Grandeur of the Seas Review
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To be fair I have only cruised on Royal Caribbean and the majority of those sailings have been on Grandeur of the Seas. Last year I noticed some wear on the ship, it seemed as if general upkeep was not as ongoing as it had been in the past. Of course to be fair the vessel did just celebrate 20 years of sailing. With that being said I can not help but have noticed over the last few years the cutbacks on general maintenance that is normally seen around the ship. Overall the ship is clean and staff seem to take pride in keeping in clean as possible so good job with that.
I was a bit challenged early on for this booking to change to a larger ship. I really believed that Royal Caribbean is focusing their efforts on the larger ships and not putting as much attention into the smaller ships. I like the smaller ship and departure port, but again to be honest I can not put down the larger ships since I have never sailed on one. I seriously considered changing my booking to a large ship prior to this cruise, but with a price drop I was encouraged to stick with the voyage.
As I boarded it was clear that items have been cut from what cruising used to be, and in just a short time. The Windjammer had very little variety from day to day for breakfast and lunch. We did not do the buffet for dinner, but several friends did and said they would not recommend it over the main dining room. Items that used to appear on the buffet are no longer there. There was no turkey cold cuts that I used to get used to if there was not many options that appealed to me. It seemed at breakfast the only item to change was the potato's and that was merely how they were cooked and prepared. I was clear that the portion sizes in the dinning room have been cut back. While we never left hungry, it normally took two dinners to satisfy our fat tummies. This was also the first cruise that I felt the quality of the food had decreased. While most was edible and could be enjoyed, I certainly could tell a difference in the food from just over a year ago.
Cabin Review
Large Ocean View Stateroom
Cabin was in a decent location and provided enough space, wish there was a little more storage available and hopefully that will be considered in the refurbishment. Room steward did an outstanding job of keeping the room clean and restocking an items that needed to be.
Port Reviews
Baltimore
Baltimore is an easy port to get in and out of. The port workers are always friendly and helpful.
St. Thomas
Took a taxi to Emerald Beach. We ended up tendering into St. Thomas and was dropped off in the middle of town where there really did not seem to be anything. Luckily the cabs were there and a group of us went to Emerald Beach. The beach was okay and was just something to do to get off the ship. Since 6 ships were in port the island was crowded and our plans to venture to St. John by the ferry did not seem like a good idea based on the tendering process and number of ships in port.
Dominica
Booked a private tour of river tubing and beach stop and Mero Beach. The company we worked with were great. They even did the tour even though only 4 people signed up. They typically do not do it with less than 8 people. The river tubing was fun, although the water was a little low, at least it was not high (which would have canceled the tour). Overall it was a good day. The beach was okay, nothing to spectacular but it was a beach.
Barbados
We were one of the first groups to Boatyard Barbados. You can't beat the price and activities they have available. The resturant and bar are extra, but based on the admission price, I was certainly willing to patronize them.
St. Lucia
Did a pre-arranged island tour. The tour companies did not seem happy with our port time, since typically ships stay in port longer. For this reason we did have to be rushed at some of our stops to take everything in and get back to the ship on time. There was a lot of riding around the island, but when we stopped it was certainly worth the drive. We did several different things on our tour and tasted lots of flavors around the island. Despite having to rush, we never felt that we did not have time to enjoy each stopped and the tour guide to a great job of getting us back to the ship when he said he would.
St. Maarten
Took a taxi to Marigot for a little shopping, did not find as many stores there as I recall from the past. Then took a taxi to Maho beach to see the planes come in. After a short visit there took a taxi to Divi Little Bay Resort for the rest of the day. The seas were a little rough, but the beach was enjoyable.