Grandeur 7-19-13 to 7-26-13 Review

[KelJ]

Grandeur of the Seas, July 19 to July 26, 2013

 

About us: From Pennsylvania. Me (47), Boyfriend (46), Daughter (20), Sons (14, 18, 21). BF, DS-21 and I are diamond C&A members. DD-20, DS-14 and DS-18 had never cruised before. We were originally booked on the 7-5-13 Grandeur sailing but had to reschedule due to the fire.

 

Captain: Trond Holm. Cruise Director: John Perry.

 

Cabins: JS-8564, I-2544, I-2546

 

Day 1: Drove to Baltimore (just over a three-hour drive), arrived early (9:45). Waited in car line for 30 to 45 minutes until we could drop off luggage. What a hot day…101 degrees! Dropping off luggage was very congested. Also, they divide you into various lanes before they permit you to enter, and many people who got there after us were let in before we were. At other ports I've been to, you pull into a parking spot to drop off your luggage. In Baltimore, there are two lanes, and about three cars can drop off luggage at one time in each lane. If you are behind a car of people with a lot of luggage or who have to take luggage off the roof rack or are just generally slow and disorganized, you get stuck behind them because you can't pull through until they do. Also, if you need luggage tags (which we did for one cabin because of a last-minute upgrade from the upgrade fairy), you have to get tags from the luggage tag tent before you get into the car line so it causes you to lose your place in line. Again, at other ports, this was done as we dropped our luggage off to the porters.

 

As we unloaded the luggage from the car, the porter told us that no wine could be in our checked bags, that it had to be in our carry-ons. While we had four bottles of wine, as BF and I were booked in different cabins due to the age of the kids, we were not about to dig out the bottles from various pieces of luggage, so we just took our chances.

 

We paid for parking ($15/night) and parked the car, walked in, zipped through security, were the only people in the diamond line, and checked in quickly. They now take your seapass photo at the check-in counter, so this saves a step later on.

 

We proceeded immediately onto the ship and to the Windjammer, which was a very crowded area because it wasn't open yet. By the time BF purchased his premium beverage package, the Windjammer opened, which was about 11:10 a.m.

 

Following lunch, we explored the ship. Our cabins were ready at 1:00 p.m., and luggage began to arrive soon thereafter. We had to claim three bags from the "naughty room." Two contained wine, which was permitted, but a third contained a small bottle of Jack which was brought back to our cabin on the last night. We had not been advised beforehand by RCCL, nor had I read on the boards here, that you were required to carry on your wine, but the staff advised us that was the preferred manner. Given the number of bags in the "naughty" area, we were clearly not the only passengers confused by this preference. Obviously, if you were flying directly to the port the day of departure, this would be nearly impossible. Additionally, when we cruised out of Miami in February, we had our wine in our checked bags, and our luggage was delivered to our stateroom without incident, so this may be a policy that varies by port.

 

We mustered at 3:15. However, as is typical, there were certain passengers who felt the muster drill didn’t apply to them or that they could create their own rules. As such, the drill took much longer than necessary, in the sweltering heat no less. Upon conclusion, we then headed upstairs for sail away at 4:00.

 

Some of the kids attended the complimentary gambling lessons. We played trivia at 5:00 at the Schooner Bar (something we enjoyed multiple times daily). We visited Francis, Raoul and Abraham in the Diamond Lounge (also a daily occurrence) and then attended dinner. The kids attended tonight's welcome aboard show. We hit the casino. DS-14 went to the Adventure Ocean registration, made lots of friends and was barely seen thereafter but for dinner time! We visited the casino (yet another daily occurrence!).

 

Day 2: Sea day. Lots of time exploring, playing trivia, eating, getting sun, et cetera. Tonight was a formal night. It was also my oldest son's 21st birthday. Francis had a cake delivered by the pastry chef into the diamond lounge, and everyone there sang happy birthday as we toasted with champagne. Cake and singing were to be delivered in the main dining room as well, but it never happened. We attended the Captain's welcome reception in the Centrum. BF was chosen to gamble against the cruise director in a slot tournament and took second place. The prize was a "Pandora style" bracelet from one of the onboard shops. Three oldest kids went to the show in the Palladium.

 

Day 3: Port Canaveral. In our opinion, this was a wasted stop, though I'm sure others felt differently. There is nothing much within walking distance so, if you didn't book an excursion, you most likely stayed on the ship. We disembarked and walked with the three oldest kids to a Circle K (about a half-hour walk). Along the way, we saw an abundance of peacocks and lizards. It was a very, very hot day, and we boarded the ship immediately after walking back. It rained in the afternoon. Lots more trivia. The cake and singing occurred tonight at dinner after a reminder…always fun to extend the celebrating! BF and I were each chosen to play in the 60 Seconds or Less game show in the South Pacific Lounge, which was fun. Three oldest kids went to tonight's show in the Palladium.

 

Day 4: Cococay. Francis, the diamond concierge, had gotten us tender tickets. However, two of our kids needed pool towels and the ship had run out of pool towels, seemingly because they were permitting passengers to check out multiple towels and were not limiting it to one towel for each person in a cabin. After they waited in line for nearly an hour, we decided to take bathroom towels and headed to the tender line. This was a very hot, relaxing day. Two of the boys did the water slide. More trivia back onboard. Tonight was an aerial performance in the centrum, and it was very enjoyable. We also attended the Love and Marriage game show in the Palladium, which is always so fun.

 

Day 5: Nassau. We visited a couple shops, then walked to the Queen's Staircase and the fort. There are very informative "guides" at both places, and people willing to take photographs, but remember to take some small bills because they all have their hands out for tips and aren't shy to ask for them. We then walked to the British Colonial Hilton to enjoy the day passes we had purchased ahead of time. The facilities are beautiful. The beach and pool had no crowds whatsoever. The food was good and the drinks were strong. This was a wonderful way to spend the day. The cost is $60 per person, but each person receives $40 in food/drink vouchers. After the Hilton, we headed to Senor Frog's, which was quite a party. The kids were happy to learn that the drinking age in the Bahamas is 18. Then we briefly visited the straw market (which has some very aggressive sellers) and headed back to the ship. Three oldest kids attended the show in the Palladium.

 

Day 6: Sea day. Attended the captain's corner in the Centrum. Watched the belly flop competition, then BF participated in the table tennis tournament. Tonight was a formal night. We attended the headliner show which was the magic and comedy of Scott Alexander and was entertaining. We had a few formal pictures taken…and BF proposed tonight on our balcony! I guess I can call him DF (dear fiance…or is that dear father??) for the rest of this review. Went to the Quest with the three oldest kids but DF and I left after a few quests…way too hot in the South Pacific Lounge.

 

Day 7: Sea day. A very rainy day in the morning. We had room service breakfast and had lunch in the dining room. DF and DS-21 attended the blackjack tournament. The internet service was finally working, so I used up my free internet time surfing the net on my laptop in the Centrum while the World's Sexiest Man Competition was occurring there as well due to the rain. Two of the boys climbed the rock wall in the afternoon once the sun came out. We said goodbye to Francis, Raoul and Abraham before dinner (and gave all three of them WOW cards), attended the final trivia after dinner, watched the "surprise" aerial show in the centrum, then packed our bags and visited the casino for the last time. Kids went to the farewell show in the Palladium.

 

Day 8: Breakfast in the diamond lounge at 7:30. We had Green 5 luggage tags. Our scheduled departure time was 8:10 in the South Pacific Lounge. We were called at 8:20, and we were in our car leaving the parking lot at 8:43.

 

Dining: This is the first time we've tried MyTime Dining. We had no choice because traditional early dining was full in light of the fact that we just rebooked this cruise in late May/early June. MyTime Dining seating is on the second floor of the Great Gatsby Dining Room. We had a standing 6:15 p.m. reservation for the week. We were seated at the same table five of the seven nights with head waiter Dennis, waiter Gabino from the Phillipines, and assistant waiter Alex from Peru. While the three of them were wonderful, the bar waiter was nearly nonexistent. One drink per night was clearly all he was serving, and this was even after complaining to the head waiter the first night after dinner. The first night, we even told him we'd like two of the cordial/shooters each night. We never received them and never even saw him to re-request them. Two nights during the week we were seated at different tables. We much preferred Gabino and Alex and were very happy to have them the last night. MyTime Dining seating starts at 5:30.

 

Meals: Throughout the week, DF and I had breakfast via room service, main dining room, Windjammer, and in the diamond lounge. We had lunch in the Windjammer and the main dining room (which offers a very nice chopped salad bar). The kids had meals several times in the Park Café located in the solarium. We visited no specialty restaurants. There were a couple poolside buffets as well. Our preference for all meals is in the main dining room.

 

Stateroom attendants: The kids had Jorge and really enjoyed him. We had Louis, who was friendly but quiet. He did an inconsistent job. Some days he forgot to provide ice and to provide a towel mat and wash cloths. We all had towel animals three of the seven nights. Each cabin only received half of the luggage tags requested but, upon asking, the stateroom attendants provided additional tags. Our JS had a refrigerator/cooler and a coffee maker. The two outside cabins had neither.

 

Casino: Most days from 12:00 to 1:00 p.m. there is a blackjack happy hour with $3 bets. There also were blackjack tournaments ($20 buy-in) at 1:00 p.m.

 

C&A: Being diamond members (three of us), waiting in our cabins were robes, a welcome beverage, and a welcome snack (cookies and dried fruit). We received chocolate-covered strawberries on day two and attended a welcome-back event in the South Pacific Lounge and also a top-tier event in the South Pacific Lounge, although I can't remember which evenings the events were. I'm thinking they were day three and day six.

 

Weather: Hot, hot, hot. It rained twice, but no day was a total washout.

 

Additional: They are still using the paper coupon books onboard. We had onboard credit from several sources and did not use it all. The remainder was credited to our Visa card.

 

Overall impression: We had a wonderful, memorable cruise and enjoyed the ease and convenience of driving to Baltimore. The Grandeur is in wonderful shape, and the staff was very friendly and fun. However, I prefer the Voyager class. I love the promenade and having more areas to explore, and the kids missed the basketball court, the ice rink and the mini golf. Also, it was very hard to hear in the Centrum when events were occurring, particularly if you were not on Deck 4, which was very crowded for these events. There is just too much other activity in the immediate proximity and it drowns out whatever is occurring. The aerial acts were very enjoyable, and the entertainment staff was amazing!!:)

Edited July 30, 2013 by KelJ

[Sea Turtle]

Thanks for sharing, KelJ.

[powelweb]

Many thanks for your review, and congrats on your engagement!!!

[ilovenyc72]

Thanks for your review! I'm sailing on her in Nov and your review informed me alot on the luggage/check-in situation. This is my first time sailing out of Balitmore (I usually go out of NYC) and we're excited! Thanks again! :)

[loeytalldog]

Thanks for sharing, enjoyed reading your review! Congratulations on your engagement!

[DragonOfTheSeas]

Great review. Congrats! I am sure it is a memory you will always have. :)

 

As to the unorganized arrival--I think you were a little early for them. 10:30 is about the earliest most people arrive. They do not clear the previous cruise until around. 9:30 or 10.

[KeywestK]

Thanks for your review and congratulations!

[MAHA]

Great review. Congrats! I am sure it is a memory you will always have. :)

 

As to the unorganized arrival--I think you were a little early for them. 10:30 is about the earliest most people arrive. They do not clear the previous cruise until around. 9:30 or 10.

 

On my cruise docs for our August 30 cruise and Sept. 5 cruise on Grandeur, it says boarding starts at 10:30 AM. Thought that might be a bit early. Our son is driving us and needs to be at work by 1 PM in Bowie, so we probably will get there by 11:30. Haven't had problems in the past with boarding at 11:30 AM in Baltimore. We have sailed from the new port in Baltimore 3 times in the past.

 

Mary Anne

[esper10]

By any chance do you have any daily planner to post? We are thinking of taking a cruise in this ship and would love to know the daily activities especially in the Centrum. I know it is noisy and crowded but their are some things we might enjoy. Thanks

[debbie83]

Thanks for the review, and congrats on the engagement!

[PhilNDebbieAtSea]

Thanks! Great review! Congratulations!! Very sweet!!

[blonde375]

Congratulations on your engagement!!! Thank you for taking the time to post the review.

 

I have a question about formal night: did you see any long dresses? I know you see a whole range of "formal" but Alaska seemed less formal than the Cariibbean and I have wondered how Bermuda fares.

 

TIA!!

[Candleonwater]

Having sailed a couple of times out of Baltimore... if you don't have luggage tags, they direct you to the tent... don't do it. Just go get your car in line and walk over to the tent. I, too, have been frustrated by people who arrive after me getting in before me... but that's not the way to start a vacation, so I'm learning to chill and take it all in stride. I usually beat them in unloading my luggage! :-)

 

Was Darryl Dyball your activities manager? If so, I'm curious to hear what you thought of him?

[DragonOfTheSeas]

On my cruise docs for our August 30 cruise and Sept. 5 cruise on Grandeur, it says boarding starts at 10:30 AM. Thought that might be a bit early. Our son is driving us and needs to be at work by 1 PM in Bowie, so we probably will get there by 11:30. Haven't had problems in the past with boarding at 11:30 AM in Baltimore. We have sailed from the new port in Baltimore 3 times in the past.

 

Mary Anne

 

If your DS needs to be at work by 1pm in Bowie I would get there by before 11:30 am. There is sometimes a line to pay for parking. But good luck on your cruise.:):D:)

[MAHA]

If your DS needs to be at work by 1pm in Bowie I would get there by before 11:30 am. There is sometimes a line to pay for parking. But good luck on your cruise.:):D:)

 

He's just dropping us off. That should be less of a line, although we do have luggage to drop off. Actually, I forgot, he now has Fridays off, so there is no problem with having to be at work by 1:00 PM.

 

Thanks!

Mary Anne

Edited July 31, 2013 by MAHA

[DragonOfTheSeas]

He's just dropping us off. That should be less of a line, although we do have luggage to drop off. Actually, I forgot, he now has Fridays off, so there is no problem with having to be at work by 1:00 PM.

 

Thanks!

Mary Anne

 

That is great! I wish I was going with you.:p

[Kteacher]

Having sailed a couple of times out of Baltimore... if you don't have luggage tags, they direct you to the tent... don't do it. Just go get your car in line and walk over to the tent. I, too, have been frustrated by people who arrive after me getting in before me... but that's not the way to start a vacation, so I'm learning to chill and take it all in stride. I usually beat them in unloading my luggage! :-)

 

Was Darryl Dyball your activities manager? If so, I'm curious to hear what you thought of him?

 

He was! Loved him - wish I had his energy :)

 

 

Sent using the Cruise Critic forums app

[Dharma517]

I have left out of Baltimore, Bayonne, and San Juan. Baltimore by far was the longest from start to finish....line after line. It probably took 2 hours. We arrived around 1:00ish. Can't speak to the disembarkation since we took the Freeport fire shuttle. :D

Edited August 1, 2013 by Dharma517
error

[KelJ]

Congratulations on your engagement!!! Thank you for taking the time to post the review.

 

I have a question about formal night: did you see any long dresses? I know you see a whole range of "formal" but Alaska seemed less formal than the Cariibbean and I have wondered how Bermuda fares.

 

TIA!!

 

There were definitely some long dresses on formal nights. Ours was a Caribbean sailing. When we did a five-night cruise to Bermuda two summers ago on Explorer, there were many long dresses on formal night.

[KelJ]

Having sailed a couple of times out of Baltimore... if you don't have luggage tags, they direct you to the tent... don't do it. Just go get your car in line and walk over to the tent. I, too, have been frustrated by people who arrive after me getting in before me... but that's not the way to start a vacation, so I'm learning to chill and take it all in stride. I usually beat them in unloading my luggage! :-)

 

Was Darryl Dyball your activities manager? If so, I'm curious to hear what you thought of him?

 

Darryl was the activities director, and we thought he was a riot! We thoroughly enjoyed him. We even found a couple pictures of him on our camera...after he had offered to hold the camera while we met the captain!

[KelJ]

Thank you for all of the congratulating remarks on our engagement!! I'm sorry it took me so long to answer some of your questions. I had subscribed to this thread but never received any emails that comments were posted. I must have subscribed to more than I'm permitted!

[KelJ]

Great review. Congrats! I am sure it is a memory you will always have. :)

 

As to the unorganized arrival--I think you were a little early for them. 10:30 is about the earliest most people arrive. They do not clear the previous cruise until around. 9:30 or 10.

 

I think you are absolutely correct. We were definitely too early. We always get a very early start because I'm always fearful that something will happen on the drive to delay us.

[KelJ]

By any chance do you have any daily planner to post? We are thinking of taking a cruise in this ship and would love to know the daily activities especially in the Centrum. I know it is noisy and crowded but their are some things we might enjoy. Thanks

 

I have all of my daily compasses from this cruise. Is there any particular day you'd like me to scan and post?

[rthling]

Congrats and thanks for the review. We will be sailing on Grandeur over Christmas and New Years. Can't wait!!

[KelJ]

I thought of two things that I wanted to add to my review.

First, stateroom JS-8564 has a pole at the foot of the bed.

Secondly, my son turned 21 the second night of the cruise. I've read that your age for the whole cruise is whatever age you were on the day of sailing. However, he went to guest relations, and they printed him a new non-child seapass so thereafter he was permitted to purchase alcohol.