JohnSnowGOT

This has always been a hostile country toward tourists. WE cruise there, but dont get off the ship. We hang a rainbow flag over our balcony while in port!!!

On ‎1‎/‎13‎/‎2019 at 11:53 PM, OTownNick said:

Day 2 started with a coffee and sunrise. Then some gym time. I skipped breakfast today. It happens occasionally on cruises if dinner the night before was large. 

 

At Noon on Day 2 (Sunday) we had our slot pull. Thanks to Cheryl (BeenSailing) for organizing this. We ended up only losing $11 each So not bad. 

 

We had had a light snack for lunch in the Suites Lounge and then watched some football on TV in our room. 

 

Dinner was Coastal Kitchen again. It was excellent. Interesting to note that the Diamond drink menu changed recently across the fleet but the waiters in the Suites Lounge didn’t get the memo lol. Well I got my Beefeaters and Tonic after I enlightened them lol.

 

We saw 2 shows tonight. Since my wife missed the comedy show last night I went with her tonight. It was better than last night. We got there as they closed the doors and there were only 2 seats left- in the FRONT ROW. Wouldn’t you know it, I got heckled by the headliner comedian for my yellow Crocs. Hilarious. 

 

After that we went to Hairspray. Unbelievable!! We liked it a lot better than we were expecting. My wife wants to see it again!! We have more shows to see though. 

 

Note that you must make reservations to the shows and be there no later than 15 minutes before show time or you may not get a seat. They close the doors at the comedy club promptly at show time and no further entry is allowed so get there early. It was a late night and tomorrow’s an early day at Roatan. 

 

Tonight was formal night. I wore a tux. There was a LOT of people dressed up especially all the Quincineras and there families (300+ of them). 

 Hey Nick it's Scott! Wow you and Barb look great!

I agree with Barb about Hairspray! We absolutely loved it when it was showing on the Oasis. Good review!

Do D+ still get BoGo for restaurants the first and second night?

Ha, Ha. Good one. And to answer AU pilot, yes, it was that cruise. I would think that anyone with blood sugar sensitivities would be able to tell when they need a boost. without a dog to sense it. Or am I just misinformed about this?

Yes you are misinformed. Sorry

Thank you so much for the info :)

Can D+ folk still buy the drink package at check in for 30% off? Thanks

Ok, can you tell me when it would depend and upon what? Since Troy seems unwilling. Odd he is rarely shy sharing his opinion....:confused:

 

JC

Show some empathy please....Troy's wearing of depends is personal.

Does the $44 include the 18% grat? which brings you a total of $52... which isnt bad seeing normal price is $54 plus grat... If D+ or painicle wait til on ship to purchase..[/quo

 

It's been almost exactly 1 year since I have been on a RCi ship....We are D+ Do they still offer the drink package at 30% off for D+ members at those tables at the pier... I see they are offering 20% off if you book before the sail date online....wondering if I should hold out

I said that last year and just got abuse.

 

CL for Suite and Pinnacle

DL for D+

D will get drinks on card only

I do like the unlimited, although most nights I never have more than 3

This argument is certainly not new.......We became D+ in 2008.......We were so afraid of losing benefits.. Guess what RCi is a for profit corporation....Reading these post... same old stuff just ten years later.

These bogus 241 and other gimicks.....are such a scam

Since it's return this was our first time back on the Brilliance since last season. So I thought I'd go over some differences than what our earlier in the year experience was. If you have any specific questions, please feel free to ask.

 

Boarding- absolutely wonderful! Ship started boarding at 10:15. No issues with check in or any part of the boarding process.

 

We valet our car and the sign said 95.00 which was 15.00 more that what it was earlier in the year. When we paid, it was actually on 80.00. That was a pleasant surprise since I thought there was a 15.00 increase.

 

Drink package- we heard mixed messaged about this ship and them not giving the extra D+ and Pinnacle discounts. We bought our package at the pool bar and Eddie wrote that we were Pinnacle on our receipt. When we checked our TV bill, they charged us the discounted rate which was great! We thought we would have to fight for the discount.

 

Our room- we had 8044. We liked the little extra balcony space. Our room was very dusty. So much that I could write my name in dust on the counter under the TV. Our guy also left dirty soup bowls in our room one night when he turned over the room for bed. We did let the lead housekeeper for the floor know of our concerns. The dust never did go away.

 

We didn't do the dining room, but the Windjammer was good for dinner on the first night. The second and last nights we went to Giovanni's.

 

Giovanni's had the price increase to 29.00 and as discussed in prior threads, they no longer have the filet. The first night I ordered the lamb chops. As always they were delicious. Also all the other sides/starters we ordered were good. The other night I decided to order the NY Strip. I wasn't impressed with it at all. For 29.00 it reminded me of the minute steak that is up in the WJ.

 

Our big complaint with Giovanni's was that on the last night of the sailing they had a group of 21 or 22 people. About 10 of them were SMALL children. They put all the kids at a large round table by themselves. As soon as they arrived, the noise level from all the kids became very un-enjoyable. Of course they put them at the table right behind us.

 

When this happened, we asked for our checks so we could get out of there. The parents did nothing to quiet the children. We told the hostess that allowing this to happen in Giovanni's was not acceptable in our opinions. It appeared that all the guests complained to her that night.

 

When the large group found out that everyone was complaining, they encouraged their children to be louder. Then they also complained to the hostess that it was all the guests that ruined their dinner and demaded that she comps all of their meals.

 

Our meal didn't get comp'd. But some of the other people that complained did get their meals comp'd.

 

Anyway, the food overall on the second night wasn't as tasty and was served a little cold. Then with the out of control kids, it really made for a bad experience.

 

Did try to go to Rita's, but we walked in and sat down and were ignored. We waited a while and eventually left.

 

Entertainment- on a scale of 1-10 I give it a 3. The rock and roll headliner show was awesome. They played a large variety of everyone's favorite rock and roll songs.

 

The Pub- there was no entertainment in there the entire cruise.

 

The pool/centrum band that played was terrible. It was a guy and a girl and they basically karaoke'd everything. Even the hotel director told us that he thought they were terrible. There was another band that also played in the centrum and pool. They were decent. Not the best, but compared to the other band it was a step up.

 

The Schooner bar I wasn't very fond of the lady that plays there. She's not very friendly and doesn't have a large song selection that she can play.

 

Overall bar service was good. They ran out of Grey Goose in most of the bars toward the end of the sailing.

 

We didn't notice that we got the "extras" that we used to receive in our cabins. They used to make a little chocolate piano and leave it in the cabin. That has gone away since the hotel director change. No wines, or other amenities that we used to receive. No biggie, but it used to be a nice gesture.

 

Ship departure- not too bad. Ship docked around 7:00 and self assist people were getting off by about 7:10.

Ya know over all your review is largely negative. However it is evident that you basically like the Brilliance and in spite of the negatives you still had a good time and enjoy the Brilliance. I have seen your posts/reviews and know your fair and rational:)

This being said.... I completely get your post... the Brilliance is a good ship...It could be great if RCI will just put some love into it. For example... the pub is really cool but with no live entertainment it appears dry and neglected. The entertainment is weak and the food is lacking, but the ship is amazing and the crew is wonderful!

This is what I keep hearing. Quite disappointing to hear. It's my friends' 1st cruise so I'm sad that she won't be getting a good food experience

 

Any recent dining room menus? I keep finding some online but they are a few years old. I'm sure it's changed since then

Well the food in the WNDJMR was ok but seemed like the same stuff every lunch and evening. Breakfast in the WNDJMR was really good every morning. Chops was not good. Inattentive waiter, he even rolled his eyes at me when I asked him to explain the fish. I was not surprised Chops service and food is unpredictable anyway. Giovanni's on the other hand was superb! THe food was great and the service gracious and attentive! Solarium food and service was very good. Bar service excellent!

As whole I found this ship to be amazing even with the weak areas in the food.

Brilliance is a great ship for a first cruise...any cruise ..It became my favorite after just the first time sailing her in November 2016.

Sorry for the confusion - we LOVED the cruise as well. I was referring specifically to the outdoor area of the Windjammer (Rita's) being closed for breakfast except for one day.

I really wanted to eat at Rita's but it was not air conditioned and the venue looked like it was a thrown together after thought so we skipped it. Youre right about the WNDJMR it was always crowded for breakfast. We ate every morning in that little annex it was empty every morning.

This ship is otherwise wonderful......but they do have issues with food choice and quality especially in the WNDJMR:(

We sailed the Brilliance a couple of weeks ago and loved the authentic "ship" feel. Loved all the wood and the Schooner bar and all the windows. We sailed on her sister ships years ago and the minute we walked on board it felt like home. The only disappointment was the food.

DITTO.................the food is definitely disappointing

Would uber drive out that far? only ever used for shorter rides. Does anyone have recommendations for shuttle service?

 

Thank you for your input!

Yes Uber certainly will.

I am not sure how to go about a private shuttle...I would start with an internet search....But, hopefully some will come to the rescue here with some information:).

RCALLTHEWAY you ask a very good and reasonable question!

It seems folk have given you good advice too.

I would also call RCI and ask them if there is anything you should do to avoid any issues.

BTW..............call RCI two times and ask the same questions.

Yes we stay on board during any Bahama port (get off at Cocoa cay) and usually Jamaica. We call it our Jamaican sea day and relax by the uncrowded pool or in the Solarium.

Yes completely doable.

We have done the opposite. FLL first then PC with no issues. Pc is an easy Port to disembark. But make sure you get off the ship as soon as you can to allow for any travel issues.

Someone mentioned Uber I would go that route or have a private shuttle pick you up at PC.

Does Celebrity count ?? 6 days

Well as I see it....Please Mr Server do not burden me with your personal work place issues....You wanna hear about my miserable job???You wanna hear about how hard I work to pay for this vacation? You wanna hear about my Director. The one without a heart and soul? I do not think you do.....

So please remember I am on vacation for which I have paid good money for...I will be pleasant .... please do YOUR job and don't burden me.

Just sayin:):):)

Wait..WHAT..I have been using bottled spring water in my CPAP machine!

Very disappointed on our 11/5 Brilliance cruise - the outdoor seating was only open one day at the very beginning of the cruise. The Windjammer was very crowded every other day.

Oh wow I was on this cruise too and LOVED IT! In fact we booked her while on board for a February birthday!!!

I don't know anything about Brilliance but I see your first cruise was the same as mine! We were also on it in 1996. Loved the Jubilee!

OH THE JUBILEE!!!!!!!!!!!!!

That was a fantastic Carnival ship.........loved that ship. She too sailed out of Tampa 15 or so years ago!! Brilliance is fantastic too...so is the Tampa port its small and very easy to park and board the ship.

Maybe we should interrupt them on the first night and say they currently have all 5's, please try and keep it that way. ;)

Wow......Perfect response!! That's putting the responsibility right back at them I love it.

Any discounts for D+ must be taken on the ship and cannot be given in advance.

Aww bad news ....I guess I just purchase online at 20% and will not give it another thought. Thank you:)

However, I was on the Brilliance last week. The deluxe package was $59 if you were to buy it on board. So $59 minus 30% equals about $17.7. So this would put the package at about $42 before gratuities if you were to buy it on board and providing you get 30% percent off. I prefer to let the hassle and the uncertainties go and buy the package at $44 online and be done with it. JMHO