Oasis for the first time, any must dos?

[Trekker954]

Just booked our first Oasis cruise and could not be more excited! We reserved a boardwalk balcony room in the very back of the ship. I am worried that I should have went with the ocean balcony. Any thoughts? Also any suggestions on excursions? Nassau, St Thomas and St Maarten???

 

Boardwalk Balcony near the back if MY FAVORITE on that ship. You can see the wake, you can watch the aqua show from your balcony (but do go at least once and watch it from the seats), you can watch them zip line past your room, if on the right side, you can watch the fathers and sons playing basketball. The door is airtight so you won't be bothered by the noise.

[Jodi3284]

The shows and night of certain events (Quest, Love and Marriage game, formal nights) change very little from itinerary to itinerary, but things can change if there is a holiday, or major school vacation during the itinerary. I always find it best to try to look at a Cruise Compass (with out a holiday) closest to the time you plan to sail. If those aren't available try one from the same dates the prior year.

Have fun...Oasis is a really fun ship!

 

Thank you! I was able to get times from a gentleman doing a LIVE post this week and was all excited. Then after reading your post I realize that this week is Valentines week so now I dont know if that holiday rates a schedule change LOL Thank you for the information, very ready to go schedule or not!

[Jodi3284]

Boardwalk Balcony near the back if MY FAVORITE on that ship. You can see the wake, you can watch the aqua show from your balcony (but do go at least once and watch it from the seats), you can watch them zip line past your room, if on the right side, you can watch the fathers and sons playing basketball. The door is airtight so you won't be bothered by the noise.

 

Thank you for your thoughts! I am more and more convinced that we will love this cabin and am so excited to explore this ship! We reserved a balcony on deck 11 in the very back of the ship :)

[MisterMom]

Definitely the Park Cafe, the roast beef sandwiches are so delicious, and the salads are great!

 

In regards to the cabin location, i think I am in the minority, but I did not care for the boardwalk balcony cabin. We had the next to last cabin on deck 9. I missed the total oceanview. Also, it was not private, all the people from all the other cabins across the way can see right into your cabin. I really missed sitting out and listening to JUST the ocean, and watching JUST the ocean go by. Now that I have experienced it, I would not take a boardwalk cabin again. We had an oceanview balcony on Oasis for a week, then went over to Allure the next week, and had the boardwalk balcony. I kept wishing I had my oceanview back again while on Allure. Again, this was just my experience. And I love to people watch. But, missed the privacy of the oceanview balcony cabin.

 

I echo this. While having the Boardwalk Balcony was a unique experience, I've booked an Oceanview Balcony for my next summer Oasis cruise.

[MisterMom]

My best piece of advice is: DON’T FEEL LIKE YOU HAVE TO DO IT ALL! We tried doing it all and were more tired after the cruise than before. (To truly do it all on an Oasis-class ship, one should book a two week back-to-back.) If you booked because of the ship rather than the destinations, spend port days onboard and explore. The artwork is amazing. Central Park and Art tours were very informative. We procured a list of all the view finders and mini-wonders pedestals and found them all. We purchased the “Live the Oasis” scavenger hunt/tour guide book from the Rising Tide Bar but wore ourselves out trying to find everything mentioned in the book! Just soak in her majesty and focus on what’s important – spending time with loved one(s) on a wonderful ship with many magical features.

[OCruisers]

Boardwalk Balcony near the back if MY FAVORITE on that ship. You can see the wake, you can watch the aqua show from your balcony (but do go at least once and watch it from the seats), you can watch them zip line past your room, if on the right side, you can watch the fathers and sons playing basketball. The door is airtight so you won't be bothered by the noise.

 

DITTO! A great location!

 

$peciality Restaurants:

 

Totally loved Giovanni's! Had dinner there 3 of our 7 nights. Also, lunch twice.

 

Two nights at Chops (good as always) and one night at 150 Park Ave. 150 Park Ave. was very relaxing and we'd go back there again for sure. :)

 

~~~~~

[NeuroQueen]

I think one of the best places on Oasis is the sundeck that is reserved (during the day) for suite guests. At 7PM it becomes the cigar bar. It is located above the Solaruim. There are only stairs and a sign that says gold cards only, but it is open to all from 7PM on. There is a very nice bar up there that was totally not crowded. It was open until 1AM. It it a huge deck so the cigars were not bothersome if that is a concern. So beautiful at night with very comfy furniture. Have a great cruise!

[Jodi3284]

I think one of the best places on Oasis is the sundeck that is reserved (during the day) for suite guests. At 7PM it becomes the cigar bar. It is located above the Solaruim. There are only stairs and a sign that says gold cards only, but it is open to all from 7PM on. There is a very nice bar up there that was totally not crowded. It was open until 1AM. It it a huge deck so the cigars were not bothersome if that is a concern. So beautiful at night with very comfy furniture. Have a great cruise!

 

I am adding this information to my many notes right now!! Thank you it does sound beautiful. There are so many nooks and crannies it seems and it is so nice to have a place to share them! Thank you!

[Jodi3284]

DITTO! A great location!

 

$peciality Restaurants:

 

Totally loved Giovanni's! Had dinner there 3 of our 7 nights. Also, lunch twice.

 

Two nights at Chops (good as always) and one night at 150 Park Ave. 150 Park Ave. was very relaxing and we'd go back there again for sure. :)

 

~~~~~

 

I have just reserved Giovannis on on our anniversary and Chops on Valentines day :) Curious though, I was kind of under the impression that 150 Park was more focussed on matching wine parings with their meals. So I thought it was a must to like wine to enjoy here, your thought? If only they did that with mixed drinks I would be IN! LOL

[Jodi3284]

My best piece of advice is: DON’T FEEL LIKE YOU HAVE TO DO IT ALL! We tried doing it all and were more tired after the cruise than before. (To truly do it all on an Oasis-class ship, one should book a two week back-to-back.) If you booked because of the ship rather than the destinations, spend port days onboard and explore. The artwork is amazing. Central Park and Art tours were very informative. We procured a list of all the view finders and mini-wonders pedestals and found them all. We purchased the “Live the Oasis” scavenger hunt/tour guide book from the Rising Tide Bar but wore ourselves out trying to find everything mentioned in the book! Just soak in her majesty and focus on what’s important – spending time with loved one(s) on a wonderful ship with many magical features.

 

My hubby never sits still so you have just given me great ideas on how to keep him occupied while I sneak a nap in the sun (other than the casino of course). I had never heard of the scavenger hunt book at rising tides but will be sure to grab one, already in my list of notes :) Also where did you get a list of the view finders and mini wonders? Do you have a copy you are able to share? Thank you so much for this great information!!

[Jodi3284]

I echo this. While having the Boardwalk Balcony was a unique experience, I've booked an Oceanview Balcony for my next summer Oasis cruise.

 

I have never had a balcony on any of our cruises yet so I wont have anything to compare it to but think it will be a unique experience and a good excuse to convince myself to upgrade to a balcony on the next cruise!! :D

[quantumleap]

My best piece of advice is: DON’T FEEL LIKE YOU HAVE TO DO IT ALL! We tried doing it all and were more tired after the cruise than before. (To truly do it all on an Oasis-class ship, one should book a two week back-to-back.) If you booked because of the ship rather than the destinations, spend port days onboard and explore. The artwork is amazing. Central Park and Art tours were very informative. We procured a list of all the view finders and mini-wonders pedestals and found them all. We purchased the “Live the Oasis” scavenger hunt/tour guide book from the Rising Tide Bar but wore ourselves out trying to find everything mentioned in the book! Just soak in her majesty and focus on what’s important – spending time with loved one(s) on a wonderful ship with many magical features.

 

 

MisterMom...was the list of view finders and mini-wonders something you were able to get on the ship, or did you locate it somewhere online?

 

If on the ship, where specifically did you get it from...or if online, can you share the link?

 

Thanks!

 

:)

[BugsyCruiser]

Just booked our first Oasis cruise and could not be more excited! We reserved a boardwalk balcony room in the very back of the ship. I am worried that I should have went with the ocean balcony. Any thoughts? Also any suggestions on excursions? Nassau, St Thomas and St Maarten???

 

I just got off Oasis on Saturday for the first time ever and loved her! She is a remarkable ship. As others have said don't miss out on Giovanni's Table. The food and service is excellent there. The shows were great and don't miss out on the Love and Marriage show or Quest.... you will be in tears from laughing so hard.

 

On my live review I posted that I felt an absolute must do and something that should not be missed out is the behind the scenes tour where they take you around the ship to the various departments to show you how they make things work on this huge ship. It's well worth the 150 dollar charge in my humble opinion

[OCruisers]

I have just reserved Giovannis on on our anniversary and Chops on Valentines day :) Curious though, I was kind of under the impression that 150 Park was more focussed on matching wine parings with their meals. So I thought it was a must to like wine to enjoy here, your thought? If only they did that with mixed drinks I would be IN! LOL

 

At 150 you can do it with or without the wine parings. The wine paring was an additional cost.

 

We didn't because we are sort of picky about the vines we like ... just ordered our own which was fine with them. I got the impression most people did not do the paring. They certainly didn't "push" it.

 

150 was very quiet, unrushed, and relaxing ... and we very much enjoyed the food.

 

We LOVED Giovanni's!

 

LuLu

~~~~~

[CruisinAg]

All good reccomendations. A couple of things I didn't see here...

 

There are some comfy wooden lounge chairs down on the jogging track at the aft of the ship. You can either exit out on deck 5 and walk around to the back or there are steps at the side of the Aquatheater that will take you right down to this area. Pretty quiet place to sit and read and watch the wake.

 

Also, don't know if jazz is your thing or not but the jazz club is a relaxing way to spend the evening. Unfortunately the same band that played when I was on Oasis in 2010 won't be there but I'm sure there will be a talented group there. On our cruise we wandered in the 2nd night after dinner and that ended up being our place every night after dinner. Some in the group didn't find it until late in the cruise and wish they'd discovered it earlier. I suggest going early in the cruise and if it's not a vibe that's your kinda thing, no problem. We liked it because it was laid back and relaxing as opposed to the hustle and bustle of the bars on the promenade.

 

As someone said the Viking Crown is also a really nice lounge. They really did a great job with this space. Good place to enjoy a drink and watch teh ship pull out of port.

[HMH G]

The aqua theater show! Also, you definitely don't want to miss the zipline. It's not very long but it sure is an experience.

 

Looking back I would skip the comedy show and the headliner show because we ran out of time and never made it to the rising tide bar, the rock walls, or ice skating.

 

Have fun :)

[Denpetter]

For sure do Giovani's table, the roast beef sandwhich at Park Cafe (except not on embarkation day too crowded)

Have a drink at the Rising Tide bar.. also do this early in the week as it gets very crowded later in the week.

If you are a walker/runner use the jogging track it is awesome. Enjoy some time in the aqua theater.. And go see Hairspray!

 

phew... I am sure I forgot something lol

 

Enjoy your trip

 

Thanks rushedmom!

 

We are booked for the first night at the Giovanni's table.

Glad to hear that it's good!

 

:-) Dennis

[Jodi3284]

I just got off Oasis on Saturday for the first time ever and loved her! She is a remarkable ship. As others have said don't miss out on Giovanni's Table. The food and service is excellent there. The shows were great and don't miss out on the Love and Marriage show or Quest.... you will be in tears from laughing so hard.

 

On my live review I posted that I felt an absolute must do and something that should not be missed out is the behind the scenes tour where they take you around the ship to the various departments to show you how they make things work on this huge ship. It's well worth the 150 dollar charge in my humble opinion

 

Chris I loved your review!! You did an amazing job and were very helpful in answering so many question. I am booked for Giovannis for our anniversary dinner and have rearranged my schedule to include Love and Marriage and Quest as I wish to experience the tear streaming laughter that you described.

 

If you all havnt read Chris review it is a MUST READ! Full of great pics and information. I dont know how you guys do these live reviews but I am very thankful for them!

 

I am going to look into the tour and hope I can get hubby on board it sounds amazing. :)

[Jodi3284]

At 150 you can do it with or without the wine parings. The wine paring was an additional cost.

 

We didn't because we are sort of picky about the vines we like ... just ordered our own which was fine with them. I got the impression most people did not do the paring. They certainly didn't "push" it.

 

150 was very quiet, unrushed, and relaxing ... and we very much enjoyed the food.

 

We LOVED Giovanni's!

 

LuLu

~~~~~

 

Thank you LuLu! I was very confused about 150 but this info is most helpful!

[Jodi3284]

All good reccomendations. A couple of things I didn't see here...

 

There are some comfy wooden lounge chairs down on the jogging track at the aft of the ship. You can either exit out on deck 5 and walk around to the back or there are steps at the side of the Aquatheater that will take you right down to this area. Pretty quiet place to sit and read and watch the wake.

 

Also, don't know if jazz is your thing or not but the jazz club is a relaxing way to spend the evening. Unfortunately the same band that played when I was on Oasis in 2010 won't be there but I'm sure there will be a talented group there. On our cruise we wandered in the 2nd night after dinner and that ended up being our place every night after dinner. Some in the group didn't find it until late in the cruise and wish they'd discovered it earlier. I suggest going early in the cruise and if it's not a vibe that's your kinda thing, no problem. We liked it because it was laid back and relaxing as opposed to the hustle and bustle of the bars on the promenade.

 

As someone said the Viking Crown is also a really nice lounge. They really did a great job with this space. Good place to enjoy a drink and watch teh ship pull out of port.

 

Adding deck 5 to my notes for sure! I do like the laid back feeling of jazz music and look forward to spending some time in there. Yours is the first comment I have seen on the club and I had been wondering. Thank you!

[Jodi3284]

The aqua theater show! Also, you definitely don't want to miss the zipline. It's not very long but it sure is an experience.

 

Looking back I would skip the comedy show and the headliner show because we ran out of time and never made it to the rising tide bar, the rock walls, or ice skating.

 

Have fun :)

 

I reserved the Aqua show and look forward to watching it from our balcony at night as well. I signed my waivers for the activities but am not so sure my lack of nerve will allow me to do the zip :eek: Ice skating brings back very bad childhood memories of one very large goose egg on the back of my head and I have never tried that one again lol!