Safari Explorer Review
Busted A/C, Sewer Gas Smell, Surly Crew after Tips Received
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We chose this cruise due to the small size & no dress code. Flew into Honolulu, stayed overnight & toured Pearl Harbor Saturday morning. Then flew to Molokai for the cruise embarkation. Ship was fine but the master cabins were lacking (see detailed cabin review). The food was good to very good. Experienced Uncruisers told us they believed the food quality has diminished significantly in recent years. I thought the food was fine with only 1 meal of limited quantities & questionable options-- the night of the manta ray snorkel.
As far as activities, we went for the snorkeling. Almost every snorkel trip was a disappointment, except around the Big Island. The manta ray night snorkel was impressive & the snorkeling at Kealakekua Bay was comparable to anywhere in Galapagos.
Some of the crew were great while others seemed to have to try real hard to pretend to like the passengers. After we gave the recommended $$tip amount & what we had budgeted, some of the crew were downright surly, (Travis & hotel manager).
Cabin Review
Paid for a master cabin & was situated in a tiny room with no place for luggage or clothing. The queen sized bed felt like what I imagine a 2 person casket might feel like. It was enclosed on 3-1/2 sides with walls. The shower was so small that shampooing the hair required one elbow stuck through the curtain. To shave legs required placing a foot on the toilet seat. God forbid you drop something because you'll have to exit the shower, locate your headlamp or flash light & search for the item. But those problems were nothing compared to the other insults we experienced . . .
First night in port the a/c stopped working. Day 2 we awoke to a sweltering hot room. Maintenance worked on it all day & it worked sporadically throughout night. This required one of us to get up & turn off the unit for several minutes then restart the a/c every couple of hours or so. By the end of the day the problem seemed to be working properly. However, the a/c closet was left open & parts were spread on what little floor space we had.
When the Explorer left port on night 2 we were awakened by an overwhelming sewer gas stench in our cabin. The next morning the hotel manager said that sometimes happens when the ship initially moves & will improve. After dinner day 3 the sewer gas smell was worse than ever. We reported the problem again to the hotel manager who seemed put out with our complaint. So we went over her head & complained to the captain who immediately consulted with staff. We were very quickly moved to a Commodore Suite which cost about $3250 more per person if we'd chosen this option initially. It was comfortable with a king size bed, full size tub/shower combo, sitting room & private balcony directly behind the bridge.
For $8190 I should be able to sleep comfortably.