mac_tlc

From the app:

We have early seating and the stated time in the compass and on the app is 5:00 - 5:15. mac_tlc

After this cruise, Oasis will be here on Tuesday and will dock at terminal 1, where Wonder is today. We have gotten off and gone to Grills. Good food, nice view. We have a house in Orlando and often wander to Jetty Park to watch the ships leave. Here was Oasis coming in a few weeks ago:

We docked at terminal 3, where the Carnival Mardi Gras berths and we docked nose in so we did not have to go past Wonder. We will turn around when we leave. At least Wonder will go right by our cabin when she leaves since we are on starboard side. Supposedly a SpaceX launch tonight at 9 which is when we are supposed to leave. It will be right outside our window if it happens on time. Some pix coming in:

No, that’s just the entertainment in those venues. There is country music in Portside BBQ, guitar player/singer in the pub, Latin music in Boleros and other places, someone usually playing in the Royal Promenade, DJ by the pool and others. Since they converted Jazz on 4 to a smoke free casino, the jazz quartet pops up in a bunch of places. No more cover bands, which is disappointing. Mac_tlc

Lazy day yesterday doing nothing in particular. Dinner in MDR was very good again, and the chef on Oasis has redeemed Royal, at least temporarily, by making a much better French Onion soup than we had on Jewel. Still not up to the 2018 Brilliance standard but things are trending in the right direction. As would be expected, pool deck was a zoo. Splash pad for smaller kids was fuller than I have even seen it. We did spend a bit of time in the smoke free casino. It’s small and even after dinner there were only maybe 10 people in it, and our group was five of them. The normal casino is just too smoky for us. I sure hope enough people visit it —- it would be great if it was overflowing, maybe then Royal will change things. Port Canaveral today , aka ship day. There is a SpaceX launch schedule for 9pm tonight, let’s hope it happens. We will have a great view! mac_tlc

Only the house band, no external cover bands like Phoenix, Aeromyth, etc. We saw Phoenix twice on Oasis last year and they were fabulous. mac_tlc

Here is the show schedule for the week. Quite disappointed that Royal has apparently discontinued cover bands in the Music Hall. Offerings there are pretty weak. Also, a couple of the headliners are scheduled for two days instead of one since we have two extra days to fill compared to the typical 7 night itinerary. Overall, not very exciting. May have to try and see Aqua80 three times. mac_tlc

Sorry @Cthy651 and @sadiwest for your medical issues and missing this cruise. Hopefully everyone will be OK and a future cruise is already in the works! Top tier stats : Number of Golds is 1,547! Almost half the ship is returning cruisers. There are some unique views on Oasis class: We skipped the cheers with an officer and instead did brunch in the MDR. We enjoy the timing of brunch —- don’t have too rich to get out of the cabin for breakfast and can still have eggs and carrot cake at noon 😜😜. mac_tlc

Good morning from off the coast of North Carolina! As always, Day 1 is a bit hectic. Always seems like there are more people on board on Day 1. Dinner in MDR was surprisingly good. The issue on Jewel in June was as much food temperature as anything else. Last night, everything was at the correct temperature. All of us enjoyed dinner. I had forgotten how loud the MDR can be 😳😳. We are in no hurry to rush through and once a few tables left you could actually hear the person next to you. Already I like our assistant waiter, Jayson! He kept the two grandkids well stocked in chocolate milk, which makes everyone’s meal more enjoyable 😂. After dinner we made a small contribution in the casino but the smoke smell, even on the non smoking side was just too much. We like the casino bar but it is too close to the smoke. A fair number of non gambling smokers too, unfortunately. Headed up to the Royal Promenade to people watch a bit. There were getting ready for the midnight balloon drop. This is as close to those balloons as I got! Top Tier event today at 10, cheers with an officer at 11:45. Plan is to do both, but we shall see. A little cloudy today which is good if you are out in the Aquatheatre uncovered. More later…. mac_tlc

We love the Oasis class GS’s, especially Coastal Kitchen! Enjoy! mac_tlc

Aqua80 is the best Aqua show in the fleet. I would see every show if I. Plus get a reservation. We have it for day 4. I have tried the standby line before and never got a seat. mac_tlc

I’ll let you know. At CoCo Cay we will try to be off by 8:30 - 9. We did this itinerary sans Labadee twice last year and the lines were not bad. mac_tlc

Welcome Aboard!!! After a “longer-than-it-should-be” 95 mile ride, we have boarded Oasis. Had a 12:00 time but didn’t make it until about 12:45. No worries, I don’t need to be first anymore. Check-in was fairly quick, grabbed a bite at Park Cafe and now heading to the room to get sea pass cards and dining assignment. We have 6 D+’s in our group and wanted to use the BOGO other than nights 1 and 2. Went to Giovanni’s and no problem— made reservations for day 5 at Giovanni’s and day 8 at 150CP. More later ….. mac_tlc

Well, time to head out to sea again. This time on the first big lady, out of Bayonne. This is our annual family cruise with the 8 of us, ages 64 to 5. I’ll try not to compare it to last years on Harmony in the 4-bedroom Villa Suite …. Prices have gone through the proverbial roof so we have 4 adjacent balconies this time. We will head down to NJ around 9:30 this morning, it’s about a 2 - 2 1/4 hr ride. Our check in time is 12:00. We will be celebrating our 40th anniversary tomorrow. This one won’t be as “live” as our Norway cruise in June but I will probably post every day and try to answer any questions. Being as this is the transition cruise from Friday departure to Sunday departure, it is 9 days instead of 7, with a stop at Labadee added along with another seas day. At this point the wife and I will probably only get off at Coco Cay. The kids and grandkids will be a bit more adventurous. More later ! mac_tlc

I love this Viking itinerary..just sayin' ...🤣

We have had three different Royal Genie’s and have sailed X Sky Suites 7 times. Here is my comparison: There is no comparison. The Royal Genie’s are exceptionally personalized. They typically only have 3 or 4 cabins, offer pre cruise communication seeking out your likes/dislikes, what beverages you want in your suite, any celebrations, etc. once onboard they are “all-in” if you want them to be. They check in a couple times a day, handle any specialty restaurant reservations, room service, etc. They often have “surprise” food/items delivered. We have done the genie with a party of 8 and everyone has access to the genie for anything they may want. They meet you at the shows and bring you to the reserved Star Class seats, which are typically in the first few rows, but they will put you anywhere you want to be. The last time we had one in 2022, we set up a group in WhatsApp and all communication was done that way, with almost instant response. As with X, the price of Star Class has increased dramatically and is now out of our “value” zone. I’m 2022 on Harmony of the Seas, we had the 4-bedroom Villa Suite for the 8 of us, at less than $350pppd. Now it’s double. mac_tlc

I think you are right. The past six/seven months on this board have been very different. There are as many negative threads as positive ones and, unfortunately, I have found it necessary to contribute to those negative ones. There have always been negative views but there are a lot of upset long time E/E+/Z Celebrity cruisers. mac_tlc

I am not a fan of the new menus either. Its not as much as they changed it, its that they cheapened the ingredients and choices. On our 12 day cruise I swear there was some form of "cottage pie", "shepherds pie" or some other offering in a pastry crust at least 5 nights. We always enjoyed the classics being offered every night, although the french onion soup, which is our favorite and a nightly indulgence, was abysmal -- smaller portion no longer in a crock, little cheese, lukewarm favorless broth. That and the temperature of the food was inconsistent and rarely hot enough. The curry's were the saving grace most nights. Hopefully the chef on the Oasis later this week knows how to make french onion soup. mac_tlc

We love sea days so I would consider it. Noticed that Viking had a 33 day R/T from LA to the South Pacific. That one looks interesting too. I’d rather spend time on a ship than a plane. mac_tlc

FWIW, I fired off my email to the executive office last night, it was much more pointed than the one I sent 4 weeks ago 🙄. While I focused on the butler changes, I did mention many of the other anti-guest changes that have occurred this year. Awaiting my Kool-Aid call. mac_tlc

Yes, ours is 9 nights. mac_tlc

I will probably do a LIVE thread from the Oasis when we board this Friday, although it will not be as detailed as the one I did on Jewel in Norway last month. I'll try to answer any questions you may have. mac_tlc

Well said, especially the highlighted sentence. If the change doesn't impact someone, why do they feel obligated to post a snarky comment attacking those impacted and that adds nothing to the conversation? mac_tlc

It doesn't sound like they did. The wounds are still open.... mac_tlc