I was highly disappointed in the Allure and RC. This was my third cruise with RC and the last two had big issues. Will probably look at other cruise . Including Carnival since they are less expensive lowering my expectations.
Embarkation
4 out of 5
We got on board and left without a hitch , went to go grab lunch at Windjammer and had to wait in a massive line to be seated. On past ships we were in pretty quick . I believe the ships large capacity drive up these wait times
Ship experiences
Food and Dining
3 out of 5
Service I’m the main dining room was good but the food was mediocre . The Buffet for lunch barely changed so it became boring very quick
Onboard Activities
3 out of 5
All were too packed to enjoy . If you didn’t get e reservation to a show a few days prior you couldn’t get a seat . The pools were nice but way over packed, flow rider was about an hour wait for each turn in line .
Entertainment
4 out of 5
Oceanair. And the headliner shows are a must see. They need to somehow create some airflow at the Auqa Theatre. It gets really hot and is unbearable during the day .
Children's Programs
No young children
Service and Staff
3 out of 5
The wait staff in the main dining room was great . I had no clue who our stateroom attendant was but our room was always made up nicely so I guess it’s not a big deal . The shore excursion desk is useless. They don’t have a clue about the island and just try to sell adventures
Ship Quality
3 out of 5
It was nice clean and well kept . It did tend to rock a little but think that had to do with the propulsion issues it was having . It’s too large though . Mostly more staterooms but not really any addition of elevators or infrastructure to move the extra 1000+ people around . There was a lot of waiting for elevators and zig zagging around people to get to your destination .
Propulsion issues messed up the entire itinerary botching the experience
Cabin / Stateroom
4 out of 5
It’s the exact same size and layout I had on the Liberty last year. Nothing bad and nothing special. The Boardwalk Balcony is not worth the money . You got no good breeze . If you go balcony the and Oceanside or save your money and go for an ocean view room.
Ship tip
Go smaller. The vision class ship is perfect for me but if you have kids you may opt for the freedom class so you can get the water slides and glow rider
Way too short of a port to do anything . We were suppose to go to St Thomas but RC changed us to this due to propulsion issues . Would have been better to stay at sea in my opinion
Our excursion was cancelled the night prior. We had no options to switch to leaving us to fend for ourselves. Once arrived there were 6 cruises in port including ours. We had to navigate through 10s of thandands if people just to catch a cab. Our port time was also shortened here by a few hours leaving us little time to explore the island
We had an amazing time on Allure in May. Food was great everywhere and had great service. Your cruise planner shows that shows can be booked before you go. We found lots of chairs by pools always available.
I do not think bigger is always better. While we have scheduled a short Oasis cruise next year at a discounted, part of me is not looking forward to it. 6500 passangers and 3000 plus crew is a lot of bodies to feed and accommodate. I think Anthem and Freedom class is a better design compromise. I do agree that boardwalk balcony is a bit of a waste as we would never book such a room.
Thanks for the feedback . I haven’t sailed Carnival yet. The prices are so much lower than RC so figured if the experience was even equal to my last two cruises I’d already be ahead .
I have cruised on that very ship and on carnival magic and I liked the magic better, less people. But in my opinion the food was better, service was about equal, and it is definitely less expensive. They go to the same ports so It's a no brainier for me to go on carnival again.
I totally agree with you! The mega ships are not for us. Always waiting in line. We still love RC, only we stick to the smaller ships. The adventure of the sea is the largest size we'll go on. Better and more personal service. Plus I think the food is better. Everyone is entitled to their opinion. If you don't like mine I don't really give a s$&t.
Thanks for the feedback everyone . I was not going to write a review however Ship Mate sent me 3 emails reminding me so thought that maybe honest feedback was warranted . Had I known I would be judged I would of opted to keep quiet.
I did try to book shows ahead on the royal app however it didn’t allow me to do so . I’m guessing because we weren’t on board yet and logged into RC WiFi .
We booked this cruise over a year ago mainly because it went to St Thomas . Unfortunately we weren’t aware of the change until about a 3 weeks prior to sail date . I was told an email went out and it probably did. However I get about 10 emails a day advertising from RC and imagine it got mixed in with those . I called RC to see about changing cruises and they said it was too close to sail date and couldn’t change . We still had the Bahamas and were very excited about a snorkeling excursion we had planned . At 8 pm the night before we reached port the excursion was cancelled . We tried the excursion desk but they were already closed so had to try the next morning just to find there was nothing available for my family of 5 . No excursions were available via the app either .
So am I complainer . I guess so. If I planned this trip for over a year. Paid 10 grand of my hard earned money for the cruise and travel to get to Florida .
Am I a poor planner? well maybe but all the less this was a vacation for my family and don’t expect every minute to have an agenda. We tried to plan some activities but I work 75 hours a week and my wife works full time so we don’t have the luxury of researching every aspect of the cruise .
All in all I enjoyed the Visions of the Seas much more and had that vacation for a 5th if the price. That’s why I shared that and had seen similar responses on other reveries as well.
Thanks for critiquing my review.
Looks like more research needed! We know it’s a huge ship but are already aware of all the various eateries available and which to avoid on embarkation day! I certainly will avoid the windjammer!
This person seems to be a complainer. There are so many different free venues where you can have breakfast and lunch you don’t need to wait in lines at buffet. Should have done more research before cruise and booked shows ahead of time. Mostly all good reviews on the Allure and I cant wait to see for myself in November.
Issues seem to center on a predisposition to complain about the ship and its size. I have been on various classes of Royal and the Oasis class feels the least crowded despite its passenger count. Most Americans expect burgers, hot dogs, chicken, fish and salad for lunch. Not sure what mega menu changes people expect for lunch or breakfast. The buffet has core standard items that most Americans expect plus a variety of changing entree items.
Also, we booked shows before boarding and had something to do every night. Booking on the app takes little to no time at all and guarantees you have a seat. Research!
If you book a cruise ship that can carry 5000+ passengers then you should have been prepared for long wait lines at the buffet and crowded areas and activities. Go for a smaller ship next time. Do your research and get feedback from others before booking.
Sorry you had the issues. Mechanical and other issues aren’t specific to just one cruise line. Just check the reviews on this app. There are complaints about delays and missed ports due to ship issues on Carnival, Norwegian, Royal Caribbean, even Viking. All of the cruise lines seem to be pushing the limits on regular maintenance / upgrades to their ships to be profitable.
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