Those Returning from Brilliance NE today - please tell all!

[apexigsx]

That's perfectly fine with me

[jackinav]

That's perfectly fine with me

 

Thank you for the information!

[Tatka]

Norwegian ships have oversized showers in comparison to industry standards, something that cannot be said about their standard room sizes. Brilliance's showers are standard, absence of shower door is inconvenient though.

[6timer]

One thing I wish I'd known before our cruise was that there is no clock radio to connect and play our iPod through. We will bring our own on the next cruise. Had to turn on tv and press channel down button twice to get to ship info onscreen to see time and location. Also would have been nice to know about 70's theme night ahead of time. I don't know why they don't put that info on their website - do any of the cruise lines?

[sail-a-bration]

Brilliance is a beautiful ship. I never felt overcrowded even though the ship was fully booked. We really enjoyed our dinner in the Main Dining room. We had wonderful servers Rigo and Pravid. Our food was always hot and everything but the steak was superb. The steak is a little tough, but not so tough I would send it back. I loved the eggplant parm. We only went to the windjammer for breakfast and lunch and preferred it over the main dinning room because it is quicker and has a larger selection. We were in 9078 and it is the first room on the corridor very near the Centrum or atrium you could hear the music in the cabin but it stops by 11pm. I enjoyed it, they have a female trio who play violins and a piano, a very talented singing couple and a group. If you are a light sleeper you may not want this cabin, But the balcony is HUGE!! you will love it. We also will save a ton of money on our Alaska cruise because we spent less than a few minutes a day on the balcony because it was so cold. It may be 45 or 55 degrees outside but if the ship is moving it is freezing. The ocean view would have been just as good; and the ports were so beautiful we were away all day. We really liked the shows and went to the trivia and dance classes. The shows were very good and the Brilliance orchestra was excellent. We stayed busy the whole time. Now for the dislikes. I asked for a pad for the bed because the bed was to hard for me and the cabin steward said they do not have mattress pads any longer If you are a first time cruiser they do not offer bathrobes or toiletries. The showers are small and have shower curtains. They close the Windjammer buffet early. We went to the early show and wanted to get a bite to eat afterward to discover it was closed. They have a little cafe that has a few deserts, sandwiches and pizza but that is about it. We went back to our room and ordered the cheese plate and cheesecake. It was better than a sandwich or the pizza. They do not discount the drink of the day if you do not want another souvenir glass. You can not order pre-order alcohol from bon voyage for your cabin. They only offer $55.00 a day drink package or the lesser $45.00 a day which has very limited selections. In summary, Royal Caribbean's food and entertainment was better than Carnival, but Bon voyage and the buffet hours are better on Carnival. We have also cruised on Holland America's Westerdam to Alaska, it was a little above Royal Caribbean and is still my favorite and they have bathtubs. Also no luggage valet in Boston. Bottom line, the ship is beautiful, the ports are fabulous and cruising is the best.

[sail-a-bration]

I am aware that I left an O off in the sentence the mattress was to hard instead of too hard.

[Tatka]

Royal is not offering bathrobes till you get to the next level after the first level - gold. Unfortunately.