cruiser82

Thank you for taking the time to write your review! I am looking forward the rest! I am glad you enjoyed the hotel. We are booked there in March for our Allure cruise. I am especially glad it is in walking distance to so many places!

We really did enjoy it. The only thing I was slightly disappointed about was that breakfast wasn't included but there was the option of purchasing a rate that included it but of course that cost more. Walking to Publix to get something from their hot food bar worked out well for us so we would do that again the next time we stay there.

I hope to add more to the review later today (stupid work is getting in the way lol).

Will be following along.

We sail on Allure soon, i follow!

I think you'll love Allure. Not to give away the rest of my review but we were really concerned with the size of the ship and the number of passengers but this cruise made Royal our preferred cruise line and Oasis class our favorite class.

Back in November my mom and I went on a 7 night Western Caribbean cruise on Royal Caribbean’s Allure of the Seas out of Fort Lauderdale. We decided to head down to Florida a day early because even though we’ve cruised out of Port Everglades many times we’ve always flown in the day of the cruise and never actually explored the Fort Lauderdale area.

After reviewing all available hotel options we decided to stay at the GALLERYone, which is a Doubletree Suites by Hilton hotel. I’m not sure if I’ve ever stayed in a Doubletree hotel so I was excited to check this one out, especially when it had such positive reviews on Trip Advisor and here on Cruise Critic. I booked the room through Expedia and was able to apply my Expedia+ points, so the out of pocket price I paid for the room was $162.74 which I felt was a great price. I also used Ebates, which I highly recommend.

We only had one day in Fort Lauderdale so I wanted a hotel that was centrally located to all of the things we wanted to do. I bought a Groupon for the Water Taxi and there is a stop right at the hotel so that was definitely a plus. My mom and I were supposed to go to dinner at the Texas de Brazil restaurant in our hometown prior to the cruise but that never happened, so the fact that there was one within walking distance of the GALLERYone was another advantage. There was also an upscale mall within walking distance and a nice outlet mall within about 30 minutes if we (ok, if I) decided to do some shopping. We ended up not going to either mall but it was nice to have those options. We didn’t need the hotel to be right next to the cruise port (there are several hotels that are very close to Port Everglades) but we wanted to be within a 20 minute Uber ride and we were with the GALLERYone. Finally, we wanted to be near a Publix to pick up any food or miscellaneous items for the room and/or cruise and there was one within walking distance.

I think our flight arrived at FLL around 2pm, so by the time we collected our luggage, arranged the Uber and arrived at the hotel I expected our room to be ready for us. Once we arrived at the hotel we soon realized that might not be possible because it was clear that there was an event being held there. We waited in the lobby for about an hour recharging our electronics and people watching, but we got bored and decided to leave our luggage with the valet and explore the surrounding area. My mom went out to the pool area and found the dock for the Water Taxi so that was helpful. We walked out of the hotel and headed left, where on the left side of the road was the mall and on the right was a small shopping center with the Publix. Just a little further on the right was the Texas de Brazil, and we were really glad to see it because it meant we could definitely walk there for dinner that night.

We didn’t explore for very long and when we got back to the hotel our room still wasn’t ready so we sat in the lobby a bit longer. My mom was getting a bit frustrated by this time and went to the reception desk to ask for an ETA on when we would be able to access our room, and the receptionist gave us two vouchers for a $5 credit at the little store so we could buy a drink. That was very nice of her and we appreciated the gesture.

Finally, we were notified that our room was ready so we headed up to check it out. I booked us in a 2 Queen Bed Suite with Balcony and Canal View. They do offer suites with two separate bedrooms but since we were only going to be there one night we decided the standard suite would be fine. I really liked our room and it was more than enough space for the two of us.

After we settled in, we walked to Texas de Brazil for an early dinner. You do have to cross a busy road to get there but there is a crosswalk with a signal and there were always several other people walking too so it is a pedestrian-friendly area.

Dinner was amazing and afterwards we went back to the hotel to catch the water taxi. We weren’t planning on getting off at any of the stops and were just using it as a little tour of the area, but a few of the other passengers were using it to bar hop and I could see that being really fun. I think the guide mentioned that there was a way to connect to one of the taxis that goes to the Hard Rock hotel in Hollywood, FL and if we had more time we definitely would have done that. Since it was November a lot of the homes on the canal had their holiday lights up and it was very pretty to see them from the water. The full loop tour with no stops took about an hour and I would definitely recommend it. After the tour, we returned to the hotel and called it a night.

Unlike most extended stay hotels, breakfast wasn’t included with our room and we decided not to buy the breakfast buffet at the onsite restaurant. We made the quick walk to Publix and got some brunch there to bring back to the room. After we ate we went down to the lobby to check out and head over to Port Everglades. The hotel does offer a shuttle service but we decided to use Uber instead.

I can definitely see myself staying at this hotel again if I’m ever in Fort Lauderdale. The rooms were very spacious and the general area seemed nice and I preferred it to the area close to the port.

Hello! This is a very long overdue review of the cruise my mom and I took on the Allure of the Seas November 13-20, 2016. I had planned to live blog and/or Periscope during the cruise but I unfortunately wasn't feeling up to it. I do have a cruise planned for August on Adventure OTS so hopefully I can do one or both then.

This was our first time on one of the larger Royal ships and we weren't quite sure if we would like it. It was also our first time in a Crown Loft Suite and Sky Class so we were curious about how the suite service would compare to our previous experiences on Royal and NCL.

I *think* I still have the Compasses from the cruise and if I do I will post them either here or on my blog (shameless plug) once I figure out how to do it. I will do my best to answer any questions you guys have but I do apologize if I don't remember something since this cruise was a few months ago.

I just started this review on my blog as well so I will try to post everything here as I write it for anyone who would rather not go there (although I hope you will)! I'll start off with a review of our hotel and our pre-cruise stay.

We were there last week and I was surprised that there wasn't a ship photographer taking pictures along the way. We did take a picture with a photographer right after we landed but we were never able to find it in the photo gallery.

CK had the sit down breakfast with a menu. It was nice to sit and relax and plan the day. They have a small buffet line in the Suite Lounge with eggs, sausage and bacon, pastries, and fruit.

 

 

 

They had the full sit down breakfast in CK on disembarking morning. That reminds me of the priority disembarking. There were 3 times you could leave; 7:45, 8:45, or 9:45. You meet in the Suite Lounge about 15 minutes before you want to leave the ship and are escorted off. Very quick and efficient. We had breakfast that morning in the CK and then relaxed in the lounge until time.

Awesome, thank you!

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Interesting. Thanks for the feedback everyone.

Yesterday we received our welcome email from the concierge on the Allure in preparation for our cruise this Sunday. It mentioned that we could reserve a standard cabana on Labadee's Barefoot Beach for $295, whereas the Cruise Planner said the price was $275. I asked Dexter about this and he confirmed that the price did increase.

We have a $300 onboard credit so it will still cover the cost of the cabana, but it seems like the prices of the cabanas (across most cruise lines) keep increasing and rather frequently. I'm not sure if this new price applies to just my sailing or just Allure so YMMV.

Thank you for your review. Is the breakfast in Coastal Kitchen a sit down breakfast like the main dining room or is it a small buffet?

I was also looking at the Embassy Suites and Gallery One for our cruise in November, and we decided to go with the Gallery One. Hopefully someone will chime in soon with information to help you make your decision but I will write a quick review here on CC after my cruise.

Thank you! I'm going to call my mom in the morning because we were thinking about a couple of excursions but thought they were overpriced so since they're both discounted she may want to book them now.

I thought the name Jeff Trachta sounded familiar so I looked him up, and he's Thorne from The Bold and the Beautiful! Yes, I admit that I watch soap operas. Do you know how long he'll be on Allure? It would be a great surprise for my mom if he's still there in November.

Thank you for your review!

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Thanks very much!

 

 

 

 

I wouldn't think there is a charge for Zumba. People were just dropping by and joining. Saw it another day too. A couple very little girls looked like they had done it before!

Thank you!

Thank you for your review. Was there a charge for the Zumba in the promenade?

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Such a fun video! The stateroom attendant was a good sport :)

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Thank you for your review, especially the information about the ziplines onboard and on Labadee as my mom and I are planning to do both.

I recently got into Periscope and one of your scopes was the first one I watched. You've set the bar very high! Looking forward to the rest of your review.

May I ask what you didn't like about the breakfast in Coastal Kitchen? We're used to going to the suite restaurant for breakfast on our NCL cruises and really enjoy that, so we were hoping we would have similar experiences in CK.

Thank you for your review.

I'm new to Periscope and have already become addicted to it! I'm happy to see so many people signed up to scope from Allure because I'll be on it in November. Thanks for keeping up these lists.

Thank you for your honest review. I'm concerned about the drinking, smoking and how sick you and your daughter were because those are the three biggest issues for me on a cruise. I hope you give Royal another chance sometime in the future, or maybe even a different cruise line.

Great question! I don't know the answer but I too like fresh squeezed orange juice so I'm interested in reading the replies.

Oh, you're Andrew_1720! I watched a scope yesterday by the tornado storm chaser that you recommended. I'm looking forward to your scopes; I'm on Allure in November but I'm not sure I'm brave enough to scope.

There were 4 different bottles and one cake soap which was very nice.

 

 

 

Shampoo, shampoo/conditioner, shower gel and lotion.

 

 

 

Did not care for the shower gel, enjoyed the cake soap.

 

 

 

Sea Ya

Thank you!

This is a very trivial question, but was there bar soap in the bathroom or was there only liquid body wash? I need to know if I should pack my shower sponge or if I can use the soap/washcloth provided. We have an L2 in November and are very much looking forward to it. Thank you, and I'm glad you enjoyed your cruise.

Great review, thank you!