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Royal Caribbean International

MV Explorer of the Seas

Your Rating:
Reviewed by: Brenda & John Lech
# previous cruises: 6
Date of Trip: January 25, 2003
Itinerary: Caribbean - Eastern

The Cruise was great. Embarkation was easy, the ship beautiful, Entertainment was real good. The Ports were ok, I would leave off San Juan, and Spend more time in Nassau, and have a day at sea the last day instead. Debarkation was horrible, causing me to drop the cruise to only 4 stars. Took too long to get off, finally at 10:30 we jumped in line 3 colors ahead of what we had so we could make our flight. WE booked our own airfare so RCCL couldn't care less when we got off the ship. Miami Airport security was horrible also, waited 1 hour in line, then we were pulled out of line when we had 10 minutes to make our flight by Airline reps. The last day was a DEFINITE slap in the face with reality when you return.....

Ship was very clean, many public rooms, many no-smoking areas which made the ship more enjoyable to non-smokers.

Pool and sun deck was very nice, although I did not like that the jogging/walking track cut through the sun deck, making a relaxing day laying in the sun, impossible.

Food service was top notch. Dining room service was fast, cooked to order, plentiful and tasty. The Portofino $20.00 Dining Room was Fantastic, worth the extra money. Room service has plenty of choices and was quick. The Cafeteria food was good, but always crowded and in disarray. I did not like the fact that they had open seating in the main dining room for breakfast and lunch. I expected more from RCCL, and I was disappointed that I had to pay for a Cappachinno. They were free on Carnival during dinner.

We had a category B suite Room 1264. Room was very nice and had plenty of room. Bathroom was large with a full tub and double vanity. Large balcony was great for relaxing.

I was disappointed though that some of the light fixtures in the room were broken and RCCL had no replacements, so we had to look at "open" light bulbs.

We really enjoyed the Celebrity show starring the Platters from the 50's. They rated A+++. The regular dancing show was a B+ and the Ice show was a B- (because of skaters falling during their stunts).

San Juan could be skipped, locals were unpleasant and pushy, could get the same thing in Miami for free. St Martaan and St Thomas were very nice, great sites and shopping. Could have used more time in Nassau, we went on the Dolphin Discovery tour and by the time we got back it was time to go. I would have preferred to stop in Nassau instead of San Juan and spend the last day at sea enjoying the sun on deck.

Our table mates were great, we hope to keep in touch. The overall age on the cruise was between 35-60. An older crowd than you would find on Carnival, which is what we wanted. Not the free for all spring break type cruise you would find on the fore mentioned. Most people on the ship were very nice, we struck up many conversations during the free seating meals and ran into them again in the ports and about ship.