First time cruisers ensured to be "Allured"?? -April 2019 TR

[pattyw]

Daily Compass Day 3: Day at Sea!

 

[OKW Lover]

Our friends- seasoned cruisers- suggested the escargot appetizer! Joe and I aren't fans of exotic food. They let us try one of theirs- so yummy!! They are cooked- no shells, and in a butter/garlic sauce!! They each ordered two orders a piece! We followed the next few times we ate in the main dining room!!

So, tip of the day- Order the escargot!

I've always said that escargot are really just an excuse to have garlic butter. Nobody ever ordered escargot hold the garlic butter.

 

[starvenger]

Our formal night attire was about in the middle- some ladies had capri pants and a nice shirt, men had shorts or pants and a polo shirt- some ladies had gowns, men had tuxedos. So basically, anything but beach attire is appropriate for formal nights. You can be smart casual or all out formal!

It's as I've been saying - wear what you want (within reason), and don't worry about what everyone else is doing.

I take it the pants pressing was part of the Suite perks?

I've always said that escargot are really just an excuse to have garlic butter. Nobody ever ordered escargot hold the garlic butter.

Garlic butter on it's own is ok. The snail-flavoured garlic butter is where it's at.

 

[Magical2017]

Is there a charge to play Bingo?

 

[starvenger]

Is there a charge to play Bingo?

I don't think there's a cover charge, but it's gambling, so you must pay to play.

 

[pattyw]

I've always said that escargot are really just an excuse to have garlic butter. Nobody ever ordered escargot hold the garlic butter.

Yes- the garlic butter makes the whole dish!!

 

[pattyw]

It's as I've been saying - wear what you want (within reason), and don't worry about what everyone else is doing.

I take it the pants pressing was part of the Suite perks?


Garlic butter on it's own is ok. The snail-flavoured garlic butter is where it's at.

Yes- I was relieved to see our formal choices, while fairly casual, were perfectly fine!

No- the press service was part of the laundry service that they charge for and is available to everyone. We usually would use the iron provided in the hotel room, but no irons allowed on the cruise except for their laundry services. It was pricey- $21.72 to press a pair of pants, shirt, and suit jacket- but necessary to make Joe look good!

Snail flavored garlic butter-

 

[pattyw]

Is there a charge to play Bingo?

I don't think there's a cover charge, but it's gambling, so you must pay to play.

Yes- we didn't play Bingo, but you did have to purchase the cards to play. I wish we had tried it, though!

 

[mevelandry]

Schooner's looks great.

 

[pattyw]

Schooner's looks great.

It was our favorite place to spend some time at night. It was so fun- the crowd would shout out songs to play and the piano player would play the suggestions. And many times it became a group sing a long!

 

[pattyw]

So Day 3 was at Sea so we slept in and enjoyed breakfast in our room and on our balcony!




Being at sea meant that the ship was full! We went to the casino for a bit and then decided to have lunch. We didn't want to eat with crowds, so we opted to try one of the premium restaurants for lunch- Giovanni's Table.

Giovanni's is in the Central Park Area on the ship. It's so pretty!

 

[pattyw]

We didn't pre-purchase any premium dining packages so this was going to be an out of pocket lunch. This is where I will give you the next tip.

Tip of the Day- Don't pre-purchase a premium dining package! You will get a better deal on the ship!

There were only a few other tables of diners when we arrived. Upon arrival, the manager asked us if we had a dining package. When we said no, he proceeded to tell us of the many choices and that he could offer us some specials. Our waiter then took a few minutes to explain the package. We told him we were hesitant to purchase a package because we were traveling with friends who weren't interested in a package and we wanted to eat together.

Our waiter was phenomenal! So efficient and nice! The food was fabulous!

And he was a great salesman! We did, in fact, purchase a 3 night dining package, received a BOGO lunch, and were able to bring our 3 friends to dinner the next night at 1/2 price- and he would include alcoholic drinks for them as well(they didn't have a drink package).

Also, every day we were approached by a crew member offering 1/2 off at the premium restaurants. One night the main dining room was at capacity. The crew members outside were offering Chops Grille at 1/2 off!

 

[pattyw]

One of my favorite things to do on the ship was to check my weather app on my phone to see where we were!



If only I could get that weather forecast at home! We live in the Buffalo, NY area so sadly that forecast is something we almost NEVER see! even in July!

 

[starvenger]

Tip of the Day- Don't pre-purchase a premium dining package! You will get a better deal on the ship!

I think at this point the best dining pre purchases are the Ultimate package, the BOGO offer and First Night Done Right, if offered. Each one saves you at least 50% off the list price so there’s really no downside to them.

Otherwise, absolutely wait and see what they offer you on board, because the list prices have gotten hiked to unreasonable levels in the past 5-6 years.

 

[Monykalyn]

Yay found the cruise trip report! Ship looks fun!

Our formal night attire was about in the middle

Well you guys clean up pretty darn good!!

One night the main dining room was at capacity. The crew members outside were offering Chops Grille at 1/2 off!

Oh that would upset me! Sorry-already paid for food and now half to pay for food again or go to a buffet? I'm sure Chops is fabulous but at that point they should have offered complimentary meals there...Did they have a brunch on Sea Days? Loved that on my Carnival cruise!!
Am kinda surprised there wasn't a dedicated GS line for suite or Key guests too-We had Faster to the Fun on our carnival cruise and the dedicated Guest service line alone was worth it-had an issue with a waaayyyy overcharge of tip on a bar bill (had drink package so no extra tip as it was already included) and being able to walk right up and not wait in line probably kept the hubs in good humor lol!

The suite looks fabulous!! And fantastic balcony!

 

[pattyw]

I think at this point the best dining pre purchases are the Ultimate package, the BOGO offer and First Night Done Right, if offered. Each one saves you at least 50% off the list price so there’s really no downside to them.

Otherwise, absolutely wait and see what they offer you on board, because the list prices have gotten hiked to unreasonable levels in the past 5-6 years.

Yes- those are good deals for pre-purchase!

The price increases probably add to the premium restaurants not being busy at all. We did dine early- 5:30- but each restaurant was only about 1/3 full. So even the 1/2 offers weren't attracting too many.

 

[Lori74]

loving the report Patty!! can't wait to see the Allure for myself in nov! i think i saw your coke cups, did they have handles?

 

[pattyw]

Yay found the cruise trip report! Ship looks fun!
Well you guys clean up pretty darn good!!

Oh that would upset me! Sorry-already paid for food and now half to pay for food again or go to a buffet? I'm sure Chops is fabulous but at that point they should have offered complimentary meals there...Did they have a brunch on Sea Days? Loved that on my Carnival cruise!!
Am kinda surprised there wasn't a dedicated GS line for suite or Key guests too-We had Faster to the Fun on our carnival cruise and the dedicated Guest service line alone was worth it-had an issue with a waaayyyy overcharge of tip on a bar bill (had drink package so no extra tip as it was already included) and being able to walk right up and not wait in line probably kept the hubs in good humor lol!

The suite looks fabulous!! And fantastic balcony!

Yay!! Thanks for reading along!

Yes- it was a little frustrating the night that the dining room was full. We had a 1/2 hour wait to be seated. And I was thinking just what you said- We should get a dinner at better than 50% off. We actually had reservations that night, too.

Not sure about brunch on sea days. We ate late breakfasts so we just grazed at Sorrento's pizza for a snack before dinner. We started to eat dinner early- or at premium restaurants- to avoid the large crowds after 7 pm.

I looked for a GS line for Key and/or suite guests. I didn't see one. Our friends are Diamond Club members and they had to wait in the regular GS line when they had issues with their room. I asked if they could have someone in the Diamond Club lounge help them and they said they couldn't.

Also, because we received our upgrade to the junior suite just 3 days prior to boarding, we never really knew what other perks we had. And we had no information given to us pre-cruise or in our cabin. We just found out the last day that we had access to a restaurant for dinner reserved for suite guests.

That sounds great on your Carnival cruise- the dedicated GS line! Kyle and Erin have cruised Carnival twice and are leaving on another this weekend. I've read some bad things about Carnival, but they've had great experiences on their cruises!

We did enjoy our suite! It worked out well on this trip as we spent a lot of time in the room- and on our balcony relaxing! We're certainly spoiled now!

 

[pattyw]

loving the report Patty!! can't wait to see the Allure for myself in nov! i think i saw your coke cups, did they have handles?

Hi Lori! Thanks for reading along!

The Allure was gorgeous! November will be a great time to cruise!

Yes- the cups had handles. We didn't use them much as we preferred bottled water( or alcoholic drinks, LOL!), but they were very nice! They are supposed to be in your cabin when you arrive. Ours weren't there, so we had to go to a location where they were selling the drink packages to get them.

 

[pattyw]

After our lunch at Giovanni's, we had scheduled Mamma Mia! Love this show! We've seen it twice before and were so happy to see it again. We had reserved it on line, and with our Key program we also received seats in a reserved area of the theater. The Key seats in the Amber theater were in the first four rows of the mezzanine/balcony area- accessed from Deck 5.

This was the evening that we had dinner reservations at 7:30 in the main dining room and upon arrival, the lines for the reservations and walk-ins were HUGE! The crew members informed us that the dining room was at capacity and it would be at least 1/2 hour wait. We were offered Chops Grille at 50% off. It didn't seem like many people accepted the offer. We chose to wait, too. After this night, we were going to use our dining package for dinner at the premium restaurants for three nights and the other night we made a reservation for 5:30 in the main dining room.

Here's some pictures of the ship- Deck 5 & 6:



This is where the Rising Tide Bar is. It moves up and down from Deck 5 to the Central Park area on Deck 8. So fun! We had a drink here a couple of times!



Here's a photo I found as it is rising!