Seven Seas Explorer

The pool is large enough for morning laps, with an easy staircase entry, a couple of hot tubs and extra-comfy loungers and day beds in sun or shade. Attendants keep towels and terry-cloth covers ready, and the pool bar serves throughout. Next door, the Pool Grill has two large buffets, a grill in the middle and seating on both sides. Order burgers, tuna or chicken from the grill, or grab pizza and handmade ice cream.

La Veranda, at the aft of the ship, is the buffet for breakfast and lunch every day. Mornings bring egg stations, waffles and pancakes. At lunch there’s a salad bar, soups, Indian dishes, a grill station and made-to-order pasta. Out back, the aft terrace has umbrella tables facing the wake. Each evening the room becomes Sette Mari at La Veranda, an Italian restaurant with handmade pastas and Italian wines, included in the fare.

Explorer’s two specialty restaurants at the aft are included in the fare, with reservations. Prime 7 is the classic steakhouse, with a bar and lounge at the entrance, a Picasso behind the host stand and ocean views. Expect ribeye, lamb and pork chops, shrimp cocktail, crab cake and ahi tuna poke. Chartreuse is the French restaurant, with classics like veal and duck plus a modern twist. Between them sits the Regent Suite’s private dining room.

The Culinary Arts Kitchen is one of the true fan favorites on board. It’s a state-of-the-art teaching kitchen with 18 cooking stations wrapping around the room, plus cameras and large screens so everyone can follow the chef. Classes focus on the food of the places the ship visits, and the chefs share techniques you can take home. Danny, who loves to cook, says there’s no better way to learn about a culture than through its food.

Perched all the way forward like a crown on top of the ship, the Observation Lounge has wraparound views through floor-to-ceiling windows. It’s a great place to be when the ship sails through scenic waters. There’s a bar with excellent bartenders and live music, and the room hosts cocktail parties, trivia and afternoon high tea. Nearby are the library, with a curated collection of fiction and travel reference books, and the card room.

Pacific Rim is the pan-Asian restaurant, with dishes inspired by Thailand, Japan, Korea and China, plus a few Chinese American favorites. Expect curries, sushi and plenty of vegetable dishes. The room has booths, tables and a few window seats, with prints set inside the chandeliers. Like every specialty restaurant on Explorer, it’s included in the fare. Just outside sits a working replica of a Tibetan prayer wheel, so heavy the ship had to be engineered around it.

Serene Spa and Wellness offers massages, facials, wraps and acupuncture, plus a full salon and barber shop with pedicure chairs facing the ocean. The men’s and women’s locker rooms each have a thermal circuit with an experience shower, a cold room, an aromatic steam room and a sauna. Just aft is a quiet terrace with day beds, loungers and an infinity pool overlooking the wake. A fitness center with an aerobics studio sits one level up.

Compass Rose is the main dining room, just past the two-story atrium with its grand double staircase and chandelier. It’s a large, elegant room that wraps around the back and sides of the ship, with tables for two and four, larger tables for groups, and Versace tableware. Breakfast, lunch and dinner are served every day from an extensive menu. The Explorer Lounge and casino are right next door.