Oasis: Boardwalk or Central Park

[Sherri914]

I have booked Oasis of the Seas (will be our 2nd time on her) for the end of next year. We've always chosen ocean balconies on other ships, and last time on Oasis. We want to try something different this time. We are traveling with another couple (separate cabins) and have selected our cabins. But we're having second thoughts as to the location, so we've put courtesy holds on two others. I'm hoping some CC friends can give me opinions on which cabin they would choose and why. :)

 

The cabins we have booked are directly across from each other. The cabins we're holding are also directly across from each other. Pricing is identical for both. Our choices are:

 

• C2 Central Park Balcony, mid-ship, Deck 10
  
• B1 Boardwalk Balcony, 3rd from aft, Deck 12
  

 

As for us and our traveling mates.....

• They've only cruised once before, 10+ years ago, on Carnival. They'll be wowed no matter which cabin we're in.
  
• We are not traveling with any children.
  
• Neither couple naps or sleeps with our balcony doors open so I don't expect cabin noise to be an issue.
  
• Both couples walk several miles a day so distance to elevators or stairs isn't an issue.
  

 

Here are my thoughts....

 

Central Park is serene. It would be nice to sit out in the evening and enjoy the ambiance. But it's also enclosed - we could see the sky but not the ocean.

 

Boardwalk is lively, and at times downright noisy. There would be little chance for serenity on the balcony. But, because of the close proximity to the Aqua Theater and aft location, we will have views of the water and the shows at the theater. (I found a review that included pics taken from the actual cabin balcony I'm looking at, and the view was great!)

 

Now I'm hoping some CC friends can give their opinions on which cabin they would select.

 

Looking forward to hearing everyone's opinion..... :D

[Clarea]

I think you have the covered the differences nicely. What do you prefer, serene or lively?

[Starry Eyes]

Noise is not a major issue for me, so I select Boardwalk over Central Park. I enjoy watching the wake, the people and the aqua show from the balcony.

[Sherri914]

Serenity.... Aqua Theater.... Serenity.... Aqua Theater.... I'm so confused! :confused:

 

I know I'll be happy in either one. But I am leaning towards Boardwalk simply because we can enjoy the Aqua Theater and the ocean view from our own balcony. Maybe someone on CC has some pros or cons I haven't thought of though.

[mil76]

We always do Oceanview balconies on every cruise we take...except Oasis/Allure. We going on our 4th cruise in a Boardwalk balcony at the end of the month. There's just something different about the Boardwalk you don't get anywhere else. You can watch the shows at night, watch the sports deck/zipline during the day, watch the ocean go by (a little), see people dancing in Dazzles at night, watch the Pinnacles/Diamond plus/suites guests duke it out for supremacy in the concierge lounge :p, see if my kids are getting too many donuts, etc., etc. Add to that the fact that you are never in your room on Oasis/Allure, and the balcony doesn't really matter anyway. We also do Deck 14 every cruise and despite all the comments on this board, we have never had an issue with noise from the outside or above. Central Park looks nice, but if you are looking for serenity you might as well just do it right and go with an Oceanview balcony.

[mil76]

P.S. before anyone corrects me, I know the Concierge Club is moving, but that would have ruined the joke...

[LBumb]

boardwalk as far aft as possible

[Sail2k]

To my family, nothing beats a Boardwalk balcony room when you are close to the back....so very relaxing. Great view of the Aqua Theater, the ocean, the boardwalk....so different.

 

At night we love to leave the balcony doors open while we are getting ready so that we can listen to the shows...I look at it this way, as someone earlier posted, there are only 2 ships in the world that will give you a view and a feeling like sitting on your balcony as the sun is setting, listening to the music from a live singer performing below....very relaxing.....

 

As a matter of fact, we turned down a crown loft at the end of this month because my wife and I really love the boardwalk rooms....

[threeofus]

As a matter of fact, we turned down a crown loft at the end of this month because my wife and I really love the boardwalk rooms....

 

:eek::eek::eek::eek::eek:Wow...I don't know what to say. There are crown lofts that overlook the boardwalk.:rolleyes:

[Sail2k]

Is that a question or a statement? I'm confused....lol Are there crown lofts overlooking the boardwalk? The one they had was not overlooking the boardwalk....was oceanview

[OCruisers]

To my family, nothing beats a Boardwalk balcony room when you are close to the back....so very relaxing. Great view of the Aqua Theater, the ocean, the boardwalk....so different.

 

At night we love to leave the balcony doors open while we are getting ready so that we can listen to the shows...I look at it this way, as someone earlier posted, there are only 2 ships in the world that will give you a view and a feeling like sitting on your balcony as the sun is setting, listening to the music from a live singer performing below....very relaxing.....

 

As a matter of fact, we turned down a crown loft at the end of this month because my wife and I really love the boardwalk rooms....

 

Totally agree with you! We very much enjoyed having a Boardwalk balcony for all the reasons you stated! :D

LuLu

[riclop]

Serenity.... Aqua Theater.... Serenity.... Aqua Theater.... I'm so confused! :confused:

 

I know I'll be happy in either one. But I am leaning towards Boardwalk simply because we can enjoy the Aqua Theater and the ocean view from our own balcony. Maybe someone on CC has some pros or cons I haven't thought of though.

 

Book 2 cruises and do 1 of each and then you will know which one you liked better.

[campbell51]

View from our B1 balcony on deck 11 room number 11327. Liked this room but bear in mind The Aqua Show when it was on at night did not finish until 11-30 pm and the music is very loud. If that does not bother you then go for it you will have a great view as you can see.

 

[Sherri914]

THANK YOU EVERYONE! We have switched from our Central Park balcony cabins on Deck 10 to the Boardwalk balcony cabins on Deck 12... and the photo above will be our view!!!! I was so excited to see this picture this morning. They're on one side of the BW, and we're directly opposite!

 

I love the suggestion to book two cruises. . . . and we will likely do that. We will probably book our next Oasis cruise while onboard. Maybe we will try Central Park next time. But I have a feeling we'll love this location so much that we may just book this one again. :)

[Starry Eyes]

Serenity.... Aqua Theater.... Serenity.... Aqua Theater.... I'm so confused! :confused:

 

I know I'll be happy in either one. But I am leaning towards Boardwalk simply because we can enjoy the Aqua Theater and the ocean view from our own balcony. Maybe someone on CC has some pros or cons I haven't thought of though.

 

I think you did a good job summarizing pros and cons yourself.

Anyone can sit on a bench in central park to enjoy that serenity for as long as one likes. If noise is not an issue, the view from an aft Boardwalk balcony is more special IMHO.

[Kycruisefan]

We had the furthest back boardwalk balcony room on deck 9 on Allure in 2012 on the opposite side of the boat as the pic above. We LOVED it. The noise at night did not bother us when we had our door closed. We went with a group of friends and they had booked ocean view balconies and after coming to our room, they wished they had booked what we had. We watched the wake out of the back of the ship and also saw the Aqua show easily and watch the goings-on below on the boardwalk. If/when we book an Oasis class ship again, we would book here again in a heartbeat! (Unless of course I couldn't,d get my husband to do and Aqua Suite!)

[Sherri914]

We had the furthest back boardwalk balcony room on deck 9 on Allure in 2012 on the opposite side of the boat as the pic above. We LOVED it. The noise at night did not bother us when we had our door closed. We went with a group of friends and they had booked ocean view balconies and after coming to our room, they wished they had booked what we had. We watched the wake out of the back of the ship and also saw the Aqua show easily and watch the goings-on below on the boardwalk. If/when we book an Oasis class ship again, we would book here again in a heartbeat! (Unless of course I couldn't,d get my husband to do and Aqua Suite!)

 

I could probably talk DH into an Aqua Suite easily enough, but I just don't want to spend that much. :) I think it's going to be great, especially with our friends in the cabin exactly opposite ours across the Boardwalk! We can wave to each other from our balconies.

[Cindy]

I could probably talk DH into an Aqua Suite easily enough, but I just don't want to spend that much. :) I think it's going to be great, especially with our friends in the cabin exactly opposite ours across the Boardwalk! We can wave to each other from our balconies.

 

Don't say never...a few days ago, they released the Aqua Suites for double occupancy for our upcoming cruise, and dropped the price considerably. We were already in a suite, but I jumped at the chance to upgrade to an AS, simply because I think it's special and unique, and I LOVE big aft balconies! I can't wait, and I'm trying very hard to keep my mouth shut and surprise my husband!

Edited October 10, 2014 by Cindy

[threeofus]

Is that a question or a statement? I'm confused....lol Are there crown lofts overlooking the boardwalk? The one they had was not overlooking the boardwalk....was oceanview

 

Yes there are a row of crown loft suites which overlook the back of the ship and that includes the mini golf, basketball court, zip line, boardwalk and aqua theater.