Brilliance of the Seas Review

4.0 / 5.0
1,563 reviews

Good but not up to old standard

Review for the Western Mediterranean Cruise on Brilliance of the Seas
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wmschwartz
First Time Cruiser • Age 70s

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Sail Date: Aug 2010
Cabin: Junior Suite

Stateroom attendant was outstanding as was our waiter and asst. waiter (we always select second seating as opposed to free dining.) Windjammer service was poor, slow to bus tables, no snap in the service. I literally saw a waitress in the windjammer drop a pile of ice in the middle of the aisle, pick up the tray and walk away. Another one came up and shoved the ice to the side. Finally a supervisor showed up and instructed a busboy/waiter to clean it up.

Since our first cruise we have looked forward to the creations from the kitchesn. This is the second cruise (our previous cruise on Holland was a similar experiene)where the best I can say about the menu and the meals put in front of us were unimaginative. This was our 9th cruise and it was the 10th for one of the couples at our table and they felt the same thing. We considered tryint one of the two speacialty restaurants but were told not to bother, food was not to the quality of the hype and decor.

Finally excursions, very unhappy that they didn't tell us the Pisa tour did not include either the Cathedral or the Baptistry nor did it provide enough time to see either of them because of the lines. Our mistake for not taking the combined Pisa/Florence tour. We definitely had a brain blivit when booking our excursions. I was the only diver in Dubrovnik so the dive operation put me with three German vacationers who were extremely experienced in the area. The problem is the dive locations were reversed (shallow first and then deep, as opposed to the reverse which is the only safe way to dive). There was no divemaster. Since only an open water card was required, the dive profile was absolutely not safe for anyone without an Advanced or Master card.

Cabin Review

Junior Suite

When I book a suite on other cruise lines I get free internet access and, in some cases fruit in the room. Holland America even gaves us a complimentary mini bar. The room itself was fine except the hot water controls in the tub were reversed and my wife almost scaled herself the first time she tried to take a shower.

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