Just off the Radiance OTS, Any Questions?

[RobNC2001]

Just returned from a 7 day Western Caribbean voyage on the Radiance OTS. Had a wonderful time. The ship is beautiful and the crew the best we have ever sailed with. Any questions?

[breenw]

We are taking the Radiance to Alaska in September. What kind of cabin did you have? What were your favorite parts of the ship??

[CruisinDawn]

Do I dare ask? This question for OP only, don't want to turn their thread into one about the SeaView :D What food did they serve in the Sea View? Word is that some Radiance class ship have changed. Just wondering since the Radiance was in the Caribbean not Europe. Radiance is to date my favorite ship and part of that was our love of the SeaView.

 

BonVoyage

Dawna

[wolfcathorse]

Please confirm who your captain was.

[jtonra]

Did you stay on east coast time the whole trip or did you switch to local time at the islands. I'm trying to arrange some independent excursions and I need to know what (local) time we will actually arrive at islands.

[Fury1995]

The Seaview served burgers, hotdogs, sandwiches, fries, onion rings..etc... when I was on her the first week of January. The captain was Rune Lokling (formaly of Sovereign)"Hurdy-Gurdy" and the CD was Marc Walker "Bing-Bong".

[RobNC2001]

breenw: We had a D1 Superior Ocean View Stateroom with Balcony and I have to say that it was the nicest stateroom we have ever had (and we always do a D1 on RCI or its equivalent on another line). The bed was extraordinarily comfortable and the stateroom was generously sized with lots of room for storage. Only downside was the bathroom which was a bit small and the shower, which still has the old fashioned shower curtain instead of the circular sliding glass door. One of our friends had an interior cabin and the other had a Junior Suite, both of which we saw and both of which were very nice, particularly the JS. The only negative we heard about the staterooms came from the JS couple. Apparently all the JS TVs come with surround sound and they could hear the system in the next room until that couple went to bed. (Nothing like listening to explosions from some action packed movie while you are trying to go to sleep). Apparently the sound proofing between cabins doesn't sufficiently take into account the power of surround sound! Thankfully, the people in the adjoining room lost their appetite for action packed theater as the week moved on.

 

CruisinDawn: We didn't eat in the SeaView since we try to eat a bit more healthy at lunch and save our appetities a bit for dinner. We did look at the SeaView Menu. It serves mostly fried foods and sandwiches (burgers, ruebens, french fries, onion rings, etc.) It was never very crowded and there is a very nice outside area adjoining the SeaView where you can sit and eat (as well as tables inside).

 

WolfCatHorse: The Captain was Rune Lokling. Omnipresent throughout our voyage. Very approachable, pleasant and funny and very well liked by the crew.

 

Jtonra: There was a one hour time change both before and after Cozumel (we gained an hour the night before Cozumel and lost an hour the night of Cozumel). All of the excursion companies we spoke with about excursions in Cozumel and elsewhere were very familiar with the Radiance, when and where it docked, and knew about the time change in Cozumel. So I wouldn't worry too much about it.

 

Hope that helps!

 

...Rob

[benjidog]

We are taking the Radiance to Alaska in September. What kind of cabin did you have? What were your favorite parts of the ship??

 

We also just got off the Radiance. We enjoyed the piano bar at night. I think the entertainer was David Curtis. He has an extra mike and lets people sing. He played the piano, sang and told jokes.

 

We found the whole ship to be very beautiful. And we rarely felt crowded even thought there was about 2300 passengers aboard.

 

We had an ocean view cabin on deck three which was fine (this was our first cruise so we have nothing to compare it to).

[FosterKey]

Has anyone had problems with motion sickness on Radiance or sister ships in the caribbean? Specifically cabin 1102 on deck 10...:confused:

[mortypro]

we are sailing on the radiance july 29 sb alaska

please tell me what are the musts on the ship!!!

[cheerdawg]

The Seaview served burgers, hotdogs, sandwiches, fries, onion rings..etc... when I was on her the first week of January. The captain was Rune Lokling (formaly of Sovereign)"Hurdy-Gurdy" and the CD was Marc Walker "Bing-Bong".

 

 

"Hurdy-Gurdy" and "Bing Bong" - okay I gotta know!! What does that mean??

[Sir Coslo of the 7 Seas]

Whats the nightlife like on the Radiance? Do they have kareoke!?:D Is there a sports bar so I can watch the Steelers kick ass this Sunday?:D

[RobNC2001]

We are taking the Radiance to Alaska in September. What kind of cabin did you have? What were your favorite parts of the ship??

 

 

Breenw: Forgot to answer your question about my favorite part of the ship. The ship as a whole is really beautiful, but I'd have to say my favorite part was the Colony Club. In fact, of all the ships that I have sailed, it is my favorite room period. Very elegant and very beautiful.

[zotzer]

I was on the Radiance also, in December, and will try to answer some of these questions.....

 

Capt Loeking can often be heard saying "hurdy gurdy"

 

Marc Walker always ends his announcements with "bing bong", mimicking the PA announcement system.

 

The Colony Club is fabulous. Get in there early and get a comfy spot all the way aft and watch the beautiful wake of the ship under the moonlight.

 

They have the Karaoke competitions in there too, with a big sing-off on finale night.

 

And yes, there is a nice sports bar, between the theater and the casino.

 

You'll have a blast!!

Tracy

[RobNC2001]

FosterKey: I get seasick just looking a puddle of water so motion sickness is a topic of great familiarity. I have relied on scopolamine in the past but grew tired of the side effects (dry mouth and blurred vision). This time, I took a 1/2 bonine just before bed each night and I was fine. I did feel that the Radiance bounced around a bit more than other ships that I have sailed, but it is by far the smallest cruise ship I have been on. We also encountered 15' swells on the last sea day, so there were a lot of people who got sick and the ship was rocking pretty significantly. Thankfully, I did not get sick, which I attribute to the bonine. If you do encounter rough seas, I recommend going to the Colony Club and watching the self leveling pool tables. We took a video of friends playing pool in 15 foot swells, which turned out to be very funny, since the table is moving all over the place in order to keep the surface perfectly level and the balls immobile. A bit like trying to play pool on a bucking bronco. Definitely a remakeable thing to watch!

 

Mortypro: Probably depends a lot on what you like. For me, the highlight of the trip was dinner at Chops. We had a table by the window, the sun was just setting and we were heading westward along the coast of Jamaica, watching the lights come on as the sun went down, eating extraordinary food, and drinking a wonderful bottle of wine, with Andrea Bocelli playing in the background. We all had these big grins on our faces and each of us agreed that it just doesn't get any better! Next best was nightly drinks in the Colony Club, which I thought was the most beautiful and elegant part of the ship. Finally, the Quest Game was a blast, though I still have a pulled hamstring from doing the splits! (don't ask). This is a great ship to take to Alaska because of the abundance of glass on the exterior. You will always be able to view the passing scenery. Also, forgot to mention the midnight buffet. I usually don't stay up for that but we had some friends with us who had never been on a ship before and I told them they had to see it and they asked me to go with them. Glad I did. It was the best I have ever seen. The ice sculptures were amazingly intricate and the food masterfully displayed.

 

Cheerdog: Rune Lockling is Swedish and says "hurdy gurdy" a lot. Not sure what it means, but it was pretty funny, particularly after a few drinks. If you ever watched the muppets and remember the swedish chef, well... Rune Lokling sounds a lot like that. Marc Walker ends his announcements with "bing bong" similar to the sound the pa system makes when it first comes on.

 

SirCoslo: Night life is good. There is a disco on the 13th floor (Starquest) which had a good crowd, particularly on the nights before sea days. They do have a Kareoke contest, though I never made it to it. Friends did and said it was fun. Finals are on the last night at about 10:30 p.m. There is an awesome sports bar on either the 6th or 5th floors forward (between the Aurora Theater and the Casino). Multiple large screens. Great place to watch a game.

[mortypro]

thanks so much for information the ship sounds fabulous!!!

[roe2ship]

Hi, can you tell me when formal nights are? Do you recall the prices for the photos? Can you order hot breakfast for room service? Thanks!

[RobNC2001]

Hi, can you tell me when formal nights are? Do you recall the prices for the photos? Can you order hot breakfast for room service? Thanks!

 

The formal nights are Monday and Thursday. I don't recall the prices for the photos since I didn't buy any but I do recall that I thought they were expensive! You can order hot breakfast for room service.

[muladybug]

We were the *Cruise Fix 2006* group in the bright neon green tshirts. Couldn't miss us!

 

I found that the events held in the Colony Club were a bit crowded. But other than that it was a great cruise. I hear it was sold out.

 

We had cabin 8088 on the *hump* and it was a wonderful large balcony (for that catagory).

 

The food in the Windjammer was terrific and plentiful on the selections. I am having withdrawls as I type.......All good things must come to an end..........

[benjidog]

We paid $20 for an 8 x 10 group photo. That's all we bought, so I don't remember the prices on the smaller ones. And you can buy fancy holders for them too. We we did get was the DVD for $30. I lot of people in our group were in it, so it was well worth it to me. We had some photogenic dancing fools with us, so the camera was on them often.

 

Most of my group stayed up till 1 or 2 and found enough action. We spend a lot of time at the piano bar. We had a few singers in our group, so they helped to entertain us. We were with the Elvis group, so we were in the Colony Club for most of the Elvis shows. We had the inside circle reserved for us.

 

Quest is a blast. I made part of our group go because of what I heard on this board. Boy did they have fun. For those of you who know what it is, we didn't finish the game. But maybe next time!!!!:cool:

[BobBeaSea]

Rob (and others), glad you enjoyed your cruise. How was the food in the dining room? I realize it is a subjective subject so I am just looking for a generalization. A couple more, what night is "lobster night" and what night would you suggest skipping the dining roon for Chops or Portofinos?

[breenw]

Muladybug - we are going to be in room 8088 on our cruise in September! Do you have any photos of your balcony or can you tell me how large it was???

[muladybug]

Breenw, I do have photos but I do not know how to attach them here. I will investigate on how to do it when I have time....or I can email them to you. I would have to say that it is at least double the size of the other balconies in the catagory, probably more. We used some of the space for storage because we had 3 people in our room. It is totally covered overhead. You can throw a small party on the balcony. What has been said about viewing both the front and rear of the ship with the 8088 room is false. You can only see twords the front of the ship. It is kinda on a slight angle and not an even rectangle. You will love it! Not much furniture on it tho. A couple chairs and a small table. We put our desk chair out there as well because it took up room in the cabin and was an asset out on the balcony. Also, the location to elevators is wonderful. Your room is right there around the corner. You can slightly hear the music in the atrium but it is not annoying........ rather soothing. I LOVED the location!

 

 

I don't remember which nite was lobster nite, but they combined the entree with garlic shrimp instead of lobster by itself. It was smaller than what we were used to, but our waiter came around and offered us seconds.

[jillybabes]

Muladybug, We also will be in 8088 November 25 8nt Eastern.....Please email photos to jilljaye@tampabay.rr.com I will sure appreciate it. From what you said it sounds like you did not have any lounge chairs on the balcony, had they taken them away???? Look forward to pics...Thanks :cool:

[benjidog]

Rob (and others), glad you enjoyed your cruise. How was the food in the dining room? I realize it is a subjective subject so I am just looking for a generalization. A couple more, what night is "lobster night" and what night would you suggest skipping the dining roon for Chops or Portofinos?

 

Lobster night was Thursday, the second formal night. Since I'm not a seafood eater, I can't comment on how it was. We have two friends who each ate six!!!!!

 

I found the dining room food ranged from good to fabulous. The only thing I didn't like was the filet. And that was because of the sauce. But I was also feeling a little seasick that night. Italians at our table thought their pasta was wonderful. I took the advice of folks on this board and tried 4 of their chilled fruit soups. I enjoyed them all.