Carnival Lover Tries Oasis - A Review and Comparison

[jpolm]

I also like variety and some spice (okay a lot of spice!), but variety is the spice of life, right? I had every intention of trying Izumi, Sabor and Giovanni’s. The only problem is that booking online means you pay online. With this being a sold-out holiday cruise, you feel like you have to book in advance, BUT I felt as though it would be a guest services nightmare if our plans changed. I decided to wing it and not book anything in advance (except MTD).

 

On the first day, we were walking through this Central Park and a rep for Chops Grille stopped us and who offered us buy one, get one free dinner if we reserved for that night. It was a no-brainer, since we had already decided we wanted to eat there, and we booked for 6:30.

 

On our Breeze trip, we ate at Fahrenheit 555. Dinner was the same price - $35 per person.

 

At Chops, I had the “Petite” filet with Gruyere Cheese Tater Tots

 

 

On the Breeze, I had the surf and turf, which wasn’t an option at Chops. I love seafood, but don’t find most of it to be very filling, so I like a small steak with my seafood. The Petite Filet was 6 oz., which is more than enough beef for me, and the tater tots were cheesy, but rather flavorless to me. Speaking of flavorless, the sauce around the plate was the saving grace for the steak – that’s the only flavor the poor beef had! I was full and decided to get the cookies and ice cream for dessert. The cookies were dry and hard but the ice cream was delish. I had a few bites and threw in the towel because I was stuffed.

 

The steak had more flavor at Fahrenheit 555, as did the sides. We also enjoyed the chef’s selections, special side dishes the chef sent out (one was a cold soup with little pieces of melon that was to die for) and the bread!

 

As far as steak houses, Breeze wins, hands down. I’m glad we only paid $35 for two of us to eat at Chops. Any more than that and I would have been disappointed.

 

Wow I can't imagine a restaurant better than chops on a cruise. Shocked that u found the other better. Chops was one of the best steakhouses I've been too we thought it was soo good,we went twice great steak ,sides, and red velvet cake and I'm a foodie that lives in Los Angeles that's been to many top restaurants to compare to.

Edited January 5, 2015 by jpolm

[bucks724]

Funny - I wondered if I was wrong about Blaze, but I remember my kid going there once and there being some kind of "misunderstanding" where they were moved back upstairs. Thanks for clarifying. She said it was the teen club - but I guess that's because she only knew that to be true based on her experience!

 

As for the steakhouse, I've been to my fair share of restaurants - we travel quite a bit. I found it to be flavorless and not worth $35, but of course, different days, different ships, different experiences. Glad it was better for you when you visited - I simply found Fahrenheit 555 to be superior in my own experience! Maybe I should book another trip and try it again just to be sure! :)

[jpolm]

Funny - I wondered if I was wrong about Blaze, but I remember my kid going there once and there being some kind of "misunderstanding" where they were moved back upstairs. Thanks for clarifying. She said it was the teen club - but I guess that's because she only knew that to be true based on her experience!

 

As for the steakhouse, I've been to my fair share of restaurants - we travel quite a bit. I found it to be flavorless and not worth $35, but of course, different days, different ships, different experiences. Glad it was better for you when you visited - I simply found Fahrenheit 555 to be superior in my own experience! Maybe I should book another trip and try it again just to be sure! :)

 

Lol I think that's a good idea rebook so u can retry.

[bucks724]

2. Royal Promenade. There is SO much happening here. There is an irish pub called Globe & Atlas, the Champagne bar, Bolero’s, shopping (including Regalia, and the new Michael Kors and Kate Spade stores), the lower level of the Rising Tide Bar (with a fountain that is on when the bar is moving up), among other cool things.

 

 

Globe & Atlas:

 

Champagne bar:

 

My favorite “artwork” on the Promenade (Genesis was the unofficial name of Oasis before it was… Oasis):

 

 

Kate Spade store:

 

Since we usually sail this very week, I’ve never seen a decorated ship. I thought it was super cool that we would see some Christmas decorations on our cruise. We heard before leaving that decorations would start appearing on Black Friday, but they started appearing before then – a few snowflakes here and there, and then this:

 

The tree made for a beautiful backdrop for pictures (which were always being taken, but seemingly never clogged up the flow of traffic, with the exception of formal night, and even then, it was easily avoided).

 

The Promenade is also where they hold parades with the Dreamworks characters, which seems like a really fun time, especially for children (we didn’t attend).

 

I really enjoyed the setup of the Royal Promenade, and the big selling point for me – there is a Starbucks! I am a Starbucks-a-holic, but surprisingly only visited ONCE (I am still shocked by this!). It was comforting just knowing it was there!

[bucks724]

3. Boardwalk and Aqua Theatre. So cool. I love the beach, I love a good boardwalk. The liveliness, the activity, the people. It’s just a cool atmosphere. I think it was a GENIUS move to incorporate this into a neighborhood on a ship. The boardwalk isn’t huge, but it’s not crowded.

 

When you go through the doors from the inside of the ship, you are greeted with stages of a hand-carved carousel horse being made. This leads you to a carousel with hand-carved horses. Rides are free and the carousel runs pretty much all day.

 

What is a boardwalk without a hot dog stand? It is a new, but great addition. It gives a little “authenticity” to the boardwalk atmosphere. The worker there was super adorable and very friendly. He looked like a doppelganger for Bruno Mars, so we lovingly called him Bruno all week.

 

On the other side, you’ll see Cups & Scoops. Ben & Jerry’s ice cream and cupcakes. I’ve heard some say the cupcakes aren’t good and that the cupcake shop was removed because it wasn’t popular, etc. Well, this week in particular, the place was hoppin’. We asked for a few cupcakes that were sold out, and they weren’t half bad. They weren’t gourmet, but they weren’t grocery store quality either (take that with a grain of salt – this is coming from the person who took 2 bites of a Sprinkles cupcake and threw it out – and I love cupcakes!).

 

There is a candy shop, Pinwheels, an arcade, the Britto shop, and then Johnny Rockets and Sabor on the sides. In the center, there is the Sabor bar (where you can get any tequila drink you want, including one of the $12 (!!!) margaritas from Sabor!

 

Then you finally arrive at the Aqua Theatre.

 

 

 

The Boardwalk area was always live with activity. Johnny Rocket’s was always busy, the Boardwalk Dog House was as well (two that I didn’t mention before, but both are excellent!).

 

 

 

I found the Boardwalk so cool because you’re in the middle of a ship, but you can feel rain and wind, and see the sunshine and the ocean. We spent a lot of time just hanging out on the Boardwalk and watching things on the big screens in the Aqua Theatre.

[bucks724]

4. Vitality Spa and Fitness Center

 

Breeze and Oasis (and just about every other ship known to man) have a spa and a fitness center. I can’t speak to how nice they are, as I never used either.

 

On Breeze, the Spa Deck is an area all its own. Deck 11 (I believe), with Spa cabins that give you exclusive amenities.

 

On Oasis, I found it difficult to find Vitality. It could be because I have a bad sense of direction (no, really, that’s it), but it is a very nice and well-equipped area:

 

 

 

When we walked through, there were people using the machines, listening to fitness presentations, and doing yoga on their own. The walking/jogging/running track is also accessed through Vitality (there are other entrances, but there was one here as well). Had it not been so late in the week when we finally made it down, we may have even used it!

[Lionesss]

I keep coming back to your thread and every time I do, I am impressed with your continued review with pictures.

 

Thank you

 

Safe travels.

[SunshineCruiser24]

Love this!

[bucks724]

I keep coming back to your thread and every time I do, I am impressed with your continued review with pictures.

 

Thank you

 

Safe travels.

 

Aw, thanks! Safe travels to you as well!

[atfreud17]

Love the review!!

[bucks724]

5. Central Park. If you were to ask me my favorite neighborhood on Oasis, I would have a hard time choosing between the Boardwalk and Central Park. I mean, take an already impressive ship, add in the sun shining down on your head on the EIGHTH deck (okay, a ship that has more than 8 decks) with a real, live park – with winding paths with bridges, birds chirping (fake, but still!), and all that gorgeous greenery! I have been on a ship and not felt like I was on a ship before, but this REALLY transports you to another place all together!

 

My favorite part about Central Park is the living wall. But who doesn’t love a good gnome or two?

 

Central Park definitely had a WOW factor for me too. It’s one of those things you can read about and see pictures of, but until you’ve actually walked through it, you don’t really know just how cool it is. It’s even cooler at night!

 

Central Park is where Chops Grille and Giovanni’s Table are located, but you will also find the Park Café, Trellis Bar, the Coach store and a photography studio here. It is also a really nice place to have family pictures taken, and there are photographers waiting to do this for you!

[bucks724]

6. Youth Zone.

 

As I mentioned before, we usually travel with a large group of family and friends (think – t-shirts, big group picture, etc.). Traveling like that (especially when you don’t live near them anymore) means you have plenty of “friends” to hang out with. Chaya’s “friend-cousin Sean” (that’s how she referred to him when they were about 4) is 6 months younger than her, in the same grade, and usually on all family vacations with us, so she has never had to think about kid’s clubs or meeting anyone new.

 

This time was very different. Darren and I told her before leaving that she HAD to go to the teen club and meet some friends because we didn’t want her regretting hanging out with our old hineys all week. I mean, I am an awesomely fun mom, but Darren can be quiet, introverted and boring. But at the same time, two’s company, three’s a crowd. Especially where there are casinos involved.

 

Before we went to muster, I told her she needed to find the teen club and see when the meet & greet was taking place. As with most teen clubs on ships, the meet & greet is where you meet your life(week)long friends. So it wasn’t an option for her to skip this time – Sean was back home in DC!

 

I don’t have any pictures of the club and you’ll soon know why. All I can say is that I wasn’t quite used to the way the doors opened and closed, and as we were exiting the one door to enter into another room in the Youth Zone, I walked SQUARE into a glass door.

 

Go ahead and laugh, it’s okay. It’s also my first reaction when I do something stupid. And it wasn’t the last time laughed on this cruise. I hit the glass door so hard that it knocked my soda mug right out of my hand! I also had quite the conversation piece to remember this venture by – a big old know on my noggin!

[A&L_Ont]

Hi Crystal,

 

We ate at Sabor two times and it was so good. It replaced the Sea Food Shack at dry dock and it was a HUGE improvement. The home made guacamole was a tasty way to start the meal.

 

As for tasty, I am glad you didn't leave me the bucket of Buckeyes. It only would have added to my cruise weight gain.;)

 

Andrew

[bucks724]

7. Pool & Sports Zone. Carnival has Lido on Deck 10 with a couple of pools and hot tubs, the SportsSquare and WaterWorks on Deck 12 and the adults-only Serenity area on Deck 15.

 

On Oasis, there are regular pools

 

 

A kiddie area

 

 

Mini golf

 

 

The Breeze has a huge water slide and a really cool ropes course.

 

BUT Oasis has this:

 

 

And this

 

[bucks724]

I feel that both ships do a great job of putting some adventurous things onboard that kids of all ages can enjoy. You can find endless fun just walking around each ship. And for people who don’t want to be around children, both ships offer a getaway – Solarium on Oasis, and Serenity on Breeze.

 

One thing I loved about the Solarium, though, is the fact that it never seemed full. I’ve heard lots of complaints about not getting a seat on the Serenity deck, but every time we walked through the Solarium (which feels like a nice little greenhouse with a GORGEOUS forward view), it seemed like we were the only ones around. The Solarium also has cantilevered hot tubs and regular hot tubs, and even its own bistro!

 

A few pictures of the Solarium:

 

 

 

 

 

[bucks724]

Destinations/Ports:

 

Our Breeze trip had an AWESOME itinerary. We went to Grand Turk, La Romana (DR), Curacao, and Aruba. GREAT stops on an 8 day southern route. When the family club (don’t ask) plans cruises, they choose the cruise based on the itinerary. When Carnival started sailing to Aruba again, this route was in their sights!

 

As I mentioned before, I knew I would be booking this trip for the ship itself, not the ports. Oasis and Allure go every other week on the same itineraries (at least they did on the cruises we looked at). They also depart on different days. Because I prefer to sail out on Saturdays, and the Western route had ports 2 ports we had never visited, we chose this cruise. Our stops were Labadee (Haiti), Falmouth (Jamaica), and Cozumel.

 

For this trip, we decided that Labadee would be a beach day – pretty much by default, since there aren’t many excursions available anyway. Our MDR server told us to get off the ship and follow the path to the right until we got to Columbus Cove. We followed his instructions and ended up with front row seats near the water.

 

 

After swimming and drying off a couple of times, Chaya and I decided to head to the artisan market. We walked around for a bit but the heckling got to be too much. I wanted two things – a wooden bowl and a turtle figurine. We ended up finding the most AMAZING papier mache bowls made by some school kids in the indoor market area, and a nice (not handmade) wooden bowl, and our turtle. Then we grabbed lunch and headed back to Columbus Cove.

 

We called it a day after a few hours and headed to Adrenaline Beach to watch the zip liners come down a few times, then headed back to the ship.

 

Just because I love it so much, here is my favorite “beach day” picture from our Breeze trip (taken in the Dominican Republic):

 

[bucks724]

Our second stop was the next day, in Falmouth. Up until Monday night, we had no plans to do anything in Jamaica, except walk in the port area for a bit and get some Blue Mountain coffee. Chaya is a complete daredevil and thought it would be fun to climb Dunn’s River Falls. I said no up until about 5 pm on Monday, then I broke down and headed to Guest Services and booked the excursion. I don’t have pictures from the day, but it was AWESOME. We did Dunn’s River Falls Express – which was simply a bus trip to the falls, the walk up, and a bus trip back with a quick stop at a “park” (aka bar and jerk chicken stand) for lunch and back to the ship. We had a BLAST. My sister said the falls are difficult, but I’m not in shape at all and found them to be fairly easy – you just have to watch your step and TEST your step before putting your weight down!

 

Next we had a sea day, which I decided was going to be a lazy day. We slept in, watched some TV (by this time, they were rioting in Ferguson, MO and we watched a little coverage on that), then we headed out for some entertainment. I decided to take some shots around the ship. These are in no certain order, but some shots I found interesting:

 

American Icon entrance:

 

 

Carousel Horse:

 

 

Cantilevered Hot Tubs:

 

 

Rising Tide Bar (going up):

 

 

Christmas on the Promenade:

 

[niksmom630]

Really enjoying your review! Have cruised almost exclusively on RCI, but have contemplated trying other lines, so I'm finding the comparison format very interesting. Looking forward to more!

 

 

Sent from my iPad using Forums mobile app

[bucks724]

Hi Crystal,

 

We ate at Sabor two times and it was so good. It replaced the Sea Food Shack at dry dock and it was a HUGE improvement. The home made guacamole was a tasty way to start the meal.

 

As for tasty, I am glad you didn't leave me the bucket of Buckeyes. It only would have added to my cruise weight gain.;)

 

Andrew

 

I heard - at first we were disappointed that SS was being taken out, but after reading the reviews about it, I think it was a good move! You would have burned off all the Buckeye calories on the Flow Rider!

[bucks724]

Our final stop was on Thanksgiving day in Cozumel. We decided as a group before the cruise that we would do the “Jungle” ATV excursion. We had never been on ATVs before, and Chaya was just recovering from a concussion (which is why I was leery about the falls), but we signed up for this excursion.

 

The bus picked us up at the pier and took us to a strip mall area, where we also picked up some Princess passengers. We headed off (wobbily down the road) to the ATV “jungle” area, where we were given a safety presentation, bandana, helmet and some basic operating instructions.

 

Next we separated into groups and started riding. Let me say this – it is fun, but you can’t expect to go fast or do crazy things. There is a guide in the front, and you can only go as fast as he does.

 

Halfway through the excursion, you stop for a bit of Mayan history, a little snack of “authentic” Mayan salsa (made with pumpkin seeds instead of tomatoes) and chips, and bottled water. Then you finish your ride.

 

Finally, you have a “beach stop” at a beach club. This club is not very fancy. It is a bar area with some chairs out on the sand, a dirty little bathroom with a man expecting tips for you to use it, and a bunch of vendors who interrupt you the whole time you’re eating or drinking.

 

 

Talk about sitting back and just being thankful!

 

Prices were reasonable(ish), but the food wasn’t very good. We had chips and salsa – something you think will be great in Mexico, but it was basically diced tomatoes and stale chips. We asked for jalapenos to spice it up even the jalapenos had no flavor!

 

Our wobbly bus finally came back to get us and took us back to the pier where we did a little shopping – mainly for vanilla and a magnet – and got back on the ship.

[bucks724]

We had a day at sea again on Friday, which I used to chat with some friends we met and take more pictures. We visited Sabor again (surprise, surprise), packed and got ready to disembark the next day.

 

Here are a few random pictures I took around the ship:

 

Basketball Courts:

 

 

Random artwork:

 

 

Looking down onto the Boardwalk:

 

 

Chaya and one of her friends in the ice skating rink:

 

 

Which leads me to tell you about the second time I laughed at myself. As if walking into a glass wall weren’t enough for one trip… I told Chaya I would go ice skating with her. Something I had done 100 times before. Well, the ice wasn’t the slickest, smoothest ice you’ve ever been on, and the skates were certainly not like the personal pair I had as a teenager. They were dull. Dull skates + bumpy ice + rocking ship = Crystal falling FLAT on her face. Think – lurch forward and land on the ice face first. As if the lump on my head wasn’t enough!

 

Yes, I laughed. Yes, it hurt like he**. I think I said I would skip my annual mammogram this year since I gave it to myself on the ice.

 

In any event, we had FUN and had another memory to talk/laugh about for years to come!

[bucks724]

Final Observations:

 

Embarkation. Embarkation for both ships was quick, but for our Oasis cruise, it was less than 30 minutes from shuttle to ship. No zone boarding even assigned. There was a rep waiting to check us in when we walked up. On the Breeze, there was a short line, and while we were given Zone 8, we didn’t sit more than 10 minutes before our zone was called. I think both POM and PE do a great job filtering passengers through. At least on these two cruises. On prior cruises (one at POM and one at PE), it wasn’t quite as efficient. Being that we were on a holiday cruise, I was expecting the worst, and PE definitely surprised me!

 

Room Availability. I believe we were in our cabins 30 minutes sooner on Oasis. This wasn’t such a huge deal because we didn’t carry on a lot (we usually take on water, sodas, and a bag with swimsuits and stuff like that). This time, we carried on a small backpack for myself and Chaya, and Darren carried on his sleep machine, but only because there wasn’t room in his luggage to check it. 30 minutes to some is a HUGE deal. When I have a lot of stuff, every second I don’t have to carry around my carryon bags counts!

 

Baggage Handling. I was extremely impressed with how quickly we go our checked luggage on Oasis. We were promised delivery by 2, and the bags were there. On our prior Carnival cruises, the bags were outside of our door, but on Oasis, the bags were intermingled with other bags and some were down the hall a bit, but no more than 2-3 doors away. We are used to going to muster drill wondering when – even if – we’ll get our luggage, and by the time muster drill rolled around, we were already unpacked! I loved this!

[bucks724]

Food Quality. This is where my opinion may get muddy. But the reality is, you can find food everywhere. You may not think it’s the best you’ve ever had, but it’s good enough to make you full and satisfy your hunger. Both ships have decent buffet food, but I think Royal’s quality has a slight edge. As far as specialty restaurants go, it’s the same thing. Steakhouse on Breeze was better than Chops to me. Red Frog Pub on Breeze had decent bar food for a cheap price to get your grease fix. Johnny Rockets has decent burgers but Guy’s burgers – and fries – are the best at sea!

 

There is no clear winner in this battle as far as I’m concerned. I never had anything I made funny faces about on either cruise. But I also tend to choose safe choices at buffets.

 

The tie breaker for me (just for fun) is the Miami Vice. They are DEFINITELY better on the Breeze. They actually blend the alcohol in the drink. I saw several times when I got them on Oasis, they would blend the 2 mixes, pour them into the glass, and add a shot of rum to the top. I prefer it mixed in AND on top (just kidding).

 

But all jokes aside, in my eyes, there is no definitive winner as far as food quality goes across the board. It’s all a matter of personal taste, but take my word for it, there is plenty to choose from and you won’t always be disappointed.

 

Food Availability. We all remarked several times that it seemed like whatever we felt like eating on Oasis wasn’t open when we wanted it. This was mainly true about the Boardwalk Dog House, and mainly because Darren thinks that he should have 6 regular sized meals per day – but I found it to be true as well.

 

The only time I remember griping about something I wanted not being available on the Breeze was when I wanted a Guy’s Burger and it was closed for another hour. Royal has WAY more variety, but you have to watch the clock and pay attention to the hours of operation (or you’ll be sitting outside of the Park Café along with 20 of your closest friends waiting to grab an egg sandwich before getting off in port!). It is also possible that we ate with the family in the buffet more on the Breeze so we didn’t notice this.

[Karter]

Wow I can't imagine a restaurant better than chops on a cruise. Shocked that u found the other better. Chops was one of the best steakhouses I've been too we thought it was soo good,we went twice great steak ,sides, and red velvet cake and I'm a foodie that lives in Los Angeles that's been to many top restaurants to compare to.

 

How long has it been since you ate at Chops. The reason I ask is we always loved Chops especially the red velvet cake - sometimes we would go just for appetizers and the red velvet cake. But they recently changed the menu and no longer get the red velvet cake from the supplier in Miami but make their own box cake now. In my opinion the food and deserts are not very good and we no longer eat there even with the buy one get one free.

[bucks724]

Ports. No secret here, Carnival has better ports. I admittedly made the “ship” my destination for this cruise but after a while, even as great as it was, the ship got boring. There was plenty to do, plenty to eat and plenty to see, but you could only do so much of each multiple times before they became boring. I chalk that up to being on the ship SO much (one extra day makes a difference, I guess), but I’m ready to go back now!

 

Cost. Pay close attention here. Many people have the opinion that Carnival is cheaper, the value cruise line. This isn’t necessarily the case. Before I go on, I will say – before the Oasis cruise, we never paid more than $2000 for the 3 of us in a balcony room. The Oasis cruise cost twice that in a cheaper (lower level) room. I booked in March and chose my room, and at the time, I believe there were only 3 cabins remaining.

 

The price dropped once during the 6 months before final payment, but it wasn’t significant enough for me to call (less than $100). But AFTER final payment, the price dropped – to around the cost of a Carnival cruise in a balcony cabin. I didn’t know the “rules” on Royal, so I called to collect my OBC, and was told basically that it was too late. I had two options, suck it up or move to a higher category room and pay the difference. The difference was significant - $1200. But it wasn’t enough to get me into a JS without paying more for the cruise. The oceanview cabin they offered at the same price (even though it was cheaper than what we paid as well) was directly under the pool (no thanks!). I left my reservation as it was.

 

We have always booked our cruises about 18 months in advance and with so many family members traveling together, you don’t have to watch for price drops like a hawk. As a matter of fact, my parents’ cruise on the Breeze right now dropped so low that they walked on the ship with over $500 in OBC, with a couple hundred of that coming after the final payment date. For this, I like Carnival, but I also understand Royal’s policy, and I do agree with the adage that if I wasn’t okay with the price when I booked, I shouldn’t have booked.

 

All in all, the cruise was worth every penny!