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ALL ISLED UP

Explorer of the seas.

Put thrilling adventures back on your radar onboard the wow-worthy Explorer of the Seas®.

Put thrilling adventure on your radar onboard the wow-worthy Explorer of the Seas®. Discover endless ways to max out memories with fleet favorites like the FlowRider®* surf simulator, Rock Climbing Wall and The Perfect Storm℠ — the boldest waterslide duo at sea. And sit down to jaw-dropping ice-skating spectaculars and dazzling world-class entertainment night after night. Sail on your most legendary journey with the cruise line voted Best Overall by Travel Weekly readers.

Your Dream Getaway Is A Click Away

Find the perfect itinerary for your next couple’s cruise adventure.

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EXPLORE MORE BETWEEN SHORES

This is not your average vacation. This is adventure in a bold new light — on the fleet-favorite Explorer of the Seas®. Soak up the sunshine and chill vibes at the adults-only Solarium. Indulge in authentic Tuscan cuisine at Giovanni’s Table. Then catch a jaw-dropping original production in the Main Theater, or dance the night away at Club Twenty. On this ship, there’s no wrong way to vacay. 

ENDLESS THRILLS ON DECK

Surf sessions on the FlowRider®*? Double check. An adults-only pool deck that’s perfect for lounging the day away? Triple check. And get your adrenaline fix on twin racers Typhoon℠ and Cyclone℠ — part of The Perfect Storm℠.

EXPLORE ONBOARD ACTIVITIES

DIALED UP DINING

No matter what flavors you’re craving — from Tuscan-inspired eats at Giovanni’s℠ Table and Far East flavors at Izumi Hibachi & Sushi, to delicious deli-style sandwiches, decadent deserts and late-night bites at Café Promenade — indulging is easy onboard Explorer of the Seas®.

EXPLORE ONBOARD DINING

DATE NIGHT DONE RIGHT

Cap off each date night with an incredible show at the Main Theater, followed by live piano and a pint of your favorite brew at Schooner Bar. Then, brush up on your salsa skills at Boleros or join the non-stop action at Casino Royale℠. On Explorer of the Seas®, the adventure continues after hours.

EXPLORE BARS & NIGHTLIFE

NON-STOP ISLE HOP IN THE MED OR THE CARIBBEAN

Scope out Mediterranean gems like Athens , Capri and beyond on an epic Euro vacation. Or soak up sun-filled days in the ABC islands — considered some of the Caribbean’s most beautiful shores .

TAKE ON THE TROPICS FROM MIAMI

If you’re sailing from  Miami , you’ll have plenty of opportunities to savor The Magic City's melting pot of cultures, Art Deco architecture, and lively beaches ahead of or after your cruise. Once you’re onboard, get ready to explore southern Caribbean gems like flamingo-filled Bonaire , Aruba’s rugged coast , and Curaçao’s spectacular beaches .

EXPLORE CARIBBEAN CRUISES

VIEWS TO GREEK OUT OVER

Depart from  Venice (Ravenna) and wander through the winding streets of Mykonos, fuel your competitive spirit in Olympia and savor memorable Mediterranean flavors in Naples. Plus, mix up your Greek getaway with a visit to breathtaking Croatia onboard Explorer of the Seas®.

EXPLORE GREECE & GREEK ISLES CRUISES

WHAT TO KNOW BEFORE YOU GO Sailing on Explorer of the Seas ®? Here's everything you need to know before you go.

Part of the fan-favorite Voyager Class, Explorer of the Seas® is loved by families and couples alike. If you’re looking to unwind, hit the resort-style pool deck and soak up unrivaled views. Want to amp up the adrenaline? Conquer the rushing waterslide duo, The Perfect Storm℠ before catching waves on the FlowRider®*. For the ultimate dinner and a show, head to Izumi Hibachi & Sushi flavorful fare with flair. And with original stage productions every night, you’ll never run out of ways to raise the curtain on entertainment. Wherever you’re headed, Explorer of the Seas® unlocks unforgettable adventures for everyone.

The Top Free Things to Do Onboard Mariner of the Seas | Royal Caribbean Cruises

May 23, 2024

Enjoy an insider’s guide to all the free things to do onboard Mariner of the Seas for cruising with kids and when taking an adults-only vacation.

The Best Cruise Restaurants Onboard Grandeur of the Seas | Royal Caribbean Cruises

Enjoy an insider’s guide to the best places to eat on your cruise vacation while dining onboard Grandeur of the Seas at its many restaurant options.

Top Reasons Why Grandeur of the Seas Delivers Epic Family Cruises | Royal Caribbean Cruises

May 21, 2024

Enjoy an insider’s guide full of Voyager Class insights for planning your best family cruise vacation onboard Grandeur of the Seas.

Cruise Room Upgrade Tips | How to Bid with Royal Up | Royal Caribbean Cruises

Earn cruise room upgrades using points from past sailings or credit cards, tracking price drops and bidding with Royal Up. What's Royal Up? Find out.

The Top Free Things to Do Onboard Adventure of the Seas

May 20, 2024

Discover free things to do on your Adventure of the Seas vacation! Explore exciting destinations without breaking the bank. Affordable experiences await.

Best Long Weekend Getaways to the Bahamas on Utopia of the Seas | Royal Caribbean Cruises

Make the most of a weekend getaway Caribbean cruise to the Bahamas onboard Utopia of the Seas with these ideal travel tips.

Top 9 Mariner of the Seas Restaurants | Royal Caribbean Cruises

May 10, 2024

Enjoy the best cruise food possible on Mariner of the Seas. Discover which restaurants offer the top dining options for your vacation getaway.

Best Cruise Ship Food Planner for Families and Couples | Royal Caribbean Cruises

May 7, 2024

Sea, sand, sun and fab food? You bet! The best cruise ship food is literally at your fingertips at these Royal Caribbean restaurants.

How do Slot Tournaments Work? Details & Expectations | Royal Caribbean Cruises

A slot tournament at sea aboard a Royal Caribbean ship combines a relaxing cruise vacation with a fun and social way to win slot tournament cash prizes.

Enjoy the Ultimate Family Vacation by the Pool on Icon of the Seas

April 30, 2024

With a pool for every day of the week, Icon of the Seas makes it easy to maximize every sun-dappled moment onboard during the ultimate family vacation.

Icon of the Seas Reveal What is included in a Cruise

April 25, 2024

Discover all the best things to do as we reveal what is included in a cruise onboard Icon of the Seas, the world's first Icon Class ship with Royal Caribbean.

Best Time to Go to Casino Royale℠ | Royal Caribbean Cruises

April 24, 2024

When should you go to Casino Royale℠ on a Royal Caribbean cruise? The best time to go to the casino might be during a sea day, show time or late at night.

What's Free on Utopia of the Seas | Royal Caribbean Cruises

April 19, 2024

The new Utopia of the Seas℠ offers plenty of free restaurants, attractions and entertainment to help you plan an unforgettable, all-inclusive vacation.

How To Have the Best Family Vacation on Utopia of the Seas | Royal Caribbean Cruises

Royal Caribbean's newest Oasis Class ship makes planning a family vacation easy. Here's everything you need to know.

Free Things to Do on Rhapsody of the Seas | Royal Caribbean Cruises

April 12, 2024

Maximize your travels at no additional cost. Create your all-inclusive vacation experience with some of the best free things to do on Rhapsody of the Seas.

Free Things to Do on Grandeur of the Seas | Royal Caribbean Cruises

Insider’s guide to all the best free things to do onboard Grandeur of the Seas both for cruising with kids and when taking an adults-only vacation.

What’s Free Onboard Icon of the Seas | Royal Caribbean Cruises

Icon of the Seas has a lot of affordable vacation options at no additional cost including free restaurants, fun activities, and many places to relax onboard.

Free Things To Do on Serenade Of The Seas | Royal Caribbean Cruises

Enjoy our guide to some of the best free things to do onboard Serenade of the Seas. Spend time experiencing all the complimentary activities and food.

What’s Free Onboard Independence of the Seas | Royal Caribbean Cruises

Find a breakdown of some of the top free things to do onboard Independence of the Seas when looking for what is included with your cruise vacation.

The Best Free Things to Do Onboard Brilliance of the Seas | Royal Caribbean Cruises

Brilliance of the Seas, smaller than Oasis Class cruise ships, offers an intimate low-key vibe that has kept a strong fanbase among vacation travelers.

What’s Free Onboard Radiance of the Seas | Royal Caribbean Cruises

Check out the full list of things to do that are included on Radiance of the Seas & browse popular itineraries to start planning your next vacation onboard.

What's Free Onboard Liberty of the Seas

When you sail onboard the much-loved Liberty of the Seas®, bold thrills, crave-worthy dining and maxed-out adventure are all included in your cruise fare.

Free Things To Do Onboard Explorer of the Seas

Learn about some of the best free things to do onboard Explorer of the Seas. You don’t need to blow your budget in order to enjoy an unforgettable vacation.

Free Things To Do Onboard Freedom of the Seas

A guide to some of the best free things to do onboard Freedom of the Seas, so you can spend less time planning and more time experiencing all the complimentary thrills.

Free Things on Harmony of the Seas

Discover free things to do on your Harmony of the Seas vacation! Explore exciting destinations without breaking the bank. Affordable adventure awaits.

Top 10 Free Things to Do on Ovation of the Seas

Discover what’s included from dining venues with free food to free activities and entertainment, you’ll be amazed with a vacation on Ovation of the Seas.

Top 9 Free Things to Do on Symphony of the Seas

Discover what’s included from free activities to dining venues with free food, you’ll be amazed when taking a vacation onboard Symphony of the Seas.

Free Things to Do on Quantum of the Seas

Discover what’s included from dining venues with free food to free shows and entertainment, you’ll be amazed traveling on Quantum of the Seas.

Spectrum of the Seas Free Activities

Maximize your travels at no additional cost. Create your own all-inclusive vacation experience with some of the best free things to do Spectrum of the Seas.

What's Free Onboard Wonder of the Seas

Enjoy the best cruise activities when vacationing onboard Wonder of the Seas with travel tips on free places to eat as well as included onboard attractions.

Free Cruise Activities | Voyager of the Seas

April 11, 2024

As one of the best cruise ships sailing, the Voyager of the Seas offers an abundance of free onboard cruise activities & vacation experiences.

What’s Free Onboard Oasis of the Seas

As one of the largest cruise ships, the Oasis of the Seas offers an abundance of free onboard cruise experiences and attractions for everyone on vacation.

Best Free Things to Do on Odyssey of the Seas

Your cruise fare includes so many great free things to do onboard. Discover the best free things to do onboard Odyssey of the Seas cruise ship.

How to Have Your Best Family Vacation Onboard Icon of The Seas℠

There are many reasons why Icon of The Seas℠ offers the best family vacation out there, from exceptional pools to daytime activities and rocking nightlife.

Top Things to Do on Grandeur of the Seas | Royal Caribbean Cruises

April 2, 2024

Enjoy an insider’s guide to all the top things to do onboard Grandeur of the Seas for cruising with kids and when taking an adults-only vacation.

7 Ways To Use Onboard Credit | Royal Caribbean Cruises

March 18, 2024

Wondering what to do with onboard credit? Use it or lose it, baby! If there's one motto for how to treat your cruise credit, this is definitely it.

Top Things to Do on Icon of the Seas | Royal Caribbean Cruises

March 11, 2024

This larger-than-life cruise ship offers endless onboard activities to fill all your sea days.

Best Family Vacation Onboard Mariner of the Seas | Royal Caribbean Cruises

With so many reasons why Mariner of the Seas offers some of the best options for family cruises the real decision is your next vacation destination.

Best Serenade of the Seas Restaurants | Royal Caribbean Cruises

Enjoy an insider’s guide to the best places to eat on your cruise vacation while dining onboard Serenade of the Seas at its many restaurant options.

Best Independence of the Seas Restaurants | Royal Caribbean Cruises

Enjoy an insider’s guide to the best places to eat on your cruise vacation while dining onboard Independence of the Seas at its many restaurant options.

The Best Cruise Restaurants Onboard Jewel of the Seas | Royal Caribbean Cruises

Enjoy an insider’s guide to the best places to eat on your cruise vacation while dining onboard Jewel of the Seas at its many restaurant options.

Benefits of Using Your SeaPass Card at Casino Royale | Royal Caribbean Cruises

What is a SeaPass® on Royal Caribbean and what are the benefits of using your SeaPass card at Casino Royale℠? VIP perks and even a free cruise, to start.

The Top Things to Do Onboard Brilliance of the Seas | Royal Caribbean Cruises

March 8, 2024

Brilliance of the Seas makes it impossible to feel bored during a vacation! These top things to do onboard this beloved cruise ship make it a fan favorite for many.

How to Plan the Best Family Cruises on Serenade of the Seas | Royal Caribbean Cruises

Whether you’re traveling with adult relatives, small children, or the whole extended family, this Radiance Class cruise ship offers something for everyone.

Discover Wi-Fi Cruise Packages | Royal Caribbean Cruises

Even if you plan to lose yourself in your next cruise, you'll want to stay connected. Here's what you need to know about Royal Caribbean Wi-Fi .

Where to Find the Best Texas BBQ | Royal Caribbean Cruises

Whether you are looking for brisket, sausage or ribs, here's where to go for the best Texas BBQ in restaurants across the state.

Everything You Need to Know About the Best Cruises For Teens | Royal Caribbean Cruises

Why is Royal Caribbean's <em>Icon of the Seas</em>℠ Caribbean sailing one of the best cruises for teens? The answer lies in the vast array of wow-worthy moments.

Best Brilliance of the Seas Family Cruises | Royal Caribbean Cruises

Enjoy an insider’s guide to discovering the best family cruises for your next vacation onboard Brilliance of the Seas. Start sailing today.

The Best Eastern Caribbean Food | Royal Caribbean Cruises

Indulge in the vibrant flavors of Caribbean food, which spotlights spices, tropical ingredients and cultural influences.

Why Anthem of the Seas for the Best Family Cruises | Royal Caribbean Cruises

As part of the Quantum Class at Royal Caribbean, the Anthem of the Seas is an engineering marvel loaded from bow to stern with next-level features for families.

The Top Free Things to Do Onboard Anthem of the Seas | Royal Caribbean Cruises

Find out what is free onboard Anthem of the Seas. Check out a full rundown of the dining options, shows, and cruise activities available for your vacation.

A Guide to Planning the Best Family Cruises Onboard Oasis of the Seas | Royal Caribbean Cruises

Plan the best family vacation, here are some of the top ways you can maximize your time traveling onboard Oasis of the Seas for your epic family cruise trip.

A Guide to Casino Etiquette | Royal Caribbean Cruises

This insider's guide to casino etiquette offers several casino tips and strategies that can help both beginers and advanced players.

How to Plan Unforgettable Family Cruises Onboard Radiance of the Seas | Royal Caribbean Cruises

Enjoy the best family vacation cruise possible while onboard Radiance of the Seas with our breakdown of tips and tricks to making the most of your getaway.

Best Restaurants on Anthem of the Seas | Royal Caribbean Cruises

Get insider tips about the game-changing Quantum Class cruise ship, Anthem of the Seas, and its amazing restaurants accompanied by an unparalleled food scene.

Best Independence of the Seas Family Cruises | Royal Caribbean Cruises

Enjoy an insider’s guide to discovering the best family cruises for your next vacation onboard Independence of the Seas. Start sailing today.

The Top 10 Things To Do Onboard Oasis of the Seas | Royal Caribbbean Cruises

Enjoy an outlined list of the top 10 fun things to do onboard Oasis of the Seas to help get your vacation-planning ideas flowing for your travels.

What Makes Royal Caribbean the Best Cruise Line? | Royal Caribbean Cruises

Having won awards year after year for our dining, entertainment, service and ships, Royal Caribbean is easily one of the best cruise lines in the world.

The Best Cruise Restaurants Onboard Brilliance of the Seas | Royal Caribbean Cruises

Enjoy an insider’s guide to the best places to eat on your cruise vacation while dining onboard Brilliance of the Seas at its many restaurant options.

The Best Cruise Restaurants Onboard Rhapsody of the Seas | Royal Caribbean Cruises

Enjoy an insider’s guide to the best places to eat on your cruise vacation while dining onboard Rhapsody of the Seas at its many restaurant options.

The Best Cruise Restaurants Onboard Odyssey of the Seas | Royal Caribbean Cruises

Discover an insider’s guide to the best places to eat on your cruise vacation while dining onboard Odyssey of the Seas at its many restaurant options.

The Best Cruise Restaurants Onboard Radiance of the Seas | Royal Caribbean Cruises

Enjoy a rundown of all the dining options onboard Radiance of the Seas, plus a glimpse of some of the top menu items at each restaurant.

The Best Cruise Restaurants Onboard Liberty of the Seas | Royal Caribbean Cruises

The fan-favorite cruise ship from New York, Liberty of the Seas, is home to some of the best cruise restaurants in the entire Royal Caribbean fleet.

How to Have an Epic Family Vacation Onboard Rhapsody of the Seas | Royal Caribbean Cruises

Planning your next epic family vacation starts today onboard Rhapsody of the Seas, a mid-sized cruise ship that is part of the Royal Caribbean Vision Class.

Travel in Style: Best Rooms on a Cruise Ship | Royal Caribbean Cruises

This handy guide gives you the scoop on the best rooms on a cruise ship, from budget-friendly options to royal suites.

Top 7 Restaurants On Explorer of the Seas Cruise Ship

To help make planning your meals on deck a little easier, we’ve rounded up some of the best dining options onboard Explorer of the Seas.

How to Choose the Best Rooms for Families on a Cruise Ship

How do you choose a stateroom on a cruise ship? Start researching the best rooms for families on a cruise ship now to make sure your trip is perfect later.

The Best Cruise Restaurants Onboard Icon of the Seas

Whether you’re a serious foodie or just appreciate the simple pleasure of a great meal, you won’t be disappointed by the cruise dining options onboard Icon of the Seas.

Family Cruises Onboard Icon of the Seas | Royal Caribbean Cruises

Icon of the Seas is loaded with features that cater to families traveling together. Here’s how to plan the perfect family getaway onboard.

Best Cruise Ship Pools are on Icon

Icon of the Seas features some of the best cruise ship pools in the world, not to mention water slides that break records and private areas for adults.

Dining Guide to Quantum of the Seas

With many great options for onboard cruise dining experiences, we have your guide to discovering the top places to eat on Quantum of the Seas.

Best Restaurants on Spectrum of the Seas

Maximize your cruise vacation with the best restaurants when sailing on Spectrum of the Seas. Find the free places to eat as well as fine dining options.

Family Vacations on Spectrum of the Seas

Plan the most unique family vacation with the secret advantage to traveling with ease. Adventure awaits those who seek it, create your greatest experience.

Making an Icon: Icon of the Seas | Royal Caribbean Cruises

Icon of the Seas is not just another cruise ship, it the very first in an all-new class being shown in the monthly video series, Making an Icon.

Best Cruise Restaurants Onboard Wonder of the Seas

With an abundance of onboard cruise restaurants and fine dining experiences discover the top cruise foods aboard Wonder of the Seas for a vacation sensation.

Things to Do on Spectrum of the Seas

Plan a vacation with many onboard cruise sensations. Discover the top 9 things to do while traveling onboard Spectrum of the Seas.

Things to Do on Wonder of the Seas

With a wealth of onboard cruise attractions and experiences discover 10 of the best things to do onboard Wonder of the Seas for a vacation getaway.

Things to Do on Serenade of the Seas

Make your vacation a sensation with onboard cruise attractions and experiences! Discover the top 10 things to do onboard Serenade of the Seas.

Things to Do on Radiance of the Seas

With an endless amount of onboard cruise attractions and experiences discover the top 10 things to do onboard Radiance of the Seas for your next vacation.

Things to Do on Ovation of the Seas

With so many onboard cruise attractions and experiences discover the top 10 things to do onboard Ovation of the Seas for a vacation temptation.

Top 9 Things to Do on Independence of the Seas

Here are the top 9 things to do onboard Independence of the Seas. Independence of the Seas has become a guest favorite thanks to all its activities.

Top 9 Things to Do on Harmony of the Seas

Here are the top 9 things to do onboard Harmony of the Seas. Harmony of the Seas is an award-winning wonder that’s loaded with all kinds of incredible onboard experiences.

Top 10 Things to Do on Symphony of the Seas

Here are the top 10 things to do onboard Symphony of the Seas. Symphony of the Seas is brimming from bow to stern with amazing experiences, including delicious dining options.

The Best Family Vacation On Explorer of The Seas

Explorer of the Seas is a great choice for the best family vacation. Learn how you can maximize your family time onboard.

Top 10 Things to Do on Mariner of the Seas

Here are the top 10 things to do onboard Mariner of the Seas. Mariner of the Seas is loaded with fun onboard attractions and unforgettable experiences.

Top 8 Things to Do on Freedom of the Seas

Here are the top 8 things to do onboard Freedom of the Seas. Freedom of the Seas has even been called the best ship for first-time cruisers.

Top 10 Things to Do on Navigator of the Seas

Here are the top 10 things to do onboard Navigator of the Seas. Navigator of the Seas has all kinds of family-friendly activities, foodie-approved restaurants, and amazing bars.

Best Things To Do On A Cruise

Explore the Oasis Class ships seven neighborhoods and discover the best things to do on a cruise that delivers a larger than life experience. Find deals for cruises on the Oasis class ships

Top 7 Things to Do on Odyssey of the Seas

Here are the top 7 things to do onboard Odyssey of the Seas. The new Odyssey of the Seas has so many amazing onboard attractions.

Best Family Cruise Vacation on Allure of the Seas | Royal Caribbean Cruises

Are you planning your next family vacation? Check out these family cruise tips for maximizing your cruise on Allure of the Seas.

Top 10 Restaurants On Allure of the Seas Cruise Ship | Royal Caribbean Cruises

Foodies love Allure of the Seas! Discover 10 onboard restaurants that will make you a believer.

Best Family Vacation On Odyssey of The Seas | Royal Caribbean Cruises

If you’re looking to plan an amazing family cruise vacation, the brand-new Odyssey of the Seas overflows with fun activities for kids and family-friendly entertainment.

Things to Do on Voyager of the Seas

Plan the best vacation with all included onboard cruise activities and experiences! Discover the top 10 things to do onboard Voyager of the Seas.

Family Cruises | Voyager of the Seas

Envision your next travel vacation, as you plan the best family cruise getaway while sailing onboard the Voyager of the Seas. Unexpected cruise activities.

Family Cruises | Wonder of the Seas

Envision your next travel vacation, as you plan the best family cruise getaway while sailing onboard the Wonder of the Seas.

Best Cruise Restaurants | Voyager of the Seas

With an abundance of onboard cruise restaurants and fine dining experiences discover the top cruise foods aboard Voyager of the Seas.

The Top 9 Things To Do Onboard Quantum Of The Seas

With an abundance of onboard cruise attractions and experiences discover the top 10 things to do onboard Quantum of the Seas for a vacation temptation.

Best Cruise Restaurants | Freedom of the Seas

Planning to dine at the best cruise restaurants onboard the Freedom of the Seas. Remain in the know with the ultimate cruise dining guide to sailing with success.

How to Plan the Best Family Cruises Onboard Quantum of the Seas

Dive into out-of-this-world adventure on the groundbreaking Quantum of the Seas®, where far-flung feats, treats and eats make for unforgettable, one-of-a-kind memories.

What's Included in on a Cruise

New to cruising and unsure exactly what is included on a cruise? Read on to learn about all the fun things Royal Caribbean ships offer for free.

Top 8 Things to Do on Explorer of the Seas

Here are the top things to do onboard Explorer of the Seas. Explorer of the Seas unlocks a world of adventure for every traveler onboard.

Vacation Ideas for Families on Icon of the Seas

Travel with the best family vacation ideas possible onboard Icon of the Seas. Encounter top level cruise experiences and its seven neighborhoods.

Best Family Vacation Onboard Adventure of the Seas

Experience the ultimate family adventure onboard Adventure of the Seas! Book your best family vacation and set sail on the adventure of a lifetime.

Family Vacation Ideas on Symphony of the Seas

Uncover all the exciting family vacation ideas and travel activities that are waiting for you onboard a cruise getaway with Symphony of the Seas.

Top Cruise Dining on Symphony of the Seas

Experience the best cruise restaurants onboard Symphony of the Seas for an unforgettable dream vacation. Book now for a stress-free getaway!

Free Things to Do on Navigator of the Seas

Discover all the free places to eat along with the top complementary things to do on a vacation cruise getaway with Navigator of the Seas.

Best Food on Navigator of the Seas

Experience exquisite dining on vacation with Navigator of the Seas cruise restaurants. Indulge in delectable cuisine and breathtaking ocean views.

Family Vacations on Liberty of the Seas

Embark on the best family vacation aboard Liberty of the Seas. Experience the ultimate adventure and create unforgettable travels with your loved ones.

Best Harmony of the Seas Restaurants | Royal Caribbean Cruises

Discover the best cruise restaurants available onboard on Harmony of the Seas for an unforgettable family vacation filled with delicious cuisine.

Top 9 Things to Do on Allure of the Seas

Here are the top things to do on Allure of the Seas. There are so many things to do on this cruise ship, you’re going to wish you had more sea days to experience them all.

Family Vacation Ideas on Freedom of the Seas

Experience a memorable family vacation aboard Freedom of the Seas. Enjoy exciting activities, delicious dining options, and endless fun for all!

Top Things to Do on Liberty of the Seas

Uncover all the exciting travel activities and ideas on the top things to do that are waiting for you onboard a cruise getaway with Liberty of the Seas.

Family Vacations on Harmony of the Seas

Uncover all the exciting travel activities and ideas for the best family vacation waiting for you onboard a cruise getaway with Harmony of the Seas.

10 Things to do on Rhapsody of the Seas

Discover 10 of the top ideas for things to do while traveling on a travel vacation onboard a cruise getaway with Rhapsody of the Seas.

11 Things to do on Adventure of the Seas

Uncover some of the best ideas for things to do while traveling on a family vacation onboard a cruise getaway with Adventure of the Seas.

Family Vacations on Navigator of the Seas

Navigator of the Seas offers endless opportunities for you to bond with your loved ones. Discover all the exciting family vacation ideas and travel activities.

Best Adventure of the Seas Restaurants

Uncover the best places to eat on a cruise onboard Adventure of the Seas from specialty restaurants and fine dining to complimentary place for free eats.

Family Cruise Activities on Ovation of the Seas

Uncover the best ideas for family cruise activities! With all kinds of unforgettable fun, a relaxing trip on Ovation of the Seas will top your watchlist.

CRUISE SHIP EXPLORER OF THE SEAS REVIEWS

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• Canyon Ranch *
• Afternoon Tea
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• Cardio / Strength Training
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• Jogging Track
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• Paddle Tennis Court
• Putting Green
• Shuffleboard
• Sports Deck
• Team Trivia
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• Constellation Theater
• Explorer Lounge
• Nightly Live Music
• The Casino *
• Pool Grill - Casual
• La Veranda / Sette Mari - Casual/ Italian
• Connoisseur Club - Cigars & Spirits
• Coffee Bar - Coffee Bar
• The Café - Coffee Bar
• Meridian Lounge - Elegant Lounge
• Chartreuse - French
• Compass Rose - International
• Observation lounge - Panoramic Bar
• Pool Bar - Pool Bar
• The Study - Private Dining
• Prime 7 - Steakhouse
• Pacific Rim - West Coast
• Excellent 42
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Regent Seven Seas Alaska cruises from $5,525*

6 Ships in the Regent Seven Seas Cruises fleet

Ship:  .

• Destinations
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Seven Seas Explorer Overview

The brand new all-suite, all-balcony Seven Seas Explorer from Regent Seven Seas Cruises is set to become the world’s most luxurious cruise ship. Expect the best of the best as you sail with fewer than 750 other guests while enjoying Regent Seven Seas Cruises’ all-inclusive luxury experience. Onboard, the Seven Seas Explorer will feature one of the highest crew-to-guest ratios, as well as space-to-guest ratios, at sea. Discover new cuisines in the Culinary Arts Kitchen, pamper yourself like never before in the spa, jump into the calm waters of the onboard pool, or dive into a good book or destination guide at the well-stocked library. No matter how you choose to spend your time, the onboard staff will anticipate and see to your every whim and fancy. They’re present without every being pushy, and are dedicated to making your experience as luxurious and care-free as possible.

• Passenger Capacity: 750 (double occupancy)
• Year Built: 2016
• Last Refurbished: N/A

• Culinary Arts Kitchen Discover and perfect new dishes and cooking techniques in the Seven Seas Explorer’s state-of-the-art Culinary Arts Kitchen. Inspired by the design of the most prestigious French cooking schools, the Culinary Arts Kitchen will feature 18 separate cooking stations with the top-of-the-line equipment and décor, because nothing but the best would be suitable for the memorable dishes you’ll prepare with fellow guests.  

• Spa The Seven Seas Explorer will feature Regent’s signature spa, making Deck 5 your stop for all your therapeutic needs. Enjoy a variety of spa treatments, including aromatherapy, seaweed treatments, body massages, facials and others. Seven Seas Explorer’s spa will also provide an array of sumptuous health and beauty treatments, such as pedicures, manicures, hair styling and more.  

• Exquisite Dining The Seven Seas Explorer will maintain Regent’s tradition of the finest cuisine at sea with the return of fan-favorites like the Pool Grill, La Veranda, Compass Rose and Prime 7. Plus, the Seven Seas Explorer will mark the debut of two new (and complimentary!) open-seating specialty restaurants, which will provide a total of six fantastic onboard dining venues. As always, you’ll enjoy only the finest regional cuisine, designed to inspire and further immerse you in each destination.  

Inside Regent Seven Seas Explorer: An Infographic

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Seven Seas Explorer Cruise Destinations

Sail the high seas in style and visit everywhere from Bermuda to Bali with Regent Seven Seas Cruises. This all-inclusive luxury cruise line offers over 300 ports-of-call, making sure you see the best and brightest in each region and have the opportunity to try some unique and exciting shore excursions. For example, Regent Seven Seas Cruises has visited over 20 ports in Northern Africa and India alone, which means you can delve deep inside the Middle East and Holy Land regions with an Africa and India cruise. Visit the Mediterranean and expand your culinary knowledge. Sail to Alaska and try some rugged excursions in the tundra. Or, cruise to South America and enjoy the Latin culture. 

Cruising to Alaska is an incredible vacation option filled with natural beauty that will be as exciting as it is memorable.

South Pacific / Tahiti

The South Pacific and Tahiti are the closest thing you’ll find to perfect paradise. So drop your daily stresses and set sail for the South Pacific with Regent Seven Seas Cruises.

Southeast Asia

Southeast Asia invites you to learn the sage teachings of Buddha, try authentic Pad Thai and ride an elephant.

Diversity is the only policy when you sail from tropical beaches to cultural European reaches on a World Cruise.

Seven Seas Explorer Departure Ports

Offering all-inclusive sailings Regent Seven Seas Cruises is a cut above. They offer amazing itineraries on truly intimate luxury ships. Try a sailing from Lima, Peru to Buenos Aires, Argentina discovering the South American continent or Copenhagen to Stockholm for an in-depth look at Scandinavia. You’ll also find plenty of other itinerary options leaving from ports all over the globe. Contact an expert Regent cruise consultant at The Cruise Web today to learn more.

The near perfect days, beautiful scenery, pristine beaches and sparkling water offer the perfect backdrop for any dream adventure in Sydney, Australia.

Hong Kong, Hong Kong Sar, China

One of the world’s most exciting modern cities, Hong Kong offers a true East meets West experience where you can shop for traditional Chinese cure-alls and attend high tea all in the same afternoon.

Singapore, Singapore

Southeast Asia’s most modern city, Singapore, also contains a lot of history and treasures from the past, along with a perfect tropical climate – all making Singapore a wonderful destination year round.

Bali, Indonesia

For decades Bali has lured visitors with its beautiful beaches, forests and mountains and a culture that is devoted to the arts.

Tokyo, Japan

Tokyo is a dazzling city where you might be overwhelmed at first by its modernity but will find lots of interesting subcultures in its various neighborhoods.

Auckland, New Zealand

The mild temperatures in Auckland enhance an outdoorsy cruise destination. Tour the many beaches, hike beautiful mountain ranges or just wander Auckland’s city streets.

Seward, Alaska

The beautiful small coastal town of Seward, which is most known for its picturesque scenic views and many visitors’ attractions, is a perfect addition for your next Alaska cruise.

Whether it’s your cruise destination or a launching point, Vancouver is a beautiful destination in itself with a sophisticated downtown and lots of natural elements to explore.

Laem Chabang (Bangkok), Thailand

This enchanting city along the Chao Phraya River offering rich and ancient culture can be known as Laem Chabang (Bangkok) Thailand.

Seven Seas Explorer Deck Plans

Seven seas explorer staterooms.

• Personal Butler
• FREE 15 Minute of Ship-to-Shore Phone Time
• FREE Unlimited WiFi up to four logins, four devices/suite
• Luxe Fruit Arrangement
• Complimentary Use of Windows Tablet
• Complimentary Tote Bag

• Free Cocktail Party for 8
• Complimentary Shore Excursion Bag

• Welcome Bottle of Wine

• FREE Personal Car and Guide to Explore Ashore
• FREE Unlimited Laundry and Dry Cleaning

• FREE Unlimited WiFi includes one log-in, one device/suite
• Welcome Bottle of Champagne and Fresh Fruit Arrangement
• 24-Hour Room Service
• In Suite Mini Bar Set Up and Refill
• Direct Dial Satellite Phone
• Shoe Shine Service

Photo Gallery for Seven Seas Explorer Cruise Ship

Offering all-inclusive cruising, Regent Seven Seas cruises are refined, elegant and a place to see the world in style. Take a look at this photo gallery to get an idea of what a Regent cruise has to offer you.

Regent Suite aboard Seven Seas Explorer

Seven Seas Explorer

Regent Suite Balcony aboard Seven Seas Explorer

Regent Seven Seas Explorer Lounge

Regent Seven Seas Explorer Balcony

Regent Seven Seas Explorer Coffee Connection

Regent Seven Seas Explorer Constellation Theater

Regent Seven Seas Explorer La Veranda Restaurant

Regent Seven Seas Explorer Observation Lounge

Regent Seven Seas Explorer Penthouse Suite

Regent Seven Seas Explorer Regent Suite

Regent Seven Seas Explorer In-Suite Spa

Top 10 Seven Seas Explorer Cruises

• Seven Seas Explorer 7 NIGHT Alaska CRUISE Departing From Seward, Alaska (Jun 2024 - Sep 2025)
• Seven Seas Explorer 7 NIGHT Alaska CRUISE Departing From Vancouver, British Columbia (Jun 2024 - Sep 2025)
• Seven Seas Explorer 14 NIGHT Alaska CRUISE Departing From Vancouver, British Columbia (Aug 2024 - Aug 2025)
• Seven Seas Explorer 19 NIGHT Southeast Asia CRUISE Departing From Vancouver, British Columbia (Sep 2024)
• Seven Seas Explorer 63 NIGHT World CRUISE Departing From Tokyo, Japan (Oct 2024)
• Seven Seas Explorer 10 NIGHT Southeast Asia CRUISE Departing From Tokyo, Japan (Oct 2024)
• Seven Seas Explorer 12 NIGHT Southeast Asia CRUISE Departing From Hong Kong, Hong Kong SAR, China (Nov 2024)
• Seven Seas Explorer 14 NIGHT Southeast Asia CRUISE Departing From Laem Chabang (Bangkok), Thailand (Nov 2024 - Nov 2025)
• Seven Seas Explorer 16 NIGHT South Pacific CRUISE Departing From Bali, Indonesia (Dec 2024 - Dec 2025)
• Seven Seas Explorer 14 NIGHT South Pacific CRUISE Departing From Sydney, Australia (Dec 2024)

Learn More About Regent Seven Seas Cruises

Accessibility

Learn about Regent Seven Seas Cruises' handicap accessible luxury cruises and accommodations for guests with special needs or disabilities.

Savor fine dining aboard Regent Seven Seas Cruises, including the Prime 7 steakhouse, Signatures French cuisine, the Compass Rose main dining room, the casual La Veranda, the Pool Grill and more.

Entertainment

Enjoy Regent Seven Seas Cruises' onboard entertainment, including Broadway-style revues, cabarets, casino games, Cirque-style performances, cigar lounges and bars.

Onboard Activities

Engage in Regent Seven Seas Cruises' onboard activities, including enrichment courses, pools, guest lectures, internet café, duty-free shopping and more.

Service & Awards

Learn how all-inclusive luxury service is done with Regent Seven Seas Cruises. All-inclusive cruising means everything is included with your fare, and you'll want for nothing. Plus, view Regent Seven Seas Cruises' awards.

Spa & Fitness

Unwind at Regent Seven Seas Cruises’ fitness center or spa with various treatments, from massages and manicures to salon stylings and make-up applications.

Special Events

Blend your special interests with Regent Seven Seas Cruises’ luxurious experiences for themed and spotlight voyages like nothing else!

Explore Regent Seven Seas Cruises' luxury all-suite accommodations, including Master Suites, Grande Suites, Horizon Suites and Penthouse Suites, as well as Concierge, Deluxe and Window Suites.

Youth Programs

Learn about cruising with children aboard Regent Seven Seas Cruises. The Club Mariner Youth Program is for children ages 6+, and is only available on select summer and holiday cruises.

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Review: Regent Seven Seas Explorer

Reviewed by Jessica Puckett

What is the line? Regent Seven Seas

Name of ship? Seven Seas Explorer

Passenger occupancy? 746 passengers

Itinerary? Central America, through Mexico, Honduras, and Belize

Start out with the big picture—what is this cruise line known for? Regent Seven Seas is known for its luxe ships and amenities. The line has some of the largest suites at sea, with spacious verandas and bathrooms with marble-trimmed tubs. It’s also known for its swanky onboard art collections.

Tell us about the ship in general: It may have been built in 2015, but Seven Seas Explorer still feels as modern and fresh as many lines’ newest launches. Spaces on board are gracious and formal, with striking chandeliers made of crystal and hand-blown glass, as well as a world-class art collection featuring paintings by Picasso and Miró. There’s plenty of space and activities to keep passengers entertained across its 10 decks, but with less than 800 passengers, it’s a good middle ground for travelers who don’t love being in a crowd.

Who is onboard? Passengers on Seven Seas Explorer are mainly older couples and retirees, with a few honeymooners and several solo travelers sprinkled throughout as well.

Describe the cabins: Every stateroom on Seven Seas Explorer is a suite with a private balcony. Even the smallest are some of the most spacious at sea, with king-size beds, a lounge area, a double-bathroom vanity, and separate shower and tub—a rarity on cruise ships. The balcony is large enough for a chaise lounge and a table and chairs to enjoy a glass of wine (or maybe the complimentary bottle of Champagne left by your cabin steward upon arrival).

Tell us about the crew: The ship’s crew were white-gloved and formal; whether you’re ordering a four-course surf-and-turf meal in Prime 7 or you’re asking your cabin steward for a cup of peppermint tea before you go to bed, expect every detail to exude the ultimate hospitality.

What food and drink options are available on board? Seven Seas Explorer has 10 restaurants and bars: two main dining restaurants and three specialty restaurants. The specialty offerings include Prime 7, a premium steakhouse; Chartreuse, which specializes in modern French fine-dining; and Pacific Rim, a sleek Asian-fusion concept. Each specialty restaurant requires a reservation but does not cost extra. The standout for me was Pacific Rim, which serves decadent dishes like miso black cod wrapped in hoba leaf, Chinese barbecue pork ribs with char siu sauce, snow crab, and crispy duck spring rolls. One of the main dining options, Compass Rose, is no slouch either, with three-course seated table service and Versace tableware. There’s also a pool buffet, coffee shop, and breakfast buffet that transforms to an Italian outdoor restaurant for dinner.

As far as bars and lounges go, Seven Seas Explorer has you covered. Dip into the Meridian Lounge for a pre-dinner aperitif, hors d’oeuvres, and live piano music, or stop into the Observation Lounge for cocktails and dancing. The Connoisseurs' Club is a perfect spot to grab a cigar and a nightcap while chatting with fellow passengers until the wee hours. But, I think my favorite place to grab a drink was the pool bar, where tropical tipples are served in the sunshine around the ship’s striking plunge pool.

Is there a spa on board and is it worth visiting? The spa is certainly worth a visit on a sea day, or on a day when you might not feel like going into port. The treatment rooms are serene and secluded, and I received a top-notch massage. The spa also has amenities open to everyone on board at no charge, including an aromatherapy steam room, chill room, and infrared sauna. Right behind the spa on the aft deck of the ship is a small deck with an infinity pool, the perfect place to soak and watch the sunset after a relaxing treatment.

Activities and entertainment Regent’s fleet offers Broadway-caliber shows backed by a live five-piece orchestra in its plush Constellation Theater. Smaller-scale piano performances and the like also take place nightly in bars and lounges throughout the ship. On the sports deck you’ll also find a pickleball court, ping pong table, shuffleboard, putting green, and netted driving range bay.

How was the experience for families? There seemed to be relatively few children on board, but the Club Mariner Youth program features kids’ programming like dance parties or mini-putt tournaments for children ages five to 17.

Where did it sail and how were the excursions? Did anything stand out? Our voyage sailed roundtrip from Miami, calling upon Costa Maya and Cozumel in Mexico; Roatan, Honduras; and Harvest Caye, Regent parent company Norwegian Cruise Line’s private island in Belize. Roatan was a particular highlight, as it’s a destination that’s complicated to reach if you’re not cruising. There was enough time in the day at port to soak up the gorgeous white-sand beaches, have a tour through the tropical forests, and sample local ceviche.

Are there any stand-out sustainability or green initiatives about this cruise? Every guest receives a Regent reusable water bottle, and the ship has plenty of refilling stations scattered around.

Finally, give a sentence or two on why the cruise is worth booking. If you’re looking for a cruise that offers a sense of elegance and pampering, a voyage aboard Regent Seven Seas Explorer is for you.

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About Seven Seas Explorer

Hailed as "the most luxurious ship ever built," the all-suite, 54,000-ton, 750-guest Seven Seas Explorer won't disappoint. She has lived up to this accolade since her debut in 2016, providing discerning travelers with unrivaled Six-Star personalized service that Regent Seven Seas Cruises is known for. Lavish designer suites, elegant restaurants serving the finest gourmet cuisine, exquisite public areas, including chic bars, comfy lounges, a stunning theater and more offer the ultimate luxury vacation. Enjoy an all-inclusive carefree cruise on Seven Seas Explorer, including specialty restaurants, shore excursions in every port, unlimited beverages, such as wines and spirits, non-alcoholic beverages, tips and much more. Simply sit back and be pampered while everything is taken care of for you. No detail is too small.

Along your luxury cruise, enjoy a host of amenities, such as a world-class spa — your haven of rejuvenation, with several treatment rooms for messages and skin care. Weight-training and cardio equipment, fitness classes and a full-service salon are also featured. During your leisure time read a bestseller and relish afternoon tea. WiFi access is offered throughout the ship and computers are available at the internet center. Head to the sun deck and a dedicated sports area, where you can go for a run on the jogging track, play paddle tennis, golf and more. Lounge on the expansive relaxing teak pool deck with a relaxing heated pool and poolside bar with custom-made frozen drinks. Chic boutiques feature fine jewelry, high-end items, perfumes and more. View them in a private show room where you may enjoy a glass of champagne while deciding which fabulous item to purchase.

Making its debut on the ship is Regent's first state-of-the-art Culinary Arts Kitchen boasting individual cooking stations for budding chefs. Guests will be offered personalized hands-on instructions in such topics as desserts, healthy cooking, food and wine-pairing. Foodies also flock to special gourmet tours, where they can immerse themselves in unique culinary experiences such as exclusive chef guided tours in ports and the opportunity to savor local cuisine and wine.

Exceptional gourmet dining is offered onboard Seven Seas Explorer throughout the day and night. Three specialty restaurants, a grand dining room and casual options will have your taste buds smiling with joy. Savor delicious French classic cuisine with modern touches while dining in a lovely ambiance that offers the feel of dining on a street in Paris, including cobblestones and an Art Nouveau décor. An elegant steakhouse serves classic fare along with seafood and features a chic bar that is ideal for pre-dinner drinks.

Romantic candle lit dinners can be enjoyed indoors or al fresco at a lovely bistro serving scrumptious Mediterranean cuisine. Savor regional specialties that include homemade pastas, enticing main courses and decadent desserts — all from Italy. Continental-inspired dishes change daily at the ship's main dining venue and a casual pool grill lets you "come as you are" and is perfect for a lunch of made-to-order burgers, salads and decadent shakes.

Luxury travelers will feel at home in gorgeous balcony accommodations with high-end marble-appointed bathrooms with indulgent high-end toiletries. Slip into plush bathrobes and slippers as you relax in beautiful serene surroundings. Watch interactive TV with complimentary movies-on-demand and enjoy the convenience of 24-hour room service. Luxury suite amenities include the option of letting guests have dinner served course-by-course. Located at the top of the ship and exuding elegance, the 3,875-square-foot Regent Suite will offer privileged guests an unmatched luxurious retreat, stretching across the entire width of the ship. Plush accommodations feature two bedrooms and an immense well-appointed living space and the industry's first in-suite spa, complete with a personal sauna, steam room and relaxation loungers, ideal to luxuriate in the complimentary unlimited treatments from the ship's spa. This personal haven even boasts a custom-designed Steinway grand piano and a glass-enclosed sitting area, providing breathtaking 270-degree views over the ship's bow.

Exceptional entertainment choices includes exciting theatrical performances at the ornate two-deck theater, with a variety of shows, including concert recitals. Hand-blown table-top Murano glass lamps lend an elegant touch. Enjoy full-scale Broadway musical revues, cabaret shows and the line's own orchestra. Exciting Cirque-style performances are also featured here. A nearby lounge is the ideal spot for pre- and post-dinner cocktails, dancing or simply taking in the breathtaking views.

Late-night dancing and music are featured at the piano bar, a fun gathering spot. Chill-out at a plush club where you can enjoy pre-dinner dinner drinks and after-dinner brandy. Savor a fine cigar or your favorite libation as you relax in comfortable armchairs in this elegant club-like atmosphere. Bustling with activity, the casino offers a variety of games, including Las Vegas-style slot machines.

Explore the world in luxurious comfort on the beautiful Seven Seas Explorer.

Cruise on the Seven Seas Explorer to worldwide destinations.

Regent Suite

Spacious Living Room With Sitting Area, Private Solarium, In-suite Spa, 2 1/2 Marble and Stone Detailed Bathrooms, 1 with Jetted Tub, Wraparound Balcony With Two Separate Balconies.

Master Suite

Spacious Living Room With Sitting Area, 2 Marble and Stone Detailed Bathrooms, Private Balcony.

Grand Suite

Explorer Suite

Seven Seas Suite

Spacious Living Room With Sitting Area, 1 1/2 Marble and Stone Detailed Bathrooms, Private Balcony.

Penthouse Suite

Spacious Living Room With Sitting Area, 1 Marble and Stone Detailed Bathroom featuring a glass-enclosed shower instead of bathtub, Private Balcony.

Concierge Suite

Intimate Sitting Area, 1 Marble and Stone Detailed Bathroom, Private Balcony.

Superior Suite

Deluxe Veranda Suite

Intimate Sitting Area, 1 Marble and Stone Detailed Bathroom featuring a glass-enclosed shower instead of bathtub, Private Balcony.

Veranda Suite

Intimate Sitting Area, 1 Marble and Stone Detailed Bathroom featuring a glass-enclosed shower instead of bathtub, Private Balcony, Built-in Closet With Safe.

View Deck Plan

Specialty Restaurant Reservation

Deck: Deck 5

Specialty Restaurant Reservation.

Deck: Deck 10

Attention to detail. You’ll notice it at the front of Chartreuse, where a beautifully crafted bar beckons while you wait. It’s in the art deco tile pattern on the floor and sparkling gold tile on the walls. It’s in the décor of a chic Parisian restaurant discovered during a stroll along the Seine. Savor ‘new’ flavors to Chartreuse like a tender veal rack of loin with caramelized endive, grape chutney and the earthy tones of a walnut veal jus sauce.

Compass Rose

Deck: Deck 4

Our largest specialty restaurant at sea, the Compass Rose on Seven Seas Explorer® delights with a beautifully defined atmosphere that transitions from refreshing natural light during the day to a dazzling cobalt blue reflected by a glass installation overhead. Choose from a seemingly endless combination of dishes, prepared to taste, garnished with a sauce of choice and complemented with side dishes, as well as nightly specials.

Culinary Arts Kitchen

Deck: Deck 11

At the Culinary Arts Kitchen, guests learn how to prepare a variety of exquisite dishes in a welcoming environment reminiscent of the most prestigious cooking schools in the world in both layout and design. Eighteen individual cooking stations sit atop three long curved rows with white quartzite countertops and stainless steel accents, belaying the complex and richly flavored foods you will prepare during the classes. View the culinary classes currently available.

Located on Deck 11 aft, guests take in stunning ocean views while enjoying elegant breakfast and lunch buffets in the chic indoor dining room or al fresco on the shaded, open-air deck. Breakfasts include traditional favorites, as well as a made-to-order omelet station, a variety of fresh fruits and pastries, along with daily specials, like fluffy Belgian waffles with fresh blueberry compote. For lunch guests indulge in an array of choices from a bountiful salad bar, gourmet sandwiches, hot carving stations and delicious desserts.

La Veranda & Sette Mari

Each evening, La Veranda transforms into Sette Mari at La Veranda, a casual, intimate dining experience. Choose from authentic Italian specialties inspired by family recipes that span generations, or opt for something with a modern twist like a spice-crusted tuna steak with braised endive, polenta and salmoriglio. Savor it all with a perfectly paired Tuscan wine. Sette Mari at La Veranda is open for dinner only.

Pacific Rim

Maximize your sense of the exotic as you pass a large Tibetan Prayer wheel on your way into Pacific Rim, our dining masterpiece that celebrates the culinary traditions of Asia. Taking a seat beneath huge lanterns and a hand-painted mural covering the entire back wall, you'll receive a signature cocktail and the promise of an extraordinary culinary journey. Be sure to check out the ocean views through Pacific Rim’s lotus-shaped windows.

The ultimate come-as-you-are spot for casual dining after you’ve been swimming or sunbathing. The Pool Grill serves up grilled-to-order burgers, grilled seafood, sandwiches, fresh salads and frozen treats like milkshakes and hand-dipped ice cream sprinkled with your favorite toppings. Come by before or after a shore excursion – there’s no need for more formal attire during our evening hours – or enjoy a snack between activities.

A true classic in every sense, Prime 7 of Seven Seas Explorer® is the epitome of luxury dining. Works by Picasso and Chagall adorn the restaurant's bar lobby and leather wing-back chairs and burnished woods abound. Enjoy a cocktail at the bar before savoring a succulent filet mignon or mouthwatering côte de boeuf at your personal banquette. For dessert, perhaps a slice of 14-layer Valhrona chocolate cake with pistachio sauce.

Get a taste of Monte Carlo excitement at our Casino directly across from the equally inspiring Explorer Lounge. Walk through glass doors into an elegant setting bustling with games of chance that include Blackjack, roulette, poker, and a full craps table, as well as slot machines. The Casino is open every day at sea when not restricted by territorial border limits.

Dance Floor

Dance Floor.

Motion Studio

Deck: Deck 6

Motion Studio.

The beautifully decorated Card Room is an inviting and tranquil oasis. Guests may gather their favorite teammates for lively afternoon or evening of board games, as well as enjoy a social game of Bridge or participate in an ACBL Tournament on select voyages. The Card Room is steps away from the Pool Deck on Deck 11 forward.

Well-stocked and exceedingly comfortable, the Library offers a calm setting for reading and relaxing. A vast collection of volumes ranging from destination-specific guide books to best-selling mysteries to classic literature are available. The Library is conveniently located across the Card Room on Deck 11 forward.

Business Center

If you prefer to travel without a laptop, our staffed Business Center offers desktop computers that allow you to access your emails and browse the Internet. Printer access is available for a nominal fee. Seven Seas Explorer® provides WiFi access throughout the ship, allowing you to connect to the Internet with whatever device you've brought on board.

Reception and Concierge

Our Reception Desk is the place to turn to have your every wish, whim and want fulfilled any time of day or night. Our knowledgeable, personable staff will welcome your questions and work to ensure your Seven Seas Explorer® experience is everything you want it to be. The ship's Concierge may also be contacted at the Reception Desk.

Infinity Pool

Infinity Pool.

Bocce Court

Deck: Deck 12

Bocce Court.

Paddle Tennis Court

Paddle Tennis Court.

Shuffle Board

Shuffle Board.

Sports Deck

Sports Deck.

Serene Spa & Wellness

Serene Spa & Wellness™ is a globally inspired, tranquil haven of health, beauty and wellness, offering restorative treatments and activities to soothe both the body and mind. Strengthen and elevate as you engage with a variety of treatments and services designed to enhance your whole being, from massages, and body wraps to facials, manicures and pedicures and exclusive treatments curated especially for Regent Seven Seas Cruises®.

Cardio/Strength Training

Cardio/Strength Training.

Constellation Theatre

Decks: Deck 5 Deck 4

A dazzling staircase mosaic creates a Gatsby-esque atmosphere as you enter our Constellation Theater, a space so grand it takes up two decks. Perfectly tiered for pleasing sightlines and furnished with plush seating, the main show lounge is an intimate venue without a bad seat in the house. Performances vary from full-scale musical revues to rousing singalongs, all backed by our incredible, five-piece Regent Signature Orchestra.

Connoisseur Club

Maybe it’s the deep blue walls that give the Connoisseur Club such a gentile, old-fashioned feel. Or maybe it’s the collection of impossible comfortable leather armchairs. Whatever it is, this is a relaxing spot for you and new friends to enjoy a fine cigar and sip cognac (both are available for purchase) in classic gentleman's club environs. Smoking is permitted in the club.

Decks: Deck 6 Deck 7 Deck 12

Laundrette.

Coffee Connection

Coffee Connection.

Explorer Lounge

With rich mahogany wood columns, heavy leather chairs and deep blue fabrics, the atmosphere here is conducive to intimate conversations and bonhomie. Relax to familiar tunes and special requests performed by our resident musicians from an intimate stage arched with a golden proscenium. A perfect spot to meet new friends for a pre- or post-dinner cocktail at the elegant, black marble bar.

Meridian Lounge

Situated along a lively hallway, Meridian Lounge is a natural place to gather with others for an afternoon or early evening cocktail. Elegantly appointed and comfortably furnished, it boasts an expansive bar and relaxed armchairs that beckon conversation. A popular spot to catch your breath after a dazzling Constellation Theater show, this lively spot invites you to extend your evening with virtuoso performances by resident musicians.

Observation Lounge

Walk through a black and gold-lit tunnel and be instantly captivated. This chic yet comfortable lounge features an impressive bar, dazzling geometric ceiling, ample seating and floor-to-ceiling windows that create a magical atmosphere. Musicians perform throughout the day, creating an alluring vibe that sets just the right mood as you unwind with a pre-dinner cocktail or satisfying nightcap.

Putting Green

Putting Green.

Jogging Track

Whether you prefer to start your day with a brisk jog or wait until later and get in an afternoon walk, our Track is a popular destination for those who’ve developed active lifestyles back on dry land. Onboard Seven Seas Explorer® it’s an outstanding place to get your heart pumping while enjoying unforgettable ocean vistas.

Decks: Deck 4 Deck 5

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Seven Seas Explorer

Courtesy of Regent Seven Seas Cruises |

Find a Cruise on Seven Seas Explorer

with a cruise advisor

Regent Seven Seas Explorer debuted in 2016. It's one of the largest vessels in the fleet, welcoming up to 746 passengers. The ship makes service a top priority, with 548 crew members on board. According to past cruisers, the staff was friendly and attentive.

Travelers were even more impressed by the all-suite accommodations, which are some of the largest offered among ocean liners. All 373 suites include spacious balconies, marble bathrooms, walk-in closets, interactive flat-screen TVs and unlimited Wi-Fi.

Another high point: the cuisine. Explorer offers eight dining areas that range from the casual Pool Grill to Asian creations at Pacific Rim. As part of the 'Regent Experience,' all specialty dining is included in the cruise fare.

Outside the cabins, guests can spend their days participating in cooking demonstrations, lounging by the pool or relaxing in the library. At night, entertainment options include casino games, cocktail lounges and shows in the Constellation Theater. Complaints about this ship are few and far between, though some reviewers felt the entertainment could be more impressive. 

The best perk, according to recent passengers? All shore excursions are included. Seven Seas Explorer sails to destinations in Alaska, Asia, Australia and more.

U.S. News Insider Tip: Pacific Rim is a favorite dining venue among cruisers, with its Asian-inspired cocktails and cuisine offering a selection of dishes from Thailand, Korea, China, Vietnam and Japan. Spin the bronze Tibetan Buddhist prayer wheel as you enter the restaurant and be sure to sample the miso black cod. – Gwen Pratesi, Contributor

Pros & Cons

Completely all-inclusive, including unlimited shore excursions

Some reviewers unimpressed by entertainment options

• Expert Rating » 5.0
• Traveler Rating » 4.4
• Health Rating » 4.5

Seven Seas Explorer ranks # 2 out of 6 Regent Seven Seas Cruises Cruise Ships based on an analysis of expert and user ratings, as well as health ratings.

• # 2 in Best Regent Seven Seas Cruises
• # 2 in Best Cruises to Alaska
• # 2 in Best Cruises to the Pacific
• # 6 in Best Luxury Cruises
• # 6 in Best Cruises for Couples

Seven Seas Explorer contains 10 decks. Find out which features are available on each Seven Seas Explorer deck.

Traveler Reviews

A ship’s traveler rating is provided under license by Cruiseline.com , which manages one of the largest databases of cruise reviews and ratings by travelers. A total of 81 guests have reviewed Seven Seas Explorer , giving it a rating of 4.4 on a scale of 1-5.

Cruiseline Travel Rating:

Reviews by traveler type.

Ship Photos

Disclaimers about ship ratings: A ship’s Health Rating is based on vessel inspection scores published by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). If a ship did not receive a CDC score within 22 months prior to the calculation of its Overall Rating, its Health Rating appears as N/A; in such a case, the ship’s Overall Rating is calculated using the average Health Rating of all CDC-rated ships within the cruise line. All ship Traveler Ratings are based on ratings provided under license by Cruiseline.com.

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• CruiseMapper

Seven Seas Explorer cabins and suites

Seven seas explorer staterooms review, floor plans, photos.

Seven Seas Explorer cabins and suites review at CruiseMapper provides detailed information on cruise accommodations , including floor plans, photos, room types and categories, cabin sizes, furniture details and included by Regent Seven Seas Cruises en-suite amenities and services.

The Seven Seas Explorer cruise ship cabins page is conveniently interlinked with its deck plans showing deck layouts combined with a legend and review of all onboard venues.

2-Bedroom Regent Suite

Layout (floor plan).

Suite's master bathroom and separate Spa (with Sauna, Steam Room, Jacuzzi) are ~30% larger than on Seven Seas Explorer. The bath has a separate shower with floor-ceiling window. Also separate is the Solarium: A custom-made Outdoor Minipool Fusion Spa 200 Treesse is placed on the balcony, A fully-stocked bar borders the living room.

Suite's master bedroom features a custom-made Vividus Bed by Hastens (USD 200,000). The bedroom has separate lounge area with sofabed and large 4K UHD TV.

With total area 412 m2 (4435 ft2), Regent Suite's early booking price starts from USD 11000 per night (!)

The Regent Suite offers the following complimentary amenities and services:

• two wraparound (step-out) balconies
• living room (sofas, armchairs, low tables, 6-seat dining table, baby grand piano)
• two bathrooms (WC, shower, double-sink vanity, bathtub), 1/2 bathroom (WC), L'Occitane bath amenities, luxury bathrobes and slippers, hairdryer
• two bedrooms (Master with King-size "Savoir Bed", second with King-size "Suite Slumber Bed"), each with a mirrored vanity table with chair, full-length mirror, walk-in wardrobe (electronic safe in the closet), sitting area (sofa, chairs, coffee table)
• Vista Garden (private / en-suite Spa)
• personalized minibar (Full-Liquor Set-Up) and stationery
• smart HDTVs (Interactive system)
• direct-dial satellite phone, Blu-Ray Player
• 3x walk-in closets (2x safes)
• all shipboard beverages (including alcohol), unlimited Internet, gratuities, roundtrip flights
• Bonus perks (free / ticket price inclusive) 1-night pre-cruise luxury hotel (included transfers, breakfast, porterage), shipboard Wi-Fi, priority reservations (shore excursion and dining), binoculars, illy Espresso coffee machine, cashmere blankets
• Bonus perks (free / ticket price inclusive) flights (Business Class / on European cruises only), personal butler service, in-cabin dining service (daily canapes), luxury bath amenities (from Hermes), iPhone docking station (universal), iPad (onboard use), guaranteed specialty restaurant reservations (each night)
• 1x In-Cabin Caviar Service
• discounts - 10% (on Premium Wines and Liquors), 10% (on Pre-Post-Cruise Hotels and Land Programs), 10% (on Regent Shore Excursions)
• FREE Laundry and Dry Cleaning Service, FREE Unlimited WiFi (six devices per cabin)
• (Pre-cruise) FREE 1-Night Hotel Package (inclusive of Ground Transfers, Breakfast, Porterage)
• FREE Personal Car and Guide Service (ashore/in each cruise port of call)
• FREE Unlimited In-Cabin Spa Services
• Exclusive Access to The Study (Private Dining Room / max capacity 12 people)

2-Bedroom Master Suite

With total area raging in size 176-195 m2 (1895-2100 ft2), Master Suites offer the following complimentary amenities and services:

• wraparound (step-out) balcony
• sitting area (sofa, armchairs, coffee table, mirrored vanity table with chair, full-length mirror, 4-seat dining table)
• master bathroom (WC, shower, double-sink vanity, bathtub), second bathroom (WC / glass-enclosed shower), L'Occitane bath amenities, luxury bathrobes and slippers, hairdryer
• two bedrooms (each with King-size "Elite Slumber Bed")
• personalized minibar (Full-Liquor Set-Up)
• walk-in wardrobe (electronic safe in the closet)
• discounts - 10% (on Premium Wines and Liquors), 5% (on Pre-Post-Cruise Hotels and Land Programs), 5% (on Regent Shore Excursions)
• FREE Valet Laundry Service, FREE Unlimited WiFi (four devices per cabin)

Grand Suite

With total area ranging in size 119-171 m2 (1280-1840 ft2), Grand Suites offer the following complimentary amenities and services:

• private (step-out) balcony
• sitting area (double sofabed, armchairs, coffee table, mirrored vanity table with chair, full-length mirror, 6-seat dining table)
• master bathroom (WC, glass-enclosed shower, double-sink vanity, bathtub), second bathroom (WC / shower), guest bathroom (WC), L'Occitane bath amenities, luxury bathrobes and slippers, hairdryer
• King-size "Elite Slumber Bed"

Explorer Suite

With total area ranging in size 76-85 m2 (820-915 ft2), Explorer Suites offer the following complimentary amenities and services:

Seven Seas Suite

With total area 76 m2 (820 ft2), Seven Seas Suites offer the following complimentary amenities and services:

• sitting area (double sofabed, armchairs, coffee table, mirrored vanity table with chair, full-length mirror, 4-seat dining table)
• marble bathroom (WC, glass-enclosed shower, double-sink vanity, bathtub), L'Occitane bath amenities, luxury bathrobes and slippers, hairdryer
• personalized minibar
• direct-dial satellite phone

Penthouse Suite

With total area ranging in size 52-60 m2 (560-650 ft2), Penthouse Suites offer the following complimentary amenities and services:

• sitting area (sofa, coffee table, mirrored vanity table with chair, full-length mirror, 2-seat dining table)
• marble bathroom (WC, glass-enclosed shower / no bathtub, double-sink vanity), L'Occitane bath amenities, luxury bathrobes and slippers, hairdryer
• (Pre-cruise) FREE 1-Night Hotel Package (inclusive of Ground Transfers, Breakfast, Porterage)

Superior and Concierge Suites

With total area raging in size 39-43 m2 (420-460 ft2), Superior Suites and Concierge Suites offer the following complimentary amenities and services:

• sitting area (sofa, coffee table, mirrored vanity table with chair, full-length mirror)
• marble bathroom (WC, shower, single-sink vanity), L'Occitane bath amenities, luxury bathrobes and slippers, hairdryer
• smart HDTV (Interactive system)
• FREE Valet Laundry Service, FREE Unlimited WiFi (one device per cabin)

Deluxe Veranda Suite

With total area raging in size 29-34 m2 (310-370 ft2), Deluxe Veranda Suites ("Deluxe Balcony" cabins) offer the following complimentary amenities and services:

Veranda Suite

With total area 28 m2 (310 ft2), Veranda Suites ("Standard Balcony" cabins) offer the following complimentary amenities and services:

• Queen-size "Elite Slumber Bed"

Seven Seas Explorer cabins review

Seven Seas Explorer cabins number is 375. Like all Regent cruise ships, Explorer is an all-suite ship. The number of all cabin categories is 16. All cruise accommodations have private balconies. Handicap (wheelchair-accessible) suites for disabled passengers are 3 (located on decks 8 and 9). Connecting rooms number is 20 (suites convertible to a double suite).

Seven Seas Explorer's suite statistics show more than 60% accommodations with square footage 470 ft2 (44 m2) or larger. Over 70% of the cabin balconies are 10 ft (or 50%) deeper compared to those found on the older RSSC ships.

Follows the review of Regent Seven Seas Explorer staterooms (suite accommodations) as furniture, amenities and included (complimentary) services:

All Seven Seas Explorer cabins feature king size “Slumber Bed”, smart HDTVs, direct-dial phone, fully stocked mini fridge, Regent Cruises-logoed luxury bathrobes/slippers, luxury bath products (“L’Occitane”), welcome gifts (champagne, flowers), 24-hour room service.

Seven Seas Explorer Suite categories Penthouse and above enjoy the following perks (bonus amenities): 24-hour personal butler service, en-suite dining (Afternoon Tea/Canapes), premium bath amenities (by Guerlain- shampoo, conditioner, shower gel, body lotion, vegetable soaps), large living room (bar, media center, rosewood furniture, crystal chandeliers), free Internet and WiFi, iPad, iPhone station, Interactive flat TV, satellite phone, binoculars, illy coffee maker, cashmere blankets, priority services (dining and shore excursion reservations), complimentary mini-bar (beverages replenished daily).

Higher suite cabin grades also enjoy complimentary services (cocktail parties, laundry/pressing), discount deals (10% off cruise ship alcohol purchases, 5% off Regent cruise shore excursions, 5% off pre-post cruise hotel deals, free airport transfers, free car ashore).

Regent's Suite categories Master-Grand-Seven Seas-Explorer Suites, instead illy have a Nespresso Forte (capsule coffee maker). Additionally, passengers in Regent-Master-Grand-Explorer suites receive a bottle of the Guerlain’s luxury perfume Eau de Cologne Imperiale (a citrus aromatic fragrance for women).

The world’s largest cruise ship suite is named “Regent Suite” (aft-ship location, on Deck 14). This unique accommodation spans along the whole width of the ship, and has 2 bedrooms, large living room with vista garden (floor-ceiling windows, grand piano, dining table, 1/2 bathroom), en-suite spa room, marble bathroom, wrap-around balcony (2 separate verandas, lounge furniture), dressing room (walk-in closet, safe, vanity). Among the Regent Suite’s exclusive amenities are the custom-made grand piano (Steinway) and the unlimited spa treatments – offered in-suite and free of charge.

Master Suites have every 2 bedrooms (each with adjacent bathroom /shower and bathtub). Grand and Explorer Suites also have two full bathrooms. Regent Explorer ship’s Seven Seas Suites have separated living and dining rooms, and marble bathroom.

Concierge Suites additionally have complimentary Wi-Fi, 1-night Luxury Hotel Package (included hotel-ship transfer, Breakfast, Porterage), champagne bottle on arrival, 15 min ship-to-shore phone time, priority (shore excursions reservation, “Prime 7” and “Signatures” restaurants reservations), discounts (10% on wine-liquor onboard purchases, 5% on Regent cruise shore excursions, 5% on pre-post cruise Hotels and Land Programs).

All Regent Seven Seas Explorer cruises as prices are inclusive of the unlimited Internet offered to all passengers (regardless of cabin categories). The top-luxury RSSC deals are also inclusive of all beverages (alcohol included), all gratuities, round-trip flights. Up to 3-nights long shore excursions/tours are offered on exotic itineraries to South Africa and Asia.

Seven Seas Explorer cabin and suite plans are property of Regent Seven Seas Cruises . All floor plans are for informational purposes only and CruiseMapper is not responsible for their accuracy.

The best Alaska cruises for every type of traveler

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Even with a season that only runs from April through October, there are some 40 big ships and dozens of small ships cruising Alaska , making it one of the most popular cruise destinations in the world after the Caribbean and Europe. The best Alaska cruises range from off-the-beaten-path voyages on vessels carrying fewer than 100 passengers to weeklong jaunts through the Inside Passage aboard megaships that hold thousands.

The itinerary choices are numerous in Alaska. Some ships stick to tried-and-true ports, sailing through Southeast Alaska and into western Canada. Others wander deeper along the Alaska coastline to places such as the Kenai Peninsula, north to Nome and Barrow and even deep into the Bering Sea.

Some trips hit multiple national parks; others dive into Alaska culture, allowing guests to learn the stories told by totem poles or hear about “the big one” from a fisherman at a dive bar.

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It can be hard to figure out which ship will deliver your idea of a “bucket list” experience in The Last Frontier. A lot comes down to your travel style, preferences and budget. Some travelers demand luxury, while others don’t mind going less fancy if it means close encounters with bears and other creatures in the wilderness. Some look for romance, while others want to introduce the kids or grandkids to glaciers and eagles, gold panning and sled dogs.

The good news is there’s a ship in Alaska for you no matter your taste or style. Here’s a beginner’s guide to the best Alaska cruises to help you narrow down your choices.

Best for megaresort fans

Norwegian Cruise Line and Royal Caribbean both sail some of their largest ships in Alaska. They are floating megaresorts, carrying thousands, and are big on amenities, glitz and a certain amount of glamor — think flashy casinos, Broadway shows, lavish spas. Dining and drinking venues number in the dozens, while amusement park features thrill the kids and adrenaline-seekers.

Norwegian Encore

On Norwegian Encore, you can race along a go-kart racetrack, compete in outdoor laser tag and zoom down slides at the water park while you traverse Alaska’s Inside Passage. The ship sails seven-night cruises from Seattle, visiting Skagway, Juneau and Ketchikan in Alaska, as well as Victoria, British Columbia, and Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve .

Related: A beginner’s guide to picking a cruise line

Ovation of the Seas

On Royal Caribbean’s Quantum-class ships, you can order a drink from a robotic bartender, try simulated skydiving or surfing experiences and take a ride in a glass capsule that travels high above your ship on a mechanical arm — a weird and wonderful way to see the Alaska scenery.

Ovation of the Seas sails round-trip from Seattle on seven-night cruises, but the exact itinerary varies by week. The ship cruises Endicott Arm for scenic views of Dawes Glacier and typically visits three Alaska ports and Victoria.

Best for land and sea adventures

You’ve traveled far to get to Alaska, and it would be a shame to miss inland sights such as Denali National Park and Preserve and the sight of Denali, North America’s largest peak — so big it’s often shrouded in clouds caused by its own weather system.

Market leaders Holland America Line and Princess Cruises both send a half-dozen ships to Alaska each year, and they have 75 and 55 years in the market, respectively.

They top the list in terms of cruises, as well as cruise tours, which combine time sailing with overnight stays on land. The companies operate their own lodges, rail cars and motorcoaches for exploration of Alaska’s interior and beyond. Many of the ships have permission to sail in Glacier Bay.

Related: The coolest things to do on an Alaska cruise

Choose from 10- to 17-night land tours that combine a standard weeklong cruise (sometimes half a cruise) with time spent exploring Alaska’s interior by bus, train or even plane.

Holland America will base six ships in Alaska in 2024, with tour offerings to Denali, Fairbanks and Anchorage.

However, it also offers nine- to 14-night cruise tours on Koningsdam that head into the Canadian Yukon, following the route of the Klondike Gold Rush from Alaska to northwestern Canada. Disembark your cruise ship in Skagway, then travel to Whitehorse and Dawson City in the Yukon before continuing on to Fairbanks (the gateway to Arctic Alaska), Denali National Park and Anchorage.

Sapphire Princess

Princess Cruises offers a cruise tour where you visit four national parks: Glacier Bay, Denali, the Kenai Fjords and America’s largest national park, Wrangell-St. Elias. The 15- and 17-night trips combine a seven-night cruise on Sapphire Princess from Vancouver to Whittier, Alaska, with another week or more on land, ending in Fairbanks or Anchorage.

Best for travelers on a budget

Older ships in Norwegian and Royal Caribbean’s fleets tend to offer more reduced prices than you’ll find on the lines’ larger and newer ships, based on the fact the older ships don’t have as many bells and whistles.

Since they have so many ships in the market, Holland America Line and Princess Cruises also tend to offer frequent sales — especially on their older tonnage. These ships have a loyal following and tend to have fewer families on board, which some couples find particularly appealing.

Related: Best time to cruise Alaska

If you’re looking for other surefire ways to save, consider sailings in the area’s shoulder season. You’ll find better deals from April to early June and in September than you will in the height of summer.

Also, in Alaska, balcony cabins are highly desirable, with everyone seeking views of the wilderness, snow-capped peaks and glaciers. As those reserves get low, the prices tend to get higher. Bargain seekers should either book early for these accommodations or choose inside, outside or guarantee cabins (where you don’t pick your room location) to save more.

Radiance of the Seas

Royal Caribbean’s 20-year-old ship Radiance of the Seas mainly sails weeklong, one-way cruises between Vancouver and Seward, Alaska, with prices below $100 per person, per night, for inside and outside cabins on many departures.

However, its early-season May 2024 sailing from Seward to Vancouver is the cheapest Royal Caribbean Alaska cruise of the season. It starts at $368 per person for an inside cabin.

Grand Princess and Sapphire Princess

Princess Cruises has so many ships based in Alaska that you’re bound to find deals, especially on shoulder-season cruises. Both Grand and Sapphire Princess offer weeklong Alaska cruises in May 2024 starting from $548 per person for inside cabins. The itinerary starts in Vancouver and ends in Whittier, Alaska, with calls in Ketchikan, Juneau and Skagway and scenic cruising in Glacier Bay and College Fjord.

Best for off-the-beaten-path travel

Want to see and deeply experience coastal Alaska, and don’t mind a mellower environment where lectures and impromptu guitar singalongs replace casinos and show productions? Consider lines such as UnCruise Adventures , Lindblad Expeditions and Alaskan Dream Cruises, all with ships that carry fewer than 100 passengers (and in the case of Alaskan Dream, even under 20 passengers).

On these small ships, captains have the flexibility to alter itineraries and linger if the naturalist onboard spots a pod of whales or bears digging for clams on a beach.

Small ships can go places bigger ships can’t, so itineraries stretch far beyond the traditional ports. You’ll visit more remote places such as Petersburg, a fishing town with strong Norwegian roots, and Wrangell, one of Alaska’s oldest communities. Some itineraries are conducted entirely in the wild, with no port calls at all.

UnCruise Adventures

UnCruise Adventures explores Southeast Alaska on seven-, 12- and 14-night itineraries. A day might start with a morning birding expedition, continue with a kayaking adventure and end with an evening campfire ashore. You might visit LeConte and Baird Glaciers (where the big ships don’t go), plus UnCruise has the only permits for hiking and biking adventures on Chichagof Island.

Lindblad Expeditions

Lindblad Expeditions frequents off-the-beaten-path destinations in both Alaska and British Columbia, with itineraries ranging from six to 15 nights.

Guests might explore the small fishing town of Petersburg or discover native petroglyphs on the beaches of Wrangell Island in Alaska, or search for grizzly bears in Canada’s Great Bear Rainforest. Lindblad has special permits to bring passengers into the wilderness of Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve and the Tongass National Forest, beyond what the big ships can offer.

Alaskan Dream Cruises

Alaskan-owned Alaskan Dream Cruises’ ships carry 12 to 76 passengers to remote Native villages that rarely see visitors, with plenty of time for wildlife viewing far from the cruise ship crowds. Itineraries range from five to nine nights, from departure ports such as Sitka, Ketchikan and Juneau.

Best for families

If you’re traveling with your kids or grandkids in Alaska and want an activity- and entertainment-packed experience, target the newest and biggest ships of Royal Caribbean, Norwegian, Carnival and especially Disney Cruise Line. All have excellent camp-like activity programs for kids, plus eye-popping amusement attractions.

Disney Wonder

On Disney ships, Goofy might make an appearance as you admire soaring eagles, blue icebergs and glaciers. The extensive children’s program, entertainment and such activities as water slides and play areas deliver what you would expect from the purveyor of dreams. Bonus: Cabins are designed with families in mind and include split bathrooms (one with a toilet and sink, the other with a shower/tub combo and sink).

Related: 5 best cruise lines for families

Discovery Princess

While lacking in whiz-bang attractions, Princess Cruises is another good choice, both for its children’s and teens program, complete with spacious facilities, and for such programming as bringing sled dogs on board, which is a hit with young passengers. The line’s newest ship, Discovery Princess, sails round trip from Seattle, a convenient U.S. home port for families to fly or drive to.

Carnival Spirit

Water slides, a partnership with Dr. Seuss and three hangouts for kids and teens make Carnival Cruise Line’s Carnival Spirit a great bet for families in Alaska.

The ship’s huge array of included quick eats — pizza, tacos, Guy Fieri’s burgers and unlimited soft serve ice cream — and casual atmosphere take the stress out of dining with the family. The ship sails round trip from Seattle on seven-night itineraries that call in Skagway, Juneau, Ketchikan and Victoria, with scenic cruising in Tracy Arm Fjord.

Best for luxury lovers

If you envision sipping Champagne as you watch a glacier thunderously calve into the sea, consider booking one of the all-inclusive luxury cruise lines in Alaska: Seabourn , Regent Seven Seas Cruises or Silversea .

All these lines include ships that are experts at delivering gourmet cuisine and the other finer things in life in intimate, cushy floating environments. Additionally, all the lines are big on featuring lectures by experts, which provides passengers with a deeper insight into Alaska.

Itineraries tend to include the popular ports and beyond. You might, for instance, visit Wrangell and Prince Rupert, a port city in Canada, and linger in places such as the Misty Fjords and Prince William Sound. Seven- to 14-night sailings embark from ports such as Vancouver, Seward and Juneau.

Seven Seas Explorer

Regent’s 750-passenger Seven Seas Explorer is an all-suite ship offering guests in Alaska multiple gourmet onboard restaurants, all-inclusive beverages, free airfare and included gratuities. Many shore excursions are complimentary. Enjoy little luxuries, like an afternoon in the thermal suite of the two-story spa-and-fitness center, or really splurge out by booking the Regent Suite, the most lavish suite you’ll find at sea.

Seabourn Odyssey

The 450-passenger Seabourn Odyssey boasts an onboard expedition team and does a posh version of expedition cruising in Alaska, using inflatable Zodiac craft and kayaks.

Seabourn calls its program Ventures by Seabourn. Experts onboard these sailings include naturalists, biologists and other scientists who are members of the expedition team. Once guests finish communing with nature, they can indulge in complimentary Champagne and caviar on board or relish a meal created by famed chef, Thomas Keller.

Related: The 4 best luxury cruise lines for elegance and exclusivity

Best for solo travelers

Solo travelers don’t always have to pay double to cruise Alaska on their own. Several ships feature cabins designed and priced for one. Single cruisers should also note that luxury lines Silversea and Seabourn, while not cheap, do a great job of taking care of single cruisers, hosting them at dinner and providing easy opportunities to meet and mingle with other travelers.

Norwegian Bliss

The ships in Norwegian Cruise Line’s Breakaway and Getaway classes all have cozy studio cabins designed and priced for one person. Additionally, they’re located in a complex where a private lounge encourages mingling. Norwegian Bliss offers 82 solo rooms on its round-trip Seattle cruises that visit Dawes Glacier, Sitka and Icy Strait Point.

Quantum of the Seas

Royal Caribbean’s studio staterooms, on its Quantum-class ships in Alaska, give solo travelers the benefits of both decent space and balconies.

On Quantum of the Seas, choose a 101-square-foot inside cabin or a 119-square-foot ocean-view room with a 55-square-foot balcony. Either way, you get a full-size bed and plenty of space for one person. The ship sails a similar weeklong itinerary to sister ship Ovation of the Seas, round-trip from Seattle with scenic sailing along Endicott Arm.

Holland America offers ocean-view accommodations for one in Alaska only on Koningsdam. Measuring 127 to 172 square feet, these rooms come with a full-size bed and a picture window.

Koningsdam sails round trip from Vancouver to Juneau, Skagway and Ketchikan, with scenic cruising in Tracy Arm and Glacier Bay. Its cruises can be combined into nine- to 14-night cruise tours to the Yukon and Denali.

Planning a cruise? Start with these stories:

• The 5 most desirable cabin locations on any cruise ship
• A beginners guide to picking a cruise line
• The 8 worst cabin locations on any cruise ship
• A quick guide to the most popular cruise lines
• 21 tips and tricks that will make your cruise go smoothly
• 15 ways cruisers waste money
• 12 best cruises for people who never want to grow up
• The ultimate guide to what to pack for a cruise

Additional reporting by Erica Silverstein.

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Editorial Disclaimer: Opinions expressed here are the author’s alone, not those of any bank, credit card issuer, airlines or hotel chain, and have not been reviewed, approved or otherwise endorsed by any of these entities.

Crying Myself to Sleep on the Biggest Cruise Ship Ever

Seven agonizing nights aboard the Icon of the Seas

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Updated at 2:44 p.m. ET on April 6, 2024.

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MY FIRST GLIMPSE of Royal Caribbean’s Icon of the Seas, from the window of an approaching Miami cab, brings on a feeling of vertigo, nausea, amazement, and distress. I shut my eyes in defense, as my brain tells my optic nerve to try again.

The ship makes no sense, vertically or horizontally. It makes no sense on sea, or on land, or in outer space. It looks like a hodgepodge of domes and minarets, tubes and canopies, like Istanbul had it been designed by idiots. Vibrant, oversignifying colors are stacked upon other such colors, decks perched over still more decks; the only comfort is a row of lifeboats ringing its perimeter. There is no imposed order, no cogent thought, and, for those who do not harbor a totalitarian sense of gigantomania, no visual mercy. This is the biggest cruise ship ever built, and I have been tasked with witnessing its inaugural voyage.

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“Author embarks on their first cruise-ship voyage” has been a staple of American essay writing for almost three decades, beginning with David Foster Wallace’s “A Supposedly Fun Thing I’ll Never Do Again,” which was first published in 1996 under the title “Shipping Out.” Since then, many admirable writers have widened and diversified the genre. Usually the essayist commissioned to take to the sea is in their first or second flush of youth and is ready to sharpen their wit against the hull of the offending vessel. I am 51, old and tired, having seen much of the world as a former travel journalist, and mostly what I do in both life and prose is shrug while muttering to my imaginary dachshund, “This too shall pass.” But the Icon of the Seas will not countenance a shrug. The Icon of the Seas is the Linda Loman of cruise ships, exclaiming that attention must be paid. And here I am in late January with my one piece of luggage and useless gray winter jacket and passport, zipping through the Port of Miami en route to the gangway that will separate me from the bulk of North America for more than seven days, ready to pay it in full.

The aforementioned gangway opens up directly onto a thriving mall (I will soon learn it is imperiously called the “Royal Promenade”), presently filled with yapping passengers beneath a ceiling studded with balloons ready to drop. Crew members from every part of the global South, as well as a few Balkans, are shepherding us along while pressing flutes of champagne into our hands. By a humming Starbucks, I drink as many of these as I can and prepare to find my cabin. I show my blue Suite Sky SeaPass Card (more on this later, much more) to a smiling woman from the Philippines, and she tells me to go “aft.” Which is where, now? As someone who has rarely sailed on a vessel grander than the Staten Island Ferry, I am confused. It turns out that the aft is the stern of the ship, or, for those of us who don’t know what a stern or an aft are, its ass. The nose of the ship, responsible for separating the waves before it, is also called a bow, and is marked for passengers as the FWD , or forward. The part of the contemporary sailing vessel where the malls are clustered is called the midship. I trust that you have enjoyed this nautical lesson.

I ascend via elevator to my suite on Deck 11. This is where I encounter my first terrible surprise. My suite windows and balcony do not face the ocean. Instead, they look out onto another shopping mall. This mall is the one that’s called Central Park, perhaps in homage to the Olmsted-designed bit of greenery in the middle of my hometown. Although on land I would be delighted to own a suite with Central Park views, here I am deeply depressed. To sail on a ship and not wake up to a vast blue carpet of ocean? Unthinkable.

Allow me a brief preamble here. The story you are reading was commissioned at a moment when most staterooms on the Icon were sold out. In fact, so enthralled by the prospect of this voyage were hard-core mariners that the ship’s entire inventory of guest rooms (the Icon can accommodate up to 7,600 passengers, but its inaugural journey was reduced to 5,000 or so for a less crowded experience) was almost immediately sold out. Hence, this publication was faced with the shocking prospect of paying nearly $19,000 to procure for this solitary passenger an entire suite—not including drinking expenses—all for the privilege of bringing you this article. But the suite in question doesn’t even have a view of the ocean! I sit down hard on my soft bed. Nineteen thousand dollars for this .

The viewless suite does have its pluses. In addition to all the Malin+Goetz products in my dual bathrooms, I am granted use of a dedicated Suite Deck lounge; access to Coastal Kitchen, a superior restaurant for Suites passengers; complimentary VOOM SM Surf & Stream (“the fastest Internet at Sea”) “for one device per person for the whole cruise duration”; a pair of bathrobes (one of which comes prestained with what looks like a large expectoration by the greenest lizard on Earth); and use of the Grove Suite Sun, an area on Decks 18 and 19 with food and deck chairs reserved exclusively for Suite passengers. I also get reserved seating for a performance of The Wizard of Oz , an ice-skating tribute to the periodic table, and similar provocations. The very color of my Suite Sky SeaPass Card, an oceanic blue as opposed to the cloying royal purple of the standard non-Suite passenger, will soon provoke envy and admiration. But as high as my status may be, there are those on board who have much higher status still, and I will soon learn to bow before them.

In preparation for sailing, I have “priced in,” as they say on Wall Street, the possibility that I may come from a somewhat different monde than many of the other cruisers. Without falling into stereotypes or preconceptions, I prepare myself for a friendly outspokenness on the part of my fellow seafarers that may not comply with modern DEI standards. I believe in meeting people halfway, and so the day before flying down to Miami, I visited what remains of Little Italy to purchase a popular T-shirt that reads DADDY’S LITTLE MEATBALL across the breast in the colors of the Italian flag. My wife recommended that I bring one of my many T-shirts featuring Snoopy and the Peanuts gang, as all Americans love the beagle and his friends. But I naively thought that my meatball T-shirt would be more suitable for conversation-starting. “Oh, and who is your ‘daddy’?” some might ask upon seeing it. “And how long have you been his ‘little meatball’?” And so on.

I put on my meatball T-shirt and head for one of the dining rooms to get a late lunch. In the elevator, I stick out my chest for all to read the funny legend upon it, but soon I realize that despite its burnished tricolor letters, no one takes note. More to the point, no one takes note of me. Despite my attempts at bridge building, the very sight of me (small, ethnic, without a cap bearing the name of a football team) elicits no reaction from other passengers. Most often, they will small-talk over me as if I don’t exist. This brings to mind the travails of David Foster Wallace , who felt so ostracized by his fellow passengers that he retreated to his cabin for much of his voyage. And Wallace was raised primarily in the Midwest and was a much larger, more American-looking meatball than I am. If he couldn’t talk to these people, how will I? What if I leave this ship without making any friends at all, despite my T-shirt? I am a social creature, and the prospect of seven days alone and apart is saddening. Wallace’s stateroom, at least, had a view of the ocean, a kind of cheap eternity.

Worse awaits me in the dining room. This is a large, multichandeliered room where I attended my safety training (I was shown how to put on a flotation vest; it is a very simple procedure). But the maître d’ politely refuses me entry in an English that seems to verge on another language. “I’m sorry, this is only for pendejos ,” he seems to be saying. I push back politely and he repeats himself. Pendejos ? Piranhas? There’s some kind of P-word to which I am not attuned. Meanwhile elderly passengers stream right past, powered by their limbs, walkers, and electric wheelchairs. “It is only pendejo dining today, sir.” “But I have a suite!” I say, already starting to catch on to the ship’s class system. He examines my card again. “But you are not a pendejo ,” he confirms. I am wearing a DADDY’S LITTLE MEATBALL T-shirt, I want to say to him. I am the essence of pendejo .

Eventually, I give up and head to the plebeian buffet on Deck 15, which has an aquatic-styled name I have now forgotten. Before gaining entry to this endless cornucopia of reheated food, one passes a washing station of many sinks and soap dispensers, and perhaps the most intriguing character on the entire ship. He is Mr. Washy Washy—or, according to his name tag, Nielbert of the Philippines—and he is dressed as a taco (on other occasions, I’ll see him dressed as a burger). Mr. Washy Washy performs an eponymous song in spirited, indeed flamboyant English: “Washy, washy, wash your hands, WASHY WASHY!” The dangers of norovirus and COVID on a cruise ship this size (a giant fellow ship was stricken with the former right after my voyage) makes Mr. Washy Washy an essential member of the crew. The problem lies with the food at the end of Washy’s rainbow. The buffet is groaning with what sounds like sophisticated dishes—marinated octopus, boiled egg with anchovy, chorizo, lobster claws—but every animal tastes tragically the same, as if there was only one creature available at the market, a “cruisipus” bred specifically for Royal Caribbean dining. The “vegetables” are no better. I pick up a tomato slice and look right through it. It tastes like cellophane. I sit alone, apart from the couples and parents with gaggles of children, as “We Are Family” echoes across the buffet space.

I may have failed to mention that all this time, the Icon of the Seas has not left port. As the fiery mango of the subtropical setting sun makes Miami’s condo skyline even more apocalyptic, the ship shoves off beneath a perfunctory display of fireworks. After the sun sets, in the far, dark distance, another circus-lit cruise ship ruptures the waves before us. We glance at it with pity, because it is by definition a smaller ship than our own. I am on Deck 15, outside the buffet and overlooking a bunch of pools (the Icon has seven of them), drinking a frilly drink that I got from one of the bars (the Icon has 15 of them), still too shy to speak to anyone, despite Sister Sledge’s assertion that all on the ship are somehow related.

Kim Brooks: On failing the family vacation

The ship’s passage away from Ron DeSantis’s Florida provides no frisson, no sense of developing “sea legs,” as the ship is too large to register the presence of waves unless a mighty wind adds significant chop. It is time for me to register the presence of the 5,000 passengers around me, even if they refuse to register mine. My fellow travelers have prepared for this trip with personally decorated T-shirts celebrating the importance of this voyage. The simplest ones say ICON INAUGURAL ’24 on the back and the family name on the front. Others attest to an over-the-top love of cruise ships: WARNING! MAY START TALKING ABOUT CRUISING . Still others are artisanally designed and celebrate lifetimes spent married while cruising (on ships, of course). A couple possibly in their 90s are wearing shirts whose backs feature a drawing of a cruise liner, two flamingos with ostensibly male and female characteristics, and the legend “ HUSBAND AND WIFE Cruising Partners FOR LIFE WE MAY NOT HAVE IT All Together BUT TOGETHER WE HAVE IT ALL .” (The words not in all caps have been written in cursive.) A real journalist or a more intrepid conversationalist would have gone up to the couple and asked them to explain the longevity of their marriage vis-à-vis their love of cruising. But instead I head to my mall suite, take off my meatball T-shirt, and allow the first tears of the cruise to roll down my cheeks slowly enough that I briefly fall asleep amid the moisture and salt.

I WAKE UP with a hangover. Oh God. Right. I cannot believe all of that happened last night. A name floats into my cobwebbed, nauseated brain: “Ayn Rand.” Jesus Christ.

I breakfast alone at the Coastal Kitchen. The coffee tastes fine and the eggs came out of a bird. The ship rolls slightly this morning; I can feel it in my thighs and my schlong, the parts of me that are most receptive to danger.

I had a dangerous conversation last night. After the sun set and we were at least 50 miles from shore (most modern cruise ships sail at about 23 miles an hour), I lay in bed softly hiccupping, my arms stretched out exactly like Jesus on the cross, the sound of the distant waves missing from my mall-facing suite, replaced by the hum of air-conditioning and children shouting in Spanish through the vents of my two bathrooms. I decided this passivity was unacceptable. As an immigrant, I feel duty-bound to complete the tasks I am paid for, which means reaching out and trying to understand my fellow cruisers. So I put on a normal James Perse T-shirt and headed for one of the bars on the Royal Promenade—the Schooner Bar, it was called, if memory serves correctly.

I sat at the bar for a martini and two Negronis. An old man with thick, hairy forearms drank next to me, very silent and Hemingwaylike, while a dreadlocked piano player tinkled out a series of excellent Elton John covers. To my right, a young white couple—he in floral shorts, she in a light, summery miniskirt with a fearsome diamond ring, neither of them in football regalia—chatted with an elderly couple. Do it , I commanded myself. Open your mouth. Speak! Speak without being spoken to. Initiate. A sentence fragment caught my ear from the young woman, “Cherry Hill.” This is a suburb of Philadelphia in New Jersey, and I had once been there for a reading at a synagogue. “Excuse me,” I said gently to her. “Did you just mention Cherry Hill? It’s a lovely place.”

As it turned out, the couple now lived in Fort Lauderdale (the number of Floridians on the cruise surprised me, given that Southern Florida is itself a kind of cruise ship, albeit one slowly sinking), but soon they were talking with me exclusively—the man potbellied, with a chin like a hard-boiled egg; the woman as svelte as if she were one of the many Ukrainian members of the crew—the elderly couple next to them forgotten. This felt as groundbreaking as the first time I dared to address an American in his native tongue, as a child on a bus in Queens (“On my foot you are standing, Mister”).

“I don’t want to talk politics,” the man said. “But they’re going to eighty-six Biden and put Michelle in.”

I considered the contradictions of his opening conversational gambit, but decided to play along. “People like Michelle,” I said, testing the waters. The husband sneered, but the wife charitably put forward that the former first lady was “more personable” than Joe Biden. “They’re gonna eighty-six Biden,” the husband repeated. “He can’t put a sentence together.”

After I mentioned that I was a writer—though I presented myself as a writer of teleplays instead of novels and articles such as this one—the husband told me his favorite writer was Ayn Rand. “Ayn Rand, she came here with nothing,” the husband said. “I work with a lot of Cubans, so …” I wondered if I should mention what I usually do to ingratiate myself with Republicans or libertarians: the fact that my finances improved after pass-through corporations were taxed differently under Donald Trump. Instead, I ordered another drink and the couple did the same, and I told him that Rand and I were born in the same city, St. Petersburg/Leningrad, and that my family also came here with nothing. Now the bonding and drinking began in earnest, and several more rounds appeared. Until it all fell apart.

Read: Gary Shteyngart on watching Russian television for five days straight

My new friend, whom I will refer to as Ayn, called out to a buddy of his across the bar, and suddenly a young couple, both covered in tattoos, appeared next to us. “He fucking punked me,” Ayn’s frat-boy-like friend called out as he put his arm around Ayn, while his sizable partner sizzled up to Mrs. Rand. Both of them had a look I have never seen on land—their eyes projecting absence and enmity in equal measure. In the ’90s, I drank with Russian soldiers fresh from Chechnya and wandered the streets of wartime Zagreb, but I have never seen such undisguised hostility toward both me and perhaps the universe at large. I was briefly introduced to this psychopathic pair, but neither of them wanted to have anything to do with me, and the tattooed woman would not even reveal her Christian name to me (she pretended to have the same first name as Mrs. Rand). To impress his tattooed friends, Ayn made fun of the fact that as a television writer, I’d worked on the series Succession (which, it would turn out, practically nobody on the ship had watched), instead of the far more palatable, in his eyes, zombie drama of last year. And then my new friends drifted away from me into an angry private conversation—“He punked me!”—as I ordered another drink for myself, scared of the dead-eyed arrivals whose gaze never registered in the dim wattage of the Schooner Bar, whose terrifying voices and hollow laughs grated like unoiled gears against the crooning of “Goodbye Yellow Brick Road.”

But today is a new day for me and my hangover. After breakfast, I explore the ship’s so-called neighborhoods . There’s the AquaDome, where one can find a food hall and an acrobatic sound-and-light aquatic show. Central Park has a premium steak house, a sushi joint, and a used Rolex that can be bought for $8,000 on land here proudly offered at $17,000. There’s the aforementioned Royal Promenade, where I had drunk with the Rands, and where a pair of dueling pianos duel well into the night. There’s Surfside, a kids’ neighborhood full of sugary garbage, which looks out onto the frothy trail that the behemoth leaves behind itself. Thrill Island refers to the collection of tubes that clutter the ass of the ship and offer passengers six waterslides and a surfing simulation. There’s the Hideaway, an adult zone that plays music from a vomit-slathered, Brit-filled Alicante nightclub circa 1996 and proves a big favorite with groups of young Latin American customers. And, most hurtfully, there’s the Suite Neighborhood.

I say hurtfully because as a Suite passenger I should be here, though my particular suite is far from the others. Whereas I am stuck amid the riffraff of Deck 11, this section is on the highborn Decks 16 and 17, and in passing, I peek into the spacious, tall-ceilinged staterooms from the hallway, dazzled by the glint of the waves and sun. For $75,000, one multifloor suite even comes with its own slide between floors, so that a family may enjoy this particular terror in private. There is a quiet splendor to the Suite Neighborhood. I see fewer stickers and signs and drawings than in my own neighborhood—for example, MIKE AND DIANA PROUDLY SERVED U.S. MARINE CORPS RETIRED . No one here needs to announce their branch of service or rank; they are simply Suites, and this is where they belong. Once again, despite my hard work and perseverance, I have been disallowed from the true American elite. Once again, I am “Not our class, dear.” I am reminded of watching The Love Boat on my grandmother’s Zenith, which either was given to her or we found in the trash (I get our many malfunctioning Zeniths confused) and whose tube got so hot, I would put little chunks of government cheese on a thin tissue atop it to give our welfare treat a pleasant, Reagan-era gooeyness. I could not understand English well enough then to catch the nuances of that seafaring program, but I knew that there were differences in the status of the passengers, and that sometimes those differences made them sad. Still, this ship, this plenty—every few steps, there are complimentary nachos or milkshakes or gyros on offer—was the fatty fuel of my childhood dreams. If only I had remained a child.

I walk around the outdoor decks looking for company. There is a middle-aged African American couple who always seem to be asleep in each other’s arms, probably exhausted from the late capitalism they regularly encounter on land. There is far more diversity on this ship than I expected. Many couples are a testament to Loving v. Virginia , and there is a large group of folks whose T-shirts read MELANIN AT SEA / IT’S THE MELANIN FOR ME . I smile when I see them, but then some young kids from the group makes Mr. Washy Washy do a cruel, caricatured “Burger Dance” (today he is in his burger getup), and I think, Well, so much for intersectionality .

At the infinity pool on Deck 17, I spot some elderly women who could be ethnic and from my part of the world, and so I jump in. I am proved correct! Many of them seem to be originally from Queens (“Corona was still great when it was all Italian”), though they are now spread across the tristate area. We bond over the way “Ron-kon-koma” sounds when announced in Penn Station.

“Everyone is here for a different reason,” one of them tells me. She and her ex-husband last sailed together four years ago to prove to themselves that their marriage was truly over. Her 15-year-old son lost his virginity to “an Irish young lady” while their ship was moored in Ravenna, Italy. The gaggle of old-timers competes to tell me their favorite cruising stories and tips. “A guy proposed in Central Park a couple of years ago”—many Royal Caribbean ships apparently have this ridiculous communal area—“and she ran away screaming!” “If you’re diamond-class, you get four drinks for free.” “A different kind of passenger sails out of Bayonne.” (This, perhaps, is racially coded.) “Sometimes, if you tip the bartender $5, your next drink will be free.”

“Everyone’s here for a different reason,” the woman whose marriage ended on a cruise tells me again. “Some people are here for bad reasons—the drinkers and the gamblers. Some people are here for medical reasons.” I have seen more than a few oxygen tanks and at least one woman clearly undergoing very serious chemo. Some T-shirts celebrate good news about a cancer diagnosis. This might be someone’s last cruise or week on Earth. For these women, who have spent months, if not years, at sea, cruising is a ritual as well as a life cycle: first love, last love, marriage, divorce, death.

Read: The last place on Earth any tourist should go

I have talked with these women for so long, tonight I promise myself that after a sad solitary dinner I will not try to seek out company at the bars in the mall or the adult-themed Hideaway. I have enough material to fulfill my duties to this publication. As I approach my orphaned suite, I run into the aggro young people who stole Mr. and Mrs. Rand away from me the night before. The tattooed apparitions pass me without a glance. She is singing something violent about “Stuttering Stanley” (a character in a popular horror movie, as I discover with my complimentary VOOM SM Surf & Stream Internet at Sea) and he’s loudly shouting about “all the money I’ve lost,” presumably at the casino in the bowels of the ship.

So these bent psychos out of a Cormac McCarthy novel are angrily inhabiting my deck. As I mewl myself to sleep, I envision a limited series for HBO or some other streamer, a kind of low-rent White Lotus , where several aggressive couples conspire to throw a shy intellectual interloper overboard. I type the scenario into my phone. As I fall asleep, I think of what the woman who recently divorced her husband and whose son became a man through the good offices of the Irish Republic told me while I was hoisting myself out of the infinity pool. “I’m here because I’m an explorer. I’m here because I’m trying something new.” What if I allowed myself to believe in her fantasy?

“YOU REALLY STARTED AT THE TOP,” they tell me. I’m at the Coastal Kitchen for my eggs and corned-beef hash, and the maître d’ has slotted me in between two couples. Fueled by coffee or perhaps intrigued by my relative youth, they strike up a conversation with me. As always, people are shocked that this is my first cruise. They contrast the Icon favorably with all the preceding liners in the Royal Caribbean fleet, usually commenting on the efficiency of the elevators that hurl us from deck to deck (as in many large corporate buildings, the elevators ask you to choose a floor and then direct you to one of many lifts). The couple to my right, from Palo Alto—he refers to his “porn mustache” and calls his wife “my cougar” because she is two years older—tell me they are “Pandemic Pinnacles.”

This is the day that my eyes will be opened. Pinnacles , it is explained to me over translucent cantaloupe, have sailed with Royal Caribbean for 700 ungodly nights. Pandemic Pinnacles took advantage of the two-for-one accrual rate of Pinnacle points during the pandemic, when sailing on a cruise ship was even more ill-advised, to catapult themselves into Pinnacle status.

Because of the importance of the inaugural voyage of the world’s largest cruise liner, more than 200 Pinnacles are on this ship, a startling number, it seems. Mrs. Palo Alto takes out a golden badge that I have seen affixed over many a breast, which reads CROWN AND ANCHOR SOCIETY along with her name. This is the coveted badge of the Pinnacle. “You should hear all the whining in Guest Services,” her husband tells me. Apparently, the Pinnacles who are not also Suites like us are all trying to use their status to get into Coastal Kitchen, our elite restaurant. Even a Pinnacle needs to be a Suite to access this level of corned-beef hash.

“We’re just baby Pinnacles,” Mrs. Palo Alto tells me, describing a kind of internal class struggle among the Pinnacle elite for ever higher status.

And now I understand what the maître d’ was saying to me on the first day of my cruise. He wasn’t saying “ pendejo .” He was saying “Pinnacle.” The dining room was for Pinnacles only, all those older people rolling in like the tide on their motorized scooters.

And now I understand something else: This whole thing is a cult. And like most cults, it can’t help but mirror the endless American fight for status. Like Keith Raniere’s NXIVM, where different-colored sashes were given out to connote rank among Raniere’s branded acolytes, this is an endless competition among Pinnacles, Suites, Diamond-Plusers, and facing-the-mall, no-balcony purple SeaPass Card peasants, not to mention the many distinctions within each category. The more you cruise, the higher your status. No wonder a section of the Royal Promenade is devoted to getting passengers to book their next cruise during the one they should be enjoying now. No wonder desperate Royal Caribbean offers (“FINAL HOURS”) crowded my email account weeks before I set sail. No wonder the ship’s jewelry store, the Royal Bling, is selling a $100,000 golden chalice that will entitle its owner to drink free on Royal Caribbean cruises for life. (One passenger was already gaming out whether her 28-year-old son was young enough to “just about earn out” on the chalice or if that ship had sailed.) No wonder this ship was sold out months before departure , and we had to pay $19,000 for a horrid suite away from the Suite Neighborhood. No wonder the most mythical hero of Royal Caribbean lore is someone named Super Mario, who has cruised so often, he now has his own working desk on many ships. This whole experience is part cult, part nautical pyramid scheme.

From the June 2014 issue: Ship of wonks

“The toilets are amazing,” the Palo Altos are telling me. “One flush and you’re done.” “They don’t understand how energy-efficient these ships are,” the husband of the other couple is telling me. “They got the LNG”—liquefied natural gas, which is supposed to make the Icon a boon to the environment (a concept widely disputed and sometimes ridiculed by environmentalists).

But I’m thinking along a different line of attack as I spear my last pallid slice of melon. For my streaming limited series, a Pinnacle would have to get killed by either an outright peasant or a Suite without an ocean view. I tell my breakfast companions my idea.

“Oh, for sure a Pinnacle would have to be killed,” Mr. Palo Alto, the Pandemic Pinnacle, says, touching his porn mustache thoughtfully as his wife nods.

“THAT’S RIGHT, IT’S your time, buddy!” Hubert, my fun-loving Panamanian cabin attendant, shouts as I step out of my suite in a robe. “Take it easy, buddy!”

I have come up with a new dressing strategy. Instead of trying to impress with my choice of T-shirts, I have decided to start wearing a robe, as one does at a resort property on land, with a proper spa and hammam. The response among my fellow cruisers has been ecstatic. “Look at you in the robe!” Mr. Rand cries out as we pass each other by the Thrill Island aqua park. “You’re living the cruise life! You know, you really drank me under the table that night.” I laugh as we part ways, but my soul cries out, Please spend more time with me, Mr. and Mrs. Rand; I so need the company .

In my white robe, I am a stately presence, a refugee from a better limited series, a one-man crossover episode. (Only Suites are granted these robes to begin with.) Today, I will try many of the activities these ships have on offer to provide their clientele with a sense of never-ceasing motion. Because I am already at Thrill Island, I decide to climb the staircase to what looks like a mast on an old-fashioned ship (terrified, because I am afraid of heights) to try a ride called “Storm Chasers,” which is part of the “Category 6” water park, named in honor of one of the storms that may someday do away with the Port of Miami entirely. Storm Chasers consists of falling from the “mast” down a long, twisting neon tube filled with water, like being the camera inside your own colonoscopy, as you hold on to the handles of a mat, hoping not to die. The tube then flops you down headfirst into a trough of water, a Royal Caribbean baptism. It both knocks my breath out and makes me sad.

In keeping with the aquatic theme, I attend a show at the AquaDome. To the sound of “Live and Let Die,” a man in a harness gyrates to and fro in the sultry air. I saw something very similar in the back rooms of the famed Berghain club in early-aughts Berlin. Soon another harnessed man is gyrating next to the first. Ja , I think to myself, I know how this ends. Now will come the fisting , natürlich . But the show soon devolves into the usual Marvel-film-grade nonsense, with too much light and sound signifying nichts . If any fisting is happening, it is probably in the Suite Neighborhood, inside a cabin marked with an upside-down pineapple, which I understand means a couple are ready to swing, and I will see none of it.

I go to the ice show, which is a kind of homage—if that’s possible—to the periodic table, done with the style and pomp and masterful precision that would please the likes of Kim Jong Un, if only he could afford Royal Caribbean talent. At one point, the dancers skate to the theme song of Succession . “See that!” I want to say to my fellow Suites—at “cultural” events, we have a special section reserved for us away from the commoners—“ Succession ! It’s even better than the zombie show! Open your minds!”

Finally, I visit a comedy revue in an enormous and too brightly lit version of an “intimate,” per Royal Caribbean literature, “Manhattan comedy club.” Many of the jokes are about the cruising life. “I’ve lived on ships for 20 years,” one of the middle-aged comedians says. “I can only see so many Filipino homosexuals dressed as a taco.” He pauses while the audience laughs. “I am so fired tonight,” he says. He segues into a Trump impression and then Biden falling asleep at the microphone, which gets the most laughs. “Anyone here from Fort Leonard Wood?” another comedian asks. Half the crowd seems to cheer. As I fall asleep that night, I realize another connection I have failed to make, and one that may explain some of the diversity on this vessel—many of its passengers have served in the military.

As a coddled passenger with a suite, I feel like I am starting to understand what it means to have a rank and be constantly reminded of it. There are many espresso makers , I think as I look across the expanse of my officer-grade quarters before closing my eyes, but this one is mine .

A shocking sight greets me beyond the pools of Deck 17 as I saunter over to the Coastal Kitchen for my morning intake of slightly sour Americanos. A tiny city beneath a series of perfectly pressed green mountains. Land! We have docked for a brief respite in Basseterre, the capital of St. Kitts and Nevis. I wolf down my egg scramble to be one of the first passengers off the ship. Once past the gangway, I barely refrain from kissing the ground. I rush into the sights and sounds of this scruffy island city, sampling incredible conch curry and buckets of non-Starbucks coffee. How wonderful it is to be where God intended humans to be: on land. After all, I am neither a fish nor a mall rat. This is my natural environment. Basseterre may not be Havana, but there are signs of human ingenuity and desire everywhere you look. The Black Table Grill Has been Relocated to Soho Village, Market Street, Directly Behind of, Gary’s Fruits and Flower Shop. Signed. THE PORK MAN reads a sign stuck to a wall. Now, that is how you write a sign. A real sign, not the come-ons for overpriced Rolexes that blink across the screens of the Royal Promenade.

“Hey, tie your shoestring!” a pair of laughing ladies shout to me across the street.

“Thank you!” I shout back. Shoestring! “Thank you very much.”

A man in Independence Square Park comes by and asks if I want to play with his monkey. I haven’t heard that pickup line since the Penn Station of the 1980s. But then he pulls a real monkey out of a bag. The monkey is wearing a diaper and looks insane. Wonderful , I think, just wonderful! There is so much life here. I email my editor asking if I can remain on St. Kitts and allow the Icon to sail off into the horizon without me. I have even priced a flight home at less than $300, and I have enough material from the first four days on the cruise to write the entire story. “It would be funny …” my editor replies. “Now get on the boat.”

As I slink back to the ship after my brief jailbreak, the locals stand under umbrellas to gaze at and photograph the boat that towers over their small capital city. The limousines of the prime minister and his lackeys are parked beside the gangway. St. Kitts, I’ve been told, is one of the few islands that would allow a ship of this size to dock.

“We hear about all the waterslides,” a sweet young server in one of the cafés told me. “We wish we could go on the ship, but we have to work.”

“I want to stay on your island,” I replied. “I love it here.”

But she didn’t understand how I could possibly mean that.

“WASHY, WASHY, so you don’t get stinky, stinky!” kids are singing outside the AquaDome, while their adult minders look on in disapproval, perhaps worried that Mr. Washy Washy is grooming them into a life of gayness. I heard a southern couple skip the buffet entirely out of fear of Mr. Washy Washy.

Meanwhile, I have found a new watering hole for myself, the Swim & Tonic, the biggest swim-up bar on any cruise ship in the world. Drinking next to full-size, nearly naked Americans takes away one’s own self-consciousness. The men have curvaceous mom bodies. The women are equally un-shy about their sprawling physiques.

Today I’ve befriended a bald man with many children who tells me that all of the little trinkets that Royal Caribbean has left us in our staterooms and suites are worth a fortune on eBay. “Eighty dollars for the water bottle, 60 for the lanyard,” the man says. “This is a cult.”

“Tell me about it,” I say. There is, however, a clientele for whom this cruise makes perfect sense. For a large middle-class family (he works in “supply chains”), seven days in a lower-tier cabin—which starts at $1,800 a person—allow the parents to drop off their children in Surfside, where I imagine many young Filipina crew members will take care of them, while the parents are free to get drunk at a swim-up bar and maybe even get intimate in their cabin. Cruise ships have become, for a certain kind of hardworking family, a form of subsidized child care.

There is another man I would like to befriend at the Swim & Tonic, a tall, bald fellow who is perpetually inebriated and who wears a necklace studded with little rubber duckies in sunglasses, which, I am told, is a sort of secret handshake for cruise aficionados. Tomorrow, I will spend more time with him, but first the ship docks at St. Thomas, in the U.S. Virgin Islands. Charlotte Amalie, the capital, is more charming in name than in presence, but I still all but jump off the ship to score a juicy oxtail and plantains at the well-known Petite Pump Room, overlooking the harbor. From one of the highest points in the small city, the Icon of the Seas appears bigger than the surrounding hills.

I usually tan very evenly, but something about the discombobulation of life at sea makes me forget the regular application of sunscreen. As I walk down the streets of Charlotte Amalie in my fluorescent Icon of the Seas cap, an old Rastafarian stares me down. “Redneck,” he hisses.

“No,” I want to tell him, as I bring a hand up to my red neck, “that’s not who I am at all. On my island, Mannahatta, as Whitman would have it, I am an interesting person living within an engaging artistic milieu. I do not wish to use the Caribbean as a dumping ground for the cruise-ship industry. I love the work of Derek Walcott. You don’t understand. I am not a redneck. And if I am, they did this to me.” They meaning Royal Caribbean? Its passengers? The Rands?

“They did this to me!”

Back on the Icon, some older matrons are muttering about a run-in with passengers from the Celebrity cruise ship docked next to us, the Celebrity Apex. Although Celebrity Cruises is also owned by Royal Caribbean, I am made to understand that there is a deep fratricidal beef between passengers of the two lines. “We met a woman from the Apex,” one matron says, “and she says it was a small ship and there was nothing to do. Her face was as tight as a 19-year-old’s, she had so much surgery.” With those words, and beneath a cloudy sky, humidity shrouding our weathered faces and red necks, we set sail once again, hopefully in the direction of home.

THERE ARE BARELY 48 HOURS LEFT to the cruise, and the Icon of the Seas’ passengers are salty. They know how to work the elevators. They know the Washy Washy song by heart. They understand that the chicken gyro at “Feta Mediterranean,” in the AquaDome Market, is the least problematic form of chicken on the ship.

The passengers have shed their INAUGURAL CRUISE T-shirts and are now starting to evince political opinions. There are caps pledging to make America great again and T-shirts that celebrate words sometimes attributed to Patrick Henry: “The Constitution is not an instrument for the government to restrain the people; it is an instrument for the people to restrain the government.” With their preponderance of FAMILY FLAG FAITH FRIENDS FIREARMS T-shirts, the tables by the crepe station sometimes resemble the Capitol Rotunda on January 6. The Real Anthony Fauci , by Robert F. Kennedy Jr., appears to be a popular form of literature, especially among young men with very complicated versions of the American flag on their T-shirts. Other opinions blend the personal and the political. “Someone needs to kill Washy guy, right?” a well-dressed man in the elevator tells me, his gray eyes radiating nothing. “Just beat him to death. Am I right?” I overhear the male member of a young couple whisper, “There goes that freak” as I saunter by in my white spa robe, and I decide to retire it for the rest of the cruise.

I visit the Royal Bling to see up close the $100,000 golden chalice that entitles you to free drinks on Royal Caribbean forever. The pleasant Serbian saleslady explains that the chalice is actually gold-plated and covered in white zirconia instead of diamonds, as it would otherwise cost $1 million. “If you already have everything,” she explains, “this is one more thing you can get.”

I believe that anyone who works for Royal Caribbean should be entitled to immediate American citizenship. They already speak English better than most of the passengers and, per the Serbian lady’s sales pitch above, better understand what America is as well. Crew members like my Panamanian cabin attendant seem to work 24 hours a day. A waiter from New Delhi tells me that his contract is six months and three weeks long. After a cruise ends, he says, “in a few hours, we start again for the next cruise.” At the end of the half a year at sea, he is allowed a two-to-three-month stay at home with his family. As of 2019, the median income for crew members was somewhere in the vicinity of $20,000, according to a major business publication. Royal Caribbean would not share the current median salary for its crew members, but I am certain that it amounts to a fraction of the cost of a Royal Bling gold-plated, zirconia-studded chalice.

And because most of the Icon’s hyper-sanitized spaces are just a frittata away from being a Delta lounge, one forgets that there are actual sailors on this ship, charged with the herculean task of docking it in port. “Having driven 100,000-ton aircraft carriers throughout my career,” retired Admiral James G. Stavridis, the former NATO Supreme Allied Commander Europe, writes to me, “I’m not sure I would even know where to begin with trying to control a sea monster like this one nearly three times the size.” (I first met Stavridis while touring Army bases in Germany more than a decade ago.)

Today, I decide to head to the hot tub near Swim & Tonic, where some of the ship’s drunkest reprobates seem to gather (the other tubs are filled with families and couples). The talk here, like everywhere else on the ship, concerns football, a sport about which I know nothing. It is apparent that four teams have recently competed in some kind of finals for the year, and that two of them will now face off in the championship. Often when people on the Icon speak, I will try to repeat the last thing they said with a laugh or a nod of disbelief. “Yes, 20-yard line! Ha!” “Oh my God, of course, scrimmage.”

Soon we are joined in the hot tub by the late-middle-age drunk guy with the duck necklace. He is wearing a bucket hat with the legend HAWKEYES , which, I soon gather, is yet another football team. “All right, who turned me in?” Duck Necklace says as he plops into the tub beside us. “I get a call in the morning,” he says. “It’s security. Can you come down to the dining room by 10 a.m.? You need to stay away from the members of this religious family.” Apparently, the gregarious Duck Necklace had photobombed the wrong people. There are several families who present as evangelical Christians or practicing Muslims on the ship. One man, evidently, was not happy that Duck Necklace had made contact with his relatives. “It’s because of religious stuff; he was offended. I put my arm around 20 people a day.”

Everyone laughs. “They asked me three times if I needed medication,” he says of the security people who apparently interrogated him in full view of others having breakfast.

Another hot-tub denizen suggests that he should have asked for fentanyl. After a few more drinks, Duck Necklace begins to muse about what it would be like to fall off the ship. “I’m 62 and I’m ready to go,” he says. “I just don’t want a shark to eat me. I’m a huge God guy. I’m a Bible guy. There’s some Mayan theory squaring science stuff with religion. There is so much more to life on Earth.” We all nod into our Red Stripes.

“I never get off the ship when we dock,” he says. He tells us he lost $6,000 in the casino the other day. Later, I look him up, and it appears that on land, he’s a financial adviser in a crisp gray suit, probably a pillar of his North Chicago community.

THE OCEAN IS TEEMING with fascinating life, but on the surface it has little to teach us. The waves come and go. The horizon remains ever far away.

I am constantly told by my fellow passengers that “everybody here has a story.” Yes, I want to reply, but everybody everywhere has a story. You, the reader of this essay, have a story, and yet you’re not inclined to jump on a cruise ship and, like Duck Necklace, tell your story to others at great pitch and volume. Maybe what they’re saying is that everybody on this ship wants to have a bigger, more coherent, more interesting story than the one they’ve been given. Maybe that’s why there’s so much signage on the doors around me attesting to marriages spent on the sea. Maybe that’s why the Royal Caribbean newsletter slipped under my door tells me that “this isn’t a vacation day spent—it’s bragging rights earned.” Maybe that’s why I’m so lonely.

Today is a big day for Icon passengers. Today the ship docks at Royal Caribbean’s own Bahamian island, the Perfect Day at CocoCay. (This appears to be the actual name of the island.) A comedian at the nightclub opined on what his perfect day at CocoCay would look like—receiving oral sex while learning that his ex-wife had been killed in a car crash (big laughter). But the reality of the island is far less humorous than that.

One of the ethnic tristate ladies in the infinity pool told me that she loved CocoCay because it had exactly the same things that could be found on the ship itself. This proves to be correct. It is like the Icon, but with sand. The same tired burgers, the same colorful tubes conveying children and water from Point A to B. The same swim-up bar at its Hideaway ($140 for admittance, no children allowed; Royal Caribbean must be printing money off its clientele). “There was almost a fight at The Wizard of Oz ,” I overhear an elderly woman tell her companion on a chaise lounge. Apparently one of the passengers began recording Royal Caribbean’s intellectual property and “three guys came after him.”

I walk down a pathway to the center of the island, where a sign reads DO NOT ENTER: YOU HAVE REACHED THE BOUNDARY OF ADVENTURE . I hear an animal scampering in the bushes. A Royal Caribbean worker in an enormous golf cart soon chases me down and takes me back to the Hideaway, where I run into Mrs. Rand in a bikini. She becomes livid telling me about an altercation she had the other day with a woman over a towel and a deck chair. We Suites have special towel privileges; we do not have to hand over our SeaPass Card to score a towel. But the Rands are not Suites. “People are so entitled here,” Mrs. Rand says. “It’s like the airport with all its classes.” “You see,” I want to say, “this is where your husband’s love of Ayn Rand runs into the cruelties and arbitrary indignities of unbridled capitalism.” Instead we make plans to meet for a final drink in the Schooner Bar tonight (the Rands will stand me up).

Back on the ship, I try to do laps, but the pool (the largest on any cruise ship, naturally) is fully trashed with the detritus of American life: candy wrappers, a slowly dissolving tortilla chip, napkins. I take an extra-long shower in my suite, then walk around the perimeter of the ship on a kind of exercise track, past all the alluring lifeboats in their yellow-and-white livery. Maybe there is a dystopian angle to the HBO series that I will surely end up pitching, one with shades of WALL-E or Snowpiercer . In a collapsed world, a Royal Caribbean–like cruise liner sails from port to port, collecting new shipmates and supplies in exchange for the precious energy it has on board. (The actual Icon features a new technology that converts passengers’ poop into enough energy to power the waterslides . In the series, this shitty technology would be greatly expanded.) A very young woman (18? 19?), smart and lonely, who has only known life on the ship, walks along the same track as I do now, contemplating jumping off into the surf left by its wake. I picture reusing Duck Necklace’s words in the opening shot of the pilot. The girl is walking around the track, her eyes on the horizon; maybe she’s highborn—a Suite—and we hear the voice-over: “I’m 19 and I’m ready to go. I just don’t want a shark to eat me.”

Before the cruise is finished, I talk to Mr. Washy Washy, or Nielbert of the Philippines. He is a sweet, gentle man, and I thank him for the earworm of a song he has given me and for keeping us safe from the dreaded norovirus. “This is very important to me, getting people to wash their hands,” he tells me in his burger getup. He has dreams, as an artist and a performer, but they are limited in scope. One day he wants to dress up as a piece of bacon for the morning shift.

THE MAIDEN VOYAGE OF THE TITANIC (the Icon of the Seas is five times as large as that doomed vessel) at least offered its passengers an exciting ending to their cruise, but when I wake up on the eighth day, all I see are the gray ghosts that populate Miami’s condo skyline. Throughout my voyage, my writer friends wrote in to commiserate with me. Sloane Crosley, who once covered a three-day spa mini-cruise for Vogue , tells me she felt “so very alone … I found it very untethering.” Gideon Lewis-Kraus writes in an Instagram comment: “When Gary is done I think it’s time this genre was taken out back and shot.” And he is right. To badly paraphrase Adorno: After this, no more cruise stories. It is unfair to put a thinking person on a cruise ship. Writers typically have difficult childhoods, and it is cruel to remind them of the inherent loneliness that drove them to writing in the first place. It is also unseemly to write about the kind of people who go on cruises. Our country does not provide the education and upbringing that allow its citizens an interior life. For the creative class to point fingers at the large, breasty gentlemen adrift in tortilla-chip-laden pools of water is to gather a sour harvest of low-hanging fruit.

A day or two before I got off the ship, I decided to make use of my balcony, which I had avoided because I thought the view would only depress me further. What I found shocked me. My suite did not look out on Central Park after all. This entire time, I had been living in the ship’s Disneyland, Surfside, the neighborhood full of screaming toddlers consuming milkshakes and candy. And as I leaned out over my balcony, I beheld a slight vista of the sea and surf that I thought I had been missing. It had been there all along. The sea was frothy and infinite and blue-green beneath the span of a seagull’s wing. And though it had been trod hard by the world’s largest cruise ship, it remained.

This article appears in the May 2024 print edition with the headline “A Meatball at Sea.” When you buy a book using a link on this page, we receive a commission. Thank you for supporting The Atlantic.

• Expeditions

Press Release

Viking returns to the great lakes for third season, new voyages announced for 2026 will bring a viking ship to chicago for the first time.

LOS ANGELES (May 30, 2024) – Viking® ( www.viking.com ) (NYSE: VIK) today is celebrating the start of its third season in the Great Lakes, with both of its identical expedition ships, the Viking Octantis ® and the Viking Polaris ®, now deployed in the region. Voted #1 for Expeditions by Condé Nast Traveler in the most recent Readers’ Choice Awards, Viking offers a variety of itineraries that operate between Toronto and Duluth and explore all five Great Lakes. The 378-guest expeditions vessels, which were designed specifically to transit the historic Welland Canal, will remain in the lakes until early October before returning to Antarctica for the austral summer.

Viking has also announced that two new itineraries in the Great Lakes for 2026 are now open for booking. The 10-day Great Lakes Treasures voyage will sail roundtrip from Milwaukee and will allow guests to explore new ports of call for Viking, including Chicago, as well as Canada’s Fathom Five National Marine Park and Benjamin Islands. The longer, 17-day Niagara & Great Lakes Treasures voyage sails between Toronto and Milwaukee and also includes Niagara Falls, Canada’s Point Pelee National Park and a transit of the Welland Canal.

“The Great Lakes region is a phenomenal place that is close to home for many of our guests, but one that few have yet to fully discover. With more than 10,000 miles of coastline, world-class cities and remote wilderness areas, it is truly a destination that is best explored by ship,” said Torstein Hagen, Chairman and CEO of Viking. “We would like to thank our local partners for the warm welcome once again, and we look forward to introducing more curious travelers to the Great Lakes this season and in future years.”

The return of Viking’s expedition ships to the Great Lakes coincides with the recent announcement of the company’s latest scientific advancement—for the first time ever, phytoplankton is being genetically sequenced at sea. With scientific support from UC San Diego’s Scripps Institution of Oceanography and J. Craig Venter Institute (JCVI), real-time environmental DNA (eDNA) sequencing of phytoplankton is being conducted in the PCR lab on board the Viking Octantis . Visiting scientists contributing to the Genomics at Sea Program (GASP) are able to monitor the environmental impact on phytoplankton without the need to transport samples to a distant shoreside facility. Viking will regularly host Scripps scientists on board the ship this season in the Great Lakes.

Viking has also partnered with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) Great Lakes Environmental Research Laboratory (GLERL), which conducts innovative research on the dynamic environments and ecosystems of the Great Lakes and coastal regions to provide information for resource use and management decisions that lead to safe and sustainable ecosystems, ecosystem services, and human communities. Additionally, Viking’s expedition ships have been designated official NOAA / U.S. National Weather Service weather balloon stations, from which regular launches are undertaken.

Highlighted 2024-2026 Great Lakes Voyages:

• NEW Great Lakes Treasures (10 days; roundtrip Milwaukee) – Visit the “Windy City” of Chicago and its wealth of world-class museums, including the Art Institute. Explore the picturesque islands of the Georgian Bay Biosphere Reserve and admire their bucolic landscapes. Venture out to Flowerpot Island in the Fathom Five National Marine Park and marvel at the stunning pink granite isles of the Benjamins Islands. Participate in lab studies as you explore coastal wetlands and delve into the Native cultures of the Great Lakes.
• NEW Niagara & Great Lakes Treasures (17 days; between Toronto – Milwaukee) – Discover the mighty waterfalls of Niagara and immerse yourself in nature amid the freshwater marshes of Point Pelee’s peninsula. Witness the creativity of Detroit’s urban development as you admire the city’s postmodern and art deco skyscrapers. Behold the stunning isles of Georgian Bay from the water and marvel at their verdant landscapes during this extended voyage.
• Great Lakes Collection (15 days; between Toronto – Duluth) – Join Viking for a unique voyage across the historic waterways of all five of the majestic Great Lakes. Experience culture-rich urban centers and admire the awesome power of thundering Niagara Falls. Explore the granite islands and sheltered inlets of Georgian Bay and traverse the famous Soo Locks. Study the aquatic ecosystems of the lakes as you journey and venture into the dense boreal forests that line the shores of Lake Superior and Lake Michigan.
• Niagara & the Great Lakes (8 days; between Toronto – Milwaukee) – From urban skylines to uninhabited islands, discover North America’s wilderness alongside renowned cultural attractions while cruising the striking waterways of the Great Lakes. Immerse yourself in the lakes’ compelling shipping history, experience the power of the thundering Niagara Falls and keep watch for scores of migratory birds at Point Pelee. Led by a team of experts, explore sheltered bays and woodlands to uncover complex ecosystems and hidden treasures.
• Undiscovered Great Lakes (8 days; Thunder Bay – Milwaukee) – Cross the width of Lake Superior between Duluth and the Soo Locks, exploring the lake’s North Shore Inside Passage as you sail. Hike along clifftop trails for sweeping views of the lake. Gain insight into the unique features and ecosystems of remote wilderness islands, and admire Kakabeka Falls, the “Niagara of the North.” Follow in the footsteps of fur traders in Duluth and step back in time as you stroll the quaint, car-free streets of Mackinac Island.
• Canada & East Coast Explorer (15 days; between Toronto – Fort Lauderdale) – Sail the US’s Atlantic coastline and visit storied cities. Enjoy Charleston’s southern charm and colonial homes. Visit Norfolk, home to the world’s largest naval base. Trace Nova Scotia’s shores to explore its rugged landscapes and visit Quebec’s national parks. Traverse one of North America’s scenic waterways, the St. Lawrence River, and marvel at the locks and canals that comprise the St. Lawrence Seaway on an enriching journey to historic ports.

Viking is also offering a variety of Longitudinal World Cruises between the Great Lakes and Antarctica, offering guests the opportunity of a lifetime to sail from the world’s largest freshwater system to “the end of the world” or the reverse. Additionally, all of Viking’s Great Lakes voyages feature Mackinac Island, which was recently rated the #1 summer travel destination in the U.S. by USA Today 10Best .

Viking Expedition Ships

The Polar Class, Viking Octantis and Viking Polaris host 378 guests in 189 staterooms. These vessels are built for expeditions, at an ideal size for safety and comfort in remote destinations. With more indoor and outdoor viewing areas than other expedition vessels, guests are as close as possible to the most magnificent scenery on earth. Highlights include:

• The Aula: A stunning panoramic auditorium inspired by the University of Oslo’s famed ceremonial hall, the former venue for the Nobel Peace Prize ceremony. Used for lectures, daily briefings, documentaries and films, this spectacular venue features a 4k laser-projected screen that retracts to expose floor-to-ceiling windows and 270° views.
• Finse Terrace: An outdoor lounge area just above sea level with recessed seating, the Finse Terrace was designed to allow guests the comforts of the ship al fresco while enjoying the dramatic scenery. Named after the Finse Plateau in Norway, where some of the greatest polar explorers, including Nansen and Amundsen, did their expedition training in preparation for their North and South Pole expeditions.
• The Hangar: A state-of-the-art, industry-first in-ship marina providing ease of embarkation and disembarkation of Special Operations Boats and other equipment while sheltered from the elements.
• The Bow: An important forward-viewing platform. And in the case of inclement weather, The Shelter is a comfortable, partially enclosed space for guests to warm up with a hot drink before going back out into the elements.
• The Science Lab: Developed in partnership with the University of Cambridge and Akvaplan-Niva, The Science Lab, at 380 sq. ft., is designed to support a broad range of research activities and is equipped with wet and dry laboratory facilities. Guests have supervised access to The Science Lab to learn from and participate with scientists in undertaking meaningful research.
• Expedition Central: The hub for the expedition team to consult with guests on their expedition activities and share knowledge about the destinations on a one-on-one basis, with the aid of 3D printed maps, digital screens, and a state-of-the-art spatial data visualization chart table.
• Dining Choices: The Restaurant offers fine dining featuring regional cuisine and always-available classics; the casual World Café offers an open kitchen, bakery, grill and premium seafood and sushi choices, as well as a wide range of international flavors; Mamsen’s, named for the Hagen family matriarch, serves Scandinavian-inspired fare; and Manfredi’s offers the best of Italian cuisine.
• The Nordic Spa: Following a day of exploration, The Nordic Spa offers guests opportunities to experience the ultimate healthy Nordic traditions, with an indoor heated pool set against expansive windows and a badestamp (wood-sided hot tub) that is open to the outside.
• Explorers’ Lounge: Located high on the ship with floor-to-ceiling windows, the Explorers’ Lounge provides guests an ideal space to take in the magnificent scenery, share discoveries with fellow travelers or to enjoy a drink.
• The Living Room: On the Viking Octantis and the Viking Polaris , The Living Room is located to maximize views of the surroundings through floor-to-ceiling windows and a library that informs even the best-read explorers. The Library is curated by acclaimed London bookshop Heywood Hill, as on all Viking vessels, as well as Cambridge University’s Scott Polar Research Institute.
• Nordic Balcony: A first for polar expedition vessels, all staterooms on board Viking’s expedition ships feature a Nordic Balcony, a sunroom that converts into an al fresco viewing platform with an observation shelf at elbow level to stabilize binoculars or a camera. Guests can choose from six stateroom categories that range from 222 sq. ft. to 1,223 sq. ft.—all with a Nordic Balcony, as well as a king-size bed and large bathroom with spacious glass-enclosed shower, heated bathroom floor and anti-fog mirror. Every stateroom is also equipped with a unique floor-to-ceiling drying closet that circulates warm air to dry and store clothing and expedition gear.
• Expedition Ship Suites: Nordic Junior Suites (322 sq. ft.) and Explorer Suites (580 sq. ft.) on the Viking Octantis and the Viking Polaris are similar to those on Viking’s fleet of ocean ships, with wood detailing and amenities that include additional storage and seating, an expanded bathroom with extended shower and double sinks, welcome champagne, a fully-stocked mini-bar replenished daily, complimentary laundry, priority restaurant reservations and more. Explorer Suites feature two separate rooms, a Nordic Balcony and a full outdoor veranda. Additionally, each ship features one Owner’s Suite (1,223 sq. ft.) that has three rooms –a living room, a board/dining room and a bedroom—as well as a 792 sq. ft. private deck with a traditional Norwegian badestamp open to the invigorating outdoors.
• Enrichment On Board and On Shore: Viking has created the world’s leading scientific enrichment environment in an expedition setting. Exclusive partnerships with the Scott Polar Research Institute at Cambridge University, The Cornell Lab of Ornithology and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA)—as well as other prestigious scientific institutions match leading researchers and educators with each expedition. Thirty-six experts accompany each journey as part of the Viking Expedition Team, including an Expedition Leader and support staff, photographer, field research scientists, general naturalists, mountain guides, kayak guides, submarine pilots and specialists (ornithology, geology, higher predator biology and history). On board, guests enjoy daily briefings and world-class lectures about their destination. On shore, they can assist in fieldwork or interact through experiential activities during landings—such as monitoring birds to help identify migratory patterns; accompanying scientists to collect samples; or taking their cameras ashore alongside a professional photographer to learn how best to capture scenic landscapes.
• Environmentally Considerate: Viking believes that its responsibility extends beyond providing exceptional travel experiences. From the outset, the company has been deliberately concerned about the environment, making decisions that it believes are scientifically correct, rather than what is deemed as politically correct. Viking’s fleet boasts many environmentally friendly features, such as diesel-electric river ships and energy-efficient ocean vessels equipped with closed-loop exhaust scrubbers. Viking’s expedition ships have set a new standard for responsible travel by exceeding the current International Maritime Organization (IMO) Energy Efficiency Design Index (EEDI) requirements by nearly 38%. Additionally, Viking is working to make its next generation of ocean ships even more environmentally friendly, with a project for a partial hybrid propulsion system of liquid hydrogen and fuel cells, which could allow for operation with zero emissions while in port and while traveling at low speeds.

With a clear focus on creating experiences for The Thinking Person, Viking does not try to be all things to all people. This approach has resonated with guests, and in 2023, Viking was rated #1 for Expeditions, as well as #1 for Rivers and #1 for Oceans by Condé Nast Traveler in the most recent Readers’ Choice Awards.

Media Assets

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About Viking

Viking (NYSE: VIK) was founded in 1997 and provides destination-focused journeys on rivers, oceans and lakes around the world. Designed for curious travelers with interests in science, history, culture and cuisine, Chairman Torstein Hagen often says Viking offers experiences for The Thinking Person™. Viking has more than 450 awards to its name, including being rated #1 for Rivers, #1 for Oceans and #1 for Expeditions by Condé Nast Traveler in the 2023 Readers’ Choice Awards. Viking is also rated at the top of its categories for rivers, oceans and expeditions by Travel + Leisure . No other travel company has simultaneously received the same honors by both publications. For additional information, contact Viking at 1-800-2-VIKING (1-800-284-5464) or visit www.viking.com . For Viking’s award-winning enrichment channel, visit www.viking.tv . Contact

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Small Ship Adventure Cruising

• Ways to travel

Forget shuffleboard and cabaret—adventure cruising is all about the destination.

Cruising is an adventure in itself, but the beauty of travelling on a small ship with less than 50 passengers means the real fun begins when we pull into port or drop anchor at an island. It means you'll get to know the locals, rather than outnumber them. You'll still be looked after by your crew and get to relax on the deck, but you'll also get to kayak along the rivers of  Krka National Park , explore Montenegro ’s surprising fjordic landscapes, or snorkel with giant  Galapagos tortoises . It's about going where the big ships can't so you can swim in hidden coves, buy fish at local markets to barbeque for dinner, and wander through little Croatian laneways with your leader. This is cruising—Intrepid style. 

Small ship cruises by region

Galapagos Islands

Our small ship Adventure Cruising tours

Classic galapagos: central eastern islands (grand queen beatriz), 10 days from 5634.

Travel to the Galapagos Islands and sail around the central eastern islands, witnessing...

Classic Galapagos: Central Southern Islands (Grand Queen Beatriz)

10 days from 5879.

Sail the aquamarine waters of the Galapagos’s central southern islands taking in...

Croatian Coastal Cruising: Dubrovnik to Split (Aurora)

8 days from 2444.

Join a small ship cruising adventure to Croatia. Voyage along the Dalmatian coast,...

Ultimate Galapagos: Central Islands (Grand Daphne)

10 days from 7875.

Spend 10 unforgettable days on board the Grand Daphne, discovering the central islands...

Croatian Coastal Cruising - Split to Dubrovnik (Aurora)

Take a small-ship cruising adventure in Croatia from Split to Dubrovnik. Voyage along...

Tailor-Made trips

Take four or more on an exclusive trip and tailor your itinerary

Complete Galapagos (Grand Daphne)

Take an active 10-day adventure cruise though the Galapagos Islands, from Isla Santa...

Classic Galapagos: Southern Islands (Grand Queen Beatriz)

10 days from 5514.

Travel to the Galapagos Islands from Quito and embark on a sailing adventure around...

Classic Galapagos: South Eastern Islands (Grand Queen Beatriz)

Explore the best of the otherworldly Galapagos Islands on this 10-day tour that takes...

Treasures of Galapagos: Western & Central Islands (Grand Queen Beatriz)

13 days from 7432.

Embark on an immersive Adventure Cruise through the Galapagos Islands and experience...

Galapagos Adventure: Northern Islands (Grand Daphne)

7 days from 5040.

Discover the treasures of the northern Galapagos Islands on this cruise, including Isla...

Galapagos Explorer: Southern Islands (Grand Queen Beatriz)

7 days from 3543.

Take to the water and explore the beautiful Galapagos Islands. See huge populations of...

Galapagos Explorer: Central Islands (Grand Queen Beatriz)

7 days from 2819.

Explore the beautiful Galapagos Islands. See huge populations of animals and experience...

Galapagos Encounter: Southern Islands (Grand Queen Beatriz)

6 days from 2819.

Explore the Islands of the Galapagos on this startling adventure that highlights the...

Galapagos Encounter: Central Islands (Grand Queen Beatriz)

Explore the central islands of the Galapagos on this startling adventure that...

Grand Galapagos (Grand Queen Beatriz)

17 days from 14245.

This Galapagos adventure cruise is the perfect way to explore the islands of Isabella,...

Galapagos Voyager: Central Islands (Grand Queen Beatriz)

14 days from 9917.

Travel to Ecuador and join a 13-day Intrepid journey in the Galapagos’. Visit Isla...

Galapagos In Focus (Grand Queen Bea)

8 days from 4930.

Hop aboard the M/Y Grand Queen Beatriz for a wildlife-filled 8-day adventure around the...

Galapagos at a Glance: Southern Islands (Grand Daphne)

6 days from 4040.

See the best of the Galapagos Islands on this action-packed adventure cruise, touring...

Absolute Galapagos (Grand Daphne)

17 days from 14305.

Discover the bizarre and the beautiful on this 17-day cruising tour of the Galapagos...

Pure Galapagos (Grand Daphne)

8 days from 5713.

Come face-to-face with the extraordinary central islands of the Galapagos on an 8-day...

Why choose Intrepid

Small ships, small groups

With fewer than 36 passengers on every ship, our groups are the perfect size for really getting to know your fellow travellers. Smaller groups mean more personalised service, like one-on-one chats with your leader about history, culture and food, or your favourite beer handed to you by the bar manager at the end of the day.

Specialised service

We’re right there with you to ensure your adventure is memorable for all the right reasons. Our expert local leaders facilitate incredible land experiences, while the ship’s friendly crew make sure you have everything you need – from a room that’s sparkling clean to a glass of sparkling wine – to enjoy your time on board.

Dining with a local twist

Whether it’s a dining alfresco on the deck at sunset, enjoying the catch-of-the day cooked up by your onboard chef or sitting down for a gourmet breakfast every morning, our culinary experiences are designed to complement your journey and help you create memories you’ll savour forever – both on and off the boat.

Cruise the seas less travelled

Our small ships give you access to those out-of-the-way spots the big ships can’t reach. We’ll show you the guidebook favourites from a new perspective, then cruise away from the crowds so you can stroll through seaside villages, swim in hidden coves, and get a real taste of what life is like for the locals.  

A floating boutique hotel

Our ships combine all the comforts and personality of a boutique hotel with the freedom of the open water. Relax in your well-appointed cabin and wake to a different outlook each morning. Enjoy panoramic views from the sun deck, spend time in comfortable lounges and dining rooms, or dine al fresco under the stars.

Highlights of small ship Adventure Cruising

Dig into Croatia’s coast

There’s a reason Croatia ’s been crowned the darling of Europe! Cruise through the pristine waters of the Adriatic and taste the best of the country’s bountiful coastline. Visit rolling vineyards for wine tastings, dine on barbecue dinners on the deck of your ship, sample locally produced honey on a Croatian farm and stroll through fragrant fields of lavender. Detour into Bosnia and Herzegovina where you’ll pop into a local coffee shop to see how Bosnian coffee is made and try some yourself.

Go wild in the Galapagos

When we say go wild, we really mean it. Located just off Ecuador, the Galapagos Islands are a natural playground for wildlife lovers with over 9000 species to discover. Where else can you chill on the beach with a seal or kayak alongside a group of inquisitive penguins? Here, you'll snorkel in shallow coves teeming with green turtles, golden cow-nose rays and Galapagos sharks. Whether you cruise around the central, southern or western islands, you'll be well placed to have unforgettable wildlife encounters on and off the water.

Meet the fleet

Whether it’s cruising along in a motor sailer or a state-of-the-art mega-yacht, our cruising vessels are built for style, comfort and adventure. Each ship features 4-star accommodation with well-appointed interiors including spacious cabins and sundecks.

Grand Queen Beatriz

Grand Daphne

View our full range of ships

Private departures

Looking to charter your very own private coastal cruise, or perhaps an island-hopping adventure in  Greece  with just you and your friends? We can make it happen. Just get in touch and tell us what you’d like to do.

Enquire with our Tailor-Made travel team

Adventure Cruising FAQs

What type of ship will i be on.

Our Adventure Cruising trips operate on a Motor Yacht that carries between 16-36 passengers, and the primary propulsion method is motorised. The decor varies between ships with some contemporary and some more traditional in their styling.

View all ships

What are the cabins like? Why are they different prices?

All cabins are air-conditioned and our ship generators provide an electric current of 220v. Cabins are equipped with European type plugs so please remember to bring an adaptor if necessary.

Please be aware that cabins are compact in size, with wardrobe and storage space also compact. All cabins on all ships have private bathrooms with hairdryers and come with some toiletries such as shampoo and shower gel. A safe and minibar (containing water) are in every cabin. Pricing depends on the cabin type - similar to a hotel, some cabins offer superior views, larger windows/portholes and larger or additional living space. You can view cabin types on our ships  page.

How long will be spent between sailing and port?

As much as possible, most relocation sailing will take place at night, allowing for more time to be spent at port and exploring. The majority of itineraries have at least one port stop or swim stop every day. In places of particular interest the ship will moor all day, allowing additional time for shore excursions and off-ship activities. It’s a good idea to familiarise yourself with the trip itinerary in order to be aware of what time is scheduled at port and what excursions are on offer. However, please be aware that weather conditions may prompt a change to published itineraries.

How much time will I have on shore at each stop?

The amount of time you spend ashore at each stop will vary depending on the stop and each individual itinerary. It is not always possible to give accurate arrival and departure times from each port. Travelling on a small ship means we are more affected by changes to the winds and tides. If conditions are in our favour we may make excellent time and arrive in port earlier than expected. But if conditions are against us, it may take longer to reach our next stop. One of the charms of small ship cruising is letting nature be part of your journey.

How accessible are the ships?

It’s important to be aware that none of the ships have lifts, and moving between decks will involve climbing fairly steep stairways. To disembark the ship in port, you will need to walk down a narrow gangway lowered to the dock. It’s important to be aware that none of the ships have lifts and moving between decks will involve climbing fairly steep stairways. To disembark the ship in port, you will need to walk down a narrow gangway lowered to the dock. On our Croatian cruises, you will usually dock at all ports, and tenders (small dinghies) are rarely used. On our Galapagos cruises, we use zodiacs to transport you between the boat and land. You will need to be comfortable getting in and out of the zodiacs to enjoy all the included activities throughout the itinerary. Our crew are always at hand to assist you.

Will I get seasick?

How often the ship sails in open waters depends on the itinerary. The itineraries that sail along the coast should experience sheltered conditions on most days, but those that sail between islands will cross open waters and may sail through heavier seas. Unless you are certain that you’re impervious to seasickness, it is necessary to come prepared with precautionary medication or other methods of combatting seasickness. Please be aware that there are no doctors aboard the ships.

Who will I be travelling with?

Our Adventure Cruises in the Galapagos have a maximum of 16 passengers and Croatia cruises have a maximum of 36 passengers.

What if I’m travelling solo?

On all our Intrepid itineraries, if you’re travelling solo, it is possible to share a twin share cabin with another passenger of the same gender, depending on availability. If you would like your own cabin, you can choose to pay a single supplement and receive a cabin to yourself.

What language is spoken on the ship?

The language on board is English (with fluent staff).

Is the itinerary always the same?

By its nature, all travel by sea is subject to the weather, winds, and tides. Occasionally the order in which we visit destinations may need to change to accommodate weather conditions and, sometimes, other ports may be substituted. Safety is always our first priority. All ships are operated by an experienced captain and crew.

What will the weather be like?

For the comfort and pleasure of our guests, our itineraries generally follow warm rather than hot weather patterns. The world's climate being at times unpredictable, our small ships are seldom far from a sheltered bay or port.

What is the official currency on board?

On our Croatia cruises, the Euro is the official currency on board. On our Galapagos Islands cruises, USD is the official currency onboard.  There is an optional credit system for expenses on board that may be paid/settled at the end of the cruise. Credit card payment is not always accepted on board. Please refer to the essential trip information” for further information

What if I have dietary requirements?

Most dietary requirements can be catered for on all ships, except for kosher and halal. Please advise us at the time of booking and we will do all that we can.

Are alcoholic drinks available on board?

Alcoholic drinks are available on all ships and are reasonably priced. For example, EUR5 for the cocktail of the day or EUR3.50 for a glass of wine. The bar runs on a chit system where you sign for drinks as you purchase them, with the amount added to your on-board account. This account is settled at the end of the voyage.

Is there a dress code on board?

Dress aboard the boat is very casual – it is a holiday after all. However, you may wish to bring a smarter outfit, such as a sundress or a shirt with a collar, for the final night’s Captain’s Dinner or if you plan to eat off the ship in port.

Is there Internet available on board?

Wifi is available on our ships at an additional cost. Please note, it may be unavailable in more remote locations or when sailing.

Can I combine an Adventure Cruise with another land tour?

Yes definitely, and it's a popular option for many. While dates might not always align perfectly, there are plenty of options like day tours  to bridge the time between the tours. Contact us or your local travel agent to find out more.

Are the Adventure Cruises guaranteed departures?

If you've found a tour you like, we can request space and confirm availability within 2-4 days.  Once availability is confirmed, a deposit is required within 7 days.  We suggest not booking other things like flights until availability is confirmed.

Once the space is confirmed by our local team and your deposit has been paid, your tour is guaranteed to depart - meaning you can book your airfares and additional accommodation with confidence. Please note that like all of our tours, this is subject to our regular booking conditions.

Why are the cabins different prices?

Pricing depends on the cabin type. Similar to how hotel room pricing works, some cabins offer superior views, larger windows/portholes and larger or additional living space. You can view cabin types on our ships  page. Contact us  to find out more

Are flights included?

While International flights aren't included in the tour cost, we can assist with booking these. Our partnerships with the major airlines mean we can get you the best price on flights for your intended travel dates. Sometimes it can be challenging organising flights. Some destinations are harder to get to than others, and we know it can be tricky trying to negotiate dates, transfers and prices. So speak to us  about how we can get you there easier.

Can you book additional accommodation, day tours and transfers?

Yes, we can generally assist with all of this when you're ready to book your trip. Contact us  to find out more.

Can I go swimming from the ship?

Of course! All ships have a swimming platform which is usually located at the back of the ship. The crew will always be present to monitor the safety of swimmers, watching either from the ship or a small zodiac safety boat. Additional towels are available during swim stops. All ships are equipped with snorkelling equipment that you are free to use. Some ships also offer kayaks and stand-up paddleboards for use at swim stops.

What is included in my cruise cost?

We include: a minimum of two meals daily, activities and land excursions (as per the itinerary), Comfortable accommodation on the boat, all port fees, services of local tour leaders, airport arrival transfer, drinking water, 24-hour coffee station with fruit and snacks, and snorkelling equipment. Some trips have kayaks and stand-up paddleboards available for use.

What is not included in my cruise cost?

We do not include: International flights, travel insurance, discretionary tips for leaders and crew, some meals, onboard purchases (such as beverages), hotel-to-port transfer (if arriving prior to the day of embarkation), airport departure transfer (unless pre-booked), any additional hotel accommodation not outlined in trip itinerary, personal expenses.

Are tips included in the price?

Tips for all crew and services are at your discretion

Where can I find the joining point/hotel details for my trip?

Your agent or sales representative will provide you with all the necessary joining point details once you have booked, along with other essential trip information. This information can also be found on the web page for your trip – scroll down past the itinerary until you see the Essential Trip Information link.

Read more about Adventure Cruising

Looking for a smaller boat.

Intrepid Sailing

Want to feel the wind in your hair? Our sailing tours use smaller catamarans or yachts rather than multi-deck cruise ships. Travellers can lend a helping hand with navigating, tacking and steering, or (if that sounds like hard work) simply stretch out on deck with a good book.

Read more about Intrepid Sailing