Oasis 2BR Aqua Theatre Suite

[Diamond Dandy]

Decided to splurge on this suite for the 8/20/17 sailing. As this will very likely be a one time thing I want the benefit of the experience of the folks on Cruise Critic.

 

All input will be greatly appreciated as to positives, negatives, and other things I need to know.

[Deb04103]

We stayed in a 2 BR ATS on Harmony..cabin 8330. It was absolutely fabulous! Watching the shows from the balcony was amazing! Be sure to communicate ahead of time with your Genie and let them know things that you would like to do. We had 8 adults in the cabin, so it was a bit much with just 2 bathrooms, but we made it work. I really don't think there were any cons..it was so amazing. Some of our group didn't like the long walk to the elevators, but other than that there really were not any complaints. Enjoy!!

 

 

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[Ourusualbeach]

Star class benefits,

 

https://www.royalcaribbean.com/royalsuiteclass/star

[tgold]

We were on the 8th floor last August. 2 Adults and 3 kids. It was our first cruise and it was amazing. You will have a ton of space. Would highly recommend doing at least one dinner and one breakfast on the deck. Your genie will take care of everything. Just have an idea of where you would like to eat and he will arrange everything about 2 weeks out. We (my husband and I) never ate in the mdr, but the kids did once. We really enjoyed the signature restaurants.

I would recommend getting on the ship early. We were on the ship with luggage in our room and sitting down at giovanni's by noon. Please send any questions.

Our stops were St. Kitts and St. Thomas. We did private tours there (not from the cruise planner). If you are interested, I can get you that info too.

[Scarlette]

Wait, I thought these were no longer included in Star Benefits?

 

Or are they taken off the Star list after a certain date?

[Ourusualbeach]

Wait, I thought these were no longer included in Star Benefits?

 

Or are they taken off the Star list after a certain date?

 

There was an error on the initial release of the new cabin reclassification that has been corrected. The 2 bedroom Aqua suites are still part of star class.

[Diamond Dandy]

That is true. RCI confirmed it is part of Star benefits yesterday.

 

Great info so far. Many thanks. Some more thoughts:

 

Pictures I have seen of the 2nd bedroom make it seem kind of cramped. Any pictures or comments?

 

Gratuities are included in Star, but should we tip the Genie and/or Stewards extra?

 

Is there added cost for special meals or parties?

 

Since you get free Beverage Plan would that apply to in-suite alcohol?

 

They mention specialized tours and the like. Costs?

 

Obviously I am trying to get the most out of this cruise and appreciate all input.

[Deb04103]

That is true. RCI confirmed it is part of Star benefits yesterday.

 

Great info so far. Many thanks. Some more thoughts:

 

Pictures I have seen of the 2nd bedroom make it seem kind of cramped. Any pictures or comments?

 

Gratuities are included in Star, but should we tip the Genie and/or Stewards extra?

 

Is there added cost for special meals or parties?

 

Since you get free Beverage Plan would that apply to in-suite alcohol?

 

They mention specialized tours and the like. Costs?

 

Obviously I am trying to get the most out of this cruise and appreciate all input.

 

 

The Genie is not tipped as part of the prepaid tips. We had 8 adults, each tipped individually and I do not know what others tipped, but my husband and I gave our Genie $200 and our room steward $100.

The mini bar is included with your Star perks and you can arrange through your Genie for more soda and water to be delivered, as well as beer. The cabin was not cramped, but the second bedroom is a bit small, however I'm sure that 3 kids will be fine in there. We had a free bridge tour.

 

 

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[RFerrington]

Is there added cost for special meals or parties?

 

Since you get free Beverage Plan would that apply to in-suite alcohol?

 

They mention specialized tours and the like. Costs?

 

There is no cost for having a party in your suite unless you order alcohol. We had a party in our suite (8330 on Harmony) as part of the cabin crawl. Food was brought in from Jamie's (but they will bring food in from any restaurant you want) and we ordered 4 bottles of sparkling wine. The Genie arranged everything. They brought in plates, silverware, napkins the food the wine, ice....everything we would need. We were only charged for the wine and we received a discont on that so the price was very reasonable. I believe if you want servers you have to pay for those. We did not need servers.

 

If you have any private tours or excursions there is a price for those but we did not do anything like that.

 

There were just 2 of us in our ATS so it was anything but cramped. The second bedroom is on the smallish side but for children it would be fine.

 

Star Class is worth the money, IMO and I don't think I will ever sail in an O or Q class without it again. I just hope that they eventually extend this program out to the other ship classes.

 

It's the little things that make this so special. One evening my husband was not feeling well and I ordered 2 bowls of my VERY favorite cream of mushroom soup from Chops. They were there in less than 15 minutes. The service was superior and we absolutely loved everything about Star Class. We have 3 more Star class cruises booked and are so happy that they did not remove the 2 BR ATS from Star Class.

[tgold]

We did both the bridge and galley tour, organized by our genie. Also a captain reception in Coastal Kitchen.

 

Is it just adults or are there kids? Our genie was able to organize seats to the ice show that allowed our kids to be in the ice show Was a great time!!

 

 

The 2nd room didn't feel cramped but this was our first cruise. We had three kids in that room, including a pack n play. Tons of space in the living/dining area.

 

 

Our beer was replenished daily. You can also have made to order cocktails come to your room for free each day from 3-5.

 

 

Best perk for me was unlimited free starbucks drinks. It was fabulous!!

[topnole]

We did the two bdr aqua suite on oasis in December. My parents did one on the allure earlier in the year and we were right next-door. Things were definitely different from their first time compared to December. For example you couldn't order room service from specialty restaurants when we had the suite. We said that it used to be a perk and they said that the program had changed. So you might just want to make sure when the people had the suite as you're getting feedback. I could also be that ships do it different ways. also when they brought specialized mixed drinks to the cabin it was just a choice of five specific drinks. You couldnt just order whatever you wanted. They had a more formalized process at that point. Really a stupid process IMO. Overall I can't imagine you not loving the suite.

[TheHobbys]

We were on the 8th floor last August. 2 Adults and 3 kids. It was our first cruise and it was amazing. You will have a ton of space. Would highly recommend doing at least one dinner and one breakfast on the deck. Your genie will take care of everything. Just have an idea of where you would like to eat and he will arrange everything about 2 weeks out. We (my husband and I) never ate in the mdr, but the kids did once. We really enjoyed the signature restaurants.

I would recommend getting on the ship early. We were on the ship with luggage in our room and sitting down at giovanni's by noon. Please send any questions.

Our stops were St. Kitts and St. Thomas. We did private tours there (not from the cruise planner). If you are interested, I can get you that info too.

 

Can you tell me in comparison to the regular excursions/tours you can do through the cruise planner, is the cost for private ones a lot more. We were waiting to book excursions so we can do this with our Genie, thinking he will have good insight on what to do and what not to do. Thought about private ones, but was afraid the price may be crazy high.

Also, which room were you in? Was this Oasis. We are in 8330 at the end of May. First time with Star Class, and we have several first time cruisers coming with us. So excited about all of the extra perks included!!

[tgold]

So I can't compare to the ship excursions because we only did private (we would rather work on our own schedule with three kids). We were very happy with our tours.

On St. Thomas, we used lion in da sun (http://www.lionindasun.com). It was wonderful. It was around 400-450 for half day. He took us to three snorkeling spots and we stopped at the coolest bar/restaurant that was really had to take a boat to get to. The captain (I can't remember his name) worked with our 8 year old on how to snorkel which was priceless.

On St. Kitts, we hired a driver/tour guide. He took us around the island, to the batik company, to the fortress and then to a snorkeling spot/beach restaurant. It was so cool at the snorkeling spot, there were wild monkeys. I thought the kids would never leave! We used Thenford Grey (http://www.thenfordgreytours.com/home.html). Cost was $365 including admission to the above stops.

We were in 8730 so same size as yours. Just incredible. The deck is just amazing. You can also ask your Genie if there are any onboard tours you would like. We were able to go on a galley tour (amazing how big the kitchen is) and a bridge tour.

 

The cost of private tours is really island dependent. We are going to St. Maarten this summer and it is more than double.

 

Let me know if you have any other questions.

[TheHobbys]

So I can't compare to the ship excursions because we only did private (we would rather work on our own schedule with three kids). We were very happy with our tours.

On St. Thomas, we used lion in da sun (http://www.lionindasun.com). It was wonderful. It was around 400-450 for half day. He took us to three snorkeling spots and we stopped at the coolest bar/restaurant that was really had to take a boat to get to. The captain (I can't remember his name) worked with our 8 year old on how to snorkel which was priceless.

On St. Kitts, we hired a driver/tour guide. He took us around the island, to the batik company, to the fortress and then to a snorkeling spot/beach restaurant. It was so cool at the snorkeling spot, there were wild monkeys. I thought the kids would never leave! We used Thenford Grey (http://www.thenfordgreytours.com/home.html). Cost was $365 including admission to the above stops.

We were in 8730 so same size as yours. Just incredible. The deck is just amazing. You can also ask your Genie if there are any onboard tours you would like. We were able to go on a galley tour (amazing how big the kitchen is) and a bridge tour.

 

The cost of private tours is really island dependent. We are going to St. Maarten this summer and it is more than double.

 

Let me know if you have any other questions.

 

This is fantastic information, thank you so much for taking the time to detail this for us!!

 

Did you book all of these on your own, or through your Genie once you go on the boat?

 

Oh and what was your Genie's name. We just got contacted by ours, Allan Fajardo. We are so excited to meet him

[tgold]

I booked them all on my own (a little research from trip advisor). The genie can't help you with outside companies but what they do is take your schedule, make sure they get you off the boat on time, assist with directions on cabs etc and then they will meet you at the boat entrance to expedite the process back on the boat.

We had Israel who was terrific. He just magically showed up:).

And make sure you eat at the Chefs table. We enjoyed so much, we went back with the 8 & 10 year old. They even adjusted some of the courses for them and made them kiddie cocktails.

[redhead621]

Decided to splurge on this suite for the 8/20/17 sailing. As this will very likely be a one time thing I want the benefit of the experience of the folks on Cruise Critic.

 

All input will be greatly appreciated as to positives, negatives, and other things I need to know.

 

Hi Diamond Dandy, I am in the other 2 bedroom Aqua Theater Suite on the 8/20/17 sailing. We can wave back and forth to each other. We have been in contact with our Genie, Allan. Is he also yours? Won't be long now. See you onboard.

[amyhphoto]

The best part for me was having dinner set up on my balcony every night from the MDR. I was traveling with my older parents and very young children so it was the most perfect setup. Theres so much to watch from the balcony. It was quite loud in the evenings, but I loved it. The deck is insanely large and be prepared to never want to stay in a normal cabin again. You will love it.

[redhead621]

The best part for me was having dinner set up on my balcony every night from the MDR. I was traveling with my older parents and very young children so it was the most perfect setup. Theres so much to watch from the balcony. It was quite loud in the evenings, but I loved it. The deck is insanely large and be prepared to never want to stay in a normal cabin again. You will love it.

 

 

I have stayed in this cabin before. You are so right, very hard to stay in a regular cabin after it. We are celebrating my son in laws 40th bday and have arranged to have Chops served on the balcony. An extra bonus will be the Total Solar Eclipse that day.

We were on for Superbowl Sunday and there was a massive party in the Aqua Theater area. ESPN was onboard and they also broadcast the game there. So much fun to be in the middle of everything but not in the crowd.

[irishgal432]

I have stayed in this cabin before. You are so right, very hard to stay in a regular cabin after it. We are celebrating my son in laws 40th bday and have arranged to have Chops served on the balcony. An extra bonus will be the Total Solar Eclipse that day.

We were on for Superbowl Sunday and there was a massive party in the Aqua Theater area. ESPN was onboard and they also broadcast the game there. So much fun to be in the middle of everything but not in the crowd.

 

I am on board as well and just found out the The Weather channel will be live on the cruise as well. You should have a great view of the festivities and concerts.