jlshouston

We were supposed to be on this sail, we were packed and everything, then at midnight Jim woke up with a pulse at 200 and needless to say in 30 minutes we were at Methodist downtown and he had 9 nurses and a doctor hovering with IV's going everywhere. It was pretty scary, happy results they were able to cardiovert him and Wednesday we were home.

This would have been our 6th time on Allure and 2nd since she came to Port of Galveston. Allure is my favorite Oasis Class maybe because of Samba Grill and Mamma Mia. I saw Mamma Mia on Broadway and the cast currently performing this show is the absolute best. I cannot praise their performance enough. 

We have debated doing the complete dining pkg several times and then we just end up doing a BOGO for night 2 somewhere, sometimes we add a Hibachi night on 4. I feel like Allure has the best variety of the specialty restaurants...probably because I consider Hooks a BIG FAIL so I don't miss it on Allure. 

I am glad you enjoyed Allure and I agree compared to staff and crew on all the sails we have done since the pause, Allure has the best for service and attitude and effort

On 9/4/2022 at 6:21 AM, Georgeny said:

Was never a fan admittedly of extra charge dining. We have cruised since 1984 and originally cruises were all about primary things, service and food. When they started added charge dining MDR food was extremely good and it seemed obvious to me that the only way to get people to pay for extra dining would be to dumb down the quality in the MDR. That has certainly occurred compared to pre-speciality restaurants.

 

That said cost and quality differ by consumer. we live in NY metro area. Drink and food prices in shipboard restaurants are similar in pricing but far less quality and service. I would consider CHOPS a nice restaurant locally not a steakhouse. But if your area doesn't have a lot these type steakhouses etc then speciality restaurant can be worth it for the experience.

 

A $15 cocktail is sadly what we would pay at home, but my relatives in Ohio would be driven nuts by that. OMG they charged me $2.25 for a POP !!!!!

 

Ship service as well far less than 1980's, not to say that then was necessarily better cruising. Today cabin amenities and ship amenities far better. There were NO balconies and limited window cabins. Our first cabin the bed was not large enough for me at 6"2" to stretch. One of us had to leave the cabin so other could dress. I will find and include a picture should you consider me exaggerating.

 

Picture taken from cabin door You don't even want to see the bathroom and shower. You could also here a whisper in the next cabin. LOL You cabin see the size of the double bed.

 

George in NY

omg I love this. Wow you have seen some changes.

On 9/3/2022 at 3:18 PM, renza said:

     I am diamond but only have been on all oasis class, Anthem and freedom over 10 years ago. Booked Voyager out of Puerto Rico for March, got a super cheap friends and family rate but worried I will hate the old outdated ship and entertainment of the ship. We are going to great ports with no sea days. Can anyone tell me some positives about this old ship?  

I cannot tell you about Explorer I was going to try her end of this month but switched to a shorter one on Independence. I did hear that the VOOM on Explorer the worse connectivity of any of the ships but I can't tell you I experienced that issue since haven't had a chance to sail on her. I have sailed Navigator once after the upgrade... which I liked Navigator but it wasn't my most favorite sail since I didn't care for my room/location and the toilet wouldn't flush half the time and it leaked because I was under the showers of the spa locker as the upgrade had some issues apparently. Anyways I LOVE ADVENTURE OF THE SEAS. She is all wood and brass, just beautiful, not much extra on her but what she has is perfect enough for me and I am so excited she is coming back to Galveston in a few months. I mainly do Oasis class, those are the ones I prefer but if I had to pick my next favorite class I think I would pick Voyager class over Quantum class or Freedom class. 

On 9/2/2022 at 3:16 PM, Tucsoncruisers said:

John thank you for all of your information. I will be boarding next week and very happy to be onboard.

Since you have spent time in the casino, have you noticed any video poker machines?
Also thank you for your service! Always have respected our service personnel.

I just spent a week Aug 23-29 and absolutely not a single video poker machine in the casino on Quantum of the Seas. This was my 2nd Quantum ship, first being Odyssey the new one which is beautiful and had fantastic food and entertainment and the crappiest casino I had been in since Mariner... Until this last one Quantum of the Seas has to be the worse casino in Royal's fleet. 

On 9/2/2022 at 1:47 PM, robmtx said:

Ovation and Quantum are both there.

We just got off Quantum on Aug 29th. And yes I think Ovation is the other RCCL ship up there right now

We booked the Aug 22 sailing of Quantum and I haven't gotten any emails. I did browse the shore excursions 2 weeks ago and there weren't many left with availability. First time Alaskan cruise so I didn't realize I had to start early on on shore excursions, sometimes I wait until the day we board to decide if we are doing an excursion so I may be in trouble seeing a whale or a bear or an iceberg...

On 5/17/2020 at 9:06 PM, clo said:

So those other two or three trips a year, maybe Europe, S. American, Asia?

LOL I've only sailed out of Florida into the Caribbean.. 

On 5/5/2020 at 1:13 PM, George C said:

Would you cruise if only ports were private islands or just a cruise to nowhere? This would not bother me at all I like being on a ship but do want to visit at least one beach. We stay on board for many Caribbean ports and all of them that tender.

Yes but maybe only twice a year rather than 4-5 times a year. Because I enjoy the shows and reading and gambling and the spa I would be fine with extra sea days and a day at Labadee and one at Coco Cay or maybe 2 at Coco Cay, one on the way out and another on the way in. I just wouldn't cruise as frequently.

On 4/23/2020 at 8:52 AM, livingonthebeach said:

 

omg I am cracking up at this. I booked an August cruise on Harmony for my birthday using a casino offer. So yes if the boats loading in August I am on one

On 4/10/2020 at 2:51 AM, molly361 said:

Question is will Royal extend their closure now or wait until the end of the month??  Inquiring minds want to know.  Bye bye May cruise. 😇

My last cruise was Jan 25 on Symphony and I have a short one I was looking forward to on 5/18 on  Independence. So this really means no May cruising. Bummer

54 minutes ago, hallux said:

That's not structural, that's just poor attention to detail on the finish work.  And before you comment that if there was poor attention to detail there, it could also be the case structurally, that's a totally different set of contractors...

I figured structural worked as an adjective because the drains weren't doing the job drains are suppose to, which is prevent water from pooling instead of draining. Actually the more I think of it probably just bad design and structurally it's just fine except the drains don't drain.

17 minutes ago, BirdTravels said:

So the ship is sailing with deadly mold? Do you have lab tests verifying this fact? 

 

And mold is a structural issue?

Deadly mold? I have no idea I didn't observe mold. I thought I said I smelled mildew/mold on Deck 11. I didn't smell it elsewhere on the ship. And I observed improper/inadequate draining in the shower/steam room on deck 12 directly above where my room was located. 

12 minutes ago, nelblu said:

Where would they go.

That's the only ship yard that does large ship repairs and remodels?

31 minutes ago, twangster said:

 

Royal owns 40% of that shipyard.  You think they are going to go somewhere else?  

LOL well good point

40 minutes ago, chengkp75 said:

So a possible slow drain leads to structural issues?

There was nothing slow about the deluge of water that pooled and flooded the floor with very little of it reaching the drain, like maybe the drains could have been inset a bit to direct water flow? Maybe the pooling is seeping into walls and that could contribute to mold and mildew which would account for the smell on deck 11 directly below the spa? I dunno, ask me about flatbed freight I'm knowledgeable , constructions stuff no. 

1 minute ago, A&L_Ont said:

 

Curious to what are the structural issues are?  I have not read or heard about them and she’s been out of dry dock for a little while. 

No expert here, but based on my sense of smell and observing the pooling water after using a shower in the spa,  the drains in the shower/steam room from spa Deck 12 are impacting deck 11. I thought she got out of dry dock in March? 

On 4/1/2019 at 1:37 PM, br111 said:

An online newspaper in the Bahamas has tweeted video of what seems to be a crane that has partially collapsed into the stern of Oasis in Freeport. (It seems that maybe it was there for a week-long wet dock?) It also seems she is listing slightly to starboard. Can't find any other details at the moment.

 

https://twitter.com/Bahamaspress/status/1112772498427441152

If I were the guy in charge of the remodels for RCCL I'd find another shipyard for my boats than Freeport. Navigator has some real structural issues since coming back from their remodel and now you have a crane accident with Oasis...somebody not running the show right in Freeport.

On 3/9/2019 at 4:47 PM, The Fun Researcher said:

Dang Twangster, these are probably the best collection of ship photos I've seen in any thread on Cruise Critic!

 

Amazing.

 

Thank you.

 

Dan

I agree the pics are fantastic and make me more excited for for April 7th cruise. Thanks for sharing!