WWYD- Need advice from Royal Experts!

[Cruis'in Mom]

First of all, we have never cruised Royal so we don't know anything about the ships.

 

We have a family cruise booked on the Oasis of the Seas November 2014. We have three Central Park balcony rooms.

 

I was going to book a second cruise in February for just my husband and I. I am deciding between Independence of the Seas and Oasis of the Seas. Here's where I need advice.

 

1) I like the 8 nt. itinerary on Independence better than the 7 nt. oasis.

2) We already did (or will have by this cruise) Sailed Oasis.

3) prices comparisons are as follows:

Oasis:

C2. $2027

JS: $2859

GS: $4307

 

Independence:

E2: $2408

JS: $3398

GS: $5412

 

As you can see Oasis fares are awesome! SO....do we do Oasis a second time because it's so reasonably priced? OR since this will only be our second cruise on Royal would you say to try a different ship and pay the extra?

 

Also, we were thinking on getting a JS or higher to expedite our Crown and Anchor status and we can get a better deal on Oasis suites. So that is another dilemma in our decision.

 

Would love to hear feedback from those who are Royal Regulars.

[Spurschick]

First of all' date=' we have never cruised Royal so we don't know anything about the ships.

 

We have a family cruise booked on the Oasis of the Seas November 2014. We have three Central Park balcony rooms.

 

I was going to book a second cruise in February for just my husband and I. I am deciding between Independence of the Seas and Oasis of the Seas. Here's where I need advice.

 

1) I like the 8 nt. itinerary on Independence better than the 7 nt. oasis.

2) We already did (or will have by this cruise) Sailed Oasis.

3) prices comparisons are as follows:

Oasis:

C2. $2027

JS: $2859

GS: $4307

 

Independence:

E2: $2408

JS: $3398

GS: $5412

 

As you can see Oasis fares are awesome! SO....do we do Oasis a second time because it's so reasonably priced? OR since this will only be our second cruise on Royal would you say to try a different ship and pay the extra?

 

Also, we were thinking on getting a JS or higher to expedite our Crown and Anchor status and we can get a better deal on Oasis suites. So that is another dilemma in our decision.

 

Would love to hear feedback from those who are Royal Regulars.[/quote']

 

When I introduced my DH to cruising we deliberately started picking different ships/itineraries on purpose.

 

Some like what they know and to keep repeating. We like to vary ships so we have different experiences.

 

Larger ships more features, smaller ships more personable and generally better itineraries. Oasis is more about the ship and like you say Indy more about the places.

 

Remember if the price comes down they will honor the decrease if before final payment date. And Indy is one extra night so night by night pretty comparable.

 

I'd go for the longer cruise any day:D

Whichever you chose though you will enjoy!

 

Let us know what you chose

Edited March 27, 2014 by Spurschick
Spelling

[DonnaK]

It's a hard call because you cant go wrong with either option.

 

Is the Oasis itinerary the opposite of the one you are taking in November? Because you might not want to repeat all the same ports.

 

The shows on Oasis will mostly be the same. (Have you looked at Allure? Almost the same ship as Oasis, but the shows are different)

 

I think I would go for the additional money and get an E2 balcony on Indy. It's an additional day, nicer itinerary, and a new-to-you ship! I don't think you need a JS for just two people.

[nolesrule]

If you really are interested in accumulating C&A points (meaning you are planning to go on a bunch of Royal cruises), I'd go with the JS on either one. I've done a GS before, and that price difference is too steep for me to go from JS to GS to get the suite perks.

 

Oasis is less per night, but you didn't mention the itineraries for the one you booked and the one you are looking at. That would be a big factor in deciding which ship for me.

Edited March 27, 2014 by nolesrule

[travelplus]

First of all' date=' we have never cruised Royal so we don't know anything about the ships.

 

We have a family cruise booked on the Oasis of the Seas November 2014. We have three Central Park balcony rooms.

 

I was going to book a second cruise in February for just my husband and I. I am deciding between Independence of the Seas and Oasis of the Seas. Here's where I need advice.

 

1) I like the 8 nt. itinerary on Independence better than the 7 nt. oasis.

2) We already did (or will have by this cruise) Sailed Oasis.

3) prices comparisons are as follows:

Oasis:

C2. $2027

JS: $2859

GS: $4307

 

Independence:

E2: $2408

JS: $3398

GS: $5412

 

As you can see Oasis fares are awesome! SO....do we do Oasis a second time because it's so reasonably priced? OR since this will only be our second cruise on Royal would you say to try a different ship and pay the extra?

 

Also, we were thinking on getting a JS or higher to expedite our Crown and Anchor status and we can get a better deal on Oasis suites. So that is another dilemma in our decision.

 

Would love to hear feedback from those who are Royal Regulars.[/quote']

 

I would book on the Oasis. Perhaps you missed something last time around that you wished you had experienced. Also if the ports are better on the Independence then I would still go on the Oasis and wait for another itinerary for less on the Independence. The Oasis has so much to offer. You can save the money you would have spent on the Independence Of The Seas and use it for something unique on the Oasis.

 

Just my 2 cents. Now others would say do another ship but that's entirely up to you.

 

Enjoy your cruise

[tidygirl]

Hubby and I book cruises based more on the itinerary! We love waking up and being at a new place every day! We are content with inside cabins as we are barely in the room. My kids always say we are on vacation you can sleep when we get home!!

[Cruis'in Mom]

Sorry I neglected to list the itinerary for Oasis. The family cruise will be a Eastern and the one in February will be Western. Also, the reason I narrowed my decision to these two ships is because they are both offering a resident discount that makes the fares very reasonable for us.

 

Thank you for all the advice so far. I really appreciate it.

[impatientlywaiting]

I don't mind cruising on the same ship twice especially since the itinerary is different. As far as spending the extra $ on a JS, I say go for it. The last 2 cruises were in a balcony cabin and we really missed having the JS. We leave in just over 2 weeks for a trans-Atlantic and will be in a JS. Don't know if I'll ever be able to book a balcony again especially for those longer cruises! :)

[kruzerci]

Both are great choices. I usually wouldn't say this, but I don't think you can go wrong with either. They are two of the best ships at sea.

[Priusprof]

Sorry I neglected to list the itinerary for Oasis. The family cruise will be a Eastern and the one in February will be Western. Also' date=' the reason I narrowed my decision to these two ships is because they are both offering a resident discount that makes the fares very reasonable for us.

 

Thank you for all the advice so far. I really appreciate it.[/quote']

What is the date in February?

It is unusual for Indy to be more than Oasis.

Edited March 27, 2014 by Priusprof

[royalcruz]

I prefer Freedom class to Oasis class. Costs aside, you might want to try Indie if you are traveling as a couple; it's fun to run into the same people (less passengers), and the pub and piano bars get a great crowd. On Oasis class we found that the bar venues were dead after dinner unless there was a big event.

[RCI Cruisers 004]

I would book the GS on Oasis. It's a great price and a great ship !

[cujosmom]

We did a back-to-back on the Allure last Fall. We had heard you just cannot see and do everything in 7 days. Well, we still didn't see and do it all in 14 days.:eek: Never even made it to the ice show! Didn't get off in Nassau and only off at Falmouth for a hour or so. The ship was the destination for us. We had an ocean-view balcony but still did not spend hardly any time in our cabin.

[dacsmom]

I love the 8 night on the Indy itinerary. I say try a different ship but you can't make a bad decision between those two options.

[Oasis Of The Seas Expert]

Oasis has 2 Flowriders, Indy only has one. :D

 

Oasis is normally more expensive than Indy because Oasis is bigger. Those prices are a good discount from normal for Oasis. I would take Oasis, because I know from experience that more Flowriders means more time on it and less time in line, and I just like bigger ships in general. Now I have been to almost all of the Caribbean ports, and I still enjoy it each time, but I like big ships and particularly Flowriders.

[summersigh]

1) I like the 8 nt. itinerary on Independence better than the 7 nt. oasis.

2) We already did (or will have by this cruise) Sailed Oasis.

3) prices comparisons are as follows:

Oasis:

C2. $2027

JS: $2859

GS: $4307

 

Independence:

E2: $2408

JS: $3398

GS: $5412

 

As you can see Oasis fares are awesome! SO....do we do Oasis a second time because it's so reasonably priced? OR since this will only be our second cruise on Royal would you say to try a different ship and pay the extra?

.

 

You're comparing the cost for 8 nights to the cost of 7 nights.

Divide the cost for each ship's fare by the number of days it sails. It may not be as big of a difference as you think if you're getting an extra day :).

 

If the difference wasn't too great .... we'd take the itinerary we wanted most rather than deciding based on a few bucks.:)