Med-Greek Isles Cruise on the Brilliance - Notes from a Disney Vet

LisaLisa87 · July 14, 2016

My husband, 13-year-old daughter, and I were on the June 19th Med-Greek Isles sailing on Brilliance. We originally planned to sail the Med with DCL, but the price difference was just too big in this case: We were able to get a junior suite on Brilliance for about $4,000 less than the cost of an ocean view room on the August 1st sailing on the Magic (the only 12-night Med sailing offered by DCL this year). It turned out to be a good thing we had decided against DCL, because they subsequently changed the itinerary of the 12-night sailing dramatically, dropping both Turkey and two stops in Greece. This is most likely a one-time thing for us, and Greece was an absolute must. DH and I sailed with another couple on Radiance when she was brand new, but since then we have only cruised with Disney. I thought I would share some thoughts about our experience, with some comparisons to DCL thrown in.

THE SHIP

We found the ship to be in great condition and, with just a couple of small exceptions, very clean. I would say her condition is comparable to that of the Disney Magic. The ship seldom felt crowded except for when you would expect -- after the muster drill and occasionally at the Windjammer.

OUR ROOM

We originally booked a Deluxe Balcony room (D1), but were able to snag a cheap upgrade to a Junior Suite after our paid in full date. We LOVED our room. It was in a great location close (but not too close) to the Centrum, and we only had to go up one deck to get to the pool or the Windjammer. I was worried after some posts I read here about the bed being too hard, but it was very comfortable. DD was on the sofa bed, which was larger than the one on DCL and which DD declared "pretty good" – high praise from a 13-year old. There was tons of storage (we had empty cabinets). It was so nice to have all the extra space, and the walk-in closet doubled as a dressing room when needed. At no point did we feel cramped during the cruise. The only downside to the room is that it’s located on deck 10 under the pool deck, and every morning at about 6:30 we heard deck chairs being put out and moved around. After the first night we started using a white noise app on my phone, and that helped. Sometimes I slept right through the noise and other times I woke up briefly and went right back to sleep. The benefits of the JS definitely outweighed this one flaw. On a positive note, we never heard our neighbors on either side, and there was no noise from the room itself. There were no popping or creaking noises like we've experienced on the Disney Fantasy, although in fairness that was probably due in part to the fact that we were more forward and, except for the first night, the seas were extremely calm.

POOLS

As on DCL, the main pool area on Brilliance is on the small side, but I never saw the main pool anywhere near as crowded as the family pools on DCL. There were lots of deck chairs both on the pool deck and on the deck above, and we never really had a problem getting 2 lounge chairs together (we only needed 2 because DD decided that she was a "shade person" on this trip). There were chair hogs, just like on DCL, but that wasn't an issue for us since we didn't need to be on the pool deck or directly facing the sun at all times (those were the chairs in the most demand, of course). I really enjoyed the Solarium. It was a great alternative to the main pool area, especially after long port days when I wanted to swim but didn't want any more sun.

FOOD/BEVERAGES

We ate breakfast at the Windjammer most mornings. IMO both the quality and variety were a step below DCL’s Cabanas, although I did think the coffee was a little better! One area where the WJ excelled was in the layout. The food area was more spread out, and I found it much easier to get to the food. I will say that I agree with many others’ assessment of the scrambled eggs -- yuck. I really liked their number system for getting made-to-order eggs or omelets, though. We ate lunch in the WJ on several sea days. The variety was a bit better than at breakfast, but I found the fish offerings disappointing. I had breakfast at Park Cafe once and lunch twice and found it to be a nice, somewhat healthier alternative to the WJ.

We decided to try My Time Dining (MTD) so we could eat at a time that made sense for us. We made reservations ahead of time for 7 nights in the MDR, all at 7:45. I also signed us up for a 5-night specialty dining package when a promotion was offered a few months before the cruise. Since we had 7 ports, I decided that we'd eat in the MDR on the port days and at specialty restaurants on the sea days. Our experience with MTD was mixed. It got off to a bit of a rough start, but starting on our third visit, we were placed at a table and with servers that we were happy with. We thought the food in the MDR was good to very good -- very comparable to the MDR on DCL. As for the specialty restaurants, we ate at Chops twice, Giovanni's Table twice, and Izumi once. We also visited Rita's Cantina one afternoon for some margaritas and nachos. We really enjoyed the specialty restaurants and I very much appreciated the fact that we could take DD (unlike on DCL). We felt that the food and service at both Chops and Giovanni's was on par with Palo on DCL. We didn't like Izumi quite as much, but we still enjoyed it and it was a nice break from the MDR. The only specialty restaurant we didn't visit was the Chef's Table, which we heard was amazing. One other item of note is that several specialty buffets were offered on the pool deck during the cruise: a pasta bar, BBQ, and paella that I'm aware of.

This is a relatively minor issue, but I did miss that DD could not get free soda as she does on DCL (okay, not really “free,” but included in the cruise fare). This was a bit cumbersome in the MDR as the order had to go through someone other than our assistant server, and then had to be paid for separately from any wine that DH and I ordered. There were times when our assistant server had DH’s Seapass and I had to give mine to the gentleman who brought the soda. Again, not a huge deal, but it seemed unnecessarily complicated. Alcoholic drinks were a bit more expensive on RCCL, although we learned some tricks to save money. Probably the best deal onboard was the 2-for-1 margarita special offered in Rita's Cantina every evening from 5-8. We also ordered the drink of the day a couple of times. I kept watching out for the drink card that I’ve read about here, but unless I missed it, it wasn’t offered during our sailing.

ENTERTAINMENT

We didn't go to any of the shows during our sailing. Not one! There were a couple that sounded interesting, but we were generally too tired by 9PM to sit through a show. In fairness, DD has begun to lose interest in seeing the shows on DCL as well. One thing I loved is that there was live music all over the ship pretty much all the time. We especially loved hearing live music on the pool deck and in the Centrum. We went old school by playing ping pong and air hockey for a little while each night after dinner. DD and DH climbed the rock wall once and really enjoyed it. They also played mini golf once. I was disappointed at how underutilized the big TV screen on the pool deck was compared to the Funnel Vision on DCL. There was a Disney movie once on the first sea day and a Star Wars movie later in the cruise. Aside from that, the only thing I noticed on the screen was Euro Cup soccer, which was actually kind of fun to watch. The movies in the cinema were all rated PG, PG-13, or R. Overall, the entertainment was geared more toward older kids and adults. In general, I would say that DCL offers a mostly G-rated experience in terms of entertainment, while RCCL offers a more PG experience. Not a big deal for us since our DD is 13.

Continued in next post...

LisaLisa87 · July 14, 2016

ITINERARY

We loved our itinerary (round trip from Barcelona):

Cannes - Took the train to Nice on our own

La Spezia - Used the train system to explore the Cinque Terre on our own

Rome - Private tour with RomeInLimo (excellent)

Sea Day

Athens - Private tour with PK Travel (excellent)

Ephesus - Private tour with Ephesus Private Tours (very good)

Santorini - Private tour with Santorini Day Tours (excellent)

Sea Day

Valletta, Malta - Hired a taxi for 3 hours at the port for 72 Euros and went to the Blue Grotto, then to Mdina, and finally to Valletta

*Photos in next post

Sea Day

MISCELLANEOUS

We tendered twice, in Cannes and in Santorini, and the process was smooth and quick both times. No tickets and no big lines. I had been nervous about the process going in, but it turned out to be a piece of cake.

It would have been nice to have do-it-yourself laundry rooms on the ship like DCL has. We spent about $47 to have laundry done that probably amounted to one medium sized load. We did the $30 bag on about day 5, and then had a handful of things washed closer to the end of the cruise.

Embarkation and disembarkation were both quick and painless. We had priority check-in since we were in a JS, and it was a breeze. We boarded at 1:10 and our room was ready.

We stayed at Hotel Jazz for one night before the cruise and one night after. We loved it and would definitely stay there again.

We did a tour with Barcelona Day Tours upon landing in Barcelona. It was a great way to see many of the prime sites efficiently and stay awake on arrival day!

DD did not utilize the teen club at all, which didn't surprise me since she didn't go to Edge the last time we sailed on DCL. There seemed to be quite a few kids on the ship, and Adventure Ocean appeared to be well utilized.

I missed the Wave Phones from DCL. Those phones and the DCL app, which has a texting feature, are a great way to stay in touch on the ship and at Castaway Cay.

We paid for Voom Internet, but what we got was not Voom. It was mostly pretty reliable, but s-l-o-w.

THE BOTTOM LINE

We had a fantastic experience overall and will definitely sail RCCL again – we have the Allure booked for April 2017. I do think this class of ship is probably a better fit for families with older kids, but I would recommend it to anyone for such a port-intensive itinerary. This was the trip of a lifetime for us, and we have no regrets about our choice to sail with RCCL. I'd be happy to answer questions!

Edited July 14, 2016 by LisaLisa87

JoyMouse · July 14, 2016

Enjoying your review and following along!

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LisaLisa87 · July 14, 2016

Photos from Malta:

Clarea · July 14, 2016

Interesting comparison, thanks.

EMED2010 · July 14, 2016

Where did you meet your guide in Santorini? If you took the cable car, how long did it take you to get up?

LisaLisa87 · July 14, 2016

Where did you meet your guide in Santorini? If you took the cable car, how long did it take you to get up?

We met in Fira near the cable car entrance. The other pair in our tour took the cable car and said the line was short. This was pretty early, though -- I think they were on one of the very first tenders. We rode the donkeys which took about 20 minutes, followed by about 5-10 minute walk to the cable car entrance. Our guide's name was George, and he was fantastic! He dropped us off in Fira at the end of the tour, and we took the cable car down. The wait was about 30 minutes, and it was HOT.

EMED2010 · July 14, 2016

Thanks!

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WrittenOnYourHeart · July 14, 2016

Thanks for the review! I was on the Brilliance sailing right after yours - the Med/Venice route (currently writing up my trip on that), and am also very familiar with Disney. Since I travel solo and am not overly picky about my cabin, I don't see the huge price differences that others do and will likely go back to Disney following my Celebrity Reflection cruise unless the celebrity experience wows me. :)

LisaLisa87 · July 14, 2016

Thanks for the review! I was on the Brilliance sailing right after yours - the Med/Venice route (currently writing up my trip on that), and am also very familiar with Disney. Since I travel solo and am not overly picky about my cabin, I don't see the huge price differences that others do and will likely go back to Disney following my Celebrity Reflection cruise unless the celebrity experience wows me. :)

I saw your report and have been reading it. Sounds like a great way to celebrate your birthday!

We would love to do another Disney cruise, but lately there always seems to be a huge price difference. We priced spring break on the Fantasy, and a 7A/obstructed verandah would have cost us about $2,500 more than a JS on Allure. The southern Caribbean itinerary on the Magic was about the same price as the western on the Fantasy. The only cruise I've priced recently where the prices were in the same ballpark was Alaska, but I'm not sure we want to go to Alaska with DCL since they don't go to Glacier Bay. Our cruises with them have been amazing, so I would like to do another at some point!

KiwiGal117 · July 14, 2016

Thanks for sharing! Your cruise sounds amazing! We considered Disney for our 7 day Med cruise coming up in August. The price was similar vis a vis Harmony. We ultimately went with Harmony because we thought that our boys (11 and 12) might have aged out of the Disney experience a bit, and of course the new bells and whistles on Harmony are something they are pretty excited about.

I have a question about Cinque Terre - we're thinking of doing the train ourselves. Was it straightforward to get from the ship to the train station? And, where are the local stations in comparison to the "sites". I was also thinking of taking the ferry from one to another, if weather permits.

Edited July 14, 2016 by KiwiGal117

LisaLisa87 · July 14, 2016

Thanks for sharing! Your cruise sounds amazing! We considered Disney for our 7 day Med cruise coming up in August. The price was similar vis a vis Harmony. We ultimately went with Harmony because we thought that our boys (11 and 12) might have aged out of the Disney experience a bit, and of course the new bells and whistles on Harmony are something they are pretty excited about.

I have a question about Cinque Terre - we're thinking of doing the train ourselves. Was it straightforward to get from the ship to the train station? And, where are the local stations in comparison to the "sites". I was also thinking of taking the ferry from one to another, if weather permits.

Interesting. As a Disney lover, I think I would also have chosen the Harmony over the Magic if prices were similar. I'm sure your boys will love it!

There were buses right where we disembarked shuttling people to the "cruise terminal," which was maybe a 5-7 minute ride. We got on a bus since everyone else was! From the cruise terminal, we took a short taxi ride to the train station. If we had done our homework more thoroughly (I'm going to throw DH under the bus here because this was supposed to be *his* port to research), we would have done things differently. Friends we met on the ship said that they walked from port to the train station and that it took them 20-25 minutes.

Once we got to the train station, we bought Cinque Terre Train cards that allowed us to use the trains for the day (see link below). It is important to remember to validate your cards if you go this route. We visited 3 of the towns, and in each case the station was a very short walk -- anywhere from 2 minutes to maybe 10. Very easy. We had planned to take a ferry at some point, but we really enjoyed using the trains. Such a beautiful place!

http://www.cinqueterre.eu.com/en/cinque-terre-card

ETA: The 1-day train cards give you access to the hiking trails as well, in case you decide to hike between two of the towns.

Edited July 14, 2016 by LisaLisa87

Ltzorn · July 18, 2016

Hi Lisa

My two GF & I are sailing on Brilliance on 8/30 with the same itinerary that you had. Do you by any chance have the cruise compasses for your trip? I'd love to see them. We are also in a JS. I see that the GS is now cheaper then our JS. I am inquiring with our TA as to whether we might be able to get that larger cabin. we are also booked with Rome in limo for Rome and Florence. thank you for your beautiful photos.

Thanks,Lisa

LisaLisa87 · July 19, 2016

Hi Lisa
My two GF & I are sailing on Brilliance on 8/30 with the same itinerary that you had. Do you by any chance have the cruise compasses for your trip? I'd love to see them. We are also in a JS. I see that the GS is now cheaper then our JS. I am inquiring with our TA as to whether we might be able to get that larger cabin. we are also booked with Rome in limo for Rome and Florence. thank you for your beautiful photos.

Thanks,Lisa

Hi Lisa! You and your GFs are going to have such a great time! Your TA should definitely be able to get you into the GS if it's still available. We loved our JS, but who wouldn't love to have full suite perks??

Here are the Compasses from our sailing:

Day 1 - Departing Barcelona

Day 2 - Cannes

Day 3 - La Spezia

Day 4 - Civitavecchia