Pacific Explorer Reviews

It was our very first cruise 🛳 P&O were absolutely amazing. The staff, food entertainment was more than what we expected. Now we are thinking about where to go on our next cruise and will definitely be looking at P&O and booking it through the amazing, and extremely helpful staff at Global Journeys.

Had a wonderful time on P&O Explorer, 80's theme really was a jump back in time. Thank you Global Journeys for making this possible and stress free, loved every minute of our cruise and would happily book again through Global Journeys.

Neither of us are likely to book a themed short weekend cruise again. This is due to these being essentially party cruises and while have nothing against these we were after something more relaxing and chill. The food at the The Pantry was, we to be honest, awful - the hot stuff almost cold and everything kind of tasted the same. The Dragon Lady was ...read more average, with the mains tasting way too similar but the starters and dessert was lovely. Loved the food at Waterfront both Breakfast and dinner - The Chefs table was great although the desserts let the finale down a little.

We did the wine tasting and High Tea - the High Tea's sandwiches were dry - Sandwich 101 is put a damp towel over them to stop them drying out before serving. We had massages which were lovely! Heidi had a facial but wasn't impressed by being called up to the spa without warning for a Dr's consultation I knew nothing about to try to sell me very expensive facial treatments without any kind of warning - wasted my time and the Dr's. The facial the next day was awesome! Suggestions - we would have preferred being able to find at least ONE quiet sunny place to just chill out outside of our cabin - even on a party cruise.

The cruise was smooth sailing and the captain made a wise decision to not go to the intended destination ’ Picton’ in the South Island due to unfavourable weather conditions down south. We went to Paihia in the Bay of Islands instead. It was a bit of a ‘non event’ and we chose not to go ashore as we can go there anytime. I felt sorry for a couple who ...read more had driven down from their home in Paihia to Auckland to board the ship and then be taken back to Paihia. Needless to say, they too opted not to go ashore. I guess the P&O cruise experience (our first P&O trip) lived up to its reputation. Having been with different cruise lines on other cruises, it was interesting to compare the difference in the service, socioeconomic factors, food & facilities. Overall, it was okay but uninspiring and we won’t be embarking on another P&O Cruise. However, the online support and the booking service was excellent. It was wonderful being able to talk to and correspond with a real person rather than an automated computer BOT.

We absolutely loved every moment of this and already looking for our next cruise. Definetely a great experience and a first of many to come!! We were blown away by how nice all of the staff were onboard.

Although the weather had different ideas, our destination soon became the Bay of Islands. Even so the overall cruise was memorable and affordable. Thanks Sam and the Global Journeys team.

Our mini-suite was great, and very spacious. Recommend it to all. Lack of information about our destination was a real let down, and P&O cruises has lost our custom because of not only this, but also really bad quality entertainment! Rachel who did our booking was great, friendly and efficient! Many thanks.

Hi Global Journeys! This being our first time cruise everything felt so smooth and almost too good to be true as if it was a scam. We had never been on one let alone planned for one so first off I'd love to thank Hannah Perry for making the booking process super smooth by answering all my questions and making everything so easy to understand. The P&O ...read more cruise was amazing!!!! The hospitality, room service and amenities were always tidy, very professional and delicious 😍😍😍. There were no boring bits, I loved the good times we recieved each day and how they made sure to have the day jam packed full of activities and games. My favorite was the white party and the gatsby party. Overall I give that cruise a 10/10 I wish it was longer.

You have done a wonderful job sorting my cruise out. The cruise wasn’t as good as other companies. We got mocktail, coffee drinks cards. Excited and got to the bar to order a mocktail they only gave a choice of two mocktails kiwi fruit or lychee flavoured - great introduction gosh, real downer, bar staff gave the feeling that we’re cheap. The duty free ...read more only stocked blue cartons of smokes $81 for 8 packets of 25s. If you wanted Red you could purchase from the cafe a packet for around $50 not completely sure. Pretty bad, hard choice, got a carton of smokes. Bottles range from about $40 Australian thankfully Port Vila had good prices. I won 2 tickets for massages they were looking at me side ways when I booked in for them. My daughter went in before me and came out after me. Gosh they’re money hungry 😋. The food would be considered wonderful for some but compared to other ships doesn’t compare. I did enjoy the cruise. My rating is for you Tracey 10/10 thanks!

We really enjoyed our cruise over to New Zealand. I enjoyed the food and activities put on by P&O in particular. It was excellent value for money. I wish they had a bigger dance floor for the theme nights. Particularly on the Gatsby night, there were lots of people dressed up but not able to dance because the platform in the atrium was too small. I ...read more would recommend that the Blue Room or Explorer bar is set up for the party from the outset. It was particularity odd having the party in the small atrium with lots of people standing around on the stairs looking down. The boat is a bit tired but I suppose that's to be expected given it is being sold to carnival soon. Overall, we had a great time.

Hannah took great care of us from beginning to end. Answered any questions we had, promptly and efficiently. This was our first ever cruise and booking through Global Journeys made the process easy. The cruise was wonderful. We had a great time and have decided that we will be going on future cruises. Antarctica is definitely on our bucket list!

Thank you Rachael for organising this trip for us. Faye and I really enjoyed the cruise. We didn’t want it to end! The crew were amazing as was the food and the shows. P&O knows how to give cruisers a good time! Once again, thanks!

First experience on a cruise for both of us, we had an amazing time, plenty to do, great music and entertainment and fancy dress to turn back time. Food was great and drinks are normal prices. We will do it again!

Worst cruise we ever have done! Cabin on the bow of the ship, nearest elevator the length of half the ship away. All so called complimentary dining venues sold out. Left only meals upstairs, always full and hard to get a table, walking with a walker and getting food was impossible! NEVER again on P&O Australia!

Tracey was very helpful, quick and professional in helping us organize our cruise. Everything went smoothly. We had a lot of fun, the entertainment was exceptional.

The trip was amazing weather not so go but no much you can do about it we all loved and will do it again.

It was a first family trip with our 4 year old, who was absolutely buzzing the entire time. From seeing the big ship, to tasting the yummy food, swimming in the pool to making lots of new friends onboard and that wasn't even including the island paradises of Noumea and Vanuatu! It was a great way to spend valuable family time and have a good break away ...read more from the norm. Look forward to future cruises hopefully next year.

We went from Fremantle to Cairns on The Pacific Explorer leaving on the 18th May 2023 for 10 days. There had been an engine problem the day before and the arrival time was delayed by 4 hours, because of this it was a bit of a shambles boarding. Our accommodation was upgraded to E deck that is Level 6 and in a very convenient position. It was on the ...read more same floor as The Dragon Lady and Angelo's restaurants and one floor above the Waterfront restaurant. The shopping arcade was also on that level and it was only a small flight of stairs up to the entertainment level or one flight down to the coffee lounge.

The cabin was an older style compared to the rest of the ship that has been refurbished, but it had plenty of room and huge window, however the bathroom was very small. There were 4 free restaurants with The Pantry being a buffet style while the others were À la carte. Plenty of entertainment but the two main shows cost $20 also the Bingo was $30 for 5 cards, so worked out very expensive if you played twice per day as some people did.

The weather was sunny every day, but windy and there were high seas at Exmouth , so the shore tours were cancelled and money refunded. Kuri bay was the next stop and was a pearl farm only excursion that was unsuitable for anyone who was unsteady on their feet as it was a rough unpaved path going up hill, that meant that many people could not go ashore as it was only for the guided excursion or a sea plane ride.

Darwin was a dock with a variety of excursions and Port Douglas was by large tender and offered a variety of excursions as well. Cairns was the final port and we no problems disembarking, although it took a while to catch a taxi. I would be happy to travel with P&O again presuming that their other ships are of the same standard.

What a delightful first cruise experience with P&O! Everything was so well organised and the staff were so friendly. Our cabin was comfortable, and we enjoyed our balcony views. The theatre productions were top notch, and we loved the nightly music trivia and karaoke at the Explorer Bar. Gatsby night was a highlight! Will definitely go on a cruise again ...read more with P&O!

Hannah at Global Journeys went above and beyond in her service. We were a bit complex but she got everything sorted and replied promptly to our emails. Would definitely recommend her to handle any future cruises.