Our week on the Brilliance of the Seas (12/1/12) was our first experience with Royal Caribbean. (For comparison purposes, our previous cruises were with Norwegian, Holland American and Princess.) In general, we were very pleased with our RCI experience and would not hesitate to cruise with them again. We consider RCI an improvement on NCL, on par with Princess and a slight step below Holland America. That being said, we have never had a bad cruise. We are a 50 something couple who consider it a blessing whenever we have the opportunity to spend a week at sea.
SHIP OVERVIEW
We loved the look of the Brilliance and the overall layout of the ship. She is ten years old, so there are some signs of wear and tear, although minor. For example, the iron portion of our balcony railing was a little rusty and the wooden top needed to be restained. Not major and in no way detracted from our balcony (aft -- room 7676) which turned out to be our favorite part of the ship. We liked the fact that the balcony was large enough to accommodate both two chaise lounges, two chairs and a table. The cabin also seemed to have more storage and shelving than previous cabins I remember. Though there was a smoker in the cabin next to us, his smoking on the balcony was not at all bothersome.