Booked Oasis - now I have questions for experienced RCCL cruisers

[travispete]

I just booked the Oasis cruise for Presidents Week (Feb 20-27, '22) for my husband, 13 year old daughter, and I.

 

1. Is the teen lounge open? My daughter is very social and LOVES meeting friends whenever we travel. She's never met a kids club she didn't like.

2. Are we able to book excursions NOT through RCCL, or does it have to be through them? *I thought because of COVID, things may be different.

3. If I drink a three to four cocktails per day, is the drink package worth it?

4. In the MDR, are they seating people together like pre COVID, or can you only dine with those in your party?

5. What's the pool situation on the Oasis? Do you need to make a reservation? First come, first served? Again, inquiring because I don't know how COVID has changed things.

6. Any must dos, don't dos, pre planning musts that you can share?

 

Thank you so much! We are so excited!

[Mugiwara]

44 minutes ago, travispete said:

I just booked the Oasis cruise for Presidents Week (Feb 20-27, '22) for my husband, 13 year old daughter, and I.

 

1. Is the teen lounge open? My daughter is very social and LOVES meeting friends whenever we travel. She's never met a kids club she didn't like.

2. Are we able to book excursions NOT through RCCL, or does it have to be through them? *I thought because of COVID, things may be different.

3. If I drink a three to four cocktails per day, is the drink package worth it?

4. In the MDR, are they seating people together like pre COVID, or can you only dine with those in your party?

5. What's the pool situation on the Oasis? Do you need to make a reservation? First come, first served? Again, inquiring because I don't know how COVID has changed things.

6. Any must dos, don't dos, pre planning musts that you can share?

 

Thank you so much! We are so excited!

Oasis is a beautiful ship with a lot to see and do.  We're booked on it in December and looking forward to being back on board her again.  To answer your questions as best as possible:

 

1. End of February is 4 months from now, so a lot can happen.  I'd expect it should be open by then.

2. Depends on the situation at the various ports you'll be sailing to - local governments dictate this, not RCL.

3. Depends - if you get it on a good sale, it might be.  The premium drink package also covers the smoothies at the Vitality Cafe as well as the Lattes and Cappuccinos etc at Cafe Promenade, so there's that to consider.

4. Hard to say - see point 1.

5. Again, it's a bit far out to speculate; what applies now may no longer be relevant (good Lord willing and the creek don't rise).

6. Do: Go to the Solarium Bistro or Park Cafe on boarding day - less crowded than the Windjammer.

           Book your shows as soon as possible.

           The Solarium is pretty quiet on boarding day, so it's a good place to unwind while waiting for                 your cabin to be ready.

          Pre Planning: Take advantage of all of the good videos on the internet about the ship - Danny Harr has a really good one about post-amplified Oasis that has a lot of good tips.

          Find a Cruise Compass for the itinerary you're taking to get an idea of ship life day to day. Royal Caribbean Blog can be a good place to look for these.

 

Hope this helps.

[Biker19]

1 hour ago, travispete said:

6. Any must dos, don't dos, pre planning musts that you can share?

Don’t plan too much as things can and do change all the time. Be flexible. 

[travispete]

7 minutes ago, Mugiwara said:

Oasis is a beautiful ship with a lot to see and do.  We're booked on it in December and looking forward to being back on board her again.  To answer your questions as best as possible:

 

1. End of February is 4 months from now, so a lot can happen.  I'd expect it should be open by then.

2. Depends on the situation at the various ports you'll be sailing to - local governments dictate this, not RCL.

3. Depends - if you get it on a good sale, it might be.  The premium drink package also covers the smoothies at the Vitality Cafe as well as the Lattes and Cappuccinos etc at Cafe Promenade, so there's that to consider.

4. Hard to say - see point 1.

5. Again, it's a bit far out to speculate; what applies now may no longer be relevant (good Lord willing and the creek don't rise).

6. Do: Go to the Solarium Bistro or Park Cafe on boarding day - less crowded than the Windjammer.

           Book your shows as soon as possible.

           The Solarium is pretty quiet on boarding day, so it's a good place to unwind while waiting for                 your cabin to be ready.

          Pre Planning: Take advantage of all of the good videos on the internet about the ship - Danny Harr has a really good one about post-amplified Oasis that has a lot of good tips.

          Find a Cruise Compass for the itinerary you're taking to get an idea of ship life day to day. Royal Caribbean Blog can be a good place to look for these.

 

Hope this helps.

Thank you so much! This is incredibly helpful!

[Sunshine3601]

As of right now there a couple islands that require ship only excursions.  What islands are you visiting?

 

Currently the teen lounge is open.  I'm not sure if there are restrictions.

 

A glass of wine typically costs $8 or $9, cocktails can be $10 to $13, some more depends on what you drink.  If you like speciality coffees or fresh squeezed juices then a beverage package may be beneficial depending on price.  Check out black friday sales on your cruise planner online.

 

As if right now they are limiting people in the swimming pool and people in hot tubs are social distancing as much as possible.

 

Mdr has options to book either traditional dining or my time dining.  As of right now there are separate dining rooms for families traveling with children under 12 that are unvaxxed.  

I have not heard of seating with strangers at this time.

 

Dont over think or book too much.  Our best cruises are those we dont have a lot booked and able to relax and not worry about time or where I am supposed to be at.

 

Again, check out sales on cruise planner on black friday.  

 

[codeyell0]

All the kids clubs activities are open. At least as of now.  
We canceled our carnival cruise because they canceled kids club. (after final payment and only put it in the details of a long list of information on an exception form) But that said carnival was very nice about it and just gave a refund and within 7 days. 
So we book Royal and made sure kids activities were all open.  

I have 2 kids,  what would small kids do without kids club?  My kids LOVE IT!!!! first thing in the AM can we go? can we go? can we go?
Who am I to say no to kid free time?  We get a quiet dinner to our selves usually once, twice a year.