Brilliance of Seas - Avoid Deck 7 - & Review

We just got back from a 12 night Mediterranean cruise on Brilliance of the Seas. What a wonderful trip with a great itinerary... Would do it again in a heartbeat. The ship is magnificent, one of the nicest I have ever seen. Nevertheless, we were assigned to cabin 7638 (balcony) - and I must say that it was VERY NOISY.

This deck of the ship is directly above all of the main entertainment rooms. Our cabin was directly above the piano bar which was going strong till 1-2 in the morning. A little noise does not bother me, but being able to hear every word of every song (and sing along in bed if I like) is a bit much. I complained and they did what they could, but there is definitely a design flaw. AVOID this area of the ship when booking - unless you are a total night owl (which is difficult on the Med itinerary since tours start each day at 7 am).

On another note, for anyone planning this trip, food was average, certainly not great, but was better in the specialty restaurants. Seaview Cafe and Windjammer actually had better food than the dining room, but the service in the dining room (at my table) was top notch - never had a better waiter.

Lots of people wanted to take private tours from this website, we did not and took the cruise tours in most ports. We found them to be truly excellent and well orchestrated. The only place that I was disappointed with the tour quality and might choose a private tour is in Naples because trying to get Capri, Sorrento and Pompeii all in on one day is tough. Also, although we took a short tour in Athens, with their Metro subway system, we could have done it totally on our own with ease.

Thank you for the information regarding deck 7 and your 12 day Meditterrean Cruise. We are booked for the 12 day cruise on 8/30 in room 7582 so I was interested in your posting. We too have decided to do the RCCL shore excursions instead of going out on our own since we have have to cancel last minute due to illness in my and my traveling companion's family. We have booked the exclusive tours in Rome and Santorni to get the best look at these two cities or areas. Any other advise would be helpful. We booked last October for this trip and was hoping for an upgrade since we are both diamond club members but we understand the ship is sold out except for the the top suite. Who knew that Europe would be such a popular place in 2004. In Athens, are you close enough to get out on your own when you return from a half day tour?

kearnsk91@aol.com

 

Who knew that Europe would be such a popular place in 2004?

 

Hmm, Olympics fever, maybe?