Royal Caribbean's Brilliance of the Seas - Cruise Review

From :    Jaci@attbi.com (Diane)
Subject :    Review
Date :    Sat, 25 Jan 2003 19:58:42 -0500

This cruise was everything I was hoping for and more! This was my second RCCL cruise. We chose this itinerary because of the 4 sea days, instead of just going port to port. We stayed the night in Miami and awoke to see our ship waiting for us, all lit up! We went over to check in about 11 although it said check in was at 2. But there were hundreds more excited people just like us, waiting to get on.

Embarkation was easy and organized once they started to let people in, and people were helpful and so friendly! We went to our room which was ready and met our cabin steward Edwin right away. Then we went to look around. I cannot describe how beautiful that ship is!!! It has the elegance and glitter of some ships, and the warmth of wood and comfort of others....a nice blend. She is decorated nicely and set up great...lots of open space and easy to get around. Once in awhile there was the usual few minute wait at the main elevators when everyone was coming or going at the same time...other than that, we never waited long.

I was on Splendour before and loved that ship and expected this one to have a similar set up, but they've even improved on locations of things on Brilliance and seemed to have provided people with more of what they want in a ship. The children's area is much larger and there seemed to be alot for kids of all ages to do. The children we saw seemed to be enjoying themselves! The Windjammer is now at the back of the ship and I actually liked that better, plus there's a nice large area outside to sit and eat, overlooking the back of the ship...our favorite spot! I actually felt on this ship that there were more places to sit and relax while looking at the ocean, both inside and out and it was great. The Windjammer is larger and much more organized too. The pool area was nice although I liked the set up of the pool bars better than on Splendour. On the sunny sea days, there was the usual scurry for chairs although they constantly ask people not to save them. Why some people insist on being rude, I don't know...there are so many lovely places on that ship to sit.

The dining room was beautiful and we chose late seating which was nice since we didn't have to rush at the end of the day, to dinner. But some nights dinner seemed to drag out much too long....longer than when I had early seating before. It's too bad there isn't an in-between time of 5:30 and 7:30 instead, so that you're not finishing dinner at 10:30. Needless to say, at that time we'd be getting tired and not feel like doing much, or would stay up half the night! Service was great though and food and choices were very good. We ate at Chops Grille one night and loved it....would definately go back! The Portofino was also very good, but I wouldn't care to go there again. A couple of times after being in port, we would come back and have lunch at the Seaview Cafe. The food was okay, but at first I found it confusing there, to order and have the food brought to you....nobody every explained it. It's okay to get a quick bite, but I wouldn't kill to go there again.

We didn't make it to the entertainment every night, but what we did see was good, although I enjoyed the singers and dancers on the Splendour more. I heard the commedian was great and we saw John Davidson and really enjoyed him much more than we thought we would...he was quite entertaining. The theater is really nice and there are plenty of seats, all with excellent views. We saw the movie theater, but never went to a movie, but it was good sized and appeared to be very comfortable. They seemed to have decent movies playing also. I could go on and on, about the various lounges and clubs, the solarium, the exercise area, but all I can say is everything seemed perfect!!! Most of all, this ship just moved along so smoothly, even in big seas, and you hardly ever feel a thing at all!

Our cabin and balcony were great...plenty of room, excellent service. We had friends that had a real large balcony near the elevators near the centrum, yet they only had 2 chairs and a table like us. It's too bad that they don't provide more furniture for those with the bigger rooms like that. They could have easily added a few lounge chairs there, or more chairs and a larger table. The cabins have plenty of storage space and lighting....everything has been thought of thoroughly in making this ship! The only complaint were heard was from people with rooms at the back, not being near and elevator and having to walk so far to everything. A set of elevators there would have helped.

We got off at all ports but without any big plans in mind. In Cozumel, we went with friends to swim with the dolphins. At Jamaica, we had prviously rented Peat Taylor tours....and am I glad!!! He was wonderful and without his guidance, that can be one scarey place...it's a shame. He was our guide for the day and he was great. We went to Dunn's River Falls...such a beautiful place! We went to Margaritaville and boy, was that a disappointment! We sent food back, service was terrible and there just wasn't the "zip" we had thought that Jimmy Buffet talks of. If I could find a place to write to complain, I would because I've heard that the one in Florida is excellent. I wouldn't recommend wasting your time with this. While we were there, we got to see the Navigator of the Seas....funny how many pictures we took of them when they were leaving port, yet we could see tons and tons of flashes from them taking pictures of us....two beautiful new ships. Navigator looks enormous!

Grand Cayman was a really pretty island, but we spent more of that day relaxing after some shopping, but I would like to explore there more. Aruba....that was everything everyone tells me it is...beautiful!!! Clean! Comfortable! Plenty to do! We spent the day shopping and at the beach, then off to Madame Jenette's for dinner....what a treat...definately a place to go to! Then we went to the Hyatt to the casino for awhile. It was a nice evening. We never made it to Carlos and Charlie's but saw alot of the people that did and everyone certainly seemed to have a great time! Curacao was nice too although all we did there was shop. It was a real attractive island, and colorful, but I didn't always have the completely safe feeling I had had in Aruba.

The last two days were sea days and they seemed to be the most relaxing for everyone...especially since we had heard it had snowed every day we were gone except for two! When we arrived in Miami, I found everything organized and quick to get off the ship...most of all, that morning, every one of the crew that we passed was just as friendly and smiling and accomodating as they had been all week...something that I hear not all ship's crews are like. We had signed up to take the bus transportation for $11 to the airport and there was some confusion there with the bus drivers and where they were headed. Another time, since the cost is about the same, I'd probably just hire a taxi and do my own thing. We weren't having an early flight though so it wasn't a problem. All in all, if you are thinking of this ship...don't think any more...just book it! It's totally wonderful, the itinerary is nice, the crew is fantastic and this definately was like no vacation on earth!!

Cruise reviews can be extremely helpful to new and experienced cruisers by giving the cruise vacation consumer's view of various RCCL ships and ports. If you've sailed aboard an RCCL ship, we hope you'll write and tell us about it by using our special form here. Sincere thanks to those who take the time to do this so that others can have the benefit of shared information and experiences.

Royal Caribbean Cruisers' Discussion Group
Embarkation (Main Index) - Current Postings - Cruisers' Cruise Calendar
Cruise Reviews and Port Reports - Images of Ships - Our History

Music is provided for personal enjoyment only. This is not an official Royal Caribbean site. This non-commercial site is maintained by Lois A. Evensen. Ms. Evensen is not a travel agent. Please read the Special Request from the WebAnchor regarding the structure of this site, how you can participate, postings, and E-mails. We'd love to know how you like this Cruisers' Discussion Group; if you have questions or comments, click here to tell us.

COPYRIGHT © 1997 - 2006 by Lois A. Evensen.
No part of this web site may be downloaded or reproduced in any form, anywhere.
You are welcome to link to this site at http://www.Evensens.net. Do not link directly to images.
All content including images on this site are copyright protected under United States of America and International laws.
If you have other questions or comments related to this web site, links, or would like to purchase any of the Evensen images, contact the Webmaster.
ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

United We Stand