Baltimore as a departure port? Who knew! Hail to Royal Carib

[B-52]

And when you drive to the port, You can't beat the parking!!

 

[B-52]

Since I only live 2-1/2 hours from Baltimore I would love to see more ships from Baltimore. Merry Christmas everyone!

 

 

Unfortunately, the size of ships are limited due to the clearance under the bridges heading down the Chesapeake.

[crusinmama06]

What is it, 3 1/2 - 4 hours for you, Michele?

 

Good deal!

 

3 hours, 26 minutes -- or less if I am driving :D

[DanJ]

I can't see the need for a new terminal there unless it was in Annapolis, so that larger ships could go there. Quite a ways out from Baltimore though. The current terminal is fine and large enough to handle the ships they get (which can't be any larger anyway), and I don't think they have the frontage to put 2 ships in there at the same time.

[juliang]

Juliang mentioned that she thought that RC was eliminating Samana as a stop and adding Antigua in 2011. Does anyone know this for a fact and if so when it would take place? I wonder if they would change all ready set itineraries? We are doing Enchantment in May out of Baltimore and would welcome such a change. Also agree that Baltimore is a great departure port and driving to it makes it even better. We drive from Cincinnati- just a good day's drive and much simpler than flying.

 

we booked the same cruise for next dec 5th, 2011..they have antigua on the itin instead of samana. go to cruise.com and pull up the sailing of the enchantment, dec. 2011. the site also gives you a preview/link of antigua

[SUOrange61]

My wife and I were on the same cruise and had the pleasure of dining with Julian. By far I agree with everything he says. RCI has an outstanding ship leaving from a little know port which = great value for the price. As for being smokey I don't smoke and I really never noticed any area being saturated with smoke. My wife on the other hand did notice a smokey area in the casino, which she says she saw groups of people that would step two feet into the casino and light up and then leave after sending smoke into the adjacent common areas near the theater. This was our first cruise on RCI and found everything beyond our expectation. We put down our deposit for our next cruise TBD and we cant wait.

 

Nick R.

[Jeepers385]

We did the Nov. 27 sailing and loved the convenience of driving 1 1/2 hrs, convenient parking and easy off and on 95. We also booked next Dec 5, 2011 and can't wait. This year we did the express walk off and I was home by 10:30 and at work by 11:00, next year I'll be retired so I don't care what time I get off the ship :D.

[TPKeller]

I can't see the need for a new terminal there unless it was in Annapolis, so that larger ships could go there. Quite a ways out from Baltimore though. The current terminal is fine and large enough to handle the ships they get (which can't be any larger anyway), and I don't think they have the frontage to put 2 ships in there at the same time.

I believe we've determined that Radiance class ships could fit. That would be a huge draw for a mid-Atlantic port.

 

Theron

[Radio]

I believe we've determined that Radiance class ships could fit. That would be a huge draw for a mid-Atlantic port.

 

Theron

 

Yes, that is right. Celebrity Millennium Class can also make it all the way to the Port of Baltimore. . .

 

You may see an announcement soon that Cruise Maryland will enlarge to berth 2 ships. . .

 

Radio

;);)

 

 

.

[B-52]

I can't see the need for a new terminal there unless it was in Annapolis, so that larger ships could go there. Quite a ways out from Baltimore though. The current terminal is fine and large enough to handle the ships they get (which can't be any larger anyway), and I don't think they have the frontage to put 2 ships in there at the same time.

 

 

They do need to re-design the luggage drop off. You unload your luggage and it stays on the transport carriers till full, all out in the open.

Our last cruise, we checked in early, and watched from our balcony as arriving passengers went through this process in a heavy thunderstorm/downpour that lasted the rest of the afternoon.

Fellow passengers told us stories all week about their luggage/belongings soaking wet!!

[mrmj]

we are thinking of driving from Toronto to Baltimore for a February or March cruise. any comments on the weather and leaving from Baltimore at this time of the year.

[DanJ]

The Radiance and Millenium classes aren't much different in size and passenger load than the Pride and Enchantment, and the Enchantment is longer than those as well. So, no changes needed to handle those ships. Of course, to handle 2 ships, then they would need to expand. One of the cargo terminals to the east would need to be removed for more parking, and another would need to be converted for passenger use. I think it would be a zoo around that area to handle 2 ships at a time though. I do agree that they should come up with a new system to deal with luggage being exposed to the elements though.

 

I would love to see some different ship options from there, as I'm not too interested in repeating a ship and the Enchantment doesn't seem to be a huge draw to me for some reason.

[Fun2snorkel]

I was also on this sailing and had such a good time! Don't forget to go to the Jump Zone - SO MUCH FUN!! And I am not a Spring Chicken!!

 

I think people used the Casino to smoke when they did not want to go outside on those cold and windy days! Also the Casino was smoke free on Formal nights.

[Darkwolfe]

It would be great to drive to port rather than fly. I wonder when they'll get a ship into the port of Wichita, KS? ;)

 

Just get the ship up the Miss to St Louis and we can drive the rest of the way. Carpool? ;)

[elhenry]

we are thinking of driving from Toronto to Baltimore for a February or March cruise. any comments on the weather and leaving from Baltimore at this time of the year.

 

Baltimore in February can be snowy and cold, but not anything like Canada. However, we are not accustomed to cleaning up the snow like Canada either, so traveling on I-95 would be a real crapshoot that time of year if a storm hits. But that is a real big "if".

 

The first one and a half days of sailing will be probably be cold and the Atlantic is rougher than the Caribbean.

 

But hey it beats being on land in cold...

 

el henry

[starlake]

I love sailing out of Baltimore. We have sailed on the Grandeur, Enchantment, and the Celebrity Mercury. I am really sorry that Celebrity will not have any ships sailing out of there after Feb. 14. The port is really easy to get to, and we normally stay the night before in the Inner Harbor and there is plenty to do there.

To the OP, I am so glad you enjoyed Capt. Rob, he is so funny, isn't he. We are sailing in March and he will be on vacation. I am disappointed he will not be there.

[earlynurse]

I have been on cruises before, but this time I thought, I would try RCCL. I was a little hesitant about booking, but seeing as I live in Baltimore, am taking my 2 daughters and granddaughter and 2 nieces, I felt trying to get this crew to Florida would cause me more gray hairs than I have. So on April 11, 2011 we will be sailing out of Baltimore on the Enchantment of the Seas. I am 30 minutes at most from the port. After all the reading I have done, I feel that I have made a fantastic decision. So off we go. Anyone else sailing on april 11, 2011?

 

 

[BillOh]

St Maarten—no excursion here. Why? There is a great beach right in front of the main shopping drag..we did shopping—prices better

 

Do you remember the beach name? We will be there in May. I would consider driving to Baltimore for a summer cruise, but we can't do 12 day cruises right now, but will keep this in mind. Great review, thanks for posting.

[allentownahoy]

Do you remember the beach name? We will be there in May. I would consider driving to Baltimore for a summer cruise, but we can't do 12 day cruises right now, but will keep this in mind. Great review, thanks for posting.

 

The Beach is called Great Bay and whereas it looks lovely it is polluted by sewage runoff. You do not want to actually go in the water. If you are just planning to sunbathe it is fine.

[dcronin]

Is it true that cruise prices tend to be higher out of Baltimore - or do the prices drop closer to sailing. I am looking at 6 cabins to Bermuda on RCI June 11th. The lowest price for 5 days is $769.00 pp.

[DanJ]

Is it true that cruise prices tend to be higher out of Baltimore - or do the prices drop closer to sailing. I am looking at 6 cabins to Bermuda on RCI June 11th. The lowest price for 5 days is $769.00 pp.

 

I think they are higher in the warmer weather seasons, because you get a lot of families and there isn't as much competition from other ships and other ports. We paid a lot more for our Carnival cruise out of Baltimore in summer 2009 than we did for a Princess cruise in Jan 2008. But, I have seen some cheaper fares in January/Feb as well, so it depends on what season you are after. I find most of the RCI northeast fares to be pretty high as well.

[crusinmama06]

Is it true that cruise prices tend to be higher out of Baltimore - or do the prices drop closer to sailing. I am looking at 6 cabins to Bermuda on RCI June 11th. The lowest price for 5 days is $769.00 pp.

 

June 11th is after the schools let out around here so you will be hard pressed to see the prices drop. I have been watching those prices actually rise. And I keep an eye on them every year out of NJ and Baltimore, they always rise for that week. If they didn't, then I would have hopped on one. ;)

 

The 2 weeks before that week, I usually see a slight price drop in some categories for the Balitmore and NJ cruises. But the first week that school lets out, no price drop. :( No need to, the cruise is full. Its in high demand.

[Tony O]

Nedd to repost comment

[Tony O]

Could anyone verify that Samana will be dropped in favor of Antigua as OP stated?

[Ocean Dancer]

if it is rumored that baltimore is expanding to host two cruise ships at once, and it is fact that the mercury is leaving in feb, any other ships/lines waiting to sail from baltimore?:confused: