Royal Caribbean Cruises, Explorer of the Seas, Canada

Having cruised on Regent Seven Seas Navigator and found the experience with 350 other passengers relaxing and out of this world, we decided rather than drive from New York to New England we would take the Explorer cruise to Halifax which stopped at Boston, Newport, Portland, St Johns and Bar Harbour instead. This ship was 10 times larger 130,000 tons and 3500 passengers so we knew we wouldn't like busy times. After booking Newport was changed to New London for no obvious reason though it turned into a media event as this was the largest ship ever to visit and it had to turn round in its own length and then reverse for 500m into port. Helicopters were filming and the local population up at 6 to watch. More later. We found the ship with difficulty as the New York limo driver hadnt been before and none of his company had visited. Boarding was smooth though Cape Bayonne is more Cape Back of Beyond. There is however a great shopping mall near Newark airport if you have time to spare before flying home. Anyway we got to our cabin quickly and found it to be well appointed large and with a nice stern view. There were many more features and entertainments on this ship especially for children. The ice show was wonderful, the stage shows a bit mixed, the pool usually too windy for us and at meal and show times the Promenade was like a football crowd. Getting seats for show meant rushing out form dinner to grab decent seats as it was often full and latecomers didnt get in somme times. We didnt like the queues for tendering at Bar Harbour we got up early 7.15 as we had to go through US customs but they didnt come till after 9 ( a Celbrity boat got them first) so we had breakfast and ended up getting off the ship at 11.30 - a very stressful time standing around wodnering when our number would be called. There were some problems getting back to the ship in Boston - not enough busses running at busy times. New London folk made us very welcome and there was enough to see to keep us happy - Tiffany windows in the local church and a free bus tour to the lighthouse and beach. Halifax also made great efforts with lots of locals at a harbour market with many original items for sale and a nice walk on the waterfront St Johns had an interesting courthouse and the reversing rapids but not much more. We had seen Portland and Boston before and enjoyed repeating the city tours and seeing the main sights. Food was Ok but not great, the service not great either ( I asked for medium steaks several times but they were always well done) but our table had a graat mix of UK and US citizens with lots of banter. Some regular RCCI cruisers said the boat was not working at usual standards and some said they wouldnt go RCCI again as it was disorganised and staff levels were inadequate. There was certainly a problem trying to see anyone at busy times to book trips or get show tickets or ask questions. We didnt want to spend ages on holiday in queues and that is a lasting memory On the positive side computer facilities were good, the cabin steward great see the towel decorations, free ice cream damage my waist line. Recognising the cruise cost around a quarter of Regent cruises I think it was value for money, but it could have been much more enjoyable with a few more staff and a bit more planning.