Taste the Allure, just back from FLL!

[stephaniekleinn]

Argh, I hate writing this review because it means that I’m home and not on the Allure. My husband, myself, and four of my closest friends had an amazing time!

 

I’m 38, my husband is 42, and our friends range from 35-40. Three of us live in Tampa, and the other three live in GA.

 

We flew from Tampa to FLL on Southwest without a hitch and arrived around 9am. Please note we did receive the “don’t arrive at port until after 1230pm due to sequesters” email but we had this flight booked many months before the email came out. We arrived at the FLL airport around 9:15 am and immediately jumped a cab for the port. The cab ride was about $20 for three of us with 4 large suitcases. Note: initially I booked the bus from RCCL to take us from the airport to the cruise terminal but that was $20 each and I read some pretty lousy reviews so we cancelled that and just hopped a cab.

 

We arrived at the port at about 9:40, gave our bags to the porters and went to get in line. They hadn’t even opened the doors to let into the cruise terminal yet so we were first in line. Within about a minute of arriving they did open the doors and we were instructed to wait just inside the doors. They told us the lines would open at 10am. The man that opened the doors was great, there was a small group of 15 or so people and he kept trying to pump us up. He told us the first thing we should do when we got on board is to head for the roast beef sandwich at the Park Café (this was our plan anyway but he was still funny). He also explained that there were a lot of international travelers on the last sailing so they were working like mad to get them cleared through customs so we could get on the ship.

 

At 10AM we went through security, checked in, got our PI sticker (this is the Premium Beverage Package sticker they put on your card), took our welcome aboard photo, and shuffled upstairs to wait to board. We are Emerald C&A members, each loyalty level had their own waiting area and you sit in the order you arrive. We had a lovely usher and she pulled us aside to give us a tip when we got on board, anyone care to guess what it was? YEP, Roast Beef sandwiches in the Park Café! I’d say way waited there about an hour (long enough to gloat on Facebook and to call home and check on the family) and they started calling guests to board. First back to back cruisers, suite guests, and then down the level of tiers for the loyalty program. My guess is we were about the 75th people to board the ship.

 

As we got on board I was in awe. She truly is marvelous! We boarded right at Sorrento’s, took a right to the elevators, hit the button to deck 8 and went straight to the Park Café. There were maybe 4 or 5 people already in line, we waited, ordered our sandwiches and chips, and had a seat outside. My husband also went to the bar next door to get his first drink! The sandwiches are all they are cracked up to be. As we sat there the line got longer and longer and by the time we were done the line must have been 30 people deep. They move it very quickly and its definitely worth the wait.

 

After a bite to eat we took an elevator to the top of the ship and started working our way down. The flow riders are amazing, really neat, there were already people using those, I figure that must have been a first stop for some of the kids. The ship really is amazing, there are so many activities packed into 7 days that you just can’t fit everything into one vacation. We walked around the pool decks and were awed at the kids pool area, theres a current pool that spins them in a circle (think washing machine), and a lot of structures that spray water and have streams for the kids to play in. I thought that the pool area was a little small for the size of the ship but you also have the solarium area with a half circle pool and hot tubs so I guess that’s ok. As it turns out, we spent so much of our time doing activities that I didn’t spend one second at a pool the whole cruise…more about that later.

 

We walked each deck and made it all the way down to deck 5 before we ran into our other group and called it quits. We found them in the Bow and Stern (which I continually called the Pig and Whistle because that’s what it was on the Voyager 10 years ago) and had a few cocktails. I’ll take this opportunity to mention the premium beverage package we purchased. Did I get my monies worth ($55/day)? No. Was it worth it anyway? Absolutely. I’m picking with drinks, I don’t like them strong, and I don’t like a lot of pineapple. I also wanted to try different things that I normally wouldn’t at $7 a drink. One of the girls in our group was drinking a long island iced tea and it was great, my husband ordered one and it was HORRIBLE. We told the waiter, he had it remade for us, it was still a little rough but there was no pressure to drink it. We just ordered a different drink and it was great. Another time I ordered a drink, it was horrible, super strong, and I just left it at the table. I would most definitely order this package again…..on to the rest of the review!

 

We had cabin 9595 which was a Central Park View room. I loved this room, it was super quiet, right over Giovanni’s table, and I loved the window seat. Our friends had an inside cabin (9673) and a balcony cabin (9596? directly across the hall so I don’t know what the exact number was). We used dry erase boards to keep in touch with everyone and that worked out great.

 

Food: We had table 416 and loved Andy, Supryiadi (sp) our wait staff and Ethel from bar service. I’d give the food a solid B, we ate in the dining room all but the last evening. We had lunch at Giovanni’s table (A), Johnny Rockets (B), and the Windjammer (B), breakfast at Johnny Rockets (A), the Windjammer (B-), and the Wipeout Café (B). None of the food was bad, some of it was just ok but you have to remember your feeding 6k people….it was outstanding if you take this into consideration. All the venues for free food were good, we hit the hot dog place a couple of times, the Park Café for salads and roast beef sandwiches etc. Our biggest disappointment came in the form of Rita’s Cantina. We saved this for the last day because we wanted a little party atmosphere on the last day. The food was mediocre at best….everything I read told me this but we wanted to try it for ourselves, we aren’t that picky. Well its everything you read…..lousy service, lousy drinks, and lousy food. Skip it, I wish we did.

 

Nassau: We did the Bahamas Segway and Beach Experience. What a great trip! I would highly recommend this. Aaron from Oregon and his wife own this business and he personally picked us up at the ship, drove us out to the area for the tour (note, they do stop and pick up from two other hotels, the ride is about 30 minutes) he gives a full commentary on the island, shows great places to stop and visit for a bite to eat etc. and answers any questions you may have. The tour was given by Meeks and was about $65pp. She was awesome, showed you everything to do and NOT TO DO on the Segway, and really made you feel comfortable before getting on. The area toured was all wilderness and beach front, there was a beach stop where you could sit in chairs or go in the water, bottle water was provided, there was even an area on the beach where you could take home a conch shell that the fishermen had left behind. Please note, you cannot bring the shell back on the boat so just leave them for the guests who are staying at the hotel. We learned that the hard way.

 

St. Thomas: We did Godfrey’s tour. It was only $25pp so we really can’t complain, I don’t think I’d do it again because I was terrified of the steep curvy roads while it was raining but if that doesn’t bother you, have at it! We stopped at the top of the mountain and got the famous banana daiquiri….REALLY STRONG….get the virgin or tell the guy to go light on the rum! The stops along the tour were good but it was raining so it did lessen the experience a little. They let you do an hour of shopping before the tour and we really didn’t need it. Unless you are looking for jewelry or liquor it really didn’t pay to do the shopping.

 

St. Maarten: Half the group did Capt. Bob’s tour, which they loved, and the other half did Maho Beach. I can’t speak to Capt Bobs tour but those that did it loved it. I did Maho beach and it was neat, we took a taxi out, about 15+ minutes, watched a bunch of little planes come in, and then the big one came, REALLY NEAT, after that we packed back up and took a taxi back to the ship. We did rent deck chairs at Maho for $10/per chair, after we paid we decided to move to different chairs closer to the middle of the beach, we found that the chairs we moved to were broken so make sure you check the chairs before you pay for them.

 

Shows: I love Broadway and production shows so I was very excited and booked all of our entertainment the day it opened. Our first night was Chicago, LOVED IT. I love the show anyway, knew the songs so of course I loved it. Comedy Show, Great! Ocean Aria…..ehhhh…yes the diving and the strong men were great but the “show” part was weak, the female dancers were horrible. The men in our group didn’t care for it at all. Blue Planet….horrible. There were one or two parts that were good, everything else was bad bad bad. I know all shows are subjective but we heard a lot of the same comment from others as they were leaving. This was the casts first time doing the show (they change casts twice a year I heard) but it wasn’t the casts fault, the show was just horrible. My husband saw the Madagascar Aqua show and he said it was the best show they had. We caught about two minutes of the Ice Games show and decided not to go back for our reservation time, it just wasn’t our thing either.

 

Activities on Board: We did almost every trivia game on board (progressive, name that celebrity, etc). We did the Quest (props to Phillip for being the driving force of Team 5), Battle of the Sexes, Belly Flop contest, Sexiest Man Contest, Love and Marriage, Flip Video Scavenger Hunt etc. There is always something to do….if you want to do it.

 

Things to note: we utilized the secret balconies on deck 11 A LOT. This “secret” is out but most aren’t taking advantage of it. There were never more than three people anytime I went. In hindsight I wouldn’t participate in so many activities, the cruise wasn’t as relaxing. The ship never felt packed except when we got out of the muster drill. We never had a problem finding an elevator.

 

As the cruise came to an end we were all anxious to get home to the kids but we were sad to leave. There was so much we didn't get a chance to do, you just can’t do it all. We ended up making three separate “future cruise bookings” because we know we’ll use them. We had #3 luggage tags which lets you off between 720-745. We headed to breakfast at 700 at Adagio on the third floor, had a buffet breakfast, they called our tags and we were off the ship within minutes. We found our luggage quickly, zipped through customs, grabbed a cab to FLL and were back at the airport by 8AM. Our flight wasn't until noon so we had quite a wait but we wanted to make sure we had enough time to not have to rush.

 

All in all it was an amazing trip and I’m ready to go back. We’ll go again in April of next year, after we figure out the FCAT schedule and we’ll take the kids. It will be a totally different cruise with kids but it’s something I want to see through their eyes too.

[lvstitch]

Awesome review, thanks for sharing:D

[Jon in the ATL]

Nice review. We were on the Allure a few weeks back and thought the shows were great. We're Broadway subscribers and see the Cirque shows when they come to town at home.

 

I was amazed by Ocean Aria just for the simple fact that it was going on the back of a moving ship. And Blue Planet was very Cirque-like in my opinion. With the way they were flipping themselves around, I'd be hard-pressed to call that "horrible".

 

But you're right, it's an amazing ship!

[anandaindonesia]

Thanks for sharing. Mine is still 361 days long wait... ...

[jakesmom04]

We sailed with you, lots to do and you can't get it all in! We did Oceanaria and Ice Games for the shows. Never felt crowded to us either. Had a wonderful time and can't wait to cruise again.

[Peeker28]

What is the Quest? I'm going on Oasis in June and I keep hearing about Quest but I'm not familiar with it.

[akcruz]

What is the Quest? I'm going on Oasis in June and I keep hearing about Quest but I'm not familiar with it.

 

Quest is an adult scavenger hunt. Don't try to find out too much about it before you go, but if you do go have an open mind (yes it is adult entertainment) and enjoy.

[BillOh]

Welcome back! That should hold me over till this weekend. We are also doing the Nassau Segway excursion. We did a similar one many years ago in Nassau.

[Gail & Marty sailing away]

Thanks for the info ..

[birdylady]

 

Activities on Board: We did almost every trivia game on board (progressive, name that celebrity, etc). We did the Quest (props to Phillip for being the driving force of Team 5), Battle of the Sexes, Belly Flop contest, Sexiest Man Contest, Love and Marriage, Flip Video Scavenger Hunt etc. There is always something to do….if you want to do it.

 

Things to note: we utilized the secret balconies on deck 11 A LOT. This “secret” is out but most aren’t taking advantage of it. There were never more than three people anytime I went. In hindsight I wouldn’t participate in so many activities, the cruise wasn’t as relaxing. The ship never felt packed except when we got out of the muster drill. We never had a problem finding an elevator.

Thank you for your review. We are SO looking forward to our sailing in just under 2 weeks (YEAH!). Question- What is the 'Flip Video Scavenger Hunt".

 

Also, thanx for reminding me about the 'secret' balconies on Deck 11.

 

Erika

[stephaniekleinn]

Thank you for your review. We are SO looking forward to our sailing in just under 2 weeks (YEAH!). Question- What is the 'Flip Video Scavenger Hunt".

 

Also, thanx for reminding me about the 'secret' balconies on Deck 11.

 

Erika

 

Erika, The flip video scavenger hunt is just that. They send your group of however many and a flip video camera on a scavenger hunt or give you tasks to do. You have about 20 minutes to do it and then come back and they show certain clips from each persons video camera. It was a lot of fun!

 

Stephanie

[stephaniekleinn]

Nice review. We were on the Allure a few weeks back and thought the shows were great. We're Broadway subscribers and see the Cirque shows when they come to town at home.

 

I was amazed by Ocean Aria just for the simple fact that it was going on the back of a moving ship. And Blue Planet was very Cirque-like in my opinion. With the way they were flipping themselves around, I'd be hard-pressed to call that "horrible".

 

But you're right, it's an amazing ship!

 

I too have a broadway pass here in Tampa and I LOVE Cirque. Maybe they've changed up the show a little but there weren't a lot of cirque type things in the show. There was some ribbon work....the most exciting thing was the trampoline act during it but it felt out of place.

 

I guess everyone will have to judge for themselves....I'm sure it appeals to some, it just wasn't my cup of tea.

 

Either way, there are enough things to do on the ship to appeal to everyone!

[rednancy1]

Nice review. Thank you for posting. :)

[Gail and Ken]

Another thing to look for on the ship are the 3D photos and 3D trinkets. They are in the brass stands with a glass look thru on top and in brass binoculars at some exits and doorways . I think there are 34 of them around the ship. A hint to get you started there is one outside of the park cafe and another on deck eight at entrance to central park behind the door ..won't tell you which door. Lol..fun to spot them while exploring the ship.

 

Sent from Gail's Galaxy S3

[jewel825]

Thanks for the review! You were on the ship the week after us. I hope we left her just as nice as we had her. :) We did have a lot of international travelers on our cruise (tons of Europeans) and a few times I heard them make announcements just for the German passengers. Your review of the shows was exactly opposite of what I thought. I loved the water show, but was not impressed with Chicago. I like the idea of the premium beverage package especially when you don't like a particular drink and you can leave it to try something new. Often times I get something I don't like and since they are so expensive, I feel obligated to finish it!

 

I agree, it's so sad to be home and have your cruise over and done with.

[krewzin]

Interesting that you flew from Tampa...something we had never considered. If you don't mind my asking, how much was the flight on SWA (we always drive the 4 1/2 hours and I hate it!)?

[stephaniekleinn]

Interesting that you flew from Tampa...something we had never considered. If you don't mind my asking, how much was the flight on SWA (we always drive the 4 1/2 hours and I hate it!)?

 

We got a special and it was $89 each way. I hate the drive too! My husband wasn't too happy about flying (he's 6"6' and has to fly all the time for business) but I hate driving, i figured once we paid for gas, parking, etc it was comparable.

[suizas]

Welcome back! That should hold me over till this weekend. We are also doing the Nassau Segway excursion. We did a similar one many years ago in Nassau.

 

Have a great cruise ~~ and enjoy the running track :-) ~~ best way to start the day off on Allure!

[jakesmom04]

Welcome back! That should hold me over till this weekend. We are also doing the Nassau Segway excursion. We did a similar one many years ago in Nassau.

 

Have a great week! Jealous already.

[fleeflicker]

Very Nice

[rsharp83]

Are you certain that they actually got to go on Capt Bobs powerboat tour? We were on your sailing and were going to do that tour. When we got there he canceled it because of high winds and rough seas.

 

 

Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk HD

[stephaniekleinn]

Are you certain that they actually got to go on Capt Bobs powerboat tour? We were on your sailing and were going to do that tour. When we got there he canceled it because of high winds and rough seas.

 

 

Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk HD

 

Yep they didn't do the speed boat, they did the big sail boat....from 9am - noon and capt bob provided lunch....they have the sunburns to prove they went lol!

[trev71]

Lovely review thank you, on the allure in 10 days cant wait :)

[Trainman-2]

Great Review!

 

All it was missing was this photo...

 

[NMG318]

What time did you go and then head back to the ship from Maho Beach. We plan on going there and have heard the traffic gets really bad toward the afternoon? Was the Sunset Bar at the beach very crowded?