We sailed the Explorer on 7/7/11 and had a pretty good cruise experience. We stayed in the Royal Suite and it was a lovely room with lots of space. The Explorer looked good for her age but I think she's got to be close to getting her dry dock update, which is good because she is probably due for some new furniture in places, etc.

The food was good and the menus were similar those of our last RCI cruise. The dining room service was just okay. Our waiter was good but his back up cast fell short at times. I think they could have used more bar staff in the dining room and the assistant waiters seemed to be spread thin with more tables to handle than the head waiter. We were thankful to have a wonderful table location with a beautiful ocean view every night so we couldn't complain too much. We ate in Portofinos one evening and had a wonderful dining experience with great food and service. We hit Johnny Rockets and the pizza place on deck 5 and they were good as well. We didn't eat in the Windjammer too much but when we did I found the selection and quality of food good for a buffet.

The on board entertainment was varied and very enjoyable. The comedians were very funny and the Unexpected Boys ( Jersey Boys take off) were my favorite. The ice skating show was good but there were a couple of mishaps during our show. The area in which the skaters have to skate/execute jumps is very small though so I am actually surprised they don't have more falls. The Quest game show is definitely a highlight as well, not to be missed. Read more