Back to back oasis 6-20th Dec

[Bradtez]

The Booking & Boarding Experience

• We booked this cruise in April of 2013 as we knew exactly what cabin we wanted. Boardwalk balcony cabin number 12323. An excellent view of the aqua theatre and the ocean, when the doors are closed there is very minimal noise from the boardwalk below.

• We received an email a few days before departure to inform us what time to board (depending which deck you are on). We were supposed to arrive at 2.30, but seeing as we had to book out of our hotel we arrived early. Our shuttle dropped us at the terminal at 11.30, luggage was handed of the porters, found the counter inside for deck 12, sea passes issued and we were on the royal promenade just after noon. All in all a very smooth operation.

• Transition day – Consecutive cruisers met in the Schooner bar at 10.30, issued with our new sea pass cards and a transition card for customs. We were taken off the ship as a group after everyone else, through customs and back on board. Lunch was provided in American icon (apparently, if the number is less than 45 you will get lunch at Giovanni’s).

 

The Ship Layout

• The neighbourhood style layout on a ship this big is sheer genius. People tended to explore for the first few days, then choose their favourite areas. We loved Central Park (deck 8) for the lush greenery and peace, The Solarium (Deck 15) for the posh chairs, healthy lunch and 16+ (no kids) rule and the Royal Promenade for the energy & little bars and eateries. The Boardwalk, with its Carousel, Johnny Rockets and Fair-style icecreamery, hot dogs etc was surprisingly quiet except during Aqua Theatre shows. Having different neighbourhoods does alleviate the feel of having SO MANY people on one ship.

• Central Park is the drawcard neighbourhood on the ship. The Landscaping tour is very good and is run twice during the week. There’s a lot of opportunity to find out the behind the scenes info for free. Lots of interesting info that you’d never guess, like what happened when an owl decided to make Oasis its home for a week!

• There are a lot of decks on the Oasis, so not many people use the stairs, especially for going up. There are two banks of elevators, six forward and six aft, and during meal times these are packed. Technically each lift can hold 24 people…. If the ship wasn’t full of buffet fanatics that is. Expect to wait a while.

• Shopping – isn’t really our thing. However, women who like jewellery and bags are well catered for. Lots of specials and massive queues. The sundries section, next to the alcohol is well-stocked, which comes in handy for vanity products, medications etc.

• Children – there’s clearly lots of these on board and the kids pool is amazing. The Kid’s club must be as well because we rarely saw children during the day. The Solarium is 16+ if you really want to avoid them.

Food & Beverage Experience

• If you can afford it, try a few specialty restaurants. It’s worth the little bit extra to upgrade to quality food. There are ‘occupancy’ meters on screens around the ship, and from our experience, the Windjammer was almost always packed and mainly caters to the tastes of Middle America. Whilst the food there varies, those who enjoy Hamburgers, Macaroni Cheese, mashed potato etc will be pleased. Each night in the Windjammer has a theme, eg, Seafood, Prime Rib, Chinese, Spanish, where a few trays are special for that night. Use their hand sanitiser and also take your own. There’s a few people picking food off with their fingers, eating, then taking more food. Cutlery people… CUTLERY.

• Sabor – This Mexican specialty restaurant is located on the Boardwalk and has a good variety of Mexican food and drinks that you would expect. It was popular in the evenings particularly but we didn’t find the need to book. The red hot tip at Sabor is to buy the $19 Tasting Menu, which is more than enough for 2 people and includes tableside-prepared guacamole & chips, salsa, choice of tacos or quesadillas, a side dish (rice, fries, etc), a main (we had short rib), a small dish (calamari etc) and a selection of six dessert items. A LOT of good quality food for $19 in total. Whilst we didn’t try the margaritas ($12), they seemed very popular.

• Sorrento’s – good for a late night pizza snack, a half dozen varieties or they will custom make one for you. It’s also the location for two of the Freestyle Coke machines.

• Park Café – Great for custom made salads, Paninis, soup and desserts. NO, we didn’t forget the roast beef roll, OMG…YUM! The outdoor seating does get busy at lunch time here. This is also the location of the bags of chips. Take a few back to your room for later.

• 150 Central – this, in our opinion, is THE BEST cruising dining experience we’ve ever had. A degustation-style menu of six courses for $40 per person (half price on Day 1), which can be paired with wine (extra cost). The whole 150 experience is awesome. The wait staff knowledge, the farm-to-table menu including tapas, fresh asparagus salad, the best mushroom ravioli we’ve ever had, halibut with chorizo…. The list of what they bring you goes on and on. The restaurant has amazing egg-pod style chairs, so request one of those.

• The Dining Room – reviews on the dining room experience will vary amongst guests, possibly depending on where they sit. We were placed near a scrap station (like… RIGHT next to) and also had to watch trolleys of food being manhandled and swooshed against a rather dirty curtain. Take hand sanitiser. The menus were good, comparable with other cruiselines we’ve been on. The usual half dozen choices per course and no qualms about bringing a couple of prawn cocktails instead of just one.

• Café Promenade – has croissants, donut balls and all other food devoured by Americans. There’s tea and coffee, but it’s pretty bad. The tea doesn’t steep properly and the coffee is possibly the worst we’ve had on any cruise line. Go to Starbucks.

• Soda Package – Good if you like making your own flavours of soda from the Freestyle machines. BUT, there are only 2 locations on board for the freestyle machines, one at the Windjammer which has limited opening hours and the other is on deck 5 next to Sorrento’s Pizza. The bars will fill your cup, but only with the usual soda flavours. Remember to use a straw to keep the lid hygienic because no one offered to wash them.

• The Solarium – became our breakfast venue of choice, mainly because the food is healthy and the view is good. It’s also a great place to sunbake or watch the world go by on the posh chairs. We saw an incident involving security where guests were complaining about people hogging the posh day beds for hours on end.

• Room Service – we did this twice. The menu is comparable to other cruise lines we’ve used but really, room service is a pretty crap option compared to other places to eat here.

 

Entertainment Experiences

We saw a few shows, and like the food, experience will vary between guests, so these reviews are simply our opinion.

Cats – is clearly a very artistic (and long) production with a talented cast. Having said that, we lasted 20 minutes. It’s singing and dancing cats.

Headliner Shows – these change and we saw Abbacadabra Week 1. It was an awesome show with parody elements and a very accurate musical score. There’s a little surprise before Dancing Queen at the end of the show that you just will not expect. See it.

Comedy Club – The guys we saw were hilarious. There’s an adult show and a family friendly. We saw the adult show and loved it. Belly laughs, no one walked out. Make sure you reserve because the venue is small and the standby line was extremely long, most of whom missed out.

Aqua Theatre – Some quite good shows put on here, obviously better if you are more into diving or synchronised swimming. A very good view from our balcony though. Also they play a couple of NFL matched on the big screens here. The Bellyflop competition was a hoot, which we also could see well from our balcony.

Karaoke – is held in the On Air bar on deck 5. There’s a Superstar competition, which means that the talented are given an incentive to get up and perform. Get there early. It’s always packed.

We attended a few of those Cruise Director-run shows, like Love & Marriage, etc, and Trivia. There’s lots daily to do, expect on port days. We didn’t attend the ice show, a couple of other shows, but there is really is a LOT on. You can access your bookings on your TV. Friends we travelled with said that the Comedy shows were booked out before they even boarded for their cruise, so do some bookings before you leave home.

 

 

Tips & Hints

• A laundry bag will arrive on Day 4 or 5 of your cruise. You can pack it with as much underwear, tshirts, shorts, pyjamas and swimwear as you can fit in. The whole bag will be laundered (but not pressed) for $30. There appears to be a 24 hour turn around period.

• The three specialty restaurants in Central Park are 50% off for Day 1 only, so if you’re thinking of having an amazing dining experience at Chops Grille, 150 Central or Giovanni’s Table go there as soon as you can on Day 1 and book.

• Alcohol (and cigarettes) are 10% off on Day 1. You can’t have them until the end, but the prices on board are excellent compared to the Duty Free shops on land. The variety isn’t as good as some other cruise lines we’ve been on, but the basics are there.

• If you want to buy stuff like watches, Tshirts, costume jewellery, do it on the last sea day. That’s when the big specials come out. And the queues are very long, so be prepared to line up!

 

If anyone has any specific questions, feel free to ask and I will do my best to answer over the coming days (as we are still travelling for 4 more weeks).

Edited December 23, 2014 by Bradtez

[Natmom]

Thank you for your detailed review!

 

When you say the restaurant is 50% off day one only, does that mean booking and paying on day one and choosing a reservation sometime during the cruise or eating there on day one ?

[Bradtez]

Thank you for your detailed review!

 

When you say the restaurant is 50% off day one only, does that mean booking and paying on day one and choosing a reservation sometime during the cruise or eating there on day one ?

 

Booking and eating on day one only.

[A&L_Ont]

There is also a free style machine in the arcade on deck 15.

 

Thanks for the concise review.

[cruisebirdie]

@Bradtez

Thanks! Excellent Review.

[Bradtez]

There is also a free style machine in the arcade on deck 15.

 

Thanks for the concise review.

 

Our bad, we never went inside the arcade.

[bgoff60]

If we have purchased the Ultimate drink package, are the margaritas included at Sabors?

[Clarea]

If we have purchased the Ultimate drink package, are the margaritas included at Sabors?

Yes, if they are $12 or under.

[A&L_Ont]

Our bad, we never went inside the arcade.

 

We never discovered it until our son sailed with us. The only reason why we went into the arcade. :)

[Sky616]

There is also a free style machine in the arcade on deck 15.

 

Thanks for the concise review.

 

Yes it is. A hidden gem not many people know about. Always filled ours up there instead of windjammer or promenade.

[PathfinderEss]

Enjoyed your review.

[JamesEM]

Thanks for your review.

[Franklinfemale]

Our kids don't like soda, but was wondering if the freestyle machine has lemonade, powerade and such available or is it just soda?

[Clarea]

Our kids don't like soda, but was wondering if the freestyle machine has lemonade, powerade and such available or is it just soda?

Here is a list of flavors from a while back:

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showpost.php?p=41963551&postcount=2