June 22- Oasis of the Seas Review!!!!

[unione2]

Well being that it is Friday and I have completed most of my work for the day. I can write a very detailed review for the afternoon. I do apologize as pictures will not be included much in this review.

 

I shall start by introducing myself. My name is Ellen and I was joined on this amazing ship with my now- fiance Chris ( more on that later). This was our first big vacation together.

 

Pre-Cruise- We were fortunate enough to stay with Chris's brothers as they live in the Ft. Lauderdale area.

 

CRUISE DAY 1!!! We promptly arrived to the ship at 11:00 AM- after much scouring of the RC website- I found a JS Port side- deck 8 for the price of d8 balcony! IT WAS A STEAL. With that in mind, we headed to the "suite entrance where we were literally on the boat 10 minutes later. It was the quickest I have ever been on a ship! We didn't even get to hang out in the suite area- bummer.... :)

 

 

We were one of the first on the boat and headed directly for Park Cafe. We were so early they didnt even have the roast beef out! Not to worry, I got a salad and my fiance got a panini. Both were excellent. We quickly ate and explored the boat... which by the way is INSANE. There was so much to see. We ran down through central park, the promenade, the pool deck, the solarium...the list goes on.

 

 

We finally get into our cabin- 8242 and it was amazing!!!! the balcony alone was to die for including 2 loungers!! I was set for the whole week as I spent so much time out there. We met our stateroom attendant- he was from Jamaica and was the funniest guy. We never got to talk to him as much as we he was always so busy!

 

We took a quick nap and headed to muster- very easy- the only time the ship ever felt busy was at this point. Otherwise- you would have never known 6000 people were on this boat. I overheard a guest relations tell us there were over 1000 children alone on this voyage. It was a doozie!

 

We headed back to the cabin and got ready for dinner. We did the MTD and pretty much stayed at 8 PM every night. The first night was a little slow, which I think its always hard to get on a new rhythm esp for the staff. We just kept drinking- which made it all the more easier ;)

 

After dinner, we went to Dazzles and fell in love with this trio who were outstanding. I am so terrible at names. The woman had the most spectacular voice. After that, we went to the comedy show- which was funny. The comedian had it out for a 19 year old couple that was on a cruise with both sets of parents. I have never seen a guy be so red in his life. I felt bad for him- but ya never know what your gonna get in when it comes to comedy lol

 

When we got back to the room, there was a plate of chocolate covered strawberries and a menu for a champagne breakfast. Chris told me it was from his mother- which I thought was the sweetest thing!!

 

After that, we went to sleep as we felt like we were dead! Reason being- we took bonine...and we drank on it... yea dont do that.. the box tells you not to- we didnt read it. We didnt figure this out till day 3!! But needless to say we were out like a light!!

 

 

 

DAY 2- AT SEA!!

 

Room service calls us at 10 AM with what we would like for breakfast. Chris chose pancakes as well as an omelette. I had scrambled eggs with bacon as well as hot tea. We even were given mimosas and a bottle of Moet! At this point, I am praising Chris's mother as I think this is the sweetest thing ever. I vow to call her in port when we get to Labadee.

 

We got ready and went to the pool where we hung out in the infinity hot tubs and Chris had to run to " guest services" at 11. I didn't think anything of it- should have known better.

 

We went to the wipe-out cafe for lunch and then lounged by the pool till the Sexiest Man Contest.

 

I am proud to say my fiance won. Yes as embarrassing as it was for me... and him... he took home a crown, trophy, and medal! He danced for 4 judges and I haven't laughed that hard in a long long time.

 

It was the first formal night so we went to take pictures and went to the Champagne Bar. It was here- we found our bartenders for the week. They were outstanding. We got to talking to them every night and pretty much became a ritual to have a drink before dinner. They remembered our names every time and we got to know them. We learned about ship life, their families, what they do for fun, ports of call secrets. They were amazing.

 

 

Dinner was great- We ended up getting a different waiter and we kept him the entire week. We would even wait to get in his section. His recommendations were always spot on. The food was always pretty good- if not average. I never had anything that was AMAZING, but it was never terrible by any means. In my opinion, I think the service was fantastic and to me that is what makes dining so much fun on board.

 

 

 

DAY 3- LABADEE

 

I was so excited to go to Labadee! Little background, my fiance's family is from Haiti. He speaks Creole and French fluently and has been to Labadee many times. We ended up getting off early and got a beautiful spot overlooking the water. As the day wore on, it was so busy- we couldnt even see the water. We stayed around Nellies Beach area and it was so nice- minus the crowd. I can't imagine having 2 ships in port in a day! We went to the artisan market. Chris sent me in "as bait." Sure enough, we were swarmed!! I felt really really uncomfortable. Chris started speaking to them in Creole- and it was like their whole demeanor changed! They were even MORE AGGRESSIVE- but nicer in a way. Then their "sales pitch" was to make sure I had something from Haiti since he was already from there. Needless to say, we didn't make it to the end of the shops. I bee-lined back to the boat. They were trying to put bracelets on me, make me touch various trinkets. It was all a ploy. WORD TO THE WISE: Do not put any jewelry on, as they will assume you want to purchase it. I didn't do this, thank gosh- but I have read they can get a little out of hand.

 

We went back, had a afternoon nap where I was told his "parents were surprising us with something." I was told to look presentable, and we had to meet in the Viking Crown Lounge at 5:00 PM. Now here I am thinking how sweet his parents are and blah blah blah but Here I am thinking that the VCL is not where any of the specialty restaurants are. So I could tell something was up.

 

So 5:00 arrives...and I start getting insanely nervous for some reason.

Back Story: I was told REPEATEDLY that I would not be engaged for this trip... I was told up and down- this will not happen because I would " expect it."

 

We get up to VCL where a coordinator is waiting for us at the elevator. Now I really start to panic. We are led into the chapel where there are rose petals in the aisle, a photographer and champagne on the table. I was in such shock I barely remember what was said. In the end, I of course said YES! and we had a photographer takes us around the boat taking pictures. I was so excited and shocked! and my whole family knew all about it!! How they kept it from me, I will never know.

 

The pictures were beautiful- we only ended up taking 4 being that 30 dollars a piece...not that necessary.

 

Off to Champagne and dinner we went. Dinner was good. We went to the On Air Bar- which karaoke was so much fun to watch! We stopped here almost every night as well. I didnt sing, but it was fun to watch everyone else. We went to sleep early that night as well.

 

We noticed as the cruise went on- there was not that much of a nightlife. Granted there were over 1000 kids on this cruise, which could have had something to do with it. Even Blaze, the nightclub was never packed after 1 AM. You would find more large groups of friends or family in there. We enjoyed Dazzles, On Air Bar, Boleros, and Vintages alot. Those were the places we mainly stayed at.

 

 

DAY 4- FALMOUTH

 

We ended up not doing any excursions this day as we have both been to Jamaica- so we took advantage of the empty ship and played in the pool all day. I found the library and got several books and read them on our HUGE balcony.

 

Day 5- At Sea

 

Another day of Swimming, tanning, and reading on the balcony.

 

Day 6- Cozumel

 

We did a snorkeling excursion through RCI- it was the 3 reef snorkel. The guys were great! It was a little cloudy all morning but we could see all the way to the bottom. I didn't like the large amount of people- we all kept running into each other! But that is to be expected for excursions- otherwise we had a great time. I got a little sea sick on the way back, but that was from the storm that was coming in. We did go into downtown cozumel where I purchased a Z-pack and some Cubans.

 

Nothing like going to Mexico for drugs and cigars ;) We headed back right before the storm opened up.

 

Day 7- SEA Day

 

the usual ;)

 

All In All:

 

We did some of the shows, but not all of them. We found that between dinner and the late shows- there wasnt as much to do unless you want to drink. We would get tired by like 10:30 and then not want to go anywhere! HA! Obviously we did, but we certainly had to do some jumping jacks or something to wake up!

 

We did do Quest- which was HYSTERICAL!

Love and Marriage was fantastic!!

Oasis of Dreams- the divers were amazing

Comedy Show was great.

 

All in all, our vacation was so much more laid back than planned. And I am a planner- I spend HOURS on here before we got on the boat. As soon as we did, all plans drifted away. We enjoyed just lounging around and relaxing. That is what a vacation is for. You really can't do everything in a week.

 

If you have any questions, I would be happy to answer them. I hope you enjoyed my review!!

[dreamer976]

Sounds like you had a wonderful time! Thanks for sharing and CONGRATULATIONS! You've made some wonderful memories.

[Cruzn Fool]

Congratulations on the engagement. That was an awesome way of proposing....props to Chris!

[jagsfan]

What a wonderful beginning to a new life for both of you. I'm looking forward to my first

Oasis cruise, and celebrating our 52nd. There's an incentive for you. Wonder what cruise

ships will look like when you get to yours.

[jv_nyc]

Congratulations!!! My husband and I got engaged on a cruise ship too - such a special memory! Great review!

[Pat in NC]

Our cruise on the Oasis next May will be celebrating our 50th anniversary! Prayer that your marriage will be as happy as ours.

[DreaAST]

Congratulations!!!

[suezyq50]

Congrats. Good job on the cabin snatch.

[big al]

Very nice review..love the pics....we too, have had a JS on Oasis....best ones are on the hump....next time try Chops or 150 Central Park restaurants, both on deck 8 in Central Park ( my fav area, especially at night)..not much privacy or romance in the MDR with 2000 people eating, bright lights, noisy,etc...the $$ venues are sooooo much nicer, and the food is a ton ( IMO) better...where else can you get shrimp cocktail or crab cakes ( THEE BEST!!), salad, bread, main entree like Filet Mignon, NY Strip, Porterhouse, Pork Chops, Salmon,etc., with amaaaaazzzing sides like creamed spinach, esparagus,hash browns smothered in onions & cheese, onion rings, and dessert & coffee ALL unlimited for $30 pp....at Ruth Chris or Morton's, this meal would be easily $75-100 pp...go for a special occassion OR just for a romantic dinner..we love the Freedom & Oasis class ships...we don't do formal nights after 28 cruises, so we go to specialty places on formal night....congrats on your engagement...we liked Dazzles along with the British Pub, Schooners, and the Viking Crown Lounge....hope you saw the ice show in Studio B , that's always cool...usually Boleros is open late for dancing ( I know, my wife is Latina)..on the Freedom & Voyager class ships, the Crypt is open late-it's a late night club which is NOT on Oasis ships..BTW, JS cabins are bigger on the Freedom ships by about 10%, so imagine that! I love RCI the most, BUT if you like late night dancing & stuff, you may want to try NCL Epic, new Breakaway , Getaway ( starting in Jan. '14 from Miami), and even the latest Carnival ships like the Dream, Breeze, & Magic are more late night oriented if you like that...avoid HAL,Princess & Celebrity, as although they are all fine cruise lines, they tend to be more sedate & more "mature" as far as action on the ship...do another cruise for your honeymoon! Just MHO... Good Luck with the future plans!!

 

Big Al

[hollon]

Very nice review..love the pics....we too, have had a JS on Oasis....best ones are on the hump....next time try Chops or 150 Central Park restaurants, both on deck 8 in Central Park ( my fav area, especially at night)..not much privacy or romance in the MDR with 2000 people eating, bright lights, noisy,etc...the $$ venues are sooooo much nicer, and the food is a ton ( IMO) better...where else can you get shrimp cocktail or crab cakes ( THEE BEST!!), salad, bread, main entree like Filet Mignon, NY Strip, Porterhouse, Pork Chops, Salmon,etc., with amaaaaazzzing sides like creamed spinach, esparagus,hash browns smothered in onions & cheese, onion rings, and dessert & coffee ALL unlimited for $30 pp....at Ruth Chris or Morton's, this meal would be easily $75-100 pp...go for a special occassion OR just for a romantic dinner..we love the Freedom & Oasis class ships...we don't do formal nights after 28 cruises, so we go to specialty places on formal night....congrats on your engagement...we liked Dazzles along with the British Pub, Schooners, and the Viking Crown Lounge....hope you saw the ice show in Studio B , that's always cool...usually Boleros is open late for dancing ( I know, my wife is Latina)..on the Freedom & Voyager class ships, the Crypt is open late-it's a late night club which is NOT on Oasis ships..BTW, JS cabins are bigger on the Freedom ships by about 10%, so imagine that! I love RCI the most, BUT if you like late night dancing & stuff, you may want to try NCL Epic, new Breakaway , Getaway ( starting in Jan. '14 from Miami), and even the latest Carnival ships like the Dream, Breeze, & Magic are more late night oriented if you like that...avoid HAL,Princess & Celebrity, as although they are all fine cruise lines, they tend to be more sedate & more "mature" as far as action on the ship...do another cruise for your honeymoon! Just MHO... Good Luck with the future plans!!

 

Big Al

 

you mention crab cakes, shrimp cocktail, steak, port chops - is this "Chops"? we are going to try a specialty dinner when we go on oasis next may, don't know which one to try.

[LBumb]

good job

[Cruisegirl6]

Thank you for the review, question, was your stateroom warm? If so what deck were you on and what cabin did you have, because too many people in past posts saying they were too warm.

[portofrome]

Thanks for your review.

[unione2]

Thank you for the review, question, was your stateroom warm? If so what deck were you on and what cabin did you have, because too many people in past posts saying they were too warm.

 

 

Our stateroom could have been an ice box if it wanted to. The air conditioner worked great! And I was on deck 8 - port side on the hump :)

[MMOMOM]

you mention crab cakes, shrimp cocktail, steak, port chops - is this "Chops"? we are going to try a specialty dinner when we go on oasis next may, don't know which one to try.

 

Yes, I think that's the one he meant .... sounds like it, since we've been there! And YES .... the shrimp are GIGANTIC!! We also had the Filet Mignon and you could cut it with a fork! And, the creamed spinach, et al!! Awesome place! We ate outside .... besides the fact I'm not a big AC fan, it was lovely out there and very romantic ... the little lights glistening, etc. It even started to rain, but we were covered and stayed there ... others chose to go inside, but we thought it added to the ambiance! LOL!! I highly recommend it! :D

[MMOMOM]

Great review! Loved the pics! We booked the Oasis with a gty JS and landed on the hump ... it was wonderful! Congrats on your engagement! We've been on cruises for our anniversary, but usually try to get to Hawaii, where we are going (land vacation thru Hilton and Marriott Vacation Clubs) again this year for our 43rd! If I had to choose the best vacations and also most romantic ones, guess I'd say Hawaii first and then a Cruise .... and the Oasis is AMAZING!! Next time, as OP said, try a specialty restaurant .... we ate at Chops and had the most awesome and romantic dinner!! Well, worth it! Oh, and just as an added comment, we also love HAL and I don't know if it was the time we went or not, but we didn't find it all that 'sedate' .... we were out late after dinner. But, we also (besides we ARE a 'tad' older than you, LOL!) find being out in that 'sea air' and busy all day doing things, not to mention EATING SO much .... we get tired too around 11-12:00 or so and like to get some sleep to get up early and not miss a thing the next day! Thanx for sharing your experience and hope you have many, many more!:D

[Cruisegirl6]

Thank you

[Babablue]

Sounds like you had a wonderful trip filled with memories that will last a life time! Congratulations!!

[MsGal]

First, Congratulations and Best Wishes! What a beautiful story. And thank you for such a great write-up. I do have a few questions:

 

CRUISE DAY 1!!! We promptly arrived to the ship at 11:00 AM

 

I've seen several posts about getting to the terminal "early". How busy was it - people arriving at that time?

 

I found a JS Port side- deck 8 for the price of d8 balcony! IT WAS A STEAL.

 

How did you (and how do others) find these deals? I think I am not using the right "technique". lol

 

We noticed as the cruise went on- there was not that much of a nightlife.

 

I sailed on the Carnival Dream and, as someone else posted, it was active well into the night.

 

Again, thanks for sharing!

[drarill]

Congratulations on your engagement!!! Great review!:):)

[rosebud1g]

Congratulations on your engagement!

 

Can you tell me what nights were formal nights? I have a friend leaving this Saturday and was asking me.

Thank you!

[big al]

you mention crab cakes, shrimp cocktail, steak, port chops - is this "Chops"? we are going to try a specialty dinner when we go on oasis next may, don't know which one to try.

 

Yes, Chops is the RCI Steakhouse....$30 pp..well worth it IMO..we have dined in Chops about 20 times on various ships..all have been terrific...for $30 you can get: shrimp cocktail, crab cakes ( don't miss if you like crab cakes- to die for!!), caesar salad, NY Strip, Filet Mignon, Chops,Porterhouse,fish,killer side dishes ( TIP: order several sides as you can share and they are included..don't miss the potatoes..)...coffee & dessert included..it is basically a 4 course meal for $30..also the 150 Central Park venue is a bit more $$, but truly a different, romantic dining experience...you get SIX small dishes for $40 pp, all very different & tasty...inside is very romantic & quiet...we loved it!!...anymore info, give a shout....

 

Big Al

[rosebud1g]

We had dinner at Chops on Allure and I didnt think it was quiet or romantic. The tables were TOO close together and I could hear everyone else's conversations.......Also the portions were very small for the cover charge we paid. :(

[big al]

We had dinner at Chops on Allure and I didnt think it was quiet or romantic. The tables were TOO close together and I could hear everyone else's conversations.......Also the portions were very small for the cover charge we paid. :(

 

Chops on Allure admittedly is not as nice as on the Freedom ships...I agree seats are too close in there...I eat alot and I found portions OK...remember, you can order as much as you want of anything...after bread, crab cakes or Shrimp cocktail, salad, NY Strip with veggies, potatoes, onion rings and more, PLUS dessert, we were stuffed..I think for $30 it's a steal....you can't even eat at Denny's for $30 like that, and at a high end steak place you pay $15 for shrimp cocktail, $8 for a baked potato, $8 for a salad, and $35-45 for the entrees...add another $10-12 for coffee & dessert....it may not be quite as good as Ruth Chris, Morton's,etc.,but IMO, a whole lot better than the MDR ( now THAT'S NOISY!!)...that's why I also mentioned 150 Central Park..that is quiet & romantic.....

[unione2]

First, Congratulations and Best Wishes! What a beautiful story. And thank you for such a great write-up. I do have a few questions:

 

 

 

I've seen several posts about getting to the terminal "early". How busy was it - people arriving at that time?

 

 

 

How did you (and how do others) find these deals? I think I am not using the right "technique". lol

 

 

 

I sailed on the Carnival Dream and, as someone else posted, it was active well into the night.

 

Again, thanks for sharing!

 

 

 

 

When we got there, it really wasn't busy at all. There was a line forming for non suite guests to get on board- and that line was moving as fast as the suite line. They have that embarkation down to a science. I really didn't see anyone in the regular waiting area either. Everyone was getting on board.

 

 

As far as finding deal, I just do a "mock" trip. Use the RC website. Use the date you are sailing on and pretend as though you were going to book online. But instead, just look at the prices. Then you call RC and they switch it right over for you. I checked literally everyday. That little "drop" was available for maybe 24 hours. It went really fast.

 

 

I think because there were SO many children aboard- that def. affected it. Also, Blaze looks like a crypt. haha I didn't like the dark color schemes and it was never busy when we would go in there. Even after 2 am, the ship was pretty quiet. The only late night spots were Boleros, Dazzles, and Blaze. But either way, we had fun.