Background Information: We booked this cruise in January 2005 through a local travel agent. We made our own air travel arrangements, as well as booking a hotel the night prior to embarkation and the night of disembarkation. We are a couple in our upper 40s, and did not travel with children on this cruise.
Travel To Port of Embarkation: We flew from Colorado to Miami on April 1, 2006. Arrived at approximately 3:00 pm and got a cab to the Holiday Inn across from Bayside. Had a very long wait to get luggage at the airport, and did not get checked in at the hotel until almost 5:00 pm. Travel was uneventful, and we were quite excited to finally be close to the Port of Miami. Hotel Info: The Holiday Inn Port of Miami was an OK hotel. Seemed clean enough, but there were areas in need of repair. Based on the price we paid, we got what we paid for. Its biggest strong point is location. We took a short walk over to Bayside Markets and watched Voyager of the Seas depart, which really got us in the mood! Had dinner at Bubba Gumps, and hung out at Bayside until around 9:00 pm. Back to the hotel, and set the alarm. We had breakfast at the hotel, and it was not very good for the money we paid. Headed over to the Port at 10:00 am, and we were on board with a drink in hand at 11:40 am. Very quick and organized! Stateroom: The room was very nice for a couple. The staff did an outstanding job of keeping up our room during the cruise. Robert from Jamaica and his assistants cleaned the room and filled the ice bucket 3 times each day. We had towel animals 5 nights. Ship Info: Explorer was in wonderful shape! One vase displayed in the hallway went missing partway through the cruise. Assume it was the kids running up and down the halls, but thats another story. We didnt go looking for wear and tear, and nothing really jumped out at us either. Ship was always being cleaned and polished during the cruise. The crew obviously takes great pride in their work.
Dining: We ate dinner in the main dining room every evening except one. We went to Portofinos on that night. Main dining room food was generally very good. Not 5 star, but better than average. Portofinos was outstanding! I had the best beef tenderloin I have ever eaten. We ate breakfast at the island grill every morning except one. We had breakfast in the main dining room that morning. The main dining room breakfast was better tasting, but we wont complain about the Island Grill food either. We really just wanted to get a bite to eat and get started with the day! Had lunch one day at Johnny Rockets, and it was also good.