Anyone have any Radiance questions?

[sportscruiser]

Just got off the Radiance on Friday. I know there wasn't much content on the boards when I was doing my research so if anyone has any questions, I might be able to help. We were a group of 6 and had 3 different room types: Balcony, Grand Suite and Handicap balcony. This was a 4 day M-F cruise to Catalina & Ensenada and there were only 872 passengers aboard. Both crew and comedians told us that over 1400 people had canceled within the 2 weeks before the cruise departed. Comedian Doug Williams called us the Section 8 cruise because we were the crazy ones that still decided to go! 😁 Low passenger count meant LOTS of room to social distance and there were NO lines anywhere, including at Guest Services on embarkation day! Carnival provided us with 2 KN95 masks and we had brought our own. I've previously cruised on the Glory(2x) and the Pride and the atrium/lobby bar area on this ship was tiny in comparison. I could just imagine how crowded it would've been with a full ship.I did get 3 days worth of Fun Times that I can scan if anyone wants to look and have pictures of most of the ship, some port info, etc. Fire away with any questions you might have!

[Guest BasicSailor]

Nice report, thanks for sharing👍 

[overlake7]

Don't know if you happened to swim but if you did what the temperature of the water? Was it freezing or tolerable?

 

[jerseygirlinAZ]

Thanks for posting!  We are on the Radiance in March.  Would LOVE to see a Fun Times.  

 

What did you do in Ensenada?

[ilovesparky13]

53 minutes ago, overlake7 said:

Don't know if you happened to swim but if you did what the temperature of the water? Was it freezing or tolerable?

 

The pools were freezing during my trip in December. Definitely stick with the hot tubs. 

[britbritrawr09]

I’m going for Valentine’s Day I would love to see the planners! Thank you 

[bdever]

Is the Serenity area as small as it looks? There doesn’t seem to be a lot of loungers, did it feel crowded or did it feel like there was not enough loungers?

[sportscruiser]

The weather was too cold for me to even get in the hot tubs but most adults/kids were in the hot tubs. Not many kids were using the waterworks area so I think the temp of the water was too cold.

[sportscruiser]

Hoping the printed Fun Times I attached show up. If not, I'll try again. These are the 3 days I was able to get from Guest Services. However, they didn't have  one from embarkation day.

FUN TIMES - JAN 18 SIDE #1.pdf FUN TIMES - JAN 18 SIDE #2.pdf FUN TIMES - JAN 19 SIDE #1.pdf FUN TIMES - JAN 19 SIDE #2.pdf FUN TIMES - JAN 20 SIDE #1.pdf FUN TIMES - JAN 20 SIDE #2.pdf

[Cruisesfun65]

I'm debating whether I should cancel my 4 day Radiance cruise. What did you do in Ensenada and Catalina island?

[sportscruiser]

For those asking about what I did in ports....in Catalina we did the Fantastic Catalina Race through Carnival and rented golf carts to tour around the island. The race was fun and takes you all over the frontage part of the island, out to the Casino, pier, up a few side streets. We had a group of 7 and I would suggest doing it with a smaller group. In Ensenada 3 of us did a horseback ride, LaBufadora and Shopping excursion through Viator.com. The Viator tour guide and driver were great and were waiting for us when we got off the ship. No complaints on the Viator portion of the tour, however, I always do a beach horseback ride in one of the ports and love it but this one was probably the worst. Instead of taking you to a ranch, it was horses lined up on the side of the road and each one was owned by someone. No step to get onto the horses, horses did not look like they were in good condition and the guide did not ride with us, just walked along with a stick although he didn't use it. The beach was beautiful however.  I think Viator offers just a LaBufadora and shopping excursion as well and I would use them again for those tours.

[cruisingguy007]

4 minutes ago, Cruisesfun65 said:

I'm debating whether I should cancel my 4 day Radiance cruise. What did you do in Ensenada and Catalina island?

 

The golf cart self tours are the big draw there on Catalina. Roll around at your own pace and check out the island on the designated paths. I think it was like $90 for a family size cart and it was worth it for us. There is some shopping and restaurants in the area that are popular as well. We tried some beers from the brewery there as swell. Ensenada has more options but a lot of people simply get off and eat drink. It's not as good as the main Panorama ports, but there should be something that worth doing for most passengers. Many also just stay on the ship there, especially if you've been multiple times.    

[cruisingguy007]

Is there a casino bar on Radiance? 

[sportscruiser]

At first I thought the serenity area was really small but then realized that there were loungers on both sides and upstairs so it turned out to be bigger than I thought. I'll try and post some pictures but it was night when I took them so apologies if they don't turn out well but hopefully you can get an idea of the space. There was one part where loungers were right next to exhaust output so not sure how serene that would be. 😁

[sportscruiser]

4 minutes ago, cruisingguy007 said:

Is there a casino bar on Radiance? 

Yes, there is a bar at the back of the Casino. Wasn't crowded this cruise due to the low number of passengers and the fact that you couldn't smoke there any longer.

[Wanna_Cruize]

Thanks for the pics of Serenity, we'll (hopefully) be on board in 10 days. had to cancel our January 7th cruise because of a positive test, so fingers crossed for this one. 

 

Did you get a chance to see the thermal suite in the spa? If not, no biggie. I see that there's a Guys BBQ onboard, is that only open on sea days? What about embarkation day? 

[DAllenTCY]

I disembarked this morning 1/24/22, and I had a great 3-night cruise!  The weather was cool, but hardly a cloud was to be seen on any of the three days.  Four fantastic football games; however, only 3 where on the big screen outdoors.  The Heroes Bar has a large screen outside which you can view from the atrium as an option.....along with huge screens behind the bar.

 

There were just over 800 guests onboard according to the CD.

 

I would strongly suggest that you try Cucina del Capitano for $15 surcharge only.

 

The venue is twice as large as on Horizon and Panorama.

 

I found the atmosphere to be very relaxing and the service and food was excellent.

 

The steakhouse was only 1/4 full on embarkation day so an an incentive they offered 1/2 off wine the second night, too.

 

David

[Shantabulous]

We were on this one, too!   So wild how empty the ship was, but it was nice to have room and rarely any lines.  Also, the ship turned out absolutely gorgeous! 

[1LoraL]

Getting so excited, we board on Friday 1/28. It's my birthday weekend. What is the one thing that I shouldn't miss? 😊Have booked drink package, the steak house and Cucina del Capitano already!

[ilovesparky13]

11 hours ago, sportscruiser said:

The weather was too cold for me to even get in the hot tubs but most adults/kids were in the hot tubs. Not many kids were using the waterworks area so I think the temp of the water was too cold.

The water slides were actually warmer than the pool. 

[PhotoMike]

20 hours ago, cruisingguy007 said:

 

The golf cart self tours are the big draw there on Catalina. Roll around at your own pace and check out the island on the designated paths. I think it was like $90 for a family size cart and it was worth it for us. There is some shopping and restaurants in the area that are popular as well. We tried some beers from the brewery there as swell. Ensenada has more options but a lot of people simply get off and eat drink. It's not as good as the main Panorama ports, but there should be something that worth doing for most passengers. Many also just stay on the ship there, especially if you've been multiple times.    

Question on renting a golf cart in Avalon. I've read that you must be insured to do this, will I need to bring along my car insurance card to show someone? Just checking off my list of things to pack..lol!

[sportscruiser]

17 hours ago, Wanna_Cruize said:

Thanks for the pics of Serenity, we'll (hopefully) be on board in 10 days. had to cancel our January 7th cruise because of a positive test, so fingers crossed for this one. 

 

Did you get a chance to see the thermal suite in the spa? If not, no biggie. I see that there's a Guys BBQ onboard, is that only open on sea days? What about embarkation day? 

Yes, we did a Spa tour and saw the thermal spa. There was no thalassotherapy pool that I saw but did have the loungers.

There is a Guys Pig & Anchor on board. Only open on embarkation day and sea day from 12:30-2:00 which was too small of a window, especially if had been a full ship. It was my first time getting to try it and I was able to walk right up though and got a little bit of all the meats plus mac & cheese. Beef and sausage were awesome, the pork was ok, a little dry for me and my piece of chicken was really tough and chewy but someone else in our group said theirs was really good. Mac & Cheese was ok and it's not a very big serving.

[cruisingguy007]

3 hours ago, PhotoMike said:

Question on renting a golf cart in Avalon. I've read that you must be insured to do this, will I need to bring along my car insurance card to show someone? Just checking off my list of things to pack..lol!

 

They didn't ask me for it but you do have to have a drivers license and they ask to see that. I think it's just assumed that most people have insurance who have a license as it's required in California. You do have to sign some waiver/liability form so if you drive it off a cliff or wreck it somehow, you'll be expected to pay. The policy could have changed and it may depend on the outfit, there are 3-4 outfits running the cart rentals. The larger family carts are more limited in numbers though.  I'd bring a copy or screen shot just in case.   

[sportscruiser]

15 hours ago, DAllenTCY said:

I disembarked this morning 1/24/22, and I had a great 3-night cruise!  The weather was cool, but hardly a cloud was to be seen on any of the three days.  Four fantastic football games; however, only 3 where on the big screen outdoors.  The Heroes Bar has a large screen outside which you can view from the atrium as an option.....along with huge screens behind the bar.

 

There were just over 800 guests onboard according to the CD.

 

I would strongly suggest that you try Cucina del Capitano for $15 surcharge only.

 

The venue is twice as large as on Horizon and Panorama.

 

I found the atmosphere to be very relaxing and the service and food was excellent.

 

The steakhouse was only 1/4 full on embarkation day so an an incentive they offered 1/2 off wine the second night, too.

 

David

Lucky you, have had great weather! I got off the day you got on and it was cold our whole trip except in Ensenada it was a nice sunny cool day. Glad you enjoyed the trip.

[sportscruiser]

13 hours ago, Shantabulous said:

We were on this one, too!   So wild how empty the ship was, but it was nice to have room and rarely any lines.  Also, the ship turned out absolutely gorgeous! 

I couldn't imagine how crowded it would've been if the sailing was at capacity. I couldn't get over the fact that there was NO line at guest services on embarkation day, every other cruise I've been on the line was always super long. Glad you enjoyed the trip too!