Good time but an old ship in need of refresh

Item: Radiance of the Seas
Rating: 3.8
Author: Itrvlfar

Radiance of the Seas Cruise Review

Itrvlfar

Contributor Level: Cruise Director

15 Days Till Next Cruise

Cruises: 7+ cruises

Reviews: 22

Helpful Votes: 815

Overall rating:

3.8 out of 5

4 Night Western Caribbean (Tampa Roundtrip)

Sail date: January 11, 2024

Ship: Radiance of the Seas

Cabin type: Suite

Cabin number: 1100

Traveled as: Couple

Reviewed: 10 months ago

Review summary

We booked this sailing as it’s convenient to us to sail from Tampa but the ship is older and pretty tired looking. Also the clientele is a mixed bag, but sailing under the Skyway Bridge is always spectacular. The smoking in the casino was absolutely disgusting and even the nonsmoking side had smokers. So gross! Our waiter and asst waiter were two of the best we’ve had in a long time. We looked forward to seeing them every evening and they were certainly a rain of sunshine each day! Overall the ship is a good value except for the drinks package and a la carts drink prices. You can take two bottles of wine per cabin and that is a nice perk we took advantage of!

Embarkation

5 out of 5

Quick and easy embarkation. Make sure you check-in online for the fastest possible embarkation.

Ship experiences

Food and Dining

3 out of 5

The food overall is pretty average and uninspired. I fact, the cutbacks over the past years is pretty apparent.

Onboard Activities

3 out of 5

Same old activities, nothing new

Entertainment

3 out of 5

Service and Staff

4 out of 5

Bar staff cut backs are very apparent as wait times were much longer than usual as most bars were understaffed. Dining room waiter and asst waiter were awesome - two of the best we’ve had in a long time!!

Ship Quality

3 out of 5

Ship needs a major refurbishment and lots of fresh paint but is clean and well kept for an older ship.

Cabin / Stateroom

3 out of 5

Cabin is very dated looking and in desperate need of refurbishment. The shower/tub is dreadful and an absolute danger for older guests. The only upside is these bath wash, shampoo and conditioner mounted on the shower wall are very convenient. Our balcony was filthy dirty and chairs mostly unusable. Bed was horribly uncomfortable and left us both achey each morning. The size of the cabin being a Je Suite is very spacious and has a walk in closet and tons of storage! Sitting are was very comfortable and is a nice size for entertaining a few friends.

Ship tip

Think twice about the drinks package and figure out if it’s really a good value for how much you think you might drink. Also, book specialty dining as early as possible!

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Ports of call

Tampa, Florida

5 out of 5

Cozumel, Mexico

5 out of 5

Disembarkation

5 out of 5

Traveler Photos

6 Comments

javawoody 10 months ago

Thanks for sharing

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Gwbigdog 10 months ago

Thanks for sharing

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Ruby13 10 months ago

Thank you for sharing

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Niavlys 10 months ago

Tks for sharing your view with us

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cruising2004 10 months ago

Thank you for your review.

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RetiredRay 10 months ago

Sounds like post Covid sailing.

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