scorpiomum

Hi AustralianJetsetter

My 17 yr old slept in the fold out sofa and we had a rollaway for the 13 year old which was set up in the bar area every night. It was great. I love to spend time in the room relaxing and enjoying the view and there was plenty of space. You can borrow DVD's from the concierge lounge and we even had one afternoon where we all just chilled and watched a movie. We found there was enough room for us all, but most of the time the boys were out and it was just hubby and I. The GS has a lot of storage space, more than we needed, and we stored the suitcases under the main bed for the duration of the cruise.

We just got off Explorer 11 nights to NZ which sailed on 6th January. Sailed in a GS and our stateroom attendant Laida was excellent. This is our 3rd cruise with Royal, each time in a GS and I must say that it was great except for the food in the Dining room. As others have noted, quality had gone down hill. Its edible, just not great. Our dining room waiter Anthony however was great and very attentive. We had already spent a fortune on our holiday so didn't want to spend more on specialty restaurants but everyone I spoke to said the food in Chops and Giovanni's was excellent. Disappointing that you have to pay extra to get great food. We didn't love the evening entertainment and only went to a few shows. Had a great trip and my teenagers made heaps of friends and had a fantastic time.

We are on the Explorer on 6th January in a GS and I was delighted to receive our Welcome email from Denzil just before Christmas. Really made my day. I asked if he could book us in to 6.30pm MyTime dining (as per our booking) and he replied the next day confirming that the request has been sent to the Dining staff. So far so good.

While I found Noumea boring, Mare was a complete waste of time. Worst port I have ever been to.

We went to Pompeii with 2 small boys, 8 & 4. Just made our own way there, caught a taxi from the port and then actually took a train then taxi back. If we could do it then everyone can. Was a great day trip for the family. I know I was worried about being overcharged etc after reading the forums but everything went fine. Our cruise left from Rome so we actually spent 3 days there before we left. One of my favourite places. The boys walked everywhere with us, loved all the sites and food. Lots to do. If you only have a day there I would either book probably book a tour so you know you can see everything in a day and be back to the ship on time.