Baltimore looses out again

[howiefrommd]

I am not much for posting on the boards, but I must say I am quite disappointed that Baltimore is loosing Mercury and also her replacement. We live 40 minutes away and have taken several Celebrity cruises (Galaxy and Mercury) and have enjoyed them greatly. Hopefully we will get a replacement.

[BonnieVA]

Lots of mixed feelings here on CC about this. There are a bunch of threads about it now. I know I am very disappointed since Balt is about a 3-hr drive for me ... very reasonable. Folks on the W coast are pretty happy, though, & Century's new itinerary does sound pretty awesome. But it IS sad to see X pulling out of the mid-Atlantic area. Maybe we'll get them back in fall '12 ... we can always hope :rolleyes:.

[ocbeachbums]

Hoping Celebrity will bring another ship into Baltimore. It's soooo nice not to have to fly for every cruise!!!

[madelinerose]

Hoping Celebrity will bring another ship into Baltimore. It's soooo nice not to have to fly for every cruise!!!

 

Doesn't look like any time soon. Yes, I'm bummed also and I live even closer to the port than the OP.

 

http://www.wbaltv.com/news/24321443/detail.html

 

There's always the Silhouette out of Bayonne. We can drive, Amtrak it or hopefully use Entertainment Tours from Baltimore, not OC. ;)

[scf1270]

Hopefully they will return to Baltimore in the future. We are just 4+ hours away by car and have family in the DC area. Would also like to see 7 days cruises from there, but that might overlap the Bayonne market.

 

Have cruised out of Bayonne and will do so again. Flying the family to FL is about $1000 each time. Last time we flew (really, really cheap flights) and stayed a couple of extra nights with NYC family. The cost of private transportation from NYC to the port is crazy, ridiculous, and nuts!!!! :mad: Next time we will drive. Cheaper to pay for NYC parking for a couple of nights, plus parking at the port. There are also some hotels near by that you can stay pre-cruise and park for free. That's on several other threads.

[madelinerose]

The cost of private transportation from NYC to the port is crazy, ridiculous, and nuts!!!! :mad: Next time we will drive. Cheaper to pay for NYC parking for a couple of nights, plus parking at the port. There are also some hotels near by that you can stay pre-cruise and park. That's on several other threads.

 

 

Yes, in NJ there are several cruise & park hotel options, but not in Manhattan.

 

We're used to paying high prices for parking, so it's not that much of a shock to DH and me. Recently, we paid $37.50/night for valet parking at a DC hotel.

 

Here's the Cape Liberty thread where there's lots of info on the NJ park and cruise hotels: ;)

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1160277

[Bozo]

Hoping Celebrity will bring another ship into Baltimore. It's soooo nice not to have to fly for every cruise!!!

 

I don't think you will see Celebrity in Baltimore any time soon what ship can they possibly bring in? All the M class ships are deployed Mercury will be gone and Century going to Australia no other ships available.

[Happy Clam]

I am not much for posting on the boards, but I must say I am quite disappointed that Baltimore is loosing Mercury and also her replacement. We live 40 minutes away and have taken several Celebrity cruises (Galaxy and Mercury) and have enjoyed them greatly. Hopefully we will get a replacement.

 

I second! We are in Virginia, but Baltimore is our most convenient port. Why is Celebrity pulling out? Will we get a replacement? Surely hope so. Celebrity are you listening? Please put Baltimore back on your schedule!!

[caribbeanboy]

Didn't RCI sent the Enchantment to Baltimore?

[BonnieVA]

I don't think you will see Celebrity in Baltimore any time soon what ship can they possibly bring in? All the M class ships are deployed Mercury will be gone and Century going to Australia no other ships available.

 

Hello? Celebrity? Don't forget about NORFOLK!!!!! I know it's not as centrally located but it IS a nice port & it's underused ... & you can put bigger ships there!

[E-burgGrammy]

I thought I read somewhere that the Century was coming to Baltimore, I could be wrong but that is what I thought I saw somewhere.

[BonnieVA]

I thought I read somewhere that the Century was coming to Baltimore, I could be wrong but that is what I thought I saw somewhere.

 

For a moment in time, yes, X planned on sailing the Century from Baltimore starting fall '11. But that quickly changed - no more Balt sailings. Century's going to Australia, etc. :(

[E-burgGrammy]

Thanks for the information, what a shame.

[excitedofharpenden]

Baltimore seems to have had an on/off relationship with Celebrity which is a shame because we left from there a few years ago and really enjoyed it. I think the issue used to be the lack of investment in the cruise port at Baltimore. Aside from the cruise port buildings, Galaxy got stuck for a few hours because the water wasn't dredged deep enough and it got caught by the tide. Has that all been put right now?

 

It does come down to money and the new itineraries look great. Celebrity obviously feel they may make better money from the new sailings and are willing to give it a try again. To my mind it gives them a much more "Worldwide" feel and I'll definitely be looking at the new itineraries when they are out.

 

Phil

[zebra36]

Sorry to see the change in plans. I have taken a few Celebrity cruises out of the port of Baltimore, just a 20-25 min cab ride away. The Enchantment is now here so I will have to take a closer look at that one.

[caribbeanboy]

Sorry to see the change in plans. I have taken a few Celebrity cruises out of the port of Baltimore, just a 20-25 min cab ride away. The Enchantment is now here so I will have to take a closer look at that one.

 

Enchantment is the ship (see below) that made me fall in love with cruising!

[lurkster]

Last year Mercury tried to disembark at low tide, they couldn't get the hysters on board or close enough to offload. After dumping one rack of luggage, they shifted water balast enough to tilt the cargo doors to offload. Our bags were on the dumped rack, not wet, just took 2 hours to find all the bags. Wasn't a happy camper. LOL

[CrabbyHarper]

Regardless of whose "fault" it is - Port of Baltimore or X, I too am disappointed that Celebrity is pulling out. Sailed out of Baltimore four times and am booked on Mercury for Nov 2009. Will have to take a good hard look at Enchantment of the Seas.

 

We can do Cape Liberty fairly easily, but much prefer good ol' Bawlamer.

[madelinerose]

Why is Celebrity pulling out? Will we get a replacement?

 

No replacement. No Celebrity from Baltimore.

 

http://www.wbaltv.com/news/24321443/detail.html

 

http://www.cruisecritic.com/news/news.cfm?ID=3997

[PSCruiser]

I, also, am bummed about the loss of a ship at Baltimore. However, pricing for cruises out of Baltimore makes me think that bookings are slow. We are booked on Enchantment for December, and have already gotten 2 price drops. I know that fares are also relatively low on Pride and Mercury. If there is not enough support for Baltimore that they can command decent fares, ships are not going to stay there. I wish the Port of Baltimore could do more in the way of PR to get people to realize that even in cold weather, there will be plenty to do onboard (including the indoor pools), and also that it doesn't take all that long to get south enough for warmth.

[dutchess43]

I too am disappointed that the Mercury is leaving the fleet. We are considering the 12/11/10 9 day Bahamas out of Baltimore what would be the better side to book a balcony cabin port or starboard? We have not been to Charlston any recommedations what we should see?

[madelinerose]

I, also, am bummed about the loss of a ship at Baltimore. However, pricing for cruises out of Baltimore makes me think that bookings are slow. We are booked on Enchantment for December, and have already gotten 2 price drops. I know that fares are also relatively low on Pride and Mercury. If there is not enough support for Baltimore that they can command decent fares, ships are not going to stay there. I wish the Port of Baltimore could do more in the way of PR to get people to realize that even in cold weather, there will be plenty to do onboard (including the indoor pools), and also that it doesn't take all that long to get south enough for warmth.

 

 

I find the prices for Enchantment incredibly high for a ship that's almost 14 years old. Glad to hear of your price drops. ;)

 

I don't think it's up to the Port of Baltimore to advise cruisers on the utilization of a ship. There's hundred of posts right here on CC regarding how long before hitting "warm weather" from Baltimore. I would think most people check a weather site or simply understand that cruising from a Mid-Atlantic port is not the same as cruising from Florida, regardless of the season, and it may take 1-3 days before the outdoor decks can be enjoyed.

 

For those who are interested in cruising, imo, the word about Baltimore is already out there. According to Cruise Maryland, approximately 40 million people are within a 6-hour drive to Baltimore. Link is from 2009:

 

http://www.cruisemaryland.com/gov_idx.htm

 

It's just a shame that Carnival Pride is the only year round ship since Carnival isn't for everyone, but it certainly sails full. I have no idea why Celebrity and Baltimore have this on again/off again relationship.

 

There are 2 CCers that I'm aware of who work at the Port of Baltimore. Perhaps they'll chime in. ;)

[dutchess43]

I am also looking for info regarding parking at the terminal in Baltimore.

[Room Service!]

Duchess43. What did you want to know about parking? Last year we paid $15.00 a day. Believe it's the same now.

[madelinerose]

I am also looking for info regarding parking at the terminal in Baltimore.

 

The photo on the home page shows the parking lot right next to the ship.

 

http://www.cruisemaryland.com/cruises/page6a_directions.htm