Trip Report Allure Med 2015

[Trixie21]

I am loving your review!! I will be on The Harmony next July..same itinerary! It's our first time to Europe and we are super excited! Thanks for all of the fabulous pictures!

 

 

Agree this is a fab review. We are also on harmony next July and while we have done these ports a couple of years ago there is so much to see it certainly merits a second visit .

And we can't wait to experience harmony - allure looks fantastic.

[sparklymermaid]

Once we got to St Peters Station Jackie showed us where at the station we would meet up for the return trip home.

 

All in all we had about 5 hours on our own in the city. At that point anyone who was going to the St Peters square could follow Jackie as she was going there to get the tickets to the Vatican Museum.

 

The colorful guards

 

 

One of the fountains on the square

 

 

The heart of the Vatican

 

 

At the square the group split up and we got on a Hop-on hop-off bus and started our trip to the Coliseum. We had been there two years ago on another tour, but that was guided and we had very little time at the Coliseum that time so we really wanted to go back and do it on our own.

 

Since the tour bus had multiple stops it took us about 30-40 minutes to get to the Coliseum. However, as Jackie had said on the train, August is the time when the Romans have their vacation and leave the city, so there was really very little traffic.

 

We had pre-purchased tickets to the Coliseum, but we hadn’t printed them, so we went to Palatine Hill to collect them. This is a tip for anyone going to the Coliseum: Pre-purchase the tickets! The line if you haven’t got tickets are miles long. If you really can't pre-purchase, or if you haven’t had time to print them; go to Palatine hill to buy/collect them as the lines are much shorter there and the tickets are for both sites. When you have the tickets you can go by the fast track which will save you at least an hour.

 

 

See the line of people behind Niklas? Those are the people that don't have tickets... And you have to go about 100 meters inside the Coliseum to get to the ticket booth. So, yeah. Pre-purchase tickets.

As you pre purchased your tickets and so to speak, went to the front of the line, do you still have to wait an hour for the security check?

I have to say again, I am loving your review and photos. Its the best i have seen,. :)

[cuddylier]

If you're exploring Marseille on your own, DO NOT use Royal Caribbean's shuttle bus to the town. It is a rip off at $20 - 30 per person when there is a free shuttle bus service offered by the port. The port shuttle drops you off at Hangar J1, only a 5 minute walk or so from where we saw the Royal Caribbean shuttle buses dropping off people.

 

Read more about the free shuttle bus here: http://boards.cruisecritic.co.uk/showthread.php?t=1861134&page=3 and throughout that whole thread.

[papcx]

You know, Cruise Critic can be a nasty place to hang out sometimes. People complaining about how cruising's "not what it used to be" or arguing about removing tips and on and on and on.

 

Then, every now and then, someone comes along and does a review like this. They spend hours sat at a keyboard, uploading photos and giving a balanced commentary on the cruise they've just done. They give hundreds of tips about what happens onboard, were to go if you want a certain type of food, where to go if you want a certain type of entertainment. They say what they enjoyed, but also what didn't quite work.

 

They invite questions (including, in your case, invites before the cruise, which you investigate (including a question from me)) which they answer candidly and honestly.

 

They post stunning pictures of the ship and ports of call, many of which I could only dream of taking.

 

And then, if that was not enough, they give invaluable advice, something so simple, such as turn left outside the port gates to find the bus stop. Hundreds of future cruisers will benefit from these small, simple pieces of information.

 

It's because of these people that me and many others continue to trudge through the rubbish to find these gems.

 

 

So Hardrocknerd, Sussi, I salute you. A truly brilliant review, with many selfless pieces of information.

 

 

 

 

 

I'm thinking about making this my screensaver.

 

 

You should. I'd be proud of that shot. Vibrant colours and the promise of what would happen if you sat in that deck chair.

[Nancynurse]

Thanks so much for the wonderful review!!!

 

Nancy

[Clarea]

Stunning photography! Thanks for taking the time to do this review.:)

[Coolcruise02]

Great review and beautiful photos!

[Valentyna]

You know, Cruise Critic can be a nasty place to hang out sometimes. People complaining about how cruising's "not what it used to be" or arguing about removing tips and on and on and on.

 

Then, every now and then, someone comes along and does a review like this. They spend hours sat at a keyboard, uploading photos and giving a balanced commentary on the cruise they've just done... Hundreds of future cruisers will benefit from these small, simple pieces of information.

 

It's because of these people that me and many others continue to trudge through the rubbish to find these.

 

 

I couldn't agree more!

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[juggler78]

Love this review. Thanks so much!

[ikki]

Hi Sussi, I love your review. We're sailing with the Allure on sep 6 so it is very inspiring to read. Being a fellow swede who find the whole thing about tipping a bit confusing I wanted to ask you about the tipping on the ship - did you tip extra (apart from the pre paid tips)? If so, to whom and how much?

[Miryam1234]

Hi Sussi, I love your review. We're sailing with the Allure on sep 6 so it is very inspiring to read. Being a fellow swede who find the whole thing about tipping a bit confusing I wanted to ask you about the tipping on the ship - did you tip extra (apart from the pre paid tips)? If so, to whom and how much?

 

Hopefully not stepping on Sussi's toes, but I as a fellow Scandinavian (Finn) agree with the whole tipping thing to be confusing. Therefore we have always prepaid the tips to avoid any possible hassle. Then, if and when we find a person - most often our cabin attendant, our favorite bartender who remembers our drinks, a MDR waiter who knows what our dislikes and likes are - we will give them something extra in the end of the cruise. Only once we left our cabin attendant without the extra but he was still getting the prepaid portion.

We've had the premium drinks package for the past 3 cruises, so that also helps, as tips are included in the price we have prepaid.

Only exception to the prepaid tips will be the room service. So we will give 2-5 USD for the person delivering our snacks or breakfast to the cabin, depending on the size of the order. Many plates = more work = more tip.

Generally, we've taken about 100 USD cash for the tips per week's cruise in addition to the prepaid tips. On a Mediterranean cruise you can always give euros, too, but for you Swedes it's always about changing money, since you dont have euro as a currency.

[Hardrocknerd]

Wow, I'm just overwhelmed by all of the positive comments. Thank you so much everyone for your support, I'm really glad you liked it.

 

When I decided that I was going to do this review I felt that it was a way to give back to all the wonderful people on this board who had helped me in preparing for both this cruise and the one before, which was my first ever cruise.

 

I spent about an hour every day writing down what had happened so I wouldn't forget something, and when I was going to start uploading it here I thought maybe it was just too much. The word document I was working from was about 14 pages of just text! But when I started getting all your great, positive, wonderful comments I thought: "Maybe it's not so bad after all".

 

I'm going to answer the questions now, and then I'm going to start working on the summary. And as soon as DH wakes up I can start using the scanner (it's right next to the bedroom wall, and you can not believe the noise it makes!) and I'll get some misc documents up.

 

Thank you all again. It's eight in the morning and I'm sitting here with tears in my eyes.

[saskiapaci]

Sussi just thake this Big round of applause you just de serve!! I Live nearby Civitavecchia and you don' t have idea of the number of times i' ve fine to the port admiring this beautiful ship. Plus ia a commuter and take the train to St. Peter station in Rome every morning and i always imagine where the cruisers sitting next to me are coming form.....

I will be on Harmony next year and knowing home the "little sister" is.... oh i just start crying for happiness!!!!!

Once again thank you for your time, your patiente to replay every questi on and... thank you!!!!

Hip Hip horay for Sussi!!!!!! Ehm... ok also for the sleeping husband!!!!!

Love,

Saskia

 

Inviato dal mio SM-J100H utilizzando Tapatalk

[Hardrocknerd]

As you pre purchased your tickets and so to speak, went to the front of the line, do you still have to wait an hour for the security check?

I have to say again, I am loving your review and photos. Its the best i have seen,. :)

 

There are separate lines to security as well for those that have pre purchased tickets. We stood in line for about 15 minutes tops. After that it was maybe a 3 minute wait to scan our tickets. The longest line for us that day was waiting in line to get our tickets at Palantine Hill. There's a separate line there as well for those that have pre purchased and just need to collect and we stood there for maybe 20 minutes.

 

Geez I'm blushing here. Thank you! :o

 

 

Thank you so much for the excellent review and photos. I really enjoy your commentary and writing style. I have a "big" birthday coming up next year (60) and have been trying to decide what to do. We have cruised Europe many times on smaller ships (Celebrity Century was my favorite) and were debating on sailing the Harmony during the inaugural European season. We have sailed the Allure and the Oasis in the Caribbean where the ship is the destination, so we are familiar with the size. Did you feel the size and passengers overwhelmed the ports? Were the excursions handled efficiently? Did you feel too tired to enjoy the ship after a day of touring? Looking into this cruise from Barcelona or the 12 night Briliiance. Any input would be appreciated.

Once again, thanks for the GREAT review!!!!

 

 

Thank you so much for the kind words. I'm going to write a bit about it in my summary, but in short I can say that I would love to be on Allure or Oasis in the Caribbean and get more days of just seeing the ship and doing activities. It never felt crowded, either on the ships or in port (with the exception of Naples), but we did get tired from being out and about all day with the exception of Palma (which was a short stop anyways), and La Spezia (when we only had a half-day tour). The excursions were handled very well, no problem there.

 

I have never sailed on Brilliance or that class of ship, so I cant help you there, but surely 12 nights are better than seven. ;) :D

[Hardrocknerd]

If you're exploring Marseille on your own, DO NOT use Royal Caribbean's shuttle bus to the town. It is a rip off at $20 - 30 per person when there is a free shuttle bus service offered by the port. The port shuttle drops you off at Hangar J1, only a 5 minute walk or so from where we saw the Royal Caribbean shuttle buses dropping off people.

 

Read more about the free shuttle bus here: http://boards.cruisecritic.co.uk/showthread.php?t=1861134&page=3 and throughout that whole thread.

 

I read that those shuttles only run on weekends (Friday-sunday) see this post, but if anyone has been there the last month or so please confirm which is the correct information. Since we were picked up by a tour bus, we never saw the shuttles.

 

 

Hi Sussi, I love your review. We're sailing with the Allure on sep 6 so it is very inspiring to read. Being a fellow swede who find the whole thing about tipping a bit confusing I wanted to ask you about the tipping on the ship - did you tip extra (apart from the pre paid tips)? If so, to whom and how much?

 

Thank you, I'm so glad you liked it!

Tipping is a bit confusing isn't it? I did pretty much the same as Miryam1234 (no stepping on toes here). :D

 

We prepaid tips (as we had MTD) and then we gave extra when needed/we felt like it was warranted. We ordered quite a lot for breakfast, and when it showed up we tipped €5 to room service, but that is no way the standard that you have to follow. I just don't like fiddling with coins. :p

 

We also tipped some extra at dinner if we got a great server. We didn't spend much time at the bar, and when we ordered something that was included in our package, many times we didn't even get a slip to sign and, as Miryam also mentioned, tips are technically included when you buy the package.

 

Hope that helps. :)

[suekay]

What a great review and so speedy too.. Every time I log on there's another post. So hurry and wake up Niklas, I'm greedy for more😁

[Hardrocknerd]

OK, are you ready for the summary (that's still pretty long :D)

 

 

Cabin:

I described what the cabin looked like very detailed in the review, so this will be more about how the cabin felt. We loved the space inside and since we were on the hump, meaning we got loungers on the balcony, we kind of just squealed when we walked through the door. The closet was an extra plus as both DH and I hang a lot of our clothes.

 

Would we get a JS again? It would probably depend on price and location. If we found one on the hump I would most likely go for it, otherwise we would probably settle for a balcony. That way we could save money to do more cruises. :D

 

 

 

Excursions:

The two that we did through Royal were well organized. I know I complained a bit about the guide on the La Spezia tour, but really, it’s probably more about chemistry than about him being a bad guide. Everything was prepared when we got to the winery, and he walked around making sure everyone had had a taste of the wine (and food), and that we were happy.

 

The Rome tour was really great, and the tour guide was very clear on what was going on, showing that this was not the first time doing this tour. I also liked that you could put the “add-ons” on your onboard account, rather than having to handle money. I’ll be posting the flyer we got that details the tours. Take note that the hop-on - hop-off we used are only one of many in Rome, so do some preparations at home so you know they’ll take you where you want to go. If they don’t there are other buses.

 

The Private tour was Excellent (the capital e is necessary) and if you want to take a wine tasting tour I would absolutely recommend Provence Wine Tours. It cost us €95 per person and it was very much worth it!

 

 

 

Pools:

We only tried one “regular” pool and that was the one in the solarium. The key word here is COLD! Seriously, I’m a bit touchy and like my water warm, but when even DH refuses to get in because it’s so cold… Then it’s bad. It was probably because we didn’t have the really warm weather that had been the previous two months. There has been a heat wave over all of southern Europe with temperatures at over 30 degrees, and now it was down to 20-25. Not to mention the storm over Palma. So we stuck to the whirlpools, and I’m happy to say that they were not very crowded. The cantilevered whirlpools outside the solarium did have children in them that were splashing a bit, but it wasn’t that bad.

 

 

 

Bars:

We didn’t go to very many bars, but the ones we did go to were: Solarium bar, Boleros, one or two of the poolside bars, and the one in Sorrentos. Many times just to get a bottle of water. At the shows there were waiters walking around taking orders and that was usually when we ordered the non-alcoholic drinks.

 

I really felt like the bar staff wasn’t the friendliest this time. Many times when we walked up to the bar, I just got the feeling we were bothering them, even though they were just standing talking to their colleagues. And when we said that we wanted water and showed our cards, they just kind of gave us the bottles and waved us on. Maybe I’m just a bit touchy, and used to the great waiters in the restaurants, but it just bugged me a little. On the bright side we didn’t have to sign a bunch of slips with a 0 cost.

 

 

 

Restaurants:

The specialty restaurants were great! If I have to rank the restaurants we went to they would be like this:

1. Chops Grille for dinner tied with lunch at Giovannis

2. Giovannis for dinner (yes I felt the lunch was better)

3. Sabors

4. MDR

 

I’m not saying MDR was bad, the others were just better. And Sabors might have tied with Giovannis dinner if the server hadn’t been so… talkative.

 

To sum it up we went to Chops twice for dinner, we went to Giovannis once for dinner and twice for lunch, we went to Sabors once for dinner, and we went to MDR twice for dinner.

 

And for some reason I hadn’t gained a pound when I’d gotten home. I think I might be doing cruising wrong…

 

 

 

Internet:

We pre-purchased internet for one device (the exchange rate was better), and when we got to our room we had a paper there giving us the password. At first we both used it so that one simply turned off their Wi-Fi when the other one needed to go online (no going to the logoff-page for us). Then on day two or three we suddenly realized that we were both on the Wi-Fi at the same time! Really, we were sitting next to each other and Niklas thought I was just writing my review (which I didn’t need internet access for) and went online. Then I showed him a video on my iPad and he kind of went “But, I’m online right now!”

 

So maybe that’s something you can try if you’re just planning on getting one device access. Please note that the “Get half off second device” only works if you buy for both devices at once, so don’t come back here yelling at me if you buy for one, it doesn’t work for you, and you have to buy a second one at full price, ok? When we were both online we thought it was a bit slower, but when one device was connected we had no problem watching some YouTube videos. We didn’t try FaceTime or Netflix, so I can’t comment on that.

 

 

 

Drink package:

Like I said before we pre-purchased the non-alcoholic Royal Replenish package. Did we break even? No clue, don’t care. We had about 6 or seven bottles of water each every day, I had two glasses of fresh squeezed OJ every morning and Niklas had one. And every night we had about two non-alcoholic drinks each.

We did have wine for dinner about 5 out of seven night, but we only bought a bottle once, and it lasted us two days. All other days we had one glass and that was it. Was I to do it again I would probably still get the same package.

 

 

 

The ship as a whole:

I loved the Allure and so did Niklas. We are thinking about maybe flying over to the US and doing a Caribbean cruise so we can spend more time on the ship.

 

I’ve seen some discussions about if Allure is too big to be in the Mediterranean or not. I’m a bit torn. I love that she came here for the dry dock so we could have a chance to sail on her, I’m also aware of how much of the ship we missed. Now, we are not party people so there’s a lot we wouldn’t have done anyways, but I did miss having more time at the pool, or just sitting in a bar. When you are in a new port every day you want to see everything you can there, and when you have an excursion at eight in the morning you can’t be up to two in the morning listening to the music in Schooner or Bow & Stern. Or even going to the Malibu party in the Solarium.

 

But I still love that she came here and I might try and get on Harmony when she drops by next summer. :)

Edited August 27, 2015 by Hardrocknerd

[Hardrocknerd]

Ok, the hubby is up, and I've scanned some more documents. Not all of these are necessary, but it might be good info for someone who hasn't cruised before.

 

Rome Tours - This details the add-on tours you can pick if you go on the "Shuttle and Private Train to Rome" tour

 

Beverage Package - Just the paper we got in our stateroom along with the cups, confirming our beverage package

 

Boarding day info - They give this document to you when you board so you'll know what's open when you get on the ship

 

Departure info - Self-explanatory, right. Right?

 

Gold Member offers - What you get as a Gold member on Royal Caribbean

 

Internet package - If you pre purchase the internet package this paper will be waiting for you in your room.

 

Room Service Breakfast - In case someone was curious what they can order for breakfast from room service

 

Small wonders - A list of all the "Small wonders" that are all over the ship. For those who don't know whar Small wonders are they are basically little art installations that you can view through tubes here and there on the ship.

 

Weekly Planner -The weekly planner gives you the most "important" happenings on the ship for the week.

 

 

OK, that's it for now. I have some small stuff left but I'll take that later today. I hope you enjoy what I've uploaded so far.

[transam84]

Sussi,

Thanks for the info on posting pictures. Going to give it a try when I get back in Oct. and thanks again for this fantastic review. One of best I have ever read. Getting even more excited if that's possible. :D

[CyranosBest]

Thank you, Sussi, for your awesome report. Literally awesome. I'm filled with awe with your photos of the ship, your adventures, and your efforts putting this all together. My DW and I hope to meet you and your DH on some future cruise. You have already enriched our experience when we board the Allure for its TA this October. Thank you again for your time.

 

Sent from my Nexus 5 using Tapatalk

[LuCruise]

Awesoem review. Thanks! The ship looks great. Allure will be doing a Caribbean route when we go, but your cruise looks amazing...both ship and ports. Thanks for sharing.

[tlatrice]

You know, Cruise Critic can be a nasty place to hang out sometimes. People complaining about how cruising's "not what it used to be" or arguing about removing tips and on and on and on.

 

Then, every now and then, someone comes along and does a review like this. They spend hours sat at a keyboard, uploading photos and giving a balanced commentary on the cruise they've just done. They give hundreds of tips about what happens onboard, were to go if you want a certain type of food, where to go if you want a certain type of entertainment. They say what they enjoyed, but also what didn't quite work.

 

They invite questions (including, in your case, invites before the cruise, which you investigate (including a question from me)) which they answer candidly and honestly.

 

They post stunning pictures of the ship and ports of call, many of which I could only dream of taking.

 

And then, if that was not enough, they give invaluable advice, something so simple, such as turn left outside the port gates to find the bus stop. Hundreds of future cruisers will benefit from these small, simple pieces of information.

 

It's because of these people that me and many others continue to trudge through the rubbish to find these gems.

 

 

So Hardrocknerd, Sussi, I salute you. A truly brilliant review, with many selfless pieces of information.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

You should. I'd be proud of that shot. Vibrant colours and the promise of what would happen if you sat in that deck chair.

 

This. Exactly. :D

[robmab]

We're on the Sept. 17 sailing (embarking at Citavecchia) and I have read every single post in this thread in the last two hours. I'm sure I will read it through at least one more time before we depart.

 

I love your writing. You're sarcastic like me. You also seem pretty laid back compared to other "Cruise Critics" and you take great photos, which I aspire to do.

 

Thanks for your time and effort in sharing all these details. I'm so glad you had a wonderful trip, and I wish you many more. Cheers!

 

 

Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

[busybeecrafts]

Myself and 5 others take this cruise sept. 10. I am so excited. Your review was WONDERFUL and it sounds like you had a awesome time. I can't wait I leave for Rome on the 6th. Adventure awaits.

[EDL]

When boarding in Barcelona are the cabin corridors locked until 1pm ? Or can you get access earlier ?