Explorer of the Seas LONG Review 12/30/11 New Year's Cruise

[LovesCruising]

Rita,

That must have been my second leg of a back to back cruise. My first cruise was only 9 nights and I sailed with my grandson Bryan. They announced snow and blizzard conditions for New Jersey, and I decided to stay onboard for the 12 night cruise.

I was in a balcony cabin with Bryan, but had to go down to an outside cabin on deck 2, as that was the ONLY cabin available.

I met so many lovely people on both cruises, and can't rmember you off hand. Maybe if I knew a little more about you.

We all used to sit in the middle of the CL, putting a whole lot of seats together in a circle.

 

That was a great cruise and I loved Cherry as a concierge. I kept in touch with her for a while via e-mail. I believe she is now with guest relations either on the Allure or the Oasis.

 

Thank you for the " delightful" comment about me. I still talk with my German accent, after nearly 52 years in America.

Ginnie

 

And your German accent is delightful!!:):) - Cheryl

[mets550]

DAY SIX

At Sea

 

We woke up late this morning—at about 11:00 a.m.—and the ship was still rocking quite a bit. I stepped out onto the balcony to feel the air, but it was cold again. Our compass said 55 degrees; I think this had more to do with the weather in the Bahamas and Florida, however, than with where the ship was.

 

We started our late morning in the gym, since it was too cold and windy to walk on the track on deck 12. (We tried, but it turned out to be a non-starter.) We walked for about thirty minutes on the treadmill looking out at the ocean; I love this view on a treadmill.

 

After our workout, we decided to have lunch in the MDR. We had never done this before, but I had read positive reviews on CC. On past cruises, we have usually just eaten quickly in the WJ so that we could get back out to the pool. Today, however, was no pool day and we were in no rush.

 

If I had to choose one part of our cruise that I absolutely LOVED, it would be lunch in the MDR. We are used to nice, formal dinners, but we seldom have nice lunches at home or on vacation, and we really loved this. We got there around 12:15 p.m. and had to wait just a few minutes. We requested a table for two and were easily accommodated. The MDR has a fantastic salad bar right when you walk in, and we both got salads from here. Unlike in the WJ, you just point to what you want and the waiters at the salad bar serve you. In addition to the normal selections, they have fresh mozzarella cheese, grilled chicken, and shrimp. They will also chop your salad for you (using what looks like a pizza cutter). The ingredients tasty very fresh, and we absolutely loved our salads. The entrees were also much better than in the WJ. I ordered a gyro, but it wasn’t what I was expected. Instead, the waiter recommended an asian chicken dish which came on a kebab; it was much better, and I finished it. GF got chicken tenders. The honey mustard from the salad bar was amazing as well! We were very satisfied with this lunch and could not understand how we had never done this before. I suppose it is nice to maximize your pool time, but we really enjoyed this experience and will be sure to do it as often as possible on future cruises.

 

We then went back to the room to relax. As the week progressed, I found it more and more necessary to come back to the room to rest after a meal. Certainly not a good sign for the scale! We sat out on the balcony all bundled up in our sweatshirts and bathrobes (which we requested and were given on day one). After that, we went to Royal Caribbean Online to check and send some quick e-mails. We had just under twenty minutes for free between GF’s Gold and my Platinum coupons. We didn’t find it necessary to bring our laptops or purchase a package, since we actually enjoyed not having our phones or e-mail for the week. It really enhances the vacation experience to be totally cut off from the rest of the world, at least IMO.

 

At 3:00 p.m. we headed to the top-tier ice show event. People were lining up outside Studio B at 2:30 p.m., and we managed to score great front row seats (although there are not really any bad seats in Studio B). We each grabbed a free drink on the way in, but there was no food or any other perks.

 

The show was absolutely amazing. We have seen the ice show before, but it really never gets old. The skaters are extremely talented, and only once did one of them fall. There was one routine where a male skater swung his female counterpart in circles and it looked as if her head would slam against the ice. We both cringed but smiled and applauded as the team successfully pulled off the move. The title of the ice show is “Spirit of the Seasons,” and the music and costumes (which are great as well) are based around the different seasons. (Especially appropriate for a cruise which saw several different seasons in the matter of a week.)

 

There were a lot of interesting things on the compass today, but we didn’t get to all of them. Some of the things we missed but have either done on previous cruises or would like to do in the future include an adult table tennis tournament (I was the two-time champion on Liberty), a ballroom dance class, a blackjack and slot tournament, napkin artistry, and a martini clinic ($11.50/person). If any of these sound interesting, keep your eyes peeled.

 

After the ice show we went back to the room and got cash together for our tips. We usually do automatic gratuities, but we wanted to tip our original waiters for the first two nights the equivalent of two nights’ worth and our new waiters the equivalent of five (even though we ate at Portofino one of those nights). We really liked our first waiters and didn’t want them to lose out (I don’t think anyone got moved to our old seats). We might have just given the full amount to our new waiters and tipped our old waiters in cash if our new waiters had been amazing, but they weren’t as good as we have had in the past. Thus, we thought that this was the fairest way to distribute our gratuities. Unfortunately, you are not able to adjust gratuity amounts when you do automatic tipping (although I was told that if your table is switched halfway through the cruise your waiters split the tips). Therefore, we were told that the only way to give tips in the way we wanted was to do cash. We made change at guest relations, got envelopes, and tipped everyone the recommended amount based on the number of days we had them. (We didn’t give anything to the head waiter from the first two nights, since we never met him/her, but we did give the recommended amount to our new head waiter, who brought us over shrimp cocktail one night even though it was not on the menu.)

 

We then went to the casino with what was left of our cash, and we actually won this time in roulette. We came back to the room and ordered some chips and spinach dip from room service (always good). The room service menu is very limited, and we ordered less on this cruise than we have in the past. The spinach dip and caesar salad are both good. The honey stung chicken is tasty as well, but I don’t like to fill up on room service just before dinner. (This, of course, begs the question of why I am ordering in the first place. To this, I have no answer other than that I am on a cruise!)

 

We then showered and made another pit stop at the casino to return the money we had borrowed (with interest of course). We then headed to dinner. Tonight was formal night and lobster night—my favorite night on the cruise. Before I describe my lobster night escapade, I must say that I am not a big guy and work out four to five times a week when at home. I stick pretty closely to my diet year-round, so when I get lobster night I like to go buckwild. On Liberty—our last cruise with lobster—I ate nine tails, and I stopped there only because the galley closed. On this cruise, our waiter had been slow to get the food from the galley, so I told him in advance that I planned on eating a lot of lobsters and that he should bring out as many as he can at once. We also told him that I didn’t need the shrimp and rice that came on the fisherman’s platter, but he still brought it all out on almost every plate (and I continued to eat it LOL). The waiter told me that he could only bring one at a time, since they needed to make sure everyone got at least one. I had never heard this before, but he managed to bring me three in my first down. I finished those quickly, and round two came. At one point the head waiter asked whether I was okay or needed more; I told her I needed more. In total, I ended up eating ten lobsters—breaking my record by a whole tail. I was stuffed by the end and completely disgusted with myself, but a small part of me was proud as well (thankfully, it is only a small part of me that enjoyed this moment). I think our waiters were equally impressed and appalled at the same time. I kept the lobster shells until the end of the meal and took a picture of the ten lined up next to each other. Too bad the ship photographer wasn’t around—I felt a Kodak moment.

 

After dinner we made a stop at the room for me to take a ten minute breather (definitely needed it this time), and then we went to the production show Fast Forward. The show was pretty good; the singers and dancers did a few songs about each of four major U.S. cities: Chicago, San Francisco, New York, and Las Vegas. It was entertaining but nothing special. The singers and dancers were very good, however, and the costumes were magnificent as usual.

 

After the show we headed off to bed. Today was a busy day, and we had a great time. While we would have preferred more pool weather, this cruise gave us the opportunity to try a lot of different indoor activities we probably would not have otherwise tried. We had been having the pre-post-cruise blues all day, and they certainly were setting in for real as we went to bed, knowing that tomorrow would be our last full day.

[mets550]

DAY SEVEN

At Sea

 

We woke up this morning to a sunny but cold (42 degrees) day. I ran up to the WJ to get some pancakes and brought a plate back down to the room. We had managed to stick to our goal of taking the stairs as much as possible, and we took the elevator only a handful of times. Being on deck six helps, since you are seldom going more than six decks up or down, and the promenade and MDR were just below us. The elevators are usually so crowded and slow anyway that taking the stairs is probably more efficient. Unfortunately, I accidentally stepped on a scale in the gym two days before, and all the walking I’d been doing had failed to counteract the ten lobsters and two entrees at Portofino! (Advice: do not weigh yourself until AFTER the cruise.)

 

At 10:15 a.m. we headed to a cake decorating competition between our cruise director Jimmy and the executive chef. Unfortunately, the executive chef was sick, so the executive sous chef took his place. This was a really fun show; Jimmy intentionally massacred his cake while drinking from a bottle of whiskey (which we later discovered was filled with water), the chef did a great job, and one volunteer from the audience did a really good job as well (with a little help from the head pastry chef). Some of the funniest parts of the show occurred, however, when it was obvious that Jimmy and the chef were departing from the “script,” such as when the chef put whip cream and a cherry on Jimmy’s bald head and when Jimmy’s cake accidentally fell off the plate!

 

After the show we went up to the gym and walked for about thirty minutes. Before we entered the gym, however, we took a peak through the Peekaboo Bridge—a designated window on deck twelve through which you can watch the captain and officers on the bridge. The chairs on the bridge looked really comfortable, but we didn’t see anyone on the bridge when we looked! I snapped a picture; it was really funny seeing the ship moving at full force ahead with no one on the bridge (at least not from where I could see—I’m sure someone was there but just out of sight).

 

After working out, we went to the MDR for lunch again. This was an even better experience than yesterday, and we truly fell in love with the MDR for lunch. We got there before it even opened, which was good, since the line was out the door by 1:00 p.m. when we left. We both got salads again (excellent), I got a beef carpaccio appetizer (so so), and a steak sandwich (amazing). They also had cajun french fries which were delicious, and we of course got honey mustard to dip our fries into. We had purchased a five bottle gold package prior to boarding, and we had one full bottle left. I didn’t think I would drink an entire bottle at dinner, so I asked our waiter to open the bottle for lunch and save the rest for dinner. I had two glasses with lunch, which was absolutely amazing, and they saved the rest for dinner (I gave my table number). How often do you have a fancy lunch and drink wine in the middle of the day? Certainly not often enough for me!

 

After lunch we stood on line for about thirty minutes to buy a bingo package for the jackpot bingo game. No one had hit the jackpot all week (which they make difficult to do by foreclosing your ability to win the jackpot after a certain amount of numbers are called), and we figured that some of our money was in that jackpot. We really wanted to get a machine, and they had a pre-sale on the promenade. We paid $67 for a machine, which gave us thirty cards for each of four games, including the jackpot game (for which we got thirty-three cards). Bingo seems to be a huge money maker on cruises; the jackpot ended up being over $7,500, and I’m sure the ship made at least double that in bingo sales throughout the week.

 

We then went back to the room to relax and enjoy our final day looking out at the ocean from our own private balcony. We had wanted to try ice skating on previous cruises, but we could never pull ourselves from the pool to go do it. This time, we agreed to actually go and try it. We got our skates on early and were the first two people on the ice. I had played roller hockey for many years when I was younger, so I felt comfortable in a matter of minutes. GF had to go very slow, but we had a good time and really enjoyed this. We only stayed on for about twenty minutes, though, since we wanted to get to the bingo game on time.

 

There were a lot of people in the Palace Theater for this final game of bingo. We talked about what we would do with the $7,500 if we won it and agreed that $2,500 would go to our next cruise. Unfortunately for us, we didn’t end up winning and will have to fork over our own money for the next vacation. By the time someone yelled bingo, there were three bingo claims, so I believe multiple people ended up splitting the money. There were two young girls who were standing (one away) for several numbers before anyone else, but they didn’t end up winning.

 

We then went back to the room to get ready for dinner. We headed to the farewell show at 7:00 p.m., although we missed the farewell parade. The farewell show was good; they had lots of crewmembers come up on stage and the captain spoke (the captain was very awkward—I’m not sure if that is his personality, a language issue, or what, but it was a bit odd after he kept repeating the same stuff about why we missed Coco Cay). We also got Jimmy’s top ten stupidest questions list, which we had seen before. Overall, the entertainment was excellent on this cruise—probably better than most prior cruises. My one main complaint is that a lot of the jokes and shows are the same on every ship every time. We are regular cruisers, but we do not cruise so often that it would be impossible to switch some things up, like the questions at the Love and Marriage game show or the jokes at the farewell show. The singers and dancers were great, however, and I really really liked Jimmy Rhodes; he was probably the best or close to the best cruise director we have ever had.

 

We had our final dinner in the MDR and said goodbye to our waiters. We didn’t really have the same connection with them as we have had in the past, largely because they were so busy and could barely keep up with everything in the section. On Majesty last year, our waiter did party tricks for us at the end of dinner one night and really spent a lot of time with our table (a table for eight). This time, we were lucky if our food came in a timely fashion. Based on what others have been posting, it sounds like we were not the only ones with complaints about the MDR this cruise. However, we made the best of everything and really did enjoy the food.

 

After dinner we went to the casino and ended off with a winning session. We then went to look at some of the professional photos we had taken. There were a lot of them, but we weren’t in love with any in particular. On our last three cruises we have purchased at least one photo, but I didn’t want to get one this time just for the sake of getting one, especially because we took so many nice ones ourselves.

 

It was sad going to bed tonight. I kept going out onto the balcony for one “last” look at the ocean. It was very cold, and I think we were extremely close to New Jersey at this point. Nonetheless, I knew the next time I stepped out onto the balcony we would be in port.

 

The last night of a cruise is really quite depressing for a lot of reasons—your vacation is over, you are headed back to work and reality, and the cruise which provided months of anticipation, excitement, and things to think about and research was about to be over. While we had a great time on this cruise, it really was bitter sweet, and we did not want it to end.

 

DAY EIGHT

Debarkation Day in Bayonne, NJ

 

We woke up this morning to the same view we had prior to setting sail. Our room faced the dock, and it looked a lot better the last time we had seen it. We both turned our phones back on and called our families—a sure sign that we were back to reality.

 

We ventured up to the WJ for one last meal, but neither of us ate very much. Our tags said we were to debark at 10:00 a.m., but by 9:30 a.m. they had announced that everyone could get off the ship. We stayed on for as long as possible, since our ride would not be there until closer to 11:00 a.m. When we finally did get off, we gave our seapass cards for the last time, boarded the bus back to the terminal, went through customs, and headed home. Debarkation was relatively simple, and the folks at Cape Liberty really do a good job getting people on and off the ship.

 

It was a great cruise, and we were sad to have it end. However, I don’t think I could have eaten the way I did for another night, and I know we will be back much sooner rather than later (we put down a future booking deposit, so we have no choice but to return).

 

OVERALL IMPRESSIONS

 

THE SHIP: While I noticed a few minor signs of aging—especially in our stateroom—the rest of the ship was very well-maintained. We absolutely loved the promenade, and we will likely consider the presence of a promenade as a factor in looking into our next cruise. The theater and dining room are very nice, and it is great having an ice skating rink onboard. The casino served its purpose, and the bars and lounges are all beautiful. We checked out the sports court on only one occasion, but there were definitely a lot of options up there as well.

 

OUR CABIN: We had a deluxe balcony cabin on the starboard side of the ship on the hump. It was an absolutely PERFECT location—I highly recommend it.

 

SERVICE: We were disappointed with how our table assignment was handled in the MDR, and our MDR service was sub-par. However, our cabin attendant was fantastic, and many other crewmembers—ranging from guest relations personnel to bartenders to the maitre’d at Portofino—really went out of their way to take care of us.

 

THE PORTS: The weakest part of this cruise was the ports. Our roll call regularly talked about how no one was thrilled with the selection of ports. Nassau is nice, but it is nothing special, especially if you have been there multiple times. Coco Cay would have been nice, but we didn’t make it there. We didn’t get off the ship in Port Canaveral, but it is my understanding that few ships actually call at Port Canaveral. Explorer usually sails a longer, better itinerary, and we will definitely try to get some better ports next time if possible. We care more about the ship and the weather than the ports, so a weaker itinerary was the only way we could do a seven-night New Year’s cruise out of New Jersey. However, in the future we will probably pay more attention to the ports of call.

 

ENTERTAINMENT: I wish we had gone to the headliners, but the singers and dancers were very good. We LOVED Jimmy Rhodes and give him an A. I would give the entertainment overall an A-, only because there was some repetition (as I previously mentioned).

 

ACTIVITIES: The range and quality of activities was great, except for the second day we spent in Nassau.

 

HITS: Ice show; Quest; Jimmy Rhodes; Portofino; ice skating; balcony; promenade; lunch in the MDR; Johnny Rockets

 

MISSES: MDR experience; too many lines and crowds to get into events/activities; poor C&A receptions

 

CLOSING THOUGHTS

 

We will definitely return to Royal Caribbean in the near future, but I am not opposed to trying another cruise line (perhaps NCL), especially after our dining issues. This was a very different vacation for us, as we usually get off the ship at every port and lay by the pool/beach all day. We did a lot of activities and had a great time, but we also ended up eating more than usual (darn Café Promenade!).

 

I would highly recommend Explorer to couples of all ages as well as families. I don’t think a RCI cruise is the best type of vacation for large groups of young singles (Vegas is probably better in general), but there is plenty to do if you are part of that crowd as well. This cruise is great for those who do not want to fly, but I think we will try to go out of Florida next time if we cruise during the winter so that we can have a better chance at more nicer days.

 

Despite my complaints about some things, we really did have a great time and would highly recommend this cruise and ship in the future. Thanks to all of you who are still with me, and I really would like to hear your comments, feedback, and any questions you have!

[Yorkvillain]

TEN LOBSTER TAILS!!!!!! You have to post that picture you took!!!

[mets550]

TEN LOBSTER TAILS!!!!!! You have to post that picture you took!!!

 

Here it is! The stray one in the lefthand corner belonged to my GF.

[mets550]

Here are some more pictures of the ship and Nassau.

[Yorkvillain]

Great, great review. And great, great picture of the lobster shells!

 

You should seriously think about doing a "LIVE" thread on your next cruise like Trainman, Radio, etc.

 

You have me fired up for my Explorer cruise in March. I was a little nervous that I wouldn't enjoy the Explorer since my last 5 cruises have been on bigger ships including the Oasis this past September. Your review has squashed all that nervousness. Like you, I have never eaten in the MDR for lunch so I am looking forward to that on the colder days.

 

I have only had one problem in the MDR ever and it was on the Oasis last year. Our Waiter and Assistant Waiter weren't very attentive to us but the reason why they weren't was because there was a table of 20 people next to us that would not leave the Waiter & Assistant Waiter alone. They really were a pain in the butt and the rest of us in that section suffered because of them. I would bet that you have no problems in the MDR on your next RCL cruise.

 

And yes, definitely check out the Oasis or Allure. They take cruising to a whole new level. In fact our plan for now on is to do 2 cruises a year, one on the Explorer or whatever ship comes to NYC/NJ (since we won't have to worry about flights, hotels, rent a cars, etc.) and then another cruise 6 months later on either the Oasis or Allure.

[LovesCruising]

Enjoyed your review so much. Agree with so many of your statements. Thanks for writing it! Love the pic of the men room!;)

[Dave85]

Great review! Enjoyed it from start to finish.

 

I have to say that your experience sounded a lot like my 2nd (and final) cruise on Explorer which was 5 days to Bermuda. Weather never got over 70 degrees the entire time so we ended up enjoying a lot more inside activities on the ship than we otherwise would on a Caribbean cruise. Glad to hear you at least got a little bit of good weather. We followed that up with a cruise on Oasis though and were blown away. Excellent bet for you guys if you're going down to Florida next time! While Explorer is a fine ship, the more I look back in comparison she just doesn't stack up to the newer ships (I'm including Liberty along with Oasis). Main benefit is obviously not having to fly, but unless I could afford (money and vacation time) one of those lovely 12 night cruises that Explorer does (which I can't at the moment hah), I'll just fly down to FL for one of the newer ships.

 

Also, those 10 tails is an EPIC performance (and i'm not talking about the new NCL ship). I'm not sure i'll ever come close to that... I think my record is 4 or 5. Congrats!

[DonnaK]

DAY THREE

Port Canaveral, FL

 

<<<snip>>>

 

After dinner we went to see one of the production shows featuring the Unexpected Boys—a take-off on the Jersey Boys. The show featured four male singers and dancers, and they were absolutely great! GF LOVED the show and even considered buying their CD. These guys really did a great job. We don’t usually care for the production shows, but this one involved a relatively simple skit and songs which somewhat made sense based on that skit.

 

 

We loved the Unexpected Boys. I was the "Sherry Baby" audience member that they called up onto the stage during their act! What a thrilling experience, and they couldn't have been nicer!!!

 

We had early dining on this cruise, so we were at the earlier show.

[riviera]

We leave Monday on Explorer.........Anyone know who is the current cruise director?

Please tell me it isn't Jimmy Rhodes (AGAIN!) I called RCCL and they told me they don't have that information.....yea, right!

[mets550]

We leave Monday on Explorer.........Anyone know who is the current cruise director?

Please tell me it isn't Jimmy Rhodes (AGAIN!) I called RCCL and they told me they don't have that information.....yea, right!

 

It was Jimmy last week.

[houlacruiser]

Loved this review!!! Fair and accurate - one of the best I've read! Glad you made the best of some not so great situations. Hoping for a better MDR experience in a few weeks. :)

[cruisecluestoo]

What a wonderful review . I really enjoyed reading all of it.

We are going Jan 27 th . I am looking forward to sunny warm days

 

Diane cruiseclues

[PSU]

Rita,

That must have been my second leg of a back to back cruise. My first cruise was only 9 nights and I sailed with my grandson Bryan. They announced snow and blizzard conditions for New Jersey, and I decided to stay onboard for the 12 night cruise.

I was in a balcony cabin with Bryan, but had to go down to an outside cabin on deck 2, as that was the ONLY cabin available.

I met so many lovely people on both cruises, and can't rmember you off hand. Maybe if I knew a little more about you.

We all used to sit in the middle of the CL, putting a whole lot of seats together in a circle.

 

That was a great cruise and I loved Cherry as a concierge. I kept in touch with her for a while via e-mail. I believe she is now with guest relations either on the Allure or the Oasis.

 

Thank you for the " delightful" comment about me. I still talk with my German accent, after nearly 52 years in America.

Ginnie

 

Yes, I remember it was the second leg of a back-to-back cruise for you.

 

I have always admired you for taking that second leg of that cruise by yourself.

 

I remember that you ate at the Captain's table on that cruise.

 

Do you also remember Betty and Ken? Betty wore many gold bracelets on one arm and they were both very tall.

 

My husband's name was Lou. We are from outside of Philadelphia (West Chester). I am an editor with Thomson Reuters.

 

My best memories of that cruise are from that concierge lounge.

 

I hope that we run into you again.

 

We were on Oasis last year. I wish I had known that Cherry might have been on that ship.

 

Rita:)

[Loralie]

Loved your review!!! I will be on the Explorer for the first time in April and I can't wait!!! I love reviews like this and plan on writing a day by day review when I get back.

 

Thanks,

 

Loralie

[MedicKen]

You should pass Carnival Pride in about 2 hours. Hope you're watching the news so you can be awake at 11:30.

[mets550]

Thanks everyone for reading and for your comments. It was a lot of fun writing this, and I'm glad I was able to provide some useful information!

[cruisers325]

Thanks everyone for reading and for your comments. It was a lot of fun writing this, and I'm glad I was able to provide some useful information!

 

 

Great review. We were on the ship with you and following your journey, I think we were probably bumping into each other the whole week. On the second Nassau day, I was lounging in the Solarium because the winds were not bad there.... lost track of time there! :)

 

 

I felt that the service wasn't as great, overall, as other cruises we have been on (all with Celebrity). And, I was surprised that Guest Relations wasn't more helpful with folks who had cancelations and other problems with excursions.

 

 

Did you notice that the balloons didn't come down at the right time during NYE?! Hilarious.

[mets550]

Did you notice that the balloons didn't come down at the right time during NYE?! Hilarious.

 

Yes, I did! I also think that the countdown timer was off by a second or two (or the countdown cheers being led by the crew was off). We still had a great time though--NYE was definitely a top highlight of the cruise.