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Oasis of the Seas - what I wished I had known


ncnickel

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Hey Everyone! Cannot wait to cruise on Oasis come Feb 16. Question for you all (followed by a little preamble):
I've been doing a ton of reading, watching videos, participating in any and every forum discussion - all to really get a good sense for what we'll want to do on the cruise. Only 7 days and there's no way we can do EVERYTHING on a ship like Oasis.
Question: For those who have sailed on her in the past - on your first cruise on Oasis of the Seas, was there something you learned about at the END of the cruise that you wish you had done (or wish you had known about earlier?). Love learning from all you expert cruisers!
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Oasis was our first cruise; and is so big that you can't do it all in 7 days.  We got back and were looking over the cruise compasses and said wow we missed that show or this activity.  We did get to see all of the reserved shows but did miss some of the standard ship shows.  Jazz4 is such a small venue that we were never able to get a seat; you will have to get there early to get in.

Going on Harmony in February, so maybe we have a do over.   Watch ship videos, pictures and study deck plans so you will know how to get around the ship as it will save you from getting lost and wandering end to end.

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As already stated make you reservations ahead of time. We did everything we wanted to and saw every show. Need to prioritizes what you what to do, Our number #1 was to see all the shows and entertainment, so we only did early dinning in the MDR and it worked out for us. Read the cruise compass daily.

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I sailed on Allure of the Seas 2 years ago and I embark on Harmony of the Seas this Sunday. Fortunately, I was able to do everything and more on Allure because our cruise was extended due to Hurricane Irma.

However, there are a few things I learned:

The chocolate croissants I was craving were in Cafe Promenade for breakfast. Found this out on day 9.

Park Cafe has several cream cheeses to try for breakfast. Discovered this on disembarkation morning.

Know that you can't do everything and choose around 3 activities that are must-dos. For example, on Harmony, I know I definitely want to do the Ultimate Abyss, Zip lining, and water slides.

Check the times of when activities are available and get there when it opens for short waits. Example- I was able to go zip lining and rock climbing a few times in a row without a wait when it opened in the morning.

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Book the aqua theatre diving show for as early in the cruise as you possibly can because these shows are often cancelled due to weather/sea conditions. The earlier in the cruise you are scheduled to see it the better your chances of actually getting to see it if it has to be re-scheduled.

On our first time on Oasis it was cancelled twice and we did not get to see it until the very last day of the cruise.

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I’ve been on Oasis 3 times. Doing Symphony in May. Book Aqua Theatre early in the week. Can get cancelled due to weather. Last time we saw it during the day. Book all shows prior. Never went to Cats. No desire. 

The tapas in Vintages is really good. If Dalbor is still there, he’s pretty awesome. 

Look on this site for a cruise compass for your itinerary and study it although there may be some changes. 

Relax. It’s vacation. If you didn’t do everything, go to Next Cruise and put a deposit down on another one! ?

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On 10/10/2019 at 5:48 AM, Jolly Ogre said:

Get your dinner reservations in now. Then you can plan your shows around your schedule when they come available.

I am on the Oasis Dec 2020 and I already have my reservations made.

How do you make reservations ahead of time for MDR?

I use the cruise planner and I'm sailing on symphony of the seas in Jan 2020.

Officially checked in online but it only provided us with our set sail pass nothing else available.

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2 minutes ago, TJ! said:

How do you make reservations ahead of time for MDR?

I use the cruise planner and I'm sailing on symphony of the seas in Jan 2020.

Officially checked in online but it only provided us with our set sail pass nothing else available.

Through the Cruise Planner.  You just schedule your time by adding it to your cart.  You won't be charged anything.

image.thumb.png.b29b1556e279f4555ff2b1d2ff211529.png

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5 minutes ago, AshleyDillo said:

Through the Cruise Planner.  You just schedule your time by adding it to your cart.  You won't be charged anything.

image.thumb.png.b29b1556e279f4555ff2b1d2ff211529.png

Thanks Ashley! I have no idea this is how you set your dining reservations.

I was over here wondering how on earth is everyone else doing it.

This is a very peculiar/interesting way to do it.

If I set a time and was unable to make it but came earlier or later how would that work?

Much appreciated.

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2 minutes ago, TJ! said:

If I set a time and was unable to make it but came earlier or later how would that work?

You can change reservations around all you want once you get onboard based on availability.  If you miss your reservation you should be able to just show up as standby..or if you show up earlier just go to the reservations desk and see if they can seat you earlier.  They do try to seat you with the same wait staff and in the same general area of the dining room if at all possible, so they will plan with what you give them.  It's pretty much the same as a restaurant that takes reservations on land.

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On 10/10/2019 at 8:04 AM, ncnickel said:
Hey Everyone! Cannot wait to cruise on Oasis come Feb 16. Question for you all (followed by a little preamble):
I've been doing a ton of reading, watching videos, participating in any and every forum discussion - all to really get a good sense for what we'll want to do on the cruise. Only 7 days and there's no way we can do EVERYTHING on a ship like Oasis.
Question: For those who have sailed on her in the past - on your first cruise on Oasis of the Seas, was there something you learned about at the END of the cruise that you wish you had done (or wish you had known about earlier?). Love learning from all you expert cruisers!

Assuming you don't have to avoid Central Park due to allergies  remember they have lots of afternoon and evening musical performances; really a very intimate setting that won't blast your ear drums as the noisier venues do.  Have a great trip!

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On ‎2019‎/‎10‎/‎10 at 8:18 AM, FionaMG said:

Book the aqua theatre diving show for as early in the cruise as you possibly can because these shows are often cancelled due to weather/sea conditions. The earlier in the cruise you are scheduled to see it the better your chances of actually getting to see it if it has to be re-scheduled.

On our first time on Oasis it was cancelled twice and we did not get to see it until the very last day of the cruise.

I second this. Had the same experience on Oasis but just lucky it wasn't something we knew ahead of time. Had booked it for second night but it was cancelled due to technical issues with the floor in the pool but was able to see it on the last night.

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On ‎2019‎/‎10‎/‎10 at 5:48 AM, Jolly Ogre said:

Get your dinner reservations in now. Then you can plan your shows around your schedule when they come available.

I am on the Oasis Dec 2020 and I already have my reservations made.

I do the exact opposite lol. Book the shows first and then dinner around my show reservations.

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Have a plan but stay flexible.  We had all our shows booked in advance, but on our last sea day we realized there was a teen rock wall competition that my 16yo son wanted to do that conflicted with a show.  We ditched the show for some spontaneous fun, and I had to stop myself from feeling like we lost out on our plans.  You just can't do everything and that's ok.  BTW, my son won the rock climb and his joy was worth the change in plans. ?

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