Finally, we made it onboard Allure (only 8 months later than planned), so the review!

[peteukmcr]

OK, so the background and the reason we boarded Allure 8 months later than planned.

 

We're Peter & Patrick from Manchester, UK and we booked to sail on a Western Caribbean itinerary on Allure in September 2012 way back in July 2011. However, unfortunately I was made redundant in August 2011 and it took a long 9 months to find another job due to the recession. :(

 

Therefore, we had to cancel our planned September 2012 sailing before I found another job, as a small thing like the mortgage had to be paid:D

 

So, once I started a new job we booked an Allure Eastern Caribbean itinerary departing Port Everglades on May 12th 2013.

 

Our plans were as follows:

 

1. Fly Manchester, UK to Sanford, FL on Thomson Airways Boeing 787 'Dreamliner' 2 days before sailing.

2. Stay overnight in Orlando to overcome the mandatory jet lag due to the -5 hour time difference between the UK and Florida, and the approximately 12 hour door to door journey (turned into 14 hours, more of that later)

3. Drive from Orlando to Fort Lauderdale the day before sailing, staying overnight near the port.

4. Experience 7 days onboard Allure of the Seas visiting Nassau, St Thomas and St Maarten

5. Drive north to Kissimmee post cruise to spend 5 nights in a rented villa.

6. Spend 5 days visiting the theme parks of Orlando (Sea World, Universal Studios, Busch Gardens and Aquatica) and catching up with people we've had the great fortune to sail with previously, who live in Florida.

 

This explains why I've only just started my review as we only arrived back in the UK yesterday and I've slept a lot since getting home. :D

 

So the following 'review' is not only our thoughts and experiences onboard Allure, but the events either side of this cruise.

 

I have to mention that at the time of booking we did not know that we would be meeting up again with friends we made on a Liberty transatlantic sailing we made in 2011, so that was a bonus and turned out to be great fun. :D

 

So if you want to come along for the 'ride', subscribe and I'll try and keep you entertained over the following posts which will include photos, links to Patrick's blog (which is far more amusing and better written than I can produce) and the 'good, the bad and the ugly' of our sailing on Allure.

[loeytalldog]

Sounds like fun, I'm subscribed!

[gowensricks]

Wow, I can not wait for your review!

[voyager70]

Really looking forward to your review!

[peteukmcr]

So step 1 was supposed to be a direct flight from Manchester, UK to Sanford, FL on Thomson Airways brand new Boeing 787 'Dreamliner' in their 'Premium Club' cabin.

 

However, due to the issues experienced by other airlines and the grounding of the Dreamliner fleet, the delivery of the Thomson aircraft was delayed and alternative aircraft had to be found.

 

Our only concern was that we wanted to depart on May 10th as scheduled and return on May 24th as planned. Thomson Airways ensured our schedule was as booked and although we would still be seated in a 'Premium' cabin, the supplement for travelling on the Dreamliner was refunded together with an ex gratia payment as compensation, as the facilities of the alternative premium cabin would not match the offering of the premium cabin on the Dreamliner.

 

Great work by the airline and a bonus donation towards our on board spend as far as I was concerned:D

[bluecruisin]

Loking forward to reading your review. I hope you had a wonderful trip.

[LuvWilliam]

Subscribed!

[petesweet]

Me, too.

 

Kathy

[peteukmcr]

As a great planner (I am a IT project manager by trade) I like to reserve and, if possible, pay for as many things as I can before sailing (keeps that Sea Pass account solely for the necessities of life like Gin!). :D

 

So I originally booked our first nights accommodation at the Hyatt Place, Orlando Convention Centre hotel on International Drive. I kept checking the rates and about 4 weeks before departure snagged a prepaid rate of $90 plus tax, so I cancelled my original booking at a rate of $150 and booked this one. I was a little concerned at first as no payment was taken, right up to departure, but Hyatt assured me that the hotel would take payment, but maybe not until we arrived but it would be at the agreed rate.

 

I also booked and prepaid for our car rental. 2 one way rentals, 1 from Sanford to Fort Lauderdale (10th - 12th May) and another for the return journey (19th - 24th May). The prepaid rates gives those of us from the UK great deals and include all the necessities we need like LDW as standard (our normal insurance does not cover us when we rent in the US).

 

I chose Hertz as I use them on a regular basis for business and they have a rental depot at the Crowne Plaza hotel on SR 84 in Fort Lauderdale which originally was to be our pre cruise base on May 11th (in their one and only suite) and Hertz also provide complimentary shuttles to/from the port.

 

However, once I'd saved money on the Orlando hotel, I thought why not splash it in Fort Lauderdale (forgetting the 'donation' to the Sea Pass account with the money saved!)? So I searched for good hotels and found the Lago Mar Resort on South Ocean Drive, located on the beach and conveniently placed for us to walk to the channel and watch Oasis depart at 5pm on the 11th May. Great choice, see later report.

 

Along with the travel plans, I prebooked the Central Park dining package saving a considerable amount on booking Giovanni's Table, Chops Grille and 150 Central Park as separate items.

 

As we like Mexican food we decided to opt for Rita's Fiesta which costs $20 per person but includes food and 3 alcoholic drinks (bring me those margaritas) or for only $10 includes food only.

 

A 7 bottle 'Wine & Dine' package is a must for us, and again I like to pay in advance so I don't have a shock when I view my account on the TV (which I do daily, and it's a good job too as I caught an incorrect posting).

 

As Allure now has the Freestyle Coca Cola machines, we decided to also order the soda package, again paying in advance, and especially as we had the most sea days we'd ever had on a Caribbean cruise we knew we'd make it cost effective, and it was.

 

Patrick investigated the shore excursions and we booked one for St Thomas (St John coastal cruise) and one for St Maarten (Made in Paradise), more of these later.

 

So with the speciality restaurants, wine and soda packages and shore excursions we'd already donated in excess of $600 to RCI, but at least it wouldn't make me have palpitations onboard!:D

 

We also booked tuxedos in advance, but as late as possible to give the diets a chance to work! We chose the combination package which gives the traditional black tie but a coloured vest and tie to ring the changes on one of the 2 formal nights. It costs $10 more at $99 per person, but you don't pay until onboard and we get 15% discount as diamond C&A members.

[peteukmcr]

Need to take a break to go cook Sunday dinner, I'll be back later (after recharging the iPad too:D).

[KeywestK]

Peter.....Even though I've read all your post on FB, including Patrick's blog (fabulous!!), I'm enjoying your 'official review' very much! So glad you are sharing it with everyone else. Waiting for more after you've caught up with other necessities such as sleep, yard work, laundry, sleep, etc.....;):)

[peteukmcr]

So having read and digested the most information I ever have done for a cruise, I knew planning and making reservations was almost mandatory for this sailing.

 

Therefore, once the entertainment bookings were open, this is when it gets interesting. Want to see Chicago, Ocean Aria, Blue Planet, Ice Games, Headliner show, Comedians etc? Then you need to plan and make your reservations in advance.

 

Juggling this with having to make reservations for Giovanni's Table for day 1 or day 2 (if you prebook the Central Park dining package), working out that the formal nights on the Eastern itinerary are days 2 & 6, having booked Rita's Fiesta which is day 4, together with working out what times your shore excursions get you back to the ship, will mean you will be a project manager by the time you're done :D

 

This is one of the downsides of sailing on this fantastic ship, there is almost too much to do in 7 days, so you need to plan. So I can understand for some people this can take away the spontaneity and relaxing aspect of a cruise. But if, like us, you travel a long way to take this experience, you need to make the most of it.

 

As a result of this we booked Ocean Aria, Chicago, Headliner show (which we didn't make), & Blue Planet.

 

We're not great fans of comedy clubs, so we didn't book anything for that. However, our friends went twice and said the show was excellent and there were lines every night when we went down to 'Entertainment Place' on deck 4, so if you're are into comedy my tip is 'book early'.

[peteukmcr]

Peter.....Even though I've read all your post on FB, including Patrick's blog (fabulous!!), I'm enjoying your 'official review' very much! So glad you are sharing it with everyone else. Waiting for more after you've caught up with other necessities such as sleep, yard work, laundry, sleep, etc.....;):)

My dear friend, I'd have thought you were bored with my endless FB updates, but I'm so glad you and everyone else who has subscribed are coming along for the 'ride' :D It may take some time, so please be patient and photos will appear I assure you, but that fiend that is jet lag has arrived and so tomorrow (which I know is Memorial Day in the US and is a public holiday here in the UK) will give me time to ramble on more about our Allure adventure.

[janetz]

Looking forward to your review Peter. It was a perfect cruise. Did you get over to St. John? It was lovely and I bought some great jewelry there at a very good price. :)

[Familygoboston]

Welcome home! Looking forward to your review! :D

[cruiseturbo]

Looking forward to reading it from another's perspective! Hope you had a great cruise!

 

Debra

[peteukmcr]

Looking forward to your review Peter. It was a perfect cruise. Did you get over to St. John? It was lovely and I bought some great jewelry there at a very good price. :)

Yes, we got over to St John and did a coastal cruise before taking a short trip to Trunk Bay, really good day.

 

Welcome home! Looking forward to your review! :D

I hope I can keep you entertained!

[peteukmcr]

Looking forward to reading it from another's perspective! Hope you had a great cruise!

 

Debra

Had a great cruise thanks, and hopefully I can give a different outlook to the journey.

[peteukmcr]

OK, so last night I talked about planning for the cruise itself, but this escapade required more pre planning re the villa we were to stay in post cruise and the required theme park tickets for Sea World etc.

 

The villa was easy, when we had to cancel our Sept 2012, we simply rebooked the villa we had selected then. The owner kindly let us have it for the same price, and trust me, even for 2 people a villa with private pool that sleeps 8 is a snip compared to hotel prices. The space and facilities you get cannot be beaten (and I can do all the laundry before returning to the UK, result :D).

 

As for theme park tickets, the prices have changed somewhat since our last visit in 2009, so I hunted around to get the best deal, as the combination options can be confusing. Anyway, settled on basically a ticket for Universal that allows 14 days unlimited park to park access (Islands of Adventure and Universal Studios) and a combo ticket for Sea World, Bush Gardens and Aquatica.

 

More on all these later (if you don't fall asleep with my ramblings!)

 

Don't worry we're getting to the cruise honestly!:D

[peteukmcr]

OK, so here we go, "fasten your seatbelts it's going to be a bumpy night" as uttered by Margot Channing (only those of you of as certain age may recognise this from "All About Eve" :D). Well actually it will be a bumpy day!

 

We left home on Fri, May 10th at 7:30 am to travel to Manchester Airport. We parked the car and approached the terminal to find all passengers and staff outside. There had been a security alert and the terminal had been evacuated. Nice start :eek:

 

Eventually we checked and passed through security to navigate our way through the duty free shops which is the only way to get to the restaurants (it does irk me slightly, but I'm a master of avoiding the sales people and fellow passengers who are wandering around in a daze at all the bright lights and merchandise on offer), I need breakfast!

 

I'll let Patrick describe the journey from Manchester to Sanford, FL.

 

http://blog.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/patch64/2/1368208260/tpod.html

 

I promise the next post will give more relevant info about our journey, especially for those of you driving in Florida and are not regular visitors to this state.:D

[Wriggler]

 

More on all these later (if you don't fall asleep with my ramblings!)

 

Don't worry we're getting to the cruise honestly!:D

 

Please don't apologise - I love this level of detail and eagerly following along :)

[anandaindonesia]

Very interesting, and like you say, 'I subscribe'. Keep it flowing.

 

Thanks for the link to Patrick's blog :)

[peteukmcr]

Please don't apologise - I love this level of detail and eagerly following along :)

Glad you like detail, because there's more of it to come!

 

Very interesting, and like you say, 'I subscribe'. Keep it flowing.

 

Thanks for the link to Patrick's blog :)

He writes very well, far better than I do!

[villauk]

Pete,

 

Really enjoying your review, especially as we're doing a similar trip in August (Oasis instead of Allure for us). Keep it coming ;).

 

Tell Patrick his blog is excellent. I'm relaying it all to my DH and laughing as I'm reading aloud! Loved the bit where he joins in the shopping frenzy...lol. Hope our flight is less eventful!

[janetz]

Yes, we got over to St John and did a coastal cruise before taking a short trip to Trunk Bay, really good day.

 

I hope I can keep you entertained!

 

 

 

We were at trunk also....:)