Considering we paid a premium to go on an RCCL cruise, I was expecting better quality.
Embarkation
5 out of 5
Embarkation was one of the quickest We've experienced. Bags were taken immediately when we were dropped off at the pier. Check in line was long but moved quickly.
Ship experiences
Food and Dining
3 out of 5
Buffet - Qualify was fair. We ate here most breakfast and lunches I ate mostly foods I could assemble (i.e. salad bar, fruit, hard boiled eggs, bacon, burgers, etc.) which were usually fresh and good and pretty much stayed away from pre-prepared salads and other dishes as what I did try was not very good. Buffet was undersized for number of passengers so that every 15 minutes they broadcast an annoying message in multiple languages asking people to please move on if they were finished.
Johnny Rockets - burgers and fries identical to what is served in the buffet.
Main dining room - Food quality was OK. Better than what we had on Carnival but not as good as last NCL cruise. Considering RCCL cruises typically cost more, I was expecting better.
Specialty restaurant - we ate 150 Central Park one night and food was fantastic ( I was expecting this quality level in main dining) Unfortunately at over $50 per person per meal it can get expensive to dine there more often.
Onboard Activities
3 out of 5
With 6000+ passengers everything is crowded and has long lines. I showed up for an open volleyball hour along with over 100 other people. I didn't stay around to find out how that was going to work.
Hot tubs are of good size and numerous but are usually crowded. However you can usually find a spot in one if you don't mind people pretty close by.
They could have offered more activities at the same time.
Entertainment
4 out of 5
Momma Mia musical and OceanAria shows were excellent. Blue Planet was a typical cruise ship song and dance show. "Headliner" group was awful, I couldn't wait to leave 5 minutes after show started. We saw the comedians twice, first time was not very good but second time was very good. The main problem is that you need reservations for all shows. Venues all undersized so they have 3 or 4 showtimes that you can try to reserve. Especially comedy club that I think fit about 100 people.
Service and Staff
5 out of 5
Cabin steward was excellent. Main waiter was very cold/distant the first few days but warned up toward the end. Assistant waiter was excellent and a lot of fun.
Customer service people were friendly and helpful (but usually a long line). Photographers as always are intrusive. Captain made an appearance for pictures one formal night but looked like he would rather be anywhere else.
Ship Quality
4 out of 5
Ship design and layout is really impressive. The different "neighborhoods" are fun to explore. The ship needs a major cleaning/refurbishment, carpets in staterooms felt gritty, black mold? around edged of hot tubs.
Cabin / Stateroom
3 out of 5
Cabin was small but typical for a cruise ship. King size bed and pillows were very comfortable (They had to customize the end of the bed and mattress by rounding the corners in order for you to be able to move around the cabin without knocking your shin). TV was decent quality with many on demand movies available. Carpets were vacuumed but needed a thorough cleaning. Garbage can in bathroom was useless as it didn't open wide enough to put anything in it.
Ship tip
Don't go on this ship if you don't like people. It's crowded.
We had planned to go to the beach here but one of our party wasn't feeling good so we mainly stayed on board (pretty much had the ship to ourselves). On past trips to St Maarten, we have really enjoyed the beaches.
Timing is poor for this stop. The ships docks around 7 am and you need to be back on board by 12:30 pm. Not much time to do anything. We did a horseback riding excursion at Campo Rico through RCCL and it was very good. Our guide, Aalie, was excellent.
Weather made this a less than perfect day. Cloudy, passing drizzle with 20+ mile an hour winds. Not unusual for December. We had scheduled a snorkeling excursion but it was cancelled due to the wind and waves. A lot of the activities here cost extra. An island owned by the cruise line should be mostly free.
I've spent over 35 days on the Oasis class ships, and they are the easiest ships to get away from crowds. All you have to do is pay attention to the crowd flow, and don't follow or just be another member of the sheep herd. After shows, don't go to the elevators, dont go to dining at peak hrs, make your reservations for shows before your cruise, and above all else.... explore the ship on the first day to get a feel for the quiet spaces and alternate routes... that way you can get around more efficiently. On Oasis class ships are designed so there is always multiple ways to get anywhere... so there are VERY FEW bottlenecks. These ships are NOT designed like any other cruise ship, so normal rules of passenger count dont apply.
Also, dont listen to anyone who hasnt actually have spent time on an Oasis class ship...
While I have never been on a Oasis yet my In laws have and once was enough for them. It is crowded and they thought food better on smaller ships. BTW they have been on close to 20 cruises now too. It's simple math, 6000+ passangers create bottle necks at times especially dining and theater shows that can require reserving seats months in advance. Bigger is not always better.
We loved allure never ever felt crowded
Only ate at buffet one Time as there are so many other free choices and the food was amazing everywhere we went. The cabin and bed was amazing and never did we feel ship was
Dirty or over crowded.
Sorry you felt that way but can’t wait to go on our next cruise which is harmony!!!
3 more days and still excited to be on the Allure! Maybe because it was a holiday cruise it felt too crowded for your preference. I do agree that I wish that Coco Cay didn't have so many surcharges but I still plan to have the time of our lives. Thank you for the informative review. Hopefully with the dry dock she gets the TLC you've mentioned. This will be our 1st cruise ever so going in with no high expectations except to enjoy myself.
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