Arizonasunshine

I want to thank the entire medical staff and the doctor that treated my wife during the Christmas/New Years cruise on The Crystal Serenity. My wife became very sick the last two days of the cruise. We visited the medical center where they examined her and diagnosed her with Cellutitis. The doctor ran blood work and prescribed intravenous antibiotics which were given to her three times during the last day and a half of the cruise. When we arrived in Miami we were met in the medical center by paramedics from the Miami Fire Department and Customs Officials which allowed us to clear customs in the medical center. She was taken off the ship in a wheel chair to an awaiting ambulance. Both the doctor and nurse accompanied us off the ship and wished us well. The coordination of getting us off the ship to the awaiting ambulance took the efforts of many members of the Crystal staff to make this so flawless. I would like to thank them too, the unsung heroes that work in the background. My wife was taken to The University of Miami Hospital where she was admitted and spent the next three nights. The diagnosis by the ship's doctor was spot on and his aggressive treatment of the infection had a huge impact on my wife's recovery. The nurse, Christy was professional and caring. My wife was in great hands. I can't say enough good about the level of care my wife received while on the ship by Doctor Soto, Ibrain, nurse Christy and the staff and doctors at the Miami University Hospital.

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.

On our October cruise we saw a relaxed enforcement of the dress code. Lots of jeans and tee shirts in the evening.

We were on Explora in October and loved the cruise, in fact we booked another cruise while on board. I am sitting on the Crystal Serenity now and am also loving this cruise. They are totally different. Last night we watched a production show with 12 cast members and 6 or 7 band members. There must have been 15 to 20 costume changes, the show was fantastic. With the amount of money Crystal spent on this production I think that it will be around for a while, and the second or third or fourth time I see it I might not be quite as impressed. That's not to say we didn't enjoy the entertainment on Explora, it was very different but more likely to change. I agree that they need a stronger CD on Explora, when we were on, the timing of the performances was horrible with big gaps where nothing was happening. I enjoyed the lecturers on both ships equally. When it comes to food Explora wins hands down, and this is a comparison with a cruise line known for their food. I keep watching for complaints about service on Explora and so far have not seen any. I was worried that as the ship was loaded with passengers there would be a problem accomodating them, especially in the Marketplace. This doesn't seem to be the case. Explora has a different concept and they are going through a learning curve, no dispute, however we totally enjoyed our cruise.

I booked a cruise while onboard. They offered a 5% discount. It allowed me to get a booking that I had seven days after the cruise ended to put a deposit on. If no deposit was placed in the seven day window you loose the booking and discount.

When we were on they had a pretty large selection. They had a number of hard to find watches, Daytonas, GMT Masters, Sky Dwellers, Submariners, Yacht Masters.

Yes, the holiday cruises I looked at were not discounted. The cruise I paid for was not included in the Explora email but was deeply discounted.

It seems like the discount does not just include the few cruises that Explora specified in it's email. Over 30 cruises are discounted on a discount travel company's website in the USA. I paid in full the Explora price ( less the onboard booking and paid in full discounts) for a cruise on December 22, the exact same cruise is now being offered for approximately 40% less today without the credits. So much for the promise not to discount cruises. I'm working with my travel agent to try to get Explora to make this right. . I loved the Explora experience and hope they will make this right for me and other customers in the same predicament

Not only free but great, the fastest I have had on a ship.

We just got off in Miami and had no problems getting reservations in any specialty restaurant at any time we wanted. With only 180 passengers, all the restaurants were pretty empty. To us, the capacity of the specialty restaurants looked larger than we expected, so maybe this will prove to be not so much an issue. We never tried to book multiple reservations in the same restaurant ( there was just no reason to ) but did book extra visits to Sakura and Marble on different dates together. We did smell cigar smoke near the Cigar Bar and at other areas of the ship. This is something that they need to correct.

Agree totally. This was the most casual cruise, as far as dress is concerned, I have taken ever been on. We went to Anthology the other day and there were men in there in t-shirts and jeans. At a 200+pp restaurant, go figure.

With all the cruises you book, the agent should have you on speed dial. I have a Canada to Montreal Cruise booked that sooo far has not been impacted. I did call my agent, she was aware of the late completion of Explora I, so that agent was contacted by Explora Journeys. She had some customers impacted, I didn't ask what Explora was doing for the customers whose cruise was cancelled. Hope you get a response from your agent soon.