Explorer June 23, 2011 Review

[vauxhall96]

thats us booked:)

 

7th june 2012, 9 night cruise.

 

counting the days:D

 

miktek, you're gonna love it. Tremendous efforts by all of the crew members to make your stay an unforgettable one.

 

As for Maho: go for it as early as possible as the widebodies come in from 1 pm on for about 2 hours. Cabs are available at the pier, let one of the oprators know where you want to go and they will try to group people which makes it a little cheaper. As in every port of call there are fixed cab fares.

 

Feel free to ask any further questions ... there should be some :)

 

Tom

[travelgirl913]

Thank you for the great review. I am sailing on EOS next month and was wondering if you remember what nights were the formal/ semi formal/ casual nights for dinner. Also do you happen to remember if any nights the food was less exciting. I know carribean night is usually less apetizing with food in the past. Looking for which night to book portafinos. Did you save any of your cruise compass you could post? Thanks!

[vauxhall96]

I forgot to mention: thanks for the review! We went on the same cruise on june 9 and it was fun going through the days again.

 

Thank you for the great review. I am sailing on EOS next month and was wondering if you remember what nights were the formal/ semi formal/ casual nights for dinner. Also do you happen to remember if any nights the food was less exciting. I know carribean night is usually less apetizing with food in the past. Looking for which night to book portafinos. Did you save any of your cruise compass you could post? Thanks!

 

I remember the formal nights which are on day 2 and on day 8. Concerning the smart casual / casual nights I'd say it didn't make such a difference and I don't remember the exact dates. One night they offered prime rib which didn't meet the standard you may be used to. As for the Cruise Compasses: there is a review here on the boards which contains at least a few, just search for: explorer, june 9, review.

[marci22]

Nice review, johneeo.

 

Thank you for the great review. I am sailing on EOS next month and was wondering if you remember what nights were the formal/ semi formal/ casual nights for dinner. Also do you happen to remember if any nights the food was less exciting. I know carribean night is usually less apetizing with food in the past. Looking for which night to book portafinos. Did you save any of your cruise compass you could post? Thanks!

 

Day 1 -casual (prime rib & vidalia onion tart) muster was at 4:15pm, no vests needed (1 welcome aboard show @ 7:45-8:30pm) clocks go forward 1 hour.

 

Day 2 -formal (filet of beef) Production show @ 9pm and 10:45pm "Invitation to Dance" RC Singers & Dancers

 

Day 3 -casual/70s attire Port: Bermuda Saturday no ferries from Dockyard to St. Georges (Headliner showtime @ 7 & 9pm, was male vocalist Kenny James) 11:30pm late night comedy with Peter Sasso (adults only)

 

Day 4 -casual ('Venetian' night) set clocks back 1 hour (Production showtime 9 & 10:45pm "Wild, Cool and Swingin" RC singers and dancers)

 

Day 5 -casual or Caribbean Port: St. Martin (7:45pm Headliner showtime The Action Comedy of Rick Novell) this is the ladder guy/juggler.

 

Day 6- smart casual Port: St. Thomas (Ice show 7 & 9 pm you get the tickets ahead of time when they announce it. There was a special invitation-only show at 3pm on Day 8 for D & D+ not sure if any other levels invited) 10:30pm Love and Marriage Game Show

 

Day 7- casual Port: San Juan (7 & 9pm production show RC Singers and Dancers "Fast Forward" movie musicals) 10:30pm Quest

 

Day 8- formal (fisherman's plate and prime rib options) Walk for Wishes 2pm (5pm Ice Show) 7:15 & 9pm headliner show Home Free Vocal Group

 

Day 9- casual (shrimp and mahi mahi tempura) 7 & 9pm Farewell show

 

I would pick night 3,4,5,6 or 7 for specialty.

 

They had a Mongolian Grill at the WJ every evening until 9pm that we really liked, in case you don't like the menu one night. In general, we liked the food. I think Explorer is one of the better ships for food. The WJ also seemed to be better this past cruise (6/23). The stews were very good as were the Indian & Asian selections at the Jade section (don't forget to check it out).

 

We had booked Portofino 2x but only ended up going on night 4. It was very good but we got sick of eating. Same for JR's: planned on going but preferred the convenience and freeness of the Mongolian grill.

 

On the nights that we didn't really love the MDR choices, we just ate what we wanted, and went to WJ later for a snack. My teens loved having the ability to eat whatever they wanted.

 

Got the burgers from Room Service one day and we were disappointed: they tasted like leftover, dry WJ burgers. This was late afternoon so maybe that's why.

[johneeo]

Thank you for the great review. I am sailing on EOS next month and was wondering if you remember what nights were the formal/ semi formal/ casual nights for dinner. Also do you happen to remember if any nights the food was less exciting. I know carribean night is usually less apetizing with food in the past. Looking for which night to book portafinos. Did you save any of your cruise compass you could post? Thanks!

 

To be honest, I did not even read the compasses while on the ship.:eek:

 

If you have the same itinerary, you get to St. Martin at noon and leave at 9 PM. We did not make our 6 PM MDR seating, so you might want to consider that night.

 

As for dressing, our group dressed up on both formal nights. All of the other nights, just about anything goes within reason. For the most part, slacks, golf shirt with collar was what I wore on all of those nights.

[travelgirl913]

Thank you so much Marci & Johneeo for your responses! Very helpful!

[KelJ]

Great review and wonderful pictures! We boarded the Explorer for our five-night cruise to Bermuda the day you disembarked. It was interesting to read about the evacuation. What time did the ship get back into Bayonne on Saturday morning? We had some congestion when unloading our luggage around 11:00 a.m. because there were still people from your cruise loading up their cars.

[brianabrad]

Great review. You pictures of the ship have me thinking we need to check out the EOS for our next cruise!

[johneeo]

Great review and wonderful pictures! We boarded the Explorer for our five-night cruise to Bermuda the day you disembarked. It was interesting to read about the evacuation. What time did the ship get back into Bayonne on Saturday morning? We had some congestion when unloading our luggage around 11:00 a.m. because there were still people from your cruise loading up their cars.

 

We docked at 8:01.

 

Captain had the ship at top speed to make up the time, but you would never know it. It was smooth sailing for the entire cruise.

[mamapan]

We docked at 8:01.

 

Captain had the ship at top speed to make up the time, but you would never know it. It was smooth sailing for the entire cruise.

 

Captain Nyseter is VERY punctual & the whole crew knows it! We've said with him quite a few times, and on different ships as well (even our honeymoon 20 years ago, in fact!) and I would have been surprised if you had said that he was more than a minute late.

 

We especially enjoyed speaking with him on our last cruise. He and my husband both started their naval careers as boatswain's mates so they had all kinds of "Navy Chat" to talk over. :cool:

[Lucinarei]

Great review! I'm leaving out on this same cruise in three weeks and am very excited!! :D

 

Any recommendations for St. Martin? Maho Beach is at the very top of my list and I'm wondering if I should book a 4.5 hour island tour that stops at Maho for 40 mins or if we should cab it there, stay a few hours, and then take off. The tour sounds great, but I want to make sure I get to see some of the bigger birds fly in, and I'm not sure 40 minutes is long enough. Any suggestions/advice?

 

Thanks!! Thanks again for the great review- your pictures have me so excited to go!! :)

[johneeo]

Great review! I'm leaving out on this same cruise in three weeks and am very excited!! :D

 

Any recommendations for St. Martin? Maho Beach is at the very top of my list and I'm wondering if I should book a 4.5 hour island tour that stops at Maho for 40 mins or if we should cab it there, stay a few hours, and then take off. The tour sounds great, but I want to make sure I get to see some of the bigger birds fly in, and I'm not sure 40 minutes is long enough. Any suggestions/advice?

 

Thanks!! Thanks again for the great review- your pictures have me so excited to go!! :)

 

Having been there, done it, my suggestion would be to take the America's Cup Yacht Race.

 

Really did not care for the Maho beach and the airport. Youtube was better than what we saw.

 

Option 2. Just cab it to Orient Beach and do the day there.

 

Just my humble opinion.

[grazrock4]

Thanks for the great review. We will be sailing in 6 days!!! Can't believe it's finally here, booked it last August. Glad to here all the positive feedback!:)

[BTSEN5]

Thanks for the great review. We will be sailing in 6 days!!! Can't believe it's finally here, booked it last August. Glad to here all the positive feedback!:)

 

 

Me too!!!! I can't believe I will be onboard in 6 days. I am so excited about this itinerary.

[BTSEN5]

If you head clockwise around the island - d'town (Phillipsburg), Maho (Airport), Marigot, Orient Beach then back to ship the traffic's not too bad. The only bad thing is the ship doesn't arrive until @ 12 pm and they seem to roll the sidewalks and the beaches up @ 4pm, so plan accordingly.

 

Even with a ship in port they close up that early? :confused:

 

We are on the cruise that leaves next Thursday. Last time we went to St. Martin, we rented a jeep and went counterclockwise around the island. This time we are taking your advise and going clockwise. I have heard that Marigot shops and cafes close between 1 and 3, so if we go to Maho till about 3, we should see some big planes, then head to Marigot for a while, drive around to Orient for a few, and then head back to drop off the car. Depending on time, we may be able to do some shopping closer to port. But, if they close up shop so early, we may just have to hit that little bar at the pier.....darn!! :rolleyes:

[Mr_Soccer]

Great review and wonderful pictures! We boarded the Explorer for our five-night cruise to Bermuda the day you disembarked. It was interesting to read about the evacuation. What time did the ship get back into Bayonne on Saturday morning? We had some congestion when unloading our luggage around 11:00 a.m. because there were still people from your cruise loading up their cars.

 

Getting off that cruise was kind of a mess. They were saying that 1 of the 6 buses was running at times. We were in a middle group and we made it to customs around 11:10 (which was probably an hour late according to the targets they had posted) Had tickets to a broadway play at 2:00 which made for a quite interesting next few hours, made it by 10 minutes.

:D

 

Matt

[johneeo]

Getting off that cruise was kind of a mess. They were saying that 1 of the 6 buses was running at times. We were in a middle group and we made it to customs around 11:10 (which was probably an hour late according to the targets they had posted) Had tickets to a broadway play at 2:00 which made for a quite interesting next few hours, made it by 10 minutes.

:D

 

Matt

 

Had a different experience.

 

In 2009, same cruise, we met at our time, and sat around for at least an hour, maybe more. This time, we were to meet at 10, so we got to our area at 10, found some seats, and began to wait. But, no one from our group of 19 was there, so I asked, and I was told they were running ahead of time, and off we went.

 

Got to our bag area, and they were pretty easy to find, as they were the only bags left. Took us about 30 minutes to get through customs, and we were off.

[Mr_Soccer]

Great review! I'm leaving out on this same cruise in three weeks and am very excited!! :D

 

Any recommendations for St. Martin? Maho Beach is at the very top of my list and I'm wondering if I should book a 4.5 hour island tour that stops at Maho for 40 mins or if we should cab it there, stay a few hours, and then take off. The tour sounds great, but I want to make sure I get to see some of the bigger birds fly in, and I'm not sure 40 minutes is long enough. Any suggestions/advice?

 

Thanks!! Thanks again for the great review- your pictures have me so excited to go!! :)

 

If you are looking for something active, my wife and kids did the zip-line/ropes excursion and were extremely happy with it. It's in the French part and so you get a bit of a tour as well.

 

Matt

[Pomperaugrr]

Man I wish I was back on the 6/23 Explorer cruise with you guys again! That was a fun cruise! I can't believe the awesome sea conditions we had. 10 days of smooth cruising.

 

If anyone is interested in going to Maho Beach, ask for a taxi driver named Pearl. She will usually be right outside the cruise terminal. We were fortunate enough to get her as a driver. She was a great guide. She dropped us off at Maho and returned right at 2:00 as requested. She managed to find a way to avoid traffic by the bridge and dropped us off at a great beach location and shopping area. We will definitely look for her again next time we are in St. Martin!

 

Try to get to Maho between 12:45 and 2:00. There was a lot of plane traffic (primarily puddle jumpers) and we saw 4 large jets landing and 4 more taking off, providing some fence surfing fun! I love how the pilots wave out the cockpit window as they turn for take off and the resulting sandblasting for those right behind them. This was definitely worth doing once. Next time we'll just head to Orient Beach for the day.

 

Eric

[Lucinarei]

If anyone is interested in going to Maho Beach, ask for a taxi driver named Pearl. She will usually be right outside the cruise terminal. We were fortunate enough to get her as a driver. She was a great guide. She dropped us off at Maho and returned right at 2:00 as requested. She managed to find a way to avoid traffic by the bridge and dropped us off at a great beach location and shopping area. We will definitely look for her again next time we are in St. Martin!

 

Try to get to Maho between 12:45 and 2:00. There was a lot of plane traffic (primarily puddle jumpers) and we saw 4 large jets landing and 4 more taking off, providing some fence surfing fun! I love how the pilots wave out the cockpit window as they turn for take off and the resulting sandblasting for those right behind them. This was definitely worth doing once. Next time we'll just head to Orient Beach for the day.

 

Yes! This is great info. Thank you! We'll jump off the boat and look for Pearl. I'm a HUGE plane person (Air Force brat) and I simply cannot visit St. Martin without a stop at Maho Beach. I can't tell you how excited I am for it. :D

[Pomperaugrr]

Yes! This is great info. Thank you! We'll jump off the boat and look for Pearl. I'm a HUGE plane person (Air Force brat) and I simply cannot visit St. Martin without a stop at Maho Beach. I can't tell you how excited I am for it. :D

 

Pearl (Pearla) has a white van. When you get to the end of the pier, go through the building with the steps to your right and you will get to the taxi queue. Just ask the taxi coordinator for Pearl. They will know who she is. She kept us all entertained and informed. It was one of the first times a regular taxi ride turned out to be a highlight of our cruise! :cool:

 

Eric

[Momto5]

I just dug this up. I need to ask a question about the Fury excursion. We were going to do the morning one, but we dock at 0800 and we are Canadians and will need to clear customs, so he suggested the afternoon one. We sail at 5, should I be concerned?

 

Thanks!

[johneeo]

I just dug this up. I need to ask a question about the Fury excursion. We were going to do the morning one, but we dock at 0800 and we are Canadians and will need to clear customs, so he suggested the afternoon one. We sail at 5, should I be concerned?

 

Thanks!

 

Not if you are docked at Havensight. We did the afternoon one also.

 

He will have you back in plenty of time. Also, that gives you a couple of hours in the morning to do something.

[Momto5]

Not if you are docked at Havensight. We did the afternoon one also.

 

He will have you back in plenty of time. Also, that gives you a couple of hours in the morning to do something.

 

Thanks so much! We are supposed to be docked there, so all should be good. I am always nervous booking private excursions in case we miss the ship, but they are so much better.

[sr5242]

Johnneo, we are considering booking 9248 on explorer- would you recommend it? Any noise from above? Issues with location? How was the size, isit really worth upgrading from regular balcony?

 

Thanks!