8 Things Advisors Should Know about Explora Journeys

Though Explora Journeys has been in operation for more than a year and now has two ships sailing in the Mediterranean and Caribbean, it’s a brand that still eludes explanation for many advisors.

With an “Ocean State of Mind” tagline that doesn’t really say a lot, it’s a cruise line that’s still struggling to find a foothold in the industry. (New lines typically struggle for the first several years, so this isn’t all that unusual.)

Pictures and videos of the ships shown at conferences are stunning. Word of mouth is all about how beautiful the ships are and how great the food is, and messaging from Explora focuses on the ships’ luxury yet residential feel.

But what does all of that mean?

To find out, TMR is joining a group of some 20 or so travel advisors onboard EXPLORA I in the Mediterranean this week and next to discover what Explora Journeys is really like and what advisors need to know.

Here’s what we’ve discovered so far:

Gorgeous ships

If there’s one thing that no one can argue with, it’s that parent company MSC knows how to build a beautiful cruise ship. EXPLORA I and EXPLORA II, which are virtually identical, are gorgeous ships, built to invoke the feeling of a luxury boutique hotel with an overall atmosphere that Explora refers to as “cosmopolitan European luxury.”

The lobby bar on both ships is stunning. The Sakura pan-Asian restaurant is so prettily designed with the cherry blossoms adorning the ceilings so realistic looking you can almost smell them.

Despite all the luxe trappings, the ship maintains a comfortable, homey feel. (Of course, by homey, we mean luxury Italian villa homey.) This is in part because the design of the Explora ships was inspired by the Aponte’s personal family yacht.

Most of the furniture in the suites, bars, and lounges is sourced from Italian luxury residential brands. Chairs and sofas don’t only look good, they’re actually comfortable to sit on.

Similarly, the entertainment onboard reflects the line’s luxury hotel inspiration, ie it’s mostly live music. You won’t find BINGO in a hotel, so you won’t find it on Explora.

With that said, there are some nods to its cruise-ness: there are two trivia sessions a day, there’s one dance class a day, there’s at least one lecture a day from an onboard “luminary,” and there is one main stage show per evening, often with a guest artist.

(Onboard luminaries are experts in their field. For instance, on our sailing we have Leo Rossi, who famously managed tours for the likes of The Who, Fleetwood Mac, and Led Zeppelin. We also have Marisa Lino, a retired U.S. Ambassador, who impressively summed up 2,000 years of European history into an educational 45-minute session on our first full day onboard.)

European hours of operation

Another thing no one can argue with when it comes to MSC’s cruise brands – they’re unabashedly European. On the Explora ships, that plays out in many of the dining venues’ hours of operation. The earliest you can get food or coffee is 7 a.m. Early bird risers can choose to make their own coffee or tea or order from the 24/7 room service menu. Of course, if you’re trying not to wake your roommate, that could be a problem. We overhead a travel advisor onboard our sailing suggesting to a crewmember that an early-riser option would be much appreciated by his North American clients.

Similarly, dinner hours at all venues don’t begin until 6:30 p.m. Between 3:30 and 6:30 p.m. the only option – other than a small selection of sweets and finger sandwiches at the Crema Café – is room service.

Entertainment is also generally later, though you’ll find live music in several venues starting around 7 p.m., and on port days, one of the ship’s luminaries will generally give a talk around 6 p.m.

Each day’s headline entertainment is at 10 p.m. The captain’s welcome on the second night is at 9:45 p.m.

Advisors with older clients who like to dine early and be in bed before 10 should communicate that they will miss out on most of the ship’s onboard entertainment.

Purposely undersold

According to Joseph Barney, business relationship lead for USA West, Explora purposely undersells each sailing with no more than 700 to 800 passengers on any given voyage. (Capacity is 922.) As he told us, it’s not luxury if you have to guard your poolside seat.

By keeping the numbers below 100% occupancy, the line ensures that no single space will ever feel crowded. Guests never have to wait in a line to get into the main theater lounge to get a good seat. There’s no wandering around the Emporium Marketplace (never call it a buffet, Barney joked) looking for a table.

Truthfully, most sailings at this point are well under even the 700 mark. Our sailing had some 330 passengers onboard, and at least 40 to 50 of those were travel advisors from North America, Germany, the UK, and Northern Europe.

It’s a great time for clients to give Explora a try as they’ll often have the sole attention of many of the crew, and their choice of spots to hang out it without worrying about finding a seat.

Friendly, attentive service

Crew onboard the two Explora ships are friendly, attentive, and respectful. (Just try getting a crew member to call you by your first name and not add a Miss, Mrs., or Mr. before your first name.) Everywhere you go, every bartender you see, every crewmember you pass in the hallway, will say hello and ask you how your day is.

Crew in the Emporium Marketplace won’t even let you carry your own plate back to your table. When your buzzer goes off to indicate the meal you ordered in the Marketplace is ready, a waiter will take the buzzer and retrieve your food for you.

We’ve never had to wait to have our wine topped up. Dirty plates are cleared within seconds of finishing your food. Our room steward is reachable at almost any hour of the day.

Couples-focused, family-friendly

Explora Journeys is definitely focused on couples, or groups of couples. The majority of rooms onboard feature king-sized beds that can’t be split into twins. (The distance between these twins is about three inches.) Even the largest suite onboard – the Owner’s Suite – can only accommodate a maximum of three adults (or two adults and two kids). There are no solo occupancy suites.

Despite this, however, the line is making efforts to ensure that families are welcome. Unlike most luxury lines, both EXPLORA I and EXPLORA II have a kid’s club (Nautilus Club). It’s small but well appointed. It covers the entire spectrum of kids from age 6 to 17. The club also hosts activities for children, aged 3 to 5, with a guardian present, during certain times of the day.

There are a number of connecting Ocean Terrace suites, as well as Residence suites that connect to Ocean Terrace suites.

As inclusive as some, less inclusive than others

While Explora likes to tell advisors it’s among the most inclusive of the luxury lines at sea, that’s not quite accurate, as the fare does not include any shore excursions. Nor does it include transfers from/to the airport/ship (except for the highest cabin categories), or valet laundry. This puts in on par with a line like Crystal, but slightly less inclusive than Silversea Cruises and Seabourn, and definitely less inclusive than Regent Seven Seas Cruises.

What is included are: unlimited beverages (including in-room minibar), unlimited highspeed Starlink Wi-Fi, all fitness classes, gratuities, access to the thermal suite on port days (and in the early morning and later evening on sea days), unlimited dining in all venues (except the extra-fee Anthology), shuttle service to/from ship to city centers in ports (where needed), a welcome bottle of Champagne, and a full bottle of liquor as chosen by each guest.

Guests staying in the highest levels (Ocean Residence & Owner’s Residence) receive complimentary pre- or post-cruise hotel and transfers, a complimentary spa treatment, and access to a private driver on shore.

A tale of two Explora Journeys

Our onboard experience has so far been pretty much flawless. What frustrations we have encountered – our request for two twins was ignored, and one of our dietary restrictions was automatically applied to both people in the suite – have arisen from the shoreside operations of the cruise line, which had proved aggravating several times leading up to our cruise. (For one, the online check-in process was broken and when trying to call Explora for help in completing check-in, the telephone number listed on Explora’s website is wrong. Thankfully, this shouldn’t be an issue for advisors, as clients should be calling you and not Explora if they have problems.)

The most egregious of these shortcomings – which ended up costing us extra money – was that the paperwork that comes with the boarding pass listed the wrong cruise terminal. So, when our transfer dropped us off at Terminal A, we were forced to take a taxi to get to the right Terminal. When we told the baggage handler, he simply said, “Yes, we know.”

Travel advisors should double check where the ship actually is docked and let clients know to make sure they don’t get dropped off at the wrong spot.

The three types of clients to target

According to Barney, while past luxury cruisers are excellent prospects for an Explora cruise, that’s not who the cruise line was designed for. Explora never intended to take market share away from other luxury cruise lines, he said to a gathering of North American travel advisors onboard EXPLORA I. It was designed to bring luxury land travelers to sea.

With that in mind Barney suggested three types of clients to target. The first is past luxury cruisers as they are a natural fit. Just make sure you let your past luxury cruisers know they won’t find much of the cruise-style entertainment that they’re used to on other luxury lines. (Barney said in its early days, onboard crew would get complaints about not having BINGO, dance hosts, and the like.)

The second segment of clients to target are your luxury land travelers who have always eschewed cruising because “all cruises are the same.” For these clients, Barney recommended explaining the differences between cruise lines in the same way these travelers understand the differences between hotels.

“Nobody stays at a Holiday Inn and then says, ‘I don’t like hotels.,” he explained.

Finally, Barney suggested travel advisors target premium cruisers, as some of the pricing is similar enough that upselling to a luxury brand might make sense.

To test this suggestion, we looked up pricing for a Sept. 2025 cruise between Venice and Athens on Explora and Oceania. The entry level price for Explora currently sits at $4,675 and for Oceania at $3,199 (including unlimited dining, gratuities, unlimited Starlink Wi-Fi, non-alcoholic beverages, and laundry).

However, when we priced out a cabin on Oceania that would match an Ocean Terrace on Explora, the pricing between the two swaps. The Penthouse Suite (PH3) on Nautica, measuring 322 square feet, starts at $7,099 per person. An entry level Ocean Terrace Suite (OT1), measuring 377 square feet, starts at $4,675 per person. For about the same price ($7,265) that Oceania is asking for, you can put your client in a Penthouse on Explora, measuring 463 to 517 square feet.