Concerning the ship, I found it in outstanding shape. The ship's crew is doing a great job of maintaining the ship. When we were in port, I saw them touching up spots with a fresh coat of paint. The décor of the ship was very nice and, there were a number of pieces of art placed throughout the ship. All areas of the ship were very clean and, there were lots of hand sanitizer dispensers so people could avoid catching and spreading norvovirus (I think that's its name).
I stayed in an inner cabin for the first time because of a good deal I was offered on the cabin. I found the cabin small but, I managed fine in it. My room attendant Hylton was outstanding. At the end of the 2nd cruise, I gave him an extra tip on top of the regular one because I was so pleased with the job he did.
Crew wise, I found every one very helpful. I was particularly impressed with Francis Vasconcelo, the ship's fitness center director who I took 3 yoga and 3 pilates classes with. There was a charge for these classes but, you got your money's worth from Frances. By the end of each class, you were sweating and knew you'd gotten a work out. Another person I'd like to commend is Pumza, the Ionithermi treatment specialist. This was the first time I'd ever used one of Royal Caribbean's spas and, I was very impressed with it. Pumza was very professional and really strove to help me reach my health goals.
Food wise, I found myself unimpressed with the main dining room. They didn't serve anything that really wiped me out barring the lobster tail on the fisherman's platter. I was particularly disappointed that they didn't have escargot like they normally do. I found it more convenient to eat at the Windjammer Café as I could get my food immediately. The Windjammer Café offered a good choice of entrees and desserts. The only problem I encountered with the Windjammer was trying to get a table at times.
Excursion wise, the shore excursion desk was very helpful and, the ship offered a good selection of excursions at what I thought were reasonable prices. I got to do a number of firsts for myself on these 2 cruises. I rode a Segway, an ATV and a jet ski for the first times. I did a walking tour of Labadee, Haiti that was particularly good as I learned a good bit about Haiti from the tour. The drive around tour of Tortola offered some great views of the island. The 5 hour bus tour of Bermuda was extremely good. The group I was with got particularly lucky in that the person driving the bus was the bus driver's union vice president who was driving a bus for the first time in 6 months. Normally, he's busy dealing with paperwork. This driver/guide was particularly awesome as he was very knowledgeable and funny. Plus, he seemed to know every one of the 65,000 people who live on Bermuda!
Ports of call wise, I thought the itinerary on my first cruise, the re-positioning cruise was particularly good as we made port 6 days in a row before spending 2 days at sea en-route to Baltimore, Maryland. The Bermuda cruise was interesting in that it was the first cruise I'd ever overnighted at a port. The dockyard facilities were very good and, there were regular ferries that would take you to the capital Hamilton for a charge (I don't know how much it was)
Baltimore Cruise Ship Terminal wise, I found it very convenient. It's easy to get to and, the people processed you very quickly. The people at the terminal were courteous. The ship was late boarding (Noon) the 2nd of my 2 cruises and yet, the terminal got them through so quickly, we were still able to depart on time i.e. 4 p.m. I was surprised how close the ship gets at high tide when it sails under the Francis Scott Key Bridge. I swear we made it by just inches. There's no way they can bring in a bigger cruise ship unless they move the terminal some where past the bridge.
One unique highlight of my 1st cruise was as we were sailing in to Baltimore. Grandeur of the Seas was returning for the first time since departing Baltimore in 2009 (I think) and was given a special welcome. Baltimore's one fire fighting boat shot off its 4 water cannon as we sailed in and supposed the state's governor welcomed the arrival of the ship. News helicopters repeatedly flew around the ship. I don't know if they got the best side of my profile.
I only had 1 persistent problem during my 2 cruises. Twice, I submitted my discount coupon for the ship's WiFi service and both times, I wasn't credited my 15% (I'm a Platinum level Crown & Anchor member) discount. I caught the problem both times but on the 2nd time, the officer spoke with at Customer Service didn't keep their word about fixing the problem. I forgot to double check my final account statement at the end of the 2nd cruise until I got home and found out she failed to solve the problem. I would recommend people watch out for this. I know I will be when I sailed on Grandeur in September/October.
Overall, I had a fantastic time on Grandeur of the Seas. I'd gladly sail on this ship again (and I will be) and would recommend it to others. It's a very nice ship with a great crew. Baltimore is a very convenient port to sail out of barring it can take you a while to get to the Caribbean or Bermuda (1 and 1/2 days out, 2 days coming back).
Update July 27, 2014: I didn't end up doing the September cruise on Grandeur. I will be doing a cruise up to Maine and Canada this September on Royal Caribbean's Legend of the Seas, the same ship I did the Panama Canal cruise on. I hope to cruise on Grandeur again in 2016 to Bermuda with a couple friends I've made at the Extended Stay Hotel I live at.
Update: August 4, 2021 Grandeur of the Seas was moved to a port in Texas by Royal Caribbean. Their ship Enchantment of the Seas which was previously homeported in Baltimore will move back to Baltimore when Royal Caribbean starts sailing out of Baltimore again. I haven't seen a date when that'll be.
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