Grandeur 8/29 Royal Suite Review Part 4

To sum it all up - we will never cruise with RCCL again. Why? - Several reasons..

1 - They obviously put thier profit margin above all else, the employees are overworked and under staffed. They charge for everyting, not even a postcard of the ship is free. They tried to charge us for our "free soda" on the very last day!! After we had confirmed that the soda was complimentary and paid our bill the night before in cash!!! Unacceptable. The herded people around like cattle. We paid extra for the Royal Suite and the only perks we got were on embarkation. My husband works 80 or more hours a week and rarely gets to travel so when he does travel he likes to do it right. This was his first and according to him his last cruise. He called it the floating Greyhound bus. I only have Costa to compare this with but I would cruise with them again anytime. The fellow passengers and children on that ship were very polite and quiet. Food was more varied and buffet managed much better. The good points of this cruise -my children had a great time and our suite was nice to hang out in. We really enjoyed time spent there. The staff worked hard to please even though they are totally overworked. Feel free to ask questions - will be happy to answer all.

mscheff...Thanks for the review. I do know that the Grandeur is going into drydock for some refurbishing in November. That should help with the shoddiness, I hope.

I had originally booked a GS on the Grandeur for the 11/05 cruise to Bermuda. After booking, I learned that the only perk for a GS was the priority boarding. Since only DH and I will be cruising and we don't need tons of room, I decided to check for an aft Jr. Suite. Well, I lucked out, got an aft corner balcony JS, saved some bucks and got a much better view.

I booked the Grandeur because it leaves from Baltimore, the port is 15 minutes away and the cruise was, imho, affordable. It's a surprise for DH. There are other ships cruising to Bermuda in 2005, but there are no balcony staterooms on the other ships that leave from Bayonne, etc., and I cannot imagine cruising without one.

Our very first cruise will be on a brand, new ship in 51 days, so I'm hoping by the time 11/05 arrives, the Grandeur will have been spruced up or I may have the same reaction as you.

DH and I also book all vacations when school is in session, therefore, we'll never have to deal with the "children running around the ship issue". So sorry your cruise wasn't up to par. I just hope I won't be writing the same review next year. :eek:

Madelinerose,

We were on the 8/22 sailing of the Grandeur in a grand suite and loved it. I thought the ship was in great shape. It really is a different experience for everyone. The dining experience was on par with Celebrity. We had a table for 2 (#248) but made friends with the people seated next to us, our waiter Randy (Phillipines) and assistant waiter, Natalia (from Urugruay), were so much fun. The food was good, the weather great (except for running into Tropical Storm Gaston in the early AM). I'd do this ship/itinerary again.

Barb