Newbee questions: Family of four on Explorer of Seas May 2023

[cruisant]

First time cruiser so please be nice:

 

- Is this cruise family friendly?

- Will we struggle in the inside cabin as we are 4 of us ? 

- Any deck suggestion if its inside cabin? 

- Do I need to pay tips in advance? 

- Any dining suggestion for a family on budget?

- Do I need to book in advance for shore tours? There seems 30% discounts now. 

 

 

Edited November 29, 2022 by cruisant

[RedIguana]

Explorer is very family friendly

Inside cabins are 150 square feet. Make sure you all love each other very much😊

You may pay the auto-grats in advance or they will be billed daily once onboard. 

Include complimentary dining options on any royal ship are quite sufficient. On an 8 night explorer last august my daughter and I did one night specialty as it was kicked in by the TA.

Some shore excursions will sell out. If there is one you want, book in advance. You can always cancel and rebook if it shows up cheaper.

[Sea Dog]

1 hour ago, cruisant said:

First time cruiser so please be nice:

 

- Is this cruise family friendly?

 

Yes.

 

1 hour ago, cruisant said:

- Will we struggle in the inside cabin as we are 4 of us ? 

 

I think you will be cramped. Go for a Junior suite.

 

 

1 hour ago, cruisant said:

- Any deck suggestion if its inside cabin? 

 

I like Deck 8

 

 

1 hour ago, cruisant said:

- Do I need to pay tips in advance? 

 

We always do but we also bring cash to tip Bartenders, Waiters, and Stewards as well as anyone else who goes above and beyond service.

 

1 hour ago, cruisant said:

- Any dining suggestion for a family on budget?

 

Main dining room is complimentary with your cruise fair as well as the Windjammer. You might consider at least one specialty restaurant to do something different.

 

 

1 hour ago, cruisant said:

- Do I need to book in advance for shore tours? There seems 30% discounts now. 

 

 

 

Yes I would as they can sell out. 

 

[taglovestocruise]

Check the price of two connecting inside cabins, often the price for two insides is very close in price to a cabin for four.  Disregard if you sailing under a Kids Sail Free promo. 

[Biker19]

3 hours ago, cruisant said:

Do I need to book in advance for shore tours?

Welcome to CC.

 

Look for the Roll Call thread for your sailing and look for discounted excursion ideas from others - even at the supposed 30% off, RCI excursions can be more expensive than what you can do/find on your own.

[ballarinamom]

How old are your two kids? Younger people take up less room LOL! I know two cabins or a suite may not be a financial option. Keep in mind they will be in bunk beds. There will be railings. You would have to pack very efficiently. A trick I read and used for our daughter when she went away for camp was to pack her clothes for each day into a separate large ziplock. That way shirts, shorts, socks and unders would be easy to grab and go. Label with each person's name and day of the cruise.  Hang up only the nicer dresses/suits. Ziplocks will take up less room and will be easy to store in a drawer or on a shelf. And a behind the door shoe organizer for toiletries as the bathrooms are small. It is doable. Ive never tried but I have been on enough cruises that I know people have made it work, Enjoy

[FionaMG]

Great advice from @ballarinamom.

We sailed twice on Explorer as a family of 4 when the kids were younger. On both occasions we were in an oceanview. Yes, it was tight, but when it's what your budget allows you make it work. 

I'm not sure if Explorer still has the showers at the entrance to the gym but if it does one of the adults could shower there to take some pressure off the bathroom in the cabin. 

@cruisant, if you can possibly stretch your budget to an oceanview, it is a nicer experience than the inside simply because of having daylight and a window to look out of. But if you can't, don't  sweat it; just look on your cabin as a place to sleep and shower. There are loads of places around the ship to enjoy and tons of activities and you'll have a blast regardless. 

[jbrinkm]

Does your room have the overhead Pullman beds like the Freedom class, or just the sofa bed? Our first two cruises with kids were inside rooms for all four of us and it worked out just fine, but we had the overhead beds and that made a huge difference in the space. The kids absolutely LOVED those beds (but definitely needed a personal light of some sort for any middle of the night movement!).

 

We did use some of the tricks listed above. Also magnetic hooks are useful for so many things. We found the cabin to have all sorts of little nooks and crannies where we could be creative about storage. We also removed the life vests from the closet and put clothes in there on the shelves - storing the life jackets just under the bed, after shoving our suitcases under and pushing them all the way back.

 

I'm attaching some pictures of hacks that were helpful for us when we squished in together in the room. The storage for the wall of the shower was really helpful also because there was only one tiny storage shelf in there. If your kids don't shower on their own yet but still take baths, you might have them practice before the ship because it is really hard for an adult to help a child in those tiny showers & bathrooms.

 

As far as deck selections, if you do a search online with your specific ship and best decks or best rooms there is a popular site that will list their favorites and you can read about pros/cons. Also if you are using a TA they could probably help recommend their favorites to you.

[cruiseguy1016]

Our very first cruise was just my wife and I on Enchantment. We had an ocean view cabin that was 150 s.f. The room was much bigger than what we had expected after hearing all the stories of how small cruise ship cabins are. We thought that us and our two children would be able to do okay in one room so we booked another cruise to take the kids on. We booked an ocean view on Sovereign. Once on the ship we realized that all ocean view cabins are not the same. Our room on Sovereign was only 122 s.f! Was it tight? Yes. Did we survive? Absolutely! We were on a cruise as a family! We used the room to change our clothes and to sleep. Changing clothes was tight with 4 people but we made it work. The cruise will be great if that's what your family wants it to be.

[Spunky946]

How old are your kids?  When our kids were younger, one cabin was fine, though we did have a balcony.  It was cramped, but ok.  The key is to unpack everything and be organized.  Now that our kids are 18 and 14, we do two rooms, and I can’t imagine going back, so much extra space. I’d price out two and see how more expensive it is.

[jbrinkm]

10 hours ago, taglovestocruise said:

Check the price of two connecting inside cabins, often the price for two insides is very close in price to a cabin for four.  Disregard if you sailing under a Kids Sail Free promo. 

 

2 hours ago, Spunky946 said:

How old are your kids?  When our kids were younger, one cabin was fine, though we did have a balcony.  It was cramped, but ok.  The key is to unpack everything and be organized.  Now that our kids are 18 and 14, we do two rooms, and I can’t imagine going back, so much extra space. I’d price out two and see how more expensive it is.

 

We do two cabins now also, since the kids have turned into teens (how did that happen!?!). Connecting rooms last April were only slightly higher than two non-connecting rooms of the same class. For this April, when I tried to do connecting vs rooms next door to each other, the price ended up $1000 more! So we did rooms next door, not connecting this time and spent that money on extras during the Black Friday sale, instead.

[cruisant]

Thanks for the tips! very useful!

Kids are 4 and 14. If its two connected rooms I wont get the offer available now for kids under 12.

I think we will try i out and see how it goes.   

 

 

[poocher]

I will add that you get more room if the bed is split into 2 twins.  We actually put one bed sideways along the back wall & the other abutting it like an inverted “L”. Opened up a lot of floor space.  I also strongly agree with the ziplock bag trick mentioned above.  Did it with my kids and now the grandkids whenever we take a trip.  It was a lifesaver at Disney! Pick a bag, any bag, and put it all on.  

[LuCruise]

We've stayed in one stateroom with 4 of us (and even have one booked in the future and that's with 2 teens).  It's do-able.  A response of "get a suite" isn't that simple as it's much more and it's not in everyone's budget or not where everyone wants to spend their money.  You've gotten great tips here about how to make it work with hooks and closet hangers. great suggestions.  Most likely you'll just use your room to sleep, shower and change and it's doable.  Have a wonderful cruise.

 

Also, you asked about dining on a budget.  We always just stick to the MDR as we really enjoy it.  Do you have traditional or My Time booked?  With traditional, you will have the same waiters and table each night which is nice as you get to know them (and can just walk to your table when you arrive).

[davekathy]

Four in one cabin with only one bathroom bathroom and limited closet and drawer space. 😲

[Joseph2017China]

22 hours ago, cruisant said:

First time cruiser so please be nice:

 

- Is this cruise family friendly?

- Will we struggle in the inside cabin as we are 4 of us ? 

- Any deck suggestion if its inside cabin? 

- Do I need to pay tips in advance? 

- Any dining suggestion for a family on budget?

- Do I need to book in advance for shore tours? There seems 30% discounts now. 

 

 

When my kids were kids, always only had one stateroom.  It's just for sleeping, so no need to spend more money.  But I did not grow up in luxury, and the kids were happy to be on the ship.  Tips can be prepaid, or once on board.  I do prefer prepay to get it done.  No need to pay for food either, the MDR and Windjammer are all included.  If a ship tour is on sale, take it now, because it can sell out, and it won't be cheaper than what you see now.