Oasis Review (6/23 - 6/30)

[ReRe71]

Booked this cruise while on Oasis in December 2023. Not a big fan of the ports but we wanted to take the kids on their first cruise and since we live in Maryland it was an easy drive to Bayonne and we knew they would love the ship (which they did). So it was me, DH, our kids (DD 19 and DS13), our 13 year old's friend (13) and my mom.

 

Embarkation: We chose the 1pm check-in time and actually arrived around 12pm. My mom lives in NJ so she met us on the ship. Check-in was seamless and we boarded quickly. Went to the Windjammer (which DH and I never do) but the kids wanted to go. Found a table pretty quickly but folks were definitely lounging waiting for rooms to be ready. We did our muster video while there and then went to our muster station. 

 

Stateroom: We all had inside staterooms (3). I truly cannot remember what time the room was ready but I "think" it was around 1:30. Bags didn't show up until around 4pm and DH's bag didn't appear until 7pm.We chose evening service for our room and it worked out great for us (we were told it would be cleaned between 4pm - 8pm but the majority of the time it was around 4:30/5pm). 

 

Ship/Entertainment: This was my 3rd time on Oasis (DH's 2nd) and she is still a beauty. We aren't pool people so I can't speak too much on that, but the boys spent a lot of time in the teen club and they enjoyed the activities. I'm a trivia nut so I was always in the Schooner Bar or Spotlight Karaoke lol. My mom and the kids loved Aqua 80 (DH and I had reservations for Giovanni's and we've seen it before). Boys had a blast at laser tag. Spent around $40 in the casino (that's my limit lol).

 

Dining: When we cruised in December we loved the brunch on sea days so we were looking forward to it. Went on the first sea day and was so disappointed, the pancakes and french toast were hard and cold and the server never came back to the table after bringing our food (DH and DD also ordered omelets). We did complain to a senior dining staff and he profusely apologized and offered to send us some food to our room. We really appreciated him trying to rectify the situation. The remainder of the week we ate at the Windjammer and also visited Portside BBQ, Johnny Rockets, Playmakers and Giovanni's. Not going to the MDR was not because of what happened at brunch, we actually knew prior to boarding that since we were sailing with the kids that we really didn't plan on going there. 

 

Drinks: DH and I had the refreshment package, it wasn't worth it for the kids to purchase it. They mainly drink water and we purchased milkshakes for them if they wanted one. I drank way too many virgin pina colada's lol.

 

Port Canaveral: Stayed onboard

 

Nassau: Love the new area. Only one other ship was in port with us. We hired a private driver and he took us on a tour of the island (around 2.5 hours). 

 

Coco Cay: We had a cabana in the waterpark and was definitely worth it for us. 

 

Disembarkation: We walked of the ship around 9am and were in the car a few minutes later. Bayonne has facial recognition so if you have a passport its a breeze.

 

My only complaint is the arcade. So when we boarded I went to guest services to put a limit on the boy's cards because we knew they were going to go to the arcade (which we are fine with). I was informed that the arcade is attached to the casino so if you put a limit, say $50, on the card, they can go over that limit in the arcade without any notification. 

 

We had a great cruise and didn't want it to end. We had already booked Oasis a few months ago for September 2024 (Barcelona). Also visited NextCruise while onboard and place a deposit for a future cruise (it will be sometime later this year but still trying to determine when).

 

Also, not sure if most folks know, but you can purchase popcorn on deck 4 outside of Studio B in the evenings (it's not advertised anywhere).

 

This is pretty brief, happy to answer any questions. 

 

 

[Scottdalfonso]

Thanks! We went on Oasis from Miami in January (Me, Wife, 11yr old son) and loved it so much, we re-booked for this October from NJ (from Philly so this will be MUCH easier!). The problem we had the first time is that we did the big shows, aqua and ice, but that was about it. We just kind of relaxed and hung out most of the time, played mini golf, arcade, and chilled out on the upper decks or central park. So THIS time we are making it a point to go to more shows like the comedy, live music and gameshows. Our son hated the kids club so hoping he will give it another shot so we can enjoy some adult shows or music that we know he won't like!  Looking forward to getting on again, it's such a great ship! 

[shepherdqueen]

Thank you!  We sail on her in October and are looking forward to it.