Just Off Grandeur/7-Night Bermuda-Review

We had a wonderful time. The staff & crew were great. The refurbishment is very nicely done. We enjoyed being in Bermuda 2.5 days. The seas were calm & weather great all but one day. Overall, this was a much better, much improved experience than the same cruise we took in 2008. CD & entertainment staff were great. Lots of activities going on most of the time. Enjoyed that the Centrum was used so much for so many things. It was mostly unused space in 2008. Glad to see that has changed. I've seen some complaints here on CC about the previous Trio band ending their contract. I just wanted to say that the (new) band we had playing in the Centrum nightly was fantastic. Multi-talented, and lots of people enjoying the music, and dancing as well. The poolside band was fantastic too, they played for longer stints than on our Freedom cruise in 2013, and they seemed to know more songs. I don't think I heard them repeat a song all week. I loved that they played for 45 minutes to over an hour several times per day. That was very enjoyable. In 2008 (GOS) and 2013 (FOS) the poolside bands played 15-20 mins at a time and that was it, which was really disappointing. Our MDR staff was fantastic this cruise. In 2008 on GOS our (1) MDR waiter didn't know the answer to any questions and didn't seem to know who to ask. This time we had a constant presence of our head waiter, waiter, and assistant waiter ready to assist. Our cabin steward was amazing too. The WJ quality was much much improved over our 2008 GOS trip. Across the board, GOS has really stepped-up and improved dramatically since our 2008 sailing.

All of this being said, there were a few (minor) cons, none of which will keep us from cruising again. However, we are likely to choose a different ship even though we enjoyed GOS this time around much more than in 2008.

(1) I didn't feel they were well-prepared for or well-versed on food allergies. I have already called and talked with someone about this. I was told some of the situations we encountered were not handled according to policy and the policies would be reviewed with the staff & crew for the sake of all future guests.

(2) Temperature - Due to this being an older ship (I'm guessing), the cooling was at times *really* inefficient throughout the ship, elevators, stairwells, and certain decks & venues, especially in the evenings around dinnertime. I nearly passed out in a slow hot crowded elevator a few times, and was forced to take many flights of steps with a heart condition to avoid being trapped in a hot elevator, which was super hard for me, and absolutely NO seats or benches anywhere near the stairwells for me to rest between levels. One night I physically could not make it to dinner due to this (and I will add, the MDR staff was so thoughtful, they sent my dinner back to the cabin with my DH when they learned why I didn't make it to dinner that night without us even requesting it). There are times DH & I would have liked to dance a song here and there (as I said, I have limitations, so it would have been 1 song here and there, not every song), but it was just way too hot in the various venues for me to do so comfortably without risking passing out. I had to leave the adult comedy show & Quest show for the same reason. There were many nights we would have gone to the Viking Crown and watched people dance, and purchased a few drinks, but again, too hot to go up there. Instead we went to bed. I think the ship lost out on 2-4 alcoholic beverage sales per night from the 2 of us due to this. (Will note, never had this temperature issue on Freedom in 2013, so I am guessing this is due to GOS being older).

(3) The disembarkation was a disaster. Very unorganized. We were called early with the suites and when we got there, all 2000+ passengers were forming a line to get off. One passenger yelled at my DH that we had to go UP the steps to the end of the line (with luggage). We said we just needed to get through so I could sit down (it was hot, and I was about to pass out due to afformentioned heart condition; and we had previously arranged for wheelchair transport for this very reason - which we couldn't find!). That was a bit harrowing actually, but we eventually found a crew member that was able to help us. No one wanted to let us pass through the line to the chairs so I could sit and wait for pier assist to come for me. On Freedom in 2013 each group was sent to a different lounge to wait, and everyone adhered to that, disembarkation was flawless. This seemed to be a "ME FIRST" scenario. Not sure what happened. Anyway there is some definite room for improvement with respect to getting passengers off GOS, it seems.

These were my only real complaints, not bad actually, when you cruise with thousands of people, you have to be patient and expect stuff like this, and it was a a great trip overall. We had a great time!

Thanks for your review. It's nice to read about all the "pros" of the ship. I'll be sailing on her for the first time during Christmas week.

Thanks for sharing your overall experience. I hope the good vibes continue, as we are sailing her on Friday!

How about Bermuda? What did you do? Any recommendations? We sail to Bermuda on the Grandeur in less than a month.

We just got off her last week, and I agree with about 95% of what the OP stated! This was (is) a great cruise and I can highly recommend it! It is ashame RCI is not going to offer 7 night cruises to Bermuda out of Baltimore next year! :mad:

Dining, service, (except Outside on deck 10, on one waiter for the entire deck!) and entertainment were outstanding!

Hint: if you are going on this ship, sign up for the roll call and the Meet and Mingle! It was a lot of fun and we met some really nice people!

Finally, (and here is where I disagree with the OP) embarkation disembarkation were the easiest we ever experienced! We were standing on the ship 15 minutes after we got to the terminal, and for disembarkation, once they called our number we strolled down the gang plank, found all our our luggage,(and we had a lot!) in five minutes - a first!

Bon Voyage!

How about Bermuda? What did you do? Any recommendations? We sail to Bermuda on the Grandeur in less than a month.

Bermuda is quite possibly the best place I have ever visited. Unfortunately GOS pulls into the Dockyard on a Sunday afternoon, when most shops and transportation to Hamilton and St. George's are closing down for the day. But fear not! Most shops and attractions at the Dockyard are open well into the evening. One of our favorite spots, the Frog and Onion brews their own beer, and it is quite tasty! Also Snorkel Park host a free Bon Fire Sunday Evening. If you decide to go, I do NOT recommend signing up on the ship! It cost $40 per person for watered down rums sizzles, and s'mores! I recommend simply walking in for free and buying drinks form the bar at Snorkel Park.

Monday morning, or whenever you decide to go ashore, I recommend getting a Bus/ferry pass. Ultimately cheaper than taxis, they provide a quick and scenic way to St. George's and Hamilton.

Bon Voyage!

How were the seas? Rocky at all?

Oh so glad you had an easier time getting off the ship TOPNET! Maybe it's one of those things where we just hit the line a few minutes too late. Anyway, I was glad for pier assist! My DH met you at the meet & mingle (Tnhokie). I didn't realize it was okay to pop-in later, and I didn't want to interrupt the gathering, so I didn't try to go late. But my husband said it would have been okay when he got back to the cabin. Hindsight!

Hi Roseshayit - The seas were great actually, all except one day, and even that wasn't too bad. Except for that one day, we swayed more in the Chesapeake than out in the ocean. I never could figure that out, because the Bay was calm. On the last night when the captain announced we were piloted up and down the bay, I wondered if whoever was piloting us in the Bay just didn't know how to make the ship feel quite as stable. But headed down to Bermuda once we hit open ocean was incredibly smooth, also the very last day too, before we entered the Bay again!

GoldenDomer - yes, we arrived in Bermuda on a Sunday afternoon. With Bermuda being more "formal" than the Caribbean I think we heard most things were closed on the weekend, plus it was a 30 minute ferry ride to Hamilton. So we did stay in the dockyard the first day. It looks a bit like a circus now, in comparison to what was there in 2008. But yes, lots of shops and a few restaurants, as Topnet said. The 2nd day (Monday) we tried Horseshoe Bay (it's supposed to be famous and have pink sand). It was SOOOO crowded! Unbelievably crowded!! We stayed about 2 hours, had lunch and 2 drinks each, then took the taxi back to the dockyard in the early afternoon. (If you decide to do Horsehoe Bay, there is a taxi from the dockyard that charges $16 pp round trip in an air conditioned van. Much cheaper than the $40 excursion the ship sells. Also, if there is another ship in port and you are worried about crowds, we learned on Tuesday there is a beach next to it called Warwick Bay, that also has facilities - wish we had known!) We got back on the ship and freshened up, changed, repacked our backpacks, and then took the ferry over to Hamilton for the afternoon. We only walked around Front street before my DH became very faint and lightheaded from the heat (and yes, ODD that it wasn't me, with my issues), but I panicked, because we both thought he was going to pass out. I had him sit in a cold cafe eating salty chips and drinking OJ for about 45 mins until the ferry returned. I was just crossing my fingers he wouldn't pass out on me! Turns out he realized later he had forgotten his blood pressure meds. So, we didn't really get to see Hamilton at all this time, (but we saw a lot of things in 2008 when we were there). The last day we had intended to take the ferry to St. Georges, which is 45 mins-1 hour each way, but we headed out, and it was SO hot and humid that I began to feel exhausted before we reached the ferry station, so we decided just to stay on the ship. Next time we go to Bermuda we will go in the spring (which is when we went in 2008, and it was 60s and breezy, no humidity). I've got pictures of the ferry schedules I can post if anyone is interested, so you can start planning in advance if you want. I just need to figure out how to post them! Oh also, there are pink buses that go all over Bermuda that are pretty cheap to ride. We did that in 2008 in order to view the interior of the island, and would occasionally get off if we saw something interesting we wanted to stop for. We had no real plan in 2008 and I think we saw so much more just bumbling along than we did this time!

Bermuda is quite possibly the best place I have ever visited. Unfortunately GOS pulls into the Dockyard on a Sunday afternoon, when most shops and transportation to Hamilton and St. George's are closing down for the day. But fear not! Most shops and attractions at the Dockyard are open well into the evening. One of our favorite spots, the Frog and Onion brews their own beer, and it is quite tasty! Also Snorkel Park host a free Bon Fire Sunday Evening. If you decide to go, I do NOT recommend signing up on the ship! It cost $40 per person for watered down rums sizzles, and s'mores! I recommend simply walking in for free and buying drinks form the bar at Snorkel Park.

 

Monday morning, or whenever you decide to go ashore, I recommend getting a Bus/ferry pass. Ultimately cheaper than taxis, they provide a quick and scenic way to St. George's and Hamilton.

 

Bon Voyage!

This is a great tip! I hesitated to buy tickets to the bonfire because we don't drink alcohol. So, I can just walk in for free? (we would buy soft drinks, if available)