Just off Brilliance - Thoughts and Observations

[bluegirlum]

Great review! I will be on the brilliance 4/6/15 whats your opinion on late or early dining! And can we change it if we dont like it. We chose 8:30

 

 

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I think that depends on what you like to do after dinner. On our cruise, there were some pretty serious karaoke singers, and they would get to the Colony Club (I think that's where it was) an hour early (during whatever game was going on) to sign up for it since only a certain amount of people could sing/they didn't want to stay up too late. So if you're a hard-core karaoker, I would go to the early dinner. :) Otherwise I think you'll be fine. The later seating on our cruise was definitely a younger crowd.

 

Have a great time!

[JLBellaCC]

We are thinking of the Brillance or Grandeur for a Canada/New England cruise in October. We have always cruised to the Caribbean and love, love, love our pool time. So my concern with a cruise heading north in October is the fact that it will be too chilly for the outdoor pool. I think these two ships have a retractable roof over the one pool area- can you tell me about this area and is it a nice pool area? Thank you!

[bluegirlum]

We are thinking of the Brillance or Grandeur for a Canada/New England cruise in October. We have always cruised to the Caribbean and love, love, love our pool time. So my concern with a cruise heading north in October is the fact that it will be too chilly for the outdoor pool. I think these two ships have a retractable roof over the one pool area- can you tell me about this area and is it a nice pool area? Thank you!

 

Brilliance does have a Solarium with a roof. The decor is somewhat dated, but the pool and hot tub are great and probably is exactly what you're looking for. If you do a search in some of the reviews people have posted pictures. http://boards.cruisecritic.com/search/royal-caribbean/brilliance

[breeze123]

Enjoyed your review.

 

Did you do any excursions?

 

Yes, we did the wreck and reef snorkel in Grand Cayman and the Dolphin Push, Pull and Swim in Cozumel. Really enjoyed both and had positive experiences. Sun was very hot in both locations so definitely wear your sunscreen. My daughter got a nice sunburn in Grand Cayman!

[breeze123]

Brilliance does have a Solarium with a roof. The decor is somewhat dated, but the pool and hot tub are great and probably is exactly what you're looking for. If you do a search in some of the reviews people have posted pictures. http://boards.cruisecritic.com/search/royal-caribbean/brilliance

 

Agree. For this cruise, it was never crowded (in my opinion) and we could always find chairs. This could be different on a cruise going north though. :)

[bluegirlum]

Agree. For this cruise, it was never crowded (in my opinion) and we could always find chairs. This could be different on a cruise going north though. :)

 

Definitely!

[American Bear]

We sadly had to get off the Brilliance on Saturday morning to return home. :( This was one of our favorite cruises so far. I thought I would share some of my thoughts and observations since this is not a ship that is reviewed often.

 

Embarkation was fairly easy. We had to wait in a bit of a security line just to get into the building (set sail pass/passport check). Then we did the health survey and hopped in line for check in. That took all of 5 minutes. Security took a bit longer since my husband has a metal hip and it caused some issues. Once on board we sat next to Cafe Lattitudes which was quiet and relaxing. Rooms were ready by 1pm.

 

The ship itself is in great condition. The carpets, upholstery, linens, etc. all looked like they were still brand new. Everything was very clean and well maintained. A fellow passenger in the elevator on departure day was complaining that the men's restroom outside the Windjammer was gross, but I do think that was in part due to the number of people cycling through there while we were waiting for our rooms. We never encountered this issue in the public restrooms during the rest of the cruise.

 

The food was as to be expected. Nothing terrible, but nothing to write home about. We know this so we were not disappointed. My husband had the lasagna one night and said it was fantastic. I was addicted to the fries at the Windjammer and my daughter couldn't get enough of the chocolate chip cookies.

 

We were in a GS so we ordered in from the dining room on most nights. We are lazy diners and do not like to get dressed for dinner on vacation so we enjoyed this suite perk quite a bit. We did notice that the WJ was serving almost all the same items as the dining room menu in the evenings so really, it was a wash for us.

 

The talent of the entertainers on board was incredible. I usually don't say that about cruise entertainment, but wow! I was very impressed. The Broadway style show in the theater had me wondering why these people were not actually starring on Broadway. They were THAT good. Very impressive. We enjoyed the groups playing in the Centrum as well and often spent time just sitting, listening, and watching people dance.

 

For all the speculation on cutbacks in crew, this ship seemed to have an EXCESS of crew roaming around at all time. There were constantly officers walking around the ship looking as if they were just observing. There even seemed to be some cleaning crew that were looking like they were trying to be busy (one standing in front of a sign that says "Caution: Wire on stairs" as the other crew member was vacuuming). We also noticed a lot of crew in uniform eating at the Windjammer throughout the day. I thought this was no no? In addition, in the evenings, we would see crew in street clothes, with their badge on, just wandering around the ship. One was even a couple holding hands. We had no problem with any of this, but I thought it was odd since I always thought crew had to stay in their own quarters when not on duty.

 

We had one crew member who really WOW'd us. Most of the rest of the crew were fine. Some were indifferent, but no one else really went above and beyond. We were not bothered by this, but it's just an observation.

 

This was a Spring Break cruise and while we did have a large group of college students, they mainly kept to the Sky Bar and we really didn't run into them anywhere else. The pools and hot tubs had plenty of room.

 

The bar service was slow, but we just figured out where we could get served more quickly and walked to that bar rather than wait. Probably a wash on that too, but it made me think I was getting a drink more quickly. :) A few times at Vintages there would be no one there to serve and people would be standing around waiting for someone to show up. My daughter was disappointed by the lack of Freestyle Coke machines, but I do think she got a kick out of bellying up to the bar to get her drink. LOL

 

Our CD was Clo, and personally, I didn't enjoy her. We only saw her twice during the whole cruise (once during the Broadway show and once just walking through the Centrum on her way somewhere). The other CD staff seemed to be at every event. To the point that I couldn't believe I just left one at Bingo and here she was showing up at the dance party.

 

We stopped at Grand Cayman and Cozumel and both had 4 ships in port total. Even with that, we never felt like there were that many people roaming around. Perhaps when you first get on the pier, but after that, it was fine. The towel pickup for port was a bit of a nightmare. Compass said get them at the exit. When we get down there to the front of the line and then ask, they say you have to go upstairs, to the pool, to get them. Huh? So I ran back to the pool only to have that person argue with me that I can't take them for port. I told her the guy told me I had to get them here and she relented. There was someone waiting when we returned to the ship to take the towels back and scan our card (which was never scanned on exit), but I just returned them to the pool where I got them from. It's possible I missed the information somewhere, but I would have thought the crew at the exit would know better how to direct me.

 

My daughter took a stab at AO again on this trip and LOVED IT (she hated it on the Enchantment). I literally had to drag her back to the room at night. I do think it's more of the amount and mix of kids vs. what is actually going on in there. Either way, she had a blast.

 

Disembarkation was a breeze. We were in a GS and we are Platinum so we took the Platinum lounge as it was closer to the exit and we wouldn't have to fight for the elevators. A crew member escorted us straight to the front of the line which was unexpected and awesome! Then when we got to baggage claim, we tipped a porter to help us which allowed up a fast track lane through customs. Definitely worth the money!

 

Again, a fabulous cruise with many great memories. I would sail this ship again in a heartbeat.

 

Happy to answer any questions!

 

We did this cruise last summer, had a good time also.:)

[JLBellaCC]

Thank you!

[DENNICH]

We sadly had to get off the Brilliance on Saturday morning to return home. :( This was one of our favorite cruises so far. I thought I would share some of my thoughts and observations since this is not a ship that is reviewed often.

 

Embarkation was fairly easy. We had to wait in a bit of a security line just to get into the building (set sail pass/passport check). Then we did the health survey and hopped in line for check in. That took all of 5 minutes. Security took a bit longer since my husband has a metal hip and it caused some issues. Once on board we sat next to Cafe Lattitudes which was quiet and relaxing. Rooms were ready by 1pm.

 

The ship itself is in great condition. The carpets, upholstery, linens, etc. all looked like they were still brand new. Everything was very clean and well maintained. A fellow passenger in the elevator on departure day was complaining that the men's restroom outside the Windjammer was gross, but I do think that was in part due to the number of people cycling through there while we were waiting for our rooms. We never encountered this issue in the public restrooms during the rest of the cruise.

 

The food was as to be expected. Nothing terrible, but nothing to write home about. We know this so we were not disappointed. My husband had the lasagna one night and said it was fantastic. I was addicted to the fries at the Windjammer and my daughter couldn't get enough of the chocolate chip cookies.

 

We were in a GS so we ordered in from the dining room on most nights. We are lazy diners and do not like to get dressed for dinner on vacation so we enjoyed this suite perk quite a bit. We did notice that the WJ was serving almost all the same items as the dining room menu in the evenings so really, it was a wash for us.

 

The talent of the entertainers on board was incredible. I usually don't say that about cruise entertainment, but wow! I was very impressed. The Broadway style show in the theater had me wondering why these people were not actually starring on Broadway. They were THAT good. Very impressive. We enjoyed the groups playing in the Centrum as well and often spent time just sitting, listening, and watching people dance.

 

For all the speculation on cutbacks in crew, this ship seemed to have an EXCESS of crew roaming around at all time. There were constantly officers walking around the ship looking as if they were just observing. There even seemed to be some cleaning crew that were looking like they were trying to be busy (one standing in front of a sign that says "Caution: Wire on stairs" as the other crew member was vacuuming). We also noticed a lot of crew in uniform eating at the Windjammer throughout the day. I thought this was no no? In addition, in the evenings, we would see crew in street clothes, with their badge on, just wandering around the ship. One was even a couple holding hands. We had no problem with any of this, but I thought it was odd since I always thought crew had to stay in their own quarters when not on duty.

 

We had one crew member who really WOW'd us. Most of the rest of the crew were fine. Some were indifferent, but no one else really went above and beyond. We were not bothered by this, but it's just an observation.

 

This was a Spring Break cruise and while we did have a large group of college students, they mainly kept to the Sky Bar and we really didn't run into them anywhere else. The pools and hot tubs had plenty of room.

 

The bar service was slow, but we just figured out where we could get served more quickly and walked to that bar rather than wait. Probably a wash on that too, but it made me think I was getting a drink more quickly. :) A few times at Vintages there would be no one there to serve and people would be standing around waiting for someone to show up. My daughter was disappointed by the lack of Freestyle Coke machines, but I do think she got a kick out of bellying up to the bar to get her drink. LOL

 

Our CD was Clo, and personally, I didn't enjoy her. We only saw her twice during the whole cruise (once during the Broadway show and once just walking through the Centrum on her way somewhere). The other CD staff seemed to be at every event. To the point that I couldn't believe I just left one at Bingo and here she was showing up at the dance party.

 

We stopped at Grand Cayman and Cozumel and both had 4 ships in port total. Even with that, we never felt like there were that many people roaming around. Perhaps when you first get on the pier, but after that, it was fine. The towel pickup for port was a bit of a nightmare. Compass said get them at the exit. When we get down there to the front of the line and then ask, they say you have to go upstairs, to the pool, to get them. Huh? So I ran back to the pool only to have that person argue with me that I can't take them for port. I told her the guy told me I had to get them here and she relented. There was someone waiting when we returned to the ship to take the towels back and scan our card (which was never scanned on exit), but I just returned them to the pool where I got them from. It's possible I missed the information somewhere, but I would have thought the crew at the exit would know better how to direct me.

 

My daughter took a stab at AO again on this trip and LOVED IT (she hated it on the Enchantment). I literally had to drag her back to the room at night. I do think it's more of the amount and mix of kids vs. what is actually going on in there. Either way, she had a blast.

 

Disembarkation was a breeze. We were in a GS and we are Platinum so we took the Platinum lounge as it was closer to the exit and we wouldn't have to fight for the elevators. A crew member escorted us straight to the front of the line which was unexpected and awesome! Then when we got to baggage claim, we tipped a porter to help us which allowed up a fast track lane through customs. Definitely worth the money!

 

Again, a fabulous cruise with many great memories. I would sail this ship again in a heartbeat.

 

Happy to answer any questions!

 

Thanks for posting your excellent review. It was very informative and I enjoyed reading it. I am sailing on the Brilliance in a couple of weeks and I will be in a GS. I have a couple of questions that I hope you can answer. :) I was wondering if you had any noise from the pool deck above in your room? How was the food service for your meals in your room? Did the food arrive hot? Can you order from the dinner menu for room service anytime that dinner is being served on board in the dining room?

 

Thanks again for such an informative post. :)

[FunCruisinFamily]

Thank you for taking the time to review Brilliance. We will be sailing Nov. 21. We are so excited about it.

[Paulette3028]

Great review! I will be on the brilliance 4/6/15 whats your opinion on late or early dining! And can we change it if we dont like it. We chose 8:30

 

 

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Thanks for the review. My husband and I are on the April 6th sailing and I am counting the hours before we board. The winter has been way too long and cold!

 

 

If either of you can, please let me know who the Activity Manager is on your cruise.....thanks!

 

Here is hoping you have a terrific time -- I am sure you will!

[Missus Makkem]

I am sorry that the OP did not care for Clo the cruise director, we have sailed with her many times and for me she is one of the best.

Just goes to show we all have different likes and dislikes.

Hope she is on our June sailing to the Baltic.

[Paulette3028]

I am sorry that the OP did not care for Clo the cruise director, we have sailed with her many times and for me she is one of the best.

Just goes to show we all have different likes and dislikes.

Hope she is on our June sailing to the Baltic.

 

How true....I often wonder how some people even get jobs as part of the entertainment team and others are tremendously talented and incredibly personable.

[loopner]

Thank you for taking the time to review Brilliance. We will be sailing Nov. 21. We are so excited about it.

 

So am I !

 

Join the roll call!!! :D

http://www.cruisecritic.com/rollcalls/brilliance-of-the-seas-november-21-2015/

[Justmekaren918]

Thanks for the great review! Brilliance is my favorite ship, and I can't wait to be on her next March for a b2b! Don't forget about the great patio past WJ.

 

For all the NE trips! The Solarium is enclosed for swimming, but understand they will have times when the kids are allowed in to swim!

 

For anyone thinking about booking I highly recommend those deck 7 forward of the elevators cabins, because balconies are much bigger! True table! Upper deck can look down on 3/4 of your deck though!

 

Enjoy she is such an awesome ship! The right size! I do have to give Freedom class another chance!

 

Happy cruising![emoji41]

[c-legs]

Thanks for your good review.

About your sense there were what seemd to be almost an excess of crew members/ooficers ,visible all over....might mean RCL deployed an ''observer team'' as is done periodically on all lines.

As well, there might have been some rookies doing the ''live trip'' part of their training.

Glad you had a voyage that obviously met most of your expectations.

Cheers

[waterbugohio]

Any chance of a current compass???

[sail-away2015]

I have one

 

 

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[waterbugohio]

can you post or email them?? rdhemm at hometowncable dot net

 

thanks we sail monday woo hoo

[tokyo1949]

It sounds like you had a great fun cruise doing the things you like to do.....I agree with your daughter -- I love the chocolate chip cookies as well....and make them a part of my daily diet on a ship.

 

I also am amazed at the talent of the entertainment staff on many of the cruises we have been on. Although I have not had Clo as a CD on any cruise, I am glad to hear that the rest of the entertainment staff was incredibly visible at all events, even if she was not. Who was the Activity Manager on board?

 

I have found that the entertainment staff works so incredibly hard to make the activities (from line dancing to trivia to karaoke and everything elso) rock and add to everyones fun. The CD gets a lot of the attention, but the entertainment staff does so much more of the daily work, led by the Activity Manager who is the assistant to the CD, in reality.

 

I was surprised to read the review on Clo we have had her as our CD a couple of times and found her to be great and so much fun. As we are sailing on the transatlantic from Tampa next month we were delighted to know she was the CD. Glad to hear all the good things about the ship.

[7leagueboots]

Thanks for the review...our favorite TA was on the Brilliance.

[JoeRum]

Brilliance is my Favorite ship and Cozumel and Grand Cayman are great Ports! I recommend in Grand Cayman doing a jet ski tour to Starfish Beach and Sting Ray City. We used Ebanks Watersports and loved it!

 

JoeRum

[Harley-Davidson_Family]

How true....I often wonder how some people even get jobs as part of the entertainment team and others are tremendously talented and incredibly personable.

 

I agree, I thought Clo was personable enough but hardly ever saw her. I felt Mo was more the cruise director because he was everywhere. She seemed to just "pop in" at the beginning and end of shows and the 70's dance party she just showed up at the end. I expected more from someone who's been with Royal 13 years and I think 27 years in the business.

[shipshape sam]

We didn't get back there much as we somehow got stuck in the casino every time we tried to walk through. ;)

 

Deck 6 will do that to you.

 

Just a few more yards and you would have made it. :)

[Paulette3028]

I agree, I thought Clo was personable enough but hardly ever saw her. I felt Mo was more the cruise director because he was everywhere. She seemed to just "pop in" at the beginning and end of shows and the 70's dance party she just showed up at the end. I expected more from someone who's been with Royal 13 years and I think 27 years in the business.

 

Was Mo the Activity Manager or just another member of the entertainment team?