Nice December Holiday Cruise, but.....

Explorer of the Seas Cruise Review to Caribbean - Eastern

Cruises: 4-6 cruises
Reviews: 0
Helpful Votes: 7

Overall rating:

4 out of 5
Verified Review
Explorer of the Seas

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Sail date: December 23, 2011

Ship: Explorer of the Seas

Cabin type: Inside

Traveled as: Family (older children)

Reviewed: 12 years ago

Review summary

This 6th family cruise. We had been on the Enchantment of the Seas with RC, but found the ship, staff and services somewhat disappointing. But we gave Royal Caribbean another chance.This ship was bigger and the staff was much friendlier. Leaving out of (No Fly) Bayonne, NJ was also great. I would do that again even though it was not warm enough in the first and last days to use the open deck and pools in winter. There were special dignified events for both Christmas and Chanukah!

Ship experiences

Food and Dining

5 out of 5
Food was plentiful and tasty. You won't go hungry. On the "street" court promenade deck (indoors) there was a quaint 'cafe' of pizza and small sandwiches, deserts (24 hours and all no extra charge) which was much better than the usual out-door pool side pizza hut. (Room service had extremely limited menu and took up to an hour and a 1/2 deliver. + there was a extra $3.95 charge for orders after midnight!?!)

Entertainment

3 out of 5
Activities were light. Other ships had more to do. This was surprising with 4 day at sea. Some nights were entertaining but some days were long.

Service and Staff

5 out of 5
The Captain called it the 'Friendliest ship on the Ocean". It was, but it had exceptions. The "No"s were polite, but firm in most cases.

Ship Quality

5 out of 5
I would not have believed this was an 11 year old "outdated ship". Looks like new.

Cabin / Stateroom

3 out of 5
Very nice and clean, but some of the furnishing were showing their mileage. (ie-we have a CRT TV, but my sons had a flat screen). But it was all in good condition. Beds were hard for my taste. The Attendant was always in the hallways working, but (as another traveler mentioned) no luxury shampoo or creams. Only a shower pump. BYOB if you want better.

Pros: The ship was great! It was better than I expected.

Cons: Excursions were non-existent and the services, in some service areas were lacking.

Recommends Explorer of the Seas? Yes!

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