Oasis November 15 -- A Little Late, I Hope it was Worth the Wait!

I had some lofty ideas about writing a L-O-N-G detailed Oasis review, but two weeks after we got home I’ve finally come to the realization it just isn’t going to happen. I keep putting it on the back burner, and so in the interests of posting my review before our next cruise in March, I’m going with the Reader’s Digest condensed version! Warning…my idea of a condensed version is STILL over 8 pages in Word, so if you don’t like long reviews with lots of pictures, this probably isn’t the thread for you.;)

We thought we’d NEVER take a cruise on the Oasis or the Allure. Yes, we were those people who were horrified by the size, the passenger load, and the whole concept. I mean seriously, who ever thought it would be a good idea to put a park and a boardwalk on a ship? Surely it would flop! Well, a funny thing happened starting in 2011…I saw one of the “big girls” for the first time and I was intrigued. I was on the Carnival Conquest at the time, and I developed a serious case of ship envy.:o At that point I conceded that maybe I was wrong and the Oasis looked interesting enough for me to take a tour, but not a cruise.

The intrigued feeling didn’t go away, and after that first meeting it seemed like I ran into Oasis or Allure taunting me every time I was on a cruise.:p I found myself taking endless pictures of a ship that I wasn’t on, and wondering what secrets could be hiding inside. I actually even peeked at prices a couple times, but I kept getting sticker shock so even though I was tempted, I never booked. We finally broke down in April when we were on the Navigator and asked the LA what she could find either right before or right after Thanksgiving, and she came back with an incredible Texas resident discount, so five years after we said never, we said here’s our money!:D

To make a long story short (or not, because I really don’t know how to make a story short), the cruise we ended up taking looked nothing like what we originally booked on-board the Navigator, but we did cruise on the Oasis! I love the research and planning, obsess over details, and think the pre-cruise is almost as much fun as the event itself. Therefore, we changed sailing dates, decks, cabin categories (numerous times!), and kept tweaking all the other stuff like on-board reservations. It was worth it. We had a great cruise and were very happy with all our choices. The only bad thing about all the changes is I’m pretty sure the agents in the Crown and Anchor office now draw straws to see who has to take my calls!:rolleyes:

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Can't wait!

Here are the details –

Friday, November 14: We flew to Ft. Lauderdale non-stop on United’s early morning flight because it was the only one I could find that didn’t completely break the bank! The weather in Ft. Lauderdale was beautiful, and we were at our hotel (Hyatt Regency Pier 66) by 11:30.

Our Hotel

Since that was long before rooms were ready, we had a delicious lunch at Pelican’s Landing, then walked over to the water taxi to meet up with people from our roll call.

Pelican's Landing Restaurant

Boats Docked by the Restaurant

Our View at Lunch

Crossing the Bridge to the Water Taxi Stop by the Hilton

The Water Taxi -- A Fun Way to See Ft. Lauderdale!

Doesn't the Hyatt have its own water taxi stop? They did when we were there but that was back in 2007.

We had a wonderful time, and enjoyed the ride, drinks at Chart House, and later dinner and more drinks at Bimini Boatyard.

On the Water Taxi

Chart House

On the Water Taxi

Bimini Boatyard

Bimini Boatyard

We walked back to the Hyatt around 10:00 and finally were able to get in our room. Whew…long day!

Hyatt from the Bridge

Doesn't the Hyatt have its own water taxi stop? They did when we were there but that was back in 2007.

It closed several months ago for construction, and it was supposed to reopen in mid October, but it's still closed.:(

It closed several months ago for construction, and it was supposed to reopen in mid October, but it's still closed.:(

Ahh, I see! That's good to know. We are staying at the Hyatt for one night after our cruise in January so hopefully it's open by then. If not we'll just take a walk like you did!

I had chosen the Hyatt for one reason…the view of ships arriving in the morning. The reviews made me a little nervous, but since I wanted to take pictures safely (the last time we were in Ft. Lauderdale for a cruise I was down under the bridge with the homeless guys at 5:30 am!) I forged ahead. I requested a high tower room facing the port -- what I got was perfect, and the room was spacious and comfortable. I didn’t sleep well (I never do the night before a cruise) and jumped out of bed at 5:00. My heart sank when I saw there was already a big RCI ship turning, but then I realized it was a smaller ship (it was the Independence). The Oasis was about 20 minutes behind, and I achieved my goal…take pictures of the ship arriving without having to get dressed.:)

First Glimpse

Too Big to Hide!

So Pretty!

I'm SO Excited!

It was a beautiful morning, and I sat on the balcony for a long time watching the ships arrive. What a fun location for a cruise ship junky!

She's Waiting!

A couple random pictures...

The Hyatt from the grounds.

One of the ENORMOUS yachts docked near the hotel. I believe someone said you could charter the Cakewalk for $300,000 a week plus expenses!:eek:

That's all for tonight. I have most of the review typed and all the pictures are uploaded to my SmugMug account, so I'll get busy posting more in the morning.

Great start! I love this pictures of Oasis all lit up in the dark coming into port. Looking forward to seeing more

Your pictures are fantastic! What kind if camera do you have? I never thought I would be the type of person to care about that but I recently purchased a new camera based off of someone's review and I'm not sure I like it. It feels too complicated to me. So I'm just curious what others use.

Nice trip review so far. Looking forward it read more of it.

Thanks for posting, great quality photos, looking forward to seeing more.

It's never to late for a review. Thanks :):D

Been waiting for this for two weeks Cindy. Photos are wonderful. In August we also stayed at the Hyatt Regency. The tower rooms are beautiful. We had a similar view, might have been the same room. Wondered how you got your previously posted pictures. You must be a brave person indeed to have done your 5:30 a.m. photo adventure !

What a great way to wake up reading your review.

I guess good things are worth waiting for.

Thanks excellent start.

Looking forward to more.

Sea Ya

Your pictures are fantastic! What kind if camera do you have? I never thought I would be the type of person to care about that but I recently purchased a new camera based off of someone's review and I'm not sure I like it. It feels too complicated to me. So I'm just curious what others use.

Thank you! I use a Canon 70D with a 15-85mm lens about 85% of the time. I also have a Canon G1X Mark ii "Point and Shoot" camera that I walk around with a lot in the evenings.

Been waiting for this for two weeks Cindy. Photos are wonderful. In August we also stayed at the Hyatt Regency. The tower rooms are beautiful. We had a similar view, might have been the same room. Wondered how you got your previously posted pictures. You must be a brave person indeed to have done your 5:30 a.m. photo adventure !

Ha! Foolish is more like it! It didn't even occur to me that I really shouldn't be down there until I looked under the gazebo and saw that three people called it home!:eek:

Saturday, November 15 -- Embarkation: We boarded about 11:30. Despite the dire warnings from RCI by text, e-mail, and phone about long delays, we arrived at the port and literally walked right onto the ship.

We wandered around for a while with our jaws hitting the floor, then went up to the Suite Lounge for lunch.

Jim posed here every time we passed!

The Suite Lounge and Coastal Kitchen will look very different when they're completely finished. They are going to add curtains and replace the tables and chairs on the lounge side with more comfortable seating.

The afternoon consisted of more touring the ship, a painless (seated) Muster Drill in the Aqua Theater, our roll call Sailaway Party at the Wipeout Bar, and dinner at Giovanni’s Table.

We ended the day with Oasis of Dreams twice…we watched once in the Aqua Theater, and then again from our balcony.

It was interesting to watch some of the mechanics from above. In this picture, you can see the performers as well as one of the safety divers who are underwater with the cast for the entire performance.

The Aqua Theater and Boardwalk at night...

Sunday, November 16 -- Nassau: We stayed onboard and spent a lot of time walking around the ship, exploring and taking pictures.

Crown Loft area...you can see construction on what will be the balcony of one of the new Royal Suites.

Solarium

Solarium

View of Atlantis

View Forward

Beach Pool -- I have to agree with other comments I've read. The umbrellas are in desperate need of replacement.