Just Back from Grandeur-Wrong Choice For Us

[splash_in_the_water]

 

Overall, we had an AVERAGE cruise, not a WOW cruise. I think that each cruise kind of has a "personality", and this one's did not match what we were looking for. I only tried to give my observations and opinions. I hope all of your cruises are WOW!

 

I'd settle for an average cruise just about anytime lol....I'm sure your next 2 will be more to your liking....we're going on a short cruise in may-out first time on RCI , so we're hoping for a good time. :)

[Paulette3028]

If anyone wants to take the time, and I do not know why you would, you can do a search and find ALL of the reviews I have written for all of my cruises. This is probably the only negative one. We really enjoy cruising. We are basically "loyal to Royal". The title said it was a bad choice for US, not for everyone. We are scheduled on the Jewell to Alaska and the Serenade out of FLL. We are looking forward to them.

 

By the way (new paragraph), we missed the Meet and Mingle, which we were looking forward to, because the notice was placed in our stateroom the afternoon following the morning meeting. We had chatted on the Roll Call with many fellow cruisers and are sorry we missed meeting them in person.

 

Also, we had 2 charges made against our cruise account that were not ours. They were on 2 separate days in the Viking Crown Lounge. When I reported it to guest services, they were quickly removed with no "argument".

 

We had My Time Dining, not a set time. It was someone else who spoke of having their time changed, not us. We had several different tables and some waiters were much better than others. The staff tried hard, but I think they were a bit overwhelmed as it was a full ship with MANY children.

 

Overall, we had an AVERAGE cruise, not a WOW cruise. I think that each cruise kind of has a "personality", and this one's did not match what we were looking for. I only tried to give my observations and opinions. I hope all of your cruises are WOW!

 

I may have been the one that may have misunderstood your dining issue. Sorry, all you could say is that is was an average cruise....and you have had plenty to judge with. The Meet N Mingle mixup is unfortunate. I know that during my Roll Call threads we usually post when we expect the Meet N Mingle to happen, to try to avoid that situation for those involved, but it happens.

 

Hopefully your next cruises on Royal, will be more 'WOW'.

[teacherman]

The ex-Celebrity ship that we were berthed next to in St Marteen was the Horizon, which was also the first ship that we cruised on. That trip was to Bermuda, out of Philadelphia, about 12 years ago. I believe the ship was sold to another company a couple of years later. I have seen it 2 other times beside this one. The first was at the port of Livorno, in Italy, and the second was a couple of years ago in Barbados. It appears that it now has a different logo on the stack than the last two times I saw it, and is owned by a French company, or, at least that is what the cruise director said during his remarks later that evening in the Palladium Theater. I always enjoy seeing it because that Bermuda cruise was the one that hooked us on cruising. Yes, the weather was good. I do not understand the attacks. I did not bash RCCL. If I have cruised all of these times, and taken the time to write reviews and chat with people on line, why would I write a "phony" review about a cruise? I have to leave now so that I can go to church and pray for "forgiveness" that I ever said any negative things about a cruise.

[depplep]

teacherman,

I read your entire review without a problem. We had the worst cruise of our lives on the Monarch Millennium sailing. Royal even gave us credit towards a future cruise because of all the problems that we had. We're still cruising Royal and we realize it can happen again. I appreciate your feedback and observations.

[Thetrail]

I do not enjoy reading negative reviews, and do not believe I have ever written one, but we just returned from a 10 night cruise on the Grandeur. We enjoy quiet sea days, good entertainment, enjoyable dining experiences, meeting people from various parts of the country (or other countries), etc. No cruise is perfect, but I believe this cruise was very lacking in what we look for. Our fault because we booked it. PROS-Baltimore is an easy flight from our home; there are many hotels downtown that are a short taxi ride to the port and many great restaurants; most passengers are friendly; cruise prices are decent; a 10 day itinerary is offered; service on the ship was pretty good; the service in the Diamond Lounge was very enjoyable; (there are probably more but the negatives stick out for me) CONS-almost everyone on board lives within driving distance of the port, so you do not get a lot of "variety", and most people we met wondered why we flew there instead of cruising out of Florida; the dining room has very little "ambiance" as it is brightly lit, and when we asked why they do not turn the lights down we were told then it is too dark and that this problem "had been reported"; most service people seemed to wish they were on some other ship, and some actually stated this fact to us; we only had 2 enjoyable dinners (Chops and Giovannis table) and even in Giovannis Table the lighting was very bright and they said that they could not dim it because then other people could not see; the big screen was "useless" as they showed no recent movies, NO NCAA BASKETBALL, and usually showed some concert videos in the evening which very few people, if any, were watching; the dining room staff seemed "stressed" and 2 of them specifically asked us to give them high ratings on the survey; when we were served lobster, no one offered to remove the shell as has always been done on other cruises, until my wife asked the waiter, who then removed it but walked away without helping the young man at the next table who had a deformed hand and was struggling with his; when we ordered the "special" souffle desert, the waiter delivered it and the sauce to us and asked if we "knew what to do with the sauce" rather than just serving it; the entertainment was lacking, with no aerial acts, and some music groups playing the same songs several evenings. We sailed out of Baltimore 2 years ago on another ship (same week of the year) and had a completely different experience. I just don't understand it. I have read several negative comments on the boards about these same "quality" experiences and tended to disregard them as disgruntled customers. Maybe I now see what they were referring to. We have 2 more RCCL cruises scheduled this year. When I mentioned this to a couple of crew members, their response was that "those are really nice ships", and I now have a dentist appointment to repair a gold crown that broke when I bit into a piece of beef. Okay, I have vented (probably more than I should have) but when you anticipate a wonderful cruise, and experience these things, it kind of takes the edge off. People who are on their first or second cruise, would probably see things differently. I am told the ship is quite heavily booked for the next year. Let the flaming begin.

That being said can't wait to sail her in August!

Have always felt the crew was one of the best in the fleet, and have never had a dining room issue. Also have met folks in the CL each night from all over the USA and Europe. By the way when you state that "most people wished they were on another ship" did you take a survey, speak with "most" people on the ship?:confused::eek:

[susancruzs]

It does happen and life goes on! Everyone has their own expectations as to what their cruise vacation should be, sometimes a particular one falls short of what they expect.

 

I pretty much sail on two lines, RCI and Princess. Being retired, cruising for over 30 yrs., I don't take short cruises (10 days is short for me)! Everyone raved about Celebrity so I tried it (twice) and not for me. After the cruises, I stated why I was less than thrilled and oh, my gosh, I got rude and ridiculous comments. These weren't recent, 2002 and 2007, and the boards have gotten better about commenting.

 

Everyone is entitled to an opinion, not necessarily a right or wrong, black or white here, sometimes all in the expectations. If I'm going on an older small ship (me, 25 days on the Vision this Fall), I won't set the bar high. However, next year on a newer Princess ship for 25 days, I'll be tougher because I'm not always thrilled with newer, big ships.

[teacherman]

A voice spoke to me and said, "There is nothing to forgive. Always be truthful, but admit your mistakes!" So, I said "most service people", not "most people". It should have said "most service people with whom I had dealings". I did not take a survey and my feelings about their feelings would not be allowed in court testimony, although the couple of specific statements made by crew members might be.

 

The voice also said, "Next time simply write your review on the review page, where you normally write it, and not on the Forum. That way, people cannot have fun responding to your review and making personal attacks about your observations and writing style. Also, since of the most recent 25 cruise reviews of this ship, 8 give it an average, or less, rating, you will not be alone in your observations."

 

Okay, it is finally warming up, so I have to go work on the lawn.

[LuckiStac13*Majesty*]

A voice spoke to me and said, "There is nothing to forgive. Always be truthful, but admit your mistakes!" So, I said "most service people", not "most people". It should have said "most service people with whom I had dealings". I did not take a survey and my feelings about their feelings would not be allowed in court testimony, although the couple of specific statements made by crew members might be.

 

The voice also said, "Next time simply write your review on the review page, where you normally write it, and not on the Forum. That way, people cannot have fun responding to your review and making personal attacks about your observations and writing style. Also, since of the most recent 25 cruise reviews of this ship, 8 give it an average, or less, rating, you will not be alone in your observations."

 

Okay, it is finally warming up, so I have to go work on the lawn.

 

Hi teacherman,

 

Just wanted to say that I am sorry your cruise wasn't a great one. Thanks for sharing your thoughts here, even though some people freak out when anything negative is written.

 

A lot of your thoughts echoed our past few experiences with Royal as well - Grandeur is one of our favorite ships, but our last cruise on her, several years ago even, was different than in previous years. It's the crew and management of the ship, and it's very disappointing to hear that things are moving in this direction.

 

I never have a "bad" cruise but I have become annoyed at these types of service-related issues that never used to be present and seem to be becoming the norm. Land-vacations for me for awhile...

[Paulette3028]

Hi teacherman,

 

Just wanted to say that I am sorry your cruise wasn't a great one. Thanks for sharing your thoughts here, even though some people freak out when anything negative is written.

 

A lot of your thoughts echoed our past few experiences with Royal as well - Grandeur is one of our favorite ships, but our last cruise on her, several years ago even, was different than in previous years. It's the crew and management of the ship, and it's very disappointing to hear that things are moving in this direction.

I never have a "bad" cruise but I have become annoyed at these types of service-related issues that never used to be present and seem to be becoming the norm. Land-vacations for me for awhile...

 

You have made a very 'blanket statement' -- yet there have been plenty of people who have said they had a very good experience with the crew and management on their sailing.

 

I have not cruised nearly as much as many. In my 17 sailings, each crew and its management (although often the same people sailing after sailing) react differently each week -- to new cruisers on board, new situations that develop.

 

I have had weak staff members and crew; I have had stellar ones; I can only predict that I will help them by giving them my best foot forward, and hope that is the catalyst for having great interactions with them.

 

I have some personal connections to staff members and they will sometimes say, the vibes they get from cruisers are 'downers' and it is tough to stay as upbeat as Royal expects them to be, all the time.

[JKrise]

I do not enjoy reading negative reviews, and do not believe I have ever written one, but we just returned from a 10 night cruise on the Grandeur. We enjoy quiet sea days, good entertainment, enjoyable dining experiences, meeting people from various parts of the country (or other countries), etc. No cruise is perfect, but I believe this cruise was very lacking in what we look for. Our fault because we booked it. PROS-Baltimore is an easy flight from our home; there are many hotels downtown that are a short taxi ride to the port and many great restaurants; most passengers are friendly; cruise prices are decent; a 10 day itinerary is offered; service on the ship was pretty good; the service in the Diamond Lounge was very enjoyable; (there are probably more but the negatives stick out for me) CONS-almost everyone on board lives within driving distance of the port, so you do not get a lot of "variety", and most people we met wondered why we flew there instead of cruising out of Florida; the dining room has very little "ambiance" as it is brightly lit, and when we asked why they do not turn the lights down we were told then it is too dark and that this problem "had been reported"; most service people seemed to wish they were on some other ship, and some actually stated this fact to us; we only had 2 enjoyable dinners (Chops and Giovannis table) and even in Giovannis Table the lighting was very bright and they said that they could not dim it because then other people could not see; the big screen was "useless" as they showed no recent movies, NO NCAA BASKETBALL, and usually showed some concert videos in the evening which very few people, if any, were watching; the dining room staff seemed "stressed" and 2 of them specifically asked us to give them high ratings on the survey; when we were served lobster, no one offered to remove the shell as has always been done on other cruises, until my wife asked the waiter, who then removed it but walked away without helping the young man at the next table who had a deformed hand and was struggling with his; when we ordered the "special" souffle desert, the waiter delivered it and the sauce to us and asked if we "knew what to do with the sauce" rather than just serving it; the entertainment was lacking, with no aerial acts, and some music groups playing the same songs several evenings. We sailed out of Baltimore 2 years ago on another ship (same week of the year) and had a completely different experience. I just don't understand it. I have read several negative comments on the boards about these same "quality" experiences and tended to disregard them as disgruntled customers. Maybe I now see what they were referring to. We have 2 more RCCL cruises scheduled this year. When I mentioned this to a couple of crew members, their response was that "those are really nice ships", and I now have a dentist appointment to repair a gold crown that broke when I bit into a piece of beef. Okay, I have vented (probably more than I should have) but when you anticipate a wonderful cruise, and experience these things, it kind of takes the edge off. People who are on their first or second cruise, would probably see things differently. I am told the ship is quite heavily booked for the next year. Let the flaming begin.

 

 

So.....how's the flame suit holding up? Got to say the Royal Champions have been gentle thus far.

[Paulette3028]

A few years ago we scheduled a cruise for my birthday, mid June. When we booked it, we had no idea the Heat would be in the NBA finals and that the finals would be when we were cruising. As Heat fans, we surely would like to watch our team in the finals....but if it would not have been, not much I could do about it. Our plans were our plans, and I would have to settle for reading about the game.

 

I would not write a review that had as an item in caps NO NBA FINALS......it really would not impact my cruise all that much.

[BND]

A voice spoke to me and said, "There is nothing to forgive. Always be truthful, but admit your mistakes!" So, I said "most service people", not "most people". It should have said "most service people with whom I had dealings". I did not take a survey and my feelings about their feelings would not be allowed in court testimony, although the couple of specific statements made by crew members might be.

 

The voice also said, "Next time simply write your review on the review page, where you normally write it, and not on the Forum. That way, people cannot have fun responding to your review and making personal attacks about your observations and writing style. Also, since of the most recent 25 cruise reviews of this ship, 8 give it an average, or less, rating, you will not be alone in your observations."

 

Okay, it is finally warming up, so I have to go work on the lawn.

 

It's like you only want people to agree with you. While you may have had a cruise that wasn't what "you" wanted, that doesn't mean others don't enjoy/love GR and the crew. Who made a "personal" attack? I saw people disagreeing with you, which you do know is allowed, right? While you may have had less than stellar service, plenty of others haven't, because you know each server is an individual. And, every RCI cruise I have been on in the last few years that have big screens have shown movies. Both our cruises on GR in 2014 showed a movie every single night.

 

Also, a good review is objective and not subjective. Feelings and opinions (especially about crew's feelings) are individual and really don't tell anyone anything useful.

[Desert Cruizers]

Sorry your cruise didn't go as well as you had hoped, as we all know, we cruise enough and there will be 1 that was lacking. No flaming her, it is just plain fact. I do hope your future cruises will be more rewarding. We haven't cruised as many as others and we ourselves had 1 cruise excluding the Ports and people we met that was not what we hoped but we still enjoyed the cruise for what we did experience.

[lovesthebeach2]

How dare the OP criticize RCL here!

 

Not when the RCL pom pom wavers are online to attack him for his review including a few who never went to school long enough to be able to read long paragraphs

 

Loved that!

 

I guess you knew you would be attacked for saying anything negative about RCL on these boards. That's why I rarely post. But the fact is that not all ships are the same and no one can deny that fact.

 

Our worst cruise was on an 11 day of Hawaii on the Legend. The food was awful, our waiter was so bad that surrounding tables were finishing dessert before we got our dinners. He kept apologizing for the whole cruise. The ship was badly inneed of refurbishing.

 

BUT, it was my favorite cruise ever! We travelled with a large group and we were in Hawaii for goodness sakes. But I would never cruise on that ship again....but it's ok, they have plenty more ships that I will cruise on and on and on.

[legaljen1969]

IMHO, the OP set up his comments to start the thread in a perfect manner. It wasn't a great choice for him (and whoever he cruised with). I think we all have experiences where things are not exactly what we expect and exactly what we plan.

 

So it wasn't the best experience for him. It's okay. I saw nothing attacking Royal. He just said this was not the best choice for him. It's like recommending something at a restaurant and you rave about it, and recommend it to someone else.

 

Maybe the person who followed your recommendation and didn't care for the seasoning on his steak. It doesn't mean the restaurant is bad or he hated it. It just wasn't his favorite. Big deal!!

[tripster]

I do not enjoy reading negative reviews, and do not believe I have ever written one, but we just returned from a 10 night cruise on the Grandeur. We enjoy quiet sea days, good entertainment, enjoyable dining experiences, meeting people from various parts of the country (or other countries), etc. No cruise is perfect, but I believe this cruise was very lacking in what we look for. Our fault because we booked it. PROS-Baltimore is an easy flight from our home; there are many hotels downtown that are a short taxi ride to the port and many great restaurants; most passengers are friendly; cruise prices are decent; a 10 day itinerary is offered; service on the ship was pretty good; the service in the Diamond Lounge was very enjoyable; (there are probably more but the negatives stick out for me) CONS-almost everyone on board lives within driving distance of the port, so you do not get a lot of "variety", and most people we met wondered why we flew there instead of cruising out of Florida; the dining room has very little "ambiance" as it is brightly lit, and when we asked why they do not turn the lights down we were told then it is too dark and that this problem "had been reported"; most service people seemed to wish they were on some other ship, and some actually stated this fact to us; we only had 2 enjoyable dinners (Chops and Giovannis table) and even in Giovannis Table the lighting was very bright and they said that they could not dim it because then other people could not see; the big screen was "useless" as they showed no recent movies, NO NCAA BASKETBALL, and usually showed some concert videos in the evening which very few people, if any, were watching; the dining room staff seemed "stressed" and 2 of them specifically asked us to give them high ratings on the survey; when we were served lobster, no one offered to remove the shell as has always been done on other cruises, until my wife asked the waiter, who then removed it but walked away without helping the young man at the next table who had a deformed hand and was struggling with his; when we ordered the "special" souffle desert, the waiter delivered it and the sauce to us and asked if we "knew what to do with the sauce" rather than just serving it; the entertainment was lacking, with no aerial acts, and some music groups playing the same songs several evenings. We sailed out of Baltimore 2 years ago on another ship (same week of the year) and had a completely different experience. I just don't understand it. I have read several negative comments on the boards about these same "quality" experiences and tended to disregard them as disgruntled customers. Maybe I now see what they were referring to. We have 2 more RCCL cruises scheduled this year. When I mentioned this to a couple of crew members, their response was that "those are really nice ships", and I now have a dentist appointment to repair a gold crown that broke when I bit into a piece of beef. Okay, I have vented (probably more than I should have) but when you anticipate a wonderful cruise, and experience these things, it kind of takes the edge off. People who are on their first or second cruise, would probably see things differently. I am told the ship is quite heavily booked for the next year. Let the flaming begin.

 

Sorry that people here are complaining about your lack of paragraphs. Obviously, those people aren't aware of the fact that not EVERYONE knows how to write properly! (Not saying that this applies to you, just stating a fact about people in general.) Can't believe the rudeness that takes place here. Yes, paragraphs do help, but a post without them is still able to be read and comprehended.

 

Anyway, sorry that you did not enjoy your cruise the way that you were hoping to. As you and others have stated, it was probably not the right choice for you. I hope that you will continue to cruise and have a much better experience on your next one.

[tripster]

IMHO, the OP set up his comments to start the thread in a perfect manner. It wasn't a great choice for him (and whoever he cruised with). I think we all have experiences where things are not exactly what we expect and exactly what we plan.

 

So it wasn't the best experience for him. It's okay. I saw nothing attacking Royal. He just said this was not the best choice for him. It's like recommending something at a restaurant and you rave about it, and recommend it to someone else.

 

Maybe the person who followed your recommendation and didn't care for the seasoning on his steak. It doesn't mean the restaurant is bad or he hated it. It just wasn't his favorite. Big deal!!

 

Nicely put. :)

[Paulette3028]

I do not enjoy reading negative reviews, and do not believe I have ever written one, but we just returned from a 10 night cruise on the Grandeur. We enjoy quiet sea days, good entertainment, enjoyable dining experiences, meeting people from various parts of the country (or other countries), etc. No cruise is perfect, but I believe this cruise was very lacking in what we look for. Our fault because we booked it. PROS-Baltimore is an easy flight from our home; there are many hotels downtown that are a short taxi ride to the port and many great restaurants; most passengers are friendly; cruise prices are decent; a 10 day itinerary is offered; service on the ship was pretty good; the service in the Diamond Lounge was very enjoyable; (there are probably more but the negatives stick out for me) CONS-almost everyone on board lives within driving distance of the port, so you do not get a lot of "variety", and most people we met wondered why we flew there instead of cruising out of Florida; the dining room has very little "ambiance" as it is brightly lit, and when we asked why they do not turn the lights down we were told then it is too dark and that this problem "had been reported"; most service people seemed to wish they were on some other ship, and some actually stated this fact to us; we only had 2 enjoyable dinners (Chops and Giovannis table) and even in Giovannis Table the lighting was very bright and they said that they could not dim it because then other people could not see; the big screen was "useless" as they showed no recent movies, NO NCAA BASKETBALL, and usually showed some concert videos in the evening which very few people, if any, were watching; the dining room staff seemed "stressed" and 2 of them specifically asked us to give them high ratings on the survey; when we were served lobster, no one offered to remove the shell as has always been done on other cruises, until my wife asked the waiter, who then removed it but walked away without helping the young man at the next table who had a deformed hand and was struggling with his; when we ordered the "special" souffle desert, the waiter delivered it and the sauce to us and asked if we "knew what to do with the sauce" rather than just serving it; the entertainment was lacking, with no aerial acts, and some music groups playing the same songs several evenings. We sailed out of Baltimore 2 years ago on another ship (same week of the year) and had a completely different experience. I just don't understand it. I have read several negative comments on the boards about these same "quality" experiences and tended to disregard them as disgruntled customers. Maybe I now see what they were referring to. We have 2 more RCCL cruises scheduled this year. When I mentioned this to a couple of crew members, their response was that "those are really nice ships", and I now have a dentist appointment to repair a gold crown that broke when I bit into a piece of beef. Okay, I have vented (probably more than I should have) but when you anticipate a wonderful cruise, and experience these things, it kind of takes the edge off. People who are on their first or second cruise, would probably see things differently. I am told the ship is quite heavily booked for the next year. Let the flaming begin.

 

Now, I am just curious....especially since you have taken plenty of cruises.....if you had to do it over, what cruise would you have chosen instead (so that we have some idea, what you feel was the biggest cause for all of the issues).....keep in mind that on that cruise you still might not have had some things like "NO NCAA BASKETBALL" to tell us about or some of the other issues you have mentioned.

Edited April 12, 2015 by Paulette3028

[iluvit!]

I understand what the OP means about the majority of passengers being from driving distance from the port, but to me it's a good thing. We cruise out of Galveston with ships full of mostly fellow Texans, and everyone is friendly and polite!

[Susie51]

Thank you for your opinions. I enjoyed reading this thread and appreciate you for continuing to post on it.

[Paulette3028]

I understand what the OP means about the majority of passengers being from driving distance from the port, but to me it's a good thing. We cruise out of Galveston with ships full of mostly fellow Texans, and everyone is friendly and polite!

 

I understand what the OP says as well....we mostly cruise from FLL or Miami, and we have lots of fellow Floridians -- not all of them are friendly and polite; but then again, people from anywhere can be unfriendly and rude. So address nor social status doesn't matter (another thorn thrown in).

 

I cruised out of San Juan and hated the experience....poor process to get on the ship (Jewel) and not very pleasant experience getting off to the airport following an excursion when we got off the ship....the cruise had a much larger population of Spanish speaking cruisers (to be expected) and some of the venues (musically catered to them).....I could complain about it, but it was just part of the experience. Overall we had a great time, and the entertainment staff had a great deal to do with that -- or I could focus on what I did not like.

 

Will we cruise out of SJ again.....probably, when an itinerary and a ship that we want to go on align themselves together.

[patrickusaf08]

After reading this post a lot of people sail out of baltimore that live close because it is a way to escape the cold and not have to pay for airfare. Also Granduer is more economically priced then Quantum or Liberty when she comes back to NJ. My parents who are travel agents have noticed more people driving past the quantum to get to grandeur because of the price point. So once anthem comes to NJ full time I expect you will see a lot more people local drive to baltimore and more "exotic" people from other parts of the country will go to nj for anthem.

[canuckgirl7777]

Thank you OP for detailing your experience.

 

Having sailed several times with RCCL, I recently had an "average" cruise on Vision of the Seas. I believe that RCCL does try hard to establish a level of consistency across the fleet in terms of service, quality of food, entertainment, etc.

 

When that expectation is not met, you're disappointed. Both my DH and I felt that way after sailing Vision. After 6 wonderful cruises, it was bound to happen I guess.

 

Was my cruise horrendous, no. Would I cruise that ship again? Not a chance. I know what works for ME as a cruiser.

 

I do understand about each home port catering to a particular crowd. We have our favourites too. People can be rude anywhere, to be sure. But again, when you cruise for the first time on a particular ship, you learn whether she's for you.

 

OP I appreciate your comments.

[Paulette3028]

Thank you OP for detailing your experience.

 

Having sailed several times with RCCL, I recently had an "average" cruise on Vision of the Seas. I believe that RCCL does try hard to establish a level of consistency across the fleet in terms of service, quality of food, entertainment, etc.

 

When that expectation is not met, you're disappointed. Both my DH and I felt that way after sailing Vision. After 6 wonderful cruises, it was bound to happen I guess.

 

Was my cruise horrendous, no. Would I cruise that ship again? Not a chance. I know what works for ME as a cruiser.

 

I do understand about each home port catering to a particular crowd. We have our favourites too. People can be rude anywhere, to be sure. But again, when you cruise for the first time on a particular ship, you learn whether she's for you.

 

OP I appreciate your comments.

 

I know this is asking a question off topic, since this topic is about a Grandeur cruise being disappointing to the OP....but what was disappointing about your cruise on Vision and what are YOU attributing it to.

[Paulette3028]

After reading this post a lot of people sail out of baltimore that live close because it is a way to escape the cold and not have to pay for airfare. Also Granduer is more economically priced then Quantum or Liberty when she comes back to NJ. My parents who are travel agents have noticed more people driving past the quantum to get to grandeur because of the price point. So once anthem comes to NJ full time I expect you will see a lot more people local drive to baltimore and more "exotic" people from other parts of the country will go to nj for anthem.

 

I have cruised with many a creative person from the UK (just an example) who when they figure airfare, need to do more than a 7 day cruise. Are you suggesting that people from Europe (more exotic people) would not consider flying to Washington DC or Baltimore, MD to spend time being tourists (there are plenty of touristy things to do, lets face it) and then get on Grandeur? Are you saying that it is only something 'locals' would consider? People could even add traveling to Virginia for a few days....and driving around is marvelous for a tourist.

Edited April 12, 2015 by Paulette3028