Although I have cruised with Royal Caribbean many times, this was my first time on this class of ship ............ and it was a very pleasant surprise. Non of this being on the inside looking in as with Royal Caribbean's more recent ships but instead it was very much a case of being on the inside looking out to sea. The first thing that stikes you as you enter the ship is the very high and light Centrum/Atrium. Beautiful. It is also so easy to find your way around as it seems everything branches out from the Centrum. All the public rooms are attractive if not strikingly beautiful. However, at the time of this cruise the Radiance of the Seas is looking a little tired and overdue a major overhaul.
I had been staying with friends in Sydney for 6 days prior to boarding after a long but comfortable flight from the UK on a QANTAS A380. The embarkation process in Sydney was very smooth. I arrived at the terminal at 11:30hrs and was aboard by noon. The cabin was ready to occupy by 13:00hrs. Soon after entering the cabin, Giri the excellent Bedroom Steward came along and introduced himself. The baggage arrived quite promptly too just an hour or so later.
Throughout this cruise I chose to take breakfast and lunch in the Windjammer. Seating was never a problem with the weather being warm thoughout it was possible to sit outside and eat, so liberating a lot of the inside seating. The range of food on offer for both breakfast and lunch could not be faulted although if I was to be picky, why was Bread Pudding the hot dessert so often? Dinner was always taken on table 411 of Cascades Restaurant on the late sitting. There was only 4 of us on a table for 10 as the late sitting was under subscribed whereas the main sitting was packed out. Our waiter (Deb Biswas) and asst. waiter (Roland) made an excellent team. Deb in particular was so very friendly and helpful plus had an excellent sense of humour. The menu every night was more than adequate with good options & choices even if the presented food sometimes lacked the original sparkle of what was expected. The steaks in particular were rather disappointing and quite tuff with the need to return them on a couple of occasions. I never felt the need to use any of the supplement themed venues for dinner.
The cabin was of a large size especially when compared with outside cabins I have had with other cruise line ships. A little dated in appearance and worn around the edges but kept spotlessly clean by Giri our steward. Besides the ample wardrobe space there is a desk with large mirrors and numerous storage drawers plus a large three seater sofa. The TV was a flatscreen model on a positioning bracket and arm which meant you could comfortable watch it from both the singe beds. One thing that let the cabin down though was the fact the carpet should have been replaced a long time ago as it was looking very worn and grubby especially in the entrance/wardrobe/bathroom area. It looked as though it had been shampooed so many times the grim had soaked in while the colour had come out. The shower room was of an adequate size with a lot of storage space with a good size shower cubicle let down by having a curtain which clung to the person showering each time it was used. There was also an issue with the toilet flush which failed on several occasions but even when working sometimes needed several pushes to flush successfully. As soon as the failed flush was reported to Giri he reported it to the maintenance department and it was fixed in no time at all.