ChristyLNDRN Posted March 12, 2013 #1 Share Posted March 12, 2013 Hi All, This will be my first attempt at a review! I'm a long-time lurker, and am very appreciative of all the reviews and tips I've picked up from Cruise Critic, so I wanted to share in return. Let's jump in! Background: This was the 5th cruise for myself (32) and DH (35). Our 2nd cruise with Royal, having previously cruised on Explorer of the Seas. Previously cruised once each on Princess and Carnival, and 2 on Windjammer Barefoot Cruises. We have two adorable kiddos, DD 3 1/2 and DS 5, who got to spend a wonderful week with their awesome grandparents, because Mommy and Daddy were cruising solo! Wooohoooo! I booked rather late, 46 days out from sailing. I had been watching prices for both Allure and Oasis, knowing that I wanted to try one of the big girls. My original plan was to do the Eastern route on Allure....so of course we ended up on Oasis for the Western route! Long story short, we were pretty flexible for dates, with my in-laws being retired and available most of the spring. In early January I caught a C&A preview sale and snagged a D1 Oceanview Balcony, 7th deck on the hump for $899pp, which I thought was a crazy good deal....it was just too good to pass up. When it came down to it, I was more excited to see the ship and wasn't really particular about the itinerary. As soon as I booked, I immediately went online and was able to make all show reservations, as well as MTD reservations, with no problem at all. I pre-booked the Central Park dining package, which required us to eat the first night at Giovanni's Table, with a reservation made ahead of time for that night. 150 CP and Chops would have to be scheduled once onboard. The only thing I was unable to do at this time was book a cabana...the Nellie's beach cabanas were all gone already. However, with some help from my cruise critic friends, you will see later on that I was able to take care of that as well:) Within a day or two, there was nothing left to do but sit back and count down the days....so let's jump ahead in time to the day before: Pre-cruise: Friday March 1st We left DE around 8 AM friday morning to start our looooong drive to Ft. Lauderdale. Yup, we drove that far. Yes, I know I'm crazy. Booking late, near spring break=very high airfare prices. Or I'm just using that as an excuse because I don't like to fly:) Made it to Melbourne FL and around 10pm decided we were too tired to drive any further. Pulled in to a Hampton Inn and was able to book a room with my credit card reward points while we were sitting in the parking lot. Had trouble sleeping as I was so excited! Finally fell asleep a little after midnight....and then woke up excited again just after 4 AM. Managed to stay quiet for awhile, then gave up at 4:45 and turned on my ipad to check out the webcam. Hubby was less then thrilled at being woken up so early, but here's what I saw 30 minutes later: If you look closely you'll see I was not the only one up that early!!! I was so excited to see the ship sailing in! Breakfast was served in the lobby at 6 AM, so after a quick shower and bite to eat, we were on the road again by 6:30. We made it to Ft. Lauderdale around 8:30. Coincidentally, my sister-in-law was spending a few days at the Marriott Harbor Beach, so we swung by and picked her up there for a second breakfast. After 2nd breakfast, and a quick trip to Publix for some wine to carry on, we dropped his sister off and we were finally on our way to the Oasis. Here's our first view: We arrived at the port around 10:30. DH dropped me off at the curb with luggage while he parked the car. I had to wait a few minutes for a porter as the curbside was a little chaotic with lots of passengers leaving and lots of cars dropping off. Still, we were in the terminal very quickly, after one last nervous look over my shoulder at our bags. The porters just had everything piled up on the curb, with a few carts behind waiting to be loaded. Just bugged me a little not to see our bags go directly onto a cart. Still, everything did arrive just fine. I tipped the porter $5. Once inside the terminal, there were only a few people in front of us, and plenty of people to check you in. I think the whole process took about 5 minutes. We were given two WOW cards as we checked in, and then we headed upstairs to the gold seating area. Boarding started just after 11. I would estimate that we were onboard around 11:15, as I took this picture after we had already made a few stops elsewhere: On the gangway: Next up: Taking care of business! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
raven22355 Posted March 12, 2013 #2 Share Posted March 12, 2013 I am on this same trip in Nov. Loving the review, living a little vicariously thru this! As I was reading your review of the night before, I can identify, I am always so excited the night before a cruise I can't sleep worth nothin!!! I have been on 11 cruises thus far and I always think I am not going to get that keyed up...doesn't work..excitement takes over, every time!!! Thanks for taking time to do the review. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChristyLNDRN Posted March 12, 2013 Author #3 Share Posted March 12, 2013 Day 1: Our first stop once onboard was Guest Services. Not the most exciting place to start, but I wanted to sign DH up for the All-Access Tour. It was the one thing I know he wanted to do, having previously done Carnival's behind the scenes tour and loved it. Had to wait just a few minutes in line, and got that taken care of. There were multiple tours for him to pick from. He ended up picking 9:15 on the last sea day (Friday). Cost was $150. After getting that taken care of, we headed up to Central Park: I wanted to make reservations for the Central Park dining package I had pre-booked. We ended up walking by Chops first, so we stopped in. Having pre-booked all the shows, and 4 nights of MTD, I knew exactly when I wanted to eat in each place: Monday night for Chops, and Friday night for 150 CP. Was able to schedule both easily right there at Chops. Once that was done, that was all the business we had to take care of. We had already eaten two breakfasts, and were not hungry at all, so we decided to hold off on eating. Time to explore the ship: Giovanni's Table: Pool deck I think: Beach Pool: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChristyLNDRN Posted March 12, 2013 Author #4 Share Posted March 12, 2013 Day 1 continued: Continuing to explore the pool deck: Awesomely huge hot tub looking over the side of the ship: And then we walked into what quickly became my favorite place on the ship: The Solarium! We spent far more time here than anywhere else on the ship. So peaceful, and relaxing! Tons of chairs, two hot tubs, and one (cold) pool in the middle. It was love at first sight, and then when you add this to the mix...... Now that's happiness right there:) Francis, one of the solarium bartenders, was great! Always remembered my name, and DH's as well. I haven't quite adjusted to not having my 10:30 am pina colada yet. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChristyLNDRN Posted March 12, 2013 Author #5 Share Posted March 12, 2013 Day 1 continued: After relaxing in the solarium for awhile, it was getting close to 1:00, so we figured our room would be ready soon. We took one more lap around the pool deck: And then took a quick peek down onto the boardwalk: And then it was on to Deck 7 to check out our room: My father, one of the sweetest guys in the world, had flowers waiting for us in the room: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChristyLNDRN Posted March 12, 2013 Author #6 Share Posted March 12, 2013 Day 1 continued--More room pictures: LOVED the size of the balcony...so deep!! No luggage to unpack yet, too excited to nap, what to do next? How about hitting the zipline? Why not? Oh, and they did have loaner shoes, just like the rock wall. I did have close toed shoes, but they seemed to think they were too loose, as they were slip-on sketchers. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
staceyeileen Posted March 12, 2013 #7 Share Posted March 12, 2013 Yay! I get to relive this great cruise. We were on board as well. :D Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChristyLNDRN Posted March 12, 2013 Author #8 Share Posted March 12, 2013 Day 1 continued Who needs kids to ride the carousel? By this time it was almost time for muster. We were in Studio B. It was pretty full in there...people ended up sitting in the aisles, so get there on time if you need a seat. It was pretty painless and quick though. And then it was time for sail away!! I was pretty excited about sail away. Again, through you wonderful folks at cruise critic, I learned you could "request a wave" from the Fort Lauderdale webcam. You can go on their site, tell them your ship, sail date, and sail away location, and they will try to zoom in on you at sail away for people watching live on the webcam. I watched a few of the older sail aways on their site (they archive them on youTube) and noticed that they would really zoom in on the port side bridge wing. So, I emailed a wave request with the port side bridge wing for my location. As soon as muster was over, we ran all the way up the stairs (we are a little out of shape!!) to deck 14 port side. You go all the way through the cabin hallway to the front, and there is a door to the outside to get you to the bridge wing. When we got out there, another guy had requested a wave for the same site. When you sail by the building where the webcam is, you start waving like crazy. I had my dad and my brother watching live from home... Sure enough, the camera zoomed right in on us, and they saw us! It was great! My dad was on the phone with me, and he was looking at his screen and said, "Tell Mike to wave! He's not waving!!" That's how clear they could see us. My brother got a great screen shot of us that I need to download. I think it helped that I had on a bright yellow shirt. Us at sail away Liberty in port with us Shorter building on the water next to tall building is where the webcam is. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChristyLNDRN Posted March 12, 2013 Author #9 Share Posted March 12, 2013 Day 1 continued: View of the helipad from bridge wing: More sail away views from our balcony. The sky just kept getting prettier as the sun went down: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChristyLNDRN Posted March 12, 2013 Author #10 Share Posted March 12, 2013 Day 1 continued We had reservations at Giovanni's table for dinner at 6:30. We ended up going a little early at 6:15 and were seated right away, no problem. Let me tell you, I think this was the best meal we have ever had on a ship. Now, remember that we never really ate lunch, so we were really hungry, but it was GREAT! For appetizers, we had Scallops, and also Mozzerella that was wrapped in prosciutto on a little piece of bread. Our waiter asked if we would like seconds of the scallops...um, yes please! DH had Osso Bucco--said it was phenomenal I had the 8 oz filet--yum! We shared a plate of spinach & ricotta crepes--very, very good For dessert: Tiramisu Chocolate Tart Sorry, no food porn...too hungry at dinner time! After dinner, we had reservations at 8:30 for hairspray: We really enjoyed the show. Normally we crash early on vacation. This time, we vowed to stay up late and sleep in. With that in mind, we stayed in the theater for a 3D showing of the Avengers that started shortly after the show ended. By the time ended it was 1 am and I had been up for 21 hours...so off to bed we went. That's the end of day one...a great start to a great vacation! That's all for tonight as well...my kiddos tend to get up early. I'll be back tomorrow, probably at night when kids are back in bed. Next up: Day 2 (at Sea) Rock Walls and flowrider wipeouts, oh my! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SF Posted March 12, 2013 #11 Share Posted March 12, 2013 Enjoying your review. Great photos!:) Looking forward to the rest. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Aggies9698 Posted March 12, 2013 #12 Share Posted March 12, 2013 I'm loving it! We have 4 kids and will be sailing without them (thanks to wonderful grandparents) in May. We are sailing the eastern Caribbean route on allure. I'm looking forward to reading more of your review! Great job so far!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ccruzal Posted March 12, 2013 #13 Share Posted March 12, 2013 Great review! I'm 31 and my husband is 34 and we have a 2 yr old who is also staying with the grandparents when we go on our cruise later this month. It's great to read a review from someone with our similar demographics. We talked about going on the Oasis or Allure in the future and your review so far is very helpful. Can't wait to read more! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jamer8 Posted March 12, 2013 #14 Share Posted March 12, 2013 Thanks for your review, I can't wait for more! We are sailing in just over a month on Oasis (western) so I can't get enough of the great reviews ! There are 7 of us sailing ( a 50th wedding anniversary celebration for my in-laws), so I am a little jealous of your quiet get-away for two! Looking forward to more of your review! Thanks :) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Just The 3 Of Us Posted March 12, 2013 #15 Share Posted March 12, 2013 Wonderful job so far!!! DH & I board the Oasis in May - CAN'T WAIT!!! :D:D:D Barb Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Canadian Tyler Posted March 12, 2013 #16 Share Posted March 12, 2013 Great review and pictures so far, thanks for posting! Sent from my BlackBerry 9900 using Tapatalk Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Keshia14 Posted March 12, 2013 #17 Share Posted March 12, 2013 What a nice job you did on your review!:) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChristyLNDRN Posted March 12, 2013 Author #18 Share Posted March 12, 2013 Thanks for all the replies and encouragement from everyone. I'm having fun reliving the memories:) It's raining buckets here in Delaware. DS is at school, and DD is happily entertaining herself (for now) so I'll see if I can get started on Day 2 here...need to resize pictures as I go. Any specific questions, just let me know and I'll try to answer as I go. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChristyLNDRN Posted March 12, 2013 Author #19 Share Posted March 12, 2013 Day 2: Excitement strikes again! I woke up early just after 6 AM. My kids get me up around 6 every day at home, and despite my best intentions, I find that it is very hard to reset my body's clock and actually sleep in on vacation. I'm also not one to just lay there in bed when there's an awesome ship to explore. DH grumbled a little when I started making noise, so I grabbed my soda cup, told him to go back to sleep, and off I went to explore, camera in hand. Side note: I bought the soda package the previous day, up at one of the bars on the pool deck. Coke Freestyle machines were fun, and easy to find. They were a little cranky at times, but overall they worked pretty well. There were two machines side by side on the forward end of the promenade, which were the ones I used the most by far. Note that the machine on the right of this pair had plain water, while the left hand machine only had flavored waters...it took me a day to figure out how to get just plain ice water when I was headed up to the Pool deck for some sun. Also ran into some machines in the windjammer, which I only used once, because we only stepped foot in there once on the whole cruise:) Also found one machine around the corner from the Wipeout Cafe in the kids arcade...this was a surprisingly convenient location for me to duck into if I was headed aft. First stop on my early morning exploration was the promenade, as we hadn't spent much time there the day before: Walked straight through the deserted promenade to the boardwalk: Not many people up and about there either! Aquatheater Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChristyLNDRN Posted March 12, 2013 Author #20 Share Posted March 12, 2013 Day 2 continued: This looked like a great spot to relax, aft along the jogging track: Great views of the wake from here: Jogging track: Aqua theater again: Rock wall: To be continued at naptime. DD, who is not known for her patience, wants to play with Mommy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tyry Posted March 12, 2013 #21 Share Posted March 12, 2013 Great start! We are doing the same itinerary in April, so I'm looking forward to hearing all about you trip. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
seadaisy Posted March 12, 2013 #22 Share Posted March 12, 2013 Thank you for taking the time to do this nice review. We are doing the Oasis western itinerary April 13th and these reviews are so helpful. We are traveling with DS, DD, and 3 grandkids (their spring break week in Boston). Since we are retired we are elected to do the research for the group. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ZimmCouple Posted March 12, 2013 #23 Share Posted March 12, 2013 Thanks for doing this review. We are sailing Oasis May 11, Western Caribbean and can't wait - reviews that come in closer to our date only help feed the excitement! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LBumb Posted March 12, 2013 #24 Share Posted March 12, 2013 very good job. ready for more Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChristyLNDRN Posted March 12, 2013 Author #25 Share Posted March 12, 2013 Day 2 continued: Finishing up my morning tour of the empty boardwalk: Layout of Deck 6: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Please sign in to comment
You will be able to leave a comment after signing in
Sign In Now