Panama's Gateway to Caribbean Paradise from Miami, 5 January 2026 (20 nights)

This is by far the best cruise ship I have been on. The lowest grade stateroom is a suite with a balcony and included a welcome bottle of champagne and a bottle of spirit of your choice . The shower was huge with the bathroom having a heated floor and the bed was one of the most comfortable beds I have slept on. The food was astonishing at all the restaurants and even at the ‘buffet’ the food was made fresh for you with oysters and champagne on tap if that is your thing . The pool and hot tub areas were plentiful and never crowded and the ship never felt crowded at all . It felt like we had our own private yacht at times, never having to worry about finding a lounger or seating area to relax without crowds. However the main thing that made this cruise the most fantastic experience for us was the service. Being only a ship of a maximum of 900 guests with 700 staff or ‘hosts’ we received the best service I have received on land or sea . Genuinely friendly and extremely accommodating . I’m reluctant to give this review as I don’t want the world to know about this gem of a cruise company . Explora Jouneys have cracks it with affordable luxury cruising without the stuffiness . Can’t wait to holiday again on their Explora III, IV, V & VI when they are built over the coming years .

Pre-cruise communications from IGLU were terrible - thank goodness for the support I received directly from Explora Journeys. We boarded Explora 2 smoothly, only to discover that our cabin had been changed (IGLU failed to update us) but thankfully, all was resolved by Explora, who had upgraded our cabin, which was excellent. We had a great cruise. The spa was great (though the thermal suite was slightly on the small side) and I loved the hot tubs along the side of the ship. The evening entertainment was better than expected. The entertainments director (Michael) was a joy. The food was (mostly) excellent but I did have a few small issues (which I am providing feedback about) Yes, we would cruise with Explora Journeys again, but we will be using a different agent. IGLU were very disappointing.

Explorer II was amazing. Loved everything about it. We didn’t watch the entertainment or do the activities and excursions so not able to comment on those. Once I’d clicked on them I couldn’t delete it or leave it blank so this is not a true rating. Everything else though was excellent from the food to the staff. We will definitely be booking another one.

Excellent from start to finish, food & drink were exceptional & fantastic facilities.