My husband and I were excited as can be to be on the maiden voyage of the Allure of the Seas. I made reservations back in March and could not wait to see how great it was. We flew in a few days early from the west coast and stayed at the Courtyard Marriott by the beach. Good motel across the street from the beach and close to restaurants and shopping.

A little over a week before the cruise I signed into the Royal Caribbean website to reserve specialty dining and show reservations. I thought it was strange that I couldn't book reservations for dinner at Chops at 6:00pm. on Sunday night. I also found it strange that the only show I could get reservations for was Chicago. I thought there was a problem with the website and figured I would make reservations when I got on the ship the first day. We never had problems getting reservations before so I thought I would be OK.

Embarkation went quickly. We arrived shortly after 12:00pm and were on the ship within 20-25 minutes drinking a fruity drink with rum. We waited in the pool area till our cabins were ready at 1:00pm. Our cabin was on the 14th floor. This was a good location. Close to the pool area and the Windjammer cafe. Read more