This has only been my second cruise and I feel completely disappointed. The food was average and the staff seem overworked and most places understaffed. I know the allure is the largest boat in the world and that was part of the problem. Too many people. Elevators packed. Toilets stopped working several times and there is a up charge for everything. I suggest looking at the beverage packages prior (soda, alcohol, water).

The excursions were the worst, not worth the price. They start very early and you are always in s group of 30 to 40 people. They take you to a spot and tell you to meet back in 1 and half hours. You really can't experience anything in that amount of time. They do this pattern several times during the excursion. The last spot is always a shop your forced to hang out at. And if you tired or have young children and would like to stay on the bus, you can't. The line to get tickets for the colleseum in Rome was 1 hour long, the line to go thru security was another hour. There is no way 1 hour and 30 minutes would suffice, but of course they don't tell you. Another excursion involved getting on and off several trains. At times we waited 30 minutes each time for the train. I recommend doing it on your own so you don't have to be on a ridiculous and inefficient schedule. Otherwise it's a 8:45 am to 4 or 5 pm day with lots of waiting around, traveling quickly from one spot to the next. Also, several groups of 40 people are all at the same sites. Trust me the small shops and restaurants are overwhelmed and the experience is like fighting to get your gelato order in.

If you stay on the boat during the day many places do not open until 1 p.m. and that goes for activities like the kids pool area as well. Most times the hot tub had a minimum of 20 people in it, it's uncomfortable. My advice is too have extremely low expectations and do not do any excursions by them. You can always catch a taxi or a free shuttle to the local town your ship docks at, they don't really advertise that. Try a mid size boat, biggest is clearly not best.