Allure vs. Liberty

[bled01]

I am thinking of booking on the Allure this winter as I have always wanted to go on an Oasis class ship. However, the price premium is giving me some pause.

 

I can book a Spa balcony on the Carnival Dream for $1000 less than a Boardwalk Balcony on the Allure. I have not been on either ship. I know the Allure offers more than the Dream, but I am struggling to see that as being worth $1000 more.

 

There are already some threads comparing the two ships, but I wanted to see if some people could comment on the Allure vs. the Liberty of the Seas since I went on the Liberty a few years ago. I think I can make a better decision that way...

 

Thanks

[pilarkitty]

I won't be on Allure until December, but I've been on the Dream and Liberty. I preferred the layout of the ship and entertainment options on the Liberty.

 

The dream was nice, but it can't compare to the royal Caribbean product. I did love the hot tubs on deck 5, but the ship layout seemed to always take me to dead ends. The adults only pool area was also really nice on the Dream, but the mini golf, hot tubs closed so early.

 

We chose the Dream over Freedom because of price, but if we has chosen the freedom our status would be higher in Royal and I believe we'd now be eligible for balcony discounts now.

Oh well.

 

Regardless of what you choose, all are nice ships and you'll have a great time.

[hubofhockey]

We had a spa balcony cabin on the Magic for a 9-day Med cruise last summer. While the use of the T-pool and thermal suite was nice and we enjoyed the non-smoking balcony, it certainly would not be a big enough draw to get us to cruise Carnival again. The entertainment is less professional and features more passenger participation shows. The pool areas are overcrowded and pools are tiny as well. It had a nice additional venue in the Red Frog Pub. But that is not available on the older sister ship, the Dream. We had a great cruise, but only because of the Med ports. We see the Allure as the anti-Carnival experience because of all of the professional entertainment and things to do. Ultimately, only you can decide whether the price of all of the extras and entertainment you get on the Allure is worth that extra $1,000. If you want better ports, just enjoy sitting out on your balcony, and plan on spending most of your other free time in a nice spa, go with the Dream and enjoy. You are really asking for a comparison between two product which have little in common.

[KKB]

Any of our friends & relatives who have done Carnival after cruising other lines were sorely disappointed. Even my very active 85YO aunt said she was bored on Carnival!!!

We love Princess & were not drawn to RCCL after our Mariner cruise--Princess has a lot more activity offerings. But we won a cruise on the Allure & WOW WOW WOW! We were blown away by this ship & never ever bored.

It is a tough price pill to swallow. But our 20th anniversary is in 2014 & I asked DH what he wanted to do & he said Allure, no brainer. Well, Oasis had the itinerary we wanted, so we booked Monday (and DANG IT the WOW sale starts Monday--we could have gotten half price deposit & $100 OBC)

I don't care for the Boardwalk area, but love Central Park. We have had ocean balconies twice, but didn't use them much--get a bit seasick looking at the ocean. Interior didn't feel special enough for anniversary, so CPark balcony it is--usually they are less expensive than Boardwalk. The advantage of Boardwalk is that you do actually get a bit of an oceanview as it opens to the back of the ship.

I know it is expensive--but I don't think you will be disappointed.

[drrich2]

It would help to get a better idea of what you like to so onboard while cruising.

 

Would you consider booking an inside stateroom on an Oasis-class ship to bring the price more inline, then see what you get/enjoy? I get a sense you're going to want to go on one eventually anyway.

 

Richard.

 

Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk HD

[Tapi]

I sailed aboard Allure and Dream last year. We had a wonderful cruise on the Dream, BUT the experience is nowhere near what you'll experience on the Allure.

 

The Dream was another nice cruise. The Allure was an amazing, once in a lifetime type of cruise. Our cruise on the Allure was considerably more than our cruise on the Dream (and for a lower category) but IMHO, the upcharge is worth it ONE TIME. I'm glad we did the Allure, but I can't justify spending that much money on the same cruise again when there are so many other experiences out there.

 

I reviewed both ships. If you'd like to read a more detailed comparison, feel free to click on the links below in my signature. Enjoy! :)

[Beth C]

I've been on Liberty & Allure and while both are quite similar I do think Allure gives you so much more bang for your buck. If you enjoy entertainment on board you'll be hard pressed to find any other ships which can provide you with what Oasis & Allure can. I have been curious about trying the Dream/Breeze just to see the difference but everything I read keeps pushing me back to Royal Caribbean and the big girls.

 

I found Allure to be much easier to navigate than Liberty - after 9 days on board I could never wrap my head around the fact I couldn't get from one end to the other on deck 3/4, I preferred the solarium in the very front of the ship with the ocean view rather than mid-fwd as well as never having to search out a lounge chair on deck on Allure. Allure is also much less crowded than Liberty was - many times the promenade on Liberty was impassable when there were parades or the $10 sales.

 

Allure/Oasis is definitely something you should experience at least once - the WOW factor is amazing :)

[CruiseLover15]

We always get balcony cabins but on the Allure we would be happy with an ocean view. There is so much to do on the Allure you don't have time to use the balcony.

[ciroon]

We always get balcony cabins but on the Allure we would be happy with an ocean view. There is so much to do on the Allure you don't have time to use the balcony.

 

Having sailed on many of the RCCL classes-let me put my two cents worth in. We sailed the Allure last March and loved every minute aboard. We're very active 60ish couple and

found more than enough to do every minute. The shows were EXCELLENT!! AND WE DIDN'T

FIND THE SHIP CROWDED AT ALL. (we were on school vacation week). We had a balcony in Central Park almost in the middle and it was great. Each afternoon we had a bagpiper

playing while we got ready for dinner. Sitting on the balcony after the shows was so peaceful and people watching was fun. Very few balcony were being used but we loved and used ours everyday/night. Lots of fun things to do and since there were lots of family's

on board-they seem to retire early and we adults had the fun the rest of the evening. So try Allure at least once and ENJOY.

[KKB]

you liked your Central Park balcony, ciroon. I just LOVED the CPark area & loved hanging out there at night--so peaceful. I know I would enjoy it out on our balcony. I thought about rebooking today to a Boardwalk balcony near the Aqua theatre...but the Boardwalk is dead at night & I just didn't like the vibe.

 

I agree that the Allure never felt crowded--I was amazed. But there are SO many different places for people to be. It did feel VERY crowded during muster, but not once again all week. Now, we don't do parades, sales, and avoid elevators unless I'm in heels.

[vickiw0318]

If you take the ships feature by feature, then they do end up somewhat comparable. Flowrider - check, basketball court - check, mini golf - check, promenade - check, rock climbing wall - check, etc. We found that we really enjoyed the neighborhoods. The Aqua Show can't be beat. I'll give an edge to the Liberty for the size of its "D" cabins and its Windjammer. However, the choices of places to eat on the Allure tops the Liberty. The Suite perks are better on the Allure (the facilities are better).

 

Is it worth $1000 extra? I think it is. Because of the price, it may not be your choice for every cruise, but I think it should be done once.

[seacruise9]

Hi,

 

I cruised aboard the Allure of the Seas in September 2011 and the Liberty of the Seas in December 2011. Also, I am booked on the Liberty of the Seas for February 2013 (I was able to get an excellent price).

 

Both are nice ships, but the Allure of the Seas is absolutely incredible. I have cruised aboard many different ships, but the Allure of the Seas (and the Oasis of the Seas) are truly in a class by themselves. The variety of the dining and entertainment options is outstanding. Also, the different areas of the ship (Central Park, Boardwalk, etc.) are stunning. I read many articles about these ships and saw many pictures prior to the cruise, but I still could not believe the ship.

 

I took this cruise with a friend and my parents. To be honest, we were a little hesitant to book this cruise due to the large number of passengers. However, we decided to try it once. We were pleasantly surprised and all four of us loved the ship. The ship is extremely well-designed and crowds were not a problem. Even though the Liberty of the Seas is very nice, the Allure of the Seas certainly offers much more. I highly recommend the ship and think it is worth a premium.

 

Chuck

[smoosh21]

 

There are already some threads comparing the two ships, but I wanted to see if some people could comment on the Allure vs. the Liberty of the Seas since I went on the Liberty a few years ago. I think I can make a better decision that way...

 

Thanks

 

quite a big difference. the Liberty is basically just a bigger version of the Voyager class. The Oasis/Allure has a whole differnt feeling to it.

While both ships have a Royal Promenade, they are very different. The Allure is very open and airy with lots of natural light coming in from central park. It feels much more open without the cabins looking into it.

 

Central park adds a very nice touch to the ship, honestly, you dont even feel like you are on a ship when sitting in the park

 

The Allure adds the Aqua theater and the shows that go with it. The casino is also much large on the allure

The Solarium is wonderful. a very nice place to spend a sunny day

 

 

The downsides to the Oasis class are the windjammer is too small. I also dont like the gym on the Oasis class, if feels cramped and dark, not like the nice forward gym on the Liberty.

 

The Oasis/Allure ships are a destination unto themselves. Have you tried looking at a different week? We paid a premium for the Oasis, but it was really only about $250 per person when we went in January. I definitely think it was worth that

[seacruise9]

Hi,

 

Yes, I agree that the Windjammer on the Allure of the Seas is too small. Also, the tables are very tightly spaced in some areas. I remember having difficulty getting to certain window tables because there were so many tables and chairs in the way. However, this problem can be alleviated by trying to avoid peak times and dining in other venues during the day such as the Park Cafe or Solarium Bistro.

 

Chuck

[topnole]

I've been on both ships. About 40 in age when on each. Lots more entertainment and activities on the Allure. Several great things better about the Allure/Oasis. The promenade is much wider/bigger so it is really enjoyable. It also has windows to the Central Park above so it has natural lighting which makes it so nice during the day. So things like the English Pub were twice as big so actually big enough to go there and spend some time and enjoy the guitar player. Central Park and the Boardwalk are both just cool and fun areas to explore and spend some time. Each have eating venues that we enjoyed throughout the week (that aren't on Liberty). So many more eating and entertainment options. For example, Dazzles is a two story live music dance club (not like the disco) so we really enjoyed it as another option for a few of the nights. Headliner shows like Hairspray were great (and I'm not a huge fan of shows), top notch comedy shows, and the aqua theatre shows were also superb. Other things that are great are the adult hot tubs (twice as large as on Liberty so never felt crowded) and the solarium is two story and has a restaurant. Incredible area! There are also two Flowriders so the lines weren't that bad. Also, we found service and food better on the Oasis and the Allure than any other Royal ship we've been on. I think they really pick the best of the best when possible for these ships as they are the crown jewels of the fleet. Truly we've had our best service experiences on these ships.

 

On the other hand the gym isn't as nice as the Liberty but Allure has a dedicated jogging track which is much nicer than Liberty. Allure is and feels much bigger so if you have mobility issues it could perhaps feel like too much, but we loved that fact it was bigger. There may be one or two things we like better on Liberty but overall we felt there was no comparison. Allure is certainly worth a price premium.

 

I have been on 30+ Carnival cruises and now with a few exceptions I always go Royal because I think its worth the extra cost. With that said, I think Allure is worth the extra dough over Liberty. We are weighing Freedom and Oasis right now and feel its certainly worth an extra $400 for Oasis (with an inside cabin instead of a balcony). So if you think Royal is worth a bit of a premium you might find Allure worth the extra 1000. I would do Allure if you can swing it. The ship is awesome!

[riclop]

I am thinking of booking on the Allure this winter as I have always wanted to go on an Oasis class ship. However, the price premium is giving me some pause.

 

I can book a Spa balcony on the Carnival Dream for $1000 less than a Boardwalk Balcony on the Allure. I have not been on either ship. I know the Allure offers more than the Dream, but I am struggling to see that as being worth $1000 more.

 

There are already some threads comparing the two ships, but I wanted to see if some people could comment on the Allure vs. the Liberty of the Seas since I went on the Liberty a few years ago. I think I can make a better decision that way...

 

Thanks

Love the Allure much better than the liberty.Especially for the entertainment, there no comparison.

[binx]

Can anyone tell me if Liberty has an outside promenade deck that encircles the entire ship? I want to know if I can walk all the way around.

[Clarea]

Can anyone tell me if Liberty has an outside promenade deck that encircles the entire ship? I want to know if I can walk all the way around.

Yes, deck 4 goes all around the ship, except in the forward part where you have to go up and down stairs and go past the helicopter pad. In addition, in contrast to Oasis and Allure, you have great views to the sea all around.