Allure 6-23-13 Eastern Review

[suizas]

where was the Paris Bistro located?? Was that St Martin? thanks -

[seaofwonder]

Fabulous review! Getting excited to be on her in less than a month!

 

 

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[Familygoboston]

Nice job! Lots of interesting photos- never saw that "let me smack you in the face with the door sign" anywhere! I love those crazy signs!:D Do you remember where it was?

Thanks for sharing!

[duncanmaria]

Enjoyed your review. Thanks for taking the time to post!

[mdxter]

 

 

 

 

 

JM

 

Enjoying your review so far and even more impressed with your stage pictures. If you don't mind me asking, what were your camera settings (aperture, speed, and iso) when you took these pictures? I am assuming you did not use a flash. What lens are you using? The pictures are clear and vivid. Thanks.

[dforeigner]

Thanks for taking time to write a review.

[drarill]

Great pictures and review!! Thanks for taking the time to post!!:):)

[Eng23]

Nice little review! I agree with you about Sharkeez in Nassau, very slow service and inattentive service. I won't waste my time there again. OceanAria is an excellent show and I hope to watch it from my Boardwalk Balcony this year. Glad you had a good cruise! :)

[tiger belle]

Thanks for an excellent review and great pictures! We are taking the same cruise itinerary on the Allure the week of October 13, and I am more excited than ever about it--we just hit the double digit countdown :)

 

You confirmed what I expected--that the shows are excellent...I think reservations for my cruise will open for the shows soon...did you make reservations beforehand? If so, any advice as to what night to book what shows?

[cruzkitty]

Great review and pictures! Thanks for posting. We have sailed on the Oasis and are going back soon. The shows on the Oasis are also quite remarkable! I'm sure we will sail on the Allure soon.:D

[rsharp83]

Nice review!

 

 

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[Shippy]

I though it was a great size for a ship. Can you tell me what catagory ?

[NMG318]

How did you get to Maho Beach? What time should we leave in order to get back to the ship?

[Ken076]

Great Review! Outstanding Show photos!!!

Thanks, Ken

[Clarea]

How did you get to Maho Beach? What time should we leave in order to get back to the ship?

I'd start back from Maho no later than 2 hours before all aboard. The trip should only take 30 to 40 minutes, but there can be traffic backups that cause considerable delay. If you get back early, you can spend some time in the shopping area around the ship.

[Robinola]

Hi and thank you so much for your thread posting!

I have a couple of questions.....
I love the deck six wake picture. That is what cruising is all about!
Is there a lounge chair area at the aft of the ship to lay out, relax and watch the wake of the ship?
Also, my next question is kind of lame, but the hot dog buns in your pic look very different from what I'm used to seeing...are they any good? It looks like it is too much bread. Is it?

Thanks again.

[Eng23]

[quote name='Robinola']Hi and thank you so much for your thread posting!

I have a couple of questions.....
I love the deck six wake picture. That is what cruising is all about!
Is there a lounge chair area at the aft of the ship to lay out, relax and watch the wake of the ship?
Also, my next question is kind of lame, but the hot dog buns in your pic look very different from what I'm used to seeing...are they any good? It looks like it is too much bread. Is it?

Thanks again.[/quote]
There are a few good places to get views of the wake with lounge chairs. You could go to Deck 16, there are lots of loungers behind the Flowriders overlooking the ships wake. You could also check out the secret balcony's on Decks 11 & 12 all the way aft at the end of the cabin corridor's.

[treborrv]

Also a secret balcony at the aft of Deck 14

[BillOh]

[quote name='the_journeyman']
- If booking Rita’s, pay attention to the Aqua Theater schedule, the music is so loud conversation is difficult once the show starts.
M[/QUOTE]

I love reading reviews and seeing things people pick up that others don't. It makes sense.

[BillOh]

[quote name='NMG318']How did you get to Maho Beach? What time should we leave in order to get back to the ship?[/QUOTE]

2-3 pm seems to be the standard time most people leave. 2 leaves you shopping time 3 is good enough most days. Note that from around late April to possibly Sept, Allure is the only ship in port that Thursday. Peak season may need longer times to get back.

[linda-nj]

Can you tell me what time you got off the ship and what time your flight was if you had to fly home. Looks like you had a great time.

[fairweather]

[quote name='the_journeyman']Wife and I sailed on the 6-23-13 departure of the Allure of the Seas from FLL. This is our review. This is my 5th RCI cruise, her 3rd

First, here's some general tips we came up with from our experience & talking with others guests:

- Chicago is certainly PG-13 to R rated. Not for the kids, teenagers maybe ok depending on their maturity level

- Don't miss the Crown & Anchor reception in the Aqua Theater. It's excellent!

- Avoid booking staterooms in the rearward sections of deck 3 and possibly deck 4. When you get off the aft elevators on deck 3 the engine room noise is quite noticeable.

- Park Cafe roast beef sandwich is so good, my wife who doesn't even like roast beef LOVED it

- Traveling to St John gets expensive since you have cab (Jumbie) then ferry, then more cab (jumbie) fare and have to do it all again to get back. I recommend trying to get the Charlotte-Amalie ferry rather than cabbing to Red Hook and using that ferry. It would be a good bit cheaper and they appeared to run on similar/regular schedules

- If going to Maho Beach to watch the planes in St. Maarten, double check LOCAL time. We missed the 767 because they were an hour later than ship time. Grab a seat near the rail overlooking the beach.

- If booking Rita’s, pay attention to the Aqua Theater schedule, the music is so loud conversation is difficult once the show starts.

- Flow Rider is awesome, looks easy, but takes some practice. I was a first timer and had a ton of fun, despite two incredible wipe outs. Don't wait to the last day, I hit really hard the second time and still wasn't sore.

- Zip line is short but fun. A bit of a novelty, but if the line is short go for it!

- Find a bar/lounge that fits your personal vibe/tastes. Get to know your bar staff and they'll be very good to you.

- Talk to your cruise mates, at supper, at the bars, in the pool or hot tub etc.

- Exiting Ocean Aria: slip up the stairs to the climbing wall and you can scoot right down the deck 7 aft stateroom hallway and avoid the huge crowd on the Boardwalk.

JM[/QUOTE]
Looking forward to hearing all about your cruise. Thanks for giving your tips upfront. Sometimes they can get lost toward the end of a review because we ask so many questions. One can scan right through them. Hope you had a great cruise.

[Lloyd555]

[quote name='Robinola']Hi and thank you so much for your thread posting!

I have a couple of questions.....
I love the deck six wake picture. That is what cruising is all about!
Is there a lounge chair area at the aft of the ship to lay out, relax and watch the wake of the ship?
Also, my next question is kind of lame, but the hot dog buns in your pic look very different from what I'm used to seeing...are they any good? It looks like it is too much bread. Is it?

Thanks again.[/quote]

[quote name='Eng23']There are a few good places to get views of the wake with lounge chairs. You could go to Deck 16, there are lots of loungers behind the Flowriders overlooking the ships wake. You could also check out the secret balcony's on Decks 11 & 12 all the way aft at the end of the cabin corridor's.[/quote]

Deck 5 aft next to the walking/running track is my favorite spot...

[URL="http://s1231.photobucket.com/user/Teddricks/media/IMG_1292aDeck5_zpsc48fe771.jpg.html"][IMG]http://i1231.photobucket.com/albums/ee505/Teddricks/IMG_1292aDeck5_zpsc48fe771.jpg[/IMG][/URL]

[URL="http://s1231.photobucket.com/user/Teddricks/media/IMG_1292b_zps2dc79710.jpg.html"][IMG]http://i1231.photobucket.com/albums/ee505/Teddricks/IMG_1292b_zps2dc79710.jpg[/IMG][/URL]

[URL="http://s1231.photobucket.com/user/Teddricks/media/Allureaftdeck5_zps38f0d922.jpg.html"][IMG]http://i1231.photobucket.com/albums/ee505/Teddricks/Allureaftdeck5_zps38f0d922.jpg[/IMG][/URL]


[URL="http://s1231.photobucket.com/user/Teddricks/media/Allurewakefromdeck5_zps0f83d6a6.jpg.html"][IMG]http://i1231.photobucket.com/albums/ee505/Teddricks/Allurewakefromdeck5_zps0f83d6a6.jpg[/IMG][/URL]

[Robinola]

Awesome! Thank you, Lloyd555! Love those pics.....Looks like just what I need!

[the_journeyman]

Sorry it's been a month and I'm just getting back. Been quite busy.

[quote name='mdxter']If you don't mind me asking, what were your camera settings (aperture, speed, and iso) when you took these pictures? I am assuming you did not use a flash. What lens are you using? The pictures are clear and vivid. Thanks.[/QUOTE]

I'm running a Nikon D90 with a Tamron 17-50mm f2.8 (through entire range). No flash, it's a courtesy and safety issue. When I'm shooting a show, I run in Manual mode, pick a low f-stop (usually between 2.8 and 4) and adjust my shutter speed accordingly. Usually, shutters below 1/125 won't effectively "stop" the action. This works well as long as you pay attention to the lighting and make sure to use the brighter parts of the stage for pictures.


[quote name='tiger belle']..did you make reservations beforehand? If so, any advice as to what night to book what shows?[/QUOTE]

We did reserve before hand aside from the ice show. Chicago is long. We booked it the first night so once we found our pre and post supper hangouts, we wouldn't be worried about running off to a long show. Otherwise, we looked at port times and booked most on days at sea. All the shows we were in were full, so I do recommend reservations.


[quote name='Shippy']I though it was a great size for a ship. Can you tell me what catagory ?[/QUOTE]

D8, I think. It was the cheapest balcony cabin as best I remember.

[quote name='NMG318']How did you get to Maho Beach? What time should we leave in order to get back to the ship?[/QUOTE]

We left at 1:30 and missed the Air France 767 coming in. If you don't plan on shopping in Phillipsburg on your way back, you can leave around 2:30 (ship time) after the 767 comes in.

As for watching the wake - there are actually a couple deck chairs on deck 6 beside the canvas that makes the backdrop for the Aqua Theater.

JM