Explorer of the Seas Cruise Reviews - Reviews

Beautiful ship. Very nice layout.

I think this ship would really appeal to first-time cruisers and kids--features such as the skating rink, johnny rockets, rock climbing wall are unique. However, this ship is about 10 years old and needs drydocking for upgrades to TVs, carpet, etc. The promenade is a fun feature. Shops were so-so. Food was mediocre (best in dining room). The food in the Windjammer needs improvement. Also, it is only opened until 9 pm. Sandwiches avalable in the cafe 24 hours, but that's it. Cutbacks, such as hot tub being lukewarm, lack of towel availability, 1 slice of meat on a sandwich, etc., were evident.

As First time cruisers our main problem was not knowing how to pack for a 14 day cruise. My husband felt that one suit would have been enough. Check -in was very efficient and quick. the days on the boat are very busy. You can chose to be busy or just relax. the music and the shows are superb. I strongly recommend to join an early morning ship tour on the ports you tender in, because, they will let you go out first- beating the "tendering" crowd. You should try to get a massage on your way back - they are wonderful up at the Spa. towards the return they offered a "Last days Special" that were very good. If you are a beach goer and your hair is bleached- the deep hair moisturizing treatment did wonders for my hair. Get it done early though, you need at leave it in for at least 1 hour. You get a sea pass attached to your credit card. You Have to be watchful and follow your balance on the interactive TV in your room. Any thing you need repaired- don't be afraid to ask your attendant to help you with. If you need towels to go ashore- big ones are given out by the pool with a 20 dollar deposit on each towel- so make sure you bring them back- get them the night before to avoid the morning crowed. Coffee in the Windjammer is pretty bad but, the coffee in the Promenade Cafe and the main dining rooms are Okay. Do take the trip insurance that offers. My husband had an ear infection and needed to see the Doctor twice for a total over $450.00 USD. Bringing cash in small bills on land is very helpful to negotiate lower prices. Duty free liquor and souvenirs are way much cheaper on the ports than on the duty free ship stores. There will be sales night on alcohol, t-shirts, cameras jewelry, watches, handbags, scarves, purses etc... in the promenade area - you have to be watchful, because they are good sales. T-Shirts souvenirs from all the Islands will be available as you cruise back. Once we Disembarked we got one of the baggage stewards to help us with the luggage and he basically just rushed us right through Customs all the way to the pick-up area in about 5 minutes! Really worth the price of the tip! The people who carried their own bags were waiting in huge lines. We should have we taken our laptop to down load pictures in our camera as we ran out of space. Internet is very expensive. Internet Caf and Wi-Fi services at the ports is much cheaper. Be watchful of ports on Sundays -as most Caribbean Islands are very religious and stores will be closed. You are probably better of with taking a tour on Sundays. You should research tours not associated with the boat. We found the same tours to be literally half the price, and nowhere near as crowded. also offers tours. Dont Forget to calculate tipping. You can pay it on your credit card or offer cash at the end of the cruise. Gratuity guidelines for each ship are found easily online. And they might feel somewhat high, but once you see how much they work for you, you wonder if you would do it yourself for the suggested gratuity. We Tipped a little bit extra. As I found out the front of the ship is always moving. So if this bothers you, you should get a room towards the back.

It was my first cruise, and I ws impressed that this is a real floating city, after 14 days cruising I still needed a map to find certain areas. It was the best vacation experience I ever had. The main point beeing that you don't have to do anything, your same room is with you while you cruise to many ports, no need to pack-unpack.

Staterooms were clean, but the ship is showing signs of aging. There always seems to be a slight lingering unclean bathroom odor all over the ship.

We could be as busy or as relaxed as we wanted to be; it was great to get food and drink anytime of the day and late evening. The performers in the shows were so talented. The employees were so friendly - always met us with a smile. The room was nice and big.....just a wonderful experience.

We loved the whole thing from top to bottom.. first cruise.. felt real important like we we rich and famous but we aren't.

As first time cruisers, we found this vacation to be everything we expected and more! From the moment we arrived at the cruise port in New Jersey to the time time we returned nine days later, we were treated as royalty on this cruise. The staff of the Explorer of the Seas was respectful, gracious, and very accommodating to our every need. The grand suite that we purchased was spotless and the attendant staff provided us with tremendous service. The Captain spoke to guests every day, providing information about weather conditions, ports of call, and gangway decks to be used, At the ports of call the ship organization was flawless, allowing passengers to depart and embark in an orderly, well thought out manner. The main dinning experience in the Magellan Room and the Windjammer Buffet were exceptional experiences; a variety of food presented in an appetizing manner. On the day of final departure were off the ship and through customs by 10:00 a.m. We have been bitten by the cruising experience and have already planned our next cruise.

We have enjoyed cruise vacationing over the years on small to large ships. The Explorer of the Seas was one of the best. The design and layout, especially the common areas, hid the fact that there were 3,100 passengers on board. The 1 to 3 ratio of staff to passengers was evident in the cleanliness of the ship and the availability of passenger assistance. This was, however, surpassed by the friendly, competent and efficient people that made up the crew.

Beautiful ship. In excellent shape. well maintained and very clean.

This was my 10th cruise with RCCL, 17 all together. I always loved to sail with RCCL and I always will. From the moment I arrived to the port to the moment I left in the end of the cruise, I had the best time. Everyone smiling, helpful. I cannot find enough words to describe how much I enjoy it. Before I even disembark I am thinking about the next cruise. Thank you RCCL, keep up the good work. I love the fact that they are more ports within driving distance in the North East.

Explorer of the Seas is a beautiful ship with just about everything you could ask for. We are only second time cruisers so we don't have much to compare, but were very happy with the ship. We only wish the weather would have allowed us to utilize the outside decks more.

This was our first cruise and it could not have been better. The people were friendly and very helpful and the food just kept on coming. The entertainment and activities were plentyful and excellent. The Explorer of the Seas is a 10 year old ship but you would not know it. Everything was clean and well maintained. I would strongly recommend this ship to anyone.

This was my wife and my first cruise and we loved it. We were impressed by the attentiveness of staff, especially the stateroom attendant and restaurant waiters. They make a point of knowing your names! The ship was very clean. There was entertainment at all times. Food was excellent. We would like to travel on the Explorer of the Seas again.

Explore of the Sea. It is a beautiful well kept ship. Rooms are very nice and clean. Some of the stafff is very friendly. Shows are good. Some of the staff is very friendly.

The ship was very nice and in excellent condition. The staff was very nice and helpful. The food was OK but not extradorinary and the 2 buffets that they had occurred without and announcement. They had a midnight buffet and a buffet in the promanade for 1 lunch but neither was announced. The entertainment was every good but there was not much of it. They usually had one show each night, shown twice but that was it. The piano music, dance music, etc all started after 9 pm. There was very little afternoon entertainment just a calypso band than played for 45 minutes every hour for 3 hours each afternoon. There were very few kids on board so the slide was only open for 2 hours per day.

This was a great cruise for multiple cruisers as it has a 9 day itinerary from an easy-to-access port city. We appreciated the service from our waiter, assistant waiter and stateroom attendant. The folks who were incentivized to provide high service did so. Otherwise, this ship & team were average. The ports were ok although we enjoyed Bar Harbor immensely. The capitain made some great decisions on how to handle the ship during the hurricaine which was appreciated as well. We had recently taken a trip on the Celebrity Infinity so, by comparison, this ship was not as nice. The food was not as good and service (overall) not as good. The average age of the cruiser on this trip was upwards of 60 -- so we socialized little as this was not in our age bracket.

We felft we were in good hands, which was comforting, considering hurricaine Earl was very close! Very expensive bingo. Only four (4) games for $37.50

The ship was really nice, but cruise is not for me. I like to explore, so I got bored fast. The good thing was that we were docked for two days and had time to explore the islands. But if you like sitting by the pool, listening to loud music and doing nothing, you will enjoy it! and one more thing regarding shopping. There is no taxes on the ship, but customs will charge you duty fees in the port when you get back. Nobody tells you that!!!!

Our five day cruise to Bermuda was very enjoyable on The Explorer of the Seas ship. Our room with the balcony was nice and we really enjoyed the great food and shows that were presented on board. You could never have time to do all of the activities offered. My wife and I had a very relaxing vacation and would cruise again.