My wife and I took a 5 night cruise from Cape Liberty, New Jersey on the RC Explorer of the Seas. The cruise left on a Saturday so getting to the port was not a problem, a 2.25 hour ride from northern CT. Parking was easy but a little pricey at $19.00 per day. We arrived early so the check-in process was quick and painless. It didn't take long to start the shuttle process over for boarding. The buffet was available as we waited until 1:30 p.m. for cabin access. We had previously sailed on the Explorer in 2010 so we were somewhat familiar with the ship, but walked around just to re-acclimate ourselves. The Explorer is a very nice ship and it was sad when we heard during the cruise that it was being repositioned in the near future and would be leaving Cape LIberty.

We had a balcony cabin on deck 6 on the starboard side toward the front of the ship. It was a typical cabin the same as we remembered, but as comfortable as cruise cabins in that category are. Our stateroom attendant was very friendly and helpful and quickly got us an extentsion cord that we needed and gave us information regarding the muster drill. Our muster station met inside one of the lounges which was more comfortable than being outside.

Since the Explorer was "infamous" for the large number of sick passengers and crew a few months earlier, there was a lot of reminders to use hand sanitizer and to wash our hands. The term "washy, washy" became a theme of the cruise, but in a friendly and jovial way. We were seated at a table of 6 for the 6:00 p.m. traditional dining and made an early request for a table for 2. That request was accommodated on day 2. Read more