scsagh Posted January 28, 2017 #126 Share Posted January 28, 2017 Our last day at sea, Day seven continues live: Was now plenty of room for the seven bottles of water I brought in my carry on and the six complimentary bottles they gave us. Not cold, but cool enough to drink...nice! Any other questions...please fire away. :) Next up....end of the last day report. Your review has never been boring, Island Lady! So I can bring some bottles of water onboard? Is there a limit? Last question...at least for now, has the ship stayed on the original Eastern Time the whole cruise, or did they move to local time in St. Thomas and St. Maarten? Thanks again, and enjoy the last few hours of your current cruise! Sandy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare island lady Posted January 28, 2017 Author #127 Share Posted January 28, 2017 Pat, you are never boring!!I will go out on a limb here (please no flames please please) ........... and say I LOVE your writing style!!!:D You go GIRL!!!!!!!!!!!!!! You have me wanting to book Oasis OTS soon! I am out of vacation until June 1st!!!:eek: Tell Bucky "Hi", too!! Oh...you are so sweet! Thanks for the great compliment. :) Sure hope to sail with you and Kay again soon. I just love her laugh and sense of humor. You are a lucky man!! :) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare island lady Posted January 28, 2017 Author #128 Share Posted January 28, 2017 (edited) Yeah, one way has more sun than the other on balcony during the cruise but I found on FR that at least some of the balcony stays shady for most of the intense sun days. The balcony dividers start providing shade later in the day. Good to know about docking on the Starboard side. The port that I liked to be portside was St. Thomas but as OA has to Dock in Crown Bay, we would not get that view anyway. On Starboard, we get a great view of the pier runners, which should be a hoot on Cozumel day. Yeah, it's a toss up sometime. Good waterfront view docked up in ports on port side, but do miss the "goings on" on the starboard dock side. ;) We decided to book OA again, port side again next time. Bucky likes that better. Edited January 28, 2017 by island lady Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare island lady Posted January 28, 2017 Author #129 Share Posted January 28, 2017 Your review has never been boring, Island Lady! So I can bring some bottles of water onboard? Is there a limit? Last question...at least for now, has the ship stayed on the original Eastern Time the whole cruise, or did they move to local time in St. Thomas and St. Maarten? Thanks again, and enjoy the last few hours of your current cruise! Sandy Thanks! Gives me the courage to perhaps do another one some time. :) Actually bringing water on board is supposed to be against the rules, (though ironic we can bring on two bottles of wine. ;)), but the water rule is rarely enforced. You can either carry on some bottles, or put them in a case with a luggage tag on. Too many pax leave the bottles in one of those shrink wrap plastic cases and find how much a PITA it is to carry it around before you can check into your cabin. Porters don't like (and will sometimes refuse) to handle that bulky case. What works for me is to put 6-7 bottles in a cloth tote bag, put a tag on it, and it arrives no problem at our cabin. Yes, we stayed on ship's time (EST) for the whole cruise. One hour later than both ports. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare island lady Posted January 28, 2017 Author #130 Share Posted January 28, 2017 Quick update on day seven: Well, now I don't feel so bad I decided to stay in and watch a movie last night. Found out "Come Fly with me"...the 10 pm show...was cancelled last night. Also Cats was cancelled yesterday including the one we were reserved for at 2:30 today. Both were due to technical difficulties in the theater. Got lucky and got in line early to see Frozen in Time, the ice show at 3 pm. Even better...first row seats! Great show, and happy to see the sand artist again was performing. Great big hits on on Island Lady's hit and miss score!! I was just handed my glass of Sauvignon Blanc here in the DL, so will sign off now, and continue the wrap up when I get home tomorrow. Thanks everyone for following along. Next up...end of our last day and disembarkation "adventure". ;) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BLAMBKY Posted January 29, 2017 #131 Share Posted January 29, 2017 No, not that I have noticed, but I don't do the Starbucks thing anyway. Notmuch help there I am afraid. I have seen many Starbucks paper coffee cups that just look like regular Starbucks. They may have them, so I will try to be more observant today. Thanks, enjoying your review! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pacificlander Posted January 29, 2017 #132 Share Posted January 29, 2017 (edited) Thanks, enjoying your review! Great tips, thanks! :) Thank you very much! Sent from my ASUS MeMO Pad 7 using Forums mobile app Edited January 29, 2017 by Pacificlander Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pacificlander Posted January 29, 2017 #133 Share Posted January 29, 2017 Sent from my ASUS MeMO Pad 7 using Forums mobile app We are boarding the Oasis in 3 weeks. Your review has been great and I can't wait for our turn! Quick question, can the balcony dividers be opened if both parties request it? Sent from my ASUS MeMO Pad 7 using Forums mobile app Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
denamo Posted January 29, 2017 #134 Share Posted January 29, 2017 Thank you! And you are most welcome! :) 150 CP (where we used our FNDR), is 45.00 per, versus 42.00 at Chops. So if we were able to go there...don't see a reason you could not use it for Chops. At least for now right now, until they decide to change the terminology on the prom. Enjoying your review. We were on the week prior to you, and we ate at Chops for the FNDR promo. When we went in to make a reservation, I specifically asked if there was an extra charge. Chandom had warned me. They immediately said "no". It was an awesome meal. We did feel there was a big push to get cruisers into the specialty restaurants. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chandom Posted January 29, 2017 #135 Share Posted January 29, 2017 ... We did feel there was a big push to get cruisers into the specialty restaurants. Yeah, it was fun play dodge the guy carrying around the menu no matter where you were. Sent from a mobile device Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
denamo Posted January 29, 2017 #136 Share Posted January 29, 2017 Yeah, it was fun play dodge the guy carrying around the menu no matter where you were. Sent from a mobile device :D:D so true! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare lazydayz Posted January 29, 2017 #137 Share Posted January 29, 2017 Thanks for the live review. I enjoyed following along and it is getting me ready for our first Oasis cruise in September. Thankfully we have a few Brilliance cruises before that. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
molly361 Posted January 29, 2017 #138 Share Posted January 29, 2017 Welcome back Pat- How was disembarkation? Last month when we did self assist (early) it took a very long time. It used to be very quick and efficient when the ship was in FLL Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rosy1013 Posted January 30, 2017 #139 Share Posted January 30, 2017 Throughly enjoyed your report, but am so disappointed that I didn't get to meet you onboard! I was at the meet and greet, but didn't get to actually do much meeting. Ah well, maybe next time! And to the poster asking about the Starbucks mugs, I'm almost positive there were none associated with Royal. Just the Miami and Florida "you are here" collection. I did get to pick up one in San Juan though:) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare island lady Posted January 30, 2017 Author #140 Share Posted January 30, 2017 Sent from my ASUS MeMO Pad 7 using Forums mobile app Thanks all on the compliments! :) This was my first attempt. Sorry no photos, still living in the dinosaur era...Island Lady worked with pay phones, called in for messages, and used...OMG!! Paper work...:eek: in my past career. ;) :p Computers and all the cool tricks are still in a learning curve for me. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare island lady Posted January 30, 2017 Author #141 Share Posted January 30, 2017 We are boarding the Oasis in 3 weeks. Your review has been great and I can't wait for our turn! Quick question, can the balcony dividers be opened if both parties request it? Sent from my ASUS MeMO Pad 7 using Forums mobile app Yes, I saw many that were combined. Not very many ships can do this, especially the older ones, but it looked like a simple tool to pop them open that can be done by your cabin attendant. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare island lady Posted January 30, 2017 Author #142 Share Posted January 30, 2017 Enjoying your review. We were on the week prior to you, and we ate at Chops for the FNDR promo. When we went in to make a reservation, I specifically asked if there was an extra charge. Chandom had warned me. They immediately said "no". It was an awesome meal. We did feel there was a big push to get cruisers into the specialty restaurants. We are going to do Chop on the first night next time...but not sure if we will attempt "First Night" promo or not. Program will most likely have been tweaked by RCI by our next time around. ;) Might just stick to our regular BOGO. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare island lady Posted January 30, 2017 Author #143 Share Posted January 30, 2017 Yeah, it was fun play dodge the guy carrying around the menu no matter where you were. Sent from a mobile device Big time!! :eek: And drink packages that first day also. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare island lady Posted January 30, 2017 Author #144 Share Posted January 30, 2017 Thanks for the live review. I enjoyed following along and it is getting me ready for our first Oasis cruise in September. Thankfully we have a few Brilliance cruises before that. Thanks!! Enjoy your cruise on OA! We were quite surprised how much we liked it, due to being more fond of smaller ships, so we are planning on booking another OA cruise when we board Serenade in two weeks. :) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare island lady Posted January 30, 2017 Author #145 Share Posted January 30, 2017 (edited) Welcome back Pat- How was disembarkation? Last month when we did self assist (early) it took a very long time. It used to be very quick and efficient when the ship was in FLL Terrible. :( I would not want to do self assist from what I saw of the grouchy people standing in a horrible long line that snaked one way down the promenade, and back around again. Was more comfortable waiting in our cabin, and then relaxing in the theater to wait for our number to be called. Edited January 30, 2017 by island lady Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
molly361 Posted January 30, 2017 #146 Share Posted January 30, 2017 Terrible. :( I would not want to do self assist from what I saw of the grouchypeople standing in a horrible long line that snaked one way down the promenade, and back around again. Was more comfortable waiting in our cabin, and then relaxing in the theater to wait for our number to be called. I always say that I am not going to do self assist but when the vacation is over I like to get back home quickly (to see the dogs) Even with it taking an hour to get off the ship we were still back home before 9am. I think our luggage tags were scheduled to be called around 9:30 if we had went that route Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare island lady Posted January 30, 2017 Author #147 Share Posted January 30, 2017 Throughly enjoyed your report, but am so disappointed that I didn't get to meet you onboard! I was at the meet and greet, but didn't get to actually do much meeting. Ah well, maybe next time! And to the poster asking about the Starbucks mugs, I'm almost positive there were none associated with Royal. Just the Miami and Florida "you are here" collection. I did get to pick up one in San Juan though:) I am sorry I did not get to meet you also! It was a good turn out, but seemed rushed. I thought the Activities Director used too much time to just talk about herself. Nice lady, interesting story...but I would have thought it would have been more appropriate to talk about CC and get people involvement...to actually "meet and mingle" Not one of the best run M&M's I have attended. Yes, agree...thanks for bringing the cups up again. I forgot to post that we indeed did check out all the shops on board, plus Starbucks themselves, and found no related RCI/Starbucks cups for sale. Guess they are missing out on that income venue. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare island lady Posted January 30, 2017 Author #148 Share Posted January 30, 2017 OK...here we go with the finale of our last day: After our DL cocktails on Day seven, we once again headed up to CK for our last dinner. I eagerly ordered that great Hamachi appetizer again, and was again fantastic! Bucky decided to go veggie, and ordered the fried Cauliflower rice. Interesting dish with two eggs on top. Quite yummy! My entree this time was another miss. I got the seafood pasta, lots of little bay scallops, but tasted and smelled of low tide. Oh well, certainly did not go hungry on this cruise of course. ;) :eek: Shared a decadent chocolate dessert, then off to the cabin to pack and set the luggage out for collection. Next up: Disembarkation Day. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare island lady Posted January 30, 2017 Author #149 Share Posted January 30, 2017 (edited) Dreaded Disembarkation Day: Yikes!! After those last beautiful sunny days in the mid 80's....got up early to watch us slide into port and found rain, a cold 46 degrees, and clamy. Noticed we followed in one Carnival ship, the "mouse" (Disney ;)) was already in, and then another Carnival ship came in after us. Four ships in port. Uh-oh! Customs agents will be spread thin. Three of the ships are no small fries for sure. Three choices for breakfast: WJ, MDR, and Park Cafe. Since it was raining, and still quite dark, Park Cafe was a no go for us. MDR typically on last day is always slow...so WJ it was. Pleasantly surprised to find it running smoothly, plenty of seats available and both sides open for business. The usual limited offerings for last day, but more than enough to not starve! ;) Another huge surprise was to find the coffee machine working in the DL this morning. Most ships, they get cheap and shut it down...leaving us for that burnt tasting coffee in the WJ. Island Lady was happy cruiser with her last Latte of the cruise. Our tag was #15, scheduled for 8:20. After returning to the cabin for a bit, we said goodbye to our great cabin attendant, (who also let us check out one of the OS cabins...Sweeet Suite!). All levels of C&A (except Pinnacle who go with the Suites people) were scheduled for down one level on deck four of the Theater. Most everyone else were on deck five (disembarkation deck) and some were in the dining room. Being one deck down was not a perk for sure, since elevators are not possible with the crowds, we had to lug our carry on bags (now loaded with rum and a "did not use" last bottle of wine) up the two sets of stairs to get back to deck five when our number was called. On the way to our assigned area, we noticed the "self assist" people in line. :eek: OMG!! Are you kidding??!! The promenade on OA covers a lot of landscape from one end to the other. This line was going down one side, back around the end, back down the other side, and then the line to the door. Grouchy looking pax were pushing and shoving their way along with all their gear...glad we did not opt for it. Our number was called 10 minutes late (found Terrance our great LA, that told me they had a record number of self assist, which pushed the timing back for regular numbers). Once we were called it was a simple walk to the door, very organized, but the trouble started when we got off the ship. Long line backed up just after we left the gangway. We were in that line for over an hour, but at least this line did not have us lugging all of our suitcases. Once let in to the terminal, found our bags right away, and then joined the other long line to get to customs. Another 45 minutes. Noticed a side line (not suites or Pinnacles) that kept forming...then they let that group of 20-30 passengers cut in line in front of us every 20 minutes or so. Not sure what that was, or why they could not simply get in the regular line at the end. :confused: Held everyone up even more. :( Finally through, easy pick up of our shuttle, and back to our vehicle at Park N Cruise. Home to my fur baby by 11:00 am. Thanks for cruising along with us, and all of your compliments! Hope you enjoyed the ride. If there are any more questions, I will do my best to answer them. :) Edited January 30, 2017 by island lady Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bette And Bill Posted January 30, 2017 #150 Share Posted January 30, 2017 Dreaded Disembarkation Day: Yikes!! After those last beautiful sunny days in the mid 80's....got up early to watch us slide into port and found rain, a cold 46 degrees, and clamy. Noticed we followed in one Carnival ship, the "mouse" (Disney ;)) was already in, and then another Carnival ship came in after us. Four ships in port. Uh-oh! Customs agents will be spread thin. Three of the ships are no small fries for sure. Three choices for breakfast: WJ, MDR, and Park Cafe. Since it was raining, and still quite dark, Park Cafe was a no go for us. MDR typically on last day is always slow...so WJ it was. Pleasantly surprised to find it running smoothly, plenty of seats available and both sides open for business. The usual limited offerings for last day, but more than enough to not starve! ;) Another huge surprise was to find the coffee machine working in the DL this morning. Most ships, they get cheap and shut it down...leaving us for that burnt tasting coffee in the WJ. Island Lady was happy cruiser with her last Latte of the cruise. Our tag was #15, scheduled for 8:20. After returning to the cabin for a bit, we said goodbye to our great cabin attendant, (who also let us check out one of the OS cabins...Sweeet Suite!). All levels of C&A (except Pinnacle who go with the Suites people) were scheduled for down one level on deck four of the Theater. Most everyone else were on deck five (disembarkation deck) and some were in the dining room. Being one deck down was not a perk for sure, since elevators are not possible with the crowds, we had to lug our carry on bags (now loaded with rum and a "did not use" last bottle of wine) up the two sets of stairs to get back to deck five when our number was called. On the way to our assigned area, we noticed the "self assist" people in line. :eek: OMG!! Are you kidding??!! The promenade on OA covers a lot of landscape from one end to the other. This line was going down one side, back around the end, back down the other side, and then the line to the door. Grouchy looking pax were pushing and shoving their way along with all their gear...glad we did not opt for it. Our number was called 10 minutes late (found Terrance our great LA, that told me they had a record number of self assist, which pushed the timing back for regular numbers). Once we were called it was a simple walk to the door, very organized, but the trouble started when we got off the ship. Long line backed up just after we left the gangway. We were in that line for over an hour, but at least this line did not have us lugging all of our suitcases. Once let in to the terminal, found our bags right away, and then joined the other long line to get to customs. Another 45 minutes. Noticed a side line (not suites or Pinnacles) that kept forming...then they let that group of 20-30 passengers cut in line in front of us every 20 minutes or so. Not sure what that was, or why they could not simply get in the regular line at the end. :confused: Held everyone up even more. :( Finally through, easy pick up of our shuttle, and back to our vehicle at Park N Cruise. Home to my fur baby by 11:00 am. Thanks for cruising along with us, and all of your compliments! Hope you enjoyed the ride. If there are any more questions, I will do my best to answer them. :) Pat - did you notice if Port Canaveral has added "Global Entry". They have it in Ft. Lauderdale and I wondered if they would put one in when Oasis moved to Port Canaveral. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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