Royal Caribbean posted a new photo from the aft area of Grandeur of the Seas, showing the work being actively done on the ship to prepare her to return to service this weekend.

Other than the photo, Royal Caribbean reports is looking good and finalizing repairs.  The work being done is to repair fire damage that occurred over a month ago in the aft area of the ship at a dockyard in the Bahamas.  Grandeur of the Seas is expected to arrive back in Baltimore on July 11th and be ready to sail on July 12th.

Repair work to Royal Caribbean's fire-damaged Grandeur of the Seas appears to be on schedule for a July 12 deployment.  Officials in Bermuda are expecting Grandeur of the Seas to make her first scheduled cruise to the Atlantic island on July 14.

Grandeur of the Seas suffered fire damage to the ship's stern back in May that forced Royal Caribbean to cancel a number of sailings while the ship was repaired in a dry dock in the Bahamas.

If not for the fire, Grandeur of the Seas would be making her fifth stop of the year to Bermuda from her homeport of Baltimore.

She still has another 10 voyages from Baltimore to Bermuda planned for the 2013 cruise season.

The news of the fire breaking out on Royal Caribbean's Grandeur of the Seas on Memorial Day has certainly given concern to some prospective passengers but two sisters on that very cruise ship have shared how helpful Royal Caribbean's staff were during the entire ordeal.

Sherry Winters and her sister Eva DeCamp, both from Ohio, woke up at 3am after hearing the captain’s voice come over the intercom in their room and knocks at their door.

“We saw the staff all in their life jackets. So we ran back in our rooms and the attendant helped find ours. We had them buried underneath the suitcases,” said Winters.

Eventually, the women learned the problem was caused by an electrical fire. Royal Caribbean International issued a statement Wednesday that said the fire started in the mooring area in the aft of the ship.

Royal Caribbean paid for hotel stays and airplane flights back home for all the cruise ship guests.

The women were told that Royal Caribbean would give them a full refund of their trip and said they would gladly take advantage of the free cruise voucher that Royal Caribbean officials offered them for next year. They said they would take another Royal Caribbean cruise because they were treated so well by Royal Caribbean staff.

“From the moment it happened until the day we left, they were just incredible,” Winters said of the Royal Caribbean staff.

“They put us first. Our safety first from the moment it happened,” DeCamp said.

The ship’s staff tried to keep the guests entertained and that Royal Caribbean staff recognized the firefighters onboard, the women said.

“We were just very very pleased with the way we were treated and the whole situation was handled,” Winters said. “We thought they did an excellent job.”

Royal Caribbean announced today it will cancel the next six cruises for Grandeur of the Seas so that the ship can undergo repairs that are needed after a fire occurred earlier this week onboard.

Grandeur of the Seas is expected to return to service on July 12.

Guests booked on cruises that were scheduled to occur between May 31 and July 5 will recieve a full refund along with a certificate for 25% off their next Royal Caribbean cruise.

Guests that were booked on one of the cancelled Grandeur of the Seas cruises should call their travel agent or 1-888-824-0012.

Royal Caribbean also said it moved the Grandeur of the Seas from the Freeport Cruise Terminal to a berth at the Grand Bahama Shipyard, where repairs will take place.

Analyst Tim Conder of Wells Fargo estimated the cost to Royal Caribbean at $15 million to $20 million, including refunds, repairs and canceled cruises.

Royal Caribbean made an announcement today that the next scheduled sailing of Grandeur of the Seas has been canceled.  The May 31st sailing out of Baltimore, Maryland will be cancelled so that the ship can undergo repairs to fix what was damaged by a fire onboard earlier today.

Guests booked on the May 31 sailing will be provided a full refund of the cruise fare paid for their sailing. Royal Caribbean also will provide these guests with the opportunity to sail in the future by providing a future cruise certificate for 50 percent of the cruise fare paid for the May 31, 2013, Grandeur of the Seas sailing.

Guests who booked air transportation through Royal Caribbean International will receive a full refund for air costs. If they did not purchase air transportation through Royal Caribbean International, the cruise line will pay for their airline change fees.

A dedicated telephone hotline has been established for guests on these two sailings. Guests may call us at 1-888-824-0012 in the U.S. or +1-408-916-9000 internationally. 

Grandeur of the Seas was damaged by a fire early in the morning on May 31, 2013.  No one was injured in the incident although the ship was redirected to Freeport, Bahamas where it remains.

Royal Caribbean reported a fire onboard Grandeur of the Seas early this morning and after assessing the damage, the cruise line has decided to cancel the remainder of the cruise.

Royal Caribbean issued a short statement on its decision via social media, "We have assessed the damage to Grandeur of the Seas and have made the decision to cancel the remainder of this voyage. We are currently arranging flights for all guests onboard to return to Baltimore, Maryland tomorrow. Guests on this sailing will receive a full refund of the cruise fare as well as a future cruise certificate. Information about upcoming sailings onboard Grandeur of the Seas will be posted as soon as it is available."

Royal Caribbean also set up a phone hotline for getting more information on the cruise, especially about people who may be on the ship.  The toll free number is 888-824-0012. International callers should call +1-408-916-9000.

A fire broke out at 2:50am on Monday and while no one was hurt, the ship's Captain decided to muster all passengers as a precaution.  The fire was put out at 4:58am and the ship was redirected to Freeport for further evaluation.

Royal Caribbean reported no injuries beyond passenger calls for incidents such as fainting, reports of high blood pressure and an ankle sprain.

Throughout, the ship’s power, propulsion and communications systems functioned uninterrupted.

Royal Caribbean CEO Adam Goldstein and a Guest Care team are en route to Freeport to meet guests.

Grandeur of the Seas was supposed to sail to CocoCay, Royal Caribbean's private island. Instead it sailed right to Freeport, Bahamas for evaluation.

The Grandeur of the Seas sailed out of Baltimore, with a stop at Port Canaveral before the fire.

A fire was reported aboard Royal Caribbean's Grandeur of the Seas while on her way to the Bahamas.  The event occurred on Monday morning by Royal Caribbean and was quickly extinguished.

Royal Caribbean says passengers had to report to evacuation stations but that all are safe and have been accounted for. The cruise line also says the ship still has full power. No serious injuries were reported, and the ship is still making its way to the Bahamas.

#GrandeurOfTheSeas experienced a fire on the aft mooring deck this morning which was quickly extinguished. (cont'd)

— Royal Caribbean (@RoyalCaribbean) May 27, 2013

The fire was reported on deck three around 2:50 a.m. Monday.

Grandeur of the Seas sailed out of Baltimore, with a stop at Port Canaveral before the fire.

Royal Caribbean's Grandeur of the Seas arrived today at the Port of Baltimore, Maryland to replace Enchantment of the Seas.  Grandeur will offer six- to 10-night cruises year-round and will offer passenger cruises to Bermuda, the Bahamas and the Eastern and Western Caribbean, as well as Canada and New England.

This is the second time Grandeur of the Seas has been based out of Baltimore.  She previously was deployed to the port from 2004 through 2009.

To celebrate Grandeur of the Seas' return to Baltimore, Governor Martin O'Malley declared May 3, 2013 as "Royal Caribbean Cruise Day" in Maryland.

Grandeur of the Seas is fresh from a $48 million bow-to-stern revitalization, which incorporated six new specialty dining options, technological upgrades and new entertainment features, as well as a refresh of all furniture, carpet, upholstery and staterooms. Families with toddlers can take advantage of the newly installed Royal Babies and Tots Nursery, which caters to the cruise line’s youngest guests, ages six months to 36 months. Guests can also enjoy a 220-square foot poolside movie screen and take in a new high-flying experience whereby aerialists glide through the ship’s six-story atrium.

 “Royal Caribbean International thanks Governor Martin O’Malley and the Maryland Port Administration for their ongoing support of the cruise vacation industry in the great state of Maryland,” said Adam Goldstein, President and CEO, Royal Caribbean International. “Maryland’s rich history and diverse cultural attractions make it an unmatched destination to pair with a Royal Caribbean cruise vacation. We are delighted to mark the beginning of Grandeur of the Seas’ year-round service from Baltimore on ‘Royal Caribbean Cruise Day’ in Maryland.”

Royal Caribbean is offering a variety of  itineraries to Bermuda, the Bahamas and the Eastern and Western Caribbean. In the summer, the itineraries alternate between seven-night Bermuda sailings, featuring a two-night call at Kings Wharf, and seven-night sailings to the Bahamas, calling at Port Canaveral, Florida; Nassau, Bahamas; and CocoCay, Royal Caribbean’s private island paradise in the Bahamas. In the fall, Grandeur of the Seas will alternate between six-night Bermuda and eight-night Canada and New England sailings. The winter season will consist of rotating 10-night sailings to the Eastern and Western Caribbean, as well as eight-night sailings to the Bahamas.

Condé Nast Traveler released its list of the top spas around the world and in the case of the best spas for cruise ships, three of Royal Caribbean's onboard spas made their Top 25 list.

Royal Caribbean's Liberty of the Seas (9), Grandeur of the Seas (16) and Allure of the Seas (20) all ranked in the top 25.  The list of the best spas ranked them by treatments, staff & facilities.

The polls results came from Condé Nast Traveler readers who shared their findings with the web site over the course of the year.

The island of Bermuda is seeing cutbacks of cruise ships stopping there across the board, including Royal Caribbean.  Royal Caribbean will cut back the number of calls they will be making to the island in 2013 by 11.

At the end of 2012, Explorer of the Seas and Enchantment of the Seas will have visited Bermuda a total of 55 times between the two ships.  Next year, however, Grandeur of the Seas will replace Enchantment of the Seas and make ten less stops to Bermuda, for a total of 15 calls.

A spokesman from the Bermuda government commented on the change, "We had early discussions with Royal Caribbean to include additional Grandeur of the Seas calls from Baltimore, with a weekend stop in Bermuda and continuing to Maine and other locations in New England."

“Royal Caribbean decided that these cruises were not selling well, and decided not to include them in their 2013 itinerary."

“However, we will still have 15 calls from the Grandeur of the Seas in 2013. We will also have 29 calls from the Explorer of the Seas in 2013, compared to 30 Explorer calls in 2012. "