Allure/Trip Report, Nov10-17

[yregrus]

This is my third cruise and first for my wife, who is a tad naive thus easy to surprise. I told her we were taking a ferry from Fort Lauderdale to enjoy a week in Nassau relaxing on the beach. We drove from Naples and in less than three hours we were boarding the Allure. As she got on the shiny elevator with a view into the atrium, she said "is this a ferry?" Didn't take long, she figured it out. For those driving to the port, uncovered parking is convenient and easy to navigate but not cheap, $15/day. Embarkation was pretty swift (~15 min) and painless. I even had a couple of both liter Coke and bottled water that eased though the carry-on scrutiny. We boarded ~2PM and our balcony cabin was ready to deposit our carry on.

The cabin was nice, flat screen TV, digital safe, comfy twin bed (more comfortable than my own), mini sofa, mini bar and lotsa storage space. The underside of the bed would also hide most suitcases. The service provided by our cabin steward was fantastic. I used beaucoup ice and Andre kept my two canisters full. Not to mention the cabin was "refreshed" seemingly every time we left. As far as "room service," other than our cabin attendant our only experience was inadvertently locking our safe in the "open position." A employee reprogrammed the safe in less than five minutes after my call.

As far as restaurants, we tried the MDR, Windjammers, Samba Grill and Park Cafe. The Samba Grill is a delight for any carnivore otherwise from my limited experience I wouldn't brag about the others (talking about food not great service) though my wife was thrilled with the MDR. Personally I like variety and to eat and run thus the Windjammer was most frequent destination though the dress code seems to have deteriorated. On one occasion a man wearing no shirt and swim wear greased to the hilt with suntan oil was standing in front of me scooping up something from the buffet. Hopefully he walked in from the pool then out and didn't ruin any dining room chairs. Next incident was a Brazilian man standing in the fried egg line barefoot and an employee came and told him no bare feet. The guy started screaming something unintelligible and the employee backed off, as if OK no problem.

The entertainment was varied. My favorite venues involved the passengers World's Sexiest Man Contest and Belly Flop Contest both inducing hysterical laughter and I missed many others similar. My wife was nuts over Karaoke, go figure. One caveat, I read you can get into most shows even without reservation, just stand by. Not so for the Comedy Show which I think seats only 119 people. I missed it on several tries.

The eastern route ports were so-so. Nassau was abbreviated (propulsion issue) though not a great disappointment as I've been there many times. Worst was I wanted to have conch for lunch at a favorite restaurant and had to eat it for breakfast. St Thomas, underwhelmed. St Martin, very nice.

General comments. I was pleasantly surprised hand cleaners are everywhere. Immaculate public restrooms are all about the ship. A hot dog stand, pure genius! A passenger eats two dogs ($1 worth of meat scrap in the shape of a tube) and is too full to dine on lobster in the MDR. Though the seas mostly calm there was a lot of motion on the ship. No things falling but you felt it. Lying in bed I would watch the hangers rock in the closet. I had been on the Navigator years back in similar sea conditions and never felt any sense of motion whatsoever. I read upon return the ship will be repaired coming February. On the positive, the motion never bothered me. On the picayune. The ship is young yet the varnish on the handrails is blistering in a few sections. There is a big blackish stain on the forward viewing area port-side on Deck 14 that looks like black vomit that was never cleaned. The professional photographers are outstanding. In our case they made a sow's ear look like a silk purse. We finally bought the almost $500 package at the end. I know but the wife is happy.

Disembarkation was not too brutal . Saturday I already was experiencing pre-post cruise depression so I was in the mode. We were the last group to leave. Got up at eight, ate breakfast. Finished at nine, cleared the room. Andre the attendant was getting pleasantly nervous. Hung around the bowels of the ship then got in line at 10:30am. Took an hour before we got into our car and headed home.

[dacsmom]

What an awesome surprise, you are so thoughtful. Thanks for the review, I have heard the comedy shows are difficult to get into. I find it amazing that the employees back off if a passenger, who is in the wrong, makes a fuss. They do not want to make people mad even if they are clearly in the wrong.

[riclop]

Thanks for the review.

[Keith1010]

Thanks for taking the time to write and to share your review.

 

Keith

[Ken076]

Thanks for the review! ken

[Artemis]

A ferry?????!!! I cannot stop laughing!

 

Thanks for telling us about your week on Allure. Your review brought back many happy memories. We are big fans.

 

And your wife is a very lucky woman--keep up the delightful surprises!

[Kim & Billy in MO]

We also just got off the Allure yesterday for the Nov 10-17th sailing. It was a bit rocky during the final 2 sea days cruising back to FLL. But I also noticed on the itinerary channel that the map showed we were further out into the Caribbean sea than earlier in the week when the ship stayed closer to the islands. So I just chalked it up to being further out in open waters. It wasn't strong enough to invoke sea sickness in me or DH, and it was nice at night as I felt I was gently being rocked to sleep.

 

Propulsion issues didn't cause problems for us, we don't care much for Nassau anyway having been there several times. In St. Thomas we did a short (2 hr) snorkel trip and St. Maarten took short trip to Maho Beach then some shopping.

 

The comedy show was awesome! Well, the first comic didn't have much to talk about other than his kid, which was mostly funny but not nearly as funny as the 2nd comic. We reserved our shows online so no stress there. All shows are great and it's difficult for me to pick a favorite. Oceanaria was our first show and just when I thought I couldn't be more entertained, Chicago was next. Then Blue Planet absolutely blew us away.

[hedy7813]

I too just returned. I heard Captain Johnny's Q&A. The reason for the motion was that we had 9-12 foot seas and would have really felt it if we were on a smaller ship. He said that the broad beam of the Allure caused minimal rocking. I am so prone to seasickness but I just took another Bonine and used the Motion-Eze product.

[Kim & Billy in MO]

DH & I discussed the same thing about how much the ship would probably be rocking if we were on a smaller ship. Yikes!

[Twibes]

I was on Grandeur of the Seas and saw your ship leaving Nassau, we were side by side... Quite a sight!

[Twibes]

 

 

 

[vega]

Thanks for your report. Love the ferry idea. :)

 

What were your times in port for each of the islands? How far in advance of each show did you get to the theater to get seats?

 

Thanks,

Lana

[yregrus]

I too just returned. I heard Captain Johnny's Q&A. The reason for the motion was that we had 9-12 foot seas and would have really felt it if we were on a smaller ship. He said that the broad beam of the Allure caused minimal rocking. I am so prone to seasickness but I just took another Bonine and used the Motion-Eze product.

 

Hedy, don't mean to be argumentative but the seas were mostly three feet or less. If someone said 9-12 feet seas, they were kidding. I pilot my own boat back and forth from Naples to the Bahamas and consider myself a fair judge of sea conditions.

[yregrus]

Thanks for your report. Love the ferry idea. :)

 

What were your times in port for each of the islands? How far in advance of each show did you get to the theater to get seats?

 

Thanks,

Lana

 

Nassau 7am-12:30pm, St. Thomas, I forget something like 10am-4pm and St. Martin again not sure but like 10am-6:30pm. Usually we showed up five minutes or so before showtime. Seats were only a problem in the comedy venue.

[Knolmom]

Just jumping in on the abbreviated port stops. Nassau was 7 till12:30, however ships excursions had an 11:30 return and the ones that were supposed to start at 9 did not go until 10. Only 1 and 1/2 hours at Atlantis instead of 2 and 1/2 as stated, but no refund available. We docked in St Thomas around 11 and had to be back onboard at 6:30. It got dark at 5 PM, so short time for a beach day to St John . Cruise Critic News said that the new port times for St Thomas are 11-4 but I don't think that's correct.

Captain Johnny said 9 to 12 ft seas from St Martin back to Bahamas due to the front moving south anda blow from the storm in the Atlantic to our northeast. Boat was rockin Ndrollin until Friday PM. Lots of fun in the pools. I am surprised they kept them open.

[jndsilver31]

DW and I are booked on the 9-21-2014 sailing. This will be our 3rd cruise, but first on the Allure. Have been on the Freedom of the Seas for our other 2 cruises.

 

We are excited about going on the Allure.

[Jmeyers]

We are on the Christmas sailing and yesterday we booked an excursion at atlantis. Are you saying we will only get an hour and a half? Why would they take the booking?

[yregrus]

We are on the Christmas sailing and yesterday we booked an excursion at atlantis. Are you saying we will only get an hour and a half? Why would they take the booking?

 

If the time in port remains the same 7am-12:30pm (as my cruise) you have 5½ hours max off the ship. Off course you want a healthy cushion of time on the return. My wife talked to a passenger whose daughter and son in law returned too late and had to watch the Allure sail out of Nassau Nov 11. Long story short, the couple spent about $2K in airfare to rejoin the ship in St. Thomas. Not to mention other expenses and hassle factor.

[yregrus]

I was on Grandeur of the Seas and saw your ship leaving Nassau, we were side by side... Quite a sight!

 

Nice pics! I saw the Grandeur entering the harbor as we departed. The ships all appear gargantuan, even side by side.

[Pebbles468]

Does anyone know what the dining fee for Izumi is?? I thought it was $10 for either lunch or dinner.:confused:

[yregrus]

Does anyone know what the dining fee for Izumi is?? I thought it was $10 for either lunch or dinner.:confused:

 

The wife and I ate there last week for dinner. It's a la carte. Had a drink our two and some sushi for ~$40. I don't think they serve lunch. A typical roll will cost about $10. The quality is excellent. The conundrum is you can eat lobster in the MDR at no charge. Decisions decisions.

[Pebbles468]

The wife and I ate there last week for dinner. It's a la carte. Had a drink our two and some sushi for ~$40. I don't think they serve lunch. A typical roll will cost about $10. The quality is excellent. The conundrum is you can eat lobster in the MDR at no charge. Decisions decisions.

 

Do you recall what the dining fee was on top of the a la carte charges?

[yregrus]

Does anyone know what the dining fee for Izumi is?? I thought it was $10 for either lunch or dinner.:confused:

 

I don't remember a dining fee. In general seems unlikely too since a la carte.

Edited November 19, 2013 by yregrus

[Clarea]

Do you recall what the dining fee was on top of the a la carte charges?

The cover charge is $3pp for lunch and $5pp for dinner.