Anyone just off Radiance??

[onefishtwofish]

We are so excited to be boarding her soon! We have sailed on most of the other classes and can't wait to see Radiance and enjoy Alaska!! Our last trip to Alaska was in 2000 on Rhapsody, so looking forward to enjoying this trip with our kids (13 & 15) We are embarking in Vancouver - how did that go? What time did you get to Canada Place?

 

Taking everything with a grain of salt, what did you think of the overall condition and look? Any plumbing problems?

 

I know food is objective, but thoughts there.....we are not planning on specialty restaurants this trip most likely...we did like Samba on Allure though....

 

If you had teens, how did they like it? Our kids are SO excited and we have always cruised with the kids, but they are ready for the ALASKA experience!

 

Did anyone get the photo package - think I saw it was $249 for all the photos....based on pricing, what is the break even number of photos you would have to buy?

 

Shore excursions - what did you do and how did you like it?

 

Any other things??? :D

Edited June 26, 2015 by onefishtwofish

[Desert Cruizers]

Our last sailing on the Radiance was last year with 2 cruises from Sydney Australia, the final was Hawaii to Vancouver. She was in beautiful condition and we never encountered any plumbing problems however our daughter & SIL on Deck 7 did which was corrected. Your correct, food is subjective but we had no complaints either in main dining or the WJ. Our daughter bought the Photo package, then scanned all the photoos and gave us what we wanted. She also uploaded everyones card unto a portable HD so we can go back and look at all the pictures. I can't speak for Alaska Tours since we haven't done that cruise. Everyone was so friendly and eager to help, you will have a wonderful cruise.

[hhalliv]

When are you sailing? We're sailing August 7th Northbound

[Cruising Nanny]

We are taking the cruise tour from Fairbanks to Seward, picking up the ship and cruising to Vancouver. Any suggestions on to how to pack, what clothes to bring? We are going July 25 - Aug 7.

[onefishtwofish]

Our last sailing on the Radiance was last year with 2 cruises from Sydney Australia, the final was Hawaii to Vancouver. She was in beautiful condition and we never encountered any plumbing problems however our daughter & SIL on Deck 7 did which was corrected. Your correct, food is subjective but we had no complaints either in main dining or the WJ. Our daughter bought the Photo package, then scanned all the photoos and gave us what we wanted. She also uploaded everyones card unto a portable HD so we can go back and look at all the pictures. I can't speak for Alaska Tours since we haven't done that cruise. Everyone was so friendly and eager to help, you will have a wonderful cruise.

 

Thanks so much for your input! Glad to hear she's in such beautiful shape! :)

[onefishtwofish]

When are you sailing? We're sailing August 7th Northbound

 

We are a month ahead of you - July 10th Northbound sailing ;)

[onefishtwofish]

We are taking the cruise tour from Fairbanks to Seward, picking up the ship and cruising to Vancouver. Any suggestions on to how to pack, what clothes to bring? We are going July 25 - Aug 7.

 

We are doing the opposite - start in Vancouver and then we are going on the Alaska Railroad for our land tour (we did ourselves) but we only go so far as up to Denali then back down to Anchorage and fly home from there.....We are planning on layers (t-shirt, sweater and jacket) with jeans or pants and sneakers. We will be bringing hats and gloves too. Trying to really streamline our packing for "multiple day use"! LOL I have been reading it has been warmer than usual, but know that can change. Being from Florida, we may feel colder than other people who are more used to colder weather....we do plan to utilize the laundry day special as that is a long time and we are trying to pack 1 big suitcase and 1 backpack for each of us. Have a fantastic cruise!!

Edited June 26, 2015 by onefishtwofish

[Desert Cruizers]

Onefishtwofish, my only complaint and they probably do it with every ship, was the over loading of Spa ads day after day through our 3 cruises. Every single day were ads for Spa activities. Daughter & I enjoyed the craft classes.:). We were kept very busy with the NZ, Transpacific and Hawaii cruises last year. We will be on her sister ship in October, the Serenade.

[onefishtwofish]

Onefishtwofish, my only complaint and they probably do it with every ship, was the over loading of Spa ads day after day through our 3 cruises. Every single day were ads for Spa activities. Daughter & I enjoyed the craft classes.:). We were kept very busy with the NZ, Transpacific and Hawaii cruises last year. We will be on her sister ship in October, the Serenade.

 

Agree that there are way too many ads in every cruise compass! :p

[jeannie126]

just returned from radiance cruise tour 8b sailing Seward to Vancouver. 13 days We had a aft junior suite which was wonderful. what to pack is a gamble. we brought a hang up bag in which they took before our cruisetour and we didn't see it again until we got on the ship. Therefore we put our ship clothes in that. We were earlier in the year so of course it would be warmer for you I guess. I put a hat and gloves in it as well as a few warmer pieces .also all our nicer casual clothes and formal wear . half my underwear and socks. just decide what you don't need until the ship and forget about it. we packed a warm fleece jacket and I was glad we brought it although we didn't use them much. I am sure you have heard about the nice warm reversible winter jackets they sell everywhere you go for 39.00. everyone had them on. if you get one then you wouldn't need to bring one . nice for a souvineer anyway. I ended up getting a nice one on the ship for 50% off before I came home even though I didn't need it. reversible, water resistant and says Alaska in the fleece lining. if you have a balcony you can just hop in and out the door at the glacier to stay warm. in the bags we kept for the cruise tour we just packed 2 pairs of jeans and a pair of shorts just in case. you do not need any dressy clothes. layers is the key. I had so many summer clothes I didn't need but would have been glad to have brought them if the weather had switched.you just cannot tell. Fairbanks was warm shorts and tee shirts on the riverboat cruise. after that I always wore a long sleeve tee, with a light zipper hooded sweatshirt and brought my northface lightweight raincoat in case That was always perfect. You could leave things safely on the bus even when you took the train because it traveled beside on the road and your bus driver never left it unattended. I carried a small knapsack as a carry on on the plane and used it throughout the cruise tour. your luggage is waiting for you in your room each day. once we reached the ship it was about 60 degrees . my husband says it seems like it should be cool in Alaska anyway! most of the time it was overcast but the rain always held off. they said the cruise before us it was in the 70 s and beautiful but they never got into the glacier as they encounter very bad conditions causing them to turn around. I won't go into any more details than that ! you can ask around if you wish to hear more. as it was talked about. There was no plumbing problems. everyone was very pleasant on the ship. the food was okay but I agree that it isn't as good as it used to be maybe because they want to get you to upgrade to the pay restaurants. they are constantly pushing that . The cruisetour and cruise was wonderful. we saw mount McKinley on our cruise tour. we saw a bear with 3 Cubs two separate times in Denali and another bear at icy strait. we saw many moose, caribou and Denali sheep. The train was great. the food on the train fantastic. best French dip sandwich and prime rib ever! B.T.Y. they cancelled our helicopter tour in Juneau due to the conditions and now after the recent accident I am glad they didn't take chances. after they cancelled our flight as we were walking away we heard two other passengers complain that other helicopters were still going up. the helicopter representatives said '" well the pilot doesn't think it is safe to fly today " those other people were complaining but my husband and I were glad our pilot was being safe. well have a great time !

[jeannie126]

we were off the ship in Vancouver and at our hotel in no time.it went very smooth. you use a machine for a quick customs experience . B.T.Y. I have heard if you are flying out of Vancouver you need to be there two hours early or they will not let you fly.

[critterchick]

just returned from radiance cruise tour 8b sailing Seward to Vancouver. 13 days We had a aft junior suite which was wonderful. what to pack is a gamble. we brought a hang up bag in which they took before our cruisetour and we didn't see it again until we got on the ship. Therefore we put our ship clothes in that. We were earlier in the year so of course it would be warmer for you I guess. I put a hat and gloves in it as well as a few warmer pieces .also all our nicer casual clothes and formal wear . half my underwear and socks. just decide what you don't need until the ship and forget about it. we packed a warm fleece jacket and I was glad we brought it although we didn't use them much. I am sure you have heard about the nice warm reversible winter jackets they sell everywhere you go for 39.00. everyone had them on. if you get one then you wouldn't need to bring one . nice for a souvineer anyway. I ended up getting a nice one on the ship for 50% off before I came home even though I didn't need it. reversible, water resistant and says Alaska in the fleece lining. if you have a balcony you can just hop in and out the door at the glacier to stay warm. in the bags we kept for the cruise tour we just packed 2 pairs of jeans and a pair of shorts just in case. you do not need any dressy clothes. layers is the key. I had so many summer clothes I didn't need but would have been glad to have brought them if the weather had switched.you just cannot tell. Fairbanks was warm shorts and tee shirts on the riverboat cruise. after that I always wore a long sleeve tee, with a light zipper hooded sweatshirt and brought my northface lightweight raincoat in case That was always perfect. You could leave things safely on the bus even when you took the train because it traveled beside on the road and your bus driver never left it unattended. I carried a small knapsack as a carry on on the plane and used it throughout the cruise tour. your luggage is waiting for you in your room each day. once we reached the ship it was about 60 degrees . my husband says it seems like it should be cool in Alaska anyway! most of the time it was overcast but the rain always held off. they said the cruise before us it was in the 70 s and beautiful but they never got into the glacier as they encounter very bad conditions causing them to turn around. I won't go into any more details than that ! you can ask around if you wish to hear more. as it was talked about. There was no plumbing problems. everyone was very pleasant on the ship. the food was okay but I agree that it isn't as good as it used to be maybe because they want to get you to upgrade to the pay restaurants. they are constantly pushing that . The cruisetour and cruise was wonderful. we saw mount McKinley on our cruise tour. we saw a bear with 3 Cubs two separate times in Denali and another bear at icy strait. we saw many moose, caribou and Denali sheep. The train was great. the food on the train fantastic. best French dip sandwich and prime rib ever! B.T.Y. they cancelled our helicopter tour in Juneau due to the conditions and now after the recent accident I am glad they didn't take chances. after they cancelled our flight as we were walking away we heard two other passengers complain that other helicopters were still going up. the helicopter representatives said '" well the pilot doesn't think it is safe to fly today " those other people were complaining but my husband and I were glad our pilot was being safe. well have a great time !

 

If you were in 1100, I apologize for the spilled Bailey's in the carpet. We had a bit of a rocky ride one night and our fridge flew out of the cabinet and landed face down on the carpet.:eek:

 

OP, my take on Radiance: I found her to be in need of maintenance in several areas - our toilet failed twice in 7 days (and she had plumbing issues during our 2010 cruise; apparently there wasn't room in the 2011 drydock budget to fix them) and there was a lot of wear and tear around the ship.

 

However, we love her anyway. The crew are terrific and will bend over backwards to make your vacation a good one. And noticing wear and tear isn't the same as letting it affect my enjoyment (the toilet was a major PITA, though, and I got tired of hearing it blamed on the passengers).

 

We only ate in the MDR three times, but enjoyed the food a lot. We also tried 4 specialty restaurants and I would rank them top to bottom as Chops, Samba Grill, Izumi, Giovanni's Table. I liked them all, but I still miss the Portofino menu.

 

We did everything independently of the ship. In Juneau, we booked a helicopter ride to the dogsled camps with Coastal Helicopters (fabulous), in Hoonah, we took a Bear Watch expedition with Misty Bay Lodge (we only saw one bear; they didn't get the memo that we were there) and did Ketchikan and Skagway on our own. At the end of the cruise we took the 6 hour Kenai Fjords cruise, which was ok - the weather was pretty bad, but we did get to see a glacier - we missed Hubbard Glacier because of rough conditions - so that was a nice way to spend the day. We took the train to Anchorage after that - a stunning ride.

 

Alaska is a simply amazing place - have a wonderful time!

[~*Lou*~]

We were on the same sailing as critterchick and traveled with 2 young children (younger than yours). I have a detailed review which answers some of your questions here:

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2221528

 

We had no plumbing issues, neither did my parents or brother who had their own cabins on the same sailing.

 

Lou :)

[JosieRhodes]

We went last year on Radiance. Even with her being an older ship, she was my favorite ship due to being able to view the ocean from many inside and outside areas. My kids are around your kids ages, and while not a ton of kids, there were other kids on board to meet, etc.

 

We liked the little eating area in Solarium for snacks and hot chocolate. The headliner shows were great.

 

We lucked out on the weather, but I did talk a lot about packing in my review in signature below. Have a great time!

[Desert Cruizers]

Jean that is scary about the fridge, it could have landed on your bed while sleeping. Packing for 54 days was a challenge with 3 cruises and 11 days in Sydney pre & Post cruise. I could have left the 29" home and stayed with the 25" & carry on. We packed for 60 to 70 degree weather up to 80's in the South Pacific & Hawaii.

[island lady]

We had aft cabin 9256 a few years ago Alaska southbound Radiance. Fantastic cruise, great

weather, and of course that huge aft wrap balcony was perfect for viewing. :)

 

Loved it so much that we are doing our first B2B next year. And....yes, we have

9256 for both legs! :D

Edited June 28, 2015 by island lady

[onefishtwofish]

thanks everyone for your thoughts/experiences! We are pretty easy going and most of the time we are enjoying the cruise too much to care about little things - just the plumbing sounds yuck.....:p Hoping we don't have issues there....:rolleyes: I read somewhere that someone brought an air freshner for the bathroom and was glad they did!! Maybe will throw something in the bag just in case!! ;) LOL

 

Looking at the weather (which I know can change!) it's a bit warmer, so will take some warmer weather clothes I hadn't planned on taking before. ;)

 

We are really looking forward to seeing Alaska on this class ship! :)

[Dizziedi]

We did the Trans Pacific in April/May on Radiance. Was my favourite ship but hmmm. Food generally was not good. Chops was not good. Chef's Table was a disgrace. Condition of the ship was okay; it's due for a refurb next year (but you probably know that).

 

It won't stop us cruising on the Radiance - we just put it down to a massive crew change in Sydney immediately prior to sailing.

 

Cheers

Di

[aronde]

....

 

If you had teens, how did they like it? Our kids are SO excited and we have always cruised with the kids, but they are ready for the ALASKA experience!

. :D

 

We were on Radiance in May. My eldest (12) loved the teen club. There were not many kids though so they had the run of the place! I met the staff and thought they were very good.

[onefishtwofish]

We were on Radiance in May. My eldest (12) loved the teen club. There were not many kids though so they had the run of the place! I met the staff and thought they were very good.

 

Thanks for the info! My kids luckily do like to hang together and were thinking about checking out the club together this time around! :D

[ronandannette]

just returned from radiance cruise tour 8b sailing Seward to Vancouver. 13 days We had a aft junior suite which was wonderful. what to pack is a gamble. we brought a hang up bag in which they took before our cruisetour and we didn't see it again until we got on the ship. Therefore we put our ship clothes in that. We were earlier in the year so of course it would be warmer for you I guess. I put a hat and gloves in it as well as a few warmer pieces .also all our nicer casual clothes and formal wear . half my underwear and socks. just decide what you don't need until the ship and forget about it. we packed a warm fleece jacket and I was glad we brought it although we didn't use them much. I am sure you have heard about the nice warm reversible winter jackets they sell everywhere you go for 39.00. everyone had them on. if you get one then you wouldn't need to bring one . nice for a souvineer anyway. I ended up getting a nice one on the ship for 50% off before I came home even though I didn't need it. reversible, water resistant and says Alaska in the fleece lining. if you have a balcony you can just hop in and out the door at the glacier to stay warm. in the bags we kept for the cruise tour we just packed 2 pairs of jeans and a pair of shorts just in case. you do not need any dressy clothes. layers is the key. I had so many summer clothes I didn't need but would have been glad to have brought them if the weather had switched.you just cannot tell. Fairbanks was warm shorts and tee shirts on the riverboat cruise. after that I always wore a long sleeve tee, with a light zipper hooded sweatshirt and brought my northface lightweight raincoat in case That was always perfect. You could leave things safely on the bus even when you took the train because it traveled beside on the road and your bus driver never left it unattended. I carried a small knapsack as a carry on on the plane and used it throughout the cruise tour. your luggage is waiting for you in your room each day. once we reached the ship it was about 60 degrees . my husband says it seems like it should be cool in Alaska anyway! most of the time it was overcast but the rain always held off. they said the cruise before us it was in the 70 s and beautiful but they never got into the glacier as they encounter very bad conditions causing them to turn around. I won't go into any more details than that ! you can ask around if you wish to hear more. as it was talked about. There was no plumbing problems. everyone was very pleasant on the ship. the food was okay but I agree that it isn't as good as it used to be maybe because they want to get you to upgrade to the pay restaurants. they are constantly pushing that . The cruisetour and cruise was wonderful. we saw mount McKinley on our cruise tour. we saw a bear with 3 Cubs two separate times in Denali and another bear at icy strait. we saw many moose, caribou and Denali sheep. The train was great. the food on the train fantastic. best French dip sandwich and prime rib ever! B.T.Y. they cancelled our helicopter tour in Juneau due to the conditions and now after the recent accident I am glad they didn't take chances. after they cancelled our flight as we were walking away we heard two other passengers complain that other helicopters were still going up. the helicopter representatives said '" well the pilot doesn't think it is safe to fly today " those other people were complaining but my husband and I were glad our pilot was being safe. well have a great time !

 

:DSo happy to finally read a report from a 2015 SOUTHBOUND! We'll be Southbound on August 14. I'd be very appreciative if you have copies of the Compass. I've scrutinized the Northbound ones but not sure if it's safe to simply assume everything is exactly the same only in reverse order (if you know what I mean). Thanks in advance.

[CVU]

We are doing the opposite - start in Vancouver and then we are going on the Alaska Railroad for our land tour (we did ourselves) but we only go so far as up to Denali then back down to Anchorage and fly home from there.....We are planning on layers (t-shirt, sweater and jacket) with jeans or pants and sneakers. We will be bringing hats and gloves too. Trying to really streamline our packing for "multiple day use"! LOL I have been reading it has been warmer than usual, but know that can change. Being from Florida, we may feel colder than other people who are more used to colder weather....we do plan to utilize the laundry day special as that is a long time and we are trying to pack 1 big suitcase and 1 backpack for each of us. Have a fantastic cruise!!

 

Departing in Vancouver you do US Customs and Security, so it takes time. Be there early, 2 hr as someone mentioned is wise.

 

Just talked to people yesterday off their cruise and it was cool and damp but no rain in Ketchikan. If you are by the Glaciers it is COLD. We stood outside for ages and it was sooooo cold.

[emeraldcity]

We are a month ahead of you - July 10th Northbound sailing ;)

 

Come on over and join our roll call ... we have enough for the Meet & Mingle and you should still have time to get on the list for that.

[WrittenOnYourHeart]

:DSo happy to finally read a report from a 2015 SOUTHBOUND! We'll be Southbound on August 14. I'd be very appreciative if you have copies of the Compass. I've scrutinized the Northbound ones but not sure if it's safe to simply assume everything is exactly the same only in reverse order (if you know what I mean). Thanks in advance.

 

 

This!!

 

I am especially interested in when muster drill is for Southbound as I have read that in past years it made early dining rushed and incomplete... (I would never voluntarily choose early, but that is what the group I am with has. :/ )

Edited July 2, 2015 by WrittenOnYourHeart

[aronde]

This!!

 

I am especially interested in when muster drill is for Southbound as I have read that in past years it made early dining rushed and incomplete... (I would never voluntarily choose early, but that is what the group I am with has. :/ )

 

Southbound on May 22 all aboard was 7pm along with everything closing down. Muster drill was 7.15pm and sail away was 8pm. We did not go to our early dinner sitting that night - too busy enjoying the sunshine in Seward!