What are your thoughts on RCL - Oasis?

[B+S]

What do you guys think about this ship?

 

My "feeling" is that I would not enjoy a ship which focused attention around themes such as a central park carousel or a walkway "shopping experience", and a tattoo parlor - it's just not my crowd.

 

I'd venture though, that any investors that would spend over a billion dollars on such a project had a survey or two that said "Build it and they will come".

 

Lastly, I have tremendous respect for the engineers, architects, tradesmen and craftsmen that could build such a technological marvel.

[B+S]

Not for me..... My future cruises will be based on where this monstrosity is on a given week. She goes East' date=' I go west, etc. I don't even want to be in the same port.[/quote']

 

I just feel this is an excellent point to be reiterated. Even IF the OASIS does not feel overcrowded what are the impacts when she eventually "weighs in" at a small port? 6,000 PAX at Coco Cay? OMG.

[househunter]

There is only one dining specialty restaurant, Palo, on the top deck of Disney Magic and Wonder that charged $10 (not sure what it is now). It is Italian food with top quality steaks and seafood, and for adults only. Peace and quiet from 1000+ kids. Yeah, I know, that sounds scary but we did 3 cruises with Disney with our kids at various ages and it never seemed that bad. Besides the Topsiders Buffet, there are three dining rooms that everyone rotates through. They tell you where you are eating on the different days. The food is the same at all three restaurants. What's great is that your waiters follow you from restaurant to restaurant. I don't think they can do As you Wish or Anytime Dining. The restaurants have different names but decorated in French continental style(Lumiere's on the Magic), one Carribbean style called Parrot Cay and one in Black and White called Animators Palate (as the meal progresses, all the black and white walls with various Disney films turns to color by the end of the meal). Still very pricey especially at holidays or spring break but well worth the experience and for the unique shows which can't be seen anywhere else on land. They also have informal places for food like Pinnochio's Pizzeria, Pluto's Dog House for burgers and hot dogs etc.

 

So they have the main dining rooms, the buffet, the pizza place and the Dog house for free. That is 4. The Oasis has 13.

[yellowbird23]

Even as much as I love to cruise, I would never be comfortable on a huge ship such as Oasis. I go for relaxation and that, to me, isn't relaxing with a city on board. Give me the old Empress of the Seas or Majesty! That is all I need.

[crooser888]

That is incorrect. There are 13 free dining venues and 13 more that have a surcharge. There are no other ships that currently have that many free places to eat. Check out the Oasis only thread under RCI's section for all the details and the menus for each of the restaurants.

 

I'll be curious to see the 26 places you can eat, as you mention 13 with and 13 without surcharge. Everthing that looks interesting such as Izumi, 150 Central park, Giovanni, Seafood Shack, Solarium Cafe etc has a surcharge. OK, you can get a slice of pizza from the pizzeria or a sandwich from the Cafe Promenade but I hardly think these count as real eating places to get a full meal, these are just places to get a snack or quick bite. Other than main dining room, room service and the buffet, where can you get a full meal?

[ehfl]

I've booked a trip for Jan. All artists renderings tend to have a sterile feel to it. But with 24,000 plants on board, it should be lush and beautiful.

 

It looks like a wonderful ship, and hope to have a great time.

[ehfl]

Much too big. Imagine how long it will take to get off the ship at an island, especially if they have to be tendered to the island. How long to disembark at the end of the cruise. I can imagine the lines at the buffets.

 

The Oasis will not tender...it's not set up for tendering. All ports will be at a pier.

 

They are moving the entrance check-in to the piers, so they will be able to have multiple stations.

 

Maximum wait would be 15 minutes...most waits will be much shorter.

 

RCL has very good flows in the buffets, even on the large Freedom class ships, I've never had more than about 3 people ahead of me at any station at the buffet. There are many stations, and each type of food is served at multiple stations, so you can usually find a free station for whatever food you're getting.

[Lionesss]

To all future Oasis cruisers, I will be looking forward to your cruise reviews of this newest ship.

I have only recently cruised twice, and next year we are so looking forward to The Freedom of the Seas. To think we did not book it before because of the sailing out of Miami.

We are game to try her, but, not yet, I am waiting till they get the bugs out, and fellow cruise critics tell us about the great and wonderful time they had on it.

 

So enjoy,

Write rave reviews so you can convince me.

Safe travels.

[ehfl]

Divide it into about 7 ships & I would love to go on one of them. Keep it as it is and you will never see me on board.

 

I, also, love the "litte girls" in the Princess fleet (Pacific, Royal and Tahitian/Ocean Princesses).

 

That's basically what they have done. There are 7 "neighborhoods" on the Oasis.

 

If you've been on the Freedom class ships, you know how large open areas, and well planned flows, can keep crowds to a minimum.

[ehfl]

I choose to live in a very tiny town without a single stop light, so why would I choose to go on a cruise ship that has more people than live in my town? I just do not understand why these cruise lines continue to build such behemoths. And why have so many cruisers become so jaded that they feel they need all that stuff on board a ship? Why can't people be satisfied with the fact that they're on a ship, and why being on a vacation isn't enough without needing rock climbing, ice rinks, outdoor theaters and all of that? Every time I step on board a ship, and not one of those insanely crowded ones, I have the feeling that I'm so terribly lucky just to be on a cruise, any cruise, without the bells and whistles.

 

But perhaps they build them because these cruise lines are run by men, and we all know that some men have this complex of "mine is bigger than yours". Maybe if women ran the cruise industry, ships would be no larger than Celebrity's M class ships.

 

Cruise lines build larger ships, because they are more efficient. Due to basic laws of physics, a long object is easier to push through the water than a short one. Much less fuel is used per passenger for larger ships...it's better for the environment too.

 

Labor cost is also lower per passenger....you don't need 2 captains just because the ship is larger.

 

There is room in the industry for ships of all sizes. Larger ships offer more options....but you're not forced into going to an ice show, or rock climing if you don't want to. There are plenty of quiet places to sit and read a book.

[ehfl]

Bigger is not always better, I think I might not experience just imagine the crowds and talking about impatientness,It looks really nice and very good,but this is a little bit much

 

I'm guessing you haven't been on a Freedom class ship (currently the largest). It does not feel crowded. How crowded you feel is not based on the size of the space.

 

You might feel crowded in an elevator with 10 people on it. But you might not feel crowded in Yellowstone Park, with 10,000 people.

 

The larger ships have lots of open areas....they don't concentrate people into one area, so there is much less of a crowded feeling.

[ehfl]

That coupon is a thing of the past, unfortunately, and has been replaced with buy 1, get 1 milkshakes.

 

I'm sure I'll go on Oasis at some point, but I won't pay a premium to go on her. I will be interested to see the reviews and how long it takes for Royal to shake out the kinks.

 

I would agree that Voyager-class ships usually don't feel too crowded, but when they do, it can get quite bad (dinner, shows let out, tendering, etc).

 

No need to pay a premium...I just booked a balcony cabin on the Oasis for $914 per person in Jan. Even with the new restrictions, unless you are a first time passenger, it's not likely you will pay the full price for a cabin with discounts and credits.

[househunter]

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1053528

 

Sorry it is 24 dining venues with 12 free, not 26 with 13 free.:rolleyes:

[silentbob007]

No need to pay a premium...I just booked a balcony cabin on the Oasis for $914 per person in Jan. Even with the new restrictions, unless you are a first time passenger, it's not likely you will pay the full price for a cabin with discounts and credits.

 

Still a premium in my eyes ... much more than other ships during that time period. Personal preference, I know, but no ship is going to get me to pay $100/night/pp for the same old Caribbean ports.

[FUN33]

Fascinating how many people can have such strong opinions on something they have never personally experienced.

 

We will try the Oasis, experience the ship, and then decide.

[Cuizer2]

[quote name='Corvette Girl']I've been seeing brochures, on-line renderings, and pictures of RCL's new mega ship "Oasis of the Seas" that will be making its debut in December.

I don't think I'd want to cruise on her simple because of her sheer size.
The pictures of the staterooms look very sterile, cold, and sparse from my point of view, as do most of the public areas.

Some extras look fun like the zip line, but I don't see myself getting excited to book this ship.

What do you guys think about this ship?[/quote]

The variety of public spaces and activities interests me. However, the size of the ship does not. I'm going to wait until several reviews come in before deciding if I will book this ship.

[Langley Cruisers]

[quote name='crooser888']...everything has a surcharge, including Johnny Rockets, which my kids love.[/quote]

This isn't new news; JR has been surcharging on RCI for years. As others have mentioned, your comments about the restaurants are not correct.

We are booked for May. We'll check it out without any pre-conceived assumptions, and get back to you. RCI's goal is to have the passenger onboard within 15 minutes at the pier. We thought both Explorer and then Liberty would be too big, but we found that the bigger the ship is, the less crowded it tends to feel. Just our observation. :)

[Lady Chew]

the travel section of yesterday's (Sunday) Washington Post had a really good article on Oasis.

We can't wait for April!!

[cruiserbryce]

My curiosity really urges me to give the ship a try...we actually had the inagural booked, but cancelled in favor of a different cruise. One of the big drawbacks in my opinion is the fact that the ship's size limits the port possibilities significantly. Both caribbean itineraries are so so at best...

[Cruzaholic41]

What you are seeing is the future of cruising. It seems huge now but, in time, will be the norm.

Personally, I am excited to see it. RCI has the reputation of building the best ships at sea, and I'm sure Oasis will be no exception.

What's with complaining about the food costs? There are 12 free venues.

[silentbob007]

[quote name='FUN33']Fascinating how many people can have such strong opinions on something they have never personally experienced.

We will try the Oasis, experience the ship, and then decide.[/quote]

I think you can figure out why you cruise and determine if this ship would be a good match or not. I haven't seen many people saying that NO ONE will go on it, just that it doesn't match their tastes ... nothing wrong with that.

[Friend100]

[quote name='cruiserbryce']One of the big drawbacks in my opinion is the fact that the ship's size limits the port possibilities significantly. Both caribbean itineraries are so so at best...[/quote]

My guess is that cruise companies want us to spend more time on the ship and less time at the ports.

[MoYerclan]

I'm just kinda appalled by the appearance of carnival rides and scenery that is reminiscent of cement laden cities which I'm happy to get away from on vacation rather than playing up graceful seafaring vessels and the relaxation of the sea itself. There seems to be a lack of charm and grace to me.