Grandeur Review Out Of New Orleans

[CabinBoy]

My wife and I just got home from a 7 Day cruise out of New Orleans on the Grandeur Of The Seas.

 

The weather was a little cool in New Orleans the first couple of days and the last couple of days of the cruise, but we just stayed inside with everyone else. As we went further south, the temps got up into the 80's. The ports on this cruise were Cozumel, Grand Caymen and Costa Maya. It only rained once and that was on Day 5 right around dusk.

 

We normally do not book our excursions on the ship and try to deal with the vendors once we get off the ship, but this year we booked the Dolphin Swim and Snorkel tour through the ship in Cozumel and the Mayan Ruins Tour in Costa Maya. We parasailed in Grand Caymen, but booked that once on shore with a local vendor.

 

The thing that surprised me the most was the fact that the ship left New Orleans at 5:00pm and we didn't hit the Gulf Of Mexico until around midnight. It takes that long to go down the Mississippi River!! It was pretty strange to look out the windows during dinner and see lights on the shoreline!

 

I would recommend the Dolphin Swim and Snorkel tour in Cozumel even though it is expensive. The dolphins swim right past you and you get to kiss them, shake their pectoral fins and even ride them!

 

The Mayan Ruins tour was also really good. We chose the 4 hour tour apposed to the other tour because we don't like being held "hostage" by a tour bus for too long. It took an hour to get to the site, but the bus was a brand new motorcoach and comfortable. The ruins themselves were discovered in 1999 and were pretty amazing. Costa Maya is still pretty "remote" in my book. They did build a plaza at the end of the pier that is pretty awesome but aside from that it was not too commercialized yet and was really pretty.

 

Grand Caymen is still recovering from Hurricane Ivan and alot of the trees and hotels are still showing the damage. The beaches and water are still perfect though.

 

The Grandeur Of The Seas is one of the smaller ships I've been on and it was noticeable, but nice. I prefer the Voyager Class ships, such as the Navigator over the Vision class. The city walk (or mall) on the Voyager class is hard to beat. Another thing that annoyed my wife and I was that you couldn't just walk up and make your own Ice Cream cone! I know, I know, I'm being picky, but on the Navigator it was self serve and conveniently placed in the city walk. The Windjammer cafe was a little crowded and congested compared to the other ships I've been on. Don't get me wrong, however, the ship is nice especially if you prefer the smaller ships.

 

The food was awesome and our waiter staff was superb. I was offered an extra Lobster tail one night and didn't even have to ask.

 

The entertainment on the Grandeur wasn't quite up to par. Maybe we just caught a bad week, but I've seen better. There was one comedian that was good, but the singers and dancers have been better on other cruises.

 

The Cruise Director and his staff were great.

[debgirl]

Thanks for the good review. We are leaving on the Grandeur this Saturday. Going into New Orleans on Friday. Glad to hear the food is good and the staff is great. We have never been on the bigger ships on RCL only the Grandeur. We like the smaller ships, we enjoy seeing some of the same faces. Thanks for the recommendations for tours. We haven't decided what to do, but glad to hear from someone who has been on the tours recently.

[mustangjoe]

Thanks for the info. My wife and I are departing from NO on March 26 and we have already booked the Dolphin Swim.

 

Did you spend any time in NO? We are arriving a day early and staying an extra day. Any suggestions in what to see?

 

Glad you had a nice trip.:)

[checkard]

Cabinboy - Thanks for the review. My mom and I are going on Grandeur March 12, flying to NO on March 10. We are also looking at the 4-hr ruins tour in Costa Maya. Not sure what we're doing at the other ports.

 

I've been on the bigger ships several times but also enjoy the change to the smaller ships.

 

I'm not sure if you can walk up and get ice cream on any of the RC ships anymore. We did on the Voyager last year but I thought I read somewhere on these boards right after we got back that RC did away with the ice cream area because they were such a mess to maintain. My husband couldn't walk by without getting a cone.

[yuyi64]

Thanks for taking the time to write your review CabinBoy. Is Tom Canosa back as cruise director (he had been on vacation for a while), or is Duane Davis still filling in as CD?

[Ronn452]

How are things in N'awlins? Saw you on-line and just wanted to say Hi!

My wife and I are going out on the Brilliance on the 25th. Finally got some time back home so we decided to spend it cruising.

 

Captain Ronn

[yuyi64]

Hi Ronn! Things are very foggy in New Orleans this morning; visibility is less than 1/8 mile on the interstate and almost nil near water. We're hoping to go back on the Grandeur or Conquest in April or May for some sunshine. Glad to hear you finally got some time back in the States; I know it's been a while abroad for you. Say hi to your wife and son. I've never been on the Brilliance but those that have tell me it's a beatiful ship. You guys will have a blast!

[CabinBoy]

Tom Canosa was our Cruise Director and was really good.

 

As far as New Orleans goes, my wife and I took a tour the day of debarkation and went down to the French Quarter and walked around.

 

We also went past the D-Day Museum in the bus, but did not go in. The tour guide said she doesn't like museums, but that one is really awesome.

 

City Park was another stop that we made. It was during daylight, but I guess they light it up during evening and would be pretty cool.

 

You may also want to take a light jacket for the first couple of days and the last couple of days. It was breezy and cool out on the decks until we got further south.

 

Hope all this helps.

 

 

Randy

[Denise&Paul STL]

I took the January 29, 2005 cruise out of New Orleans on Grandeur of the Seas. I had an absolutely wonderful time and enjoyed this much more than the Carnival cruise I took last summer. It may not be top of the line, but for the price, I can't believe you could do better. I thought the service was outstanding, the food wonderful, and the entertainment excellent.

 

As far as excursions, we did the shopping in Cozumel, Stingray City and snorkel in Grand Cayman which I definitely recommend and was a blast, as well as a couple hours on Seven Mile Beach which was fantastic. In Costa Maya, I took the transportation to Majahual beach. That was nice, but the shopkeepers harassed us from the moment we got off the bus -- be prepared for that. Not much privacy on the beach and to snorkel you had to go quite a distance out and didn't feel very safe. However, the beach and water are beautiful and well worth the visit.

 

Denise

 

7/04 Carnival Sensation

1/05 Grandeur of the Seas

[NannyJan]

Thanks for your review. We are crusing Grandeur on April 9th out of NO and really looking forward to it. about 40 of us going!

 

We were on Enchantment in 98 and loved her. On Explorer in 2001 and loved her as well.

 

Question? Is there a cafe open 24 hours like on the Explorer or no...I don't care about the ice cream, but loved that little cafe on Explorer where you could get great little sandwiches and coffee anytime...

 

Also, do they have a midnight buffer - just one during the cruise week?

 

What deck were you on...we are on Deck 8...can't wait!

 

NannyJan

[yuyi64]

There is no 24-hour cafe on the Grandeur but the Solarium Grill does stay open late on most nights. There is only one midnight buffet, usually on the second formal night (Thursday on my last Grandeur cruise). It's called the Gala buffet and it's set up in the Great Gatsby dining room. They open up for pictures first and start serving the food later. You can some some pictures of that buffet in my Grandeur photo album at:

 

http://yuyi64.photosite.com/Grandeur2004/

[NannyJan]

WOW! What great shots...I feel like I can leave my camera home and just look at your pictures...I sure can't get much better than that! But I actually just got my Digital Rebel so I MUST in fact bring it anyway.

 

You have really whet my appetite for our upcoming cruise...so far I have not found anyone crusing April 9th, but we have a large group going so that's ok. I'm sure it won't be just Boston on the ship!

 

I read some of your other Emails and saw something about Ben and Jerry's and Starbucks...tell me its true...hubby and I are fans of both!

 

The ship looks so beautiful...having cruised Enchantment a while back, she looks very much her sister ship.

 

Thanks so much for your photos...love them!

 

NannyJan

[yuyi64]

Thanks NannyJan, glad you liked my pics! I'm told by recent Grandeur cruisers that the Ben and Jerry's ice cream shop and the premium(extra fee) coffee shop are now open. I wish they had been open last year when we were on the Grandeur. Enjoy your new Digital Rebel, I hear they're awesome cameras. Take lots of pics and post them when you get back!

[debgirl]

yuyi64 thank you for such beautiful pictures. Now I can't wait until Saturday when we sail off. We are going to leave Friday for New Orleans. Just wanted to know, the beach pictures, were those pictures of Costa Maya and is the beach near by or do we have to take a cab? Thanks

[NannyJan]

You took the words right out of my mouth...was wondering which beach was Majahua. Are all of the beach shots Costa Maya? We are planning on taking a taxi to Majahua or I keep reading about renting a golf cart and driving ourselves...need to get more info about this...

 

We have done Stingray City twice and the Dolphin swim at Cozumel. Both were great...this time we are just kicking back...snorkeling, beaching it, relaxing...enjoying the ship...

 

debgirl - can't wait to hear all about your cruise when you return. We too are heading into New Orleans the week of our cruise on Friday...flying in from Boston in the am..staying at La Pavillon...but that is not until April 8th...lucky you going Saturday!

 

Enjoy, and thanks again yuyi64....

 

NannyJan

[yuyi64]

The beach shots with trees, thatch huts, or bar tables and chairs were taken at Mahahual. It's only a short cab ride from Costa Maya. The more desolate-looking beach scenes (showing mainly sand, water, or beach "toys") are from Seven Mile Beach in Grand Cayman. They were very different types of beaches but both were beautiful in their unique ways!

[debgirl]

Thanks yuyi64 for the info.

[debgirl]

Nanijan--thanks. I will post a review after I get back. Hope you have a great cruise also.