Fresh off Allure - A Tale of Two Royals

[Steppy08]

Just got off the July 9 from FLL to Labadee, Aruba, and Curaçao 

 

(Was on Enchantment June 24 to Bermuda so I got to compare the current state of Royal from two completely different ships…)

 

check in: Allure- Super quick for us. We had a noon time and arrived at 11:50. Were able to use the suite line for security and only waited 10 minutes for actual check in. (Do everything you can BEFORE in the app! It saves time for everyone) walked on the ship at 12:05. 
Enchantment: check in at Baltimore was a cluster. 15 minutes to get through security. Another 30 minutes waiting in a massive line. It took a solid hour to get on board. 

Cabin: Allure- was nice. Our first experience in a Jr Suite. The upgraded toiletries in the shower were actually a nice perk. Cabin attendant was excellent and friendly.  Only issue was that it’s a connecting room so we could hear everything next door. They sneezed, we said “bless you.” Thank goodness for white noise apps. 
Enchantment- it was okay. Showing its age.  We were not even sure who our cabin attendant was for about two days since he never introduced himself. He was okay, we had to ask for fresh drink glasses a couple times because he took them but didn’t replace them. 
 

Ship: Allure is starting to show some age, but still looks great. We sailed on her 9 years ago. We enjoyed the boardwalk aft view and pool decks before they pile on the slides and other “amplifications” next spring. 
Enchantment- I love this class ship but she needs some paint and love.
 

staff: I was really worried about this. The Enchantment in June was seriously understaffed (both of our waiters had their contracts “extended” for two months and were supposed to be home in June). Getting a drink from the bar took a solid 15 minutes each time. 
The Allure was a different world. If there were staffing issues we didn’t see it. Every bar was fully staffed and the waiters were plentiful (except on Deck 4 in the comedy club and jazz club). I never waited more than a couple minutes to get served. 
 

drink package: both ships have the “new” refill neon plastic cups. 
 

Windjammer: We pretty much just eat there for breakfast and occasionally lunch. Just about everything was better at the Windjammer on Allure. Freshness, quality, taste , presentation. I noticed they only had one side of the WJ open on Allure most times. Two differences: the Enchantment had way better avocado toast AND I could NOT find the Berliner crème filled donuts ANYWHERE on Allure. The Allure was also way more staffed here- there were plenty of waiters offering to bring drinks and refills on Allure versus Enchantment. Also, Windjammer on Allure had a consistent supply of Coconut Ranger cookies (iykyk)
 

I can’t compare the main dining rooms because we really didn’t eat in the MDR on Allure, we ate at Coastal Kitchen or the specialty restaurants. Coastal Kitchen was awesome. Our service team on Enchantment was amazing (our waiter actually told us what meals NOT to get and was spot on every time) but they were definitely overworked and short staffed. 
 

Entertainment: can’t really compare these two. There were phenomenal musicians on both ships. Allure just has so many more options. We did see Mama Mia- the cast/crew/orchestra were fantastic. The show itself… well, at least it wasn’t Cats. 
 

In conclusion- We had a great time on both cruises. Both ships were full or close to it. But I would say they are definitely staffing the “flagships” of the line fully compared to the smaller ships right now.

 

I have several family members employed in the airlines and it is unfortunately the state of the travel industry right now- understaffed and overbooked and trying desperately to make up for the last two years. We still feel it’s a great vacation and value.

[firefly333]

Was johnny rockets open for breakfast? How about the solarium for all 3 meals?

 

I had the donuts on liberty in WJ but grandeur had no filled donuts in WJ but 2 kinds of avacado toast. I dont like their avacado toast, lol  I want slices of avacado not guacamole squeezed out of a bag.

 

Did you try the suite lounge for the donuts. That's where I found them on grandeur in the diamond lounge. 

 

Which deck were you on with your end of boardwalk cabin? I'm on allure b2b in dec. Hoping to eat breakfast at johnny rockets and have their hash browns. I think I'm deck 10 far aft 2nd week to see the wake and diving show. Glad you loved allure. Any pictures of your cabin and view.

[Biker19]

18 minutes ago, Steppy08 said:

We still feel it’s a great vacation and value.

Wait till some RCI haters come in here to tell you other wise - @Jimbo?

[loman]

Good to hear the situation is fine with the Allure as we are scheduled to sail

 on it soon. 

We are also in a suite , so looking forward to CK .

Glad you had a good cruise. 

We also got a good rate as we booked a year out, and feel there is value with RC .

Cheers🙂

[Another_Critic]

49 minutes ago, firefly333 said:

Which deck were you on with your end of boardwalk cabin? I'm on allure b2b in dec. Hoping to eat breakfast at johnny rockets and have their hash browns. I think I'm deck 10 far aft 2nd week to see the wake and diving show. Glad you loved allure. Any pictures of your cabin and view.

They were in a Jr. Suite, not a Boardwalk balcony.

[Steppy08]

46 minutes ago, firefly333 said:

Was johnny rockets open for breakfast? How about the solarium for all 3 meals?

 

I had the donuts on liberty in WJ but grandeur had no filled donuts in WJ but 2 kinds of avacado toast. I dont like their avacado toast, lol  I want slices of avacado not guacamole squeezed out of a bag.

 

Did you try the suite lounge for the donuts. That's where I found them on grandeur in the diamond lounge. 

 

Which deck were you on with your end of boardwalk cabin? I'm on allure b2b in dec. Hoping to eat breakfast at johnny rockets and have their hash browns. I think I'm deck 10 far aft 2nd week to see the wake and diving show. Glad you loved allure. Any pictures of your cabin and view.

Johnny Rocket’s was open for breakfast. We did not go though. 
we didn’t make it to the solarium bistro for breakfast or lunch, though technically we had dinner at Samba Grill which is the same place. 
 

Sorry if you misunderstood- I just meant the aft views in general for the ship, our cabin this time was midship on the bump. 
 

however our cabin in 2013 was a boardwalk aft cabin… 11329 or 327 I think … this was the view. Great and unique view (until the slides go in 🙄) but you do get to see and HEAR everything from the aqua theater. We watched the Ocean Aria show from the theater and our cabin. There’s also public aft balconies in some decks. Deck 11 is one of them and pretty much no one knows it’s there. 

[Steppy08]

49 minutes ago, Biker19 said:

Wait till some RCI haters come in here to tell you other wise - @Jimbo?

Oh I’m sure. There’s always haters and some criticism of the lines is warranted. And yes, some things are not what they once were (remember midnight buffets and chocolates on the pillow each night?)

we travel a lot and have done many cruises, non-cruise tours to multiple countries, and several all inclusives. Yet we still come back to cruising. 
one of my husband’s favorite things to ask when on board (in referencing some of the Negative Nancy’s on these boards and the general public) is “But did it RUIN your cruise?” 😅 Then we laugh and move on. 

[Steppy08]

18 minutes ago, loman said:

Good to hear the situation is fine with the Allure as we are scheduled to sail

 on it soon. 

We are also in a suite , so looking forward to CK .

Glad you had a good cruise. 

We also got a good rate as we booked a year out, and feel there is value with RC .

Cheers🙂

have a great cruise! We were quickly reminded as to why we love that ship so much. (this coming from a couple who admittedly prefer the smaller ships, usually)

[John&LaLa]

7 minutes ago, Steppy08 said:

Johnny Rocket’s was open for breakfast. We did not go though. 
we didn’t make it to the solarium bistro for breakfast or lunch, though technically we had dinner at Samba Grill which is the same place. 
 

Sorry if you misunderstood- I just meant the aft views in general for the ship, our cabin this time was midship on the bump. 
 

however our cabin in 2013 was a boardwalk aft cabin… 11329 or 327 I think … this was the view. Great and unique view (until the slides go in 🙄) but you do get to see and HEAR everything from the aqua theater. We watched the Ocean Aria show from the theater and our cabin. There’s also public aft balconies in some decks. Deck 11 is one of them and pretty much no one knows it’s there. 

 

Pretty sure the only public aft balconies are on deck 7. The old ones are long gone. A3/A4 suites now

[firefly333]

3 minutes ago, Another_Critic said:

They were in a Jr. Suite, not a Boardwalk balcony.

Here is what the OP said and why I asked if any pictures of their view and cabin, and of course I read it was a JS .. but thanks for nothing. I would like to see their cabin and views. No matter what they are.

 

"Ship: Allure is starting to show some age, but still looks great. We sailed on her 9 years ago. We enjoyed the boardwalk aft view and pool decks before they pile on the slides and other “amplifications” next spring. "

 

 

[firefly333]

11 minutes ago, Steppy08 said:

Johnny Rocket’s was open for breakfast. We did not go though. 
we didn’t make it to the solarium bistro for breakfast or lunch, though technically we had dinner at Samba Grill which is the same place. 
 

Sorry if you misunderstood- I just meant the aft views in general for the ship, our cabin this time was midship on the bump. 
 

however our cabin in 2013 was a boardwalk aft cabin… 11329 or 327 I think … this was the view. Great and unique view (until the slides go in 🙄) but you do get to see and HEAR everything from the aqua theater. We watched the Ocean Aria show from the theater and our cabin. There’s also public aft balconies in some decks. Deck 11 is one of them and pretty much no one knows it’s there. 

Ok thanks. I'm just hungry for any news of allure and places open to eat. Read some solariums not fully open yet. So ready for oasis class. 

[Steppy08]

2 minutes ago, firefly333 said:

Here is what the OP said and why I asked if any pictures of their view and cabin, and of course I read it was a JS .. but thanks for nothing. I would like to see their cabin and views. No matter what they are.

 

"Ship: Allure is starting to show some age, but still looks great. We sailed on her 9 years ago. We enjoyed the boardwalk aft view and pool decks before they pile on the slides and other “amplifications” next spring. "

 

 

Oh okay. Here are the views from this cruise. Room 7644 this time 
 

the “bump balconies” are nice and very private

[Steppy08]

6 minutes ago, John&LaLa said:

 

Pretty sure the only public aft balconies are on deck 7. The old ones are long gone. A3/A4 suites now

Boo. Of course they would try to make more money off those views. We didn’t get a chance to wander back there and find out. 

[LMaxwell]

The Enchantment is getting pretty old and not kept up to the slick marketing standards RCI sets for WOW on Quantum-Class, Oasis-Class, or Freedom-Class.   Allure is much more representative of amenities, entertainment, etc. It makes sense that RCI would focus crew deployment to the big ships. I will say it is nice on the smaller ships not having to schedule everything though. 

[Steppy08]

5 minutes ago, firefly333 said:

Ok thanks. I'm just hungry for any news of allure and places open to eat. Read some solariums not fully open yet. So ready for oasis class. 

It was definitely open for breakfast and lunch- we were hanging out there for a couple sea days. We just didn’t make it there for food. 

[Another_Critic]

4 minutes ago, firefly333 said:

Here is what the OP said and why I asked if any pictures of their view and cabin, and of course I read it was a JS .. but thanks for nothing. I would like to see their cabin and views. No matter what they are.

 

"Ship: Allure is starting to show some age, but still looks great. We sailed on her 9 years ago. We enjoyed the boardwalk aft view and pool decks before they pile on the slides and other “amplifications” next spring. "

 

[John&LaLa]

6 minutes ago, Steppy08 said:

Boo. Of course they would try to make more money off those views. We didn’t get a chance to wander back there and find out. 

 

Seems to me it was an under utilized space. Like you said earlier, pretty much no one knew they were there. 😉

 

Here's our view from Allure deck 8 in 2020

 

March 12, 2020. Right before the world as we knew it came to a grinding halt.😪

Edited July 18, 2022 by John&LaLa

[firefly333]

5 minutes ago, Steppy08 said:

Oh okay. Here are the views from this cruise. Room 7644 this time 
 

the “bump balconies” are nice and very private

nice loungers. I was supposed to be right on the outside of the hump on allure last march but rcl postponed terminal 10 in Galveston and I got transferred to liberty from allure. I was so jealous when we pulled up next to allure in cozumel and saw my hump balcony I was supposed to had. 

 

Allure should already be in Galveston darn. Though my ta transferred me to a nice aft on liberty..still for same money should have been allure.

 

Wish she was here already. I've done oasis twice but never allure thanks to covid. Those are extra nice cabins. Very nice thanks. 

[Steppy08]

8 minutes ago, LMaxwell said:

The Enchantment is getting pretty old and not kept up to the slick marketing standards RCI sets for WOW on Quantum-Class, Oasis-Class, or Freedom-Class.   Allure is much more representative of amenities, entertainment, etc. It makes sense that RCI would focus crew deployment to the big ships. I will say it is nice on the smaller ships not having to schedule everything though. 

We like both but for different reasons- the first cruise ship I was ever on was 800 passengers! 
we are back on Grandeur in April so hopefully the staffing issues will resolve by then. 

[Another_Critic]

4 minutes ago, Steppy08 said:

We like both but for different reasons- the first cruise ship I was ever on was 800 passengers! 
we are back on Grandeur in April so hopefully the staffing issues will resolve by then. 

Smallest I've been on was Azamara Journey (694 passengers), but there were only 300 passengers on the 10 night non-stop Lisbon to San Juan TA.  🙂

[Jimbo]

2 hours ago, Biker19 said:

Wait till some RCI haters come in here to tell you other wise - @Jimbo?

No second person on this post? I'm disappointed, guess it's kind of getting old huh?

 

Btw, Who ever said I hated RCI ?

[Ocean Boy]

I'm glad Allure did not disappoint. I've had two excellent cruises on her this year.

[Steppy08]

30 minutes ago, Ocean Boy said:

I'm glad Allure did not disappoint. I've had two excellent cruises on her this year.

We had forgotten how much we liked her. And we still haven’t seen/done everything yet! Need another cruise or five on her. 

[Biker19]

51 minutes ago, Jimbo said:

Btw, Who ever said I hated RCI ?

Well, if you are not a cheerleader..........

[Luv2teachandcruise]

6 hours ago, firefly333 said:

Was johnny rockets open for breakfast? How about the solarium for all 3 meals?

 

I had the donuts on liberty in WJ but grandeur had no filled donuts in WJ but 2 kinds of avacado toast. I dont like their avacado toast, lol  I want slices of avacado not guacamole squeezed out of a bag.

 

Did you try the suite lounge for the donuts. That's where I found them on grandeur in the diamond lounge. 

 

Which deck were you on with your end of boardwalk cabin? I'm on allure b2b in dec. Hoping to eat breakfast at johnny rockets and have their hash browns. I think I'm deck 10 far aft 2nd week to see the wake and diving show. Glad you loved allure. Any pictures of your cabin and view.

We were on the Allure July 3-9. Johnny Rockets was open for breakfast, we ate their twice, but we preferred Wipeout Cafe because they make "made to order" omelettes. And their waffles were delicious!