1. The ship - Brilliance of the Seas, although 7 years old, showed no wear or tear. It looked brand new. There were plenty of places to eat and the food was anywhere from good to very good. We did not eat at the alternative restaurants (Chops Grille or Portofinos). You were correct. The buffet (Windjammer's) did have the same food as the main dining room at dinner, except you couldn't get regular ice-cream most of the time. Just a low fat frozen yogurt. We had dinner there 3 times because we had the late sitting (9:00) and were too tired on these days to dress for dinner when we returned from the excursions. This was the days were were in Cannes, Florence and Rome. Next time we cruise we will select 'My Time Dining'. The wait staff was so good I truly believe we would have no problem with service even if we had to prepay the gratuities. We ended up prepaying them anyway a few days into the cruise. The cruise lines gives you a survey to fill out the day before you disembark and you have to rate all of the staff separately, so I think there is much incentive to provide very good service. We did not use the pool. It was a little too cool for us. The weather was perfect for touring. High 60s to low 70s. Other activities on board on sea days. We found these to be somewhat limited, but it could be we are just not interested in most of the things offered. We were lucky that the weather was so nice. We were happy to sit outside and bought some cards and played cards some of the time. We also chatted with people and saw one move (Mama Mia).

Negative: We did not get to see Naples. Therefore, we had 4 days at sea instead of 3. The ship was supposed to dock here. The night before we were told they would be tendering. When we got to Naples the weather was gorgeous. There were several other ships docked (Navigator of the Seas, Disney Magic, etc.). We had to meet in the theater at 6:30 AM for our excursion (Capri, Sorrento and Pompeii). At 8:00 we were told there were large swells beside the ship and the port's tenders could not get close enough. In fact, we were told they were damaged trying to do so. Everyone was extremely disappointed and angry. I believe many passengers questioned why we were the ship that had to tender when others docked. The captain said it is up to the port. The only plus to all of this was we arrived in Venice 1/2 a day earlier than expected (i.e. 7 AM instead of 1:30 PM).

Other negative: We had to pay $26 each for a shuttle into Venice the first day. The second day in Venice the ship moved to the dock closer to St. Marks's Square so we could walk. We also had to pay $10 each for a shuttle into Dubrovnik, as we had no excursions booked. There was also a shuttle cost in Venice. These costs were unexpected. Read more