Is Allure getting more crowded?

[2910car]

We are just off the 12/6 Allure. The crowds in the Windjammer and the other lunch venues seem much bigger and lines longer than when we sailed on her 4 years ago. MDR tables were so close together we could hear all the conversations at the next table. And MDR service seemed to go down a bit. Our food was often cold and sometimes the wrong order.

 

I was told they added 100 more cabins. Can this be true? I always told people you could not believe you were on a ship of 6000 people. Now I don't think I could honestly say that anymore.

 

We are booked next December on the Harmony and not sure if I really want to go. Maybe I should try something smaller.

[zeridan]

We are just off the 12/6 Allure. The crowds in the Windjammer and the other lunch venues seem much bigger and lines longer than when we sailed on her 4 years ago. MDR tables were so close together we could hear all the conversations at the next table. And MDR service seemed to go down a bit. Our food was often cold and sometimes the wrong order.

 

I was told they added 100 more cabins. Can this be true? I always told people you could not believe you were on a ship of 6000 people. Now I don't think I could honestly say that anymore.

 

We are booked next December on the Harmony and not sure if I really want to go. Maybe I should try something smaller.

 

They did add cabins but such a small amount will make no major difference on a ship of that size. We were on the same same sailing and with the exception of breakfast in the Windjammer on disembarkation day I can't say we shared your experience. However if you disliked what you saw/experienced I'd have to assume Harmony will be similar.

[harry0]

I was on the same sailing and our original service team in MDR was so bad we moved tables (first time after more than 50 cruises). Our new waitstaff was great but I am not a fan of My Time-we waited an average of 40 minutes for a table.

Definate drop off in MDR experience. But we love the Allure and will be booking the Harmony soon.

[racerxspeedy]

I agree with your findings - my time dining on Allure had a significant lines. Will skip MTD on Harmony. Also noticed longer lines in other areas compared to Oasis.

[Dave85]

I sailed the Oasis class three times before they added new cabins and once after (on Oasis), and she did seem a little more crowded at key spots (such as around the buffet and on the Royal Promenade) after. I was sure that we wouldn't notice a thing, but am not so sure about that anymore. I was just on Anthem last month and felt less crowded.

Edited December 14, 2015 by Dave85

[Royal2464]

We are just off the 12/6 Allure. The crowds in the Windjammer and the other lunch venues seem much bigger and lines longer than when we sailed on her 4 years ago. MDR tables were so close together we could hear all the conversations at the next table. And MDR service seemed to go down a bit. Our food was often cold and sometimes the wrong order.

 

I was told they added 100 more cabins. Can this be true? I always told people you could not believe you were on a ship of 6000 people. Now I don't think I could honestly say that anymore.

 

We are booked next December on the Harmony and not sure if I really want to go. Maybe I should try something smaller.

 

A person's perception of something often can vary greatly from that of another in the same place and time. You need to find a class or line of ship that provides your ideal vacation. I assume you work hard for your money. Going on another Oasis class ship would be like going to a restaurant one night, hating their food but continue to go there every night expecting something different. Good luck and pleasant cruising!

[loubetti]

Okay, let me get this straight.

 

You have 6,000 pax on a 225,000 ton ship.

 

That equates to a pax to space ratio of 37.5.

Yes, some areas will seem spacious and some crowded.

 

Now, we have a tiny ship named Queen Mary 2, she's ONLY 148,000 tons, but she carries a max of around 2620 pax.

 

That equals a space ratio of 56.4.

 

Oh yeah, no flow riders, rock walls, and blah blah.

 

Space equals luxury, get used to it!:D

[zeridan]

I was on the same sailing and our original service team in MDR was so bad we moved tables (first time after more than 50 cruises). Our new waitstaff was great but I am not a fan of My Time-we waited an average of 40 minutes for a table.

Definate drop off in MDR experience. But we love the Allure and will be booking the Harmony soon.

 

I had the My Time dining and never waited more than 5-7 minutes (perfect amount of time to grab a drink or glass of wine from the waiting lounge). I also had the same waitstaff every evening. Did you have My Time reservations or were you just doing walk-up?

[hazeleyez3]

I, too, was on the 12/6 sailing. She did seem more crowded in the Park Café. Never entered the windjammer, so I cannot speak on that.

 

We never waited for a table in the dining room, but I do agree that there were areas where the tables were so close together that you could hear 100% of neighbor's conversation.

 

Granted it isn't a room that everyone uses, but I have to say that the card room (which was also where the computers are) was unbelievably crowded. Finding tables and chairs for a game was impossible sometimes.

[gatour]

I am assuming when you are referencing 225,000 ton vs 148,000 tons the figures are gross tonnage. If not, stop right here.

 

As you know, gross tonnage is a statement of enclosed volume transporting cargo. For cruise lines the cargo is passengers. So any enclosed space that accommodates passengers is part of the gross tonnage.

 

Oasis class ships have the Promenade that stretches three stories straight up. Their is space on deck 6 and 7 that is in essence "wasted" in regards to space ratios, as compared to ships that would have actual decks in those spaces.

 

Having said that, I don't think the air space in the Promenade is wasted. It enhances the experience.

 

I have sailed on both the Oasis and the Queen Mary 2, and they both seem to utilize the public spaces effectively.

 

 

 

 

Okay, let me get this straight.

 

You have 6,000 pax on a 225,000 ton ship.

 

That equates to a pax to space ratio of 37.5.

Yes, some areas will seem spacious and some crowded.

 

Now, we have a tiny ship named Queen Mary 2, she's ONLY 148,000 tons, but she carries a max of around 2620 pax.

 

That equals a space ratio of 56.4.

 

Oh yeah, no flow riders, rock walls, and blah blah.

 

Space equals luxury, get used to it!:D

[kalliekae]

I was on the same sailing and our original service team in MDR was so bad we moved tables (first time after more than 50 cruises). Our new waitstaff was great but I am not a fan of My Time-we waited an average of 40 minutes for a table.

Definate drop off in MDR experience. But we love the Allure and will be booking the Harmony soon.

 

We were on the sailing before you and were told by multiple crew members that the Nov 29 sailing was the end of their contract so many were going home. Perhaps the new crew on your sailing wasn't quite in the swing of things.

 

I'm sorry you had problems in the MDR because we were very impressed with the level of service we received. We also had My Time dining and never made a reservation. Yet, we only waited one time for about 10 minutes for a table for 2. Our past experience on the Oasis was not a good one in that MDR so we were thrilled with the quality of food and service on the Allure.

[Langley Cruisers]

Personally, I feel the size of the Windjammer and the lines around the ship are proportionate to the size of the ship. Our favorite class of ship is Radiance class; the WJ is well laid out and not overly congested or at the very least, you can still "move around". Move up to Voyager class and all of a sudden I am feeling a bit squishy, I guess you could say. Slightly different WJ layout, more people, longer lines, claustrophobia stats to set in. Oasis - forget it. Sorry, the WJ is totally dysfunctional for this size of ship. I have said this before and so have others here - I know there are other eating venues on this class of ship and I think that's what they are counting on to help spread out the crowds. Too bad it doesn't work. :rolleyes::p

 

OP 2910car, I invite you to try something smaller (and Radiance class is not all that small!). Only you can decide how big is too big and how you will enjoy your vacation.

.

[harry0]

I had the My Time dining and never waited more than 5-7 minutes (perfect amount of time to grab a drink or glass of wine from the waiting lounge). I also had the same waitstaff every evening. Did you have My Time reservations or were you just doing walk-up?

We needed a table for four and switched from traditional to My time on the 4th day. We were told we had a reservation every night at 6:30-2 nights we had the same waiters the other night was differen. Service was great but the wait was too much. The first waitstaff team we had was having a very bad week.

Edited December 16, 2015 by harry0

[RCmommy]

Sitting in the mdr right now on the Allure. Captain said there are 6300 people on board. There has been long lines for mdr but they move fast. Buffet is busy busy but you don't wait too long. The ship is busy overall and there is crowded areas but not horribly so. It's a big ship! We expected it.

[setsail]

I guess no one uses the touch screens to monitor how full the venues are. Friends we were on with used the windjammer everyday, says it was easy to get seating, etc., because the touch screens told them the best times to use and after a day or so they just went at those times, no problems.

[playingpossum]

We were on the December 6th sailing and were not impressed at all with how the my time dining worked for us. Royal lost all but one of our dining reservations and moved 3 show times around due to a new cast. We were unable to obtain times close to our original dining and had to settle with later times. We ate at the wind jammer on the first night and missed the Blue Planet show trying to straighten out the reservations we had lost:mad:. On our third day in the cruise we asked a friend who is a pinnacle member to help us out with our desired dining time for the show before Momma Mia. We did get the time we wanted prior to the show.(still a 25 minute wait but thankful for the early seating) Our waiter messed up my wife's order 3 times leaving no time for desert prior to the show. On a side note Momma Mia was one of the best we have seen and offset all of the negativity my wife was feeling from dinner.

 

We are loyal to Royal and enjoy cruising but have found that the oasis class ships are far from what they are capable of delivering for cruise satisfaction. To be honest if this had been our first cruise with Royal it would be our last with them. We currently have a reservation for the Harmony of the seas next December and I will be cancelling it and doing something different:(. It is basically 3 strikes and you're out for them now as our other oasis class cruises have all had problems which detracted from the experience. We will continue to cruise with Royal but go on slightly smaller ships that meet the expectations we have had in the past. The navigator cruise we had the week before was what Royal Caribbean is capable of and it was a great vacation.

[suss1234]

On allure now as well. RCmommy said it best. The ship is busy overall with some busy areas. I would say if you are sailing oasis class expect busy...it's lots of people..

[riclop]

You got to hit these places at the right time, not prime time.

[2910car]

Of course there are a lot of people. I know that. I was only saying that compared to 5 years ago when I said "you would never know there were 6000 people on that ship" to people thinking about booking her, I would never say that now. Not to say it isn't still a wow for people who have never seen it. But the difference was very obvious to me and wanted to read some other opinions.

[DScruiser]

We are just off the 12/6 Allure. The crowds in the Windjammer and the other lunch venues seem much bigger and lines longer than when we sailed on her 4 years ago. MDR tables were so close together we could hear all the conversations at the next table. And MDR service seemed to go down a bit. Our food was often cold and sometimes the wrong order.

 

I was told they added 100 more cabins. Can this be true? I always told people you could not believe you were on a ship of 6000 people. Now I don't think I could honestly say that anymore.

 

We are booked next December on the Harmony and not sure if I really want to go. Maybe I should try something smaller.

 

Four years ago we were in the throes of the great recession. A lot fewer people could afford to cruise, now it's more popular than ever. Perhaps there's a correlation there?

[setsail]

Of course there are a lot of people. I know that. I was only saying that compared to 5 years ago when I said "you would never know there were 6000 people on that ship" to people thinking about booking her, I would never say that now. Not to say it isn't still a wow for people who have never seen it. But the difference was very obvious to me and wanted to read some other opinions.

 

We just got off the 12/6 cruise and did not see any difference. In fact we think overall the ship runs better than it did several years ago. Rci has learned how to manage the flow.

[landlockedinco]

We were on the 12/6 sailing and enjoyed a wonderful cruise with excellent service. That being said, I agree with the OP as the lines for the MDR were quite long on numerous occasions. The lines were evident for each type of My time dining: with reservations and without. It was worse if you did not have reservations. While waiting on those lines and chatting with returning Allure passengers, they consistently noted that they had never experienced the kind of lines as on this sailing.

[mcatmcat]

I sailed in both allure and oasis and for some reason I felt that the allure was super crowed. I basically did the same schedule in both ships but I was sweating at the theater one night, which is rarely for me to sweat specially at the theater when it tends to be super cold. I even had to make a line during breakfast to be escorted to a table. First time ever I experienced or felt in a super crowed ship

[harry0]

We just got off the 12/6 cruise and did not see any difference. In fact we think overall the ship runs better than it did several years ago. Rci has learned how to manage the flow.

 

I agree-It seems for the most part Royal has improved 100% with crowds on the megas. The turnover in the WJ is amazing-I no longer see people camped out playing dominoes. We just had a stroke of bad luck in MDR and Royal made it right -kind of.

Edited December 18, 2015 by harry0