NCL Getaway or RCCL Allure of the Seas

[sparky791]

Debating which one of these ships to take on Eastern Carribean cruise in July for 33rd Wedding Anniversary. Any thoughts? Will book D1 large balcony on Allure or Mini-Suite with large balcony on Getaway. Both have same ports of call. We like good shows, fine food and relaxation. Again, anyone have thoughts on ships?

[dclark]

Haven't been on NCL yet, but did cruise on the Allure last summer. Even though we had an inside, we never missed having a balcony because we were never our room, we were too busy trying to see and do all the things that the Allure has to offer.

Shows, food, were excellent. There were also shows on sea days, like the at the aqua theater and parades in the promenade. You will also have at least one show to attend each night, you will really be on your toes seeing it all, you will not be disappointed.

Edited December 18, 2013 by dclark

[punkincc]

Wow, at least one show every night? How about multiple shows in multiple venues every night. Have not been on the Allure yet, would like to someday, but I don't think it will surpass the Breakaway class as far as entertainment.

[Aquahound]

For what my opinion is worth, I think Allure has some of the best entertainment at sea. The shows are EXCELLENT and are in 4 different venues. I was just on Allure a few weeks ago...2nd time on that ship and 4th time on that class...and I was still blown away. Oasis Class is something you have to try at least once. No other ships are similar or in my opnion, comparable.

[Artemis]

We just got off the Dec. 8 sailing of NCL Pearl. We were definitely impressed by the Pearl's entertainment and activities lineup. There was something going on every minute. But to make fair ship comparisons, the Pearl generally featured one big show nightly, enhanced by a variety of other shows, games, dance parties, etc. I'm guessing that the Breakaway's evening lineup is similar and that the Getaway's will be, too.

 

That is the same experience we had on Allure in August. There were a lot of entertainment options in addition to the main evening show.

 

I wonder if the Getaway will have a house orchestra/band? We are show people, and while the Pearl's singers and dancers were very talented, they performed to canned music because there were no house musicians (other than the lounge performers, three of which we made a point to see more than once because they were pretty good). I'm sure the live vs. recorded distinction makes no difference to 99% of cruisers--we're just a little picky that way. :D

 

In my opinion comparing NCL Pearl and Allure, both are strong on entertainment and activities, so I'd look at other factors that might distinguish the two. When it comes to cabins, I think it's easy to predict the mini-suite with large balcony will far surpass a D1 balc on Allure--Royal is notoriously stingy on square feet! As for service, I'd rate it about equal, although Pearl's top brass were impressively out and about engaging with guests throughout the cruise, while Allure's specialty dining service was better than Pearl's. As the OP said "fine food" was important, I'd observe that, to our tastes, the Allure has a fairly considerable edge when it comes to dining.

 

My Pearl review (now running in this NCL forum) is probably not that relevant to your inquiry, OP, but if you want to learn more about specialty dining on Allure, I wrote a compare and contrast of 150 Central Park and Chef's Table here on the Royal forum.

 

Whichever you choose, happy anniversary! :)

[punkincc]

Comparing the Pearl to either the Allure or Getaway is like comparing apples to oranges. Two entirely different classes of ships. The entertainment on the Breakaway class ships is far superior in quality and variety to the Jewel class Pearl, IMO, although we loved our cruise on the Pearl.

[metawnny]

I can't wait to see some responses to this question. My husband and I are booked on the Getaway for June in a large balcony mini suite but I had been debating going with Royal. I have sailed NCL twice before and Royal once. I slightly preferred Royal but the price between the two Caribbean trips definitely favored going with NCL. Now I am a little nervous since the reviews from Getaways sister ship Breakaway don't seem to be that great. I would love to see feedback on this subject.

[dclark]

Wow, at least one show every night? How about multiple shows in multiple venues every night. Have not been on the Allure yet, would like to someday, but I don't think it will surpass the Breakaway class as far as entertainment.

 

Keep in mind that some of the shows are long. For example, "Chicago" was a full length show maybe 2 hours (don't remember). Also, they multiple shows going on every night. You sign up for guaranteed entrance, but they have a lot going on each night.

I don't know how much time you want to spend seeing shows but I think 2-3 hours is plenty. We had nights where we rushed from seeing a diving show to go see an ice skating show, then came back to the ice rink again for the Quest (which although is audience participation, is pretty good). Another night, after one show, we were at the big disco party in the promenade, which was awesome, with multiple singers, dancers and the CD throwing out lighted glow rings and t-shirts.

They also show Dreamworks movies, but never had time to check that out.

Funny thing, on the last night of the cruise, found a bar that didn't know existed with a good 50's cover band playing.

[Nyc2tropics]

Allure blows Breakaway out of the water. Can't even compare the two. Breakaway is a more crowded version of Jewel class.

[Yurita]

I agree; go for the Allure.

 

I was on the Oasis (sister ship) and I was blown away by the ship, entertainment, amenities, etc.

 

We had daily shows: Come fly away, The ice show, Chicago (on the Allure), The Aqua diving show (just to mention a few)

 

If you like relaxation, you'd love the solarium, Central park, the over-hanging jaccuzzies, rising tide bar, ... I mean Allure has so much more to offer!!!!!

[Yurita]

Here's an amazing video of the Allure

 

 

I don't think any ship can compare... period

[barnacle_boy]

As far as accommodations are concerned, the Allure’s Superior Oceanview with Large Balcony is very similar to Breakaway’s Mini-Suite with Large Balcony. However, Breakaway’s Mini-Suites come with double sinks and a much larger shower with great body jets and a waterfall shower head. I had the same sort of shower in my suite on Breakaway, and I absolutely loved it. The water pressure is far stronger than on any other ship I’ve been on.

 

If you’re a spa person like I am, I would advise you to stay away from Allure. Despite the ship's massive size, it has the smallest thermal suite I’ve ever seen. Five hot tile loungers and the tiniest saunas and steam room. Even the ancient QE2 had more extensive facilities and a hydrotherapy pool. I made the mistake of getting a spa pass on my first Oasis cruise, and ended asking for a refund within 15 minutes. The place was overflowing with hot, sweaty passengers who were getting far too close for comfort. Breakaway’s spa is far from perfect, but it is considerably larger, has more features, and never gets as densely crowded.

 

When it comes to entertainment, I suggest you look at the specific shows that each ship offers and compare them. Both ships have shows that have played on Broadway. Getaway will have Legally Blonde: The Musical and Allure has Chicago. Legally Blonde ran for less than 2 years on Broadway and received less than stellar reviews. Check out the MTV recording of one of the Broadways shows on YouTube to draw your own conclusions. I personally thought it was tedious, shrill, and irritating. Everyone knows Chicago, since it’s the longest running Broadway show in history (well, behind Lloyd-Webber’s West-End imports). It’s a great, solid musical worth repeated viewings, something that can't as easily be said for Legally Blonde. I’ve seen Allure’s production, and thought it stayed true to the original revival (what an oxymoron!). Chicago doesn’t rely upon extensive sets, but rather great music and choreography, and RCI was able to pull it all together. It’s unusual to find such a large, and more importantly, good band on ships these days, so seeing one on Allure was a delight.

 

The outdoor entertainment options offered by these ships differ considerably from each other. Getaway will offer the same sort of firework shows that her sister does. I’ve seen several firework shows on Breakaway and I was reasonably impressed. However, I should add the caveat that my expectations were reduced by the fact that I was aboard a moving ship in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean. If you go in expecting Breakaway’s shows to be like the land-based firework extravaganzas that we’ve all seen for New Years Eve or 4th of July, you’ll be extremely disappointed. Allure, with her immense size, is able to offer an outdoor “Aqua Theater,” home to a water based, very Cirque du Soleil-esque show called Ocean Aria. It is a show that requires no lowering of expectations to be enjoyable. Comparisons to Cirque du Soleil’s O are unavoidable, and well warranted. The quality of acrobatics and high diving may be below athletic competition standards, but they are nonetheless breathtaking and creatively packaged.

 

Ocean Aria blows Cirque Dreams: Jungle Fantasy on Breakaway out of the water, but Getaway will have a new “Illusionarium” show in its place. As with Cirque Dreams, it’ll be a dinner show, but focused upon magic rather than acrobatics. Until it debuts in several weeks for the first journalists and passengers, the show’s quality will remain as mysterious as the magic it contends to posses. Both ships have comedy clubs. The performers at the Comedy Clubs on my Allure and Oasis cruises have never elicited more than a chuckle out of me. Comedy is subjective, of course, but I found it lackluster. Getaway is the first ship in the NCL fleet to have Levity Entertainment, rather than Second City, handle the Headliner’s Comedy Club. Levity has an impressive list of comedians, but as with the “Illusionarium,” nobody knows how this is going to play out quite yet.

 

Getaway and Allure have a variety of multiple entertainment venues to compliment their main attractions. I thought Burn the Floor on Breakaway was unimpressive. There’s no comparable show for Allure, but it’s not something that I missed. I couldn’t really stand Howl at the Moon for more than a few minutes at a time, even after consuming a substantial amount of alcohol. My personal philosophy is, if you have to be under the influence to enjoy it, the performance probably isn't that good. I’m sure others will have a grand time listening to a buzzed pianist, with empty beer bottles on his piano, stumble his way through “Piano Man” while dozens of drunkards singalong, but it’s not my cup of tea. Getaway will debut with the “Grammy Experience,” featuring live performances by Grammy winners and nominees. Again, since this is new territory, it’s impossible to say whether or not it'll be any good. Allure has its own jazz club, and the groups I’ve seen perform there are decent enough. Allure also has outdoor concerts in "Central Park", a massive outdoor venue with hundreds of trees and live plants. Listening to guitar or piano accompanied violin play staples such as Vivaldi’s Four Seasons and Pachelbel’s Canon, along with a mixture of modern pieces such as Kamakawiwo’ole’s Over the Rainbow is as enjoyable as it is cliché. It’s nice to be able to hear classic music under a real starry night sky, surrounded by real trees that rustle in the breeze.

 

Dining aboard ship is, at least in my opinion, far more important that entertainment. You can avoid seeing a show, but it’s considerably harder to avoid eating a meal. I will start off with the amusing observation that I tend to lose weight on NCL’s ships, but gain weight on RCI’s. Allure’s main dining room has considerably higher quality food. I could happily eat every meal at the MDR on RCI’s ships. However, I did think that the food in Breakaway’s Haven Restaurant was very good, and the service was faultless. Unfortunately, RCI does not offer a similar amenities for their suite passengers.

 

I generally try to avoid the buffet (whenever I’m there, I almost always see some unsupervised little boy or girl shove their hands into the food), but I’d say that Breakaway’s Garden Cafe has a larger variety of higher quality food than Allure’s Windjammer. That being said, the design of the Garden Cafe is far less efficient. All the stations are organized along the interior wall, which makes it difficult to maneuver since passengers tend to erratically jump in and out of the walkway to pick up food as they pass by it. The Windjammer has stations set up on staggered islands, which greatly improves flow by keeping everyone from congregating in a single buffet line. Allure’s complimentary Park Cafe is usually very good. Although on the past several cruises it’s been hit or miss, the roast beef sandwiches there are usually to die for. Allure’s other complimentary venues, Sorrento’s (Pizza), Boardwalk Dog House and Donut Shop, and Cafe Promenade are all forgettable. Breakaway’s complimentary O’Sheehan’s serves standard pub and bar food that tastes great for what it is.

 

Specialty dining is a bit more varied. NCL is famous for inventing the concept, and they still do an excellent job, but RCI is quickly catching up. Both ships have specialty restaurants that offer alfresco dining. With Allure's Central Park, you get a view of trees, plants, and other passenger's balconies. With Breakaway’s Waterfront, unless you’re dining at Moderno or Cagney’s, get a fantastic ocean view partially obscured by lifeboat davits. I prefer Allure’s Giovanni’s Table over Breakaway's La Cucina. Portions are larger and the quality of food is slightly better. Both Allure’s Central Park 150 and Breakaway’s Ocean Blue promise gourmet experiences, but only Central Park 150 delivers. It’s the closest you’ll come to finding a high-end restaurant on a megaship today. To be honest, I absolutely hated Ocean Blue and I doubt I’ll ever feel kind enough to dine there ever again. It was a soggy, overly salty mess. The other specialty restaurants aboard Breakaway are very good, though. I enjoyed La Cucina and Le Bistro, and I absolutely loved dining at Cagney’s. Out of all the meals I’ve had aboard these two ships, dining alfresco on the Waterfront at Cagney’s, under a full moon with stars, tops them all.

[Mott1086]

ALLURE: Period. No other ship can hold a candle to her. Seriously.

 

If You Want To Compare The BREAKAWAY Vs The ALLURE, Simply Look At The Reviews From Other Cruise Critic.

 

The ALLURE Is Currently Trending At A 87% Approval Rating,

 

The BREAKAWAY Is Currently Trending At A 65% Approval Rating.

 

That Should Tell You Something.

 

P.S. After Our Trip On The Allure This Past May, I Cancelled Out Breakaway Trip In May 2014, And Rebooked The Allure

[hondarr9]

Been on Breakaway, Oasis and Allure. Loved all of them but entertainment goes to RCCL hands down. If you haven't been yet then you have, HAVE, HAVE to do the Allure. Amazing.

 

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[Medtech2]

Here's an amazing video of the Allure

 

 

I don't think any ship can compare... period

Wow, great video but it really showcased the mass of humanity crammed on that ship. Wow.

 

Too bad they did not show the cabin...