Allure - Live August 28th to September 4th - Changes in Latitude Change my Attitude

[A&L_Ont]

Thanks for the Virtual Cruise last week you did a great job.:)

Did you find that there were long waits for Restaurants and other activities with the cabin category that you had?

 

 

 

I will address your question in my post cruise shake down, which we posted in the next day or so. Thank you for positive feedback.

 

 

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[Relax@Sea]

I will address your question in my post cruise shake down, which we posted in the next day or so. Thank you for positive feedback.

 

 

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Will stay tuned.:D

[Lisa&Neb]

In your post cruise shakedown, if you happen to know if the new dining menus were aboard the Allure that would be awesome. I know someone posted pictures of the new menus on Oasis so I can always search them up again, just wondering about the MDR. Also, are the menus in the Coastal Kitchen still just 2 and they change 1/2 way through the cruise.

 

Thanks so much for your reviews and periscopes

[leaveitallbehind]

Very informative and entertaining. Thanks for taking all the time with this, Andrew.

 

Best to all - and congrats Owen on the two 360's!

[rkkunk]

We do have a long wait for Harmony, but we have a 9 day Alaska booked on Radiance for May 2017.

 

With our son starting high school this year it will be harder to just get up and go like we are used to. Although my husband would like to fit another cruise in there somewhere.

 

Until then we'll live vicariously through you guys and others. Lol!

 

 

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[A&L_Ont]

Lisa and I both noticed a few specific things this sailing. In this post we will deal with the pool deck.

 

First of all I will talk about the kids pool area. This thread is not the place to talk about whether or not RC should have lifeguards but I will make note of the changes we have seen since we sailed in March. Last year they had life vests at the pool for children but this cruise we saw it noted in the compass.

 

 

 

They also had images on the screen at the Aqua Theatre that went through the slide rotation about life jackets and watching your children at the pools.

 

 

 

They also had 2 crew members watching kids pools. One for the actual pool and another specifically for the circular pool. For the circular pool they measured the children's heights if there was any doubt. They strictly limited the number of children to the allotted 17 in the circular pool. I spoke to a sports desk staff that I knew who covered that pool and it was enforced.

 

Any kids who jumped into the kid's pool, circular pool, or any of the other pools were specifically warmed not to do it by the deck crew that were watching the pools. All the other pools (except Solarium) had 1 deck attendant watching specifically for people jumping in.

 

At all pools they also another deck attendant making certain that no food got any where near the water. Lisa said they were specific about all glass bottle drinks in the pools and I saw a gentleman with an aluminum bottle being spoken too.

 

Lisa did say she saw some towels being removed but also saw other towels being left unattended for hours. As always the normal notice was in the compass for towels and deck chairs.

 

 

At the flow rider I noticed a lot more strictness regarding the rules, even during advanced riding. Having just cruised in March I was allowed to do simple tricks that this week were frowned upon and not allowed. When I asked the supervisor that I know, he said basically that they are holding to the rules.

 

On a side note we really noticed that all the pools seemed murky at the end of the day. It got worse as the cruise went on, most likely because it was just so darn hot. As always the first day was the cleanest day. [emoji6]

 

 

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Edited September 5, 2016 by A&L_Ont

[A&L_Ont]

We also noticed these interesting points in the compass. They vary from funny to serious.

 

Where are my towel animals?

 

 

 

Don't forget the theatre is cool, what a great warning.

 

 

 

On a more serious note there was a note in the compass daily stating that body worn cameras are being worn by ship security guards. Regretfully with some occurrences that have happened this will help RC and guests if something serious occurs.

 

We have never seen this warning on cruises previously. That being said, I did look at guards around the ship and I didn't visually see cameras on all of them. Maybe it depends on their role or maybe some cameras were hidden better than others.

 

 

 

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Edited September 5, 2016 by A&L_Ont

[jaspercat]

 

My virtual cruise is over. Thank you Andrew for another great review and awesome 'scopes/pics!

 

[A&L_Ont]

Next I will quickly talk about the food.

 

For breakfasts we ate JR and it did the trick. It was hot but not as fast in the past. For lunch when we were on the ship we ate either the Dog House, Wipe Out Cafe and Owen often got pizza at Sorento's. If they had decent pizza I would have had some. They did have build your own pizza again but I didn't have time to wait.

 

For dinners we ate at Sabor two times, Giovanni's once, Chops two times, JR once and at the WJ once. We did not eat in the MDR or the Coastal Kitchen on this sailing mainly because we had Owen with us.

 

The best meal was the second time at Chops. The worst meal was at Giovanni's. We haven't been cruising for decades but we have seen the decline in dining quality but for us it is really no big deal. You already know that we are laid back and easy going so it takes a lot to make us find fault with an experience.

 

The issue with Giovanni's was they were overpacked to the point that all their tables in Central Park and inside were full. Thankfully our reservation was for 6:30pm right before the real rush hit and all the tables were filled.

 

It took 30 minutes to order and another 30 minutes to receive our apps. The mozzarella wrapped with prosciutto was cold and not hot like all the others times we have had it. We consumed it anyhow.

 

By the time our mains arrived it was 1.5 hours in to the meal. Lisa's pasta was undercooked and Owens was only slightly better. Lisa in a very polite way told our waiter that it was undercooked and he wanted to get us more but we declined. My dish was good but at that point we just wanted out. Owen did well but it is too much to ask a 9 year old to last 2 hours. They packed us some cannoli to go and we did.

 

If the meal hadn't been included with my our cabin we would have spoken to someone about the whole ordeal. The sad thing is it looked as though everyone that night was in the same position. The folks beside us had the exact same time frame to their meal as us. In fact the gentleman had to wait at least 30 minutes to get his drink after he mentioned it to 3 people other than his waiter.

 

I'm not sure if it was formal night that caused this rush or what it was. There was no shortage in staff, they actually had table runners from Sabor and Park Cafe to help. I believe they just have too many tables for the size of the kitchen especially since they have expanded further into Central Park.

 

Needless to say we took our other remaining specialty dining reservations and made them for 6pm and showed up 10 minutes early. That way we had our order in prior to the 6pm rush and were out of the venue by 7:15 and 7:30. We just made the system work for us, instead of getting bogged down in it.

 

We will say that all the dining, bartenders, and wait staff were great throughout the entire cruise.

 

 

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[A&L_Ont]

In your post cruise shakedown, if you happen to know if the new dining menus were aboard the Allure that would be awesome. I know someone posted pictures of the new menus on Oasis so I can always search them up again, just wondering about the MDR. Also, are the menus in the Coastal Kitchen still just 2 and they change 1/2 way through the cruise.

 

 

 

Thanks so much for your reviews and periscopes

 

 

 

They didn't have the MDR menus in our cabin so I didn't have a chance to check. For whatever reason I didn't check the interactive TV for the menus. This cruise we did not dine at the CK so I can't answer your menu question for their either.

 

I'm sorry but I wish I could have been more helpful.

 

 

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[A&L_Ont]

Stewards and Cabin

 

As for the cabin and our stewards I really could not say enough great things about them. We had Carmen as our lead and Fecto was her assistant. We had never had either of them before and they did not disappoint.

 

We also got to catch up with Marva and Jesus from previous cruises for a quick hello. We can't wait to do the same with Carmen and Fecto in the future. They are wonderful people.

 

I think my understatement of the cruise might have been the following. When someone asked how was the cabin in a periscope, I responded that it was "pretty decent". If you knew me that was spot on. If you saw the cabin scope tour it says it all. If not these pics should confirm that "it is pretty decent". [emoji6][emoji3]

 

Cabin 1740 location.

 

 

 

Cabin layout.

 

 

 

 

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Edited September 6, 2016 by A&L_Ont

[Soul Brother]

I was lurking this thread as I too was on this cruise and found your posts very entertaining before the cruise.

 

I'm just catching up to it now (didn't check it when onboard) and it looks like I bumped into you on the cruise.

On the last sea day I was wandering around Boardwalk and went up to the Tequila Bar. I was looking for a "fruity" drink and you suggested the Bushwhacker to me.

I realized this when I saw your pic with you and your son with the drinks at the bar.

 

Good to have met you, kind of....LOL.

The Bushwhacker was a great recommendation BTW and I'm not sure if I thanked you so......thanks for the recommendation.

[A&L_Ont]

Tomorrow I will wrap up my review with reflections on the Star Class.

 

 

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[A&L_Ont]

I was lurking this thread as I too was on this cruise and found your posts very entertaining before the cruise.

 

I'm just catching up to it now (didn't check it when onboard) and it looks like I bumped into you on the cruise.

On the last sea day I was wandering around Boardwalk and went up to the Tequila Bar. I was looking for a "fruity" drink and you suggested the Bushwhacker to me.

I realized this when I saw your pic with you and your son with the drinks at the bar.

 

Good to have met you, kind of....LOL.

The Bushwhacker was a great recommendation BTW and I'm not sure if I thanked you so......thanks for the recommendation.

 

 

 

OMG! I totally remember you and can picture your face right now. I guess I am here to entertain and to "serve"... Or is it make recommendations.[emoji3]

 

Whatever the case it was great to help and meet you, if only for a few minutes.

 

 

 

 

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[MattInFLL]

Andrew - truly enjoying the post cruise reflections, but of course really waiting on the Star Class musings. lol

 

Considering the waiver you have to sign for the Flowrider, and if you're doing advanced you are well aware of the risks - I'm surprised they were restricting you.

 

 

(To jump in on the MDR and CK questions - all reports remain the same from what I can see: No change to the MDR menus on Allure yet, and CK alternates day to day between the Harvest and Vineyard menus - rather than changing mid-week.)

[A&L_Ont]

Andrew - truly enjoying the post cruise reflections, but of course really waiting on the Star Class musings. lol

 

Considering the waiver you have to sign for the Flowrider, and if you're doing advanced you are well aware of the risks - I'm surprised they were restricting you.

 

 

(To jump in on the MDR and CK questions - all reports remain the same from what I can see: No change to the MDR menus on Allure yet, and CK alternates day to day between the Harvest and Vineyard menus - rather than changing mid-week.)

 

Matt, thanks for answering the menu questions.

 

As for the flowrider everyone signs the waiver and no matter the skill everyone has the same rules. In the past they would let things slide depending on your skills at advanced and definitely at a private rental. During this cruise it took some talking with a crew member for me to try the board to board transfer while on the wave. I got to do it once, at advanced, while there were only three of us in total. I was not allowed to do it either of our two private rentals.

 

There has been a high turnover in sports crew so that might have made the difference. However when you included the extra watchful eyes at the pools I believe there has been a decree from corporate or at least from the Hotel Directors office.

 

I will actually have one other topic post to make prior to the Star Class musings. Lisa and I discussed the Star Class on and off thorough out the sailing and we think we have it summed up fairly well.

[A&L_Ont]

Very informative and entertaining. Thanks for taking all the time with this, Andrew.

 

Best to all - and congrats Owen on the two 360's!

 

Thanks Mike. Owen was pretty excited about his 360s, and so was Lisa and I. It has been fun to do this and I do appreciate the Kudos. :)

[atgood]

Congrats to Owen on his first 360. I know completing that first one is special and you got it on video to boot!

 

Thanks for taking us on your journey.

 

 

atgood

[zimadog]

By any chance - Can you tell me the name of the Diamond Lounge Host?

[playingpossum]

Thank you for taking the time to post all of the wonderful information and experiences you had while cruising. The periscope app you are using is really neat and fun to watch. I downloaded it and showed my wife but said I better stop because we have a ways to go before our vacations and we don't have any time off to do an in between cruise;).

 

Your flowriding skills are really good. Hopefully your son can join you next March so he can push you to your limits. Or if he's not tall enough you will have to go to the dark side and see if you can push him to his. How many 360's can you do eh:).

 

Hope your fil is recovering quickly. That is scary when you are away and can not be there to help.

 

Again thank you for the very well done review. Looking forward to your next one as it will help get us really excited to get away.

 

Ryan

[ARCruisinNana]

By any chance - Can you tell me the name of the Diamond Lounge Host?

 

 

Jeremias is currently in the Diamond Club on Allure.

 

 

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[A&L_Ont]

Jeremias is currently in the Diamond Club on Allure.

 

 

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Thanks for the help Nana. It is appreciated.

 

 

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[A&L_Ont]

Thank you for taking the time to post all of the wonderful information and experiences you had while cruising. The periscope app you are using is really neat and fun to watch. I downloaded it and showed my wife but said I better stop because we have a ways to go before our vacations and we don't have any time off to do an in between cruise;).

 

Your flowriding skills are really good. Hopefully your son can join you next March so he can push you to your limits. Or if he's not tall enough you will have to go to the dark side and see if you can push him to his. How many 360's can you do eh:).

 

Hope your fil is recovering quickly. That is scary when you are away and can not be there to help.

 

Again thank you for the very well done review. Looking forward to your next one as it will help get us really excited to get away.

 

Ryan

 

Thanks Ryan.

 

I have already ventured to the dark side to boogie board. Since Owen is younger he needs to have adult with him when he rides. If I am there then I might as well boogie board VS sit in the bleachers. This past week I finally got a 360 and then quickly wiped out.

 

I'm glad to hear that you followed along on CC as well as on periscope. I think it is a good blend to doing a live review. Hopefully it will help to tide you over.:)

[John&LaLa]

Matt, thanks for answering the menu questions.

 

As for the flowrider everyone signs the waiver and no matter the skill everyone has the same rules. In the past they would let things slide depending on your skills at advanced and definitely at a private rental. During this cruise it took some talking with a crew member for me to try the board to board transfer while on the wave. I got to do it once, at advanced, while there were only three of us in total. I was not allowed to do it either of our two private rentals.

 

There has been a high turnover in sports crew so that might have made the difference. However when you included the extra watchful eyes at the pools I believe there has been a decree from corporate or at least from the Hotel Directors office.

 

I will actually have one other topic post to make prior to the Star Class musings. Lisa and I discussed the Star Class on and off thorough out the sailing and we think we have it summed up fairly well.

 

Have you filled out your survey yet? We plan on doing ours tonight. I was thinking to paste the link to my review into one of the comments. You think they will notice.

[A&L_Ont]

I can't skip over the flow rider.

 

 

I always talk about meeting great people in the flowrider line here on CC. I met great people this week as always, but one couple stands out this cruise, that being Seth and Nicole. You might remember Seth as he was the young "gent" that won the best of the best.

 

Seth was on his honeymoon with Nicole and they had only been married for hours prior to the cruise. It wasn't his first cruise but it was hers. While chatting in line I learned he works in production with a great YouTube channel called Devinsupertramp. I will state that they are my favorite YouTube channel for outdoor adventure. To give you an idea of what they are about this is their "best of video" for 2015. Seth is in the video at 1:55 and I a few other times.

 

[YOUTUBE]AZAOD_bL7FY[/YOUTUBE]

 

 

So where am I going with this you might ask? Our first cruise was our honeymoon and we met a nice couple that surprised us with a small gift during the sailing that we have never forgotten about, the moment or what it really means. We have continued with that legacy and on occasion we randomly surprise others in turn. I found a small and simple Britto piece of word art in the ship's retail store and surprised them right before the best of the best.

 

 

Hopefully this little gesture will have the same effect on them, as it did on us in July of 2004.

 

In talking with Seth through the week also I found out that a friend of theirs filmed a surprise proposal video for them. Nicole had no knowledge of it and what was about to happen. What a great story. Sometimes you are just meant to meet people, and for whatever reason I know that I was meant to meet the two of them. I thoroughly enjoyed getting to know them as well as the other good folks in line.

 

[YOUTUBE]lg889K20D5g[/YOUTUBE]

 

 

 

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Edited September 6, 2016 by A&L_Ont