Explorer of the Seas Review
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We were quite excited about our 11 day New England/Canada cruise in September. We had been on the Explorer of the Seas back in 2002 when she was fairly new and quite grand. It is still a beautiful ship, but does have a number of issues. Good thing she is headed to dry dock next year! The staff does work very hard to keep it clean and maintained.
The bad: Mold/mildew in our bathroom. We became ill after day 3. Finally moved to a new room after complaining for days! Not even to a balcony room nor an apology! We did feel better a couple of days later! The main dining room service from our head waiter was slow, uneventful with mediocre food at best. He appeared bored and truly unhappy! We were always the last to be served in our area. Very disappointing! Our assistant waiter was professional and tried hard.....he should have been the head waiter. The food in the Windjammer is typical buffet food. Eat the salads or fruit and leave the overcooked entrees behind. Super expensive excursions that really don't offer much. Try not to do them if possible!
The good: The evening shows were fun for the most part, the cruise director John, was super! The captain and crew did a marvelous job bringing us through some very windy conditions! The pool area was comfortable and clean! We played mini golf, saw movies, danced, enjoyed our table mates at dinner and loved being at sea together. Desserts at dinner were very good and the best part of the meal! The ports we visited were lovely and we would love to go back to many of them! Embarkation & disembarkation were very smooth!! Impressive!
Cabin Review
Our room itself was just fine. We were surprised with the handicap accessible room as we didn't sign up for one. The bathroom was another story. It had mold/mildew in either the floor drain or sink! We let our stateroom attendant know right away. He had maintenance come and clean the drains. It didn't work. Be the end of the 3rd day, we were physically ill with headache, heavy lungs and coughing with fatigue. We did finally ask to be moved after 3 days of letting our stateroom attendant know about the issues. He tried hard for us, but action was finally taken when we put it in writing to guest services. We were moved to a room with a ocean view (not a balcony). We did begin to feel better, but the hallway near our new room would often smell of mold/mildew. We began to think there is a plumbing leak somewhere near the forward of the ship. This is a dangerous issue and one Royal Caribbean should check into closely. Guest services didn't seem to think it was a big deal. I hope no one else gets sick like we did.