Alaska, a unique experience! by
Susan M from Wayne, NJ
Sailing date: Aug 2012 Pros:
Beauty of Alaska - ports of call
Cons:
Ship well maintained and friendly staff
Recently updated,attractive-good variety of activities.
Ship Quality Well sized and maintained.
Dining/Food Used My Time Dining to accommodate desired dining time - worked out well. Windjammer cafe options offered fair quality.
Stateroom Quality Superior Balcony stateroom included window washing equipment on balcony and stale odor in bathroom.
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a fantastic cruise by
A Traveler from cape cod, ma
Sailing date: Apr 2011 Pros:
decor
Cons:
crowded pool and area around pool
we have been on many cruises but by far this was the nicest ship, the size was perfect - we would not like to be on a larger one. The woodworking all over the ship was so detailed. The food was delicious, the entertainment fantastic and our room stewart couldnt have been friendlier. Unfortunatly she is leaving for Alaska and then going down to do an Australia - New Zealand route. Fortunately one of her sister ships in her series will replace her out of tampa next fall. Would book this cruise again.
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Everything I wanted & more by
Pauline C. from Buffalo, NY
Sailing date: Oct 2010 Pros:
Service, my room, variety of activities
Cons:
Pressure to purchase SPA products after SPA services
My girlfriends just wanted to get away for a few days to rest, relax, have fun and be ourselves. We did all of that and more. Everything from boarding, to disembarking was "smooth sailing". I may even do it again with my husband.
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Alaskan Cruise and Inland Tour by
Denise M. from Mendon, MA
Sailing date: Jul 2009 Pros:
We had a wonderful vacation . The cruise and the railroad experience were exceptional
Cons:
The plane ride to and from
The ship and cruise were exceptional. The whole experience was relaxing and worry free. Anything that was needed was easily provided immediately. The travel agent with whom we dealt was exceptional. When we had difficulty with the on board credit, I emailed our BJ's agent and within hours it was addressed and taken care of. I highly recommend the ship and the cruise line.
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Collapse List of Ports
Icy Strait Point (Hoonah), Alaska This was a difficult port for anything except the zip line. All those riding the zip line were glad of this visit although just going ashore wasn't really worth the time
Juneau, Alaska The Gastineau Mine was well worth the time.
Don't Miss: Mendenhall glacier
Ketchikan, Alaska the Saxman Totem Village was well worth the time. I do wish we had had time to take the tram to the top of the mountain.
Skagway, Alaska The White Pass Railroad was a long and hot train ride but the views and commentary were very good.
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It was okay .... by
Kris L. from Chicopee, MA
Sailing date: Feb 2008 Pros:
Food in the dining room.
Cons:
Staff/crew not very friendly.
This was our first trip on a Royal Caribbean cruise. Last year we took a Carnival cruise on one of their older ships. We did not like the Royal Caribbean cruise as much as we enjoyed the Carnival trip. This ship was nice but did not knock our socks off. We had been told that once we went on a Royal Caribbean cruise we would never want to go on another cruise line. This is not the case for us. We would rather go on another Carnival cruise. The shower curtain never stayed in the shower. The floor was always wet when you were done with showering. There was no room in the shower to bend over and shave your legs. Rest of the cabin was very roomy. Elevators seemed very slow. Easier to take the stairs (up 11 decks) than to wait for the elevator.
Ship Quality
Dining/Food The food in the main dining room was excellent. The food in the WindJammer Cafe was very good too.
Stateroom Quality Stateroom itself was nice, very roomy.
Ship Staff Quality We did not find the staff on the ship to be overly friendly or helpful. Cabin steward did not go above and beyond. We opted to do automatic tipping. On the last night of our trip, we left our tip voucher for the cabin steward in our room. When we returned it was crumpled up along with some other trash and stuffed into the evelope and left on the desk. If we had felt that his service warranted an extra tip, we would have left it for him. I went and complained to the customer service desk and the woman at the desk only made excuses for the steward. Due to the treatment we received and the lack of concern, I would probably never book a Royal Caribbean trip again.
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Collapse List of Ports
Cozumel, Mexico We spent the morning at the beach and then took the taxi downtown and went shopping.
Key West, Florida We loved Key West. Absolutely a must see.
Don't Miss: Southern Most Point.
George Town, Grand Cayman Absolutely loved Grand Cayman. We would go back and spend a week there.
Don't Miss: Stingray City
Montego Bay, Jamaica Jamaica was not what we had thought. The glass bottom boat was a complete WASTE OF TIME. We saw as many fish walking the beach and pier as we did on that excursion. Not worth the money. Would not recommend.
Don't Miss: Margaritavile was fun.
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A relaxing cruise by
A Traveler from Raleigh, NC
Sailing date: Jan 2008 Pros:
Ports of call
Cons:
some conditions on the ship
Overall, the conditions on the ship were fine. Our bathroom (and heard comments from several other passengers about the same problem) smelled like a latrine. The smell was so bad at times it was hard to spend any time at all in the bathroom. This problem, while brought up to our steward, was never adequately addressed.
This was our third Royal Caribbean cruise and we found that the quality of the food was not up to the standards we have come to expect from Royal Caribbean. Also, this was the first cruise we have been on that ran out of food items like 2% milk, yogurt, pina colada mix (these are the things I am aware of). We would not book a trip again on this ship.
We were impressed by the measures taken by the ship to battle the spread of infectious illnesses with the use of sanitary wipes. They were present in all the dining rooms (and handed out) and at the gangplank when returning from ports of call. I also noticed housekeeping wiping down handrails.
Ship Quality Ship cleanliness was very good. Decor was pleasant.
Dining/Food Overall quality of food was average (not up to our expectations based on two other cruises on the same line). Dining times were good and there were many dining choices and food options.
Stateroom Quality Stateroom was smaller than we were led to believe (balcony room). The bathroom smelled like a latrine. The overall comfort was below average.
Ship Staff Quality Overall staff were great. There was a problem in the sports bar that was brought to the attention of the person working at the bar and she refused to do anything about it (there was a man being particularly vulgar and using profanities). She indicated that she didn't hear him (which meant to us that she wasn't going to do anything about it). My husband intervened.
Entertainment & Activities Great entertainment.
Collapse List of Ports
St. John's, Antigua Thoroughly enjoyed our catamaran excursion which included snorkeling and beach time.
Nassau, Bahamas Didn't have enough time in port to be able to do much.
San Juan, Puerto Rico Enjoyed the Bacardi Rum tour.
Charlotte Amalie, St. Thomas, U.S.V.I. We rented a jeep and drove all over the island. It is very easy to get around (even thought they drive on the left side of the road). We were able to spend time doing what we wanted to and when we wanted to. Great shopping!
Don't Miss: Mountain Top
Philipsburg, St. Maarten Took a taxi to the beach. Taxi's are readily available and will come back and get you at a specified time.
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It was a very relaxing cruise by
Karen S from Rockledge, FL
Sailing date: Nov 2007 Pros:
Wonderful large stateroom/balcony
Cons:
thanksgiving dinner was more Euro-Chinese than American; the only less than satistactory meal on the whoe cruise
We were very impressed with the stateroom for wheel chair disabled passengers. Even the closet was roll-in. Excellent bathroom, huge balcony, we could not have been happier with the arrangements. We had room service for breakfast which arrived on time each day and was delicious. Service was excellent; room attentant absolutely the best. We will definitely do this cruise again.
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The "Radiance" is radiant by
Charles C from Marietta, GA
Sailing date: Jun 2007 Pros:
Crew was attentive, food was good, shower was nice, room to move around
Cons:
not enough veggies, breakfast was inconsistant, not enough seating at Windjammer
The "Radiance" is the largest ship that we have sailed on. She has enough room for everyone except during the early breakfast hours in the Windjammer. We really expected more since she is so large.
Almost every morning we had to wait for a table. The wait staff kept their eyes open for those who were about to leave so the table could be cleaned quickly. The only other items that upset us was that the pre-scrambled eggs were always runny and there were very few, if any, steamed veggies on the lunch buffet.
The lack of lines in the "food court" setup of the Windjammer contributed to the lack of tables. For almost every person at the steam tables, there was one person saving a table for eating. If the "old-fashioned" lines seemed long, at least they kept everyone in line and there was no "saving" of seats (usually for a party of two at a table for 4 or 6 - and they didn't want "strangers" sitting with them)
The shows every evening were wonderful. The talent showed by the singers and dancers on the crew is nothing short of amazing!!! Imagine doing lifts and swinging from a cable while the floor beneath you is rocking back and forth. Even the "well-known" talent had to cope with the seas once in a while.
We were pleased with our cabin and our tablemates for dinner. I don't know how the combinations are chosen, but they did a good job with us.
Ship Quality There is something for everyone on this ship - within reason. She is large enough that you really don't need to go to the gym if you just walk the decks and use the stairs instead of the elevators. By the way, there are 7 elevators, so there was barely a wait for any of them.
The "quiet" area during the day was in the upper lounges where the view of the sea was awesome. You could sit there and read, sew, or sleep and no one would bother you.
Dining/Food Breakfast buffet eggs were runny and the dining room omelet was overcooked and tough. Not enough veggies with hot meals - one broccoli floret is not a fair portion, nor are 8 green bean halves.
Dinners were a lot better. except for the lack of green veggies. We just made sure to add a salad to our meal every evening - even if we were not in the mood for one!
Stateroom Quality Stateroom was nice sized. 4th deck let us see the ocean and the waves. Everything was kept clean and bathroom was cleaned every day. Our room steward even caught the fact that I needed an extra pillow before I had a chance to ask for one.
Ship Staff Quality Ida and Amir were the best wait-staff.
Imak(sp.?) was great as a room steward.
Entertainment & Activities
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A fantastic cruise by
A Traveler from Dunn, NC
Sailing date: Apr 2007 Pros:
The concenience of the room - close to elevator
Cons:
The layout of the rooms. Sofa in a bad place to open.
The shop was wonderful and the entire cruise was goo with the exception of one seminar in the Fitness Center. It was suppose to be on metabolism. She just told us how bad the FDA was. Very poor session. Everything else was wonderful...
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Dining/Food Our waiters were outstanding. Also, the stateroom attendant was very nice.
Stateroom Quality The location of our room was great. The layout of the room is not good.
Ship Staff Quality
Entertainment & Activities All the activities were good, EXCEPT the one on how to increase your metobolism. The fitness center. This was a lady and she got to the session 15 minutes late. Had to prepare papers after that. She only talked about what she had done and how terrible the FDA was. She was from South Africa and took offense the way she threw off on our country. I did not learn 1 thing about metobolism. Very Poor.
Children's Programs Our grandson loved this program...
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A fantastic cruise by
Condary Ellis from Dunn, North Carolina
Sailing date: Apr 2007 Pros:
The concenience of the room - close to elevator
Cons:
Lay out of the room
The Radiance of the Sea is a fantastic ship. Our waiters in the Dinning room were "the best". We took our grandchildren and our 10 year old enjoyed the program for his age very very much.
Ship Quality The layout of the rooms was not good. The sofa bed was not in a good position.
Stateroom Quality The stateroom on the Disney cruise line are better arranged.
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Children's Programs Our grandson wanted to stay "all the time" in the programs. Wonderful!!
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