Marqus R.
Yelp
I have a lot of mix feelings concerning my adventures aboard the Allure of the Seas, but have to preface my review by stating that I was not aboard for an actual cruise but a 14 day transatlantic (repositioning) crossing from Barcelona, Spain to Fort Lauderdale, Florida. Though I would think that things would be the same as between a crossing and a cruise, there is a possibility that they are not. Hence, I feel obligated to point that out.
The Allure of the Seas is not only unbelievably huge is size, 2 inches longer than the Oasis of the Seas hence the world's largest, but an incredibly beautiful ship throughout. One of the highlights for me were their shows. If I could rate the shows, the staging, the lighting systems and the technology behind them 10 stars, I would. The best I've ever seen aboard in ship, made possibly by some of the most incredible automated and moving stage devices I've ever seen even surpassing many of those I seen in Las Vegas. How Royal Caribbean accomplishes all the tech that goes into their staged performances, particularly their Aqua Show, in salt water environment is not only unbelievable but breathtaking as well.
As for food, they were just in the process of starting with a plan they call "dynamic dinning," intended to involve differing dining schedules, reservations and a whole lot of computer crap that I don't think their computer systems are yet capable of handling. And speaking of computer systems, when it comes to booking any trip or whatever, Royal Caribbean has the least friendly, least intuitive, most glitch prone worse system of any cruise line I've ever dealt with. A low down fat One Star for that. I might also add that though the service was top notch the main dining room food was only par for ships food and the overall service rather lackluster. There were no waiter dances, no March of the Baked Alaska, no Parade of the Cherries Jubilee.
As far the quality of food goes, it's overall about on par with most other cruise ships operating in its price class even though on Some however, such as Park Café which serves up a Beef on Kummelweck, are, though popular, a rather pathetic joke for those knowledgeable about what a real "Beef on Weck" is all about. No double dipping of buns or fresh ground horseradish are offered and the beef sliced too thick and incorrectly with reference to the grain. My suggestion would be to send their cook off to Buffalo, New York to places like Schwabl's or Charlie the Butcher's to learn how it's properly done. As for their specialty restaurants, being the foodie I am, went to each of them, finding Chops Grill to be extremely good and 150Central Park excellent as was the service in both.
As far as some of the standard types of entertainment common to most cruise ships, dull, lackluster and downright boring. A comedy club with only one standup comedian, a pathetic nonevent of sail away party without walkabout cocktail service and, if you can believe this, a band that quit playing even before we set sail though our departure sailing had been delayed. Then there is a supposedly "late night" piano bar with a rather unaccomplished piano player who even folding things up and quit player at 11:00 o'clock. Like really now, is 11:00 considered to be "late hours" on RCL?
For a beautiful gorgeous ship and the very best in shows backed by incredible staging technology, the Allure is Five Stars but for standard bar, club and dining room entertainment (actually there was no dining room entertainment....not even any background music) Two Stars at best with overall food in the common dining room amounting to nothing special. So would I book on Allure of the Seas again? The answer is no. Overall I've found any number of the ships of Cunard, Carnival, Norwegian, Celebrity, MSC, etc., all of which I've had repeated cruises and crossings aboard, to be overall superior with their common dining area entertainment, their overall food at least equal but common bar and club entertainment far superior, resulting in a much more fun filled cruising adventure.
However whether you're a cruiser or a crosser and no matter your tastes, ships and ship passengers vary widely from Holland America on one end, noted for the least amount of passenger partying catering mostly to the elderly and oft referred to as a floating convalescent home to any one of the Carnival Line catering to a younger set and generally noted with cruises equated to a drunken brawl, down to Disney, which of course is entirely child and family oriented.