We chose this cruise as a winter get-away from Michigan. We decided to do the 7-day to see if liked the inside stateroom. Our other cruises were all in balcony staterooms. Surprisingly, the inside stateroom was no problem even with the 15' high seas we experienced during most of the cruise. The main difference we noticed was no sun coming in the window in the morning to help wake us and, it was very quiet. Another reason we tended to sleep late most mornings. We did miss standing on the balcony when entering or leaving ports or, for an evening cocktail but, the cost savings of around $1,000 for the 7-night trip more than made up for it. My wife and I agreed that if it meant taking more cruises due to the savings then we could easily abide the inside stateroom especially since it was the same floor plan as the balcony staterooms. Another factor that played into this decision was the weather. It was windy and somewhat cool and cloudy for most of the cruise which made it less desirable to use a balcony.

This is the 2nd Royal Caribbean cruise that we have taken. Our first cruise was also Royal Caribbean. The two cruises in between were on Princess. It is hard to draw meaningful conclusions between the two RC cruises because of the different types of ship. Our first ship was Enchantment of the Seas and we were truly enchanted! Part of the reason for our feelings were because that was our very first cruise and, the staff on Enchantment was exceptional. This cruise was on the Allure of the Seas; What a difference in ship size! Allure is huge! Maybe too huge or, maybe it was just the configuration of the ship and its attractions. We felt that we were traveling on a high-end amusement park rather than a luxurious hotel. This feeling can partially be attributed to the large number of families with children of various ages, Surely they were attracted to the zip line, rock climbing, surfing pools, carousel, ice-skating, Dreamworks characters, etc. We weren't. (Well, OK. My wife did have to try the zip line, just once.)

The food in the main dining room was great and, so was the service. The food in the Windjammer (buffet) was also very good but there, one has to fend for oneself. Not much in the way of service other than cleaning off the tables, which they did a pretty good job of. In the Windjammer, breakfast ran into lunch which ran into dinner, all in a smooth operation that provided good food for nearly any time of the day. Read more