JulofDenial

I have been instructed to have a high protein 'lower carb' diet by a dietician. I have a similar breakfast on my cruise to home. 

Egg white Omlette with spinach, mushrooms, and a bit of feta cheese if they have it. The rest of my plate is filled with fruit, grilled tomato and grilled mushrooms, again if they have them, but they are usually not hard to find on a cruise ship.

Grandeur of the Sea had what I can only describe as some sort of Jamaican donut. I have no idea what was in it. It looked like half a donut and probably had cinnamon in it and I don't know what else. Very tasty, and I would grab one off the buffet ever time I saw one.

The best breakfast I had was the Bottomless Brunch on RCL when it was a new thing. They had a little high end buffet of brunch items. I had shrimp cocktail, caviar, filet mignon, eggs, and béarnaise sauce and probably six mimosas. My mother does not like breakfast and complimented the shrimp cocktail, joking with the waiter that the serving size in the dining room was too small. Smiling he brought her a plate with about a pound of shrimp on it. Steak, eggs, and béarnaise are now my favorite all time brunch item.

1 minute ago, mets123 said:

Here's a simple solution. Either don't cruise any more or find another cruise line. All of your points have been answered many times. Maybe cruising isn't for you?

Did you miss the places where I repeatedly said that the object of the post was not to complain, but that I was wondering why the itineraries were the way they were?

I do club soda with lime. Alcohol is bad for my waistline and makes me grouchy if I drink too often. The fringe benefit of having that as your preffered drink is that bartenders will often not charge you for it. I was not charged for it about half of the time when I ordered it on Grandeur.

2 hours ago, meadowlander said:

I don't know where you are getting your information but it is wrong. Every Anthem 5 day Bermuda cruise in 2019, all 13 of them, spend an overnight in Bermuda.

 

In addition all 8 of their 9 night 2019 Caribbean cruises and all 4 of their 12 night Caribbean cruises do not call on Florida or Bahamas. Neither do their Canada/New England cruises.

I am getting my information from the Royal Caribbean sight and yes, I see that about the Bermuda cruises now. I was reading off of the search list on the RC page while scanning it so it gave the impression that they were only spending one night there.

I am citing itineraries, not individual cruises. I have not bothered to go and count how many times each individual itinerary sails for the 40 cruises that are sailing out of Bayonne and Baltimore. I have noted that yes, there are cruises that don't have the weird itineraries I am talking about. There just aren't many of them.

And this still doesn't answer my question which is why so many of those itineraries exist compared to the other ones. Do people actually like those cruises? Do they get kickbacks from those ports? Does it somehow save the ship money? What happened to the Western Caribbean cruises? And so forth.

To clarify a few things, this is less to complain about the itineraries (even though I do think that they suck) than to enquire why they are the way they are.

Examples of what I am talking about.

-I don't necessarily consider a cruise to Florida and the SE coast to be weird in and of itself. They may appeal to Canadians and such. They are just not what I am looking for in a cruise. What I do consider to be odd are cruises billed as 'Bahamas' or 'Bermuda' cruises which have just as many, if not more, PoCs on the mainland.

-Out of 22 different Itineraries that take you to The Bahamas out of Bayonne and Baltimore only 1 does not include a stop in Charleston or Florida. Of the others some are up to nine nights long and have up to 4 PoCs in Charleston and Florida.

-There are only 4 Itineraries to Bermuda out of Bayonne and Baltimore. Two of them only visit Bermuda which is something, but they never overnight in Bermuda as I have seen some Bermuda Cruises do from other departure ports.

-Out of the other two Bermuda cruises the one that departs from Bayonne has a PoC in Boston for a reason I can't conceive. The ones that follow this itinerary are all in April when the weather in Boston is particularly miserable. The other departs from Baltimore and goes to Charleston which is actually further away from Baltimore than Bermuda is.

-The first cruise I took was on the Grandeur out of Baltimore. It was a 9 night Western Caribbean cruise and the ports were Cozumel, Grand Cayman, Falmouth, and Labadee so it is possible to get there and back in a reasonable amount of time. There now don't seem to be any Western Caribbean cruises out of Baltimore or Bayonne.

-There are Eastern and Southern Caribbean itineraries as well as New England cruises. New England cruises don't appeal to me, but I don't consider the itinerary to be 'weird'.

-I don't necessarily consider a cruise to Florida and the SE coast to be weird. They may appeal to Canadians and such. Not ideal, but not odd. What I do consider to be odd are cruises billed as 'Bahamas' or 'Bermuda' cruises which have just as many, if not more, PoCs on the mainland.

39 minutes ago, Merion_Mom said:

There have been many threads in the past on Cruise Critic begging for “coastal cruises”. Someone always has to explain about the PVSA. 

 

There is a demand for these itineraries or the ships would not be sailing them, and sailing them full. 

 

As for for being able to drive to Charleston in a day?  Um, no.

 

I LOVE cruising to Charleston. I’m doing  it again in January.  Do I love a port call in Miami or Port Canaveral?  No, but I can visit friends and family.  I could visit the Kennedy Space Center every year, it’s such a wonderful place. 

 

When you tire of a port, try a walking food tour. It’s a whole new/different experience from other kinds of excursions. 

 

And the oddest part part of the OP’s question is:  only been on one cruise. 

 

One cruise, and you don’t like the itineraries?????  A little soon to be proclaiming that, IMO, in light of the many options. 

Yes, I can get to Charleston in less than 12 hours from where I live. South Carolina is a popular summer beach spot vacation from where I live it is warm and easy to get there by car which makes it cheaper and more convenient than a trip to Florida which is why I question it being on a itinerary out of Baltimore since it is a place that Northeasterners are typically familiar with and can easily reach if they want to.

Yes, I do not like the itineraries. It does not matter how many cruises I have been on. I know I don't like the itineraries because I have been to South Carolina and Florida both. I did not need to take a plane or boat to get to either of them. I would rather not pay port fees for places that close to were I live and have become mundane for me.

I have only been on one cruise before which was a Wester Caribbean cruise on the Grandeur with my mother. We live in Southern Pennsylvania so cruising out of Baltimore saves us all the inconveniences and costs of flying. I was wanting to go on another cruise from Baltimore or New Jersey, but when browsing the itineraries I noticed that they were lacking. They almost all stop in Florida or South Carolina no matter where the cruises stated destination is. There are even cruises billed as being cruises to the Bahamas that have more ports in Florida than in The Bahamas. I honestly would rather be on a cruise that has one stop on an island and after meandering aimlessly out in the ocean for a few days than pay the port fees for a place I could drive in a day. On top of that I think most people from the Northeast have been to Florida more than once because it is inexpensive to fly there. What's the deal with this? Do people want these sorts of cruises or is there something else at work here?

I had a pair of white stretch jeans laundered last week on the Grandeur. They starched the heck out of them with a crease and everything, unrequested, so much that they temporarily lost their stretch. It was nothing more than an object of amusement of course, but I would not be worried about the quality of pressing.

While interesting, it is much more likely that the upcharge lobster served on European cruises is North Sea Lobster, and not Maine Lobster.

It might be, and it might not be. I would wager that if lobster -is- served on a European cruise it's one of those weird, budget European lobsters. I don't know anything about them other than they are used in place of Maine/New England lobsters in Europe/UK and are supposed to be inferior.

Other than that I stand my opinion which simply I that you can't expect the same food that's available out of North American to be available on the other side of the world. In fact, as a foodie, I don't think I really would want there to be.

Have you checked live Maine lobster pricing lately? Due to unusual sea conditions, live lobster is in the $16 per pound range.

 

Lew

Not for a few months, but I saw lve, whole lobsters at a fish monger here in PA for about $7pp around Christmas. I can't imagine it's doubled in price since then. I honestly would make it every week if I could get my husband to eat it. Maybe it's more where you come from, or maybe you are over paying for it.

(Also one should bear in mind that any processing of the lobster will increase the price (freezing, taking the tail off, taking it out of the shell, etc) jacks the price up a lot as does transport it to the Midwest or further.)

Maine/New England lobster is relatively cheap on the North East coast of the US (starting at about $6.50 per pound for live, whole lobsters which makes it competitive compared to other wild caught seafood), it gets more expensive the further away from New England you get. By the time you get to the west coast lobster is super premium, and it is almost impossible to find (comparatively) outside the US. On top of all that it's also a seasonal food. That said I haven't been on my first cruise ship yet, but I am under the impression that this isn't a floating McDonalds. I assume that he chefs try to use things that are easily accessible via the port they disembark from to keep things fresh, and frugal like any responsible chef does.

Just my two cents!

Woah time out it was meant to be amusing . no none of it bothered, annoyed or made me scream with rage. Maybe its a Brit humour thing but I just laughed when I saw them and thought maybe others may laugh. Evidently some of you are upset so I humbly apologise.

I am an American (and descended from Germans too!) and I considered starting a blog or web comic simply to document the stupid/annoying/funny/inappropriate things people do in coffee shops. If anyone doesn't think that was funny, well that's not your fault. They just deserve our sympathy and pity.

Watching the motorcycles unload & load at each port was fun (15 bikes, 3 trikes). Only cost them an additional $700 to bring, probably worth it

Wait... you can bring a motorcycle with you?

The only thing wrong with Baltimore driving is that all the drivers from Maryland drive like they are lost (I'm not at all kidding about this). Just so long as you give them their space they're fine. Otherwise it's a very easy city to drive in, and you will not find any of the aggressiveness you'll find around other North East cities, and the roads are laid out sensibly.

Other than that train travel into Baltimore may end up being cheaper than parking your car at the terminal. It's also fast and pleasant (granted train travel is easy for me because I can get to the station via public bus, or cheap cab fare from where I live).

So I have a unique issue involving beverages...

I personally think, given my drinking habits, that I will have no issue with paying out of pocket for my drinks on my upcoming December RC cruise (10 nights; western Caribbean; Grandeur). I drink very little soda, can't have much alcohol, and really enjoy unsweetened ice tea and flavored water (which I understand is complimentary). I'll probably buy a pack of bottles of water for use off the ship, maybe couple of bottles of sparkling water, and a few alcoholic drinks. I drink very little other than coffee and tea. That said I have a few questions:

1) In the event I find myself spending over $20 a day on non-alcoholic drinks will I be able to take a drink package for the remaining days of my trip, or do I have to decide before hand?

2) Are there sports drinks available, and if so what is the selection like? I -need- to have sports drink available to me if I am going to be active/sweating. I'm prone to electrolyte imbalances due to an endocrine disorder, and intend on being active during the cruise. Do they have bottled sports drinks? If so can anyone tell me what is available (My poison is G2. It's low-calorie.), and how much it costs?

3) If it's not available will they have an issue with me bringing a 6-pack of my own? I would rather not bring my own because room temperature sports drinks are nasty, and I won't have a room fridge. I'm pretty sure they don't like you bringing non-alcoholic drinks on board, but it seems to me that this should be a reasonable accommodation for someone with a disability.

4) About how much do other no alcoholic drinks cost individually? Specifically diet coke, sparkling water, club soda, and bottled sports drinks.

5) Are club soda and sports drinks covered by the Royal Refreshment package?

That's it!

I am a big fan of cats, but yea... It is 'hit or miss'. In my own opinion if the kids you are bringing with you have trouble sitting through a movie in a movie theater then don't bring them to see a musical. If the kinds your are bringing don't like musicals (even if they only musicals they have been exposed to are Disney) then they probably, also, won't like this. I loved musicals when I was a kid, and my parents took me to all sorts of them. By the time they had started doing that, though, we'd watched all sorts of musicals on TV, and my parents knew I'd be impressed with live theater. The thing is that most musicals aren't geared toward children, and Cats is not the least among those. If you don't like Andrew Lloyd Weber this also definitely won't be for you.

From what I have read, and know from friends who live in, or come from other countries Americans are the pre-eminent tippers of the world. Americans are used to living in a society where the people who serve them subsidize their income with tips. Royal Caribbean, and other cruise lines that cater largely to Americans pay their employees according to American standards and count on their guests tipping certain employees as part of their income.

On the other had Royal Caribbean (and the others) has seen that there are many untapped markets in other parts of the world (Asia being a big one). However in most countries tipping is more of a social exercise where they leave a few dollars (such as the UK), virtually non-existent (China), and seen as inappropriate (Japan). It's much easier to just charge an automatic gratuity than to educate people on American tipping standards, and expect them to understand and comply.

I have not yet been on a cruise (I will be going on my first in November/December), but I have been to all inclusive resorts that charge automatic gratuity here in the states. It doesn't bug me at all. I am not a heavy drinker, but I tip about a dollar a drink when I do drink at a bar whether it's a martini or just tap water. When I am at an all inclusive, gratuities covered resort I tip a dollar for every two drinks, and leave something for the waitresses and housekeepers anyway. I still don't consider myself to be overly generous, and I imagine there are people who tip much more than me. I can only imagine what folks from countries who tip from 0-5% look like to bartenders compared to Americans who 20%+ for every drink they get -especially- if their wages account for American style tipping vs European and Asian style tipping.