The issue is while you can refurbish even a 40 year old ship to a high standard (QE2 being a good example), the smaller ships simply don't have the space to fit in all the features that RCI have come to be associated with. That's why one is actually better off replacing them with Newer Larger Ships and if RCI had any sense, they would be looking to move on the Vision & Radiance Class Ships.
@@MrSmith1984 Some don’t care about all the latest and greatest extras and continue to cruise on smaller ships the real issue is profitability of a small ship.
I can't wait for Symphony of the sea OMG💃🏽💃🏽 I was on Anthems of the Sea in April and had a great time after not cruising for a few years OMG I'm so glad to be back can't wait my anticipation is through the roof 😫🤣😉 I've been on Adventures of the sea 2x, Liberty of the sea, Explorer of the sea 2x Happy Cruising💃🏽💃🏽
@@randymo3371 I wasn’t around when those ships existed (except majesty but never been on that one) but they are certainly different from what royal caribbean is today. As of now the vision and radiance class are the most similar.
We really like the Radiance class ships; we were on Jewel and Serenade this year and I traveled on Brilliance 20 years ago. They have a more mature, relaxed feel as opposed to the go-go-go, hurry up and have thrills of the newer ships. For another under rated ship; Mariner is our favorite so far.
I was thinking more along the lines of Vision of the Seas, Grandeur of the Seas, Serenade of the Seas (when not doing the World Cruise), Rhapsody of the Seas, etc. We've been sailing a number of these lately because, as cruisers "of a certain age," we appreciate that they are typically a bit quieter (translation - fewer kids) and their fares tend to be more affordable than many of the newer ships.
Yes, and they go to more exciting ports, that folks who love to exolore, enjoy more. It is much nicer to be on a cruise, without all the plethora of kids, and enjoy basically, an adults only cruise.
We LOVED our 11-day SE Caribbean Island Hopper cruise last year on the Rhapsody. We went to several small ports that the megaships can't. It was very relaxing, and we talked with many Brits on the cruise. About ⅓ of the passengers were from England or Ireland. Being part Irish, we bonded with them and had a great time! We have given up on the huge Oasis class ships and their massive crowds everywhere. We much prefer the smaller ships.
I nominate Jewel of the Seas. We thought it was a beautiful ship. Loved the outdoor dining area for the windjammer on the back of the ship and also enjoied the indoor solarium as well. Plus the access to the helicopter pad as well. The outside glass elivator wall was beautiful too.
I totally agree. Jewel of the seas is a spectacular ship, with just the right size, and amenities. Loved cruising on it out of Miami,pre-covid. I would do another on her.
My first cruise was on the Jewel! The captain told us that he was the original Captain on the Oasis of the Seas, but he chose to "step down" to the Jewel because he didn't care for captaining a megaship... it was "too impersonal" for him and he never got to meet very many passengers. The Radiance class is actually my favorite RCCL ship class. I love the layout of it. I really liked being on the Rhapsody too.
We went on Brilliance during spring break with my daughter, her husband, his parents, and our granddaughter. Old ship, spring break, all the wrong things. We had a wonderful time. First time for 5 of us, my wife and I had been on multiple cruises, all would do it again. My wife and I were kind of worried because of the age of the ship and small during spring break could have been a terrible time. It was jammed with people and I think everyone had a wonderful time. After all it was a cruise. We are going on a TA cruise from Fort Lauderdale to Rome and then doing a back to back through the Grecian Isles on Odyssey. Looking forward to it with some apprehension. We have never had rough seas, fingers crossed. It is also full.
I did a Holy Land cruise on Odyssey of the Seas in October 2022. Highlights for me were the cabin (very elegant and comfortable), the North Star capsule, the largish pools, especially the quieter one, where I swam most days, and Izumi, the sushi restaurant. (I dined there three times). I did enjoy the Effectors show too. I did not like Giovanni’s. I ordered spaghetti carbonara and it came smothered in cream. I prefer my Italian food to be authentic Italian! Another thing I did not like was the laborious process of disembarking at every port. Due to the large number of passengers, this always took at least an hour. And the ports were crowded with many cruise ships in port. So in 2023 I decided to take a cruise to smaller ports on a smaller ship on a different cruise line, and I much preferred that experience.
I’m due to take my first EVER cruise next august, on Liberty of the Seas. I’m so excited that I’m pretty sure I’m gonna physically combust between now and then!
😂😂 I understand I feel the same way! This will be my 12th cruise & my anticipation is through the roof for May 16 Symphony of the sea birthday cruise💃🏽💃🏽💃🏽🎊 Happy first cruise you're going to be HOOKED 😂😂
Took Liberty of the Seas for our first cruise. I thoroughly enjoyed it. Think it’s a great size ship. Plenty to do. Hope you enjoy it as much as we did.
Congrats on your first cruise. Trust me when I say, calm down and save all that energy for it. you're going to need it. Been on 13, soon to be 14 in a month. And I can tell you, each cruise I've been on has been SO FREAKING AWESOME! XD My one main advice I can give is make sure you bring suntan lotion. On every cruise I've been on, including an Alaska one, 1st day, I've seen at least 2 people redder then a cooked lobster.
@@ModernMyths thank you so much, yeah I need to chill. I’m the only one in our group that’s never been and I suspect im going to drive them crazy. Sunblock is on the packing list I was handed :)
Time stamps for people in a hurry. (The video is better when watched from the start though) 1. 1:35 - Symphony of the Seas 2. 4:27 - Liberty of the Seas 3. 7:22 - Explorer of the Seas 4. 9:14 - Odyssey of the Seas 5. 13:35 - Brilliance of the Seas
Sailing on Liberty next fall visiting New England and Canada. Previously we were on Harmony. I hope we will not be disappointed as Liberty is an older ship.
I just did Odyssey in September for the 9 day Greek Isles itinerary and it was fantastic!! Odyssey is a beautiful ship with lots to do. I will definitely book it again soon.
We’ve been Harmony twice, Odyssey once and Liberty five times when it sailed out of Galveston. All are great ships and although Liberty is smaller than the Odyssey and Oasis class ships it is quite large and very special in its own way.
We were on Liberty in August and she is a fantastic ship!!!! We can't say a bad thing about her! I think the Star Lounge ended up being one of the best spots on the ship. There was always some event happening in there. We aren't going to see Oddesy until 2025 and thanks to this video, it is going to be an agonizing wait!
I was on Liberty this summer, and it was a good time, though I'd never get an interior room again. It was like a prison cell. I'll be going on Odyssey next year, too.
We have been on several cruises with RCCL and we didn't like Liberty at all. We thought the decor was boring and the layout of the ship created several crowded pinch points that made moving from one activity to another unnecessarily crowded. We decided not to go on the Freedom class again after that experience.
I was on Brilliance’s sister, Radiance on an Alaskan Cruise. In Sitka, AK, Brilliance actually pulled up by Radiance as I was getting back on. It was very cool.
Love Explorer of the Seas & have sailed on her 4x! Have Symphony scheduled for end of Sept & doing a back-to-back, Liberty scheduled for May (have cruised on her 2x & great ship!!), Odyssey scheduled for January 2025. Love the Quantum class - have sailed Quantum 1x & Anthem 2x!! Great video & information Matt!! Thank you for sharing your ideas re: these RC gems!!
Hey Matt, I was on Odyssey back in 2021. It is my favourite ship by far. The problem for me is, it sails out of New York and has stops in Florida. When I was on it in ‘21 it went to the Caribbean, when it sails back to the Caribbean, I’ll be the 1st to book it. Love your show. Keep up the great work.
My family and I traveled on Explorer of the Seas in 2022 and Odyssey of the Seas as well as Liberty of the Seas in 2023. I have only fond memories of all of them... especially Odyssey. We are sailing on Granduer of the Seas next February. I saw your vlog about it and am excited to experience the ship.
Thanks Matt, you have a very interesting take on these 5 ships. I sailed on Liberty and Odyssey. I agree with you, Odyssey is a hidden gem. The entire Sea Plex and Two70 are not too missed! The main dinning room is gorgeous.
We sailed Odyssey in October and it was awesome. Two70 is the coolest area on a ship have seen. It was our 24th cruise. However, I still like Independence OTS best. Just like the smaller ships.
Really surprised Enchantment wasn't on here. I feel like I hear about the other Vision ships (not a ton, but still hear about them) but Enchantment is one I never hear mentioned.
I love Liberty OTS. She was the ship I was on for my very first cruise and I was on her again in 2022 before she left Galveston. My #1 ship I want to go on in the fleet is Symphony. A ship I don’t see talked about very often is Quantum or Enchantment. I want to go on Quantum and my favorite ship with RCCL is Enchantment.
Was on Brilliance in September for an Alaskan cruise. Though my wife and I enjoyed ourselves, the ship is in need of a refurbishment. We had quite a few instances of damaged seating and even our cabin door was in need of repair. Quite a few of the other passengers complained about the layout of the Windjammer, but I personally didn't see a problem with it
Never had a bad cruise. Monarch, Majesty, Grandeur, Vision, Enchantment, Voyager, Allure (x2), Rhapsody. Looking forward to b2b on Explorer transatlantic, and an Odyssey Transatlantic b2b. Plus another trip on the Vision to Bermuda.
I’m going on my first cruise in a few months on Vision of the Seas, how would you describe the experience on board? Did you feel that it was lacking in anyway due to it being an older and smaller ship?
@@aaliyahherbert5 well, I am afraid I won’t be able to answer. It was at least 15 years ago and we did a Mexican Riviera. I have looked on cruise critic, and there are some negative reviews, but I always take those with a grain of salt. For me, a bad day on vacation is better than a great day at work. We will go on her for a Bermuda cruise in October. Looking forward to it.
Well done. So many people forget about the smaller ships Radiance and Vision class are my faves. The Quantum class were overshadowed by the new Oasis class ships, but everyone who sails them, loves them.
Same here. The Solarium on Jewel was my favorite spot on any RCI ship until we sailed on Anthem. We will be sailing Brilliance next September, but it looks like she doesn't have the greenery I experienced on Jewel.
We sailed on Odyssey OTS about 2 months after its launch. It's a fantastic ship, and was especially nice with only half capacity at the time. We went on Anthem a year later, which I liked, but I saw that they had really improved Odyssey from the Quantum class design. We also saw one of the earliest performances of the Effectors, which was still in development then. The Book in the 270 was fantastic as well.
We cruised on Liberty just last week! Weather wasn’t great, but ship and crew were fantastic. Beautiful ship with the Christmas decorations. Grandeur in November ‘24.
We LOVE the older ships! Explorer, Rhapsody, Grandeur, Jewel etc. Been on them several times and it was always great! Very much looking forward to another b2b on the Jewel next year. Those brand new great big ones with so many thousands of passengers are not for us at all. All those extra price speciality Restaurants we do not go to. All those "excitements" (whoo-hoo!) we do not need and want, not for us. Call us boring and "old, in mind" , I don 't care We gladly leave them to others!
liberty was our first cruise ship and loved the experience! :D it was for my sisters birthday and it wasn’t a bad ship at all and the staff and the people in them were a vibe food was actually decent too lol next ship i’m going too is odyssey i hope it’s a better experience than the last but can never forget my first ship liberty ✨✨
Loved our Liberty sailing! Sabor was fantastic! We had to do it twice and yes the margaritas were awesome! Absolutely right with splash away bay and not getting our children out of there.
Other than brilliance I hear a good bit about these ships. I think they are all great! The one I never hear anything about ever is Rhapsody. Personally I really want to sail on a vision class ship. I think it would be such a different experience and they are beautiful! Not To mention they are able to get into a lot of ports bigger ships can’t.
Symphony was my first RC cruise at the beginning of 2020. We love the ship so much. Everything was wonderful, from style/decor, amenities, service, food, shows. We loved it all. Our cruise on Symphony was the beginning of us becoming RC cruisers. My favorite show on any cruise so far has been Flight on Symphony. It's so good. We love the Oasis class and Symphony is our favorite. We'll be going on Odyssey for the first time in March. It will be our first time on a Quantum class ship. Looking forward to it.
I was on the Odyssey in 2021, and it was great because it was only half full. The ship is really beautiful. I'm surprised you didn't mention the IFly, or the North Star. We did both of them on the first day, so we didn't have to pay, though the North Star was not so great. We are both in our 70s, and we must have gone on the bumper cars a dozen times! The only thing I wasn't crazy about was the Music Hall. It wasn't big enough, and they had too many things going on in that one venue. The Two70 shows were really good. My favorite ships are the Oasis class.
Hey Matt, I was scheduled to sail on explorer of the seas in 2023 to the ABC island's. Unfortunately it was cancelled due to extended dry dock. So did the ship get updated in dry dock or no🤔
I will say Explorer for not being renovated its still in great shape. However in the rooms is where you can see the ships age. Also in the windjammer, the windows leaked when it was raining and it just looks outdated in there. I love the Voyager class ships but Explorer needs a renovation and I think she will be a great ship again.
Matt, how could you leave out the Vision Class ship? No one talks anymore about Grandeur, Enchantment or Vision of the Seas. Sure, they lack those wiz bang features, but you won’t find a more personal experience on any of the larger ships. Plus they are super easy to learn and walk around in them. And, as you have mentioned in a previous video, they go to ports that the larger ships simply can not reach.
We were on Symphony last spring and Oasis last month. Symphony did feel more modern and fresher in some areas. I didn’t know she was over looked. Hope to try Odyssey next. 🤞🏻
Very cool- neat to see some of the one-off, unique features on these particular ships! I would also enjoy a related video, perhaps the 20 (or whatever) most unique, singularly occurring features across the entire fleet.
We are sailing brilliance of the seas next summer and had some interest in the thermal spa pass. Any idea how much money the daily or weekly pass goes for?
We're going on the Navigator of the seas in April. We were on the Adventure of the seas few years ago stayed in the Royal Suite and it was amazing and we went with a group of 24 and everynite we had a party in our room hosting like 40 people and the room never felt crowed.
My sister just booked Adventures Of The Seas. Don't know anything about it so that would be another ship you may be able to talk about on the next video.
Liberty sucks....no match with Freedom or Indy. Explorer sucks....no match with Navigator and others in the class. Odyssey no one care for....it is no Quantum, Anthem nor Ovation.
We sailed on Briliance of the seas. Feb 2024. It needs lots of work. The giant screen on the pool deck needs to be replaced. It's really in bad shape. I am looking forward to sailing on the Liberty of the Seas in Feb 2024.
Last week I booked Symphony for next year. I could have gone on Icon or Wonder but I"ve been obsessed about Symphony since 2019!! Can't wait for this trip.
Royal Caribbean has the HIGHEST on board “fees” and the lowest passenger space ratio. Have you ever tried to snag a chair by the pool during summer season???! I will NEVER again take RCCL after a disastrous experience on Independence of the seas. In addition, who the hell wants to take vacation with 4,000, 5,000, or 6,000 other guests ???!! Hell no!
my first cruise was on Explorer, loved going to the hot tub in the Spa late in the evening. Worst cruise as far as ships go was on Symphony. Hopefully it has been to dry dock since I was on it, it really needed it, plus the entertainment was terrible. I loved Sabor in the Boardwalk and miss having it on Symphony. We went on Odyssey just as cruises were opening after Covid. Did not like the layout, felt very narrow and dark.. Spoke to many od the crew as it was only at 43% capacity and they agreed concerning the layout. Going on Freedom soon, which is my favorite RC ship. .
I love Liberty and Anthem. After 5 cruises combined, I can't wait to go on Liberty again next year. Looking forward to Odyssey in December for my first time.
I’ve been on Anthem, I will say I wasn’t impressed. The worse service I’ve ever experienced on a cruise ship. We’ve been on Disney Fantasy twice, Oasis, Harmony, Anthem, Wonder in that order. Going on Adventure June 25’ staying in Ocean panoramic suite, nothing beats the service of staying in a suite. We stayed in a 2 bedroom grand one Harmony and it was amazing
We're going on our first RC cruise (previously cruised with Disney a few times with the kids), on the Grandeur of the sea (deal was too good to pass up on a 7 night cruise), and I know it's the oldest and smallest ship but I'm not worried, as the cruise stops at 4 ports so probably won't spend too much time on the ship anyway.
Cruisers are going to steer clear of Symphony, after that sicko crew member with the secret camera, who was caught. Very bad pub for that ship, and Royal Caribbean in General. RCL has ALOT of damage control on their hands.
We did our first ever cruise aboard Wonder in Aug. In Sep, we will be taking Liberty to New England/Canada. I currently am holding good vibes, although some of the talk in groups has made me wonder if it is a good choice.. I am reminding myself that Liberty didn't get the upgrade the other ships in her class did-and I am going in expecting good things. We wanted something other than Caribbean, and she seemed the best overall choice for the sailing destinations we decided on.
My first cruise ever was a honeymoon cruise on Brilliance. I've since got the point with Royal that I will probably never sail with them again. However, if I did it would be on Brilliance again, especially after my last experience on Anthem.
I'm not a fan of Brilliance of the seas. I went a 2 week Panama canal cruise last April and that was not a good ship to be on for 2 weeks. Next to no included dining options, MDR and WJ buffet, and a small cafe. The toilet had multiple issues in our cabin, overall outdated and worn out.
The itineraries are way more creative for these ships. I sail based on itineraries so I’m looking at liberty of the seas because it does New England and canad
Went on Explorer last March and I loved that ship. To me it’s a great size. With all the amenities I could ask for. I love that size ship. Going on oasis next month and I’m sure it’s going to be amazing but the size may in the end just be too much ship. We shall see.
It gets talked about a little bit but I think Navigator of the Seas is underrated. My first cruise was with on it in 2019 right after it was amplified. I think it has something for everyone and it's the perfect size for first time cruisers.
We usually cruise out of PC . For long cruises they have the Aventure of seas and I am not familiar with it. Mainer of Seas has been moved. We love to go on the Wonder but the prices are too high . We been on the Allure and Harmony, Please share next time about Adventure.
Prob with Odyssey is it repositions quite frequently between Italy, New York and Florida and so the window for sailings is a lot smaller than some of the other ships in the fleet that have a longer term of service at a port like Wonder which literally is all PC
Sorry Matt, but I’ve recently been on Brilliance of the Seas and it showed to be very worn. Definitely needs refurbishment. Broken cabin door, broken door leading to the bathroom along with rust along the balcony and noticeable in other areas.
