On Board Explorer

Final thoughts:

We had a lovely cruise on Explorer, our 2nd but not our last. We go to relax and are not pre-occupied w fault finding or making compare-

isons..but,oophs, sometimes you do it anyway.

We found our room very comfortable w everything in working order. There are many drawers but some [e.g.bedside] are so shallow that if you put anything in there you might experience trouble opening them. There was, of course, no illuminated clock, a nuisance in the middle of the night. We loved both the walk in closet and the bathroom w shower and tub.

Our cabin attendants kept our room in excellent shape although we repeatedly had to request bottles of water for the fridge.

If any food was delivered, the tray was discreetly slipped under the [full size] sofa so no problem there.

We love having 1 or 2 specialty restaurants open for lunch as we are not buffet fans. La Veranda has a lovely setting and excellent service although we found the food average at best. Ditto for the pool buffet..lots of salad heavy w mayo..and we were boycotting burgers.

Reception Desk and Destinations were warm and friendly...concierge helpful.

I was very impressed with the response to midcruise comment sheet.

Loved Chartreuse and Prime 7...found Pacific Rim beautiful and a bit exotic,.

[last thoughts to follow]

We found all staff/crew members to be cheerful & service oriented. The gracious of Eric Jouffroy & the Chartreuse staff was greatly appreciated.

Our negatives are confined to

-foods that are served tepid [the plates are hot so not certain where the problem lies]

-boring breakfasts

-the rather quiet evenings. The show is 9:30 to 10:20-30pm. During this time the 3 lounges are mostly without music. Meridian is silent 7;30-10:30 when the band appears for a 45 min set. There is no real late night spot. There was post show karaoke a few nights and Name That Tune. If you are not into casino you could find it rather quiet;we did. The acts were a magician, ventriloquist and an excellent pianist. We did think like the productions although I heard others praising them.

They could use another entertainer in Meridian.

We enjoyed a galley tour from Am Ex but I don't recall an open galley tour...no galley lunch..no special Sunday brunch. We had 4 sea days [plus

SBH where the tenders could not be deployed] so

some of these would have been a treat. A popcorn movie doesn't fill the bill for us.....but that's just us.

I think I'm trying to say, not too exciting.

Disembarkation was a breeze.

Safe travels to all.

Really enjoyed reading your posts. In terms of a galley lunch, that was a 25th anniversary special for this year that was only on certain itineraries. I thought the the galley lunch was a "take" on Explorer's Sunday brunches. You mentioned that there were no Sunday brunches on your cruise. Did any sea days falls on a Sunday? If there was a Sunday "sea day" with no brunch, perhaps they aren't doing them any more on Explorer.

I am fairly certain that Sunday was a sea day and the explanation. The customary caviar and champagne was present.

There had been some promo talk ( perhaps a newly boarded CD) about these special events so the absence of even a galley lunch was a bit surprising. Hope I didn't miss it but I usually read Passages.

Either way I still returned home having consumed too many calories!

we are casino people. There is 3 card poker, blackjack, craps and yes there are hold'em tournaments on sea days.

great!!!!!!!!!

Practicing..please be kind..king crab legs from Prime 7

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The weather on the eastern coast of the US seems to have extended

 

Down into the Caribbean...or whatever. Day 3 was mostly rainy . Today we were due to tender into SBH but the Capt felt that the conditions were not safe, so off we went. He had also stated that the forecast was for deteriorating conditions and indeed, the day was rainy and unpleasant.

 

 

 

Service could not be more available, competent or pleasant...just a delight. The dinners have been excellent plus we have been enjoying lunch in one of the specialty restaurants. The room service menu seriously needs attention. Today they had crepes at tea time and yesterday, cupcakes although we sampled neither so can' t comment.

This is a photo from the galley tour. Now that I am getting the hang of this (in incorrect order) I may need to re-up.

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You are doing 1000% better with photos that I did when I first started!

This is a photo from the galley tour. Now that I am getting the hang of this (in incorrect order) I may need to re-up.

 

 

 

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HI Paula, echo the thanks for posting while on board. Hope y'all have a terrific Explorer voyage (know you will).

Ok, last photos..all from the lovely Chartreuse

TC2. You are way too generous w your % points!! I couldn't do it on the ship...got a few in wrong places tonight..and now cannot remember how to do it again! Ouch, ouch, ouch.

One more thing Paula. Can you find out if they do a special wine luncheon? We attended one while on Mariner. It was worth every cent they charged and the food pairing was spot on. It was the highlight of our first cruise with Regent. Would love to have the opportunity to do it on Explorer.

Plate from Prime 7 ...prettier in 'person'

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Great post and photos, thanks-enjoyed the post. When we go on Regent in April I'm going to try doing some photos, hope I do 1/2 has good as you did. Thanks, Rick

Does anyone know if the P7 plate is new(ish)? Pretty sure that they were different than on our Explorer cruises (last cruise was March 2017).