Four years ago we sailed Explorer and there were problems from the gitgo. The ship was delayed and we were stuck in the terminal bldg for hours with no food--except cookies. Nothing was done for any passengers--not even a free bottle of wine! The whole disaster with the bus system was chaotic.
We figured things had to be better this time around! Well, it started with our cruise being cut from 10 days to 9 days. We left our house as planned and just spent an additional day in a hotel before the cruise. In hindsight, we should have known this was not a good way to start this vacation.
The first port was eliminated--as expected, but we thought they would add a half day at Tortola at the end because there were 3 sea days back and we knew Ncl has 2 sea days back to NY with a half day in Tortola on their cruises. Even a stop in Bermuda with temps of 65-70 would have been something. I realized on this cruise that 2 sea days are nice but 3 is just too many when the weather is cool and damp. These NY/NJ ships need a solarium pool & bar with a retractable roof for so many sea days--whether it is raining, windy, or cool.