BRAVO CRUISE - EXCELLENT

The only reason I went on this ship was to be part of the Bravo Cruise of Performing Arts. Whilst a regular on Princess and Celebrity, this was my first taste of the Royal Carribean fleet. I had heard mixed opinions from friends, most of whom did not place the Radiance in the WOW category. So I went with less than high expectations.

How wrong I was. The ship is older and smaller than the mega vessels floating around. But I was really impressed by the leadership of eh captain and officers. They run a tight ship, so to speak. Cleanliness was of very high importance. Everywhere, all day and night, crew members were washing, polishing, scrubbing. Our hands were sanitised so many times they began to be squeaky!

But from the beginning.

Check-in was smooth and painless. We were on board at 11 am. The upstairs Windjammer Cafe was in full swing with a really good selection of food. Alas, no cabins were open until 2 pm so there was a bit of hanging around!

My stateroom was a Royal Suite on deck 10 which was all one could ask for. Well laid out, large balcony, good quality furniture and fabric, coffee machine (with poor US coffee) However, one brickbat was that there was no walk-in shower, and you had to clamber into the bathtub to have a shower. Quite an ordeal for some passengers. There were no grip rails to hang on to either.

Dining was extensive. As well as the Windjammer, the main dining room was Cascades which was fine but nothing to rave about. Dining times were fixed at 5.30 and 8.30 and you could not change.

The Italian restaurant, Giovanni's Table had food to die for. Faultless and the wine list was pretty good as well. Other specialist eateries were Chops Grille, Izumi Asian eatery and a host of casual cafes. For a ship this size, it had excellent choices.

Bars were good too. The champagne bar was a bit of a misnomer as it served nearly everything else but. The schooner bar and colony club had great ambience. The casino was vast, but on our trip, the players were vastly outnumbered by the croupiers.

Staff were obviously very well trained, friendly and genuine. As this cruise sailed from Sydney, there was no expectation of tipping, so the service was sincere and not in the quest for the dollar!

Being a suite guest, there was a wonderful private Concierge club with an open bar, and special arrangements for dining in special areas.

Officers were evident and approachable, not like on many other ships.

As I stated before the reason we went on this ship was because it was a charter for the Bravo Cruise of Performing Arts. 35 acts, ranging from a full orchestra, string quartets, trios and duets, soloists, choirs.

Music from go to woe everywhere on the ship. And what was so nice was that you could hear cabin attendants and cleaners humming opera as they went about their work.

This voyage on the Radiance was outstanding.,