Grandeur of the Seas Review

The Cruise that Made Us Go Hmmm....

Review for the Bahamas Cruise on Grandeur of the Seas
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nodumblond
10+ Cruises • Age 2020s

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Sail Date: Feb 2017
Cabin: Interior Stateroom

As a point of reference: this is our first on Grandeur, second out of Baltimore, first out of Baltimore in winter. We have 21 sailings under our belt with four cruise lines, and hit Diamond status on Royal with this trip. We booked it because it was an easy drive to the port, scandalously inexpensive – under $70 per person per day for our interior cabin – and because it allowed us to visit Charleston SC and Port Canaveral as ports of call (we’d used PC twice as a departure port), along with Freeport, Nassau, and Cococay, Bahamas.

Embarkation: oh, Baltimore, how I love thee for thy ease of embarkation. We ended up arriving an hour earlier than we planned due to a work obligation prior, at 10:30 am. We could see folks still leaving from the last cruise, but we were quickly processed and moved into the ‘VIP’ waiting area. We noted that the ‘general’ waiting area was quickly filling up . . . so much so that they started having to put non ‘VIPs’ in the VIP area, but organized in such a way that they knew who would go where. One Platinum cruiser was miffed that a sizeable group from the ‘general’ area was led aboard before us – but, to my untrained eyes, it looked like a sizeable group of individuals with disabilities, and besides: really? We went from the parking lot to the Windjammer deck in an hour. In.One.Hour. Brilliant!

Hint #1: they are now doing ‘carry-on storage’ in the South Pacific lounge. You can leave your stuffs there and roam freely until they open access to the cabins at 1 pm – but you do have to go back and get said stuffs.

Cabin Review

Interior Stateroom

Cabin M

Cabin: 3071, standard interior. Sadly, it seemed our cabin did not receive the new bedding others have reported – the mattress and pillows have seen better days. I prefer a firmer sleeping surface, but husband had no issues with it. (Bonus: flatter pillows = easier to meld around your ears when husband’s snoring peaks.) The flat screen TV had an arm that pivoted it for better viewing from the desk or bed. You will still struggle with the lack of outlets, but if you purchase a couple of 230/110 converters, you can use the ‘european’ power outlets, thereby doubling your electric functionality.

When we arrived, the bathroom was overwhelmed with a mildewy smell. We asked our cabin steward, Ien, to replace the shower curtain (no curved glass walls). Voila! Smell removed. I liked the extra storage in the bathroom – it came in handy.

One oddity: the water in the bathroom sink was noticeably cloudy. It didn’t taste bad, but it’s the first time we took notice of potability challenges; it’s probably why there was complimentary bottled water in the cabin. Also, if this is important to you: there are no mini-fridges in standard interior cabins on Grandeur.

Port Reviews

Port Canaveral (Orlando)

we visited Brevard Zoo, a delightful little community based zoo that’s doing a lot with a little. A couple of displays could use some larger accommodations and/or a second animal in the enclosure – one or two seemed to be exhibiting boredom-flagging behavior like pacing. However, given the price point, it was a great way to avoid the Kennedy Space Center/Orlando crowds. Note: Lyft charges a surcharge to pick up and drop off at the port . . . which we got charged twice for coming back because our driver took the wrong exit and ended up north of our ship, so he had to double back. Boo.

Nassau

We’ve been here so often, we decided to wing it. We cabbed it to Ardastra Gardens (still struggling with post-Matthew renovations), then walked to Fort Charlotte/Stanley/D’Arcy and over to the Queen’s Staircase and Fort Fincastle. The forts are now charging a nominal ($1.08) admissions fee, but well worth it to see the interpretive displays they’ve added as a result.

We then headed to Junkanoo Beach for a little quality time with seashore until we returned to the ship for dinner and bed. (We were in port until 11:30 pm, which seemed a little out of place on a ship where there weren’t enough partiers to keep Senor Frog’s, Hard Rock Café, AND Sharkee’s going, but who are we to say.) Good thing we didn’t pass up Junkanoo, because we missed CocoCay due to high swells/wind. Boo.Hiss.

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