mattnorris75

Hello! In December I am doing 7 nights on Navigator in and out of LA. Then I am off to Vegas. 
 

I know I can fly out of LAX or Long Beach but I would rather not spend the day waiting at the airport and paying for baggage as I am on a 6 week trip. 
 

So what are my other options? How else can I get from LA to Vegas? Are there luxury coaches? Is Greyhound ok for the cheaper price? 
 

Is renting a car and self drive a good option? Can I easily get one from the port? 
 

Happy to hear any and all ideas or prior experiences please. 

Here’s a pic from the wharf at Coco Cay! definitely only cosmetic. 
 

we are the only ship here today too! It’s great having the place to ourselves! 

So final update from the Captain is that is was just deck5 damage, purely cosmetic and no other damage which is great news. Enough excitement for the day!! 
 

We have now set sail and are on our way to Coco Cay!! No delays at all. no changes to schedules. 
 

Apologies to anyone this post caused stress for with upcoming sailings. But it shows how things can change so quickly and was also a great way to see all Royal staff involved come together to get us away on time without delay. This included divers below the surface, communication with Miami office etc. 

Thanks for following on and for those joining Mariner soon, she is a beautiful ship with fantastic crew. 
 

And Freeport? Looks like most people stayed on board the Ship today. It’s not an attractive port, it has the straw market by the pier. Some pics as we departed attached.
 

But any day on a cruise ship is an awesome day in my books regardless of where you are or what you do. 
 

Safe travels all!

1 hour ago, chengkp75 said:

 

4 minutes ago, chengkp75 said:

Can you look down and see if the "duck tail" has any damage.  I was thinking it was the outboard end of that opening, but being closer to centerline the duck tail may have gotten scraped.

No I had a look over the stern and all is complete and intact at the waterline. Looks like the only impact was deck 5 thankfully. 

28 minutes ago, Big_G said:

Just curious so where would you estimate the location of the damage in this picture?

Agree with Chenkp75 reply further below. Just above the “of the” words 2 openings up. 

Ok so it does look like that is the only damage thankfully! You can still walk around the aft on deck 4. I’ve attached some photos from deck 4 looking up to deck 5. Looking over the stern of our ship there is no visible damage to Mariner other than where the bridge wing of the other ship hit. 
 

Still no official update but hopefully just some welding and painting and it will be fixed quickly. So for any future cruisers, I think it will all be ok!! Please don’t spend time stressing or making other plans. 
 

I really hope my post hasn’t caused distress to future cruisers. That was certainly never my intent. I only posted it as this is a rare event to witness and wanted to share it as we have a common interest in cruising. It was distressing to witness being hit, but I am glad that the damage doesn’t appear to be as bad as first thought.
 

Once I hear of any further details from the Captain or anything like that I will post a further update. 

34 minutes ago, Sam Ting said:

Unfortunately i think you should start making back up plans….

I don’t think people should make back up plans!! There is a team of people working hard on this already and I am sure Royal would be doing everything to have this inspected and repaired in the absolute shortest time possible. I am on a BTB at the end of this cruise and I have no concerns. I trust Royal and am sure it will all be fine. We are in the right spot for any maintenance to be done and get this fixed in the shortest stone possible. 

11 minutes ago, Sam Ting said:

Unfortunately i think you should start making back up plans….

I don’t think people should make back up plans!! There is a team of people working hard on this already and I am sure Royal would be doing everything to have this inspected and repaired in the absolute shortest time possible. I am on a BTB at the end of this cruise and I have no concerns. I trust Royal and am sure it will all be fine. We are in the right spot for any maintenance to be done and get this fixed in the shortest stone possible. 

Ok so they have pulled the smaller ship out of our stern. Their bridge wing suffered good damage which is what cause the hole in our deck 5. 
 

Still not sure if we have any other damage other than the deck 5 railing area. But at least now they can investigate it fully. 
 

No further updates as to any changes in itinerary but will advise.  

I’m currently on board Mariner in an aft facing cabin. Our itinerary changed from a sea day to having today at Grand Bahama Island for maintenance. We are alongside the main dock. 
 

Just watched a smaller cargo ship, Tropic Freedom, come alongside the edge of the wharf at a good speed, hit the concrete edge of the wharf and then crashed right into our stern. It is now lodged into Mariner. 
 

From Deck 7 I can see a hole in the railing on deck 5 where the bridge wing of the other ship has cut into us. It made a mighty noise and a big shudder. Not sure how much damage is below below deck 5.

Captain has announced all is ok and will give us updates. At this stage the other ship is still stuck in us with a tug boat keeping it in place. Pilot boats around and lots of activity. Will update when we hear further. 

hey guys,

Just wondering if anyone else here is on this cruise! I'll look for a FOD notice on night one, but would be nice to meet some friends along the way.

Traveling alone here, from Australia.

Matt

Thanks everyone for the advice. I will have a good look at hotel options. Thanks for that tip jpcello, about looking outside of the city but remaining on the Metro. A day exploring the museums sounds really good.

I'm glad it will be warm, as I'll be happy to escape the Aussie winter!

Thanks again for the all the advice and I hope I can return the favour if any of you ever cruise down under.

Thanks for the replies so far!

Looks like heading to Washington straight off the Ship sounds like the better option. I can always see a bit of Baltimore the day before the cruise and the morning before embarking on 10 August. Any recommendation on a good pre cruise hotel close to the Pier?

Yes 138east, my free dates are 19-21 August. The hop on/off bus sounds like a great option too. I'd like to stay central to Union Station to make transport easy. I really just need a clean safe base to sleep and shower, then it's an easy place to leave from to make Dulles on the Monday morning for my flight. Happy for any recommendations there.

Are all the museums open on a Sunday in Washington? Hopefully it will still be nice and warm.

Hey CC members,

I will be visiting from Australia in August this year and part of the big trip is a cruise on Grandeur from/to Baltimore.

I need some help and advice for when I return from the cruise.

The ship docks back in Baltimore on a Satuday morning, and I have 2 free days until I fly out of Washington Dulles airport on the Monday around lunchtime.

I am traveling solo, and won't have a car.

My research so far has the following options:

1. Spend 2 nights in Baltimore after the cruise and then take an Amtrak and metro to Dulles on the Monday morning to meet my flight.

2. See Baltimore on the Saturday after the cruise docks, then take an Amtrak to Washington Union on the Satuday night and see some sights there on the Sunday before catching the metro to Dulles on the Monday morning.

I know it is very limited time, but what would locals or regulars recommend? Stay in Baltimore or head to Washington, or see both?

Can you also recommend a good hotel close to the port and/or close to Union Station in Baltimore?

Thanks in advance for your advice and suggestions.

Great news, thanks for the assistance.

I will put the request in writing to the Concierge closer to the cruise departure.

Hello everyone,

I am sailing on Radiance with my father (82 years old) on a 17 night cruise next year. I'm his 41 year old son.

In the past, we have sailed in the same cabin on much shorter cruises with the twin bed set up obviously.

As this cruise is much longer, and Dad now uses a CPAP breathing machine at night which makes a little noise, I am wondering if we can have the bedding set up as a queen bed and sofa bed set up in the cabin.

Being the Grand Suite, we can close the curtain from the sleeping area to the living area to block the noise out and provide some privacy between the sleeping areas, but my question is, will the sofa remain out as a bed during the day?

Ideally, I would like to have retracted back to a sitting couch during the day and only set up as a bed at night.

Is this possible? Or are there any other suggestions for how we can best make use of a Grand Suite for separate bedding options for such a long cruise.

Thanks in advance.

Love the review thanks! Aussie here, heading back to the states in February for my 3rd royal cruise, 3 nights on Enchantment. 40th birthday splurge and booked a grand suite. Can't wait! Your review makes me more and more excited for it. Cheers!!