REVIEW - Oasis 4/11/15 Western with kids in Royal family suite

[TripleU]

Background - DH and I are both 37. We cruised with our 5yo triplet girls and my parents. All of us in one royal family suite on deck 9. This was the first cruise for the kids, the first RCL cruise for my parents and the 3rd RCL cruise for DH and me.

 

We arrived in FLL via Southwest on Friday afternoon. We took the free hotel shuttle to the Hilton Garden Inn. This was a fabulous location for us as there were several restaurants and shops within walking distance. Dinner was at Chipotle, which is right next door. Then DH walked across the street to Big Lots to get a $3 case of water.

 

We had 2 rooms at the hotel. My family stayed in a "suite". I discovered on Saturday morning that we could see the ships from our room (6th floor). They were far, but I could see them. Such a glorious site. Our room was nice - 2 double beds and a pull out couch that was a twin at best. It worked perfectly for the 5 of us. The room also had a small refrigerator and coffee pot. As a Hilton Honors member, my husband got us each a cold bottle of water. Yay - more water to take with us! All 7 of us walked across the street to McDonald's for a quick breakfast on Saturday morning.

 

I had asked the front desk to schedule a cab for my family at 9:45am. My parents took the hotel shuttle to the port ($10pp plus tip). There was no way we were going to pay $50 for our family on the shuttle, and we couldn't get a cab big enough for all 7 of us and all of our luggage. Our cab arrived at exactly 9:45. I was very pleased that it all worked out so perfectly. The cab ride was $18.90 plus tip. It would have been cheaper and quicker for my parents to also take a cab, but we weren't sure. Their shuttle also left at 9:45. Luckily they dropped off at the Oasis first or it would have taken an hour for them to arrive. Yikes!

 

Check in was easy since we were there so early. There was no line. We got the kids their muster station bracelets, and then we sat in the waiting area for the suite guests. They let us board around 11:15.

 

We headed straight to the Park Cafe for lunch. I had never had one of the infamous roast beef sandwiches. Sadly, I was disappointed. I'm not sure what I was expecting, but with all the hype I guess I was expecting more. They were good, but not that great, in my opinion. We had a run-in with an awful guest there who was so rude and bossy. He even threatened to call security on us and have us thrown out when he was the one waving his arms all around and cutting in line. He even hit my father in the face while waving his arms around. Everyone else who witnessed what happened was on our side. I later learned he's a pinnacle member. I guess he assumes that means he owns the ship and can boss everyone else around. Unfortunately, we saw him often in the suite lounge. Such a rude man.

 

After lunch, we split from my parents and took the kids to Ocean Adventure to get them signed up. What an amazing place. Needless to say, the kids had an amazing time there throughout the week.

 

Our room was ready by 12:45. The royal family suite is amazing!! It's on the hump, so the balcony is huge. There are 2 bedrooms (one "master") and 2 bathrooms. Plus the couch folds out into a queen bed. I assumed once the couch was transformed into a bed, the living room would seem small. Not at all true. Absolutely no furniture needs to be moved. The room is huge! There are a total of 4 closets - 1 in the master, 2 in the living room and 1 in the small interior bedroom (which has a king bed and 2 pullmans). There are 3 TVs.

 

We explored the ship all afternoon, but spent a good amount of time in the suite lounge. It's beautiful up there. One side is Coastal Kitchen, the middle has the bar and Chef's Table and the other side is a sitting area with a small buffet and drinks. It's one big room. Our MTD reservation was for 6:15 in the MDR. MTD is on deck 3 - American Icon Grill. First seating in on deck 4 and late seating is on deck 5.

 

My parents had reservations for the comedy show at 9pm. My family was tired, so we turned in early. The kids were exhausted.

 

More to come.

Edited April 20, 2015 by TripleU

[PR Cruisers]

Can't wait for more. We will be there next July for the western route.

 

Don't you have the cruise compasses available?

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[SherriZ366]

looking forward to your updates

[TripleU]

Can't wait for more. We will be there next July for the western route.

 

Don't you have the cruise compasses available?

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

Someone posted them recently.

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2157103

[TripleU]

Day 2 - At Sea

 

I had scheduled the Dreamworks character breakfast for Day 2, so we had to get up quite early as it was at 7:45am. Luckily, I had scheduled it before September 1st, and we didn't have to pay for it. In my opinion, it's not worth paying for. The breakfast is the same as everyone else in the MDR, and everyone else can see what's going on, if you get there that early. The only thing that's special is that you have a better view and you get to take photos with the characters. There are 3 characters - different ones at each of the 3 breakfasts. Oh, and each child gets a sticker from each character. There are plenty of opportunities to take photos with the characters around the ship. Paying $10 each for breakfast is not worth it. My kids definitely enjoyed it, but I would not pay for it.

 

After breakfast, we took the kids to Ocean Adventure, and DH and I went to the Meet and Mingle. This was our first meet and mingle. From what the others said, it was not a good one. The prizes weren't that great, and we didn't win anything. They gave away 2 free Johnny Rocket's meals and 2 free 30 minutes of internet certificates and 3 bottles of wine.

 

After wandering the ship for awhile, we picked the kids up and went to lunch in the Windjammer. Big mistake. It was so crowded, and we couldn't find a table for our family of 5. There were several large tables with only 1 or 2 people at them. Why???? The food wasn't all that good, and it was hard to find things that my kids liked.

 

The 5 of us went to see Cats at 2pm. So many people complain about it, and I don't get it. In fairness, I had already seen it on Broadway. I truly think the key is sitting close to the stage. We had front row seats. The Cats are on and off the stage and are interactive with the first several rows. The plot is definitely confusing, but I still find the singing and acting entertaining. My three 5 year old kids all sat through the entire performance without a single complaint. They LOVED it!!! In fact, they have been pretending to be Cats ever since. The contract for this particular cast is over, so it's hard to say what's coming next, but the actress who same Memory was AMAZING!!!

 

This was a formal night, so we decided to go to Coastal Kitchen because we only wanted to dress up on the 2nd one when they serve lobster. Both DH and my father were in shorts, and we were not allowed in until they changed. They do enforce dress codes sometimes! I was in capris and flip flops and my kids were all in shorts, and that was ok. Dinner at Coastal Kitchen was delicious!! They have the same menu for the first 4 nights, and then it changes. But it's not all that different when it changes - just different preparations of the exact same proteins.

 

DH and I went to the Majority Rules Game Show after we put the kids to bed. It was so nice to have my parents there who were willing to stay in the room and let us go out. The Game show was a lot of fun.

 

Next up: Labadee

[Khsh08]

Thank you, I'm looking forward to reading more! Can't wait for my trip in February... oh so far away.

[PR Cruisers]

Someone posted them recently.

 

 

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2157103

 

 

Nice!!! Thanks!!!

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[SherriZ366]

Printed your review out to read later and then read that you had 5 year old triplet girls. We have 3 year old triplet grandsons. Where did the girls sleep? If you used the bedroom with the bunks, how did you decide who slept in a bunk. I looked at the new family stateroom on deck 12 forward and it has a bunk room but only for 2.

 

It's a kick and a challenge having 3 (just finding 3 identical or similar shirts in their size is interesting). When they were born, luckily DD & SIL had a great support network for feedings but she still had to feed 2 at a time.

 

Ours are fraternal with two with brown hair looking a little alike and one blonde.

[TripleU]

Printed your review out to read later and then read that you had 5 year old triplet girls. We have 3 year old triplet grandsons. Where did the girls sleep? If you used the bedroom with the bunks, how did you decide who slept in a bunk. I looked at the new family stateroom on deck 12 forward and it has a bunk room but only for 2.

 

It's a kick and a challenge having 3 (just finding 3 identical or similar shirts in their size is interesting). When they were born, luckily DD & SIL had a great support network for feedings but she still had to feed 2 at a time.

 

Ours are fraternal with two with brown hair looking a little alike and one blonde.

 

How awesome! The girls slept in the small interior bedroom - 2 on the pullman beds and one on the lower bed. We had the stateroom attendant split the bed so there were basically 2 bunk beds in that room. I slept on the other bottom bunk since I was afraid they'd wake up confused or need something and I wouldn't hear them from the other room. I loved how incredibly dark and quiet the room was. My parents slept in the master bedroom, and DH slept on the pullout couch. It was nice to escape DH's snoring for a week! Although one of my girls in a teeth grinder, and that was pretty unbearable too. Technically kids aren't allowed to sleep on the pullman beds unless they're 6, but our girls sleep on bunk beds at home, so I wasn't worried. I figured if the ship rocked enough to knock them off the bed, we had bigger problems. The stateroom attendant did mention on the first day that they weren't old enough to sleep up there, but I ignored him.

 

I let them take turns choosing a bed. Most of the time, the first one to choose wanted the bottom bunk.

 

All three of my girls are fraternal too. I have blonde hair and blue eyes, but my husband is Asian, so his genes won and they all have brown hair and brown eyes.

[TripleU]

Day 3 - Labadee

 

I forgot to mention that we had no problem getting our $3 case of water on board. I slapped a luggage tag on it, and it showed up in the room. I asked the porter when we dropped it off if it was ok, and he said yes. It was the last thing to arrive, and I asked the person delivering luggage if it was confiscated. He said it wasn't, but it takes longer because they have to put the water in a different area so it doesn't get crushed by the weight of the luggage.

 

One of the main reasons I like to bring water on board is to take on shore with me. I want to stay hydrated and not pay for bottled water on the beach.

 

My absolute favorite thing to eat on a cruise is an omelet from the omelet station. Well, the Oasis has eliminated the omelet station. I guess it makes sense that 6,000 people can't all stand in line for an omelet. The compass said omelets and made-to-order eggs are available at the Wipeout Cafe only. So, that's where we headed for breakfast. I was quite disappointed that you submit an order and they're made behind the scenes AND they no longer have my favorite ingredients as options - spinach and bacon. For the record, the same omelets are available on the menu in the MDR. This was quite disappointing for me. The Wipeout Cafe has a small breakfast buffet with all the expected items, and, most importantly, it wasn't crowded at all.

 

As suite guests, we headed to Barefoot Beach for the day. For me, the most disappointing thing is that there are not any hammocks in the Barefoot Beach area. DH and I went to Labadee in 2009 (when I was pregnant with the triplets), and I spent the entire day in a hammock. It was the best part of that cruise. I really missed my hammock. I did the same thing on our last cruise in CocoCay. They really need to put some hammocks in Barefoot Beach. I found the drink service to be poor on the beach. You had to flag them down. They seemed more interested in getting orders from the cabanas. There is an upgraded buffet lunch on Barefoot Beach. It was delicious - steak and shrimp. Mmmmm. I also didn't know that towels are provided for the guests on Barefoot Beach. We lugged 8 towels unnecessarily from the ship. I wish I had known.....

 

This was my girls' first time on the beach. They had a blast!! They spent the whole day making sand castles (I brought sand toys with us) and playing in the water. They even found a friend who was their same age to play with. It was a great day.

 

Dinner was again in the MDR. We then headed to the AquaTheater for the Oasis of Dreams show. The divers are amazing, but the story line and choreography is incredibly cheesy in my opinion. DH liked that part of the show better than I did. My girls enjoyed it too. One diver dives off a 20m platform. That's 60 feet - 6 stories. Crazy.

 

After we got the kids in bed, DH and I went to the Love and Marriage Game Show. This is always a favorite of ours. One couple had been married for 57 years. They were hilarious!!! I think this is not to be missed. It does depend on the people who get on stage, but we never been disappointed.

 

Up next - Falmouth.

[kovhanperl]

Don't you have the cruise compasses available?

[TripleU]

Don't you have the cruise compasses available?

 

 

There's a link in the 4th post above.

Edited April 22, 2015 by TripleU

[TripleU]

Time for some photos. Unfortunately, 95% of my photos have my kids in them, and I don't want to post those. Here are some, and I'll post more later.

 

Our first glimpse of the Oasis.

 

 

View from the suite lounge leaving the port.

 

 

My girls on our balcony.

 

 

The boardwalk.

 

 

The 20m platforms over the AquaTheater pool.

 

 

Docked in Labadee.

 

 

Panorama of Barefoot Beach.

 

[Travalerie]

Day 3 - Labadee

 

 

 

As suite guests, we headed to Barefoot Beach for the day. For me, the most disappointing thing is that there are not any hammocks in the Barefoot Beach area. DH and I went to Labadee in 2009 (when I was pregnant with the triplets), and I spent the entire day in a hammock. It was the best part of that cruise. I really missed my hammock. I did the same thing on our last cruise in CocoCay. They really need to put some hammocks in Barefoot Beach. I found the drink service to be poor on the beach. You had to flag them down. They seemed more interested in getting orders from the cabanas. There is an upgraded buffet lunch on Barefoot Beach. It was delicious - steak and shrimp. Mmmmm. I also didn't know that towels are provided for the guests on Barefoot Beach. We lugged 8 towels unnecessarily from the ship. I wish I had known.....

 

This was my girls' first time on the beach. They had a blast!! They spent the whole day making sand castles (I brought sand toys with us) and playing in the water. They even found a friend who was their same age to play with. It was a great day.

 

 

 

Up next - Falmouth.

 

Did you have to pay for floating mats?

[cb at sea]

Regarding the Windjammer, and seating...if only a couple folks are sitting at a large table, just say, "Mind if we join you?" and sit down. Tables are not "private"!

 

If you're not in a cabana that comes with floats, then yes, you have to pay to rent them. Some folks will simply bring their own blow up float!

[TripleU]

Did you have to pay for floating mats?

 

 

Mats are free in Barefoot Beach, but you have to pay for them elsewhere.

[TripleU]

Regarding the Windjammer, and seating...if only a couple folks are sitting at a large table, just say, "Mind if we join you?" and sit down. Tables are not "private"!

 

If you're not in a cabana that comes with floats, then yes, you have to pay to rent them. Some folks will simply bring their own blow up float!

 

 

Very true, but 2 people at a 6 person table doesn't leave room for my family of 5. Maybe they're looking for company, but it makes it hard on larger families. We ended up at a table for 4 with 2 kids sharing a chair.

[TripleU]

Day 4 - Falmouth

 

We started the day with breakfast in the MDR followed by a round of trivia - my favorite! The ship didn't dock until about 10:30a.

 

My original plan was to get off the ship with the kids and walk around the port area and then take them back to OA so DH and I could leave the port area and walk around Falmouth. As we got to the gangway, DH realized he didn't have his seapass card. My parents had already cleared the checkpoint, so we ended up getting separated from them. That was ok because they actually wanted to shop, and I didn't.

 

We walked around the port area. It was miserably hot. My kids were complaining. We finally got to the exit from the port, and we decided just to take the kids with us. We walked about 4 blocks into town and then back to the port. People describe Falmouth as the armpit of Jamaica. I would agree. DH is from Indonesia, and I have been there and seen 3rd world poverty before. Falmouth wasn't the worst I've seen, but it wasn't a nice place to be. Some people have said they were scared. I had 3 children with me, and I was never scared or uncomfortable. People are constantly asking you to buy things or take a taxi with them, but that is their livelihood. What do you expect? The girls complained constantly about how hot and miserable it was, so we went right back to the port after a few photos.

 

Once back in the port, we walked around some more. We found a lady selling fresh young coconuts for $3. DH is obsessed with coconut water, and drinks tons and tons of it at home. While not an amazing bargain, I did get her down to 2 for $5. I don't like coconut water, so DH and the girls shared the 2 coconuts. We wish we would have had a spoon to get the meat out. We tried to get some at DQ, but they wouldn't give any out without an order.

 

We then went back to the ship. I was soaking wet from the heat and humidity and was miserable. We all had lunch in the Windjammer again. This time was better for seating since most people were off the ship.

 

I took the kids to OA for the afternoon. DH decided to get off the ship again to explore the town. I had no interest. I spent most of the afternoon in the suite lounge and playing any trivia games offered. I went back to the room to discover that DH had returned and was most likely at the FlowRider (his swim trunks were missing). He was really wanting to try it. I found him at the FlowRider, and I watched him for awhile. He only did the boogie board one, not the stand up surfing.

 

DH said his time walking around Falmouth was interesting. He was offered many taxi rides, hookers and drugs. When we were eating dinner, we talked to our waiter about Falmouth. He said that DH should not have gone into town alone as it's very dangerous. The Jamaican staff on the ship has warned all the other staff to stay in groups while in Falmouth. Interesting. DH said he never felt scared or uncomfortable though.

 

We both headed back to the room to relax a bit and get ready for dinner. It started to rain really hard, and we enjoyed watching all the people running through the port in the rain. We were on the starboard side of the ship, but we were facing the port at all 3 stops.

 

Again, dinner was in the MDR, but my parents ate at Coastal Kitchen. Apparently we left the port 30 minutes late due to a ship sponsored excursion arriving late. We were already eating dinner, so I didn't even notice.

 

The night was capped off with the headliner, Kenny James. He was a 13 time Star Search winner in the 80s - he won $100,000 on the show. He was a great singer, dancer and entertainer. His son is the bass player for his act, and they make a great team. We ended up disembarking right behind them. They were headed to catch the Jewel on the Pacific side of Costa Rica. I don't know who the next headliner will be.

 

Up next: Day at Sea - 2nd formal night.

 

Coming up later on my Day 7 review - our amazing bridge tour including detailed information straight from the captain's mouth about missing the ship as well as the 100% true story of the man who went overboard in January and was rescued by the Disney ship.

[SherriZ366]

How awesome! The girls slept in the small interior bedroom - 2 on the pullman beds and one on the lower bed. We had the stateroom attendant split the bed so there were basically 2 bunk beds in that room. I slept on the other bottom bunk since I was afraid they'd wake up confused or need something and I wouldn't hear them from the other room. I loved how incredibly dark and quiet the room was. My parents slept in the master bedroom, and DH slept on the pullout couch. It was nice to escape DH's snoring for a week! Although one of my girls in a teeth grinder, and that was pretty unbearable too. Technically kids aren't allowed to sleep on the pullman beds unless they're 6, but our girls sleep on bunk beds at home, so I wasn't worried. I figured if the ship rocked enough to knock them off the bed, we had bigger problems. The stateroom attendant did mention on the first day that they weren't old enough to sleep up there, but I ignored him.

 

I let them take turns choosing a bed. Most of the time, the first one to choose wanted the bottom bunk.

 

All three of my girls are fraternal too. I have blonde hair and blue eyes, but my husband is Asian, so his genes won and they all have brown hair and brown eyes.

I like the ideas of letting them choose -- maybe we would let the boys draw straws.

 

Did the pullman beds have railings? The new family stateroom's bunk room on Freedom had railings. http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2186535 has pictures.

 

Your girls look cute from the back!! Here are my boys: Charlie, Evan and Ray. Charlie and Evan just got glasses -- eye conditions inherited from their dad but probably exacerbated by being 7 weeks premature (very healthy otherwise).

[FlyStef]

My absolute favorite thing to eat on a cruise is an omelet from the omelet station. Well, the Oasis has eliminated the omelet station. I guess it makes sense that 6,000 people can't all stand in line for an omelet.

 

 

That is disappointing. My mother will not be pleased with no omelet station, and the made to order omelets are very limited in fillings. :(

[Clarea]

That is disappointing. My mother will not be pleased with no omelet station, and the made to order omelets are very limited in fillings. :(

You can get made to order omelets for no extra charge at Johnny Rockets, Wipeout Cafe, and the Main Dining Room.

[LuCruise]

Loving your review. We'll be on oasis sister ship and our younger one will be close to your girls ages. Interesting reading your comments on the character breakfast. Which characters did you have? I think it depends on the day?

 

Looking forward to reading more. Sounds great so far.

[TripleU]

Did the pullman beds have railings?

 

Yes, they have a side railing that goes about 1/2 - 3/4 of the way down the side.

[TripleU]

Loving your review. We'll be on oasis sister ship and our younger one will be close to your girls ages. Interesting reading your comments on the character breakfast. Which characters did you have? I think it depends on the day?

 

Looking forward to reading more. Sounds great so far.

 

We had Alex, Julian and Gloria. When we ate in the MDR on other days, I saw Kung Fu Panda and the Penguins (2). We usually got there right at the end and only saw the last character. I never saw a photo opp with the penguins around the ship (I may have just missed it), but we got plenty of photos with the other characters. On the last sea day, our waiter tried to bring our girls over for a photo with Kung Fu Panda (which we already had), and the people running the character breakfast stepped in an said no. I was at the buffet at the time or I would have said no to begin with.

 

Another thing that I loved is the Dreamworks channel on the TV. It made getting ready in the room much easier because we had something to keep their attention.

[TripleU]

Day 5 - sea day and 2nd formal night

 

Of course we started the day with breakfast in the MDR. We then headed to the pool deck to play some mini golf. My girls still don't understand how to play, but it was fun to watch them try. They just constantly move the ball with the club. So funny. It wasn't crowded at all. There was only one family ahead of us.

 

We also watched the FlowRider again. DH was on it again, and my mom (71yo) also did it. She loved it, but the last time she wiped out she got a bunch of water up her nose and called it quits.

 

I dropped the kids off at OA. I had forgotten that they were doing a talent show. I checked them in too late to learn the routine. I left for awhile, but when I came back, they were in the middle of the show, and I did get to see my girls on stage. They enjoyed it even though they didn't get to make guitars or learn the routine. The song was a rock n roll version of the ABCs, so they figured out the "lyrics" pretty quickly. The older kids had the chance to perform individually, but the 3-5yos all did a performance together.

 

There was a DreamWorks parade in the Royal Promenade at 12:30. We got there early and got good seats. It was a much bigger production than I was expecting. Lots of characters and people riding bikes and acrobats and aerialists and more. It shut down the entire promenade. The captain and the officers and Drew, the cruise director, were all there too - riding the Rising Tides Bar. It was a good time.

 

Lunch in the MDR again followed by some rides on the carousel. The carousel was probably my girls' favorite part of the ship. We then dropped them off at OA again.

 

DH and I did another round of trivia and went to the jive lesson. We both already know how to jive, but we enjoy going to the dance lessons. The instructors were 2 of the cast members of Cats. It was fun.

 

We then got ready for formal night. They have lobster at Coastal Kitchen as well, but we decided to eat in the MDR. I personally am a fan of the MDR. After dinner we took some family photos. My parents ended up buying a few of the prints - they were pretty good.

 

DH and I had reservations for the 9pm Comedy Live show, so we quickly got the kids ready for bed and headed out. We ended up being 1st in line for the people with reservations and got front row seats. The venue is very, very small, so there aren't any bad seats. Several of the people in the no reservations line got in. Simian is an amazing comedy host. In my opinion, he was funnier than the other 2 comedians. Ron Josol was the first comedian. He's Asian and somehow DH ended up on the stage with him during his act. It was funny. I wasn't fast enough to get a photo though. The headliner was Barry Diamond. I didn't understand his act. To me, he wasn't funny at all. At all. Most of his act was random streams of consciousness in some weird voice (his favorite seemed to be an old black gangster from Brooklyn). I will say that we ended up going to the "family" comedy show on the last night, and he was much funnier! I'm not offended easily, so it wasn't that he was raunchy or anything like that. He just didn't really tell any jokes. He voice recorded the show on his iPhone, so I'm wondering if he was trying new material. One older man in the front row next to us was laughing so hard. I kept looking at him trying to understand what he was laughing at. I was trying so hard to keep a smile on my face since I was RIGHT in front of him and didn't want to seem as bored as I was.

 

DH met a lady at the jive lesson who really wanted to dance but doesn't have a partner. We made a plan to meet her at Dazzles at 10p. Unfortunately, the music ended there at 10p but would start again at 11p. We headed to the royal promenade where the 70s disco party was going on. They never really found the type of music they wanted to dance to that night and hoped to meet up again the next night.

 

Up next: Cozumel