Tree_skier

The weather is still shockingly cool here in California. It's pouring rain again. Yesterday DW went shopping and I had the day off so I went to Six Flag by myself. It's a weird feeling going to a theme park by yourself. It was surprisingly dead in there. I walked up to several rides and just got right on. I've started of review of my Oasis cruise on the main page. It is the precursor to the mighty Bella cruise.

Day 3: Labadee Another start to the day at Coastal Kitchen. I switched it up a little and had the eggs scrambled instead of over medium. I know, I know I’m not really all that adventurous when it come to eating. They were done perfectly. The pastry was more like a dessert and I felt like I needed an insulin shots half way through eating it. We were on Labadee by 10 am. I think I got a pretty good mooring line picture. We settled in our bungalow very comfortably. DW had a kayaking excursion so off she went leaving me to relax and drink alone. How is this pic @Sea Dog In the morning I did the coaster and the waterslide. The coaster was fun and I’d gladly do it again, the water slide is lame. Lunch was better than what than what I expected having read some rather negative reports here on cruise critic about the food at Labadee. There were some good options and everything was very very clean. So far Labadee was a great experience. However, the highlight of the day became the parasailing. What an awesome time…. I have always loved to be in the air. Back as recently as 10 years ago I loved ariels when I was skiing. The bigger, the more dangerous, the better. I loved to cliff dive. Even skydiving was part of my past. Now that I’m older and a lot more broken down I have to stay pretty firmly planted to ground. Most of that stuff is behind me. I still ski but no more ariels. Parasailing scratched that itch to fly. I absolutely loved the experience and can’t wait to do it again. Labadee was about the best shore day I’ve ever had. It was relaxing and super fun at the same time. Here’s a little Youtube video I put together with a couple of highlights from the day. Dinner was at Chops and was great as usual. I’ll skip the steak pic… They all start to look the same after a while. I loved my bacon app and I always order off the kids menu for dessert. The casino was good to me. I’m up about 200 so far. The house band in the music hall was good. Fun upbeat 80’s music. They were called Urban something or other. And with that I called it a night.

After that we called it a night. Day 2: Sea day Coastal kitchen breakfast. Wow is this ever more civilized than the Windjammer in the morning. First thing up for the day was the Top Tier event. Champagne for breakfast… What a great idea 🙂 Tragedy and embarrassment struck first thing as I reached a couple chairs over to set my empty champagne flute in one of the slots in the empty chairs beside me to get it out of my way only to have fall strait to the floor and break because I didn’t notice the insert was missing. So with great shame I had to let a waiter know so they could get it cleaned up before someone hurt themselves. They started 10 minutes late. They listed the numbers by tier. With 6450 passengers onboard that means there are a very large number newbie’s onboard. Really quite a light load of Pinnacles. After that we had a short stint at the suite sun deck in a nice and secluded little area overlooking the solarium until a 1230 lunch Chops. For those that have never had the opportunity to sample these it is a really great space if you are looking for privacy and a little shade.Very good steak and an excellent wedge salad we’re my choices. Since I’ve been dieting for the last month I’ve lost 14 pounds. I know um going g to gain but want to minimize the damage so I skipped dessert. After lunch. DW wife hit the track for a couple miles of walking. That completed she headed back to the suite sundeck and I ventured off to the casino for first attempt at helping Royal recover form the pandemic shut down. I ended up $50 But after a trip down the abyss and a couple cocktails at the suite sundeck back I went for a second round in the casino. Of course now I’m down 100 lol. We had a very good dinner tonight at Izumi Hibachi. I always love Hibachi, on or off the ship, and this didn’t disappoint. Our chef was entertaining, my steak was prepared like I asked and service was exceptional. We’ve got one more night scheduled and instead of the steak and chicken combo I’m going to try the Tenderloin. Someone else had it at our table and it looked like a wonderful cut. After dinner we hung around Central Park just outside Giovani’s and listened to a Jazz band before the big show in the Main theatre. One complaint… What kind of self absorbed narcissistic tools do you need to be to stand right front of a group of people enjoying a nice mellow jazz concert, block their view, and talk in a loud voice littered with profanity about some of the most inane things possible. You can take folks out of the trailer park but you can’t always take the trailer park out of the folks. Later that evening we were very entertained by the performer in the main theatre. The performer was a fella by the name Austin Drage. He was a performer on the X-factor back in 2008. He made it to the final twelve. He is a great performer and thoroughly entertaining. I called it a night early. I’ve got lots of plans for Labadee tomorrow as well as entertainment tomorrow night. I want to have a full tank tomorrow so I can go all day.

Day 1: Embarkation The most wonderful day of the year is here 🙂 We had breakfast at the hotel which offered a typical offering of breakfast items. I ordered an Uber which took 5 minutes and we were off to the Port of Miami with great anticipation. Traveling through terminal A in Miami when you are in a suite is about the nicest embarkation I have ever had. They bring you to an elevator that takes to your own security where there was one older couple ahead of us. In just a minute we were in the embarkation hall being checked in. 90 seconds after that, at 10:35, we were walking on the ship. We haven’t cruised near as much as so many who post here on Cruise Critic but one of the things that I noticed as you cruise more and more is that with each cruise you lose a little of that “wow” factor that was so pronounced when you walked onto the ship for the first time. Being on an amplified Oasis class ship for the first time this cruise I got that “Wow” feeling back. What an incredible ship. We wandered through the promenade onto the boardwalk then up to Central Park just taking in the sights. Typically we have a routine that begins each cruise. That went out the window. We just had to explore every area we could like newbies. What a great start for the first day. Lunch was in coastal kitchen. The Chicken, Caesar salad and crème brûlée were excellent. I had all but given up on Royals crème brûlée as I’m a bit of a crème brûlée snob. However, I gave it a B+. After lunch cabins were ready so we dropped into the cabin and found 3 of our 4 pieces of luggage had arrived. We unpacked what we had and headed out. Our cabin attendant introduced himself and asked if we had all of our luggage. We told him we were missing one still and we let him know what we needed from him and headed out. The afternoon was spent on the suite sun deck. We settled in a very cozy wicker bed like thing. Sort of like a clam shell but much more comfortable. I’m enjoying my own persona bartender. The Lime and coconut on the pool deck looks to be pretty chaotic. It is a very crowded ship. Up on the suite deck life is more relaxed. We met our second cabin attendant later in the afternoon Tristan our head attendant had tracked down our 4th bag. Apparently they had questions about a device charger so it went to the naughty room. We changed for dinner and enjoyed a lovely meal at Giovanni’s. I’m sorry for the lack of food porn I’m been off my camera game today. I’ll do better tomorrow. Later that evening I saw my first Aqua Show. I do not know if all aqua shows are created equal but this one is incredible. Amazing talent. I was truly impressed. After that we called it a night. That's it for now... I'll get to Day 2 this evening and then tomorrow we will be at exactly one week behind schedule and that'll be our pace for the week. Thanks for reading.

Day 0: Flight day Sadly the saga continued in the morning. When guests started leaving at 5:30 we were awoken to a cacophony of door slamming, cars starting, shouts about remembering this or that and car honking. Thankfully, when we got to LAX it went about smooth and easy as it could. No line up to drop bags and no line up to to get through security. I had vowed to never use Southwest again after the debacle I had on Christmas Day but I had these tix already purchased and the price was right so I just stuck with the original plan. Our Southwest flight was 20 minutes delayed but we had 90 minutes for our connection in Houston Hobby so I wasn’t to concerned. The rest of the flight was pretty uneventful. The connection at Houston Hobby went off without a hitch and we landed in Miami. Sadly another less than stellar experience at a hotel. We were staying at the Hilton Garden inn Miami airport west. I booked because they offered a shuttle. It took 85 minutes from first call to the hotel to drop off at the hotel. I don't know why I keep making this same mistake over and over again. I booked a hotel because they have a shuttle and then am frustrated that the shuttle experience is bad. This is the last time. After landing at the airport 9:20 and waiting an inexorably long time for bags and then the shuttle, we arrived at the hotel at 1130. Sadly, dinner was Uber Eats. I could nit pick a few other things but I’m not going to because tomorrow I get on a cruise ship. The room itself was about what you’d expect from this class of Hotel. They had a bar and a small restaurant that was closed when we arrived. We’ll check them out in the morning at breakfast.

Day -1. Travel to Hotel near LAX So I ended up needing to take a meeting yesterday afternoon so packing started later. Vacation didn’t start with dinner downtown last night like we anticipated. We didn’t leave Rancho for LA until late evening. We stayed at the Best Western Plus South Bay about a 10 min drive from LAX. This was a disappointing choice. Thin walls, noisy corridors and about the worst water pressure I have ever seen. Unfortunately, for the water pressure situation I didn’t discover it until the morning. The sink was fine but the shower was dire. I told the front desk in the morning but they didn’t seem to care. Breakfast was the typical pastries. They had sausages and eggs but the sausages were kind of a slate grey color so I gave them a pass and stuck to fruit loops, coffee and OJ. We went to bed early but mostly just lied there because we could hear the TV in the other room. I called the desk a couple of times but that did nothing. Eventually they shut if off and we all were able to sleep.

Day -2 - Travel to LA After the cruise, when we return, I’ll be working in LA so I have our plane tickets booked out of LA and we are travelled down with our 5th wheel and set up home on Thursday the 2nd of March. Florida and the Caribbean are going to be glorious. After the cold damp winter we have had so far some 80° degree temps are going to be just what the doctor ordered. California weather has been unbelievable so far this year! Driving to Southern California I saw the most unexpected thing south of Bakersfield just as I was approaching “The Grapevine”. I love snow but I can tell you I don’t expect to see it at this low elevation approaching Southern California on the 2nd of March. If global warming gets any worse I’m going to have to buy a heavier coat. We will call Rancho Cucamonga home until the end of April. LA traffic is always so much fun and LA traffic with a 43 ft. 5th wheel is doubly so. I managed to get in, set up and am enjoying a relaxing evening in my recliner as I type. Tomorrow the plan is a trip to the chiropractor in the morning and packing in the afternoon. That evening, after the rush hour is over, we’ll head downtown for dinner and to a hotel ten minutes from LAX so our flight day morning is a little less stressful. Then we are Miami bound

Greetings one and all. Welcome to my after action review of our March 5th cruise aboard Oasis of the Seas. It was my intention to do a “live” report but due to circumstances beyond my control that was not possible. This review is being written live in note form initially and will be posted in long form as I post it, day by day, a week after our return so as not to conflict with the massive Bella live thread that will be taking place through the 19th of March. This cruise was booked to celebrate my wife and I’s 30th wedding anniversary and was originally supposed to be the March 12th sailing. I was quite excited to be on and take part in, what many of you are now aware of is, the infamous “Belle cruise”. Our anniversary is March 13th and this worked in perfectly. I was really excited to be able to be on that cruise with so many of the posters that I have posted with on this board. Sadly, because of a work commitment that had to be rescheduled, that week was not available to us anymore and I had to cancel and rebook for the week of March 5th. Thanks to all who contributed to the Bella thread. That I was supposed to be on it and wasn’t was slightly assuaged by being able to follow you exhaustive thread. We typically book standard balcony cabins. However, my dear wife has had to put up with a lot over the years being married to me and for this landmark anniversary cruise I was determined to do everything that I could afford to make this the most special of all sailings. With that being the case, I booked a Crown Loft Suite and the Unlimited Dining Package. We have cruised in a suite before, twice, but not on a ship that offered the Royal Suite Class of service. As a matter of fact, this will be our first time on an Oasis class ship. The itinerary is an Eastern Caribbean that stops in Labadee, San Juan, Charlotte Amalie and Coco Cay. This too will be special since it will be our first Eastern Caribbean cruise and our first time to Coco cay since it got it’s facelift in 2019. Nine days before embarkation I received an email from the suite concierge, Francis and Chantelle, introducing themselves and letting me know what perks were available to us as suite guests and what they could do for us pre-cruise. I dutifully replied with a couple of questions and a list of specialty dining reservations I wanted them to get nailed down for us. In the past, when we had the UDP and it was a little stressful trying to sort out which specialty dining restaurants we could get on what day and at what time all at a busy time on embarkation day. Being able to email your request a week in advance is a perk I’m sure I could get used to. Francis replied a day later with my questions answered and only one slight change to my dining requests. Shows were booked over a month in advance through the cruise planner. Activities and cabanas for both Coco Cay and Labadee were booked at crazy good prices on Black Friday (I suspect one was one of the many Black Friday mistakes). We planned to self explore in San Juan and Charlotte Amalie. We haven’t booked the DBP. We are Diamond and get our four diamond vouchers and that will be sufficient. DW doesn’t usually use more than two of these a day leaving me to use at least two of hers, giving me a total of six. With that and what I will have available to me at the suite lounge I am more than covered in the beverage dept. What more I need I will simply pay out of pocket for. I have the soda package and a dozen waters ordered for the days I need to take a breather. Just a little bit about my DW and I for those that don’t know us. We are Canadian ex-pats now residing in Central California. DW is a retired public school teacher and I work for a non-profit. We are diamond, having cruised (with a couple of exceptions, see my signature below) exclusively with Royal Caribbean. In my signature below are previous “Live” reviews I have done. Thanks for joining along as I relive and review this great cruise. Hopefully, I will be able to keep a few of you entertained and answer a few questions along the way. "Is it live... or is it Memorex"

They don't even ask for that. They'll just ask for your room number.

Definitely an added bonus

We're always on the upper deck. The lower deck is just to chaotic for us.

I agree, Teenagers are not the problem. There are many exceptional teenagers who are model citizens. The issue is parenting. You can't say a minority is to be representative of the majority. I think a zero tolerance policy for willful damage must be adhered to. A few parents having to foot a plane ticket from a port of call and the problem goes away.

I was just there less than 2 weeks ago. It was my favorite stop of the cruise. I felt safer there than just about any cruise port I have been in. Enjoy!

I'm sure this might be a controversial statement but I think Giovanni's is the best steak on board. I liked it better than anything at Chops.

I thought this might be the case. I think the OP might be going about this the wrong way. She just needs to find a cabin that holds 4 and move to that one. After that is done add the 4th person. Am I interpreting this right?

Enjoyed Turquoise Bay our first trip to Roatan back in 2018. How was the food this time around? Just trying to decide between it and Maya Key for next December when I'm on board Harmony.

So I have a couple questions about Maya key for you... How is transport handled the way it reads in my cruise planner for December is you board a shuttle boat to get there. Where do you board the shuttle boat. Is it just a walk off the boat and then onto a shuttle or do you have to bus as well? Was food and booze included. The cruise planner says lunch is included and booze may be available. What does that mean in real life? Do you pay for booze per drink or was there a daily charge add-on? If so what were prices like?

They are not... I'm looking at them right now. There are lots of them on decks 6, 7, and 8. You need to get a commitment from this extra kid's mom pronto though. The longer you wait the more you will pay

Switching to an Oceanview balcony instead of the Central Park balcony seems to be the cheapest option. Current pricing... If you have a C&A balcony discount your price might be a little lower.

What may be cheaper is to move one adult and the extra passenger into a different cabin and go with two Central Park balconies

What specific cabin did you book. If there are 4 person cabins available to book in the same category perhaps you could switch to that at no charge?

I can't imagine trying to land a double axle with moving ship below you. Those are hard enough when the rink doesn't shift beneath your feet.

Been on two since in the last 45 days. Loved them both. Service was great, food was very good and entertainment is as expected... The ice show on every ship I have ever been on is very good. Sounds to me like you overpaid for a last minute cruise during the busiest time of the year, with maximum number of kids onboard almost guaranteeing you were going to have a less than satisfactory experience. People don't post on this board generally because they "totally over cruising". If you are looking for a lot of validation to your complaints I suspect you're going to be disappointed. Other social media platforms might be more conducive to this sort of thing.

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Has anybody heard an update?