Our family of 5 (husband, 3 teen-aged boys, and myself) went on the Allure of the Seas for the December 18-25 sailing from Ft Lauderdale. This is our third cruise on Royal Caribbean (previously Navigator of the Seas and Legend of the Seas), and our 14th cruise overall (Carnival, Disney, Celebrity, Uniworld, and Royal Caribbean). Eight additional family members were also on this sailing. I had very high expectations in regards to the ship and amenities, but we were disappointed in the overall experience.

Embarkation: The Allure of the Seas does a very good job with getting everyone on the ship in a timely manner. This is one of the easiest embarkations I've ever had, and I was impressed with this part of the trip. However, the trip went downhill from here.

Hand sanitizer patrol: Every time you turn around there's a stand with hand sanitizer and someone getting nasty with you to use it. I was told I "had" to use the hand sanitizer before entering a restaurant or getting on the ship. The hand sanitizers are also on the pier before you get back in line to get on the ship, so you've been instructed that you "have" to use it 3 different times before getting to your cabin or to a dining venue. I told one of the girls that my hands were still wet from using it 5 minutes ago, and she was insistent that I use it again. Read more