Impressions of Grandeur

[goldfish65]

“Not for everyone,” that’s why it is appealing to me. Jan. 8-13 stopping at Key West and Labadee, a nice mix of cruisers, not too many kids. I am new to cruising, first time was an OS, this time I wanted to see if I could enjoy the cheapest cabin. 7049. It was handy to take the stairs everywhere, and as a solo traveler, I loved it. Everything put away and neat. I liked the body/hair shower gel just fine! Steward 10/10, I tipped upon meeting him and received twice a day service and ice.
Food/Dining 9/10 Early seating, some dishes were real standouts; all the food was good. Still the “old” menu. Waiters were happy to bring anything you wanted. Breakfast 10/10 Eggs Benedict freshly toasted muffin. 
Activities 10/10 Options were as expected…Egg Drop was very entertaining, Rock Wall staff gave great coaching, really fun to do!

I skipped anything with the cruise director; her voice was so irritating. The art “auctioneer”’was even more grating. Royal, please give these ladies speech lessons. 
I did not see any shows, but heard good comments. 
Bars 6/10 Long waits even for gin on the rocks. 
The absolute highlight was a guitarist and violinist called Entourage Duo.

The ship vibrates considerably! It was very bad in the spa, aft area, sounding like percussion. 
Key West had great history and galleries, and Labadee was uncrowded, zip line and coaster a lot of fun. 
I can’t understand why a little rust /paint imperfections is such a big deal to people! I loved the teak promenade, sitting next to the railing reading a great book, and it is CLEAN, I walked all the way around it once with bare feet and they didn’t get dirty. 

Any questions, ask away!

[crzndeb]

I sailed the Grandeur back in 1997 with my daughters. I think there is a cruise ship for everyone. Lots of people love the old ships. I was on the Wonder TA in Oct/Nov, and recently over New Years, the Navigator. I like the newer ships. I also travel solo (New Years was with family) and really enjoy the production type shows, and multiple venues with music. I think the Ovation (only Quantum class I have been on) is still my fave, and hopefully that will still hold true in the Spring, when I’m on her for 54 nights.

Glad you had a good time.

[Rubyfisch]

I loved Enchantment as a solo cruiser (Granduer's sister ship). I can see why some people would prefer larger ships, but I don't get the hate for this class. It's okay if it's not your cup of tea, but that doesn't mean it's terrible ....

[cruiselvr04]

We spent 14 nights on her in 2022.  Oceanview and Jr suite. We love the ship.  While she doesn’t have a Broadway show, she still had good entertainment, easy to get around, easy off and on, staff the best we’ve had in 2022.  Love the little Park Cafe.  The solarium was warm but still enjoyed it. 
 

It wouldn’t be a ship I’d bring the grandkids on but that’s a different type of cruise for us.  Small ships don’t scare us and they have some of the best itineraries. 

[vegascruiser1]

Glad you enjoyed the Grandeur, we were on it in 2003. We have it booked for May of this year. I am looking forward going on this ship. 

[ramja96]

Will be on her in 66 days and can't wait. Thanks for the review.👍

[Takes Notes]

Thanks all for the comments. By the way, what is the capacity of Grandeur (2 per cabin)? I'm sailing on her Jan 5-10. Are there any classical musicians on board?

 

[Tatka]

We loved Grandeur for Christmas and new Year (12 dayers) in 2017 and 2018!

We loved Enchantment last March.

 

We know differences as we cruise every year with 4-5 classes

Last year Anthem X 2, Oasis, Adventure and Enchantment.

 

We know what we will not have on smaller ships, but we LOVE itineraries, coziness of smaller ships, closeness of everything, music in Centrum, real promenade from which you can almost touch ocean.

 

Cabins are of course really small, but we never in our cabins... even on large ships, even when we have balcony. We enjoy cruises for what we do outside of our cabin.