Oasis of the Seas - May 7th 2016 - Western Caribbean (with Photos!)

Day Two:

Today was the first day at sea. I tried to take a few pictures from our balcony to show off the view. For the price, it's hard to beat a boardwalk balcony, especially if you are close to the back of the ship. You get amazing views of the ocean for a much cheaper price than an ocean view balcony. There are definitely a few noise concerns with these balconies though, so I would not recommend booking one if you like to sleep in and/or take afternoon naps. During the night there was no noticeable noise though, so that was good.

We eventually made it out of the stateroom around 11am, so we decided to just skip breakfast and head down to the Park Cafe to try it out for lunch. My girlfriend had a salad, and I tried a cheese panini and the much famed roast beef sandwich. The panini was under-cooked leaving the cheese still cold in some spots, but the roast beef sandwich was good. I'm pretty picky about food so I ended up opening it up and cutting away some of the fat, but other than that no complaints. We actually never ended up going back to Park Cafe after this though. I think it was just a bit too far out of the way when we were only two decks below the Windjammer and Wipeout cafe. That is part of the beauty of the Oasis class ships though - they divide up the flow of passengers exceptionally well. For breakfast alone I believe there are 7-8 different options, including the Windjammer, Park Cafe, Wipeout Cafe, the main dining room, room service, Solarium Bistro and Johnny Rockets. Because of all of the different food options it seems that the crowds are pretty well dispersed. The longest lines still occur at the windjammer, but it is more so about trying to find a table than finding food. I don't think I ever waited more than 30 seconds in a line for food, and perhaps 5 minutes to find a table on the most busy days. Once again, I have to commend Royal Caribbean for the design of their ships. Even though it was a long time ago, I still recall lines for food in the Lido Buffet on the Fascination and waits for tables too. The same goes for Sovereign of the Seas. For a ship with well over 5,000 passengers, I never once felt crowded while on board Oasis.

Today was a pretty relaxing day all in all, spending most of it walking around the outdoor decks and sitting at various chairs to watch the ocean go by. There is a nice area between the pool decks and the sports deck called 'The View' where we ended up heading out to several times throughout the week. Being both pale white people from the north, the sun does take a toll pretty quickly on the both of us, so it's nice to be able to find locations to be outside in the nice weather and watch the ocean go by while also being at least partially shaded from the sun.

While roaming around the pool deck I spotted pina colada's in pineapples. This was simply a must have! So we bought two of those (actually, my girlfriend bought me mine with her OBC, leading to the bartender making a joke about the girl buying the guy a drink) and relaxed at 'The View' while listening to some live music from the pool deck nearby.

Another of our favorite spots would end up being the very back of the ship on deck 5 behind the aqua theater. Fantastic wake views from the back of the ship and almost always quiet and peaceful. There is no better place to relax on an Oasis class ship in my opinion.

We ended up heading back to our room to get ready for the first formal night. I have to take the time now to commend our waitstaff, Edsil and Crismar (Table 228)... simply fantastic. On the first day I asked for iced tea and my girlfriend asked for lemonade. Every day after that they would bring those drinks out without us even asking. The cups were never empty, as the assistant waiter Crismar was seriously on top of things when it came to refilling everyone's drinks. There was one occasion where literally the exact minute I took my last sip of tea, he appeared magically beside me to refill my glass! They also remembered my coffee preference with dessert and would even ask if I wanted it prior to ordering dessert so it would time out well (the first night my coffee came 10 minutes after dessert). Edsil, the head waiter, was incredible and I can't say enough about his service either. He was kind, funny, and knowledgeable about the food choices too. We did prepaid gratuities, but we gave them both quite a sizable tip on top of that at the end of the week. Once again, 11/10 for the service.

The food on the other hand could sometimes be hit or miss in the main dining room. Today I tried the shrimp ravioli while my girlfriend had duck for the first time. Both were very good tonight, although had I known I would literally be getting four ravioli in total I might have opted for the duck as well haha. For dessert we both got a chocolate souffle, and ordered an extra double strawberry cheesecake to split (it was just too hard to decide between these things!). Both were excellent. In fact, every dessert and every appetizer throughout the week were all very good... it seems like it was more so the main courses that would vary from okay to good, while the appetizers and desserts were always top notch.

After dinner we had reservations for Come Fly with Me. I did not have many expectations, and to be honest at first I thought it was going to be a bit too campy/cheesy, but then it really took off! Literally! The acrobatics were incredible. At one point all I could think about was how this girl is going to have her arm pulled out of it's socket from all the weight of the guy she was holding up with one hand, and at another point I was seriously concerned what would happen if they lost their grips during the aerial stunts. It was extremely well done, and it seems Royal Caribbean works hard to hire some very talented performers for their shows. Definitely check out the show if you have a chance, it should not be missed!

Once the show was over, we walked around the jogging track on deck five a few times before stopping by the promenade for a snack. The pizza at Sorentos is pretty average, but it's usually hot and almost always available. Could it be better? Yes. But once again, it's hard to complain when it's free and there's so many other options for food around. Speaking of which, the Cafe Promenade has delicious cheesecake bites that should be tried at least once, as well as several delicious premade sandwiches on what seemed like fresh baked bread too. You certainly will not go hungry on this ship.

Sooner or later we ended up back in the stateroom and tried to call it a night. Upon returning to our stateroom we were welcomed by our first towel animal on this cruise. Granted I've seen this several times, so my reaction was more subdued and limited to a smile and a 'look!' while pointing at it. My girlfriend however had no idea this was a thing. Honestly, one of the best parts about this cruise was experiencing a first time cruisers reactions to the little things like this. I'm pretty sure she thought Maria did this just for us haha, but nonetheless it made me smile to see her reaction of 'awwwww... Maria is SO awesome I can't even explain it anymore!'.

Unfortunately it seemed like Oasis was really swaying that night. I'm not sure if it was a factor of the height (since we were on deck 12), but everything in the room including the blinds and clothes on hangars was swaying left to right. The TV was even making creaking noises on the wall mount. While surfing through the TV channels, I found the bridge channel that updated you with the speed of the ship and the winds... according to that channel, we we getting hit with 45knt winds from the north east! This made a lot more sense to me now. The seas were pretty calm, but several doors on the top deck, including the sun deck above the bridge, were closed or locked so it would seem the swaying motions were not from rough seas but rather from gusts of wind hitting the side of the boat. I bet those on the lower levels did not feel it as much, but it was very noticeable to us on deck 12 that night. Granted neither of us felt sick, it was still hard to fall asleep because it was not the normal feeling of a boat rocking up and down, but rather this strange slow left to right swaying. Thankfully this would only happen for a few hours on this night only.

Day Three:

Today we were at Labadee, Haiti so we tried to make it out of the stateroom early and get off the ship at a reasonable time. Prior to heading to the island, we stopped at the Windjammer for breakfast. I'm not a big fan of eggs so I can't comment on the quality of those, but they definitely have a lot of variety from fresh fruit, cheese, various breads and pastries, to eggs, hash browns, and waffles. I'm pretty sure I tried one of everything this morning haha. I found the sausage to be too salty, but the bacon was surprisingly good in my opinion. There are definitely plenty of options for healthy eating, although the temptation to eat unhealthy foods is rather strong if I do say so myself.

After heading off the ship, I tried to snap a few pictures to show off the sheer size of Oasis.

Now the following picture I almost deleted, but I found it too funny so I just had to keep it. For a little backstory leading up to this picture - there was a fairly large amount of Asian tourists on our cruise this week, and with that came quite a few selfie sticks around the ship. Now I'm not going to judge those who take seflies, but it's definitely not my thing... in fact I don't really like having my picture taken much at all to be honest. So in an attempt at humor, I pulled out my cell phone and proclaimed "Oasis selfie!!!" and took a picture. My girlfriend thought I was taking one of us, and not just me and the ship, so she tried to get in the picture too. Well... the results are below.

See that dark round shape in the lower left? That would be the top of her head haha. You see, I am actually around 6'2 in height, and she is barely 5'0. We always joke that our relationship doesn't work while standing up (it makes for some awkward hugs from time to time), and this picture is just further proof of that.

Anyways, once we made it off the pier I had this brilliant idea to try to find a cool lookout location I read about on this very site. I did recall that it involved a trail through the woods, on some stone path somewhere, and it would end up with this nice overview of the entire ship... but that's all I remembered. So I saw the path leading up to the woods somewhere, and off we went!

About a half hour later, we emerged sweaty and exhausted somewhere on the far side of the island. Turns out the path I wanted was to the left when leaving the pier, not the right. We were both pretty exhausted from all the walking up and down stairs in the heat, so we figured we'd head to the beach and cool down in the water. I did remember reading several times that the best beaches were on the farthest end, away from the ship. Columbus Cove? I think? This was one of those times where having an internet connection would have been a lifesaver. So we continued walking, in attempts to find Columbus Cove (or something with a similar name). After looking at a map, I determined that we were getting pretty close, but just had to go a little further down and stick to the right.

Well, we ended up near the flea market area with the 'authentic' experience of shopping with locals. After telling a guy no thank you, and ignoring him while he kept yelling at me to come see what he has, I began to become discouraged. We decided we would just turn back and go pick a random beach on the way back to the ship, because as far as we could tell the only way to that beach we wanted to get to was through the flea markets, and neither of us wanted to deal with that at the moment. So we see a tram unloading people and decide we'll hop on that and get off at the first beach area we see. After doing that, we are walking to the beach and I notice a sign saying 'No Swimming'. That was roughly around this same time we realized we forgot to bring towels as well.

After walking around for a couple of hours in the heat, we were both feeling defeated and tired by everything that just happened, so we opted to return to the ship, cool off, get some towels, and try again afterwards. Once back on board though, we discovered how great it is having the ship mostly to yourself! We ended up not going back on Labadee and instead enjoying Oasis mostly to ourselves.

We actually got to 'hangout' in the hot tub that 'hangs out' over the side of the ship (couldn't resist the puns) all to ourselves for quite a while. The views were incredible! I highly recommend checking out the cantilevered whirlpools sometime. It was also quite nice having them all to ourselves, so all in all I can't complain even though our actual time on Labadee was a fail.

Day Three Cont:

Right around the time we were about to leave Labadee, the winds began to pick up quite a bit and the skies began to darken. We felt a few droplets of rain, but it seemed like the weather was mostly isolated to the mountains above Haiti. It was actually impressive seeing how low the clouds appeared, as if the mountain peaks were literally cutting through the clouds above them.

Soon after sailaway, we went back to our stateroom to get ready for dinner. If I recall correctly, tonight was the tiger shrimp dish. It was very good! Although we did both think the rice was too plain for the dish, the shrimp itself was excellent. For dessert I tried the chocolate sensation, and my girlfriend got the tiramisu.

We did not have plans this evening as far as shows go, but we noticed the Love and Marriage game show was going to be starting later on so I thought it could be entertaining to have a few drinks and go check it out. Well, my girlfriend isn't a drinker, and I didn't really want to drink alone... so after just a tiny bit of peer pressuring, she relented and agreed to have a couple of drinks since we are on vacation after all.

The show actually ended up being hilarious! Our cruise director, Drew Devine, was absolutely amazing. Drew has a very naturual sense of humor, and you can tell very little is scripted or rehearsed. Granted, I'm sure he recycles a lot of jokes between cruises (who wouldn't?), you can tell he is authentic. He isn't putting on a show, or acting a part to entertain you... he is being himself, and he is funny, charming, and friendly. I can imagine the game show being much less entertaining with someone else hosting it, but Drew had everyone laughing in no time. We shall see how other cruise directors are on future cruises, but I suspect we got very lucky and sailed with one of the best in the business on this cruise. He certainly set the bar high.

Also, I wish I could remember their names, but there was an older couple on the gameshow who were ridiculously adorable. You couldn't write the answers they were giving, and the audience was consistently awwing and oooing at them. I believe they were married for 60 years, but don't quote me on that.

Following the show, and several rum and cokes, we ended up at the back of the ship on deck 5 again where we sat and got lost in some deep philosophical conversations about just about every topic under the sun while watching the ocean pass by. I'm a huge fan of deep conversation, and I believe it's one of if not the best ways to bond with people, so this ended up being a memorable evening when all was said and done. She also was glad she ended up drinking haha.

Somehow or another, two hours flew by and we were both beginning to feel very sleepy. After successfully finding our way back to the stateroom, we both promptly passed out.

Thank you for this review! I'll be in 12725 in August, so loving your pictures out of the balcony.

Also, I work with people in career transition, so I love that you were able to make a change to something you will enjoy. Good luck with the transition.

Thank you for this review! I'll be in 12725 in August, so loving your pictures out of the balcony.

 

Also, I work with people in career transition, so I love that you were able to make a change to something you will enjoy. Good luck with the transition.

Thanks! And you will definitely enjoy the view from your balcony. You can actually see your balcony directly to the right of the pictures from our balcony, so you can expect almost the exact same view only slightly closer to the back of the ship.

Love your background story! Good for you and how lucky you are to have realized the right career path while you are young. Best wishes for a bright future!

Thank you. And while I may have questioned it at first, I am definitely glad I made the decision I did before I found myself stuck doing something I wouldn't have been happy doing. Best wishes to you too!

Nice job so far! Shout out from a fellow Michigander sailing on Oasis in about a month! :)

Lucky! You'll definitely enjoy it, and if it's your first cruise or Royal Caribbean it's certainly going to set the bar high as far as the ship itself.

Thank you for this review! I'll be in 12725 in August, so loving your pictures out of the balcony.

 

Also, I work with people in career transition, so I love that you were able to make a change to something you will enjoy. Good luck with the transition.

Just wanted to add - if she is still on the ship you will likely have Maria as your room steward. She is awesome! We left her a hand written note with an extra tip at the end of the week she was so good... you'll be in very good hands. :)

Enjoying your review. Thanks

Why go into such detail about all this? Because this cruise vacation (and hopefully many others to come) would not have been possible for another decade or so had I not gone down the path I did. And hey, perhaps a few people might enjoy hearing about a success story like this and be able to relate or draw inspiration from it. If I didn't believe it before, I certainly believe it now - do what makes you happy.

I love this story and am so glad you shared that part along with the cruise-y bits. I can't wait to read past this first post! :D

Thanks from me too! - for the review and the background. I love to hear bits about the people behind the reviews!

Day Four:

Today was Jamaica, and even prior to leaving for this vacation we were not sure if we wanted to get off the ship today. Before leaving, I heard from many different people - including my parents, my aunt and uncle, my friend's parents, and even my boss - who all said Jamaica is beautiful, but not worth getting off the boat on unless you book an excursion. Add into this that we also overheard several people on board saying similar things, and we ending up opting to stay on the ship this day. We clearly weren't the only people who made this decision, since the Windjammer was jamming at lunch, and all the pools and hot tubs were packed too.

Honestly I can't complain though, all the excursions seemed either over priced, or would take too long. One day I do want to see Dunn River Falls, but perhaps it will have to be on a different cruise line because I think it was a couple of hours away from where Oasis docks in Jamaica. While on board the ship, we did have the opportunity to enjoy some jerk chicken in the windjammer, as well as listen to the live band sing reggae and Bob Marley all day long. Despite not leaving the ship, we did get to experience some Jamaican vibes on board Oasis while soaking in the gorgeous scenery, including a double rainbow on sailaway!

We then made our way to the front of the ship to try to catch the sunset.

Day Four Cont:

I couldn't decide which sunset picture to upload, so a threw them all together into a rough animated picture showing the entire sunset. Disclaimer: the angles and location change picture to picture, so it is a little choppy.

I really do enjoy the observation areas hanging over the edge of the ship on deck 14. After snapping another picture looking backwards, we headed back inside.

Where we returned to our stateroom and found a new pet awaiting us!

I can't recall what I had for dinner that night, but I do remember the dessert being amazing. It was a warm chocolate melting cake, and for those who have cruised Carnival and love their chocolate melting cake... it's very similar only it is served on a plate upside down instead of in the souffle dish. Very, very good. It's probably a good thing they only offered it once or I would have had a serious problem. Once we were done with dinner we changed into more comfortable clothes then went off to checkout the headliner show and explore the ship at night.

Day Four Cont:

On the way to the show I may or may not have gotten sidetracked by this totally awesome model of Freedom of the Seas... where I then went on about how it was the biggest ship ever made prior to Oasis, how a lot of Oasis was based on things Freedom pioneered, and how I still need to go on it 'for comparison's sake'.

I really do think the Freedom class ships are beautiful vessels.

Actually, as of right now the plan is to go on Freedom of the Seas next spring!

The headliner show tonight was actually a ventriloquist act. Neither of us were really expecting much, but we figured since we have a reservation and the cruise compass said this guy was the world's best ventriloquist that we would check it out (but sit near the back in case we wanted to slip out haha).

Turns out the show was actually very well done. The ventriloquist was Ronn Lucas, who has performed on TV, for several presidents, and has his own act in Vegas. He was talented, and very funny. It's actually pretty impressive that Royal Caribbean got him on board this week considering his history. The ventriloquism parts were funny, but honestly the standout was his humor. He had a lot of puns and double entendres thrown in, much of which went over the audience's heads and would result in a long silence... then people starting to get it... then the laughter spreading as it started to click for more and more people. Subtle, yet very clever humor that requires a quick wit to understand at times. The highlight of the show was when he asked for a wife to volunteer her husband for the next part of his act. He literally turned one of the passengers into a human ventriloquist doll, including a talking mask/mouth piece he wore on his face as well as a few goofy props to go with it. It was utterly hilarious! The entire place was in stitches, and the guy who was volunteered was a good sport about it. It probably helps that a lot of the jokes were directed at his wife as revenge haha. Definitely glad we ended up going, as Ronn Lucas was both engaging and funny.

Once the show was over, we roamed around the ship a bit more and found our way down to the boardwalk area. It is absolutely stunning at night!

A few more pictures of the boardwalk at night:

We then made a stop at candy beach, where we bought some candy and I purchased an Oasis of the Seas souvenir magnet for my fridge at home. Every time I walk past my fridge I'm reminded about what a wonderful cruise we had. Sigh. I already miss it.

After one more nighttime stroll around the ship, I returned to one of my favorite spots for one last picture before we called it a night.

Sorry for the delay in this, life's been pretty hectic of late. It's still a work in progress, but I'm going to try to find a bit more free time to finish this up as soon as I can. More updates soon!

Update - I finally have the time to sit down and finish this. I apologize for starting it as soon as I did because I underestimated just how time consuming reviews can be. This is the first time in a long time I have an evening to myself so I will be finishing the rest of this review tonight for those of you still wanting to read more.

Day Five:

It was another sea day, which we spent mostly relaxing and enjoying the beautiful weather. At one point we stumbled upon the game room, where several people were playing what looked to be like some serious matches of something. Perhaps poker or euchre... the world may never know. We opted to play something as well - go fish! Turns out I haven't played it since I was a kid and forgot all the basics of it haha. Either way, I lost. Twice. I did however exact my revenge when we played a few games of chess, which I won.

Tonight was a formal night, and also lobster night, which I was very much looking forward to. We both opted for a caesar salad tonight, and split some escargot. This actually became a nightly trend, we would each order our own appetizer to try, then split the escargot between us. Even if you don't like escargot, the garlic butter they bake the snails in is fantastic to dip the dinner rolls in. Highly recommended. We also both ended up ordering the lobster, and one extra strip steak to split between us to make our own surf and turf for the night. Unfortunately, the lobster was dry and slightly overcooked (but still good... just not as good as I know it could be), and the steak which we ordered medium-well was beyond well done. Borderline beef jerky well done. Based on that steak, if you plan to ever order a steak in the main dining room just order it rare because by the time it gets to your table it will have continued cooking and if you're lucky it will be medium or medium well by the time you get it. Thankfully I'm not a steak person anyways, so I didn't really care, but I could see how some would be very disappointed by the steaks in the main dining room. On the other hand, the baked potatoes and all the side veggies were cooked perfectly, and dessert was amazing as usual.

After changing into more casual clothes, we headed over to the aqua theater show.

Sidenote: I do miss the classic atriums with the glass elevators and grand staircases, but Oasis does have some pretty impressive displays nonetheless.

We then made our way to the aqua theater and settled in for the show.

The aqua theater is certainly an impressive sight. Unfortunately, I did not capture any pictures from the show itself. I will say it was very well done and should not be missed. They combine diving, including from the very top of that metal structure above, along with synchronized swimming, acrobatics, and gymnastics. It is visually stunning, although I truly have no idea if there was supposed to be a plot. The show is called Oasis of Dreams, so my ultimate conclusion was that the lead girl must have been in some sort of strange dream land where this was all occurring? Or there was no plot. I don't know. Once again though, definitely check it out for the production value alone. And maybe don't try to make sense of the actual plot, if there even is one haha.

I don't recall much else from this day. I think many hours were killed enjoying the sun so I did not take many pictures. I did however take a couple of pictures of our stateroom for those who are curious about what a boardwalk balcony room looks like.

Day Six:

Cozumel, Mexico. Today we decided to try out Johnny Rockets for breakfast. Unfortunately, we were running a little late (entirely my fault.. I am not a morning person at all, and I'm on vacation!). We ended up arriving at Johnny Rockets at precisely 9:30am... right as it was scheduled to close. Luckily they still allowed in. The menu was somewhat limited, but your food was made to order versus waiting in a buffet line. Service was quick, food was all delivered hot, eggs were done as ordered. One of the better breakfasts throughout the week in my opinion. Worth checking out.

As we were eating, I looked down the boardwalk towards the back of the ship and noticed a Carnival Ship pulling in next to us. Since our first two stops were at private ports, this was the first time all week I saw another cruise ship. I got pretty excited and rushed over to take a picture or two.

Already docked was Carnival Glory.

We came very close to going on Carnival Glory in the beginning, so it was fun to see her in port next to us. I'm sure we would have had a great time had we went on the Glory, but I definitely have no regrets choosing Oasis instead. A ship like Oasis is a destination in itself. For our first 'real' cruising experience (I'm not counting cruises taken when I was a young child), I think we made the right decision paying extra to really be wow'd by the ship itself.

Slowly making her way in to dock next to Glory was the Carnival Conquest.

One thing I did find particularly interesting was just how small these large ships seemed next to us. The largest ship I've ever been on was Sovereign of the Seas if I recall correctly, so a ship like the Conquest seems pretty massive in comparison. These are not small' ships by any means, but it's truly mind blowing how small they seem in the shadow of Oasis.

Here's a video showing just that.

[YOUTUBE]Kxsev7MKF6k[/YOUTUBE]

Granted, you have to factor in distance, but even then Oasis of the Seas seriously towers over her surroundings. She is a sight to behold for sure.

I did not have a camera on me for Cozumel, but we went to Chakanaab Park for the afternoon. All in all I would recommend it to someone looking for a reasonably priced beach/snorkeling/entertainment type of day. They have dolphin swimming and sea lion shows, as well as a mini park like area with some walking trails that go through a lagoon, wild iguanas roaming around the trees, a crocodile pen, as well as some replica Mayan ruins. Personally I recommend the snorkeling. I brought my own snorkel and mask with me, so all you need to do then is check out a life vest from the kiosk. I wasn't a fan of giving a drivers license to them to hold until you return it, but everything was fine. The snorkeling was incredible though. We were out right near the tour group snorkelers looking at the same fish and the same reefs for nothing but the cost of admission. If you know have your own equipment then I personally think this is the way to go. If you want a simple, touristy like beach day in Mexico, Chakanaab is a safe bet at a good price. Aside from one waiter. But I digress.

Returning to the ship, heading to one of the top decks to watch sail-away. I'm always a big fan of sail-aways, so I'm glad Oasis had several good spots for this. The sun deck on deck 14 above the bridge is always my preferred spot, but almost anywhere on the top outdoor deck, and deck 5 aft under the aqua theater are all also great locations for watching a sail-away. They are also good locations to sight see.

One thing that is super noticeable about Cozumel is the water color. I'm not sure if pictures can do it justice, and it was slightly cloudy, but the color of the water is the vibrant, turquoise blue color that is seriously crystal clear. You can look off the side of the ship and see straight down to the bottom.

Day Six Cont:

Once Oasis was back at sea, we stopped by our room to shower and change prior to dinner and Cats.

Maria had clearly been here recently.

After showering and changing, we walked up to the Windjammer to grab a quick bite to eat before Cats. The food can be hit or miss at times (especially with the pasta), but it's worth walking through because they do have different special dishes out each and every meal. Today there was a Mexican taco/nacho/burrito bar setup that was quite good. Another time they had fish and chips, which was very good. I'm sort of a fish and chip snob, so I didn't have any expectations for fish and chips produced in mass quantities for a cruise ship, but it honestly seem like freshly prepared and recently battered fish. I was disappointed that I only saw the fish and chips once all week. Aside from the variety of foods at the Windjammer, the view is amazing. Thinking back, I'm not sure if there's any other areas on board the ship with such great views. The floor to ceiling glass makes for an awesome experience if you can grab one of the good window tables.

It was almost time for Cats, so we rushed through dinner and made our way to the theater, grabbing some popcorn for the show along the way. I had not seen Cats myself prior to this, so I didn't really know what to expect, but my girlfriend had seen it once before on Broadway and was a fan. Our cruise director introduced the show and announced that it was this casts first time performing this show together live on Oasis of the Seas. I can only imagine the nerves they must be feeling.

Aside from maybe one minute during one song where they were a bit out of sync, that cast knocked it out of the park. Truly incredible talents that Royal Caribbean recruits for these shows. I overheard a lady next to us talking to her friend about seeing the show live in the past and how this lived up to it and was right on par. They really do have insanely good production value, and just as importantly, talent in the shows on Oasis of the Seas. Unfortunately, over half the theater left during intermission and did not return. I felt bad for the cast since it was their first show, but the remaining guests gave them a nice long standing ovation at the end. Personally, I'm not sure if Cats is really my thing, or plays in general for that matter, but I would totally go again without hesitation. 10/10 to that cast and crew.

I did not want to try to snap pictures during the play, but here are a couple of pictures that show off the theater and the set. Very well done indeed.

Day Seven:

Our final sea day. I was already starting to feel this bittersweet sense wash over me as a walked around the ship that day. You start seeing areas like Central Park, or the Boardwalk, and you think 'is this the last time I'll ever see this? Mannnn I don't want to leave!'. But it was our last full day on board Oasis, and we wanted to explore everything she had to offer at least one more time.

We roamed around Central Park before making our way over to Giovanni's Table for lunch. We had not tried a specialty restaurant up to this point, so we figured why not make our last day special and go for a nice lunch? The food was spectacular. Everything from the bread with vinegar and oil, to the salads, to the gnocchi, to the stuffed chicken and veal meatballs was top notch and cooked to perfection. While I can't really complain about the food in the free venues, there is a definite and obvious step up in the food here. It's certainly worth trying just for the experience.

They also had the best tiramisu on the entire ship.

After a long lunch that involved many courses, we went back to roaming around the ship. The promenade is always impressive, with it's glass ceilings looking up into central park and the rising tide bar that has miniature water shows going on underneath it from time to time. It does has a mall like feel to it, but it is very well done and classy. Like an upscale mall perhaps.

Day Seven Cont:

Studio B is also pretty impressive. I mean, it's an ice skating rink on a moving cruise ship! The show was well done, just like every other show on Oasis of the Seas, and I highly recommend checking it out. Many of the figure skaters were former national champions and competed in many big events. The skill level of the skaters was evident from the start. The show is called Frozen in Time, and tells various classic fairy tales such as The Ugly Duckling and The Little Mermaid. Fun for all ages! And also once again truly incredible production value and talent. I don't know the names of any of the moves, but my girlfriend figure skated in the past and was impressed, and I definitely saw some back flips in there. Don't miss this if you're on Oasis!

After the show we made our way back to the 'secret area' on deck 5 aft. It's so peaceful (despite the sound of engines and water below haha). We spent several hours back here throughout the week, and it's probably the best spot to get away and experience private moments on a ship with over 5000 passengers. It's nice to be able to connect to the sea in a way, and watch the wake pass by with nothing but open ocean on the horizon.

I sure do miss that spot already.

Day Seven Cont:

We later made our way down to the main dining room for our last meal aboard Oasis. I believe I had the seafood and mash, which was very good. Service was excellent as always. It was sad to see our waiter Edsil for the last time, so we made sure to thank him for an incredible experience and leave a nice extra tip on top of the prepaid gratuities. I can't imagine how hard they must work, and there were two older ladies nearby who were exceptionally rude to them throughout the week. I'll never understand why people feel the need to treat the people serving them like that and it honestly made me pretty upset. I'm sure the waitstaff are used to the occasional bad guest, but nonetheless I still found it unacceptable. Definitely made sure to give our staff 10/10 across the board. They earned it and then some.

Once our rather bittersweet dinner came to an end, we said our goodbyes we headed back to our rooms to finish packing before heading back out to roam around the ship in an attempt to take as much of it in as we could prior to leaving. Oasis has some impressive lighting at night that I've tried to capture in a few photographs.

The ship was eerily quiet that night, probably from everyone doing their last minute packing.

I really wish the Viking Crown Lounge was still around... it was my favorite place on Sovereign. Now it is a restaurant for suite guests only.

We also saw another cruise ship off in the distance sailing parallel to us. The funnel could be made out clearly, so I think it may have been the Conquest sailing back to Fort Lauderdale with us. It's always cool to see other ships on the ocean.

Our vacation was so close to ending that all I could think about was how badly I wanted to stowaway somewhere on board to extend my trip another week. Our waiter Edsil recommended the lifeboats. Thankfully I ended up convincing myself that this wasn't plausible, and instead ordered some room service and sat out on the balcony until well into the AM hours. Florida was already visible on the horizon shortly after midnight, and tomorrow would be our long trip home. Eventually I fell asleep and enjoyed a final nights rest aboard one of the most remarkable ships ever made.

Thank you for a great review and pictures!!

Day Eight:

Disembarkation day. I had trouble waking up after staying up so late the night before, but we did make it up to breakfast with plenty of time to spare. The ship seemed quieter than usual, and even the music was slower and sadder sounding than the usual upbeat music playing in the Windjammer. Probably pure coincidence, but it made the fact that we'd be getting off Oasis soon hit that much harder. We looked longingly at the mini-golf course and remembered we kept wanting to do that but never found the time. There is simply too much to do in one week to fully experience all Oasis has to offer. But that's why there's always a next time!

I did not want to wait in a large public room for an hour, so we walked around outside for a bit instead. Carnival Conquest was docked next to us.

It may not come through in this picture, but once again the size of Oasis is seriously awe inspiring. It seemed like the bow of the ship, the halfway point of Oasis's height, was almost even with the top decks of the Conquest.

Ocean as far as the eye could see was now replaced by cars and trucks on city roads.

Not long after our number for disembarking was called and we made our way off the ship and down towards US Customs.

Goodbye Oasis. :-(

Another size comparison.

Day Eight Cont:

According to the time-stamps on the photographs, it took us about an hour and a half to make it through customs and depart on our bus. Considering the amount of people on board that doesn't seem so bad, but the line seriously felt like it took at least three hours to get through. It looked like they were renovating the customs area, so perhaps in the future it will move faster. Disembarking was one of the few complaints of the week, and just about the only time I encountered a long line too.

Pulling away.

One last look at Oasis of the Seas before she disappeared from sight.

It was definitely a somber experience for me to head back home after such a marvelous vacation. Unfortunately our flight didn't depart until very late at night too, so much of the day consisted of reminiscing about Oasis and how much we already miss her. Undoubtedly my favorite vacation to date, which the several hours in the airport pricing and planning the next cruise attests to.

If I was not a cruiser in the past, than I am one now. Royal Caribbean set's the standard pretty high, and there are certain things that I am not sure I can live without on future cruise vacations. For example, it would be hard to handle a step down in the entertainment quality, because that aspect alone could easily add-up to several hundred dollars ashore. An ice skating show, an acrobatic show, a synchronized swimming and diving show, and a Broadway show. Believe it or not, the freestyle coke machines are also a huge factor for us in planning future cruises. You get accustomed to being able to serve yourself with what you want whenever you want and carry your drink with you wherever you go. Things like these begin to add up.

While I am certainly not opposed to other cruise lines and other ships, I think if the price is within a reasonable range I would have to pay the extra to cruise with Royal again. On the other hand, if other cruise lines can offer comparable vacations to similar islands for less money then I would not blindly stay loyal to royal either. In fact, I really would like to cruise on the best and newest ships other cruise lines have to offer for comparison's sake!

Our next cruise is already being planned, and as of now it's between Allure and Freedom. I'm also intrigued by the NCL Escape and Carnival Vista. Decisions, decisions. One thing is fore sure, cruising sure beats working!

Thank you all for reading, and I hope you enjoyed. Sorry once again for the long delays between sections, if I ever attempt to do this again in the future I think I would approach it a different way, but live and learn. I had not intended on creating a review after our cruise, but our experience on Oasis was so wonderful I that I just had to give it a shot. Thanks again, and happy sailing!