EXPLORA V

Steakhouse, pan-Asian and guest-chef dining

Much of Explora V’s dining is included in the fare, so choosing where to eat each evening comes down to mood rather than budget. Marble & Co. Grill sets the tone: a contemporary steakhouse with an open kitchen, where you watch the chefs prepare premium cuts. Sakura, also included, takes a different direction, bringing Japanese, Chinese, Thai and Korean flavours together in one restaurant.

Anthology is the restaurant to plan around. It hands its kitchen to rotating guest chefs, so the menu changes from voyage to voyage and no two cruises eat quite the same. It carries a charge and is best reserved ahead.

Copenhagen from May to August, the Mediterranean from December

Copenhagen is Explora V’s home port through the northern summer, and the voyages from there are the core of her programme. In May, June and August she sails Scandinavia and the Baltic, either 6 or 7 nights one way to Stockholm or 14 nights round trip from Copenhagen; stops change between departures, but Tallinn, Helsinki and Rønne on Bornholm are among them. In July and August she turns to Norway, with 7-night round trips from Copenhagen that typically take in fjord ports such as Eidfjord, Nordfjordeid and Bergen, and 14-night voyages from Copenhagen ending in Stockholm or Southampton. The longest voyages leave Copenhagen in August: crossings of 28 and 38 nights to New York or Québec City, where calls might include Reykjavik, Oban and Stornoway.

From December to April, across the Australian summer and into autumn, she moves to the Mediterranean. Her 7-night one-ways link Barcelona and Civitavecchia (Rome) in either direction, and some Barcelona departures finish in Lisbon instead; ports vary, but Villefranche-sur-Mer for Nice, Ajaccio, Palma de Mallorca and Valletta all feature. You can see her departures from Barcelona in 2027 alongside other lines’. In January and February she also sails 7 nights from Málaga to Lisbon, with Cádiz and Gibraltar typical calls.

Each of these departures means flying from Australia, so we book the flights out to wherever she sails from and home from wherever she finishes, with the hotel either side and the transfers, as one holiday. Explora VI is her sister ship, and the rest of the fleet, including Explora I, is on our Explora Journeys page.

Whisky, ocean views and films under the stars

Explora V’s bars are built for lingering rather than rushing. The naturally lit Explora Lounge, included in the fare, serves light meals and afternoon tea with the ocean in view, and tucked within it the Malt Whiskey Bar pours whiskies from across the globe, rare bottles among them, with a walk-in humidor and an outdoor terrace; the whisky is included in the fare, apart from an ultra-exquisite selection sold separately, while cigars are charged.

After dark, The Conservatory Pool Bar turns from a sheltered poolside lounge into an open-air cinema, with cocktails included in the fare, so an evening can end with a film rather than a show.

Is Explora V a luxury cruise?

Explora Journeys is one of the lines in our luxury ocean cruise search, and aboard Explora V that shows in how much is folded into the fare: the steakhouse, the pan-Asian restaurant, Shore Club by the pool and afternoon tea in the Explora Lounge among it. What carries a charge is the guest-chef dining at Anthology and the single-table Chef Table, while drinks at the bars are included in the fare, apart from an ultra-exquisite selection sold separately.

Explora V cabins and deck plans

Every grade aboard Explora V is a suite, so the choice is which suite and where it sits. Her cabins and deck plans map them deck by deck.

CruiseAway looks after the whole trip, from the voyage to the travel around it. Our Best Price Guarantee applies. Compare her dates among our ocean cruises to Europe from Australia.