Really?

Grandeur of the Seas, launched in early 1996, is one of Royal Caribbean's older vessels, but you'd never know it from the ship's sleek public spaces: a grand Art Deco-inspired dining room, the glitzy Palladium Theater and a sweeping six-story atrium.

Some of the cabins, however, are showing signs of wear and tear. Our dresser, for example, was nicked in spots. The stopper in the bathroom sink had corroded, and the mirror was beginning to lose its finish. There was an abandoned towel rack attached to the wall that, oddly enough, had never been dismantled. And the TV screen, about a foot wide, was smaller than a lot of laptops you see today.

None of this is a deal breaker, of course. But I guess I was also struck by what Grandeur of the Seas does not have...

And unless you book a suite, there are no toiletries. That's right: toiletries. I asked for a shower cap and lotion and was told those "amenities" did not come with our cabin class...

There's also no enrichment program...

More unusually there are no alternative restaurants...

As for service, our experience was a mixed bag...

And while our cabin steward was attentive, our stateroom failed to pass my white glove inspection when we first boarded....

I'm no fan of Carnival, particularly after what they did to HAL, formerly our favorite cruise line, and I hope they're doing themselves harm by trying to pass off this ship and cruise as being of the same standard as their others.

I also feel sorry for those who had a bad experience. It was certainly reasonable to expect more than they got. Still, even such generally sympathetic and "soft" reviewers as Cruise Critic enable advance research.

That, to me, is one of the core purposes of FT, and one of its greatest values to me. ^

Cheers,
Fredd