Just returned from the Anthem

[conandrob240]

Okay, cost is what it is. Supposedly there's a cheaper lot a mile or two away with a shuttle for $11/day. I'd rather spend a bit more and walk across the lot into the terminal.

 

If you're driving from Virginia, book an EWR hotel with free parking. It'll cost about the same.

 

Do you pay at entry or exit?

[E&D]

You pay at entry.

[conandrob240]

Thank you.

[fred30]

Just cost, mainly. But, for us since we live in VA, and are going to Cape Liberty again, we just stay at a hotel, spend the night before and just take advantage of the park and ride option. That way, no stress of having to arrive the same day as the cruise and we can take the hotel shuttle to the pier. Bring a hotel card back with us and we call the shuttle and they even come and pick us up. Overall, we save a little that way and don't have to park at the pier.

 

If it's just cost why would you call it a "Nightmare".

It's convenient for many that would prefer to get on the road rather than waiting to be shuttled around. Plus a lot of people are within a hour or two drive and come in the same day.

[sharonlacey]

Did you notice if they offered wine packages on the ship? I know on our last cruise they were not offered on line ahead but you could buy once on the ship. That was in Feb.

 

Thanks Sharon

[FROGGY23]

I called royal. They told me the wine pkg is no longer offered. They now allow 2 btls carry on per state room. And now offer Drink pkgs. That are listed on line.

[Dave85]

Formal dress nights have now been eliminated from Celebrity so this half hearted effort at the Grande should be scrapped altogether as its a joke really. Wear what you want and we will give you a jacket to carry to your chair. Pointless.

 

 

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We got back from the first Caribbean 12-night today and I have to agree with you and generally think The Grande needs some serious work. The food and service in The Grande were dreadful and by far the worst on the ship. In contrast, we found the food and service in the other 4 included restaurants (including Devinly) to be quite good. I think they need to just scrap The Grande and come up with something else.

[Bonnie Voyager]

We got back from the first Caribbean 12-night today and I have to agree with you and generally think The Grande needs some serious work. The food and service in The Grande were dreadful and by far the worst on the ship. In contrast, we found the food and service in the other 4 included restaurants (including Devinly) to be quite good. I think they need to just scrap The Grande and come up with something else.

 

And by contrast, we just had 3 marvelous dinners in The Grande! ;) Food was cooked to perfection and service was swift and efficient! We had no true complaints in any of the other restaurants we dined in either. For us, the best meal of all was last night in Devinly Decadence! I wish we had not waited until the last night to eat there! It was yummy! My favorite dessert the entire 12 days was that wickedly decadent Icon Candy Bar in American Icon (we had it served with vanilla ice cream as the "antidote" to all that rich sweetness). I actually told my waiter in The Grande one night that I wish I could have the Icon Candy Bar for dessert for that meal and darned if he didn't bring me one, along with my favorite Grande dessert (the Key Lime Tart).

 

Oh boo hoo! Now I am craving cruise food and am sitting here eating a container of greek yogurt! Poor me! :o;)

[Dave85]

And by contrast, we just had 3 marvelous dinners in The Grande! ;) Food was cooked to perfection and service was swift and efficient! We had no true complaints in any of the other restaurants we dined in either. For us, the best meal of all was last night in Devinly Decadence! I wish we had not waited until the last night to eat there! It was yummy! My favorite dessert the entire 12 days was that wickedly decadent Icon Candy Bar in American Icon (we had it served with vanilla ice cream as the "antidote" to all that rich sweetness). I actually told my waiter in The Grande one night that I wish I could have the Icon Candy Bar for dessert for that meal and darned if he didn't bring me one, along with my favorite Grande dessert (the Key Lime Tart).

 

Oh boo hoo! Now I am craving cruise food and am sitting here eating a container of greek yogurt! Poor me! :o;)

 

Just goes to show how you can sail on the same ship for 12 days and have polar opposite experiences! I'll be telling RCI what I thought about The Grande when I complete the survey in a few minutes.

 

We definitely agree about Devinly Decadence, however. Outstanding! We ate there twice and both times had the surf and turf lobster tails and filet mignon, and it was delicious both times. Unlike our lobster in the Grande, which was overcooked to the point of being nearly inedible, the lobster at DD was cooked to perfection and the steak was perfectly seasoned. I almost wished we ate there more than two nights!

 

Otherwise, we enjoyed the food (and menu overall) at Chic the second most.

[CaroleV]

What activities went on during the 3 days down & 3 up in the chilly weather.

[Dave85]

What activities went on during the 3 days down & 3 up in the chilly weather.

 

 

Only one day was chilly in each direction. Full slate of activities in the SeaPlex, various trivia contests, bingo, etc., and keep in mind that there are two indoor pool areas that were very heavily used.

[grouchomarx]

Just goes to show how you can sail on the same ship for 12 days and have polar opposite experiences! I'll be telling RCI what I thought about The Grande when I complete the survey in a few minutes.

 

We definitely agree about Devinly Decadence, however. Outstanding! We ate there twice and both times had the surf and turf lobster tails and filet mignon, and it was delicious both times. Unlike our lobster in the Grande, which was overcooked to the point of being nearly inedible, the lobster at DD was cooked to perfection and the steak was perfectly seasoned. I almost wished we ate there more than two nights!

 

Otherwise, we enjoyed the food (and menu overall) at Chic the second most.

 

That is quite interesting about the Grande. We absolutely hated it! They couldn't find our table in the dining room so we wandered about with the hostess for a few minutes. Sat us down and were clearly annoyed we wanted to order cocktails, which were delivered after appetizers were half eaten. I got the lobster which was harder than chicken (so was the lady's next to me). The waiter proceeded to shell it on my plate in front of me and deposit the shells on my bread plate, leaving them there for the entire meal. I've never had such a bad experience anywhere! But it didn't ruin our cruise, we laughed about it afterwards and never went back.

[mets07]

That is quite interesting about the Grande. We absolutely hated it! They couldn't find our table in the dining room so we wandered about with the hostess for a few minutes. Sat us down and were clearly annoyed we wanted to order cocktails, which were delivered after appetizers were half eaten. I got the lobster which was harder than chicken (so was the lady's next to me). The waiter proceeded to shell it on my plate in front of me and deposit the shells on my bread plate, leaving them there for the entire meal. I've never had such a bad experience anywhere! But it didn't ruin our cruise, we laughed about it afterwards and never went back.

 

We were on the same cruise and had a most excellent time overall. However, we also did not have the best experience at the Grande, finding the place a bit of a zoo. The waiters seemed crazed, harried, and slow to deliver food.

[Bonnie Voyager]

Wow, we obviously got VERY lucky with our experiences in The Grande! I wonder if it had anything to do with what time you ate or if your were "Classic" versus "Dynamic"?

 

We had Dynamic Dining and ate in The Grande between 5:30 and 5:45 all three times we dined there. We were always immediately seated at a table for two, usually near a window, each time as well. The area we were seated was never full since they just opened, but whenever we left (usually less than an hour later) the place was filling up and there was a long line outside waiting to get in.

 

My guess is that as the evening wore on they got more crowded, more overwhelmed, and hence more hurried and hap-hazard (and the lobster in turn became over-cooked). Our lobster (all three times, for both myself and my mother-in-law) was cooked to perfection and the server always removed it from the shell, and placed the shell on a bread dish out of the way. We had similar experiences in all the restaurants, but we dined every night between 5:30 and 6:00.

 

Now, about that lobster...yes it was cooked to perfection, but it was NOT the big, juicy, lobster I would typically see in a better restaurant in the Northeast U.S.! :p But having cruised a time or two, I knew not to expect too much from the lobster. I enjoyed it for what it was (all four bites)! The best lobster we had on the ship though was at Devinly Decadence! Still small, but oh so tasty!

[Dave85]

 

We had Dynamic Dining and ate in The Grande between 5:30 and 5:45 all three times we dined there. We were always immediately seated at a table for two, usually near a window, each time as well. The area we were seated was never full since they just opened, but whenever we left (usually less than an hour later) the place was filling up and there was a long line outside waiting to get in.

 

My guess is that as the evening wore on they got more crowded, more overwhelmed, and hence more hurried and hap-hazard (and the lobster in turn became over-cooked). Our lobster (all three times, for both myself and my mother-in-law) was cooked to perfection and the server always removed it from the shell, and placed the shell on a bread dish out of the way. We had similar experiences in all the restaurants, but we dined every night between 5:30 and 6:00.

 

 

Bonnie, that must be it -- you eat extremely early, right when the restaurant is opening. We started every dinner between 8-8:30. By that point, The Grande was churning out poor food and the servers were running around all frazzled, creating a scene reminiscent of something between a track meet and a football game. Shockingly, this wasn't an issue in any of the other restaurants....... hmm, sounds like a management issue to me!

 

Unfortuantely, the majority of cruisers don't eat as early as you/Bonnie, so they really to get their act together in The Grande. I said as much in my online survey.

Edited November 23, 2015 by Dave85

[Bonnie Voyager]

Bonnie, that must be it -- you eat extremely early, right when the restaurant is opening. We started every dinner between 8-8:30. By that point, The Grande was churning out poor food and the servers were running around all frazzled, creating a scene reminiscent of something between a track meet and a football game. Shockingly, this wasn't an issue in any of the other restaurants....... hmm, sounds like a management issue to me!

 

Unfortunately, the majority of cruisers don't eat as early as you/Bonnie, so they really to get their act together in The Grande. I said as much in my online survey.

 

Sounds horrible! I surely would NOT enjoy dining in The Grande either under those circumstances! Sounds similar to what I have experienced when eating Lunch in The Windjammer! I hate that atmosphere! Thank goodness most folks never ventured all the way to the back of The Windjammer to find the beautiful peaceful outdoor seating venue! :D It was never crowded out there and was a perfect place to "recover" from the trauma of actually being IN The Windjammer at all! ;)

[Turtles06]

That is quite interesting about the Grande. We absolutely hated it! They couldn't find our table in the dining room so we wandered about with the hostess for a few minutes. Sat us down and were clearly annoyed we wanted to order cocktails, which were delivered after appetizers were half eaten. I got the lobster which was harder than chicken (so was the lady's next to me). The waiter proceeded to shell it on my plate in front of me and deposit the shells on my bread plate, leaving them there for the entire meal. I've never had such a bad experience anywhere! But it didn't ruin our cruise, we laughed about it afterwards and never went back.

 

We ate at Grande once on the Anthem TA. The servers were totally harried. When one finally showed up at our table long after we'd been seated, he immediately wanted to take our food order, and did not even ask if we wanted anything to drink.

 

It was not a good experience (food or service), and, as I've commented elsewhere, nothing about Grande is special enough to justify a "formal" dress code.

[Turtles06]

Sounds horrible! I surely would NOT enjoy dining in The Grande either under those circumstances! Sounds similar to what I have experienced when eating Lunch in The Windjammer! I hate that atmosphere! Thank goodness most folks never ventured all the way to the back of The Windjammer to find the beautiful peaceful outdoor seating venue! :D It was never crowded out there and was a perfect place to "recover" from the trauma of actually being IN The Windjammer at all! ;)

 

Oh no, you've given away our secret place! ;)

 

(I don't think the Windjammer is big enough for a ship the size of Anthem. It's quite similar to the buffet on Celebrity's S-class ships, but Anthem has a good 1,000 more passengers.)

[grouchomarx]

Oh no, you've given away our secret place! ;)

 

(I don't think the Windjammer is big enough for a ship the size of Anthem. It's quite similar to the buffet on Celebrity's S-class ships, but Anthem has a good 1,000 more passengers.)

 

Agreed the Windjammer is seriously too small for the crowd on Anthem. I'm a patient and calm person most of the time but breakfast in the buffet really put me in a bad mood. I hate running around looking for a seat with food that's getting cold, and if you get a table first and take turns getting food, food still ends up cold if you want to eat together. The rear area was usually the only place to find a seat and the only problem there were the ginormous table for like 10 when you're a party of two. Other than that I liked the food and decor very much.

[Cruisin' Ya Ya]

What restaurants offer breakfast & lunch which are not buffets and don't cost extra?

[ecslady]

I haven't cruised from Cape Liberty in a few years, so now that there is a new terminal, can you easily do self-embark and self-disembark with one piece of regular size luggage, the size you would normally check on an airplane, not carry-on size?

[Bonnie Voyager]

What restaurants offer breakfast & lunch which are not buffets and don't cost extra?

 

American Icon had the sit-down Breakfast and Lunch, and Silk had an "express" sit-down Breakfast buffet which I rather enjoyed! Wish I had found it sooner!

[Bonnie Voyager]

I haven't cruised from Cape Liberty in a few years, so now that there is a new terminal, can you easily do self-embark and self-disembark with one piece of regular size luggage, the size you would normally check on an airplane, not carry-on size?

 

This was the quickest, easiest embarkation/debarkation I've ever experienced in over 40 cruises! I checked my large suitcase with the porters for embarkation, but I walked off the ship at the end with my HUGE spinner suitcase plus a backpack with no problem at all! From ship to customs to car was barely 10 minutes!

[Life is Good Cruising]

Only one day was chilly in each direction. Full slate of activities in the SeaPlex, various trivia contests, bingo, etc., and keep in mind that there are two indoor pool areas that were very heavily used.

 

Dave, can you tell me what Tribute bands they had in the Music Hall?

 

Thanks

[Dave85]

Dave, can you tell me what Tribute bands they had in the Music Hall?

 

 

 

Thanks

 

 

Beatlemaniacs were on board. I dislike bands so I generally avoided them. Rock the Boat seemed to have a big following too.