Daghis Posted August 21, 2011 #1 Share Posted August 21, 2011 Hello, everyone! Just as Radio has finished his fantastic cruise on the Enchantment of the Seas, giving me much enjoyment to read for the past week, we're about to embark on our own cruise on the Allure of the Seas. As I did last year, I'll bring y'all along with me for the cruise to share the experience. I love reading "live" threads and hope that this thread will be enjoyed by others as well. We're planning on heading to the pier around 10:30, so it's about time to get to bed so that I can awake refreshed and full of anticipation for this wonderful week ahead of us! BTW, this is my first time using Tapatalk, so I'm hoping that this will make it even easier to access the forum while onboard. I've got my "Camera Connection Kit" for the iPad, and I've got a method for uploading photos from here, so I'm really hoping I'll be able to share photos as well. I'll keep my fingers crossed that it works as planned. See y'all tomorrow! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
billiebob Posted August 21, 2011 #2 Share Posted August 21, 2011 Certainly looking forward to reading your LIVE review. :) We leave in 7 weeks! :D Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rosebud1g Posted August 21, 2011 #3 Share Posted August 21, 2011 Hi Marc! I will be seeing you at the port- I plan on getting there around the same time so we can get an early jump on things. If you dont mind giving me a few lessons on the IPad picture posting- I have one too. Not familiar with Tapatalk, See you at the port!!!!! Let's get the party started! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bcwaves Posted August 21, 2011 #4 Share Posted August 21, 2011 Can't wait to read your review! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
emmy Posted August 21, 2011 #5 Share Posted August 21, 2011 Will watch you all leave on the portevergladeswebcam.com Say hello to CC friends Lorna and Carol:D Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
riclop Posted August 21, 2011 #6 Share Posted August 21, 2011 Really looking foward to it !!! Enjoy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rhuntington3 Posted August 21, 2011 #7 Share Posted August 21, 2011 /subscribe Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
espressoguy Posted August 21, 2011 #8 Share Posted August 21, 2011 /subscribe ditto Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
time4me2fly Posted August 21, 2011 #9 Share Posted August 21, 2011 Looking forward to cruising with you, even though I have to sit at the computer to do it. How far in advance were you able to book specialty restaurants and shows? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mickey-mouse Posted August 21, 2011 #10 Share Posted August 21, 2011 I hope hurricane doesn't effect our cruise. It is supposed to hit Florida by Thurs./Fri. I'm leaving to fly out to Fort Lauderdale in 1 hour. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Daghis Posted August 21, 2011 Author #11 Share Posted August 21, 2011 Well, as usual, I can't sleep well the night before the cruise, so here I am, checking email and stuff early in the morning. DH is awake also, but the kids are sleeping soundly. Lucky them! I thought this would be a good time to give everyone a bit of background about us. We are a group of five (DH, two sons, 14 and 18, and a family friend) from Pittsburgh. We've sailed a bunch as you can see from my signature, but have become "loyal to Royal" since we sailed on the Liberty of the Seas a few years ago. Thanks to a quick 3-day cruise on the Majesty of the Seas that I managed to squeeze in back in January, right before the cruise credits-to-points change happened, we are now Platinum Crown & Anchor members for the first time. I'm looking forward to being on the other side of the boarding area to see what it's like on that side of the room. :) We sailed on the Oasis of the Seas last year, so I'm looking forward to seeing both what's familiar on the Allure of the Seas as well as what's different. A few highlights in my mind that are on my "to do" list include: Izumi, Rita"s Cantina, Jazz on 4, the Riding Tide Bar, the Champagne Bar, the Cupcake Cupboard, ... well, pretty much all of the Royal Promenade :)..., FlowRider, ice cream on the Pool Deck, the casino, Samba Grill, Park Café, Johnny Rockets, and the comedy club. Yes, those are just a "few". :D Oh, about our cabin... We are booked in a Promenade cabin. What's disappointing to me about the Oasis-class ships, as compared with Voyager- and Freedom-class ships, is the lack of Promenade cabins. There are so few, and even fewer that connect to another cabin (just 3). And those that do connect, do so to a "large interior" (category L) cabin, not another PR cabin. That seems strange to me as well. I guess that's another advantage to us for booking early... we were able to get a cabin that we wanted which was in limited supply. I do love Promenade cabins! Hmmm... Here's a disadvantage to Tapatalk. I can't review the rest of the thread while posting this to reply to others' posts. I guess I'll post those separately. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Daghis Posted August 21, 2011 Author #12 Share Posted August 21, 2011 I will be seeing you at the port- I plan on getting there around the same time so we can get an early jump on things. If you dont mind giving me a few lessons on the IPad picture posting- I have one too. Not familiar with Tapatalk,See you at the port!!!!! Let's get the party started! Sure! I'll be glad to show you my little setup including picture uploading and Tapatalk. See you in a few hours! How far in advance were you able to book specialty restaurants and shows?I seem to recall it was about 70 days out for the shows. I think restaurants opened up earlier than that, but I didn't book any dining in advance. The entertainment opens up somewhere between 60 and 90 days out. At some point, Royal Caribbean opens up several cruises at once. We were a bit later than expected in that regard. One thing that will be interesting to see will be whether our friend can book some of his missing reservations onboard. He neglected to book in advance as I had done, so he doesn't have a few of the reservations that we do. We're hoping that by going to the Show Reservations desk (in Studio B) as soon as we board, he might be able to get those reservations that he couldn't get on the web. I guess we'll see how well that works soon. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LorraineP Posted August 21, 2011 #13 Share Posted August 21, 2011 Help with POQbum. I was able to get the countdown clock in an email but how were you able to get in on Cruise Critic. I would like to put it on my desktop. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gvlgolflady Posted August 21, 2011 #14 Share Posted August 21, 2011 I am so excited to see another live thread with Radio getting off yesterday. Especially this one being from the Allure. We will be sailing the Allure on October 16, Eastern. So happy to be sailing with you. Have a great cruise. Shirley Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
weary traveler Posted August 21, 2011 #15 Share Posted August 21, 2011 will look forward to your live report. safe flight down there... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Daghis Posted August 21, 2011 Author #16 Share Posted August 21, 2011 I was pleased to find this morning that we could indeed see the Allure of the Seas off in the distance! It's always a wonderful time on embarkation day when you can see the ship from your hotel room balcony. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare mac_tlc Posted August 21, 2011 #17 Share Posted August 21, 2011 Looking forward to your review. We got off of the Oasis a week ago ------ and it seems like months ago ! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MACruisers Posted August 21, 2011 #18 Share Posted August 21, 2011 Looking forward to following your LIVE review. We are doing B2B on Allure in Feb/March of 2012. So this will help carry us through. Did you spend your pre-cruise night at the Embassy Suites? I think I recognize that view. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cruiseturbo Posted August 21, 2011 #19 Share Posted August 21, 2011 Looking forward to your review as we board the Allure 14 days from today! It will help me pass the time. Take good care of her for us!:D Debra Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Daghis Posted August 21, 2011 Author #20 Share Posted August 21, 2011 Help with POQbum. I was able to get the countdown clock in an email but how were you able to get in on Cruise Critic. I would like to put it on my desktop. Here's the code that I put into my signature here on Cruise Critic. You can edit the numbers/text embedded in this code to put your own message and time/date. <embed src="http://files.myspace-toys.com/Files/Gens/countdown/cndplayer.swf?skinn=http://files.myspace-toys.com/Files/Gens/countdown/skin3.swf&bg_c=16777215&bg_mc=0x003366&tcm=b2b2fe&tcu=fa7fed&msg=Allure%20of%20the%20Seas%20August%2021,%202011&tyear=2011&tmonth=8&tday=21&thours=11&tminutes=0&tseconds=0" wmode="transparent" quality="high" name="cndplayer" height="180" width="310"> Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Daghis Posted August 21, 2011 Author #21 Share Posted August 21, 2011 Did you spend your pre-cruise night at the Embassy Suites? I think I recognize that view. Yes, we did! Good eye! I like staying here since it can hold all four of us reasonably well and it's pretty cost effective. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LorraineP Posted August 21, 2011 #22 Share Posted August 21, 2011 I already put info in on POQbum.com but can't figure how to get onto my desktop. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
debshomespun Posted August 21, 2011 #23 Share Posted August 21, 2011 Thanks for the "LIVE" report! Will be tuning in each day, as we board the Allure in just 7 weeks! We are your neighbors! Will be flying out of Pittsburgh first of October to board the Oasis, the will be boarding the Allure! Can't wait! Have a great cruise! Can you let me know if they have any live Calypso bands playing poolside on sea days! Thanks! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Daghis Posted August 21, 2011 Author #24 Share Posted August 21, 2011 Here we are! We're in the Platinum boarding area! The ship is so close... and so big! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nenner1 Posted August 21, 2011 #25 Share Posted August 21, 2011 Really excited to sail along with you...until it's our turn in 4 weeks! :) Thanks so much for sharing your adventures on Allure with us!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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