Bahamas Paradise Cruise Lines — Local services in Riviera Beach

Good evening,

I just went on the Grand Classica on February 19th 2022 after being rebooked and upgraded to a Junior Suite because of my previous experience with booking on Bahamas Paradise Line and the delay in the processing of refund. I thought that my experience on Grand Classica would be better than expected yet I was overwhelmingly disappointed. Since cruises have re-opened in June 2021, I have cruised with Royal Caribbean and Carnival Cruise Lines and have received extraordinary service and experience so I had expected the same with Bahamas Paradise Line.

Check In Process: The outside valet took over 10 minutes to take my car and park it when I could have parked it myself within a minute. The process outside of the terminal was unorganized and messy as I had to wait an additional time in a COVID-19 Test Line when I already had a covid test performed 12 hours later because the outside employee did not dictate that we could have entered the terminal if we already had a test taken. Once we entered the terminal, none of the employees wore their mask correctly. Once at the top of the escalator, there was signage for a separate line for VIP Guests and Suite Guests yet I was told I could not go in that line although I had a junior suite. So I had to wait more time in a line for passport holders that took more time than needed. After being checked in, I felt bombarded by employees about buying the drink package(which I already had), spa services, and the specialty dining. Then I finally go on the ship to the room to be underwhelmed immensely -Junior Suite: Look at pictures attached to see what was discovered upon my entrance in the room. Additionally no one brought me an extension cord until the next day because 'maintenance could not find it.' Mattress was bare thin and the bed was constantly squeaking throughout the night. The walls were peeling and the bathroom looked like the outside deck, and the shower does not have proper signage so I ended up burning myself because I could not tell which direction was hot and cold. -Buffet/Food: The buffet had an extremely limited option. There was only 8 options of buffet items of the hot food and a limited salad and dessert bar. Although I am not vegetarian or vegan, I would have went hungry throughout the cruise because of the limited options that were provided. I understand that the ship is smaller but this buffet was not what was expected for that size ship. There were not enough workers to serve the food so I had to wait about 5-10 minutes before an employee could serve me the soup or the salad due to other guests having their food served before mine. -Rock N Roll Night: The music that traveled from DECK 8 to DECK 5 was overbearing that I could not sleep well the first night. I do not understand why there needed to be a live band playing ROCK music at 11:15pm in the Encore Lounge when they could have moved it to the Regal Room that is far away from any rooms and any guests. Please make sure to move any of these interactions to an earlier time or another location that will not interfere with guests who are trying to rest -Debarkation Process: This was an even worst process than the check-in process. There was signs saying that disembarkation would be around 7:30am yet the process did not begin till 8:30am. That is an hour that I had to wait in the main lobby hour that I could have spent to eat breakfast on Deck 10. I did not get to enjoy the breakfast and there was no organized line to disembark. I had to push through other people who arrived after me who tried to cut me in the line as I disembarked. Additionally the workers in Port for disembarking were not right in how they selected people from the line of Passport and Birth Certificate paper. More people with Birth Certificates were allowed to go through customs before any one in the Passport line was. There needed to be an employee assisting with the disembarkation process and the line to leave the ship so that there were no hostile interactions or...

Staff: Excellent guest services from waitstaff to housekeeping- everyone was exceptional in being quick to respond, friendly, helpful, hardworking, hospitable. You can tell that they take pride in taking care of their guests and keeping the facilities clean. I hope that whatever the management is doing to train the staff and to keep the staff happy, that they keep doing it- happy staff equals happy guests.

Ship: This is an older ship, the furnishings and fixtures are dated, but everything is in working order and very importantly, clean. My favorite place besides my Oceanview room (nice large window btw), are the cabanas on Oasis deck for adults only. We opted to stay onboard one day and we spent about 4 hours there, not a single interruption of anyone offering alcohol or anything. Relaxing jazz music, nice jacuzzi (I’d say 6 adults could fit in there comfortably).

Value: Amazing!!! Do not book this and expect a fancy/luxurious cruise- that said, this is an awesome deal for a fun getaway with excellent service and cleanliness. We did a Groupon deal and were very happy with what we got for only $358 for two people INCLUDING taxes/fees/gratuities, Oceanview room, all food (5 course dinners included- appetizer, soup, salad, entree, dessert). We went to a couple of shows that were included- Tina Turner experience (high energy, can tell she loves her audience, very fun), and the circus/singing/dancing/acrobats- high energy, especially loved the amazing acrobats. We did get drink offers but they were never pushy nor excessive- honestly I’d prefer to be approached once at dinner and shows to order something, instead of having to get up myself and ask to order a drink. Again, when we were in our cabanas or lounge chairs on the Oasis deck, we were left alone to sunbathe/nap the entire time- not a single person approached us, and we were able to really enjoy the solitude.

Food tips: Breakfast buffet- Grab some unlimited coffee/tea, go to the made to order station for customizable omelets (poolside), then go to another station for hot and fluffy waffles, and get a window seat for an awesome start to your day. (Would have loved some hot chocolate but none in sight.) The rest of buffet items were standard fare- fruits were fresh, especially the pineapples were so sweet and juicy. Lunch buffet- seafood anything was sooo fresh, well-seasoned fish on both days. For the adventurous palate, the lamb curry over jasmine rice is delicious, the chana masala (curried chickpeas) was very flavorful, with real ginger (which is good for the stomach especially if you’re not used to being on a ship). Fave lunch item- made to order penne pesto- honestly I’d be happy just eating this alone, it was that good. Unlimited self-serve soft serve poolside. I’d skip the poolside burger- the patty was a good size (not a hockey puck thankfully) but it lacked flavor. Dinner: We had five course dinners both nights (see pics)- this is perfect for a date night or a dressy dinner with friends. Note that the sit-down dinner is an experience in itself- takes about 2 hours- so only do this if you really want to relax and unwind with a fabulous, unhurried dinner.

Recommendations: First time cruisers, Floridians, couples, friends, solo. Our friends did a girls trip last year on this cruise and they recommended it to us. We spoke to a solo cruising Florida local who’s done this 7 times and she loves it, and after our own experience, we’re going to recommend this to our friends and family. I wouldn’t fly across the country just to go on a 3 day cruise, but if you’re thinking of it, I’d suggest adding a few days of either Disney (about 3 hour’s drive from West Palm) or Miami (about 2 hour’s drive from West Palm). They also have Bahama hotel packages if you’re looking for a Caribbean vacation.

Thank you, BP Celebration staff for an awesome getaway! Keep up the exceptional service and you’ll have lots more guests to compliment and recommend...

Don't waste your money! Do not book! If you "won the trip" do not take this cruise! The cruise had so much potential, but unfortunately there were many short comings. I thought of giving them a higher rating because I made the most of the cruise, but I did not because I feel like it is their job to provide the best experience. My cabin was so warm and stuffy and when I ask my room attendant about it, who may I add did not speak English well, which may I add was a recurring theme on the ship. When I say does not speak English well I do not mean they have accents I mean they have a limited vocabulary in English. It was easier for me to communicate with them in Spanish, but if you don't speak Spanish like my boyfriend you will find it more frustrating trying to ask questions. Moving forward the attendant informed me that the room is always warm. Now the cruise did not have many passengers, which leads me to question a few things, why would you place someone in a room you normally get complaints about being warm or why not fix that issue so other passengers do not have the same experience. When on the cruise there was a meeting about the customs process when disembarking. I was in the wine tasting event and ask the server a question if I can leave and go to the meeting and come back or if I can just have all my wine now. He wasn't sure what I was asking again language barrier. The dinner took forever, which again the ship was not filled by any means and dinning room was not filled either which I am sure was to observe social distancing so why did the food take so long and the food taking so long made us miss out on the other activities. When I did receive my food it was the wrong order and the server took the food to another table and just swapped our dishes. Not okay especially during a pandemic. The food was cold. The menus were only accessible with a QR code which normally wont be an inconvenience, but being that you have no phone service and that they do not provide Wi-Fi unless you pay for it. They also add on surprise surplus charges for fuel and port fees, which they could inform you about before getting on the boat. The fee was $9.00 a night per person per night. When I did reach the resort I was staying at other people informed us they had the same charges, which leads to me to question if the surplus charge is a regular thing why not inform guest about it prior just include it in the initial charge? Now when I went to the show we spent most the show listening to how the host has worked on many different cruise ships and about his past work experience, which honestly was uncomfortable to sit through. The show was nothing like what they show in the pictures. They do not have the girls dressed in feathers or the dancers. They did have a comedy night, but that was only available if you pay additional money for the tickets. The show had some good singers, but they were the same singers you saw singing around the boat so the show wasn't interesting at all. The dance night in the sport bar never happened. Honestly if you want a trip filled with disappointment then this is your place to go. I was so excited, but was let...