Royal Caribbean Cruise's newest addition Oasis of the Seas is slated to enter their fleet in December 2009. What makes this ship so great for group cruises? Let's see...
SIZE DOES MATTER
Small ships are a poor choice for multi-generational group trips, as they generally have limited activities, smaller public spaces, and fewer choices for members. If you will be traveling with people of varying ages and interests, a larger ship provides more options, making it easier to meet everyone's individual expectations about the group cruise. The Oasis will be the largest ship on the ocean - boasting a passenger capacity of 5,400 at double capacity with 2,700 staterooms. It's important to select a group cruise that will fit everyone's budget. On a larger ship, there is generally a wide range of stateroom categories in a variety of different price ranges. It's likely that everyone will find something they can afford - whether it be an interior stateroom, an oceanview, a balcony, or a suite. However, the Oasis of the Seas takes the typical stateroom choices and turbocharges them. This ship was built with an abundance of staterooms that overlook interior public spaces -- like the tranquil Central Park, the bustling Promenade Deck, or the outdoor Boardwalk.
CENTRAL PARK, THE PROMENADE DECK & THE BOARDWALK
For those who are familiar with Royal Caribbean's Voyager or Freedom-class ships, you already know they are a big "wow" for just about everyone. These three public spaces (where both Central Park and the Boardwalk are new concepts) provide a memorable spot for groups to gather. Central Park is a change from the typical flashy and colorful cruise ship decor. The designs provided by Royal Caribbean reveal neutral, spa-like colors and cozy spaces that would be conducive for quiet chats and catching up (great for family reunion cruises). All sorts of interesting plants will be represented in Central Park - including Calla Lillies, ferns, vines, an assortment of trees, pineapple plants, bamboo, and more. Right below Central Park will be the new and improved Promenade Deck featuring a skylight called the Crystal Canopies that shines light from Central Park above.
The Promenade Deck is also a really great place to hang out informally with people at the coffee shop, ice cream shop, or any of the lounges or restaurants. A new addition to the Promenade Deck is the Rising Tide Bar - a high-tech water feature where the bar rises up on a plume of water from the Promenade Deck to Central Park (three stories up). Additionally, embarkation for this ship will take place at the Promenade Deck rather than on one of the lower decks (as has been with the other RCC ships).
AQUATHEATER
In addition to the standard entertainment fare (theater, movies, casino, etc.), Oasis has the coolest outdoor amphitheater ever called the AquaTheater. By day, the large pool (51' x 21') can be utilized by guests. With a depth of 17 feet deep and filled with fresh water, this is much different than the typical cruise ship pool. At night, the area transforms into an outdoor theater with a water and light show. Trapeze artists take to the heights and artistic swimmers fill the pool. Cameras have been installed under the water and the images are projected on large screens on each side of the pool. I'm not sure how groups could utilize this space, but it was too cool not to mention it.
CHOICES, CHOICES AND MORE CHOICES
The key to successful cruise group travel is choices. You want to have choices for stateroom accommodations so everyone can find something within their budget. You need choices for dining - so finicky eaters will be happy, as well as accommodating those with restricted diets (such as diabetics or those with food allergies). With a group cruise, you'll be hard pressed to find a single activity that everyone will agree on, so the more choices there are, the more likely it will be that everyone will find something fun to do.
CONCLUSION
The Oasis of the Seas provides so many choices for so many things that cruise group travel was an obvious consideration Royal Caribbean had in mind when they designed this ship. With their great group policies (in terms of Group Amenity Points, pricing and tour conductor credits), planning group trips onboard this ship is something your group can plan with confidence. Oasis' inaugural sailing is set for December 12, 2009. Royal Caribbean will begin taking bookings on September 3, 2008 for this fantastic group-friendly ship.
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Tuesday, July 29, 2008
Friday, July 25, 2008
Specialty Dining on Royal Caribbean Cruise Line
A few years back my wife and I decided to go on a cruise to Bermuda for our wedding anniversary. Normally we would take a weekend trip somewhere within a reasonable driving distance, but in this particular year we really wanted to go on a cruise.
We chose the Royal Caribbean cruise line as our means for vacation for this particular trip. We chose Royal Caribbean because they offered a cruise to Bermuda from a local port within an hour drive from our house.
On most cruise vacations that my wife and I take we try to treat ourselves to something special. It could a massage, or an exciting excursion, but you can always count on us doing something as an added piece of excitement for our vacation.
This time we wanted to try something new on the cruise ship. On this particular Royal Caribbean ship they had a specialty restaurant called Portofino's. I understand that they have added this same restaurant to all of their new ships, and after having one dinner there I can understand why.
We considered this a treat because there is an added expense of $25 per person to dine at Portofino's. Some people asked us why we would pay to dine on a cruise ship when the food is included at sit down dinners and of course at the buffet. Prior to us dining there we thought the same thing, but then also thought to give it a try and experience it just once.
Dining in the specialty restaurant is far different than what you will experience elsewhere on the ship. When you walk into Portofino's it is similar to walking into a five star establishment. The waiters and waitresses are dressed to the utmost professional attire. That is not to say that the waiters and waitresses in other dining areas do not look professional, but Royal Caribbean makes the specialty restaurant help go a step further.
When dining you are given a menu of many choices of appetizers, salads, soups and main courses to choose from. Many differ from what you would find at your normal sit down meal, however there are also some familiar choices as well. As with your sit down dinner or buffet, it is still all you can eat, so if you wanted to try a couple different appetizers or entrees they will accommodate your request. The best part is they will scale down your order for the amount of food you eat (if you so wish).
In other words if you order two appetizers, lets say escargot and duck, instead of getting two full appetizer portions they will gladly split each down to a half serving size. I like this option as it makes me feel like I am not wasting food.
The restaurant also has floor to ceiling windows so you can enjoy the view of Bermuda (or wherever your ship is going/docked). Light sounds of classical music plays in the background and because space is limited the conversational noise from surrounding tables is very low.
Overall I would rate our experience at Royal Caribbean's Portofino specialty restaurant, on a scale of one to five where five is the best, a five. We received great food, excellent service and the ambiance was outstanding. Add all of this up and it far outweighs the nominal $25 cost.
We liked it so much that we recommended it to our friends. On their next cruise they tried it and absolutely loved it as well. Give it a shot I am sure you will not be disappointed.
Read also:
Biggest Cruise Ships in the World
The Royal Caribbean Cruise Deal
Serenade of the Seas - Ships of Royal Caribbean
Majesty of the Seas - Ships of Royal Caribbean
Cruising Down Under With Royal Caribbean Cruises
By Bruce A. Tucker
We chose the Royal Caribbean cruise line as our means for vacation for this particular trip. We chose Royal Caribbean because they offered a cruise to Bermuda from a local port within an hour drive from our house.
On most cruise vacations that my wife and I take we try to treat ourselves to something special. It could a massage, or an exciting excursion, but you can always count on us doing something as an added piece of excitement for our vacation.
This time we wanted to try something new on the cruise ship. On this particular Royal Caribbean ship they had a specialty restaurant called Portofino's. I understand that they have added this same restaurant to all of their new ships, and after having one dinner there I can understand why.
We considered this a treat because there is an added expense of $25 per person to dine at Portofino's. Some people asked us why we would pay to dine on a cruise ship when the food is included at sit down dinners and of course at the buffet. Prior to us dining there we thought the same thing, but then also thought to give it a try and experience it just once.
Dining in the specialty restaurant is far different than what you will experience elsewhere on the ship. When you walk into Portofino's it is similar to walking into a five star establishment. The waiters and waitresses are dressed to the utmost professional attire. That is not to say that the waiters and waitresses in other dining areas do not look professional, but Royal Caribbean makes the specialty restaurant help go a step further.
When dining you are given a menu of many choices of appetizers, salads, soups and main courses to choose from. Many differ from what you would find at your normal sit down meal, however there are also some familiar choices as well. As with your sit down dinner or buffet, it is still all you can eat, so if you wanted to try a couple different appetizers or entrees they will accommodate your request. The best part is they will scale down your order for the amount of food you eat (if you so wish).
In other words if you order two appetizers, lets say escargot and duck, instead of getting two full appetizer portions they will gladly split each down to a half serving size. I like this option as it makes me feel like I am not wasting food.
The restaurant also has floor to ceiling windows so you can enjoy the view of Bermuda (or wherever your ship is going/docked). Light sounds of classical music plays in the background and because space is limited the conversational noise from surrounding tables is very low.
Overall I would rate our experience at Royal Caribbean's Portofino specialty restaurant, on a scale of one to five where five is the best, a five. We received great food, excellent service and the ambiance was outstanding. Add all of this up and it far outweighs the nominal $25 cost.
We liked it so much that we recommended it to our friends. On their next cruise they tried it and absolutely loved it as well. Give it a shot I am sure you will not be disappointed.
Read also:
Biggest Cruise Ships in the World
The Royal Caribbean Cruise Deal
Serenade of the Seas - Ships of Royal Caribbean
Majesty of the Seas - Ships of Royal Caribbean
Cruising Down Under With Royal Caribbean Cruises
By Bruce A. Tucker
Monday, July 14, 2008
The Royal Caribbean Cruise Deal
Cruising has become a very popular way to take a vacation in the recent years and that is due to the fact that the number of cruise ships companies has grown considerably. Nevertheless, choosing the right cruise ship company for your cruise can make all the difference in the world between having a good vacation and having the vacation of a lifetime. Royal Caribbean Cruise Line is consider as one of the leading cruise ship companies in the world with 20 operational cruise ships of different sizes offering cruises to most of all the famous and desired destinations in the world. Royal Caribbean Cruise Line has their ships divided by family groups so as to mark their capacity and destinations: the smallest of the family is the Empress of the Seas with a passenger capacity of 2,020 guests followed by the Sovereign Family, which has three ships, the Majesty of the Seas, Monarch of the Seas and the Sovereign of the Seas, these ships hold approximately 2,700 guests.
The subsequently Royal Caribbean Cruise Line family is the Vision Family, which consists of six ships namely: Enchantment of the Seas, Grandeur of the Seas, Legend of the Seas, Rhapsody of the Seas, Splendor of the Seas and Vision of the Seas. After which is the Radiance family with four ships, they are, Brilliance, Jewel, Radiance and Serenade of the Seas; Voyager family ships is next with five ships to boats, which are Adventure, Explorer, Mariner, Navigator and last but not the least Voyager of the seas.
Lastly, in the Royal Caribbean Cruise Line fleet is the Freedom family, which for the present has only one ship, the Freedom of the Seas, which is also known as the largest ship in the world with a capacity of 3,664 guests. The Freedom class family ships are due to make another addition in May of 2007 with a sister ships of the same capacity of the Freedom of the Seas, which will be called Liberty of the Seas.
Caribbean holiday cruises are usually conducted on the eastern and western and southern Caribbean and each itinerary will differ very much in prices depending on the ports of call and the amount spent at sea. Caribbean holiday cruises are normally for three, five, seven and sometimes even up to ten days; the most popular Caribbean holiday cruise consist of seven days because it is made of the right amount of days in port and at sea in order for you to explore and have fun as well as to relax and rejuvenate before getting back at work.
You can make an effort to do some research online and read through some passengers reviews and comments before picking a Caribbean holiday cruise in order to find out which one will suit you and your requirements best or on the particular cruise liner's website. Nevertheless it is recommended to book your Caribbean holiday cruise through your travel agent as that is the only way to get the best deals for any cruise at any time of the year.
Sequentially to fill the ships up there are Caribbean cruise deals that are available until the last moment and some of them can be as low as $99 for a length of seven days cruise with everything included; what more can you ask for. But of course, this is not a deal that you may get everyday but a good Caribbean cruise deal will easily be available from $199 and above depending on the length on the cruise and the cruise liner.
There are generally two ways to go about getting a good Caribbean cruise deal: one way is to try and approach your travel agent who will be able to track down the best deals on the market at any given time and the other way is to make your booking directly with the cruise lines online. There is yet another way to get a good Caribbean cruise deal but, this only applies if you happen to live in Florida and that is to try and get a cruise on the day the ship sails out as they almost always have vacancies and almost always they will sell it for some unbelievable deals. It is on the other hand not recommended to travel all the way to Florida hoping to get a great deal in the last minute as you can get disappointed.
Each cruise ship company caters for a particular type of guests for example; Disney cruises mainly cater for young families, which usually will make the ships activities, food and entertainment around those requirements. It is suggested that you check the cruise liner targeted guest types before you make your booking for a cruise so you don't get stuck on what seemed like a great Caribbean cruise deal with the wrong crowd.
Source
The subsequently Royal Caribbean Cruise Line family is the Vision Family, which consists of six ships namely: Enchantment of the Seas, Grandeur of the Seas, Legend of the Seas, Rhapsody of the Seas, Splendor of the Seas and Vision of the Seas. After which is the Radiance family with four ships, they are, Brilliance, Jewel, Radiance and Serenade of the Seas; Voyager family ships is next with five ships to boats, which are Adventure, Explorer, Mariner, Navigator and last but not the least Voyager of the seas.
Lastly, in the Royal Caribbean Cruise Line fleet is the Freedom family, which for the present has only one ship, the Freedom of the Seas, which is also known as the largest ship in the world with a capacity of 3,664 guests. The Freedom class family ships are due to make another addition in May of 2007 with a sister ships of the same capacity of the Freedom of the Seas, which will be called Liberty of the Seas.
Caribbean holiday cruises are usually conducted on the eastern and western and southern Caribbean and each itinerary will differ very much in prices depending on the ports of call and the amount spent at sea. Caribbean holiday cruises are normally for three, five, seven and sometimes even up to ten days; the most popular Caribbean holiday cruise consist of seven days because it is made of the right amount of days in port and at sea in order for you to explore and have fun as well as to relax and rejuvenate before getting back at work.
You can make an effort to do some research online and read through some passengers reviews and comments before picking a Caribbean holiday cruise in order to find out which one will suit you and your requirements best or on the particular cruise liner's website. Nevertheless it is recommended to book your Caribbean holiday cruise through your travel agent as that is the only way to get the best deals for any cruise at any time of the year.
Sequentially to fill the ships up there are Caribbean cruise deals that are available until the last moment and some of them can be as low as $99 for a length of seven days cruise with everything included; what more can you ask for. But of course, this is not a deal that you may get everyday but a good Caribbean cruise deal will easily be available from $199 and above depending on the length on the cruise and the cruise liner.
There are generally two ways to go about getting a good Caribbean cruise deal: one way is to try and approach your travel agent who will be able to track down the best deals on the market at any given time and the other way is to make your booking directly with the cruise lines online. There is yet another way to get a good Caribbean cruise deal but, this only applies if you happen to live in Florida and that is to try and get a cruise on the day the ship sails out as they almost always have vacancies and almost always they will sell it for some unbelievable deals. It is on the other hand not recommended to travel all the way to Florida hoping to get a great deal in the last minute as you can get disappointed.
Each cruise ship company caters for a particular type of guests for example; Disney cruises mainly cater for young families, which usually will make the ships activities, food and entertainment around those requirements. It is suggested that you check the cruise liner targeted guest types before you make your booking for a cruise so you don't get stuck on what seemed like a great Caribbean cruise deal with the wrong crowd.
Source
Friday, July 11, 2008
Serenade of the Seas - Ships of Royal Caribbean
There is no mistaking a great ship like Royal Caribbean's Serenade of the Seas with just any other cruise ship. Spend just a couple of hours on her and you will find out why.
"To the lover of wilderness, Alaska is one of the most wonderful countries in the world," John Muir. I mention Alaska because that is the trip I took with my wife and in-laws when I sailed on Royal Caribbean's cruise ship, the Serenade of the Seas.
For me it was the perfect cruise ship to set sail on for this type of 7 day fun and adventure. With it's floor to ceiling windows from the Champagne Bar to it's great construction of how the balconies off of the rooms were laid out so that you can speak to your neighbors without a huge wall interfering with you, made it that much better.
It had many ammenities such as a complete workout facility, an auditorium for events and shows, many gift shops and of course the spa and salon, a service which my wife and I took advantage of. We each signed up for the half hour massage, which was well worth its price tag. The masseuse was very professional and thorough and after talking to my wife hers was also just as good. Just keep in mind the price you pay does not include your tip and that really should be based on the level of service that you received.
Another great feature of the Serendae of the Seas are the separated pool areas. One is set up so that both the kids and adults can enjoy it and the other pool area is for adults only. I found it hard to believe that families would bring kids on an Alaskan cruise, but they did and there were a lot of them.
At the time my wife and I did not have any children so I did not partake in learning of any of the kids activities, but on the top deck there were basketball courts, volleyball courts, miniature golf and a slew of other activities to keep kids of all ages busy and it looked like they were having loads of fun.
For adults there were ample amounts of "watering holes" to choose from to wet you whistle at anytime during the day. If for some reason you just did not want to get out of your seat to belly up to the bar for a drink there were plenty of courteous waiters and waitresses ready to meet your every need.
The trip through the inner passage and seeing the Hubbard glacier, Skagway, Ketchikan and Juneau was a great trip and I would highly recommend it. Seeing these sites from the beauty and comfort of Royal Caribbean's Serenade of the Seas made it that much more enjoyable.
Source
"To the lover of wilderness, Alaska is one of the most wonderful countries in the world," John Muir. I mention Alaska because that is the trip I took with my wife and in-laws when I sailed on Royal Caribbean's cruise ship, the Serenade of the Seas.
For me it was the perfect cruise ship to set sail on for this type of 7 day fun and adventure. With it's floor to ceiling windows from the Champagne Bar to it's great construction of how the balconies off of the rooms were laid out so that you can speak to your neighbors without a huge wall interfering with you, made it that much better.
It had many ammenities such as a complete workout facility, an auditorium for events and shows, many gift shops and of course the spa and salon, a service which my wife and I took advantage of. We each signed up for the half hour massage, which was well worth its price tag. The masseuse was very professional and thorough and after talking to my wife hers was also just as good. Just keep in mind the price you pay does not include your tip and that really should be based on the level of service that you received.
Another great feature of the Serendae of the Seas are the separated pool areas. One is set up so that both the kids and adults can enjoy it and the other pool area is for adults only. I found it hard to believe that families would bring kids on an Alaskan cruise, but they did and there were a lot of them.
At the time my wife and I did not have any children so I did not partake in learning of any of the kids activities, but on the top deck there were basketball courts, volleyball courts, miniature golf and a slew of other activities to keep kids of all ages busy and it looked like they were having loads of fun.
For adults there were ample amounts of "watering holes" to choose from to wet you whistle at anytime during the day. If for some reason you just did not want to get out of your seat to belly up to the bar for a drink there were plenty of courteous waiters and waitresses ready to meet your every need.
The trip through the inner passage and seeing the Hubbard glacier, Skagway, Ketchikan and Juneau was a great trip and I would highly recommend it. Seeing these sites from the beauty and comfort of Royal Caribbean's Serenade of the Seas made it that much more enjoyable.
Source
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