Review of Allure of Seas 3 day - Good and Bad

[sunshine3215]

My husband and I were also on the 3 day cruise on the Allure of the Seas. Please see my comments below, which I hope will be helpful to other cruisers. I'm going to break the comments down in short postings so I can clearly explain.

 

First let me say, I have cruised several times, but this was my first time on the Allure. Was it worth the money??? YES. But I do want to provide mistakes that I made, things I observed, and possible tips for you. These comments are not meant to start a debate about weight, race, etc.; this is just comments about things I noticed and comments I heard from other travelers on the cruise.

 

FLIGHT to and from Ft. Lauderdale -

Because so many cruises leave from Ft Lauderdale, please expect your flight to be sold out with no extra seats. Both our flights were sold out so if you have special seat requirements please understand, these are the flights where you will need to understand that you will more than likely NOT have a open seat beside you.

 

My husband is a big and tall man, so when I book a flights I 90% of the time purchase three seats. THis is for "OUR" comfort. I am not going to debate "wasting" money or losing weight, the most important thing for me is my husband's comfort so I factor in the price of a 3rd seat when planning our travel.

 

Normally I book our flights on southwest. Well, when I booked our flight, I looked for the cheapest flight cost and made the mistake of not factoring in the cost of selecting a seat or baggage costs. We took Spirt down which no charges a 25 dollar fee if your bag is over 40 pounds, plus 20 dollars per seat selection and 20 dollars per bag. THen we took Air Tran back which charges 30 dollars per bag and 20 dollars per seat selection. I have to have the either first row or the emergency exits which have more leg room to accomdate my husband's height. I should have just taken southwest because all the charges all up to the same cost.

 

So the moral of this comment is don't just factor in the price of the seat.

[sunshine3215]

Cabin -

We arrived on the ship at around 12:00 and our room was ready by 1:00 pm and also the birthday decorations I requested were already in the room. It looked quite nice, it is not a lot of decoration but it made things cheerful.

 

I also ordered red velvet cupcakes, they were average at best. I would not order those again for the price of around 25.00 it was not that good.

[sunshine3215]

Crowds-

Please understand, this cruise was very very crowded. SO please understand, if you plan to take family pictures, you are going to have people walking around in the background, and through the pictures. I know this sounds obvious when you go somewhere with a large crowd.

 

What I should have done was gotten up early one morning and taken some pictures before the massive crowds.

[sunshine3215]

Excursion -

I had booked the Everglades Tour at the end of the cruise. I had a 2:50 pm flight which I booked so we could go on the excursion. Well, the excursion was cancelled and when did RC tell me.....8:00 pm on Saturday night via the message on the tv.

 

So I went downstairs and all the excursions were booked. I would have loved to have received earlier notice so we could have booked something else.

 

I also should have been "THINKING" because it was raining on Friday and Saturday afternoon so I should have thought...oh, are they going to take a boat out into the everglades in possible mud??? SO think ahead and change your excursions based on the weather so you will have something to do.

[joand452]

Looking forward to the rest of your review! We loved Allure and hope to sail on her again.

 

Thanks for sharing with us,

[KirkNC]

Thanks for the report!

[sunshine3215]

Cabin in Central Park -

We had a cabin in central park and it was very nice. If you can swing it I recommend it BUT....it was noisy on Friday night until 5:30 am. On this cruise, they had around 14 weddings and they had a large 400+ wedding party from Costa Rica. The large wedding party had reserved several areas at different times and I think the reception was Friday night because the music went on and on.

 

I did not get a good night sleep but what I should have done is put in my airplane ear buds to block the sound, of course I did not think of that until the next day. Saturday night the music stopped by 10:30 pm. and on Thursday there was also no loud music.

 

I do not expect this is the norm but just remember if you have the plus of a room in central park or broadway...expect some noise during the night. I am confident that the broadway side was much noiser because of the venues on that end of the ship.

 

So consider using airbuds to block noise.

[sunshine3215]

Dinner -

I did not go to dinner but ate in other venues. The windjammer was not "BAD" to me as some other reviews. But it was not the BEST, mass food tends to not have the seasoning and flavor as non mass produced food.

 

We went to JOhnny Rockets and the food was good.

 

We went to the ice cream place and the ice cream tasted good in butter pecan but I heard reviews from others that they did not find it worth the cost.

 

I had pizza at the pizza place and it was good, not pizza hut but good.

 

We did not go to any speciality additional cost restaurants.

[maureencruiser]

I'm looking forward to what you have to say, but, I wish you would give yourself a break. You keep saying I should have thought,,,I should have this....I should have that...I don't look at those things as mistakes, some are unavoidable, some are learning experiences and some are reasons to take another cruise! :)

[sunshine3215]

Customer Service -

We had a cabin on the 12th level, 12655 and the service was very nice by everyone on the ship. I went to the customer service area several times for questions and they were always helpful.

 

Leaving the SHIP -

Oh...this is were the drama began.

 

Since my excursion was cancelled, I went to the service desk to get new tags for our luggage. They had special tags for those going on excursions. My tag number was 31. We were told to be in the dining room by 8:30 am. So we went to breakfast and went to the dining room.

 

There was a long and large backup. I heard an announcement that the problem was in customs. So we sat in the dining room for like 1 1/2 hours. Then when we departed the ship and had to go through the long lines for customs. The customs line took another 45 minutes, then we sat on the bus for like 20 minutes.

 

Please make sure you use the bathroom before you enter the customs line, there is a bathroom in the area where you pick up the luggage.

 

Things have a way of working out for the best, because if I had booked an earlier flight we would NOT HAVE made it based on the delay.

 

The cruise does offer the early exit where you take your luggage off yourself but....that was even delayed. Because no one was allowed off the boat until the customs line were reduced.

 

Moral of the story....do not book a flight before 12:00 am if possible because if any delay occurs you might be in TROUBLE and have to try and reschedule your flights.

[sunshine3215]

Professional Picture on Ship

I have always loved to take professional pictures on the cruise ships. I did notice that the lighting was extremely BRIGHT, where when I looked at my other cruises, the photographers had "soft" backlighting which is very flattering on the skin.

 

These pictures were like standing under a flouresant light and the pictures showed every flaw and looked quite harsh. We only bought two pictures.

[sunshine3215]

Excursion in the Bahamas -

In the bahamas, we did the Atlantis Resort and it was a nice something to do to get off the ship. When we got off the boat you have to walk about 10 minutes which was not a problem for us but I could see the elderly having a problem.

 

Also when we got to the area to get on the bus, the locals were asking about water purchasing and braiding hair. They were only 3 so I did not feel attacked or harrased as some might have posted in years gone by.

 

The bus were airconditioned.

 

The resort was very nice, we had not been to this resort before.

 

We took the a bus back so we had time to look at the local stores, and I did find a lot of nice things. THe straw bags have improved so much in the last 10 years since we were last in the bahamas. We also bought a carnival feather mask, and a wind chim item.

 

My husband bought liquour and it was boxed well and tapped well, I packed it in my luggage with clothes spread out wide on top and below the box. The liquour DID NOT BREAK and made it home.

[gelo7]

Nice review.

[sunshine3215]

Other Cruisers -

I have been on many cruises and this cruise did not have a lot of children that were not well behaved. I did not see any bad behavior but I'm sure things happened. But people were courteous.

 

My husband and I had a few conversations with the elderly and some people commented about the large number of hispanic cruisers. I was not bothered in any way by the hispanic cruisers. I had wonderful conversations with several cruisers. But some older "white" cruisers expressed comments that I found offensive. I do understand that the US racial balance is changing; so if this is a concern for you then please do not take a cruise out of Ft. Lauderdale or Florida.

 

Once again, this comment is not to start a debate about races. All races were on the cruise, but it was a very very very large amount of spanish speaking guests.

 

If this topic is a concern for you, then please consider taking another cruise tinerary like Canada, Alaska or European cruises. Or even taking holland america or celebrity cruise lines.

 

All of us have a RIGHT to spend our money in the ways we desire, I desire to buy 3 seats on the plane for my husband's comfort, and others have the same RIGHT to choose cruises that they feel more comfortable on... so please let's not start a debate about race and money. This is just a report on what I saw and heard and this might help someone in planning a cruise that best fits "THEIR" needs.

[sunshine3215]

Women's Dress at Night -

 

I have been on many cruises and I have NEVER SEEN the women dressed like what I saw on this cruise. I don't know if it was because it was valentines weekend, the age of the cruisers (a lot under 50), the location of the departure (Florida), but the women were dressed SUPER SEXY with very short dresses, open back, low low cut with breasts exposed and a lot of shiney sparkly clothes, and super high heel shoes.

 

I am not 45 yet but wow, I was surprised. I did admire the appearance of many of the women but I encourage anyone planning a cruise to understand that people are going to be dressed sexy and festive.

 

I bought dressy clothes but my husband and I have been on so many cruises we just didn't feel like changing....which showed me that maybe we need to take a break from cruising so much.

 

I did bring sparkly t-shirts and tanks and I wore them with my white jeans and capri jeans at night. So just keep this in mind, you do have the option of dressing up at night or not dressing up. But I would encourage ladies to wear festive t-shirts and I saw several ladies with festive low heel shoes so if you happen to not want to dress up it is OKAY.

[Silvery Seas Cruiser]

Sunshine, I am enjoying your frank and forthcoming review. I love Allure and Oasis. I suspect some of what went on was because it was a short cruise which is a rare event on Allure and some was because it was during Valentine's Day.

 

You mentioned the evening time clothing. I have cruised ten years and have never seen what I saw on my last cruise (January 2013, Liberty of the Seas). There was a young woman who entered the main dining room in an outfit that was nothing short of obscene. I could barely believe my eyes. I'm close to seventy, so I have seen a lot, but I have never seen the likes of this in the MDR on a cruise ship. Frankly, I would have rather seen her wear cut off jeans, a hoodie and a baseball cap, than that tasteless Frederick's of Hollywood rig.

 

Perhaps what you noticed and I saw is a new trend in evening attire for young women?

 

A couple questions. Did you enjoy the ship's entertainment? The parades, the shows, ice show, Comedy Club, Jazz Club, ship's games such as Quest or any of that sort of thing? Did you check out any of the lounges such as Boleros, Schooner Lounge, Wave Bar, etc?

 

Would you take a longer cruise on Allure or Oasis given the chance particularly at a different time of year?

[Silvery Seas Cruiser]

This is an afterthought to my above post. I live in South Florida, so am used to being around lots of Hispanics, Brazilians, Haitians, Bahamians and Jamaicans and we are even begining to have a sizable Filipino and other Asian community here, so I barely notice on a ship when there are seemingly large numbers of such groups.

 

On our last Liberty cruise, we sat in the theater for a show and were completely surrounded by Russians. I bet there were fifty or more in that group.

 

I think that is the way the world is headed. More and more people from all over the world have the means to travel and they do. Our cruise director said we had guests from fifty-eight countries on board! That's the way cruising will be increasingly as time goes by. The world really is changing a dramtically. I see that as a positive thing.

[BillOh]

Crowds-

Please understand, this cruise was very very crowded. SO please understand, if you plan to take family pictures, you are going to have people walking around in the background, and through the pictures. I know this sounds obvious when you go somewhere with a large crowd.

 

What I should have done was gotten up early one morning and taken some pictures before the massive crowds.

 

JMO, but this is much easier on a 7 day cruise on these ships I hope you get to do that someday. Especially one with better weather.

[beachnative]

SUNSHINE: you are presenting an excellent review. I'm eager to read more.

[sleepless]

Sunshine, I am enjoying your frank and forthcoming review. I love Allure and Oasis. I suspect some of what went on was because it was a short cruise which is a rare event on Allure and some was because it was during Valentine's Day.

 

You mentioned the evening time clothing. I have cruised ten years and have never seen what I saw on my last cruise (January 2013, Liberty of the Seas). There was a young woman who entered the main dining room in an outfit that was nothing short of obscene. I could barely believe my eyes. I'm close to seventy, so I have seen a lot, but I have never seen the likes of this in the MDR on a cruise ship. Frankly, I would have rather seen her wear cut off jeans, a hoodie and a baseball cap, than that tasteless Frederick's of Hollywood rig.

 

Perhaps what you noticed and I saw is a new trend in evening attire for young women?

 

A couple questions. Did you enjoy the ship's entertainment? The parades, the shows, ice show, Comedy Club, Jazz Club, ship's games such as Quest or any of that sort of thing? Did you check out any of the lounges such as Boleros, Schooner Lounge, Wave Bar, etc?

 

Would you take a longer cruise on Allure or Oasis given the chance particularly at a different time of year?

 

It's also a new trend in school cloths for young girls in high school. I am constantly amazed at what the girls wear to school. The heels keep getting thinner and higher and the skirts keep getting tighter and shorter. I see boobs hanging out, strapless tops, and dresses that would be best worn to a fancy party or dinner or wedding or even a formal dance. I won't even describe what it is like seeing the butts hanging out on the boys, and what they are holding on to in order to keep their pants up (?) as they walk through the halls.

[cruisingagentone]

I have been wondering about something...We always fly SW and I was thinking about purchasing two seats if the price was right just so we would have the room. What do you do so that they know you have the extra seat?

[poodog]

Enjoyed reading your review, seems like you had agood time

[sunshine3215]

How to purchase three seats on an airline -

 

Also as a sidenote, you don't have to be overweight or tall to purchase an Extra seat. I have known "average" size people who purchase an extra seat because it allows YOU to control who seats beside you for the flight.

 

You just have to make up in your MIND, I am going to pay the cost for an extra seat. Especially on long flights, when we flew to seattle from Baltimore that was a 6 hour flight, a 3rd seat was a REQUIREMENT.

 

If you want to control who sits beside you and your wife, buy a 3rd seat. If you don't want a crying child next you when traveling alone, buy a 2nd seat on the side of the plane with 2 seats. Remember, you have a right to comfortable and sometimes you have to pay for that comfort and I choose to pay the cost and just cut back in other ways. Like taking lunch to work.

 

I am going to provide clear instructions below. I normally purchase my tickets online.

 

1 - select airline destination

2 - enter 3 seats as the number to be purchased

3 - in the name section you will notice the computer will ask for first, middle and last name of passenger.

 

4 - 1st passenger - John - no middle name - Doe

2nd passenger - John - ES (middle name) - DOE

(ES means Extra Seat)

3rd passenger - Sunshine Doe

 

5 - please understand, you pay the same price for all 3 seats

 

6 - Southwest has a new policy, if you purchase 3 seats and the plane is not sold out, after your return flight home, you call southwest and they will give you a refund to the credit card of purchase for the total cost of the 3rd extra seat. This is a new policy established in the last 2 months. It went into effect after I bought my cruise airline tickets.

 

When not traveling on Southwest - about 1 1/2 weeks before the date of travel or as soon as the airline website alows me to I go online and select my seats and pay whatever costs are required. It does not make sense to buy 3 seats and your husband is in the back of the plane sitting alone and you are in the front of the plane. I buy seats for the entire 3 seat row. For example seat 22D, 22E,22F. The computer will show you the location of the seats so the goal is to find a complete row.

 

So as soon as the system allows it, I go online and select the seats if the airline is not southwest. I either select the first row after first class or the emergency row which both have more leg room for his height.

 

Now if you are flying on southwest, ES passengers are able to board right after the elderly as automatic pre-boarding. Remember southwest does not have assigned seats.

 

7 - The boarding pass for all airlines will indicate the word ES for the extra seat, The boarding pass will say John ES Doe as the person's name. So you will have 3 boarding passes and you must print out all three boarding passes - 1 for me, 2 seperate boarding passes for my husband

 

8 - When i arrive at the airline counter I tell the airline representatives that I have purchased 3 seats, also when you go through security and they check my husband's id I tell them right away that he has 2 tickets. Most of them are very familar with this process.

 

When I arrive at the airport and I am traveling on southwest, I do the same thing as above, when you get to the boarding area, as soon as the airline attendent comes to the counter --- I go up and tell them that I purchased 3 seats and have an ES for my husband, they will give you the pre boarding blue envelope. It is best to tell them before the lines form to board the plane.

 

To me this is the only way I fly, once I started purchasing 3 seats, I never went back. It makes the travel so much more comfortable. I prepare in financially advance for travel. It is well worth it to me because you never know WHO is going to sit beside you and if it is another large person you can be miserable for the entire flight. It just makes things more comfortable.

[sunshine3215]

The entertainment was good, the water show was cancelled due to the rain. We went to Chicago and it was good, we also went to the comedy show. I enjoyed the comedy show, there was no cursing, and not many racial jokes. WHich I prefer because a few years ago we went on a carnival cruise and the comedy was very tacky and offensive.

 

We saw part of the kids parade and part of the kids show and it was cute.

[sunshine3215]

The lounges such as Boleros, Schooner Lounge, are the lounges we went to and they were very nice. THe music was great, people were sitting around listening and enjoying the scenery or people walking around on the ship. THe jazz band was REALLY GOOD, but they also had several singers that were just as spectacular. We just took a seat and watched the crowds.

 

The ship also has a sports bar, it does not have food but you can order drinks. The allstar pre events were on (which was of interest to hubby) so we sat in their one night and I bought pizza and food from down the hall. You can do that....so keep that in minde.

 

We did not go to the Wave Bar but watched the elevating bar go up and down which was fun.

 

We had a nice time, it was a short cruise and I would do another short cruise to a different destination. But frankly to me, the cost for the 3 days was just as much as a 7 day cruise. We have been to the islands on the 7 day before so this trip was really just ot see the ship.

 

I don't like to repeat islands when there is a whole wide big world to see. I go once and I'm mostly done....and I move on to the next destination.