Grandeur Nov. 11, 2014 Review

[kleo30]

I loved your review.

 

We just took our first cruise on Freedom of the Seas out of Port Canaveral, but we live in Maryland and are only an hour from the port. I would love to sail out of Baltimore.

 

Your review was great. I am thinking we should try this cruise the next time. And I loved how you rolled with anything that came your way without complaining. Broken toilet, rain, no problem. Not everyone would do that.

Are you totally addicted now? We were hooked after our first cruise on Explorer.

 

We can't change the circumstances, so may as well make the best of it is my philosophy. Although that first day that was yucky, I was sad. I wanted one last sea day. But seriously, if it was Day 9 in the middle of November sailing from Baltimore before the weather was yucky, I had nothing to be sad about, so I gave myself a pep talk and made the best of it.

 

DH and I have just started dance lessons about 6 months ago. We tried to find places to dance on our cruise but were not too successful. DH would also like to jitterbug.

 

Thanks again for taking the time to write this.

 

I really enjoy writing the reviews of our trips. I like going back and reading them, too. I would LOVE if there were more 70s and 80s music, but what can ya do. The pool deck band sometimes played stuff we could have danced to if we weren't too lazy to get out of the lounge chair lol.

[Philly Steve]

Hi Kelly,

 

Really enjoying your review/blog and pics with so much detail.

 

I have kept journals for about a half dozen cruises now; handwritten in a leather bound book. While cruising do you make entries during the day or catch up at night? I usually take notes then knock out the daily at the end of the night. To some, it seems like work (and it is) but it helps to make those fleeting cruise moments more permanent. ;)

 

Also, did you shoot much video?

[kleo30]

Hi Kelly,

 

Really enjoying your review/blog and pics with so much detail.

 

I have kept journals for about a half dozen cruises now; handwritten in a leather bound book. While cruising do you make entries during the day or catch up at night? I usually take notes then knock out the daily at the end of the night. To some, it seems like work (and it is) but it helps to make those fleeting cruise moments more permanent. ;)

 

Also, did you shoot much video?

I'm glad you're enjoying it Steve.

 

I like to journal in the morning with coffee. It helps me catch up with the night before, and I write whatever things we plan for the day, which usually is different than what we actually do.

 

If we are in the cabin mid-day napping, and I wake up first, I'll sit outside and catch up.

 

But rarely after dinner. I do that catching up in the morning.

 

I really love keeping a journal of our cruises. It is relaxing to me.

[MOcruiserman]

Fantastic review. We will be on the Grandeur next October and I'm really looking forward to it.

 

Here are a couple of observations and a question.

 

First, one of the reasons your review is so entertaining is your positive attitude. I read many bitter cruise reviews based on what I see as minor problems, but you didn't let any of the issues you faced get you down.

 

Second, I notice that you and your husband belong to Weight Watchers. You are inspiring me to give it a try (my wife tried it and failed, I think because I wasn't on board with it).

 

Here's my question. With all the opportunities to eat on the cruise, how do you manage to stay on the WW diet?

[Fun2snorkel]

Kelly - I loved your review! We were also on the cruise and it was great to relive the good times. We ate in Chops the first night and it was fantastic. We had MTD - usually eating around 7:30 - but had no set time. We thought the food was great - a couple of misses but overall really good. We only ate in the Windjammer a few times. We did go to the Motown show and it was great. Thankfully we had no problems with the toilet but did have trouble with the air that took several days to fix! But it was a fantastic and relaxing cruise and we can't wait to go out of Baltimore again.:)

 

Also congratulations on your weight loss - you look fantastic!

[kleo30]

Fantastic review. We will be on the Grandeur next October and I'm really looking forward to it.

 

Here are a couple of observations and a question.

 

First, one of the reasons your review is so entertaining is your positive attitude. I read many bitter cruise reviews based on what I see as minor problems, but you didn't let any of the issues you faced get you down.

 

Second, I notice that you and your husband belong to Weight Watchers. You are inspiring me to give it a try (my wife tried it and failed, I think because I wasn't on board with it).

 

Here's my question. With all the opportunities to eat on the cruise, how do you manage to stay on the WW diet?

I hope you love the Grandeur!

 

How did I stay on the WW plan. Well, I didn't is the short answer. I did make a plan to walk the stairs as much as possible and to eat and drink whatever I wanted HA. My goal was to gain less than I did on my last 10 day cruise (which was 8 pounds), and I did. I gained 5.8. And to not be more than 2 pounds over goal, which is the legal weight rules for staff and lifetime members, and I'm not :) So all is good.

 

Other than cruising, I take my WW plan with me on vacation, because it really is a way of life. But there are so many drinks and desserts (the food, other than Giovanni's, doesn't interest me so much. I do order what I want but rarely at all of anything. Oh, and raspberry pastries).

 

There are some exciting things happening at WW in the next few weeks. I say give it a go. If you do the work, the plan works. I am a leader for them now, and absolutely love helping my members succeed, while being motivated to stay at goal :)

[jimandtoni]

I hope you love the Grandeur!

 

How did I stay on the WW plan. Well, I didn't is the short answer. I did make a plan to walk the stairs as much as possible and to eat and drink whatever I wanted HA. My goal was to gain less than I did on my last 10 day cruise (which was 8 pounds), and I did. I gained 5.8. And to not be more than 2 pounds over goal, which is the legal weight rules for staff and lifetime members, and I'm not :) So all is good.

 

Other than cruising, I take my WW plan with me on vacation, because it really is a way of life. But there are so many drinks and desserts (the food, other than Giovanni's, doesn't interest me so much. I do order what I want but rarely at all of anything. Oh, and raspberry pastries).

 

There are some exciting things happening at WW in the next few weeks. I say give it a go. If you do the work, the plan works. I am a leader for them now, and absolutely love helping my members succeed, while being motivated to stay at goal :)

 

Just a few things:

1. Loved your review. We are on the Grandeur with the same itinerary on January 6, so I found your review quite informative and helpful. It has a been a lot of years since we have cruised on an RCI ship and you answered a lot of our questions.

2. Question: on the outside Promenade deck, were there lots of lounge chairs, and could you walk all the way around the ship on the outside deck?

3. I saved the best for last...you do look GREAT!

[stellarose]

Wonderful on ww. I have maintained my weight loss for 8 years.

 

Looking forward to seeing grandeur in less than a month.

 

 

I think I may journal now that y'all have said it was fun to do so.

[bubba83]

We just got home from the 10 night Eastern Caribbean cruise on the Grandeur. We had an amazing time. I posted a detailed, day by day review, on my blog if anybody is interested in reading it.

 

Grandeur Nov. 11th ~ 10 night review

 

If you have any questions, I'll try to answer them.

 

 

Is there more to the review than just the first 3 days....when I click on the link for your blog only days 1,2,3 come up....I could be missing something :)

[kleo30]

Just a few things:

1. Loved your review. We are on the Grandeur with the same itinerary on January 6, so I found your review quite informative and helpful. It has a been a lot of years since we have cruised on an RCI ship and you answered a lot of our questions.

2. Question: on the outside Promenade deck, were there lots of lounge chairs, and could you walk all the way around the ship on the outside deck?

3. I saved the best for last...you do look GREAT!

 

Thank you!

 

The loungers on the promenade deck were plentiful, on both sides. I'm not sure if you could walk all the way around. I'll ask my husband if he knows. We went out to that deck several times, but didn't walk it.

[kleo30]

Wonderful on ww. I have maintained my weight loss for 8 years.

 

Looking forward to seeing grandeur in less than a month.

 

 

I think I may journal now that y'all have said it was fun to do so.

Congratulations!!

Is there more to the review than just the first 3 days....when I click on the link for your blog only days 1,2,3 come up....I could be missing something :)

 

Yes, if you go to the bottom of that page, it will say older posts. Click on that and you'll get more pages (and keep clicking because I think it is several pages back where it started. If you keep clicking, you'll see my other two reviews from 2013 and 2011 on Explorer).

[equavian knight]

We just got home from the 10 night Eastern Caribbean cruise on the Grandeur. We had an amazing time. I posted a detailed, day by day review, on my blog if anybody is interested in reading it.

 

Grandeur Nov. 11th ~ 10 night review

 

If you have any questions, I'll try to answer them.

Most nights after that, the music was loud and more ethnic than we like. So we didn't stay after the DJ came in.

 

What does that mean?

[kleo30]

Most nights after that, the music was loud and more ethnic than we like. So we didn't stay after the DJ came in.

 

What does that mean?

 

All I meant was the music they played was more what my teenage African American nieces like vs. what we were expecting in the disco (70s, 80s, disco). I couldn't quite decide how to say that.

[jewel_beth]

For some reason that link isn't working for me. Can I get the website address for your blog?

 

Thanks!

 

 

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[kleo30]

For some reason that link isn't working for me. Can I get the website address for your blog?

 

Thanks!

 

 

Sent from my iPad using Cruise Critic Forums mobile app

 

Sure. http://lifewithboys-kleo37.blogspot.com/ I also have it linked in my signature.

[Philly Steve]

I really love keeping a journal of our cruises. It is relaxing to me.

 

..And a good read for the rest of us! :cool:

[cruising forever]

For us, the drink packages were worth it. Doug had the premium and I had the ultimate. We each had 4 or more bottles of water a day. I had Starbucks once a day. I had a mimosa with fresh juice at breakfast. And we both had quite a few cocktails (2-4 at the pool, 1 before dinner on the balcony, I'd have wine with dinner, after dinner shooters, a couple more in a bar after dinner and another to take back to the room to enjoy on the balcony before we'd go to bed). There weren't any cocktails we ordered that went over the limit. We got mixed drinks like Long Island iced tea and all kinds of frozen cocktails and martinis. Doug used the soda cup frequently and had soda with dinner or lunch. I only used it to keep water cold at the pool. So we definitely got our money's worth. We will definitely purchase them again.

 

I'm sure this has been answered a gazillion times, but I'm not finding it and DH wants to know............is there a limit to how many drinks in a 24 hour period as with other cruise lines? Thanks!

[kleo30]

I'm sure this has been answered a gazillion times, but I'm not finding it and DH wants to know............is there a limit to how many drinks in a 24 hour period as with other cruise lines? Thanks!

 

We didn't have anybody give us a limit. And we drank a lot. One or the other of us often went to order drinks for the both of us. We just needed to make sure we took both cards. We sat at a bar one night drinking shots one after another (well, several in a 40 minute period, not every 2 minutes). This was after drinking all day and having bottled water and wine with dinner.

[Clarea]

I'm sure this has been answered a gazillion times, but I'm not finding it and DH wants to know............is there a limit to how many drinks in a 24 hour period as with other cruise lines? Thanks!

No limit.

[pl3341]

If I don't buy a beverage package now can I buy it later if I change my mind ?

[Clarea]

If I don't buy a beverage package now can I buy it later if I change my mind ?

Yes, you can purchase any of the beverage packages on board the ship.

[RSLeesburg]

Just finished your blog. Very nice. So interesting - we met Petya when we dined in Giovanni's on the first night. She was such a nice person, and doted on our son that night and the two times we made it in for suite breakfast. We heard about he husband, but did not realize that he was on the ship until we dined in Chops, and had Delroy as our server. What a small world.

 

As we did not attend most of the events, so did not want to comment about Mitch but we felt the same. We really missed Ricky. Andre was amazing.

 

 

 

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[stellarose]

Anyone know if my 11 year old can get a mani or pedi at spa?

[RSLeesburg]

Anyone know if my 11 year old can get a mani or pedi at spa?

 

 

I don't have a spa price sheet from this past cruise, but do have one from last year's cruise on Grandeur, and there is a section called "Teen and Kid Spa". Under this section, there are options for facials ($99), massages ($89-$195), pedicure ($65), and manicure ($45). These are last year's prices, so not sure if they are still accurate or not. Also, they may be offering deals during your cruise - ask the spa manager.

 

 

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[CCC3]

May I just say your formal dresses were beautiful! Where did you purchase them?

 

 

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