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Just back..Grandeur St.Thomas, St.Maarten, San Juan, Bahamas

bj3247

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bj3247

bj3247

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1. Excursions were:

 

San Juan....attempted to do the Bacardi factory and although it claims to be free....all taxi's we contacted charged $20 per person one way to get there.

 

St. Maarten...Butterfly farm and major shopping

 

St. Thomas...Turtle cove snorkeling and once again major shopping

 

Bahamas...Not much to do there so we beached and shopped

 

If you have any questions about any of what I did let me know.

 

2. Patch job is adequate. Looks like a big dent at this point. NO early dry docking being talked about at all. Boat still floats and no leaking. It's not pretty but it is fuctional. I have pics I have to download later. They are doing many interior repairs as the ship is sailing, including new carpeting in the rooms (one of which was mine). Hope thos helps.

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bj3247

bj3247

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In Nassau we went snorkeling on a catamoran last year. It was great...free rum punch on the way home. I would definately encourage anyone to get into the georgus waters one way or another.

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Culebrita

Culebrita

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I don't know if I missed it or not, but has there been a new captain assigned? Just wondering.

 

Michelle

 

I was also on this cruise ( May 7), its the same Captain. I don't think the accident was his fault, I *heard* there were large swells that day and one must have hit the ship as he was docking. But thats just what I heard, so I could be wrong:)

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Sheffie

Sheffie

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I was also on this cruise ( May 7), its the same Captain. I don't think the accident was his fault, I *heard* there were large swells that day and one must have hit the ship as he was docking. But thats just what I heard, so I could be wrong:)

 

Glad to hear that he's still on the ship. :)

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mrg0433

mrg0433

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Nassau--I would suggest taking the water taxi from the ship to Paradise Island to avoid traffic congestion near pier. Atlantis Hotel Casino is absolutely gorgeous--worth seeing the hotel's famous aqaurium if only through the glass in the lobby area downstairs.

 

St. Martin--We loved Dawn Beach. Breathtaking scenery. Noon -3pm is happy hour (75cent Caribe beer)on this beach. If you have a long stop, you can take the ferry on the French side to Anguilla for the day--rate #1 beach in the world on Travel Channel. You can also take a ferry on the Dutch side to St. Barts.

 

St. Thomas--Meghan's Bay Beach is gorgeous scenery and the taxi was a bargain ($10 or $12 roundtrip per person). Very scenic ride to beach too.

 

Mary

Plymouth, MA

 

We definately need some suggestions for Nassau. Also, what did you do in St. Maarten? We were on the Grandeur last April and enjoyed it. Was surprised to hear about her accident.
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bj3247

bj3247

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Captian is still onboard and will not be leaving because of this incident. The accident happened while the ship was turning around to port, it got knocked into the moving pier by a wave.

 

Speculation and rumor to rest!!

 

In St. Thomas the place to be is St. John's Is. Beats any beach out there. In that area there are 5 islands in close proximity of each other.

 

St. MAarten has a water taxi tha goes to three spots along the coastline and it's $5 all day as many rides as you want-definately worth it!!

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Phamer55

Phamer55

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I was on the Grandeur when it crashed into the pier in Costa Maya. They explained that the crash was a result of strong current combined with the wind. I'm wondering if they plan on making a more permanent fix soon. Our cruise was extended from 7 days to 9 days, which was great. There are some funny "I Survived The Grandeur Crash" shirts available for purchase at http://www.cafepress.com/~phamers....Anybody have Peter from Hungary as their waiter?

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caribbean crazy

caribbean crazy

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Thanks for the information on the excursions. Now for some follow up questions...

 

Nassau - Do you remember the catamaran's name or excursion name if it was through RCI? Royal Caribbean has one named Rainbow Reef and one name Seahorse snorkel. Also, the water taxi to Paraside Isaland...Do you then take a taxi or walk to Atlantis from there?

 

St. Maarten - Do you know what the 3 stops are for the water taxi? We were thinking of going to Divi Little Bay Beach. We were also interested in Dawn Beach, but am afraid the surf may be too strong there.

 

Thanks for your advice - trying to firm up all the last minute plans. May 29th!!!

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marymoffitt

marymoffitt

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Any questions for any of the islands or the ship itself?
:) I'll be sailing on the Grandeur on May 27. My granddaughter will be with me. She is 21 years old. Is the disco lively? Did there seem to be many people in her age bracket? I want her to have the time of her life. Thanks for any info. Mary
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Janice1265

Janice1265

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we are on Grandeur in less than 2 weeks... any shows/etc that we just SHOULD NOT miss???? how is the evening DJ/bands ?? is there a Quest game on this ship???

 

We enjoyed all the shows, except the one with the duck. They did have the Quest Game in the South Pacific Lounge and was hilarious.

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Sheffie

Sheffie

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St. Maarten - Do you know what the 3 stops are for the water taxi? We were thinking of going to Divi Little Bay Beach. We were also interested in Dawn Beach, but am afraid the surf may be too strong there.

 

Thanks for your advice - trying to firm up all the last minute plans. May 29th!!!

 

Crazy, I think the 3 stops for the water taxi are down town. I remember seeing it at 2 different spots, so there is probably a third that I missed.

 

We took a regular taxi to Dawn Beach and had a wonderful time. We did not experience any surf at all. Maybe it depends on the weather and the tides? I don't know. We plan on going there next time for the whole day. :)

 

Michelle

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bj3247

bj3247

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First off-we had no swearing tour guide so I have no idea what you are talking about. I think it a little off to tell someone not to go someplace b/c of a guide....I was just there and had no issues. It was a great morning for my large group of 16 that went.

 

Quest was awesome!! We were right up front and had a blast. All the shows are great and the commedians change from sailing to sailing so they may not even knwo who the guy w/ the duck is.

 

If you can go on the backstage tour it is neat. The dancers and actors/singers are very nice and very personable.

 

Don't miss karyoke-sorry for spelling- some amazing singers show up there!!

 

The stops on the water taxi are all downtown. It's nice if you are going to shop b/c you can get off the 1st stop furthest away and walk down the shopping strip then get on the last stop and not have to retrace steps or revisit the shop owners you told you'd come back to knowing you really didnt want to!! lol!!

 

The club on the 10th floor is great. Your 21 yr old will love it.

 

Anyone going on the ship soon.....ask for Randall Williams as your bar man. Tell him Dad Jim and the girls sent you!! He is very nice and very helpful and has a memory like you would not believe. After spending close to $1500 on alcohol in our group of 16, we got to know him really well. He always went an extra mile sometimes even creating special drinks for us when we didn't like anything offered.

 

Keep the questions comming.....

 

And there are no more repairs set for the boat other than what can be accomplished while it is in dock during a normal visit or at sea.

 

No early dry dock for granduer.

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bj3247

bj3247

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Quest is an adult scavenger hunt contained in one room. You are in large groups, typically 6-8, and the host will give you a card with a number. That is your team number. Then he will ask you to bring something to him on the dance floor such a 2 womens bra's or a ship's compass for that day. (those were 2 of the items we had to come up with). You grab the item as fast as you can and run up to him on the dance floor and show him the item and your number card. He will shout out numbers as you show him you have what he asked for. The 1st number called gets 5 pts, the 2nd gets 4 pts and all the way down with the 5th getting 1 pt. The team with the most pts at the end wins. They give out metals on ribbons now....it used to be t-shirts or hats. Hope this helps!! Definately an adult game!!

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bj3247

bj3247

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Randall was everywhere!! By the pool, in the dining room, he was not stationed at a bar per say. I do believe right now he is in the champange bar just for the baltimore down sailing. He is from trinidad. I don't know how else to tell you how to find him. Have a great time!!

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