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Rain, drinks, smokes and fun on Radiance! Pictorial review, 2/10/11.


DarthGrady

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This is going to take a while to get posted up, I have a bunch of pictures. Lets get it started!

Introduction:

This was my twenty second cruise, and fifth with Royal Caribbean, having previously cruised twice on Monarch and twice on Freedom. After reading so many positive reviews of Radiance of the Seas, my wife and I decided to try it out. Since Royal Caribbean was kind enough to put it in our back yard, I figured that we would be fools not to brave the 1.5 hour drive to Tampa to experience such a fine ship. We were originally booked into an interior cabin, but after a considerable price drop we decided to upgrade to a Junior Suite. At the time we also had 8 household points with Crown and Anchor, so the extra credit for the suite would make us Diamond Members. We were accompanied on this cruise by another couple going on their fifth cruise. We all drove down together on the first morning and got to the pier at around 11:30 am.

Some shots I took with my cell phone as we arrived at the Port of Tampa

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Embarkation:

I have to give the Port of Tampa a lot a credit because this was quite possibly the fastest embarkation process ever. We walked into the building at around 11:45 and were walking onto the ship at 11:55. Lines were non existent.

 

Some more covert cell phone shots inside the terminal. Shhhh, don't tell the security guards!

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The infamous sign that started it all :cool:

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Our Cabin:

After studying the deck plans my wife found that Junior Suite #1602 had a larger than normal balcony and an aft facing view. We had been in an aft suite on Carnival Spirit and really enjoyed that view of the ship’s wake. Upon getting to the room I was very impressed with the space and decoration. The room is large with a full size couch in the sitting area. The bathroom has a nicely tiled floor and a shower/tub. The balcony is very large with two lounge chairs, two upright chairs and a small table. About half of the balcony is covered by an overhang which was very nice considering that the majority of our cruise was plagued by rainy weather. It was also helpful since I prop the balcony door open at night to let in fresh air and enjoy the sound of the wake.

Early on day 3 we discovered a leak coming from under the wall between the bathroom and foyer. It was not much water, but we did notify our cabin steward about it. They brought a floor blower in and let it run, but the floor had mostly dried by them. The leak did not reoccur again during the cruise. The same cannot be said for the other rooms around us. At the opposite aft corner there were blowers going constantly due to leaks, and we saw crew working on plumbing at a few spots in our area. On the last night of our cruise we received a letter stating that we would be getting a future cruise discount certificate for 15% of our cruise fare. I felt this was more than enough for the extremely minor issue we had. I can only assume that all the cabins with leaks got the same letter.

 

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The Ship:

Immediately after boarding the Radiance, one can sense that the ship was designed to offer views of the outside from almost every location within the ship. Huge windows and glass walls provide panoramic views. Everything about the ship is thoughtfully designed and decorated. The layout is easily learned with only a few hours on board. It really seems like Royal Caribbean (RCI) went above and beyond making the Radiance a beautiful ship both inside and out.

Starting at the bottom on deck 4 is the centerpiece of the ship, its atrium. The atrium lobby houses the guest relations and shore excursions desk, as well as a lobby bar with nearby dance floor. There is frequently live music in the lobby, which becomes an unofficial dance club at times. The atrium has the standard glass enclosed elevators, but Royal Caribbean has taken the idea a step farther. One side of the ship adjacent to the Atrium is made entirely of glass panes. There are four additional glass elevators that look out through it, offering tremendous outside views while guests ride between decks.

 

The atrium lobby

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Live music in the lobby

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Birds eye view

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Looking up into the atrium

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The atrium sculpture

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Wow, I am enjoying this review. . . I love the oics. . . I need to cruise from Tampa someday !

 

I really want to sail from there :)

 

 

 

 

Radio

;);)

 

.

 

Easiest port we've ever sailed from and only 40 minutes or so from our front door!:D

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Darth, would you please describe/list the coupons that were in your Emerald coupon book?

 

Not for me.....but I bet that lots of newly-made Emeralds would like to know!

 

:)

 

Surely.

 

Just off the top of my head:

 

2- BOGO soda, beer or wine

1- 10% off soda, beer or wine

3- Spin to win in the casino

2- (I think) $5 match play in the casino

1- 15% spa discount

1- BOGO premium coffee drinks

1- Free premium coffee in a specialty restaurant

1- $10 or 15% (whichever is greater) off an a web package.

1- Art discount, can't remember what it was

1- Buy one, get one half off photo purchase

1- Some type of bingo discount

 

Those are the highlights, if I think of any more I'll post them. I also posted pics of the new Emerald C&A pin here:

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1359442&highlight=

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The lower level of the Cascades Dining Room is also located on deck 4. The Cascades is a very beautiful restaurant. The scale may not compare to the dining room on Freedom of the Seas, but it more than makes up for it with its beauty. The room features a Y shaped grand staircase that flanks a large fountain in the center. At the opposite end is a huge tile mosaic that extends up through both levels. Our serving team Ozgur and Robert were both fantastic and provided us with quality service all four nights.

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The Aurora Theater located on deck 5 is the main show lounge of the vessel. The photo gallery, art gallery and gift shops are also located on this deck. In the atrium on deck 5 has the Latte-tudes café which serves Seattle’s Best coffees along with cookies and pastries. There are also several internet computer terminals in the café. On the exterior of deck 5 is a wrap around promenade deck, which if followed all the way forward leads to the helicopter landing pad at the bow. This area is one of my favorite features of Royal Caribbean ships as it offers some of the best views available. It is also a novelty since most ships do not allow access to the bow. I was happy to find that the area was open at night, since it was always closed on Freedom.

The Aurora Theater

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Deck 6 is the ship’s main entertainment area. It is home to the upper level of the Aurora Theater. The ships Cinema is also nearby. The movies shown on the ships televisions are also shown in the theater. It has stadium seating and surround sound, giving a very close approximation to being in a movie theater on land. Although I never used them, the Casino Royale and Scoreboard Sports Bar are located on this deck. The ship’s Champagne Bar is on deck 6 in the atrium.

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Scoreboard Sports Bar

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Arcade in the Sports Bar

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