TeamTrom

Dad and Kristie both ordered the aged striploin. Both spoke highly of it

For Desert dad and I each had the Peach Blueberry Cobbler, which was tasty but not as moist as I had envisioned.

Wifey got the Strawberry Cheesecake, and she said that it was fine.

Kristie ordered the Crème Brulee and she also said it was okay

i was about to, but i only saw two of you ( i lurked this thread from the start, i thought u were in a group or with kids or somethin') .. and oh yeah, not a huge fan of that green slide[emoji51]

We went on the cruise with my dad and his gf... but they were not up for this adventure so just the two of us made it. and OMG that green slide... funny story that will have wait til later lol:D

Right after Muster Drill was our CC planned sail away party at the Sky Bar. We made our way up there to find out that the deck was closed down due to our bad weather. Additionally while we are on weather cancelling plans our reserved Oasis of Dreams show was cancelled night 1 as well, but we made it on a different night so no big deal. We had a backup location of the Schooner Bar if weather came up like it did so we headed that way to meet our sail away comrades. We arrived, ordered a drink and looked for fellow members to no avail. We stayed for around 15 minutes then decided to head up to pool deck and see if we run across anyone else. We did run across 4 of our CC goers. They were Nicole, Gina, Karen and Shelly. We went to Solarium for a view of us leaving the port and it was busy so difficult to come up with a better photo than this.

We stayed in here a while, enjoying beverages of our choice until time for dinner. We arrived to dinner and met our staff. Our assistant waiter is Adonis, our waiter is Darvin and our bartender is Karl. Dad and I ordered French Onion Soup which is a soup of choice for me and it was good, not great but good. Stacey Ordered The Escargots a la Bourguignonne. Also different than we last remembered. The sauce was as delicious as ever but the Escargots was not as good. Each couple also ordered the Calamari and the crispy pieces were pretty good, while the soggy ones were not.

Stacey didn't find anything that called to her so she ordered the classic Spaghetti which surprisingly was very good

And I ordered the Spicy Grilled Pork Chop. It was dry and lacked flavor, but the sauce it sat in was tasty.

First impressions of the balcony are that this is much bigger than we are used to, not considerably different because of cabin space but the layout with addition to the balcony really creates an improved use of space and atmosphere. The bathroom is not much different than we are used to but that is okay. And lets be honest but how can you not love this absolutely romantic view we have here lol

I swear that today I tried one of every kind of food imaginable, one of which being one of the bratwursts from the doghouse on the boardwalk, I tossed some grilled peppers and onions on it and I was pleasantly surprised. I really wished I would've remembered to come back at some point in the week because I was pretty excited for this place and my first experience was really good. After this and sometime before dinner we also stopped by and got a slice of Pizza from Sorrentos. We have had a lot of mixed reviews about the pizza on board but we picked out what looked like a fresh slice of pizza and we enjoyed it enough to go back for more later on the trip.

This was probably about the time we were swindled into getting the Dining Package :p I say swindled because we weren't planning on getting it, but realistically there were multiple hundreds of times that I would convince myself pre trip to book this deal and then not to... to do it, then not to do it lol Honestly I am glad that we waited until we were on board so we knew for sure the times we wanted we received before paying for it. This is the schedule that we settled with

Night 1: MDR

Night 2: Giovanni's

Night 3: Izumi

Night 4: MDR

Night 5: MDR

Night 6: 150 Central Park

Different than we expected that is for sure. We selected Izumi, but instead of Chops we booked Giovanni's and 150 Central Park. We didn't fall in love with the Chops Menu, not enough options so we went elsewhere. Now is also a great time to mention the Formal Nights. We were expecting, based on many CC suggestions that they would be nights 2 and 5 or 2 and 6 if not the first. Well everyone was incorrect lol because they went with nights 2 and 4 which I thought was a terrible choice. Night 4 was Costa Maya and our latest port day leaving at 7pm. We had 6pm dining and an excursion that was not to end until 530 so this was clearly not going to work for us but I will wait til later to get into this.

This brought us to Muster Drill and what we all look forward to... lol our muster location is Studio B. Not sure how I feel about fleeing to the inner depths of the ship in the case of emergency but in Royal I trust, plus it is nicer in here than on one of those decks, crammed like sardines.

This is my first experience inside and honestly the video was a refreshing change.

And then here is the best part of it all, that wash your hands video that has become so famous for the wrong reasons. It wasn't as long or as terrible as I had expected though lol

I think I recognize you from the shuttle line bound to Lost Kingdom Adventure Park Costa Maya, am I right?

You are absolutely correct, we did go to Lost Mayan Adventure Park in Costa Maya and we had a great time, more about this later. Should have said Hi!!!:)

We continued our flash tour to the pool deck so we could get a view of Fort Lauderdale and hope to gauge the layout of the ship a little better. Took a few quick pics of the skyline along with some precious cargo nearby that Gambee would appreciate very much =)

This picture isn't completely telling of the weather for the remainder of the cruise but we had similar weather for a decent amount of time. Now lets not make it seem as though it negated from our cruise because we fully enjoyed it, just didn't get as much sun as we have had in the past by a long shot.

Anyone who knows Gambee or has read his cruise reviews will understand these

Shortly after this it was 1pm and most of you know what that means. CABINS ARE READY. Now most of the time this is not a particularly important or anticipated moment for us but there is something different this time and this picture tells it all!!!

I'm enjoying your TR. Hope you have a fantastic vacation! :)

Love your review and thanks for reminding me of how lucky I am that I don't have to wait a year and nine months to see the beach!

 

Looking forward to the rest!

Thank you to both of you and each and everyone one of you who also wished me a great vacation. I in fact did have such a good time I could never find time to post on here, but never fear, I will catch up soon.

I asked this somewhere else too but am covering all bases. I am trying to find out if they play Monday Night Football on the Oasis on the screens at the Aquatheatre. If anyone knows or is going soon please let me know.

Thanks

We leave on Sunday and our team has Monday night that week. So, there is some hope! One Thanksgiving we were on the Oasis and loved sitting outside watching football:) Thanks so much!

I had full intention on watching SNF in Aqua Theatre being a huge Cowboys Fan but I never made it out of the On Air Club/sports bar when not in use for karaoke. I can say that the Aqua Screens were malfunctioning the one time we watched them, big sections of the screen blacked out as if pixels were out.

Hello Team Tron and Wifey-

We are also following you on the Oasis next week. I love that you are as excited as we are (and I wish I had that great spreadsheet-must work on that). By now you are aboard and hopefully loving every minute. I hope you have wifi so you can keep us updated before we leave. ENJOY!

Enjoy the day, I will be following your travels and waiting for your return. Next departure will be mine:):)

 

Carol

By now you are both on the ship and I am sure your having a fantastic time. I did have Wifi and while I would have liked to spent time on this during the trip I never found a moment where I rather would have done it then enjoy my vacation. Have a great week

We are starving and thanks to the suggestion from some fellow Cruise Critic friends we head straight to Park Café and boy was that a good suggestion!! It's a small place but after a short line we had a delicious roast beef sandwich and even found an open table! (hint: we would not have been able to say the same about the Windjammer)

Don't keep track how often(or not often) you receive a photo pre-eaten in some capacity lol I am pretty forgetful.

Funny story: we sit next to a group of friendly strangers who turned out to be on Cruise Critic who recognized us from our pictures in my review! The lady leans over "Are you the guy doing the Cruise Critic review?"

Why yes, yes I am. lol This was interestingly the only time this happened on the cruise, which quickly humbled me from feeling like a celebrity, to being back on earth. If you are said people please call yourself out, I failed to get your username nor do I remember your name. Sorry

Took this photo of the Promenade from our table, pretty cool how incorporated this ship is from area to area.

We then explore the ship a bit, skipping the Windjammer because, SURPRISE! It's beyond packed, there's a line past the elevators and the stairs one floor down. Impressive. Me and dad get some more drinks because we can, my wife nurses her first one which is okay by me because like Kristie she did not get the package. only dad and I are the alcoholics lol :p. Now is a great time to mention Ramesh. We met him very early this day at the Schooner Bar. He bartends there every night and he was our favorite of the entire week. It just so happens this bar was the closest one to our Cabin which really made it that much better. He was very personable and we enjoyed each and every conversation we had with him. He took great care of us, remembering our names from the first interaction. Go and pay him a visit.

We step right onto the promenade which is super crowded and bustling. Also it is worth mentioning that this area of the ship is in fact as amazing as everyone gives it credit for, take a look!

Below is the always famous Graffiti shot in the RP. It seems every review ever has a photo of this somewhere in it so I decided I must as well. A interesting note that I had not yet heard was that the name that was "written" in graffiti is "Genesis" which was apparently the original name or the project name prior to officially being name The Oasis. Pretty neat

I am disappointed with myself, for the next photo because I constantly make fun of everyone for having a photo of Starbucks from onboard in their review, and I made it a priority to not do this, but as I loaded this picture I noticed that I failed in this area so I figured what the heck, cant beat em then join em

After one quick walk through (and a stop at the bar to break into my first ever ultimate drink package!) we decided to avoid this area until after we set sail.

Day 1: Embarkation Day is Finally Here!!!

Bright(not so bright actually when we left) and early, we depart from my grandma's house, said goodbye to our son, and after a stop at our first 4-star meal of the trip, McDonald’s for breakfast (sorry no pictures!), we head towards the port. A little over 3 hours later we get our first glimpse of the ship we've been dreaming about for 584 days.

Dad and I drop off the ladies with our piles of luggage at the port and they wait for us to turn in the rental car and catch a ride from Dollar Rent A Car’s free shuttle service to meet them. Check in is super easy and quick. No lines(couldn't even use my almost meaningless Gold Priority Check in), no fuss. Wifey's passport expires this upcoming year and is still in her maiden name so we usually show them our marriage certificate in addition to it but they never ask for it this time so it sits unused in our documents folder. The woman hands her a sea pass card with her maiden name. Apparently, we aren't married during this trip, so plenty of Singles meet and greets for us ;) (we never had any problems regarding the name change, we just made sure to bring her passport instead of ID when getting off the ship). For those of you who don’t have a passport like myself, know that you don’t NEED one for your standard roundtrip cruise out of America. I have always used my Birth Certificate with absolutely no problems, but I must admit my first cruise had me very anxious wondering if I would be accepted or not. Worry not though because it is completely acceptable, just know that if you don’t make it back to ship at a port out of the country you will have a much more difficult time getting home, let alone back on the cruise. If you want to make a memory you will never forget then I bet you could make one by doing exactly that. If you do make an attempt at this PLEASE tell me about it, I could use a good laugh!!!

There's a short line to board the ship once checked in but it takes a total of twenty or so minutes from walking in for check in to finally get onboard the Oasis of The Seas!!

Well not really a boat, its a ship, and a gigantic ship at that but oh well lol

T Minus 1 Day: Dad & Kristie Fly to Orlando/Packing Day Part II

We spent most of the day relaxing, not doing much, being lazy, kicking back or however you want to desciribe it. We are trying to build up some energy for the next 6 days. Have I mentioned that we are SO SUPER EXCITED. This is so crazy how far we have gone from when we booked this thing, it feels like yesterday. Dad and Kristie picked up our rental car at the airport today so we can travel down to Fort Lauderdale tomorrow morning. It almost took an hour of waiting in line to finally get it, Dollar Rent a Car is not my number one choice moving forward. With their flight arriving at 12:40 and our intentions to board by noon tomorrow we only had to book the rental for one day. We booked a standard SUV through Dollar Rent A Car with unlimited miles and our total came to $84.61. On a side note, for customer service purposes, I had to call 3 different numbers (Expedia, Dollar Rent A Car Customer Service and finally the Dollar Rent A Car location we will be picking up the rental from) to get my father’s name listed on the booking so that he could pick up the car that I rented in my name. Slightly frustrating but I suppose I am the one to blame for using a 3rd party to reserve and didn’t think ahead by booking it in his name in the first place.

The only event worth mentioning for today is dinner... With my month in the coming weeks and Grandma knowing that my favorite meal all year is Thanksgiving Dinner she planned on that for tonight with everyone together!!! It was delicious just ask Wifey...

Caught her off guard and she just might kill me for it ;)

Hopefully it is an early night because it is an early morning but ITS EMBARKATION DAY!!! So it is worth it. Cant wait to be on board and run into most of you there. Everyone get a great nights sleep and safe travels to anyone still getting to the ship

We tried out a place called Jimbo's Pit Bar B-Q. Pretty tasty if I do say so myself. If you like BBQ and are in the Lakeland/Auburndale area give this place a shot.

We ordered their ribs, chicken and about every side that they offer and came our pleasantly surprised with all of the meat. The sides are not anything special but their BBQ is pretty good in my book. I love a good homemade BBQ sauce. Give me something I haven't had before and you make me a happy camper. Just a sample of what we got.

Took the fam out for a nightly ride on their golf cart around the neighborhood and it was a perfect ending to a relaxing day. This weather is GREAT!!! Dad comes in tomorrow, looking forward to seeing him and Krisite.

Caleb is a cutie! :)

 

Palm trees.......my favorite kind of trees!

Its my sign that im close to parsdise!

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T Minus 2 Days: Pre-Cruise Vacay - Beach Day

It was an early morning, and a quick check of the weather said it was 20 degrees warmer here than home and that made me :) Went for a quick run at 7am to get the day started in the right direction... I fully anticipate putting back on 10lbs of my 30lbs that I have lost over the past 90 days because of food overload so every bit of exercise I can get will help me lol What a beautiful morning it was, wish I had the wherewithal to take a picture.

After breakfast we got gathered up and headed due west to find some sand! Finally after a year and 9 months we have found what Caleb was meant to do all along.... be our DD

We ended up at more of a local-ish type of beach. It was anything but a touristy location but we will get plenty of that in the coming week. It was warm (82 degrees) but not hot so getting into the water had little to no chance. Here are some shots of Picnic Island Beach in Tampa Bay!!!

Palm trees and sun!!! Yay!!! They have a little playground that Caleb enjoyed!

And then we snapped a photo of Grandma, Grandpa and Uncle Teddy(Notice the tiny black Shih Tzu puppy in between the two. Keeping under the shade, you can tell they are from Florida

We are back at home, ready and waiting for Dad and Kristie to make it to town tomorrow. I think we are going to try a local BBQ place in town, if we do I will let you know how it is!!! BBQ is my Faaaavoritee!!

I have a spreadsheet of daily outfits for DS and I so I'll know what I still need to shop for before we go.

 

SO yeah, another spreadsheet user here! :D

Tack another one on for me!!!

Thanks - I received the spreadsheet! You're son is an absolute cutie!!!!!

[emoji7] [emoji7]

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Sean you son is just way too adorable!!!! Can't wait to see this cutie in his costume. Enjoy these years they fly bye. Can't believe my baby is 25!

He actually wont be with us, getting some much needed bonding time with my Grandparents! [emoji16] this is a Wifey and me trip. Plus my dad and his gf!!!

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What a cute young man you have there!!! Enjoy... ours are all grown and moved away, and now we're suffering (but not too badly) from empty nest syndrome (but a year and a half old granddaughter is helping with that!).

 

Wish we could get down early, but work calls unfortunately.

I work a half day tomorrow, then head home to wash clothes and pack.

I've got it down to a science now and only takes about 45 minutes, tops!

We got it down to science to, a 3 week long science experiment where it takes many trial and errors, hypotheses and when we finally put it all together it looks like a hot mess!!! [emoji13]

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Hey.....we will be on your cruise as well. I have not been keeping up with the roll call because we just moved into a new house 3 weeks ago. Life has been crazy!!!!

 

You can add me to the color-coded spreadsheet group!

 

We have tried several lines and have things we like and dislike about each one. We sailed on the Allure several years ago....

 

Here is my review

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1812722

 

Maybe we will see you on the cruise!

Now that I had time to look back on your Allure cruise I quickly realized that I HAVE read it already, although it was great to be able to relive through some of your memories again. You really did take some amazing photos of your trip and the ship. I am truly jealous of all those cupcakes you had to eat :p specifically the Vanilla Bean ones. Thanks for sending the link to me again, helped me get re-amped for the trip, as if I needed more energy for it lol

I hope if your Hubs is coming along too that he enjoys the size of this ship more than the last one. Have a great vacation and I am sure we will cross paths at some point!

Can I get a copy also pleas, my email is retnavy1996@hotmail.com. We will see you onboard. We are trying to deside now if we drive down frim Orlando on Friday or Saturday morning. What part are you leaving from?

I believe the 3 of you that asked for my Cruise Template should receive it this morning. Let me know if you didn't get it!!!

I agree with that, I get to skip first formal night being a EAGLES fan :D

Ewwww!! An Eagles fan ;)

Can I get a copy also pleas, my email is retnavy1996@hotmail.com. We will see you onboard. We are trying to deside now if we drive down frim Orlando on Friday or Saturday morning. What part are you leaving from?

We are driving down bright and early on Saturday morning. We are leaving from the town my Grandparents live in Auburndale, FL. Not sure the route we are taking, just what my phones GPS says. I'm going to put my trust in technology!

Sean, Caleb is adorable!

Have a great time!! Your son is adorable. We will be on the Oasis May 28th. We can't wait!

Thanks, that means a lot, he is our world!!!

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I'm following along and enjoying your trip report so far.

 

We are on the sailing right after yours, the Nov 5 sailing from Port Canaveral.

 

Have a great vacation.

I cant make any promises as to what kind of shape I will leave Lady O in for you ;) but I hope you have a blast, should be a great week for you!!!

The decision with Caleb being in our lap could've gone far worse than it did. It wasn't perfect by any means but I don't know if having an additional seat would've been an improvement or not. This was us at take off from CAK before he started kicking and squirming lol

We stopped at TGIF at the airport and while I have normally had great service in Atlanta this was not one of those experiences. Food was good but it took far too long. While we were passing through the concourses we came across this section that was a pretty cool sight to see

Guest appearance from Wifey in the last one. And here we show how you gotta put the young buck to work, he didn't quite have it mastered yet.

Did I mention when I got off the plane it was near the 80's, what a difference from home, ill take it :D

I am now currently sitting on my grandparents enclosed porch, beer in hand, cool breeze hitting my face and I'm watching the Tribe play in game 2 of the World Series. This is the life...:)

P.S. Was just having a conversation and my Grandma asked Wifey about the type of pants she was wearing. She asked "are those the yogurt pants that everyone is talking about?" and I just laughed and after a moment I asked "did you mean yoga pants?" and she says oh yeah lol just a funny moment to top off the night...