uktog

No problem We pre registered his allergy on our booking When they get onboard they make a big thing about they can do anything- they can’t. Small adaptations are made but they don’t seem keen to make huge changes preferring him to choose something else. As the one without the allergy you will find you too are restricted eg the breadbasket etc. The Emporium has zero allergen signage. You will spend time hunting people down if you need an answer. The hosts will typically give you a default answer - you can’t have it. We use our own judgement there so far it’s worked The flour used onboard for pastries is almond flour they will make a special tart of the day at night but the chef hasn’t got it right - some nights it’s been rock hard! We’ve also had issues with the temperature of my meals - we think they may sit around whilst they sort out his.

Yes he has to pre order. We don’t like that but respect that they have to have decisions by 10. Other lines are more accommodating We did have an issue now they’ve brought in daily specials. Initially the maitre d was adamant he could not let us know them in advance. However we spoke again with the very helpful f and b manager who then took the maitre d to task. It’s a little awkward as I think the maitre d was cross we had gone above him but we do now have the specials menu. Except they keep having the wrong information! Desserts at lunchtime are pre made for him but they lack innovation often the same each day. Lucky his sweet tooth only comes in the evening!

And they control the portion size to what you want. I was skeptical before my first cruise but am a lover though haven’t made the leap to dinner there yet. I know we should

Glad you had a good Fils Rouge experience @CruiserFromMaine last nights menu was particularly good there. DH managed to negotiate to have that special and loved it (he is supposed to only order off the menu to ensure his special diet). Eduardo is a very good sommelier knowledgeable and just gets on with his job without fuss. A few more like him and Fil Rouge would be perfect

An answer about how safe is Martinique. Honestly today it felt far safer than Barbados. On our tour as we drove out of town we saw one car which must have been a barricade last night smouldering. It appears they protest at night only and sleep in the day. Mein Schiff and Holland America are also in port though the Zuiderman is docked in the commercial port near the smouldering cars. The pier is a long walk to the taxis and tour buses with no shuttle- the little craft shops on the front are lovely and “genuine But there was zero mention of problems by the guide as you would expect and all we saw were good roads, houses and living conditions including in the interior. Based on another conversation we asked the guide did Martinique wish independence from France and her response was why would we - look at what independence did to the housing and hospitals in St Lucia. We managed to get on a ship tour provided by Beyond the Beach for those who like to go independently. It ran albeit at $280 each. It was an insider access visit to Clemente estate which about 45 minutes each way. There were 6 of us plus a ships escort (one person never showed up). The description of the tour was wrong and the organisation was “experimental” so lots of extra walking. We had both a guide from the estate plus a tour guide so a lot of information. The estate is also a cultural park and the write up told us of a botanical garden but we were told there was no time to go. What we did see was very pretty It was not the standard tour run to the estate advertised elsewhere. It was insider access, we were taken through locked barriers as others looked on. We got to draw our own tasting samples from barrels and has two tasting samples direct from the barrels A long walk through the gardens we then saw the original steam plant and the creole style owners house. We then ended up in the board room where we sampled 7 rhums pared with some canapés These were expensive rhums some well over $150 a bottle Yes we tasted all these!! I think this trip was fairly priced. Had it been better organised and a more accurate reflection of the amount of walking it would have been 5 star

His name is Marco Cimbaro. His bio says he’s been with MSC since 1996. He doesn’t come across as being an entertainer more a manager. You have to listen very carefully to his announcements if you haven’t got perfect hearing as his English is strongly accentuated

The captain announced an hour ago that they are still planning to stop tomorrow but will keep monitoring the situation. Our excursion- the insider access rhum tour- is still scheduled to go ahead

Lovely event with champagne cocktails in the Sky Bar / steel band and sunsets. Really nice IMG_7397.mov

They only open one other restaurant at lunch time. We are happy at the Emporium lunch time as we only want a little

Med Yacht is open on sea days

It certainly sells Scotch - overpriced and that would as we say be like carrying coals to Newcastle

Certainly an option for US guests

Todays schedule we are in port so this opening pattern for venues will be with us for five days We are docked at Sugar Wharf so a bit of a walk (5-6 minutes in heat and through a crowded terminal) if you want taxis. Only one excursion went out today with 8 guests. We’ve done it before so walked to the mobbed terminal (MSC Magnifica, Britannia and Rhapsody of the Seas are also in. They all have shuttles to the port gate we do not which in the heat has given some guests issues. Last nights guest artists Max and Ana put on the best dance show I have seen on land or sea - outstanding dances from around the world 8 costume changes and excellent video also giving narrative. The opening routine of their silhouettes against a sunset backdrop was the most spellbinding beautiful 5 minute sequence ever. I believe they also work on Seabourn- more acts of this calibre please Explora!

Your credit can be used in the journey store but there’s not a lot unless you are prepared to pay $000s. A bottle of hand soap is $65!

I’m not disagreeing with @mike@sea about some aspects of the voyage. I was just expecting a little more “stimulus” on a transatlantic cruise I experienced in the past and a “shore ex” experience at least equivalent to other lines. However as I said I will summarise all my thoughts once I have had all the cruise. I expect positives in that summary. Today included another excellent craft session and as before the products we were working with were superior to other lines. Dining and the associated service is becoming more and more subjective- we personally prefer low key competent service than over the top staging. We like well cooked food to come out hot. Some of the restaurants crack that. Sakura is one. The sushi selection is absolutely excellent (ok not expecting that hot) First time trying the scallop mains - why did I leave that so long - excellent well balanced dish. We are now trying to burn our OBC big time so enjoyed a nice bottle of Rock Angel

Unfortunately stairs are not my friend! Sounds a great experience for those who can

Thanks for that information it differs from what Destination Experiences told us this morning.

Yes heard good things about the cooking classes though unfortunately it’s a lot of money when the other half can’t handle or enjoy some of the ingredients. I agree about the entertainment - the dancers were good and I look forward to seeing them again, they totally wasted the magicians talents by not using him more - was that a contract issue, in which case they have to sort it - and the singers though better than the duo last year are getting very repetitive. I was disappointed no new artists are coming on in Barbados however from my experience elsewhere on Explora this lack lustre entertainment is not unique to a transatlantic. Journey 1 got a new very experienced and personable Entertainment Manager the second week we were on in September, the staff were very enthusiastic about how he was already opening their eyes to what was possible. He was everywhere talking to guests and with 30+ years experience really knew his game. I do not have that same sense just now on EJ2. EJ1 will start a transatlantic soon I think - if they do I’d be interested to see their programme for comparison

As we move into the port based element of this cruise I thought I’d do a summary of how we found the offerings for the 6+2 sea days. As the ship is only half full accessing everything has been easy with no shortage of loungers either in the sun or the shade. As reported elsewhere it started badly with the insistence on playing background boom boom boom all day on deck but this was appropriately addressed. I suspect this might be a this voyage only not a policy change so future cruisers will need to speak up if the noise returns. We have done seven transoceanic cruises so know what they can be like. In terms of weather this one was pretty good just the usual issues with swell but much less than we’ve seen elsewhere. The pool roof was opened most days. Just as well the heat was unbearable the day it wasn’t! The ship seemed to handle pretty well however its design is not suited to swell. All the hot tubs on the outside decks have had to be closed each day which is very disappointing but when you look at their location not surprising they are all at the edge of the vessel. Never had this issue on other ships except in very high wind situations (which we did not have). The entertainment programme was weak - I’ve posted the dailies - and repetitive. The overall programme was well below what we have seen elsewhere. There were only three onboard speakers - one excellent, one enthusiastic though inexperienced talking on a subject hashed to death on cruises and one poor both in terms of content and delivery. Timings of events was strange with popular activities scheduled against each other then long gaps. The high spot was the art and craft class run by a mother and daughter. They were so well prepared and were using better quality products (eg weight of paper) than on other lines. It wasn’t a watch me now do this class, it was much more a one on one coaching session as they worked round the group which was initially up to 30 but numbers dropped when they set the daily trivia opposite it. The other issue - and I so felt for the instructors - was the location in front of the windows in the lounge on Deck 11 - it got brutally hot there but none of the bar staff seemed empowered to help. However these were excellent classes - my art was not 😀 There is no library onboard fortunately we had brought a lot of books between us. There is no facility for a book exchange. Unfortunately the selection of onboard games disappointed many as there was no scrabble or mahjong sets so again bring your own. For the bridge players there is no instructor or facilitation of get togethers. Would we go on an Explora transatlantic again based on this entertainment programme experience alone (I will summarise other aspects at the end of the cruise) - absolutely not until they up their game re luminaries etc and recognise that whilst they might be a floating hotel round ports on a transoceanic cruise they are a ship and the trapped audience need more. I doubt they’ll ever solve the hot tub issue for those of us needing joint therapy though!

The curse of the cancelled shore excursions continues. Just had a notification at 2200 that our Barbados trip the day after tomorrow is cancelled “due to operational reasons at the request of the tour operator”. I have no idea what that explora speak means but we are stuck with nothing in a second port and instead of using credit as planned will have to buy something. Also very little time to research options. We now have no way we can spend all our on board credit which was given not us a booking perk but us an adjustment due to the shortening of the Cruise - nearly $800 will be unspent - we’ve already bought wine and Anthology and can’t do the spa. . All I would say to anybody going to Cruise with these people in future you should refuse to accept on board credit if there has been a problem and this is what it offered us the resolution. I believe in these circumstances excursions cancelled by the cruise line should be recredited as Refundable onboard credit to allow guests to fund alternative plans. Will report back what we manage to do instead.

No floats available

One Scotch only a small bottle of Glenfiddich offered. The list to choose from should be in your room on embarkation if not you ask the “room host” aka attendant

None of the fish is fresh but it tastes ok

Everyone can choose one bottle for their room on embarkation

I would start on that route the “sparkle” on all the water is variable both in the room and restaurants