Allure of the Seas Review 1/25 - 2/1

[KarenR122]

Hello! First a little about our family. I am 45, DH is 43 and our daughter is 8 from NY. DD does not utilize the kids club at all, so most of our vacation is “family” time with very little alone adult time so I do not have any reviews of the adult only areas. We always travel in suites. DD is high functioning autistic and we need the extra room. We have been on numerous Princess, Disney, Carnival and Norwegian cruises. DD herself has been on about 7 cruises. The Allure is definitely the largest ship we have been on but have done The Breakaway and Disney Fantasy so we have sailed on large ships.

I will say that we enjoyed our vacation as it gave us time to bond together as a family, but this was the absolute worst cruise we have every been on. It was our first Royal Caribbean and most likely our last. We picked Royal and the Allure because it was highly recommended to us. We are not loyal to any particular line and just cruise what we find appealing at the time.

[B][U]The Good[/U][/B]
Embarkation
Ice Shows
Aqua Theater Shows
The Boardwalk
Casino

We arrived to the port at about noon and were on the ship within 20 minutes. Very fast and efficient. The Ice Shows were amazing and you forget you are on a ship. I really give Royal Caribbean kudos for these productions as the quality of the shows are just amazing. DD loved the How to Train your Dragon show. We had an Aqua Theater Suite so we saw the Aqua Shows numerous times as well as the divers practicing. All were terrific and something we have not experienced in any other cruise line. We loved the Boardwalk area and my DD had an everlasting seat on that Carousel. Another really cool feature to have a ship. She also loved the little playground section. We got numerous balloon animals but was never able to find the face painting they said they had.

[B][U]The Bad[/U][/B]
Guests
Balcony
Wait Staff
Concierge
Buffet

Never in all of my cruises, pre or post children, have I ever encountered more rude guests. It really put a damper on the entire trip. We always travel while school is in session so while we know there will be less children, I did not think the majority demographic would be much older than us. That is one of the main reasons we do not sail on Celebrity. We were literally pushed out of the elevator by wheelchairs and those scooter things. At the children’s ice show the entire front row was taken up by guests over the age of 70. It’s a kids’ show and they want to interact with the characters, common sense should have prevailed there. Then because they were taking up all the front row seats they were constantly turning around to tell the kids (not just my own) to shhh or to stop moving around and even told one parent next to me to learn to control their child. They were being normal children not causing a major ruckus.

We were waiting on two occasions to eat in the main dining room lunch. It was super crowded and they were sitting people together at the large tables. On each day numerous people (all older) said out loud for all to hear that they refuse to sit with my daughter, pointing at her. DD was so upset not understanding why no one liked her and how do you explain that to your child. I totally understand not wanting to sit with a child but keep your mouth shut or mention it quietly to the host. These were just a few of the multitudes of insults and rudeness we received for having a child with us.

We tried to eat in the Main Dining for dinner a few times and we were not impressed. Most of the time there was nothing that we found we wanted to eat, or if we did, the waiter told us not to because it wasn’t very good. We found that the wait staff, at least the ones we had, were not able to understand us very well. We had to explain over and over what we wanted and it usually came out wrong. Two examples are that we just wanted water with no ice to drink. You would think I was asking for them to build a rocket. Then one night we ordered off the list where you have to pay extra. DH wanted a lobster tail. They offered a full lobster and a surf and turf. We told the waiter we would pay for a surf and turf but only wanted the lobster tail. If they could do two lobster tails that would be great, if not, the one would be fine. Well when his food came to the table he had two full lobsters (I know, first world problem : ) ) which is not what he wanted. He doesn’t eat anything but the tails and it would be a waste. So back and forth we go with the waiter and he said just eat it and apologized. Fine no problem. When we get the bill for dinner they charged us for two full lobster dinners, over $70 bucks. Long story short but after going back and forth with the waiter and head waiter we agreed to pay for the price of the surf and turf dinner, which we originally asked for.

We then decided to use the buffet for other dinners/breakfasts. Never in my life have I ever seen a line to get into a buffet and some nights waiting over 30 minutes. We found the selections to be minimal and while what they had tasted good, there was not enough selections (for our palates). For a child, there were no chicken fingers or pizza or standard kid fare. The pasta bar was just pasta in a bowl with sauces on the side. Normally I’m used to seeing pasta stations where they prepare the food for you. The desserts had minimal choices and most were not good. Unless I missed a whole section of food, this is one of the worst buffets I have seen and the seating was severely lacking for the amount of people on the Allure. Yes we eat at prime times but at a buffet that really shouldn’t matter. I have no issue waiting for an omelet being made but to just find a seat it is unacceptable.

Because of our issues with both the Main Dining Room and the Buffet we ate a lot at Johnny Rockets. While it was good how much of that stuff can you eat? We also ate once at Rita’s and really like it. Our only issue was that DD did not like anything on their menu (she is autistic and fighting her about food is not something we want to do on vacation). We asked if they could get her some chicken fingers or if we could purchase them from Johnny Rockets and bring them over for her to eat and they said absolutely not. How ridiculous. They are directly across from each other and saw the workers going back and forth all week. So that was another restaurant we had to cross off the list.

Our room – we got a great deal on the Aqua suite about a month before the cruise and jumped at it. The room size was huge. 2 full bedrooms and 2 full baths along with a sitting area. The room was not as well appointed as the suites we normally stay in but I knew that ahead of time so it really wasn’t an issue. Our issue was it was dirty. I do not think it was cleaned from the people previously there. We called up and had it re-cleaned that afternoon. Again, for the amount of money I spent, or that anyone spends on their room, it should be clean before you enter. No excuse for that.

Our balcony was absolutely huge and we had planned on using it a lot this vacation. That was not the case because again it was filthy dirty. I think it was the soot falling down onto the balcony but it was never cleaned by the staff after we repeatedly called. I ended up cleaning it myself every single time we walked out there because if I didn’t we’d come back covered in black. Also, the bathrooms stopped working about 5 times during the cruise. They came and fixed it but it was quite annoying. Definitely not worth the money we spent.

The Concierge or I should say lack of Concierge. As I mentioned earlier, we only travel in suites and are very familiar with what a concierge can and can not do. Even though this post may make me sound a little high maintenance, I am really not and prefer to do things myself and only reach out if needed. That being said, I do think that the Concierge should be reaching out to its suite guests a few times during the cruise to see how everything is going. Not one single call or visit. Nothing. I tried calling once to ask about how to order breakfast from the main dining menu, as we were not familiar with how Royal did this. I was hung up on 3 times and the 4th time was told they would call me back in 10 minutes and I am still waiting for that call. We figured it out ourselves. We did not go to the Concierge Lounge during our trip as we do not drink and I didn’t think it was appropriate to bring my DD there.

All in all we had a good vacation because we made it so but for the money that we spent, it was a waste. Many of the friendly people I met in the casino even commented that this was the rudest crowd they have encountered and their worst Royal trip. Most of them were repeat customers. I’m hoping what I encountered was just a fluke but we definitely not sail on the Allure again and sailing any Royal Caribbean ship again is iffy at most.

Thank you.

[trihawks1]

Thank you for taking the time to write a review. We have cruised on celebrity when my daughter was 14 and we enjoyed the cruise...but agree it is for an older group. Now that I am 55, lol, I am the older group on Royal Caribbean. We try to book when kids are in school so at least here are a few less kids on the cruise. In the 3 cruises we have done, no issues with kids.

We just booked a cruise for December with my DH, DD who is 26, and three of her friends who are all 27-30. We had a fantastic cruise, best of all the ones we have been on, on Independence in Dec 2013. We are hoping that booking the Oasis isn't a bad idea. Everything on Indy was awesome. My DH and I think we should stay with Freedom size ships...but the adult kids want to try Oasis. So, hoping we don't have the rude people or staff as you had on your trip.

I would love to try NCL or another ship on Royal or Celebrity...however I have vertigo issues and I like the ships that are at least Freedom size or bigger...I go based on the beam width. NCL and others with new ships are not as wide of beams as Freedom or Oasis...so I will stick with the ones that do. Indy was first ship I have been on with no vertigo issues and I was able to go to the MDR and Chops without issues.

A suggestion would be to try the Freedom size ships. It doesn't have as many people or restaurants, but Indy was perfect for us. However, I realize that each cruise can be good/bad depending on the staff, weather, and guests. Hope you try another cruise and it is better than this one was for you and your family.


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[DCT61]

Wow. Sorry you didn't enjoy your cruise. It must be horrible to spend all that money and not enjoy it. We were on this same cruise and in a Crown Loft suite. Our experience was 180 degrees different from yours. It was our BEST cruise so far.
I cant imagine why the concierge didn't contact you. We received so many calls from him, that we joked about needing to be placed on a "do not call" list. Our suite was SPOTLESS and our room attendant (Marva) was the best we've ever had.
I wanted to let you know that chicken tenders WERE available in the Windjammer. I'm a fairly "finicky" eater and I had them on a couple occasions. They were not out on the "islands" they were up against the wall where the hamburgers and hot dogs were.
Again, Sorry you didn't enjoy your vacation.

[LuCruise]

I'm sorry to hear that you had such a bad experience with rude passengers, bad dining and dirty rooms. The passengers can't be helped by RCL, but the dining and cleaniness they can. Hope if you cruise again, you have a better experience.

[TonyaJune]

Sorry you had a bad experience. My family was also on this sailing. We stayed in a Crown Loft Suite, and I must say it was absolutely wonderful! Service was outstanding and our suite was spotless. The concierge was fantastic (Dexter Fraser), one of the best we have ever had. Food in the main dining room was delicious. We have been on approximately 35 Royal Caribbean cruises, and this was one of the best!