Vs1023

Sounds like a great trip. We were on Allure last year. Still a great ship and the staff was terrific.

I feel like most cruise lines are not going to have that "wow" factor for the included food. They have to cook for a large amount of people. However, maybe you can consider a dining package on a ship such as Royal Caribbean. We did that on a longer cruise on RCCL on a smaller ship so we would not be bored in the Main Dining Room and the specialty restaurants were good. Oasis class is going to have more variety of specialty restaurants though so it is a larger ship.

We're loyal to Royal still as we're almost Diamond. My kids have always loved these ships as there is a ton to do for kids and teens alike.  Is anything leaving out of Texas that you could do?

Freedom was our kids first cruise. You can't go wrong with that class or Oasis class.

We're going on Independence in November. We've been on Freedom before. Only Oasis class and Quantum class give you the option to book shows beforehand. So for smaller ships, including Independence,  you can just show up.

Even if Windjammer is done with lunch, they re-open for dinner, but there is also Sorrentos and Cafe Promenade which will have small sandwiches, sweets (cake/cookies/pastries) and Fish and Ships on the pool deck is now included except the Lobster I think.

We did a repositioning cruise with RCCL on Adventure. It started in Florida and ended in NY. It was a great cruise and 12 days and we hit 5 ports. I'd definitely do another on Royal.

I would do Oasis class on Royal Caribbean. I believe Wonder is the newest. Plenty for teens to do. We've done several if you look in my signature. My kids now teen/tween have done 7.

12 day repositioning cruise. Kids were 14 and 8.

On 6/7/2022 at 3:49 PM, Itchy&Scratchy said:

yeap, I am positive. 😞

Have managed not to get covid for 2.5 years, and this cruise has "gifted" me with it. 

Darn! Ugh... exactly what i'm worried about. Our last cruise was March 2020 before the world shut down and we were on Oasis.

I hope you recover quickly and it's not severe.

I appreciate this summary. We board in a few days and I already know I am going to be like you noticing the people not being cautious. We plan to be cautious and continue masking. We've gone this long without covid. I had mentioned to our party about not using the WJ this time and this sounds like a good call. 

Yeah...often with kids, one stays behind with them at bedtime and one can go out. I'm not a night owl, so will probably just be me on those nights and DH can enjoy the casino.

That's pretty good if your 4 year old was able to make it to 9 or 9:30pm. I've tried to arrange it so that there are no "late" shows but some don't start until 9pm. I'm hoping the excitement will keep them going as I know they won't want to go to bed.

Unfortunately if the weather isn't great the Aqua show will be re-scheduled which happened to us and so the night we were supposed to have it they said yes it's on so we made the MDR rush us through dinner only to arrive at the theater and it was cancelled so we chose a 930 rescheduled show. I think our original time was 730. I agree with not doing too many late night shows too. Fortunately my little guy hates sleep..LOL :)

Solarium Bistro definitely had things I'd enjoy like brown rice, quinoa, etc, but wasn't in the mood to deal with it with the others. Definitely check it out. Try the roast beef sandwich in Park Cafe. That was my favorite and they have soup too! Bagels and stuff in the morning.

I was on the same sailing. What I thought was a nice touch was the umbrella's that RCCL provided near the doors both forward and aft for the walk through Central Park if it was raining.

Thanks for the reply. I'm didn't realize you can use Royal's life jackets at the pool. Are they by the pool? We recently purchased one but it would save us lugging it around. But we'll definitely take it with us on the beach.

Thanks for the tip as well to bring something to put it in incase it's wet when ready to pack the suitcase. We'll definitely bring some extra plastic bags.

I don't think you can take the ones by the pool off the ship, but they were just past the kids area on Oasis more near the "beach pool" where you'd get the towels and they come in various sizes.

The brand they use on board is Texas Rec super soft swim vest.

Not sure if this link will work, but http://texasrec.com/product-categories/water-safety/

More on the RCCL blog too - it won't let me link it! Google search RCCL Oasis of the seas life vest. It looks like the blue one which is a small would fit a 5-7 year old per the manufacturer website.

Thanks for taking the time to post a review. Glad you had a great vacation.

You're welcome and thanks for reading!

Sounds like a great family cruise. I love how family centred Royal us. Saw some of your responses (to my posts) on the family board so it's great to hear feedback from others traveling with kids. Didn't realize the kids club has activities for parents with the kids.

 

My older one is a picky eater too. Where did you find the best lunch places for them? (we'll be on Allure but very similar).

 

Thanks for the feedback. Sounds like a great cruise.

I am glad I could help. I don't have anything to compare it to, but RCCL has been great for us since we all like so many different things that it works.

For lunch we usually got the kids pizza at Sorrento's. We tried the grilled cheese panini in Park Cafe and neither of my kids liked it. I tried it and it was fine so it may depend on your child. it did have 3 cheeses so maybe that's why. You can also order room service for free. We ordered some cookies one day and I got a fruit and cheese plate. There is also a hot dog stand on the boardwalk. My husband will eat hot dogs, but not the kids. Windjammer always has a good selection (burgers, fries, cold cuts and hot dishes too), but wipe out cafe has similar stuff plus pizza. it's aft of the ship near the sports court. Both kids and my husband are picky. In the MDR my daughter usually got mac and cheese and the tomato and cheese sandwich. Both kids loved the rolls with dinner. My son is a little less picky and will eat grilled chicken and the chicken soup and always fries. Ha! You can get lunch in the Solarium Bistro as well (free..dinner is a charge), but I didn't see anything there my kids would eat. Also the MDR does lunch on At sea days, but we never checked it out. Cafe promenade has turkey sandwiches and others (ham, muffelatta sandwich).

Morning

 

I have a few questions on the Royal Replenish Package

 

What does premium Tea & Coffee mean? can you get a cappuccino from starbucks or some where else

 

How many bottles of water can you get at one time?

 

Can you take the bottle water off the boat when in port?

 

It says it includes Fresh Squeezed Orange Juice but does it include other juices eg tomato as I like a spiced tomato juice before dinner or is that cover under a virgin mary

 

does it include the juices from the gym I like my morning smoothee

 

Does it include milkshakes from JR or can you get a mikeshake from the bar

 

thanks

Just off Oasis with the RR.

1 - You cannot use the RR at the stand alone Starbucks on Oasis and Allure however you can get latte's, etc at Cafe Promenade, Park Cafe and in the MDR. I had a cappuccino every night with my dessert. You can use your SB gold card at the stand alone Starbucks.

2 - Technically only 1 and technically you couldn't do a coffee plus the bottle of water however, on Oasis I was able to get my iced latte and a bottle of water at the same time with no issues and occasionally the lady was nice and gave me 2 bottles of water. Your mileage may vary. You can always walk across the promenade to Sorrentos and get another bottle.

3 - We took water off the boat into port with no issues.

4 - As far as I know all fresh squeezed were included. In the vitality spa area you can get carrot, etc. I was able to get a protein shake from the gym area and it was covered. I've heard this isn't always the case.

5 - It would include a milkshake. Some nights in the MDR my daughter would get the oreo cookie milk shake after dinner and it was covered.

Hope that helps.

Does Enchantment not have Cafe Latte-tudes anymore? That would be an option. Not sure what time they open though.

Thanks for the link! I was wondering if I was gonna see any pools sloshing. :)

You're welcome! There was definite sloshing. The kids thought it was fantastic when the pool became a wave pool!

We went to 7 mile beach last year with my 9 and almost 4 year old. Take a cab to the Royal Palms. You can rent a chair and umbrella and the water is beautiful and it's clean.

The best advice is to talk to AO staff during the registration / open house on boarding day. Tell them that you want your kids picked up for MFTD, and just verify where and when they pick up the kids, and it also does not hurt to notify the AO staff each morning if you will be using pickup, so if you are running late, they will wait a bit for you.

Agree with this. Also if they're in the kids club during a certain time frame the staff can bring them to the wind jammer for dinner. My 10 year old did this 2 nights on Oasis. We dropped her off by 5 and she stayed there and went to dinner with everyone. She told me they didn't use the elevators and walked there.

My 4 year old is 42lbs and used the life vests on Oasis that are provided and they worked perfectly. I would definitely recommend bringing one for the beaches or pools in general. The only beach one was provided was RCCL's private island and I had to ask for it. We didn't have a life vest this time for the beach and had my son float on a boogie board (just holding on) with me right there in shallow water to float on the calm waves.

I would just hang it up to dry each day in your bathroom and then if it's still damp wrap in a towel and then put in a plastic bag (giant ziploc if you can get one) and pack it. We packed damp bathing suits like this with no issues.

I would recommend Freedom (class) of the Seas. They have the kids club and nursery areas and a kids area for those not potty trained. No swim diapers are allowed in the pools though, but they have a splash like area that they would be allowed. Oasis is another option though larger. We did FOS last year and Oasis this year.

I've attached a pic of the kids pool/splash area for you.

On Oasis on the first day we visited the kids club to get the kids set up. They gave each child a lanyard with clip to hold the sea pass card and they punched a hole in it so it could be attached. My son is 4 so he didn't use this and neither did my 10 year old as I am not comfortable with her checking herself in and out.

Also before you board you go to a table with kids club employees and they will put an arm band on your child which signifies their muster station so if they're in the kids club away from you during an emergency the staff know where to take them. They're color coded and have printed info on them. Other than that no other ID. We held onto their sea pass cards.

We've only done Royal so I cannot compare. I have a 10 and 4 year old and the 4 year old is not a fan of the club. Adventure ocean does run family activities so we did those plus there is so much to do around the ship. Flow rider, ice skating, rock wall, sports court, zip line, etc. They also show movies some evenings in the Aqua theater. We cannot justify the cost for Disney so we choose RCCL. My daughter happens to love the kids club so she goes pretty often.

The kids pool area on the ship is fun too, but we also enjoyed the adult pools (not the solarium as they have to be over 16).

I have a 10 and 4 year old. The 10 year old has stayed up as late as midnight some nights. On the cruise though my husband and I take turns so we can go enjoy stuff as the 4 year old is not a fan of the kids club still so usually I will get my youngest ready for bed and off to sleep once we drop off the oldest at the kids club and my husband goes to the casino. My youngest went to bed by 9pm most nights of the cruise except for a show one evening where the show time was 9:30pm so he went to bed closer to 11. No naps either. They did fine. We did a cruise last year and had a similar schedule.

We were on Oasis last week and did this. It was our first time using it. We did the Marriott Morning Star Resort in St. Thomas and had a fabulous beach day. Highly recommend it. We didn't have a room to crash in later that day, but it was fine. The facilities themselves were clean and we got chairs and an umbrella and towels to use.

We also used resort for a day in St. Maarten and had a room as well at the Westin Dawn Beach. Also fabulous. I'd definitely do it again and it was great with the kids since we had restrooms and amenities nearby, yet it wasn't crowded at either of these at all.