What's with the Grandeur out of Baltimore for 2017

[RIDGELYCRUZER]

I too was very disappointed in the just released schedule.

Some of the Bermuda cruises should have been longer

Way too many southeast coast/ Bahamas cruises...bring back a few with a Key West stop....drop Nassau:mad: (it is a dump) and Freeport:mad: is a joke! We are booked on the February 4/2017 cruise with a stop in Charleston and still no RCCL tours available.:eek:

Not enough New England / Canada cruises in the spring.

RCCL did not waste a lot of time putting this schedule together. Will have to start looking at some of the Carnival Pride repositioning cruises out of Baltimore.

 

Last and not least....you do get more correct information from Cruise Critic members than you get on the ship from all lf the "experts".

[KarlS]

Was anyone else disappointed to see the 9-night Bermuda / Bahamas itinerary? Arrive Bermuda Saturday afternoon, and leave Sunday afternoon. One day at Nassau, and one at Cocoa Cay.

:(

We are so disappointed Grandeur's 2017 Bermuda itineraries continue the horrible 2016 early-afternoon-arrival with next-day-early-afternoon-departure. That just perpetuates the cruise-to-nowhere mentality for the Bermuda runs out of Baltimore. We were hoping Grandeur would return to her former, longer stays in Bermuda, which already seemed too brief for us on our two cruises there. I guess we didn't know how good we had it back then. ;)

 

So sad. :(

[Wanderista]

Even though I'm doing my first cruise as one of the 5 day Bermuda cruises, I would love to see a 7 day option like you see with Carnival or with the East Coast cruises from other ports. I wasn't thrilled with how short the stay in Bermuda is but I booked it because it was a great price and a convenient way to try cruising while checking out Bermuda.

 

I will say that the weird port schedule meant that my traveling companion and I decided to book a shore excursion directly through RCCL so I can see how this type of cruise is profitable for them. Their shore excursion itineraries are more competitive in terms of costs and scheduling than the private offerings that we saw if you don't have a large private group. Specifically, we booked a long island tour.

 

I will say that though the port schedule isn't ideal, the cost and convenient dates for the cruise have made it competitive. It was is $300+ cheaper per person than Carnival Pride when I was deciding. I'm just saying that it is priced competitively for an easy 5 day cruise, but I wish the two days were full days.

 

I would also have loved to see more scheduling variety for Grandeur for next year. Just going to the Bahamas is not that exciting and while I'm looking forward to Bermuda, there are only so many times you can go on a weirdly-scheduled cruise like that. It's good as a taster but definitely not a deep chance to fully experience the island.

[Wanderista]

I'm just wanting to add that when I say that RCCL's private excursions are competitive with the private operators, I'm talking specifically about on this ship with its weird port schedule.

 

The arrival time has you getting there after a lot of the bulk private tours and it also makes it difficult to self-tour the island especially for someone who doesn't know the island well. The ship's easy shore excursions and priority disembarkation and start times become more valuable in that context. I'm not saying that it's great but I can kind of see why they do it like that.

 

I will say that part of me does like the ability to have lunch on the ship before going off on a tour and then setting myself the goal of being back on the ship to have lunch while sailing away. I would love the option to have more time in Bermuda though.

[Beach Ball]

Yep, was happy to see that....so much for reliable sources that said it was leaving Baltimore. Booking the December cruise today.

 

 

Gwen [emoji3]

Gwen,

Hi from Chris and Carl We sailed with you on the Explorer from Bayonne.

Did you see that Rhapsody will sail from Bayonne from May to October of 2017?

Check out the itinerary. We are on the repo from Tampa to Bayonne on

April 29,2017. But you have to get to Tampa. We fly so no problem.

 

 

 

 

Sent from my L9 using Tapatalk

[cruise47]

We have never cruise on RCCL, this is a small vessel compared to most Celebrity Cruise Line Ships. Our cruise line of choice is Celebrity but family is near Balitmore. What are the best balcony cabins to book size by size high deck (needs three cabins). Thanks for any information.

[julielm818]

RCI just renewed their contract with the port of Baltimore until 2020. Four more years of some ship out of Baltimore.

 

 

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[coneyraven]

That was good news about the contract renewal with the Port. It's sad, Baltimore can deliver the people, but with all the tropical destinations being days away, short cruises just don't exist. I too was disappointed at the removal of Key West from the east coast cruises, had it remained, that would probably be the next one scheduled after the 5-night Bermuda one we'll be on in September.

 

 

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[Fun2snorkel]

Hi Beachball! We are Carol and Don and were with you on the Serenade in Feb! We will be on theGrandeur June 4 and June 9 and would love to see you two again! Bob and Phyllis and Rich and Jean will be there for the June9 cruise.

[Beach Ball]

Hi Beachball! We are Carol and Don and were with you on the Serenade in Feb! We will be on theGrandeur June 4 and June 9 and would love to see you two again! Bob and Phyllis and Rich and Jean will be there for the June9 cruise.

Hi Carol and Don,

We had a great time on the Serenade. Sorry we didn't get to say goodbye but Don gave us your card. We are doing the repo on April 29 on the Rhapsody but with it being in our backyard (we are in Pennsylvania) it is very possible we may be on board during the 2017 summer. We are very happy that the ship is an alternative to the Anthem.

 

Not sure about the Grandeur this summer. We are on the Solstice to Alaska in August and the Grandeur after Thanksgiving.

 

Enjoy your cruises.

Chris and Carl

 

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[DragonOfTheSeas]

We have never cruise on RCCL, this is a small vessel compared to most Celebrity Cruise Line Ships. Our cruise line of choice is Celebrity but family is near Balitmore. What are the best balcony cabins to book size by size high deck (needs three cabins). Thanks for any information.

 

Grandeur is one of the older ships. It only has balcony cabins on deck 7 and 8--and those on deck 8 are JS/suites.

[Fun2snorkel]

Chris. Going out of Baltimore is so easy for us and always seeing people we have cruised with before is a bonus. We will be back the end of Oct for a 12 night cruise. You would know a lot who are going with us. Will you be back on the Serenade in Feb? We will be and I am looking at 2018!! Keep in touch. :)

[Beach Ball]

Chris. Going out of Baltimore is so easy for us and always seeing people we have cruised with before is a bonus. We will be back the end of Oct for a 12 night cruise. You would know a lot who are going with us. Will you be back on the Serenade in Feb? We will be and I am looking at 2018!! Keep in touch. :)

Hi Carol,

I'm sure we will cruise with you again. For February 2017 we are sailing out of San Juan. We are staying on land at the new Wyndham Margaritaville and then two weeks on the Adventure in our first corner aft cabin room 1688! Take care.

Chris and Carl

 

 

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[sailing sammy]

Hi Gwen

I hope the Grandeur is not leaving Baltimore!:(

I'm looking to find a cruise partner for October 31

[coneyraven]

They're not, RCCL and the State of Maryland signed an agreement for 4 more years of sailings out of Baltimore

 

 

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Edited April 25, 2016 by coneyraven

[MedicKenK]

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Although we have learned to like Grandeur a lot, it is probably the LEAST handicapped friendly ship in the fleet. If you need an accessible cabin please be aware that you will need to request a toilet seat enhancer as the commodes are all 15". The beds are also quite low but they have a wonderful "jack" system to raise them. The Crew and Staff are among the best though and she is in great shape for one of the older girls in the fleet.

 

As for an new ship in Baltimore, Vision class is the largest that can fit under the bridges. There was some scuttlebutt about a cruise port near the Solomon Island are but if it does happen it will be many many years down the road.

[crookedhalo]

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There was some scuttlebutt about a cruise port near the Solomon Island are but if it does happen it will be many many years down the road.

 

As a resident of that area, it would be decades before there is appropriate infrastructure in the area to support. Currently there are not enough hotels; the distance it too great from the nearest airport to make it cab-ride possible; and don't even get me started on route 4!! OMG two lanes each way and if an accident happens, I hope you brought puzzles!

 

Coming from the other side isn't much better as in some areas (most notable leading to the Solomon's area) it is a single lane each way, crossing a single lane each way bridge that closely resembles the St. Louis arch:eek:.

 

And then there's parking...

 

Yep, it would be decades:cool:

[KarlS]

We are so disappointed Grandeur's 2017 Bermuda itineraries continue the horrible 2016 early-afternoon-arrival with next-day-early-afternoon-departure. That just perpetuates the cruise-to-nowhere mentality for the Bermuda runs out of Baltimore. We were hoping Grandeur would return to her former, longer stays in Bermuda, which already seemed too brief for us on our two cruises there. I guess we didn't know how good we had it back then. ;)

 

So sad. :(

 

 

UPDATE: We really do miss Bermuda. Since Grandeur is only doing the single overnight at King's Wharf again in 2017 (on both of her Bermuda itineraries),... For our 40th wedding anniversary celebration in June 2017 we've decided to give up the drive-to-the-port in Baltimore bonus, and we've booked our anniversary cruise on HAL's Veendam out of Boston. She ties up in Hamilton for three overnights, which was the deal-maker for us, even though we have to get on a plane to meet the ship. :D We'll come back to Grandeur for a different sailing.

Edited May 16, 2016 by KarlS

[caribbean sailor]

What is up with the Grandeur out of Baltimore for 2017? I know it is going in for dry dock in April or May 2017, but there are no cruises scheduled for the rest of the year. Is the Grandeur leaving Baltimore and why? Is there another ship coming in it's place?

 

I know, too many questions, but I would appreciate some answers, if anybody knows anything. I think our cruising days are numbered if Royal leaves Baltimore. Will not pay the prices of the Anthem in NJ. And we don't like to fly to Florida either. I guess we will be stuck with cruising Carnival from Baltimore or not cruising at all. Will be a tough decision. And one I am not looking forward to making. :(

 

 

Gwen

 

We also will not pay the price to sail on anthem.:eek:

[sammee]

What is up with the Grandeur out of Baltimore for 2017? I know it is going in for dry dock in April or May 2017, but there are no cruises scheduled for the rest of the year. Is the Grandeur leaving Baltimore and why? Is there another ship coming in it's place?

 

I know, too many questions, but I would appreciate some answers, if anybody knows anything. I think our cruising days are numbered if Royal leaves Baltimore. Will not pay the prices of the Anthem in NJ. And we don't like to fly to Florida either. I guess we will be stuck with cruising Carnival from Baltimore or not cruising at all. Will be a tough decision. And one I am not looking forward to making. :(

 

 

Gwen

 

We also will not pay the price to sail on anthem.:eek:

 

Hi Gwen, I'm in NJ too. I tried Grandeur for the first time. I actually thought Pride is just as good as Grandeur. I do not like the Cape Liberty prices either. But we are willing to drive to Charleston, Jacksonville or Port Canaveral if the price is right when including the drivetime/hotel costs.

[GenHawk]

Hi Gwen,

 

When I was on the the Grandeur last I was told by a crew member that a new ship would replace the Grandeur in 2019.

 

Wendy

 

 

What is up with the Grandeur out of Baltimore for 2017? I know it is going in for dry dock in April or May 2017, but there are no cruises scheduled for the rest of the year. Is the Grandeur leaving Baltimore and why? Is there another ship coming in it's place?

 

I know, too many questions, but I would appreciate some answers, if anybody knows anything. I think our cruising days are numbered if Royal leaves Baltimore. Will not pay the prices of the Anthem in NJ. And we don't like to fly to Florida either. I guess we will be stuck with cruising Carnival from Baltimore or not cruising at all. Will be a tough decision. And one I am not looking forward to making. :(

 

 

Gwen :)

 

[psupa]

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Although we have learned to like Grandeur a lot, it is probably the LEAST handicapped friendly ship in the fleet. If you need an accessible cabin please be aware that you will need to request a toilet seat enhancer as the commodes are all 15". The beds are also quite low but they have a wonderful "jack" system to raise them. The Crew and Staff are among the best though and she is in great shape for one of the older girls in the fleet.

 

What is a "Jack" system to raise the beds. We had an accessible cabin on the Grandeur and I can't understand why the beds are so low and would like them to be higher on our next cruise.

 

Theresa

[psupa]

UPDATE: We really do miss Bermuda. Since Grandeur is only doing the single overnight at King's Wharf again in 2017 (on both of her Bermuda itineraries),... For our 40th wedding anniversary celebration in June 2017 we've decided to give up the drive-to-the-port in Baltimore bonus, and we've booked our anniversary cruise on HAL's Veendam out of Boston. She ties up in Hamilton for three overnights, which was the deal-maker for us, even though we have to get on a plane to meet the ship. :D We'll come back to Grandeur for a different sailing.

 

I remember when the smaller ships sailed to Bermuda and docked in both Hamilton and St. George.

 

Theresa

[sargeantcurley]

What is a "Jack" system to raise the beds. We had an accessible cabin on the Grandeur and I can't understand why the beds are so low and would like them to be higher on our next cruise.

 

Theresa

 

ask your room attendant to raise the bed and they will place a wooden platform under the bed legs.....raises the bed about 12 inches.

[psupa]

ask your room attendant to raise the bed and they will place a wooden platform under the bed legs.....raises the bed about 12 inches.

 

Will do - thanks