mattb31
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Posts posted by mattb31
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Back from Oasis of the Seas today and wanted to do a quick little review on our trip
Booking:
- 4V - Interior - $436pp
- Total Cost after pre-paid grats and taxes and fees for the both of us was $1386.26
- We won our Royal Up bid for a Central Park View Interior (great room) for $40pp
Addons
- 2 Pre-booked dinners at Izumi at $28pp - $136.80
- VOOM surf and stream - 2 device plan - $230.93
- Deluxe Bev Package - $1007.44 ($60.99/day)
I'll start off by saying we had a great time! Our last cruise was in early 2019 on Symphony and Oasis literally was a clone with a few different restaurants and a different design in the rooms. Otherwise it felt very similar and honestly some of the public spaces were better on Oasis then on Symphony.
Pros
The first pro on this list is Playmakers. Royal Caribbean really perfected it on Oasis compared to Symphony. On SOTS, Playmakers is kind of weird because it is shared with an arcade. On OOTS the bar is smaller but the seating area is larger, there are more TVs, and it's just a great space to watch games. The Rangers are still going in the Stanley Cup Playoffs so during every game it was pretty crowded, the NBA Finals had also just started. Really a great place to watch a game. The Onion Ring tower is phenomenal too.
Another thing I noticed in regards to the sports bar is that the quality of the TV broadcasts was the best I've seen on a ship. ESPN and Sport 1 definitely came through in HD (same in staterooms) which meant watching games was that much better.
Second pro was the dining. The food every night was outstanding. We did MDR on 1 and 7, Izumi 2 and 6, Giovanni's on 4, and Windjammer on 5. We ate at Jamie's on Symphony and it was underwhelming. Giovanni's was really spectacular and I'd highly recommend it to anyone going on a ship that has it. Izumi I found to be a good value as well. For $28.99 you get Miso, and appetizer, 2 entrees, and a dessert. It was more food that either of us could eat. The Futomaki roll and Yaki Udon were my favorites here.
I wanted to try Portside BBQ, so I just got a single cut of meat one of the days while on the deck (think it was like $4), and it was great. This seemed to be a popular spot and the rest of the food there looked amazing. El Loco fresh was also so tasty. Windjammer was the only place that was slightly underwhelming. The selection was less than I remembered before, but we did go at almost 8pm.
Another pro I wanted to mention was the Port of Bayonne. As far as I could tell this cruise was over 100% capacity. We took the train from Philly to Newark and then Ubered to the port (cheaper than tolls + gas). We got to the port about 15 minutes prior to our 12pm check in time and were on the ship in no time. We used a COR + our positive PCR from April. Getting off this morning was also a breeze. We did self-assist, walked out of our room around 6:50am and by 7:05 we were through customs and waiting for our ride.
Cons
Smoking. I hate it. The smoke leeching out of the Casino was the worst I remember it in a long time. There were times when you could definitely smell it on the promenade. It stunk outside the MDR too. Since the casino was short staffed, they only had some of the tables open on the smoking side which was a huge disappointment. Same thing up on the pool deck where they allow smoking. It blows over to Lime and Coconut and the pools. I really wish they would segregate the smoking areas well away from other public areas.
Voom is my second con. It was atrocious. I wouldn't have been so mad if it was included in the fare, but considering we paid over $200 for it I was annoyed. So many timeouts on webpages and apps. Random disconnects as well. It worked completely fine on CocoCay and I've had VOOM on Anthem, Allure, and Symphony and it was great on those ships. This must just be an issue with Oasis because I found a few other posts on different sites mentioning the same thing.
MTD chaos was another con. It honestly wasn't too bad, but if you're going on the cruise I just recommend avoiding it the first night. For some reason there was a massive line the first night (for walk-ins AND reservations). We waited 30 minutes for our table and dinner took another 1.5 hours. We walked by every other night and there was no line and had no problem when we went on Day 7.
No cruise compass. You can get one if you ask, but I missed having it delivered each day. There's a hint and tips section on the app which kind of gives you a rundown but it's not the same as the cruise compass. They should just put a PDF of the cruise compass on the app.
Drink Package
There's been a ton of discussion about the drink package lately because the cost has gone up so much. I believe in 2019 on Symphony it was $49/day. I paid $60.99 a day on this cruise, and every other day in the cruise planner it was $70+ a day. That's alot. That being said, I tracked what I drank this cruise so I know where my breakeven is in the future. I don't drink a ton at home, I have a beer watching the game or a glass of wine with dinner sometimes or a few seltzers by the pool on a nice day.
Mixed Drinks are $10, Beer $7.50, Cocktails & Wine $13
Day 1:
3 Coke Zero
4 Water Bottles
Bud Light
1 Rum and Diet
1 Pinot Noir
$51.50
Day 2:
Iced Chai Latte
2 Coke Zero
8 Water Bottles
7 Rum and Coke Zero
Lava Flow
Spike Peach Tea from Portside
Margarita
$137.50
Day 3:
L Espresso
2 Coke Zero
3 Water Bottles
Miami Vice
Miller Light
Sake
$53
Day 4 (CocoCay):
L Espresso
5 Water Bottles
2 Rum and Diet
Pina Colada
2 Pinot Noir
Old Fashioned
$91.50
Day 5:
L espresso
4 water bottles
2 Coke Zero
Blue Hawaiian
3 Rum and Diet
Lime and Coconut
Old Fashioned
Lavender Daiquiri
Bionic Bar Drink$117.65
Day 6:
2 water bottles
Mimosa
2 Blue Hawaiian
2 Coke Zero
Sake$64
Day 7:
Apple Mint Fresh Squeezed from Vitality ($7)
4 bottles of water
Iced Chai Tea
Boston Iced tea party
Jack and Coke
2 Old Fashioned
Lavender Daiquiri
Merlot$114.65
Total Drinks Consumed (excl. grats): $629.80
Total Drinks Consumed (excl. grats, excl water bottles): $539.80
Drink Package Cost (excl. grats): $426.93
I think $60.99 is my limit for the package. If I couldn't get it at the price on a future cruise I would probably just forfeit alot of the drinks. I obviously made out on this one though. I didn't get 'hammered' or anything during the cruise. We just stayed on the ship for all ports except CocoCay, so we were able to take full advantage of the package. This would be different on a port intensive cruise.
One other interesting tidbit from the Captains Corner was that he mentioned that RCL is only going to make ships larger than Oasis class moving forward. Take that as you will.
Closing
It was great to be back cruising again! Oasis was a great time. In terms of staff, you could tell they were short staffed. If you are impatient or super picky about things I'd recommend staying home right now. They ran out of a few wines mid-cruise, but otherwise didn't notice much that was out of stock. There were definitely less waiters around the pool deck serving drinks, there were times where I had to wait 3-4 minutes to be attended to, but all of the workers were very nice and very helpful. A little patience goes a long way!
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3 minutes ago, Jerseygirl1416 said:
Unfortunately I don’t think you’re going to see $61 again going forward. From what I’ve seen it’s more like $72 and up from there. My September Oasis is at $78.
When you’re used to buying this same pkg for $38-$48pp then yes almost double the price seems ridiculous to me.
Yeah I agree. This sailing hit $60.99 once and I snagged it. Otherwise it was $75-$85 a day. At that price I wouldn't be buying anymore either.
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11 minutes ago, Jimbo said:
You need to find a way to get a few drinks to you served to you in the restrooms, just imagine how many more drinks you can get in you and really get your value for the package
I think so too! I actually heard Royal is working on a new program for Icon where you just tap your card while you're standing at the urinal and it dispenses a shot right into your mouth! Can't miss a beat!!!
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12 hours ago, Joebucks said:
Water is free. (Better) Pinot and Coke Zero can be brought on the ship. I'd give all of those things a value of $25. Then you hide the gratuities cost. You're looking at $500. Day 2 you got some good use out of it, and barely got a buzz. My first thought wouldn't be easy value.
Lol. I didn't hide gratuities. I didn't add them to the drink costs on board or my total package price so it's a wash.
I don't feel like lugging an entire pack of coke zero on the ship nor do I feel like constantly returning to my cabin for a glass of wine. And you still have to pay a $15 corkage fee at the restaurants.
It sounds like it isn't a good value for you. You can nitpick the package all you want. At 60.99 a day it's still a really good value for most people including myself.
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4 minutes ago, drb116 said:
Did you bring the LOR to the port at check in time, or did you submit it ahead of time?
Check in time
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41 minutes ago, billslowsky said:
You're "ahead" because you get so many water bottles... talk about a profit center for the ship.
Just ordered another rum and diet which would have been $10. Add that in and take out the $72 in water bottles and I'm sitting at an average of $61.40 a day, which is still beating the $60.99 I paid.
I'm sure that will go up even more if I have a glass of wine with dinner and an old fashioned before bed again.
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I'm on Oasis now, figured I'd track for the first time since this ridiculous thread started the day before we left. Gonna assume water bottles are $3 and sodas are $3. I didn't differentiate between filling my soda cup and getting a can
Day 1:
3 Coke Zero
4 Water Bottles
Bud Light
1 Rum and Diet
1 Pinot Noir
$51.50
Day 2:
Iced Chai Latte
2 Coke Zero
8 Water Bottles
7 Rum and Coke Zero
Lava Flow
Spike Peach Tea from Portside
Margherita
$137.50
Day 3:
L Espresso
2 Coke Zero
3 Water Bottles
Miami Vice
Miller Light
Sake
$53
Day 4 (CocoCay):
L Espresso
5 Water Bottles
2 Rum and Diet
Pina Colada
2 Pinot Noir
Old Fashioned
$91.50
Day 5 (In Progress):
L Espresso
Blue Hawaiian
2 Coke Zero
4 Water Bottles
$35.50
Was slightly buzzed by the pool on the second day, but never once felt drunk or sick or whatever.
I paid $60.99 a day pre cruise which is $426.93 before gratuities. Had I bought these drinks without the package I'd be up to $369 with 2.5 days to go.
Easy value for me. Only got off the ship at Cococay.
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At the port, $25/day
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1 hour ago, molly361 said:
Did you have a PCR test or NAAT that was positive?
Yes, our initial PCR in April.
I was negative on an antigen I took at home about a week before the cruise, but there was no reason to risk a positive coming up by chance before we left. The COR was easy to get and copay for telehealth was cheaper than the proctored tests.
Plus, like I mentioned, I saw plenty of stories where people had to go to the medical center and were tested for COVID. If that happened and we had our COR it's no big deal. Without it I'm sure quarantining is a risk.
At this point it's just better to travel with documentation of recovery if you can.
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19 hours ago, 4minimark said:
We just got off Ovation of the seas Alaska cruise last Friday and tested positive the day after we got home. We have another cruise scheduled for June 12th and we will be able to board using the "Letter of Recovery" + the positive PCR test since we will most likely still be testing positive even though we are recovered and no longer contagious. My question is about being able to get off at the ports. We visit Jamaica and Grand Cayman and both are listed as not being able to disembark (not accepting the Letter of Recovery) in the RCCL FAQ. With research on their government sites, it appears all COVID restrictions have been listed for those 2 countries so I believe the information on the RCCL website is out dated. Wondering if anyone has recent experience on this. I personally wouldn't mind staying on the ship but will be travelling with my teens who would prefer to cancel if we can't get off at the ports. I'm also reaching out to Royal, but past experience has shown you can get multiple answers depending who you talk to.
On Oasis now. We both boarded with the letter of recovery and was very easy. Check in agent just had to clear it with someone else. Maybe added 2 minutes to check in.
We got it from our PCP who just set up a telelhealth with us after we completed our quarantine to make sure we were symptom free.
We wanted this because if for ANY reason we had to take a PCR while on board, we had proof we had already recovered.
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1 hour ago, Project-College said:
Unfortunately, with two kids in college, and summer classes, Aug 5th was the ONLY cruise time that was possible for Oasis.
Have the UDP (used all the pennies in the jar for that one) and just hope that all the Specialty Res are actually open?
How are they on your cruise? OPEN, CLOSED, ???
There also was a strange post on another thread that Izumi was no longer available for lunch on Oasis? If so that kills half of what the boys used to talk me into the UDP.
Is Izumi actually closed for lunch?
Open for lunch on sea days
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MTD was a fiasco last night. Had an 815 reservation, didn't get seated till 840ish, wasn't done till almost 10. There were 0 lines for the set time dining.
Other than that the ship is fine. El Loco fresh waits around peak times at lunch were maybe 10 minutes.
All of the staff has been fantastic and personally the food for me has been better than pre pandemic. I can't speak to the Windjammer as I haven't been there yet.
All of the bar service has been excellent as well. No issues there.
Everytime I found myself getting upset about waiting in a line I just step back and realize I'm on vacation and the world is short staffed right now.
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I got it at 60.99 per day which is still decent. Anything above that and my bottle of wine allowance will become a bottle of wine filled with vodka allowance
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There was an actual sale for my Oasis sailing at the beginning of April. Drink package was on sale for $60.99 a day which is about the most I would pay. Haven't seen it back to that price since, it's at $72.99 a day now.
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On 5/17/2022 at 8:13 PM, slyster said:
I just found this thread. I tested positive two weeks ago and I no longer have symptoms (a few days ago), but my cruise isn’t until mid August. Is there a possibility i can still test positive? Is the Certificate of Recovery what I need to be able to board? I have my vaccination and booster record too.
I tested positive at the end of April and was positive on an antigen for about two weeks. We are going on Oasis in a few weeks and boarding with the COR as opposed to negative pre-board test. Main reason was if for any reason we have to go to the medical center and they test us using a PCR, we will have those docs stating we are recovered in case it comes back positive. Also, if anything goes wrong and you get stuck in another country (like the Escape in DR), it's probably a good idea to have a certificate of recovery with you.
Other reason was it's just easier. Telemed was cheaper than buying proctored tests.
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You need a certificate of recovery.
5 days of home quarantine plus 5 more days of extra masking. If you complete that, go to your PCP and get a letter of recovery as long as your symptom free.
You can test positive for weeks after you are recovered.
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When I booked our Oasis cruise (in like Feb) it was $74.99 per day. Royal ran a sale two weeks ago where it was down to $60.99 per person per day which wasn't too bad.
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22 hours ago, HBE4 said:
Couldn't agree more. Why people are willing to pay more for an itinerary / ship that may not be your first choice just for the loyalty status is beyond me. I'd much rather save the money and go with my first choice, even if it 'll take me a few more years to reach diamond.
The same goes for Hotel and Airline loyalty programs. I let my wallet do the talking.
It's because people are sucked in by the 'perks'. They're willing to forego a $500 savings with another cruise line because they have 'status' with RCCL that only gets them $100 in perks. Loyalty programs are like a bonus for me, I don't cruise because of them, but it's a nice extra surprise when you get something out of them.
In a weird comparison, it's like loyalty to a company. Job hoppers (aka the people who try different cruise lines), frequently end up better off than people who are blinded by loyalty (aka the people stuck to one cruise line).
We like Royal for the ships and the quality of service they offer. Loyalty perks are just an added bonus.
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Yes, we embarked last year on a Sunday and it was in the cruise planner and being shown in the Aquatheater.
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Is this about the actual porters, or the guys who stand at the belts?
We were at Terminal A a few months ago and I walked my baggage up to the belts, there were 3 porters sitting there who pretty much took my bags out of my hands and lifted on the conveyor belts for me. They made some offhand comment when I walked away without tipping them. Is this the people you're talking about?
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Aside from being completely tone deaf, you're missing the larger picture here.
Hurricanes churn up all kinds of stuff in the ocean and Dorian passed right through a massive belt of it on his way to the Bahamas. Of course there is going to be Seaweed washed up on the shorelines. Aside from that, it's been a massive problem in the Caribbean since ~2015. Uncontrolled fertilizer runoff and warmer ocean water have made the issue 10x worse than it used to be.
So to address your entitled attitude here:
- Dredging won't do anything. All that does is moves earth from one point to another.
- Remove the Seaweed to where? Another part of the island?
- Lastly, do what? Take away resources where they are desperately needed because you can't deal with a stench?
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I would be SO happy if they did this. I cannot stand losing all my money on craps and having to deal with second hand smoke.
But really, it's a huge problem because it leaks out into other areas.
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For those of you wondering. Cococay is probably going to escape this relatively fine. Right now, they're probably experiencing winds of about ~50mph, and barring any major unexpected turn south, it shouldn't get much worse than that. There will probably be some damage from storm surge and the occasional hurricane force wind gust.
You can check out the NHC's website which has the wind radii https://www.nhc.noaa.gov/refresh/graphics_at5+shtml/220614.shtml?gm_track#contents
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8 minutes ago, Jzx1103 said:
This was the first thing that came to my mind when I saw the track this morning.
Yeah and worth noting that a category 4 hurricane usually has wind gusts that extend well into the category 5 range. So if it does go over CocoCay I'd expect some severe damage.
Back to Cruising - Oasis 5/29 - 6/5 Review!
in Royal Caribbean International
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Truly, which I don't like lol