If you plan to read while you re on the cruise, bring your own books, their library would be inadequ

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We just got back from a seven day cruise on Royal Caribbean's Megaship, Oasis of the Seas. The scale of the Oasis of the Seas will awe you. Ship motion was undetectable for most of the trip. If you have major problems with sea sickness, this is the class of ship for you. Pre-cruise check-in and post cruise checkout were a breeze. The suites are nicely laid out and the beds are comfy. (We were traveling with two other couples. We had an Owners Suite and they both had Grand Suites.) Our 7-day itinerary included three eastern Caribbean ports, Nassau, St. Thomas, and St. Maarten. discount broadway theatre tickets to spamalot All were nice beach towns, where we booked our own activities in lieu of ship-sponsored excursions. Embarkation and debarkation went smoothly especially considering the number discount broadway theatre tickets to spamalot of people getting on/off the ship.
The food quality on board was average to above average discount broadway theatre tickets to spamalot and, oddly enough, the soups in the main dining room were often outstanding. Two out of three of the extra cost specialty restaurants we tried were very good/excellent choices for dinner. For a long cruise, even with the extra charge, having additional dining choices would provide some welcome variety to the standard dining options. The casino was huge, fun, and had a non-smoking side! The entertainment choices across the board were excellent I suspect some of the best at sea.
If only that were the full story. There are a number of significant problems facing passengers who board the Oasis. The most troublesome of these was the consistent lack of communication between staff, officers, administrators, guest services, and shipboard personnel who are trained to SELL rather than serve passengers. You should be prepared to be pushed/badgered and even bullied into buying discount broadway theatre tickets to spamalot additional services, discount broadway theatre tickets to spamalot drinks, spa treatments, wellness packages, bottled water, drinks of the day, etc. as part of many meals and activities. The constant attempt to upsell was both exhausting and obnoxious. Too bad it was part of so many of our staff member interactions.
Our suite, while beautiful, had a number of maintenance problems (a sewer gas smell in the bathroom discount broadway theatre tickets to spamalot that took 3 days to fix no ability to turn on the A/C and then no ability to turn it off, a broken shower fixture, water being turned off).
Due to all the issues discount broadway theatre tickets to spamalot that surfaced during our trip there were well over a half dozen times staff follow-up was required. Maintenance, the concierge desk, guest relations, and even one of the ship s officers all volunteered to get back with us on one or more issues and then we never heard another word from them with just one exception.
We found out My Time Dining means making reservations before 4 pm or waiting discount broadway theatre tickets to spamalot in line. If you eat out a lot, don t expect to be impressed by most meals unless you go to the upper tier, extra cost, specialty restaurants. Even then it was a bit of hit or miss for us. At the steakhouse Chops , our service plummeted once we decided to forgo their wine list and order from our pre-paid wine package. At the end of the meal we got the sales pitch for the special wine aerator (an additional $40+). The service at many meals was also unbearably slow (2 hours plus for a table of 6). Expect to spend significantly more money if you want to eat dinner at a variety of locations discount broadway theatre tickets to spamalot by our count, about 15 of the 20 dining/snack options are extra charge.
If you plan to read while you re on the cruise, bring your own books, their library would be inadequate for a ship 1/5 the size of the Oasis. We also found we couldn t trust the event times listed on our personal calendar on the TV. As error caused us to miss one of our shows. One of the biggest surprises was the concierge staff showed no interest in acting as a customer advocate. They seemed to relish the power to say no to even small requests or inquiries made by the three couples in our group (a dinner reservation on a particular night or help monitoring a request for a bridge tour). I ve never experienced this type attitude on a Royal Caribbean ship - ever.
Given the competitiveness of the cruise market we ve decided we ll cruise with another line from this point forward. discount broadway theatre tickets to spamalot Right now, these megaships are a niche market that Royal Caribbean owns and they command a premium. It feels as if RC is resting on their laurels. At some point the inconsistency in execution we experienced will catch up with them. We were consistently left feeling nickeled and dimed, that no one was in charge, problems were ignored, commitments discount broadway theatre tickets to spamalot weren t honored, restaurants were understaffed, and staff was inadequately trained. Our Owner s Suite was very nice at first glance, but given all our maintenance problems, we can t recommend it. The check-in/check-out process, casino, and entertainment were bright spots, but not enough to make up for the rest of the experience.
We've been sailing discount broadway theatre tickets to spamalot with RCCL for decades and I have to say the dining service on the Oasis was so bad that we only went to one meal in the main dining room. When you are told, in writing, to expect to wait an hour for food there is no way.
As suspected, selling has became the norm. That's one reason I stopped crusing on NCL and Carnival years ago (and have added RCCL recently to the no sail list) and moved on to Princess and Celebrity. I can understand selling, but to a point. I can understand champagn and orange juice, but Grand Marnier and Kaluha for coffee discount broadway theatre tickets to spamalot add-on at breakfast time is pushing it a bit too far.
The Mega ships such as Oasis and Allure are beyond mega. You just have to get on board and see for yourself once and be done with it. It was a unique experience. (Notice that I did not call it good or bad, just unique.) discount broadway theatre tickets to spamalot Luckily, we were on board on a "preview cruise" and it was a sell job of a different kind.
With the advancement of the extra fee restaurants, the "normal" food has no way to go but down, maybe in their twisted way to "force" you to pay for better quality discount broadway theatre tickets to spamalot food. If you don't mind cafeteria or banquet style food, then by all means, it's all you can eat.
I don't believe RCCL is resting on their laurels. It's cost cutting and it is across discount broadway theatre tickets to spamalot the board on all the cruise lines. We have noticed general degradation of quality on a consistent basis each and every time we cruise for the past few years. On the other hand, the price had not gone up, and as a matter of fact, the price had came down and became more "affordable". If that is the trend, something got to give and unfortunately, it would be quality.
I see a lot of people choose a cruise based on price, without considering what was being offered. Some cruise lines (NCL/Carnival/RCCL etc) have "rewarded" people with last minute deals and discounts that people are now expecting deals all the time from them. We see less deep discounts from Princess and Celebrity. If it was left up to me, I would say sail with empty cabins and not discount them just to fill the ship. Discounting discount broadway theatre tickets to spamalot cheapens the value proposition.
discount broadway theatre tickets to spamalot The people I know who have cruised on the Oasis or the Allure rave about thses ships and the Oasis on cruise critic was voted the best of the large ships by a readers poll scoring 4.6. The Equinox was right behind discount broadway theatre tickets to spamalot her at 4.5. I would try this ship one day but only if the prices drop. Its too much for such a limited itinerary for me. We paid less for the Equinox for 4 more days and a much better port selection.
We sat in on a session on the Equinox discount broadway theatre tickets to spamalot with the navigator who lectured about how the ship determines a route, port calls, etc. He was asked about the Oasis class ships and said something interesting and that was in terms of safety issues. He said how big is too big. Just imagine a crisis on one of these ships with 6k passengers and more crew and multiply discount broadway theatre tickets to spamalot the panic factor if there was a situation that called for the ship to be abandoned ala the Concordia. Scary thought indeed.
Eschew, you may be right, it may be cost cutting. Seems pretty clear that's what happened with the library. We also noticed the 8 page daily news briefs are gone. I asked the concierge about that - they were dumped three years ago. The other obvious cost cutting measure was the recorded music they play throughout the ship and at most of the venues - none of it is recorded by the original bands. None this is a big deal, it just serves to make your point.
PModo, we have cruised regularly for the last while and all I can say is that every year, they took something out. Lower quality entertainment (more "game show" hosted by the staff versus live show), cheaper cut of meat, smaller size shrimps and scallops; smoked salmon on certain days rather than daily on the buffet, less frquency of extotic fruits and vegetables. Something that most people wouldn't have noticed initially or at all, but they are there in plain view if you know where to look. (I was in the expense control, improve net revenue, cost cutting business ... )
Princess is now offering a "pub lunch" as a feature in their wheelhouse. You can order fish and chips, steak and kidney pie etc for lunch and it is quite well attended and well recevied. Most would even order a dark ale or two to wash them down. The quality is quite good, service fast and food hot. The truth is probably cost cutting, as it is a whole lot cheaper to serve and produce than the lunch buffet. At least they are hiding it well, and to top it off, people are calling it an improvement. (That's my way of cost cutting! )
On our last Celebrity cruise, they have staff serving you food on the buffet line. The official reaons are better customer service discount broadway theatre tickets to spamalot and sanitation. The truth is probably portion control and waste management. The staff cost is fixed as they are already there.
As to the constant selling, Larry, that's why we have been staying away from NCL, Carnival, and more recently, RCCL. It is refreshing NOT to have peop