This was the second cruise of the year for us. We sailed Freedom of the Seas in January and were somewhat disappointed with that experience. It was refreshing to sail Allure and find a much better experience.

So first the not so good part...the dining room dinner menu. This year, we've noticed the menu seems pared down a little with the entrees a bit on the bland side. The seafood was definitely unimpressive and the beef dishes looked to be a better option. Perhaps this is an attempt to drive patrons to the $$$ specialty restaurants? If so, I'm not liking it. Appetizers were real good with a nice variety, desserts were decent, but many entrees were so-so. Did I go hungry...hardly. Just saying it's been better in the past. On the plus side, we just love the Park Cafe on Allure and Oasis. A make your own salad, roast beef sandwich to die for and the triple chocolate cookies were a hit. We found the Windjammer adequate for a lunch as well as some other spots. The dining options on this ship are numerous with each venue having it's plus side.

We sailed with four family couples and had adjacent balcony rooms. We were able to open the partitions between the rooms so ended up with a 4 room wide balcony. That was nice. We were in cabin 11302 on deck 11. BTW thanks to the people in cabin 11292 for supplying a week of morning cigarette smoke. It's hard to hide that activity on a moving ship. Everyone downwind knows the instant you light up...idiots. Read more