Help with Oasis Class

[porthole21]

Hello all,

Family and I have never sailed on Oasis Class and after finishing our Liberty of the Seas decided we would like to try one...but we do not know which to chose over another? Do not want to take the easy route and pick Symphony since it is newest or avoid Oasis since it is the first. Any insight is greatly appreciated as I comb the Boards.

 

Quick background: we have 10 yr old triplets and loved everything about the Liberty- size, shows, food, water slides, flow rider, rock wall....you get the point.

[Foodluvr]

Harmony has water slides, Abyss, Flow Rider, rock wall, escape room, and all the stuff on the sports decks. Grease was a great show too.

 

 

I love the shows on Oasis and going out of Port Canaveral is cheaper! No water slides but it's our favorite ship. Tons to do! The carousel on the Boardwalk is a favorite. Rock wall, mini golf,sports decks, flow rider and Zipline are fun! We preferred the specialty restaurants on Allure and Oasis to Harmony.

 

Allure is very similar to Oasis. Major difference is Solariun turns into a Brazilian Steakhouse at night as a specialty restaurant. Shows are good. Mama Mia is fun for the family.

[bethann2103]

The only experience I have is with Oasis which I do not recommend with your children's ages. There are no water slides on this ship and that was a real bummer for my kiddos who love riding on the slides all day! On a ship this size it was hard for them to do anything on their own bc most of the other activities had height restrictions and needed the parents to be there (flow rider) in order to participate. The zip line has weight restrictions that my 11 year old didn't meet. In my opinion his is not a good ship for kids below 12 years of age.

[Cruisegirl6]

If your flying, Orlando International is a distance from the port....I would suggest the Harmony out of Ft. Lauderdale, the port is right there next to the airport and there are plenty of hotels also. The Symphony goes out of Miami, and hotels are more costly there, but with little ones your best bet be Ft. Lauderdale, Harmony.

[Biker19]

Skip Oasis class and sail on Anthem - might be within driving distance, which would skew the cost equation. Seaplex would be great for 10 yr olds.

[Grandma Dazzles]

The only experience I have is with Oasis which I do not recommend with your children's ages. There are no water slides on this ship and that was a real bummer for my kiddos who love riding on the slides all day! On a ship this size it was hard for them to do anything on their own bc most of the other activities had height restrictions and needed the parents to be there (flow rider) in order to participate. The zip line has weight restrictions that my 11 year old didn't meet. In my opinion his is not a good ship for kids below 12 years of age.

 

Not all kids enjoy water slides all day! Did your kids try the rock climbing wall, ice skating, ping pong, shuffleboard, mini golf, basketball and other sports court activities. So many activities on Oasis class of ships. Zip line has weight restrictions, and flow riders have height restrictions, but my grandkids aged 6, 8 and 11, first time on board, had a great time.

[BNBR]

Harmony is missing some things from Oasis/Allure and vice versa. Symphony appears to be the best of both but nobody really knows yet.

 

If the solarium pool is a big deal for you, you won't like Harmony. Otherwise Harmony has some nice upgrades in general and probably a better choice for most travelers.

[porthole21]

If your flying, Orlando International is a distance from the port....I would suggest the Harmony out of Ft. Lauderdale, the port is right there next to the airport and there are plenty of hotels also. The Symphony goes out of Miami, and hotels are more costly there, but with little ones your best bet be Ft. Lauderdale, Harmony.

 

 

We have sailed out of Port Canaveral on the Disney Dream a while back and it wasn't too bad but not ideal. Kids love all the other items like ping pong and table games and the parades. We do like sailing out of Fort Lauderdale. I know time of sailing and room categories will change the cost but have you seen large differences in the costs of say Harmony to Allure or Oasis?

[bethann2103]

Not all kids enjoy water slides all day! Did your kids try the rock climbing wall, ice skating, ping pong, shuffleboard, mini golf, basketball and other sports court activities. So many activities on Oasis class of ships. Zip line has weight restrictions, and flow riders have height restrictions, but my grandkids aged 6, 8 and 11, first time on board, had a great time.

 

Clearly this is my opinion of the ship, obviously not all children slide all day. Giving the OP My opinion and my experience so they can make an informed decision. Of course we did everything else on the ship, we spent the entire cruise running all over that gigantic ship and hardly had two minutes to relax. Been on 3 other ships that were smaller and my children were much happier and able to do a lot more on their own. Glad your Grand children had fun it just wasn't for us.

[Eslader]

I would suggest the Harmony out of Ft. Lauderdale

 

Unless they're booking after April of next year -- Harmony is moving to Port Canaveral starting in May 2019.

 

OP, if you're booking for the near future I'd avoid Symphony because unless you're going for the "first sailing" bragging rights, sailing a brand new ship can be annoying. Staff is still getting used to the ship, and some things may not be working yet.

 

As mentioned above, Harmony lacks a solarium pool so if that's important, avoid, but it does have the water slides, so if *that's* important, avoid Oasis and Allure.

[BNBR]

Unless they're booking after April of next year -- Harmony is moving to Port Canaveral starting in May 2019.

 

OP, if you're booking for the near future I'd avoid Symphony because unless you're going for the "first sailing" bragging rights, sailing a brand new ship can be annoying. Staff is still getting used to the ship, and some things may not be working yet.

 

As mentioned above, Harmony lacks a solarium pool so if that's important, avoid, but it does have the water slides, so if *that's* important, avoid Oasis and Allure.

 

They use experienced staff to open the new ships. With Symphony being the 4th in the same class, I think service will generally be fine.

[jor689]

just got back from Oasis with a 6 year old, and oasis does not have a water slide. my daughter was bummed out about that. but they do have a great waterslide at Labadee, if you kids are interested. My kid loved it and the aqua park. Labadee is the absolute best port

[BNBR]

just got back from Oasis with a 6 year old, and oasis does not have a water slide. my daughter was bummed out about that. but they do have a great waterslide at Labadee, if you kids are interested. My kid loved it and the aqua park. Labadee is the absolute best port

 

Harmony is substantially better in this respect. They have water slides, the big dry slide, and also an outstanding splash pad area. Oasis has an ok splash pad though.