Review-Radiance OTS Panama Canal, Oct 24 - Nov 7

[DisneyBlonde]

PreCruise

 

The night prior to our flight we stayed at Four Points by Sheraton at the Philadelphia Intl airport, using their Park and Fly program. For $89 ($96.07 w/tax) we got a nice room for the night, and were able to leave our car there while cruising for no additional cost. The hotel supplies a shuttle to the airport…and then back from the airport to the hotel after the cruise. I like doing this because we tend to book early flights. By staying close to the airport there is no need to deal with rush hour traffic or unexpected delays, on what is usually already such a hectic day. We booked Four Points using www.stay123.com. This was our second time using them. Their service is good and their prices are very good. Four Points Sheraton has a restaurant (Café Rusto), lounge, and outdoor pool on site. Neighboring Sheraton Suites (Atrium Café for continental cuisine, indoor pool and fitness center) is a short walk.

 

We had three flights in the morning, all on SouthWest: Phili to Chicago, Chicago to Kansas City, and Kansas City to San Diego. Our first flight began at 7:10 - the day ran smoothly and without incident - and we were in San Diego by 1:30 or so PST. The roughest part of the day was managing all our bags at the San Diego airport. In order to pick up the hotel shuttle we had to maneuver to the second floor, go across an overpass, and back down to the street. A long haul with lots of baggage in tow, and in very warm weather.

 

As we approached our hotel it didn't look like much in comparison to the others in the area - I believe it was the only set of pink and blue buildings around. But it was actually a very nice place and very clean. We booked The Holiday Inn San Diego On the Bay ($189) through Travelocity, our first time using this service. I had a concern because the e-confirmation from Travelocity did not specify that we had booked a Bayview King (for all intends and purposes the hotel was sold out, we just got lucky and saw an availability on Travelocity), but all went smoothly at check-in. The hotel is very nice. A little spread out, perhaps, as we had to drag our bags from the lobby, down the hall, through a courtyard and over to an adjacent building…but from that point on we were in the perfect location. We had an amazing view of the pier where our ship would be right on our balcony. And we could see the walkway we would use to cross over PCH to get to the pier in the morning, which would be easily accessible from this particular building. The view of the bay was great, with the San Diego Maritime Museum and The Star of India to the right, and The Midway Aircraft Carrier Museum and Seaport Village to the left.

 

This location offers several dining options. There is a Ruth’s Chris Steak House on property, as well as The Elephant and Castle, which looked pretty cool. We had breakfast Sunday morning at the Hazelwood Deli, also on property. Off property but nearby is Anthony’s Seafood Grotto, and The FishMarket.

 

We toured the Midway for about an hour, then had an early dinner at The FishMarket. Since it was a long day we turned in early, awoke to the sound of a ship's horn, and watched both the Carnival Spirit and the Radiance arrive at the port at about 5 am.

 

 

Embarkation:

 

Radiance of the Seas holds 2,501 passengers when full, and the Carnival Spirit holds another 2,124 passengers. These ships are large, and the port is not. With only one building to process passengers, we'd been shaking our heads for weeks wondering how this was going to play out. We initially thought this might be a good time to be the laid back couple that mosey on the ship late in the afternoon, after the rush. We had this fabulous balcony view of the harbor in a great hotel. So we would remain in our room until our 12 pm checkout, then ask the porter to hold our bags while we explore the San Diego shoreline a bit, pick up our bags and board the ship after the dock clears. But once the hustle and bustle of embarkation begins, every cruiser understands, you want to be where the action is. You want to get on the ship. So at 11:30 we packed everything and walked over to the pier (with the help of one of the trolleys to carry our bags). An hour or so of waiting in the hot sun…then things started to move right along and within 30 minutes we were onboard.

 

Now rumor has it that all morning activities (disembarkation as well as the loading of food and goods) was held up due to the fact that two men who were to disembark Radiance that morning were being detained for previous offenses (robbery and child molestation) and two more were being held for illegal alien status. This has not been substantiated, but the RCCL agent that processed us gave us the scoop.

 

We couldn’t go to our cabin right away, but after lunch in Windjammers we went to check it out. Jim had the cabin decorated with Bon Voyage streamers, a Bon Voyage chocolate cake, and a beautiful flower arrangement with pink roses and purple orchids. Just gorgeous! Our cabin was an E1, 7110, a handicapped cabin. Neither of us is physically challenged, but RCCL puts any unbooked handicap accessible cabins up for grabs about three weeks prior to the cruise. We had booked an E1, so it didn't cost us anything to switch to cabin 7110, which is much larger than a standard E1, with a very large bathroom. And due to it's placement in the back of the port side bump-out, the balcony was also very large. The only downside to this cabin was that the lifeboats were below it, and when you look directly down from the balcony you see lifeboat cover instead of water. Other than that this was a great cabin in an ideal location.

[DisneyBlonde]

The Ship:

 

This ship was really great. Radiance is Jim's favorite class because he feels it’s the right size, with not too many people. Donna is still partial to Voyager class, though Radiance is a very close second.

 

Radiance has no ice skating rink, but it does have a cinema. It doesn't have Johnny Rockets, but the onion rings at the Seaview Cafe are just as good. There is no Royal Promenade, but the Centrum is spectacular. The Concierge Lounge on Radiance is smaller than the one on Voyager, but the one on Radiance has an incredible view. And speaking of great views, the glass elevators are very cool. In fact, there is so much glass and so many windows on Radiance that there are excellent views from many different areas, making it the ideal ship for this Panama Canal itinerary.

 

One of our favorite places on the ship is the Solarium. It has a retractable glass roof, pool, 2 hot tubs, it's own bar, and an area that serves pizza, hotdogs, nachos, cookies and brownies. Donna (aka DisneyBlonde) referred to this as the “Disney room”, because it has a Disney feel to it. It was done in a very Lion King-esque motif, and there are even bird-chirping/frog-croaking/crickety noises piped in, a la Disney. The focal point of the room is the far wall with three huge elephant sculptures on it. This wall is lit at night with soft colored lights and it's just the dreamiest place on the ship to be. In front of the elephant wall is a wooden bridge, reminds me very much of Jungle Book. The Solarium is supposed to be adults only, but it saw it's share of unsupervised teens the two weeks we were onboard.

 

A close second to the Disney Solarium is the Disney hallway. The tres cool entranceway to the Schooner Bar (cool in its own right) had a cannon in the center, a mural of turn of the century ships and captains at sea, and always spelled like gunfire. For Disney attics, it’s reminiscent of going through the Rome burning section of Spaceship Earth in EPCOT. The Nautical theme continues into the Schooner Bar. The wood is very dark but is offset nicely by massive amounts of windows. There are sails and rope knot accents. The dark wood continues back to the next area, the Colony Club...very "Hounds of the Baskerville". Next to the Colony Club is the Bombay Billiard Club. Designed especially for use at sea, the self-leveling pool tables are in almost constant motion due to the motion of the ocean, and yet the balls only move when they are supposed to.

 

Other very cool places: the Scoreboard bar (the walls of which are filled with flat screen TV screens), Latte-tudes coffee bar (try the Cafe Frio with a shot of vanilla), and the Centrum (with views extending up through 6 decks).

 

The Aurora theater, Casino Royale, and Cascades dining room are pretty standard spaces. The dining room was only 2 levels, not three, and lacked the grandeur and elegance of the dining room on Voyager, but it was very beautiful nonetheless. Likewise the casino was only 1 floor. The main pool area was fairly nondescript. There was a rather obtrusive looking totem pole overlooking the pool, but beyond that there was no other themeing in the area that was obvious to me. 'Course they had a bar with a blender and there was water in the pool...so they had it all!

 

Like many RCCL ships, Radiance has a Champagne Bar which is usually always empty. My opinion, RCCL would do well to repurpose this area into a Martini Bar.

 

The shops onboard carry pretty typical fare. Prices are not horrible. I bought a pair of Fossil sunglasses for $28 that would have cost me the same at my local department store. RCCL T-shirts were of good quality, and available at 2/$28. As with most ships, there are very few sundries on board. Bring your favorite sinus remedy/suntan lotion/hair brush with you, because chances are you won’t find what you’re looking for on the ship.

 

There are two specialty restaurants on board Radiance, Portofino and Chops Grille. The food in both is outstanding, giving a slight edge to Chops which has a more casual atmosphere. I personally prefer Chops' steakhouse feel, but Portofino is beautiful, and also offers a Murder Mystery Dinner Show, which was lots of fun.

 

 

Staff:

 

Prior to embarking on Radiance I had heard this ship has the best crew afloat. Well, this is often said about other ships, and we haven’t always found that we agree. This happens to be true about Radiance. Captain Kent, the “Singing Captain”, was more visible on this sailing than any captain I recall on any previous sailing. And not just at the obligatory returning passenger functions and Captain’s Cocktail hour. He was in the Centrum, he was in the Windjammer, he was even at the Halloween party.

 

Cruise Director Tim Seivert is a very funny guy, we enjoyed all the activities he was involved with such as Trivia Challenge, Liar's Club etc. Assistant Cruise Director Anthony is the man that pulls the Bingo Balls, and he’s a lot of fun. Shane, Jessica, Jennifer, and Hugo round out the multi-talented and hard working but fun loving cruise director staff.

 

From our cabin attendant Luis, to INyoman at the Lobby Bar, to Petr at the Photo Gallery, the entire crew is friendly and truly capable. I think in our 14 days onboard, there was maybe one crew member that we thought might be ‘new’. Everyone else works together with an accord that truly exemplifies the phrase running a tight ship. It was a pleasure to spend my vacation time with this crew.

 

 

Passengers:

 

The passengers in general were not as old as we had thought they would be, based on what we had read. I would guess that the average age was late 50s early 60s. And they were a pretty rowdy bunch. No problem getting participants for the belly flop contest! The tour buses we saw leaving Huatulco and Puntarenas were all full – everyone wanted to ‘Get Out There!’. They were very into having a good time. The most notable thing about the age of the passengers was that there were very few teens and young children. I’m sure there were less 20 and 30 years olds than typical, but overall I feel the crowd was younger than I had expected.

[DisneyBlonde]

Ship Activities:

 

The spa offers a Couples Massage Workshop, this was a really nice way to spend the morning. For $55 for both of us, we were taught the proper way to give a back massage, and given a bottle of Elemis massage oil to take back to the cabin to practice with. There were two other couples in the workshop with us. The massage technician took the time to make sure we were applying pressure properly, and that we were using the right technique on the right muscles. It was a great couples activity.

 

Bingo! We played, we lost, we had fun. A fellow Cruise Critic won the snowball jackpot, over $10,000. Cha-ching!

 

There were a number of Academy at Sea courses offered. One was a cooking seminar, which we did not attend, but because it was held in the Centrum we were able to watch from the railing of deck 6 above. We saw that Cruise Director Tim had his hands in the middle of everything, making a huge mess and creating a lot of fun for everyone. There was also a course on Digital Photography which we did not attend, but we heard a few tips from fellow Cruise Critics that were very good. Wish we had attended that one. We did attend one session of the Bar and Hospitality course. We were able to taste three different martinis: the Chocolate Martini, the Cosmopolitan and the Bar Manager's Martini. Session four was the one I really wanted to attend: it was about shooters and flipping bottles and bar glasses. Somehow we missed it because I thought it was on Saturday, but it was on Friday.

 

Halloween Monster Dance Party: A lot of people dressed up, which was great but I think it surprised Cruise Director Tim. The Colony Club was packed, and it was really impossible to fairly award prizes for costumes (scariest, sexiest, funniest, most original, etc), because there was no way the judges were able to see every costume. It was a great time, I’m glad we dressed up and joined in the fun.

 

Murder Mystery Dinner Show: We started out with champagne in the Colony Club, where we met the players in this wacky melodrama and learned of their tawdry associations. We then proceeded to Portofino, where our waiter Joselito greeted us with wine and a smile. A few of the players were seated at tables with passengers, and actually had dinner with them. We did not have an actor at our table, so I don’t know whether they stayed in character the entire time or not. Shortly after ordering we were told that a murder had taken place…oh my! At various times throughout the evening, the actors would move from table to table and answer any questions we might have, with one caveat: we were told not to believe anything we hear. We were then asked to guess who we thought the murderer was. Correct guessers received a bottle of champagne or an RCCL tote bag. The cost for the Murder Mystery Dinner Show was $49 pp, an increase from the usually $20 pp. Limited to 70 guests.

 

 

Meet and Mingle:

 

The Meet and Mingle on board Radiance was very nice. Canape and soft drinks were served, and bar service was available. We didn’t feel rushed, as we have read other gatherings have been. We were each given a name tag and name tag holder when we entered the Hollywood Odyssey, and there was a raffle for three door prizes: 2 bottles of champagne and an RCCL AquaMouse, which Jimbo won. What made the meeting particularly special was the Cruise Critics that attended. Thanks to LauraS and the Roll Call boards, we were able to get to know each other before the cruise, and it felt like a reunion with old friends.

 

We also arranged to meet several other times during our 14 days at sea. Our very first meeting was after embarkation, by the Pool Bar. Some members of the group met again at Portofino for lunch, and others met at Portofino for the Murder Mystery Dinner Show. We had the pleasure of taking one of our tours, in Acapulco, with some of our Cruise Critic friends. And the entire group gathered again for a farewell meeting in the Schooner Bar on the Friday before we disembarked. We made some good friends on Radiance, and we hope to sail with them again soon.

 

 

RCCL Unplugged:

 

In this day, the internet has become so much a part of our lives that it has become necessary to have access. It feels like an obstacle when the internet is not available. Not that we need to surf the web while on vacation, but we have come to rely on the internet as our primary means of communication with those at home while we're traveling. I’m not sure what the deal is with RCCL ships and AOL, but I can never send an email on AOL while onboard. I have resorted to using Yahoo while cruising, but on this trip even Yahoo didn’t work. From our second day at sea till the end of the cruise, the internet was down. First we were told it was a problem with their satellite, and they expect it to be functioning the next day. Then I was told it would be the day after that. Our fellow Cruise Critics were told there was a “virus”, and the technical department was working on it (this was news to us, we hadn’t heard this one). Then the story was “this happens all the time in Mexico, once we get through the Canal it should be fine”. We didn't hear this excuse until sometime during the second week…after trying unsuccessfully to get access from day 3. We tried after we got through the canal, before and after Aruba, and all the way back to Miami…still no internet.

 

Personally, I was aggravated that I wasn’t able to keep in touch with my son, whom I had told to please check email everyday. But I really felt bad for the passengers who couldn’t get to their stock reports. Given the fact that most of the passengers are retired, I can understand the importance of being able to check their stocks and get to their portfolio, and how it could have been very costly for them not to have internet access for two weeks.

 

 

Excursions:

 

Cabo San Lucas

 

In Cabo we explored the streets of the town on our own, heading toward Cabo Wabo for some souvenir shopping. In the afternoon we did our ship-planned excursion. It was called Land's End tour with Scenic Drive. The Land's End portion of the tour was on a large catamaran which took us to Los Arcos, the famous rock formations that form the very tip of Baja California. We went by Lover's Beach, saw sea lions, and watched a fishing expedition pull in what looked like a 4-ft swordfish. After the catamaran portion of the tour, we loaded into air conditioned vans and headed to Giorgio's, a restaurant located atop Cabo Bello hill. We were given complimentary cervasa (mucho tasty)...and time to explore the grounds and take in the coastal vistas. This tour was $36 pp and we got our money’s worth, in my opinion.

 

Acapulco

 

Our next stop was Acapulco. We had booked a tour guide named Oscar who was highly recommended on our cruise boards. We went through the manager of the Acapulco Port Authority, Roberto, whom we also met on Cruise Critic. Roberto set up the tour with Oscar and dinner at La Perla, the restaurant famous for the cliff divers. We had three couples from Cruise Critic that were going on the tour with us. The others had elected to be dropped off at Le Quebrada to watch the 1:30 cliff divers show, at which time we would go back to the ship, and go to dinner at LaPerla at 6:30, and watch the evening cliff diver show. And that was the plan.

 

So we set off on our tour with Oscar at 9 AM. He showed us around Old Acapulco, beginning with Zocolo, or the center of the city, past Caleta, the oldest beach in Acapulco...by Sylvester Stallone's house....to Mirador de Puerto Marquis, or Lookout Point...and Las Brisas Hotel, where you get a jeep rental with your hotel room rental, very cha-ching! Then it was onto the beautiful Fairmont Princess Hotel, gorgeous. Then to Capilla de La Paz, or The Chapel of Peace, built on a mountain 1250 ft above sea level, the property has a cross which is 128 ft. high. Oscar is hooked up. The man has connections all over the city. He got us to places no one else could. He was able to drive us up a hill that most people had to walk, because the average tour vehicle is not allowed to drive in. He got us in to see a private villa while the owners were not around, so amazing. Breathtaking view.

 

[DisneyBlonde]

The next stop was the jewelry factory. They had a nice little setup, nice tour, we got to see jewelry molds, people handmaking jewelry, a demonstration of the way stone rough is mined, and finally the gift shop with complimentary margaritas and soft drinks. After this we dropped off the rest of our group at Le Quebrada to watch the cliff divers, while we went back to the ship. Overall this was an excellent tour, and I highly recommend Oscar. At the time we inquired about Oscar he was charging $35 an hour. Since then he has gotten a larger van and can accommodate more passengers, and his rate has increased slightly. You can get more info from Roberto (ACA_Port Authority) on the Mexican Riviera Port Of Call boards.

 

We were supposed to have dinner at La Perla, the tiered restaurant next to the cliff divers, and watch the 7:30 show. Since we had to be back on board by 8:30, we had pre-arranged through the manager of La Perla to be seated at 6:30, so we'd have plenty of time to eat, watch the show, and head leisurely back to the ship. We got a taxi and went back to the area of the dive show. We arrived at La Perla about 6:15, and checked in for our 6:30 reservation. The hostess, however, was not attentive. When we had not been seated by 6:45 we had decided to forego dinner, watch the 7:30 dive show, and eat once we got back to the ship.

 

The show was very interesting. We found a great spot on Symphony of the Sea, the grandstand built into the side of the mountain for watching the show. About 7:00 two small boys, maybe 10 or 12 years old, began to ascend the rocks. The boys dove, but from sort of a low spot. They continued to dive for a while. At 7:30 a few more divers came out, including a girl of about 13. In total there were 5 divers. First the girl dove, from the lowest point, which was twice as high as the young boys had previously. Then the next diver was up higher, etc, until two men dove in tandem from the highest point. The show was over in 20 minutes. Very interesting to see, and a must for first timers in Acapulco.

 

Huatulco

 

The next stop was Hualulco. I had read that this would be a nice beach day. Huatulco is a fairly new port, and there are not a lot of excursions available. So we planned nothing except shopping at the vendor stands at the pier and hitting the beach. The vendor's were nice in that they were not at all aggressive.

 

While heading toward the beach, however, the locals got much more assertive. We were chased down by someone saying his place didn't charge for chairs. We were approached by another man telling us we have to pay $5 each to sit. All the while, the beautiful Radiance of the Seas was sitting just a short walk away. We packed it in and headed back to the ship.

 

Puntarenas

 

Prior to leaving for the cruise, we had looked into going Ziplining, also called a Canopy Tour. The idea here is that you are harnessed to a cable and you slide from one platform to the next on the cable, while suspended over the rainforest. We also looked into doing a white water rafting tour, I heard great things about it, got some nice pictures from people who had taken the tour. We looked into the various tours offered by the ship, and all were 2 hours each way (or longer) from the ship. On bumpy roads. We started looking into other options. There was a resort that was an all inclusive, but that was over an hour each way, and I have a hard time justifying driving all that way and then paying extra for what we basically had on the ship. So bottom line is, we got on the ship not knowing what we would do in Puntarenas, and we ended up doing nothing. We got off briefly to shop at the craft stands, which had great stuff, and really inexpensive. This was quite a surprise. After hearing quite discouraging things about this port from the cruiseline, seems like they just didn't want us milling around the pier. We had been warned “there is nothing there, you will likely be back on the ship in less than 10 minutes”, unless we had an excursion planned. They were wrong. Thinking the dock had nothing to hold our interest, we had primarily gotten off to get coffee to bring back for both our parents. It was quite a walk down the pier, but there is a very unique trolley that picked us up right as we got off the ship, and drove us to the shops at the end of the pier.

 

There were lots of street vendors along the beach close to the road. They had so many nice things, and very inexpensive. There were all kinds of wooden items, such as bowls and covered boxes and puzzles. There was a guy selling sailboats made out of wood with cloth sails, really inexpensive. We got a nice ship in the bottle. There were several stands that had the coolest clay stuff. Shot glasses, flasks, pens, cigarette lighters...decorated with what looked to me like clay. There was a guy named Thanner that was selling handpainted plaques of Radiance of the Seas with different backgrounds (firey sunsets and moonlit nights) inscribed with the ship name, and date we were there: October 31, 2004. We liked these so much we couldn't decide, and we bought two: one with an orange and gold sunset, and the other a night scene complete with full moon (and it was!). Lots of jewelry, and not the same stuff you see at every port. Lots of local food. Very nice handmade crafts and clothing. It would be a pleasure to visit this port again, and I would try to do a rainforest tour, as our Cruise Critic friends told us the roads were not that bad.

[DisneyBlonde]

Panama Canal

 

The day prior to entering the Canal there was a lecture given on it's history, which was later shown on TV. There had also been a similar documentary playing on TV. Very interesting. When you go through the canal, you begin at sea level in the Pacific Ocean, you enter the first two sets of locks, Miraflorez Locks when traveling east, which elevate you to 85 feet above sea level, and you end up in the Atlantic Ocean after exiting the Gatun Locks. It was fascinating to go from first learning the history of it, including all the problems in actually building it (it took 10 years and $337 million dollars - in 1914 - and over 5000 men died while building it), and then to actually sail through it, and watch this engineering wonder in action. To have this level of genius and ingenuity at the turn of the century...makes me think what this guy could accomplish with today's technology backing him up.

 

We had read that passengers will crowd the heli-port (at the bow of the ship) to see the canal go through the Miraflorez Locks...then there's a 'been there done that' phase when everyone gets tired of standing in the sun and heat and either goes to the pool or back to their air conditioned cabin, or they go to eat. We talked about waiting it out in our cabin through the first set of locks, which were the smallest set anyway, and take pictures from our balcony...and we would go to the bow during the last set of locks, once the mania settled. But once the Bridge of the Americas was in sight, it was hard to stay in the cabin.

 

We spent the majority of the day on deck while going through the canal. We went through the first set of locks about 7:30, which took almost an hour. Then we bought some Panama souvenirs that had actually been tendered onto the ship after we went through Miraflorez locks. These items were not on board prior to that. Had a lazy afternoon on the solarium. It was at this time while in Gatun Lake that passengers with excursions were tendered from the ship. Then about 2:30 we took our place for the third and final set of locks, the Gatun Locks. These are the largest and most impressive, with three chambers. There are two entrances to the locks: if we went through on the right side, it would be better to be on the left of the bow for picture taking, but if we went through the left side, we would want to be on to the right. Since we got there early and there was still room, we split up to claim space in both areas. Once it became apparent that we were going through the right side, we joined up on the left of the bow. It was such a great thing to watch up close. We were going through the canal the same time an oil tanker was going through the left side, and we got some great shots throughout the process. We waved to the panama-cam as we went by, hoping my son could at least see us, since I hadn’t been able to email him.

 

After we went through the first lock chamber we left our spot at the bow...and started moving back toward the aft of the ship. We took pictures from the side of the ship, which was a neat perspective because we were very close to the guys driving the mule trains which pulled us through the canal. Like inches. We made our way to the aft, and had a great viewing spot to watch the ship going through the last chamber of the locks, and we sailed away from the Panama Canal, back at sea level, looking up at the bridge of water behind us.

 

Later on the ship docked at Cristobal Pier in Panama, to pick us those that had excursions through the canal. We got off the ship for a few minutes and walked through the shops. They had a nice set up, mostly all air-conditioned, and the local children are in cultural dress performing dances and posing for pictures.

[DisneyBlonde]

Aruba

 

We did a very nice island tour in Aruba. The last time we were there was a Sunday, and this particular tour was not operating. So we chose to do a day pass at an all-inclusive (Occidental Allegro, great place), but we didn't see much of Aruba. So this time we opted for the Banana Bus Explore Aruba tour. We were met at the dock at 9 am by Albert, driving an open air bus with iguanas on the hood, a huge banana hanging off the roof, and no windows. Like Oscar, our tour guide in Acapulco, Albert had the town wired. He was the man. Everywhere we went, Albert would toot his horn and shout out the window in his native language of Papiamento. We were greeted by hoots and hollers and waves throughout the island. I thoroughly enjoyed this tour, which was well worth $30 pp.

 

We began at the pier, and stopped at several of the hotels in hotel row to pick up more tourists. Our first stop was California Lighthouse. Very scenic, though I did not realize we would not be able to go in the lighthouse. Next was Alto Vista Chapel, build over 250 years ago and the oldest church on the island. We enjoyed complimentary refreshments before heading out. As we drove toward the Natural Bridge Albert pointed out the grassy areas on both sides of the road. According to him, this area is usually completely brown...all sand. Since Hugo, it has been raining daily on the island that never gets any rain. He said seeing everything so lush and green is a treat for him and the Arubans. Albert told us the tiny island of 20 miles long by 6 miles wide has very low unemployment. "You get fired today, you'll have another job tomorrow. No problem." Tourism is the number one industry, and school children are taught to speak four languages to accommodate the tourists. Aruba is under Dutch rule, and Albert will tell you it's very good to be under the Dutch rule.

The next stop was the Natural Bridge, a very scenic area with a nice gift shop. On the way out to Natural Bridge Albert had told us that the tourists stack rocks, I guess it's a jewish tradition and he's not sure how it started on Aruba, it's not an Island thing...but people are rock stacking and making wishes. We made our own rock stack and took pictures next to it.

 

After the Natural Bridge we drove past the old gold mining building and the jail with no fence that no one ever tries to escape from. We also stopped at a shrine built in a roadside cave where an Aruban girl in the 1990's was supposed to have seen the same vision of the Virgin Mary that a woman saw exactly 100 years earlier.

 

Baby beach was smaller than I had imagined. There was a single food stand, no local craft vendors, and one bathroom facility. I guess having heard so much about it I assumed it was a big beach, on par with Orient Beach, but it was not. This area had been hit pretty good by Hugo, and where there once was a soccer field and baseball field was now just beach sand and toppled wood. Could be Baby Beach was more impressive before Hugo. We didn't go in the water, but heard that the snorkeling was pretty good. We also heard that the snorkeling at the wreck of the Antilles was amazing.

 

Upon leaving Baby Beach, Albert gave each of us a pair of maracas and blasted Who Let the Dogs Out, and we rocked the Banana Bus all the way back to Oranjestad. Great tour. Albert dropped us off at Carlos and Charlies so we could do some souvenir shopping. Then we headed back to the ship for lunch.

[DisneyBlonde]

Food:

 

There were three Formal nights on this sailing: the first sea day, the first Saturday, and the second Friday. The 2nd and 3rd formal nights were lobster nights.

 

· Cascades dining room - Fair to good. No major complaints, but nothing special. The Lobster Royale was excellent, the beef tenderloin was very good, Royal Steak and Grilled Steak (alternate menu) were both tough when ordered medium well. The Shrimp Cocktail are too small (order it in Chops). Maryland crab cakes are excellent. Dessert was usually the best part of the meal. Flourless chocolate cake (of course!), Cheesecake with fresh berries.

 

Service was very good but could be a little slow. There were a few nights that some tables were getting coffee while we hadn't had our entrees yet. Our wait staff, Sweedin and Jeanette, worked well together but had too many tables.

 

· Portofino - Very Good. Filet Mignon with Tiger Shrimp was excellent (now those are shrimp!). Chicken Parm was good. Tiramisu, very good. Normally a charge of $20 pp, we attended the Murder Mystery Dinner Show, which was $49 pp.

 

Service was outstanding. Bravo, Joselito! Excellent waiter and a great voice to boot.

 

· Chops Grille - Outstanding. Everything from bread to dessert was excellent. We had Shrimp Cocktail, Maryland Crab Cakes, French Onion Soup, Cheese and Onion soup, New York Strip (I'd get Filet Mignon next time) and for sides: baked potato, rice pilaf, sauteed mushrooms, steamed asparagus. For dessert: Chocolate Mud Pie, and Apple Pie a la Mode (if you like apple pie, get it here. The one in the dining room/Windjammers does not compare). There is a charge of $20 pp for Chops Grille.

 

Service was excellent.

 

· Windjammer - One of the best buffets afloat! Made to order omelets were outstanding, order from the omelet station on the left of the Windjammer. Bacon left a little to be desired, we called it “bacon chips” because it was so well done it broke apart when you pick it up. Lunches were predictable but hot food was always hot, cold food always fresh and crisp. Dinner: love the sushi! Choices at dinner were remarkably diverse and appetizing.

 

Service was very good.

 

 

There were several late night buffets during the 2 week cruise:

· All American Buffet

· Mexican Buffet

· Chocolate Buffet

· Poolside Buffet

· Gala Buffet

 

One note, the Radiance ran low on iced tea about day 9 or 10. From that point on you could usually get iced tea in the morning, but by dinner time the daily allotment of iced tea was usually gone in Windjammer, the dining room, and Chops. Given the cost of soft drinks, I would think that RCCL could see to it that there was enough iced tea for it’s passengers who have paid good money to spend 14 days with them.

[DisneyBlonde]

Entertainment:

 

· Day 1 - The Welcome Aboard Show-Comedian Steven Scott, Royal Caribbean Singers and Dancers

· Day 2 - (Formal Night) Motown Music from former Drifter Johnny Thunder

· Day 3 - Royal Caribbean Singers and Dancers in The Piano Man, Wild West Dance Party

· Day 4 - Entertainer Craig Dahn, 70's Dance Fever

· Day 5 - Folkloric Showtime

· Day 6 - Dania Kaseeva, "Two Funny Guys" Mario and Daniel

· Day 7 - (Formal Night) David and Dania, Singer Joni Butler, Chocolate Buffet

· Day 8 - Comedian Yacov Noy, Halloween Monster Dance Party

· Day 9 - Violinist Claire Gobin, Love and Marriage Game Show

· Day 10 - The Diamond's Original Lead Dave Somerville

· Day 11 - Royal Caribbean Singers and Dancers in Welcome to Our World, The Quest, 50s Sock Hop

· Day 12 - Comedic Jugglers The Hill Brothers

· Day 13 - (Formal Night) Singer/Impressionist Bobby Arvon

· Day 14 - Farewell Show, Comedian Carl Banks

 

In my opinion the best entertainment we saw during the cruise was the “Two Funny Guys”, Mario and Daniel (day 6), and The Piano Man (day 3). Mario and Daniel were excellent, and I was sorry they only performed once. In fact, none of the comedians offered an adults only show, which I thought was odd given that there were so few children on board. I’m not a big fan of production shows, but I thought the Piano Man was excellent. It has great music and fantastic talent. I wish all production shows were as good.

 

There was a band that was not billed as a headliner, but should have been. Santino and Blakjax usually sang in the Colony Club, but also had engagements in the Centrum during the week. With amazing talent, lead singer Sonny sings the songs of Andrea Bocceli like no one else can. He and his band Blakjax play everything from Top 40 to rock to alternative to country. They seemed to have the entire ship under a spell, as most times when they played in the Centrum, the decks above would be crowded with passengers and crew alike, listening to their music. Not only is Sonny a great singer and entertainer, but he was funny, and very approachable. He could often be found partying with passengers till the wee hours.

 

Another fine entertainer is David Curtis in the Schooner Bar. This piano man was funny and very talented, and got the entire room pumped up and singing along, often inspiring impromptu karaoke sessions.

 

Radiance of the Seas is a fantastic ship and the Panama Canal was a great itinerary. I would highly recommend this ship to anyone. In fact I just helped a friend book her in-laws on their first cruise on Radiance, which will be a gift from she and her husband.

 

Go to our Webshots Page to see our photos (we haven’t finished downloading everything yet).

 

We’re happy to answer any questions you may have.

Jim and Donna:)

[Gaynors]

Wow was that a through and wonderful review!!!

 

Thanks so much for taking the time to put all that information on the boards for us.

 

Now it seems like the next 11 days will be forever!!!

 

Only next week and it will be our turn on the Radiance!!

 

Thanks!!

[Arizona Cruz Chic]

Thanks for a wonderful review and all the great memories from the Radiance and the PC form our Radiance PC cruise last October! Thats one cruise I would do again if given the chance.

 

***

[Kay D]

Quite interesting & well-written review!! We will be boarding Radiance this Sunday!!!!

[DisneyBlonde]

Also...

 

if you have any questions you can email us at JimboChap@aol.com, or DisneyBlonde@aol.com.

Diz:)

 

[Kay D]

A Few Questions:

Hair dryer in cabin??

Alarm clock or clock on TV station?

Refrig or mini-bar in cabin?? (Did you have items removed from mini-bar?)

[cathykb]

This was a great and very detailed review. I almost felt like I was there with you.

 

Cathy

[DisneyBlonde]

Yes, there is a hair dryer in the drawer at the dresser. I brought my own...as past experience tells me that the dryers onboard are usually wimpy.

 

There was no alarm clock, but the phone displays the time, as well as certain TV stations.

 

There is a mini-bar, and the room steward emptied it promptly when we asked

 

Amazing ship - you're going to have a great time!

 

Diz:)

 

[Croozin Soozin]

Hi Jim and Donna -

 

What a wonderful review of your trip!!! I can't wait till next October when we get to do the same cruise on my favorite ship - the Radiance.

 

Jim, I saw your message to me on the roll call for next year. I meant to email you and then forgot. I'm glad you guys had such a great time on your trip - I'm really looking forward to it!!!

 

Susan

[Jimbo]

It was an awesome cruise, you and Bill are going to have a great time........14 days spoiled us, so relaxing, the only way to cruise.

 

 

[NancyB84]

What a fantastic review. Thanks for taking the time to post such a well written and thorough review. Jimbo, that is a great picture of Radiance OTS.

[Arizona Cruz Chic]

Jimbo...awesome picture!

 

I agree 14 days is the best....it sort of goes hand in hand with

"once a balcony....always a balcony"

...now only "once 14 days...always 14 days!"

Definity spoiled, however we did enjoy the 11 nt Brilliance and I loved the 7 turned 9 nt girls cruise. As long as its a cruise....I'm happy, just make it a 14 day with balcony! :D

 

 

***

[ImPcJunky]

Thanks for all the pic's and summary of your cruise.. I am having a hard enough time waiting to get my feet on the Radiance, but now.. I will be whinning daily until I "Get Out There.". I have so much to look forward too... I am like you want a longer cruise if I have to fly acrossed the map to get there.. But we are going from Miami to San Diego.. then fly to Vegas for two days, then a short flight to Washingon..

GREAT JOB BOTH OF YOU...

THANK YOU..

HAPPY THANKSGIVING

[Guest cruzr44]

I need to know if aft is still your favorite. What a review! Your pictures are great! Thanks for taking the time to put everything together.

[Jimbo]

Aft is "Still" best for a 7 day cruise but Midship for a 14 day cruise sure worked well for us.;)

 

Jimbo:)

[mtebor]

thanks for the great review. My wife and I would love to do a Panama cruise for one of our anniversaries.

[twocats]

We are actually going through the Canal on another cruise line, but your information on going though the locks was go great that I will be taking your posted info with me. Also the port information will be a help since our itinerary is very close. We are actually going from Florida to San Francisco. Thanks again.

[Deloresgardella]

Your review was great, Wewill be going through the canal in April on the Coral Princess from Ft Lauderdale to San Francisco. After reading your review and discription of the ports I am more excited than ever.

Delores