RC out of Baltimore

[latitude918]

I recently found out that Carnival is ceasing operations out of Baltimore, which is sad for me because of my proximity to the port. Is Royal Caribbean still going to be sailing out of The Charm City?

[cruzinlady1947]

Yes......the Grandeur sails out of Baltimore.

 

Gwen :)

[JMG]

We have not heard of any announcement that RCI plans to move out of Balt.

 

As for the future...the bridges (Key Bridge and Chesapeake Bay Bridge)dictate the height that the ship can be. That rules out most of the RCI fleet. Anyone's guess as to how long RCI will be able to stay in that market. The cruises we have been on had been on a full ship so it appears that there is a market in Balt.

Edited November 5, 2013 by JMG

[DEIx15x8]

Adam commented on the situation recently. He says they have no plans to change their plans in Baltimore. If the loss of Carnival causes an increase in demand they could look at their options to increase capacity. At the moment though they have no plans to add, remove, or change the setup of just Grandeur of the Seas in Baltimore.

 

Both the Vision and Radiance classes can sail from the port so they still have many more years to go. The Voyager, Freedom, Oasis, and Quantum classes can't though. Since the Radiance and Voyager classes are about the same age it won't be until some of the voyager class ships are retired that Royal would likely not have any more ships left capable of sailing out of Baltimore.

[PuterMonkey]

We have not heard of any announcement that RCI plans to move out of Balt.

 

As for the future...the bridges (Key Bridge and Chesapeake Bay Bridge)dictate the height that the ship can be. That rules out most of the RCI fleet. Anyone's guess as to how long RCI will be able to stay in that market. The cruises we have been on had been on a full ship so it appears that there is a market in Balt.

 

From MD as well and this is the main issue. Most of the big cruise lines are focused on building larger ships, not smaller. In B-more there is a height limit on the ships that can sail in due to the bridge. I don't think there have been issues with the Grandeur sailing empty so I'd imagine that as long as they have the audience, they'll keep a smaller ship in port (especially if Carnival is on the out). Like the pp said though, these ships are only getting older and RC probably won't keep them forever =(

[leaveitallbehind]

We have not heard of any announcement that RCI plans to move out of Balt.

 

As for the future...the bridges (Key Bridge and Chesapeake Bay Bridge)dictate the height that the ship can be. That rules out most of the RCI fleet. Anyone's guess as to how long RCI will be able to stay in that market. The cruises we have been on had been on a full ship so it appears that there is a market in Balt.

 

I have been told that the Radiance class ships also would fit under those bridges.

[RSLeesburg]

On the East Coast Departures forum some one posted that on a recent Carnival tour for TA's, the question was posed about Baltimore, and the answer given was that Carnival is planning to return in 2015. No comment on if it would be Pride or not.

[mskaufman]

I have sailed out of Baltimore three times. One of the highlights is seeing how close the ship is to the bottom of the Key Bridge. I consistently hear that ships are full and they charge more than trips out of FL where there is more competition. Living in the area I like the fact that I can be on vacation so soon after leaving home.

[slyster]

I'm also close to the port of Baltimore. I wonder why Carnival pulled out. I do know that the Carnival Pride has been there for a while so maybe that ship has sailed ;-). I just returned from Grandeur. It was a full ship. I think it's a good idea to rotate ships out of there every couple of years. I think that would help too.

[tekeella]

The issue for Carnival is that they are currently not in environmental compliance for sailing in the Chesapeake Bay. Royal was issued waivers and then installed scrubbers(?) in the stacks to be able to sail through the Bay and be in compliance.

 

Carnival wants a guarantee they will receive the same exemptions and approvals as Royal before they invest the money in the ships. If they do, they have even teased bringing in more ships. It looks likely that Maryland will come to terms with Carnival and they will not leave the port.

[RSLeesburg]

The issue for Carnival is that they are currently not in environmental compliance for sailing in the Chesapeake Bay. Royal was issued waivers and then installed scrubbers(?) in the stacks to be able to sail through the Bay and be in compliance.

 

Carnival wants a guarantee they will receive the same exemptions and approvals as Royal before they invest the money in the ships. If they do, they have even teased bringing in more ships. It looks likely that Maryland will come to terms with Carnival and they will not leave the port.

 

I thought I read somewhere that the EPA has since approved the waiver for Carnival.

[RSLeesburg]

I'm also close to the port of Baltimore. I wonder why Carnival pulled out. I do know that the Carnival Pride has been there for a while so maybe that ship has sailed ;-). I just returned from Grandeur. It was a full ship. I think it's a good idea to rotate ships out of there every couple of years. I think that would help too.

 

I think rotating ships would be a great idea, although some people get very attached to a ship :).

[tekeella]

It looks like they have. Carnival is saying that they will still relocate to Tampa for a short bit then return to Baltimore in 2015. Sounds like they will only be gone for 6 months at most. Last departure out of Baltimore with Pride is scheduled for November 30, 2014 and the last cruise for it scheduled in Tampa is April 26 2015.