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About Your Ship: Explorer of the Seas

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Departs Cape Liberty (Bayonne) aboard Royal Caribbean – Explorer of the Seas

Sailing Date(s): Dec 2013, Jan 2014


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	Average Explorer of the Seas Rating



	SORT BY: Most Recent \| Positive \| Negative \| Helpful 1 - 10 of 50 \| Next 10 >
	Overall Rating: About the Reviewer: Age: 30 - 49 Cruise Experience: 2 - 3 cruises Traveler Type: Family w/older children Stateroom Type: Balcony Vastly overpriced! Terrible value! by David S. from Philadelphia, PA Sailing date: Aug 2011 Pros: The food and hospitality of the staff. Cons: Cruise was disgracefully overbooked!! There were massive lines for most everything - dining rooms, elevators, activites. Literally no quiet areas could be found. Avoid this cruise like the plague- at least in the Summer. It was so ridiculously overbooked you could barely move. Sometimes moving up and down a few floors on elevators would take 15 minutes. The crowds overwhelmed everything. Wait times were insane. We could never find a table for the buffet. My parents were older and really struggled at times. What annoys me is that this cruise was very EXPENSIVE. I have been on far cheaper cruises with a much smaller passenger to staff ratio so even in RCCL's class of cruise this was awful. Cruising should be RELAXING not this stressful. The staff tried their best, but they were obviously overwhelmed. Also, the lack of enforcement of dress code was disgusting. Even in the formal dining rooms, most passengers dressed like bums - caps, hoodies, tank tops, bathing suits, short shorts, sneakers. Made a mockery of the published dressed dress code and no one in the staff even cared. This ship left from North Jersey and this was a pretty hard scrabble crowd. They obviously had no interest in the traditional decorum of a cruise. If you desire at least a modicum of traditional cruising decorum avoid this cruise and probably RCCL in general. I didn't think this would be a "booze-cruise" given the cost but I must admit I was wrong. RCCL markets itself as family-friendly but this cruise was definitely not - there were some real creepy people and tons of drunks - a little scary for kids IMO. Ship Details: Ship Quality Ship was impressive. A little tacky but definitely an engineering marvel. Dining room was beautiful. Would have enjoyed it so much more if there were fewer passengers. It was hard to move anywhere. Dining/Food Food was excellent. Buffet was very well stocked and most definitely better than any I have been to on land. Dining room food was superb. Every night was delicious. Some of the best food I have every had served in a restaurant. Stateroom Quality Room was OK. Obviously heavily used and badly in need of a refresh. However, the stateroom attendants were great and did their best to keep it clean. TV was ancient. Sofa had a visible stain (horrified trying to imagine what caused it given the type of people on this cruise.) Ship Staff Quality Staff was the best part of this cruise. They tried so hard to help and were so friendly - wonderful people. They come from all over the world and work almost non-stop for 6-7 months at a time. They are away from their families for most of the year and they are still so cheerful - amazing. They go out of their way to help, but were clearly overwhelmed by the crowds. Entertainment & Activities Entertainment was decent. First-night comedian was great. Gymnast show was fantastic. Ice show was so-so. I felt bad for the ice-skaters, they worked hard, but had a difficult time with the more complex routines, there were some falls. It must be so hard to ice skate on a rocking cruise ship, especially given the probably awful ice from the hot temperatures. Read this user's port of call reviews: King's Wharf, Bermuda Collapse List of Ports Ports of Call: King's Wharf, Bermuda Decent port, but you need to travel at least half an hour to get to Hamilton and all the nice beaches. Somewhat stressful. 10 out of 11 people found this review helpful. Did you find this review helpful? Overall Rating: About the Reviewer: Age: 30 - 49 Cruise Experience: 2 - 3 cruises Traveler Type: Family w/older children Stateroom Type: Balcony Vastly overpriced! Terrible value! by Lou S. from Philadelphia, PA Sailing date: Aug 2011 Pros: The food and hospitality of the staff. Cons: Cruise was disgracefully overbooked!! There were massive lines for most everything - dining rooms, elevators, activites. Literally no quiet areas could be found. Avoid this cruise like the plague- at least in the Summer. It was so ridiculously overbooked you could barely move. The crowds overwhelmed everything. Wait times were insane. We could never find a table for the buffet. My parents were older and really struggled at times. What annoys me is that this cruise was very EXPENSIVE. I have been on far cheaper cruises with a much smaller passenger to staff ratio so even in RCCL's class of cruise this was awful. Cruising should be RELAXING not this stressful. The staff tried their best, but they were obviously overwhelmed. Also, the lack of enforcement of dress code was disgusting. Even in the formal dining rooms, most passengers dressed like bums - caps, hoodies, tank tops, bathing suits, short shorts, sneakers. Made a mockery of the published dressed dress code and no one in the staff even cared. This ship left from North Jersey and this was a pretty hard scrabble crowd. They obviously had no interest in the traditional decorum of a cruise. If you desire at least a modificum of traditional cruising decorum avoid this cruise and probably RCCL in general. I didn't think this would be a "booze-cruise" given the cost but I must admit I was wrong. RCCL markets itself as famil-friendly but this cruise was definitely not - there were some real creepy people and tons of drunks - a little scary for kids IMO. Ship Details: Ship Quality Ship was impressive. A little tacky but definitely an engineering marvel. Dining room was beautiful. Would have enjoyed it so much more if there were fewer passengers. It was hard to move anywhere. Dining/Food Food was excellent. Buffet was very well stocked and most definitely better than any I have been to on land. Dining room food was superb. Every night was delicious. Some of the best food I have every had served in a restaurant. Stateroom Quality Room was OK. Obviously heavily used and badly in need of a refresh. However, the stateroom attendants were great and did their best to keep it clean. TV was ancient. Sofa had a visible stain (horrified trying to imagine what caused it given the type of people on this cruise.) Ship Staff Quality Staff was the best part of this cruise. They tried so hard to help and were so friendly - wonderful people. They come from all over the world and work almost non-stop for 6-7 months at a time. They are away from their families for most of the year and they are still so cheerful - amazing. They go out of their way to help, but were clearly overwhelmed by the crowds. Entertainment & Activities Entertainment was decent. First-night comedian was great. Gymnast show was fantastic. Ice show was so-so. I felt bad for the ice-skaters, they worked hard, but had a difficult time with the more complex routines, there were some falls. It must be so hard to ice skate on a rocking cruise ship, especially given the probably awful ice from the hot temperatures. Read this user's port of call reviews: King's Wharf, Bermuda Collapse List of Ports Ports of Call: King's Wharf, Bermuda Bermuda was beautiful - BUT you must drive at least a half hour to Hamilton of Horseshoe bay. The dockyard where you anchor is not that impressive 2 out of 2 people found this review helpful. Did you find this review helpful? Overall Rating: About the Reviewer: Age: 30 - 49 Cruise Experience: 4 - 6 cruises Traveler Type: Family w/older children Stateroom Type: Balcony Not that great ship by A Traveler from NY Sailing date: Aug 2011 Pros: Service Cons: Teen program boring The ship needs a good make up Rooms looks like the 'golden girls' from the 80' The teen club was very bad organized and all the activities were closed or cancelled. Or reduced access. Not a fun place to your ideal vacation. Our family did not like it. Ship Details: Ship Quality Dining/Food Stateroom Quality Ship Staff Quality Entertainment & Activities Needs new shows Children's Programs Read this user's port of call reviews: King's Wharf, Bermuda Collapse List of Ports Ports of Call: King's Wharf, Bermuda 3 out of 5 people found this review helpful. Did you find this review helpful? Overall Rating: About the Reviewer: Age: 50 - 65 Cruise Experience: 4 - 6 cruises Traveler Type: Singles/friends Stateroom Type: Balcony bugged on cruise. trip ruined by SUZANNE L from hackettstown, nj Sailing date: Mar 2011 Pros: the itinerary. Cons: incident with bedbugs in our room. 2nd cruise on thiis ship. we would have enjoyed the cruise but for the problem with bed bugs in our room, and the way ship personnel delt with it. Ship Details: Ship Quality Dining/Food Stateroom Quality bed bugs Ship Staff Quality poor response to resolving bed bug problem. Entertainment & Activities Read this user's port of call reviews: Labadee (Cruiseline Private Island); San Juan, Puerto Rico; Charlotte Amalie, St. Thomas, U.S.V.I.; Samana, Dominican Republic Collapse List of Ports Ports of Call: Labadee (Cruiseline Private Island) San Juan, Puerto Rico Charlotte Amalie, St. Thomas, U.S.V.I. Samana, Dominican Republic 9 out of 10 people found this review helpful. Did you find this review helpful? Overall Rating: About the Reviewer: Age: 50 - 65 Cruise Experience: 4 - 6 cruises Traveler Type: Singles/friends Stateroom Type: Inside Disappointment by Anne K from Collegeville, PA Sailing date: May 2013 Pros: Service was excellent Cons: Food in the main dining room was equivalent to a diner food The ship was nice but in need of an update. The show on the last night was a cheap recap. Cruise video was shown and a little comedy from the cruise director. A waste of an hour. I would have rather used it packing. I've been on other cruises with RC and they were great in comaparison. However, if I had never cruised before, I wouldn't have been so disappointed. Ship Details: Ship Quality Dining/Food Stateroom Quality Ship Staff Quality Entertainment & Activities 0 out of 1 people found this review helpful. Did you find this review helpful? Overall Rating: About the Reviewer: Age: 50 - 65 Cruise Experience: 2 - 3 cruises Traveler Type: Couple Stateroom Type: Inside Great time... except for the stateroom by A Traveler from NY Sailing date: Jan 2013 Pros: Size of the ship Cons: Stateroom Second time on this ship and still finding new things to explore. Ship Details: Ship Quality Seemed a little less clean this time around. Dining/Food I prefer the old menu for the dining room but thought the windjammer was a bit better this time. Stateroom Quality We had an adjouning room and they didn't lock the interior door until 3 calls to the desk. We missed sail away. The gentlemen from the next room came into our room twice thinking it was his bathroom. He might have well stayed in our room. Every bit of noise and light (24/7) came through the adjoining door. Ship Staff Quality Just adequate this time. We don't need a lot so this works for us. Entertainment & Activities First time we tried the Silent Party. Fun time! 3 out of 3 people found this review helpful. Did you find this review helpful? Overall Rating: About the Reviewer: Age: 30 - 49 Cruise Experience: 4 - 6 cruises Traveler Type: Family w/young children Stateroom Type: Balcony OMG The food sucks! by Helder M from Old Bridge Sailing date: Aug 2012 Pros: The beaches Cons: The food Ship needs a makeover, chef at the windjammer needs to be fired on the spot. Service was ok. Most things are over priced. I wont go on a RC cruise again! Ship Details: Ship Quality Dining/Food The food was horrible! Stateroom Quality Ship Staff Quality Entertainment & Activities Children's Programs 0 out of 2 people found this review helpful. Did you find this review helpful? Overall Rating: About the Reviewer: Age: 30 - 49 Cruise Experience: 4 - 6 cruises Traveler Type: Singles/friends Stateroom Type: Inside Staff made ALL the difference! by Desiree A from Cherry Hill, NJ Sailing date: Apr 2012 Pros: Richard Spacey (Cruise Director) and his staff Cons: Stateroom and Sanitation Smell Overall, the ship was incredibly impressive. It was a pleasure to get lost aboard the sizable Explorer of the Seas, with its vibrant Promenade, spacious pool deck and elegant dining rooms and elevators. The onboard ice skating rink was such an interesting attraction! Unfortunately, a horrible sanitation smell saturated the corridors most days, and all night one evening. In addition, staterooms leave much to be desired. Ship Details: Ship Quality The Explorer of the Seas is large, without being overwhelming. It is quite easy to navigate once acclimating to its layout. Public areas were kept very tidy, with the exception of corridor carpets. They appear to be in great need of deep cleaning, as they were darkened by imbedded dirt. There is a bit of a decor imbalance, as public areas were adorned with brilliant metals and precision-cut glasses, while corridors and landings contain varied pieces of abstract art that seemed strewn about. Dining/Food Food quality is very good, but there was little restaurant variety. At the buffet, trays were consistently replenished with fresh items. The fruit was particularly delicious! No dishes stood out spectacularly, so I wouldn't expect gourmet dining. A few tasty dishes were available during dinner from the Windjammer, but overall, it's a hodgepodge of buffet items. Dining rooms offered a few items that I would consider upgrades from those in the Windjammer, but again, nothing spectacular. We were always able to get reservations, though they were typically only early and late time available. Stateroom Quality A generous closet, full-length mirror and vanity are wonderful touches to the stateroom. In many other areas however, staterooms are greatly in need of improvement. The upholstered furniture was colored by worn-in dirt (vanity chair, sofa), as was the bed runner. The space is incredibly cluttered in interior king rooms. The television is outdated, and located at an odd angle, making viewing from bed difficult. Lighting was poor in the bathroom and the bathroom layout could use work. Ship Staff Quality The Explorer of the Seas' staff are the ABSOLUTE BEST! I can not say enough about how personable, humorous and accommodating everyone is... and that's EVERYONE! I felt like VIP for the entire cruise - like staff went above and beyond, at every turn. I would take this cruise again, if staff were the same. TOP NOTCH!! Entertainment & Activities Though there were a variety of activities, many seemed to be geared more toward older guests. As a 32 year old professional, I had expected a myriad of entertainment that would allow me to let my hair down. Those types of events typically occurred at night with the phenomenal cruise director and his staff. The chilly weather made sun-bathing on the pool deck unbearable, so days got a bit boring. 2 out of 4 people found this review helpful. Did you find this review helpful? Overall Rating: About the Reviewer: Age: 50 - 65 Cruise Experience: 7+ cruises Traveler Type: Couple Stateroom Type: Balcony the cruise was mainly for senoir citizen by Ken H from Clearfield, Pa Sailing date: Sep 2010 Pros: Boston Cons: lack of entertainment The ship was very nice and in excellent condition. The staff was very nice and helpful. The food was OK but not extradorinary and the 2 buffets that they had occurred without and announcement. They had a midnight buffet and a buffet in the promanade for 1 lunch but neither was announced. The entertainment was every good but there was not much of it. They usually had one show each night, shown twice but that was it. The piano music, dance music, etc all started after 9 pm. There was very little afternoon entertainment just a calypso band than played for 45 minutes every hour for 3 hours each afternoon. There were very few kids on board so the slide was only open for 2 hours per day. Ship Details: Ship Quality Dining/Food The food you got at sitdown dinners was very good but very limited in selections, usually limited to 5 main courses. Also the my time dinner didn't work out as there were very limited tables available and very few tables for two. The one time we got a table for 2 it was really a tablet for 6 with 4 empty seats which threw off the waiter as he was waiting for the table to fill up so it took a long time to get waited on. Everyone on the cruise must have eaten at the same time in the open buffets because it was hard to find seats there also. Stateroom Quality Ship Staff Quality Entertainment & Activities Excellent entertainment but very limited, on a 9 day cruise the ice rink had only 1 show which was repeated 4 times in 2 days, they could have had more shows. The comedians and outside singers only put on one show each and they could have had afternoon shows. Read this user's port of call reviews: Bar Harbor, Maine; Boston, Massachusetts; Portland, Maine; Halifax, Nova Scotia; Saint John, New Brunswick Collapse List of Ports Ports of Call: Bar Harbor, Maine Very nice town to visit and shop as there were alot of unique shops thet were very close together which made for a nice walk. Boston, Massachusetts The trolley tour of Boston and Cambridge was excellent as you can get off and on at every stop as the trolleys run every 15 minutes. Included in the tour was a free harbour cruise or Charles River cruise but we didn't have enough time to do them. The tour included a second day free but we were only there for one day. it was a very good deal for the money. Don't Miss: Fenway Park Portland, Maine We had toured this town before and there was not anything extrordinary. Halifax, Nova Scotia We toured before. Saint John, New Brunswick We toured before. 3 out of 5 people found this review helpful. Did you find this review helpful? Overall Rating: About the Reviewer: Age: 50 - 65 Cruise Experience: 2 - 3 cruises Traveler Type: Family w/young children Stateroom Type: Balcony Our cruise experience by A Traveler from NYC Sailing date: Jul 2010 Pros: Service was fine, ship is beautiful and well maintained, AC was a blast! Cons: Food was uneven - some excellent, some inedible; jr. suite was smaller than expected and drawer space was quite limited. Extra charges got annoying (for soda) as was the check in and check out of towels each day. The ship itself is huge and beautiful. The shops are somewhat limited and the food in the sit-down dining room was very uneven -- sometimes it was great, others it was quite poor. Lounge chairs fill up fast and the staff doesn't really control "saving" while passengers leave. We observed very poor behavior by a very few passengers who tossed other people's belongings onto the deck because they were left on their lounge chair even tho' they had left for more than the 30 min. limit. Ship Details: Ship Quality Dining/Food Stateroom Quality Ship Staff Quality Entertainment & Activities Read this user's port of call reviews: King's Wharf, Bermuda Collapse List of Ports Ports of Call: King's Wharf, Bermuda The staff on land at the pier, especially those from the ferries, were outright obnoxious. When asked where we get off the ferry, they replied, "Where did you get on?" When landing a distance from the ship, we asked how to get back to the ship, they replied, shouting, "You walk!" They failed to mention that there was a free mini-train shuttle. Don't Miss: Nothing at King's Wharf, but the Crystal Caves in Hamilton is a must see. However, there is an entry to the beach right there at no cost which they don't tell anyone. 5 out of 5 people found this review helpful. Did you find this review helpful?
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