Kissing Seahorses

I am currently onboard Explora.

In the past, I have regularly sailed traditional "luxury" lines including Regent, Crystal and the "premium" line Oceania.  

Explora isn't a "traditional" cruise line.  They don't want to be.  

They want to appeal to a different clientele than the traditional ships, younger, more active, less jaded, they want to appeal to people that haven't even considered cruising before.

I have eaten in all the Restaurants and the only (epic) fail was Anthology and I understand they are already considering a change of concept for that venue.  I disagree with one of the previous poster that has said there wasn't enough variety in the restaurants. All the menus are varied and have starters, main courses of fish, fowl, meat and vegetables and are always beautifully presented.

Marketplace is the main breakfast venue and is large and set up in stations. This allows everyone to see what is on offer and also there are very short waits for food. I personally like it better than any other buffet type venue I have seen on any ship.  The food is very good and much of it is prepared to order with minimal wait times.

This ship is beautiful.  The best I have ever seen.  The Italians do style and design very very well.

To me, one of the key elements of "luxury" is space.  This ship has more space in the common areas than any other ship.  My late partner would often bristle at being seated "cheek to jowl' in restaurants on land or at sea.  On Explora there is none of that.  Even the coffee venue is spread out and has lot's of comfortable seating in groups of 2 or 4 but most of the chairs are easy to move so it is easy to add to these sizes. They also have snacks, mostly sweets and yogurt in the morning and grilled panini and other sandwiches in the afternoon if you need a small bite. 

The outside venues are also large and spacious. Deck 12 has alot of chaise lounges and sun beds as well as a run/walk track that encircles the entire deck.

Explora needs to improve their communication.  Obviously pre-cruise, and during the cruise they need to improve how they inform passengers when things change as they inevitably do.  In a conversation with the GM, who is quite visible onboard, he seems to be very aware of this failing.

I don't intend to be an apologist or a cheerleader for Explora and I know that many have been harmed by the delays and cancellations, etc. but I just wanted to give my perspective which is primarily positive. 

I think that as with all new concepts and products, there is plenty of room for improvement but I am glad that a line has finally stepped outside the traditional mold and decided to be different.  If you are wedded to the traditional format for cruising, this may not be for you.

Thanks for your review.

I was on this itinerary as well and I agree with your observations about 98%, I think I enjoy all the restaurants more than you although I think Compass rose is probably the best "main diningroom" in the business. 

Your comments on the ports were spot on.

My experience with the internet/wifi was much different. I paid for the upgrade, $9.99 per day but I think it makes all the difference however you are only allowed to be on one device at a time per suite so if both are heavy users it won't work well because you would be constantly kicking the other person off.

My apologies for thinking this was a new tax.  This was the impression I was under and like I mentioned I hadn't seen any discussion of what I consider to be a pretty egregious tax.  

I have not read any discussion of this on Cruise Critic but there is a new 25% VAT tax on all onboard purchases made in bars, boutique and spas. It does not apply to services in the spa but on products purchased there.  This applies to days at sea between ports of call.

The jewelry boutique has announced an indeterminant discount as the remainder of this Voyager cruise and the majority of the following cruise are within Brazilian waters.

Yesterday, I participated in the already somewhat pricey Wine Pairing Lunch and the Sommelier called to make sure I knew that the tax was on top of that.

Luckily, most things are included on Regent, but if you are a fan of Premium Wines, this may be a consideration.

Actually the Europa & Regina has undergone a complete renovation and is scheduled to reopen in September 2019 as the St. Regis Venice.  It should be an excellent alternative for future Venice stays, especially for those who have Marriott Bonvoy status.

We were excited about a particular 2020 itinerary on Splendor and tentatively booked, then we read the deposit and cancellation penalties for this new ship's maiden year and decided we couldn't commit to what we considered to be fairly onerous cancellation penalties this far in advance. That is not to say we won't book much closer in but with potential health and other family issues between now and the sail date we were just not ready to take the leap.

Butler service is an amenity for gracious living, No one need rack their brain for things for them to do; let that happen organically. Just be aware that they are available to you and they are willing and able to do whatever is needed to make your cruise better, even if, or especially if, that thing is unique to you.

We nearly always make our own arrangements to the airport or to a hotel post cruise but in this case i don't really think you are missing out on much in Monte Carlo. In my experience, it is a city that is much more of a nighttime port and not much is really available to do before 10am except perhaps have a nice cup of espresso, etc. and with the hassle of your luggage, etc you are probably better off to be headed for the airport once you disembark the ship.

All that said you could have likely had a bit more leisurely morning for about the same price or less by making your own transfer arrangements or booking transfers with your travel agent.

I think that a transatlantic non-stop to Nice is more important than the domestic portion being in first or having to make both a domestic and a european connection to get to Nice.

The flight from FLL to ATL is short, domestic economy is bearable if you fly Air France non-stop to Nice, in my opinion.

A Delta flight from FLL to JFK and then a non-stop to Nice is still great.

United no longer flies to JFK, only Newark so no possibility of a connection on United to Delta without a drive from Newark to Queens.

There are no non-stop flights from MIA to Nice.

Just my 2 cents from a fellow South Floridian.

Paulchili- I would think comparing Oceania itineraries and NCL itineraries really are apples and oranges, Most NCL ships are on weekly itineraries that embark and debark from the same port and are sail virtually the same set of ports throughout the season, perhaps there are some NCL ships that alternate between 2 sets of itineraries but again the itineraries they sail are very similar throughout the season and offer little variety.

On the other hand, Oceania may repeat an itinerary or two over a season but they are more likely to vary their itineraries to accommodate back to back and Grand Voyages throughout the season and it is much rarer to see their ships embark and debark from the same port, all these things lead to greater complications in figuring port timing, the days of week, number of ships in port, tides, distance to travel etc. etc.

Not trying to be an apologist for Oceania, just offering an explanation as to why there may need to be more adjustments made to the Oceania port times than there are to NCL.

I think there is quite a bit of a pent-up romantic nostalgia for the Cuba before the revolution. It was an exotic and glamorous place. The fifty plus years since Castro took power has been difficult on the Cuban people and the former infrastructure. Communism, the tropical heat, salt air and humidity have done a number on the island. If you go, expect a 3rd world country with negligible comfort, not the daiquiri swilling, Hemingway haunt of the 40's and 50's.

Fort Lauderdale is really not a long distance to the Miami port, The difference is roughly equivilent to choosing to fly into either JFK or Laguardia in New York and then driving into Manhattan, sure, one is a little longer but really not a huge difference in my opinion and living in Greater Miami, I will fly out of either for fare advantage or a prefered schedule.

Todays (12/2) Miami Herald quotes Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings president and CEO, Kevin Sheehan as saying in a statement "Jason's financial background also aligns well with our corporate culture and strong focus on financial discipline."

One of my father's favorite sayings was "You can call me anything... but late for dinner". I dunno, it always gave him a laugh.

I think that the Oceania suites are much more uniform in size and layout, that said, there are slight differences between the ones located near the bow and those in the aft of the ship. The Vista suites seem to vary more depending on what floor they are located on in regard to veranda size and privacy and variance in interior space as well.

They are both very nice and a great values in comparison to similar suites on other upscale lines.

The cable car and stairway etc are only if the ship goes into the Messina port, if you tender into Giardini-Naxos, the only choice is taxi or shuttle bus.

The dock in the harbor of Monte Carlo is only large enough for one cruise ship so if another ship has secured that berth the remaining ships must tender. This happened to us last summer on the Riviera. The ships tenders docked just behind the docked cruise ship, very near the Monaco Yacht club.

Paul Newman, R.I.P.

 

Malibu Waves, in which Venice Beach comes alive with the popular hits of the Beach Boys and an unlimited supply of Summer Party Hits.

 

Whoever wrote up this blub is not from S.California, Malibu and Venice beach have nothing to do with one another and are miles and miles apart.

No.

I have purchased art and ceramics etc abroad many times and had the merchant make the arrangements for crating and shipping. I have never had a problem although if it is large and goes by ship it can take a long time to receive it.

It would seem when you limit the areas that people can smoke, the areas where people can smoke will become more concentrated with smokers (and smoke), therefore it seems prudent for non smokers to give a wide berth to the two areas on the ships where smokers are allowed to do their smoking. It is not as if either of those areas are unique and have no non-smoking equivalent.

Please note: I am a non-smoker and take my own advice.

With very few exceptions, a prudent rule of travel is that your luggage should always move on the same transportation as you do...very few exceptions! Separate transport can lead to misdirected, delayed and lost luggage, don't allow it if at all possible.

If memory serves, there are a number of outposts of the famous Cafe Versailles at the MIA airport, probably the best known Cuban restaurant in the country.

Can't speak for the entire airport, but at least for the part that houses American Airlines is great and functions better than anytime I have flown there in the last 25 years. Bright, clean and well organized.

I often find that when I make impulsive decisions that mistakes are made, some can be fixed, others I must live with.