Help deciding on ship

[mcqueenbee]

Hi everyone!

We are currently trying to decide between three ships for our vacation that are in our budget. We are traveling with our 12 year old son. We have only done Freedom and Liberty years ago.

 

Ship #1 is a 6 day Allure of the Seas Western Caribbean.

Pros

• Ports, we have never done 
• Price, super good deal
• Leaves from Fort Lauderdale
• Always wanted to do Oasis class
• More family friendly dining options

Cons

• 6 day cruise
• Not sure how updated the ship is, 11 years old

 

 

Ship #2 is an 8 day Odyssey of the Sea Southern Caribbean

Pros

• Brand new
• Price is a good deal
• uhm, 8 day cruise
• Ports of call we have never been
• leaves from Fort Lauderdale
• cabin available is actually larger than others

Cons

• Does not many dining options or family friendly options
• The ship appears geared to adults, pool area appears too plain (thinking like a 12 y/o boy)

 

 

Finally, the last is a 7 day Oasis of the Sea Eastern Caribbean (I want to know if it has been renovated)

Pros

• Good deal
• Ship has been renovated adding slides (I think, correct me if I am wrong)
• Always wanted to do Oasis class
• More family friendly dining options
• Goes to our favorite ports
• 7 day cruise

Cons

• Leaves from Miami, ugh
• Goes to ports we have been

 

I appreciate any help. We travel often and try to keep it different destinations. We are also foodies and like a wide variety of dining options but not $50/pp for every options.

 

 

Lisa

[firefly333]

Oasis has been amped but allure has not

 

You can pre purchase the unlimited dining plan for 79 or 99 pp depending on class. The oasis class is usually 99 pp. If you go most days it wouldnt be 50 each meal. 

 

Lots of good free options though on oasis class.

[WisconsinFan]

Allure of the Seas went into dry dock, May of 2020. She was to get a major overhaul, but then COVID. I can't post links to stories on what was done, and don't have time to type out what was done, but you have access to search engines so you can see what they ended up doing. We were supposed to be on her last week, but COVID ;). We have done Harmony of the Seas and would imagine a 12 year old as well as the family would love Allure. Lots to do for sure. Oasis class has the Aqua shows which are awesome, plenty of free food (Johnny Rockets is free for breakfast) and nice up charge places as well. You just need to decide if ports or ship is more important. When we were traveling with our boys (now 22 and 27) they always found things to do, and that was when the largest ships were Freedom Class 🙂

 

We have Odyssey of the Seas booked for 2023, and really can't comment on if kids would find enough to do, but it does have the I-Fly.

[HicksRA]

Oasis would probably be best for a 12 year old. 

[sandebeach]

21 minutes ago, firefly333 said:

Oasis has been amped but allure has not

 

You can pre purchase the unlimited dining plan for 79 or 99 pp depending on class. The oasis class is usually 99 pp. If you go most days it wouldnt be 50 each meal. 

 

Lots of good free options though on oasis class.

I think you are quoting the price for a 3-dinner package.  Unlimited dining package is usually more than that for a Oasis-class ship.  

[Biker19]

Odyssey will be good for the 12 year old and the longer itinerary for you.

[Cigar King]

You didn't say when this cruise was going to be.  If it were me, and I was making plans for a family vacation, for this Summer, I would NOT choose a cruise.  If it doesn't sail I'd imagine the 12 YO would be disappointed.

 

BTW - I see it's your first post.  Welcome to CC.

Edited March 31, 2021 by Cigar King

[Scoobydobe7]

37 minutes ago, firefly333 said:

Oasis has been amped but allure has not

 

You can pre purchase the unlimited dining plan for 79 or 99 pp depending on class. The oasis class is usually 99 pp. If you go most days it wouldnt be 50 each meal. 

 

Lots of good free options though on oasis class.

Unlimited dining plan for 79 or 99 per person.??? Or did you mean the 3 night dining package??? I

[mcqueenbee]

@cigarking it is during Christmas break. His June 2020 Symphony of the Seas got cancelled. He bounced back. We live in Florida 😁

Thanks

[Tapi]

Even without the amplification, my son had way more to do than he could handle when we sailed on the Allure. With that said, I can’t imagine your kid not having enough to do on ANY of these ships. Chances are that he’s going to have plenty to do no matter which one you pick. I would personally go for the longest itinerary that also happens to be on the newest ship. Odyssey would be my choice. 
 

I know that all kids are different but I’ll give you my two cents, based on 11 cruises with 2 kids around the same age as yours. They’ve always had way too much fun no matter which cruise line or ship we’ve sailed on. Even when we sailed on Holland America (which is geared towards a senior citizen clientele with very limited kid offerings) my kids had an absolute blast. My 11yo son actually said that it was his favorite cruise so far. And that’s quite a statement after having sailed on more family friendly cruise lines (Disney, Royal, Carnival, MSC) with much more elaborate and extensive kid facilities and programs. 
 

Long story short, I’d recommend that you focus on the itinerary and ship that sounds best to you. Unless your son is a cruise ship connoisseur and enthusiast that knows all the little differences between ships, chances are that he will have an absolute blast no matter what, and won’t know what he’s missing on one ship vs another. 

Edited March 31, 2021 by Tapi

[firefly333]

37 minutes ago, sandebeach said:

I think you are quoting the price for a 3-dinner package.  Unlimited dining package is usually more than that for a Oasis-class ship.  

Lol you are right, I was looking at the 3 meal.

 

The other is more, 159 pp on liberty and more on oasis I'm sure.

[smokeybandit]

I think you're thinking too hard.

All those ships are similar enough not to make a difference in your experience, especially if you're not a frequent cruiser.

 

If the price of all three works for you, I'd go for the longer cruise with new-to-you destinations.

[cruiseguy1016]

You list a pro as sailing from Ft. Lauderdale but a con leaving from Miami (you even commented "ugh"). I'm curious. Why is Miami so bad compared to Ft. Lauderdale? The two are so close to each other, I can't believe it would be a make or break point.

[deweytrader]

Ship #2 is an 8 day Odyssey of the Sea Southern Caribbean for sure!!!  Plenty to do for a 12 year old...

[bumorgan]

Odyssey gets my vote 8 days. Check out their video. Bounce park, Laser tag, observation bubble and more. I'm booked on it for 2/6/22. Enjoy!

[mcqueenbee]

29 minutes ago, cruiseguy1016 said:

You list a pro as sailing from Ft. Lauderdale but a con leaving from Miami (you even commented "ugh"). I'm curious. Why is Miami so bad compared to Ft. Lauderdale? The two are so close to each other, I can't believe it would be a make or break point.

Miami traffic is horrible and Port of Miami gives me anxiety. I am originally from Miami then moved to Ft Lauderdale now in Central Florida. The drive to Ft Lauderdale is easier and less congested, hands down.

[mcqueenbee]

@TapiI agree with most points. We are seriously considering the Odyssey for many reasons. My son did have not-so-fun experience on a cruise to Cuba on Halloween. We were assured they would have Halloween activities on board but it turned out he was the only child on board😬 And there was nothing. The ship was older and did not have a lot for kid. Even the pool was salt water so he hated that. Oh well, lesson learned!!

[Ashland]

18 minutes ago, mcqueenbee said:

Miami traffic is horrible and Port of Miami gives me anxiety. I am originally from Miami then moved to Ft Lauderdale now in Central Florida. The drive to Ft Lauderdale is easier and less congested, hands down.

Sorry I still think this reason isn't enough to rule out what would be the better ship/itinerary choice.

[mcqueenbee]

8 minutes ago, Ashland said:

Sorry I still think this reason isn't enough to rule out what would be the better ship/itinerary choice.

See for us, Floridians, this can be totally a make or break. Same as driving into Disney traffic on I-4 traffic---deal breakers!

Edited March 31, 2021 by mcqueenbee

[erinsmom03]

This would be easy for me... Odyssey, hands down. Longer itinerary, ports, beautiful new ship. We sailed on Ovation in 2019 with a 16 year old, 15 year old and 13 year old. The 13 year old was the only boy. We never saw him. He spent all his time with friends he met at the teen club and in the SeaPlex. There were great options for dining. Our families loved the Solarium Bistro and Cafe TWO70. The kids loved iFly! There is a ton of stuff for kids to do on the ship, and plenty of places to eat.

[Tree_skier]

Odyssey would be my choice.  Brand new ship with a better 8 day itinerary trumps everything.  

[Ashland]

33 minutes ago, mcqueenbee said:

See for us, Floridians, this can be totally a make or break. Same as driving into Disney traffic on I-4 traffic---deal breakers!

Couldn't timing of the drive be an option....a small bit of inconvenience for a great cruise.

You're choice.

[firefly333]

6 minutes ago, Ashland said:

Couldn't timing of the drive be an option....a small bit of inconvenience for a great cruise.

You're choice.

I got a friend who lives in ft Lauderdale who wouldnt drive into Miami without her son with her. Maybe its changed but miami has a bad reputation of dont get stuck in a dead end street and get lost.

 

I'm not sure it's just a matter of a bit of inconvenience.  

[Ashland]

8 minutes ago, firefly333 said:

I got a friend who lives in ft Lauderdale who wouldnt drive into Miami without her son with her. Maybe its changed but miami has a bad reputation of dont get stuck in a dead end street and get lost.

 

I'm not sure it's just a matter of a bit of inconvenience.  

OP lived in Miami...An option could be to park in Fort Lauderdale and shuttle right to POM.

Lots of people arrive into Fort Lauderdale for a Miami cruise.

Not sure why OP gave this Miami cruise as an option if it was completely out of the question.

[firefly333]

5 minutes ago, Ashland said:

OP lived in Miami...An option could be to park in Fort Lauderdale and shuttle right to POM.

Lots of people arrive into Fort Lauderdale for a Miami cruise.

Not sure why OP gave this Miami cruise as an option if it was completely out of the question.

I saw OP lived in miami previously. I lived boca for 13 years about a hour north so I'm very familiar.

 

Now I sometimes even fly into ft Lauderdale instead of miami just because it's so much easier. And shuttled from ft Lauderdale so I've done it a few times. 

 

No idea why the cruise from miami offered. Just saying I too prefer ft Lauderdale. 

 

Dont think OP can go wrong with these ships, but her 12 year old sounds picky. I haven't been on any cruises without quite a few kids. As a kid I would be thrilled but more slides a plus!!