Oasis of the Seas - June 2 - 9 2012 - Comparison to Princess

[AlaskaGolden]

We returned this past Saturday from 7 wonderful days on Oasis of the Seas, Eastern itinerary. I realize there have been other reviews which compare Princess to Royal, but I thought I’d share my thoughts specifically on the Oasis of the Seas cruise compared to handful of Princess ships and cruises I’ve been on. The following are just my opinions…

The Ship – I’m not sure it is fair to compare Royal’s Oasis to Princess’s largest ships. The Oasis certainly has a large WOW! factor. The different neighborhoods on Oasis almost feel like one is on a different ship as you go from one to the other. Obviously, Princess doesn’t have a Flow Rider, a Rock Climbing Wall, a Zip Line or a Carousel (to name just some of the major differences). Also, this is the first cruise I have ever been on where I didn’t need anti-sea sickness medication. The Oasis, thankfully, is very stable at sea. Advantage: Royal

The Cabin – We booked a Suite guarantee for almost the same price (at the time) as a D1 cabin. We were assigned a Junior Suite on deck 6 (6248). These Jr. Suites are bigger (especially wider) than the Princess Mini Suites. Of course, it had a very nice size balcony with a table, two chairs and two chaise loungers. The bathroom, although about the same size as the Princess Mini bathroom, was laid out better. Royal was smart not to put a furniture divider between the bed area and the sitting like on Princess which takes up space. The door opens into the cabin (like on Princess). There isn’t a hallway “indentation” for the door to open out. This gives more square feet in the cabin instead of the hallway. The walk-in closet opposite the bathroom was great. Princess has a nice closet too, but it is next to the bathroom and one can easily get hit by the bathroom door as your cabin mate is coming out of the bathroom while you are looking for something. The only minor issues with the cabin were the water, the TV and the bed. No way to get cool or cold water from either the sink or the tub/shower (we asked our room steward, but he indicated that nothing could be done). The interactive TV is great; something Princess doesn’t have. It didn’t work right the first two days, but by the third day it finally was reset. The bed was a little softer than Princess’s beds (and softer than I usually like), but still comfortable. The air conditioned worked great, and we like it on the cool side! Advantage: Royal

Service – Overall, Royal provides outstanding service. If there is an issue or a question, they are very accommodating to resolve or answer. Advantage: Royal

Pre-order and Delivery – This probably was our biggest concern during our first day on the ship. We pre-booked all the excursions, but no tickets ever arrived in our room! Also, we pre-ordered a Royal Beach Towel. For some reason, that wasn’t in our room either on the first day. We really needed the tickets and the towel the next day for our excursion in Nassau. After waiting on-line for about 15 minutes at the excursion desk after dinner and checking with our steward (he didn’t have them), they re-printed them. Then we waited another 15 minutes at guest services to find out about the towel. The towel was delivered the next day while we are at Nassau. We just used the ship’s pool towels during our excursion the first day. In fact, we used the ship’s pool towels for all our excursions. BUT, I really don’t want to spend ½ hour running around looking for things that should have been delivered to our cabin prior to our arrival. Princess has always delivered our excursion tickets and “gifts and gear” items on the first day before dinner (usually before we arrived in the cabin for first time). Advantage: Princess

Pool Towels – Although it was nice to have as many clean pool towels as we wanted, having to wait in line after the excursions to exchange the dirty ones for clean ones was a bit time consuming. On Princess, the cabin steward refreshes the pool towels which are located in the cabins. Advantage: Princess

[AlaskaGolden]

The Food – Where possible, I’ll discuss each dining venue and compare to Princess, where applicable, below. But before discussing the venues in detail, I’d like to comment overall on the food. Royal does a good job feeding close to 6,000 passengers plus around 2,000 crew on a daily basis. The food is freshly prepared, and for the most part served at the right temperature. The quality is good. But, overall I think Princess does food just a bit better in terms of quality, presentation and taste. More details below. Advantage: Princess

Desserts – OK, technically not a food venue but an important part of any meal or snack. I really didn’t care for too many of the desserts on Oasis. Plus, Royal didn’t serve too many creamy or custard-type desserts (puddings, pies, etc.). Not sure the brand of ice cream they serve on Oasis, but it just didn’t taste right. However, the Cupcake Cupboard is a neat concept, and the one cupcake I had was delicious! Advantage: Princess

Giovanni’s Table – We had the Central Park Dining Package (great deal!), so we were obligated to eat here the first night. The food was delicious, and the service was outstanding! Better than Sabatini’s on Princess. Plus, I like being able to order and share the small plates instead of having everything on the menu served to you like on Princess. Because of this, we didn’t leave too stuffed as we did after Sabatini’s. Advantage: Royal

150 Central Park – As many have said, this is the best place to eat on the Oasis (and I would imagine Allure). The service was the best we’ve ever had anywhere on land or at sea! The flavors of each dish were amazing. The portion sizes were perfect. The different dishes seemed to complement each other. Princess has nothing like this. Advantage: Royal

Chop’s Grille – We weren’t too impressed with the service or the starters (Crab/Shrimp Cake and Cheese/Onion Soup) and desserts (Crème Boule and the Berry thing). However, the steaks (10 Filet and the NY Strip) were delicious and about the same quality and taste as on Princess. Also, the sides (Onion Rings, Broccoli and String Beans) were good, but sides on Princess are better. Advantage: Princess

Main Dining Room – We only ate in the MDR on the formal nights. We had 6 PM seating at an 8-top. I went right to the MDR after boarding to change to My Time Dining, but they couldn’t accommodate us. Then I tried to change us to a 2-top at 6 PM, but they couldn’t do that either. They could, however, change us to a 2-top at the 8:30 PM seating. Since that would have required changing all the pre-reserved shows, I was a bit hesitant. Although I don’t usually like dining with strangers, I thought we could handle it for two nights. Actually, we had wonderful table mates! Very nice, engaging people from California, Ohio and Alabama. I suppose I digressed since we haven’t discussed the food or the service. The service was OK, nothing outstanding, nothing wrong either. It was adequate. We have only done Anytime Dining on Princess where we usually have great service. In fact, we usually ask for same wait staff many nights on the same cruise. The food in the MDR on Oasis was like the food. It was OK. The only thing better on Oasis than on Princess was the lobster tail. It was large and very tasty. On Princess, it is usually smaller and not quite as tasty. But, the other food wasn’t too memorable. Missed the Fettuccini Alfredo on Princess. Advantage: Princess

Sorrento’s Pizza – We stopped here a few times on the Royal Promenade for an afternoon snack after an excursion or a late night snack since dinners were all early. The pizza was good, and it was never too crowded. On Princess, the Prego Pizza place is on the pool deck. I like this location better. Plus, the pizza on Princess is a bit closer to genuine New York City pizza than Royal. Advantage: Princess

Wipe Out Café – I’m still not sure what to make of this place. It is very small and usually very crowded, when it is open which isn’t too often (afternoons, especially on sea days). The food is buffet-style and it is messy looking. I really don’t want to eat at a place where it looks like someone “wiped-out” in the food being served. Princess doesn’t have anything like this (thankfully!). The closest venue Princess has is the Trident Grille also by the pools where they serve burgers (beef, chicken and turkey), hot dogs and sausage with French fries, fresh lettuce and tomato. The food here is really good, and I usually have lunch at the Trident Grille on sea days on Princess at least once or twice a cruise. Advantage: Princess

Windjammer – I was pleasantly surprised by this buffet on Oasis. We had dinner here once, lunch twice and breakfast three times. A great selection of foods from all over the world, nicely presented, and served at the right temperature. Also, it was bigger than I had anticipated especially with the two serving sides when things were busy. Princess has the Horizon Food Court. We like Horizon too, and usually eat here the same number of meals here as we did at the Windjammer. Royal just seems to do the buffet slightly better. Advantage: Royal

Solarium Bistro – WOW! This venue is great. Liked it more for lunch than breakfast due to the selection of foods, but it is a healthier alternative to some of the other places on the ship regardless of which meal is being served. The wraps at lunch were especially delicious! The setting is also very peaceful and relaxing. This is really terrific place to eat. Next time, we’ll try dinner here. Princess has nothing like this. Advantage: Royal

Café Promenade – This venue was probably the biggest disappointment. I thought it would be closer Princess’s International Café, but it wasn’t even close! The selection of food was disappointing. Nothing special here. Advantage: Princess

Park Café – The Roast Beef Sandwiches were fantastic! Other than that, wasn’t too impressed with this place. Long lines for the salads; confusing (too me) as to how to order anything else besides a roast beef sandwich. But, Princess doesn’t have anything like this. So… Advantage: Royal

Johnny Rockets – We had one lunch and one breakfast here. The burgers are better than ones we’ve eaten at on land at a local outlet mall. The “works” breakfast with eggs was delicious, although not too healthy (back to the Solarium Bistro the next day!). Again, Princess doesn’t have anything like this. Advantage: Royal

Seafood Shack – Let’s hope this venue gets replaced with Jimmy Buffett's Margaritaville ASAP! We did the Surf’s Up Beach Party on Tuesday at 8:30 PM (the latest we ate dinner during the cruise). The chips they serve to start with were stale! Then comes heavily-breaded shrimp and calamari which, obviously, wasn’t too tasty. Finally, more shrimp and ribs. Actually, the ribs were the best thing they served (at a seafood place?!?). Princess was wise enough to not try this type of venue, therefore…Advantage: Princess

Boardwalk Bar – Another venue that’s hard to figure out. Is it a bar or a fast food place? The only thing we got here (besides refills of our soda containers) was popcorn. I was shocked they charge $2.00 (including 15% gratuity) for each small portion of popcorn. The popcorn on Princess is free when the movies are playing. They also serve popcorn on Oasis at On-Air. Not sure, but assume they charge for it here as well. This really annoyed me, but I’ll get over it. It certainly didn’t impact any other aspect of the cruise. Advantage: Princess

[AlaskaGolden]

Coffee – The week before the cruise, I received a Starbuck’s Gift Card. I thought, GREAT! I can use it on the cruise. Well, the free coffee was so good I didn’t use the gift card once. On Princess, I buy the coffee card and use it at least twice a day. Princess coffee is close to poison if you drink it black like I do. Royal has figured out how to provide coffee that many people seem to find acceptable. Advantage: Royal

Entertainment – During the week we saw Hairspray, Oasis of Dreams, Frozen in Time, Come Fly with Me, and the Madagascar 3 3D (the same day it opened in theaters on land!). Again, WOW! Royal really does a phenomenal job when it comes to keeping its guests entertained. All the live performances were spectacular in their own way. Seeing Madagascar, although not my favorite type of movie, was a great way to spend the last night on board. Advantage: Royal

Excursions – We did the following: Atlantis Aquaventure; Destination St. John: Coastal Cruise of National Park; Best of St. Maarten - Exclusive Resort, Beach, Shopping and Sightseeing; and Everglades Airboat Ride Ending at Miami International Airport. Most of the excursions were good to very good. The only one that was lacking was the Best of St. Maarten. The exclusive resort was so exclusive, those of us on the excursion couldn’t use the pools (just the beach), and we were limited to one entrée per person (no salads unless you wanted to give up your entrée). The drinks were very good and unlimited, just don’t eat too much food and stay away from pools! Also, I think Princess takes better care of you on excursions. For example, we had to find the taxi and pay our own way to go to the beach (Trunk Bay – beautiful!) at St. John’s after the boat ride. No big deal, just an observation. Advantage: Princess

Pools – There’s something different about the pools on Royal than on Princess. I’m not sure what it is (maybe they’re not deep enough or big enough compared to the size of the ship?). They were certainly warm enough compared to the “refreshing” pools on many Princess ships. Also, I missed the covered pool Princess has on many of their ships. These pools are just quieter and more relaxing. Advantage: Princess

Hot Tubs – They are HUGE on Royal! And the cantilevered ones are breathtaking. They’re not too warm, but probably wouldn’t want them any warner cruising the Caribbean in June. Advantage: Royal

People – Our fellow passengers were younger and healthier on Oasis than on any Princess ship I’ve ever been on. I think Princess caters to a slightly older, less active crowd than Royal. We really enjoyed this on Royal. We’re not that old; we’re not that young. The only thing that we noticed is there is a lot more drinking of alcohol on Royal than on Princess. Definitely saw a few people who had too many; including some young ladies who were so obnoxious by the pool one day that Security was called. All other times, people were in control while they consumed. Advantage: Royal.

[sunsetbeachgal]

I'm a very regular Princess cruiser and just did the Freedom of the Seas and have just booked the Enchantment...we traveled with another couple who had children who chose the Freedom, and we chose the Enchantment as this is a Bermuda itinerary and Princess does not do Bermuda.

 

I enjoyed your comparison. For me, in a nutshell (and I can only compare the Freedom...It is apples versus oranges to compare Oasis to any other ship)...in a nutshell I thought the ship itself, the entertainment, The fabulous kids facilities, the coffee and the buffet were better on Royal, but I found the dining room food, the pizzeria, the poolside burgers, the International cafe To be better on Princess. I also did not care for the towel policy and standing in line for towels and to return towels on RC. We do not typically do the surcharge dining venues so can't compare. I found the alcoholic beverages to be very pricey on RC, and I missed being able to carry on a few bottles of wine!

[JoyB]

I love your review.. I will be going in september on the oasis.. So this really helped out.

Thanks agian

Joy

[AlaskaGolden]

I'm a very regular Princess cruiser and just did the Freedom of the Seas and have just booked the Enchantment...we traveled with another couple who had children who chose the Freedom, and we chose the Enchantment as this is a Bermuda itinerary and Princess does not do Bermuda.

 

I enjoyed your comparison. For me, in a nutshell (and I can only compare the Freedom...It is apples versus oranges to compare Oasis to any other ship)...in a nutshell I thought the ship itself, the entertainment, The fabulous kids facilities, the coffee and the buffet were better on Royal, but I found the dining room food, the pizzeria, the poolside burgers, the International cafe To be better on Princess. I also did not care for the towel policy and standing in line for towels and to return towels on RC. We do not typically do the surcharge dining venues so can't compare. I found the alcoholic beverages to be very pricey on RC, and I missed being able to carry on a few bottles of wine!

 

It appears, for the most part, we think alike! :)

 

We don't have young kids and don't drinkalcoholl too often so couldn't compare these. In fact, this might have been the first cruise where I didn't purchase a drink with alcohol.

[AlaskaGolden]

I love your review.. I will be going in september on the oasis.. So this really helped out.

Thanks agian

Joy

 

You're welcome. I've read so many great reviews here on Cruise Critic and learned so much, I thought I'd finally give back to the community.

[RealDeal]

Regular Princess cruiser here. I agree with most of what OP wrote with a few exceptions. Just off Allure & had a D7 balcony cabin & didn't love the set up. The closet was ridiculous. There was hardly any room to hang "full length" items as half of the closet had a bar that ran along the bottom half (so, you only had a little space to hang full-length items). Also, the closing "doors" in the shower seem like a good idea, but they're really loud. We could hear them slamming all around us. Minor nuisance but still....

 

Also, as far as cabins, I would've loved to have a jr. suite, but the pricing for them is WAY more than for a balcony, which is not the case w/Princess and mini-suites...generally they're a few hundred more, whereas the upcharge w/RCCL seems to be much higher.

 

Loved the entertainment, no question. Food started out strong but seemed to decline as the week went on. Def. agree about Chops: the filet was great, everything else, not so much.

 

Staff was phenomenal...beyond friendly & helpful.

 

Where I disagree is w/the Windjammer...total nightmare & I didn't think the food was nearly as good as what Princess serves. However, props to RCCL for the Park Cafe & the salad bar in the MDR.

 

Had a great time on Allure & already have a few more RCCL cruises booked, but if I had to break it down, there's probably more I like on Princess...but hey, variety is good! Don't have to only cruise one line.

[AlaskaGolden]

Regular Princess cruiser here. I agree with most of what OP wrote with a few exceptions. Just off Allure & had a D7 balcony cabin & didn't love the set up. The closet was ridiculous. There was hardly any room to hang "full length" items as half of the closet had a bar that ran along the bottom half (so, you only had a little space to hang full-length items). Also, the closing "doors" in the shower seem like a good idea, but they're really loud. We could hear them slamming all around us. Minor nuisance but still....

 

Also, as far as cabins, I would've loved to have a jr. suite, but the pricing for them is WAY more than for a balcony, which is not the case w/Princess and mini-suites...generally they're a few hundred more, whereas the upcharge w/RCCL seems to be much higher.

 

Loved the entertainment, no question. Food started out strong but seemed to decline as the week went on. Def. agree about Chops: the filet was great, everything else, not so much.

 

Staff was phenomenal...beyond friendly & helpful.

 

Where I disagree is w/the Windjammer...total nightmare & I didn't think the food was nearly as good as what Princess serves. However, props to RCCL for the Park Cafe & the salad bar in the MDR.

 

Had a great time on Allure & already have a few more RCCL cruises booked, but if I had to break it down, there's probably more I like on Princess...but hey, variety is good! Don't have to only cruise one line.

 

Pricing was weird for our cruise, and changed often from about 3 months out until about a month out. I think the difference between a D1 and a Guarantee suite was about $200 per person when we booked (about 2 months before the cruise--VERY late for us due to work considerations).

 

I think we hit the Windjammer just right, and the foods they were serving were things we really liked. I can understand how others can have a totally different experience. Also, maybe the Oasis Windjammer is better than Allure's?:confused:

[sunsetbeachgal]

I'll chime in again...We typically book less expensive cabins...on Princess outside or inside..sometimes splurge for a balcony... on the Freedom cruise we had a Promenade view inside. On Paper it looked nice and it was a great location and very quiet..and we loved the window..but I have NEVER been in any cabin with so little storage space or such a small closet. The cabin layout felt small...you had to zig and zag to get around the bed...lots of seating space but all we did with that was leave packages and carryons on it...

[roe2ship]

I think its nearly impossible to compare the Oasis to any other ship....with that said I enjoyed reading your thoughts between the two lines. In general, I agree with some of your comments (especially about the coffee and pizza) except I found the buffet food on Princess better mostly because there seems to be different selections throughout the cruise and the food there is consistently hot rather than cold or lukewarm.

 

Thanks for posting.....sounds like you really enjoyed your cruise!:)

[roe2ship]

. I found the alcoholic beverages to be very pricey on RC,

True, however, IMO, Royal serves the drinks with the right amount of alcohol while Princess waters their drinks down. So you get what you pay for.;)

[dellaroo]

We leave Saturday on the Oasis, so excited. We booked the same St Marten excursion that goes to the resort. So you can't use the pool??? What the heck?? Was the beach nice? How much time at each stop? SHopping? Marigot? Resort? Thanks in advance for answering these questions. I just want to decide if we should cancel.. it is my husband, me, 4 kids (11,10,8,6) and my parents.

[AlaskaGolden]

We leave Saturday on the Oasis, so excited. We booked the same St Marten excursion that goes to the resort. So you can't use the pool??? What the heck?? Was the beach nice? How much time at each stop? SHopping? Marigot? Resort? Thanks in advance for answering these questions. I just want to decide if we should cancel.. it is my husband, me, 4 kids (11,10,8,6) and my parents.

 

That's correct, you can't use the pools--and they are really nice too (to look at anyway). The beach is OK, a little rocky once you get in the water. Water shoes would have been helpful. A few small fish in the water, and the water is very clear. The beaches at Nassau and St. John were much better. I think we had about 3 hours at the resort. It is a Westin resort.

 

We stopped for about an hour for shopping on the French side. Really good bargains in the shops and flea market-type stalls.

 

Not sure what you mean by Marigot? I only remember stopping for the shopping and the resort. Oh wait! We stopped for about 10 minutes at an overlook. I didn't even get off the bus. Nothing special as far as I could see.

[dellaroo]

That's correct, you can't use the pools--and they are really nice too (to look at anyway). The beach is OK, a little rocky once you get in the water. Water shoes would have been helpful. A few small fish in the water, and the water is very clear. The beaches at Nassau and St. John were much better. I think we had about 3 hours at the resort. It is a Westin resort.

 

We stopped for about an hour for shopping on the French side. Really good bargains in the shops and flea market-type stalls.

 

Not sure what you mean by Marigot? I only remember stopping for the shopping and the resort. Oh wait! We stopped for about 10 minutes at an overlook. I didn't even get off the bus. Nothing special as far as I could see.

 

Marigot is the town on the French side. this is the description from Royal website:

Overview:

Enjoy two of the best experiences St. Maarten has to offer – shopping in Marigot and relaxing on the beach with an all-inclusive package at an upscale resort.

Highlights:

- Explore / shop in the French capital of Marigot.

- Relax at the Dawn Beach Resort

- Lunch, beverages, lounge chair, and towels included.

 

Now when I read the description is specifically says relax on the beach, not relax at the pool. Interesting verbiage. The excursion is over $100 per person, not sure it is worth it now. I looked on line and I can book a day pass at the same resort and use the pools for about $40 per person. But we really wanted to go to Marigot too. My children go to a French school and they really want to practice their French. I hate these last minute decisions....

[janetz]

Great comparison. Love both lines and LOVED the Oasis. With that said Princess ALLLOWS you to bring on wine. Now that is an advantage. :D

[Gracie115]

Thanks for your review, very helpful. We will be on her in December for the 1st time, so appreciate all the detail on the different venues.:)

[sunsetbeachgal]

We did St. Martin in May off the Freedom.. We did a 1/2 day ships tour that went to Marigot with an island tour... then we were dropped off in Phillipsburg for the rest of the day on our own...( we opted not to go back to the ship with the tour)...we were traveling with a family with children ages 8 and 4...the beach in Downtown Phillisburg right in town is very nice and you can rent chairs and umbrellas for the day for a minimal sum...there are food options all Around in the restaurants lining the beach... we found the shopping in Phillipsburg to br MUCH better than Marigot...while we enjoyed going to Marigot Im not sure that kids really loved it...they love the beach. We considered Orient Beach, but did not want to see nudity with the two little girls with us...

[AlaskaGolden]

We did St. Martin in May off the Freedom.. We did a 1/2 day ships tour that went to Marigot with an island tour... then we were dropped off in Phillipsburg for the rest of the day on our own...( we opted not to go back to the ship with the tour)...we were traveling with a family with children ages 8 and 4...the beach in Downtown Phillisburg right in town is very nice and you can rent chairs and umbrellas for the day for a minimal sum...there are food options all Around in the restaurants lining the beach... we found the shopping in Phillipsburg to br MUCH better than Marigot...while we enjoyed going to Marigot Im not sure that kids really loved it...they love the beach. We considered Orient Beach, but did not want to see nudity with the two little girls with us...

 

Based on the above, and our experience on June 6, the next time in St. Marteen/Martin we will do the shopping with the ship's tour and the beach on our own.

 

On a related note...Next time, we are planning to do a back to back on Allure. A 7 day cruise isn't long enough for me anymore, and 7 days on Oasis or Allure isn't enough time to do everything (we missed riding the carousel, the ice skating, some of the shows, some of the dining venues, etc.). Plus, some of the shows/venues we really enjoyed and would like to more than once! :)

[tchrmom]

We are on the June 30 Oasis...........Do you remember what nights are "formal" nights? Sometimes, when you read these threads....you get different nights.

THANKS!

[AlaskaGolden]

We are on the June 30 Oasis...........Do you remember what nights are "formal" nights? Sometimes, when you read these threads....you get different nights.

THANKS!

 

The formal nights are Sunday (Nassau) and Thursday (first day at sea after St Marteen).

[tchrmom]

The formal nights are Sunday (Nassau) and Thursday (first day at sea after St Marteen).

 

THANKS!!!!

Have agreat weekend!

Fran