Wanderista

I have a serious allergy to mango, unfortunately. I can't touch them or taste them and I can get sick from cross-contamination. I have to pay careful attention to what I eat and to know what ingredients are in my food. Fish in a tropical sauce? I need to know what the "tropical sauce" is. No eating random, unspecified, risky things.

Fortunately, I've never had a problem with aerosolized food allergy but I have heard of it in relation to peanuts and certain other allergies. It just really depends and the person in question does not have control over the reaction at all.

I never would have considered a cruise before but recently, I have realized that as long as I stay vigilant and do research as well as inform and work with the staff, it can be a good way to travel to regions that might otherwise be difficult for me. It can allow me access to a competent staff that understands food allergy management. It's a real selling point for the idea of cruising for me.

People with allergies still want to enjoy life and experience new things. It's an annoying medical problem but it shouldn't be the end of the world.

You can eat your candy bar tomorrow, but that woman will be dealing with her condition most likely for the rest of her life.

I agree that this is a chocolate vs. vanilla type of debate or like debating airline preferences. I think it's good that the different lines exist and offer options for people. I would rather that they each offer something a bit different and appeal to different cruisers than if they were exactly the same.

These lines were my two options when looking for a Bermuda cruise out of Baltimore. I went with Royal because it seemed like a better fit for me, personally. The "Vegas Style" party atmosphere thing is a turn off for me. I'm early 30s, I guess I'll be happy as long as there's a range of ages among passengers. I'm guessing that might vary depending on the particular cruise. Honestly, if they are polite and respectful, I won't care too much how old or who they are.

I agree that the various "sales" seminars are a turn off and I plan to avoid them. I get very turned off by a pushy sales approach and I have no interest in being pressured to buy things.

I do think food is subjective because I've heard different things from different people about who has the better food. Your opinion is the one that counts when planning your own vacation.

Hamburgers and pizza are nice but I won't make my decisions around them. I actually don't eat that many burgers and when I do, I tend to go for fairly unconventional burgers anyway. I can't see wanting to eat more than one or two burgers during a week and I'd be perfectly happy not eating any. Royal's food has looked preferable to me in the photo reviews that I read through. I guess I will find out in a few weeks if it will work for me.

I think Royal is more my style but I might be up for trying Carnival if I want to go to somewhere like the Bahamas/Grand Turk and if I manage to avoid Spring Break. I think a loud Spring Break party cruise might be my personal definition of Hell.

If you are still interested in switching to My Time dining, go to the MTD desk when you board. They may be able to switch you then.

Thanks very much, I think I'll be able to work with this time but will keep that in mind. I honestly think I am neutral between MTD and late traditional. I could do early if I had to but it would actually be my last choice. (On this particular cruise that wouldn't work because I am doing a long island tour of historic/cultural sites on the port evening). Since it is usually very popular, that shouldn't be an issue.

Thanks for this info. It is big news. I don't really know what the situation will be by the time of my cruise. I will plan to allow extra time for the process.

Err, no plans to request any other compensation than to have a great time on the cruise ... and also to hope that Grandeur avoids crashing into anything. :p

I'm actually glad that the menu won't change before my upcoming cruise because I have a severe food allergy (to mango, unfortunately) and I like knowing the level of the presence of the allergen so that I can plan.

Honestly, if they start using my allergen in a lot more ingredients then that would impact my decision-making if I decide to cruise again in the future. With the current menu, I feel ok with just having the allergy listed on file and with notifying the waitstaff. This is one reason why I am glad that I am doing traditional dining.

Aside from that, I generally like variety. What I've seen of the current menu looks interesting to me. I will have to evaluate the new menu whenever it comes out and see if it would work for me. It would be a factor in deciding future travel plans.

I am a new cruiser and I will be doing the late traditional sitting at 8:30 pm. Honestly, my dining times "in real life" tend to vary but I normally don't eat dinner at 5:30 pm. 7-9 pm is much more my style. If I recall, I think "My Time" dining was booked out as an option on my cruise. I will also be doing a long day in port where the late sitting will be convenient.

I'm pretty sure that I'll be ok with 8:30. If I need light snacking in the mid-late afternoon, I'm sure there are options. I will like not having to wait for dinner. I plan to fill the evenings before dinner with other things. Also, with a lot of people doing dinner earlier, I am thinking that the crowds will thin out around the pool, jacuzzi, etc, in the evenings which I will like.

Sailing out of Baltimore on Grandeur in less than two weeks. I'll board however they tell me to, but wow.

I think it depends on what you are looking for in a ship. My friend who is going to Bermuda with me has just come back from a 10 day cruise on the Grandeur in April. (Yes, she is that lucky). She gave it rave reviews and said that she had a great time with the ship and ports - she went to the Western Caribbean. She especially praised how nice the staff are.

I'm easy to entertain if I have good access to a swimming pool, some lounge time to read and enough other low key stuff.

I did not consider Anthem because I wanted to sail out of Baltimore and it is much more convenient and cost-effective for me. I initially thought that I would not want to consider Anthem in the future, but it is possible. Logistical convenience and cost are the big decisive factors for me though. If I were coming from outside the region, I might choose differently.

I was just looking for a classic and easy cruise to an interesting destination. If I really like Bermuda then I can go back without too much difficulty.

I'm very much looking forward to going to Bermuda soon which is very convenient to me and has special interest because of its heavy British influence. I've lived in the UK previously.

In your situation coming from TX, I would pick Adventure to the ABCs. It is something I might consider doing sometime if I get the chance.

I agree that the time of year would be a factor. I would go to Bermuda in the summer and shoulder months. I would look at the ABCs during the rest of the year.

I think I would generally pick an itinerary over a ship unless I really hated a ship or thought it was lacking things that I particularly enjoy.

This is where I say to each, their own. There are a lot of things that aren't beautiful about capitalism but that is something that definitely is. Everyone can make their own decisions about how and what they buy.

I don't worry much about souvenirs, if I really want something and I can afford it then I get it. I've gotten great stuff while traveling, much of which I make use of or have thoroughly enjoyed. If I am happy with the quality of an item and find the price to be reasonable, then I don't sweat it. I like supporting local vendors in my own small way when I travel.

I am glad to hear about and if possible to avoid places like "Diamonds International" which I've heard about on this board. I actually don't know what that is but I will try to avoid it if I see it while cruising and I can thank CC for knowing about that.

As for cruising, I don't plan to buy too much but if I really want something specific then I will get it.

Beverage package changes can be confusing and deciding whether or not buying the package makes sense for your specific situation can require some thought. I don't see any whining.

I appreciate seeing this info whether or not it applies to me on my particular upcoming cruise.

I'm not much help yet but I'm going on Grandeur as my first cruise in a few weeks. I will be staying on Deck 7. I will be near the forward elevators but not the central ones. Hopefully, it won't be bad. I booked it as a guarantee and it is a lot better room than I expected to get. I'm planning to bring chamomile tea which I have lately discovered will reliably put me to sleep.

Anyway, I'll know more in a few weeks. I think the Canada itinerary looks very interesting and is something I would definitely consider doing. I've been to both New England and part of Canada as land travel and I've always enjoyed it.

I don't get paid vacation leave but I can take leave pretty much whenever I want. This means that I tend to avoid long vacations where I can't work at all. I can work remotely and have more extended vacations when I want, but for a cruise, obviously, that isn't the case.

I have a lot of flexibility as far as the time when I can cruise or travel so I can generally pick the price and itinerary that I want. I'm just not likely to choose a long trip. I think that missing more than about a week of work would be something I would hesitate about.

Scheduling flexibility is one definite plus of my situation though. If I really want to go somewhere then I can. I think I would avoid typical "spring break" season if possible or the Caribbean in high summer. I would consider hurricane season cautiously. I like various types of weather though which also makes me somewhat flexible.

I'm just wanting to add that when I say that RCCL's private excursions are competitive with the private operators, I'm talking specifically about on this ship with its weird port schedule.

The arrival time has you getting there after a lot of the bulk private tours and it also makes it difficult to self-tour the island especially for someone who doesn't know the island well. The ship's easy shore excursions and priority disembarkation and start times become more valuable in that context. I'm not saying that it's great but I can kind of see why they do it like that.

I will say that part of me does like the ability to have lunch on the ship before going off on a tour and then setting myself the goal of being back on the ship to have lunch while sailing away. I would love the option to have more time in Bermuda though.

Even though I'm doing my first cruise as one of the 5 day Bermuda cruises, I would love to see a 7 day option like you see with Carnival or with the East Coast cruises from other ports. I wasn't thrilled with how short the stay in Bermuda is but I booked it because it was a great price and a convenient way to try cruising while checking out Bermuda.

I will say that the weird port schedule meant that my traveling companion and I decided to book a shore excursion directly through RCCL so I can see how this type of cruise is profitable for them. Their shore excursion itineraries are more competitive in terms of costs and scheduling than the private offerings that we saw if you don't have a large private group. Specifically, we booked a long island tour.

I will say that though the port schedule isn't ideal, the cost and convenient dates for the cruise have made it competitive. It was is $300+ cheaper per person than Carnival Pride when I was deciding. I'm just saying that it is priced competitively for an easy 5 day cruise, but I wish the two days were full days.

I would also have loved to see more scheduling variety for Grandeur for next year. Just going to the Bahamas is not that exciting and while I'm looking forward to Bermuda, there are only so many times you can go on a weirdly-scheduled cruise like that. It's good as a taster but definitely not a deep chance to fully experience the island.

Thanks for sharing your perspective!

Everyone is different. I've also found that sometimes I am different depending on my mood and stage of life/travel experience.

I'm at a point where I really want to try cruising and so the opportunity to do it appealed to me just as much as the destination. That said, I'm ok with a 5 night cruise so I can see how I like it. I think I will but at this juncture of my life, it's hard for me to see wanting to go on more than a week-long cruise. That's probably about the max of what I can afford in time off, beverages and fees anyway.

I think I will definitely be able to entertain myself and relax on a cruise. I don't see a lengthy transoceanic cruise in my future anytime soon but I think it's great that they are there for other people. Also, while I'd like to see the Caribbean and think a cruise might be a good way to get a taste of different areas, I'm not someone who wants a lot of intense or loud partying. I'm youngish but I like more sedate relaxation.

Anyway, it's great that there are different options out there for different people. Give me some sea breezes, some pool time, decent food and a few interesting activities and I will be happy. It will be great to explore new places too.

Travel doesn't need to be one size fits all and I'm glad that cruising is an option and that there are many different ways to cruise. :)

Thanks for the continued suggestions!

Thanks for this review! It's great to hear different perspectives & information regarding this ship.

I remember that snowstorm. I spent a lot of days snowed in. That was probably an experience that made me dream of sunny weather in Bermuda ...

Great to hear about your experiences and despite the delay, I'm glad you were able to go. :)

I can only speak as a beginner to cruising.

I picked the itinerary first. I decided that I wanted to go to Bermuda before I decided that I would do a cruise. I then did some research about the island. I considered flying and doing a VRBO or a resort but I was curious to try cruising and it turned out to be the lowest price. I decided that I didn't want to deal with the logistical challenges of getting around the island and the high costs of food that is almost never included. As I was interested in trying a cruise anyway, I decided that it was the way to go. It was also the best price.

I really only looked at going out of Baltimore because it's convenient and the prices were good. I then debated the cruiseline for a while but I got a price that I was happy with and this itinerary will be easy. It also worked for my friend who is going. I read a lot of reviews and decided to try Royal. I went with a 5 day on Royal instead of a 7 day on Carnival but I considered both, it was $300+pp less. I guess ultimately interest in trying the ship/cruiseline was the final decider.

If I look at another cruise, I'll probably be a bit similar. I'll look for an itinerary I want at a price that I'm comfortable with. I might be more flexible on port for a good price. I will probably be willing to consider the different cruiselines, so whoever offers a deal that I want would get my business. I'd probably be a little flexible about the actual ship.

On FOS, at least, there were no self-serve flavored water places. And while I never got an ingredient list, the possibility of those having *real* fruit in them seems rather low to me. But at Windjammer even the coffee is being handed to you now, it's not self-service.

 

If you drink a lot of bottled water, if you put a value in spring water (vs desalinated water from the ship), you could consider the Evian water package. 12 liters of water delivered to your room for $39 plus the gratuity. More than you'd pay for it on land, but still, a nice option. My son and I got the water packages and paid for everything else OOP. DH got Replenish and finally realized that it's not a good value for him. I'm sure he'll join in on the water package in the future. (there's something about the ship-made water that makes us swell like crazy, and it doesn't happen when we drink the bottled spring water)

Thanks, this is really worth thinking about. I could also take the water on excursions as well. I'm not decided yet but this is good info that I'll take into consideration.

Thanks for talking about this. I've been going back and forth about whether I want this package and it may be something where I need to see the physical layout of the ship to know if this is something I will use or not. I've looked at deckplans but it is still kind of abstract.

Initially I was nervous that I might go thirsty without a package but it sounds like a lot of stuff is actually included as free. I'm also allergic to mango so I'm not sure how that will factor into what I can drink. I'm sensitive to cross-contamination, so self-serve stations with mango juice are a no-go for me.

I'm someone who does drink a lot of fluids like bottled water on land but my cruise is only 5 days and some of that will be spent over-nighting in port. Basically, I haven't figured out if this package will be worth it, but I might need to see it in person to know.

I just wanted to chime in and say I love your CC name :D Enjoy your cruise and let us know if you get bitten by the bug.

 

I have substantially new to add to the thread, although I agree with most that has been posted. My favorite cruise of all time had the most active Roll Call and I still am in contact with the friends I made there... but my upcoming Europe cruise is very very quiet.

 

We love meeting new people on the ship and I am sorry that there seems to be fewer opportunities to interact and do so.

Thanks very much! Will do.

I hope that you have a great time in Europe. I'm definitely jealous of that. :)

You can make reservations in advanced if you get "My Time" dining. So, for a party of 5, you can request a dining time for the party and say that you'd rather not share. That's probably what I would do in that situation. I would make a reservation in advance.

Someone with more experience can tell you how to do that. I don't have "My Time" so I don't know. I do know that you can do it before the sailing or on the ship by going to the dining room or by calling them from your room.

"My Time" was booked out on my sailing so my choices were either early or late traditional. It seems to vary depending on the sailing which one is more popular.

This board was recommended by a smaller travel board as the place to go for cruising information. I started kicking around the idea of a cruise to Bermuda and here I am. I'm around 30. I never thought about cruising when I was younger because of bad stereotypes mostly related to college Spring Breakers. Now that I'm safely away from that demographic myself, I am interested in trying something new.

This board is definitely a great resource and has answered a lot of my questions as I figure the whole thing out. Now I'm excited and it's good to have an outlet for the excitement. I honestly have no clue what my vacation plans next year will be. I am guessing that I'll have a great time on this cruise and will be very willing to cruise again but I will be open to other options as well. Maybe I'll do a New England cruise or maybe I'll fly to Iceland. I'm not used to booking travel plans far in advance as the norm seems to be for cruising. A few months early is more usual for me though if I want another cruise, I will look earlier than I do for flights.

There's no Roll Call for my sailing (though there are for nearly every other sailing on the ship lol). I have no clue who will be on my cruise but I'll see how it goes. I've lived in Europe and I speak French, a little Italian and a little German, so I do enjoy meeting some Europeans if that is who it turns out to be.

We're going on an RCI excursion/tour so I'm sure I'll meet some people that way. We also have traditional dining, so we might meet some tablemates. I would have been willing to join a private tour if I'd had an active Roll Call, but it's no big deal. I am finding the board to be helpful anyway.