My Oasis Star Class Experience (3/12-3/19)

We sailed on Ovation last year and loved our Star Class experience. When we got back we tried to book Star Class on Harmony for a cruise over a year in advance (early 2018) and that level was already sold out. We had to book for a particular week for this cruise, but it would be nice if RC had a search option to return sailings with Star Class availability for future reservations.

it would be nice if RC had a search option to return sailings with Star Class availability for future reservations.

Yes, it would !

I have never found much information about it, but I would like to know a little more about the room and the surrounds. Maybe someone else that has had a 2 bedroom aqua theatre suite could chime in. We have got a level 8 booked for the end of 2018.

I was wondering if the rock climbing wall was much of a bother? You go out on your deck and there is someone steering in at you or your room.

How good was the deck for watching the shows? Could you hear and see everything, or did you make at least one trip down to the seats to get a better view? Was it very noisy during the day or at night? Was it easy to watch the late movie on the big screen?

If watching something would have it been easy to order popcorn and soft drinks for the kids, from the genie or room service? Or with all the drinks in the room it was only adult beverages that were needed if watching the show?

With Level 10, being Star, and Level 11 being Sky (1-bedroom), if you didn't need the second bedroom, the location and view is roughly the same would you still sail in an Aqua Theatre suite, or would you move to level 17 where all the other Star class rooms are, the benefits are now that important to you.

Sorry, one more question - when being escorted off the ship, when you went to the front of the queue for CBP, was this a US Citizen only line, or would non US passport holders also have roughly the same timeline?

Thanks

I was wondering if the rock climbing wall was much of a bother? You go out on your deck and there is someone steering in at you or your room.

We were in 8330 on Harmony in Feb of this year.

The climbing wall was never a problem for us. For the entire week, the wall on our side was never activated....all of the rock climbing was on the 8730 side. However even if they had been climbing on our side, I can't imagine that they would ever been looking our way as the balcony is fully behind the climber. They would have to turn fairly severely to look in that direction so I wouldn't be concerned about that at all.

How good was the deck for watching the shows? Could you hear and see everything, or did you make at least one trip down to the seats to get a better view? Was it very noisy during the day or at night? Was it easy to watch the late movie on the big screen?

We have been in both the 2 BR ATS (8330) and the 1 BR ATS (11330 on Allure in Feb. 16). I would say that the difference in elevation between the 2 actually makes a significant difference in your ability to hear what is going on down at the ATS (obviously doesn't apply to the pounding music of the shows). While the visibility is about equal in quality, it is definitely easier to hear (voices) from deck 8 than it was from deck 11. We were able to completely enjoy all of the ATS shows from deck 8 while I think we would have been able to enjoy them more last year if we had gone down to the seating when we were staying on deck 11.

As far as extraneous noise, it never bothered us in either location. They have practice sessions during the day and it's fun to watch them practice. ...but the "noise" was never an issue, especially with the doors closed.

Regarding a movie, I have to admit that I never was outdoors when a film was being broadcast, so I really don't know whether you can hear the dialogue or not. My guess is that you would not be able to hear up on the higher decks but possibly may have been able to from deck 8.

If watching something would have it been easy to order popcorn and soft drinks for the kids, from the genie or room service? Or with all the drinks in the room it was only adult beverages that were needed if watching the show?

Popcorn ? There's popcorn ? How did I miss this ??? :mad:

The Genie can do anything (except attend the life boat drill on your behalf, I know. I asked (jokingly)). If the children (or adults) want popcorn and soft drinks, then popcorn and soft drinks they shall have ! Yes, if you want to have soft drinks available at all times in the suite just make sure that the Genie (and stateroom attendant) know what they want and in what amounts and it will be there. I'm guessing (since its availability somehow escaped me !!!) that if there is an event for which popcorn would be desired, it would be delivered.

It has been my experience that anything to eat drink that is available on the ship can be brought to your suite. The only thing with which there are limitations are bottles of liquor....and there are ways around that one too...for a price.

With Level 10, being Star, and Level 11 being Sky (1-bedroom), if you didn't need the second bedroom, the location and view is roughly the same would you still sail in an Aqua Theatre suite, or would you move to level 17 where all the other Star class rooms are, the benefits are now that important to you.

As I mentioned above, we have been in both the 1 and 2 BR ATS. When we were in the 1 BR in Feb 16, the Star Class Program had not yet begun so we didn't realize, at the time, what we were missing ! After having experienced the Star Class, I would never pay the prices they are asking for the ATS unless it was a Star Class suite.

We have 1 more 2 BR ATS reserved for Sept. of this year on Harmony. It will almost certainly be our last opportunity to have an ATS b/c they are now limiting the 2 BR versions to parties of 5 or more. Since there are only 2 of us, we will no longer qualify for these suites. While the 1 BR suites are very nice and the view is breathtaking, I would not consider spending that kind money again for Sky class. So it's going to be deck 17 for us after September.

Then benefits of Star Class ARE that important to us.:p

Sorry, one more question - when being escorted off the ship, when you went to the front of the queue for CBP, was this a US Citizen only line, or would non US passport holders also have roughly the same timeline?

 

Thanks

Typical American. I didn't even notice. Sorry. No help on this one.

Thank you for you post. We live in Trinity just up the street from you. We are sailing in June in the same suite two floors below and are so looking forward to the whole genie VIP experience. It is good to hear that I don't have to stress about trying to book things ahead of time like a cabana. We always book a cabana although it may not be in the location we wanted. Is there anything at all that I need to think about booking ahead or should I just not even worry about it and know that it will be all taken care of by the genie?

 

Also for dining I assume they take care of the reservations and you just pick where you want to eat each night?

CruzShipps-

If you want to see the comedy shows, you should book that as there is limited seating and the Genie may not be able to reserve you a seat there. Also, if you want to go to Izumi, let your Genie know ASAP as those spaces are also limited. Other than that, don't worry about a thing! You will be well taken care of! And you are going to LOVE that suite! Yours is even bigger than ours, and I thought ours was huge! Enjoy!

Diane

What did you think of that mattress in the master BR ? Wasn't it heavenly ?? That was THE most comfortable mattress I have EVER slept on. Wish I could have taken it home !

RFerrington- Ours was just a cover over the mattress. Felt like a really good memory foam. Very comfy! Best cruise ship mattress I've ever slept on! No falling through the crack like in the old days! ;p

I did have to laugh at the "Pillow Menu". They listed 4 different kinds of pillows you could choose from!:') We just used the three amazing down pillows (each) that were on our bed. we were very pampered indeed!

Diane

I have never found much information about it, but I would like to know a little more about the room and the surrounds. Maybe someone else that has had a 2 bedroom aqua theatre suite could chime in. We have got a level 8 booked for the end of 2018.

 

I was wondering if the rock climbing wall was much of a bother? You go out on your deck and there is someone steering in at you or your room.

 

How good was the deck for watching the shows? Could you hear and see everything, or did you make at least one trip down to the seats to get a better view? Was it very noisy during the day or at night? Was it easy to watch the late movie on the big screen?

 

If watching something would have it been easy to order popcorn and soft drinks for the kids, from the genie or room service? Or with all the drinks in the room it was only adult beverages that were needed if watching the show?

 

With Level 10, being Star, and Level 11 being Sky (1-bedroom), if you didn't need the second bedroom, the location and view is roughly the same would you still sail in an Aqua Theatre suite, or would you move to level 17 where all the other Star class rooms are, the benefits are now that important to you.

Rock Wall- We saw people climbing while we were on our balcony, but they didn't even notice we were there unless we said something to them. They cannot see in the room at all, and can barely see onto your balcony even if they tried. There was a little noise from the bell when people reached the top (deck 10) but it wasn't loud enough to hear if you weren't on that side of the balcony.

Aqua Shows- We loved watching from up there. The sound may have been a little better from lower, but we never felt like we missed out on anything.

Movies on Big Screen- We watched ever movie they showed (my daughter is a movie buff). They put the captions on the screen so you could read the words if you couldn't hear everything. The sound was pretty good, even on the 10th deck. When you weren't on the balcony though, you could not hear anything in the room.

Customs Line- Star Class gets preferential treatment no matter what, so I think it would be the same for non-American as well. Not sure what other processes you have to go through, but you wouldn't have to wait in line.

As for Cabana reservation... I know there is a lot of discrepancy here, and I guess it depends on your ship/ concierge/ genie, but my understanding is this- Star Class gets first dibs (through their Genie). Then sky class (and sea class?) would get their choice through the concierge. Whatever is still available can be booked on the ship. Feel free to correct me if I'm wrong, but I think that is how it works.

We requested B2 (thanks to people on this board) and we did get that cabana. It was charged to our onboard account once we were on the ship. We did book the Labadee zipline through the cruise planner online, and were charged for that up front.

Hope this helps!

Diane

CruzShipps- I forgot to mention that you should book any excursions you want, ahead of time as if they fill up, the Genie may not be able to get you in.

Diane

As for Cabana reservation... I know there is a lot of discrepancy here, and I guess it depends on your ship/ concierge/ genie, but my understanding is this- Star Class gets first dibs (through their Genie). Then sky class (and sea class?) would get their choice through the concierge. Whatever is still available can be booked on the ship. Feel free to correct me if I'm wrong, but I think that is how it works.

 

We requested B2 (thanks to people on this board) and we did get that cabana. It was charged to our onboard account once we were on the ship. We did book the Labadee zipline through the cruise planner online, and were charged for that up front.

 

 

Hope this helps!

 

 

Diane

That's what I have heard and only hope that I contacted them too early - our Genie is on vacation right now & I think is due back for the next cruise - we don't sail until the 5/11 cruise that goes to Labadee

Thanks

Pat

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That's what I have heard and only hope that I contacted them too early - our Genie is on vacation right now & I think is due back for the next cruise - we don't sail until the 5/11 cruise that goes to Labadee

 

Pat, I think you're probably right, that you contacted them too early. Our Genie was on vacation right before our cruise, so the concierge made our reservations on her behalf. I worried so much about my cabana and our reservations, but everything turned out perfect once we were onboard. :D

 

Diane

What is it with the ice show? On Harmony we saw the same thing. Genie comes down with a party of three. There were only 2 seats next to each other open, with a 3rd one open 5 seats to the left. One couple smiled and moved over one seat each to make room for the 3rd star class person to sit with the other two. But the other couple would not move. Complete jerks. So the 3rd start class person ended up sitting by himself, 2 seats away from his 2 friends. Oh, did I mention the couple that wouldn't move had a dog in their lap?

 

 

All week we saw issues like this. We were slumming it in Sky class. The poor girls in the theater whose job it was to hold 2 looooong entire rows in the main theater for any and all sky class. Hopeless, frustrating for them. What made it worse was that week there was a couple hundred people from East Asia on the sailing. They would literally push the girl aside to take any seats they wanted. "No English....No English....."as they waved her away. So rude. They knew what they were doing.

From a way back but funny story, on Harmony Med last summer we watched a guy trying to reserve seats at the ice show 4 or 5 groups tried to pass him to take them and he said no, in the end 5 mins before the start loads of people didn't have seats so a guy and his wife went back for a second go, the guy still said no, they tried to walk past, he lifted he legs to block them, they both started shouting, guy sitting threw a punch, other guy threw one back, then pushed his legs and walked past and him and his wife took the seats. The guys were then sat next to each other shoulder to shoulder the whole show - the original guys pals never did show up, but that must have been a very awkward hour!!

No security arrived.

From a way back but funny story, on Harmony Med last summer we watched a guy trying to reserve seats at the ice show 4 or 5 groups tried to pass him to take them and he said no, in the end 5 mins before the start loads of people didn't have seats so a guy and his wife went back for a second go, the guy still said no, they tried to walk past, he lifted he legs to block them, they both started shouting, guy sitting threw a punch, other guy threw one back, then pushed his legs and walked past and him and his wife took the seats. The guys were then sat next to each other shoulder to shoulder the whole show - the original guys pals never did show up, but that must have been a very awkward hour!!

No security arrived.

Yikes !!

Yikes !!

I call it the pre-show show sometimes more entertaining than the actual event to watch all argy-bargy that goes on before what with attempted reserving and suite seats complainers!

I am sharing my Star Class experience, not to brag about it, but to give some information for those who may be interested in what is involved with sailing Star Class. When I booked, there was not a lot of current info., so I thought I'd share.

 

After my first Star Class Cruise, I have to tell you, I don't know if I can ever go back to "normal" cruising again! We booked the 2 bedroom Aquatheater suite (10730) for my husband and I and our 2 adult children (20 and 21). It was a great week of being completely spoiled!

 

It started 6 weeks before sailing when we received a questionnaire via email (silly questions which I answered honestly, but feel was never read). 4 weeks before sailing, I got an email asking if we wanted to rent a cabana at Labadee (we did) and what times we wanted dinners at Specialty restaurants and which shows we were interested in. All reservations were made and a schedule was emailed to me about 2 weeks prior to sailing.

 

1 week before the cruise, the Genie sent me the LOOP app. We did communicate through that a few times, but apparently it doesn't work very reliably, so we communicated through email, and then by phone onboard.

 

On embarkation day, at the terminal, we reported to the Star Class Area and were ushered to an area where we were met by an official looking man who escorted us past all the lines and directly to the check

Thank you for the review! We are in the same room in May. Our family is looking forward to the trip and you helped answer some of the questions we have had.

Thanks for sharing.

Your experience was very similar to ours. We were in the Sky Loft in September in 2016 not too long after Star Class was implemented. We had fun filling out the form letter from RCCI but I feel it was read. Our Genie was Israel Sanchez. He set up all the things we asked, Specialty restaurants, shows, cabana on Labadee. He even arranged for my Granddaughter to be in the swan sled in the ice show, what a lasting memory for her. We also had unlimited snacks and drinks, coke and water, in our room and the cabin stewards were willing to help us in any way they could. The funny looks were a little hard to get used to but in the end we felt we had paid for the services and if other people wanted the perks they could ante up the cost also. It is an amazing week long pampering that we will enjoy again this year only in the 2 bedroom ATS on deck 8.

So...before you give a Star Class passenger a dirty look or complain about where they get to sit at shows book a Star Class room and find out. We will never sail RCCI in less than a Star Class suite.

Haven't heard anything from our Genie except for our questionnaire a few weeks ago. Sailing in 10 days so guess no cabana for us. Oh well, I'm sure it will be a wonderful cruise without it. Can't wait as we have sailed in 2BR ATS before but before Star Class.

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We have a 2 bed aqua reserved on symphony in feb 2019 - was wondering - did you tip the genie?