The Grand..officially my least favorite Princess ship

[DesertGirl28]

Well, we are back one day, and the Grand has officially become our least favorite ship. Not because of the entertainment, the food, the service (no complaints there, except we did notice less servers, which just meant those we had had to rush a bit more)..but because of the ship. So glad I had my inhaler with me...the mildew gave me cause for concern. The ship stunk of mildew all over the place! The area outside the Exploreres lounge (to the right of the stage) constantly had a blower going, trying to get rid of the damp (which of course blew the mildew odor farther). Several public bathrooms had towels rolled up behind the toilets, which I assume was where more mildew smell came from. Getting "rained" on while playing trivia is not fun...I don't need to be wet when enjoying a cruise! Getting "rained" on like several complained in the Wheel House during uke lessons is just plain ridiculous. Dodging pails catching water (from the ceiling) while traveling halls should be unnecessary and could be dangerous..felt bad for those with walkers and wheel chairs.

Talk about a worn out ship! Sitting outside of Explores (or even inside in many chairs), be prepared to ask for help getting up as you sink into oblivion. The chairs and couches in many areas are so worn! I have never heard so many people complain about an unkept ship, and I was on her the week after they removed Skywalkers! She's in much worse shape now.

And while they can't control the crowds, it would be so nice to have some of the activitied that draw a lot of people in bigger areas. While the Pub night looked to be a lot of fun, many people couldn't get near it..should have been held in the Vista, not the Explorers..at least there is more room to stand!

I know the casino allows smoking, but I never noticed before that even when it's closed, it's become the smoking area..they really need more fans to draw out the smell..the non smoking area seems to be well ventilated..why not the rest of it. I felt so sorry for the workers at the pursers desk, constantly having that smoke drift out on them. If it's a designated smoking area, why not ventilate it better so others don't have to enjoy it in the center area?

 

But the main complaint is the mildew smell..I know we are on an ocean, but I've been on plenty of ships and didn't find mildew to be a problem.

 

We were on the Grand on the Hawaii cruise that followed yours. I did notice some off smells in some of the public toilets (can't remember which ones). We also didn't like the lack of a central stair, we either had to wait for the elevator (going from 8 to 6) which was always full or hike to one of the staircases. Glad to hear Princess changed that design flaw in the later ships of that class. We are thinking of doing the Mexican Rivera next Feb but it will be on the Crown.

[Interlochencruiselover]

Well, there sure we're a lot of happy faces on my 15-day LA to Hawaii. There was one area, about ten steps, where I could smell mildew. There was also a fan blowing on Aloha deck. Yet, I never heard anyone complaining. Have you never had a complaint about a hotel? For 15 days I had one of the times of my life! I ate creme brûlée every night, and when they had soufflés I had one of those as well! There were too many great things that outweighed the bad! Sure you can see rust on your balcony, but you should be looking at the ocean or sailing a higher-priced line. She will always be Grand to me; her customer service can't be beat! And because of dancing every night in the One5, I only gained two pounds! By the way, I'm 64. And I never slept better than those 14 nights!

[Colo Cruiser]

Welcome back, sounds like you had a great cruise. :D