Field notes from the deck, not the brochure.
Long-form on Explora Journeys and the luxury cruise category, written from the deck of Explora I across several family voyages. No broadcast cadence. No padding. Posts land when there's something worth saying.
- June 15, 2026
Eight Nights on Explora I: An Adriatic Photo Essay
Eight nights, round-trip from Venice, on Explora I with my family. Rovinj at anchor, a long pasta lunch in Ancona, the trulli and the Sassi out of Bari, and the misty run into Kotor at dawn. Here is what the week actually looked like, in my own photos.
Read → - June 15, 2026
A Shore Day from Bari: Alberobello and Matera, Done Right
Bari is the port. Alberobello and Matera are the point. I booked a private guide and did both in one port day, roughly 9am to early evening, back before all-aboard. Here is how it actually went, and the honest call on whether you should try for both.
Read → - June 14, 2026
Booking Cruise Flights: The Part People Get Wrong
The suite gets weeks of thought. The flights get a panicked afternoon two months out. After booking enough of this for clients, the air is the piece I watch most closely, because it is the one that can cost you the whole voyage.
Read → - June 5, 2026
Explora's First World Journey: Who 'Endless Worlds' Is For
On 6 January 2029, EXPLORA I leaves Dubai for as long as 128 days on Explora's first World Journey. Here is who 'Endless Worlds' is actually for, who should book a single passage instead, and how I'd help you choose.
Read → - June 4, 2026
The Best Explora Journeys Suite, and Two I'd Quietly Skip
Explora sells fourteen suite categories on one ship. Every single one is oceanfront with a real terrace, the entry runs 377 sq ft, and most of the money above that buys things you may not use.
Read → - June 4, 2026
Why Every Explora Suite Is Oceanfront
There is no interior cabin on an Explora ship. Every one of the roughly 460 suites faces the sea with a private terrace. Here is the naval-architecture trade that makes that possible, and what it buys you.
Read → - June 4, 2026
The Green Tech on Explora: LNG, Shore Power Explained
Explora I runs diesel, not LNG. LNG starts at Explora III. Here is what each system actually does, and where the green claims hold up under scrutiny.
Read → - June 4, 2026
Explora I to IV: what actually changed across the fleet
Explora I and II are sisters. Explora III and IV are not just newer, they are bigger: enlarged by 19 metres for LNG propulsion, with a wine bar, a chef's table, and a split kids' club the first pair do not have. I sailed Explora I; the rest I read off the shipyard.
Read → - June 4, 2026
How Explora Journeys Provisions an All-Inclusive Ship
Explora reports 129 chefs per ship, about one for every seven guests, feeding a 922-guest ship across eight of nine included restaurants. Here is how an all-inclusive ship actually provisions and cooks at that scale.
Read → - June 4, 2026
Explora I, Deck by Deck: What Is on Each Deck
Explora I has four pools spread from Deck 5 to Deck 12, no big production-show theater, and dining split across two decks. Here is what is on each deck, and how to use it to pick your suite.
Read → - June 4, 2026
Explora Journeys at Night: One Real Evening Aboard
Explora goes quiet after dinner, by design: no casino, no late club, no formal nights. The aft Astern lounge at sunset became the seat I came back to every night.
Read → - June 4, 2026
Explora Journeys dress code, decoded by an advisor
Explora Journeys has no formal nights, no tuxedo, no gown, no themed evening, ever. Here is what the dining room actually looked like at dinner, and what to pack.
Read → - June 4, 2026
Explora Journeys: what's included, what costs extra
Dinners, premium spirits, ship-wide Wi-Fi, gratuities, the thermal spa: none of it hit my folio. Four things did. Here's exactly where the meter ran on my Explora sailing.
Read → - June 4, 2026
Explora Journeys Restaurants: Where I'd Actually Eat
I went to Sakura three times on one sailing, and the teriyaki was the standout. Eight of the nine dining rooms are in the fare. Here is where I'd actually eat on Explora, and the one paid table I'd weigh carefully.
Read → - June 4, 2026
Explora Journeys tipping, explained
Gratuities are in the fare on Explora. Nothing is added to your folio each day, there is no envelope on the last night, and the line does not expect you to tip on top. Here is how that actually plays out, and the one place tipping still applies.
Read → - June 4, 2026
Explora Journeys Travel Advisor: What You Get
The fare is the same whether you book Explora direct or through me. No surcharge, no direct discount. So the real question is what that same fare is worth in the right hands.
Read → - June 4, 2026
Explora Journeys Wi-Fi: Can You Actually Work From the Ship?
I worked the whole week from Explora I and the connection never made me choose between the trip and my inbox. Ship-wide Starlink, included in every fare, full signal even deep in the hull.
Read → - June 4, 2026
Explora Journeys with kids: a multi-gen sailing, from aboard
I sailed Explora I with three generations, in-laws and babies included. It is not adults-only and not a kids' line. Here is how the week actually went, and the one caveat.
Read → - June 4, 2026
Why Explora Rides Smoothly: Stabilizers and Hull
Explora I is a 248 m, roughly 64,000 GT hull, large for the luxury tier, and that size is most of why she rides steadier than a yacht. You still feel weather. Deck and suite placement is the lever you control.
Read → - June 4, 2026
Explora Journeys Excursions: Decoded by an Independent Advisor
Shore excursions are the one thing Explora doesn't include, and the one place its 'no big bus tours' promise occasionally slips. Here is the operator's rule.
Read → - June 4, 2026
How Explora's Starlink Wi-Fi Works at Sea
Explora's Wi-Fi runs on Starlink, satellites at about 550 km instead of the old 35,786 km. That distance is why a video call held two decks down on Explora I. Here is the technical how-it-works.
Read → - June 4, 2026
Ocean Terrace Suite Layout: 377 sq ft Explora
The entry suite on Explora I is 377 sq ft, including a 75 sq ft terrace, and it lives larger than the number. I slept in one across more than one voyage. Here is the floor plan, corner by corner.
Read → - June 4, 2026
Explora Journeys Packing List: What to Bring
Leave the tuxedo home. There are no formal nights on Explora. Here is the real packing list, evening to shore day to spa, from someone who actually sailed it.
Read → - June 4, 2026
When to book Explora Journeys (and why)
Explora's Early Booking Benefit takes 5% off the Journey fare when you book about a year ahead, and it stacks with the current brand offer. But the stronger reason to book early is suite tier, not price. Here is how I time it.
Read → - June 3, 2026
Is Explora Journeys worth it? An honest verdict
The entry suite runs 377 sq ft, every one is oceanfront, and eight of the nine restaurants are in the fare. I sailed Explora I with three generations of my family. Here is the honest verdict on whether it is worth it.
Read → - May 28, 2026
What surprised me most about Explora
Breakfast arrived on the terrace before I'd worked out how to ask for it. That small thing told me everything about how Explora actually runs, and why it held up across three generations of a family that doesn't agree on much.
Read →
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