Freedom vs allure

[Team fraser]

Would anyone have an opinion as to which ship is 'better'?

We have been impressed by our first cruise which was on the freedom, and are just curious if they are equal in terms of facilities and quality?

Thanks

Laura

[LuCruise]

Allure has Central Park and Boardwalk area, and Aqua shows that are apparently amazing. Not sure the shows on Freedom bur Allure has Broadway show Mamma Mia.

[harry0]

The Freedom is a great ship. The Allure is like the Freedom on steroids.

Freedom has 1 flowrider Allure has 2-and a Zipline

Freedom has Ice Show-Allure has Ice Show and a unbelievable Aqua show.

Freedom has the promenade-Allure has Promenade, Boardwalk and Central Park.

Having said that if it was my wife and I alone I would not hesitate to sail the Freedom-Its the younger ones(I am in my 50s) that love the Mega ships

[Clarea]

Would anyone have an opinion as to which ship is 'better'?

We have been impressed by our first cruise which was on the freedom, and are just curious if they are equal in terms of facilities and quality?

Thanks

Laura

Allure is about 40% larger than Freedom. There is really nothing that compares to an Oasis class ship.

[drchris]

We've sailed on Freedom twice, and will board her again tomorrow! We've also been on Allure twice and Oasis once. In our opinion, the two ships are just very different and we don't like to think of one as 'better' than the other.

 

The Oasis class ships are BIG - really BIG. Specifically, they're a lot wider than are the Freedom class ships. This extra size allows for more mid-ship venues like Central Park, a much wider Royal Promenade, and the Boardwalk. These "neighborhoods" also feature more unique dining options. All of these features really do need to be experienced at some point - they're great!

 

The larger, Oasis class ships do have a few downsides. For one, we were surprised to find that you actually see the water much less from any of the public areas in these large ships. The Royal Promenade deck is surrounded by the jogging track and you really can't see outside at all from this area. It's also not possible to see out from Central Park. The Boardwalk area also is mostly without sea views, except from fairly far aft near the aqua theater. Due to this lack of sea views from common public areas, we feel strongly that we much prefer a sea view balcony room when aboard an Oasis class ship.

 

Additionally, we have observed that the larger the ship, the less of a personal, customer service feeling that we have. This is pretty much offset by the additional amenities that the Oasis class offers, but it's still a difference.

 

On a slight side note, we are rather sad about the loss of the Viking Crown Lounge in so many of the RC ships. The Oasis (and I think now the Allure) have both had this venue converted to the Suite Lounge (just for Suite guests). I believe that the Freedom still has this venue in place, and we're looking forward to spending time there this week. We have noted that this venue has been converted to a Suite Lounge on the Liberty of the Seas. I'm afraid that we'll see this excellent quiet spot with wonderful views changed to a private amenity for suite passengers only.

 

Back on topic... We really enjoyed the Oasis and Allure and will likely sail on them again. But our experience on those larger ships didn't keep us from looking forward to time back on the smaller 'cousin' ships at all.

 

Chris

[Team fraser]

Really useful! Thanks. Reassuring that both good in different ways!

Thought the freedom was enormous. Allure going to amaze me if even bigger!

Plumped for an allure on next as the dates happened to work better!

Fingers crossed!

So long as there's a schooner bar I'm happy!

 

Xx

[cb at sea]

You can't "compare" the two...it's like apples and oranges!

[champagne123]

You are going to be BLOWN away. :):):)

[Pancake16]

Have taken two cruises and these are the ships! First Allure and then Freedom... Agree with EVERYTHING said here. I will also add that the shows and "events" on the Allure we way superior to what we encountered on Freedom. I missed the Park Cafe and Solarium Bistro (breakfast) on the Freedom. We had a balcony on both but agree that its harder to see water from public decks on Oasis class.

 

Enjoy!

[John&LaLa]

We've sailed on Freedom twice, and will board her again tomorrow! We've also been on Allure twice and Oasis once. In our opinion, the two ships are just very different and we don't like to think of one as 'better' than the other.

 

The Oasis class ships are BIG - really BIG. Specifically, they're a lot wider than are the Freedom class ships. This extra size allows for more mid-ship venues like Central Park, a much wider Royal Promenade, and the Boardwalk. These "neighborhoods" also feature more unique dining options. All of these features really do need to be experienced at some point - they're great!

 

The larger, Oasis class ships do have a few downsides. For one, we were surprised to find that you actually see the water much less from any of the public areas in these large ships. The Royal Promenade deck is surrounded by the jogging track and you really can't see outside at all from this area. It's also not possible to see out from Central Park. The Boardwalk area also is mostly without sea views, except from fairly far aft near the aqua theater. Due to this lack of sea views from common public areas, we feel strongly that we much prefer a sea view balcony room when aboard an Oasis class ship.

 

Additionally, we have observed that the larger the ship, the less of a personal, customer service feeling that we have. This is pretty much offset by the additional amenities that the Oasis class offers, but it's still a difference.

 

On a slight side note, we are rather sad about the loss of the Viking Crown Lounge in so many of the RC ships. The Oasis (and I think now the Allure) have both had this venue converted to the Suite Lounge (just for Suite guests). I believe that the Freedom still has this venue in place, and we're looking forward to spending time there this week. We have noted that this venue has been converted to a Suite Lounge on the Liberty of the Seas. I'm afraid that we'll see this excellent quiet spot with wonderful views changed to a private amenity for suite passengers only.

 

Back on topic... We really enjoyed the Oasis and Allure and will likely sail on them again. But our experience on those larger ships didn't keep us from looking forward to time back on the smaller 'cousin' ships at all.

 

Chris

 

The main area of VCL on Liberty will remain the same. The SL is going in the card rooms from what I can see

[SamFritz]

IMO: Allure is a really nice floating resort hotel. It's all about the the ship, not the sun and sea. Personally, I can't see paying a premium in the fare so that I can the be constantly bombarded with opportunities to spend even more on extras that I don't need to have to enjoy my vacation.

 

Freedom is more of a ship, less of a resort. It's still really big, but is more connected to the sea. The entertainment might not be as impressive, but it's still entertaining.

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[rtazz17]

Allure hands down.... Much more to do and honestly you feel less crowded because the ship is so big with so much to do...

[jticarruthers]

Sailed both and preferred Freedom.

 

Allure is a floating hotel, no sense of motion, no view of the water (unless you are on the top deck). Felt more like a floating mall than a cruise ... with that said we still enjoyed the cruise and had a fun week but it was a very different experience.

 

Freedom while large still feels like being on a ship, you can look out the windows in many venues and see the water, you can feel some motion, etc.