21 Nights A Grand Journey from Caribbean Coves to Iberian Charms Cruise

The Best Way to Cruise

I’m just back from a Caribbean cruise on the newer MSC luxury ship, Explora II. Having cruised on Ritz Carlton, IIma in January of 2024, I can compare Explora II to that. I had a wonderful time with great service on both ships. Ritz excursions were better than the ones on Explora II. The food was excellent on both ships, but Explora had more variety. There was slightly more entertainment on Explora with large lounge, sport court and small casino. However, I really enjoyed the Ritz beach party, flower arranging class and the party given on the last night of the cruise. MSC should work on offering more unique and immersive excursions for their guests. There were only a handful of children on both of the cruises. If you are looking for luxury, service and the feeling that you have the ship to yourself, then you would enjoy either cruise ship.

5-stars from those who cruise AND those who don't!

Explora II: A 5-star review from those who cruise and those who don't! My wife and I, in our 50s, cruise a lot. We took an Explora II cruise (on the advice of our travel agent who is in love with Explora) from Barbados to San Juan with my wife's brother and his wife, also in their 50s. They don't remember the last decade they cruised but they are 6-star travelers and hate "cruise life!" Until now! We had the entry level cabin (Ocean Terrace Suite) and it was amazing! My wife loved the style and materials. I loved the walk in closet with the vanity mirror/desk so didn't have to see my wife on the floor in the hallway putting on her makeup. The bathroom was also one of the most spacious! My brother/sister in-law had one of the mid-larger cabins (Cove Residences) and were happy with their offering which came with an additional butler and whirlpool on balcony. Big Stage Entertainment: Biggest disappointment BUT so many other niches to hang that it was okay in the long run! Staff has a CAN-do attitude! Remember that part of hospitality? Its so refreshing! The creme de la creme was Alex (Sasha), head of Food & Beverage (pictured at the Asian-themed restaurant); we might actually cruise again to see him! We loved the guy who headed up the Whisky-tasting (tho forget his name now-sorry). Our cabin-steward, Jacqueline, was amazing (pictured with the abundance of Diet Coke my wife requested). Food & Restaurants: 10 out of 10 and, tho arduous, I think I ate at them all! Not thrilled with the pre-boarding as well as the boarding rezi app, which could sort by time available instead of having to go down the rabbit hole of each restaurant to see if they have availability at the time you want, but that hopefully will get fixed. Explora II was launched in 2024. I think the secret to these ships is that they pushed out inside accommodations as far out to the sides so gives more square footage in the rooms and also the common areas at the expense of redundant outside walking areas. Sometimes in the beginning of the cruise, when you get lost, you'll figure that out and then be lost no more! Common areas were awesome! The elevator banks on each wall had to press the button separately because the couches in between were causing people to trip! Isn't that Darwin at work? Hassle that should have a better workaround! Pools are amazing tho not happy that the outdoor whirlpool closes at 8pm! I am happy, thrilled that the size of the rectangular huge shape that accommodates more than one person at a time like those tiny round ones by the pool on other ships, where you're playing footsie all the time! Also, the Jacuzzis are facing the side of the ship so you can see some incredible sunsets instead of having to look at other bathers! I would go back on this ship for this feature alone! In the immortal words of The Terminator: I'll be balk!

Best service ever received anywhere!

Been on several cruises and this one was the best ever for service, food and accommodations on board! If you go to the Marketplace and pick a table, the servers will e asking you if you want water (still or sparkling) or something else to drink. When you get up to leave, they will be cleaning your table before you get 10 steps away. I can't say enough about the room, food, service, friendly servers, ease of getting off and on the ship and fact that everything is included with only a few extra experiences requiring any extra money. I would have liked to see one sports bar on the ship as it was football playoff time, but the only way we could watch was on a tablet or laptop over WiFi which is great by the way). I know its a classy ship but one sports bar please. Also, while the entertainment was enjoyable, it was lacking in my opinion. They had a group of 6 singers that performed every night. They were good, not great. They could have had 3 or 4 and had a comedian or magician or some skits or something. And while you can always fins a poolside lounger, you can't always find one at the pool you necessarily want to be around. There was still some lounge hawking by some because there was a group that wanted to hang out together all the time. All in all though, it was an amazing experience. I'm ready to book another, although maybe not to the caribbean, kind of tired of that.