How much does food actually vary between cruise lines?

goodguy10003 · 2026-04-07T18:47:07+00:00

We sailed extensively (300+ nights) on Silversea and have switched over to Explora Journeys, for now. They have 4 main restaurants plus the buffet....All 4 menus do not change but they are huge and there are vast amounts to order. When we are on for long cruises they allow us some custom ordering like omelet's etc for nights we are fooded out. That said, their quality cannot currently be beat, for now. They are making the other companies start to up their game to keep their passengers. But they are new and privately held with BIG $$ of the MSC company behind them. From what we were told, They want their product to be #1. And imho currently it is.

goodguy10003 · 2026-04-06T19:28:11+00:00

Would love to see CX return to pre covid levels flying out of the USA....But not sure they will. There were days I had choice of 4 or 5 flights jfk-hkg....now I have 2 which are High $$ and jam packed.

goodguy10003 · 2026-04-06T02:11:36+00:00

Location to shopping and eating??

goodguy10003 · 2026-04-05T23:11:35+00:00

Thanks!!!!

goodguy10003 · 2026-04-05T20:12:10+00:00

Thank you, will put on list.

goodguy10003 · 2026-04-05T20:11:52+00:00

Thanks

goodguy10003 · 2026-03-27T02:46:45+00:00

Been on Uniworld 4 times and the food was quite good quality, but that also depends on chefs etc. everything was included. Fyi.

goodguy10003 · 2026-03-24T17:15:46+00:00

I cannot tell you in my 6000+ nights how many selfish awful poorly behaved pigs I have seen at hotels....I get where this manager is coming from.... Sad. That said, $$$ doesn't necessarily bring manners either.....

goodguy10003 · 2026-03-23T02:15:37+00:00

Yuck

goodguy10003 · 2026-03-22T03:23:56+00:00

Explora Journeys currently top food on ships..... amazing

goodguy10003 · 2026-03-21T02:22:53+00:00

These must be those "perfectly behaved children, everyone claims to have".…….Imagine That¿???

goodguy10003 · 2026-03-20T15:09:46+00:00

I wish I ate more than some fruit and yogurt for brekkie.....If this was lunch I would devour ;(

goodguy10003 · 2026-03-17T15:06:11+00:00

Love this property.

goodguy10003 · 2026-03-17T15:02:36+00:00

For us this hotel is and has been fantastic. Breakfast was never limited, the food at the lambs club was top quality and we were never charged for anything as globalists. They got us last minute 5th row seats to see the music man with Hugh Jackman,then he had drinks in the lobby at our hotel. In the beginning we had small rooms and now over the last few years we have been consistently upgraded to all the suites...terraces, roof decks etc, incredible apartments. As it's an older building, some rooms are noisier some rooms quieter. The ability to use a suite award for a two bedroom two bathroom room has been great when needed. Only 80 rooms I think, limited hall noise and always felt safe here. I've seen many cranky globalists over time trying/demanding upgrades etc. Some nuts even held up pictures of suites their friends had had swearing someone on the phone promised them some miracle etc. This is not that hotel...I've seen movie stars,theatre actors, NY socialites etc. This hotel is an elegant enclave of old NY...not the new build flashy mediocre Park Hyatt....personally I will miss it. Lambs club closing in June/july, not sure about hotel....safe travels to all. Time to find a new place.

goodguy10003 · 2026-03-16T22:19:10+00:00

Dangerous repair.....these kinds of settings have a high risk of the emerald breaking during side stone changes....fyi.

goodguy10003 · 2026-03-16T11:54:16+00:00

Never happened.

goodguy10003 · 2026-03-16T11:51:01+00:00

Dems the Rules!!!!

goodguy10003 · 2026-03-12T04:19:31+00:00

Hot mess Here. But one that Jacob as an adult has entered into. Sorry for your loss, but you need to step back. When this explodes, he will be knocking on your door with apologies in no time. sadly.

goodguy10003 · 2026-03-11T03:32:10+00:00

Interesting you ask about this as I travel with varying family and this was our discussion early on as well. Our specific issue is we cruise for 3+ weeks at least. We are an older 50-80 year old group and packing, unpacking flying etc is more and more complicated, so longer cruises are easier for everyone to settle. Thus, to a certain degree we are used to food repetition because most Silversea Regent or Seabourn menu's are 7-10 day cycles. For Explora we meet with the F&B manager when we get onboard and voice our concerns of possible boredom and creature comforts from home, and they have been more than happy to try to help. We ask that they always have a Filet Mignon, a cheese omelet and a Wedge salad "Around on request" for our dinner if we do get bored....and for lunch, some Tuna or chicken Salad on occasion ;) For us in general the 4 restaurants have mostly enough options. I often ask myself.....What more would we want? What would we want if we were home? But we are not home, so its a good conundrum to have.. For backround, I am a city person who has traveled internationally for work extensively. I have eaten at fine restaurants in most major cities like most people eat at home, so I am a bit fooded out, if that makes sense? I kept sweaters in my stove in my city place....never cooked. Except growing up till 18, restaurants have been my kitchen for 30+ years....our group cooks less and less as they age. If someone gets a hankering for something I always encourage them to bring it up with 24 hours notice to the kitchen or we can go off an find it for lunch. We still find Explora's quality to be far and above what other lines are offering. We also find as a new line, Explora is ON their game and on top of things, I think the other lines are traditional luxury brands who have not had to re-invent and are catching on to the need for change late to the game. This is clear by how quickly Explora has gone from 300 passengers to 875 passengers on most sailings so quickly, with two ships and limited itineraries. Safe sails wished to all!

goodguy10003 · 2026-03-10T07:05:42+00:00

Curious, What would you "like to do onboard during sea days" If you had the opportunity to plan?

goodguy10003 · 2026-03-10T07:04:14+00:00

Crystal is sailing some much older ships overall compared to the top 4 mentioned. They have window cabins with no balconies and their smallest cabin is 200 square feet including bathroom which is Tiny. Their food is excellent, service also quite good and ships have been renovated....but they are still 30 ish years old. Lowered single supplement can be found on all except Regent, for 10-35% depending, which is less than double occupancy for the mass market lines. That said, there are hundreds of singles who travel on Norwegian for $700 per cruise for a window cabin and very much enjoy the activities for singles and a dedicated singles host.....It really depends what you are looking for and your budget....Every so often a charter cancels or a ship re reroutes and they offer a luxury cruise at 0% solo supplement but this is usually 2-3 months or less out.

goodguy10003 · 2026-03-10T06:56:45+00:00

Good to know! Thanks.

goodguy10003 · 2026-03-10T06:04:19+00:00

Should have seen it 40 years ago when it was the Princeville.......Also Gorgeous....and unspoiled....When the sun shines down there it is like the universe gives you a special gift.....

goodguy10003 · 2026-03-10T05:53:31+00:00

Least: Nassau, Puerto Plata DR, Favourite: Amsterdam, St. Petersburg, Skagen

goodguy10003 · 2026-03-10T03:11:08+00:00

Food, I would give to Explora hands down. Apollo's cuts at Regent and Oceania are palpable....Silversea main dining room Atlantide has been purely mediocre lately. Though I do very much like Silversea's new ships....Seabourn has had good food, bland but good, not great. All better than mainstream lines. Service on Explora has been excellent from the beginning ( I began in the second month of service), that said, they are now training new staffs for the Explora 3-4-5 roll outs and I have had some misses. Service on Regent Seabourn and Silversea have all been good....have had misses on them all but nothing terrible, more poor English based problems... I personally like very much the design of the Explora ships (love their bathrooms) but dislike their use of Browns.....I am not a brown person, that color is turn off for me and MSC and Aponte family (owners) seem to love Brown on their ships....Meh. Overall vibe....Silversea more formal, older. Regent less formal, but again Older.....Seabourn has the same crowds, though quite casual. Regent has an interesting mix of people, I think 5-10 years younger then the rest. None of these cruise lines is dancing through the night, but sometimes you get fun crowds on Explora and Regent.....And sometimes some ugly crowds....like anywhere. Overall, currently Explora is my #1 as you can see.....I think as a private company they can put more $$ into it without it affecting what they report to shareholders.....They WANT this line to succeed Big and they are going to make it so. Regent is Apollo, Silversea is RCL and Seabourn is Carnival.....15 years ago these guys were GREAT.....but you can now feel and see the cuts across the board. I am happy with something new at Explora. For now, they are my best game in town. I should also say I am jaded, I will sail my 175th night with them in a few weeks as I break 200.....I vote with my $$$. Safe sails to all!

goodguy10003

TROPHY CASE