Brilliance vs Liberty

[lkmcginnis]

Hi there!  We are considering booking a cruise on the Brilliance of the Seas.  We have taken a couple of cruises, one on Disney and one on Liberty of the Seas.  I am looking at Brilliance because of the itinerary, but am concerned that there is enough to do on a smaller ship.  We are a group of 13, with kids ranging from 12-18.  We loved the Liberty!!!!  Has anyone gone on both ships?  How big of a size difference is there?  

 

Thanks,

Lisa

[Biker19]

5 minutes ago, lkmcginnis said:

How big of a size difference is there?  

Size is not really the issue, fewer activities on Brilliance may be, like no Flowrider, ice skating, etc. It all depends on what you did/liked on Liberty which Brilliance doesn't have.

[lkmcginnis]

The kids really liked the water slides, arcade and all night pizza.  We also liked all of the shows.  The pools felt very crowded, so with the ship being smaller, we were wondering if the pool area on the Brilliance was smaller.  The itinerary we are looking at has 3 sea days, so just making sure there was plenty to do.   

[Biker19]

8 minutes ago, lkmcginnis said:

The kids really liked the water slides, arcade and all night pizza. 

You'll have one (arcade) of those three on Brilliance. Pool crowding is hard to predict but figure it being just as bad as Liberty.

[island lady]

With that many kids...I would pick Liberty.  Radiance series tends to be a little more laid back, less activities.  Attracts an older generation versus the big ships (AKA theme park at sea) with all the bells and whistles...IMHO.  

[lkmcginnis]

Thank you both for the information, I appreciate it! 

[vegas7df]

I agree with @Biker19 it's not the size of ship but the actives.  I've been on both and prefer the Liberty 

[HBE4]

First ever cruise was on Liberty back in 2008 and second cruise was on Serenade (sister of Brilliance) 6 months later. Loved both but for different reasons. Ship wise, we really missed the Flowrider, the cantilevered whirlpools and the Royal Promenade for parades, Cafe Promenade and Sorrento's pizza.  And now we'd miss the water slides.  The good thing about Serenade was it was a port intensive cruise with only 1 sea day so we kept ourselves pretty busy despite the more laid back nature of the smaller ship.

 

With 3 sea days, large group and kids, I'd pick Liberty hands down unless the itinerary had some bucket list items and excursions for all to enjoy.

[retired dude]

forgive me for chiming in, as we have not sailed on the liberty, but we have sailed numerous times on the brilliance and i would not suggest it for teenagers....It is more suited to a more "mature audience" if you catch my drift. No live  music around the pool during the daytime, no bands after 8 p.m. in the evening except for the theme shows orchestras....I found the days at sea to resemble watching latex paint  drying ....we have only been on 30 cruise before so maybe my remarks are not valid, but they are honest..The service and food on the ship are good, not great, but good.The average ages of the passengers on the sailings that we have been on would be around 60...During spring break that goes down a lot...I hope this helps a little and i wish that your group stays safe and sound.

[mariefisher]

Brilliance definitely attracts an older crowd. I was just on her in Jan and even though I am 69, I was bored. Food is great, cabin was nice but would never sail on her again. I am sure your family is excited to go on the cruise and I hope you have a great time. I don’t think you can go wrong with Liberty. 

[erinsmom03]

 

7 hours ago, retired dude said:

forgive me for chiming in, as we have not sailed on the liberty, but we have sailed numerous times on the brilliance and i would not suggest it for teenagers....It is more suited to a more "mature audience" if you catch my drift. No live  music around the pool during the daytime, no bands after 8 p.m. in the evening except for the theme shows orchestras....I found the days at sea to resemble watching latex paint  drying ....we have only been on 30 cruise before so maybe my remarks are not valid, but they are honest..The service and food on the ship are good, not great, but good.The average ages of the passengers on the sailings that we have been on would be around 60...During spring break that goes down a lot...I hope this helps a little and i wish that your group stays safe and sound.

 

11 minutes ago, mariefisher said:

Brilliance definitely attracts an older crowd. I was just on her in Jan and even though I am 69, I was bored. Food is great, cabin was nice but would never sail on her again. I am sure your family is excited to go on the cruise and I hope you have a great time. I don’t think you can go wrong with Liberty. 

 

You guys are scaring me...we have a 12 nt British Isles cruise booked for next July.  We didn't have any other choice, Brilliance was the only ship doing that itinerary.  We will have 3 sea days.  Four teens ranging in age from 15-18, plus a 21 year old, as well as all of the old folk parents of said kids.  I'm thinking we all better invest in the Surf and Stream Voom packages????

[Hoopster95]

7 minutes ago, erinsmom03 said:

 

 

 

You guys are scaring me...we have a 12 nt British Isles cruise booked for next July.  We didn't have any other choice, Brilliance was the only ship doing that itinerary.  We will have 3 sea days.  Four teens ranging in age from 15-18, plus a 21 year old, as well as all of the old folk parents of said kids.  I'm thinking we all better invest in the Surf and Stream Voom packages????

 

erinsmom... thx for the kind words on my current Adventure review.

You need to see this!!

https://boards.cruisecritic.com/topic/2560648-brilliance-british-isles-june-19-july-22018-review-wlots-of-photos/

 

Unless you are a boring family, you'll have a blast on Brilliance 😁👍

[erinsmom03]

5 minutes ago, Hoopster95 said:

 

erinsmom... thx for the kind words on my current Adventure review.

You need to see this!!

https://boards.cruisecritic.com/topic/2560648-brilliance-british-isles-june-19-july-22018-review-wlots-of-photos/

 

Unless you are a boring family, you'll have a blast on Brilliance 😁👍

Thank you for your Adventure review...I am loving it! 

 

Thanks for the review link.  We have been planning this trip for so long, and are so excited...we can have fun anywhere! I did mess up though...we will be on Jewel next summer, sister ship to Brilliance...they switched on me! But I am looking forward to your review of Brilliance!

Edited May 29, 2020 by erinsmom03
my mistake on the ship name

[Hoopster95]

1 minute ago, erinsmom03 said:

Thank you for your Adventure review...I am loving it! 

 

Thanks for the review link.  We have been planning this trip for so long, and are so excited...we can have fun anywhere,!

 

Awesome! Hopefully that link will help you. I had so much fun on that sailing, great ports and great site seeing.

[deliver42]

Definitely the Liberty. I've been on the Jewel and the Serenade, both sister ships of the Brilliance, and while they are beautiful ships, there really isn't much to do, even for adults, much less for kids.