Oasis of the Seas or Norwegian Gateaway

We are taking our grandkids girl 10 and boy 7 in July to Western Caribbean.

Can't decide between Oasis or Gateaway. Like the water slides in Getaway but

think they are more things to do in Oasis. Price is about the same. Love Harmony

but dates not suitable.

Please do choose the Oasis! I have been on 74 cruises so far, and honestly the Oasis class is our most favorite class of all the ships and all the cruise lines! The NCL breakaway/getaway is our most disliked ship for too many reasons. There is no comparison choose RC!

Thank you Cruisegirl6

Please do choose the Oasis! I have been on 74 cruises so far, and honestly the Oasis class is our most favorite class of all the ships and all the cruise lines! The NCL breakaway/getaway is our most disliked ship for too many reasons. There is no comparison choose RC!

Can you elaborate as to why NCL breakaway/getaway is disliked?

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We've been on Norwegian Getaway and Harmony (with Oasis booked for next month). Personally we liked Harmony in most every facets with the exception being The Waterfront and the Food.

You mentioned Waterslides. We found waterslides to be a bit overrated in that you do them once and you've "been there and done that". Kids might find them much more fun and ride them over and over though. If this is the case, they will greatly miss them on Oasis. Also, the Getaway does have the Ropes course that kids seemed to really enjoy. Will your children be taking advantage of the kids club type activities on board? I think that would be a major selling point for me.

Feel free to ask any specific questions you might have comparing the two.

Justmysyd- Your welcome.

Ang63- Just about us, my other half and I are 55, we been on the Breakaway with other family members (all adults different ages) as well as with friends, the same on the Allure....my other half and myself and father in law who is now 79 been on the Harmony last May, my other half and I were on the Oasis on October 29 and we again are all going on the Oasis on April 15th.

The list is way too long on what we didn't like the Breakaway and would never travel on NCL again but here are a few reasons:

For starters and this is secondary- The drinks were watered down plus my other half drinks Makers Mark and Knob Creek they didn't have either. My father in law drinks Grey Goose they didn't have that and they didn't have my Patron. They seem to have cheaper alcohol such as Smirnoff and Svekia vodka, all well in my book.

1- I could not use my blowdryer it kept turning off the electric in the stateroom, their blowdryer was fine but it is located at the desk and plugged in under the desk and I am 5'6" I was unable to stand blow drying my hair, I had to sit on that little stool tilting my head to use their blow dryer, the cord is way too short.

2- Hallways were very narrow, and you really had to maneuver between a doorway when a scooter/wheelchair had to go by

3- Pools were TINY TINY! The outside near the pool had "cubby holes" to sit in, felt enclosed. The adults rear aft sun area had no pool.

4- The staff was the most unfriendly I ever encountered and so far we been on 74 cruises. I thought there was a rule that they were not allowed to speak to the passengers. We had balcony cabins and didn't get to speak to our cabin steward for days and we all had different cabin stewards as our cabins were located in different areas on the deck. You pass workers/cabin stewards and nobody would say hello, they ignore you, never ever did we encounter this, in fact, we find RC and Carnival cabin stewards to be all friendly as you pass them by the hallways.

5- When leaving the show there were only two exits/entrances (deck 6 & 7)the one on deck 7 wasnext to the casino which means a huge traffic jam going in and getting out in/out of the casino/lounge and it took forever moving, the elevators were right outside the lounge which meant more traffic jams.

6- Everywhere we went we found ourselves in traffic jams, the ship is severely poorly laid out

7- We had reservations nightly to specialty restaurants and always had to wait an average of 20 minutes

8- The lunch buffet only had a meat carving the first day boarding, salad bar is very limited

9- It was the most unstable rockiest ship we ever been on and we had no bad weather (it was a Bermuda cruise)

10- Rooms on the coolest setting were too warm at night

11- Balconies are much smaller

Overall the pools are tiny, the ship is always crowded, the staff was not friendly like we are used to getting on RC, Carnival and Princess, the drinks were not as good and the buffets to us were lacking and the ship not as stable as the Oasis class ships on RC.

The Oasis class ships, much larger pools and more of them, more for kids to see and do, boardwalk and Central Park very nice, the only time it was crowded was the sale shopping day on the promenade which only took place two hours in the am, I am sorry you can't compare RC Oasis class ships to the NCL ships.

We were on Norwegian out of New York once. Think it was the Breakaway - not sure. Balcony very very small. Barely fit sitting there in chair with knees right up to the glass. Went to Main Dining Room one night - people showing up in sweatpants and trays of dirty dishes on stands next to the dining tables. Not too picky food wise on cruise since I get they are feeding thousands at a time, but the food that night in MDR wasn’t anything to write home about. We never ate in there again. We paid for speciality restaurants each night. We did pay $85 per person to have access to the Haven for the week. Felt that was worth it as we always had a lounge in the sun and a private bar. We did enjoy some of the small entertainment options on Norwegian such as the dueling piano bar and the Jazz Club. Great music each night. Heading out on Oasis two weeks from tomorrow. Can’t wait as this will be our largest ship. Have done 4 prior RC Cruises and loved each and every one of them (2 on Adventure, 1 Freedom, 1 Independence)

We were on Norwegian out of New York once. Think it was the Breakaway - not sure. Balcony very very small. Barely fit sitting there in chair with knees right up to the glass. Went to Main Dining Room one night - people showing up in sweatpants and trays of dirty dishes on stands next to the dining tables. Not too picky food wise on cruise since I get they are feeding thousands at a time, but the food that night in MDR wasn’t anything to write home about. We never ate in there again. We paid for speciality restaurants each night. We did pay $85 per person to have access to the Haven for the week. Felt that was worth it as we always had a lounge in the sun and a private bar. We did enjoy some of the small entertainment options on Norwegian such as the dueling piano bar and the Jazz Club. Great music each night. Heading out on Oasis two weeks from tomorrow. Can’t wait as this will be our largest ship. Have done 4 prior RC Cruises and loved each and every one of them (2 on Adventure, 1 Freedom, 1 Independence)

You didn’t get access to the Haven for $85 per person for the week. You don’t get access to the Haven unless you’re booked in a Haven cabin and I can guarantee it cost a lot more than $85 per person!

I think it really depends what your grandchildren love to do. At their age I loved waterslides and would have spent all day and into the evening on them. I have been on both ships..Oasis was roughly 5 years ago and Getaway was 3 years ago. We really enjoyed both ships a lot you really cannot go wrong with either one. I would give Oasis a slight edge just because it is something you have to experience once and the nighttime entertainment is much better. Our favorite ship to date is NCL Escape. While we loved our last cruise on Oasis we were disappointed in the food...that being said we are booked on Harmony this fall and are really looking forward to it.

I think the person meant Spice H2O not the Haven.

I think the person meant Spice H2O not the Haven.

I hope they didn’t pay $85 pp for Spice H20 because it’s free to everyone!

You didn’t get access to the Haven for $85 per person for the week. You don’t get access to the Haven unless you’re booked in a Haven cabin and I can guarantee it cost a lot more than $85 per person!

Probably Vibe, I agree cruising_in_life.

I've been on Getaway 3 times and Allure once, with another Allure cruise set for this October.

I prefer travelling in Suites in order to have separate space and multiple bathrooms for my family. A suite on NCL is a completely different experience than my good mini-suite on Getaway. My first suite on Allure is this October, as my RCI suite was on Jewel of the Seas (completely different ship and experience than Oasis).

There are trade-offs between Oasis and Getaway, but they are mainstream cruiselines--you have more similarities than differences. No smoking on either's balconies. You have free MDRs and upcharge items on both, with additional surcharge restaurants on both lines. Both charge for room service for cabins under suite class.

Getaway has a thermal suite (for a LOT per person or couple), Oasis has free Solarium with no heated tile loungers. *shrug* Trade-off that might not matter if you don't care for heated tile loungers.

Oasis has a LOT of walking (said because of my cruise on Allure). Getaway is big, but my Allure cruise had a Cruise Director that seemed to need me to get my steps in; activities went consecutively from one side of the ship to the extreme other side of the ship for the next activity.

I'm not bothered by ship movement, and my family has gotten queasy on both ship types. Our Atlantic cruises on both lines had bigger waves than my Getaway Northern Baltic cruise (which was a sea of glass for the 9 days in June).

Good luck deciding! :) I don't think you can really go wrong here.

Never been on any NCL ship. On my list to try in the future.

Been on Oasis once and sister ship Allure twice. Children are in early twenties and they loved it as well. Plenty to do, so many areas to hang out. It is like a floating resort rather than a conventional cruise ship. Good choice of entertainment and food venues.

I am sure NCL would offer an experience which is just as rewarding but can't comment as I have never been. All I can say is that Oasis class is my favourite for RCL and would happily sail on this class of ship over and over again. I should add that neither myself or my children are fans of waterslides. If that is a deal breaker for you then clearly Oasis is one to avoid.

Thank you all for feedbacks. Leading towards Oasis

Just got off Escape yesterday, and count me in with the "won't ever sail NCL again" club. This is an EASY decision. Oasis by a mile. We sailed in the Haven on NCL with spa and every perk they have. Would take an inside cabin on Oasis over the Haven. As another poster suggested, the list of everything that was lacking on NCL is far too long.

Just got off Escape yesterday, and count me in with the "won't ever sail NCL again" club. This is an EASY decision. Oasis by a mile. We sailed in the Haven on NCL with spa and every perk they have. Would take an inside cabin on Oasis over the Haven. As another poster suggested, the list of everything that was lacking on NCL is far too long.

I understand it's a long list, but can you give us just a few things that were lacking?

 

Oasis has a LOT of walking (said because of my cruise on Allure). Getaway is big, but my Allure cruise had a Cruise Director that seemed to need me to get my steps in; activities went consecutively from one side of the ship to the extreme other side of the ship for the next activity.

 

Good luck deciding! :) I don't think you can really go wrong here.

LadyShiva, I got a chuckle out of the "get my steps in" comment. We are on Oasis in a few weeks - first RC cruise and first on a megaship. I am looking forward to getting plenty of exercise in the normal course of each day but for some people that would not be a benefit!

Just got off Escape yesterday, and count me in with the "won't ever sail NCL again" club. This is an EASY decision. Oasis by a mile. We sailed in the Haven on NCL with spa and every perk they have. Would take an inside cabin on Oasis over the Haven. As another poster suggested, the list of everything that was lacking on NCL is far too long.

Well that's good to hear, because we are not only in an inside on Oasis, but it's an inside GUARANTEE! They have us on deck 10 right near the forward elevators at the moment but I am aware they can do a switcheroo on us right up until embarkation.

I hope you will provide more details as to the problems you encountered on NCL as well.

I understand it's a long list, but can you give us just a few things that were lacking?

Sure.

- Drink package on NCL doesn't include bottled water.

- Drink package, while advertised as drinks up to $15 compared to Royal $13, actually gives you much less. Maybe higher drink prices? I asked for Gentlemen Jack - sorry, not included. Nothing above your standard liquor was included. Whereas on Royal I could get almost anything I wanted - Patron Anejo, Reposado, Gentlemen Jack, etc. etc.

- Casino is awful, it's basically in a hallway

- Ship is grossly overcrowded and poorly designed. 1 pool for 5,000 guests. You can't find a lounger anywhere. Guests were finding the rare stacked lounger or whatever and putting them in any nook, cranny, or outside hallway they could find.

- Theater looks like it was designed to copy 1980's movie theaters - the design was simply terrible. No elegance, no balcony, grey walls, very enclosed, small stage, etc.

- Comedy club, similar. Just a room with a stage, where they shove a ton of stools. Not a "lounge" or comfortable at all.

- No drink service during shows, including comedy. That's right, you can't get a drink during the comedy show or the stage shows

- Entertainment was horrible. For a line that once had Blue Man Group and touts great entertainment, the shows were simply low budget singing/dancing. Not enough for a stage show and much more appropriate for a lounge. Obviously no ice show, aqua show, and the stage shows were super low budget

- Haven courtyard was worse than the Oasis solarium. Solarium is complimentary, Haven is an expensive suite perk

- Haven restaurant had the same small menu the entire week

- Haven upstairs courtyard and sundeck is essentially closed at 4PM!

- Kids all over the Haven, it was a total kid takeover

- Buffet had too many lines and the food was sub-par compared to Oasis, which has the great islands concept as well

- Restaurant service, Haven and all the upcharge restaurants, was VERY lacking. (friendly, yes), but understaffed and slow

- $17 upcharge for Margaritaville ($20+ with grat) compared to $9.95 for Johnny Rockets. Who wants to spend $20/pp for a burger and fries at lunch?

- Overall ship design has nothing grand or elegant what-so-ever. It just screams cost cutting. No glass elevators, no soaring or spacious areas. Low ceilings, crowded and confined.

- Spice H20 allows smoking near the only bar. Getting a lounger here was also near impossible.

- Many of the water features in the kids splash pad were non-functioning

- There is 8 elevators per bank. But the buttons work separately for the front 4 and back 4. So you had to go and press both buttons separately. What this also means is that when you are riding the elevators, you constantly hit floors with no guests since they pressed both the front and back 4 but already got onto an elevator. It wasn't uncommon to stop at nearly every floor.

- The cruise line app was virtually useless. Doesn't show you your schedule. It was essentially an app with the daily activities similar to the paper you get in the morning.

I could probably come up with more. But the best way to explain it would be that the ship just "misses" on the bigger picture. It looks good in the brochure but doesn't deliver. It's an enclosed, overcrowded mess compared to Oasis which has such big, airy venues and so much more to do. Not something you would probably realize until you have sailed a better line/ship like Royal Oasis.

I would also point out that so many people call Escape and similar ships "mega ships." Which is an insult to Oasis-class because people who don't know the difference seem to lump them together. "Oh, I sailed Escape and it was too crowded, I hate mega ships." The reality is far from that, where Oasis is a ground up rethinking of cruise ship design and a total home run and Escape is an oversized "medium" ship that can't handle the volume of passengers they stick on it.

To be fair, I'll give a couple positives with Escape :)

- Waterfront was really awesome and unique

- The water slides were great, especially the larger inner-tube slide

- Dining was generally pretty good, though typical for upcharge restaurants

- The craft beer bar had a nice selection, though it was basically South Florida volume craft beers but nice for a cruise ship

- The demographics of the cruisers was noticeably the best I've seen on any ship so far. For the most part, everyone was very respectful and seemed on the same page culture wise. Lot of really nice people. Could be the time of year, I don't know, so I can't compare but it was pleasant.

That's about it....

BNBR I guess you can say we learned our lesson well and by the way, I had my list of negatives and I didn't include all of them and you had some on your list that I wanted to write but the list is way too long lol. I realize any cruise is better than no cruise but quite honestly, if your going to take a cruise take the better one, go RC!

BNBR I guess you can say we learned our lesson well and by the way, I had my list of negatives and I didn't include all of them and you had some on your list that I wanted to write but the list is way too long lol. I realize any cruise is better than no cruise but quite honestly, if your going to take a cruise take the better one, go RC!

I mean, we did have a nice time. But it was the first cruise I've been on where after the 3rd or 4th day, I was basically counting the days until I could just go home. The ship and NCL misses the mark pretty badly. But we look at it the same way "we tried it, learned out lesson, won't do that again!"

I had this sinking feeling of "I could have spent this money for a MUCH better vacation" and that's a shame. And it really does come down to having options. For the same or less cost, we could sail better Royal ships, so why would I bother with NCL ever again?

I mean, we did have a nice time. But it was the first cruise I've been on where after the 3rd or 4th day, I was basically counting the days until I could just go home. The ship and NCL misses the mark pretty badly. But we look at it the same way "we tried it, learned out lesson, won't do that again!"

 

I had this sinking feeling of "I could have spent this money for a MUCH better vacation" and that's a shame. And it really does come down to having options. For the same or less cost, we could sail better Royal ships, so why would I bother with NCL ever again?

I appreciate the extensive list, it was eye opening! I never realized that the Haven would also have children, I thought it was similar to Royal's Solarium.

I appreciate the extensive list, it was eye opening! I never realized that the Haven would also have children, I thought it was similar to Royal's Solarium.

SO DID WE!!!!

They don't advertise it as adults only, so I guess it's my own fault for not figuring that out, but we don't often look for answers to questions we don't have. It's advertised as a "haven" retreat. You go inside and it has soft music, luxury loungers, waterfall, etc.

But reality is quite different. Think of all the family suites in the Haven. On our cruise last week, oftentimes kids outnumbered adults in the courtyard 2:1 or even 3:1, and the only adults were the parents. Kids were running around, splashing, screaming, snorkeling in the hot tub, playing marco polo, etc. It's a small area, noise travels and echos. The pool is a dipping pool and there could be 15+ young children playing in it. It was honestly a total disaster. I have kids, I don't dislike kids, but there is a time and place and apparently NCL has no issue with it.

For the parents, however, I could see it being nice. They have this beautiful, contained area and the kids can just run free and play while the parents sat on their computers, reading books, or crochet. Even the Haven restaurant, billed as fine dining, often had more loud kids than adults.

The solarium is a better product and complimentary. Solarium has a restaurant, bar, pool, hot tubs, loungers, drink service, etc. And the solarium has a view whereas the Haven courtyard is completely contained and has no view at all.

SO DID WE!!!!

 

They don't advertise it as adults only, so I guess it's my own fault for not figuring that out, but we don't often look for answers to questions we don't have. It's advertised as a "haven" retreat. You go inside and it has soft music, luxury loungers, waterfall, etc.

 

But reality is quite different. Think of all the family suites in the Haven. On our cruise last week, oftentimes kids outnumbered adults in the courtyard 2:1 or even 3:1, and the only adults were the parents. Kids were running around, splashing, screaming, snorkeling in the hot tub, playing marco polo, etc. It's a small area, noise travels and echos. The pool is a dipping pool and there could be 15+ young children playing in it. It was honestly a total disaster. I have kids, I don't dislike kids, but there is a time and place and apparently NCL has no issue with it.

 

For the parents, however, I could see it being nice. They have this beautiful, contained area and the kids can just run free and play while the parents sat on their computers, reading books, or crochet. Even the Haven restaurant, billed as fine dining, often had more loud kids than adults.

 

The solarium is a better product and complimentary. Solarium has a restaurant, bar, pool, hot tubs, loungers, drink service, etc. And the solarium has a view whereas the Haven courtyard is completely contained and has no view at all.

Great description, and thanks again for the details.

I think this picture pretty much sums up the NCL Escape/Getaway :)