Sorry for the delay in posting this report--a bit of busy on my part and a lot of laziness!

We decided to cruise on the Allure after thoroughly enjoying a cruise on its sister ship Oasis of the Sea in January 2011. While there were some minor differences the ships are basically identical.

Differences we did noticed:

Decor on the Allure is more understated--preferred the look and feel of the Oasis but no big deal

The donut shop on the Broadwalk on the Oasis was a full shop--on the Allure it was a couple of shelves next to the ice cream shop. The donut shop area on the Allure was a hot dog stand!

Also on the Broadwalk the sea food place on the Oasis was a Mexican place on the Allure.

Other than these minor differences we really did not noticed any significant differences.

Embarking and disembarking on the Allure was as trouble free as on the Oasis. For such big ships RCL really has this process aced. We waited about an hour to get on the ship but that was because we arrived at 10 a.m. We were told by passengers who arrived later that it was almost a show up and walk on process.

Again as on the Oasis the only time we felt crowded was when shows let out. Most of the time it was not a crowd scene.

We ate dinner one night at the steak restaurant (extra charge) as we did on the Oasis and it jwas OK not great. The rest of our dinners were either in the main dining room or the Lido buffet which suited me just fine. We would reserve a time each morning for the evening when we dined in the main dining room and my request for a table for two was always filled---good thing as I am anti-social!

Our favorite spot on the ship was the adults only Solarium in the front (bow?) of the ship. This was also our favorite spot on the Oasis. Great place to read and to see where you are going!

Our cruise on the Oasis was to the eastern Caribbean. On the Allure we went to the Western Caribbean to ports we have been to before. We have had many land vacations in Jamaica in the past so rather than doing the beach scene we took a tour which included a visit to a school which delighted my teacher wife and a mango/sugar cane plantation where we had a snack of jerk chicken and rum tasting.

Our stateroom was almost in the exact same location as on the Oasis and the balcony was a great place to relax and read.

One note--the Sunday we boarded the Allure was the day that the shipwreck in Italy was hitting the news-----not what you want to see before leaving port. I spent the first couple of days keeping a close watch as we approached various islands!

I would be happy to answer any specific questions anyone may have.