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A destination cruise not a cruise for the ship.

Ketchikan

This cruise was like butlins on water the standard was so low.

Service and food in the dining room Cold food most nights. Had to wait ages most nights for it. When it did come it was bland. Choice was not varied at all. Found it overall stressful eating in the min dining room. The Windjammer was no better whatever time you ate there you could not find a table and if you did it was not cleaned before you ate on it.

Entertainment in the Theartre was 2nd rate  2 nights a film was shown. Acts in the other bars were second rate and played the same sets every night

They manged to loose a bag for 2 hours on disembarking

This was truely the worst holiday i have ever taken in my lfe.

I have one plus the cabin staff were brilliant my stateroom was always clean and he left great towel creatrues

Holiday Camp and Sea

Have travelled with RCI on numerous occasions and was on Brilliance in 2004. My trip was partly due to loving the ship and also taking my partner to destinations she had not been before.

The staff were first class and the ship looked well, even after a re-fit some 3yrs ago, I felt at ease.

Sadly the standards have slipped, dress code has dropped to new lows, if you expect no shorts, flip flops or t-shirts at an evening meal then think again. Even on a formal night the lowest of the low were allowed to join customers who had made an effort.

The cruise line should have the guts to tell people to dress properly, else they will lose repeat custom from those who do. If you want to eat looking like you have just come off the beach then don't use the main dining room. Better still, cruise with someone else or pick a beach holiday.

Entertainment was below par and food luke warm at best. If you expect white or rose wine to be cold, them ask for some ice, very sloppy.

Dress code, what dress code???

I’m sorry to say that the cruise experience on this last trip was not one of the worst that I have experienced; it was THE worst I have ever experienced.  I will not be selecting Royal Caribbean for any future cruise vacation.

-	Food

I have cruised on other cruise lines, and have never seen all of the food venues closed by 9:30PM.  The only option for eating after 9:30PM was a small snack bar that only had cold sandwiches and salads or a small selection of pizza until they ran out!  Or, room service with a fee after 10:00PM, again, with a limited menu.  Not very ‘guest friendly’ in my opinion.

This was particularly a problem the evening of the 1st night in Venice Italy when we docked at 3:00PM and were expected back by 10:00PM or so.  After getting to the port of call, disembarking and taking the initial walking tour, there was not too much time to eat a nice dinner in Venice as the European custom is a long leisurely dinner.  It was getting late, and the group of 9 that we were traveling with decided to forego dinner in Venice and return to the ship at about 9:00 or 9:30 PM and just eat on the ship only to find out there was nothing open on the ship to get anything to eat!  When we went to the snack bar, we were stunned to find hundreds of other passengers in the same predicament crawling all over each other like ants for a slice of pizza before it ran out!  When we went to Guest Services, we told that we should have eaten dinner in Venice and that we could just go to an early breakfast!  And while the room service fee was nominal at approximately $4.00, it was not offered to be waived!

-	Ports of Call

Again, I have cruised on other cruise lines, and have never been expected to pay additional transportation fees to actually get to the port of call!

In Venice, we were expected to pay an additional $25.00 a day for a 2 day docking ($50.00 per person) in order to get from the port to the city!  And in Kotor Croatia an additional $12.00 for bus transportation back to the port.   However, if you had an excursion booked through Royal Caribbean, the fees were not charged.  This is unacceptable!  If there is a port of call, there should be accessibility for ALL passengers to disembark and enjoy it without having to pay any additional fees!  I paid for the port of call when I booked the cruise, and you should be aware of the transportation challenges and address them without affecting the passengers’ experience.

-	Tender Disembarking

At the 1st port requiring tenders, the process was awful!  There were hundreds of passengers all in queue through the deck blocking access to the staterooms on that deck; it was hot, crowded and utter confusion.

The next port requiring tenders was just slightly better as they were issuing tender passes.  However, there was so much miscommunication about when the passes were available and how you could obtain one.  It was originally announced that they would not be distributed until 12:15PM after docking/anchoring, but many people were able to get them MUCH earlier than that.  And, when 1 member of our group of 9 went to get 9 passes, they were told that they could only get them for themselves.  Then, another person was able to get them for additional people/rooms, and finally a 3rd person finished getting them for us!  This meant that our group of 9 was separated into 3 groups on 3 different tenders with 3 different departure/arrival times in the port of call.  We were not able to enjoy that port of call together.

-	Activities

The activities scheduled for times we were aboard the ship were inadequate.  They were either scheduled for such a short time, cancelled with no notice, not interesting or had additional costs associated with them to be able to participate.  The worst example I can tell you is the $500.00 jackpot bingo.  Bingo can be a fun activity even if there is a fee for the cards to play.  But, the way it was done on this cruise was a charge of $20.00 per card for only ONE game of bingo, and you either won the $500.00 or you didn’t!  Why don’t you just play bingo for a few or several games, and at the end announce that the last game is for the $500.00 jackpot!  I know I would have purchased cards and played for a while (as nothing else was going on) whether I was playing for the $500.00 or not! 

In the 12 days on the ship, there were only 2 ‘parties’ where the cruise director and the staff participated and engaged passengers.  While they were entertaining and fun, there were no ‘complimentary’ drinks or anything for the passengers.

Many days, reviewing the daily ‘newsletter’ for activities, if you removed the activities with a $ indicating a fee to participate, a sale in the shops, the art gallery hours or auctions, there was only 1 or 2 ‘real’ activities!  And, they were not exciting!  One day I saw that I all that was really left to do was to learn how to fold napkins into animals!

To further explain the boredom throughout the ship, the TV programming was an issue with many people complaining that they were ‘hostages’ forced to watch the same programs and episodes over and over again for 12 days!  I honestly have never had an issue with TV programming on a cruise because I have never been left with only the option to be in my stateroom watching TV for entertainment!  I don’t know anyone who goes on a cruise to watch TV in their stateroom!

Charging for movies in the stateroom that were being shown at different times for free on the ship is just being greedy!  The movie theater only holds about 30 or so people, the weather in the evenings made it uncomfortable to watch a movie on the pool deck (when they were showing them!) so charging to watch the same movie in your stateroom is ridiculous.

Overall, I have never felt like a cow being herded from one place to another with a $ sign branded on my forehead!  You have perfected the art of ‘nickeling and diming’ people for everything in order to enjoy the comforts of cruising.

-	Missing ‘niceities’

There were no snacks (peanuts, pretzels, chips, popcorn…) at any bar where you were expected to sit and spend a lot money drinking!

There were no waiters anywhere except for in the bars offering to get anything for you.

The free coffee was left for hours making it bitter or cold or both!

The free beverage stations were closed at certain times, and you had to go to a bar for a drink.

I did bring these concerns up with the Front Desk Manger, Robert Marshall.  

1st, getting an appointment was not easy!  It took 3 days to finally straighten out a time and place.  While he did seem interested in what was being said as he seemed to be taking notes, his response was just, ‘I’m sorry that you are having a bad experience.’   He did offer a discount of 15% of the cost of this cruise toward our next cruise but made no attempt to address the concerns of this cruise by refunding the port transportation fees, offering a free drink package for the last 2 days we were on board at sea or offering a day tour of Barcelona when we arrived there at the end of the cruise.  And, we have yet to receive the confirmation of the 15% discount offered that he said we would get.  If this cruise experience was so bad, do you really think that a 15% discount would entice us to come back again?  Absolutely not!

I will not be selecting Royal Caribbean for any future cruise vacation.

BACKGROUND

This was our first Mediterranean cruise, we are typically Caribbean cruisers, and pretty Loyal to Royal. I'm OCD about / addicted to cruising and love the planning process.  This Brilliance of the Seas round trip from Barcelona made stops at Villefranche, Livorno, Civitavecchia, Naples, Venice (overnight), Zadar (Croatia) and Kotor (Montenegro).

With 8 ports including Barcelona this was a lot of planning. We're usually do-it-your-selfers, but decided we could pack more in with take tours. We avoid the large ship tours, and we were proven right every time we drove right up to a particular sight, and passed the groups of 50 people far back following the tour guide because the buses can't get close enough in the historic cities with narrow streets.

Embarkation and debarkation were both very smooth.

PORTS:

I thought this itinerary was amazing.  We visited so many and such a good mix of ports. 

- Villefranche was a tender port. This was a DIY day for us. We took the train to Nice, spent half the day strolling Old Nice, returned to Villefranche by bus, and explored there until time to tender back.

- For Livorno, Civitavecchia, and Naples we had arranged a private tour with 3 other couples on our Cruise Critic Roll Call. I can highly recommend Joe Banana Italy Tour Sharing.

- Venice – the sail-in to Venice is a great experience. This was an overnight stop so we had a lot of time to explore on our own.  

- Zadar – We were so sad that the Sea Organ was down for repair, because this was a highlight we were looking forward to, but Zadar is a lovely town, and a perfect spot for strolling. We’ll have to come back one day to explore further and hear the Sea Organ.

- Kotor – This was surprisingly by far our favorite port – and I’d say from many reactions around us we weren’t alone. We had planned an excursion with Montenegro M Tours of Perast-Budva-Kotor, and had so much interest that we filled 2 vans. The sail-in to the Bay of Kotor is spectacular, and the towns we visited each had their own personality without being overwhelmed by throngs of tourists.

DINING

We never made it to the MDR. We had MTD but found that after either a long day in port or a day that we ate in port we had no interest in a long meal. We mostly ate in the Windjammer, Park Café, and on a couple of sea days we ate at Giovanni’s Table. Service there was great, but the first night the food was way too salty; they invited us back for another night and that was perfect. 

There were 2 formal nights (6th & 11th nights – both sea days) and the rest were casual – no smart casual.

ISSUES:

- There was no Meet & Mingle scheduled, although it was confirmed before sailing with 70+ signed up. We received no good explanation about why this happened, and no response to emails. This was very disappointing as we had all chatted on Cruise Critic for a year.

- Tender process in Montenegro: It was announced that tender tickets would begin to be issued at 12:15pm.  At 11am we noticed people with tickets – by then they were up to tender #9. They had begun distributing them at 10:15am. There was one announcement made, but you can’t hear them in the cabins and many locations.  

- Music in the Starquest disco.  The DJ cut songs short that obviously people were dancing to, yet played songs in full that cleared the dance floor. He continually overlapped songs together that sounded so awful it not only cleared the dance floor, but the lounge. Isn’t the purpose of a live DJ so they can ‘read’ the audience and adjust the playlist for the crowd?

- Although the port listed in our documentation for Croatia was ZADAR, in actuality we docked 10 minutes away in Gazenica. Royal Caribbean charged $12 for a round trip shuttle. Not a huge deal, but unexpected.

- Speaking of transportation –getting away from the Cruise Terminal in Venice wasn’t easy. There were shuttle buses that were marked ‘Shore Excursions’, but some people told us we could take that to get closer to the People Mover, others said we needed to be on a Shore Excursion. We wanted to get to the people mover. The shuttle actually took us far enough away from the People Mover that we may as well have walked in the first place! Maybe it’s normally better, but there was some construction in that area.

Aside from these issues which were mostly the result of generally poor communication from the staff, the ship is still sparkling and beautiful.  I love the Radiance class ships for their connection to the sea, and this itinerary was enhanced by the ship. We thoroughly enjoyed each port and our excursions, and made some good new friends (despite the lack of the Meet & Mingle).

Great Itinerary, Good Crew, Poor Communications

This was our 3rd RCI cruise and our first since 2011. Sadly there were quite a few things that have changed since then.

We booked this cruise through our TA in June 2015 with a UK All Inclusive Drinks & Gratuities Offer.  

Embarkation 

We arrived at the port in Barcelona just before 11am and were checked in and on board the ship within about 15 minutes! Everyone involved during this process was friendly and very efficient. This had to be one of the best embarkation processes we have encountered to date.

Meet & Mingle

We were very disappointed not to have a Cruise Critic Meet and Mingle, especially as this had been confirmed to all the Roll Call members by RCI, prior to departure. We believe nearly 70 people had signed up for this but Roxana told people that we had not reached the 25 people required! This was very disappointing as many Cruise Critic members spend time on the Roll Call boards, getting to know each other prior to the cruise. Once on board it is very difficult to meet up individually as we don’t tend to publish cabin numbers.

State of Ship

Brilliance of the Seas is an older ship and does show signs of wear and tear. However, it wasn’t as bad a some people made out. We liked the style of the ship a lot, as it has character and reminded us of how cruising must have been in years gone by.

Casino

Not that busy during the cruise but being such a port intensive itinerary it was understandable. Wish they could make it no smoking. Seemed that many people just went there to smoke rather than play!

Shopping

Average ship shopping area with all the usual sales, etc. Did find it amusing that the pharmacy goods were hidden away in a corner where they sold alcohol and tobacco!!

Cabin

Mid ship balcony – deck 9. Comfortable bed, spacious and kept really clean and well serviced by our cabin attendant Camilla. Never had to ask for anything more than the first time and the cabin was always ready by the time we went back to it. She got to know our routine very quickly! Plenty of storage space and even the bathroom was a bit more spacious than other ships we’ve been on. Also there should be a TV channel that picks up announcements made over the loudspeaker system You need to know about tenders, port disembarkation, activities, etc. without having to go and open your cabin door to hear them!!.

Crew Members

The majority of crew members were happy, smiling and very friendly.(Always the odd exception!) This applied especially to the staff in the Buffet, who couldn’t do enough for you. Always asking if you needed drinks. Offering assistance to families and people not able to carry plates, etc. At breakfast and lunch they would go round with trolleys with cold drinks, coffee, cookies and so on. Can’t comment for the evening as we never ate there.

In the main dining room, (My Time Dining) again the waiters were very good but we sometimes felt they were under pressure. This could be a fault from the kitchen or maybe they just need some more waiters! They also had to deal with the drinks orders and we personally didn’t see any wine/drinks waiters walking round the dining room. We were very fortunate to have Rozario and Tunscer who looked after us extremely well for the entire cruise.

Shortage of staff was also evident in most of the lounges and bars, where if you didn’t go get your own drinks from the bar, you could wait a very long time! If you are putting a service charge on every drink item, it’s quite important that people get that service value.

Notable absence too of senior crew members walking round the ship.

Drinks Package & Food

We had the premium beverage package which worked very well, eventually!!

It’s really important to make sure that you have in writing exactly as to what drinks packages has been agreed in the booking reservation. We had a problem where we were told that our drinks package was not the one that was on our reservation but a Select one. Luckily I had a copy of an email from RCI confirming the Premium package. Without that there would have been a definite problem to prove otherwise. This also involved me wasting an hour at the Guest Services desk while they tried to sort it out. We did hear that other passengers on board had a similar situation. (‘All Inclusive Drinks and Gratuities Offer’  is not specific enough!)

Overall there was plenty of food available on the ship at all times. Food in the Main Dining Room was more than adequate and once we requested that we wanted our food to be hot (unless it was meant to be cold!) that’s what we received. The portions were generous and nicely presented and you could always have more if you wanted it. Food in the buffet was varied and we always found something to eat the times we were there. We also like the layout of the buffet which was airy and the tables were nice spaced. Park Café in the Solarium was also a good spot for a snack. We didn’t eat in any of the speciality restaurants. What we did find sad was that in Lattetudes coffee bar you paid $4+ for a cappuccino which was served in a polystyrene cup!!

Entertainment/Activities

Some shows were better than others but again that’s down to personal taste. The Soul Inspiration group was very good but we didn’t like the disco at all. We felt that there was a lack of ‘live dance music’ round the ship, especially in the evenings. The White Party on the pool deck (much anticipated by many people) took place on an evening when it was very windy and cold. So most people went there for 10 minutes and then gave up and went back inside. The Colony Club was not being used that night and we cannot understand why the venue for this event was not transferred to there.

Cruise Director and his team worked hard to keep everyone entertained. Dance classes, lessons, trivia, bingo, exhibitions, movies, etc. so there was always something you could do.

Ports of Call

This cruise had a really good itinerary and we had a great time in all the ports.

Only disappointment was In Zadar where we expected to be ported in town. We were in fact ported 7kms away (no prior notification) and then, apart from losing time waiting for shuttle buses etc. we were charged 12US$ per person for the privilege!!

Disembarkation

Disembarkation was really easy. We asked for the latest time and although the taxi line was rather long, it was handled very efficiently.

Post Cruise

We stayed 2 days in Barcelona before heading home. Lovely city and more than worth spending some time there.. 

Overall we had a really nice vacation but we did find RCI lacking in some of those little ‘personal touches’ that other shipping lines are still offering.

Some Disappointing Aspects

Two years ago, I sailed on the Brilliance and had a wonderful time. This recent cruise was a big disappointment. The changes were quite noticeable and bad.  The food was only mediocre with very few selections on the menu. The folks at "guest services" were rude, condescending and lied to us. The entertainment was very poor, as compared to two years ago. One of our expensive excursions was not as advertised and was cut short by an hour.  The first port that we had to be tendered into was very badly handled...as though they had never tendered before.  Folks had to stand in line in the hallways on two decks for up to 3 hours. The next port that had to be tendered was handled better, but the crew member piloting the ship's motor boat ran onto a sandbar in spite of a buoy clearly marking the sandbar. Thankfully no one was seriously hurt! 

At one port, we were 4 miles from the town with no taxi service at that commercial port. I was totally bummed when we were charged by the ship to board their reserved buses for the ride into town!  This should not have happened. I suppose that Royal Caribbean will soon be charging to be tendered into towns too.

There was no "meet and greet" with the captain and officers.  There was no get together for Crown & Anchor members. 

The hot tub in the Solarium is advertised in RC's brochure as open 24 hours.  This was not the case. When we return from a long day's sightseeing we like to use the hot tub to relax aching muscles.  We complained every day about keeping it open at night.  Finally, it was open one night. Five of us used it for about 40 minutes when the jets were turned off and the crew person told us to leave because he was closing it.It was not opened again at night for the remainder of the cruise.

I've saved the worst for last. We were travelling with a group of 51 folks. The cabin that 2 of our group were in had a toilet that did not function for four days!  Every day they would complain to "guest services" and were belittled and lied to. This is an absolute unacceptable situation!

Royal Caribbean needs to stop pouring money into their mega-ships and maintain/improve what they already have. This is the last cruise I will ever take on RCCL.  There are too many other cruise lines to chose from.

Good Bye Royal Caribbean

Melbourne

I chose the Atlantic crossing to see if I would like being on the ship for that many days without a port call.  I loved it.  I did have early concerns because, being a fairly new cruiser, I unknowingly picked what was supposed to be a "not so good" location for an oceanview cabin. It was on deck 3 all the way at the front.  However,it turned out to be just fine.  Our cabin steward was fantastic and treated us like we were in the luxury suite. I did not have any bad experiences with the motion of the ship or any unusual noises. The only negative (which turned out to be a positive) was how far we had to walk to the dining rooms and other public areas. Considering the amount of food I consumed, it was excellent for me to have to walk those extra steps. I was pleased with the size of the ship and all the interesting things they had scheduled to keep you occupied if you needed it.  I didn't chose to use the wifi package and it was a big plus for me to be 'unplugged' for the days we were crossing the Atlantic.  I could always find free wifi in each of the pots and catch up on what was necessary. I didn't book any shore excursions preferring to do my own thing which worked out just fine and was a lot cheaper. Overall, I'm very happy with the experience and plan to do another one next year.

First TransAtlantic but not the Last!

My 4th cruise with RC and first transatlantic.... I loved it! The room, the balcony, the staff service, friendliness and professionalism were all terrific.  I thought room service, dining in the Windjammer and the Minstrel 4th floor and food was perfect!   I never tried any of the specialty restaurants as I thoroughly enjoyed the dining room and the group of people I sat with.

However, I would not use the spa mani/pedi (fire/ice) again, though. Extremely overpriced ($120) and not to US standards .... no gloves worn, nor foot soak prior to starting pedicure, no vibrating chair. I was the only one  in the room at the time and the attendant continually ran to the door trying to fix it, rather than letting one of the others who had no customers handle the situation.  *** My advice.... make sure you have your nails done before the cruise, or plan to do them yourself.

Wonderful Transatlantic Cruise !!

staff and extras on board were wonderful. Sail away parties, arriving parties, entertainment was wonderful. love this ship. Our tablemates were the best and made for lasting relationships matched with our great waiter and asst. waiter. Our cabin was a very nice size and window was large for oceanview. There were no negatives to mention. 

Food was good.....but if I don't have to cook it is wonderful. The pools were very nice. morning stretch class was way to full and difficult to move. Royal Caribbean had a priest on board so we were able to attend daily mass. Big shout out to RC for this opportunity. Not many ships are afforded this opportunity so we are very appreciative that Royal Caribbean does it. This was on of my favorite cruises.The size of this ship works well, easy to navigate and yet many extras offered. We were celebrating our 50th Anniversary and were no disappointed.

Thank You Royal Caribbean for a great cruise.

Great Cruise

took this cruise to celebrate our 50 wedding anniversary. We had a oceanview cabin and regular dining (set time and table). We enjoy this opportunity to meet other guests and form friendships. Our waiter and asst. waiter were excellent. The entertainment was top notch and we enjoyed it very much. They offered many extra celebrations on this ship which made for a more exciting time. The ports were very interesting and we had a wonderful time at each of them . We had planned this trip for some time and was not disappointed. The staff in every venue from workers around the ship , officers, waiters, cabin steward, entertainment staff etc. were some of the best we have meant. We took this cruise to extend our cruise on the new Ovation of the Seas switching in Barcelona.

We thought everything went very smooth from checking in to switching ships in Barcelona. We appreciated the extra help that Brilliance offered in our switch to the Ovation.

Special occasion

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