My Week On The GREATEST Ship In The World! Allure OTS 10/30/11: A Pictorial Review!

[fdthird]

Continued great work Grady! Leaving this afternoon and sailing on Sunday on the Allure...can't wait!

[markadele]

Love all the pictures cant wait to see this in person we will be getting on this Sunday:D

[Virtopia]

I'm in complete aww of all the pictures. I'll be on the Allure next September and this is making me want to bump the date up!

[Prairie_Gal]

Best. Review. Ever.

[DarthGrady]

Hello Grady. I am enjoying your review, I cruise Allure next year and I am really looking forward to it. Just a quick question, in the Schooner Bar were there windows that look outside of the ship? On the deck layout maps it does not appear that there would be windows. In one of your pictures it looked like there may have been some windows. Looking forward to the rest of your review and a heads up about the Schooner Bar. Thanks, Harold. :D

 

No, there are no exterior windows in the Schooner Bar. There are cabins on the outside of that deck. Thats one thing about this class that is a little odd, there are not a lot of lounges that have ocean views.

[DarthGrady]

Wow, You've done it to me again. This very table (table for 2 in the center) is where my wife and I had dinner on May 2nd, 2011, our 30th anniversary. This has to be the most complete pic review I've seen.

 

Thanks! Glad you're enjoying it!

[Eng23]

No, there are no exterior windows in the Schooner Bar. There are cabins on the outside of that deck. Thats one thing about this class that is a little odd, there are not a lot of lounges that have ocean views.

Hi Grady. Thanks for the quick answer about the Schooner Bar.

[roe2ship]

I LOVE all your pictures! I have seen so many pictures of both Oasis and Allure but you seem to have so many different new ones. And that Central Park video......stunning! Thanks for sharing!:)

[Ander026]

Great Review. Your review makes me want to possibly take this class for my annual December Cruise

[DarthGrady]

Deck 14:

 

The ship’s kid’s area is located forward on deck 14. It has several colorful play rooms and activity centers for the little ones. They also have a small arcade and movie theater just for children.

 

At the very front of Deck 14 is the “Sun Deck”. It occupies the entirety of the roof above the ship’s Bridge. They have stacks of lounge chairs out there for sunning. Guests can also walk out onto the bridge wings that stick out past the edges of the ship. Unfortunately this is as close to the bow of the ship as most guests can get. I really wish the guest accessible bow area had been incorporated into this class. I enjoyed that area a lot on the Freedom and Radiance classes.

 

"The Sun Deck" above the bridge

 

 

 

The Adventure Ocean children's area

 

An arcade in the children's area

 

[DarthGrady]

 

 

 

 

 

[DarthGrady]

A small movie theater in the children's area.

 

 

 

[DarthGrady]

Deck 15: Pools, Hot Tubs, And So Much More!

 

Deck 15 is where the ship’s five guest accessible pools are located. All the way forward is the adults-only Solarium. A (partially) glass enclosed area with loungers, two hot tubs and a pool. It also has it’s own restaurant, the Solarium Bistro. The food in Solarium Bistro fits in between the Windjammer and Spa Café on the healthy scale. They have a salad bar, soups and a variety of dishes. Almost all of the walls are glass, offering great views off the front of the ship. The upper level of the Solarium has more loungers and patio seating, as well as a full service bar. Just outside the Solarium (but still posted as adults only) are the two large cantilevered whirlpools, a feature carried over from the Freedom class. On Allure they are much larger and each divided into two sections. They have flat screen TVs above, and feature an “infinity” edge.

 

Upstairs in the Solarium

 

 

 

 

The main level of the Solarium

 

 

[DarthGrady]

More Solarium

 

 

 

A fountain runs all the way around (and even inside of) the Solarium Bistro

 

[DarthGrady]

The Solarium Bistro

 

 

 

 

[DarthGrady]

The cantilevered whirl pools

 

 

 

 

...and by night

 

[DarthGrady]

There are four large pools in the middle of deck 15, each with a different style and purpose. The “Main Pool” is just a basic pool for swimming; it also has a tiered sunning area adjacent to it that stretches up to the next deck. The “Beach Pool” is the only salt-water pool on board. It has a sloped sunning area that allows the pool water to flow around the lounge chairs as if they were sitting in actual surf. The “Sports Pool” is used mostly for pool games, as the name would imply. I saw many games of pool volleyball being played in it, which looked very fun. The last pool is located within the children’s water park area. Each pool has its own hot tubs.

 

The Beach Pool

 

 

The Main Pool

 

The Childrens Pool

 

The Sports Pool

 

[DarthGrady]

Random pool deck shots

 

Stairs up to the Suite Guest Sundeck

 

Mast bar

 

Smoking area

 

Towel station

 

Better than a boring sign that says "Ladies"

 

Dive shop on the pool deck

[DarthGrady]

Royal has set up an interesting retrospective of their first ship the "Song of Norway", as well as its comparison to Allure on Deck 15.

 

 

 

 

 

 

[DarthGrady]

 

 

 

 

[DarthGrady]

 

 

 

 

 

[DarthGrady]

The “Living Room” teen club is located on Deck 15 aft of the pool area. It is a large lounge area with several TVs and video game systems. It also has a music room and outdoor seating area. I was pretty jealous of the outdoor teen area; it has big beanbag chairs and comfy looking couches. The “Fuel” teen disco is next door to the Living Room. It is nicer and larger than the adult dance clubs I have seen on other ships.

 

Challengers Arcade

 

 

The Living Room teen area

 

 

 

[DarthGrady]

TV area in the Living Room

 

Outside seating for the teen area

 

Fuel teen disco

 

 

[DarthGrady]

All the way aft on Deck 15 is the sports area. It is home to the ships dual Flowriders. One is used for body boarding, the other for surfing. “Allure Dunes” is the ship’s mini golf course. There is also a full size basketball court, and two ping-pong areas that are enclosed to prevent wind interference. All of those features are impressive, but the big draw is of course the Zip Line. It stretches from behind the “Wipeout Bar” all the way across The Boardwalk to a platform on the opposite side. The ride is only about 10 seconds long, but the view can’t be beat! The sports deck has it’s own restaurant, “The Wipeout Café” It has assorted items like tacos, hamburgers, soft serve ice cream and delicious pretzel wrapped hot dogs.

 

 

"Allure Dunes" mini golf

 

 

 

Basketball court

 

Wipeout Bar

[DarthGrady]

Flowriders

 

 

The view from the sports area

 

Zip Line