Allure and propulsion problems.

[cruiserdudebobby8]

hopefully she is fixed soon, going on her in August and really looking forward to this cruise

[Ocean Boy]

So find another stop somewhere more conducive to the route? Look at the time for Nassau; hardly a port of call. Enough time for a walking tour of historical areas and to browse the straw market.

 

Given that these ships ARE the destination, I still don't understand the desire to push them harder than necessary to make this port of call for such a short time. Throwaway stop

 

I understand that you do not particularly care for Nassau and that you consider the ship to be the destination. You are absolutely entitled to feel that way.

[broberts]

So find another stop somewhere more conducive to the route? Look at the time for Nassau; hardly a port of call. Enough time for a walking tour of historical areas and to browse the straw market.

 

Given that these ships ARE the destination, I still don't understand the desire to push them harder than necessary to make this port of call for such a short time. Throwaway stop

 

Nassau is Allure's home port.

 

I like stopping in Nassau, even the abbreviated call that Allure makes.

[Ocean Boy]

Nassau is Allure's home port.

 

I like stopping in Nassau, even the abbreviated call that Allure makes.

 

As do I.

[Ocean Boy]

Why can't RCI simply contact management of CC has they have on other issues in the past, explain the problem, what their plan is and put an end to the speculation or post the info on their website? Then people who are not happy with the plan can make other plans of their own. If RCI has no intent to fix this ship in the near future and they know that they will be altering the itinerary then they should inform people so that they can spend their vacation dollars as they please. By the same token, if the ship is going to be sailing its usual itinerary let people know so they are not concerning themselves with this issue needlessly. Weather problems happen. Mechanical problems happen. It is very understandable that cruises occuring shortly after a machanical issue shows up would be altered with little notice. If this problem will be going on for months then it is not excusable for RCI to not let people know.

 

Maybe some people are just happy to be on the ship as the destination and could care less about Nassau. Others maybe not so much.

Edited October 28, 2013 by Ocean Boy

[vital1]

Why can't RCI simply contact management of CC has they have on other issues in the past, explain the problem, what their plan is and put an end to the speculation or post the info on their website? Then people who are not happy with the plan can make other plans of their own. If RCI has no intent to fix this ship in the near future and they know that they will be altering the itinerary then they should inform people so that they can spend their vacation dollars as they please. By the same token, if the ship is going to be sailing its usual itinerary let people know so they are not concerning themselves with this issue needlessly. Weather problems happen. Mechanical problems happen. It is very understandable that cruises occuring shortly after a machanical issue shows up would be altered with little notice. If this problem will be going on for months then it is not excusable for RCI to not let people know.

 

Maybe some people are just happy to be on the ship as the destination and could care less about Nassau. Others maybe not so much.

 

^^This^^ I've been to these same ports many times and wouldn't mind shortened days at SXM or Nassau, but the reason I chose the Eastern is to get to St John. I'm giving up a land-based vacation on St John for this cruise:eek:

[bilyclub]

When Freedom first got out of the yard in Turku, they had to make a stop in Hamburg to hit the dry dock and replace the bearings on one of the azipods.

 

Freedom of the Seas was docked at Blohm und Voss in Hamburg, Germany on 17 April 2006 to repair a damaged bearing in one of the three Azipod propulsion units and to put on some of the finishing touches prior to its official handover to Royal Caribbean International on 24 April 2006.

Edited October 28, 2013 by bilyclub
more info

[cruiserdudebobby8]

When Freedom first got out of the yard in Turku, they had to make a stop in Hamburg to hit the dry dock and replace the bearings on one of the azipods.

 

Freedom of the Seas was docked at Blohm und Voss in Hamburg, Germany on 17 April 2006 to repair a damaged bearing in one of the three Azipod propulsion units and to put on some of the finishing touches prior to its official handover to Royal Caribbean International on 24 April 2006.

 

 

i remembering seeing that on the TV episode of Building Freedom of the Seas

[reedl]

For those posting live from Allure, are you all in unlimited $179 internet package?

 

Is the connection good enough for that price? I might also get that package.

Not exactly on topic, but check this thread that I started:

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1932442

[oneputt18]

So to summarize all the reports we got, looks that those affected are the Eastern route, Western route is not affected.

 

Perhaps because the route is longer in the Eastern, compared to Western.

Yes, it is 900 Nautical miles from Nassau to Philipsburg, longest leg of either Caribbean itinerary. (excluding southern Caribbean)

 

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[reney313]

If I'm not mistaken, the revised itinerary actually shorts us 2 hours in St. Thomas. It's getting in at 11:30 instead of 9:00 and leaving 30 minutes later.

 

This is from my pre-cruise planner:

20-Jan Nassau, Bahamas 7:00 AM 2:00 PM

22-Jan Charlotte Amalie, St. Thomas 10:00 AM 7:00 PM

 

According to the revised itinerary:

Nassau 7:00am-12:30pm (1 1/2 hours less in Nassau)

St. Thomas: 11:30am-7:00pm (2 1/2 hours less in St. Thomas).

 

I'm not that disappointed with Nassau as I don't have excursions planned. I have been there many many times (and yes, I actually enjoy Nassau) so missing 1 1/2 hours doesn't kill me. i would like to be there the full time.

 

I'm more disappointed with St. Thomas. I had planned on going to Trunk Bay in St. John. With the ferry time this would really limit the time to be there.

 

I do hope to hear more soon as our final payment date is next week. I, too, would consider switching to Oasis for that week. Although I'd need to do some changes to my air and hotels. I'm not sure that I would change, but would like the option to without financial penalty if we decide to..At the very least, I might need to rethink my St. Thomas plans.

[sweetpee_1993]

This blows. My aviation buff husband is already disappointed that the flight schedules for St. Marten have changed so that no "heavies" are coming in the day we're there. He was sooooo looking forward to the private sailboat charter we had in St. Thomas. The charter is supposed to be 6 hours long. Well, with the shortened schedule even reducing the charter to 5 hours only leaves us with 1 hour on either end for the 20 minute taxi ride to/from the marina. Cutting it too close for comfort. Shortened to 4 hours makes the $840 + tip pricetag not a very good value. Told DH about the propulsion issue and the resulting itinerary changes for us. His response? How much penalty would we pay to just not go at all?

 

This is our first non-Disney cruise. This paired with other little issues we've had, it's just not shaping up to be a very good overall experience. Frustrating, really.

 

The hours of the port stop in Nassau are such a waste. Seriously. Skip Nassau and give us the hours in St. Thomas where the time is actually useful. 7:30 in the morning? Really? What's open at 7:30 in the morning???? We were looking forward to the rum distillery tour there. That doesn't open until 10:00. We're not even sure it's worth trying to go if we're going to feel rushed to get back before noon. Literally half the time in Nassau is completely useless.

[bradpole]

That may be the first time I've heard Nassau and premium in the same breath. :D

 

Glad I'm not the only one who thought that! :-)

[cruisinfanatic]

Yes they do. I've seen replacement prop blades bolted down on the bow's deck on several ships.

It's possible, but Oasis is not just another ship. Everything is bigger

[Tyler80]

I was on Oasis in December 2012 and a nautical engineering student noticed that there wasn't 3 jets out of back of the ship and asked the captain why they weren't running all three azipods. During the Captain's Corner the captain said they were "nursing" one of the azipods because it was having problems.

[The Big Booper]

I'm on this sailing also- where are you seeing the changes to the itinerary?

The original schedule was:

 

Nassau 7-2

ST 10-7

SXM 8-5

 

Based on your information it appears that they have added an hour to Nassau and St. Thomas and SXM are a wash. I don't see how you are coming up with an additional 30 minutes on St. Thomas?

 

I was looking at the timetable of the port stops on my booking confirmation, issued in the Spring. Guess that was changed even before this latest incident.

 

We booked thru our time share, swapping Vacation Club Points so there is NO involvement or service by the TA after the booking, they are straight salary and no cash exchanges hands except we pay taxes ourselves. They never contact us and don't look to follow up on anything.

[jo24]

I find it amusing that there is such drama over a propulsion blade. The issue has been there for approximately 4 weeks now and aside from 1 hour less is Nassau, there has been no other disruption to guests which I think is fantastic. They are working at every opportunity to get it fixed and I am sure all will be sorted soon. I agree with the comments regarding the time in Nassau. I have visited there twice on Allure. On my first trip I did the Blue Lagoon Island. We had a lovely boat ride there and back and plenty of time for lunch and sunbathing. On my second trip I did the See and Sea tour. I was back on the ship well before the 1.30pm (as it was on my cruise) all aboard time. It is hardly a huge port and it isn't as though there is enough to do to keep people amused all day. Hoping it is all sorted soon :)

[Wilda]

If I'm not mistaken, the revised itinerary actually shorts us 2 hours in St. Thomas. It's getting in at 11:30 instead of 9:00 and leaving 30 minutes later.

 

This is from my pre-cruise planner:

20-Jan Nassau, Bahamas 7:00 AM 2:00 PM

22-Jan Charlotte Amalie, St. Thomas 10:00 AM 7:00 PM

 

According to the revised itinerary:

Nassau 7:00am-12:30pm (1 1/2 hours less in Nassau)

St. Thomas: 11:30am-7:00pm (2 1/2 hours less in St. Thomas).

 

I'm not that disappointed with Nassau as I don't have excursions planned. I have been there many many times (and yes, I actually enjoy Nassau) so missing 1 1/2 hours doesn't kill me. i would like to be there the full time.

 

I'm more disappointed with St. Thomas. I had planned on going to Trunk Bay in St. John. With the ferry time this would really limit the time to be there.

 

I do hope to hear more soon as our final payment date is next week. I, too, would consider switching to Oasis for that week. Although I'd need to do some changes to my air and hotels. I'm not sure that I would change, but would like the option to without financial penalty if we decide to..At the very least, I might need to rethink my St. Thomas plans.

 

Can you please tell me where you are seeing the revised itinerary? I'm confused now more than ever because you and big booper are contradicting each other!!!

Edited October 28, 2013 by Wilda

[Jmeyers]

Wow. There has been no itinerary charge to out Christmas cruise on allure.

[sweetpee_1993]

That's because it's Christmas, the time for magic.

 

Crap. That's the problem. We're on the wrong ship.

[bilyclub]

I find it amusing that there is such drama over a propulsion blade. The issue has been there for approximately 4 weeks now and aside from 1 hour less is Nassau, there has been no other disruption to guests which I think is fantastic. They are working at every opportunity to get it fixed and I am sure all will be sorted soon. I agree with the comments regarding the time in Nassau. I have visited there twice on Allure. On my first trip I did the Blue Lagoon Island. We had a lovely boat ride there and back and plenty of time for lunch and sunbathing. On my second trip I did the See and Sea tour. I was back on the ship well before the 1.30pm (as it was on my cruise) all aboard time. It is hardly a huge port and it isn't as though there is enough to do to keep people amused all day. Hoping it is all sorted soon :)

,

 

Well if it's a bearing, that can't be fixed without a dry dock. Bearing's don't get better with time. Royal should be forthcoming about the problem and what the prognosis is. All of us with Allure cruises coming up need to be concerned until there is some dialogue from Royal explaining things.

[vital1]

I find it amusing that there is such drama over a propulsion blade. The issue has been there for approximately 4 weeks now and aside from 1 hour less is Nassau, there has been no other disruption to guests which I think is fantastic. They are working at every opportunity to get it fixed and I am sure all will be sorted soon. I agree with the comments regarding the time in Nassau. I have visited there twice on Allure. On my first trip I did the Blue Lagoon Island. We had a lovely boat ride there and back and plenty of time for lunch and sunbathing. On my second trip I did the See and Sea tour. I was back on the ship well before the 1.30pm (as it was on my cruise) all aboard time. It is hardly a huge port and it isn't as though there is enough to do to keep people amused all day. Hoping it is all sorted soon :)

 

I wouldn't call it drama, just people weighing their options on how they want to spend their vacation time and money. A couple of hours less in STT is a huge amount of time when you want to go to STJ. I could care less about Nassau. Been there 6-7 times, did the Blue Lagoon, Pirate Museum, etc and don't get off the ship anymore.

 

I agree, I hope it gets sorted out soon!:)

 

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[mattmom]

Donna27th October, 2013 at 1:47 am

Hi Adam,

I really appreciate the opportunity to ask you questions directly. I have been reading about propulsion issues on the Allure. Can you elaborate on that situation. Have a cruise booked for May 2014 and am concerned. Thanks.

 

Reply

• Adam28th October, 2013 at 3:40 pm
  Hi Donna – Allure of the Seas currently has a small restriction on her top speed. All equipment is fully operational and there is no impact on the maneuverability of the ship or on the safety of our guests and crew.
   
  

[vital1]

Donna27th October, 2013 at 1:47 am

Hi Adam,

I really appreciate the opportunity to ask you questions directly. I have been reading about propulsion issues on the Allure. Can you elaborate on that situation. Have a cruise booked for May 2014 and am concerned. Thanks.

 

Reply

• Adam28th October, 2013 at 3:40 pm
  Hi Donna – Allure of the Seas currently has a small restriction on her top speed. All equipment is fully operational and there is no impact on the maneuverability of the ship or on the safety of our guests and crew.
   
  

 

Forgive my ignorance, but who is Adam?:o

 

 

 

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[oneputt18]

Forgive my ignorance, but who is Adam?:o

 

 

 

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President and CEO of Royal Caribbean International

http://www.royalcaribbean.com/ourCompany/ourLeadership.do?name=Adam+M.+Goldstein

 

 

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