Nunagoras

That profile indicates her as Experience Manager, what perhaps means a land based thing to support full entertainment range... She was hired in May!... Formerly Azamara... Meanwhile; I have never thought this company would to become even more crazy than Virgin Voyages really is. Those wonderful professionals from the mid-to-full luxury will one day go out on their career and MSC will be lost with their Italian based 2nd line folks to round the deal till they're just able to...

I totally understand inflation rates and need to recover from Covid, but the current rampant price increases and service cutbacks on RCI will only to shoot them out on their feet, really, sooner rather than later, come the anxious to cruise after pandemic crowd to its last line. Icon is pinnacle of the absurd at that front. To each, their own. If there are people interested on paying those ridiculous prices to go on what is basically an EU 4* land hotel, with some 5 starish features, ok on me, but I'm out. MSC might to have their challenges, but they're more than ready for EU 4* standards perhaps with a "+" on top, especially within the YC enclave, so I have no doubts on going MSC for the purposes. As for RCI better them to rethink their strategy. Perhaps you'll may have older X ships for less than say, Icon?!...

Sometimes they'll have crews changing things up to a month before dry dock. Once I was on a TA that was a month before dry dock on the Magnifica. There was a Samsung team there changing all the TV sets onboard. Of course my own cabin was visited on one of the sea days. Little annoyance with nothing to write home about.

Ok, thanks. So, if my memory stinks, E2 itineraries are former E1 ones with some additions and the odd 4 nighter sampler cruises removed in favor of 7-11 night cruises? Less prone to booze cruises and more profitable on the shore excursions and other extras. There are some interesting itineraries out there. Quite nice to see Portimão on the new list, but many luxe lines do stop there either! Let us see: There are 2 itineraries that might to capture my attention: The one that calls in Monte Carlo and the ones that call in Lisbon an Portimão. Lisbon to Barcelona, well, easy flights from Lisbon nonetheless...

That seems more or less the mainstream MSC product just on a smaller ship with "free" caviar and Moet et Chandon available!... By and large; I'm tired of captain's receptions and the likes; they can all go. Nowadays give me soft classical music by the atrium and a soft show on the show venue (E doesn't have a theater, it is rather a multi purpose beautiful lounge where you can do it all from a religious service to a cabaret show with drinks). Let's see on where they'll to settle this one... Congrats to the description. This company, while softer at a glance seems actually crazier than Virgin Voyages, minus the hard rock ambiance and the somewhat sexualized part of the whole experience. Difference? If it wasn't for the pandemic, Virgin would be a market changer, and it is still around there as that to an extent. Explora, it seems nobody has reason to worry on them in the industry, at least for now... Time will tell. But, once a somewhat adventurous cruise addict myself, I may very well to book a cruise with them till there is just to see what the heck that is!... Virgin is out for me. I'm too old for the target and I want more silent experience!...

That's it. They're changing their mind because they have already had a far below expected bookings, maybe with many sailings still below the minimum needed to sail. They simply pissed out those clients, but they have a hidden chance: People whom still have a job to run here in Europe can only to book their holiday time by February to April next year. It is the usual business. With a ship now on the Eastern Med / Middle East business, I hope that as an Italian line, at least they'll have some nice 7 night cruises from Genoa to Monaco and other southern Med itineraries, plus possibly Caribbean on winter for E2. No Lisbon, even though some 2 sailings around 10 nights devoted to Madeira and Azores would be an interesting niche nobody fills currently. Keep dreaming, but quite unlikely...

That's lovely! Have a wonderful stay here!!!...

You're very welcome. Lisbon is a great city to visit!... And we have other wonderful places to visit as well!... And our cruise terminal is wonderful at the center of the city. Sadly Lisbon is not that central for main cruise destinations!... Still a good place both for a cruise day, embark or disembark!...

Many thanks for your preference. At your time here the celebrity chefs weren't there. I don't remember what was there on their current area then; maybe they had the seasonal changing promotional items there or such. Gourmet Experience started as a full table service both for lunch and dinner. Now it is more liberal for lunch with those premium finger foods and such you can pick and go. You can to purchase some tidbits from one place, some from another and make a meal out of it or peruse the table service. Either way even on full table service; you chose your food with the chef's host stand and they'll deliver the food for you within the confines of the venue.

Cruise critic's distinctive is that the ones coming here are, mostly the "old cruising's brigade", those ones whom have started their cruise "career" some 30 years ago or more. I'm a relatively new one for the standards, late 40's, mostly cruised on mainstream MSC with 7 cruises with them, 1 RCI, several river cruises on smaller local EU operators... But I'm even an exception. This explains what is going here. It's sort of a "conservative" crowd here. I've no doubt they'll to do better within the newer generation cruisers, granted they settle cruises that actually sail, correctly marketed. They have a long journey away... Sad to see those sample cruises out of Lisbon going, though, but life is what it is...

This. From the videos the place is pretty much a copy of what we have here in Lisbon at El Corte Inglés's Gourmet Experience. Imagine some 4 or 5 local celebrity chefs with their stands selling their food. You'll go stand by stand and they'll give you the food. Some food there is table served though, but the area is pretty much a metal copy of said venue. I wouldn't mind having all my meals at E's Marketplace if one day I'd happen to be aboard.

X is for upper mainstream younger families. You don't attract those for silence anymore... That is not how things work. I understand your query on top luxury though. Silence during the day for quiet relaxation, soft, academic level entertainment by evening for guests enjoyment.

Not at this highly limited market segment, sir, but hey still have a chance with Russians in Dubai and Chinese out of China where the English speaking social media is irrelevant. Winter in Dubai, summer in China. But they don't need more than E1-E2 for that and they plan on bringing 5 E ships!... Good luck on them.

Well: Bashing a cruise line over the environment music they put round the ship is a little bit too much. Calm down, guys!... But E is not exempt of fault on their arguably bad situation right now. And those current changes in the ships redeployment might have been the last nail on their most likely coffin, to say the least. All the Mediterranean itineraries out of the website now?... So, no Lisbon for me to experience E without 2 flights? Doesn't they know that usually true luxury individuals want to plan their travelling schedules far in advance?... And that a clear "no" is set to turn those clients away? Pissing the possible client base is main drive for failure!... Against what they may to think about the luxury market is really very limited on what you can redeploy as a new thing. Surely there are an increasing number of very affluent individuals, some of them still with a job whom would likely to go on such a sustainable small-to-middle sized ship. But, sadly I'm starting to be convinced on what someone has written elsewhere on the social media: MSC group has no the "ethos", you know, the spirit or simply the knowledge to enter such a so very well served luxury market with its current 6 or so economical groups still serving it like it deserves. Yes; I'm an avid MSC cheerleader running on this E board. But I'm also knowledgeable of what a true 5 star service is about. I've made several 5* places in Europe both to sleep or just going on their restaurants. Simply I'm becoming convinced they've no way to succeed at this level, even if on a niche of their own. Shame on you, Explora. Shame on you MSC group. Get your act together, or transform those ships on regular Lirica+ ships for those mainstream more exotic itineraries on where they'll do great at say 1250+ guests per sailing (dividing those Penthouses and Residences on smaller connecting rooms wouldn't be difficult, then Med YC on just another buffet)... For now I'm one more sadly going out. The most I would like to be diplomatic... As a potential client I simply must to say: No business with whom is not willing to provide. I'm sorry. I still would consider mainstream MSC. They're great for what they provide. Surely with their limitations, but there is nothing perfect in this world. They were tailored to do mainstream. That is their "ethos". That is where they are capable of.

Never done one, but it should be really like an end of season cruise and that I did at least once. At this time of the year it will likely to reflect full crew turnaround time. Your current crew will be tired, and quite anxious to return home and see their much beloved ones. Service might to suffer a little bit from the employee's emotional state, but otherwise it would be great. First cruise after dry dock is another thing. Likely initial cruise for a crew that is away for months trying to get their act together, plus the addition of possible new features to the ship's ecosystem. I probably wouldn't do either one, but if I did, I'd to prefer last one before dry dock.

No it isn't. It is a "try on haul" measure to see if they can fit in a new market niche in the Industry just for themselves. Winter season in Dubai with the Russians would be a success, but that is just for one ship. As regarding those ships; there is no time now for them to be anything but what they are designed to be. Those ships were commissioned to Fincantieri before the pandemic. In no way will them to have any substantial structural modifications. They're extremely small to compete on the X/Princess range and even more pax would be a no-no even at their current perceived level. Maybe they'll just to make them with, for example, larger and better top suites bathrooms, updated restaurants and the likes. If the brand fails entirely, then my best bet is that they'll to do another thing: Remove from them the over expensive pianos and other luxury items, divide all those penthouses and residences on smaller cabins... And just to redeploy those ships as mainstream MSC Lirica+ class replacing the ageing ones and one more for growing purposes...

That's it. E is a new company out of a segment where the market is severely limited and very well served. They're not your centuries old trademark, so not a disaster either as you so well state. Just for simplification I'd join together mid and full luxury companies here. You have a lot of trademarks already there; some 8 biggies, plus the smaller operators!... Furthermore you had the pandemic effects which are not entirely solved yet. E is on a difficult situation right now. I believe MSC could have been more successful if they had gone with the 125k GT / 3000k guests young generation segment of X/Princess standards than at proper luxury. That is the segment where the good money really is to be made, and only 3 companies doing it right now: X, Princess and Virgin. Disney, Cunard and HAL are market niche. They can do some business in Dubai (Russians) and the Caribbean (at a discount for part of the current luxury "excommunicated" by inflation ones) with this E thing, but they have 5 ships to redeploy in the next few years. If the luxury market remains as limited as it is now, they'll most likely need to rethink at least some of those ships. E3-E5 will likely to remain for that specialty revised venture. E1-E2 with their first run hardware bugs will likely to end up elsewhere on the MSC's portfolio. By the way; their need to redeploy both ships from mid next year onward indicates their bookings weren't great. They wouldn't piss 900 guests per week at a single second. Maybe they have less than 100 per week in average, with several below 50. Sorry for the ones affected... But that would have been reality at this segment level...

If your Oceania/Azamara cruises were quite recent, expect Explora to fall on same category. Technically speaking they're same standards, whatever Explora's promotional. Whatever else they provide above would to be a plus, and certainly they have some pluses!... But, I strongly believe it won't be anything below par from that. Variety in experiences is the salt of life.

Sadly this. I couldn't have said it better... But I want to make things as diplomatic as possible... Surely, the hardware is impressive... But actually it needs a few bug fixes: For example: If they have a sushi counter at the Marketplace, why not a few more tables at Sakura and all of them slightly more separated instead of a sushi bar? Same for Med YC: Why that lounge lobby inside a restaurant, when there are lots of lounge space just outside at a bearable distance? A few more tables and the ones still there a bit more separated would to do wonders in service quality, and they still can do it at a nearly no cost. Regarding the software; I wouldn't comment for now: They need some months to make it up to par with the industry. I'd comment later on.

Tastes are subjective. Quality and feature sense is still objective. You can't have the same service standards and features at a 700 pax ship compared to a 1000 of comparable tonnage. Explora inserted themselves to the 1000, and as far as I can tell, they're minimally delivering that service quality. Try to watch the full videos for the likes of SB, SS, RSS and compare them to the few ones on E. No matter the sophistication level of the wonderful atrium and lobby bar... What the videos show is a different market target. E will likely to be popular among 35-55 entry luxury level individuals whom still have a job and want some distinctiveness on their holidays... But, please don't compare that to the likes of SB, SS, RSS. You can compare them to the likes of OC, VO, AZ though. When I learnt they were going with a prototype akin to VO's one with same shipyard I became with that real impression... But Ok, I used to be a bank's market analyst myself... Maybe extreme sensivity!...

Ok. Fruit in the suite is mostly a waste. For the ones whom want it, asking once for the cabin steward to bring it would suffix. They'll likely to adjust themselves. Otherwise there seems to be such a trend really at CC: I don't know if because of Explora's marketing or just for personal reasons of each other one, there seems to have been done the expectation that Explora would be ultra luxury cruise line... They're not by industry's standards design. Pax numbers do command market segment here, let's see: Ultra luxury: HL, RSS, SB, SS, Cr - Less than 850 guests per sailing. Mid Luxury: OC, VO, Az, E - Between 900 and 1500 guests per sailing. How was it possible? I don't know, but surely Explora has a problem on hands and they must to decide what to do: Going ultra luxury on a mid luxury sized ship? Possible... But difficult! Probably market themselves the right way? Time will tell!... Some in the industry consider VO as full luxury. VO themselves went out of that way. May Explora to do the same?...

I would to understand a certain sailing change to allow different ports or different time frames... But, at this segment, this is NOT the way forward to manage a business. Good luck on them with the Russians in Dubai if that is the case. The western based true luxury crowd which is not extremely big to say the least will have them at them as their last priority, because they're usually the most knowledgeable crowd in the whole market. I'm surprised on watching this. Very surprised to say the very least.

They'll run the first 5 years or so at a default. Afterward they may have options if the venture fails which I seriously doubt. Maybe, just divide all those Penthouses and Residences on smaller cabins, and market the ships as MSC Lirica+ class. The cruise department represented only 3% of the whole MSC group business back before the pandemic. Now with the huge fares on the cargo market I wonder where that value has simply gone below 1%, TBHH!...