Help assure me that I would like the Oasis of the Sea as much as the Disney Fantasy!

[Jacobnolivia]

My family took our first cruise last summer on the Fantasy. We absolutely loved it!! Now we want to cruise again next summer with extended family. My kids will be 7 and 11. We are a full on "Disney family". We would be sailing with my parents (have taken many royal Caribbean cruises but no Disney cruises) and my brother & his wife. My parents ate fine with going on either the Fantasy or the Oasis but my brother is worried about the price of the Fantasy ( prices aren't out yet). My kids are dead set on going on the Fantasy again. Will we love the Oasis just as much? Some of the things they loved are: the aqua duck, the food, the characters, castaway cay, the mystery detective game, and the nighttime shows.

[cynt]

I'm a Disney nut and I loved the Allure. But do not go on the Oasis expecting Disney. It is not Disney. I had a fabulous time on the Allure. I think you will like it and I know your kids will love it. It will be a whole new experience that your family will enjoy.

[G85 SS]

Oasis of the Seas will blow them away with the production shows. Shows such as Hairspray, Frozen in Time, Splish Splash, Oasis of Dreams just to name a few. That's not to say Disney shows are bad because Disney knows how to put stuff together too. But the variety you will see on Oasis is much more.

 

Other things for the family to enjoy on Oasis of the Seas is the Zip Line, one of the two Flow Riders(Surf Simulator), Mini Golf, Basketball, Dodgeball, Ice Skating and the H2O Zone for the kids. There's not slide like Disney has with the Aqua Duct but the H2O zone is essentially a waterpark at sea.

 

Food. I'll be honest and say the food I had on Oasis was not the best I have seen but I have had worse. This is also an area where Disney shines. So you may find yourself liking Disney food more.

 

As for Character interaction, Oasis of the Seas has a Dreamworks Parade and you can also do things like a character breakfast so that might be something to think about... I do believe it is still available.

 

As for itinerary. If you take the Western Caribbean you will call in Labadee, Haiti which is a private destination. There's a lot of things there for the kids to enjoy as well such as a small waterpark, Zip Line(maybe not the younger kids as there may be a limit) and Roller Coaster.

 

But I will be honest. As much as I am uptalking RCCL and Oasis of the Seas, that was not one of my more liked cruise ships. But each person is different and as long as you board with smiles on your face, expecting to have a fantastic time, you will. :)

Edited February 17, 2014 by G85 SS

[Disneybridein2k3]

I am a self-proclaimed Disney freak and I think the family will enjoy Oasis. I agree with Cynt - don't expect Disney - no Rainforest room, Palo brunches, split bathrooms, or Castaway Cay but there are a lot of entertainment options. And you can't beat the price of RC compared to Disney. Try it once just to say you did it. I don't love Oasis more - I just love it in a different way. :)

[karmacats]

My family took our first cruise last summer on the Fantasy. We absolutely loved it!! Now we want to cruise again next summer with extended family. My kids will be 7 and 11. We are a full on "Disney family". We would be sailing with my parents (have taken many royal Caribbean cruises but no Disney cruises) and my brother & his wife. My parents ate fine with going on either the Fantasy or the Oasis but my brother is worried about the price of the Fantasy ( prices aren't out yet). My kids are dead set on going on the Fantasy again. Will we love the Oasis just as much? Some of the things they loved are: the aqua duck, the food, the characters, castaway cay, the mystery detective game, and the nighttime shows.

 

DH and I sailed on the Disney Dream last year (Fantasy's sister ship), and have been on Oasis (and Allure, Oasis' sister ship). They are very different experiences, but both ships have great service, food, and activities, and I don't think you'd go wrong with either. We're big Disney fans, too (have had annual passes to WDW the last 2 years), and enjoyed our Dream cruise, but honestly, I'd give the edge to Oasis/Allure, just because of the excellent shows and the sheer number of things to do.

 

Oasis obviously doesn't have the aquaduck, but has a great kids' splash/pool area, plus the flowrider surf simulator (not sure about age restrictions on it, though). To be honest, I found the food in the main dining rooms on royal better than the food on disney, though palo on disney is my favorite specialty restaurant. Royal has dreamworks characters that do a lot of interaction and a couple of parades, they have fantastic nighttime shows, and Labadee (their private "island") is very similar to castaway cay. There's nothing on royal that approximates the mystery detective game, but they may do some scavenger hunts in the kids' clubs, if your kids will be going to those. Also, I should add that we've always had great service on both cruise lines.

 

Our last Dream cruise was so fun, when we got off we thought "how can we go back to royal?" And then when we went on our Allure cruise, we thought "how can we go back to Disney?" :rolleyes: (So of course we're going back on both, but that's neither here nor there.) My point is, I think you will have a blast on either!

[hollon]

Please, just don't compare, Think of it as a "NEW" vacation.

[trev71]

Ive never cruised with Disney. But we enjoyed the Oasis way more than any other ship so we decided to go on her again. The only thing that i noticed about the Disney ship was that wicked waterslide that goes around the whole ship. I though about sneaking on that ship just to tyr that out :D

[VanessaM]

I have cruised both, and as others have mentioned they are totally different.

 

I find that Allure has more variety for the different age groups in your party. IMO, that's one of the places that Disney lacks. I find that their shows are very much geared towards the younger crowd and pretty much what you see in the parks. I wish they would offer 1 show that was more Broadwayish, but that's my opinion. Also on both Disney cruises, I find that by 10:30/11 there is not many people out in the venues. Not sure that would matter to your brother and his wife.

 

As for the kids clubs, they are both great.

 

The one downfall for Royal is Castaway! That's a fantastic little island!

Edited February 18, 2014 by VanessaM

[spm422]

Both are fabulous for very different reasons!! We are disney FANTATICS too!! If Cost is a huge factor when making the decision got with what makes sense for the whole party. We definetely enjoyed both ships. As a family we have been on Disney twice and RCI twice, going on Enchantment of the seas next month. I personally would give the advantage to Disney but that is not to say you won't have a fabulous time on Oasis.

 

It really is hard to compare - you would have to go over every little detail with a fine tooth comb to compare each detail - and on top of that what is more importanat to your grop may not be as important to someone else. If you go with an open mind and not compare you will enjoy yourself more - I promise!! Treat it as a whole new vacation not one that you say -"It isn't like this on the Fantasy' the whole time.

 

Oasis has great shows, good food and...well a ton to do!! the RCI islands are not as great as the Disney island but still fun! I prefer the checkin/ checkout procedures and overall kid clubs better on Disney.

 

Have fun whichever you do!!