American Safari Explorer Review 2
Posted by Cruise Bug under: budgeting; general cruising; moving up; podcast; review; reviews.
My cabin was 8B, a Mariner Category stateroom, on the middle deck of the yacht. I entered via a sliding door from the outside of the ship. As I entered, I noticed the binoculars hanging on a hook next to the door. Not only is this ideal for those who forgot to pack binoculars, but it also helps guests abide by the airline’s weight restrictions, at least those guests who arrive by commercial air. Many guests use their private jets to meet the yacht. Lucky them that they don’t need to tolerate the long layovers in Seattle.
Next to the wall is the bathroom, complete with heated tile floors. Considering that we had just installed the same heated flooring in our master bath, I appreciated the thought put into the design. The bathroom came with a variety of toiletries and fluffy bathrobes.
Just outside of the bathroom and next to the bed was the sink and vanity. This had several drawers for storing both toiletries and clothing. A hairdryer is provided in the drawer as well as water bottles bearing the American Safari logo.
The bed itself was tucked into a corner. The lights on the wall behind the bed were ideal for reading; books could be left on the shelf at the head of the bed. (Please note that my room configuration is not as shown on the diagrams provided on the American Safari website. Don’t want you to think that I have a really bad memory.)The Stearns and Foster mattress provided many comfortable nights of sleep for me. Several pillows on the bed were perfect to rest against when watching DVD’s. More about that later. Under the bed is a deep drawer. This was the perfect spot for me to store my outerwear and heavier clothes. Every night I found a nice chocolate turndown treat.
At the foot of the bed is a closet with a small place for hanging clothes. The atmosphere on this line is casual, so you won’t need room for hanging a tux or formal wear. In fact, nobody except you and the one critical person in every group will care that your clothes aren’t perfectly pressed. There are also several shelves for the rest of your clothing or gear.
On the opposite wall from the vanity is a hinged pull-down desk. This brought back memories of the first apartment I lived in. That was the simplest thing in this area as there was also a flat-screen TV with DVD player and an alarm clock, which also seemed to be an iPod dock. Being older than 12, I had difficulties figuring out how to set the clock and operate that gadget. Those old-fashioned wind-up alarm clocks match my skill level. I did figure out how to play a DVD, a real accomplishment for me. You might be wondering why I would be watching movies when I am in Alaska. I did this during the evening, when I didn’t have to worry about an announcement of a pod of orcas off the port side of the vessel.
There was a small stool to use with this desk and next to that was a regular chair near the window. Although it was possible to open the window, I was advised not to because of the bugs that inhabit Alaska. Fortunately, there is individual temperature control in each stateroom. I never turned on the heat or the air as the temperature was perfect. The room darkening shades on the door and the window left a bit to be desired for somebody like me who prefers pitch black darkness for sleeping. I improved these by simply leaning something against the shades to block out the thin slip of light that attempted to disturb my sleep.
Two nice features in the room were the outlet near the window as well as one on the vanity. There was also a dimmable light, which I appreciated. You might guess that I am not a huge fan of bright and cheery rooms, but much prefer dark and somber.
Don’t forget to listen to my interview with our captain, Tim Voss.
Next time - The food of the Explorer
Sail Away
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