Do staterooms on Brilliance of the Seas still hold up to the Royal Caribbean standard?
Launched in 2002, Brilliance of the Seas remains a fan favorite.
The Radiance-Class vessel has a capacity for 2,543 guests, with a total of 1,075 staterooms onboard.
I recently sailed on Brilliance for a 7-night Western Caribbean cruise, calling upon Cozumel, Mexico; Georgetown, Grand Cayman; and Yucatan (Progresso), Mexico.
I booked an oceanview balcony cabin through the guarantee process. The guarantee selection offered a lower price in exchange for being assigned a leftover stateroom in our chosen category.
The total payment, with gratuities and fees, was $1959, or $140 per day, per person.
A few weeks before the cruise, Royal Caribbean assigned me a balcony stateroom located on the forward end of Deck 9: #9520.
According to online deck plans, the stateroom spans 167 square feet, with a 27-square-foot balcony.
When I first entered the room, I noticed that it felt small for a balcony cabin, but had some great amenities.
First, I opened up the closet, located to the right of the front door.
The spacious closet featured six large wooden shelves in the center. I like that the shelves were dividing the middle—it made it easy to split the closet with a travel buddy. We could each hang out clothes on one assigned side.
The closet also had a multitude of hangers and an above-head storage space where the life jackets lay.
Opposite the closet, I opened the door to the stateroom bathroom.
The small space was brightly lit, with a large bathroom mirror.
The tiny shower sat to my right, covered by a white cloth curtain.
The shower curtain was my least favorite part of the stateroom, as it appeared old and worn. Plus, it would either sway outwards, slashing water onto the floor, or inwards, clinging to me in the shower.
Combined with the miniature size of the shower, it made showering inconvenient and frustrating.
However, our stateroom attendant did a great job of keeping the area clean, with fresh towels every day.
The bathroom was equipped with multiple shelves, located behind the mirror or under the sink, for plenty of toiletries storage.
Outside of the bathroom, I moved on to explore the cabin desk. The long piece of furniture held seven drawers, plus more shelf storage behind the mirror.
A ring light on the mirror and chair in front of the desk made it easy to transform into a vanity for applying makeup or choosing jewelry.
On day one, when I first opened the desk drawer, the top piece fell off in my hand.
By day three, the piece was affixed back onto the drawer, and we didn’t have any further problems with the stateroom.
I could tell that, despite Brilliance of the Seas' age, Royal Caribbean's crew members were working hard to maintain a quality environment.
Despite the ship's age, the lights and amenities functioned well, and the stateroom appeared well-maintained. My only issue with the cabin was the shower curtain.
Beside the desk sat the stateroom TV, equipped with 20 free channels. Below that, I found the mini-cooler, which had just enough space to fit bottles of wine or small bowls.
However, it wasn’t a true refrigerator; any ice left inside melted completely.
Read more: 6 things I loved and 3 things I hated about my Brilliance of the Seas cruise
Opposite the desk, I turned to find the couch. I was surprised by how small this piece of furniture was because other balcony cabins I've stayed in had slightly longer couches.
However, it was a comfortable place to sit or leave items on, and a lamp was conveniently placed above it.
I also liked that a small table was placed next to the couch—I could leave it there to eat at or move it around for extra storage.
Between the couch and the stateroom bed, I found a long brocade curtain tied back.
This could serve to divide the stateroom and keep out extra light. If one guest wanted to sleep while the other stayed awake, the curtain could divide the room to avoid disturbance.
The stateroom bed was wide and made up with white Royal Caribbean monogrammed sheets.
My travel buddy and I later asked for the beds to be separated, which our stateroom attendant did quickly and efficiently.
Each bed was a comfortable place to sleep, with two pillows and a thick blanket.
On either side sat two bedside tables, each with a lamp above them.
Each bedside table had two sections: a drawer and a large shelf space underneath.
The bedside table to the left also held the stateroom phone.
I appreciated that each lamp provided individual lighting and could control the stateroom’s main lights. I could turn off the lights without getting out of bed!
Past the bed sat a sliding glass door (covered by thick blackout curtains), which led to the cabin balcony.
When it was windy, the door was hard to push open, but the balcony view was always worth it.
The balcony space itself was small, only long enough to fit two chairs and a circular table.
However, it was a lovely place to sit, read, eat, or chat.
Read more: Inside cabin vs. balcony room on a cruise ship
I also liked that the table and chairs were waterproof and easy to wipe the rain off when the weather was wet.
The balcony added to the cruise experience, offering a convenient spot to check the weather and enjoy views of the ship sailing into and out of port.
At night, the sky was so clear amid the dark ocean, and we could see thousands of stars.
