Live Grandeur 10/28/17- 12 day Baltimore/S. Caribbean

[DaisyL]

Thanks all for your kind words and listening to my babble.

 

Gwen, good advice about the JS, corner afts on deck 7, thought it was all JS corner afts.

 

We passed on the filet special....oh well, next time we're on Grandeur.

 

 

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[DaisyL]

Day 7 menu

 

 

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[DaisyL]

The meals continue to be excellent. And the service outstanding.

 

We're keeping the staff in stitches (and others around us) and they tell us that we're the most fun table ever. Just being our loud, silly, NY selves. We always bring the party with us.

 

The captain has not sat at the special table next to us yet, but we'll need to be on better behavior when he does.

 

We see the captain and his family quite often around the ship and he's very friendly and approachable. One of our friends happened to be standing next to him and his family waiting for the vans for an excursion and struck up a conversation.

 

But on another note, found out last night that he lost his wife a few months ago. His 2 young children, elementary school age, his mother and the nanny are also along. We see them all the time.

 

 

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[Chimamashouse]

That’s really sad about the captain. Will be sure to keep an eye out and be friendly. Where is he from?

 

Also thanks for the pics. Those cheddar sticks are to die for! Will be ordering several helpings!!

 

 

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[DavidJrandRichard]

Thanks all for your kind words and listening to my babble.

 

Gwen, good advice about the JS, corner afts on deck 7, thought it was all JS corner afts.

 

We passed on the filet special....oh well, next time we're on Grandeur.

 

 

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My understanding is that it all the aft JS have walkin closets. Will know for sure in Jan in #8588.

 

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[dixieva]

I have sailed on Grandeur so many times! Love the ship.

 

I am pretty sure only the two corner aft JS on deck 7 have the walk in closet. It is really impressive. The other aft JS (not corner) have the regular closet and the JS on the side of the ship on deck 8 have the regular closet.

 

Daisy Enjoy the rest of your cruise.

[Lady Hudson]

Who is the captain? If he is the same one we had last November (with two young children) he was with his wife at the time. So sad.

[S&Slovecruises]

My understanding is that it all the aft JS have walkin closets. Will know for sure in Jan in #8588.

 

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Junior suite 8588 does not have a walk in closet. This is our favorite cabin on the Grandeur. We have stayed in 8588 many times....love the balcony.

[OceansOfTravels]

Really enjoying your review so far. It is reminding me that I should take advantage of the hometown cruise ship more often, as I do live in Maryland. Thanks for taking the time out of your vacation to write this, I hope you enjoy the rest of your trip! :)

[DaisyL]

Really enjoying your review so far. It is reminding me that I should take advantage of the hometown cruise ship more often, as I do live in Maryland. Thanks for taking the time out of your vacation to write this, I hope you enjoy the rest of your trip! :)

 

We're so tired of the hassle, expense, and aggravation of flying so our preferred vacation is to cruise anyway. We're lucky that it's very convenient for us to drive to NYC, Bayonne, Brooklyn, etc. 1 to 1.5 hrs, which gives us a lot of options. Baltimore is only a 4 hr drive and Boston is only 3 hrs away, if we want to try that at some point.

 

So glad our cruise was cancelled by RCL which gave us a chance to book this one. Will certainly cruise on Grandeur again. It's ironic because after 2 days we said we prefer the variety of options on Anthem but we have grown to love the beauty of this ship and will certainly come back.

 

 

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[Chimamashouse]

We're so tired of the hassle, expense, and aggravation of flying so our preferred vacation is to cruise anyway. We're lucky that it's very convenient for us to drive to NYC, Bayonne, Brooklyn, etc. 1 to 1.5 hrs, which gives us a lot of options. Baltimore is only a 4 hr drive and Boston is only 3 hrs away, if we want to try that at some point.

 

So glad our cruise was cancelled by RCL which gave us a chance to book this one. Will certainly cruise on Grandeur again. It's ironic because after 2 days we said we prefer the variety of options on Anthem but we have grown to love the beauty of this ship and will certainly come back.

 

 

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I know this is a bit off topic...but what are some of the variety of options Anthem has?

I’m the person who is sometimes overwhelmed by too many options.

But I did love the amount of options we had on Navigator, Mariner and Liberty in comparison with the one time we were on Vision.

 

 

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[DaisyL]

In Martinique today but chose to stay on board. I wanted to visit some shops but DH really didn't want to. We don't have EU nor speak French but wanted to see if the jewelry shops understood Pandora....lol. I'm sure they would take my MC.

 

Lounging in the Solarium, which is cooler than outside but still warm and the roof is closed today. I've seen it partially open a few times, maybe 2 panels worth.

 

 

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[DaisyL]

Heavy rain this afternoon.

Taken from our balcony in Martinique.

 

 

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[DaisyL]

I know this is a bit off topic...but what are some of the variety of options Anthem has?

I’m the person who is sometimes overwhelmed by too many options.

But I did love the amount of options we had on Navigator, Mariner and Liberty in comparison with the one time we were on Vision.

 

 

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Certainly, I love to make comparisons. We love every cruise we've been on but they are all different.

More bar options on Anthem. We liked the Pub before dinner in the Atrium, drinks and people watch.

Like the Music Hall...went there every night after dinner. Good music, bands, dancing or just watching. Also a pool table for fun.

Schooner bar depends on the performer. Didn't like those on Anthem, reminded us of old vaudeville type humor with 40s, 50s music. Love JR in Schooner now, 60s, 70s up to current music and he's really good.

Better shows on Anthem but you need to make reservations.

Dining room food much better on Grandeur and service also. Windjammer food quality and selections better on Anthem and both get crowded.

 

 

 

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[joand452]

In Martinique today but chose to stay on board. I wanted to visit some shops but DH really didn't want to. We don't have EU nor speak French but wanted to see if the jewelry shops understood Pandora....lol. I'm sure they would take my MC.

 

Lounging in the Solarium, which is cooler than outside but still warm and the roof is closed today. I've seen it partially open a few times, maybe 2 panels worth.

 

 

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Really enjoying this live report. We’re an hour away from Baltimore, but DH doesn’t want to sail on such a small ship. He loves Anthem and Oasis class.

 

We went to Martinique in April 2016. We just walked around the pier area, down as far as the fort. The vendor tents there had no problem accepting USD! And they all spoke English!

 

 

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[Chimamashouse]

Really enjoying this live report. We’re an hour away from Baltimore, but DH doesn’t want to sail on such a small ship. He loves Anthem and Oasis class.

 

We went to Martinique in April 2016. We just walked around the pier area, down as far as the fort. The vendor tents there had no problem accepting USD! And they all spoke English!

 

 

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That is so reassuring for our call to port in 3 weeks. Thanks for posting.

 

 

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[Darcy03231]

We're just back from the Adventure and went to Martinque. We didn't book a tour and just got off the ship and walked around. We found that most of the people spoke English and those that didn't were still all smiles and very friendly. We just pointed to things we wanted to see. I used a CC that doesn't charge a foreign transaction fee for some purchases and US dollars for others. Some vendors had the prices in both EU and US. Adventure gave us a map with points of interest and we hit most of them.

[Defender1158]

We're just back from the Adventure and went to Martinque. We didn't book a tour and just got off the ship and walked around. We found that most of the people spoke English and those that didn't were still all smiles and very friendly. We just pointed to things we wanted to see. I used a CC that doesn't charge a foreign transaction fee for some purchases and US dollars for others. Some vendors had the prices in both EU and US. Adventure gave us a map with points of interest and we hit most of them.

I did the tented shops next to the pier last year. The vendors took cash dollars and gave a !:1 exchange rate with their euro prices, and offered change in euros or dollars We were there on a Sunday, and most of the downtown was closed.

[DaisyL]

Day 8 menu

 

 

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[DaisyL]

 

 

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[DJLDRUMS]

Daisy L or anyone else, has the Captain or any other Staff echelon mentioned anything as to how much longer the Grandeur will remain in the Vision Class lineup and not be going up for sale.

Has anyone heard of any other Vision or Radiance Class ships nearing their "retirement" in 2018 or 2019. I know this is a topic that comes up a few times a year, but good to be able to stay on top of things in the Travel professional world. Thanks to all who reply.

[DavidJrandRichard]

Junior suite 8588 does not have a walk in closet. This is our favorite cabin on the Grandeur. We have stayed in 8588 many times....love the balcony.

8588 has one of the smaller aft balconies, correct? Since it isn't on the corner...

 

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[DaisyL]

Sorry I'm a few days behind. Yesterday the Internet was spotty and today I was busy shopping in the morning and an excursion in St. Kitts this afternoon.

 

We had a great time. Had to take a taxi to the shopping area because we didn't dock at the main pier because our schedule was swapped. The taxis cost $2 p/p. The shopping had all the regular stores. Not too much pushing of tours but it was still there. On the way back to the ship, our taxi driver told us not too much business for tours from the Grandeur. She sounded disappointed.

 

In the Schooner with JR at the piano and Nenad taking care of us...great music and good drinks, what's better than that.

 

 

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[Chimamashouse]

Sorry I'm a few days behind. Yesterday the Internet was spotty and today I was busy shopping in the morning and an excursion in St. Kitts this afternoon.

 

We had a great time. Had to take a taxi to the shopping area because we didn't dock at the main pier because our schedule was swapped. The taxis cost $2 p/p. The shopping had all the regular stores. Not too much pushing of tours but it was still there. On the way back to the ship, our taxi driver told us not too much business for tours from the Grandeur. She sounded disappointed.

 

In the Schooner with JR at the piano and Nenad taking care of us...great music and good drinks, what's better than that.

 

 

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What St.Kitts excursion did you do and where was the meeting point?

 

 

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[S&Slovecruises]

8588 has one of the smaller aft balconies, correct? Since it isn't on the corner...

 

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Doesn't have the wrap around but we like it better. The cabin is one of two that are in center of aft. Balcony has two loungers and two chairs and small table. The aft junior suites are a little smaller than the side ones but more than makes up for it with the balcony.

Have a great time!