ROYAL CARIBBEAN OASIS OF THE SEAS

Since we are among those who enjoy the smaller ships, R-ship types, we were both amazed at how much we absolutely loved Royal Caribbean’s Oasis of the Seas. WHY NOT??? Oasis is a ship that seemed to have something for everyone. She is not a ship that takes you from one destination to another, she is the DESTINATION! She is fantastic for the very active cruiser who wants to spend the day on the zip line, playing basketball, surfing, swimming, ice skating, boxing, riding the Carousel or climbing the rock wall or the leisure traveler who prefers to relax, read a book and enjoy a show and a good dinner, there was truly an option available for whatever our pleasure. This cruise was an adventure filled with wonderful surprises for us.

Our first surprise was how absolutely easy it was for us to embark. We were expecting long lines with close to 6000 people pushing and shoving, NOT…, instead we were just whisked through check-in and walked right on board. The terminal was as massive as the ship and finding our way to the appropriate check-in counter was a breeze. Even the obligatory boarding photos were made easy and RCI has made the photo selection a piece of cake. The first time we saw a “crowd” was after we boarded the ship and walked into the Royal Promenade. With all of the shops and cafes on deck 5, people were just milling around and soaking up the experience. I must admit that we just loved the promenade – on the Oasis, the Royal Promenade is like that of the Freedom Class ships but on steroids.

We had a balcony cabin overlooking Central Park, an experience that was very different from any cabin that we had ever occupied, though by the end of the cruise we did realize that we missed looking out at the ocean. But, for those who may have a problem with motion sickness as they look out at the horizon, this could be a unique solution to escape from an inside cabin.

We had reservations for the Ice Show, yes Ice Show, which was spectacular, as well as the Broadway like production of “Hairspray”. We had seen Hairspray during it’s first run on Broadway, but we cannot say enough about the wonderful production that we experienced on board the Oasis. Though we waited too late to get reservations for the shows at the Aqua Theatre, we were still able to see the show. We actually had a great view from the Boardwalk but other locations were also available on the ship.

Apart from the shows, dinners were a high point of the trip. We had excellent service and very good meals in the main dining room. With just one week, much to our dismay, we could not visit all of the specialty dining venues. We did have dinner one night in Chops Grille, where the meal was extraordinary and the service excellent. But the biggest surprise was the wonderful lunch we enjoyed at Giovanni’s Table. This restaurant boasts a delicious Italian menu with excellent service and what was probably the very best meal we had on board the ship. It is mostly served “family style” and with Rene and Tony, our daughter and son-in-law, we shared many of the items that were available on Giovanni's menu. Afterwards we all wished that we had made dinner reservations there as well. Oh well, next time. One other treat was for Sushi in Izumi, also a good choice for those, like Yvonne and Rene, who get a craving for Sushi or Sashimi.

As far as entertainment is concerned, there are many venues. We usually don’t spend too much time in the shows and clubs late at night but we had lots of fun in the Rising Tide, a nightclub that rises from the Royal Promenade on deck 5 to Central Park on deck 8 where it rests a while and then returns to the Promenade. Also, it was a treat to find that half of the Casino was designated as non-smoking.

The concierge and his staff go out of their way to provide the best service and extra amenities to Crown and Anchor Diamond or Diamond Plus Club members while on board. This service makes cruising with Royal Caribbean even more worthwhile.

The only negative comments we could find about the experience was that there were many children on this particular sailing and at times the elevators were full or slow in coming. We also suggested that they look at more venues that were for adults only. The Solarium and the late night clubs were the only options we saw. This sentiment was shared by others on the ship.

Disembarking at the ports of call seemed easy enough since you just punched the elevator button marked “gangway” and voila! We only disembarked in St. Thomas and had no problem getting off or back onto the ship. Since we are very familiar with the island, this port was of particular concern for us in terms of disembarking and boarding as well as the traffic going from the Crown Bay dock to the center of town. We must say that this was very well handled by the V.I.

The other concern that turned out to be a very pleasant surprise was the disembarkation. Everything was so very well organized by Royal Caribbean that we had no realization of the number of people that had to be taken off of the ship when we arrived back in Fort Lauderdale. We came though quickly with ample porters to handle the luggage and easily found a cab to take us to our destination. We were particularly happy about that since it was raining and southern Florida, like the rest of the Eastern United States, was gripped in an unusual Arctic chill.

So, would we return to the Oasis or an Oasis class ship? WHY NOT??? We’re already booked the Allure of the Seas next January.