library books on board

[rastewa]

we are about to go on our first cruise "radiance of the seas' and wondered if the library has a good slection of books and also can you take books out, or should we pack our own?

[cb at sea]

If you care about what you read, bring your own! The selection is slim. Yes, you can "check-out" (just take what you want, really) books, but you may not find anything worth reading! It's not a "true" library!!!!

[JerseyGem]

Welcome! I haven't been on the Radiance, so I can't give you precise advice, but we do check out every library on every ship we sail (well over a dozen now). The quality and quantity of the books really vary by ship and by line. Plus, many libraries only have limited hours (although some are open so that you can look at the books through the glass doors on the shelves- so you at least know what to get when they do open up). Also, visit early in your cruise- you'll find many books disappear for the duration of the cruise, since most lines do not restrict how many you borrow. We've seen people leave with dozens of books at a time, which, of course, they don't bring back until the last day! (I think they're also related to the chair hog families!)

 

That said, we always pack a few paperbacks just in case we don't find something onboard. The trip to Borders or Barnes and Nobles is a traditional pre-cruise event for us! We usually donate the paperbacks to the existing library at the end of the cruise (some lines have a special shelf for passenger donations).

 

My final hint: most libraries have a travel section, which can be a great source of info on your ports.