Just off the Radiance - Review

[jrpjr]

Review – Radiance of the Seas (6/14/07)

 

History & Background

 

Since all reviews are subjective, some background may be helpful. My wife & I are both professionals, and we have two teenage boys (13 & 16). We love to travel, and we have been to many places (both inside & outside the U.S.). We have been on three previous cruises: Carnival (3 days to Bahamas from Miami); the Grand Princess (7 days to Western Caribbean from Ft. Lauderdale); and again on the Grand Princess (7 days to Western Caribbean from Galveston). My wife & I love fine dinning and good wines. I have a wine cellar in my home, and have been buying hard to find (allocated) wines for over 10 years. In fact, I take a long weekend trip to Napa & Sonoma every spring to taste wines and eat at their fantastic restaurants.

 

General Itinerary & Getting to the Cruise Terminal

 

Our ship – Radiance of the Seas – was set to depart form Vancouver on Friday, June 15, 2007. Our cruise itinerary was Vancouver; sea day; Ketchikan; Juneau; Skagway; Icy Strait Point; sea day (Hubbard Glacier); docking at Seward on the morning of June 22, 2007.

 

For reasons that seemed logical at the time, we flew into Seattle on Thursday (6/14/07), rented a car ($150 for a mini-van), and drove to Vancouver. Even though I had planned this out and it worked very well - the total price was much cheaper than flying into Vancouver & the car drop off in Vancouver was 2 blocks from our hotel - the one and a half hour delay at the border crossing gave me second thoughts. I was told by my “neighbors” in the slowly moving line of cars that this was about normal, so please factor this in when deciding to go this route. I would say that it took us just short of 5 hours to get from SeaTac to our hotel. I definitely would not plan to fly into SeaTac the same day that your ship is departing from Vancouver, unless your flight is arriving very early or you like to cut things very close.

 

We stayed at the Best Western on Drake St. It was a very good, economy hotel, with a free shuttle to the cruise terminal. Parking was $10 per day in an underground garage next to the hotel. The neighborhood was somewhat “interesting”, but no major issues. Plus, it was just a place for us to hang out until we could board the ship the next day.

 

Radiance departs from Ballantyne pier, which, I am told, is not nearly as nice as Canada Place. The group we were with had previously sailed from Canada Place, which they said allowed them to stay at a hotel & walk to the terminal. You definitely have to drive, taxi or shuttle to Ballantyne pier. Embarkation was a breeze. We were at the pier by 1:00pm; our carryon items were in the room & we were lunching in the Windjammer by 1:30.

The Cabin

 

We were in junior suite on Deck 10, towards the aft on the port side. I liked the configuration better than the junior suite on Princess (my wife liked Princess better). Really though, the differences were minor. I think the port side was slightly better on this cruise than the starboard side. We were glad that we had the extra room provided by the junior suite (with two teenage boys), although next time we might skip the balcony and get two insides or a smaller balcony & and an inside. The fact is, as we get older and our kids get older, we don’t keep the same hours.

 

Wining & Dining

 

Whining - This area cased me the most pre-cruise “stress”. I was very use to bringing my own wine on board Princess, and was very unhappy about Royal Caribbean’s policy. This has nothing to do with prices or saving money! In fact, I didn’t find RCCL’s wine prices out of line with our restaurants back home (the ship’s prices were, on the average, a little more expensive than our local restaurants). I was very concerned, however, by RCCL’s selection, which, according to what I could find out on-line, was pathetic. I thus took the step of buying six bottles of wine through Well Wishers, and having these delivered in a gift basket to our cabin. This was expensive to do and, in hind sight, I would not do it again, since the wine list on board was more extensive than what I could see on RCCL’s website before departing. This is not to say that it still would have been much better to have been able to bring my own wines and pay a $25 per bottle corkage fee. Let me also add that the wine glasses, lack of vintage dates on their wine list, dining room staff knowledge (or lack there of) & other factors led me to conclude, as I had with Princess, that fine wines are not anything that the cruise lines, at least at this “level”, really care much about. Frankly, thought, this is no terribly different then most moderately good restaurants in our home town. With regard to the bottles I had delivered on-board by Well Wishers, we were never charged a corkage fee, but please keep in mind that I also ordered a white wine off the ship’s wine list each night (we had 7 adults in our group). The first night the head waiter matter-of-factly inquired where I got the bottle that I had brought with me into the dining room. I told him it was in a gift basket, which caused him to nod and move on. I saw no one else bringing a wine bottle into the dining room.

 

Dining – There were 11 of us in our group (4 boys and 7 adults), and we were seated at one oblong table on the top floor of the main dinning room. We had the early seating (6:00pm). I definitely liked the look and feel of the dinning room more than the ones on Carnival or the Grand Princess. The ceilings seemed higher, and you could see throughout the dinning room much better. My wife and I thought the food was slightly better on the Radiance than on the Grand Princess, and that the service was slightly better on the Grand Princess. Once again, however, the differences were around the margins. Our waiters, who were very friendly & helpful, also seemed very rushed. I almost felt sorry for them at the beginning of each meal. We ate in one specialty restaurant – Chops – where the service was outstanding. The food was good; although I can’t label the steak I had – the NY Strip – better than at an upscale steakhouse at home. It was “thinner”, did not have the nice “crust” on the outside, and did not seem to be of “prime” quality. Nonetheless, I would have eaten there again (if our group had had voted to do so). Everyone in our group who had been on Princess before gave the Windjammer the thumbs up over the Horizon Court. I also liked the Seaview Café, although it would have been much nicer in the Caribbean (particularly the outside seating!)

 

Bars & Public Places

 

We were told that “the ship was full”, but, except for the Windjammer at peak hours, the ship never seemed crowded. At times, it almost seemed eerie. Does everyone stay in their cabin until dinner time? A coupe of quick notes: Late-tudes on Deck 5 – friendly staff and a good view to enjoy while sipping my morning cappuccino; Champagne Bar on Deck 6 – friendly bartender and a limited selection of bubbly by the glass; and Hollywood Odyssey on Deck 13 had great jazz & a good atmosphere in the evenings (I discovered this late into the cruise; I should have listened to my spouse earlier). I went to one show in the Aurora Theater – Piano Man – which was well done. I spent about 45 minutes in the Casino losing $50 bucks at roulette. Seemed nicer than Princess (but it’s really not my thing).

 

Kids Programs

 

My youngest son said he preferred RCCL’s program from that on the Grand Princess, but would not, or could not, give me specifics, so it might just have been the other kids or the staff (as opposed to the program itself). My oldest son (who mainly hung out with his cousin who is his age) thought that the counselors in their program were “cool”. Everyone seemed to have a good time.

 

Formal Nights & Other Outfitting Issues

 

I’m glad I did not bring my tux. There were a few, but definitely in the minority (I think I could count the tuxes I saw without taking off my shoes). I wore a dark blue suit, which fit in quite well. I have to say, however, that even suites were in the minority on the formal nights. This was the most casual cruise of the 4 we have been on. None of this bothered me in the least. Regarding other clothing issues, everyone that says “layering is your friend” is correct. Except for standing on the helo pad at Hubbard Glacier and on the forecastle on the whale watching boat (while at full speed), I was never really cold. I would start out in the morning in a long sleeve t-shirt, polartec vest and light, rain resistant jacket, each layer of which I could peal off as the day went on.

 

Ports of Call

 

Ketchikan – We docked here. My sons, their cousin & I did the zip line excursion, which we thoroughly enjoyed. Other than a quick walk around early in the morning (while everyone was waking up), I didn’t see much of the port. The weather was overcast and misty. I was not overly impressed with this port, although the lack of sunshine (which is its usual state) and my failure to walk around when everything was open probably contributed to this.

 

Juneau - We docked in the morning, then tendered in the afternoon. Weather was, once again, overcast and misty. We took one of the shuttle services available at the pier and did a 3.5 mile hike at Mendenhall Glacier. Nice “self-made” excursion that cost nothing more than the $12 shuttle service. Beware, however, that the buses going back, in the mid-afternoon, are a lot more crowded than the buses going to the glacier in the morning, and it was about an hour wait between each particular tour company bus. Two suggestions (both untried by me): (1) only buy a one way ticket going there, so then you can buy a ticket back from a different shuttle service (I read somewhere that the drivers can sell you a one way ticket); or (2) take a taxi (I saw several coming and going from Mendenhall), and make an appointment to have the driver pick you up at a certain time? Once again, I did not spend much time in the port itself; once again, not overly impressed.

 

Skagway – We docked at Skagway, and the weather was gorgeous. My sons, their cousin & I did the rock climbing excursion, which was outstanding. The town was small and a lot of fun to walk through. However, there were way too many jewelry shops (which seemed the same as the other way-too-many-jewelry shops in Ketchikan & Juneau). Shopping is not my thing, but it seems to me that more specialty shops with upscale & unique items (of quality) would serve everyone better than 20 jewelry shops and 20 t-shirt stores. Oh well, I guess that’s why I’m not in retail.

 

Icy Strait Point – This is clearly a stopped created just for cruise ships (like Costa Maya in Mexico), and I loved it! Only one cruise ship is allowed in port at a time (all ships tender). Nice, short nature trial. Nice (rocky) beach. We did the whale excursion, which also was great. We were lucky and saw several humpback whales (including a mom & calf).

 

Hubbard Glacier – Arrived at 7:00am. It was really spectacular. We also saw a black bear and a brown bear, on the shore of a nearby island, as we exited the bay.

 

Disembarkation

 

We arrived at Seward very early. In the past, my biggest problem with cruise line procedures (or the lack thereof) is when it comes time to get off the ship. Their time estimates are always off. They don’t have anyone on the ship to whom you can address questions (“Has Red 4 been called?”; “Why was Red 4 skipped?; etc.). We were Red 4, which was supposed to get off the ship at “6:25pm”. They call “Red 1”. Then they call Lavender this, Brown that. I go to find someone to ask if we have missed “Red 4”. No one new anything. Then, “Last call for all Reds”. I swear, on the soles of my (future) grandchildren, that we went from “Red 1” to “Last call for all Reds” with nothing in-between. Luckily we were in no hurry, so I was more amused than anything else. However, on our last cruise, this lack of correct information was more aggravating since we had an early flight. The three hour bus ride to Anchorage was pretty, but I was the only one that enjoyed it, since the rest of my family slept most of the way. One thing to keep in mind: Anchorage is a long way away from the eastern part of the US. It took us two travel days to get back to our home town, although this is partially due to my reluctance to have tight “connections”, particularly when traveling with the boys. This is one trip, if I ever did it again, that I might bight the bullet and buy the air component through the cruise line.

 

Summary

 

Radiance is a beautiful ship; the best we have been on. An Alaskan cruise is a must do; however, for me, once will do.

 

I will be more than happy to answer any questions, as best I can.

[isujim]

Nice review..............we were on Radiance for 15 days doing a full transit of the Canal and loved the ship..........thanks for taking the time to post your review.

[My2Kitties]

Thank you so much for the review...we can't wait to see both Radiance and Alaska. We will do whale watching in Icy Strait and do other things in the other ports...Do you have the menus (what each night looked like)...is playing pool on the ship as cool as it looks?

[Italy52]

Thanks for your detailed review, I really enjoyed it. We have cruised with Princess and RCI, it's nice to get a balanced prospective. We will be taking the Radiance next year to Alaska and I have a question for you: How was the tendering process, was it organized? Where did you get your tender tickets? How long did it take from ship to shore?

 

Thanks in advance for your reply.

[jrpjr]

To My2Kitties - I did not get copies of the menus, but the ones I saw posted elsewhere, before I left, seemed very similar to what we had on board. I did not play pool, but it did look cool.

[jrpjr]

To Itlay52 - Tendering was a breeze (much better than the nightmare in Grand Cayman). We were told, however, that the ability to dock at Juneau in the morning greatly contibuted to our lack of problems. No tender tickets that I ever saw. All tenders were of very short duration.

[mytwoboys]

Thanks for the great review we will be on the Radiance 2/2008. We are getting very excited:)

[jetlady]

thanks for the review, can you tell us what nights were the formal nights?

[jrpjr]

jetlady - Formal nights were: 2nd (after Ketchikan) and 6th (after Icy Strait Point).

[cruisenfever]

Thank you so much for your wonderful review. We are doing the Member's cruise in September and can not wait to get back on our favorite ship.

[jetlady]

Thanks, my sister is going and was asking.

[MercedMike]

Great report. We love the Radiance! Thanks for posting.

 

You are right, true oenophiles will not find much on cruise ships. OTOH true carnivores will not either. Good steaks, good wines, but not great of either.

 

Lots of reports on the boards that early season cruises have not been able to get close to Hubbard Glacier. How close did you get? Was there much calving activity? How long did you stay?

 

Thanks!

 

Mike

[jrpjr]

To MercedMike - According to the Captain and Cruise Director, we got very close. About a half mile away, they said. We were repeatedly informed that this was a real treat, but unfortunately I no previous experiences to judge this by. Once we stopped going forward (around 7:00am), the Captain did a 360 with the ship (so everyone could see), then headed back out. I would say about an hour to an hour and a half total?

[mommyto2girls]

We are thinking of switching our January cruise from Carnival Liberty to the Radiance..one or 2 questions if you don't mind. Are there new beds and bedding I have a friend who went last year and said it was very old. And are the balcony staterooms a decent size and at all updated since the ship is 7 years old. We have only sailed larger RCCL ships. Thanks for any help.

[jrpjr]

To Mommyto2girls – We had the new bedding, and it seemed fine to me (a wee bit on the hard side). My boys slept on the pull-out couch, which was as hard as a rock. If I had slept on that, I still wouldn’t be walking normal.

 

The ship and our cabin were in tip-top shape. I was very briefly in a balcony cabin, and I looked O.K. to my uncritical eyes. Regarding size, however, it might have been a tight fit for my wife, our two teenage boys & me.

 

I thought the Radiance was nearly perfect. Can’t speak highly enough about its design & lay-out.

[scarlet4897]

I thus took the step of buying six bottles of wine through Well Wishers, and having these delivered in a gift basket to our cabin. With regard to the bottles I had delivered on-board by Well Wishers, we were never charged a corkage fee, quote]

 

Hey there! Thanks for the nice review. I was actually thinking of using Well Wishers.com to order their tropical flower arrangments but was worried about the logistics, i.e. when it would be delivered, what happens if its not delivered, etc. Would you mind sharing more about that? Thanks!:)

[EggDropErin]

Thanks for the review. I can sit here and daydream about cruising all day though you fine cruisers. :)

[jrpjr]

To scarlet4897 - Well Wishers was great to work with. My comment about not doing it again, i.e., having a gift basket of wine sent to myself, was aimed at me, not at them. I did find that a little bit of gentle nagging on my part was necessary to get them to respond, but, in all honesty, what I was trying to do was out of the ordinary.

 

My basket arrived shortly after the emergency drill. I was as promised in all respects. I would strongly recommend them.

[scarlet4897]

Yea, I'm trying to decided between well wishers, just because of you, or just ordering them through the ship. Well Wishers floral arrangment is almost double than the cruiseline's price, but the well wishers floral arrangement just looks so beautiful!

[CleoPat]

I was on Radiance last year. Fantastic! Who was your captain?

[JJ2sail]

Thanks for the review! We have just 80 days to go!

 

The lack of wine selections and staff knowledge has been an on-going thorn in many sides! I pretty much gave up, and switched to the foo foo drinks!:D ;)

[Murphy]

Thank you so much for your wonderful review. We are doing the Member's cruise in September and can not wait to get back on our favorite ship.

 

Yeah, what she said... ;) THANKS!

[jrpjr]

To CleoPat - Our Captain was Trym Selvag. Very friendly and talkative, with a booming voice: "GOOD MORNING, GOOD MORNING, THIS IS YOUR CAPTAIN..."