First Tme Cruisers

The Allure of the Seas is a beautiful boat with plenty to do.   I traveled with my husband, and 3 sons (22, 20, 18) and they had plenty to do.  Of course, the drink package and the wifi package were musts with them, but they clearly had plenty to do with the various sporting events going on around the ship - 3/3 basketball, volleyball, pool volleyball, surf rider, zip line, rock-climbing wall.  They didn't particularly enjoy the shows such as Mama Mia and Blue Planet, but they did enjoy the diving show and the comedy shows.  Kareoke was also fun and entertaining.  I enjoyed the running track and fitness room, as well as just relaxing around the pool on the sea days.  We all thought the food was excellent, especially in the main dining room.  Our waiters, Moses and Vikos, were excellent, and were constantly letting us try new dishes, and multiple dishes so the boys would have enough to eat.  My husband and I also ate at Choppes Grille one evening, and was probably the 2nd best steak I have eaten in my life.  My first was at the Plum Thicket in Kiowa, KS (the heart of cattle country).  We were celebrating our 25th anniversary, and the atmosphere and service was excellent!  So much food though - so we got our dessert to go - and our waiter gave us 4 different ones to sample back in our room.  The most negative aspect of the trip would have been Jamaica.  We didn't book an excursion here, and just caught a van ($20/person round trip) to Montego Bay as there is nothing to do in Falmouth.  We shopped and went to Doc's Beach ($6/person) but there was a restaurant/drinks and beach access right there so it was a nice afternoon.  However, the shopping with the locals was horrible - we didn't feel safe in the first spot we went as it was just a small village little huts that there was only one way in.  I understand they are aggressive to make a living, but this was our first time in Jamaica and we have no desire to return.  We did love Labadee and Cozumel - we did book the water park excursion at Cozumel.  The only complaint I would have on the cruise is additional charges that are still incurred each day with the daily gratuities.  I understand why this is done, but I still had a $600 bill when we got off the ship.  We were glad to have the opportunity to put additional gratuity for our waiters on our credit card though, as we don't  like to travel with that much cash.  Overall - for our first cruise, we were very happy.  I would certainly take another cruise, but don't feel the need to cruise each year.