Allure of the Seas Review

Probably NOT sail on a Mega-Liner Again

Review for the Western Caribbean Cruise on Allure of the Seas
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Bigtrace
6-10 Cruises • Age 50s

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Sail Date: Jan 2017
Cabin: Owner's Suite with Balcony
Traveled with children

My wife and I booked this cruise for our family while we were sailing on our last cruise about 10 months prior. I really like Royal Caribbean, but this cruise on the Allure left a lot to be desired. This is my 8th cruise, 3rd with Royal over a cruising life of about 20 years. We decided to splurge a little and get an "Owners Suite" for this cruise. Our cruise mates from our last outing had this cabin and we were very impressed so we decided to try it. We had a similar cabin on a Norwegian cruise we took in 2015 and liked it then as well.

Aside from the cabin, we were not very impressed with the level of service we've grown accustomed to while cruising. Not once did we meet our concierge. I would have thought if you were paying some good money to rent an owners suite in the first place, you would at least get a tour and explanation of the suites amenities and privileges and shown where everything happens. Nothing, just a welcome letter. The only person we met that was even connected to our room was the room steward. He was "ok", nothing over the top, but nothing missed either. Except for leaving some unwanted fruit in our room, he was there and did a good job cleaning. Because we were with a party of 10, the suite helped us all as a "rally" point so we gathered there and even watched a football game there so it did come in handy. I guess the disappointment comes in the little things. No more "turn down" service with mints on your pillow. Towel animals only 3 times instead of everyday, the little things that used to make it a bit more special are not included any longer. 10 months earlier, on the "Liberty of the Seas", all that was still present so I can only imagine its RCL and possibly just one the "Allure" that these things don't happen.

The check in, embarkation procedure was good and accommodated all of our family (a total of 10 people) so we were able to skip the massive lines without issue. We were a little perplexed in that they didn't have our "sail & sign" cards ready as they did all the others in our group, but they figured it out and we were off. One of the issues was that they did not put the sticker on my card for the "all you can drink" package I had paid for before we cruised. A bartender noticed that when he asked me about purchasing a package. He did get it corrected for me, but my wife's never did get fixed so that was disappointing. It wasn't a big problem, hers was the package that didn't include alcohol, but still, getting waters was a pain sometimes.

Cabin Review

Owner's Suite with Balcony

Cabin OS

Great cabin, plenty of space and quiet. Unfortunately, you don't get much in the way of services down on the 11th deck. Now, if you were on the 17th deck, I think that would have changed things. It's almost like we were forgotten.

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