Explorer of the Seas; 7/13-7/20 ALASKA - Final Thoughts/Summary: any questions???

EMBARKATION - Smooth as can be; They start loading at 11am; If your paperwork is in order, 30 minutes tops;

Luggage service very well organized; Received all pieces by 5pm; 4.5 stars

CABIN / CABIN STEWARD; We had a PR on Deck 7; Just like all the other PRs we've had previously; Cabin steward was excellent; really timed his service around our schedule; Hardly ever saw him; 5 stars

PORTS: Good variety; Wish we did ketchikan instead of the extra day at sea, but oh Well; Can't control the weather, but made do with what was there; Lots of variety of tours and interesting cities to visit; 4 stars

FOOD; I have been on too many RCI cruises to expect anything different; MDR for dinner, the food was good, except for the duck which was WAY OVERCOOKED; MDR for lunch was just AWFUL, however breakfast was really good; Windjammer has plenty of variety and never had an issue finding a table; The omelet station was the highlight; Cafe Promenade had ice water with Oranges ( which is a nice touch) and coffee was always available; NO MORE SORRENTOs Pizza; so the ones in CP were just OK; 3 stars

ENTERTAINMENT; Good Variety of Singers and Dancers, Ice shows, magicians, and comedians; Karaoake every night as well as plenty of Trivia to win RCI knick knacks; Casino has BJ, 3 card poker, craps and roulette; 4 stars

STAFF: Got to meet the Capt.; Very personable; Topi and ICY are great as CD and ACD; Their staff is very hard working and Marvin is just Hilarious!!! Joanna is a hoot at Bingo, and Slyvia and Veronica make trivia extra challenging - 5 stars

DEBARKATION; As well as can be expected; luggage separated by color[ blue or green] and by number; Once collected, there are 5 lines to queue through customs; They are long, but they move; Took about 15 minutes to get through

SHIP; Due for a re-boot in 2020; Lots of upgrades since we last sailed it in 2005; Carpets starting to show their age; Facilities are always clean and never had an issue with the elevators; NO CHAIR HOGs, but you wouldn't expect it for Alaska; The poolside movies were 1st rate and current! - Jealous that the Ovation is taking over for 2019

Thanks for the review..

Very nicely done.

What time did you get to port?

Was there one great line from the outside to get in, is it covered just wondering in case it rains.

How far from cab drop off area do you have to lug your suitcases, or are their attendants there?

You said to get thru checkin took 15 min.

Do they do check in by C & A or by suites? Or is everyone grouped together.

Where did they take the boarding first picture.

How was your weather?

Any bad wavy seas?

I am sure I will think of more.

Thanks again.

Thanks for the review..

Very nicely done.

 

What time did you get to port?

Was there one great line from the outside to get in, is it covered just wondering in case it rains.

How far from cab drop off area do you have to lug your suitcases, or are their attendants there?

 

You said to get thru checkin took 15 min.

Do they do check in by C & A or by suites? Or is everyone grouped together.

 

Where did they take the boarding first picture.

 

How was your weather?

Any bad wavy seas?

 

 

I am sure I will think of more.

 

Thanks again.

1. we got to Pier 91 at 11:45 by lyft; Once you get and attach your luggage tags( by yourself) you head inside; The pre-check line is long but moves: We were only outside for 3 minute; The cab drop off line is about 1/4 mile from the luggage staging area: Real easy walk via marked crosswalk; There are attendants at the luggage area[ bear in mind Celebrity uses the same area for vehicles, but they are located across the road.

2. They check in by Suites and/or C&A; Need Platinum and above for priority; Gold is stuck with the masses

3. Right after you cross the gangway, the photographers are there; You can bypass if you wish

4. July weather; Sunny in Seattle; Raining in Juneau and Skagway (upper 50s.low 60s) Sunny 60s in the Yukon; Sunny 70s in Victoria; It is a crap shoot; the next week, all the ports were sunny and 80; No bad or wavy seas

Great Review!! Thanks!!

I sail on this cruise on Friday. I so hope overcooking the duck was just a fluke on your cruise. It’s my absolute favorite thing on the menus and have found it to be excellent (7 cruises in the past year) with one exception. They only brought it back last year and I want to continue to enjoy it.

I also remember (sailed on Explorer out of Seattle last year) that the taxi drop off was right next to the luggage drop off, not 1/4 mileaway. I guess we’ll see.

Thanks for your thoughts!

Thanks for the review! We sail this itinerary soon... one question for the OP...

Did you dock at the main dock area in Juneau or the one that is off by itself? There will be 4 ships in port the day we are there & we arrive last... just wondering.

TIA

BTW...they can totally remove the Duck from the menu as far as we're concerned.....

Oh! Another question... Did they serve any crab on this sailing?

You dock In the solo one

You dock In the solo one

So the one you need a shuttle to get to the main area?

Sent from my iPhone using Forums

Thanks for the report.