My View: The Blonde, The Bullethead, and The Brilliant Ship (Semi-live B2B)

[gatour]

51 minutes ago, blueridgemama said:

 

Your photos are beautiful. You can tell that you put a lot of thought into the composition and framing.

I agree.  The Sundowner photo is another great one.

[perfect match]

I love the room divider curtain! ❤️ They're great when one person is a morning person and the other is a night owl.

 

Not so much the cloth shower curtain!

 

Great bridge 🌉   pictures! I appreciate your camera addiction! 

 

[gatour]

9 hours ago, perfect match said:

I love the room divider curtain! ❤️ They're great when one person is a morning person and the other is a night owl.

 

Not so much the cloth shower curtain!

 

Great bridge 🌉   pictures! I appreciate your camera addiction! 

 

I am in agreement about the room divider curtain.  I had to do a double take because I thought they were long gone across the fleet.  On our Enchantment cruises last the tracks were still in the ceiling for them.

[APDMOM]

19 hours ago, blueridgemama said:

 

Your photos are beautiful. You can tell that you put a lot of thought into the composition and framing.

Thank you, blueridgemama!  I have learned a lot about photography from these very CC boards!  It is really a wealth of information.  I also have to admit that I take many pictures with the hope that a few of them may be worthwhile 😂 I am just glad we no longer use film cameras!  I would be broke...

[APDMOM]

My View:  The Verdict on Brilliance of the Seas

 

   First, I am an optimist and truly appreciate the opportunity to cruise.  I know it is a huge privilege, and as such EVERY cruise is special.  If my worst cruise were the only cruise I could ever take, it would still be my favorite vacation memory!

 

   With that said, I am very glad that we had this back to back experience, as these two legs had very different demographics and factors that helped us form a more balanced view of this ship.  Overall, Brilliance is a great ship, and ended up in my top 5.  If Brilliance did longer itineraries during breaks, we would book it again without hesitation.  However, our favorite ship classes remain Oasis class (#1), followed by Norwegian Breakaway class (#2), then Freedom and Voyager classes (pretty much tied for #3 & #4).  If we could ever get away from the school schedules, I am sure we will enjoy Brilliance more.  Radiance class definitely has potential to our top 3, but we are not able to take advantage of the other three ships at this time.

 

Pros of this ship:

Beautiful: This ship was definitely designed when they paid more attention to detail, and spent more money on ‘the little things’ that make the ship stand out!  I would say this is the most beautiful ship we have sailed, to date.

Ocean views: So many public spaces have clear views of the ocean, with The Colony Club and Schooner Bar being our two favorite spots.

Friendly staff:  We did not encounter a single unfriendly employee.   The ship has the reputation for being ‘the friendliest ship’.  As such, I think it is obvious that the employees take pride in it.  Just to mention a few people who truly stood out: Sue and Junlee in the Diamond lounge, Timothy in The Colony Club bar, Savio in the R-Bar, John - the Head waiter in MDR, Paul and Sienna - our servers in the MDR for the second leg, Tremaine - our awesome room steward, Carlos - who served us during the Top Tier Event.

Beautiful Centrum with excellent participation in game shows:  The whole crowd got worked up and involved in the game shows and line dances, whether physically participating or enthusiastically cheering!  It made for a very festive atmosphere!  Even as an introvert, I got involved and brave enough to do the country line dances on the second leg.

Windjammer:  What a beautiful restaurant!  It was also well organized.  Even though it got crowded, it was fairly easy to navigate.  The aft seating and Rita’s Cantina seating are our favorite spots of all buffet restaurants on the 32 cruises we have taken.

Helipad:  I love that you can walk up to the helipad on this ship.

 

Cons of this ship/cruise: (Really mostly related to the cruise)

First, I have to qualify that I have no problem with people who smoke. 😉 It seems to be a sensitive topic here, but I have great friends who smoke and understand where I am coming from.  It is the smoke that makes my eyes tear up, my nose run, and my throat itch.  I cannot help it and cannot avoid it unless I stay up-wind from smoke.  However, it is impossible to avoid in enclosed spaces.  The first week, the centrum was okay and we were able to enjoy the game shows from deck 8 (two decks above the casino).  The second leg, there was a much larger number of people who enjoyed the casino games, while smoking.  It was during this leg that I understood the coined term for the centrum,  ‘The Chimney”.  Yes, the smoke comes up from deck 6, and even wafted into our cabin during peak times when we opened the door to enter or exit.

 

Casino:  This is the first time we skipped playing our tokens.  We only used them on the first leg, then it got too smokey on the second leg.  The machine to play your diamond tokens is in the smoking area.

Spa:  I had the worst manicure experience. (A little drama to follow… skip if you want to)  The technician did not soften my cuticles before she started clipping away… Ouch!!! The nail polish started chipping less than a day after the manicure.  I also asked for the basic manicure, which should have been $29.  Without my permission, they upgraded me to the Elemis Exotic manicure, which cost $45.  The whole time, the spa consultant told me how dry my skin is and how I really NEED these products.  I had to tell her over and over that I was not interested.  I returned after a day to have the nails re-painted, which they did for free.  However, they tried to make me pay for a nail polish that lasts longer for a whopping ‘bargain’ of $20.  I smiled and waved, “no thanks!”   It should come as no surprise that I had to remove the nail polish a day later due to more chipping.  Though I hope this is not the standard on Royal Caribbean, I will never get a manicure on a ship again (unless it is free, of course)!  This is such a ‘first world’ problem that I feel bad even mentioning it here, but I thought it may be helpful for people who consider waiting until the board the ship to get a manicure.

 

Crowded midship:  Although it definitely depends on when you book your cruise, this was the most crowded ship we have encountered. Unfortunately, we can only cruise during school breaks, so this was the nature of our cruise.  We have cruised spring break many times and never experienced a ship this crowded.  I believe the shorter cruises are to blame, as I am sure families can afford 4-5 days much easier than 7-8 days.  We often avoided the crowds by using the forward stairs… which was good for exercise anyway. :)

 

Shore excursion:  Panoramic Drive…The shore excursion in Cozumel was falsely advertised as having a duration of 3.5 hours, with a 90-minute scenic panoramic drive. The tour ended up being only about 2 hours, while loading and unloading the bus twice took about 30 minutes of that time.  The panoramic drive was less than 4 miles one way, then we stopped at a Tequila tasting.  The tasting was fun, but again just a sales pitch.  I would not recommend this tour at all.  Just go to a tequila tasting for free, rather than pay the $35 to $39 for this tour.  Then, get a taxi or choose a better excursion that truly shows you the island.

 

Details about the crowds, for those who are interested:

  During the first leg, I thought that it would be very feasible to book an inside cabin rather than a balcony.  There is so much public space that I would have survived and even considered booking an inside cabin.  However, the second leg totally stomped that idea.  The first leg was much more quiet with only some college-aged spring breakers and an overall more “fun” feel.  The second leg was overwhelmed by teenagers and children, including adult parents who were not all that concerned about their children’s behavior. (I work with and love children, so cruising with them is not usually a problem.  Cruising with their ‘checked out’ parents is more the problem).

The stairs at the midship elevators were usually crowded, and it seems many people had difficulty figuring out how to ‘keep right’.  Maybe they were trying to figure out where ‘starboard’ is…LOL!

 

   During our second leg I thought this was the most crowded ship I have been on.  It was more difficult to find seating in public areas from mid-day to late evening.  The head waiter told us that there were over 350 teens (between 15 and 18), and an additional >300 between ages 18 and 21. To put that into perspective:  The solarium hot tub was usually filled with teens when we walked through there, while the hot tubs by the main pool were frequently filled with 10 to 14 kids each (at least half the time we observed from the diamond lounge).  There were obviously times when adults enjoyed the hot tubs too, but it was just notable how many kids used them on this cruise.

 

   We therefore spent a LOT of time on our balcony during the second leg, and I will continue to book a balcony if we can afford it.

 

   We do recommend Brilliance and would definitely love to sail on this class again if the price is right.   My recommendations are:

1. Book a balcony far away from the centrum, unless you are a night owl.  If you don’t get sea sick, book one that is forward, as the forward stairs and elevators are much less crowded.
2. Use the outside seating of the Windjammer for the best breakfast and lunch experience.

I hope we can catch one of the Radiance Class ships in Europe or Alaska when the new itineraries are released!  Can’t wait to book our Summer 2021 experience 😊

 

[APDMOM]

Just a bit of Centrum action... This was “Finish that lyric” on the first leg.  Loved this contestant  from DC!

 

[APDMOM]

Beautiful glass elevators, and the surprise fishermen on deck 13:

[APDMOM]

The Bridge:

 

[APDMOM]

Beautiful Music in Schooner Bar:

[APDMOM]

Final Sunset on our Back 2 Back Brilliance experience:

[thegraminator]

Thanks  again  for  your  excellent  report  and  pictures !    I  have  throughly  enjoyed "sailing along "  with you .  I  was excited  to read that you  would  be  sailing  on the Seaside .   I am anxious  to  see  how you compare  the MSC  ships to the RCCL  line.   Our  first cruise  ever was on RCCL  Sovereign  over 15 years ago so we have a special  spot in our  hearts  for Royal ,  but our last 2 cruises have been  on the Divina  and the Seaside  which we loved !  We have   also  sailed  with Disney ,  Princess  and RCCL  Navigator ,  but we decided  to  go  with  the Allure  this June .   I'm  excited  to  be  back  with  Royal  and your trip report  made me  even  more  excited !   Looking  forward  to  seeing  your thoughts  on  the  Seaside . 

[parsnip1]

Do you have any similar reviews on your cruise aboard Allure?

 

[APDMOM]

On 3/24/2019 at 3:13 PM, thegraminator said:

Thanks  again  for  your  excellent  report  and  pictures !    I  have  throughly  enjoyed "sailing along "  with you .  I  was excited  to read that you  would  be  sailing  on the Seaside .   I am anxious  to  see  how you compare  the MSC  ships to the RCCL  line.   Our  first cruise  ever was on RCCL  Sovereign  over 15 years ago so we have a special  spot in our  hearts  for Royal ,  but our last 2 cruises have been  on the Divina  and the Seaside  which we loved !  We have   also  sailed  with Disney ,  Princess  and RCCL  Navigator ,  but we decided  to  go  with  the Allure  this June .   I'm  excited  to  be  back  with  Royal  and your trip report  made me  even  more  excited !   Looking  forward  to  seeing  your thoughts  on  the  Seaside . 

I will definitely try the live review from Seaside 🙂 We only have “basic” wifi with our booking, so I will have to see how that works.  

[APDMOM]

1 hour ago, parsnip1 said:

Do you have any similar reviews on your cruise aboard Allure?

 

 

Yes!  It is right here:  Enjoy!

 

 

[dpostman]

APDMOM, thank you for your great review.  I'm sorry I'm a bit tardy to thank you, but the maple trees have finally started to run and have been busy all weekend getting the sugar shack up & running.

Pictures are great (I'm a medical Photographer, I'm not much of an artist but I know my way around a camera.) An you have a great eye for bringing life to your pictures.

 

Your writing is just as great and I've enjoyed every post.

 

Thank you as well for taking time out of your vacation to answer all those questions.  Our next cruise being on Brilliance made this review all the more appreciated.

 

If we ever cruise together, you can expect a drink of your choice on me.

 

Looking forward to your next one.

 

Cheers

Dennis

 

[APDMOM]

2 minutes ago, dpostman said:

APDMOM, thank you for your great review.  I'm sorry I'm a bit tardy to thank you, but the maple trees have finally started to run and have been busy all weekend getting the sugar shack up & running.

Pictures are great (I'm a medical Photographer, I'm not much of an artist but I know my way around a camera.) An you have a great eye for bringing life to your pictures.

 

Your writing is just as great and I've enjoyed every post.

 

Thank you as well for taking time out of your vacation to answer all those questions.  Our next cruise being on Brilliance made this review all the more appreciated.

 

If we ever cruise together, you can expect a drink of your choice on me.

 

Looking forward to your next one.

 

Cheers

Dennis

 

You are welcome, Dennis!  Thank you for keeping me company throughout the week!

 

I will see you for an amaretto sour if we ever land on the same ship.  😁

[LuCruise]

On 3/17/2019 at 9:56 AM, APDMOM said:

Back on the ship, we found this critter waiting for us.  We give our room steward off at night, as we do not need turn down service.  So, he surprised us with a daytime towel animal. 

 

We are in one of the extended balconies by the midship elevators.  Unfortunately, there are no loungers, which defeats our purpose for booking this cabin.  The location is great if you stay up late, but the noise from the atrium is very loud.  They don’t settle down until after 11:30, and then there are people walking past our cabin talking loudly.  So, I do not recommend this location if you like to turn in early.  However, it is fun to be able to walk out to the atrium overlook and observe all the fun activities.

Hi APDMOM.  Great review.  I always enjoy following your reviews.  

 

Also..not sure if I missed it but where was your stateroom located?  We're thinking of maybe booking a cruise on Brilliance so wondering what location to avoid for the late atrium noise.  Thanks.

Edited March 26, 2019 by LuCruise

[ShillyShally]

On 3/22/2019 at 10:38 PM, APDMOM said:

My View:  End of Day 5, Second leg

 

Sundowner 🙂

 

LOVE this photo!  Sunsets at sea are my favorite part of cruising!  Thank you so much for all your great photos and detailed trip report - it's been such fun to read!

[ShillyShally]

On 3/24/2019 at 1:34 PM, APDMOM said:

My View:  The Verdict on Brilliance of the Seas

 

   First, I am an optimist and truly appreciate the opportunity to cruise.  I know it is a huge privilege, and as such EVERY cruise is special.  If my worst cruise were the only cruise I could ever take, it would still be my favorite vacation memory!

 

   With that said, I am very glad that we had this back to back experience, as these two legs had very different demographics and factors that helped us form a more balanced view of this ship.  Overall, Brilliance is a great ship, and ended up in my top 5.  If Brilliance did longer itineraries during breaks, we would book it again without hesitation.  However, our favorite ship classes remain Oasis class (#1), followed by Norwegian Breakaway class (#2), then Freedom and Voyager classes (pretty much tied for #3 & #4).  If we could ever get away from the school schedules, I am sure we will enjoy Brilliance more.  Radiance class definitely has potential to our top 3, but we are not able to take advantage of the other three ships at this time.

 

Pros of this ship:

Beautiful: This ship was definitely designed when they paid more attention to detail, and spent more money on ‘the little things’ that make the ship stand out!  I would say this is the most beautiful ship we have sailed, to date.

Ocean views: So many public spaces have clear views of the ocean, with The Colony Club and Schooner Bar being our two favorite spots.

Friendly staff:  We did not encounter a single unfriendly employee.   The ship has the reputation for being ‘the friendliest ship’.  As such, I think it is obvious that the employees take pride in it.  Just to mention a few people who truly stood out: Sue and Junlee in the Diamond lounge, Timothy in The Colony Club bar, Savio in the R-Bar, John - the Head waiter in MDR, Paul and Sienna - our servers in the MDR for the second leg, Tremaine - our awesome room steward, Carlos - who served us during the Top Tier Event.

Beautiful Centrum with excellent participation in game shows:  The whole crowd got worked up and involved in the game shows and line dances, whether physically participating or enthusiastically cheering!  It made for a very festive atmosphere!  Even as an introvert, I got involved and brave enough to do the country line dances on the second leg.

Windjammer:  What a beautiful restaurant!  It was also well organized.  Even though it got crowded, it was fairly easy to navigate.  The aft seating and Rita’s Cantina seating are our favorite spots of all buffet restaurants on the 32 cruises we have taken.

Helipad:  I love that you can walk up to the helipad on this ship.

 

Cons of this ship/cruise: (Really mostly related to the cruise)

First, I have to qualify that I have no problem with people who smoke. 😉 It seems to be a sensitive topic here, but I have great friends who smoke and understand where I am coming from.  It is the smoke that makes my eyes tear up, my nose run, and my throat itch.  I cannot help it and cannot avoid it unless I stay up-wind from smoke.  However, it is impossible to avoid in enclosed spaces.  The first week, the centrum was okay and we were able to enjoy the game shows from deck 8 (two decks above the casino).  The second leg, there was a much larger number of people who enjoyed the casino games, while smoking.  It was during this leg that I understood the coined term for the centrum,  ‘The Chimney”.  Yes, the smoke comes up from deck 6, and even wafted into our cabin during peak times when we opened the door to enter or exit.

 

Casino:  This is the first time we skipped playing our tokens.  We only used them on the first leg, then it got too smokey on the second leg.  The machine to play your diamond tokens is in the smoking area.

Spa:  I had the worst manicure experience. (A little drama to follow… skip if you want to)  The technician did not soften my cuticles before she started clipping away… Ouch!!! The nail polish started chipping less than a day after the manicure.  I also asked for the basic manicure, which should have been $29.  Without my permission, they upgraded me to the Elemis Exotic manicure, which cost $45.  The whole time, the spa consultant told me how dry my skin is and how I really NEED these products.  I had to tell her over and over that I was not interested.  I returned after a day to have the nails re-painted, which they did for free.  However, they tried to make me pay for a nail polish that lasts longer for a whopping ‘bargain’ of $20.  I smiled and waved, “no thanks!”   It should come as no surprise that I had to remove the nail polish a day later due to more chipping.  Though I hope this is not the standard on Royal Caribbean, I will never get a manicure on a ship again (unless it is free, of course)!  This is such a ‘first world’ problem that I feel bad even mentioning it here, but I thought it may be helpful for people who consider waiting until the board the ship to get a manicure.

 

Crowded midship:  Although it definitely depends on when you book your cruise, this was the most crowded ship we have encountered. Unfortunately, we can only cruise during school breaks, so this was the nature of our cruise.  We have cruised spring break many times and never experienced a ship this crowded.  I believe the shorter cruises are to blame, as I am sure families can afford 4-5 days much easier than 7-8 days.  We often avoided the crowds by using the forward stairs… which was good for exercise anyway. 🙂

 

Shore excursion:  Panoramic Drive…The shore excursion in Cozumel was falsely advertised as having a duration of 3.5 hours, with a 90-minute scenic panoramic drive. The tour ended up being only about 2 hours, while loading and unloading the bus twice took about 30 minutes of that time.  The panoramic drive was less than 4 miles one way, then we stopped at a Tequila tasting.  The tasting was fun, but again just a sales pitch.  I would not recommend this tour at all.  Just go to a tequila tasting for free, rather than pay the $35 to $39 for this tour.  Then, get a taxi or choose a better excursion that truly shows you the island.

 

Details about the crowds, for those who are interested:

  During the first leg, I thought that it would be very feasible to book an inside cabin rather than a balcony.  There is so much public space that I would have survived and even considered booking an inside cabin.  However, the second leg totally stomped that idea.  The first leg was much more quiet with only some college-aged spring breakers and an overall more “fun” feel.  The second leg was overwhelmed by teenagers and children, including adult parents who were not all that concerned about their children’s behavior. (I work with and love children, so cruising with them is not usually a problem.  Cruising with their ‘checked out’ parents is more the problem).

The stairs at the midship elevators were usually crowded, and it seems many people had difficulty figuring out how to ‘keep right’.  Maybe they were trying to figure out where ‘starboard’ is…LOL!

 

   During our second leg I thought this was the most crowded ship I have been on.  It was more difficult to find seating in public areas from mid-day to late evening.  The head waiter told us that there were over 350 teens (between 15 and 18), and an additional >300 between ages 18 and 21. To put that into perspective:  The solarium hot tub was usually filled with teens when we walked through there, while the hot tubs by the main pool were frequently filled with 10 to 14 kids each (at least half the time we observed from the diamond lounge).  There were obviously times when adults enjoyed the hot tubs too, but it was just notable how many kids used them on this cruise.

 

   We therefore spent a LOT of time on our balcony during the second leg, and I will continue to book a balcony if we can afford it.

 

   We do recommend Brilliance and would definitely love to sail on this class again if the price is right.   My recommendations are:

1. Book a balcony far away from the centrum, unless you are a night owl.  If you don’t get sea sick, book one that is forward, as the forward stairs and elevators are much less crowded.
2. Use the outside seating of the Windjammer for the best breakfast and lunch experience.

I hope we can catch one of the Radiance Class ships in Europe or Alaska when the new itineraries are released!  Can’t wait to book our Summer 2021 experience 😊

 

Thanks so much for this complete recap - you sound similar in what I look for/how I experience a ship so this helps me a lot to know when/where/what cabin to aim for in this class of ships one day!

[APDMOM]

2 hours ago, LuCruise said:

Hi APDMOM.  Great review.  I always enjoy following your reviews.  

 

Also..not sure if I missed it but where was your stateroom located?  We're thinking of maybe booking a cruise on Brilliance so wondering what location to avoid for the late atrium noise.  Thanks.

Hi, LuCruise!  Great to “see” you again!  We were in 8088.  It is right off the atrium.  We book d it for the large balcony and thought we could deal with the noise if we could enjoy the boardwalk balcony despite the noise.  Well, the noise on Brilliance is MUCH worse than the boardwalk.  We could hear songs word for word - even ones we did not know 😂  

 

I think we will look at 8034 or 8534 next time.  They are close to the forward stairs and you would not look down on the ‘roof’ over the lifeboats:

 

Edited March 26, 2019 by APDMOM

[LuCruise]

49 minutes ago, APDMOM said:

Hi, LuCruise!  Great to “see” you again!  We were in 8088.  It is right off the atrium.  We book d it for the large balcony and thought we could deal with the noise if we could enjoy the boardwalk balcony despite the noise.  Well, the noise on Brilliance is MUCH worse than the boardwalk.  We could hear songs word for word - even ones we did not know 😂  

 

I think we will look at 8034 or 8534 next time.  They are close to the forward stairs and you would not look down on the ‘roof’ over the lifeboats:

 

 

Thanks for the quick reply and help.  I see what you mean about the balcony being larger.  A shame it was so noisy.  Thanks for the frame of reference of area to book and what to avoid.  Your review is really helpful.  Looks like you had a nice cruise (even if not your favorite class)

[dpostman]

On our upcoming Baltic cruise on Brilliance I chose 8025.  It is an interior (Our first) because a balcony room was SUBSTANTIALLY more expensive.  But The location is just forward of the forward stairs.  We like this spot because of what you said, stairs are less congested, and we are just in between floors of our favorite spots.  This is also our first 12 night cruise and an interior one at that, so we'll see how that turns out.  But I suspect that on Brilliance, with so many great views from so many public spaces, it will just push us to spend even more time out of our room.

 

dp