What to Know Before You Go

You’ve done your shopping, planning and packing. But before you sit back and tick off the days, here are some things to know before you go:
 
First things first. Did you do your online check-in? How far in advance you need to do it varies by cruise line. We do it about six weeks before the trip. While you’re printing up your boarding pass, don’t forget to also do the luggage tags. You’ll need a color printer for these. And to staple them to your bags.


Signing a waiver is a must for climbing the walls
on Royal Caribbean ships

And did you…Sign up for shows (Royal Caribbean’s Oasis class ships), book the specialty restaurants you wanted to, sign the waivers that you need? (For Royal Caribbean, to use the zip line, FlowRider®, rock climbing and skating; you can sign them online up to three days before you leave.)

Carryon but don’t carry on. Most of the time, your luggage doesn’t show up at your stateroom right away. In fact, sometimes, it doesn’t even show up in time for dinner. So, you might want to slip something nicer than your shorts into your carryon. 


You'll need reservations for the Allure's
150 Central Park

When to bring your own. Even though the ships provide these, you might want to consider bringing your own blow dryer and shampoo. The ship blow dryers are usually substandard and the mass market cruise ships today are all going to shampoo dispensers in the shower.

Speaking of bringing your own, Celebrity, Royal Caribbean and Princess all let you bring a limited number of bottles of wine onboard. You can only drink them in your stateroom without incurring extra cost, but there’s nothing like sipping white wine on the balcony. You can get some nice wine bottle carriers with shoulder straps, which make toting them onto the ship a snap.  
 
All that baggage. When you get to the port, you’ll be surrendering all your suitcases except your carryon. Expect chaos. There are cabs, buses and cars converging in the same small place, trying to avoid creaming cruisers and each other. You’ll be directed to the drop-off, where baggage guys will take your suitcases off your hands and onto the ship.
 
Some of the cruise lines are offering fly/luggage programs, where they handle your luggage from flight to float, so you don’t even need to deal with it at all. There is a fee for this service.
 
Important: tip them. The baggage guys expect tips. The online forums are filled with horror stories of when people didn’t give them money or even when the amount fell short. Bottom line: if you want to see your stuff again, tip them and tip them enough.
 
Your passport to pleasure. Keep your passport handy when you get to the terminal. You’ll need to show it several times as you make your way to check-in. You will also need to present your boarding pass (what you print up during the online process) when you check in at the terminal.
 
In sickness and in health. A routine part of the check-in process these days is that you sign a form acknowledging that you don’t have any signs of sickness. What they’re really looking for is to keep norovirus from coming onboard with you.
 
Sanitize, sanitize, sanitize. Speaking of norovirus, the best way to stay healthy during your trip is not to dodge the lady with the spray, and to also bring your own stuff. The bad germs can be spread via railings and banisters, elevator buttons, ladles in the buffet, salt and pepper shakers, the TV remote control, telephone, door knobs and I’m sure there are some I haven’t thought of. We bring our own wet wipes and sanitizer sprays and use them continuously throughout each day.

Two smiles and says cheese. You’ll have two photos at check in—one you must say yes to, and the other is up to you. The first is for your sea card, which is your ID card and credit card rolled into one. You can’t get on or off the ship without it.

The other photo is for the benefit of the ship’s photographer, who will nab you as you head toward the gangway. You can oblige him. Or duck him. The choice is yours.

 
Read the fine print. Every day, your room steward will leave you with a newsletter, which is full of info on the activities of the day. Read it closely. There are details on when to be back onboard after port, whether you need to reset your watch and how to dress for dinner. As well as the shows, the sales and the all-important drink of the day. And sometimes, even the best events onboard are buried in the fine print.
 
Well, now you know it all. What’s left? Check out the weather at your ports of call, use your free Ship Mate app to track your ship and…have a great trip!

Musing’s Top Tip: Check out the great article from Travel & Leisure on the best time to apply for a passport and what you can expect on wait times. For more on passports, see the posting “The One Thing You Absolutely Must Know Before You Cruise.”

 

 

When Bigger is Best: a Review of the Oasis

You notice it most when you’re in port. Oasis is big. It commands attention. And it dwarfs every other ship.

But what does big do for the cruiser?

Oasis commands attention

Big means better entertainment. Like its sibling, Allure of the Seas, Oasis of the Seas has top-flight entertainment, starting with the full version of the musical Cats (see tip below). It has a colorful and lively ice show with former championship skaters. An extensive DreamWorks parade.

In short, it has shows and events you just won’t see on any other ship. And some productions, like the aqua show with its mesmerizing high divers, you won’t see on land, either.
 


A dive from above in the Oasis of Dreams aqua show

Big means more activities. Only a ship that’s 1,800 feet long (five football fields!) can have a full-sized carousel (rides are free), wave-making machine for surfing and boogie-boarding, 82-foot long zip line, and two rock-climbing walls with multiple levels of difficulty.

Big means more places to call your own. Of the three “neighborhoods” (Promenade, Boardwalk and Central Park), Central Park was the most underutilized and thus, became our favorite. Nighttime, you pretty much have the place to yourself. A glass of wine at the Trellis Bar, surrounded by the (real) tropical foliage and sparkling restaurant lights, is a great way to get away from the bustle.
 

Central Park at night: cushy chairs with your name on them

Big means more food choices. There are 25 restaurants—some will cost you, but others will not. The complimentary venues begin with three main dining rooms, where the entrees are adequate (thankfully, lobster tails still grace the menu on the second formal night), desserts are good and the rolls are superb (try the pumpkin seed ones). Along with the usual fare, the Windjammer buffet at night has some interesting Asian dishes, such tandoori chicken and curry specialties; brie; and an occasional surprise or two.

Among the other free options are Park Café for breakfast and lunch (paninis and salads assembled to order); Sorrento’s, where pizzas can also be made to your taste; and the 24-hour Café Promenade with sandwiches and desserts (try the wonderful cheesecake pops).

Big means more space to walk off your meals. The covered jogging track on Deck 5 spans the length of the ship and has one lane dedicated to runners and another to walkers. Be sure to check out the cute sayings overhead. One mile is just 2.4 laps. And aside from the occasional crew member using the track as a short cut, you won’t have much competition for foot space.

Ironically, even with its vast size, Oasis still runs out of room. Comedy is relegated to a small theater, forcing the comedians to do show, after show, after show on a seven-day cruise—a fact they never fail to mention. Our Crown and Anchor event was held on the helipad, in the sun, on a hot day.

When big is not the best. Big doesn’t necessarily mean better food. While the food on Oasis is okay, it doesn’t get the same emphasis that you’ll see on some other cruise lines. Royal Caribbean focuses on activities and entertainment and for that reason, perhaps, the crowd on Oasis was decidedly younger than on other cruise line ships.

And big means more people and longer lines. For the most part, Oasis has crowd control down to a science. Getting back onboard after a port visit always involved some kind of line, but it moved swiftly. Amazingly, disembarkation took significantly less time than it did when we sailed on Celebrity’s Constellation, a ship half of Oasis’ size.

Despite the occasional inconveniences and unremarkable food, what you can count on is that Oasis of the Seas is big on fun.

Musing’s Top Tip: The Oasis production of Cats is fabulous and shouldn’t be missed. However, it’s not as easy to follow as traditional musicals like Oklahoma or West Side Story. To ensure you enjoy the show, consider doing some homework before you leave home. We did and it made all the difference:


Courtesy of Wikipedia

See the movie version. We rented the 1998 version of Cats with Elaine Paige and John Mills for free at our library. You can also check out movie clips on YouTube. Once you get familiar with the music, you’ll really be looking forward to seeing it on the ship.

Read the plot summary. You can find it on catsthemusical.com or read the story line in Wikipedia.

Download the lyrics. Some of the lyrics are quite clever but it can be hard to make them out at times during the singing. You can download the lyrics for free at metrolyrics.com or songlyrics.com.