Bucket list trip doing a full transit of the Panama Canal.
Embarkation
5 out of 5
Very fast, due to no passengers disembarking. (Repositioning Cruise). Rooms were ready at noon, wow.
Ship experiences
Food and Dining
4 out of 5
Service outstanding as always, but food quality has been diminished since the cruise lines lost so much money during pandemic.
Onboard Activities
5 out of 5
Great deck space, Solarium, track on upper deck, miniature golf, and fitness center (never had a problem getting to a machine, or weights.)
Entertainment
5 out of 5
For a 14 night cruise, we were not bored. Musicians all outstanding, and most of the theater presentations were good. As you pass through this ship, you usually go through the Centrum/elevator area, and you can often hear the musicians playing from Deck 4 all the way up to Deck 9 or 10.
Children's Programs
No kids
Service and Staff
5 out of 5
These Royal Caribbean staff members are awesome. Always so cheerful and ready to help you with anything.
Ship Quality
4 out of 5
Love the Radiance class ships like Brilliance, as you can often see the ocean when near the center of the ship. Ship was clean and in pretty good shape, just saw some small rusty areas, but hey, saltwater will do that :-) Overall the ship is impressive.
Cabin / Stateroom
3 out of 5
We had a balcony cabin on the Port side, which was great for views of Panama City and other sites when transiting the Canal. It was fine for 2 people, but not more than that. What we did not appreciate are the thoughtless passengers in the cabins above us, and next to us. It was impossible for them to shut a drawer or a door quietly - even at 1am. When taking off shoes they must have launched them in the air to make loud "klunks" rather than setting the down.
Ship tip
If you like looking at stars at night, the only dark place you'll find is on the helipad, Deck 5, forward.
Took an excursion to the Miraflores and Auga Clara locks. Long ride on the bus, but very interesting seeing the Visitors Center presentations on old and new locks - and seeing the canal operate from land. We saw the Miraflores locks from the ship the next day, when going through.
Did a bus tour of Costa Rica, winding up at a fort, then a local park where locals performed, then the huge El Jardin market. Not a bad way to pass the time and see a small part of the country.
We took a bus ride to La Bufadora, which means blow hole. This is said to be the 2nd largest blow hole in the world. It was not super spectacular when we went, ie. was not at its highest, but they told us this was seasonal and dependent on tides. Still, fun to see. Be ready for the 1/2 mile long flea market walk, which is the only way to get to the blow hole. Very aggressive vendors, so just keep your hands in your pockets and say No, gracias. Our tour guide said the vendors had "everything that you don't need", ha. We did eat at Habana Cabana restaurant along the flea market strip. and had some great margaritas, guacamole, and fajitas.
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