Brief Review of Brilliance 11-22-04 Cruise

[johnnyi]

I know there were many CC members on this recent 11 day Thanksgiving Cruise, so I won't go into too much detail, but did want to offer my impressions of the cruise for all.

 

Overall, we had a wonderful time. The ship was beautiful and in good condition. I found the staff everywhere to be very, very friendly with many remembering names and preferences extremely quickly. Dining room service was excellent as was the service in Chops and Portofino. The food in the Windjammer was very good with many different options, however it is a challenge to keep some of the food warm. Our meals in Chops and Portofino were truly outstanding. I, however, cannot say the same for the dining room food. Unfortunately, it was quite disappointing after so many RCI cruises, with many at our table having to send meals back. The beef on the first formal night was great, but the remainder of the main courses lacked taste and the quality of some wasn't what the menu or waiter promised. Talking with some of the guests in the Conceirge Club, which is a fabulous feature with top-notch Conceirge Chris, they were dining in Chops/Portofino for the 5th or 6th time during the voyage and I wondered if this was because of the food in the dining room. Maybe, maybe not, but the alternative dining venues were very popular this cruise. I must say we certainly did NOT starve. :)

 

The Cruise Director Peter I thought was fantastic, a very, very funny gentleman who was professional and hosted events well. We didn't attend all the shows, however the Singers and Dancers were so-so, with the show "Big Time" being the best one. We also enjoyed Antonio Salci and Judy Kolba.

 

The weather was practically perfect, with no movement of the ship at all. We had to look out the window to make sure we were actually cruising.

 

If anyone has any other questions, please email me at johnnyi@aol.com as I don't often check the boards.

 

Again, it was a great cruise and I would recommend this ship, however I hope that the experience in the dining room was only an isolated incident. We certainly didn't let it ruin things! :)

 

Thanks!

[KamloopsCruisers]

We cruised the Brilliance last Christmas - oh what a beautiful ship. While we thoroughly enjoyed our cruise, I agree with your comments about the food. We found that the quality of food on board was fair and was the only real "disappointment" of our cruise. We cruised on her sister ship, the Radiance, this past September and found the food to be outstanding. While we never had any dinners in the dining room that were so bad they had to be returned, they just seemed bland and often were lukewarm. But, having someone else cook Christmas dinner and not having to spend the day in the kitchen - and the subsequent endless clean-up was worth it. I'd rather be on a beautiful ship being pampered and eating "bland" food in the dining room than sitting here at home watching the snow fall!

[savva0122]

Surprised you didn't like the food... I thought it was much better than on recent RCI cruises we have been on.

Horses for courses I guess...