The AquaTheater room (10330) itself was a very good size, never felt cramped for our family of 6, and the balcony was gigantic- probably bigger than the room itself!  Probably our favorite memories were made just watching the nightly diving show in the Aquatheater, or even the Belly flop contest during the day.  And watching the ship sail away in the evening or having 270 degree panoramic views at night was breathtaking.

While other reviewers made some comments about the sound at night, we never found it to be a problem and in fact, this was likely the quietest room we've ever had on a ship.  The room steward was actually more attentive than our genie, and was always the first to say good morning and the first to ask the kids about their day.  Overall, one of the best rooms on the ship- and the only problem is the fact it's at the very end of the hallway, so it does make for a long walk back and forth. However, being at the stern was no issue for us- Allure was so stable the entire time, you simply could not tell if you were moving at all if you were in the interior of the ship.  The only complaint was that it was a long walk to the end to get to the room.

Our final port day was Cozumel, and we booked the ‘Royal Dolphin Swim’ at Dolphin Discovery, and since we did it four days before, we got the kids for half price, saving us about $230.  However, those savings would soon evaporate because of the ridiculous way they price the photos, which was certainly unethical and bordering on illegal 'bait and switch' tactics.

We got there pretty quickly, and the place is clean and once you know your way around, pretty efficient.  But everything is for sale, and the nickel and diming was constant.  While there we upgraded to include the ‘Sea Lion’ experience, which was actually the kids favorite because the sea lion looks and acts like a big puppy dog and was fun to play with (and there where only 10 people in our group).  They also threw in a taxi ride back ($24), how generous, unless you want pictures of this 'separate' experience.

The Dolphin experience was also very, very good, and even a little thrilling (only 8 people in our group).  Besides petting them, holding them, and 'riding them', the highlight is that you swim out about 100 feet and turn back toward the group, lying on your stomach as much as possible  Then two dolphins swim out to you, and it really feels like an outtake of Jaws the movie because you can't see them coming, and all of a sudden they push you from behind- with their noses on your bare feet- until you literally stand out of the water and going a decent speed back towards your group.  How in the world the two dolphins work it out is amazing, because every single member of our group did this on the first try.

We also got to feed the three manatees, who indeed were gentle giants and ate out of the kid’s hands (we fed them romaine lettuce).  What was nice is that if you know Manatees, they are almost always scarred from boat propellers, but these three had perfect and 'leather-like' yet soft skin.  However, we did not have a photographer with us, so we didn’t get any pictures.

And the pictures… We were prepared that since we were 6 people, there would literally be 300+ pictures, and the guy did spend more than an hour with us, which would cost $150 sitting fee back in the states.  And indeed, it was $240- but they made the claim it was for only ‘one session’.  So we had to pick between the dolphins or the sea otter.  The whole affair was ridiculous, and they know they have you hostage, and finally negotiated down to $400 which included all of the pictures on two CD-ROMS, plus 8 hard photos.

The included food was absolutely horrible and would likely be illegal in 18 states- probably the cheapest buffet one could ever experience.  Also, the included drinks was only tap water and soda out of a two liter bottle- another likely US health code violation in the works, so we opted to pay for cans of soda and bottled water ($2), and cans of beer, which at $3 was surprisingly inexpensive.  Once they knew you had cash, service was quick and efficient.

So while there were some bumps, the overall experience of swimming with the dolphins was truly a once-in-a-lifetime experience, and was perfect for the kids ages (10 through 16), though we did see some kids really enjoying it as young as 7.  The pictures, while expensive, were of professional quality, and we expect that we’ll frame several of them.  Overall- you just have to pay up.

Our genie and a porter met us at our suite with a luggage cart, and we were whisked away and literally bypassed every single line, including the port immigration line, which from past Oasis cruises with no genie service saved us at least 30 minutes.The room came with the new ‘Star Class’ and ‘Royal Genie’ service, which while helpful most of the time, really suffers from some implementation problems, and was a complete disaster on the first day and half of the second.

Allure of the Seas Review

Allure AquaTheater Suite and Star Class- Was it Worth it?

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Aquatheater Suite with Balcony - Deck 8

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