 5 minutes to the Crystal and Fantasy caves. Then back to the Swizzle Inn. Then a bus to Hamilton. Walked around Hamilton for a while then took the ferry back to the ship. All that transportation cost $36 dollars. I think a 2 day pass is just a few dollars more. We just bought a couple tokens each for day two. The buses are air conditioned and the drivers are very helpful.

 

Shirleygr I got you some answers for your trip back in July. Enjoy your cruise

[Sue L]

What time does the first shuttle leave? We were thinking of arriving around noon. Does anyone know if the traffic has died down by then? We don't want to wait too long in the terminal. The kids tend to get bored.

 

 

The first shuttle was at about 11:50 and we were on the second at 11:55, they went very fast, we were checking our clocks and noting everything is DH palm pilot for next time. And yes we are sure there will be a next time.LOL Not sure what the traffic was like at that time.

 

 

Sue

[gerif]

We were also on this cruise - our third with RCCL (have also sailed Carnival, HAL and Celebrity). Arrived at the dock at about 11:30 - yes, there was a long wait in the line of cars going into the port - some people arriving and some coming to pick up returning passengers. Once we got through that, we dropped off our luggage, went into the terminal and directly to suite check-in (we were in a JS - they checked a list and our cabin was on it, so, yes, a JS does get priority boarding). There was no line at all, so we checked right in and got immediately onto the waiting shuttle. We were in the Windjammer by noon.

 

Most of the food was good - some just OK. We ate at the Windjammer Tuesday night as we wanted to go to the dock festival. It was pretty crowded, so I guess a lot of people had the same idea. Really enjoyed the offerings at Jade. Thursday, we opted for Portofino as I recalled from last year that the offerings in the dining room were poor on that night. We went early so we were able to join our tablemates for coffee and two birthday celebrations - worked out great.

 

BTW, there was a table for 2 right above our 8-top that was never used the entire trip - this was 2nd seating.

 

Never got to Love & Marriage game, but heard about the "lady" from our tablemates. I did win the "cruise in review" video the first day on the Promanade, so will be viewing it soon (although I understand the "good" parts were edited out).

 

Since this was our fourth trip to Bermuda, we didn't do any planned excursions - took the bus to Horseshoe Beach on Tuesday. It was beautiful. The bus was mobbed on the return trip, but two very nice schoolboys gave us their seats. Wednesday, we took the ferry to St. George to see the dunking show and to a little shopping. Two young girls nearly missed the ship - in fact, the captain actually backed the ship up and they put out a plank for them to board. Everyone on that side of the ship was hanging out their balconies cheering for them. They looked to be teenagers. I'm guessing there was a fine involved.