Allure Review, Pictures and Other Great Information: Aug 7, 2011 Sailing

[megibabi7]

Hi there! Loving your review! How did you like your room location? Did you like floor six, and being more forward?

 

Thank you!!!

 

 

Our D4 Balcony cabin on Deck 6 (Cabin #6676)

was right above life boat #13....

We knew exactly which one it was because

we taped a colored ribbon on the inside of the

safety glass on our deck which could be seen from the pier...;)

 

 

[ILuvCruisin']

I have a dumb question here...........:confused:

 

Is there a "Lobster Night" on Allure? I've been out of the 7 night cruise loop for a while and just had to ask. Thanks!

 

Hi Jayfo:

 

See Friday - Second Formal Night menu above...it's listed as a Fisherman's Plate...includes Lobster, Shrimp, Broccoli...

 

I don't really enjoy shrimp (except maybe one) but I enjoyed that Lobster!!! :D

[ILuvCruisin']

Hi there! Loving your review! How did you like your room location? Did you like floor six, and being more forward?

 

Thank you!!!

 

Hi megibabi7: Glad you are enjoying it...below is info on our cabin location...we really thought it was a wonderful location...BTW we were Aft not forward...

 

 

My cabinmates were my 2 sisters…one has cruised before one is one of the newbies of our group…our cabin #6686 (deck 6) was right around the corner from the Boardwalk…not far from the exit to the elevator…as I said before every day we could see the Carousel when we left our cabin…6686 is Aft (bed by the closet) so the Windjammer was up to deck 16 and the Adajio the Main Dining Room (MDR) was down to deck 3…Guest services was just one deck down…Schooner Bar and the Photo Gallery were on our deck also Aft….It was a great location...

 

[ILuvCruisin']

Next up.....did all the luggage arrive? :rolleyes:

[ILuvCruisin']

These are wonderful hints and

even a link to the Compasses

for the Western Itin:

 

I have been compiling my Allure list for a little while now.. These are from different boards and my own notes. It is from others experiences that I can make this list. Copy this list and add your own if you like, keep the list growing.

 

• Take a highlighter to mark the Compass
  
• Sail away show at Aqua Theater around 5:15pm
  
• Bring water shoes for labadee. And rash guard shirt for flowrider.
  
• Ocean Aria at Aqua Theater, Blue Planet main theater, Chicago, Comedy Show (book online)
  
• Bring a sweater/jacket to the Amber Theater if you go to see Chicago. It gets cold.
  
• Aquatheater show can cancel if the seas are rough. See it early in case they cancel
  
• Ice cream machines; one in wipeout cafe, other between the two forward pools (free) deck 15
  
• Sorrento's pizza – get a custom made one, put in box, take to the park!
  
• Boardwalk Dogs; (free and nice selection)
  
• Pinnacle Lounge: deck 16 (nice view for picture taking)
  
• Shuffle Board courts are located behind Aquatheater
  
• Scavenger hunt book – live on the allure – buy at rising tides bar
  
• They do have nice custom salads at Park cafe
  
• Johnny Rockets has a fresh (free) breakfast each morning.
  
• Scrapbooking gave some free embellishments specific to the cruise ship
  
• Vintages Wine Bar great place to use those buy one get one free coupons.
  
• Restaurants that are included:
  

1. Winjammer
   
2. Solarium Bistro free for breakfast and lunch, turns to Samba Grill for dinner (pay)
   
3. Wipe Out Cafe
   
4. Park Cafe (not to be confused with 150 Central Park)
   
5. Dog House
   
6. Johnny Rockets (breakfast only)
   
7. Donut Shop
   
8. Sorrento's Pizza
   
9. Promenade Café
   

• Skip dessert in the Main Dining Room and head up to the Windjammer to make ice cream sundaes.
  
• The jazz club is no smoking!
  
• If you do the on board zipline, keep your feet up for the landing. Will hurt self if not.
  
• Check out the wedding chapel, it is peaceful and the view is incredible.
  
• Go behind the FlowRiders. lounge chairs and free telescopes
  
• Go onboard by 11:00 am
  
• If you do the Flowrider...bring a rashguard or tee or tank
  
• Schooner Bar for casual drinks and watch Dreamworks Parade from here
  
• Booth on the Royal Promenade where you can send a FREE video postcard
  
• Picture place is on Deck 6 - Welcome aboard picture is used for facial recognition for all other photos.
  
• Balcony at the end of deck 11,12,14 that overlooks the aft of the ship and the Aqua Theatre. The ships have no deck 13.
  
• http://cruisingator.smugmug.com/ good pictures
  
• Cooking Classes: http://www.royalcaribbean.com/conten...scriptions.pdf
  
• Lobster is second formal night, Friday
  
• HEADLINER ENTERTAINMENT - send an email to RCI at web_reservations@rccl.com for lineup 4 weeks out
  
• 70 s disco street party is day 6 Cozumel at 10pm
  
• The Central Park area to relax and spend time. The Northern Lights Duo performed almost every night
  
• Breakfast in the Solarium. Nice spread of fruit and very good oatmeal
  
• PORTS
  Falmouth - My Time n Place, $10/beach pass email ahead for better taxi rate ($40 R/T)
  
• FALMOUTH - free 20 min shuttle to Shops at Rose Hall. Board with in secured area. Runs on schedule.
  
• Falmouth - About 15 minutes before sailaway ,go on deck 4 to the side where you can see the shops to watch the sail away show
  
• Labadee Beautiful Island. Dragons Breath zip line and roller coaster. Afternoon of snorkeling! shops are agressive, smile and know they are trying to feed their family. Say no thank you if you do not want to buy.
  
• For Cozumel, look into Nachi Cocom (quite, all inclusive, 100 people per day) and Paradise Beach Cozumel (family fun, pay per item, lots of water activities.)
  
• Airbrush tattoos - don't wait til the last day of the cruise to go. If you get a tattoo early in the week, you can go back on the last day and get it retouched for free
  
• Sign your waivers online ahead of time so you can go right to the Zip Line when it opens on embarkation day and get a ton of rides in before it gets busy. Same with rock wall.
   
  
• Before your go, take a picture of your luggage inside and out. This will make them easier to identify your belongings if they are lost.
  
• split stuff up between the suit cases - some of mine in wifes, some of hers in mine. If lose one suitcase, we both have cloths. All formal stuff together.
  
• http://www.insuremytrip.com/
  
• Always fly the day before a cruise. leave nothing to Murphy.
  
• Bring my own "pillow chocolates" and M&M’s. Surprise DW nightly!
  
• If you like potato chips, you can get them in the Park Cafe.
  
• Create a FACEBOOK Events page, invite your Meet and Mingle group to join it - quick and easy way to share info/pics/links
  

recent WESTERN Compasses:

 

Day_1_Compass

Day_2_Compass

Day_3_Compass

Day_4_Compass

Day_5_Compass

Day_6_Compass

Day_7_Compass

[ILuvCruisin']

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

thanks to Barbi C for the pics

[ILuvCruisin']

Is this Beautiful or what!!!! thx again to Barb C...this is reason enough to cruise...

 

 

 

[ILuvCruisin']

This is where you go on the pool deck to get your towels every day for use at the poosl etc....and they no longer put towels in your cabin for taking ashore...you go to the "Towel Station" and sign out the towels and you must bring them back when you are done with them or they will charge you for them...the charge is somethng like $40 per towel or some Extraordinaire amount like that

 

[ILuvCruisin']

[ILuvCruisin']

[ILuvCruisin']

while we finished our first onboard meal the announcement was made that cabins were available (it was around 1:00 pm) so once we finished we headed to our cabin to put our carry ons in and check to see if our luggage had arrived...plus we wanted our Newbie Sis to see the cabin ASAP...

she was thoroughly amazed!!!



We walked out onto the Balcony and looked at Port Everglades and all the hustle bustle of them getting us ready to sail...



one bag had arrived before we got there and one arrived a few minutes after...we were still looking for a couple more but decided we would go and explore the ship instead of waiting in the cabin for it...

 

 



 

 

H2O ZONE

 

 

 



 

Central Park

 

 

 



 

 

 

[Jayfo]

I'm reeeeeaaaaaaaaallllllyyyyyyyyy torn between wanting to look at every single picture you guys keep posting (because they all look so great!) and wanting to "save" the ooooooo's and aaahhhhhhhh's until I get there and see it for myself....:rolleyes:

[ILuvCruisin']

I'm reeeeeaaaaaaaaallllllyyyyyyyyy torn between wanting to look at every single picture you guys keep posting (because they all look so great!) and wanting to "save" the ooooooo's and aaahhhhhhhh's until I get there and see it for myself....:rolleyes:

 

Jayfo I say two things to that: there's soooo much that no way we can catch it all, you are sure to see plenty that none of us got, and number two, pictures don't do it any justice ;) :D

[ILuvCruisin']

These are wonderful Food

Porn Pics...thx nenner1...

 

 

Before we could let loose and have fun, though, we had some reservations to procure. We did get most of our reservations online prior to the cruise, but a couple of the specialty restaurants we wanted to book did not have times available online that worked with our show schedule. We tried to figure out just where to go to get these reservations. There were desks at the “Clock Tower” in the Promenade, but those were for shore excursions only (and the lines were horrendous!) Finally we found a staff member who told us a number to dial from any house phone to make the dining reservations. We found a phone near the forward elevator bank and quickly made our Giovanni’s reservation, but we would have to call back for Samba Grill.

 

With that task complete for the time being, we headed up to Park Café for some Roast Beef sammies. It was already very busy- and let me tell you, the secret is out about this place. It was packed-all day, every day-for the entire week! Be prepared for a wait and some chaos when you go there, but remember the payoff is worth it:

 

World’s Best Roast Beef Sandwich!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The servers kind of float around at Rita’s. We didn’t have one set waiter. Whoever was around brought the food, and different servers filled our drink orders at different times. When you check in, you are issued a wristband with three removable tabs. This is how they keep track of your drinks. The alcoholics get the green wristbands, and the teetotalers get the red ones that say NO ALCOHOL on them. LOL!

 

 

The first round came quickly and the kids enjoyed a virgin Strawberry Daiquiri, virgin Miami Vice, and a Shirley Temple, respectively. Ron chose the Patron Perfect Margarita, and I chose the Strawberry Margarita. Do take a minute to look at the drink menu, and remember what you might want after they take it from you. I wanted to try the Pomegranate Margarita and forgot about it later.

 

They aren’t messing around at Rita’s. The drinks are STRONG! I had a few inches of pure tequila floating at the bottom of mine (and plenty more throughout)!

 

 

 

We are soon brought our appetizers, chicken and shrimp quesadillas, and chicken and shrimp taquitos arranged in alternating fashion around the plate, topped off with a small bowl of tempura style fried shrimp and zucchini:

 

 

The appetizers were pretty tasty, especially the chicken quesadillas- very cheesy! They do tell you which are chicken and which are shrimp at the time, but it is very noisy (loud music) and they rattle it off quickly, so if it matters to you be prepared to have someone at the table pay close attention.

 

[ILuvCruisin']

More Rita's Cantina...nenner1's

daughter is a cutie pie!!!

 

 

Soon after the dancing, the main course arrived: mixed fajitas. These are chicken and steak served together on a large platter. Our table (just our family of 5) received two huge plates of fajitas, and about 12 total tortillas.

 

 

 

While it looks delicious, the taste- again only “OK”. There was no flavor or spice at all to the fajitas- they were quite bland. Also they didn’t have any “grilled” or blackened taste to them. I was disappointed. I would equate them to what you might get at maybe a neighborhood chain like Applebee’s. Also we did not have near enough tortillas, unless we wanted to over stuff the ones we did have and make gigantic Chipotle Mexican Grill sized burritos for each of us. Since we didn’t have an assigned server, we tried to catch the attention of one of them in passing to fetch us more , but we eventually gave up. We ate enough to no longer be hungry, so it wasn’t a big deal.

 

Fajitas are not something usually on a 3 year old’s rotation of meal choices, so we were unsure of how Sarah would do with them. She had more fun putting together her “taco” as we called it than eating it. But I am happy report she did not starve during this cruise (thank you soft serve ice cream machines!)

 

 

 

 

After dinner, more dancing. This time it was a dance contest participated in by about 7-8 folks selected by Rita. She started with the girls, the restaurant voted a winner by applause, and the champion dinner wins a shot of – what else? – TEQUILA!

 

Rita’s Dancing Partner:

 

 

 

[ILuvCruisin']

And finally dessert at Rita's

 

 

And if you weren’t full and drunk enough by now, here comes dessert! There was a “sampler” plate with full size servings of each of Rita’s desserts: A huge slab of Mexican Flan with fruit salsa on top, Scrumptious Banana Custard Enchiladas, and of course Cinnamon-Sugar rolled Churros with Chipotle-Chocolate Sauce. Mmmm!

 

 

None of us had been able to consume all three of our drinks, so the serving team collected our remining tabs, and brought us drinks to go. For the non-alcoholic drinks we chose soda, which was provided in cans, and for the alcoholic drinks we chose beer, which was brought in bottles. Terrific! Don’t let those unused drink tabs go to waste!:D

 

While I’m mentioning drinks, Rita’s did not have the “free” drink options available on RCCL like the iced tea, lemonade, fruit punch, or flavored water. I love iced tea and drink it with every meal, si I made sure to bring along some iced tea from Park Café. In fact there are no free drink options anywhere on the Boardwalk- this is important to remember when you stop by to eat at the Dog House or Boardwalk Donuts. You’ll have to bring something to drink from elsewhere onboard or purchase a drink from the Dog House or nearby Johnny Rockets. Very inconvenient.

 

Anyway, back to Rita’s: the whole experience took about 2 hours. It was the perfect way to start off your cruise as a party, and also to avoid the craziness of the MTD section of the MDR on the first evening. It was absolutely worth the price and I wholly recommend it!

 

[ILuvCruisin']

Compass Day 1, Sunday August 7, 2011

 

ok Folks here it is, this is for all the Type A's out there (of which I am one...haha)... :p :cool:

 

Click here: Compass Day 1_Allure_ Sunday, Aug 8, 2011

 

- Details of all there is to see and do on Day 1

- Ship info

- Openings and closings of all venues

- Entertainment highlights

- ETC! ETC! ETC! LOL

 

- Page 5 and 6 are what you can carry in your pocket/purse as a mini version so you will have at your fingertips all the happenings around the ship...invariably people ask at dinner, what's happening tonight? I pull out the Compass and Bam! the info is readily available....:p

 

every night your cabin steward will put one in your cabin and there are plenty of extras at Guest Services...

 

I usually take a highlighter before going to bed or when I wake up in the morning and highlight everything I think I might want to check out...this becomes my daily wish list...

 

on this cruise I allowed my Newbie Sis to have the one in the cabin and I went to Guest Services and got one...

 

Enjoy!!!

[BUCKETOBEER]

Good stuff, great review iluVcruisin....i read all pages and the allure of the seas owe u big time...lol

 

but i also come with a heavy heart...today is the 14th...2 doggone months since we cruised!!!...its seems a lifetime ago...im going thru withdrawls and need a cruise fix!!!

 

Im headed to the corner, to beg for cruises...lol "brother can you spare a cruise?"

 

allure, take me away!!!

 

Oh yeah, i missed the video postcard on the ship...well i missed alot of things on the ship....guess i will have to try it again...lol...no laffs now, only tears...brother, can you spare a cruise?

[ILuvCruisin']

Good stuff, great review iluVcruisin....i read all pages and the allure of the seas owe u big time...lol

 

but i also come with a heavy heart...today is the 14th...2 doggone months since we cruised!!!...its seems a lifetime ago...im going thru withdrawls and need a cruise fix!!!

 

Im headed to the corner, to beg for cruises...lol "brother can you spare a cruise?"

 

allure, take me away!!!

 

Oh yeah, i missed the video postcard on the ship...well i missed alot of things on the ship....guess i will have to try it again...lol...no laffs now, only tears...brother, can you spare a cruise?

 

 

thx bucket: I appreciate you coming by and reading the whole thing..haha....and thanks again for the part you played in this review...your daily reviews are hilarious...

 

You are too funny..... "brother can you spare a cruise?" HILARIOUS!!!!

 

surprised you didn't do the Video Postcard...it's right in there where your Karaoke is...

 

you even still have your Allure date in your signature...haha...I understand. really I do...haha.... you just can't take it down....haha...enjoy your weekend dude...

 

"brother can you spare a cruise?" HILARIOUS!!!!:D

[ILuvCruisin']

This is an interesting topic... We put our cell phones away until debarkation morn but have other things that require us to have a strip....digital batteries, etc

 

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1463289&page=5

[ILuvCruisin']

Ran across this post and had to say YUMMY!! Thx QTMichele

A few more pictures from our first day's tour...

 

The Cupcake Cupboard - What a darling little place this is!

Cupcake Decorating Class Info - I signed up for this class... unfortunately, they called me on the first night and said I was signed up for the children's class. Um, that's not what my reservation says. I had the choice to reschedule for 1:30 or 3, but those are my "pool hours" so I cancelled.

 

Look what I could've made. There's always next year!

[ILuvCruisin']

Oasis class has taken the Spa Treatment and Fitness Center to a whole other level with the Vitality at Sea...any type of service you can think of is available there...I used it a couple of times...since I had gone to the one at the hotel in Ft Lauderdale I did not feel the need to go more than that once onboard but the hours are avaialbe for whenever you want to go there...(Note:I know some Dads who shower here in the evenings to give the mOms and Daugters more time in the Bathroom in the cabin...poor Dad!!! haha)

 

here are a few pics and here's a link to my Oasis pics of the Vitality at Sea Spa and Fitness Center (there is a surprise guest in the Salon in one of the pictures getting her nails done, can you guess who it is, hint: she's one of the Godmother's to Oasis) :

 



http://travel.webshots.com/album/575987933toxUgt

[ILuvCruisin']

Sail Away Photos on Embarkation Day...don't miss it...

if you don't have a balcony be sure to go up to one

of the outside decks...Have your cameras ready...

most of the time the band is playing and

they really rev up the party atmosphere...

 

Unfortunately they had to bring our SailAway Event indoors as

it started to rain just as we pulled away from the

dock...No Problem Mon!!! we just partied on the Promenade Deck...:D

 

BEAUTIFUL!!!!pictures of FT Lauderdale at Sail Away...

 

 

I then ran up to deck 16, to the Sky Bar to meet some other Cruise Critic members for sail away. The view from this high up was incredible, and it was a nice sail away spent meeting some new friends.

 

Bye Bye, Fort Lauderdale! See you in a week!

 

[ILuvCruisin']

Magnificent!!!!

if you look close you can see the second one...

 

It was a rain day when in Cozumel last week. We were ashore for a little while and caught this pictue. Wish the second rainbow showed up more, but it was still beautiful. (This picture doesn't do it justice.)

 

[ILuvCruisin']

this is how the hallway looks on

embarkation day when the bags

are dropped off to you at the start

of your cruise and also the night

before debarkation when you have

to put them outside your stateroom for pickup

 

 

(AKA as the night before they put you off the ship and

say "you don't have to go home but you gotta get outta

here" haha..it's a sad time...lol)

 

 

 



 

thx to will77 for this photo