INTRODUCTION My husband is 59 and I celebrated my 47th birthday while onboard; we have cruised several times before, but never in Europe. We have always sailed with Royal Caribbean, and we prefer the Radiance-class ships. This cruise was a celebration of our 10th wedding anniversary. We live in the mid-west of the United States and consider ourselves very active, very flexible people who always see the glass as "half-full" rather than "half-empty."

ROOM We booked our favorite room on the Radiance-class ships,  #1556, which is a Grand Suite on the "hump" on Deck 10. Our room was right next door to the Royal Suite, and across the lobby from the Concierge Club, which we utilized extensively during the cruise. The room has a nice layout and plenty of storage space - my only complaint is minor: the closet doors can "box" you in if you're not careful - you can get trapped if your significant other opens their doors at the same time. Minor, and not a deal-breaker. Otherwise, the room was very nice - and also very quiet. We never had noise issues - from above or next door, although our neighbor in the Royal Suite told us they had played their piano quite loud one night. We never heard it. Twice during the cruise, we had plumbing issues - but quick phone calls to our Cabin Attendant, Alston, resolved them immediately. Alston was wonderful, by the way - we had chocolates and towel animals most nights, and he was always attentive to our needs. We utilized our balcony extensively; we would sit on it while pulling into port, as well as enjoy our breakfast from room service. It was also nice to just sit and lounge on sea days, where it was quiet and relaxing - so different from the noisy pool area.

SHIP The Brilliance of the Seas is a beautiful ship - we found it easy to navigate and pretty clean. Our only complaint would the elevator that is STILL out of service - and has been, according to research done online, for quite some time. How much time does it take to fix an elevator? We tried to utilize the stairs as much as possible, as the elevators would be very crowded most days. Read more