What to Know When Sailing on a Royal Caribbean Radiance Class Ship
I recently sailed on Royal Caribbean’s Brilliance of the Seas, a ship that the internet seems to have split opinions on. With Royal Caribbean always flaunting their newer, record breaking, mega-ships, I was unsure what to expect when boarding one of their smaller ships: the Brilliance of the Seas. Would I still get that epic vacation promised in the advertisements? Or would I wish I had boarded something else?
After seven days onboard, here’s my honest Travel Big Sister Brilliance of the Seas review: the good, the “meh”, and what you need to know before you set sail.
What I Liked
1. The Goldilocks Size
The Brilliance is a Radiance Class ship, meaning it is one of the second smallest ships within the Royal Caribbean fleet. It launched in 2002 and can hold around 2,500 passengers. Upon boarding, I was worried that the ship would feel small and outdated, a critique that many people on the internet warned me about. I’m happy to report that the internet was wrong, and the older vibe was actually something that I enjoyed. It gave the ship a homey feel that you never get on the larger ships today.
The size of the Brilliance of the Seas ended up being my favorite thing about this ship, and reminded me why cruising on smaller ships is sometimes better. I was traveling with my friends, many of whom had never cruised before, and this size of a ship was the perfect introduction for them to understand cruising without being overwhelmed by people or activities. No one area was ever too crowded, and I never had to wait for an elevator once, which if you know was a cruising miracle!
Travel Big Sis Tip – Want to learn how to successfully plan a trip that makes it out of the group chat (and doesn’t end badly), check out my other blog post: How To Plan a Friends Trip
2. The Best Service I’ve Ever Had
I’ve lost count of how many Royal Caribbean cruises I have been on, but it’s a lot. The service on the Brilliance of the Seas was hands down the best cruise service I have ever experienced. I always make it a point to befriend a bartender or waiter while on a cruise, and the staff on the Brilliance made doing that effortless. Every staff member was kind and went out of their way to help me with whatever I needed.
That is something I will always love about smaller cruise ships. You get a more personalized experience. By day 2, the wait staff at dinner knew all of our names and had our drink orders ready to go by the time we sat down for dinner. I went to the show almost every night and the bartenders in the theatre starting making my drink without me ever asking. It was the VIP treatment without the VIP price tag.
3. The Thermal Suite
I tried I new activity on this cruise. I purchased the thermal suite pass for the spa. Did I justify it by saying it was travel blog research? Absolutely! It can’t write a proper cruise ship review without a mentioning one of the most popular cruise amenities, the spa.
While the pass was expensive, I am so glad I had it because the thermal suite on the Brilliance of the Seas was fabulous. Four large warm thermal beds to lay in with various different saunas and steam rooms to try. The perfect place to relax and spend some time alone during a busy girls trip vacation. The thermal suite also had these massive windows so you could watch the ocean sail by. I miss this view and can’t wait to go back.
Travel Big Sis Tip – the locker room in the gym has a sauna that you can access for free! You don’t need a pass or anything. Just walk right in and enjoy!
What I Liked
1.Small Bits of Motion Sickness
Before I start the negative part of this review, I have to mention that I am an ocean person. I love being out on the water and no amount of motion sickness will ever bring me down. However, there were a few moments on this cruise where I was very aware that I was on a boat in the middle of the ocean. Our itinerary included a stop in Bermuda, where high winds are the norm. Trust me, when the wind picks up you are going to feel the boat moving no matter what size the ship is and the Brilliance was no exception.
Travel Big Sis Tip: The guest service desk typically has motion sickness medication is you need it, however my best motion sickness tip is to eat a green apple. I don’t know why, but I can guarantee it will work. I eat a green apple once a day on rough sea days just to ward off motion sickness and evil spirits.
2.Lack of Nightlife
I was cruising with my four girlfriends on this trip, all of us in our 20s. While we aren’t crazy partiers, we definitely like to have some fun, especially when we are on vacation. The Brilliance of the Seas offered SO much to do, but all of those activities quieted down at 10:30pm. The club stayed open late but normally had an average 10 people each night, so while we tried to bring the party, we were not always successful.
While this is a critique I have of the Brilliance of the Seas, it by no means ruined our trip. We still had plenty of fun and honestly, we got up so early everyday to do things, we probably need to go to bed anyways. So thank you Brilliance of the Seas for making sure that we actually left this trip well rested.
Nightlight on a cruise can be very hit or miss and while some say it depends on the ship, my opinion is that it depends on the age demographics of the other cruisers you are with. I’ve had some of the most fun nights on smaller ships, so I’m sure the Brilliance can throw a party if the right amount of party people were on board.
3. Fight for Chairs
This final critique of mine is a really small one, but it’s still something I’ve got to call out. Every day felt like a battle for deck chairs, especially if we wanted to sit near the pool. Because chairs near the pool were always occupied, we spent a lot of time at the front of the boat, a place that always had empty chairs in the sun. Despite not being near the pool, it was perfect environment for all of us to sit and read books in peace. If we wanted to watch the belly flop contest, we just walked on over and stood on the upper deck. It was by no means a big deal.
My Final Thoughts on the Brilliance
The Brilliance of the Seas is a great ship for any cruiser old or new, and I’d argue that it’s a cruise ship that doesn’t get enough hype. Yes it doesn’t have massive water slides or the most updated features, but the ship offers so much distinct charm and character, I find myself wanting to sail on a smaller ship again, so I can have the same homey, cruise experience again. If you’re looking for a cruise vacation where the staff know your name and you can actually hear yourself think, give sailing on the Brilliance of the Seas a try. I promise it’s a ship that still shines just as bright.