Thom Cruise Posted November 4, 2023 Report Share Posted November 4, 2023 I'd be interested to hear other people's thoughts on this. Mine is based on a recent 7 night SymphonyOTS. I felt the following... - music on top deck was excessively loud - Windjammer seemed hectic, less relaxed than Quantum - I enjoyed the huge array of things to do but 7 days seemed to short to realistically enjoy it all - Oasis schedule seems disappointing in Europe. Ports are mainly industrial zones and points of interest are 60+mins away - No top deck cinema screen was disappointing - Interior rooms are great on Oasis - Boardwalk is great, Central Park not so utilitarian, bit of an 'exclusive' vibe - Theatre offering not enticing - MDR was disappointing experience compared with last year but probably not an Oasis class problem - Dazzles was basically hidden, it's so unintuitive to find or walk past - lack of speciality coffee venues in places you expect them - loved the Hiro show but overall it's an extravagant waste of a large space for 95% of the time. They show movies there but the acoustics are awful - Johnny Rockets is a waste of space on the Boardwalk, seemed hardly used - badly missing a Sea Plex venue - casino is great, huge - top deck needs Lime and Coconut decor I'd happily cruise again on an Oasis class, but for now I'd prefer Quantum or Quantum Ultra. I'm never leaving Royal Caribbean! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
texaskstar Posted November 4, 2023 Report Share Posted November 4, 2023 “Here’s my list of complaints (that I mention aren’t problems on other ships), but I’m never leaving Royal.” -Most Oasis Class ships don’t have Dazzles -Johnny Rocket, could’ve just been your sailing, they’ve always been busy on the ships I’ve been on -Ports, by definition, are industrial zones. I guess Royal could go built their Veneer Ports like they do in other parts of the world, but then that hour drive you’re complaining about is going to increase to a 2 or 3 hour drive because they’ll have to go way outside the city to build it. -Honestly, where would the put a Sea Plex? They’d have to remove a large revenue center and I don’t see them spending millions on renovations to make less money. -Not sure what you mean by the top deck needs more Lime and Coconut decor. I feel like that’s all the top two decks are. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ryan79 Posted November 4, 2023 Report Share Posted November 4, 2023 If you want cheap lime and coconut decor, book a Havana room on Carnival. That’s their schtick, and they can keep it! Austin, PeloAl and texaskstar 1 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Austin Posted November 4, 2023 Report Share Posted November 4, 2023 It’s all opinions, but since you asked… -Windjammer is bigger on Wonder for that reason (gets very busy on older oasis ships) - Specialty dining is always going to be better since you pay extra compared to MDR -if you don’t want music, go to the solarium. I’m sure some Carnival cruisers would think the music isn’t loud enough. I like Caribbean vibes if I’m sailing the Caribbean. -I never do Oasis ships in the Med, only small ships that can go to unique ports -Wonder and Oasis have lime and coconut so maybe go on those next time - I spent maybe 5 min in Seaplex on my Odyssey cruise. It’s all really dependent on the individual. Some people don’t like the fact the Quantum class has no slides. Seaplex takes up that space, but those ships are made for colder climates so it makes sense it’s closed in. Oasis is for warmer climates like the Med and Caribbean. texaskstar and Thom Cruise 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
steverk Posted November 4, 2023 Report Share Posted November 4, 2023 I've sailed on Allure and found it really isn't my cup of tea. On the good side, the play, aqua show and ice show were all spectacular. There was always activity and the ship did a great job of keeping the crowds spread out. On the other hand, it was a long hike to wherever I wanted to go. The shows repeated several times to allow everyone to see them. However, this limited the total number of shows to see. The Windjammer and elevators were always crowded. My adult children liked Allure, so it's just a matter of taste. Overall, I prefer a Freedom or Voyager class vessel. ChessE4 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thom Cruise Posted November 4, 2023 Author Report Share Posted November 4, 2023 13 minutes ago, Austin said: It’s all opinions, but since you asked… -Windjammer is bigger on Wonder for that reason (gets very busy on older oasis ships) - Specialty dining is always going to be better since you pay extra compared to MDR -if you don’t want music, go to the solarium. I’m sure some Carnival cruisers would think the music isn’t loud enough. I like Caribbean vibes if I’m sailing the Caribbean. -I never do Oasis ships in the Med, only small ships that can go to unique ports -Wonder and Oasis have lime and coconut so maybe go on those next time - I spent maybe 5 min in Seaplex on my Odyssey cruise. It’s all really dependent on the individual. Some people don’t like the fact the Quantum class has no slides. Seaplex takes up that space, but those ships are made for colder climates so it makes sense it’s closed in. Oasis is for warmer climates like the Med and Caribbean. Yes forgot to say the slides are a massive plus. I DO want music, but I'd also like to be able to speak to the person beside me without needing to raise my voice! I had earbuds in and needed top volume to drown out the deck music. Agree, the med struggles to accommodate Oasis class. Quantum goes to beautiful ports and locations. Seaplex rules dude. The Aircon makes it a perfect hot weather facility for sports! I'd actually prefer a smaller version of the water slides, just simple open air slides, not flumes. One of the flumes is basically pitch black inside, it's grim. There's always trade offs, I geddit, and even Royal admit Oasis class can be improved, hence the new Icon design. It's rather juvenile when people can't deal with criticism of a particular class of ship. It's a weird flex, but whatever. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thom Cruise Posted November 4, 2023 Author Report Share Posted November 4, 2023 2 minutes ago, steverk said: I've sailed on Allure and found it really isn't my cup of tea. On the good side, the play, aqua show and ice show were all spectacular. There was always activity and the ship did a great job of keeping the crowds spread out. On the other hand, it was a long hike to wherever I wanted to go. The shows repeated several times to allow everyone to see them. However, this limited the total number of shows to see. The Windjammer and elevators were always crowded. My adult children liked Allure, so it's just a matter of taste. Overall, I prefer a Freedom or Voyager class vessel. I've never been on a Voyager class with flumes. Might be interesting, the kids loved the flumes on Symphony. I didn't find the elevators too crowded, same as all others really. I quite like the hike around the ship generally, and it was much the same on Quantum class. Cafe270 is a much better use of the rear of the ship than the diving arena. In my opinion. Agree on the shows, I felt unfulfilled. 7 days is too short on a ship that size. I'd be happy to cross the Atlantic for 14 days on it. I left after 7 days having not had time to go to the ice show, or theatre, for example. Too busy! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Austin Posted November 4, 2023 Report Share Posted November 4, 2023 I’ll give Seaplex another go when I’m on Anthem in Norway. Allure was good for us, but we were also on a COVID restart cruise so there were very few people onboard. I’d gladly vacation on any Royal ship. I’m not sure what you mean about criticisms as your initial post asked for thoughts on your criticisms of a particular ship and so you have received what you asked. Royal does a good job at having something for everyone instead of tailoring it to a particular population. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Xaa Posted November 5, 2023 Report Share Posted November 5, 2023 11 hours ago, Thom Cruise said: It's rather juvenile when people can't deal with criticism of a particular class of ship. It's a weird flex, but whatever. I totally agree. Imagine someone listing a set of opinions, asking for thoughts and then getting prickly when those thought weren't in line with their own. Austin, michaelp1446, Ampurp85 and 1 other 2 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ScottD Posted November 5, 2023 Report Share Posted November 5, 2023 I also wish Oasis had more views of the water. When you are inside the promenade or most of the bars and specialty restaurants- you don't even see the water. Even in MDR it's just porthole type windows that only the people sitting next to can see, I'm going on a Freedom class next and excited about those huge floor to ceiling windows in MDR, being able to sit at the schooner bar AND seeing water! Eating outside at Johnny rockets or inside at Giovannis and seeing the ocean. That's something that they fixed with icon... HUGE windows to see the ocean from Promenade and other areas of the ship. Also, I'm not a huge water slide fan, especially the tubes like you mentioned. Which is another thing I'm excited about on Liberty- that big open, dual tube slide that you go up and down the little ramp. That looks fun. I haven't done a Quantum class yet, but I would imagine I would love seaplex- the playmakers alone makes me want to go! asquared17 and Rackham 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tonyfsu21 Posted November 5, 2023 Report Share Posted November 5, 2023 15 hours ago, steverk said: I've sailed on Allure and found it really isn't my cup of tea. On the good side, the play, aqua show and ice show were all spectacular. There was always activity and the ship did a great job of keeping the crowds spread out. On the other hand, it was a long hike to wherever I wanted to go. The shows repeated several times to allow everyone to see them. However, this limited the total number of shows to see. The Windjammer and elevators were always crowded. My adult children liked Allure, so it's just a matter of taste. Overall, I prefer a Freedom or Voyager class vessel. Allure is old news in regards to Oasis Class. I would have a hard time judging the ship class based on Allure alone because it’s severely in need of a refresh. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheMaxRebo Posted November 5, 2023 Report Share Posted November 5, 2023 We sailed Symphony this past February, though in the Caribbean, not the Med. I think the big ships are better suited for places like the Caribbean with more sea days and less issues with ports, etc I do agree about Windjammer - it did often feel a bit chaotic and just undersized for the amount of people ... Seems they addressed this with Wonder and hopefully even moreso on Icon We enjoyed the big shows they had in the theater, especially Hairspray which I thought was an amazing production Overall I do get some of your criticism but do think they seem to be addressing with newer ships and some was just probably not right ship for that location/itinerary Rackham 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JasonOasis Posted November 5, 2023 Report Share Posted November 5, 2023 I will say the worst Aqua Theater show on any Oasis Class ship is on Wonder of the Seas. inTENse was any thing but intense it was slow, boring and halfway through the show people were getting up to leave. I felt bad for the performers because leaving is disrespectful but after having sailed on every Oasis Class ship multiple times on each ship I think Royal needs to rethink inTENse because its not a 10 its more like a 2 for me. Windjammers on Wonder is much larger than any other Oasis Class ship however the overcrowding is still a problem between 9 a.m.-10:30 a.m.. I don't think enough people know there are other venues open around the ship for breakfast. In fact on several days I went and had breakfast at El Loco Fresh. They had the same breakfast as windjammers but there was maybe 20 people at El Loco Fresh. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thom Cruise Posted November 5, 2023 Author Report Share Posted November 5, 2023 11 hours ago, Xaa said: I totally agree. Imagine someone listing a set of opinions, asking for thoughts and then getting prickly when those thought weren't in line with their own. Someone made their points in a particularly sarcastic tone, that's poor form. If we all did that then the forum would quickly become unfriendly. I guess I was surprised to find myself not totally falling in love with the Oasis class, as many YT shows had built up a wholly positive picture of them! Having said that, I'd love to try Wonder. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GatorCruiser Posted November 5, 2023 Report Share Posted November 5, 2023 Wonder is fantastic. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AandD Posted November 5, 2023 Report Share Posted November 5, 2023 We have been on both the Symphony and the Wonder in the last year and half. I love being able to walk into the Windjammer when they open and get a beer to go with my breakfast. WAAAYTOOO 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GatorCruiser Posted November 6, 2023 Report Share Posted November 6, 2023 Can’t drink all day if you don’t start in the morning ScottD 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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