Bermuda: Anthem vs Grandeur

[Another-Adventure]

Which would be your preference for a 5 day Bermuda cruise- Anthem (Bayonne) or Grandeur (Baltimore)? I know everyone has different likes/dislikes, but I'm interested in a comparison of these.

 

 

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[cb at sea]

They are 2 entirely different "feels"....how long will you be IN Bermuda? Is that why you're going...for Bermuda, or for the ship?

 

If you want to see Bermuda, and spend lots of time ashore, go with Grandeur....if you're all about the ship, then Anthem will probably be your best bet...so much to see and do on the ship....a 5 nighter with port days won't give you the time to USE the ship!

 

Also, if you have to fly to port....I'd pick the one with the lowest airfare! If you can drive to one, then I'd do that any day!

Edited May 6, 2016 by cb at sea

[Merion_Mom]

Which would be your preference for a 5 day Bermuda cruise- Anthem (Bayonne) or Grandeur (Baltimore)? I know everyone has different likes/dislikes, but I'm interested in a comparison of these.

 

 

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You seem to have already sailed out of Bayonne and thoroughly researched Baltimore as a departure port.

 

As far as the ships go..........

 

It looks like Grandeur spends 25 hours in Bermuda. Anthem has 32 hours in port.

 

Based on that alone, I would choose Anthem.

 

I would also compare and weigh cruise fares.

 

Anthem will have much more to do while you are cruising to and from Bermuda. Grandeur is lovely, and I am doing her Bermuda cruise myself this year, but I am well aware that I will be entertaining myself, for the most part.

 

:)

Edited May 6, 2016 by Merion_Mom

[Wanderista]

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.

Edited May 6, 2016 by Wanderista

[danp]

With how long you are going to be in Bermuda and how far you have to travel to get to the ship. If you are closer to the Anthem, I would go for it. My reasoning is how far you have to travel when you get OFF of the ship.

[ksg]

With how long you are going to be in Bermuda and how far you have to travel to get to the ship. If you are closer to the Anthem, I would go for it. My reasoning is how far you have to travel when you get OFF of the ship.

 

If you're driving to Bayonne, I'd switch gears and go on the Summit. It's an elegant ship and you get 3 days in Bermuda. Five days on Anthem is probably not enough - I don't know how they'd accommodate everyone for all the shows.

[sammee]

We had this choice to make back in March. I live an hour from Cape Liberty and 2.5 from Baltimore. For a 5 day, it was about $1000 difference. We chose the Grandeur, as we don't need the bells and whistles. 5 days is not enough on the that ship for the first time. By the time you figure your way around, it will be time to leave. We will consider a 7-day in the future, if the price is right. I will say you get a couple extra hours in Bermuda with Anthem though.

[RCI_Fan]

Just did the 5 night on Anthem of the Seas. It is a beautiful ship and everything is still in great condition. As for the short duration of the cruise, it is tough to squeeze everything in in just 5 days. It does feel rushed at some points. We explored St. George Bermuda one day, and then did a custom tour of Bermuda and Horseshoe Bay Beach on day 2. Having never sailed on Grandeur, tough to compare the ships. But, the Quantum class does offer a lot of onboard experiences and new venues which are amazing to experience, like SeaPlex, Two70, Music Hall, etc. Here is a copy of the Cruise Compass to give you a better sense of what the trip is like http://eatsleepcruise.com/2016/05/anthem-of-the-seas-cruise-compass-5-day-bermuda/

[Turtles06]

I think a 5-night cruise on Anthem, with a couple of those being docked in Bermuda, is just too short for Anthem. Imho, a cruise to Bermuda is really about going to Bermuda; I'm going to guess that Anthem is more expensive than Grandeur. If so, it seems a waste to take Anthem, since you'll have so little time for the ship. (Of course, if you have to fly to one embarkation port but could drive to the other, that would be a big factor.)

 

And putting aside all that, I think a 5-night cruise on any ship is too short. One option is to take a full week cruise with nearly three days in Bermuda.

 

Enjoy whatever you decide!

[Merion_Mom]

I think a 5-night cruise on Anthem, with a couple of those being docked in Bermuda, is just too short for Anthem. Imho, a cruise to Bermuda is really about going to Bermuda; I'm going to guess that Anthem is more expensive than Grandeur. If so, it seems a waste to take Anthem, since you'll have so little time for the ship. (Of course, if you have to fly to one embarkation port but could drive to the other, that would be a big factor.)

 

And putting aside all that, I think a 5-night cruise on any ship is too short. One option is to take a full week cruise with nearly three days in Bermuda.

 

Enjoy whatever you decide!

 

You would be amazed how much Grandeur charges for that cruise! :eek:

[hansolosmom]

Grandeur is a nice smaller ship. It's comfy/cozy. it doesn't have the bells and whistles but it's a nice ship with a nice crew.

 

Anthem is new and has the 'wow' factor with the flowrider, iflY and northstar etc.

 

Being in Philly where it's pretty much an equal trip to NJ or Baltimore, I'd probably go with Grandeur because it would be less expensive and the trip IMO would be very relaxing because I wouldn't be trying to do everything on the ship in such a short time like I would on Anthem.

[lenquixote66]

I have cruised to Bermuda many times ,once on Cunard but every other times on HAL.In my opinion the best way to see Bermuda is an HAL cruise because it docks in Hamilton.

[Bostonjetset]

I have cruised to Bermuda many times ,once on Cunard but every other times on HAL.In my opinion the best way to see Bermuda is an HAL cruise because it docks in Hamilton.

 

Totally agree! Bermuda is a beautiful place and should be [iMO at least] the highlight of a cruise there...much more so than the ship. HAL's Veendam docks in Hamilton and stays for 3 nights/4 days...the longest of any week-long cruise to the island as far as I know. A wonderful small ship with a fabulous crew. However, to sail HAL to Bermuda, Boston is the only option for departure point. If OP lives in between Baltimore and Bayonne she may not want to drive that far north...if she is flying from somewhere else in the country it may not matter where she departs from.

 

As to the OP's original question, if she really only wants a 5 night cruise and is between the two ships mentioned with no possibility of deviation, I would advise to go with the best price and easiest point of departure [unless the main purpose of the trip is the ship itself]. I've never sailed either ship she is asking about but they both dock in the Navy Dockyard and both only stay 1 night so the off-board experience is likely to be similar.

[Heather1972]

I have sailed both ships. If you are comparing ship against ship, Anthem wins hands down.

[Cruising-Snowbird]

If you're driving to Bayonne, I'd switch gears and go on the Summit. It's an elegant ship and you get 3 days in Bermuda. Five days on Anthem is probably not enough - I don't know how they'd accommodate everyone for all the shows.

 

We totally agree with you. Five days in Bermuda is TOO SHORT. We booked the 7 day cruise on the Celebrity Summit this August. I also agree with you that 5 days on the Anthem is too short to see and do all the great stuff. We booked the 9 day cruise next month on the Anthem.

[karmacats]

We just did this math ourselves, and ended up on Grandeur.

 

We knew we wanted to go in June 2017. Grandeur was $1100 cheaper than Anthem for the same time frame (I can't remember if it was the exact same week, or a week or two later, but the dates were close). We got a JS; the price difference might be less in another category type. In addition, we live an hour from the Baltimore port, so can go the morning of the cruise; to leave from NJ, we'd probably spend about $200-250 in gas, tolls, and hotel for the night before, which brings the difference to more like $1300.

 

We've been on Anthem before, and enjoyed ourselves. However, to be honest, if we hadn't been on her before, I'd be worried about making myself frantic trying to see everything, plus bermuda, on a 5-night. If you're the type of person who wants to see and do everything on the ship, I would not do a 5-nighter on anthem. If you're the type who will not be bothered if you miss a show/restaurant/activity that sounded cool, then that wouldn't be a problem for you. it would drive me nuts, though. :p

 

On the flip side, i've seen some reviews saying grandeur is kind of....sedate. i probably wouldn't like that for a longer cruise, but on a 5-night, you've really only got 4 days, and one of them will be in bermuda, so i figured with only 3 days on the ship, that gives me just enough relaxation time, plus i'm sure there will be enough activities to keep us busy for 3 days (atrium aerial show, etc). For us, there's also the matter of trying a new ship (grandeur) vs one we've been on already (anthem), and having snagged an awesome corner aft JS on grandeur which i'm excited to try.

 

The biggest downside to grandeur, and it was enough to make us consider anthem despite the price difference, is the shorter time in bermuda. on anthem you have a day and a half. on grandeur you only get two half-days. on most cruises i don't even get off the ship, but bermuda is beautiful and there is tons to do there so we definitely will get off in port. in the end, we decided that an extra half day in bermuda was not worth $1300 and the extra hassle of getting to NJ. however, if you've never been to bermuda before, i might consider anthem more seriously.

 

i'm not sure if that was any help, but since we just weighed the pros and cons ourselves, thought i'd at least put it out there. :D

[CapitalKyle]

Just did the 5 night on Anthem of the Seas. It is a beautiful ship and everything is still in great condition. As for the short duration of the cruise, it is tough to squeeze everything in in just 5 days. It does feel rushed at some points. We explored St. George Bermuda one day, and then did a custom tour of Bermuda and Horseshoe Bay Beach on day 2. Having never sailed on Grandeur, tough to compare the ships. But, the Quantum class does offer a lot of onboard experiences and new venues which are amazing to experience, like SeaPlex, Two70, Music Hall, etc. Here is a copy of the Cruise Compass to give you a better sense of what the trip is like http://eatsleepcruise.com/2016/05/anthem-of-the-seas-cruise-compass-5-day-bermuda/

 

Was on that sailing as well. I agree that I did not feel like I had enough time with the ship, although I did feel like I was able to experience a lot of it. The overnight in Bermuda is really great. While both Anthem and Grandeur do this, Anthem gets in at 9am and leaves at 5pm the next day, whereas Grandeur gets in at 1pm-ish and leaves at 2:30pm-ish the next day. In my opinion, that's 2 "full" days in Bermuda on Anthem and, as another poster said, 2 "half" days on Grandeur. The second day on Grandeur is hardly enough time to get off the ship and go relax on a beach, if you have to be back on the ship by 2pm or so. In my opinion Anthem a) wins the ship-to-ship comparison with Grandeur and b) affords you longer in Bermuda. So whether your priority is ship or destination, I think Anthem is the better choice, unless your priority is departure and you live closer to Baltimore. I actually live outside of Washington, D.C., so Baltimore would have been much more convenient, but I was really interested in experiencing Anthem so that one was a no-brainer for me. That said, while onboard Anthem I did book a return trip to Bermuda on Grandeur for next June :) I did a live blog of the Anthem 5-nighter to Bermuda, here's a link: http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2349642

Edited May 12, 2016 by CapitalKyle