sambycat
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Mar 24, 2007
- Messages
- 3,483
Oasis of the Seas 7 night Caribbean
Things we liked:
(Aside from meeting new people and the generally great weather!)
- pools: the sizes, the lounge areas, all really nice and way better than DCL
- debarkation process: we did DUs transfers off the ship, so I don't know how the timing "normally" goes, but we liked the more easy going morning with several food options and lots of lounging areas. I don't know how they turn the ship over so fast!
- elevators: full size and rarely crowded
- ocean view balconies: we didn't spend a ton of time on our balcony put the shape of it was bigger than DCL and really accommodated two chairs and a decent sized table
- Central Park: we liked this area just as a concept and hoped the little birds there did too
Things that were "meh":
- ship theme/decor: the ship was generally really clean and in great condition, but we found it very mall of America meets Las Vegas. Or possible Reno. The "art" was really weird and had a vibe to it that struck me as being fake art (I know that sounds bizarre) but allegedly it was actual photo art etc, not corporate art made for hotels or whatever. I believe the theme is nature.
Some areas seemed not to be open at times we were uld use them (the boardwalk), never figured out where the movie theater (showing trolls) was. There is apparently the idea that belly flop contests and sexy man contests are really entertains so much so they show them on in room tv. Oh, the TV has some interesting interactive features but they offer pay for view movies? I thought that was weird.
- service: we had 4 standout crew persons we really enjoyed. Usually on DCL you count the "bad apples" on one hand, not the great ones! Few were truly awful, but definitely a different vibe
- cost: I guess overall I want RCL to be just a bit less expensive to make it more appealing for us. For our family and the times of the year we cruise and how far out we try to cruise and the upcharges, this cruise was within 1k of DCL, but it wasn't soooooooo much cheaper to sway us away from DCL in the future
- rooms: linens were great, pillows were like flat little pancakes. I prefer a split bath but the room was in great condition and the bathroom had pretty tile. The stand up shower felt less luxurious or whatever but we couldn't fit in a DCL bathtub anyway and the showers were nice. The idea of a community shower dispenser is gross and just get rid of that. The sink and counter looked nice but the sink was really narrow and I almost whacked my head hard trying to rinse my face in the sink the first night! Ha! No toiletries of note, just some soap. Our room was nice and was clean.
- clientele: this is neither good or bad, but I feel like the crowd skewed very very "retiree". Which is fine, but I think a lot of the entertainment and food was geared in that direction and that just isn't us. The big plus is that although there were kids, it wasn't crazy kid town and that's great for families in that cool kids pool area!
Things we didn't like:
- smoking: could have been much worse and i think smokers would love this cruise line, but it was noticeable and gross to us
-entertainment: we only did Cats and the Come fly with me/cirque du soleil type thing. They had their moments and the cast of cats was great but I found I do not like cats nor can I understand how that was a thing and the other show was just not our thing... we skipped the ice skating and diving and comedy. Again, just not a fit for us
- upsell: man I thought the spas at DCL were bad, but this was embarrassing. I felt really bad for the crew sent out to harass you while waiting in line for food etc. they were selling drink packages, encouraging you to buy packages for upcharge dining (while you were in line to eat already), trying to sell wine tastings or ship tours. I had crew approach me while I was sitting in a pub waiting for friends and having a drink. It wasn't just out in the mall kiosk of doom area. Also the whole shopping aspect was sad and the actual dundries area was slim and hard to find.
Generally, though we can say that if something came up that fit with cruising on an Oasis sized ship we would probably do it, we don't enjoy casinos, and certainly not smokey ones. We didn't care for the food, not that DCL is waaaay better, but we ate at one upcharge place and Palo is one million times better than Solarium.
We just kind of found it cruise ship-y overall in a cheesy way, while I guess we like the faux classic feeling DCL goes for and the theming/entertainment better. Although RCL doesn't do the ultimate cheese thing I hate: WELCOME THE JENNINGS FAMILEEEEEEEEEEEE!!!!!!!
For us, I think going forward, our vacations are more likely to be trying an all inclusive or something at a Caribbean destination and getting the beach, swim, sail time in that way. I think DCL will be something we do less of overall, looking more to the occasional special itinerary rather than just cruising once or even twice a year.
Things we liked:
(Aside from meeting new people and the generally great weather!)
- pools: the sizes, the lounge areas, all really nice and way better than DCL
- debarkation process: we did DUs transfers off the ship, so I don't know how the timing "normally" goes, but we liked the more easy going morning with several food options and lots of lounging areas. I don't know how they turn the ship over so fast!
- elevators: full size and rarely crowded
- ocean view balconies: we didn't spend a ton of time on our balcony put the shape of it was bigger than DCL and really accommodated two chairs and a decent sized table
- Central Park: we liked this area just as a concept and hoped the little birds there did too
Things that were "meh":
- ship theme/decor: the ship was generally really clean and in great condition, but we found it very mall of America meets Las Vegas. Or possible Reno. The "art" was really weird and had a vibe to it that struck me as being fake art (I know that sounds bizarre) but allegedly it was actual photo art etc, not corporate art made for hotels or whatever. I believe the theme is nature.
Some areas seemed not to be open at times we were uld use them (the boardwalk), never figured out where the movie theater (showing trolls) was. There is apparently the idea that belly flop contests and sexy man contests are really entertains so much so they show them on in room tv. Oh, the TV has some interesting interactive features but they offer pay for view movies? I thought that was weird.
- service: we had 4 standout crew persons we really enjoyed. Usually on DCL you count the "bad apples" on one hand, not the great ones! Few were truly awful, but definitely a different vibe
- cost: I guess overall I want RCL to be just a bit less expensive to make it more appealing for us. For our family and the times of the year we cruise and how far out we try to cruise and the upcharges, this cruise was within 1k of DCL, but it wasn't soooooooo much cheaper to sway us away from DCL in the future
- rooms: linens were great, pillows were like flat little pancakes. I prefer a split bath but the room was in great condition and the bathroom had pretty tile. The stand up shower felt less luxurious or whatever but we couldn't fit in a DCL bathtub anyway and the showers were nice. The idea of a community shower dispenser is gross and just get rid of that. The sink and counter looked nice but the sink was really narrow and I almost whacked my head hard trying to rinse my face in the sink the first night! Ha! No toiletries of note, just some soap. Our room was nice and was clean.
- clientele: this is neither good or bad, but I feel like the crowd skewed very very "retiree". Which is fine, but I think a lot of the entertainment and food was geared in that direction and that just isn't us. The big plus is that although there were kids, it wasn't crazy kid town and that's great for families in that cool kids pool area!
Things we didn't like:
- smoking: could have been much worse and i think smokers would love this cruise line, but it was noticeable and gross to us
-entertainment: we only did Cats and the Come fly with me/cirque du soleil type thing. They had their moments and the cast of cats was great but I found I do not like cats nor can I understand how that was a thing and the other show was just not our thing... we skipped the ice skating and diving and comedy. Again, just not a fit for us
- upsell: man I thought the spas at DCL were bad, but this was embarrassing. I felt really bad for the crew sent out to harass you while waiting in line for food etc. they were selling drink packages, encouraging you to buy packages for upcharge dining (while you were in line to eat already), trying to sell wine tastings or ship tours. I had crew approach me while I was sitting in a pub waiting for friends and having a drink. It wasn't just out in the mall kiosk of doom area. Also the whole shopping aspect was sad and the actual dundries area was slim and hard to find.
Generally, though we can say that if something came up that fit with cruising on an Oasis sized ship we would probably do it, we don't enjoy casinos, and certainly not smokey ones. We didn't care for the food, not that DCL is waaaay better, but we ate at one upcharge place and Palo is one million times better than Solarium.
We just kind of found it cruise ship-y overall in a cheesy way, while I guess we like the faux classic feeling DCL goes for and the theming/entertainment better. Although RCL doesn't do the ultimate cheese thing I hate: WELCOME THE JENNINGS FAMILEEEEEEEEEEEE!!!!!!!
For us, I think going forward, our vacations are more likely to be trying an all inclusive or something at a Caribbean destination and getting the beach, swim, sail time in that way. I think DCL will be something we do less of overall, looking more to the occasional special itinerary rather than just cruising once or even twice a year.
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