Staying in a Suite on Allure Made Me Feel Rich

Have you ever wondered what it would be like to stay in a suite on a cruise ship?

A few years ago I snagged a deal on a suite for a 7 night Caribbean cruise. At the time, Royal Caribbean’s Allure of the Seas was the largest ship at sea with 5,484 passengers. In this post I will describe some of the suites available on the Allure including the one I stayed in. In addition, I will tell you about the perks associated with this suite.

It’s a Deal!

After many cruises, I had decided that it was time, at least once, to experience the “suite life” on a cruise ship. I found a drastically reduced rate on a 7 night cruise departing early December, the time period immediately after Thanksgiving and before Christmas. This time of year is notoriously slow for the cruise industry as most people are recovering from Thanksgiving and preparing for Christmas. In other words, it is a good time to look for discounts.

Types of Suites

There are many choices of suites on the Allure and I will describe some of them from least expensive to most expensive.

Junior Balcony Suite

This suite is actually just one room though larger than normal at 556 sq. ft. with a balcony of 80 ft.

Grand Suite

A partial wall separates the dining room/living room from the bedroom. It is 371 sq. ft. with a balcony of 105 sq. ft.

Crown Loft Suite

This is a 2-level urban style loft with panoramic views measuring 545 sq. ft. with a balcony of 114 sq. ft. The master bedroom and bath, with a shower for two, are on loft level. Another bath with shower is located on main level along with a dining room and living room with sofa bed.

Owners Suite

I booked the Owner’s Suite. It has an open living/dining area with a separate bedroom. There are 545 sq. ft. with a balcony of 114 sq. ft.

Aqua Theater Suite

You can watch the Aqua Show from the balcony of this suite which measures 126 sq. ft. The cabin has a living/dining room and separate bedroom measuring 433 sq. ft.

First Impression

After whisking through embarkation through a special line, I could not wait to see our suite. I had seen a photo in a catalog but the real cabin was even better than I could have imagined. The suite covered an area normally occupied by 3 adjacent cabins with 3 sets of sliding glass doors. The living room contained a full sofa plus 3 easy chairs and a cocktail table. A floor to ceiling wood cabinet with mirrors hugged one wall and continued around the corner as 2 large mirrored closets. To the left was a bedroom with 2 single beds (that can convert to a queen) and a built in dresser. Next to it, a large bathroom sported double sinks, shower, tub and bidet. I could enter the large balcony through any of the 3 sets of sliding glass doors. The 114 sq. ft. balcony contained table, chairs and loungers.

Dining

The suite passengers dined in a special dining room, the Coastal Kitchen. We could dine at any time we wanted between set hours with a reservation. It was quiet compared to the main dining rooms and the service and food were excellent.

Suite Lounge

The Suite Lounge is adjacent to the Coastal Kitchen and is a gathering place for pre-dinner cocktails. Bartenders provided free wine and hors d’oeuvres for suite passengers.

The Coastal Kitchen served an abbreviated buffet breakfast every morning, a perk much appreciated since it freed us from battling the crowds in the Windjammer Marketplace Buffet.

L’Occitane Bathroom Amenities

The ship supplies these high-end products only in suites. Unfortunately, they were missing when we arrived and so, in order to make up for this deficiency, the cabin steward brought us full size bottles of all the products. I longed to take home the unused bottles but they could not be carried on the airplane did not fit in my suitcase. Reluctantly, I was only able to take one bottle.

Concierge Service

We had our own concierge located in the Coastal Kitchen. She handled any requests or problems efficiently. No more standing in long lines at Guest Services.

Unlimited High-Speed Internet

This was the fastest, most reliable internet I had yet experienced at sea.

Specialty Bottled Water

Much appreciated by someone who is not a big drinker.

Luxury Pillowtop Mattress

Lovely to sleep on.

Reserved Seating

A special section of the theater and ice rink was roped off and reserved for suite passengers. We had to arrive early as they released the seats to the general audience 15 minutes before the show.

Suite Sun Deck

A private sun deck assured the availability of deck chairs for suite passengers and saved us from the notoriously crowded public areas.

Private Beach

Royal Caribbean’s private island is Cocoa Cay. I decided to venture over for a look at this normally busy beach. As expected, passengers, or their towels, occupied all the beach chairs. But then I spotted a smaller, gated beach area with a crew member restricting entrance. My specially colored ID card allowed me to enter. I counted 5 other passengers in this area. The beach chairs and floats were readily available. It was heavenly. I will never forget having that beautiful beach all to myself.

A Perfect Day at Cococay

Royal Caribbean has upgraded Cococay and renamed it Perfect Day at Cococay. I have not seen it yet. They spent $250 million to add an expansive water park, a helium balloon ride, a wave pool and a fresh water infinity pool among other amenities. It opened in 2019. Sadly, it now stands idle.

Feeling Rich in a Suite

In summary, feeling rich in my suite was special even though it only lasted a week. I am glad I experienced it, however, I have not repeated the experience due to the high cost. I can book 3 cruises in balcony cabins for the cost of one suite. You might want to try it, too, and maybe you will get hooked and never go back to standard cabins. Who knows?