Review: Grandeur 3/27-31 2008

[alansfreed]

Just got home from a great trip on Grandeur. Thought I'd share a few thoughts on our trip!

 

ABOUT US

 

This was the 6th cruise for my wife and me. My brother also joined us; it was his first. We're all from the Pittsburgh area, where we have become very unfamiliar with sunshine lately. My wife surprised me with this cruise as a 40th birthday gift -- she rocks!

 

BOARDING

 

We drove from Pittsburgh to Tampa, and found the parking to be easy and convenient. We arrived around noon, and were on the ship very quickly. It was a breeze compared to Miami!

 

THE SHIP

 

We've been on Legend (a sister ship) and Majesty before, so this was a familiar experience for us. Being a shorter cruise, we still seemed to get ourselves confused as to which end of the ship various things were on. Even though the ship is fairly old by ship standards, we found it to be nice and clean without much sign of wear.

 

As far as a couple nitpicks are concerned... our bathroom door was rather tricky to get closed, and the shower was overflowing onto the floor the first night of the trip. But our super stateroom attendant called maintenance for us and it was fixed while we were at dinner.

 

Our bed squeaked in an annoying fashion. Anytime I moved in any way, it sounded as though I was squashing a bird or something. And it goes without saying that the squeaking was especially annoying under... um... "certain circumstances."

 

PORTS

 

We visited Key West and Cozumel, and had a day at sea. My wife and I had been to Key West just a couple summers ago, so we were reasonably familiar with it. I enjoyed a walk around town while my wife and brother went on an early morning pub crawl. They paid the price for that choice later in the day.

 

In Cozumel, we scheduled the "Segway Adventure" excursion, which was a lot of fun. The only bad thing about it was that everywhere we read about it, the description only mentioned the Segway... but it's actually a Segway AND snorkeling tour! Had we known about the snorkeling, we probably wouldn't have booked it since my wife had a bad experience with the ocean as a child. And not knowing about it, we didn't have swimsuits along, which was a bummer. My brother and I did go snorkeling and LOVED it, but were bummed that my wife just wound up sitting around at a pool by herself while we did it.

 

DINING

 

The food was what we've come to know from doing several other cruises. We enjoyed it thoroughly, although it seems like the meals take a long time.

 

I have to tell you about our wait staff. On the first night, our main waiter, Terrance, introduced us to our assistant waiter saying, "He is new. He does not know what he is doing." We all got a good laugh out of his sarcasm, but quickly learned that, by golly, he really did not have a clue what he was doing!

 

We named him "MP" which stands for "My Pleasure." His real name was Fermin. Don't get me wrong, he was a nice guy, but he was TOTALLY clueless and basically didn't get a single thing right the whole time we were there. It made for great entertainment value, though.

 

We called him "My Pleasure" because he used this phrase approximately a trillion times during the trip. And most of the time it was in odd contexts. Here's an actual transcript:

 

MP: "Didn't you like your soup?"

LADY AT OUR TABLE: "No, it just didn't suit my tastes."

MP: "My pleasure."

 

You really had to be there to see how many times he'd say "My Pleasure," and then we'd all giggle ourselves silly. One night I asked him 5 times for a Diet Coke before he finally brought me FOUR of them. So I polished them off and asked for another one just to amuse everyone at the table. You had to be there.

 

LEAVING THE SHIP

 

We were off the ship and in the car by 8:30, which was wonderful. My brother wasn't so lucky -- he didn't get off until almost 11!

 

Anyway... it was a great trip. The nitpicks I mentioned are just that... nitpicks. If you can't have fun on a cruise and want to find fault with everything, the only person you can blame for having a bad trip is yourself, as I see it. We had a blast, and can't wait to do it again.

 

It has been my pleasure to present this review to you.

[Tanker4]

Glad that you enjoyed the Grandeur. We were on her about a month ago and really enjoyed our cruise. We have a 10 day booked on her for Dec and are looking forward to it. She doesn't have all of the bells and whistles of the newer ships but has a character of her own and the crew is first rate....:)

[pmfan]

Enjoyed the review. Thanks.

[wolfcathorse]

I had an assistant waiter on Vision that I'd like to introduce to MP. Mr My Pleasure, met Mr Bon Apetite! Ya gotta wonder if their training told them, when in doubt say something like My Pleasure or Bon Apetite. His grasp of the English language may have been a little on the short side too. My sister loved the art on Grandeur, I loved my waiter! Grandeur's crew is friendly!

[Sun-Sand-Palm-Trees]

alansfreed ~ Thanks for the review!

 

Just curious, but how did you get off the ship so much quicker than your brother?? We too will have a long drive ahead of us once we get off the ship and would appreciate any advice on how to disembark quickly.

 

Thanks again! :)

[Granny J]

Oh, my. I'm glad we didn't have your assistant waiter at our table. I probably would have been laughing so hard that I would have embarrassed him as well as everyone else seated at the table. lol

[yogimax]

 

Ya gotta wonder if their training told them, when in doubt say something like My Pleasure or Bon Apetite.

 

The waiter's training must include instructions to say, "My Pleasure." They all seem to say it.

 

When it's used so much, it loses its meaning.

[alansfreed]

The waiter's training must include instructions to say, "My Pleasure." They all seem to say it.

 

When it's used so much, it loses its meaning.

 

You're actually pretty much right on the money!

 

We sat with two ladies (co-workers from Tampa), and the one lady's son worked onboard on the IT staff. She mentioned the "My Pleasure" thing to him, and he said that the workers are indeed told to use that phrase. They're actually told not to say, "you're welcome" to people who say thank you!

 

So apparently this is part of their training. Obviously our waiter was going overboard with it, and probably didn't have a great grasp on English.

[alansfreed]

alansfreed ~ Thanks for the review!

 

Just curious, but how did you get off the ship so much quicker than your brother?? We too will have a long drive ahead of us once we get off the ship and would appreciate any advice on how to disembark quickly.

 

Thanks again! :)

 

I suspect there were a couple things that came into play here. For one, we're "Platinum Members" of Royal Caribbean's Crown & Anchor group (having sailed with them several times before). I believe part of this level of membership includes "priority departures."

 

Plus I suspect that the better your cabin, the better your departure times. We had a balcony stateroom this time... I'd bet that the junior suites, balcony rooms, etc., are probably given a better departure time than folks on lower levels, inside staterooms, etc.

 

My brother was a first-time cruiser and was on Deck 3, and was among the very last to leave.

[debshomespun]

What a great birthday gift and a wonderful wife! We are thinking of booking the Grandeur for next jan. for 3 couples, us girls are long time friends from first grade, and planning a 50th birthday cruise. It will be their first cruise. They can't get away for a week, so this sounded like a great choice. Glad you had such a good experience. I see we are practically neighbors. We usually fly out of Pittsburgh for our cruises.

[BadgerFBfan]

Great review. We're on Grandeur this Saturday for a seven day cruise. We here in Wisconsin have also had a short supply of warm weather, and an over-supply of snow and cold this year. Throw into the mix the kitchen remodeling we're in the middle of (no sink, stove, washer, dryer, dishwasher, counters, etc.) and a week away from everything can't come soon enough.

[mckinna]

I suspect there were a couple things that came into play here. For one, we're "Platinum Members" of Royal Caribbean's Crown & Anchor group (having sailed with them several times before). I believe part of this level of membership includes "priority departures."

 

Plus I suspect that the better your cabin, the better your departure times. We had a balcony stateroom this time... I'd bet that the junior suites, balcony rooms, etc., are probably given a better departure time than folks on lower levels, inside staterooms, etc.

 

My brother was a first-time cruiser and was on Deck 3, and was among the very last to leave.

 

Actually, I don't think there is priority departure at platinum level- if so we would have used it ourselves last week on Voyager. There is priority embarkation, but not departure. I think that comes with Diamond. It's not by cabin, either. They do the tags by what your transportation status is. Priority is given to those with excursions and flights to catch. We drove, so we were among the last to leave. After talking with others on our roll call, we could've gotten off earlier, and it wouldn't make any difference. We'll do that next time. We had a 12 hours drive, and didn't make it home until 12:30 AM Monday. Didn't want to do express departure, as there were 7 of us in all, with kids, and there was no way we could handle all that luggage by ourselves.

[Tanker4]

Actually, I don't think there is priority departure at platinum level- if so we would have used it ourselves last week on Voyager. There is priority embarkation, but not departure. I think that comes with Diamond. It's not by cabin, either. They do the tags by what your transportation status is. Priority is given to those with excursions and flights to catch. We drove, so we were among the last to leave. After talking with others on our roll call, we could've gotten off earlier, and it wouldn't make any difference. We'll do that next time. We had a 12 hours drive, and didn't make it home until 12:30 AM Monday. Didn't want to do express departure, as there were 7 of us in all, with kids, and there was no way we could handle all that luggage by ourselves.

 

Actually there is (or was) priority departure at platinum level on some ships. We've used it in the past on the Sovereign, Enchantment and Grandeur before we reached Diamond level.:)

[jgsi]

We were on Grandeur in December. Your description of your assistant waiter made me laugh. For us, it was the opposite. Our assistant waiter was wonderful, but our waiter wasn't. Instead of calling us by name all week, he addressed us as mamsir. A combination of ma'am and sir. Every single thing he said to us was followed with mamsir. "Here is your soup, mamsir." We would laugh. By the end of the trip, my DH would introduce us to people as Mr. & Mrs. Mamsir. We did love Grandeur and would not hesitate to sail her again.

[JackieH]

Thanks for the review. We will be on the Grandeur 9 night in Aug 2008 from Norfolk..Its always fun to read other peoples reviews:)

[tacbets21]

I enjoyed reading this review! I am booked on Grandeur for a 5-night getaway with DH in July- so glad to hear it is a nice ship and you had a good time!

[sunlover5]

Glad to hear such positive things about the Grandeur. We are doing the 11 night repo in Oct. for our 30th wedding anniversary.

[mckinna]

Actually there is (or was) priority departure at platinum level on some ships. We've used it in the past on the Sovereign, Enchantment and Grandeur before we reached Diamond level.:)

 

Wow! Thanks- I'll ask next time. We won't be diamond until after our upcoming cruise- wonder if Adventure does it also? I don't think Voyager did it, though, because my DH talked to guest relations about our getting off earlier. They said the only way was express departure. Looking back, we should have just gotten off anyway. Turns out our luggage was available all along. Live and learn!

[Tanker4]

Wow! Thanks- I'll ask next time. We won't be diamond until after our upcoming cruise- wonder if Adventure does it also? I don't think Voyager did it, though, because my DH talked to guest relations about our getting off earlier. They said the only way was express departure. Looking back, we should have just gotten off anyway. Turns out our luggage was available all along. Live and learn!

 

Just ask your cabin steward. They have access to all of the colored tags..:)

[Amber14]

Thanks so much for taking the time to write a review. It's so nice to hear someone who can laugh at the little things, instead of letting them ruin their cruise. You sound like my husband and I - We can't imagine having a bad cruise! We would have laughed at the squeaky bed and the MP waiter also!

 

We're looking forward to the Grandeur in June.

[alansfreed]

It's so nice to hear someone who can laugh at the little things, instead of letting them ruin their cruise. You sound like my husband and I - We can't imagine having a bad cruise!

 

From time to time I read a post where someone complains that their cruise was "ruined" because the ship didn't have their favorite brand of water, or something stupid like that, and I just scratch my head. If people are going to look for things to complain about, then sure, they're going to have a "ruined" vacation.

 

If a waiter accidentally sawed off my arm with a steak knife, then sure, I'd probably use my other arm to write a snotty note to the management. But I really can't get too wound up about the little things. I don't need to have my butt kissed 24/7. :)

[philnpen]

Glad to here about "My Pleasure" and the enjoyment he gave you. On our first Grandeur cruise in 2007 we had a waiter (no name mentioned to save any possible embarrasment) who on the first night had forgotten to take my order. He came around with everyone else's appetizer and found me still sitting there with the menu. This was a rectangle table for eight and I was on the end next to the rail. He quickly took my order and I was rushed through the courses until dessert. Another time he served my DW an appetizer she didn't order. We usually order two with one being one of their delicious cold soups. Another time he forgot my cold soup until the DW reminded him. DW has worked for many years as a waitress and knows some of the problems they go through with customers, so we would never be demanding or rude. We treat them like we want people to treat us.

 

Our second Grandeur cruise came this past January and our waitress was Ana from Peru who was the most wonderful person we have ever had contact with on our ten cruises. She delighted us every evening with her eagerness to serve us. A woman at our table wanted nothing for dessert so Ana brought her a plate with "Nothing" written with a sauce. All at our table bragged on her to the Head Waiter for our section, giving her the praise she deserved. At the Platinum and Diamond get together I even talked about her to the Hotel Manager. If anyone gets her as their waitress you are indeed fortunate.