Bea
Thompson
thompsonbea.cruises@cox.net
Itinerary: Eastern
Caribbean
Sailing Date: January 9th, 2010
Age: 69
Occupation: Travel consultant
Number of Cruises: 35
I would definitely cruise on the Oasis again and would
recommend it for anyone who enjoys cruising.
On deck 6 a Boardwalk exhibit
shows how wooden horses are made for the nearby carousel
that whirls with adult riders as well as children. Again,
there are shops, restaurants and cafes including an old
fashioned ice cream parlor and a donut shop. Guests squeal
as they buzz overhead on the zipline. I glanced upward at
the curved glass patios on six decks of cabins overlooking
the Boardwalk and wondered if they would be too noisy. One
colleague with a stateroom in that locale indicated that
noise was shut out when his balcony door was closed. Suites
at the far aft overlook both the Boardwalk and the outdoor
theater where the Aqua Show and Light Shows are held.
The much awaited Central Park is located on deck 8 (near my
cabin). What a way to transit the length of a ship to the
show room! I would enter the park near the aft elevators,
stroll the park walkways through trees and beautifully
maintained beds of plants and flowers. Then I would skirt
past sculptures and restaurants with al fresco dining. The
park ends near the fore elevators that go down four decks to
the show room. Evening lights provide for a romantic stroll
after dinner and a show. A horticulture tour of the park is
an offered daytime activity.
The Vitality at Sea and
Fitness Spa is spacious and restful. Beauty procedures and
exercise classes are performed on deck 5; massages are
performed in a quiet, isolated area on deck 4. The spa
offers a wide range of services, including acupuncture. The
prices are on par with spas on other cruise lines. Only
guests who purchase a massage or a special package can use
the warming lounge (benches, steam room and sauna). Access
from deck 5 to 4 is by a winding, glass staircase. Some
guests with mobility concerns may find this staircase
unsettling. There is one elevator built to hold a
wheelchair. The elevator is difficult to locate but may be
used by any guests. The spa has a wheelchair accessible
shower on deck 4.
Most of Deck 4 is the Entertainment Place neighborhood. This
deck includes the casino, comedy club, Blazes family disco,
the Jazz Club, the ice skating rink and the main entrance to
the theater. Reservations must be made for the shows and
comedy club. Reservations are embedded in your cruise card.
Staff simply zap your cruise card at the entrance to the
venue and you can select your seat—no standing in line. Ten
minutes before show time, persons who did not make
reservations are invited to fill empty seats on a first-come
basis. Shows are offered a sufficient number of times so
that each person on the ship can attend each show once. Some
show times conflict with dining room hours so you may need
to place reservations for one of the specialty restaurants
or dine in the Windjammer Marketplace. It was wonderful to
know your theater seat was waiting rather than having to
shuffle in a large line of people looking for vacant theater
seats.
Decks 15 and 16 are the fun decks. There are two “Flow
Riders” in an area called Wipeout. Guests of all ages were
giving surfing a try. Again reservations were required in
order to manage the number of interested guests.
There are four pools, none especially large but each
distinctly different. One pool is deep and long enough for
exercise swimming; one pool has a “lap” area where guests
rest on lounge chairs as pool water laps over them. The
children’s pool has many colorful fountains and is divided
into areas of different depths to accommodate toddlers and
young children. Around the pool are lounge chairs, both
adult and child sized.
The Solarium contains an adults’ only pool and the
cantilevered hot tub. This area was crowded the day I
visited; the area appears quite small to provide a restful
day in the sun.. The Solarium restaurant is open to all. The
restaurant serves a selection of healthful, Mediterranean
type foods.
There are two golf courses: one is an adult putting course
that appears to challenge the players. Adjacent is a
miniature course for young children. The basketball court
allows room for folks to practice soccer shots between the
two basket ends of the court. I did not visit the other
sports areas or the Youth Zone (the seventh neighborhood).
The neighborhoods are divided by decks and either begin or
end at an elevator. All of the neighborhoods have open
seating along the promenades or in adjacent snack bars and
bars. This provides very comfortably accommodation for the
elderly and slow walkers who may need to rest while moving
about the ship.
Activities
The Oasis is not only unique from any other cruise ship in
its size (capacity of 5400+ passengers and a crew of more
than 2100+), it presents many experiences not offered by any
other cruise line. Introduced on the Oasis are light shows,
an aquatic show, a Broadway play, rising bar, horticulture
tour through Central Park, carousel ride, zip line, a family
disco and many more.
During one day at sea, the “Daily Compass” included 25
activities in the morning, 46 in the afternoon and 26 in the
evening. During one day in port, the “Daily Compass”
included 14 activities in the morning, 30 in the afternoon
and 32 in the evening. And these numbers do not include
activities for children and youth or shows. This large,
diverse array of activities keeps the passenger load well
dispersed.
I attended the Aqua Show (diving, swimming and gymnastics),
“Come Fly With Me” (aerial gymnastics), Abbacadabra (a
review of ABBA) and the comedy show. All were excellent. My
colleagues raved about the quality of “Hairspray.”
Reservations for the shows, zip line, Flow Rider and
restaurants can be made online up to 90 days prior to
sailing.
Dining
The Oasis has one three-story dining room. One story is
designated for “anytime dining.” The other two dining rooms
hold about 600 tables each, with tables seating from two to
eight persons. One of the two times I felt the pressure of a
large number of passengers was when the doors were opened
for dinner. This is a common occurrence on any cruise ship,
but it is recommended that you go to dinner a few minutes
late because of the large number of people funneling into
each dining room.
Food in both the dining room and the Windjammer Marketplace
ranged from very good to excellent. Service was consistent,
friendly and very good. The Windjammer Marketplace provided
a large array of selections, including Asian and Indian
dishes, at both lunch and dinner. The Windjammer was
organized with several large, round serving areas that
worked well at keeping the guests moving.
The ship has 24 restaurants and snack bars as well as 37
bars. Fourteen dining spots have surcharges ranging from
$4.95 per person at Johnny Rocket’s to $35 per person at the
flagship restaurant, 150 Central Park. A nominal charge is
made at the ice cream parlor, donut shop and candy store, as
well as a few other snack bars. The price for two
medium-sized scoops of high quality ice cream was $2.95 +
15% tip. Self-serve soft ice cream is available for no
charge at two snack bars on the sun deck.
I was impressed by the number and placement of hand
sanitizer stands at the entrances to the restaurants.
Personnel stationed at the entrance to the Windjammer
reminded people to sanitize their hands. On one occasion,
the crew member followed a guest into the buffet room and
politely asked her to return to sanitize her hands.
Stateroom
My stateroom was comfortable. The balcony easily held a
round table and two chairs; it can hold two more chairs.
Adjacent cabins alternate in furniture layout. If the bed is
located near the balcony door, the couch (facing the desk)
is between the bed and the bathroom. If the couch is made up
at night for a third guest, access to the bathroom will be
blocked for the guests using the bed. If three people are to
share a cabin, I recommend a cabin where the couch is by the
balcony door.
I had only a few other very minor negative comments about
the cabin: the outlets were difficult to use since they were
under the desk; the instructions on the safe were too small
to read, and the instructions for use of the in-cabin
internet presumed too much technical knowledge on the part
of the user.
Debarkation
Debarkation was well organized at the onset. However, many
guests ignored the color coded timing for departure and were
allowed to leave the ship ahead of their scheduled time.
This caused a jam in customs since their luggage was not yet
available in customs. This was the second time I was aware
that there were a large number of people on the ship. Since
this was only the seventh sailing of the Oasis, I believe
Royal Caribbean will get the timing of release under control
with future sailings.
Conclusion
You never have to leave the Oasis of the Seas to have a good
time. Other than the shops and casino, the ship’s activities
are open during port days. You do not have to leave the ship
to feel your “land legs.” Water in a glass does not move
when the ship is at normal cruising speed; water barely
shimmers when the ship is traveling at 22 knots.
The extensive use of organization and technology so
effectively manages the number of guests that I did not feel
that I was traveling with 5400+ other guests. The location
of the neighborhoods (divided by different decks but
starting or ending at elevators) and the horizontal park and
Royal Promenade provide opportunities for people to rest as
they move around the ship.
When boarding Royal Caribbean’s new Oasis of the Seas, I
stepped into one of the ship’s seven neighborhoods: the
Royal Promenade (deck 5). I was immediately surrounded by a
colorful, array of restaurants, a coffee cafe, word streams
on a news board, shops with brightly colored wares and a bar
rising upward. Located midst these exciting features are
Guest Relations with organized queues and a central kiosk
entitled Expeditions for shore excursions. The surprise
greeting of the Royal Promenade sets the ambience for this
beautiful, exciting new resort at sea.
