Tips and Hints By Those That Have Cruised Explora Journey

[parallax]

We had a wonderful cruise on Explora and are schedule again in December.  A few of the things we really liked.

 

1.  There is a wonderful outdoor eating area behind the Marketplace.  There is plenty of shade and there are multiple servers to take your drink orders.  It was very under utilized space during our cruise. 

 

2.  All the pools are wonderful but we really liked the Atoll pool the best.  Plenty of seating and the staff was wonderful.  Plus, steps away from the Marketplace.

 

3.  For those cocktail lovers, the staff is really good.  Many of the bartenders on our cruise bartended at 5 star resorts.   They know how to make a cocktail.  Over the cruise, I would sometimes do what I call bartender's choice.  I would give them a profile of what I liked (i.e., whiskey, vodka, etc.)  and what I disliked (sweet, gin, etc.) and they would make a cocktail.  So instead of drinking an old fashioned, I had a scofflaw.  It was a lot of fun and it expanded my drink repertoire.  For my wife, each bartender did a variation on the espresso martini. 

 

4.  If you are old fashioned drinker, go to the malt whiskey bar and have a smoked old fashioned.

 

5.  We really enjoyed the musicians at the astern lounge.  They would do a couple 45 minute  sets after dinner.  We preferred it over the production shows in the Journey Lounge.  

[zship]

what type of production shows were offered ?

[Dr. Cocktail]

22 minutes ago, zship said:

what type of production shows were offered ?

There are no production shows. There’s a good house band that backs up singers and guest entertainers.

[parallax]

Production show might have been a bad phrasing.  On our cruise, they did a tribute to Billy Joel that had singers and dancers.  There was one other similar show but it was not our cup of tea.  We preferred the offerings at the Astern Lounge.  Sorry for the confusion.

[Sthrngary]

16 hours ago, parallax said:

We had a wonderful cruise on Explora and are schedule again in December.  A few of the things we really liked.

 

1.  There is a wonderful outdoor eating area behind the Marketplace.  There is plenty of shade and there are multiple servers to take your drink orders.  It was very under utilized space during our cruise. 

 

2.  All the pools are wonderful but we really liked the Atoll pool the best.  Plenty of seating and the staff was wonderful.  Plus, steps away from the Marketplace.

 

3.  For those cocktail lovers, the staff is really good.  Many of the bartenders on our cruise bartended at 5 star resorts.   They know how to make a cocktail.  Over the cruise, I would sometimes do what I call bartender's choice.  I would give them a profile of what I liked (i.e., whiskey, vodka, etc.)  and what I disliked (sweet, gin, etc.) and they would make a cocktail.  So instead of drinking an old fashioned, I had a scofflaw.  It was a lot of fun and it expanded my drink repertoire.  For my wife, each bartender did a variation on the espresso martini. 

 

4.  If you are old fashioned drinker, go to the malt whiskey bar and have a smoked old fashioned.

 

5.  We really enjoyed the musicians at the astern lounge.  They would do a couple 45 minute  sets after dinner.  We preferred it over the production shows in the Journey Lounge.  

@parallax Thank you.  When I wrote this topic, this is exactly what I was looking for.  Thank you again.

 

Cruise well and enjoy every moment. 

[Dr. Cocktail]

On 9/2/2024 at 11:01 PM, joseph123 said:

Looks great! I've seen some photos where they have Alaskan crab legs at the raw bar. Did you notice any on your cruise? Also, was there any mention as to where the oysters were from? I would think it might be challenging for them to get good, fresh seafood options to have on hand, but hoping they will have the crab legs on my cruise next winter.

 

19 hours ago, KJB416 said:

We also hit the Raw Bar every night at 6:30 for pre dinner drinks and appetizers. They’ve had king crab legs on alternating nights on both of my cruises. Shrimp was on  offer the other nights and raw Oysters every night. I wish they had horseradish for their cocktail sauce. 

. 

I stand corrected … apologies for forgetting this!

[PaulMCO]

On 9/2/2024 at 11:01 PM, joseph123 said:

Looks great! I've seen some photos where they have Alaskan crab legs at the raw bar. Did you notice any on your cruise? Also, was there any mention as to where the oysters were from? I would think it might be challenging for them to get good, fresh seafood options to have on hand, but hoping they will have the crab legs on my cruise next winter.

On our cruise in January, they sourced the Oysters from Denmark.  We are both oyster fanatics, raw, rockefellered, fried in a Po-boy -- we love them.  On Explora I those Danish ones were really poor quality (chef admitted it) with a bitter taste.  They could have gotten better one out the Miami harbor  🙂 Hopefully they will be better in January 25, but if not we have those at our stop in NOLA.

 

Some hints @Sthrngary

Don't like any of the excursions that they offer and have must use OBC??  Do some research at Viator or Trip Advisor.  Then ask destinations to see if their local person can customize a tour.  We did a horseback riding tour on the beach in Cartegena for around $120pp

 

Don't like the liquor brand in the suite they are providing -- sometimes they will change it providing its is in the included brand.

 

If the bed you do not like your bed too hard -- make sure you specify the flexible one (which is a mattress topper) 

Edited September 4 by PaulMCO

[santos949]

On 9/1/2024 at 7:05 PM, Waltershipman said:

You will love it

 

We too have been on over 100  Cruises over the last 40 years and will be returning in January to EJ for our 2nd EJ cruise with lots of excitement.  It is a great cruise

 

Enjoy have fun

We have cruised Explora and absolutely loved it!  We have two more booked...and cannot wait.

[seatrial]

We are cruising with Explora for the first time in December. I am curious which, if any, of the bars on Explora 1 have snacks like nuts, pretzels, etc. available with drinks. Also, are pre-dinner hors d'oeuvres available anywhere on the ship other than the Emporium Market?

 

Thanks

[shrkdive1]

We were able to get both nuts and pretzels at all the bars with our drinks. I don't recall how d'oeuvres though available.

[LMC]

We are booked on our first Explora cruise in March.  After reading this post I CAN'T WAIT!!! We are also avid cruisers looking for a better value and it looks as though we chose well.  I'll eagerly keep following this thread- and will add my thoughts after our cruise.  Thanks to all- such wonderful information!!!!

[CruiserFromMaine]

Just started following this thread, and with interest. We’re on our first EJ cruise in November, on the EJ2. Right now, Regent is our favorite line but we’re still free agents to see what other lines offer. Looking forward to our cruise in November! 

Edited September 10 by CruiserFromMaine