ALLURE REVIEW AND ALL THAT JAZZ: Western Caribbean July 15, 2012

Welcome! :)

If you’re reading this, you must be interested in sailing on the Allure. Or you like reading all the cruise reviews (like I do). Or maybe you’re at work and just B-O-R-E-D and looking for a distraction -- ANY distraction.

Whatever it is, I’m glad you’re here! We had a great cruise on the world’s largest cruise ship. And although there were a few minor bumps on our voyage, I would do it again in a heartbeat.

First a little background:

This was our first cruise on RCI. We have sailed on Disney and Celebrity previously. We’re a family of four who live in Fort Lauderdale.

· Kim (me)

· Dear Hubby (DH) Tom

· DS Tommy, 14

· DD Marissa, 8

Here's our itinerary:

Sunday: Fort Lauderdale

Monday: At Sea

Tuesday: Labadee, Haiti

Wednesday: Falmouth, Jamaica

Thursday: At Sea

Friday: Cozumel, Mexico

Saturday: At Sea

Sunday: Fort Lauderdale

This cruise was to celebrate our 20-year wedding anniversary (which is really weird because I’m only 26). ;) We booked this Western Caribbean sailing back in February. We had a Superior Ocean Balcony Room . I think that’s what the category is called. It was on Deck 12. Cabin 12276 to be exact.

Sidenote: This brings me to my disclaimer. The normally warm, wonderful and knowledgeable Cruise Critic community can be really harsh if you give out incorrect or incomplete information. This was my first hesitation when deciding to do this review. I’m not an RCI expert. I am only sharing what I experienced and my perceptions. If I get something wrong, please feel free to point it out nicely! I don’t mind criticism … as long as it’s to be helpful and not just to prove to everyone that I'm a dumba$$. :D

My second – and last – hesitation is that I wasn’t sure another Allure review was really necessary. There are a lot out there. But I know I gobbled them down like chocolate-covered cherries when planning my cruise. I loved, loved, loved reading everything about the ship and everyone's experiences. And I've realy been looking forward to sharing my experiences with this group.

Also -- as first-time RCI cruisers, and a family of four, we might have a slightly different perspective than some of the others. And lastly, the ship is humongous! You would have to read a ton of reviews to learn about all it offers.

Along the way, I will be sharing tips that will hopefully make your cruise go smoothly. Some are things I wish I would have known before our sailing. Others were just boneheaded mistakes someone in our family made. (And by someone, I clearly mean me.)

Here’s a pic of my family. This is on the Celebrity on our last cruise in January. I don't have one of all four of us from this cruise. (Mom is lame.) But don’t worry – I have lots of pics from this cruise that I will be sharing. Including the crowd-pleasing food porn!

Now that wasn't nice of me at all. I mention food porn and don't include an image. So here's one of our first meal of the cruise. I'm sure none of you can guess what it was. ;)

NEXT: Embarkation and Day 1

Great start! Love reading trip reports!!!!

Can hardly wait for more!

Thanks for making the font bigger for us older folks. :D We'll be doing the same itinerary on the Allure in ten weeks so I'm looking forward to reading your review!

I'm in. :)

Okay, let’s get this party started. We live in Fort Lauderdale, so we didn’t have to make any travel plans. We’re only about 20 minutes from Port Everglades.

The night before the cruise, I was up late. Really late. I was finishing packing for four people, doing some last-minute work projects to prepare for being out of the office -- and way too excited to sleep.

So after only three hours of shuteye, it was time to get up, get moving and get ready. I couldn’t believe our cruise was actually here!

We left for the port about 10 a.m. Our friend Dave drove us so we could avoid the parking charges. (He’s a great guy.) We arrived at 10:30, and the port was pretty chaotic. Lots of people leaving and arriving. We got dropped off, said goodbye to Dave and headed inside! WOOHOO!!!!

Security was a breeze and soon we were up to the check-in area. At Port Everglades, RCI does the check-in by Deck #, so we found the (non-existent) line for Deck 12 and walked up to the counter. Check-in was brief, and we took our Sea Pass photos. Afterward, we posed for the cursory embarkation ship pics and headed upstairs to the waiting area.

We sat down, and I got comfy -- ready to read the Cruise Planner. Only we didn’t have one. Instead, we had two Deck Plans. I had specifically asked for a planner but no luck. It was my fault for not checking.

I’m a bit anal, and a huge planner. So anyone who knows me understands that this drove me absolutely freaking nuts. I kept looking at everyone reading their planner, becoming more and more certain that I was missing out on vital information, and our vacation would surely suffer as a result.

Tom could tell I was getting a little stressed, so he suggested I request one from the many RCI staff members on the floor. No one had one, and I really didn’t want to leave the family to go back downstairs. So I took a deep breath, put on my big girl panties and decided to relax.

I took Marissa over to a really cool playground in the waiting area. She had a lot of fun climbing through the different levels and sliding down. I thought it was great that they had this for the kids to enjoy.

Around 11:30, our group was called! We got up, holding our Sea Pass cards in our hands. They must have made the overhead announcement that you needed to have your Sea Pass cards in your hands at least 20 times while we were waiting. Tom and I were making bets on what percentage of passengers would still not be holding them as they boarded.

They checked our cards three times during boarding. We entered the ship through the Promenade and my mouth dropped.

WOW!!!WOW!!!WOW!!!WOW!!!WOW!!!WOW!!!

Everything I had read … all the pictures I perused … could not prepare me for the magnitude of this ship. I was blown away. The Allure is so big and so beautiful. And everything inside the Promenade was gleaming. I almost felt like I was dreaming as we walked past the cupcake store, the Bow and Stern Pub and all of the great venues I had heard so much about.

It was nothing like the ships we had cruised on before. And I was overwhelmed but in a totally awesome way.

I loved exploring, but as a planner, I had a plan. And that was to get our butts to Central Park asap to enjoy one of the world-famous Park Café roast beef sandwiches. We got there, and there was only one other table in the place. One of the great advantages to getting on board early.

So did the sandwiches live up to the hype? Heck Yeah! The roast beef was tender, the bun was soft and the horseradish was perfect. Maybe it’s not the world’s greatest, but it was probably the best lunch I’ve had on a cruise ship. For drinks, we had mango water and strawberry-kiwi water. Tasted kind of like Vitamin Water. It was pretty good.

After full bellies, we went to Adventure Ocean (AO) to get Marissa signed up. That’s when I learned that the kids’ club isn’t open the first night. Not a big deal, but Tom and I like to explore the various lounges on our first sailing night to find our perfect nightcap spot. The kids' club has been open after dinner on our previous cruises.

But no worries … we were smart enough to bring a babysitter with us! Tommy is almost 15, and he agreed to watch movies with Marissa after dinner.

The kids’ facilities were impressive. AO has large play rooms divided by age, as well as a science lab and an actual movie theatre. I thought it was cool but I was a little worried about the lack of things to do in the play rooms. The main rooms didn’t look as fun or interesting as our Disney cruises.

I asked if Marissa could try the 9-11 group or if she had to stay in the 6-8. She was one month away from turning 9. The staff was very receptive and agreed that Marissa could try both. But they did say that they would assess her. If they decided she needed to be in the 6-8 group, then that’s where she would have to stay. I thought it was awesome that they were so flexible.

(Turns out, it wasn’t needed. Marissa tried the 6-8 group first and decided to stay there. Especially after she saw how big the kids were in the 9-11 group. Marissa is a munchkin.)

We then went to check out the teen area. We knew Tommy wouldn’t set foot in there – he’s a bit of a loner and doesn't like dance music. But we thought we should at least look at it. This area is awesome! Kind of like a cool nightclub. I thought it was neat that once the cruise started, parents were no longer allowed in the space. You would have to send a crew member in to collect your teen.

This is where one of the oddest moments of the cruise occurred. As we’re touring the teen club, we wandered into an area away from the main space that had high booths. And standing there in the open is an older woman … around 60 I’m guessing … in her bra!!!! She’s changing her shirt in the teen club!

Tom and I stared for a moment; we couldn’t quite believe what we were seeing. Then we tried to usher the kids out. Tommy was laughing hysterically. And Marissa said loudly, “What is she doing? Why isn’t she in the bathroom?”

Out of the mouths of babes. That was my question exactly. There were bathrooms close by so why would anyone think it’s okay to change clothes in teen club? I get it: Your cabin isn’t ready. But geez!

Marissa in one of the cool chairs they have outside of the teen area.

And here's Tommy.

We had to stop by Wipeout Cafe so the kids could get an ice cream. The ice cream parlor on board has an extra charge. But the soft serve in Wipeout Cafe and in the pool area are free.

The famous Flowrider. We boarded early so no one was using it yet.

Wipeout bar right next to the Flowriders. One of our favorite things to do on sea days was to grab a beer and sit in the bleachers to watch people try out the surfing and boogie boarding.

Marissa is too small to zipline. Maybe next time!

NEXT : Exploring the Boardwalk and Seeing Our Cabin!

I'm enjoying your review with photos!! We are sailing in a few weeks and getting very excited. :D Lovely family. Thank for doing this!!

Enjoying your review and photo's. Can't wait for the rest of it.

 

My second – and last – hesitation is that I wasn’t sure another Allure review was really necessary. There are a lot out there. But I know I gobbled them down like chocolate-covered cherries when planning my cruise. I loved, loved, loved reading everything about the ship and everyone's experiences. And I've realy been looking forward to sharing my experiences with this group.

 

And this is precisely why you must share your review...because people like me who will be sailing next(and with a teens) need to read it;) So glad you decided to review...can't wait for the rest!

Great review! Sailing Allure for the first time next April and love to hear opinions and suggestions. Look forward to the rest.

can't wait to read more! Going on Allure in November for Thanksgiving and my 20th anniversary. We also have kids. :)

Kelly

Can't wait to read the rest!! We are sailing in 15 days!!!!! We are celebrating our 20th too!!! I too am reading all I can read about the Allure! I can't wait!!!

71 Days until our Allure cruise. I personally love all of the reviews. I learn something new in each one! Looking forward to the rest!

Enjoying your review. Reviews for me never become old hat.

Eventhough everyone is cruising they all have different interests and needs. Everyone on a cruise has a different experience and I thank you for taking time to share yours.

Really enjoying your fab review :)

Thanks for a great review, can't wait for more. We will be on her in 5 weeks and one day.;)

great start

You are using a very nice style of reviewing by placing you photos within the context of your story.

Keep up the good work.....I'm "bored" and hungry for more.;):):)

PS: you have a very nice looking family.

Thank you so much for all the nice comments!!! I really appreciate it, and I'm glad you're enjoying the review so far.

Soooooo ... when we left off we had just run into the topless woman in the teen room. (That's a weird sentence. :))

It was about 12:30 and our cabin would be ready at 1 p.m. So we headed down to the Boardwalk to take a ride on the carousel.

It was a lot of fun, and Marissa rode it several times during the cruise. There was never a line, and they would let the kids ride as many times as they like. I just thought it was so cool to be on a carousel on a ship.

So did the ship ever feel crowded? Absolutely. Promenade on embarkation day was craaaaazy. I occasionally saw big crowds at the Windjammer. And the pools during sea days got very crowded. But it was pretty much the same on our previous Disney and Celebrity cruises. The popular areas of a ship can get crowded.

The majority of the time, however, the Allure didn't feel crowded at all. Which is pretty significant since we cruised in July, and I think the ship was near capacity. I was amazed at how many times we would go into a lounge, bar, venue and be the only ones there.

So after our carousel ride, Tom and I went into Rita's Cantina for our first drink of the cruise. Tom got a Dos Equis (he doesn't always drink beer, but when he does ...) and I had an absolutely delicious margarita. I can't stand overly sweet margaritas, and this one was perfect.

Then we headed to our cabin. Our cabin was on Deck 12 in the back of the ship, very close to the elevators. We were also close to one of the secret decks, which was great. It was so convenient to be able to pop down there for 20 or 30 minutes, grab a lounge chair and read a magazine.

And I only saw other passengers there once or twice during the entire cruise.

So we get to our room, and I was very pleased. Overall just a really nice stateroom. All four of us shared the cabin, and space was never a problem. Partially because we were hardly ever in the room anyway. Too much to do!

Three of our eight suitcases were already there so I got started unpacking. We met our cabin attendant, Antony, who was very welcoming. We asked about getting our mini-bar emptied so we could use the refrigerator but he told us just to take out the drinks and leave them in the room.

I would have rather had them removed, but it wasn't a big deal. There was a skinny shelf above the television where the mini bar beverages fit perfectly. So that's where they stayed through the trip.

We wanted the fridge emptied because we brought 12-packs of bottled water and Coke Zero in our checked baggage. I had read on Cruise Critic that security really doesn't care about non-alcoholic beverages. And that was definitely true at Port Everglades. I saw people with 12-packs of soda go through security and drink them in the waiting area. The water and coke arrived to our stateroom with no problem.

We still hadn't received all of our baggage but we didn't want to wait around in the room. So Tommy went to explore on his own and me, Tom and Marissa headed off to tour the spa.

A $1 swipe of your Sea Pass card and Zoltar will tell your fortune!

Marissa and I show off our matching shirts!!!

Thanks for making the font bigger for us older folks. :D We'll be doing the same itinerary on the Allure in ten weeks so I'm looking forward to reading your review!

I accidentally posted the last installment thinking I was "previewing." :eek: Sorry I didn't enlarge the font. I will in the next post!

I'm glad you're enjoying the review!

You can tell Tommy is loving the carousel.

The kids enjoyed posing for pictures with the props in the Boardwalk.

There's a cute little play area outside of Rita's. I was so impressed with all the little unexpected "touches" like this throughout the ship. There were surprises around every corner.

Our first adult beverages of the cruise! Our vacation has officially begun!

Our cabin before any of us messed it up. Pretty, right?

Next Up: Touring the Spa, Muster Drill and Sailaway!

can't wait to read more! Going on Allure in November for Thanksgiving and my 20th anniversary. We also have kids. :)

 

Kelly

Congrats on your 20th!!!! Cruising on the Allure is the perfect way to celebrate! :D

Thank you for taking the time to write the review. I can't wait to read more! BTW, I love your writing style.:)

I am like you and can't read enough before I cruise. thanks for your review.

:confused: I too like to take sodas with me, but have only done so when we didn't have to fly. I'm concerned about packing sodas with luggage for fear they'll explode and ruin my clothes. Do you pack cans or bottles?

Do you pack them in any special way?