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My complete review of the Brilliance of the Seas - April 17-28, 2006

Aubiecruiser

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Aubiecruiser

Aubiecruiser

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Long Review - Brilliance of the Seas 11 day Panama Canal April 17 - 28, 2006

Panamaniacs and Barcrawlers at Sea - Oh my!

Backround

This was our third eleven day cruise on the Brilliance of the Seas, all three were different itineraries and over the course of these three cruises we saw first hand Royal Caribbean during the good, and the bad but must say that this last cruise was by far the best cruise we have ever taken. We were fortunate to be cruising with very good friends, two of whom (Sam & Karen) sailed with us on the Brilliance in 2004 and a couple we originally met on Cruise Critic have had visit our home (Art & Beth) and have developed a lasting friendship with all. We had originally requested the six of us dine at a large table, but were not unhappy or dissappointed to have our own table for six at dinner.

The Ship

It is apparent that my wife and I both love sailing on the Brilliance and enjoy the Radiance class ships mostly for the size of the ship, the great views from numerous public rooms and the ease of getting around. The ship is still in very good shape, the only signs of wear can be seen on some of the woodwork on the outside areas, ie, coat of arms above the pool deck, some of the balcony railings, etc. The interior of the ship remains in very good condition and is well taken care of. This is evident from seeing the crew constantly cleaning in the public areas. On only a few occasions did I encounter a sort of musty smell around our dinner table, but they were breif and did not affect our dinner experience one bit.

The Itinerary

Day One : Boarding in Miami

Day Two: At Sea

Day Three: Labadee, Hispanola

Day Four: At Sea

Day Five: Aruba until 1:00 a.m.

Day Six: Curacoa

Day Seven: At Sea

Day Eight: Panama Canal (Partial Transit)

Cristobal Port

Day Nine: Costa Rica

Day Ten: At Sea

Day Eleven: At Sea

The Ports

Labadee - We slept in until around 10:00 in the morning then tendered over. Our only excursion was the Waverunner experience and we had a great time. Our guide was very nice and shared alot of knowledge of the area, the village of Labadee and the people there as well as the improvements made by Royal Caribbean to bring up the standard of living for the people of Labadee. The tour lasted about an hour after viewing the manditory safety film.

Aruba - The six of us in our little group rented a 7 passenger - 4 wheel drive van and set out touring the island on our own. All of us had been to Aruba in the past on both cruises and land vacations so we knew our way around. Our primary goal was to find the world famous, Charlie's "Boozer" Bar in San Nicholas. This feat was accomplished, with the help of a local man we saw comming out of the post office and was happy to guide us to our destination. Charlies Bar (not Carlos & Charlie's) is located just outside the oil refinery in Aruba and is a true landmark/museum for those who are lucky enough to find it. After succeeding in our primary goal we returned to Oranjestad for lunch at The Paddock, a favorite waterside cafe just over from the port. After lunch, we more of less seperated with our friends from Illinois driving around the island, to the lighthouse, etc and the rest of us doing as we pleased. This, for my part,

included a trip to a local grocery store for a twelve pack of Balashi (local Aruban beer), some snacks, and a half gallon of fresh grapefruit juice. (This was necessary since there was not a drop of this precious liquid on the ship, plenty of fresh grapefruit was available but not a drop of grapefruit juice, a necessary component for my cocktail of choice.) That night the six of us walked to my favorite seafood restaurant, The Driftwood for a fantastic meal. On the walk back we had a few drinks at some of the many local drinking establishments in the downtown area. That night, at sailaway a large buffet was served on the pool deck while being entertained by the ships bartenders competeing in their bartending exhibition.

Curacoa - We had planned on not even leaving the ship since our last visit to this port was not very good due to the dirty appearance of the area. That being said, and since we docked up the river, right in the city due to high seas at the new pier just on the outskirts of town, we got off the ship, found a nice little cafe for a cocktail, shopped for some the local spirits, had a fine lunch at the Goveneurs House and then reboarded.

Panama Canal - Since we did not sign up for one of the ships excursions we stayed on the ship after passing through the Gatun locks to Gatun lake. After locking back through we docked at Cristobal pier and just ventured through the shopping mall at the dock. Purchased the necessary Panama hat for $8, four cartons of American cigarettes for $39 and had a couple of local beers to quench our thirsts.

Costa Rica - This was by far our best port to visit on any of our previous cruises. We had, online, made reservations with Oscar Brown for his Tour #2. We were met by Oscar, a very nice and informed man and one of his sisters, Toni. As it turned out there were 12 of us scheduled for this tour, but the other six people did not show up so our little traveling troup of six were lucky enough to have our own private tour. From the start we requested a stop for a few cold beers. Toni and our driver Juice took us to one of their local supermarkets, a very interesting stop by the way, where we purchased a six-pack of the local brew, two bottles of juice for Toni and the driver, two candy bars and a pack of gum for a total of $8.

(Something like $2,000,000 in their local currency). From there we went into the rainforest to the Jungle Breeze Zipline. I have to say that I and one of my female friends had the time of our lives. This is a must do for anyone visiting this beautiful country. Our instructors were very friendly, knowledgeable, and genuinely dedicated to our safety and enjoyment of this adventure. I would do this again in a second and definetly want to visit this port again. After ziplining, we drove to a locals house to see and hold a sloth, complete with it's baby hanging on. What a strange creature this thing is, with a perpetual grin on its flat little face. We then went to an area to see monkeys in the trees hanging over the road. (I say road for lack of more correct terminology) The roads in Costa Rica are more potholes than flat surface you see and the majority of the time driving is trying to avoid these pitfalls. We also went to the Delmonte banana plantation to see how this fruit is grown and harvested. A very labor intensive task to make sure we have bananas with our cornflakes every morning. On the way there we also took time to stop by a man on the side of the road with a six month old congo monkey. This little guy (the monkey), liked the ladies in our group much more than the guys but was fun to pet and hold. For this we tipped the man a couple of dollars and he was as happy as a clam. We also stopped by a local beachside bar and cafe (sorry, the name escapes me at this time) for a few more local beers and a snack. We did see some of the ships staff there dining on whole deep fried lobster dinners, cost $30 U.S., and purchased a few nice woodcarvings. The tour ended after a short tour of the downtown area and a visit to a restaurant on the highest point in the area for a view of the city and our ship in port in the distance before returning to our home on the seas. At the port we bought a couple of pounds of local coffee before boarding.

I highly reccommend Oscar Brown and his associates (mostly his 12 sisters) for their absolutely professional and friendly company. We could not have had a better time and were comfortable and safe at all times. Oscar has a website and is mentioned numerously on the Ports of Call board and has a great reputation as a professional.

My Personal Observations

As I wrote at the beginning of this novel, this was our third time sailing on the Brilliance of the Seas and was by far our best cruise ever. The last time on this ship, RCI had just implemented some new programs, such as teaming up room stewards, they also had a large number of new waitstaff and bartenders that may or may not have contributed to a not so enjoyable vacation. I now, in all honesty, have to say that RCI has, at least on this cruise and in my opinion, corrected any and all of their previous shortcommings. Our cabin steward Kevin, was the best, the cabin was always cleaned promptly, he kept my small collapsable cooler full of fresh ice, had a great disposition and seemed like he was always availble to assist us, if you are reading this Kevin, thank you for everything, including finding us two new robes to have in our cabin.

The Dining Experience

We had the absolute best team of Waiter and Asst. Waiter anybody could ask for. Carlos, our waiter, went way above and beyond to make sure everything was exactly as requested. Ask for rare steak, "no problem" was his answer, he even, on the night after leaving Curacoa found our table of six creme brulee that was only on the menu for the night in Aruba that we ate dinner ashore. Russell, our Asst. Waiter was the best, always there, always friendly whether at dinner or on the several times we crossed paths at the various ports. These two made a great team along with Jose, our everpresent coctail/shooter server in the Minstrell Dining Room. Overall, we did not have a single meal, or item served to us that we did not enjoy. The food was very good, way above the average cruisefare, was always served hot (except for those great chilled soups), had beautiful presentation and great taste. I was extremely impressed by how far RCI has come in their dinning room food and service. Our Head Waiter appeared at our table nightly, he even came over to our table the evening we dined in Chops to make sure we were being taken care of. This is the attention to detail that seemed to have been lost, but was back again for our cruise. The only complaint about food the entire cruise, the night we ate at Chops, was that one of our steaks was overcooked, at which they promptly replaced it with one to our liking. Overall, I would rate the food and service a minimum of four stars on this cruise. My hat's off to the Chef and all his staff on the Brilliance at every eating venue. The food in the Windjammer was equally as good as in the dinning room, from the breakfasts, including omlette station, to the lunches and fresh salads and meats on the carving station, to the afternoon snacks, including really good and fresh sushi. The food was always fresh and tasty. We did not have dinner in the Windjammer this cruise, mostly due to the excellent food and service in the main dinning room but feel sure it was just as good as it could have been. Even the sandwiches and pizzas in the Solarium were above average. We did not try the Seaview cafe, have to save that for the next time but did walk by and saw some great looking deep dish pizzas and pasta on other guests plates. I could rave on for much longer but feel like this is getting too long anyway so I'll just summarize by saying the entire dinner experience was fantastic.

The Bars / Casino

Our favorite hangout in the late afternoon and prior to dinner was always the Schooner bar. The entertainment was good, the bartenders Rad and Mykala were freindly and attentive, and fixed very good cocktails. Ali, was the nicest and cutest bartender at the pool bar, always friendly, and as all the staff I met, had an uncanny knack for remembering everyone's name. The casino bar was also a favorite place for late evenings to be followed even later by our nocturnal voyage to the disco. In general, all the bartenders and servers we encountered, and we managed to encounter just about all of them, were all friendly, professional, and always willing to "adjust" the amount of spirits in a drink if requested, which was not necessary the majority of the time.

The Casino was our nightly hangout, mainly due to the slot machines, or at least the machines I had played being very, very loose. The Wheel of Fortune machines, for the most part kept me playing with the casino's money the entire cruise and several other machines were in a very giving mood to boot. Due to their generocity, I now have a brand new set of golf clubs in by bag. Thank you Casino Royale for the gambling experience of my lifetime anyway, and the tee shirts I acquired for hitting those jackpots.

In Closing

I've said this before, but I think it deserves repeating, this last cruise on the Brilliance of the Seas was our most enjoyable vacation ever. The entire staff and crew deserves a standing ovation for their hard work, friendliness and attention to detail. I and my wife are sure to cruise on Royal Caribbean and the Brilliance again and have already made plans to join our friends and tablemates back on the Brilliance in the Spring or Summer of 2008 in the Med. provided the ships itineraries are not changed.

Aubie

 

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familycruises

familycruises

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"I highly reccommend Oscar Brown and his associates (mostly his 12 sisters) for their absolutely professional and friendly company. We could not have had a better time and were comfortable and safe at all times. Oscar has a website and is mentioned numerously on the Ports of Call board and has a great reputation as a professional"

Can you please tell me Oscar Brown's website? I have searched for it but cannot locate it.

Thanks!

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Kababs

Kababs

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Great review Aubie, I agree 100%, this was by far the best cruise ever! I'm still missing Carlos and Russell:(

 

Gambler, we had 2 formal and 2 smart casual nights.

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Aubiecruiser

Aubiecruiser

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Thanks for a great and detail review.

How many formal nights and smart casual, etc. did you have??

 

We were told, several times that we would have three formal nights and two smart casual but only had the standard two formal and two smart casual nights.

Aubie

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Aubiecruiser

Aubiecruiser

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All these great Brillance reviews are only soldifying my decision to go on her next year. And making it harder to wait!!

 

It's going to kill me to have to wait two years to cruise on her in the Med. :(

Aubie

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leavnofingerprints

leavnofingerprints

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Great review Aubie, I agree 100%, this was by far the best cruise ever! I'm still missing Carlos and Russell:(

 

Gambler, we had 2 formal and 2 smart casual nights.

 

 

What? You don't miss LNF? I'm crushed beyond words. :( :p I've already started planned the "reunion" cruise. :D

 

LNF

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pinkrosesdeb

pinkrosesdeb

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Aubie, I tried posting another thread about the food on Brilliance but no one answered. You said you enjoyed the food much more this time around. Was it because they changed the menus or because they upgraded the quality? I have seen menus posted on other websites etc and just wondering if they are still the same. We were really planning on doing Chops & Portofino's several times ea. this time and you are making me wonder if I should do more evenings in the reg. dining room. Thanks again for all your input and I know exactly how you feel about having to wait for the next cruise. It will be almost 2 yrs. for us when we finally board again in Jan. 2007.

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leavnofingerprints

leavnofingerprints

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Aubie, I tried posting another thread about the food on Brilliance but no one answered. You said you enjoyed the food much more this time around. Was it because they changed the menus or because they upgraded the quality? I have seen menus posted on other websites etc and just wondering if they are still the same. We were really planning on doing Chops & Portofino's several times ea. this time and you are making me wonder if I should do more evenings in the reg. dining room. Thanks again for all your input and I know exactly how you feel about having to wait for the next cruise. It will be almost 2 yrs. for us when we finally board again in Jan. 2007.

 

We were at Aubie's table and although you directed your question to him, I can tell you that the food on the Brilliance was as good as what you can expect on any ship out there, even those who have built their reputation on fine dining. While the food in Chops was excellent, the dining room fared well by comparison. I wouldn't be too quick to overlook it. We have also been on the Brilliance before and I have to say the quality of the food and its presentation in the dining room far surpassed our previous cruise. I didn't believe it could be topped but was pleasantly surprized to see that the chefs had done just that.

 

LNF

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pinkrosesdeb

pinkrosesdeb

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LNF, thanks for the help. We have never had a problem with the food onboard. We have always eaten very well and been satisfied with pretty much everything. But when Aubie spoke of the great improvement I just wondered what they changed. We usually do most dinners in the dining rm, never done an alternative but looking forward to trying them this time. We also do Windjammer for dinner at least once per cruise when I am too lazy to get dressed up. Thanks again. Deb

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Kababs

Kababs

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What? You don't miss LNF? I'm crushed beyond words. :( :p I've already started planned the "reunion" cruise. :D

 

LNF

 

I miss you all beyond words!!!:( It just isn't the same with just Sam and I at the dinner table.

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pinkrosesdeb

pinkrosesdeb

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So, Aubie, will you do Brilliance again or are you jumping ship? This is our first Radiance class ship, we love the Voyager class and can't wait to try Freedom class but wonder how you like the larger ships. Do you think we will be impressed by this class? Just excited to try something different and she does look beautiful. Like the idea of all the glass and the Seaview Cafe. Also, love the new ports.

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Aubiecruiser

Aubiecruiser

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So, Aubie, will you do Brilliance again or are you jumping ship? This is our first Radiance class ship, we love the Voyager class and can't wait to try Freedom class but wonder how you like the larger ships. Do you think we will be impressed by this class? Just excited to try something different and she does look beautiful. Like the idea of all the glass and the Seaview Cafe. Also, love the new ports.

 

Our first RCI cruise was on the Explorer. I can faithfully say that that was the first and last time I'll sail on a ship of that size. Just too many people all trying to get to the same places at the same time. IMHO the Radiance are far better and can't fathom why they have this idea that bigger is better. We also are planning on being back on the Brilliance in 2008 for a reunion Med. cruise, provide they don't change the itinerary. As for the Freedom and Genesis class ships, they can have them.

Aubie

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pinkrosesdeb

pinkrosesdeb

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Thanks again Aubie for your feedback. We would love to try the Med cruise one day as well but I am not a great flyer. Working hard on that though because I would love to do a European vacation. Guess I will have to see how I feel about the smaller ship as we do love the big ones. I am claustrophobic and have never felt squeezed in by too many pax on the larger classes but know it won't bother me on Radiance class either since it seems to have such an open feel to it.

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