On April 13, 2018, I had the opportunity to sail on the inaugural voyage of the Bahama Paradise cruise line’s newest ship, the Grand Classica. Although the ship is new to their fleet, it is a refurbished ship from Costa Cruise line. My trip was complimentary due to my association with the Cruise Lines International Association (CLIA), but the typical advertised fare for a two-night cruise to the Grand Bahama Island is around $150 per person (not including taxes and gratuities). I have to admit, I had low expectations since it was originally built in 1991 and went under two renovations in 2001 and 2005.
Arrival at the Port
The Bahama Paradise Cruise Line operates out of the Port of Palm Beach, which is a small port. What I wasn’t expecting when I arrived was valet parking. I wasn’t too thrilled with leaving my car unlocked and relying on the valet to properly secure the car. But I went with the flow and grabbed my luggage. I was definitely not ready for my next encounter – the check-in process. It was not high tech at all. In fact, the passengers were checked off on a printed list in a three-ring binder. My expectations were getting even lower! When I walked through the doors and hit security, I was surprised again. But this time in a good way! The process was so simple, easy and fast. I arrived around noon because I like to board cruise ships as early as possible so the fun starts earlier! So I don’t know if that had an impact on the quick boarding process, but the place was crawling with media and VIP guests (of which I was considered a VIP, thanks to my CLIA membership- Yay!) due to the inaugural sailing. I was on the ship and heading to the buffet for lunch by 12:30.
My First Impression of the Ship
While making my way up to Deck 10 for lunch, I again was pleasantly surprised by the decor and overall feel of the ship. It was much better than expected. It had a mid-century modern feel. There were some signs of being dated, but overall it had a good vibe and appearance. The main lounge areas on Decks 8 and 9 were nice. Definitely, a place you want to hang out and have a few drinks. The age of the ship was evident in the deck 10 Ocean View Buffet area. It was smaller and had a choppy layout, but it did appear to have adequate seating. More on the lunch experience later.
Once I made it to my cabin, I again was pleasantly surprised. It was an oceanview cabin (for those who have never cruised, that is a fancy way of saying you have a room with a window) that was much more spacious than plenty of Balcony cabins I have been on with other cruise lines. Again the room was well decorated with the same mid-century modern feel. The bathroom was a decent size with teak floors and much more counter space than my RV bathroom. The room had a small flat-screen TV that doesn’t get much in the way of decent channels, but then when on a cruise-why watch TV anyways? An important tip if you are cruising with someone else, make sure you each have at least two pillows. Unless you like using a very thin flat pillow, you will need to ask your cabin steward for an extra.
The ship had very small pools and a couple of hot-tubs. The top deck had a decent walking track (not so sure about the fake grass turf) and a nice 360-degree lounge giving great views when you are at sea.
How Is The Food
This is one area that I felt was really bad! At least in the Ocean View Buffet. The initial lunch was “ok”. I wished I had the opportunity to try the outside dining area located at the rear (aft) of deck 10, outside of the Ocean Buffet. The food smelled good, but on Day 1 I had already had lunch at the buffet and on Day 2 I attended a special luncheon for Travel Agents. On Day 2, the buffet was the only breakfast option and I thought it was terrible. The food was luke warm and didn’t taste that great. So I decided to try some pancakes and asked one of the crewmembers where the syrup was located. The response shocked me. There was no syrup, just honey. Honey on pancakes, really? My other major complaint is all of their water-based beverages in the buffet area had a horrible taste. I am a big coffee drinker and it was hard to drink that or even their iced tea. I did have the opportunity to talk to the Hotel Director who attributed it to being chlorinated water. For me, it tasted more like it was “musty”. But in fairness, have experienced the same in some of Carnival’s older ships.
The dining experience in the evening was better. The atmosphere in the dining was good and the food was decent. It wasn’t the best I have ever had on a cruise, but it certainly wasn’t the worst. The Pinot Grigio I had with dinner had to bottom shelf. In fact, it was probably hidden under the bottom shelf. I love Pinot Grigio but had to struggle to get through a glass. On Deck 8, mid-ship, there were some premium dining options, but I didn’t get to try them.
The Entertainment
This is one area that I thought they really did well. From the nightly variety shows to the musicians located in the lounge areas, I thought all were very good. In fact on a recent cruise on the Carnival Splendor, they blew my theory that the entertainers in the variety show lip-synced their lyrics. It was the worst performance that I had ever seen on a ship. Several guests around me on that cruise were laughing because the singing was so bad! But back to the entertainment on the Grand Classica, it was definitely worth seeing. The shows included a comedian, a magician and your typical singers and dancers all in one show. I thought it was well done. The comedian gave a family friendly performance. But if you wanted to see the “adult” version, you could pay $13 for that show, later in the evening.
I am not much of a gambler and rarely hang out in the ship casinos. Mainly because I can’t stand the smell of cigarettes. Well, on this ship, the casino was a non-smoking area which was nice! I still didn’t play any of the slots because when I got on board they were still working on the machines getting them ready. So I took a gamble and figured that newly commissioned (empty) slots were likely not to pay off.
The Port of Call
If you want to see anything or go to a beach, you will need to do an excursion. The port is an industrial area and there is not really anything of interest within walking distance. They do offer an excursion to a local resort that is really nice. You get a day pass that allows you to use their pool and private beach area. At the resort, you can additionally book some water sports like jet skis and para-sailing.
Overall Impression
If you have ever cruised before, one thing you get in your cabin each day is an activity newsletter so you know what is going on throughout the cruise. On day 1, I had to get one from the guest services desk and on day 2, there were none to be found. This could be an inaugural cruise glitch, but it is not their only ship, so they should have that figured out. One thing they did that I think other cruise lines should adopt is how they handle their drink packages. Instead of forcing both people in a cabin to get the drink package if one wants it, you buy a pack of 10 drink tickets for $69. Then you can use those tickets for any drinks during the cruise. The cruise is only two nights, so it was difficult for me to use them all up. In fact, I had about four tickets left. But I received that as a free perk due to my VIP status as a travel agent. If the Pinot Grigio was better, then I probably could have managed to use them all up. I found out on the last night that you could also use them at the coffee bar located mid ship and that coffee was really good. At least the Americano that I got was good. It didn’t taste anything like the coffee at the buffet on deck 10.
My end thoughts might surprise you. Would I go on the cruise again? As a Florida resident, yes! For the value, it’s a nice getaway and since my cruise, they have offered several specials with an inexpensive fare. On many cruises, I am content with just chilling with my Kindle on the ship if the port is somewhere I have been several times. Now if you are flying in from another state just to do this cruise, it’s not worth it. Chances are, your airfare will cost more than the cruise. In this case, I would recommend going on one of the major cruise lines for a longer cruise with better amenities.
I hope this review helps and stay tuned for the next adventure!
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