BRILLIANCE (British Isles) June 19-July 2,2018 REVIEW w/lots of photos

[accio_7]

Hoopster, I absolutely loved your photos and review of Amsterdam, this is a bucket list item of mine to visit this beautiful and historic city!

 

Not too sure if you regularly travel/cruise solo, but, as someone cruising solo for the first time later this year, would love to hear some tips :) I have travelled solo quite a bit in the past to the States, Europe, so I'm very comfortable with doing so.

 

Keep up the great work!

[IrishLassie]

Hang tight IrishLassie... I'd love to hear your feedback on my two days in Dublin when I get there :D

 

Will do! Been there many times as my DH's family is from Co. Donegal & we have good friends in Dublin. Looking forward to your pictures. One thing, be careful of "pick pockets" in Dublin!! Enjoy!

[Hoopster95]

Great pictures Hoopster95! Can you tell me how long those balloons remained in the atrium please. Did you notice any other balloons while on the cruise?

 

 

Sent from my iPad using Forums

 

Thx for following along cruiztime .... as far as the balloons go I have no clue. I believe they were up only for embarkation and that was it. I am 100% positive there were no balloons for any show in the Centrum (ie, 70's, 80's, etc) and I did not see any anywhere else. Maybe someone else on this sailing following along can give you more info??

[Hoopster95]

Hoopster, I absolutely loved your photos and review of Amsterdam, this is a bucket list item of mine to visit this beautiful and historic city!

 

Not too sure if you regularly travel/cruise solo, but, as someone cruising solo for the first time later this year, would love to hear some tips :) I have travelled solo quite a bit in the past to the States, Europe, so I'm very comfortable with doing so.

 

Keep up the great work!

 

Thx for the kind words accio. Yes, I've cruised solo a few times, most recently before this sailing on Jewel out of San Juan (did not do a review). Expand my signature below... Serenade and Quantum I also did full solo reviews as well if you're interested.

 

3 most important things to consider in my humble opinion:

• INVOLVE YOURSELF on-line with fellow cruisers pre-cruise on the roll call. Getting in on private excursions with other like-minded fellow cruisers is a huge deal. It's how I discovered Sherri & Mike on this sailing and how we planned some of our dinners & meet ups... life long friends :D
  
• PLAN PLAN PLAN ... know what you're going to site see and why
  
• HAVE FUN! Say hello and get to know everyone you meet ... pretty much at the end of every cruise many close to me laugh as I'm saying hi and hugging a bunch of fellow cruisers at the end of the sailing, they bug me that I know everyone on the ship :cool:
  

[Hoopster95]

Although this sailing on Brilliance completes my "tour" of sailing on all four Radiance Class ships at one time or another, there are many more fellow CC'ers here on this forum that are more experienced than me with Radiance Class and know the ships like the backs of their hands ... rather than go through an explanation of photos, hopefully by posting them you may follow along (on a deck plan if you wish) to see if the drydock from a couple of months ago triggers a memory for anyone on Brilliance as far as upgrade and/or changes to the ship. This is my first sailing on Brilliance. To me, all looked pretty much the same as other ships with some minor differences. Bob may be able to see some upgrades or differences from last season's Tampa sailings?

 

So without further ado....

I'll start with deck 6 aft as I headed straight away upon boarding to Chop's to confirm my D+ BOGO specialty booking with Kanscocoa (Middle Aged Drama Queen) and her DH for this evening. Any questions, fire away and I'll do my best to answer.

 

 

Deck 6 (aft)

 

1 - entry through to the Schooner Bar from the Centrum

 

2 - Giovanni's Table

 

3 - Chop's taken from the side door (staff only) that connects to Giovanni's at the windows

 

4 - Schooner Bar looking back from where I had come

[Hoopster95]

Deck 6 (aft cont.)

 

 

1 - entering the Colony Club (self leveling pool tables on the left)

 

2 - Colony Club's dance floor

 

3 - Sound system for this venue

 

4 - On this cruise I never did use this area. However, if you were to go through my last fall's Jewel b2b review in Europe, there were a couple of days where I enjoyed sail away here instead of up at the DL/CL with perfect aft views leaving port and the pianist playing. The floor-ceiling windows are superb... this is by far the least used "high-end" real estate on any RCL ship. These unobstructed aft views will likely become cabins someday or a revenue producing venue (ie. specialty restaurant)

 

5 - another view of the dance floor from the stage

[KansCocoa]

Great pictures Hoopster95! Can you tell me how long those balloons remained in the atrium please. Did you notice any other balloons while on the cruise?

 

 

Sent from my iPad using Forums

 

I only remember seeing the balloons during embarkation - I believe they were gone by the time we assembled for Muster Drill. And as Claudio said, I didn’t see any more balloons the rest of the cruise.

[KansCocoa]

Thx for the kind words accio. Yes, I've cruised solo a few times, most recently before this sailing on Jewel out of San Juan (did not do a review). Expand my signature below... Serenade and Quantum I also did full solo reviews as well if you're interested.

 

3 most important things to consider in my humble opinion:

• INVOLVE YOURSELF on-line with fellow cruisers pre-cruise on the roll call. Getting in on private excursions with other like-minded fellow cruisers is a huge deal. It's how I discovered Sherri & Mike on this sailing and how we planned some of our dinners & meet ups... life long friends :D
  
• PLAN PLAN PLAN ... know what you're going to site see and why
  
• HAVE FUN! Say hello and get to know everyone you meet ... pretty much at the end of every cruise many close to me laugh as I'm saying hi and hugging a bunch of fellow cruisers at the end of the sailing, they bug me that I know everyone on the ship :cool:
  

 

 

 

VERY good tips!

 

 

Yes, Hoopster joined Hubby and I for dinner several nights, and after the first night, I felt like we were family!!! This all came about from us meeting here online on Cruise Critic - in our specific Roll Call - which led to some emails pre-cruise on setting up plans.

 

 

I have cruised solo once, but I have traveled across the world solo numerous times...and these are very good tips. Traveling solo allowed me to focus on other people, and “put myself out there” - which led to some lifelong friendships with people from all countries, all nationalities.

 

 

My philosophy in life is that (for the most part), people want to be included - and that means including solo travelers - and vice versa. We like to be part of a social group, so I will go out of my way in any venue to make sure people are included...I wasn’t shy to talk with people on excursions, at the Schooner Bar, in the elevator, etc. I don’t think I had too many people give me the “drop dead” look - but even if they did, I’m like, “Oh well - your loss.” Bwahahahahaha!

 

P.S. My “solo” cruise review is in my signature below - the one entitled “Middle Aged Drama Queen Goes BIG” - and it includes numerous tips on traveling solo. But be forewarned - it’s long. ;)

[Hoopster95]

Deck 6 (aft cont.)

 

 

Chef's Table... I name this venue as the #1 memory of this cruise and ship. More on this during my day 5 revue... in summary the very best RCL meal ever on any ship.... ever! Many of you know I've recently sailed on Oceania for the first time, and they blew RCL's food out of the water.... Oceania's buffet was as good as and better than RCL's specialty. My Spidy senses were at first alert on this cruise comparing to my recent Oceania experience, and I have to tell you that this specific Chef's Table was as good as anything on Oceania. I was floored. And the wine pairings were not cheapo $10 bottles like on my last two Chef's Table experiences... my favorite was Belle Glos Pinot Noir ($60 Canadian at home), 2nd favorite was the unoaked Mer Soleil "Silver" 2015... Oceania had served the oaked which was my favorite on Oceania.

 

A big time thumbs up to Chef Brown and Sommelier Claudiu for a totally awesome dinner and evening

 

1 - entry into Chef's Table

 

2 - pre-dinner waiting area, champagne is served until all guests have arrived. Then everyone is escorted in together to their seats

 

3

 

4 - Leaving Colony Club, looking forward through to the Schooner Bar

[Hoopster95]

Deck 6 - midship

 

 

1 - Vintages Bar. I really loved the decor and vibe here. Had I been with my gf, would've definitely given this a shot on occasion to have a couple of specialty wines and hang out in the great setting with beautiful furniture. I did sit here a couple of times when wanting some privacy on line, looking out the windows in the high back sofas

 

2- Casino Royale... yep, could smell a little lingering smoke into the Centrum at times, but not as bad as some previous sailings

 

3 - Casino Royale Bar

 

4 - I played in the Texas Hold'em Tourney... 4 players left, short stacked, I was dealt pocket 8's. I pushed all-in... about 1300. Highest stack called me with A Q (he had about 5000). It was a race.... Flopped J K!!! Lol... more outs, the turn was a Q ... GRRRR... the river didn't matter, he out-drew me. I did not double up and was busted. This guy had out-drawn a couple of others as well before me so he was lucky... it didn't last. I saw him two days after and he said he had lost! Maybe got a little overconfident.

 

5

[accio_7]

VERY good tips!

 

 

Yes, Hoopster joined Hubby and I for dinner several nights, and after the first night, I felt like we were family!!! This all came about from us meeting here online on Cruise Critic - in our specific Roll Call - which led to some emails pre-cruise on setting up plans.

 

 

I have cruised solo once, but I have traveled across the world solo numerous times...and these are very good tips. Traveling solo allowed me to focus on other people, and “put myself out there” - which led to some lifelong friendships with people from all countries, all nationalities.

 

 

My philosophy in life is that (for the most part), people want to be included - and that means including solo travelers - and vice versa. We like to be part of a social group, so I will go out of my way in any venue to make sure people are included...I wasn’t shy to talk with people on excursions, at the Schooner Bar, in the elevator, etc. I don’t think I had too many people give me the “drop dead” look - but even if they did, I’m like, “Oh well - your loss.” Bwahahahahaha!

 

P.S. My “solo” cruise review is in my signature below - the one entitled “Middle Aged Drama Queen Goes BIG” - and it includes numerous tips on traveling solo. But be forewarned - it’s long. ;)

 

 

Thanks for your personal tips, Sherri, I appreciate it immensely <3

 

Btw, I read your solo review just recently and absolutely adored it! I’m going to read your others shortly :)

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[Hoopster95]

Deck 6 - forward

 

 

1 - leaving the Casino Royale on the starboard side... on route to the King & Country Pub as well as the Pacifica Theatre

 

2

 

3 - deck 6 (balcony level) entry into the Pacifica Theatre

 

4

[Hoopster95]

Deck 6 (forward cont.)

 

 

1 - leaving the theatre, port side

 

2 - The Cinema

 

3

 

4 - back through the King & Country Pub... I did not spend any time here at all the entire 12 days. I have plenty of English Pubs here at home I can visit... don't need to sit in a windowless/dark pub for hours while on cruises to exotic bucket list vacations.

 

5 - And back through the Casino Royale on my way to the Centrum

[Hoopster95]

Down to Deck 5 (midship)

 

 

1 - Stairs landing overlooking the Centrum

 

2 - Minstrel Main Dining Room

 

3 - Next Cruise Desk... I will say this now as I'll likely forget later, this area was packed at all times, so much so that extra tables were set up on deck 11 and 12 (close to Windjammer) to book future cruisers. So you're all wondering why prices are high and many cabins already booked on future sailings? Truthfully, I must be missing something... the group rates and perks I receive with my TA have always .... ALWAYS ... been better than any "deal" on board. Ah well, as long as people are happy and booking away! However this shows me how strong booking is at this time compared to previous years where the Next Cruise desk seemed to be empty.

 

4 - not only did they have deserts/cakes in the display, they also had sandwiches and croissants... basically a mini-Sorrento's.

I have a photo of the price list if anyone needs me to post it

 

5 - Anyone need help with VOOM? Here's where you go. The gentleman in charge was on deck 4 Centrum upon embarkation alongside the drink package and Specialty Restaurant Sales the moment you boarded through the balloons, so that's where I ordered my VOOM. Never had an issue so did not have to track him down.

[Hoopster95]

Deck 5 (forward)

 

 

1 - Shops and stores... the entire cruise they continued to have out their Baltic stuff, that's all they sold the entire 12 days.

 

2 - Lobby between shops & photo gallery... also an exit out to the Deck 5 Promenade outdoors

 

3 - photo gallery

 

4 - most all times these doors are locked, however the Conference Room door was ajar this time. Ever wonder what it looked like? Nothing special. I also met here on our Jewel b2b to get our new sea pass cards when in Civitavecchia last year on Jewel... did not have to go out to the pier re immigration or anything.

 

5 - Art Gallery ... the Art Auctions were held either in the Colony Club or Starquest (aka. the Viking Crown Lounge of old)

 

The theatre from deck 5 was now closed doors, so I must've snuck in those earlier photos just in time before closing for rehearsals.

[tnt10]

Was there a charge for the food items at Cafe Latte-tudes?

Thanks-following with interest as we will be on the Brilliance next month😎

[Hoopster95]

Was there a charge for the food items at Cafe Latte-tudes?

Thanks-following with interest as we will be on the Brilliance next month😎

 

Nope, no charge for food items :)

[Hoopster95]

Done with the venues on the two main lower decks, I went up deck 13 to check out the upper decks of the ship and get some lunch

 

Deck 13 (Viking Crown Lounge & Starquest)

 

 

1

 

2 - These bars all rotate 360 degrees on all Radiance Class ships. I know both Jewel and Radiance worked on my last sailings, Serenade was years away from drydock at the time and it was not working at all... was told way too difficult to repair during service mid-cruises as they'd have to rip out the entire bar. Not sure if that's valid or not. I did not ask on check if Brilliance was functioning on this trip

 

3 - Why did I not ask? Because amazingly (to me anyway) I never set foot once on the dance floor in Starquest the entire 12 nights on board, so I was never up at the bar in the evening. I did check it out on several nights, but it was really dead up there. You will find on port intensive cruises with early sail-ins and early excursions, the dance floor and nightlife is rather sparse. Also the demographic on this cruise was on the older side compared to Caribbean cruises.

 

4 - This was also the overflow for the Diamond Lounger next door. I was surprised to learn that there were over 200 D+ + PNs on board, and over 300 Diamonds for this sailing. They had staff on duty at the entrance to Starquest as well as the entrance to the CL from 5pm onward, the general public was not allowed up there.... a real shame during sailaway in bad weather.

[Hoopster95]

Deck 12 (aft)

 

 

1 - The sports court... with several kids aboard this cruise, the few times I did walk by it was taken over by soccer rather than basketball (makes sense with World Cup on at the moment) although they did offer the usual 3 on 3 basketball tournament on the Compass

 

2 - This area on Jewel is still the adult Country Club. On Jewel we were offered beautiful D+/PN/suite guest sail-ins to Santorini and Cagliari here with canapes and a full open bar. On Brilliance this area is still part of Adventure Ocean and holds the arcade.

 

3

 

4 - Around the stern of the ship you'll find on the starboard side Izumi Japanese Restaurant. Unfortunately this is the only time I visited here. I enjoy this venue, having dined at Izumi on Jewel and Samba Grill on Radiance. Usually very quiet and the views are excellent

 

5

[Hoopster95]

Deck 13 (aft)

 

 

1 - Mini golf at The Fairways of Brilliance

 

2

 

3

 

4 - Kiddie pool and slides... Note the life guard walking

 

5

[Hoopster95]

Deck 12 midship .... where's Waldo in pic 1 and 2?

 

 

1 - What the?

 

2 - There's no one in the water? Wow, RCL has very much taken the lifeguard thing seriously beyond what I imagined.

 

3 - Bow/helipad view from deck 12

 

4 - Same (and I feel slightly better) view from deck 11. There's two sets of stairs to get down there. On previous sailings on other radiance Class ships, I've noted they've had this area reserved for Gold Card guests, however here there were no signs. On a couple of sail-ins and sail-aways during the cruise, I noted most people stayed on deck 12 to look over the bow... I feel it would've been better for many cruisers to go to this deck 11 for a less obstructed view

[crusinot]

This itinerary was not on my bucket list before I started reading your review! It is now! Wonderful pictures and excellent review!

[Virtopia]

So loving this review! :) You're making me excited for my upcoming sailing - my first TA on the Jewel.

 

My flight will be connecting through Amsterdam - now I'm wishing I would've spend a couple days there before heading to Rome!

 

Looking forward to reading more.

[Hoopster95]

Deck 12 (forward)

 

 

1 - Shipshape Center... other than Quantum, in my books the best laid out gyms in the fleet... yes, better than Oasis which is stuck in a dark hole. All the equipment is updated and the views while working out are awesome.

 

2

 

3

 

4

 

5

[Hoopster95]

Deck 11 (midship & aft to the Windjammer) ... where's Waldo again?!

 

 

1 - I stopped at Park Cafe for one of those large salad bowls, but they were not open for embarkation lunch.

 

2

 

3 - Yep, lifeguard still there in the exact same spot, hovering right over the lip of the pool

 

4 - So I've read a couple of times here on CC that ice sculptures are a thing of the past... well I guess not anymore

 

5 - Basic layout of the Windjammer. More on this as I review several dinners I had there on this cruise.

I made my way to the rear open seating looking aft with a view of Amsterdam, my favorite spot at the Windjammer