Oasis (3/31/12) - Great Trip - Brief Review

[Barbluvstocruz]

We just returned home from the Oasis 3/31, Western Sailing. I traveled with my husband and our 5 & 6 year old boys. There are a lot of reviews out there so I'll try to keep it brief. :)

 

We've sailed several times prior on RC and Carnival ships. This was the boys' second cruise. Overall, we had a wonderful, fairly relaxing time.

 

The night before the cruise we stayed at the Embassy Suites on 17th. It was nice. We like having the extra space, especially knowing we were going to be crammed in a cabin the next 7 nights. We picked up a few drinks and snacks at the Publix, which is just a short walk from the hotel. We enjoyed a leisurely breakfast before hand and then took the hotel shuttle to the ship. The shuttle crowd was a little chaotic. The cost was included in our room rate. Otherwise I would have just taken a cab.

 

Embarkation was a breeze! We got there about 11:30 and were on board easily by noon. I got pulled aside to have my backpack searched. I had a few unopened bottles of soda. They checked them and let me go. No problem taking it on. We also had a duffel bag with some water and juice that was inspected, but got to us w/ no problem. We just like the convenience of having things on hand in the room. We did not go to the Windjammer, instead just stopped at the Promenade Cafe, which was empty, and had a few little sandwiches and cookies.

 

Cabin - We stayed in 14196, a hump balcony. Loved the location. A short walk to the forward elevators and the "secret" deck forward on 14. We attempted to hang out up there for sail away, but for some reason we didn't leave until after 6:00 and we headed to dinner. This cabin had the bed by the bathroom/closet. I know most people do not seem fond of this room arrangement, but I thought it worked best for us because we used the sofa bed every night. Once the bed was pulled out there was only about a foot (if that) of space to walk between the sofa bed and desk to get to the balcony. I think I prefer that instead of trying to squeeze through to the bathroom late at night. Every morning we just put the bed back to the couch so we had more room. Never heard noise from the pool deck just above us. Would stay in this location again.

 

Shows - Loved Oasis of Dreams. Watched it once from the theater area and once from the balcony on deck 11. Also loved the Splish Spash show. Hairspray was great, as was Come Fly with me. We didn't make it to the Ice show or comedy show.

 

Adventure Ocean - I had hoped to report back on this, but my boys didn't go. We registered and checked it out on the first day. They seemed excited about it. On day 2 we were going to take them for a couple hours. When we checked in my 6 year old he got completely overwhelmed by the number of children in there and decided he didn't want to go. I was a little disappointed because I think they would have really enjoyed some of the activities and I was hoping for a little alone time with the hubby, but it didn't happen. We encouraged them to try out some things and they didn't want to. We weren't about to force them to do anything they didn't want to do. I'm sure in a few years they'll want nothing to do with us when we cruise. :) We had some great quality family time together!!

 

We were signed up for Family Time Dining which I told some people I'd report back on, but since they didn't participate in AO I have nothing to report.

 

We dined in the MDR 5 of the 7 nights. The other 2 nights we went to the Windjammer. We also enjoyed the Park cafe for a couple breakfasts and lunches. Room service was great for afternoon snacks. I love the cheese plate. It's my favorite cruise snack. The food was all good. The favorite things were: the fruit soups, onion tart, gnocchi, and lobster. The mac and cheese was really good. My 6 year old devoured it nearly every night and on a couple nights had seconds. I didn't like the Thai chicken on the 2nd formal night and ended up having a bowl of it for my dinner. :)

 

The Boardwalk was our favorite place to hang out. Every night we rode the Merry go Round (over and over and over), the boys loved playing in the little bus and pirate ship. That was when hubby and I got some quiet time to talk and enjoy a drink. We enjoyed shuffleboard. Our 6 year old tried out the Rock Wall and loved it. The ice cream shop was good. I'd have to say that with the kiddos the boardwalk was perfect for us!!!

 

Every afternoon we were at the H2O zone...which was packed this trip! We knew there would be a lot of kids (there were 1600) on a spring break cruise. For the most part the overwhelming number of kids was not an issue at all. However, there were many at the pool that appeared to have no supervision and were rather rude and disrespectful. That was my only frustrating time. The boys loved the pool area...as did I.

 

Labadee - We had a fun beach day here. We took the "ferry" from the pier over to Columbus Cove. We got there about 11:00 and initially couldn't find a beach chair. We walked all the way to the end and one of the beach attendants found us a couple chairs for a small tip. After lots of water play and lunch we walked back to the ship.

 

Falmouth - Here we did the Trolley tour of the area. It was interesting to see a bit of the local area. There was one stop for the typical local (pushy) sales. After this we went on the Family Pirate Adventure. It leaves right from the port area. It was a cheesy show, but we had a pretty good time. We enjoyed wandering around the shops. I think they've done a nice job with the port area.

 

Cozumel - We went on the Atlantis Sub ride. It was pretty cool. The sub goes down 120 feet. The kids loved it. Then we did a little shopping and back to the ship for the pool.

 

We really enjoy Ricky Matthews as the CD. Normally we don't really care who the CD is and rarely remember them, but he was very high energy and a lot of fun.

 

The Dreamworks breakfast was cute. The boys loved seeing the characters from Madagascar. I loved the great amount of kid friendly events on the ship!!

 

Not sure what else I can tell you. I'm tired. Surely I'll think of more later. Happy to answers whatever question I can.

 

:D Barb

[masonpips]

Nice review, sounds like a great trip! My DS was 14 on our last cruise (and DD was 12) and you're right, you don't see them much at that age so enjoy it while you can!

[LESLIEKURZ]

Thanks! If you have them would love to see pics. We'll be in 14596 in 34 days.

[shonandsuzie]

Thanks for sharing your trip review! I, for one, can never read too many! Everyone's experience is a little different so it gives us new tips.

:D

 

We plan to stay at Embassy Suites for our Oasis cruise too. Did you get a chance to try the pool area at all?

[Familygoboston]

Thanks for your review!

 

Mine were never big "kids club" kids either:(...the good news is that today as teens they'd rather be engaged in the locations we travel too, rather than seeking out other teens in a dark room with video games at the expense of experiencing the place they are visiting.;) SO there is hope:D

 

Another thread was just discussing whether these cabins under the pool chairs are noisy ...did you notice any chair movement noise while they were cleaning in the early AM or running feet during the day?

[Nickles]

Great review! Looking for to experiencing Lady O next month!

[Barbluvstocruz]

We plan to stay at Embassy Suites for our Oasis cruise too. Did you get a chance to try the pool area at all?

 

Yes, we did. We actually stayed there the night before the cruise and the night after. We used the pool both times. It's a very nice pool area. I pretty much was in the pool with the kids the entire time, but there were many adults relaxing, enjoying bar service, I believe there was also food service. Towels are available at the pool. No need to lug yours from the room (like I did the first time). Enjoy! :)

[Barbluvstocruz]

Another thread was just discussing whether these cabins under the pool chairs are noisy ...did you notice any chair movement noise while they were cleaning in the early AM or running feet during the day?

 

Nope. We never heard anything from above, next door, etc. It was a peaceful cabin and we really enjoyed it.

 

I'll post some pics as soon as I have a chance to wade through them. :)

[LBumb]

great review

[Barbluvstocruz]

Here are a few pics.

 

You can see the cabin arrangement w/ the sofa bed pulled out. We could get by, but it was tight. We stuck the table in between the bed and sofa bed each night.

 

The boys loved all the character appearances around the ship!!!

 

During our sea day between Falmouth and Cozumel the ship stopped because this refugee boat was spotted. We were stopped for a few hours while they figured out what to do. Eventually the refugees were brought on board and then taken off the next day in Mexico. No idea what happened to them from there. It was so sad to see...I can't imagine life being so bad that you risk your life to leave your country. There was also a child on the boat with them. :(

 

As I go through more pics I'll try to find more to share. :)

[LESLIEKURZ]

Thanks!

[Barbluvstocruz]

If you choose to be a dumb a$$ and jump off the pier in Cozumel, security will surround you quickly and escort you to the ship!

[joeski27]

Here are a few pics.

 

You can see the cabin arrangement w/ the sofa bed pulled out. We could get by, but it was tight. We stuck the table in between the bed and sofa bed each night.

 

The boys loved all the character appearances around the ship!!!

 

During our sea day between Falmouth and Cozumel the ship stopped because this refugee boat was spotted. We were stopped for a few hours while they figured out what to do. Eventually the refugees were brought on board and then taken off the next day in Mexico. No idea what happened to them from there. It was so sad to see...I can't imagine life being so bad that you risk your life to leave your country. There was also a child on the boat with them. :(

 

As I go through more pics I'll try to find more to share. :)

 

Cool, I think my wife would really like to meet Puss n Boots, she loves him, lol!

[Beth C]

If you choose to be a dumb a$$ and jump off the pier in Cozumel, security will surround you quickly and escort you to the ship!

 

That's what you get for crossing the red line!! Do people think they take the time to paint that on just for fun???