Returning to Explora 1 after almost a year

[CruiseCrew123]

I’ve just seen that next weeks guest entertainers are The MacDonald Brothers . Their claim to fame is taking part in UK X Factor 18 years ago !!!!! So disappointed as I saw them on a cruise a few years ago too 😭

Edited September 19 by CruiseCrew123

[uktog]

The biggest onboard disaster

 

There have been no Pasta del nata for two days. They’ve run out. They do not make them onboard but get them from a top source in Lisbon. They may not have any delivery before we leave - a disaster

[CruiseCrew123]

That’s is truly a tragedy !!!!!!!! they are my favourite 

Edited September 19 by CruiseCrew123

[Khareef]

9 hours ago, uktog said:

Unfortunately the loud video calling is endemic onboard. A large Asian group were also annoying at breakfast. The suited supervisors are either not empowered to intervene or are unwilling. 
 

It’s a breezy sea day. Turned up at an activity on the sports deck - no one there, not even a staff member to say they had cancelled it. 
 

Chairhogs out in force at the inside pool area. All chairs are “occupied” though only about 20% have bodies. It’s pleasant here but the Muzak is weird and gets on my nerves. Yes I could go and get my AirPods, maybe the other 80% of pool chair reservers are trying to find their ones 😂

 

Excellent dinner last night though spotty service. Maitre D very defensive and not up for constructive feedback 

Where did you go for dinner last night?
Tonight show is probably my favorite, too bad i watched the same last week 🙂 but better to watch twice the same show then a crappy new one

[uktog]

An even bigger onboard disaster no rose wine, no Chardonnay no Cabernet Sauvignon for the remaining 7 days. 
 

Im sorry but this isn’t what you’d expect on a mass market line never mind one claiming to be premium/luxury. 
 

I am trying to see if my travel agent can cancel our November Cruise, but I suspect the penalties will be significant. This sadly isn’t cruise line for me.

[Bongomeme]

19 minutes ago, uktog said:

An even bigger onboard disaster no rose wine, no Chardonnay no Cabernet Sauvignon for the remaining 7 days. 
 

Im sorry but this isn’t what you’d expect on a mass market line never mind one claiming to be premium/luxury. 
 

I am trying to see if my travel agent can cancel our November Cruise, but I suspect the penalties will be significant. This sadly isn’t cruise line for me.

Oh, that’s bad news. I’m on the 9/27 trip ( my 3rd with Explora) and really looking forward to it.  Small hiccups don’t bother me but running out of wine options in the Med seems like poor planning!

How many guests are aboard?

[ChilledGecko]

We have just boarded and we have been told that it is "half full" for this cruise. 

 

..... information from Manoj in the Helios Bar, so I will take that as solid data. 

[uktog]

1 minute ago, ChilledGecko said:

We have just boarded and we have been told that it is "half full" for this cruise. 

 

..... information from Manoj in the Helios Bar, so I will take that as solid data. 

An officer told us it was 550

[Dr. Cocktail]

1 hour ago, uktog said:

An even bigger onboard disaster no rose wine, no Chardonnay no Cabernet Sauvignon for the remaining 7 days. 
 

Im sorry but this isn’t what you’d expect on a mass market line never mind one claiming to be premium/luxury. 
 

I am trying to see if my travel agent can cancel our November Cruise, but I suspect the penalties will be significant. This sadly isn’t cruise line for me.

This is beyond ridiculous .... have you asked to speak to the Hotel Director?

 

They should be comping the good stuff.

[uktog]

24 minutes ago, Dr. Cocktail said:

This is beyond ridiculous .... have you asked to speak to the Hotel Director?

 

They should be comping the good stuff.

Spoken to him, he claimed he did not know there were issues. 

[saminina]

If you want guest count, there is one accurate source.  It's not the hotel desk, or some officer.

[Dr. Cocktail]

15 minutes ago, uktog said:

Spoken to him, he claimed he did not know there were issues. 

Of course he didn't know - he's not allowed to drink on duty and hasn't seen the list!

[Khareef]

Explora charges 200 dollars for a private transport to the hotel in Istanbul…i spent 15 euros on a regular taxi…i mean come on…

 

We were called 30 minutes before our estimated time and it is very easy to disembark in Istanbul.

 

A few random thoughts on small things that could be improved : the nebbiolo in the Marble&co was pretty disappointing, the pinot grigio felt pretty weird the last few days on board. Anthology should have 2 different wines for the main course depending on whether guests choose meat or fish..There is an insufficient amount of washing machines: 4 for a ship of nearly 1k people is really too few. The mini croissant and pain au chocolate in the crema caffè seemed way better than the normal ones in the emporium…in room service food seemed much poorer (the pizza was really bad). No craft beer or any kind, if the wine selection was poor the beer was poorer.
 

Overall i think they have a very beautiful interior design, great food and coffe and a decent entertainment and the option to have some late night fun with like minded guests.

 

My biggest concern is that they might be going after big groups of people from the asian and latin america markets and i am afraid to report that the behavior of some of those guests left a lot to be desired. 

 

Overall i am pretty satisfied with my 2 weeks on boards, if some more interesting itineraries will be added in the future i might be back, but the med and caribe are just too plain for me,

 

 

Edited September 20 by Khareef

[cruisr]

6 hours ago, uktog said:

An even bigger onboard disaster no rose wine, no Chardonnay no Cabernet Sauvignon for the remaining 7 days. 
 

Im sorry but this isn’t what you’d expect on a mass market line never mind one claiming to be premium/luxury. 
 

I am trying to see if my travel agent can cancel our November Cruise, but I suspect the penalties will be significant. This sadly isn’t cruise line for me.

So sorry to read this.  That there is no Char or CS or Rose would cause me to not drink wine as, in reverse order, they are my favorites.  I know that if this happened on other luxury lines I have sailed, the F&B Mgr or Hotman would be authorized to purchase these onshore.  
 

The more I read here the more I am questioning my decision for Dh and I to try Explora. 

[Dr. Cocktail]

11 minutes ago, cruisr said:

So sorry to read this.  That there is no Char or CS or Rose would cause me to not drink wine as, in reverse order, they are my favorites.  I know that if this happened on other luxury lines I have sailed, the F&B Mgr or Hotman would be authorized to purchase these onshore.  
 

The more I read here the more I am questioning my decision for Dh and I to try Explora. 

I think that what may be lost is how much that they actually get right!

 

The ship is stunning with very good entry level suites, the food is generally spectacular using extremely high quality ingredients, the staff is generally solicitous, kind and eager to please, the FIVE outdoor bar/lounges and outdoor decks are unmatched by ANYONE in the industry with THE most beautiful and comfortable outdoor furniture and yet….

 

… an unacceptable wine list and spirits menu (I had far better choices on Celebrity in May), not enough shade to enjoy these gorgeous areas, poorly designed cabin bathrooms and a poor shorex/transfer operation…not disasters but missed opportunities.

 

 

[uktog]

7 hours ago, Dr. Cocktail said:

I think that what may be lost is how much that they actually get right!

 

The ship is stunning with very good entry level suites, the food is generally spectacular using extremely high quality ingredients, the staff is generally solicitous, kind and eager to please, the FIVE outdoor bar/lounges and outdoor decks are unmatched by ANYONE in the industry with THE most beautiful and comfortable outdoor furniture and yet….

 

… an unacceptable wine list and spirits menu (I had far better choices on Celebrity in May), not enough shade to enjoy these gorgeous areas, poorly designed cabin bathrooms and a poor shorex/transfer operation…not disasters but missed opportunities.

 

 

Whilst I agree the food and ship are great there’s too much not right after a year for me to continue to advocate for Explora. 
 

it has emerged they knew four days ago based on the rate of consumption on various wines they would run out. They initially made no attempt to obtain alternative supplies choosing to print a truncated wine list instead. 
 

The General Manager wasn’t straight about it when guests challenged them claiming to be unaware of the problem. We know from others the decision to print a new list needed leadership authorisation 

 

Yes they are going to try and buy more wine today in Istanbul but there’s no guarantee they can get it and find something drinkable and if they do when will it run out again? 

 

The way staff (ok they were probably to some extent doing as they were told) made up stories and led guests to believe the wine bring served last night was far superior to what they had earlier in the cruise (or for those guests joining then that they never served the missing wines) left a nasty taste in our mouths. All this fluff about hosts - well I like my hosts wherever I am to be honest and not treat me like an idiot. I saw several restaurant hosts in a new light last night some of the stories they spun were awful.  That memory will stick! 

[Sololux]

I’m sorry that it’s turned out like that.  Your expectations were realistic given you had cruised with them before.  I hate it when my holidays are different to what I had  expected.  Do you think HQ in Geneva was too focused on the second ship and/ or more competent staff had been sent to the new ship?

[Khareef]

I didn’t even try the pastel de belem, was it any good? it is one of those things that is meant to be eaten as soon as it is made anyway, I never tried the industrial ones, a missed opportunity i guess. The cookies were pretty good though.

 

I do think they should have a 2 weeks menu rotation on all restaurant, after the first week it gets a bit repetitive and it lacks that surprise factor. 

On sea days the med is open at lunch and they have a few different things from the evening offering and that was nice actually.

In my book the med beats the french by a lot, the only great thing about the french are the desserts which are a bit weak in the med,

 

Coffe was top notch, a lot of the other fancy cruises could learn a thing or two from explora coffee wise. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[tine-tine]

On 9/19/2024 at 11:37 AM, uktog said:

The biggest onboard disaster

 

There have been no Pasta del nata for two days. They’ve run out. They do not make them onboard but get them from a top source in Lisbon. They may not have any delivery before we leave - a disaster

Whaaaattt!!!!! I am surprised you have taken it so calmly, I would be jumping overboard, these are the top of my list as to why I booked Explora. 🤣

[Marmaduke]

Does Heike (former Hotel Director on Azamara) still work for Explora ?  I can't imagine these fiascos happening on her watch.

[uktog]

11 minutes ago, Marmaduke said:

Does Heike (former Hotel Director on Azamara) still work for Explora ?  I can't imagine these fiascos happening on her watch.

They certainly wouldn’t have! She is not onboard 

[saminina]

Who is (was) hotel manager?  So sad you had to have such an experience, but appreciate you sharing it on CC. 

[uktog]

44 minutes ago, saminina said:

Who is (was) hotel manager?  So sad you had to have such an experience, but appreciate you sharing it on CC. 

Maarten Smeets 

[GregoryPaul]

Following (probably way too) intently what is going on with the current Explora 1 cruise, mostly because I have come to appreciate your past insight & comments. Please continue to post.

 

I’m not really all that demanding of a cruise line but not offering Chardonnay, Cab Sauvignon or Rose is unacceptable. As a certified Somm (for fun), I was already dismayed by the quality of the wines they DO offer.

 

Ah well, time to lower my expectations another notch or three, I guess.

[mike@sea]

25 minutes ago, uktog said:

Maarten Smeets 

I am really surprised to read all this and learn, that neither the entertainment nor the repetitive food in the restaurants, nor the excursion issues have been adjusted despite so many passenger complains and feedback during Explora1’s past first year.

Mr Smeets was on Explora 1 in February/March and listened to all remarks and complains : 

-The necessity to offer daily specials in all restaurants or 2 different menus alternating every week.

- More reliable excursions which do not get cancelled or altered last minute. 

- better entertainment, which is not repetitive after one week/cruise.

- a better free wine list with more choices. 
…to name a just few of those remarks and issues.

 

And none of it has changed apparently since then. That is very sad to hear, since he even took notes during his talks with me or other passengers.