The future of RCCL in Baltimore

[rj70056]

If even one more ship from any cruise line were to come to Baltimore the port would definitely need an upgrade... it only has room for one mid-sized ship at a time and the whole boarding process is very inefficient... and don't even mention the parking...

I and numerous others seem to find Baltimore one of the easiest ports for the boarding process.

[Robinhill]

i find it to be extremely efficient- when i go in- i fill out the sick form- the line moves fast and i am typically onboard within 20 minutes. No problem with parking either.

[beachnative]

I called RC a few years ago and asked about Norfolk. I do agree it would be a great option for them to return to Norfolk, and no Bay issues to deal with, still close enough to harness DC area passengers. The person I spoke to said too many people in the immediate Norfolk area were looking for lower priced options than what RC was offering and everyone expected a deal. They were not able to sell the cruises for what they thought the value should be. This is just what I was told. Don't shoot the messenger. In no way, do I speak for the cruise line or their current philosophy. Just passing along what I was told.

 

 

I live in Virginia Beach and have sailed on the Grandeur out of NORFOLK.

 

 

What you said is probably true and add the fact that this area didn't consume enough alcohol and did not gamble enough.

 

 

ALSO:

The City of Norfolk built the terminal in the heart of the downtown business district which is one of the worst spots for traffic congestion; with a loading/unloading area for cars, taxis, busses in front of the terminal in a space smaller than my home's front yard; parking is off site requiring passengers to travel from the cruise parking lot to the terminal in a bus (think far worse than Bayonne was).

 

We loved sailing out of Norfolk and would gladly do it again if Royal Caribbean returned. (P.S. as a local we knew not to park in the Terminal Off-Site Lot and instead parked in a parking garage across the street from the terminal!!:):)

[RFerrington]

Just returned from a 5 night Bermuda on the Grandeur. Embark and disembark were fine. I do with they had a suites entrance and exit area though. Other than that, it's a great port close to home.

 

Interesting. One of the casino dealers (I know....not a reliable source of intel) told us that the Grandeur had already been sold. I took that with a HUGE chunk of salt since I know that there are bookings well into 2019. Guess we'll all find out soon enough.

[laumicmah]

Just returned from a 5 night Bermuda on the Grandeur. Embark and disembark were fine. I do with they had a suites entrance and exit area though. Other than that, it's a great port close to home.

 

Interesting. One of the casino dealers (I know....not a reliable source of intel) told us that the Grandeur had already been sold. I took that with a HUGE chunk of salt since I know that there are bookings well into 2019. Guess we'll all find out soon enough.

Yeah, we just booked Jan 2019 on her. Though we were once booked on an older Carnival ship and they moved it and replaced with the Magic several months before our cruise. They just put us in comparable cabins and gave us chance to tweak for same lower rates we had on the older ship. We had two cabins booked- an inside for the two guys and an aft balcony for us three girls and they put us on different floors so I had to call to move guys up with us ( guys were DH and DS and girls were me and DDs).

 

So I can work with a different ship. Hope it's a nicer one with more stuff.

[coolcruiser777]

Having sailed the Grandeur a few times it takes approximately 8 hours to reach the Chesapeake Bay Bridge Tunnel. Leaving at 4:00 P.M. puts you there around midnight. Coming back into the bay is around 8:00 P.M. though.

 

She might have meant when the ship is approaching Baltimore, we saw the bridge tunnel during the 8PM seating, too.

[tx121]

I think eventually with the sale of the Vision Class ships, RCL will most likely not replace a ship in Baltimore due to the same reasons why there are no more ships leaving out of Philadelphia, loss in revenue from the casino and shops. For the casino and shops to be closed most of the day on Day 1 and closed early on the last day, financially it doesn't benefit the cruise line. Yes the ships are full out of Baltimore, but the cruise lines don't rely much on booking cabins, they make most of their money on what the passengers spend on the ship. I believe the casinos can now open at night in Bermuda. RCL was probably losing a lot of revenue with their 5 day cruises to Bermuda out of Baltimore since the casino was probably only open around 2.5 days while at sea.

To sum it up in my opinion, I think once the Grandeur is retired, there will be no RCL ship out of Baltimore.

[dctravel]

To sum it up in my opinion, I think once the Grandeur is retired, there will be no RCL ship out of Baltimore.

 

 

Yet, they are adding a ship to New Orleans, which presents the same challenges as Baltimore for opening the shops and casino.

 

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums

[setsail]

, but the cruise lines don't rely much on booking cabins, they make most of their money on what the passengers spend on the ship..

 

About 75% of rci's revenue comes from cabin bookings

[Biker19]

About 75% of rci's revenue comes from cabin bookings

 

 

 

But most of the profits come from on board spending.

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums

[tx121]

Yet, they are adding a ship to New Orleans, which presents the same challenges as Baltimore for opening the shops and casino.

 

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums

 

Yes they are adding a ship to New Orleans, but the shops and casino still open later in the night. Right now, the Grandeur's casino and shops are closed on Day 1. Also, Carnival ships leaving out of New Orleans must have a deal since their casinos are allowed to open after sail away. Maybe this is the reason why RCL is returning to New Orleans.

[Ocean Dancer]

Yes they are adding a ship to New Orleans, but the shops and casino still open later in the night. Right now, the Grandeur's casino and shops are closed on Day 1. Also, Carnival ships leaving out of New Orleans must have a deal since their casinos are allowed to open after sail away. Maybe this is the reason why RCL is returning to New Orleans.

Split the profits? Money talks!

[Beachammo]

I think eventually with the sale of the Vision Class ships, RCL will most likely not replace a ship in Baltimore due to the same reasons why there are no more ships leaving out of Philadelphia, loss in revenue from the casino and shops. For the casino and shops to be closed most of the day on Day 1 and closed early on the last day, financially it doesn't benefit the cruise line. Yes the ships are full out of Baltimore, but the cruise lines don't rely much on booking cabins, they make most of their money on what the passengers spend on the ship. I believe the casinos can now open at night in Bermuda. RCL was probably losing a lot of revenue with their 5 day cruises to Bermuda out of Baltimore since the casino was probably only open around 2.5 days while at sea.

To sum it up in my opinion, I think once the Grandeur is retired, there will be no RCL ship out of Baltimore.

I live down the road from Baltimore and its still cheaper to fly to FLL or SJU and get on a ship there than to cruise on Grandeur. So....Royal is capturing any lost casino revenue with higher cabin revenue.

 

Sent from my VS995 using Tapatalk

[SRF]

Yes they are adding a ship to New Orleans, but the shops and casino still open later in the night. Right now, the Grandeur's casino and shops are closed on Day 1. Also, Carnival ships leaving out of New Orleans must have a deal since their casinos are allowed to open after sail away. Maybe this is the reason why RCL is returning to New Orleans.

 

Different states, different laws.

 

I think that RCCL could open the casino in MD waters, IF they were to pay the appropriate fees and taxes to the People's Republic of MD.

[tx121]

I live down the road from Baltimore and its still cheaper to fly to FLL or SJU and get on a ship there than to cruise on Grandeur. So....Royal is capturing any lost casino revenue with higher cabin revenue.

 

Sent from my VS995 using Tapatalk

 

This also depends on the time of year you are sailing. Flights go up significantly to FLL / SJU during peak season (summer, spring break, etc). But also there are many ports that are closer to FLL and SJU and the ships do not use as much fuel consumption as compared to leaving from Baltimore. RCL is spending more on fuel cost for the ships to get to the Bahamas/Caribbean from Baltimore than it would from FLL/ SJU; reason for higher cost , RCL has to pay more for fuel.

Edited September 9, 2017 by tx121

[tx121]

Different states, different laws.

 

I think that RCCL could open the casino in MD waters, IF they were to pay the appropriate fees and taxes to the People's Republic of MD.

 

You may be right as Carnival is probably paying for fees and taxes to Louisiana so it can open while in local waters.

[Beachammo]

This also depends on the time of year you are sailing. Flights go up significantly to FLL / SJU during peak season (summer, spring break, etc). But also there are many ports that are closer to FLL and SJU and the ships do not use as much fuel consumption as compared to leaving from Baltimore. RCL is spending more on fuel cost for the ships to get to the Bahamas/Caribbean from Baltimore than it would from FLL/ SJU, reason for higher cost. Basically if you add your flight cost plus a cheaper cruise in the Caribbean, you'll be paying roughly the same amount.

Not sure where you are flying from.....but I can get FLL tixs for $199 RT and SJU for $299 RT 90% of the time. Grandeur is always $1000 more for a balcony cabin than ships in the South.

 

Sent from my VS995 using Tapatalk

[tx121]

Not sure where you are flying from.....but I can get FLL tixs for $199 RT and SJU for $299 RT 90% of the time. Grandeur is always $1000 more for a balcony cabin than ships in the South.

 

Sent from my VS995 using Tapatalk

 

It all depends on the itinerary and ship. You are also on a 9 or 12 night cruise if you are actually going to the caribbean out of Baltimore, compared to a avg 7 night. You may also be paying extra for "luxury" since Vision class doesn't have that many balconies as on the mega ships.

[coolcruiser777]

I live down the road from Baltimore and its still cheaper to fly to FLL or SJU and get on a ship there than to cruise on Grandeur. So....Royal is capturing any lost casino revenue with higher cabin revenue.

 

Sent from my VS995 using Tapatalk

 

For a balcony cabin, yes. For an oceanview/inside, no. If you are traveling alone or with a friend I suppose it would be better to go out of FLL, but for families Baltimore is cheaper. SJU is quite a bit more than FLL, too.

[Knighton]

I live 20 mins from port of Baltimore. I love the convenience but I am tired of how much both ccl and rccl are charging for the same old ho hum itineraries and the same old ships. I'm so done with Bahamas and Bermuda. I don't need a cruise to take me to florida- I can fly there. Even other itineraries the grandeur offers don't excite me. Hopefully some new ships and port stops will be offered soon.

[Biker19]

Even other itineraries the grandeur offers don't excite me. Hopefully some new ships and port stops will be offered soon.

 

 

Right, because Oasis class ship's itineraries are so exciting. Expecting a Panama Canal or a sailing to Iceland a bit unrealistic.

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums

[Knighton]

Right, because Oasis class ship's itineraries are so exciting. Expecting a Panama Canal or a sailing to Iceland a bit unrealistic.

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums

Yeah but I'd be fine on the Oasis. There's so much to do on that ship it could go around in circles in the ocean and not stop anywhere for a week and I'd be happy. I don't need ports if the ship itself is interesting.

[coolcruiser777]

The Grandeur ports to me don't seem that bad, but the Pride has absolute crap.

[teddybear231]

I live 20 mins from port of Baltimore. I love the convenience but I am tired of how much both ccl and rccl are charging for the same old ho hum itineraries and the same old ships. I'm so done with Bahamas and Bermuda. I don't need a cruise to take me to florida- I can fly there. Even other itineraries the grandeur offers don't excite me. Hopefully some new ships and port stops will be offered soon.

 

Agreed!

[Tony O]

Different states, different laws.

 

I think that RCCL could open the casino in MD waters, IF they were to pay the appropriate fees and taxes to the People's Republic of MD.

 

I think you mean the People's Republic of VIRGINIA.

They are the ones who forced the casino to close as they have a law they are enforcing that bans any type of casino gambling in their state including sailing in their waters.

Maryland changed their law years ago to allow the casinos and shops open once they sailed under the Key Bridge