Oasis Trip Report June 19-26, 2010

[klb1978]

Thanks so much for your wonderful review. I am certainly enjoying the pictures and everything you have to say about this ship! I was wondering if you have a picture of the balcony? My husband and I are sailing on Allure next October and we too have a balcony at the end of the hump (although ours is a D5). I have been very curious to see what the balcony looks like given that it is an odd shape. Thanks again and I look forward to reading the rest of your review!

[Plut0]

I love reliving our cruise through someone else's view.

 

Excellent review, can't wait to read more.

[swwake]

Thanks so much for your wonderful review. I am certainly enjoying the pictures and everything you have to say about this ship! I was wondering if you have a picture of the balcony? My husband and I are sailing on Allure next October and we too have a balcony at the end of the hump (although ours is a D5). I have been very curious to see what the balcony looks like given that it is an odd shape. Thanks again and I look forward to reading the rest of your review!

I don't remember taking any pictures specifically of the balcony, but I will try to find some in my photos when I get home tonight. It was pretty large - 3 people would fit comfortably. All 5 of us could fit out there standing, and along the rail. It was a polygon shaped in a rectangle as I would assume any typical D2-D8 cabin's balcony would be, but with the side closest to the outside of the ship angled from the bow (wider) to the stern (narrower), as the hump decreased back down to non-hump balconies. I am not sure if this is making any sense. I suspect that it's really not much different from a "regular" balcony, which is why this is a category D2 rather than a D1 room.

[will work to cruise]

Thanks for the great review. Keep it coming. We just booked the Oasis for next June while on the Serenade two weeks ago.

[seeship]

Another Austinite. We sail on Sept 25. Thanks for your posts.

[swwake]

Before continuing, let me make a comment about our staterooms. After this cruise, we decided that we definitely LOVE the ocean view balcony room and would choose one again.

 

The Central Park View Balcony was nice, but CP is so quiet that there isn't much to see. Most activity is people walking from one place to another. Don't get me wrong - the view is beautiful, but it just doesn't change much. For our group, since the girls were rarely in their stateroom, we would just go with an inside room for them if we had it to do over.

 

We looked at the Boardwalk View Balcony rooms from the outside. These look like they would be very cool, with a view of the sports deck above, Boardwalk below, Aquatheater and all of its nearly-continuous activity, and the ocean beyond. So there would be lots to see and changing scenery and activity. This one, we might consider for a second cabin, but wouldn't be our primary cabin.

 

My husband and I both prefer the ocean view balcony. The main thing is that you can tell when you're in port. On two port days, my daughter called and asked me if we had arrived yet. From the CP room, she had no way of knowing. We also liked the ocean breeze at night, when we (illegally?) left our sliding door open. We could also hear some of the splash from the wash of the boat moving through the ocean. Just so peaceful and calming. We were never in our room or awake for sunrises and sunsets, but they would have likely been amazing from the balcony.

 

So, there's my 2 cents on the choice of staterooms.

[swwake]

I guess it was before lunch that Kellye and I broke off to go run a couple of errands. When we received our Seapass cards back in the terminal, we noticed that our cards had a different letter/number combination after "Table No:" than the girls' and Kellye's cards. Being the good veteran cruisers that we are, we knew that we needed to head right to the Maitre d' station for any table change requests as soon as possible. We had My Time Dining so we didn't understand the table assignment, but our reservations were supposedly linked, so we just wanted to make sure we weren't separated at dinner. (One of our family's cruise traditions is that, no matter where everyone goes and what they do during the day each day, we spend EVERY dinner together so we can have time together and discuss our days.)

 

So, Kellye and I proceeded immediately to Opus 5 Dining Room. Here's how the conversation went:

Kellye and Susan: We're supposed to have linked reservations, dining at the same table.

Hostess: Right, you have My Time Dining, Miss.

K & S: Yes, but we want to sit at the same table, not different ones.

Hostess (looking at our Sea passes): Right, you will be at the same table.

K & S: But one card says C1 and the other says C3. Those are certainly different tables.

Hostess: No, ma'am, those are your muster stations.

 

We looked at our cards, and, after all, there was no number next to "Table No:" on the cards. Boy did we feel stupid. But we knew what number our muster stations would be!

 

While we were there, we purchased a wine package to share. I think we ordered the Platinum Package of 10 bottles, since it had our favorite wine on the list. By the end of the cruise, we had only drunk 7 bottles, so Kellye, being local, took the other three home.

 

From there, we explored the Boardwalk a little. On the Boardwalk, they had a table set up to purchase Evian water bottle packages and the soft drink package. Kellye bought a water package for herself.

 

I didn't get photos, but there were very cool art statues on the Boardwalk representing the various stages of production of the hand-carved carousel horses. Very neat and I wish I had taken a photo.

 

Here are some photos:

 

 

Next, Kellye and I made our way back to the Park Cafe, where the others had already settled into a table.

It was not crowded at all, and service was swift.

 

After lunch, we went to the girls' room to see if the luggage had arrived. It hadn't, but we checked out the room:

 

and the view of Central Park:

 

We checked the Cruise Compass and determined that the Flow rider was already open, so of course we wanted to go. Chris and I changed to our swimsuits and we headed out to the Sky Bar, where we were to meet several people from our Cruise Critic Roll Call and from our Facebook group. The teen girls went off on their own to explore the ship.

 

We met at the Sky Bar and couldn't find anyone! Eventually, our friends Beth and Wil and their families showed up. They were from the Roll Call, but we had met them twice before in Austin. We were glad to spend some time with them. We took a couple of pictures on the ship, then bee-lined it for the Flow rider.

 

The Flow rider was open until 4:15, when it closed in preparation for the "muster drill". Here we are in line:

 

The lines were very short that day, as I don't think many passengers had found the Flow rider yet, or maybe it just wasn't a priority for them. We met people there that day who would become our friends for the week, as we would see them every single day at the Flow rider.

 

Next up: "Muster drill"? What's that?

[Thisisthegame]

good ol' cliff hanger

 

love everything so far

[ALSEAU]

Susan - Love your pics and review. Thanks for sharing.

[01Sweetpea]

Enjoying your review...keep it coming!

[BrianAlt]

Next up: "Muster drill"? What's that?

 

Yes, I love the mustard drill. Especially since I much prefer it to ketchup.

[AFS1970]

Yes, I love the mustard drill. Especially since I much prefer it to ketchup.

 

I thought you only had to play ketchup if you were late for the mustard drill, if you are on time you can relax and relish the experience.

[BrianAlt]

I thought you only had to play ketchup if you were late for the mustard drill, if you are on time you can relax and relish the experience.

 

Yes, I always try to be early. Thanks.

[jjb415]

I am glad that I saw the link to this trip report on the Maker's Mark thread !! Thanks and keep them coming. Your efforts are appreciated. :)

[swwake]

When we left off, we were in line for the Flow Rider. (I am never sure if that is one or two words, capitalized or not, so I just spell it differently each time. Let's just make that our deal.) Here are a couple of additional pictures along the way:

 

 

Now, a little explanation is necessary for the next couple of photos. A close friend of mine is a marketing director for a large retail golf chain. He sent me a special golf ball to accompany me on my travels. You can see Foo Ball's blog here: http://foogolf.blogspot.com/

The blog hasn't been updated for Foo's Oasis cruise yet, but I will share a couple of his photos.

 

Foo's trip to Oasis Dunes:

 

He was so excited, he couldn't wait to get to the fairways.

 

Back to our story. The Flow Riders closed at 4:15 in preparation for the "Guest Assembly Drill". Now, I must say, this was the first time I remember being on a ship where this was not referred to by any staff as a "muster drill". I wonder if this is because people were constantly looking for the mustard.

 

The girls' station was in Blaze, the nightclub in the Entertainment Neighborhood on Deck 4. Our station was in Studio B, also on Deck 4 (and also the ice skating rink and home of bingo, Quest, and various other events).

 

 

This "boat drill" was different from all the others we have done. First, our muster station was not out on deck, not near the lifeboats or life rafts as on previous cruises. Second, and most important, we did not have to find life vests in our stateroom and parade all over the ship wearing them. We were told that in the case of an actual emergency, someone would be there to hand out vests at our drill station.

 

We watched a video with a bunch of faceless avatars going through the emergency motions, spent about 15 minutes in Studio B, then moved on with our day.

 

After our boat drill, we met upstairs on Deck 15 to purchase the Drink of the Day, the "Nation of Why Not", for sail-away. Drinks in hand, we headed to the super secret area accessible on the port side of Deck 14. Not so super secret anymore.

 

For us, sail-away was not very spectacular. Sorry to say, Port Everglades in not as pretty to leave as Miami is. But all that aside, WE WERE ON VACATION!!!

 

(continued in next post)

[swwake]

After sail-away, we were all hungry, and we wanted to tour the gym, so we decided to check out what Vitality Cafe had to offer. Don King (ok, seriously, this guy was a dead ringer for Don King. Maybe he was Don King, but trying to be in cognito. We asked him if he was Don King with new hair and he replied something like "I've gotten Kanye West before, but never Don King." I think it was Don King. Let's just pretend.) and his wife were the only other patrons at Vitality Cafe. It is a very quiet place with some nice, healthy snack offerings. I think they also have made-to-order smoothies (for an extra price) there too.

 

Being midway through our Drink of the Day, I believe we might have been a tad loud and obnoxious for the Vitality Cafe. Pictures don't lie.

 

 

The nice hostess there was probably happy to see us leave.

 

Next, in our tipsy state, we decided it was time to tour the gym. Yeah, great idea.

 

The spa lobby is beautiful, as I remember it also being on Liberty of the Seas. They gym is super nice. Equipment is state-of-the-art. There is lots of cardio equipment, several weight machines, and a free weights/cable area. Cardio all faces large portholes (a little disappointing compared to Freedom Class's high-deck floor-to-ceiling windows), and they have towels, a water fountain, an enclosed area for stretching and classes, and an open area for the same. There were lots of spin bikes lined up against the wall as well.

 

I think I'll stop here before our group gets in trouble with the RCI police.

 

Next up: More ship exploring and a little up-and-down action

[amethyst365]

Loving it!!!! cant wait for more!!!:)

[stateparent]

We were also down the hall from you--9603 and 9536!

Thanks for writing such a comprehensive review--now I don't have to! :)

By the way, you must have gotten off the ship at the ports...in contrast, at least part of our large group remained on the ship, and it turned out to be a great time for both the Flo-rider and the zipline--no lines whatsoever! (though the hours were limited to 9-11am and 3-6pm)

[dexsas]

C'mon, you're going to leave us with a "little up and down action"....Hurry Back!!! Can't wait to read on.:D

[jjtt]

WOW, what a review!!! :) Can't wait for more (as others have said)!!! :D We will be on her in August and the waiting is now harder since reading your wonderfully thought out review.

[swwake]

We were also down the hall from you--9603 and 9536!

Thanks for writing such a comprehensive review--now I don't have to! :)

By the way, you must have gotten off the ship at the ports...in contrast, at least part of our large group remained on the ship, and it turned out to be a great time for both the Flo-rider and the zipline--no lines whatsoever! (though the hours were limited to 9-11am and 3-6pm)

Y'all had to be right across the hall in 9603! We did get off the ship in ports, and missed the flow rider sessions on the two "St" days. :( But we have a strategy for the next cruise now!

 

C'mon, you're going to leave us with a "little up and down action"....Hurry Back!!! Can't wait to read on.:D

That's how I roll. haha

 

WOW, what a review!!! :) Can't wait for more (as others have said)!!! :D We will be on her in August and the waiting is now harder since reading your wonderfully thought out review.

That is so funny. I am not thinking it out at all. I just type what comes to mind.

 

Thank you all for the compliments!! It's fun to write the review, and will be a nice keepsake.

[gkdk24]

We were in stateroom 9606. As I mentioned, this is on Deck 9, a little forward of mid-ship, just behind the first hump on the Starboard side. It's a D2 stateroom, and has an oversized, angled balcony.

 

 

Our bed was closer to the bathroom, not the balcony. Here is another photo:

 

We will be staying in cabin #12606 which is 3 decks above this cabin. RCI just emailed me today and said that our bed would be near the balcony. I don't think they are correct though. I believe I read another post on cabin #10606 and their bed was by the bathroom as well. I wish I could get some clarification.

[swwake]

After our snack at Vitality Cafe, the teen girls went off on their own, and Chris, Kellye and I set out to explore more of the ship. We walked out of the spa area and caught the Rockin' Rhythm Nation parade getting started. (so it must have been about 5:45pm, according to my Compass.)

 

 

 

This is where the globe outside the Globe & Atlas Pub opens up and a catwalk rolls out.

 

By this point, the Drink of the Day had kicked in and we were officially members of the Nation of Why Not. We hopped on an elevator and, for some reason, thought we needed a picture of our fresh pedicures.

 

We went to Deck 8 to see what trouble we could get into at Central Park. I think this was when we made our reservations for Chops on Tuesday night. (Sorry, things are getting a little fuzzy here. Wonder why?)

 

Outside of Chops, we decided there is no better time than now to break in Rising Tide Bar. Why Not? (ok, that's gonna get old.)

 

For any who don't know, Rising Tide Bar is unique to Royal Caribbean's Oasis Class ships. It's an oval-shaped bar with a few tables, a stand-up bar in the middle, and a working bar on one end, with bartender. The entire bar travels from Deck 5 Royal Promenade to Deck 8 Central Park every 15 minutes.

 

 

[swwake]

We hopped aboard just as a zany character from the Rockin' Rhythm Nation Parade was exiting. We checked out the menu.

and I ordered something that might have been the Italian Tea (because I don't see anything else on the menu that corresponds). Foo Ball decided to share with me.

 

Kellye and Chris went out on a limb and ordered a standard bourbon and Coke and Jack on the rocks with a splash of water.

 

On the way down, Chris had the Flip Cam and was playing with some small children, yelling "help us, we're sinking..."

 

Some photos of the Royal Promenade from Rising Tide Bar. This is the only way you can get this perspective.

 

 

 

[swwake]

We enjoyed Rising Tide so much, we decided to take it back up to Central Park. Off we went through Central Park back to our rooms to get ready for our dinner. We had My Time Dining reservations for 8pm.

 

Next up - My Time Dining and an empty ship (?)