“Suite: v spacious. Shower – expansive,” my first dot points note approvingly. It doesn’t take long for the first exclamation mark to appear. “Charging options – so many!” And it’s true. Looking to charge your devices? There is no shortage of options. Bedside universal power points, phone charge points, even a wireless charging pad are all ready and waiting.

The exclamation marks keep coming. “Pools – 4!!” is followed by “mango chia pudding!!!!” It is not the mango chia pudding itself that launches the avalanche of exclamation marks (although it is very good) but the glass bowl in which it is served.

For some reason, chia pudding is often delivered in a narrow-neck vessel, requiring you to wield your spoon with a certain dexterity. Onboard Explora II, chia pudding comes in a wide bowl that makes it easy to scoop up every last morsel. It is a small yet telling sign – this company doesn’t do anything on auto-pilot.

Explora Journeys has certainly made a big impact in a short time. Luxury cruise lines tend to build a reputation slowly: Silversea and Viking have been around since the 1990s, Seabourn since the 1980s. Cunard goes all the way back to 1840.

So it is remarkable that in just three years, and with just two ships, Explora has already established itself as a company to watch. By 2030, when it will have a fleet of six ships – it will be a major player.

“The [passenger] feedback has been phenomenal,” says Anna Nash, Explora Journeys’ president. “We were sailing both ships full in the season, and we’ve definitely got our eyes on the horizon.”

Explora has been up-front about targeting first-time cruisers, people who are happy to spend big on high-end hotels but have never considered cruising. “Over 30 per cent of our guests are first time-cruisers, and that’s growing,” Nash says.

They are not the only ones pursuing that demographic. Hotel groups such as Four Seasons and Aman – where Anna Nash spent a decade before joining Explora Journeys in 2024 – have recently launched their own motor yachts, aiming to lure their existing guests onto the high seas. Nash is confident that a mid-size ship like Explora II, with its 461 ocean-facing suites, offers a more appealing experience.

“Every guest wants a choice of where to eat tonight,” she says. “If you want to feel social, you can but if you want to retreat, you can always find a cabana or a space that’s your own. And I think that’s something that’s going to be very difficult to find on a smaller ship.”

Indeed, the smartest decision made by Explora’s owners, the deep-pocketed Aponte family (Explora is part of their MSC Group, which also includes MSC Cruises), was getting both the size and the layout of the ships right.

Explora II may offer the variety of a large ship – its dining venues, for instance, include a steak house, a fine-diner and a chic buffet outlet as well as Mediterranean, French and Asian restaurants – but it has the welcoming feel of a much smaller vessel, thanks to a design that eschews scale in favour of intimacy.

Restaurants such as Fil Rouge, which offers a la carte breakfast as well as French bistro fare, have a winding layout which disguises just how large they are. Instead of one main pool, they have positioned four smaller pools around the ship: the ones at the bow and at the stern have particularly impressive outlooks. Even the hefty array of Technogym equipment can be found in quiet corners of the ship – outdoors and undercover, facing out to sea – as well as in the gym.

That clever design thinking is coupled with the sort of attentive service you just won’t find on larger ships. The first time I head to Sakura, the Asian restaurant, and give my (German) name, I’m asked whether I would prefer a menu in German or English. Every time I breakfast at Fil Rouge, where I can’t get enough of the swoon-worthy Normandy butter, the waiters keep an eye out and promptly bring a second serve if I’m running low.

One other aspect of Explora guaranteed to appeal to Australians is its all-inclusive rate, which cover everything from excursions to in-room dining, specialty coffees to gratuities. Even though Australia isn’t yet included in Explora’s itineraries – we will have to wait until 2029 for our first visit – Australians are already the fourth-largest passenger contingent after the U.S, the U.K and Germany.