EXPLORER OF THE SEAS CABIN 1804 - SUITE AMENITIES AND ROOM REVIEW

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Ever since I decided to stop getting connecting rooms for our group of four on our cruises, I've been on the lookout for great rooms that give us a lot of space, but don't break the bank. Explorer of the Seas cabin 1804 lives up to this promise, and then some. Today I'm going to go in-depth in my review of not only the room, but also of the amenities that came with staying in a suite. (read more)

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EXPLORER OF THE SEAS CABIN 1804

We were on a cruise in 2018, a nine day out of New Jersey that went North up to Canada. It was while we were on board that we talked to the Next Cruise people about booking another cruise. We like Next Cruise because they always give us money. It might not be much, $50 per person or so, but that bit goes a long way toward keeping my kids in soda all week long.

​When we talked about the dates we'd like and the area we'd like to see, while also making sure the trip was at least nine days long (you get better rates on longer cruises), the Next Cruise guy told us that there was a great room available, a no-balcony room with enough space for my mom, my two boys, and myself. It even had bunk beds in a little nook behind a curtain. 

Since my main goal with cruising is to have enough space that we won't be on top of one another, this ticked all my boxes, and the price was right. 

At the time, I had no idea it was a suite, even though I know he referred to it as a Panoramic Family Suite. I didn't realize I'd be getting double Crown & Anchor points, nor did I realize we'd have access to some sweet...suite amenities.

Before we talk about the amenities, let's talk about the room.

WE'RE REVAMPING OUR KID'S ALLOWANCE WITH THE GREENLIGHT DEBIT CARD FOR KIDS

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EXPLORER OF THE SEAS CABIN 1804
​THE VIDEO

The first thing I did when we got in the room was to take a video. This is before our luggage showed up, before we had a chance to make an unholy mess, but not before I'd had a drink, so pardon me if I sound less than sober. It's because I was less than sober.

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EXPLORER OF THE SEAS CABIN 1804
​OUR BELOVED WHITEBOARD

The second thing I did, after taking that video, was to go outside and hang a magnetic white board on our door. We got this as a set on Amazon and it has been one of those purchases that just keeps on giving. 

It comes with a board that rolls easily into a small storage tube. Also in the tube are three colored markers and a dry eraser, all magnetic.

As my kids get older and spend less time in the room, I still need to know where they are, and vice versa. We can definitely pay for texting, but I'd rather not, and my 12 year old has a clamshell phone, which doesn't work with Royal IQ.

So, I hang this, I write down where we're going when we leave, and I write down things he needs to know, like what time to be back in the room. 

He comes by the room once in awhile (usually when Optix/The Living Room is closed) and leaves his own messages. It makes things very easy, and I highly recommend it for a low-tech way of keeping in touch. 

Side note, you also get some funny messages from other cruisers once in awhile. 

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EXPLORER OF THE SEAS CABIN 1804
WHAT'S IN THE ROOM?

A couple of things to note here, but I'll start with (what I consider to be) the most important thing.

The window is NOT opaque. I cannot stress that enough. You can see out just as well as everyone on the outside can see in. So, if you're like me and you're standing there on the first day gawking at passersby and making funny faces when they look up at you....

They can see you.

They are questioning your sanity.

Thankfully the area below the window doesn't get a lot of traffic. You must go into the Solarium to reach the space, so it's pretty much limited to adults, and even then only a few dozen a day, at most. 

We did venture out that way to see if the window was see through. Here's a picture. I did also take a video, it's at the end of the room video I posted at the beginning of the post.

Our steward, Iputu, was in the room at the time, that's why the lights are on.

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EXPLORER OF THE SEAS CABIN 1804

The room is large with plenty of space to move around. 

There's a queen bed that converts to two twins, a sofa bed that also converts to two small beds, and a nook that houses bunk beds behind a rather heavy curtain, giving the occupants of that space some privacy.

There is an entire wall of closet space in the main area as well as shelving and closet space in the bunk bed nook. 

The main area also has several drawers to keep items, though we didn't end up using any of them. 

There is a safe large enough for passports, your phone, etc, but not large enough for larger electronics. 

There is also a refrigerator, but it has no shelves and is very shallow. For instance, one night I brought back a bowl of ice cream to eat after dinner with the intention of putting it in the fridge. It wouldn't fit, the bowl was entirely too wide, and it wasn't a very wide bowl.

Probably the only thing you can really use the fridge for is drinks.

Let's talk electrical outlets. 

It's going to be a short sentence.

THERE ARE ONLY TWO OUTLETS!

Not even kidding there. Two outlets, both on the desk. So if you've got a blow dryer, electric toothbrush, more than two people who need to charge their phones, etc. You're going to want to bring apower strip. 

I recommend this one.

WE TOOK HIGH TEA AT THE EMPRESS WHEN WE STOPPED IN VICTORIA, BC

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EXPLORER OF THE SEAS 1804
THE OTHER ROOM JUST LIKE IT

There is another room on the ship that is a flip flop of 1804, it's Explorer of the Seas cabin 1854, and, as far as I know is exactly the same, only flip flopped. 

The two rooms are not side by side, rather there are two smaller rooms in between them. 

Whether you book 1804 or 1854, both are excellent choices. 

Now let's talk about what you get when you stay in a suite onboard Explorer of the Seas.

WHEN IN VICTORIA, BC, BE SURE TO TAKE A HORSE DRAWN CARRIAGE TOUR

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EXPLORER OF THE SEAS CABIN 1804
THE SUITE LIFE - PERKS AND AMENITIES
BREAKFAST AT GIOVANNI'S TABLE

I'm going to show you the email I got before we boarded, so you can see precisely what comes with staying in a suite, but in a nutshell there are a few worth mentioning:

​* Breakfast at Giovanni's table - We only did this a few days, but it was awesome. My kids have an unhealthy love of The Windjammer, so we compromised and only went to Giovanni's every other day, but I could have gone daily. 

If you've been in a suite on Harmony or any ship with Coastal Kitchen, it's not that level of awesome, but it is small, quiet, and wonderful. When my kids are grown and no longer think cruising with me is cool, I'll be eating in these places daily, as long as I can afford the suite cost on that particular cruise.

I'll talk more about the amenities, but here's a look at Giovanni's table. It's located on Deck 4, Forward (if I'm remembering that right), just before the Schooner Bar.

​I've also included the menu, which remained the same each day.

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EXPLORER OF THE SEAS CABIN 1804
​RENTING AN OVER WATER CABANA AT BAREFOOT BEACH

This is probably one of the best perks that came with having a suite. 

We had already booked an over the water cabana at Nellie's Beach, but about a week before our cruise we got an email from the concierge letting us know that the cabanas at Barefoot Beach had availability, albeit more limited because they were to have two ships in port the day we were there. 

I believe these Barefoot Beach cabanas open first to people who are Sky Class, Star Class, etc. so we didn't get the email until all of those people (not that there were any on our ship, I don't think) had first pass. 

Or it could be that we got the email right away, but they just didn't notify anyone until a week out. I'm not really sure. 

It could be that all suites are the same in RC's eyes, or it could be that the "classes" go in order. 

However, it was easy enough to book the cabana on Nellie's Beach, then cancel it once we got the email for Barefoot Beach. There was no charge and we were able to cancel Nellie's online.

This cabana was amazing, and (in my opinion) worth every penny. It all depends on what you're likely to spend for an excursion, but for the four of us it average out to around $125 per person, which is on the high side of what we might spend on an excursion, but definitely not a crazy amount. If we rode horses in Aruba, we'd pay just as much, if not a bit more.

The price of the cabana is per cabana, not per person, just so you know. 

Here's a video of the cabana, everything it came with, and the AMAZING view. This was one of our favorite stops, topped only slightly by riding Blokarts in Bonaire.

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EXPLORER OF THE SEAS CABIN 1804
​MAIN DINING ROOM - ROOM SERVICE

Another perk of staying in this suite was room service. 

We had the ability to order dinner straight from the Main Dining Room menu each and every day. Iputu would service our room and leave the latest menu, then we'd just place a quick call around 5:30 and let them know what we wanted to eat.

It typically got delivered about 45 minutes later, and we didn't have a ton of room to hold the dishes, but it was still a lot of fun.

I did keep cash on hand to tip if we used room service, so if you think it's something you're going to do, and you feel like tipping, you might keep that in mind.

Here's an example of the room service menu. It did change each night.

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EXPLORER OF THE SEAS CABIN 1804
A SPECIAL BREAKFAST MENU

Another perk of having a suite was that we had a special menu for room service for breakfast each day. This menu was exclusive to suite guests and did not cost anything extra. 

You can of course order room service no matter which room you're in, but you'll be charged (depending on the meal and what you order). 

Suite guests are not charged, so if this is something you'll do a lot, it's quite nice to not have to pay more than you already have.

Here's the menu, it remained the same each day. 

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EXPLORER OF THE SEAS CABIN 1804
THE CONCIERGE LOUNGE

Another perk of staying in a suite is that you have access to the Concierge Lounge. You also have access to the Concierge. 

We didn't use the lounge at all, other than to go in one night and get some meatballs before the Windjammer opened, but it was open each day and always had a selection of drinks and food. 

The seating was limited and it was crowded at night, but you could absolutely go in, grab some food and a drink, then head back out.

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EXPLORER OF THE SEAS CABIN 1804
​RESERVED POOLSIDE SEATING

Suite guests also had reserved seating by the pool. Mind you these are not directly by the pool, but rather stadium style seats on either side of the pool area that offer you a great place to stash your stuff while you swim. 

It's also a great place to sit and watch your kids swim if you're not feeling the urge to get in the water. 

This was one of the first places we went after we boarded. The area was quiet, rather empty, and very easy to find a spot. 

The seats are sectioned off with ropes that clearly show you're only supposed to cross the rope if you have a gold colored sea pass.

I believe there were three sections of seating on either side of the Sky Bar, and each section had approximately 7 seats, for a total of 42 seats reserved for suite guests. 

This was my oldest son's favorite place to be if he wasn't hanging out with his friends. If we couldn't find him, we could invariably find him seated here, Coke in hand, watching whatever was playing on the giant screen above the pool. 

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EXPLORER OF THE SEAS CABIN 1804
​THE CONCIERGE

We don't have a whole lot of use for a concierge, but even we found her services to be very helpful this time around, mainly in the area of making it so we didn't have to walk down to the Shore Excursions desk. 

One night, the evening before we docked in Bonaire, we decided to book a very last minute landsailing tour. 

I was sitting in bed in my pajamas, none of us wanted to go out, but we did want to book the tour, so we just picked up the phone and called our concierge. 

She got it sorted right away, and we were able to enjoy one of the best excursions we've ever been on. 

So, even if a concierge isn't a big bonus for you when you consider booking a suite, you might just use them, you never know. 

We hope we've covered all of the high points, but here's a more detailed list of everything that comes with your suite.

CHECK OUT OUR REVIEW OF LANDSAILING ON BONAIRE

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EXPLORER OF THE SEAS CABIN 1804
​FINAL THOUGHTS

We've cruised in quite a few suites in our time. From the Roy O. Disney suite onboard Disney Fantasy, to the two bedroom Aqua Theater suite onboard Harmony of the Seas, suites are awesome, but they come with a not so awesome price. 

For us, this was the perfect balance. No balcony, a great view, lots of perks, and a price tag that was more than comparable to booking two ocean view connecting staterooms. 

If you're on the fence about this suite, we're going to tell you to jump on it. There are only two available on the entire ship, and you simply cannot beat the view! 

As always, if you have any questions, feel free to ask. I will always answer if I have the knowledge.

​Ty

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