Jump to content
Cruise Critic Community

Grandeur Review

ddgleason

Recommended Posts

ddgleason

ddgleason

Posted
Posted

I have never written a review before, so forgive my mistakes or omissions. I tend to get wordy when I write, so I will do this in stages, if anyone wants me to keep going with it.

 

Background- DH and I are from Las Vegas, Nevada. We have cruised many times on RCI, mostly from Los Angeles. We do have children, but they did not go on this trip.

 

We flew out at 10 p.m. on Wednesday night. Got into Fort Lauderdale at 6 a.m. Thursday morning. 4 hour flight with a screamng child for 3 of those hours is not the best way to start a vacation. Now, before you start slamming me for being a kid hater, please know that I am not. I have 3 little ones of my own (they stayed with Grandpa for this trip) and I teach full time. I LIKE kids a lot. I do not like PARENTS who will let a child scream for 3 hours until she is so hoarse that you could hear how raw her throat was. I have flown with my kids on a red eye a few times so I know a crying baby is a definite possibility. You really do have to anticipate that your child will be the cryer and bring whatever you need to try to alleviate it. I felt so bad for that little girl. But this was minor compared to what happened on the flight home. That is for later.

 

Got into Fort Lauderdale and we rented a car. Got a good deal on Hotwire and Hertz gave us an upgrade, so that was good. We found a Denny's to get some breakfast, found a Wal-Mart to get some sodas and waters to bring on board, just about died from the humidity, returned the car, grabbed a taxi and got to the port about 11. Quick check in and on the ship by 11:30.

 

Now, I know the Grandeur is not a big ship and may not be as impressive as others, but we fell in love with her. Our favorite ship is the Monarch because she is so intimate. We have sorely missed her since she left LA, so the Grandeur kind of filled that void for us. Grandeur is not big and does not have the flashy stuff others may have, but she is so well kept and I LOVED the art. I think the pieces on Grandeur may be some of the nicest I have seen. (I know nothing about art, so please don't ask about period or whatever-cause I don't know) I just really liked the theme, if that makes sense. Lots of portraits of what looked like Rennaisance era stuff, lots of musical pics- it all just seemed to work together. Of course, this is to my very uneducated eye.

 

Rooms were not open yet, so we wandered up to the Windjammer and got a couple of snacks. Not at all crowded, but it was very early still. After lunch, we wandered around a bit to get a feel for the ship. Found the Schooner, got a Coke card, met Jose (bartender) at the pool bar, and died a little more from the humidity. By this time, the rooms were open. We had an inside on deck 7.

 

Insides cabins- yes, they are small (this one was bigger than Monarch's) but for a short cruise like this one without the kids, we prefer insides. The pitch black helps us sleep. Immediately, we collapsed on the bed and fell asleep. We slept for a couple of hours and felt so much better. No luggage yet, so we went to explore the ship some more. By this time, it is pushing 4 ish. Muster was at 4:30. During our wandering, we happened to find the naughty room.

 

Naughty Room- This was in a conference room. Outside of the room, there was a large sign that outlined RCI's alcohol policy. You couldn't miss it. Inside, there were lots of suitcases. A crew person came over and asked our cabin number, he checked a list and said nothing of ours had been tagged, but to just be patient, that our luggage would probably be delivered during muster. As this was going on, other crew were asking people to remove the bottles of stuff they had packed. Lots of bottled alcohol. I didn't notice any smuggling type paraphanalia (rum runners, mouthwash or water bottles, etc.). One woman was asking, "How did you know we had it?" At that point, we left to find our muster station.

 

Muster drill- Don't you just love that we don't have to do the life jackets anymore? On Grandeur, muster stations are on deck 5. We were muster station 9. We were a little early, but it was shady, so we settled in to wait. We lined up along the wall as directed. As we waited, the lady next to me was very upset about the fact that we had to stay there for this drill. She complained about the heat (OK, she had a point about that- did I mention the humidity yet? but she was also wearing jeans), complained that she hadn't had her lunch yet, complained that not everyone was at the drill on time, complained that the alarm bells were so loud and piercing, etc. I admit, I laughed out loud when she said she was feeling borderline b*tchy. She was great.

 

Muster ends and we find a spot on the pool deck for sailaway. We are used to sailaway from San Pedro in California, so this seemed a little anti-climatic. No one to wave to. We waved anyway. Time to get ready for dinner.

 

OK. I told you that I get wordy, and I sure lived up to that. Time for a break now. More later if anyone is interested.

Link to comment
Share on other sites
Silvery Seas Cruiser

Silvery Seas Cruiser

Posted
Posted

Hi, Donna. I am Donna too! Hubby and I and other family members sailed on Grandeur in late April. I enjoyed your review and hope you will write more. Like you, Hubby and I admired the art and sculpture on the ship. We also liked the Radiance-style atrium featuring lots of glass and great views.

 

We are huge fans of RCI's Freedom Class ships and Oasis. For me it was a step down to Grandeur, but because we were with family, we enjoyed them and did not need all the mega-ship bells and whistles. We found Grandueur to be both cozy and elegant. I'm still a big, big fan of Oasis, but Grandeur is cheaper and offers shorter cruises. It is hard for us to get away for longer cruises, so Grandeur will have to do.

 

Unlike you, we never did find the infamous "naughty room." It was interesting to know just how many suitcases fall into the trap. Hubby got caught with scissors once, but that was at check-in. He was hustled over to the "naughty table" where his scissors were confiscated. We were so surprised because he had brought scissors on over twenty cruises before!

 

You stated you like Monarch. For small ships we like Majesty--her sister ship. We have enjoyed her four-night itinerary several times. Grandeur does offer bigger rooms. That is a plus.

 

I look forward to the rest of your review.

Link to comment
Share on other sites
Sunkissed Mommy

Sunkissed Mommy

Posted
Posted
Muster ends and we find a spot on the pool deck for sailaway. We are used to sailaway from San Pedro in California, so this seemed a little anti-climatic. No one to wave to. We waved anyway.

 

 

Hi there, I was on this sailing with you and we had a blast! Let me tell you that normally (Friday, Saturday, & Sunday sailings) there is an awesome turn out of "wavers". The rocks by the entrance/exit of the port gether loads of people on the weekends. There is usually a trumpet player in the tall building you pass by as you leave. I know this because I have driven down to the beach and sat on those rocks a few times!

 

Unfortunately I think it is because it was a Thursday at 5pm :/ Most people were at work still or eating dinner.

 

I also noticed a lack of passengers up on the decks for sail away :(

 

Anxiously awaiting the rest of your review :)

Link to comment
Share on other sites
ddgleason

ddgleason

Posted
  • Author
Posted

Thanks for the positive comments, everyone! I have a little bit of time before I pick up my 9 year old from choir practice, so I'll try to get a little more in.

 

I forgot to mention that this was the 4 night cruise to Key West and Cozumel. We sailed on June 10 and got back June 14.

 

I left off with going down to the room after sail away to get ready for dinner. Luggage had arrived, so we went ahead and unpacked, then took quick showers and changed for dinner. (We are old school cruisers, I guess, and I have always dressed for dinner on our cruises.) We did early seating. I did notice quite a line of people for My Time Dining. I don't know if they had to wait to be seated or if they were early for their reservations or what. We have debated My Time Dining, but we really like having a set dinner time with a set table. More old school us, I guess. Anyway, we were at table 76- waiters were Arnold and Rainbow (Thomas). They were wonderful. One thing I love about RCI is that by the 2nd night, I don't have to ask for a specific drink, they automatically bring it. And remembered all of our names too. These people really do work so hard on the ships to make sure we have a wonderful vacation. We had a 6 top table with 2 other couples. We all hit it off right away and started comparing notes on past cruises, including Carnival cruises. Every night, dinner time was great. Lots of good conversation with warm, friendly people and good food. I know some people have said that the food is getting worse, and I would not disagree- I don't think it is the same product of 15 years ago, but I was also not cruising the same ships at these prices 15 years ago. The best part about the food is that someone else cooked it and cleaned it up for me.

 

I am trying to remember what we ate each night, and I just can't. I do know that I found something I liked every night. I also noticed that the menus seemed to be the same as the cruises from the west coast. (Garlic Tiger Shrimp, prime rib, etc.)

 

After dinner, our table mates tried to talk us into going to the Welcome Aboard show, which we politely declined. We don't do the shows on board unless there is a headliner. Maybe because we have seen so many of them that they are all the same to us? Maybe because we are from Vegas? I don't know. Just not for us, I guess. Instead of the show, we went out on deck and marveled about how warm it was. Not saying it was hot- but pleasantly warm. Cruising out of LA, I am used to bringing a wrap for on deck since it can get chilly. Didn't need it once on this cruise (well, not counting the show room). Next, we wandered back to the Schooner Bar.

 

Schooner Bar- this is our favorite place on the smaller ships. We love finding a corner and sipping some cocktails and watching the people go by as they go from what ever activity to the next. So relaxing! This Schooner was just as good as the others and maybe better because it had JR. If you go on Grandeur, go find JR at the Schooner. He is wonderful. By the 2nd night, he remembered us and what we prefered to drink. And by the 3rd night, he was entertaining us with bar tricks. And he seemed to love it when we figured a couple out. He was easy to talk to and had a smile for everyone.

 

After the Schooner, we went to the adult late night comedy show in the South Pacific lounge. I don't remember the comedian's name, but he was funny. Probably it helped that we had a few cocktails in us at the time. Bar service was good; anytime we needed a drink, we looked up and caught an eye and had a server.

 

After the comedian and the drinks, we felt that familiar call of that cursed vixen - cruise ship food. Since we hadn't eaten in a few hours, we needed some munchies and figured, well, we are on a cruise- let's eat! Problem was, by this time, it is about midnight. Windjammer is pretty much shut down, but the Solarium Cafe has hamburgers, hot dogs, pizza. Everything an alcohol induced mind craves anyway. Off we go to the Solarium- along with the rest of the ship, it seemed. The line was HUGE. After a quick debate, we opted to pay for room service (3.95 because it was after midnight).

 

Room service- the charge was per cabin, so we ordered a few different things (cheeseburger, bistro burger, spinach dip, ceasar salad). This was just what the doctor ordered to help soak up the alcohol and we drank lots of water with the late dinner. Everything was good. DH had that Caeser salad just about everyday, he liked it so much. The food came very quickly and we were both glad to stay in to eat in our room. It had been a very long day, after all. After dinner, we went to sleep, planning to have an early start the next day since it was Key West and neither of us had been there before. But, alas, that was not to be.

 

Well, time to ge the little one from choir, so Day 2 will have to wait until later. Thanks again for the positive comments!!!!

Link to comment
Share on other sites
ddgleason

ddgleason

Posted
  • Author
Posted

Our plan was to get an early start in Key West because the ship was scheduled to leave at 1:30 in the afternoon. But, we had very little sleep the night before. Combined with the darkness of an inside cabin, we slept and slept. We missed breakfast in the dining room. Headed up to Windjammer and got some food there. We had no problem ever finding a table in the Windjammer. By the time we finally got off the ship, it was around 11. Not a lot of time for Key West.

 

We headed to the Pirate Soul Museum. We had planned to do the trolley tour, but we just didn't think there would have been enough time. We are not the type to be running for the ship when it is time to leave. Pirate Soul Museum was interesting. Next, we headed to the Southern most point for the obligatory photo. We walked there. It really wasn't a long walk; it was just so HUMID!!!! How do you people live in that humidity??? I guess I am just a true child of the desert. Give me a dry 115 any day over that wet sticky hot. We drank lots of water. On the way back, we passed Ernest Hemmingway's house. Didn't have time to go through it, much to my disappointment. Passed the mile 0 marker. Got in line to board the ship in front of some of the crew. A few of them had a flat bed of liter bottles of soda they were taking to their cabins. Much joking and laughing amongst them. Boarded the ship again and headed to our room to drop off our souvenirs.

 

Cooled off in our cabin for a little while and then checked the compass to see what was going on. At this point, I am mixing up what activities happened on which day and I didn't save the compasses, so forgive me if I mix things up a little. The Grandeur had the standard pool activities - sexy legs, belly flop, pool games. We headed up to the pool deck to listen to the band and chat with Jose the bartender whom we met on the first day. The ship was scheduled to leave at 1:30, so we headed up one deck to watch departure. 1:30- we are still there. We decided to walk around the deck while we waited. As we were walking, we noticed that the Carnival ship next to us was leaving. We decided to blame them for our late departure. Not that it made any difference to anything, the only place we had to be was on board and we were already there. We watched that ship head out and soon after, our ship was also on the way.

 

Since this was in essence a weekend cruise, we really thought it would be comparable to one of the Monarch weekend cruises, which were known for being booze cruises. We did see a few families; not as many as we saw on the Mariner last summer though. Didn't see big packs of teens on board. Lots of young adults. But none so rowdy and out of control it was embarrassing, like we have seen on Monarch in the past. Overall, it was a very nice crowd, everyone seemed to be having a good time and no unpleasantness to speak of.

 

I also forgot to mention the coupon books. We are diamond and, like everyone else, we wondered about the June 1st changes and if they would be in effect on this cruise. We got the same coupon book they had been using (with the bad coupons that no one wanted), but we also got a packet delivered with the books. The packet explained the changes- including the combining of benefits- and also had some photo copied coupons for free pics (yay!) and internet minutes and a laundry bag discount. I liked that they gave us these coupons since they didn't have the new books out yet. Also, this was the night we got our diamond "amenity". I had wondered what that would be. It was a plate of petit fours before dinner (it was formal night). No welcome back gift (tote bag or baseball cap) but free sweets are always good with me. We like cruising and RCI gives us the level of service we want, so we choose to cruise RCI. Getting little perks like this just adds to it for us. It was nice to get ready for dinner and have a drink and a small sweet before we went to dinner.

 

Got ready for dinner and head a pleasant meal comparing notes with our table mates. I believe this was escargot night (love them!). After dinner, we did a couple of portraits and then changed out of the formal wear. Headed over to the Schooner to laugh with JR for a while. That night was the 70's disco party in the Viking Crown, so we headed up there to find a table. This is one of my most favorite activities. It was crowded but so fun!!! Everyone was dancing and laughing and it was such a good atmosphere. Don't you just love cruises? We danced until they turned the lights on at 3 A.M. (sounds late but for the west coast, that was only midnight). Then, headed down to the solarium cafe for our nightly grease fest to help soak up the alcohol. Took it back to our cabin and drank water as we ate. (This is a great remedy to battle a hang over, if you are wondering why we kept eating and drinking water before bed.) Time for bed- tomorrow is Cozumel and Nachi Cocom!!!!

Link to comment
Share on other sites
Icruzthere4Iam

Icruzthere4Iam

Posted
Posted

DD, Loving the review thus far. Gonna be on board Grandeur in September with about 42 of my closest friends and family:p and love to read about the ship and the experience. Thank you for continuing to post and will look forward to the rest, especially the Nachi part:), as a good chunk of us will be going there for the first time. Take care, Jim

Link to comment
Share on other sites
ddgleason

ddgleason

Posted
  • Author
Posted

Day 3. After dancing the night away, we again slept late (gotta love the inside cabins for darkness). But, we did make it to the dining room for breakfast since they had later breakfast hours on this day. I prefer the dining room for breakfast over the windjammer. I am not really a fan of buffets, having worked in a casino for a number of years.

 

Our plan today was Nachi Cocom. This was the day we had been looking forward to for a while now. I read the reviews of Nachi on the port boards on CC and I could not find one negative review. Not one. That's quite a reccommendation, in my opinion. We had pre-booked through Cozumelexcursions.com. It is $49.00 per person; you pay a deposit and then bring the balance with your confirmation the day you go. (Make sure you bring CASH to pay the remaining balance.) For 49, you get a 3 course lunch, all you can drink, and they have a pool, hot tub, and a beautiful private beach with chairs and umbrellas. We got the beach bag ready (bring beach towels with you to Nachi Cocom) got into our suits and cover ups, and off we go. It was raining a little when we got off the ship, but this was more than OK for us. We never get to see rain and we planned to spend the day swimmng anyway, so getting a little wet now didn't matter. Found the taxi stand. They have a list of places and prices for each place, which really made me feel better. I have had experience with taxis in Mexico changing prices after arrival; it seemed this was regulated somehow. $15.00 cab ride and we arrive at Nachi Cocom. (Hint, if you can get 4 people, the taxi price is the same so you might be able to split the fare.)

 

As soon as we got there, we were greeted with smiles. We paid the balance of our entry cost and were given a table looking out over the beach. It was still a little drizzly but we were under a huge open air roof. (I don't know how to post pics or I would. Google Nachi Cocom and find some pics of this place- it is truly amazing.) We had a couple of drinks and some chips and salsa, then ordered lunch. GET THE GUACAMOLE!!! It was so good, I am in depression that I can't have more now. GET THE RIBS!!!! They were so tender and the sauce was surprisingly sweet. After lunch, our waiter (Carlos) took us to two chairs on the beach that he served as part of his area. More drinks and I felt like I was in a Corona commercial as we sat there. (By this time the rain had stopped). Carlos checked back on us all day. My DH asked him about the parasailing and Carlos got him all set up for that. DH also had Carlos get me a time for a massage (beach side massage or parasailing? hmmmmm....difficult choice- not!) Off DH goes for his adventure while I watch from the safety of the beach.

 

Nachi Cocom does not book the parasailing at their resort. The boat had to take him to Paradise Beach to do that. Nachi is much quieter and I have heard they only let a limited number of people in per day. The result is that it is never crowded and it is very quiet without the craziness the other beach resorts have. If you are looking for a lot of activites, Nachi may not be the place for you. Anway, DH gets ferried over to Paradise to pay for the parasailing. He said that it was very crowded there and the beaches around there. There were a total of 5 ships in port the day we were in Cozumel. Going to Nachi Cocom was such a good decision for us.

 

DH gets back after his adventure parasailing (do not drink Coronas before attempting- just a little life lesson there.) and off I go for my massage. 30 minutes went so quickly. After it was done, I meandered back to our chairs and poured myself in mine. Carlos, in the meantime, had brought a fresh margarita for me. What a place. I could easily just live there. We had a couple of more drinks and then decided to head back to the ship. Another taxi ride back, and we briefly considered shopping. Decided not to since apparently it doesn't matter which side of Mexico you go to, the touristy stuff is the same. We have enough touristy stuff from Mexico and DH was still not 100% from his adventure so we went back on board the ship. Back to our cabin, DH falls asleep and I read for a little bit before we get ready for dinner.

 

Another nice dinner, but I do remember that I just wasn't hungry that night. Must have been the big lunch. There was nothing wrong with the food, I was just not hungry.

 

This was the night of the welcome back C&A party, so we headed ther after dinner. Darn, I am not hungry and they have hor' doeveurs (or how ever you spell it). Oh well. I was surprised that at this welcome back party, none of the officers were introduced. The loyalty rep spoke and that was it. The officers that were there left as soon as she started talking. They must have known we were going to beg and plead them to PLEASE, please tell someone to keep a ship on the west coast. Dh was till not feeling all that great so he headed back to the cabin to get a little more sleep. Quest was that night and he knew he had to be on his game for that. I went to the headliner show in the Palladium Theater. Again, don't remember his name, but he was a juggler. I enjoyed it. Especially the bit at the end where the lights were turned off and he juggled balls of light that changed color. After the show, I was supposed to go get DH from the cabin but I stopped by the Schooner and of course, JR was there with the regular crowd, so I went ahead and sat down. I did call DH later in time for Quest and he actually slept the entire time I was gone and woke up feeling refreshed. He needed the sleep. (NEVER drink before parasailing- such a common sense sort of thing, yet apparently not so common in the male species. or at least in my male.)

 

Quest- wow, this was a TAME quest. One of our table mates told us that they changed Quest to make sure that it wasn't crazy anymore. I don't know about that, but it was tame. Didn't see a lot of skin, even on the piercing quest. And I did notice that the last quest was for a fabulous looking woman (you all know who had to dress for that, if you have been before) rather than specific articles of clothing. It was still a fun time, though. Having experienced Quest on large ships and these small ships, I prefer the small ships more. It is more interactive than having everyone in the ice studio. After Quest, we went up to the Viking Crown, but just didn't feel like dancing tonight. We stayed for a little bit and listened to the music, then called it a night.

Link to comment
Share on other sites
linedancer

linedancer

Posted
Posted

Loving your review. I will be on Grandeur for the 1st time in September. You did mention you are Diamond C&A but you never mentioned the Diamond Event they have every night for wine or champagne. Did they not have it or did you just not go??

 

Can't wait till the rest of the review

 

Irene

Link to comment
Share on other sites
Sunkissed Mommy

Sunkissed Mommy

Posted
Posted

This was the night of the welcome back C&A party, so we headed ther after dinner. Darn, I am not hungry and they have hor' doeveurs (or how ever you spell it). Oh well. I was surprised that at this welcome back party, none of the officers were introduced. The loyalty rep spoke and that was it. The officers that were there left as soon as she started talking. They must have known we were going to beg and plead them to PLEASE, please tell someone to keep a ship on the west coast.

 

I find this interesting as I never recevied an invitation to the C & A Welcome Back party. Other people I spoke with on CC also mentioned that they were not invited to one either. I was under the impression that they did not have one on this sailing.

 

Was this the Diamond & Diamond Plus event??

Link to comment
Share on other sites
ddgleason

ddgleason

Posted
  • Author
Posted

I forgot to mention the wine tasting. We went to this in the dining room; I believe it was on day 2. It was 9.95 per person and you had 3 whites and 3 reds to sample, along with some cheese, crackers, and fruit. Now, DH and I are not wine drinkers at all. We really know nothing about wines, but we want to. So, we figured that this would be a good opportunity to learn a little bit about wine and to try a few different varieties to see if we could find one we liked. It was quite interesting- to me. DH started to get a little antsy by the end. It was rather long, but the sommilier (sp) really did provide some good background on the wines and taught us why swirling is important and how to nose a wine and how to look at the color, etc. I really enjoyed it. And I discovered I like Cabernet. I would do it again, but I doubt DH would.

 

The nightly diamond event was rather a sad little gathering in my opinion. Our table mates made it every night but we only found time on the last night. Because we had early seating, it was difficult to get to the lounge before dinner. It opened at 5 and dinner was at 6. But we did get up there the last night, as I said. It is in the top level of the Viking Crown. Now, supposedly, we are to get 25% off of beer and mixed drinks. DH got a beer and it was discounted but my Bellini was full price. Our table mates said they had noticed the same thing. His Amstel Lights were discounted but her Mojitos were full price. I guess we could have asked why this is, but for one drink, it wasn't a big issue for us. The one time we made it to the lounge, we were the ONLY ONES there. Maybe it got better after an hour or so as second seating guests came in, but for us, it was just a blah kind of thing.

 

So our last day starts and we get breakfast in the dining room again. Our plan this day is to just relax and chill and do nothing. After breakfast, we got our suits on and headed to the Solarium. Saw some books and shoes saving chairs for missing people, but since we just planned to sit in the pool anyway, wasn't that big of an issue. We put our towels on one of the table and chair sets and got in the water. This is truly what cruising is about. (by the way, I saw no children in the solarium ever.) It seemed that the younger drinking crowd preferred the main pool outside. That is Ok with me. I LOVE the solarium for its quiet, for its adult atmosphere, for its great chairs with cushions, etc. We tried the hot tub briefly but let's remember that we are still in the most humid place on the planet (at least we felt) so that just didn't seem to work. Cool water, not hot water, felt wonderful. After doing the pool thing for a while, we got hungry. Got cheeseburgers and pizza rustica from the solarium cafe and had a nice lunch.

 

Belly flop was today. We went outside on the upper deck and found a good spot to watch that. I am always amazed that no matter what cruise we are on, they manage to bring in so many national champion belly floppers :D. Good times. After belly flop, we spent some time at the pool bar and chatted with Jose. We asked him why so many people on this cruise are STILL carrying around their Coke cups. Usually, they have given that up by the last day. He laughed and said we should have seen the last cruise. Twice as bad he said. Why do people carry those cups around anyway?

 

After doing pretty much nothing all day, we went to dress for our last dinner. :( This was the day we made it up to the diamond lounge before dinner. (see above) Dinner that night had turkey. DH and I really do enjoy a good turkey dinner with all the trimmings, but we decided to splurge since it was our last night and we each got the Chops steak for 14.95. If there had been a Chops Grill on board, we would have gone there one night, but since there wasn't, this was a good substitute. I LOVE a good steak and this was a goooooood steak. So tender, cooked perfectly, bearnaisse sauce on the side, ahhhhh.... Dessert was Key Lime Pie. I never got any in Key West so I made up for that. Oh, I do love cruises.

 

After dinner, we went back to our cabin and packed and put our luggage out. Then, we went to the theater for the Love & Marriage show and the Comedian. Love & Marriage on this cruise wasn't as funny as I have seen in the past. But our goal was really to get seats for the comedian anyway, so not a big deal. The comedian was the same one from earlier in the week. Not as funny tonight- must be because we had not been drinking as we had before. After that, we went up on deck one last time to be sad as we thought about getting off of the ship tomorrow morning. Then, we called it a night.

 

We did run around and use what coupons we wanted to use on this day. I still don't know why we wait until the very last day to use our coupons but that is how we do it. I used our free photo coupons (we had 2- 1 for each of us) and did not end up buying any extra pics. After this many cruises, I don't need more portraits of us, plus we didn't have the kids with us, so I just didn't see any that I had to have. The photo guy did seem a little irritated that we were just using free coupons and not buying any. It almost made me buy a pity photo- almost, but not quite. We also used our free spin coupons- and we won!!! A t shirt and a key chain. Good souvenirs for Grandpa who watched our kids for us. DH used the match play coupons and then played 20 more in blackjack but gave up when the guy sitting at 1st base kept hitting EVERYTHING- including 16's and 17's when the dealer had a low card. Hmmmm....don't come to Vegas. No on second thought, please come to Vegas- our economy needs your money, guy.

 

The next morning, we got to the dining room where they had the waiting area for C&A members. Got a cup of coffee (this was 8:00) and as soon as we sat down with it, they said we could go. Wow. Quick! Got off the ship, found our laggage, no line at all for customs, and within moments we were in a cab back to the airport where we had a rental car reserved for our last days. We decided to fly back on Tuesday, instead of Monday so we could look around and go to the beach and stuff.

 

We rented a Mustang convertible (I couldn't help myself) and had a room booked in South Beach. We drove around the Miami area a lot and went to the Holocaust Memorial (so moving- if you get the chance, go see it.), drove to Biscayne Bay and toured the Viscaya mansion (again, go if you can), went to the beach and marveled at how warm the water is compared to California, looked for shells, and just had a nice day. That night we went to Mango's Bar in South Beach. South Beach was fun but I think we were funned out by this point. Didn't stay out late at all.

 

So, our flight home the next afternoon. We thought the 3 hour crying child was bad but that was minor compared to this one. We flew from Fort Lauderdale to Nashville and then grabbed a connecting flight to Las Vegas. On the flight out of Nashville, we were seated in front of 2 men who had a small child with them (she looked about 10 months or so). The flight left Nashville about 7 at night. About an hour into the flight, I noticed a distinct odor. Looked at DH (who has been known to get fluffy, shall we say) and he immediately proclaimed his innocence in this situation. Normally, a smell will dissipate. Not this one. It got worse. We figured out that it must be the baby behind us. After about an hour, she starts crying. I would have too if I had to sit like that. One of the men, walks her up and down the aisle. Smell follows as she passes by on her walks. At one point, the flight attendant came by and told the other man that there is a changing table in the restroom. He said, "Oh, OK." and did nothing. As we approach Vegas, the aisle-walking man has to sit down, of course. Now the baby is screaming bloody murder. And the stench was so strong that it was making me sick to my stomach. The crying wasn't the problem here. Of course, that poor child was crying. I can't imagine the diaper rash she was developing. And being a girl, all I could think about was I hope she didn't develop an infection from this. Other passengers must have made a comment in the hearing of these two men, because I heard one of them say, "Well, we paid for her seat so she has a right to be on this plane, even if she is crying." Obviously, he didn't get what the problem was. I felt and still feel that this was border line child neglect. I don't know if they live here or were coming to visit. It was a sad, sad situation and a sad way to end a really nice vacation.

 

And that was our cruise on the Grandeur of the Seas! Thanks again for all the nice comments! I think the Grandeur was beautiful and I would sail her again. She reminded me of the Monarch with the added bonus of a Solarium. We did book a future cruise while on board since we can combine benefits again. We are not sure what that cruise will be since RCI is leaving us here in the west. But it doesn't expire and we haven't done Alsaka yet. That might be where you can find us next summer. In the meantime, RCI GIVE US SOMETHING OVER HERE!!!!! Ask away if you have questions!!!

Link to comment
Share on other sites
ddgleason

ddgleason

Posted
  • Author
Posted
I find this interesting as I never recevied an invitation to the C & A Welcome Back party. Other people I spoke with on CC also mentioned that they were not invited to one either. I was under the impression that they did not have one on this sailing.

 

Was this the Diamond & Diamond Plus event??

 

You know, I don't know. It may have been for diamond/plus. Our table mates were diamonds too and they got one. That is interesting. Maybe it was just diamond/plus. It seems like on a longer cruise, there are 2 welcome back events we go to and this one only had the one. Maybe on these shorter cruises they only do the one. Really, Perry, you didn't miss a lot. It was in the Viking Crown, which was a strangly shaped space for it. You know how it is circular shaped? Everyone was spread out and you couldn't see the loyalty ambassador as she was talking.

 

Sorry we never did meet up on board! Did you have a great time? You were on Oasis just the week before, right? I still don't know about that. Oasis looks just too big for my taste.

Link to comment
Share on other sites
Sunkissed Mommy

Sunkissed Mommy

Posted
Posted

Hey Donna,

 

Well Im glad to know I didn't miss much. Viking Crown 2nd floor is rather awkward for an event. We went up to that level one night and thought "oh this is a nice private place to get away from everyone else in the Viking Crown!" haha.

 

My mom and I had a great time! She is now adicted to cruising and searching the website for one to do with her boyfriend this fall!

 

I am really conflicted now on whether I like small or large ships. I have never had a bad time on a cruise so I'd say all sizes are great. I figured the Oasis would be too big for me, and once I was onboard I wasn't sure how I felt at first. At the end I loved it. We've (hubby and I) always done well on others ships (without all the bells and whistles) and as I stated in the past going on the Oasis was a big jump for us and I was a bit nervous. I would say give it a try at least ONCE (find a good deal) then you will know for sure!

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Archived

This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.

Go to topic listing
  • Forum Jump
    • Categories
      • Welcome to Cruise Critic
      • Hurricane Zone 2024
      • Cruise Insurance Q&A w/ Steve Dasseos of Tripinsurancestore.com June 2024
      • New Cruisers
      • Cruise Lines “A – O”
      • Cruise Lines “P – Z”
      • River Cruising
      • ROLL CALLS
      • Cruise Critic News & Features
      • Digital Photography & Cruise Technology
      • Special Interest Cruising
      • Cruise Discussion Topics
      • UK Cruising
      • Australia & New Zealand Cruisers
      • Canadian Cruisers
      • North American Homeports
      • Ports of Call
      • Cruise Conversations
×
×
  • Create New...