Live from Allure of the Seas - March 5, 2017

[Lisa&Neb]

We'll be there as well! Can't wait!

 

 

us too - can't wait

[pudy68]

M&JfromSDL - thank you for the Day 1 Compass! I know it's extra effort to get them loaded and we appreciate it. We are on the same western itinerary on Allure 3/19 so I was surprised when I looked at the "Showtimes at a Glance" flyer because your shows are very different than what my reservations are for. I thought your sailing would be the same as ours, since they alternate every other week. For example, I am going to Mamma Mia on Day 2, OceanAria on Day 3 and Blue Planet on Day 6. They aren't even on your schedule of choices.

[MCManders99]

Are you going to be trying chops?

 

 

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[Pia1913]

Are you going to be trying chops?

 

 

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I'm responding since we ate at Chops during our February Allure cruise. Only worth it if you eat there on the first night and you get 50% off. Otherwise, nothing special.

[M&JfromSDL]

Are you going to be trying chops?

 

 

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We are headed there tonight. I will let you know how it goes.

 

 

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[mringenoldus]

I agree about chops - it was just fine but big service was unholy slow the nights that we went

 

 

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[Canukcruisenewbie]

Aren't people allowed to smoke on their balconies? I'm a non-smoker and hate the smell of smoke and think it's really inconsiderate to subject your neighbour to your smoke (and portable boom boxes) but I thought it's allowed? I just spray really strong perfume in their direction. :-). Joking. :-)

 

 

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[packerman8]

Smoking is not permitted inside any stateroom and any stateroom balcony. This applies to all stateroom categories onboard. If a guest is in violation of this stateroom policy, a cleaning fee of $250 USD will be applied to their SeaPass[emoji768] account and may be subject to further action pursuant to the "Consequences Section" of the Guest Conduct Policy.

 

 

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[Canukcruisenewbie]

Awesome packerman!!

 

 

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[lawtonsooner]

Looking forward to your posts! My lovely girlfriend and I will be on the Sept 10 sailing! Our first Royal Caribbean cruise and first time on a ship over 2500 passengers! Can't wait!

 

Oh, and please let us know how long, or quickly, you make it through the terminal from curb to ship. RCI says 15mins but I just can't believe it one bit. Took us a few hours on our last cruise out

Have a blast!. Our experience in December from Valet stand Hard rock Hotel via UBER and checked in with ship pass card in hand walking onto ship was 20 minutes max. It was as smooth as it could of gotten.

[M&JfromSDL]

Sorry for the lack of an update. We've been enjoying our vacation!

 

Where did I leave off?

 

Day 4 - at Sea.

 

I ran down to the Champagne Bar for a little pre-dinner.

 

Then over to Vintages for a snack since our reservation at Giovanni's was not until 9pm.

 

We really enjoy Vintages on the Freedom-class ships. Good wine and people watching from the location on the Promenade. We've always found it to be empty here on Allure.

 

 

The tapas menu here is better though it is an a la carte affair.

 

 

 

 

 

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[M&JfromSDL]

 

 

 

 

 

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[M&JfromSDL]

We walked over to Giovannis to see if they could seat us a little earlier and luckily they were able to accommodate.

 

It quickly became apparent our experience tonight would be much different than the night before. They were clearly understaffed.

 

As far as the food goes, it was good as usual. Mrs had the beef carpaccio again and I went with a boring but tasty arugula salad.

 

The waiter brought out an antipasto dish that was nice. I added a piece of the salami to my salad to liven it up. I wish they would stop with the wasteful portion sizes and extra courses and adjust the price of the restaurant but I digress.

 

 

I ordered the filet which was nicely cooked. Not sure it's anything beyond what you could get in the MDR.

 

 

Wife went with the risotto which was good.

 

 

Another extra course we didn't ask for and frankly didn't go with that we ordered. It was a rather ordinary pasta dish.

 

 

We spent sometime talking with a nice family but once they left it was pretty clear to us and the rest of the patio we had been abandoned by our waiter. I actually had a dirty napkin from the table next to us blow onto our table. And no one had been at the table the entire time we were there.

 

We were clearly not going to be offered dessert so I went inside to fetch my check and speak to the manager.

 

As we were walking over to the Rising Tide bar I noticed the people from a few dinner tables over unloading on the bartender at Trellis Bar about how terrible their Giovanni's experience was.

 

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[M&JfromSDL]

After dinner we navigated through the 70s Party crowds on the Promenade and went and sat at Boleros while we waited for the band to start playing.

 

The 70s party seemed a little weak compared to the one on Indy a few years ago.

 

But the great bartenders in Boleros, their drinks and good conversation kept us going.

 

My wife ordered me a caipirinha which was pretty strong and at that point in the night was way too much for me.

 

I swung past Sorrentos on the way to the room. The selection of pizzas is pretty boring this trip.

 

 

 

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[M&JfromSDL]

Day 5 - March 9, 2017 - Falmouth, Jamaica

 

We skipped the Solarium and decided to get smoothies from the Vitality Cafe for breakfast.

 

 

Today we were docked alongside Indy.

 

 

We stopped in Falmouth on our last Allure cruise a little over 5 years ago. I find the port pretty disappointing. It's essentially an outdoor shopping mall.

 

 

They even have an Auntie Annie's.

 

 

 

 

 

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[M&JfromSDL]

Our plan was to grab a red stripe from one of the beer carts ($5/bottle btw) but chose to sit at the bar at Spice Bar. There was a local Jamaican band playing and a whole gaggle of school children dancing. It was fun to watch.

 

 

 

We took a walk through some of the duty free and jewelry shops to kill some time.

 

 

But before long we were ready to get back on the ship.

 

By now we were pretty hungry. After a quick cruise through the Windjammer we ended up at Park Cafe for lunch. Then we walked around checking out nooks and crannies we hadn't explored yet.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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[M&JfromSDL]

Here are some photos of the Casino and Izumi which are both located on the same level (4).

 

 

 

 

The restaurant space impressed me. We eat sushi at home all the time so really haven't had the desire to eat here. But maybe later in the week we will give it a chance.

 

Sushi bar area

 

Hibachi area

 

 

Sail away was supposed to be early today. All aboard was at 3:30pm so a short day in Jamaica.

 

There must have been a late excursion because both Indy and Allure hung around at port for a bit then we watched the crew run around like mad bringing in the gangways.

 

 

 

 

 

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[M&JfromSDL]

It was super windy so we ended up in the Solarium bar for sailaway.

 

I was overdue for a Goombay Smash!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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[M&JfromSDL]

Here's a 360 view of us getting ready to sail away.

 

https://theta360.com/s/d0k2GYI3rkwJdDGhNmJRrSkmO

[M&JfromSDL]

Because of the late departure we finished up our sailaway party on our balcony.

 

 

 

 

My lovely Mrs. Ordered a cheese plate and chocolate chip cookies to enjoy while we were getting ready for dinner. Our cabin attendant dropped of ice for our bottle of champagne.

 

I must report for my fellow chocolate chip cookie lovers, room service is the only place to get good cookies from.

 

 

 

 

 

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[M&JfromSDL]

Showered, dressed and no where to go until Cjops at 9pm we walked down the Promenade with our bottle of champagne and did a little people watching. The crowd has been much more well dressed than our NCL cruise last year. Lots of guys in tuxedos so I didn't stick out as much.

 

We stopped by the Rising Tide to say hi to Bosco and ride up to Central Park.

 

Let me just say, we had a really great dinner at Chops. Food was excellent and the service was great.

 

 

Mrs started with the mushroom soup.

 

 

I went for the Caesar salad.

 

 

Shrimp and Crab cake. Great flavor, about the only thing wrong with it was our point of reference. It was underwhelming to us because we get incredible crab cakes at home. But nonetheless a good choice.

 

 

By now we were starting to get full. I went ahead and ordered both upcharge items, dry aged NY Strip and the Maine Lobster. I'm not entirely sure why I splurged. They sounded good and we really haven't spent anything onboard.

 

But I can tell you, I'm glad I did. The steak was very good. The Maine lobster was also very good. I've typically found the MDR lobster to lack flavor and at times be stringy like it hasn't been stored at the right temperature. This was anything but. Unfortunately for the lobster, the steak was so good it sort of overwhelmed the lobster. I know, I know, stop typing and show us the pictures.

 

 

 

 

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[M&JfromSDL]

 

We nibbled at the sides and decided to take our dessert to go since we were so full. When I mentioned our plan to the waiter he came back with a bottle of whipped cream and said the chocolate sauce was on it's way out! LOL

 

 

We were also feeling a little tired at this point. The heavy dinner and champagne were probably the culprits. We changed into casual gear and checked out Dazzles for the Battle of the Sexes fame show.

 

 

Afterwards it was down to the casino so I could give back my earnings from earlier in the week.

 

We enjoyed our dessert from Chops before heading to bed for the night. Huckleberry cheesecake btw

 

 

 

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[Pia1913]

Chocolate Chip cookies: What's the difference between those at Promenade Cafe and Windjammer vs. those from room service? DH eats them; I don't. And he says they're the same. :confused:

[M&JfromSDL]

Chocolate Chip cookies: What's the difference between those at Promenade Cafe and Windjammer vs. those from room service? DH eats them; I don't. And he says they're the same. :confused:

 

 

They were soft and tasted fresh. The ones in the Promenade are overcooked and rock hard. It could have been a fluke but I will conduct additional research this afternoon.

 

 

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[Pia1913]

They were soft and tasted fresh. The ones in the Promenade are overcooked and rock hard. It could have been a fluke but I will conduct additional research this afternoon.

 

 

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LOL. That might be the answer. My husband likes them crunchy; not soft. As long as you're taste testing CC cookies, try the Windjammer ones too. ;)