Explorer of the Seas Review
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Additional details
After booking our cruise in September I read some reviews that were a little unfavourable. (unfriendly crew, long waits at bars, not enough deck chairs, ordinary food etc) So I was unsure what we were in for when we embarked.
Wow from the moment we embarked I was impressed. The crew were fantastic, so friendly and helpful. From our cabin steward Nilesh, who appeared and introduced himself to us the moment we got to our cabin, to our main dining room waiter John, assistant waiter Pradeep and our drinks waiter Ash. My glass never got to be empty!
We were a group of varied ages, my husband and I, our adult daughter and her boyfriend, my three teenagers ranging in age from 19-14 and our youngest who is 3. All of us had the best holiday ever! There was something for everyone on board this beautiful ship.
Cabin Review
Oceanview Stateroom
We had an interconnecting state room, on deck 3 with our teenagers on the other side of the door. The port hole window was huge. The room was comfortable and functional. It could perhaps do with a refresh as it looked a little dated, but certainly was clean and comfortable.
We had our bed made up together, which was huge! And comfy. The girls had two king single beds, and the 14 year old had one of the top bunks pulled down.
As I wasnt comfortable with my three year old sleeping on a top bunk, our steward supplied us with a fold out bed which he made up and put away for us each day.
We had plenty of storage.
It was kept clean by our steward and roomy enough for our toddler to play with her toys.
Our older daughter and her boyfriend had one of the newer rooms on the other side of the ice rink. Their room was a little bigger and fresher. The cabinetry was slightly more practical and modern.
Port Reviews
Sydney (Australia)
We stayed over night in a hotel prior to our cruise. Spent our morning at Darling Harbour, and taking a ferry ride around to Circular Quay, were we first glimpsed our beautiful ship!
The Opera house is worth a look.
Mystery Island
We got over on the 2nd tender. It is really beautiful. As we cruised up to the Island it was picturesque and we were excited to get off the boat.
It is what you expect of a tropical Island. Nobody lives here so they all come across in boats to sell their wares. Probably the most authentic souvineers of the trip and cheapest too.
Markets, local tour operators and gorgeous clear beaches are what you will find here, along with an overgrown airstrip and a few thatched stalls. Toilets were fun.....long drop, with woven palm front walls! Go before leaving the boat then keep your legs crossed!
We snorkled and swam and enjoyed the beverages bought over by the crew of the explorer.
Enjoyed our day here immensely, my advice is walk away and find somewhere more secluded as 4000 people on a beach is not fun. We found our own little piece of paradise and snorkled away.
We also purchased for $15 a snorkeling "turtle safari". My advice here would be to be careful. 20 people crowded onto a small dingy along with 3 tour operators, and quite big waves was quite the experience. They dont check or care how experienced people are and quite a few people freaked out. The water was deep, we were out in the middle of nowhere and I seriously doubt they knew how many people they had on board. I would recommend doing one of the Royal Caribbean tours here or just enjoy the beach.
Isle of Pines (New Caledonia)
Such a beautiful and idyllic place...until 4000 people get off a cruise ship.
Unfortunately many of our fellow cruisers do not respect the environment they enjoy, leaving trash every where. Kudos to the Explorer team who sent crew over with rubbish bags who walked the area picking up what was left behind.
The snorkeling here was amazing around the little rock that sits in the bay. But again I was saddened by the destruction by fellow snorkellers.....please please please, if you visit here and snorkle, learn how to swim without having to put your feet down every few minutes. seeing so many people trampling through and destroying the coral was heart breaking. they were reef walker shoes or flippers to protect their feet and think that makes it ok to walk over the beautiful corals. You can see it dying and being destroyed. Not to mention that walking through it all stirs up the bottom making visibility bad.
Snorkelling here really was gorgeous, so many fish, octopus, and we even found Nemo, numerous times.
In hindsight I wish we had gone in one of the cars they had there for a small fee, and gone to visit the village. It is only 6 km away and I believe would of been worth trip.
Glass bottom boats fill up fast so get over there quick. We kept missing out then gave up.
A few market stalls there, with goods for sale. More expensive and commercial than at Mystery Island. We bought coconuts off local boys who were taking advantage of the tourists. We also bought gorgeous lobsters that were bbq right in front of us. There are various people selling locally made food. My kids had some kind of fritters but I stuck to coconut and lobster.
Auckland
A beautiful harbour to sail into.
Plan your day in advance. We wandered aimlessly for a bit.
The skytower was worth going to. $28 to ride up in a glass fronted, glad bottom elevator for sweeping 360 degree views of the city.
After that we caught a ferry across to Devonport, a sleepy beachside area with an old world feel. Just 15 minutes on the ferry from the ship. Had the yummiest fish and chips and ice cream there. Nice change from the hustle and bustle of the city
Tauranga
My advice here would be, if you are not booking a tour through the ship, book your tours or hire cars well in advance!!! Like before you leave!
I tried to book a car while at sea but it fell through and I didnt know until we got to shore because of our limited internet.
There is a huge crowd of people on the port trying to buy up tours or rent cars and many missed out! We missed out due to allowing people to push in front. Grrr.
However we did end up having a lovely day. We hiked around the base of Mt Maunagnui. You can choose to walk around the base or up to the top. Well worth the walk. It is such a pretty area. We had a quiet day, but a good one. Some nice shops in the mainstreet. Hot pools at the base of the mountain that many visited.
Make sure you are on deck before the ship ports, it is well worth it for the view as you head through the channel.