INSIDE EXPLORER

I have some extra time tonight so thought I would do another entry about things to do on while on the ship. I don't know how many photos I can place in one entry so I may need to put some photos into a second post well see.

First let me say I have no idea how anyone could ever say that they would get or got bored on a cruise. At least my opinion is there is too much to choose from and there is no way you could do everything. Right now I'm only going to give an idea about what you can do when inside the ship. Outside activities will be a whole other post with photos.

First the Explorer of the Seas is one of Royal Caribbean's Voyager Class ships. They were the first ships to have a Royal Promenade right down the center of Deck 5. It is lined on both sides with stores for all types of shopping and several bars for resting and drinking as well as a good stopping place for people watching. Also there is the Promenade Cafe which is open 24 hours for coffee and cookies as well as other goodies like pastries at breakfast and little sandwiches from late morning till midnight. Pizza I believe is available 24 hours as well. There is also a Seattle's Best Coffee shop and a Ben and Jerry's Ice Cream counter. These last two area you must pay to get things from, but everything at Promenade Cafe is free. There are always a lot of people wandering through this area. The last night of the cruise they put on a parade here, but more on that later.

Down on Deck 4 is one of the most popular areas of the ship for many people. The Casino Royale. This is were people go to try and win money for a future cruise, shopping in ports or just to simply win money. In my experience they more likely will lose money so it is only good for entertainment purposes and if winning occur that is a nice surprise. There are plenty of slot machines where you can wager any where from $ .02 to $3.00 at a time. Also there are a variety of gaming tables. I will confess to playing the slots for fun of watching the wheels spin, but have never tried or even wanted to try my hand at any of the tables. This is a noisey and brightly lit area of the ship. Unfortunately it is also one of the few areas where smoking is allowed so I don't find it a particularly pleasant place to spend much time.

More enjoyable is the Spa and Hot Whirlpool in the fitness center. This is an adult only pool. It is a wonderful place to relax and let the water jets massage your back or shoulders. There are changing rooms nearby that have both a sauna and a steam room as well as nice "normal sized" showers. Unfortunately because there was so much to do aboard ship I only got to use this whirlpool once. Next to it is an exercise class room and I did go there quite a few mornings for a morning stretch class and once I even tried aerobics. The fitness center is on deck 11.

So we've been to deck 4, 5 and 11. On deck 3 there is an indoor ice rink. I will tell you more about that when I show you pictures from a fabulous show on board. As you can see there can be a lot of stair climbing or you can take one of the many elevators that are located both at the front and the center of the ship. Some of them are enclosed, but quite of them are glass so you can people watch as you go up and down. Four of the elevators go from deck 1 to deck 15. Most only go to deck 12. Decks 13, 14 and 15 are only at the aft (back of the ship).

Usually Jerry and I were only going up or down 4 decks at a time. So often we just took the stairs. Our cabin was on Deck 7 making us centrally located. Deck 3 was as low as you normally went unless you needed to go to the infirmary, which thankfully none of us did, and most often we never went above Deck 12. The Windjammer Cafe was on Deck 11 and that was a climb first thing in the morning for breakfast, but we did it. There were times however when our legs said "no more" or we were on Deck 3 and wanted to go to Deck 14. Then the elevator was very welcome. The dining room is on three decks our table was on Deck 5 so that was another place we took the stairs to. Climbing stairs and walking a lot is important on the ship as you must work off all the extra calories you take in from all the good food they ar costantly feeding you!

The ship also has a well stocked and well used library, an internet room, a movie theater, at least nine bars and a night club. Also there are two card and game rooms as well as a two tiered theater for live performances nightly. These are just the indoor activity areas. Oh I always forget the day spa and beauty salon where you can get various massages, a manicure or pedicure, facials and hair cuts and styles. I don't ever get up there as they are pretty pricey services compared to what I would pay on land.

Well that's an over view of the interior of the ship. I know I've missed something. If and when I remember it I'll include it in a future post.