My Sometime Brief & Detailed March 26 Oasis Review

[nelblu]

This is my 4th cruise on an Oasis class ship, with 3 of them on Oasis and my last just this past February 6th. I did my 1st review of Oasis some 5 years ago. However, this time we are traveling as a group of 9, comprised of my children, spouses & grandchildren.

 

We began our journey on Saturday, March 26th. Got picked up in Monmouth Co., NJ by private van at 3:30 AM, to take us to LaGuardia Airport (NYC), for a Delta flight scheduled for 7am. This would allow us ample time, as we did not know what security impact it would have since the Brussels airport bombing occurred a few days earlier. You may also wonder why LaGuardia and not Newark Int’l since we are only about 25 minutes from the airport. Answer is simple: United, which has a virtual monopoly at Newark, had a pricing of $650per ticket, while Delta, from LaGuardia, was pricing $276 per. Savings of $3,366, and net of $2,900, after van expense. Mind you when we flew to FLL from EWR in February, it cost us $265 per—guess Easter week premium.

 

PS. Delta terminal at LaGuardia airport is dumpy compared to United’s terminal “C” at Newark. No wonder VP Biden called it a 3rd World airport.

 

Below, is a somewhat brief & sometime detailed review of our trip experience:

 

Overall, the flight was pretty un-eventful, with a few bumps along the way. Luggage, to our amazement, came out pretty quick as compared to United.

 

Embarkation: As in past experience it was a very smooth. This time they took the credit card info entered on the SetSail rather than swiping the cc. Embarkation was delayed as there were 2 case of chicken pox—letter handed out while waiting to board.

 

After Suite & Pinnacle guests finished boarding, we (D+) were allowed to board. We got on the ship at approximately 11:45 AM.

 

Left the group and went to Studio B to complete our entertainment schedule. I had a complete schedule, but a month prior, some programs, eg; Oasis of Dreams and Frozen in Time dropped from my cruise planner. When I went to Studio B, there was no-one there, other than a few cleaning staff. Went to GS and was directed to a kiosk by the bar (?) near the Regalia shop. Was directed inside the bar by the staff manning the kiosk. Went inside and explained my situation and was successful in getting 4 add’l tickets to Dreams and 9 tickets to Frozen. It seems that they hold some 25% of tickets to show or on-board Paxs.

 

While walking to meet the group at Park Café, saw a kiosk for Specialty Restaurants. Asked if there were any specials for the 1st or 2nd night. I told them that I was D+ and would get the BOGO. They asked if any member of the group (9) were D and if so on the 1st night they would be entitled to 25% off. Made reservations to Chops for 1st night and Giovanni’s for the 6th night. After completing my task, I met and joined the group at Park Café for a nice leisurely lunch of salads, paninis, chips, and those wonderful roast beef sandwiches.

 

After lunch, went to our cabins which were available at 1PM. We had 3 Central Park balcony cabins together, with 2 adjoining (12593-12591.) My Son & DIL were in 12589.

 

Met our cabin steward (Putu Suardana) and instructed him to provide us with ice and extra pillows and bath towels. It was nice to see him again as he was our cabin attendant in CP cabin #12603 on our Feb. cruise. He kept our room always spotless. He was very patient, especially since one of our granddaughters, in the adjacent cabin, kept bringing their pillows to our cabin to build a castle between the bed and sofa. He was always friendly and smiling and got a big kick out of the children.

 

We attended the sail away held at the Aquatheatre (Boardwalk). The grandkids enjoyed the characters from Dreamworks. While sitting there I felt as though we left earlier than the scheduled 4:30PM.

 

To be continued.

[nelblu]

Continued from above,

 

DINING: Although quality and taste is subjective, we found it to very good in most if not in all areas.

 

MDR: Requested and got a table for 9 by a window in Grande (#607). It was situated in one of the dining rooms to the side of the MDR. We usually took the short cut by not entering the main MDR entrance, but rather from the left side entrance. Also, we were lucky as some tables around us were used for MTD overflow and went empty a couple of nights—thank God, as sometimes the grandkids were a bit noisy.

 

Staff: Our tandem was comprised by Messrs. Ansuman (Waiter) & Cheetaman (Asst.). They were excellent and professional, especially with all of the confusion emanating from our table. Grandkids bouncing around, and the request for special dishes and seconds in appetizers and entrees. Also assisting was Ms Nagy (Head Waiter/Maitre D.?) concerned with my youngest granddaughter food allergy. Overall, a real 10 in our review.

 

Food: I don’t know, but it seemed that the quality was a bit better than our Feb. sail. We enjoyed entrees such as: Crab salad, fisherman’s platter (SIL had 5 lobster tails), lasagna al forno, rack of lamb & lamb shank on the last night. The appetizers were good from seafood salad, shrimp cocktail to onion soup. My SIL really enjoyed the escargot. Desserts, my party really enjoyed the various nightly desserts. I ordered the brownie sundae from the children’s menu. Speaking of children’s menu, their portions seemed larger than the adult and the steak ordered was very good.

 

Specialty restaurants:

 

Ate at Chops Grille at 5:30 pm the 1st night. The group ordered a combination of shrimp cocktail, French onion soup, sea bass, filet mignon & the strip steak. The kids menu was outstanding for taste, portions and price of $10 per. Overall, a fantastic culinary experience. It became even better, when it was time to pay—instead of the bogo and 25% discount, they gave the adults only, 50% off their meal--saved $20 overall that went towards add’l grats. I guess they did not want to be bothered calculating the tab. lol

 

FYI: If interested in these restaurants, especially on the 1st night, ask if they have any specials.

 

Service was fantastic.

 

Giovanni’s qt 6pm on the 6th night. The food was good, but my youngest granddaughter began acting up and took away from the dining experience. Family style appetizers. Enjoyed the antipasti (lots of), mozzarella salad, Cioppino (Fish soup), crab filled raviolis, beef tenderloin, veal ossobuco, etc. Topped it off with cappuccino, cannoli and other desserts. As with Chops, the $10 per child is a real bargain.

 

Service was fantastic, also.

 

 

Other dining venues:

 

Breakfast: Ate at the following venues, MDR, Johnny Rocket, Park Café, & Wipeout Café. Both Johnny Rocket and Wipeout Café open at 8:30 am—a bit late for us. Enjoyed omelets in the MDR and Johnny Rocket. I especially enjoyed the apple pastries in the MDR

 

Lunch: Ate at Park Café for their excellent salads and roast beef sandwiches. On sea days (3) ate in the MDR and enjoyed the Tutti salad bar and also items from the menu.

 

Snacks: Sorrento’s was a good place for a late night pizza.

 

Grandkids and some adults, enjoyed the ice cream machines by the children’s pool and in the Wipeout Café.

 

Staff at these venues, were prompt and friendly.

[nelblu]

Further continuation,

 

PORTS:

 

Labadee, Haiti: Went off at 9:30 am. It was a bit windy and needed to be careful for windburn. Loved laying in the lounge chair and enjoy the warm sun—plenty of lotion and sun block. None of our kids were with us as they are late risers. Something that I noticed that was evident in prior stops, was the lack of local beach attendants, that sometime become pests regarding lounge chairs.

 

The rest of the clan showed up an hour or so later.

 

Stayed till noon, and after snacking on some buffet items, went back to the ship and ate lunch at the Park Café.

 

Jamaica: Been to Dunn’s fall many times, however, my wife & I got off the ships and visited some of the shops in Falmouth. No success and went back to the ship. My children stayed on the ship and enjoyed the emptiness of the adult & children pool areas. They also took advantage of miniature golf.

 

Cozumel:

 

This was the best decision made on this cruise. My daughter, even though was a bit sunburned at Labadee, wanted to go to a beach. Looked at the beach tour, but was very expensive, especially with 3 small children who pay as much as an adult, eg: Playa Maya beach excursions.

 

From CC I was able to get an evaluation of some of the Cozumel beach areas. Opted for Paradise Beach. This is truly a-la-carte. Getting to the taxi area was a zoo. In past cruises we try to disembark as early as possible and avoid this nightmare. This time we were a bit late and not only Mex. Customs slowed the process down, but the lines to taxis snaked all over the place. Finally reached the front and asked for a van. A bargain, a flat $30 + grats.

 

It took us approximately 12 minutes to get there. Once arrived, a staff member advised us that it’s $3 per (avoided pay for the 2 smallest children) and included lounge chairs and umbrellas, plus the pool. The caveat, need to spend $10 per on food/drink. This was easily accomplished. Did not expect much regarding food, but it was absolutely good. We ordered chips with salsa, beef tacos, Quesos and chicken fingers for the children. Was surprised that the chicken fingers contained about 8-9 large pieces with French fries. Some of us ordered beer( Sol & Tecata) & others sodas. A very unusual situation—Ginger ale was in cans, but diet or regular Pepsi was from the fountain. Along the way, we saw some diners with canned sodas and could not understand why. We found out later, that the staff person assigned to us was associated with the bar, while others were associated with the restaurant—unusual arrangement. My SIL, at $18 each for of his children got the usage of beach inflatables, kayaks, and many other diverse beach toys. Worth every cent.

 

 

The pool was included in the $3 price and it was large, clean and one could swim up to the bar. We took advantage of both the beach and pool. Overall a great experience.

One down side was the plethora of seaweeds washing ashore. There was a storm the day before that caused this situation. This was up & down the entire beach area. However, if you went 20 feet in the water, no weeds were apparent. I walked the pier that is adjacent to the beach and it stretches some 150 ft. and the water was crystal clear.

 

Bottom line, for $200 we had a great beach day. One of the beach excursion via RCL would cost us $450+ for the same experience.

[nelblu]

Further, further continuation,

 

OTHER SHIP EXPERIENCE:

 

 

Entertainment:

 

Oasis of Dreams: A mini version of “O” in Las Vegas. Wonderful entertainment as some performers danced & others dived into the pool from various heights. We had enjoyed this show in prior cruises, but enjoyed it even more through my grandchildren eyes. They smiled, clapped and danced to the background music. As a matter of fact, my daughter, SIL & their children saw it a 2nd time. A benefit for D+ & Pinnacles—2 rows are reserved for these tiers.

 

Frozen in Time: Lucky to get the front row. Fantastic shows, with very agile & athletic performers. Wonderful & colorful costumes. Skaters were simply magnificent. Grandchildren, as with Dreams danced, smiled & clapped. Got even more entertainment when performers came close to barrier and hi-fived the kids hands.

 

Headliner: Kenny James performed. He was good, but he sang only Motown songs. His son accompanied his band.

 

Cats: Unfortunately, with the scheduling of shows, reserved this shows for the last day @2:30pm. Since it was the last day and a beautiful day to sit in the Solarium, we decided to forgo this show. However, my daughter wanted to see the show and took her youngest daughter, but she became afraid of the make-up and costumes and they left the show after 20 minutes.

 

Come Fly with Me: If Dreams is a mini “O” this show is a mini “Cirque”. Did not enjoy Cirque in Las Vegas, as it was too long and redundant. This show was palpable as it was only 40-45 minutes. Excellent usage of bungee cord, trampolines & props. Very athletic performers with lots of dancing. Enjoyable.

 

Comedy Show: We had seen this show on the Feb. cruise and it was hilarious. Convinced my kids & their spouses to attend the show, and that we would baby sit. They were glad they did, as they confirmed, that although a bit risqué, it was a very funny event.

,

Dreamworks Parade: Last night, all of the characters were present. A bit crowded but the grandchildren really had a great time.

 

 

Other Activities:

 

Diamond Lounge. Open from 5-8:30pm. 1st day it was a disaster. Raved about the service and snacks, however, this night there must have been a trainee, as he was not familiar as to what was & wasn’t available. For instance, my SIL, asked if Stoli flavored vodka was available. I knew that it wasn’t, but the drink waiter said yes. Came back and said that it wasn’t available. Said they had Smirnoff flavor, came back with a screwdriver. My SIL went to the bar and asked for a beer. However, the hors d’ovres made up for this fiasco.

The rest of the week, the service was exemplary.

 

We noticed a big difference between the February cruise and this one. On the Feb. cruise the Lounge on the 11th deck, was crowded and the 12th deck was empty. This cruise, the lounge was basically empty when we arrived between 5-6pm. Only explanation is that because of Easter week, many grandparents were with their kids & grandchildren. There were a ton of kids and grandparents.

 

Labadee Sail away: Invited to the sail away at the front/helicopter deck. What a wonderful experience and sight. My family enjoyed it immensely. Champagne and mimosa served, plus a non-alcohol drink.

 

Tidbit: Met officer in charge of determining and advising Homeland Security that all passengers were on board. Asked him if we left Port Everglades early—he said they did and basically saved $15k because they did not have to use their full power to leave the port area. He mentioned that once it has been confirmed that all Paxs are on board, they advise Homeland Security and after 30-45 minutes they are allowed/approved to leave the dock.

 

Bridge Tour: Got invite, but I wanted to get my kids and family to experience this event. I visited the Loyalty Ambassador (in the library), to see if I could get them invited to the Bridge tour. He told me that he needed to determine the number of respondents before he could confirm. Waited a couple of days and lo and behold invites appeared in their room. They were glad they did as they said it was educational and interesting.

 

Casino: No did not win, but, we earned some t-shirts & key chains. LOL

[Clarea]

Appreciate the update about show tickets not being given out at Studio B anymore.

[nelblu]

Further x 3 continuation,

 

MISCELLANEOUS:

 

Voom Internet. Brought my computer along, but this time around, the speed seemed slow. Trying to get to the games website took a very long time. Not so, on the Feb. 6th sail. Not complaining as I got an entire week of internet usage free with the usage of 2 D+ coupons.

For my kids & family, I got them the bogo promo of $106 for 2 devices (before sail).

 

Drink Packages. My son got the Royal Replenish and my daughter got 2 Royal Replenish packages. I tell you on this cruise the bartenders were handing out multiple water bottles and sodas. We did not see any time or volume restrictions.

 

D & D+ Drinks loaded onto the SeaPass. Worked like a charm. I’m not much of a drinker, but enjoy a beer. I was able to get drinks during the 5-8:30pm timeframe. Got drinks at the bar in Central Park, The Opal Theatre, Studio B and the bars in the Promenade. My kids & spouses, as D were able to enjoy the same benefits.

 

Easter Mass: Attended Easter Mass at 8 am in Studio B. Service was performed by Father Quinn. He’s from NYC, but stationed in FFL. What a sense of humor.

 

 

DISASTER AREAS:

 

After the Dreamworks parade, we went to the photography section. Half of the kiosks did not work. There were so many folks there, that it was hot & uncomfortable. My photographs were no-where. None in the basket and none digitally available. Thank God my kids had some photos that we could use the free D+ coupon. Had to order and available the next day. Facial recognition does not seem to work in some cases.

 

Disembarkation

 

It seemed worse than the Feb. sail. The lines seemed not to move. I’m not sure if Pax paid attention to the # assigned to disembark. The lines were literally snaking around the promenade and by the dining rooms/elevators. Was able to cajole using the Suite exit and once off the ship, got our bags and used “Global Entry” to exit and by pass the masses.

 

Ps: Made a huge mistake—what a knucklehead. Picked the wrong bag and did not realize until exiting Customs. Was sent to Security, and was advised that I would have to wait until the ship got clearance. Asked, how long—11:30, 12, or 12:30pm. Not palatable, filled a “personal property report”. Time frame of delivery--3-6 weeks. Received call from RCL lost & found that bag was on its way via Fed/Ex. Bag was delivered at 11:30am today, but we had cash, but it was not acceptable form of payment—only certified check or money order. Going to Post Office to get required payment form. Ps. Not bad $45.35 for 53+ lbs.

 

After this fiasco, my SIL (a rookie) got us in a shared van at a cost of $11 per. Besides the 9 of us there were 3 add’l passengers and felt crowded. Bottom line, when we arrived we took 3 separate cabs and averaged

$18-$20. Taking the van totaled $95 (incl. grat.)

 

Made to the airport and with the TSA pre-clear made it in no time flat. But, storms in the NYC Metro area caused the Delta flight to be delayed from 1:20pm to 3:05pm. My wife & I went to Miami Grille and shared a nice 12’ turkey sub with FF and soda. Wasn’t bad.

 

Flight back home was a bit rocky, but less than anticipated. Had a good tail wind and made it to LaGuardia in 2:30 hours. The sun was breaking thru the clouds and it was a thrill flying over the tall Manhattan skyline/buildings on the way to LaGuardia.

 

Our driver met us at the baggage area and we walked to the parked van, as he wasn’t allowed to pick us up by the terminal because of security issues.

 

We got on the van and after 1:30 hrs., we were home. He was able to avoid some of the Manhattan traffic by using the George Washington Bridge/NJ Turnpike to get us home.

 

Summary: All had a great time. My grandchildren cried on the last night as they did not want it to end. Most of the cruise they were awe struck by the size of the vessel and the many activities available.

 

Planning another family cruise in the not too distant future

[mirp]

Thank you for the review

 

I especially appreciate hearing that you thought the $10 fee for children's speciality dining was a good value. How old were the children?

[nelblu]

Appreciate the update about show tickets not being given out at Studio B anymore.

 

Bob, I'm not sure if this was only on embarkation day. As you know, there's a lot of activity at the Promenade.

[nelblu]

Thank you for the review

 

I especially appreciate hearing that you thought the $10 fee for children's speciality dining was a good value. How old were the children?

 

8 & 6, & the youngest was 2.6mos. and not charged as she basically did not eat anything. The portions in both the MDR and Specialty Restaurants were a pretty good size.

[Clarea]

Bob, I'm not sure if this was only on embarkation day. As you know, there's a lot of activity at the Promenade.

Thanks, I'll have to keep checking with folks who have recently been on Oasis and Allure.

[mirp]

Thank you. My child is 9 but has a big appetite and dislikes typical children's menu but this sounds much better.

[Keith1010]

Very nice review.

 

Well done.

 

Keith

[nelblu]

Thank you. My child is 9 but has a big appetite and dislikes typical children's menu but this sounds much better.

 

The steak was very good. As mentioned, I ordered my dessert, brownie sundae, from the children's menu as it is not listed in the adult dessert menu. LOL

[champagne123]

Thank you for your great review..:) We always recommend Paradise Beach to everyone. For such a minimal amount of money, such a great place. We have been there twice and both times had a blast.:):):)

[nelblu]

Thank you for your great review..:) We always recommend Paradise Beach to everyone. For such a minimal amount of money, such a great place. We have been there twice and both times had a blast.:):):)

 

Was pleasantly surprised by the quality of the food.

[Pardsie]

I will be staying in 12591 & 12593 4/16 to 4/23 were there any cons with these canons? On another note did you need to use a flash taking these beautiful photos and if so was it an external flash. I have the same camera and would like to know the settings you used. I would prefer to not spend my entire cruise taking photos and constantly changing settings.

TIA

[nelblu]

I will be staying in 12591 & 12593 4/16 to 4/23 were there any cons with these canons? On another note did you need to use a flash taking these beautiful photos and if so was it an external flash. I have the same camera and would like to know the settings you used. I would prefer to not spend my entire cruise taking photos and constantly changing settings.

TIA

 

No problems with either room. FYI, thy are adjoining and 12591 the bed is located by the balcony sliding glass door, while 12593 is by the closet. In the set up, 12593 was better at handling 2 adults & 2 children. Did not include any pics in my review, therefore, I can't help you with this inquiry.

[Pardsie]

Thank you for the room info. My wife and I will be in cabin 12591 and three teenage grandsons will be in 12593 after your review. Not sure all three will survive but we'll see. If it is not too much trouble could you also respond to the camera settings and flash question.

TIA

[Pardsie]

BTW wonderful review and pictures thank you!!

[nelblu]

BTW wonderful review and pictures thank you!!

 

Again, sorry, but I did not have/include any photos with my review. There are a couple of other Oasis reviews that do have some wonderful pics.

[A&L_Ont]

Great review Nelblu. Thanks for taking the time too post your experiences on Oasis.

[bravostar]

Thanks for the review. Our turn is in November.

[nelblu]

Thank you for your kind comments. Also, got a nice warm feeling as the review was accepted to be included in CC library of reviews.