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Just off Brilliance - Thoughts and Observations

breeze123
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breeze123

breeze123

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We sadly had to get off the Brilliance on Saturday morning to return home. :( This was one of our favorite cruises so far. I thought I would share some of my thoughts and observations since this is not a ship that is reviewed often.

 

Embarkation was fairly easy. We had to wait in a bit of a security line just to get into the building (set sail pass/passport check). Then we did the health survey and hopped in line for check in. That took all of 5 minutes. Security took a bit longer since my husband has a metal hip and it caused some issues. Once on board we sat next to Cafe Lattitudes which was quiet and relaxing. Rooms were ready by 1pm.

 

The ship itself is in great condition. The carpets, upholstery, linens, etc. all looked like they were still brand new. Everything was very clean and well maintained. A fellow passenger in the elevator on departure day was complaining that the men's restroom outside the Windjammer was gross, but I do think that was in part due to the number of people cycling through there while we were waiting for our rooms. We never encountered this issue in the public restrooms during the rest of the cruise.

 

The food was as to be expected. Nothing terrible, but nothing to write home about. We know this so we were not disappointed. My husband had the lasagna one night and said it was fantastic. I was addicted to the fries at the Windjammer and my daughter couldn't get enough of the chocolate chip cookies.

 

We were in a GS so we ordered in from the dining room on most nights. We are lazy diners and do not like to get dressed for dinner on vacation so we enjoyed this suite perk quite a bit. We did notice that the WJ was serving almost all the same items as the dining room menu in the evenings so really, it was a wash for us.

 

The talent of the entertainers on board was incredible. I usually don't say that about cruise entertainment, but wow! I was very impressed. The Broadway style show in the theater had me wondering why these people were not actually starring on Broadway. They were THAT good. Very impressive. We enjoyed the groups playing in the Centrum as well and often spent time just sitting, listening, and watching people dance.

 

For all the speculation on cutbacks in crew, this ship seemed to have an EXCESS of crew roaming around at all time. There were constantly officers walking around the ship looking as if they were just observing. There even seemed to be some cleaning crew that were looking like they were trying to be busy (one standing in front of a sign that says "Caution: Wire on stairs" as the other crew member was vacuuming). We also noticed a lot of crew in uniform eating at the Windjammer throughout the day. I thought this was no no? In addition, in the evenings, we would see crew in street clothes, with their badge on, just wandering around the ship. One was even a couple holding hands. We had no problem with any of this, but I thought it was odd since I always thought crew had to stay in their own quarters when not on duty.

 

We had one crew member who really WOW'd us. Most of the rest of the crew were fine. Some were indifferent, but no one else really went above and beyond. We were not bothered by this, but it's just an observation.

 

This was a Spring Break cruise and while we did have a large group of college students, they mainly kept to the Sky Bar and we really didn't run into them anywhere else. The pools and hot tubs had plenty of room.

 

The bar service was slow, but we just figured out where we could get served more quickly and walked to that bar rather than wait. Probably a wash on that too, but it made me think I was getting a drink more quickly. :) A few times at Vintages there would be no one there to serve and people would be standing around waiting for someone to show up. My daughter was disappointed by the lack of Freestyle Coke machines, but I do think she got a kick out of bellying up to the bar to get her drink. LOL

 

Our CD was Clo, and personally, I didn't enjoy her. We only saw her twice during the whole cruise (once during the Broadway show and once just walking through the Centrum on her way somewhere). The other CD staff seemed to be at every event. To the point that I couldn't believe I just left one at Bingo and here she was showing up at the dance party.

 

We stopped at Grand Cayman and Cozumel and both had 4 ships in port total. Even with that, we never felt like there were that many people roaming around. Perhaps when you first get on the pier, but after that, it was fine. The towel pickup for port was a bit of a nightmare. Compass said get them at the exit. When we get down there to the front of the line and then ask, they say you have to go upstairs, to the pool, to get them. Huh? So I ran back to the pool only to have that person argue with me that I can't take them for port. I told her the guy told me I had to get them here and she relented. There was someone waiting when we returned to the ship to take the towels back and scan our card (which was never scanned on exit), but I just returned them to the pool where I got them from. It's possible I missed the information somewhere, but I would have thought the crew at the exit would know better how to direct me.

 

My daughter took a stab at AO again on this trip and LOVED IT (she hated it on the Enchantment). I literally had to drag her back to the room at night. I do think it's more of the amount and mix of kids vs. what is actually going on in there. Either way, she had a blast.

 

Disembarkation was a breeze. We were in a GS and we are Platinum so we took the Platinum lounge as it was closer to the exit and we wouldn't have to fight for the elevators. A crew member escorted us straight to the front of the line which was unexpected and awesome! Then when we got to baggage claim, we tipped a porter to help us which allowed up a fast track lane through customs. Definitely worth the money!

 

Again, a fabulous cruise with many great memories. I would sail this ship again in a heartbeat.

 

Happy to answer any questions!

Edited by breeze123
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GTO-Girl

GTO-Girl

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Posted

Thank you for your review!!

 

We tried to sail her on Feb 23rd but it was cancelled due to fog, so now will be sailing her for the first time on the 11th and cannot wait!

 

I think I am going to love this class of ship!!!

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breeze123

breeze123

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Thank you for your review!!

 

We tried to sail her on Feb 23rd but it was cancelled due to fog, so now will be sailing her for the first time on the 11th and cannot wait!

 

 

I'm glad you are getting another chance very soon! I watched that whole fog situation very closely. We even moved our return flight to later in the afternoon just in case. Of course we ended up sitting at the airport for 6 hours, but that was fine.

 

I really felt like this cruise had a lot of activities that we WANTED to participate in. And a lot of family things too which we really enjoyed. I really wanted to do the scavenger hunt, but my daughter opted for the pool instead (i should have just done it on my own!).

 

People really got dancing to all the music in the Centrum. Great place to enjoy yourself.

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frisbeewife

frisbeewife

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I'm so glad you liked Brilliance! DH and I were on her sister ship, Jewel, in January 2014 and had a great time. DH is not much into cruises but he had such a good time that he finally agreed to a 12-night Norway & Iceland cruise this summer on Brilliance. So I'm really glad to hear that Brilliance is as nice as Jewel was.

 

Thanks!

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breeze123

breeze123

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I'm so glad you liked Brilliance! DH and I were on her sister ship, Jewel, in January 2014 and had a great time. DH is not much into cruises but he had such a good time that he finally agreed to a 12-night Norway & Iceland cruise this summer on Brilliance. So I'm really glad to hear that Brilliance is as nice as Jewel was.

 

Thanks!

 

That sounds wonderful! I'm sure it will be a fantastic cruise!

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bluegirlum

bluegirlum

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Thank you for your review!!

 

We tried to sail her on Feb 23rd but it was cancelled due to fog, so now will be sailing her for the first time on the 11th and cannot wait!

 

I think I am going to love this class of ship!!!

 

I'm so glad you're finally getting to go. I know how disappointing that how disaster was for you! Have a great time! :)

 

OP, thanks for your review and glad you had a good trip. I sailed on her on Feb. 28th, and we had a blast. i had been on Brilliance a long time ago and thought it was fine, but we really thought it was great. I have always said it's either Liberty or Majesty for me, but I'd definitely go on Brilliance again.

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WrittenOnYourHeart Great Review Rare

WrittenOnYourHeart

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Posted

Thanks for the review! I'm seriously considering doing either the Italy or Greek Isles cruise in summer of 2016 as a birthday celebration for me - and it would be on the Brilliance.

 

Plus I'll be on the Radiance this summer to Alaska with my running coach and her husband and 75-100 new running buddies! :)

 

One question... With the pub being so close to the casino is it really smoky? I love pubs and hanging out in them, but I can't tolerate a strong smoky smell (last summer the running group was on HAL and I always got extra exercise on stairs getting to and from dinner to avoid having to walk through the completely open casino which reeked even when it was closed.

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shipshape sam Great Review Rare

shipshape sam

Posted
Posted (edited)
We sadly had to get off the Brilliance on Saturday morning to return home. :( This was one of our favorite cruises so far. I thought I would share some of my thoughts and observations since this is not a ship that is reviewed often.

 

Embarkation was fairly easy. We had to wait in a bit of a security line just to get into the building (set sail pass/passport check). Then we did the health survey and hopped in line for check in. That took all of 5 minutes. Security took a bit longer since my husband has a metal hip and it caused some issues. Once on board we sat next to Cafe Lattitudes which was quiet and relaxing. Rooms were ready by 1pm.

 

The ship itself is in great condition. The carpets, upholstery, linens, etc. all looked like they were still brand new. Everything was very clean and well maintained. A fellow passenger in the elevator on departure day was complaining that the men's restroom outside the Windjammer was gross, but I do think that was in part due to the number of people cycling through there while we were waiting for our rooms. We never encountered this issue in the public restrooms during the rest of the cruise.

 

The food was as to be expected. Nothing terrible, but nothing to write home about. We know this so we were not disappointed. My husband had the lasagna one night and said it was fantastic. I was addicted to the fries at the Windjammer and my daughter couldn't get enough of the chocolate chip cookies.

 

We were in a GS so we ordered in from the dining room on most nights. We are lazy diners and do not like to get dressed for dinner on vacation so we enjoyed this suite perk quite a bit. We did notice that the WJ was serving almost all the same items as the dining room menu in the evenings so really, it was a wash for us.

 

The talent of the entertainers on board was incredible. I usually don't say that about cruise entertainment, but wow! I was very impressed. The Broadway style show in the theater had me wondering why these people were not actually starring on Broadway. They were THAT good. Very impressive. We enjoyed the groups playing in the Centrum as well and often spent time just sitting, listening, and watching people dance.

 

For all the speculation on cutbacks in crew, this ship seemed to have an EXCESS of crew roaming around at all time. There were constantly officers walking around the ship looking as if they were just observing. There even seemed to be some cleaning crew that were looking like they were trying to be busy (one standing in front of a sign that says "Caution: Wire on stairs" as the other crew member was vacuuming). We also noticed a lot of crew in uniform eating at the Windjammer throughout the day. I thought this was no no? In addition, in the evenings, we would see crew in street clothes, with their badge on, just wandering around the ship. One was even a couple holding hands. We had no problem with any of this, but I thought it was odd since I always thought crew had to stay in their own quarters when not on duty.

 

We had one crew member who really WOW'd us. Most of the rest of the crew were fine. Some were indifferent, but no one else really went above and beyond. We were not bothered by this, but it's just an observation.

 

This was a Spring Break cruise and while we did have a large group of college students, they mainly kept to the Sky Bar and we really didn't run into them anywhere else. The pools and hot tubs had plenty of room.

 

The bar service was slow, but we just figured out where we could get served more quickly and walked to that bar rather than wait. Probably a wash on that too, but it made me think I was getting a drink more quickly. :) A few times at Vintages there would be no one there to serve and people would be standing around waiting for someone to show up. My daughter was disappointed by the lack of Freestyle Coke machines, but I do think she got a kick out of bellying up to the bar to get her drink. LOL

 

Our CD was Clo, and personally, I didn't enjoy her. We only saw her twice during the whole cruise (once during the Broadway show and once just walking through the Centrum on her way somewhere). The other CD staff seemed to be at every event. To the point that I couldn't believe I just left one at Bingo and here she was showing up at the dance party.

 

We stopped at Grand Cayman and Cozumel and both had 4 ships in port total. Even with that, we never felt like there were that many people roaming around. Perhaps when you first get on the pier, but after that, it was fine. The towel pickup for port was a bit of a nightmare. Compass said get them at the exit. When we get down there to the front of the line and then ask, they say you have to go upstairs, to the pool, to get them. Huh? So I ran back to the pool only to have that person argue with me that I can't take them for port. I told her the guy told me I had to get them here and she relented. There was someone waiting when we returned to the ship to take the towels back and scan our card (which was never scanned on exit), but I just returned them to the pool where I got them from. It's possible I missed the information somewhere, but I would have thought the crew at the exit would know better how to direct me.

 

My daughter took a stab at AO again on this trip and LOVED IT (she hated it on the Enchantment). I literally had to drag her back to the room at night. I do think it's more of the amount and mix of kids vs. what is actually going on in there. Either way, she had a blast.

 

Disembarkation was a breeze. We were in a GS and we are Platinum so we took the Platinum lounge as it was closer to the exit and we wouldn't have to fight for the elevators. A crew member escorted us straight to the front of the line which was unexpected and awesome! Then when we got to baggage claim, we tipped a porter to help us which allowed up a fast track lane through customs. Definitely worth the money!

 

Again, a fabulous cruise with many great memories. I would sail this ship again in a heartbeat.

 

Happy to answer any questions!

 

Quick question on ordering from MDR. Do they bring all courses at same time?

 

We sailed Brilliance in January and had a great time.

Edited by shipshape sam
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Clarea

Clarea

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Posted
Quick question on ordering from MDR. Do they bring all courses at same time?

 

We sailed Brilliance in January and had a great time.

Yes, if you order room service from the MDR menu, all courses arrive at the same time.

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Paulette3028

Paulette3028

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Posted
We sadly had to get off the Brilliance on Saturday morning to return home........ my daughter couldn't get enough of the chocolate chip cookies.

 

The talent of the entertainers on board was incredible. I usually don't say that about cruise entertainment, but wow! I was very impressed. The Broadway style show in the theater had me wondering why these people were not actually starring on Broadway. They were THAT good. Very impressive. We enjoyed the groups playing in the Centrum as well and often spent time just sitting, listening, and watching people dance.

 

 

Our CD was Clo, and personally, I didn't enjoy her. We only saw her twice during the whole cruise (once during the Broadway show and once just walking through the Centrum on her way somewhere). The other CD staff seemed to be at every event. To the point that I couldn't believe I just left one at Bingo and here she was showing up at the dance party.

 

 

Again, a fabulous cruise with many great memories. I would sail this ship again in a heartbeat.

 

Happy to answer any questions!

 

It sounds like you had a great fun cruise doing the things you like to do.....I agree with your daughter -- I love the chocolate chip cookies as well....and make them a part of my daily diet on a ship.

 

I also am amazed at the talent of the entertainment staff on many of the cruises we have been on. Although I have not had Clo as a CD on any cruise, I am glad to hear that the rest of the entertainment staff was incredibly visible at all events, even if she was not. Who was the Activity Manager on board?

 

I have found that the entertainment staff works so incredibly hard to make the activities (from line dancing to trivia to karaoke and everything elso) rock and add to everyones fun. The CD gets a lot of the attention, but the entertainment staff does so much more of the daily work, led by the Activity Manager who is the assistant to the CD, in reality.

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breeze123

breeze123

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There is no smoking in the pub and there was no overflow from the casino-I would have noticed for sure. The main theatre is really close and there is a bank of elevators there too

 

 

Absolutely agree. Never noticed overflow at that end.

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

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