Ship Reports - Oasis of the Seas

Oasis of the Seas

Andrew Harrison, Broads Travel’s General Manager, was invited to attend the launch of Royal Caribbean’s latest ship, Oasis of the Seas, at its home in Fort Lauderdale, Florida at the end of last year. The ship is the first in her class and will be joined by her sister ship, Allure of the Seas later in November.

You can read Andrew’s views here or if you would like to book a cruise on Royal Caribbean’s Oasis of the Seas, call our Cruise Specialists on 0121 250 2201, visit www.broadscruises.com or email cruises@broadstravel.com

Prior to boarding

I stayed at the Raddison Edwardian Hotel near to London Heathrow the evening prior to our flight to Miami, which I’d recommend as it’s reasonable in price and you can leave your car safely.

I experienced a comfortable 9 hour flight in British Airways’ economy class with a large choice of entertainment channels to pass the time and was provided with a pleasant meal plus a sandwich shortly before arrival.

Miami Airport

The green disembarkation card still needs to be completed on board the aircraft so I’d advise keeping a pen in your hand luggage, but I was surprised at how quickly we passed through immigration. Once through, we collected our luggage and made our way to the Royal Caribbean coaches for our transfer to Fort Lauderdale. Royal Caribbean seem to have the entire process really well organised - regular announcements were made with plenty of staff to direct us to the correct coach. The journey to Fort Lauderdale took around 35 minutes.

Fort Lauderdale

We could see a large cruise ship berthed in the distance, which at first we thought was our ship, but as we approached we quickly realised that Oasis of the Seas is in a league of its own. There is no mistaking the world’s largest ship, it simply dwarfs the other cruise lines and looks superb - truly a magnificent feat of engineering.

Royal Caribbean’s slogan of “the land of why not” has been perfectly applied to the Oasis of the Seas. Having experienced a number of slow check-in procedures for other cruise ships in the past, I expected a long wait - however, this was not the case! I’d already checked in on-line, so after answering a couple of questions and having a photograph taken for my key card, I was on-board the ship within minutes. Whoever designed this ship deserves an award, it really is a very easy ship to find your way around and I quickly found my cabin.

Accommodation

I had an outside cabin with a sea view, however on this ship it is possible to have an inside cabin that still has a view! Views of Central Park (yes, I did say a park!) or the Boardwalk are tremendous and give a fresh alternative to the traditional sea view. My luggage arrived at my cabin fairly quickly – pretty impressive as there are over 2,700 staterooms for the staff to transfer all of the luggage to. My cabin was on Deck 9, in the middle of the ship and offered a 32-inch flat screen television that was totally interactive so I could check my cabin bill, order a movie or wine for dinner and have internet connectivity without leaving the cabin! Even with a large king size bed plus a separate sofa and coffee table, I thought how light and spacious it was. There was plenty of wardrobe space and the bathroom was a good size with a large shower cubicle. I guess I was being spoilt, as usually I occupy a cabin of equal size with my wife and two young children! There is a wide choice of cabins available to suit all budgets, including the new Sky Loft suites and Royal Loft Suites, staterooms which can sleep families up to 6, balcony rooms with Boardwalk or Central Park views and more standard interior staterooms. For me, I still think a sea view is the perfect way to start your day.

Restaurants

I ate in the Opus restaurant, but it is fair to say that you are spoilt for choice. As my cruise was only for three days I had insufficient time to sample all of the restaurants. I did try to have lunch in Johnny Rockets’ American Diner (a small surcharge applies to eat here), however the queue was so long that I decided to opt for a sandwich at the Boardwalk bar whilst watching a rehearsal for the high diving show. I believe that the only reason for the long queue was because passengers were trying to squeeze as much as possible into their 3 days onboard. I feel sure that on a l

One morning I chose to take breakfast in the spacious Windjammer which is a casual buffet-style eatery offering breakfast, lunch and dinners, located on deck 16. I have eaten with my family in the Windjammer many times onboard the Independence of the Seas and can highly recommend it. At lunchtimes, there is every conceivable choice available. I also chose to eat breakfast in the main restaurant - which apart from a handful of guests was completely deserted. We British must be early risers!

If you wanted, you could easily eat for 24 hours a day on the ship! As a treat, I tried some delicious ice cream from the Ice Cream parlour and enjoyed a walnut flavoured cappuccino from the speciality coffee shop called Mondo Coffee Bar. There are 24 dining options onboard so you would need to be on Oasis of the Seas for a month to try them all.

Entertainment

I got to see the first showing of the performance of Broadway’s Hairspray which, unlike other cruise shows, was almost a two hour performance without an interval, so is highly recommended.

A personal favourite was the high diving and synchronized swimming show. At the end of their first proper dress rehearsal in front of a capacity crowd, we all witnessed the finale which is a truly spectacular high dive into the smallest of pools. I thoroughly enjoyed the show and the standing ovation was well deserved. As a word of caution, following the show there are a few minutes of superb fountain displays, my advice - do not sit in the first six rows unless you have your swimsuit on and a towel ready!

The Boardwalk

The Boardwalk reminded me of a lovely old fashioned seaside pier. Overhead, the screams of passengers who have chosen to zip wire to Central Park can be heard! It is optional and in my opinion, there are easier and less scary ways of getting there!

If all of this was not enough, there is also a Carousel – another first for Royal Caribbean. The traditional merry-go-round has wonderful hand crafted horses and you can even see several of the horses at various stages of construction – truly fascinating.

The sweet shop, which is called “Eye Candy”, has a multitude of sweets to keep any sugar cravings at bay. While I was here they were discussing a slogan for the shop – I suggested “this is the only eye candy your wife will allow!!” They laughed but I suspect they will not be using the slogan. If they do – you heard it here first!

Central Park

Away from the madness of the Boardwalk is Central Park which is the first ever park at sea. For the gentleman, a word of warning - a walk through Central Park is great but at the end of the park is an upmarket handbag shop and an art gallery. It’s probably best you keep walking and continue past the jewellers on the Royal Promenade! Central Park has no less than 12,178 trees and plants (I didn’t count them) and not a weed in sight. It is a peaceful area and gives a new dimension to the ambience of the ship. There is a trendy mews area with smart restaurants and wine bars to complete the feel, and the gardens have hanging ferns covering four floors.

Rising Tide Bar

At the end of the Royal Promenade is the Rising Tide Bar which is brand new to Royal Caribbean. Here you can enjoy a drink in what can only be described as a large elevator which continually moves between 3 decks of the ship. Underneath the bar is an impressive fountain which adds to the amazement but in my case bafflement as to why you would bother!

The Casino

The Casino offers all of the usual machines and gaming tables. I played Blackjack for 30 minutes and quit when I was 70 dollars ahead. I think it was beginners’ luck, but the Croupier was very patient in explaining our options to us. As always, the clear message is that passengers should only gamble what you are prepared to lose. They certainly were not pushy to encourage you to the tables which had minimum stakes of around $5.00 or $10.00 depending upon the game or table in question.

Spa

Away from all the madness, hustle and bustle you have a haven of tranquillity in the Spa. Here it is possible to choose from a very wide range of treatments and therapy sessions. The products that are used seemed to be predominately Elemis but I would recommend looking out for the special offer days as discounts are made available.

Gym and Solarium

For those feeling the need to burn the calories, an extensive gym offers a wide array of the latest cardio fitness equipment. Add to this, a running track and you will quickly see how it is possible to justify having an indulgent cake or two. I would like to say that I spent an hour or two in the gym but as a busy Broads Travel reporter it was important that I moved on to sample the Solarium. This was one of my favourite areas and you were spoilt for choice of location to have a secluded peaceful hour with a good book and a drink. The view was magnificent and I think we should keep this area a secret!

Summary

It was all too soon to disembark and return to the UK and I’m pleased to say that disembarkation was as painless as embarkation. My suitcase had been collected the previous night and after breakfast I made my way ashore to the waiting coach. There were no queues so I assume most passengers had disembarked earlier.

To summarise, this is a ship that has to be sampled to do it justice. It has something for everybody and I thoroughly recommend Royal Caribbean with total confidence.

Interesting facts about the Oasis of the Seas..

  • Oasis of the Seas is the world’s largest cruise ship and weighs 225,282 tons
  • It is 360 metres in length (or just over 3.5 football pitches)
  • It lies 72 metres above the water line (equivalent to a 23 storey building)
  • It cruises at 22.6 knots
  • The ship has seven neighbourhoods (or districts)
  • The Aqua Theatre pool is 18 feet deep
  • There are 21 pools onboard
  • Oasis of the Seas can carry 5,400 at double occupancy and 2,165 crew
  • $75M was spent to create a new terminal at Fort Lauderdale