Allure 9/22/13: A Story Review w/drama, humor, Pics & Video

[VegasChic]

Breakaway is a beautiful ship, too. Aside from the outstanding entertainment (at least as good, if not better than Epic entertainment), the experience will be similar.

 

The big claim to fame were the exterior areas (which I absolutely loved). While the Allure tends to focus on keeping passengers away from water views, the Breakaway is the exact opposite. I spent a lot of time outdoors on the Breakaway vs the Allure.

 

My guess is your daughter and your husband will love Burn the Floor. I also loved Rock of Ages. However, the themes and language are rated R. So keep that in mind when you go.

 

I found the food and service on the Breakaway to be better than on the Allure.

 

However, the pay venues were good on both.

 

But, I had a great time on both the Allure, Epic and Breakway. Had "nits to pick" on all of them, but no real complaints at all.

 

You should also take a look at the Carnival Breeze. It is a fantastic ship.

 

Thanks for the feedback,I'm pretty sure I will love burn the floor (I love ballroom dancing) in my younger years I wanted to be a pro ballroom dancer! Starting reading your Breakaway review but I barely have free time on my hands these days... should be through with it by next week!

 

Question: if someone gave you a free cruise to EPIC, Breakaway or Allure which would you choose?

[VegasChic]

Really enjoying your review Vegas Chic. Always said I would never be on a mega ship but just might one day.

 

On another topic I see you have been to Vegas numerous times--I have to be there on a short business trip first week of November. Don't see any headliners booked I care to see and we are in a nongaming hotel. What should I do on my free day--love really good food and would love to see a good entertainment show (no magic).

 

Have you been to Vegas before? It's hard to tell what I should tell you to do if you only have one free day. There is so much to see and do it depends on what you like. Show's my favorite to date is Le Reve but again depends on what type of shows you're into. I should probably write an article "Vegas in a Day" I would probably have a migraine trying to figure it out. For spa's I like Qua at Caesars or The Spa at the Wynn or the Bathhouse at THEhotel. Lunch at Mon Ami Gabi, try to get something on the terrace overlooking the Bellagio dancing fountains. Dining: Craftsteak, Nine, Cut, Delmonico's, Eiffel Tower Restaurant at Paris. There are so many delicious and gorgeous restaurants I just mentioned some of the steak houses. If you have time you must visit the Bellagio and the Wynn! Hope this helps!

[gottogocruisin]

Vivian I am enjoying your review so much. I am going on the Oasis with my best friend of 60 years, leaving the guys at home, the end of March.

I also love your take on Vegas. We spent our 50th anniversary at the Bellagio and what a wonderful time. So much to do that you need to weed out those things that don't interest you. My niece is a policewoman in Vegas so it was fun to go to the places that the local frequent.

Keep those thoughts of your trips coming.

Kay

[A&L_Ont]

Have you been to Vegas before? It's hard to tell what I should tell you to do if you only have one free day. There is so much to see and do it depends on what you like. Show's my favorite to date is Le Reve but again depends on what type of shows you're into. I should probably write an article "Vegas in a Day" I would probably have a migraine trying to figure it out. For spa's I like Qua at Caesars or The Spa at the Wynn or the Bathhouse at THEhotel. Lunch at Mon Ami Gabi, try to get something on the terrace overlooking the Bellagio dancing fountains. Dining: Craftsteak, Nine, Cut, Delmonico's, Eiffel Tower Restaurant at Paris. There are so many delicious and gorgeous restaurants I just mentioned some of the steak houses. If you have time you must visit the Bellagio and the Wynn! Hope this helps!

 

If I might throw in a few others dinner stops. Ramsey's Steak at the Paris or Stripsteak at Mandalay Bay. Get the Wagyu Rib Cap Steak. We had that cut at both restaurants and it was the best steak ever!

 

We went this summer for the first time for a week and had a blast. We stayed at the Bellagio and had a premier fountain view suite. We watched the fountain show every time it ran while we were in our room. We are going back next year for a few days at least.:D

 

Andrew

[VegasChic]

If I might throw in a few others dinner stops. Ramsey's Steak at the Paris or Stripsteak at Mandalay Bay. Get the Wagyu Rib Cap Steak. We had that cut at both restaurants and it was the best steak ever!

 

We went this summer for the first time for a week and had a blast. We stayed at the Bellagio and had a premier fountain view suite. We watched the fountain show every time it ran while we were in our room. We are going back next year for a few days at least.:D

 

Andrew

 

Andrew thank you for chiming in! I also went to strip steak this past April when we renewed our vows this is where we had our anniversary dinner we were staying at THE Hotel. It was delicious!!! I was confusing it with craftsteak which is at MGM which I also ate at but had the tasting menu. I tried to go to Ramseys when it first opened in 2012 but they had nothing available (I was so upset) until the following week (unbelievable!)

 

We are going back in April (celebrating my hubby's 50th:eek:!!)

[VegasChic]

Vivian I am enjoying your review so much. I am going on the Oasis with my best friend of 60 years, leaving the guys at home, the end of March.

I also love your take on Vegas. We spent our 50th anniversary at the Bellagio and what a wonderful time. So much to do that you need to weed out those things that don't interest you. My niece is a policewoman in Vegas so it was fun to go to the places that the local frequent.

Keep those thoughts of your trips coming.

Kay

 

You are so Lucky, I would love to cruise alone at least once but my husband will be insulted if I told him that or think I was going off to have a romantic rendezvous with a lover:rolleyes:

[A&L_Ont]

Andrew thank you for chiming in! I also went to strip steak this past April when we renewed our vows this is where we had our anniversary dinner we were staying at THE Hotel. It was delicious!!! I was confusing it with craftsteak which is at MGM which I also ate at but had the tasting menu. I tried to go to Ramseys when it first opened in 2012 but they had nothing available (I was so upset) until the following week (unbelievable!)

 

We are going back in April (celebrating my hubby's 50th:eek:!!)

 

We were surprised by Puck's restaurant in MGM. We ate there prior to going to Brad Garrett's comedy club in the basement of the MGM. The food was really good and the price for dinner was very affordable. If Brad is in town you should go. He was when we were there and he was hilarious as an act. By far better than the headliner comedians.

 

For Ramsey's steak we walked up and got a reservation for the following night which was a Friday. We were lucky enough to get a booth which was right beside where they plate the food. You should ask/request this, as the show was almost as good as the dinner. Another words it was amazing. A great spot for a birthday, 50th or 49th again.

 

We also went to Dig This and ran dozers and large excavators. So much to do in his town. :D. I loved Vegas and we don't drink or gamble (OK only the 5 cent slots). I love cursing more though.

 

Thanks for a great review.

Andrew

Edited October 17, 2013 by A&L_Ont

[Marlin girl]

Thanks for the review Vegaschic. We are going on the Allure next week and want to take our daughter to the Character Breakfasts. Is it correct there are 2 per sailing and do you remember which days they were on?

 

Thanks!

[VegasChic]

Your daughter is going to have the time of her life. Yes the Character breakfasts are at 8am on sea days in the MDR, you have to pre-book so make sure you do this as there is limited seating. If you don't see it online under Specialty dining, call RCL and they will reserve it for you. I will be posting Day 6 on Friday which includes the Character breakfast.

[swim13]

Question: if someone gave you a free cruise to EPIC, Breakaway or Allure which would you choose?

 

ALLURE, was that a serious question?! :D

[PCWalton1]

Just wanted to say your pictures in Jamaica were beautiful. Thank you for taking the time to post.

Bill

[gottogocruisin]

You are so Lucky, I would love to cruise alone at least once but my husband will be insulted if I told him that or think I was going off to have a romantic rendezvous with a lover:rolleyes:

 

After you have been married 50+ years he may change his mind!!!!!:cool:

[graphicguy]

Thanks for the feedback,I'm pretty sure I will love burn the floor (I love ballroom dancing) in my younger years I wanted to be a pro ballroom dancer! Starting reading your Breakaway review but I barely have free time on my hands these days... should be through with it by next week!

 

Question: if someone gave you a free cruise to EPIC, Breakaway or Allure which would you choose?

 

Oooohhhhh...you're going to make me choose between the Allure, Epic, and Breakaway? For free?

 

WOW....that's a tough one. I like all of them.

 

I'd have to go with the Breakaway. It's just a beautiful ship. I love the outdoor areas of the ship. And, the crew made me feel like an old friend. I did that cruise solo, and they always went out of their way to make sure I knew of all there was to do, to drink, to eat, to see, etc, etc, etc.

 

I LOVED Bermuda. The people in Bermuda are great, and sincerely want you to feel the same while you're visiting. I didn't have to rush around, worrying what time the ship left, as it stayed docked. I would party in Bermuda, come back on board, and party some more.

 

Plus, they're going to allow the casino on the Breakaway to stay open while in port (not sure when that goes into effect, though).

 

Wait...wait, I might change my mind if you're going during winter. The Atlantic can get pretty knarly in the Fall/Winter months. So, if you're going in the Winter, I'd have to choose between the Allure and the Epic.

 

OK....I'll go with Epic...entertainment is what I consider the best at sea. Plus, the service was the best I had experienced, on any ship. Nobody does Freestyle better than NCL. Epic puts an exclamation point on it. Every day on board you really do decide whether you'll have a better time staying on board, or going on an excursion, and really having a debate with yourself, where there isn't any wrong decision.

 

No...wait....I choose the Allure. Park Cafe is one of the best venues for breakfast and lunch that I've experienced on any ship. It is hands down better than going to the buffet line. And, although smaller, a better experience than fighting for tables in the buffet. Plus, there's the Atrium Bar, which I hung out at a lot, and had a blast...every day (and night). Oceania is a good show. The Ice Show is pretty amazing, too.

 

I know, book all 3, and come back with your recommendation when you're finished!!!!!:D

[Candie787]

Amazing review! Helping me get ready to sail in 16 days :D

[pamssanity]

Love reading your reviews. Going in 26 days. Adorable dd. watch out you guts are in trouble my husband would say your husband will need a 10 foot pole to keep the boys away. Well back to dwarfing

[VegasChic]

Day 5: At Sea

 

For the first time this sailing, I set a wake-up call the night prior for 6:45 AM. We had the character breakfast this morning at 8 AM and I didn't want to be late. I woke up and looked at the clock and with my blurry eyes and yelled “oh crap everybody wake up we’re super late!!!" I turned on the lights and jetted for the bathroom as I got closer to the bathroom I looked at the clock again but this time it said 5:15 AM (not the blurry vision of 8:15). I looked at DH and DD but they were still in an intense sleep. For a moment there I thought I should get dressed, get a cup of coffee and head up to one of the decks to watch and photograph the sunrise but then I changed my mind and went back to sleep. When I finally did wake up at the correct time I was kind of upset at myself that I didn't take advantage of the situation and go see the sunrise. Did I mention how much I hate being in an inside cabin this is when I really started to miss the ocean. We spent 80% of our time indoors again today!

 

When I arrived at check-in with DD there was a line formed and every for every other person who said they had a reservation, there was no reservation found in the system and they were asked to step aside and wait for all of those with legitimate reservations to be accommodated. I started to worry and thought “my reservation better be there” as I had made mine with the reservation agent on the phone plus I brought my confirmation. My reservation was valid and we were promptly seated. We were given a DreamWorks menu (very cute!)

 

 

 

 

A few minutes later, they called the children up to join some of the crew to participate in a mini dance routine.

 

 

 

Then the character’s came out one at a time. There was an introduction and song for each of the three characters that were there that morning. Alex the Lion, Gloria and King Julien (all from Madagascar). As each character arrived they did a mini dance routine with the crew then they proceeded to start greeting the guests and taking pictures. They visited every table so everyone has an opportunity to take pictures. The next character would come out 10-15 minutes later, until all three were out on the floor. Then they left as they finished all the tables.

 

 

 

 

 

Half way through the greetings, there was an announcement for all children celebrating their birthday today to raise their hand, there were none. Then they asked who was celebrating their birthday this week and of course my daughter raised her hand so they brought her up and king Julien lead her through a birthday song and dance routine (she was elated!).

 

[VegasChic]

After breakfast we dropped DD off at Adventure Ocean and I came back down to Deck 5. I told DH I would be at the casino for the CC Slot pull he said he would see me down there. I cut through the Royal Promenade to grab more coffee at the Café Promenade and took the shortcut to the casino I snapped a few pictures along the way.

 

 

On Air

 

 

 

 

 

[VegasChic]

More Zumba

 

 

 

 

I made it to the casino after fighting through the zumba mob to get by. I took a few pictures of the casino (rather quickly). I know it’s no-no to take pictures in certain casinos I wasn't sure about the policy on Allure but didn’t want to get yelled at (the place was totally empty!)

 

 

 

 

 

 

[mdwcruises]

All I can say is Wow! Love your review!

[VegasChic]

I sat down to play at a draw poker slot machine TIP: draw poker has the best odds of all slot machines in the casino at least in Vegas it does! I put in $20 got up to $80 then cashed out. It was still 10am and the slot pull was at 10:30 so I decided to get a drink (I was in a casino after all). I ordered a mimosa and gave the bartender my card (he said it was declined!) “HUH??” What on earth last night when I ordered wine at dinner the waiter said my card was not reading properly (he was being nice!) So we went up to Guest Relations where there was a long line formed luckily I had my mimosa to keep me entertained. When we got to the teller she advised our credit card was denied yesterday but was approved today. My husband took out his wallet and gave the woman $1200 cash to add to our account and remove the credit card. She said that are account was fine and that we shouldn’t have any problems. I went back downstairs and the slot pull was getting started. They chose an imitation wheel of fortune as the machine we would use at $15 pp. The reason I say imitation is because it was nothing like the “real” wheel of fortune slot I’ve played in many casino’s on land and on NCL’s casino and even on the Navigator (which I won $1500 on).

 

 

It was really difficult to get a spin! Basically, you need to get 3 “spin” icons on a line to get a spin (totally sucks). We got a few spins but they were small amounts. We didn’t win anything just kept playing until we used all our credits. After that I went back to the bar to pay for my drink and ended up ordering another mimosa and gave my card to the same bartender. “Declined again!” :mad::mad: I went upstairs again in a rage with no Mimosa in hand this time! I saw my husband standing in the long line as well. Apparently he tried to buy a Bingo package. Luckily we got the same lady who advised that our card was perfectly fine and didn’t understand what the problem was. After 20 minutes and doing trial charges and still no resolution. She told the front desk manager who wrote our name on a list of others with the same situation and proceeded to tell us it was a glitch in their system. So she gave us both a business card with a note telling crew to write a paper ticket (total inconvenience). My DH went down to pay for my mimosa while I went to pick up DD from AO which closed at noon. DH later told me that the bartender asked him if we finally paid our balance (I cannot validate the truth in this statement as my husband tends to exaggerate!)

 

DD and I changed into our swimsuits to hit the pool when DH arrived and said he wanted to see Iron Man in the Amber Theater. That was the last thing I wanted to do I told him to have fun. He left to the Amber Theater solo and called the cabin a few minutes later and told me to go by there quickly before we went to the pool. DD and I stopped by and they were selling popcorn and soft drinks. DD loves popcorn and wanted some then decided she wanted to watch the movie too. I’ll admit I love Iron Man and haven’t been able to see part 3 so I got suckered into it.

 

There is a large screen that I imagine comes down from the ceiling and they provide you with 3D glasses. Half way through the movie we are interrupted by a message from the captain stating something that went like this: “As some of you may have noticed, we have turned the ship around (“uh no I didn’t notice :rolleyes: and we’re missing the good part”) apparently we have received numerous reports from passengers that a mysterious object was spotted in the ocean that looks like a human body and from directions we’ve received from Miami and the coast card, we must investigate further”. They repeated this long 5 minute message in Spanish too! I don’t remember if anyone left the packed movie theater to be nosy but 45 minutes later, the captain returned stating that after a full investigation the mysterious object was a tree log with a bird on it! Nice!! We all laughed and they repeated the whole message again in Spanish.

 

After the movie, I needed sunlight and fresh air we headed straight to the pool deck. DD played in the pool and DH and I got another 8 beers to put in our RCL Cooler :D I was starving at this point it was like 3:45 (we ate breakfast 6 hours ago!). I went down to the park café and got us some sandwiches and snacks. I brought my beach bag with me! Went back to the pool and had my Roast Beef Sandwich with an ICY cold Stella Yummy!! I want one now!

[VegasChic]

I didn’t take that many pictures this day so I figured it would be a good time to post some photo’s I took throughout the sailing of central park.

 

 

 

 

 

 

[VegasChic]

 

 

 

 

 

[VegasChic]

 

 

 

 

 

[VegasChic]

 

 

 

 

 

[VegasChic]

It was formal night tonight so I wore my nicest outfit, a bandeau skirt and a sequin top. The plan was to try and see Ice Games tonight it was scheduled for 7pm. I had a reservation for the 9:30 slot (again poor planning on my part!) It was lobster night and either I miss dinner, eat at 6:00 or try to get in at 7 for the Ice games. DD and I were ready at 6:20 and headed over to get on standby. As soon as we arrived I explained the situation to the crew member checking people in and she mentioned it was a slow night and let us go right in. My husband got there right when the show was starting and had to sit elsewhere (always late!). The show was awesome!!! It was my second favorite show behind Chicago. I didn’t take any pictures of the show and a woman sitting in front of me got a flashlight in her face for taking pictures or filming.

 

 

 

After the show, we had dinner in the MDR, it was lobster night. Guess what I had? It was okay nothing to brag about what I can expect I’m on a cruise with 6000 other people. I have to admit the three cheese tortellini was delicious although I didn’t order it our waiter brought it anyway, said they had a lot of extra. Our lobster took forever and the waiter mentioned that during early dining there was a table that had 7 lobsters each (he might have been exaggerating). I told our waiter (John Reyes) that he looked exactly like Mr. Chow on the hangover, he laughed and said he’s been told many times.

 

After dinner, we walked around a bit then headed to the cabin. We were drained from waking up so early.

 

Allure vs. Epic Comparisons

 

Character Breakfast – Allure wins! The Epic charges $15 and there is no menu to order from they serve everyone the same thing. Plus the characters don’t walk around you have to line up to take pictures with them. It’s just the worth the money in my opinion.

 

Movie Theater – Allure Wins! There is no movie theater on the Epic however they have a two story screen that covers the atrium and o’sheehans they play movies in the evenings sometimes but sometimes there are no seats let.

 

Lobster – Epic wins! (My opinion of course!)

 

Ice Skating vs. Bowling – It’s a tie – it depends on what you prefer; we are bowlers so Epic is our pick, what is yours?

 

Up next: Cozumel

Breakfast at park café

Call home + mini internet package + Fight w/DH:mad:

Jeep rental and beach hopping (LOTS OF PICTURES!)

Shopping

Room Service

3 hour dinner at Chops including spooky conversation with mystery man:eek::confused: