carnival people considering Radiance OTS

[Name Of The Game]

My mom and I are going on our 4th Carnival cruise this fall and we've been very happy with their food, service and entertainment. When price shopping, Royal has always cost a couple hundred more per person so we've continued to cruise with Carnival and have no complaints.

 

In looking way ahead to Oct 2010 we see very competitive prices for Radiance stopping in Grand Cayman, Costa Maya, Belize and Cozumel. It seems they usually cruise to Alaska but will be coming back to the Caribbean. Is there a reason this ship would be much cheaper than the other Royal ships? Is this a "clunker" ship like the Holiday is for Carnival?

Would it seem like "jumping the gun" to book this far ahead?

They have inside rooms available for $519 each on deck four near the lobby bar. Do you think these would be very noisy?

For $529 each they have rooms on deck eight but what is this "Explorers Court"....noisy?

 

Are these good prices for this ship?

Thanks for any advice.

[cb at sea]

A "clunker" ship??? No way! Radiance class ships are lovely! None of the cabin hallways open directly to "public" areas, so noise won't be an issue. However, RCI's inside cabins will be a bit smaller than what you're used to on Carnival (by about 10-20 sq. ft).

Those cabins on deck 8 are near the stairs and elevators, making them very convenient!

 

Can't answer if this is a "good deal", money-wise (I've never been into comparing prices...) but you will have a grand time on this ship!

[cruisenfever]

Here's a link to our most favorite ship which I might add is no clunker.:eek:

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=575048

 

Ships only do the Alaska itineraries from May through the middle of September. Radiance will be repositioning from San Diego to Tampa doing a Panama Canal cruise on September 24, 2010, The ship will then be doing Western Caribbean itineraries during the winter months.

 

Explorers Court on Deck 8 is in the Centrum and is where the Library is located.

[finoky]

We just recently came back from the Grandeur which is one of the older ships. It was not a clunker at all and we had a fantastic cruise. I say go for it!

[Name Of The Game]

Thanks for the link to the Radiance. Lots of pages so I hope you don't mind questions. Suppose we're hungry between 9 PM and midnight. What is there free to eat besides room service? Do they have a sandwich shop, pizza, anything?

 

Also, I heard that Bingo is very expensive and people use computers? If that's the case, I don't think we'll be playing.

[elleluv]

The Radiance Class ships are our absolute favorite... go!!

 

I think you'll be fine with either of the stateroom locations you are talking about...

 

We've had an OV on Deck 4 of Jewel, which is a Radiance Class ship, we we actually in the very first room off the centrum and didn't have any problems with noise.

 

We also just sailed on Deck 8 of Radiance last week... The Explorer's Lounge is actually the area where the International Ambassador has a desk and meets with non-English speaking guests... It is a very quiet location.

 

The pricing for those Radiance sailings out of Tampa are excellent. I would definitely book now. RCCL is great about honoring price drops if the price were to go down, so you really have nothing to loose by booking this far in advance.

[elleluv]

Thanks for the link to the Radiance. Lots of pages so I hope you don't mind questions. Suppose we're hungry between 9 PM and midnight. What is there free to eat besides room service? Do they have a sandwich shop, pizza, anything?

 

Also, I heard that Bingo is very expensive and people use computers? If that's the case, I don't think we'll be playing.

 

 

 

Your free options between 9pm and midnight are the Seaview Cafe and the Solarium Cafe... both have sandwich's and the Solarium Cafe has pizza.

 

Don't know about Bingo...

[bluecookies]

out of curiosity, from one who has never sailed Carnival, what makes the Holiday a "clunker?"

[Name Of The Game]

I can't speak personally about the Holiday but it's the oldest ship left and constantly gets poor reviews.

 

To the person who said RC is good about honoring price drops, we were going to book through a cruise site where we had previously booked another cruise and then cancelled. They charged us $50.00 per person to cancel but we can get that credited if we rebook within a year, so we essentially have a $100.00 credit.

[elleluv]

I can't speak personally about the Holiday but it's the oldest ship left and constantly gets poor reviews.

 

To the person who said RC is good about honoring price drops, we were going to book through a cruise site where we had previously booked another cruise and then cancelled. They charged us $50.00 per person to cancel but we can get that credited if we rebook within a year, so we essentially have a $100.00 credit.

 

 

You should probably check with your online TA to see if THEY honor price drops and if they charge for them... RCCL does not, right up 'til sailing as long as it's *not* a "for new bookings only" rate...

[cruisenfever]

Thanks for the link to the Radiance. Lots of pages so I hope you don't mind questions. Suppose we're hungry between 9 PM and midnight. What is there free to eat besides room service? Do they have a sandwich shop, pizza, anything?

 

Also, I heard that Bingo is very expensive and people use computers? If that's the case, I don't think we'll be playing.

Yes, Bingo is expensive, don't know off the top of my head what they are charging but they use the paper sheets that you punch out the holes..........not computers.

 

On our recent consecutive cruise on Radiance, the SeaView was only opened from noon until 7PM on Sea days and 3PM until 7PM on port days.

 

The Solarium Cafe was opened from 12:30PM until 7PM on sea days and 3PM until 7PM and 1:00AM until 5:00AM on port days.

 

The Windjammer was opened from 11PM until 1AM on both sea and port days for snacks.

[cincicruisers]

I love the Radiance! I would not hestitate to book this ship again.

[Name Of The Game]

You should probably check with your online TA to see if THEY honor price drops and if they charge for them... RCCL does not, right up 'til sailing as long as it's *not* a "for new bookings only" rate...

 

Right now the prices on RC and on the cruise site are coming out exactly the same. However, we have a $100.00 credit from the cruise site. Seeing as though I've never seen RC this cheap before, I can't imagine it dropping another $50.00 per person. Even if it did, I'd still be even. I think we should take the automatic $100.00 discount now through the cruise site, don't you?

[elleluv]

Right now the prices on RC and on the cruise site are coming out exactly the same. However, we have a $100.00 credit from the cruise site. Seeing as though I've never seen RC this cheap before, I can't imagine it dropping another $50.00 per person. Even if it did, I'd still be even. I think we should take the automatic $100.00 discount now through the cruise site, don't you?

 

 

Their prices should always be the same... RCCL doesn't allow agents to discount cruises. If it were me, I'd probably use the $100 discount now, but before I did I'd ask them what their policies are about making changes to the reservation and price drops.

 

Some TA's do charge for things like that and the fact that they charged you a cancellation fee makes me think they may be one of those agencies. It's always a good idea to understand what their policies are before you book.

[texascruzer]

:D When I first read the title to this thread, I thought you were people that worked in a Carnival. :eek::o:D

[uksimonusa]

Yes, Bingo is expensive, don't know off the top of my head what they are charging but they use the paper sheets that you punch out the holes..........not computers.

 

On our recent consecutive cruise on Radiance, the SeaView was only opened from noon until 7PM on Sea days and 3PM until 7PM on port days.

 

The Solarium Cafe was opened from 12:30PM until 7PM on sea days and 3PM until 7PM and 1:00AM until 5:00AM on port days.

 

The Windjammer was opened from 11PM until 1AM on both sea and port days for snacks.

 

RCI are rolling out the touch screen computer bingo cards throughout the fleet now

[cruisenfever]

RCI are rolling out the touch screen computer bingo cards throughout the fleet now

Thanks for the info.........on our 4/12 and 4/26 cruises on Radiance they were still using the paper punch out sheets.

[Name Of The Game]

We booked it! We went through the cruise site and used the $100.00 credit.

 

A few other questions:

 

Is it easy to find your way around the Radiance and get from one place to another or are there some dead ends like on Carnival (although I'm used to them)?

 

My mom wants to know how the coffee is. She likes Carnival's.

 

What are some delicious food items that shouldn't be missed? Anything that was horrible? Is the dining room closed for lunch on port days?

 

What's the best lounge for a 22 year old to find people his age? Does anyone know which lounges are non smoking?

 

Thanks again.

[CJ264]

We booked it! We went through the cruise site and used the $100.00 credit.

 

A few other questions:

 

Is it easy to find your way around the Radiance and get from one place to another or are there some dead ends like on Carnival (although I'm used to them)?

 

My mom wants to know how the coffee is. She likes Carnival's.

 

What are some delicious food items that shouldn't be missed? Anything that was horrible? Is the dining room closed for lunch on port days?

 

Radiance is a very well laid out ship. The food on Royal is just as excellent on RCCL. I don't think the dining room is closed on Port days.

[bluecookies]

The dining room is closed for lunch on port days.

 

Also, 5/16 Enchantment sailing they were still using paper punch cards for bingo.

[klingoncruiser]

I have cruise 4 lines over the years and mostly cruise RCL now. Of all the ships, the Radiance is by far and away the most elegant and open ship I have ever been on. You will love the layout. It is a shame that RCL never built out the remainder of this class of ship.

 

Food is subjective. I really don't care for Carnivore's food and like RCL. The wind jammer is MUCH better than carnivals lunch area. JMHO.... (Carnivals pizza beats any I have seen on any of the lines. Ya never know.)

 

Try other lines, you never know what you will find. Hope you have a wonderful cruise, that is a very nice itinerary.

[Silvery Seas Cruiser]

Radiance is a lovely ship. It is very easy to get around. The coffee is OK, but you can purchase premium coffee and coffee drinks at the coffee shop.

[finoky]

My mom wants to know how the coffee is. She likes Carnival's.

 

My wife drinks coffee every day and she thought the coffee on the Grandeur was far and away better than on any Carnival ship we have been on. They had Seattle's Best and she just loved it!

[cheaptravel]

I am booked on the Radiance 7-nighter out of Tampa on 10/9/10.

 

The price just went up 2 days ago. The balconies were $699, and went up to $749. That's still dirt cheap !!

 

Looks to me like it's the one and only voyage with that itinerary.

[Name Of The Game]

So we'll be on the same ship, cool. :cool: