''Explorer of the Seas'' is a owned and operated by

Royal Caribbean International Royal Caribbean International (RCI), also formerly known as Royal Caribbean Cruise Line (RCCL), is a cruise line brand founded in 1968 in Norway and organised as a wholly owned subsidiary of Royal Caribbean Group since 1997. Based in Miami, Flori ...

, completed in 2000. She can accommodate over 3,000 guests, including scientists making use of a built-in

atmospheric An atmosphere () is a layer of gas or layers of gases that envelop a planet, and is held in place by the gravity of the planetary body. A planet retains an atmosphere when the gravity is great and the temperature of the atmosphere is low. A s ...

and

oceanographic Oceanography (), also known as oceanology and ocean science, is the scientific study of the oceans. It is an Earth science, which covers a wide range of topics, including ecosystem dynamics; ocean currents, waves, and geophysical fluid dynamics ...

laboratory A laboratory (; ; colloquially lab) is a facility that provides controlled conditions in which scientific or technological research, experiments, and measurement may be performed. Laboratory services are provided in a variety of settings: physicia ...

operated by the

University of Miami The University of Miami (UM, UMiami, Miami, U of M, and The U) is a private research university in Coral Gables, Florida. , the university enrolled 19,096 students in 12 colleges and schools across nearly 350 academic majors and programs, incl ...

Rosenstiel School of Marine and Atmospheric Science The Rosenstiel School of Marine and Atmospheric Science (RSMAS ) is the University of Miami's academic and research institution for the study of oceanography and atmospheric sciences. Founded in 1943, the University of Miami's Rosenstiel Schoo ...

. The lab with its attendant educational and outreach programs for passengers was discontinued in 2007.

History

The ''Explorer of the Seas'' was completed in 2000 and has the capacity of 3,000 passengers. An automated system for gathering data was installed in 2008.) At launch, ''Explorer of the Seas'' had a tonnage of , exceeding that of her sister ship ''

Voyager of the Seas Voyager may refer to: Computing and communications * LG Voyager, a mobile phone model manufactured by LG Electronics * NCR Voyager, a computer platform produced by NCR Corporation * Voyager (computer worm), a computer worm affecting Oracle da ...

'' by 32 GT and making her the world's largest passenger ship. She held that record until being overtaken by '' Navigator of the Seas'' in 2002. In early 2015, ''Explorer of the Seas'' received major upgrades, including the replacement of the inline skating rink with a Flowrider surfing simulator and increasing her tonnage to 138,194 GT. The ship's godmother is

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, pe ...

athlete

Jackie Joyner-Kersee Jacqueline Joyner-Kersee (born March 3, 1962) is a retired American track and field athlete, ranked among the all-time greatest athletes in the heptathlon as well as long jump. She won three gold, one silver, and two bronze Olympic medals in tho ...

. In 2019 September, it was announced that the ship will get a refurbishment with $110 million in makeovers before it’s 2020 summer season. The refurbishment that was to take place under the amplification program in 2020 was delayed indefinitely due to the COVID pandemic, instead only technical refurbishment took place. In July 2021, the ship was used to house some rescue workers and other officials involved in the rescue and recovery effort of the

Surfside condominium building collapse On June 24, 2021, at approximately 1:22 a.m. EDT, Champlain Towers South, a 12-story beachfront condominium in the Miami suburb of Surfside, Florida, United States, partially collapsed, causing the death of 98 people. Four people were ...

Ports of call

A huge cruise ship visiting Sydney Bridge Harbour

In fall 2014, she sailed 5 to 9 day Caribbean cruises out of

Port Canaveral Port Canaveral is a cruise, cargo, and naval port in Brevard County, Florida, United States. It is one of the busiest cruise ports in the world with 4.5 million cruise passengers passing through during 2016. Over 5.4 million tonnes of bulk car ...

Florida Florida is a state located in the Southeastern region of the United States. Florida is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the northwest by Alabama, to the north by Georgia, to the east by the Bahamas and Atlantic Ocean, and to ...

. After dry-dock refurbishment in the spring of 2015, ''Explorer'' began to sail Northern Europe, Mediterranean, and Madeira, Azores and Canary Islands itineraries out of

Southampton Southampton () is a port city in the ceremonial county of Hampshire in southern England. It is located approximately south-west of London and west of Portsmouth. The city forms part of the South Hampshire built-up area, which also covers Po ...

Hampshire Hampshire (, ; abbreviated to Hants) is a ceremonial county, ceremonial and non-metropolitan county, non-metropolitan counties of England, county in western South East England on the coast of the English Channel. Home to two major English citi ...

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and North ...

. From November 2015 to 23 April 2016 ''Explorer of the Seas'' was based in

Sydney, Australia Sydney ( ) is the capital city of the States and territories of Australia, state of New South Wales, and the most populous city in both Australia and List of cities in Oceania by population, Oceania. Located on Australia's east coast, the metro ...

, for the summer cruise season. A 24-day cruise relocated the ship to

Seattle Seattle ( ) is a seaport city on the West Coast of the United States. It is the seat of King County, Washington. With a 2020 population of 737,015, it is the largest city in both the state of Washington and the Pacific Northwest regio ...

for the summer 2016 season. In 2019 January, the ship brings 4,000 passengers to

Wollongong Wollongong ( ), colloquially referred to as The Gong, is a city located in the Illawarra region of New South Wales, Australia. The name is believed to originate from the Dharawal language, meaning either 'five islands/clouds', 'ground near wate ...

. Starting in 2021, Explorer of the Seas will sail out of

San Juan San Juan, Spanish for Saint John, may refer to: Places Argentina * San Juan Province, Argentina * San Juan, Argentina, the capital of that province * San Juan, Salta, a village in Iruya, Salta Province * San Juan (Buenos Aires Underground), ...

and will be traveling through the southern Caribbean.

Accidents and incidents

Rescue of ''Tumbleweed''

On 16 February 2008, while en route from Bayonne, New Jersey, on a nine-day cruise to the Caribbean the bridge crew heard a faint mayday call over the radio. This turned out to be the crew from ''Tumbleweed'', a 39-foot sailing vessel, which had a planned sail from Baltimore to the Florida Keys. The crew reportedly had a mechanical breakdown of both engine and sails. The vessel drifted for 11 days to the location N32.35 W 72.49–roughly 275 miles southeast of North Carolina. ''Explorer of the Seas'' located and rescued the three men, who then departed the ship in Puerto Rico on 21 February 2008.

Crew overboard

On 5 May 2010, 26-year-old bartender Satianand Buddaru was caught on surveillance jumping overboard. The ship turned around to rescue him but was unable to locate the bartender.

''Norwegian Star'' collision

On 14 September 2012, ''Explorer of the Seas'' was moored in

Bermuda ) , anthem = "God Save the King" , song_type = National song , song = " Hail to Bermuda" , image_map = , map_caption = , image_map2 = , mapsize2 = , map_caption2 = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = , e ...

when heavy winds pushed

Norwegian Cruise Line Norwegian Cruise Line (NCL), also known in short as Norwegian, is an American cruise line founded in 1966, incorporated in Bermuda and headquartered in Miami. It is the fourth-largest cruise line in the world by passengers, controlling about 8.6 ...

's ''

Norwegian Star ''Norwegian Star'' is a ''Dawn''-class cruise ship operated by Norwegian Cruise Line (NCL). Ordered by and intended for Star Cruises, it was originally named ''SuperStar Libra'' before being transferred to NCL. ''Norwegian Star'' is a Panamax ...

'' at its stern. Neither ship suffered any significant damage.

Norovirus outbreak

On 24 January 2014, 281 passengers and 22 crew members aboard ''Explorer of the Seas'' fell ill, reporting symptoms of vomiting and

diarrhea Diarrhea, also spelled diarrhoea, is the condition of having at least three loose, liquid, or watery bowel movements each day. It often lasts for a few days and can result in dehydration due to fluid loss. Signs of dehydration often begin wi ...

. Due to the number of passengers sick, the

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is the national public health agency of the United States. It is a United States federal agency, under the Department of Health and Human Services, and is headquartered in Atlanta, Georgi ...

sent a Sanitation Program Officer and an

epidemiologist Epidemiology is the study and analysis of the distribution (who, when, and where), patterns and risk factor, determinants of health and disease conditions in a defined population. It is a cornerstone of public health, and shapes policy decision ...

to the ship on Sunday, 26 January 2014, when it was docked in St. Thomas. By 27 January 2014 the number of ill increased to 564 passengers and 47 crew members and a decision was made to end the cruise early. After ''Explorer of the Seas'' returned to port, 684 of the 4,237 aboard had symptoms of

norovirus Norovirus, sometimes referred to as the winter vomiting disease, is the most common cause of gastroenteritis. Infection is characterized by non-bloody diarrhea, vomiting, and stomach pain. Fever or headaches may also occur. Symptoms usually deve ...

Gastro outbreak

On 16 December 2015, A total of 182 passengers out of the 3,566 on board Explorer of the Seas contracted

infectious diarrhea Gastroenteritis, also known as infectious diarrhea and gastro, is an inflammation of the gastrointestinal tract including the stomach and intestine. Symptoms may include diarrhea, vomiting, and abdominal pain. Fever, lack of energy, and dehydr ...

. The ship's operator contacted South Eastern Sydney Local Health District before arriving in Sydney at 6am. None of the passengers were taken to hospital. It was also on this cruise that all of the passengers on board experienced a freak storm on 15 December 2015. During this storm the ship experienced a crosswind of 150 knots (277.8 km/h) and the ship listed to the port side by 10 degrees. On 4 November 2019, the ship was forced to delay her arrival back in

due to the heavy storms battering in the UK to Western Europe.

Coronavirus pandemic

During the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identif ...

, the

(CDC) reported that at least one passenger had tested positive for

Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS‑CoV‑2) is a strain of coronavirus that causes COVID-19 (coronavirus disease 2019), the respiratory illness responsible for the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. The virus previously had a No ...

within 14 days of disembarking from the ship on its voyage from 8 to 15 March 2020.

References

External links

*
Voyager-Class.com
- the largest online resource for information & pictures of the Voyager-class ships
Miramar Ship Index - ''Explorer of the Seas''
{{DEFAULTSORT:Explorer of the Seas 1999 ships Maritime incidents in 2008 Maritime incidents in 2012 Maritime incidents in 2014 Ships of Royal Caribbean International Ships built in Turku