The ports and excursions are once in a lifetime and beautiful scenery. However, Radiance of the Seas was a huge disappointment. the boat never has a day off and cleanliness suffers. Passengers depart by 9AM and new passengers can board at 10:30AM. Although people clean the rooms/bathrooms/etc, it is always a "hasty" cleaning and the rooms/bathrooms smell. Even though they replaced the carpeting last year.
Food was terrible....experienced cruisers complained. Even met people buying food at port and "sneaking" on board for a sick friend. Service on boat was friendly and helpful.... except for Guest Services. Conflicting info from various guest service agents and unorganized/unhelpful people. More help from room attendants and waiters than guest services....recommend bypassing them when you can.
Entertainment was sketchy. If you attend an event LATE by 5 minutes - you can't participate. Really? Need a new cruise director.
Ship experiences
Food and Dining
1 out of 5
Horrible food. Experienced cruisers said this was the worst. Avoided the dining room and ate at buffet or Specialty dining (good). Very disappointed by food.
Onboard Activities
1 out of 5
Once and done - rock climbing. Events - if you are late 5 minutes, you are NOT allowed to participate....Bingo. Need a new cruise director. Never thought I would be bored on a cruise. Kid didn't like the Adventures Ocean program. Destination/Ports were the best part of cruise.
Entertainment
1 out of 5
Bored on the boat. Walked around to find things to do and was 5 minutes late..... couldn't participate. Really? Lousy events and need a new cruise director....
Children's Programs
1 out of 5
Our 9 year didn't like the program. Spent most evenings in the room....babysitting since he didn't like the kids program. What a waste.
Service and Staff
5 out of 5
Everyone was amazing - room attendants, waiters/servers....except for Guest Services!! Guest Services and Entertainment directors were the worst!!!
Ship Quality
1 out of 5
Gross, gross, gross..... passengers depart at 9AM and new passengers board at 10:30AM same day. Rooms never get "really cleaned"....and bathrooms/rooms SMELL. Thank goodness for balcony and airing our room out each day.
Cabin / Stateroom
1 out of 5
and 9542. Cabin room and bathroom smells. Bed pillows and linens...sketchy. Room attendant was amazingly helpful and did his best. But with only 1 1/2 hour room turnovers between cruises, the rooms/bathrooms never get a thorough cleaning. I now understand why people get sick on cruises.
Must see the glacier. Helicopter sled dog is fantastic. Also rafting down river past Mendenhall glacier was awe inspiring. Heard minimal whale sighting in Juneau this trip.
Best whale watching; feeding in coves among seals and otters. Beautiful. Take smaller excursions - boats go closer to shore and whales. Don't do the cruise excursion - large boat and crowded.
We've done 2 Alaskan cruises on Radiance with the last one 3 years ago. We had no complaints about the ship. We will be on her in one week sailing Honolulu to Sydney celebrating our 40th wedding anniversary. We are seasoned cruisers but have never sailed for 20 days. Looking forward to this adventure and and I hope my experience is as wonderful as the last 19 Royal cruises we've been on.
I disagree with this statement and was just on the cruise ship, also a first time cruiser. The ship was clean, the food in the dining room was very good and the staff was very good!!
We would love to do Alaska some day. We did Radiance and also found the ship old and tired, food not memorable and entertainment limited. But the service was top notch and we had a relaxing cruise. Freedom is still our favorite. Just to give me perspective, was this your first time cruising? I bet it was. All cruise ships are never idle - they suck in a new load of guests as soon as the previous batch leaves. The staff works for low wages often 10 to 12 hours a day, 7 days a week, 7 month or more in a row. They work hard cleaning but the newer the ship, the more fresh it will be. A good ship for multi generational cruising is an Oasis class - there is something for everyone on those ships. Happy cruising!
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