Allure is an expensive and sad chapter for the Royal Caribbean brand. The ship is a monster, with none of the grace or elegance that characterized ocean liners of the past. No longer the sleek greyhounds of the sea, modern mega-cruisers have become little more than giant ugly hotels that float on their sides in the water.

We did two back-to-back seven-day Caribbean cruises on Allure, and would never do it again. RCI has lost the magic that worked in the smaller ships--the intimacy and personal attention are totally missing; the open, expansive public spaces have been replaced by huge crowds, long lines everywhere, and mandatory reservations for the shows. If you don't mind standing in line to get a drink at the bar, this is the ship for you. We never did get a reservation for the comedy club.

Also largely missing was the attractive and tasteful artwork that graces smaller ships in the RCI stable; on Allure, what you get instead is miles and miles of plastic glitz; it's like being in a Las Vegas shopping mall next door to an amusement park and a traveling carnival. Read more