1st cruise since 2001 and I'm very hesitant....

bdiddy

DIS Veteran
Joined
Mar 12, 2008
DH and I have been on two RCL cruises. We got married on the Grandeur in 1999 then went on the Monarch in 2001. I know things have changed A LOT based on all the research I've been doing. We've been wanting to go again for so long and the kids are now 11 and 13 and would love it so we've been looking at a cruise on the Oasis next summer.

I'm hesitant because it seems like it's changed so much and for the worse in many cases. That there are so many extra costs and pre-planning and I keep hearing how people say the staff is always pushing additional sales on you. DH and I aren't drinkers so on our previous cruises the only additional costs we had were the excursions and the tips. And whatever souvenirs etc...we bought. I keeping reading as well about the food and how the "free food" isn't as good as it was in the past and to get the best you need to book the signature dining (or whatever it's called). I'm also worried about the boat being too big and it being super crowded.

A cruise is supposed to be relaxing and I don't want to have to worry about all these extra costs every where for the "better" food and for drink packages and having pushy staff trying to sell you stuff constantly. Even though we'd be going on a cruise which is expensive in itself, we'd still be on a budget and can't just spend like crazy. The cost of just the basic drink plan for 4 people is crazy! I want to be able to have soda with my meal if I want and not have to pay extra which it sounds like.

We are big travelers and love Disney, music festivals and doing crazy long road trips over 2-3 wks. I guess I'm second guessing a cruise now and thinking maybe the money could be better spent to go do a road trip out west via the Northern route which has been on our list for awhile.

What are your thoughts on all this? Am I worrying too much? Are some of these things true and are an annoyance but you just get over it? I would love for some feedback from those that have been cruising for a long time and can compare how it used to be to now.

As much as I love our previous cruises, I'm just worried it won't be like I remembered and things will just be more stressful.

Thanks!
 
So yes, things have changed a lot. 17 years is a long time for anything. I went on (the old) Regal Princess in 2006. A lot of things were still paper-based. Our room key was a card with holes randomly punched into it. The dining dress code was actually enforced. There were designated "non-smoking" areas. And it was a lot of fun. Fast forward to 2013, when I went on the Allure. There was so much more tech on board. Everything was swiped via your key card. There were more activities. People basically dressed how they felt like for meals. There were designated "smoking areas" that too often wafted their odors towards everywhere else on the ship. And it was still a lot of fun.

(I also went on a ship called Atlas in the late 80s (so in my early teens). I usually pretend I didn't go on it, which should tell you a lot about how much I liked that cruise)

Am I worrying too much?
I don't think so. It's your vacation, and if you don't worry about your vacation, who will?

I'm hesitant because it seems like it's changed so much and for the worse in many cases. That there are so many extra costs and pre-planning and I keep hearing how people say the staff is always pushing additional sales on you. DH and I aren't drinkers so on our previous cruises the only additional costs we had were the excursions and the tips. And whatever souvenirs etc...we bought. I keeping reading as well about the food and how the "free food" isn't as good as it was in the past and to get the best you need to book the signature dining (or whatever it's called). I'm also worried about the boat being too big and it being super crowded.
You've gone to Disney frequently so you understand all about the pre-planning. The idea here, as it is there, is to speed up the process of getting you on board so you can start the "fun" part of your vacation (i.e. navigating crowds at the lunch buffet) faster. As for pushing additional sales, I've been on 3 Royal cruises and I was only bothered once to buy anything - a drink card, on the Harmony this year. I won't lie - there is generally a push to sell drink packages and such, but you can say no and easily avoid anyone pushing them. Especially if you're a non-drinker.

Food... I have to agree, it's probably not as good as it could be. But it is still good. Specialty restaurants can give you better food for a surcharge, but do you need to do one? The answer is - you don't. Many people can do a cruise without paying extra for food, and were perfectly happy. On our last cruise we did one night at Chops (the steakhouse) on one of their promotional rates and that was it.

The boat itself... I will say that Oasis class ships are not for everyone. It is the size of a self-contained resort, and it can be overwhelming. Is it crowded? I suppose one could consider it to be, but I felt more crowded on the DCL Fantasy than I did on Allure or Harmony. Again, it's a big boat.

We are big travelers and love Disney, music festivals and doing crazy long road trips over 2-3 wks. I guess I'm second guessing a cruise now and thinking maybe the money could be better spent to go do a road trip out west via the Northern route which has been on our list for awhile.
I love a good road trip (my kids however have yet to buy in), so I wouldn't try to talk you out of that. But I hope I gave you some food for thought.
 
Our first cruise was our honeymoon 2003. Radiance of the seas, Alaska.

I planned it for a YEAR with the help of cruisecritic and wedding planning message boards. So planning cruises is nothing new. Heck, I planned out pretend cruises in the late 70s, sending away for booklets to be sent in the mail and dreaming of South American cruises with excursions to macchu picchu. Seriously; planning is nooooothing new.

I planned out all the “mango tango” rum drinks I would have. Then we had a week between wedding and embarkation, and 3 days into the cruise as my bra area was up in size a cup and a half, I realized there was a reason the drinks weren’t good and I’d barely had two total. We had a little stowaway.

I was SO exhausted that I was passing out by 8, which is why I missed the one and only midnight chocolate buffet I would ever have seen. Sigh. That’s maybe the only thing I might miss from the older days. But then DH says it was kinda gross. All the sculptures were obviously old and frozen.


After dinner in 2003 the servers hawked aperitifs and the glasses like crazy. We have approx 9 little glasses bc they were cute and matched our wedding colors. There were no beverage packages so there was no break on the cost of anything. Pictures were expensive.

The food was as just as atrocious as it is now, which is to say that sometimes it’s bad and sometimes it’s not. We were then and are now vegetarian, and I’m just glad that it’s not eggplant dishes every stinkin’ night like it was then.

If you don’t want gold by the inch (which I remember being sold in 2003), say no. Don’t go to the store areas when the Compass says there’s a sale on. (Disney has stores, too, and they never have sales BTW) If you dont drink don’t drink. It’s simple to pass things by.


If you’re worried about the size of the ship, switch classes!!! Going from the tiny ships you’ve been on to oasis class is a big jump. As I said we were on radiance.

Then we hit Freedom (in 2014, after 3-4 cruises on Disney Dream). It had been long enough that we can’t make a side by side comparison to Radiance, but that change was big enough. Then we hit Vision, which reminded us of Radiance. Then we went on Adventure which was almost perfectly sized.

You’re going to cause culture shock by the choice of ship. Switch ships if that’s too much. I personally have NO interest in anything beyond Freedom class.


Oh and I’m pretty sure that DH’s sodas on Radiance werent free. Maybe they were on grandier and monarch but I think even by 2003 that had changed.

But you don’t have to buy the package. You can buy a can of soda a la carte if you’d like.
 
I found the free food to be perfectly fine (I am not a foodie however) and never considered upcharge specialty restaurants

I second the idea of a smaller ship maybe - there may be less for the kids to do though
 


So perspective is everything. I think there is way more planning that goes into a Disney vacation than ever goes into a cruise (maybe unless you're going to Europe). But I love going to Disney and I love going on cruises. As far as food, sometimes we eat in the Main Dining Room and sometimes we treat ourselves to a paid venue. I will tell you, we've never gone hungry!

I've been on Royal 8 times in the last 7 years on all sizes of ships. For me, the Oasis is too big, but my kids (boys were 10 & 14 at the time) loved it! There was so much for them to do. For us, we compromise on the Freedom class ships. Not too big for me, but still plenty for active teen boys to do.

No matter what, if you go into the vacation expecting to enjoy yourself, you probably will! Heck even a bad day at sea is better than a day at work!
 
I have said this before: If you go on a cruise expecting to find problems, you probably will. If you go on a cruise expecting to have a good time, you probably will. I have been cruising since the 1980s, so I can tell you things have definitely changed when it comes to cruising. My wife and I still cruise without paying for a drink package, specialty dinning, or anything else that cost extra except for shore excursions and souvenir purchases. When are daughter was younger, we did purchase her a soft drink package. Yes you do have to do some planning for shows and main dinning room seating times on larger ships, but the cruise can still be tailored to your wants and needs. We don't worry about chairs by the pool, or being the first off the ship at a port, we just go with the flow. If things get too hectic or crowded, we retreat to our balcony. I will say that the larger the ship, the more for the teens to do. Just like a WDW trip, Plan, check the plan, make the minor adjustments, then relax and expect to have a good time!
 
DH and I have been on two RCL cruises. We got married on the Grandeur in 1999 then went on the Monarch in 2001. I know things have changed A LOT based on all the research I've been doing. We've been wanting to go again for so long and the kids are now 11 and 13 and would love it so we've been looking at a cruise on the Oasis next summer.

I think your kids are the perfect age for Oasis- it was our first cruise and the one that got us onto cruising!

I'm hesitant because it seems like it's changed so much and for the worse in many cases. That there are so many extra costs and pre-planning and I keep hearing how people say the staff is always pushing additional sales on you. DH and I aren't drinkers so on our previous cruises the only additional costs we had were the excursions and the tips. And whatever souvenirs etc...we bought. I keeping reading as well about the food and how the "free food" isn't as good as it was in the past and to get the best you need to book the signature dining (or whatever it's called). I'm also worried about the boat being too big and it being super crowded.

"extra costs" is a big tag I hear on here and have never experienced (I've been on 2 Royal, 1 Disney and 1 Holland America cruises) I love food, but we haven't bothered to do much as far as extra dining (we have done Palo on the Fantasy and no special dinning on any of the other ships) we found the main dining room food good and we do like good food. We didn't find the ship too big- I actually found the Disney Fantasy felt a bit more crowded, even though it's a smaller ship. It was a bit crowded in the areas you would expect of course- when a show got out etc, but nothing over the top at all

A cruise is supposed to be relaxing and I don't want to have to worry about all these extra costs every where for the "better" food and for drink packages and having pushy staff trying to sell you stuff constantly. Even though we'd be going on a cruise which is expensive in itself, we'd still be on a budget and can't just spend like crazy. The cost of just the basic drink plan for 4 people is crazy! I want to be able to have soda with my meal if I want and not have to pay extra which it sounds like.

Yes, if you cruise royal and you want to have a pop with your dinner you will have to pay for it- it is what it is...I don't drink pop really, but I think having one with dinner will cost you $3? not much in the grand scheme of things- sometimes you see offers on drink packages if it is a big thing- I wouldn't let it stall you out though.

We are big travelers and love Disney, music festivals and doing crazy long road trips over 2-3 wks. I guess I'm second guessing a cruise now and thinking maybe the money could be better spent to go do a road trip out west via the Northern route which has been on our list for awhile.

I think both options sound great! We now love cruising, but I'd love to do a big roadtrip

What are your thoughts on all this? Am I worrying too much? Are some of these things true and are an annoyance but you just get over it? I would love for some feedback from those that have been cruising for a long time and can compare how it used to be to now.

Can't comment on how things used to be but as I said, Oasis was our first cruise and it's a good thing we are very far from Florida, or we'd be spending a lot more on cruises!

As much as I love our previous cruises, I'm just worried it won't be like I remembered and things will just be more stressful.

Thanks!
 


I usually love the main dining room offerings! That doesn't mean that the 'signature' dining experiences aren't even better, but they are entirely avoidable if you want them to be. Speaking of avoidable, 'staff pushing sales' on you seems to happen when you show up for the 'jewelry informational presentation' or the 'Johnny Walker tasting' etc. They organize sales pitches and wrap them around free drinks or a bingo card, which they wait until the end to give you. Just do what you want to do onboard and ignore the rest. It's not like the Jamaican Straw Market where they pull you into their booth and insult you if you don't purchase something from them.

You can have a GREAT time without spending a lot of extra $$.
 
We have sailed with RCI a few times and have noticed a big drop in the standard of the food in the main restaurant, not the ones where there is a cover charge. We twice sailed from Southampton, UK, that being our home port. The last time cottage pie was on the menu. For those who have never heard of that dish, it is stewed minced beef with a topping of mashed potato. It is a relatively cheap meal and, as a result, is a fairly standard dish in a lot U.K homes. It is not what we expected to be served on what RCI would have us believe is a luxury cruise. One night I told our waiter that I was considering the steak and was advised against it. And so the disappointment continued. We will never sail with them again.
 
With food, there can be a discrepancy based on the chefs. For example, on DCL Fantasy I had decent meals at Enchanted Garden and Royal Court, but Animator's Palate was just not very good.

But I do feel that the food quality in general on the "family" cruise lines has dropped. Best food I've had on a cruise is still on a Princess cruise back in 2006-2007.

Cottage pie, btw, is often mistakenly called "Shepherd's Pie" in North America. So if you order a shepherd's pie here, there would be no lamb, and it would cost you $10-20 depending on where you are. Based on that pricing, I'm not surprised to see it on the menu, especially for a cruise originating/ending in the UK.
 
I'm not surprised to see it on the menu, especially for a cruise originating/ending in the UK.

It seems like they attempt to incorporate some regional fare into the menu and it doesn't bother me. Some people would prefer a well-done 'comforts of home' dish vs some of the fancier offerings on occasion. Also, If I were to travel to Southampton, UK and cruise from there, that would be part of the experience I guess. That said, I would be pretty upset if I cruised from the US and sat down to a Main Dining Room dinner offering of Chicken Strips, Cheeseburgers, or hotdogs :) But there are other places on board to find those such things.
 
I've been on Grandeur as well, plus Voyager (with DH) and Allure with our kids (sister ship of Oasis). The Oasis class is amazing and so perfect ages for Oasis.

First off...yes, Royal charges for drink packages with lowest level being soda package, then other options with fancy coffee, and alcoholic drinks. But Royal cruise costs so much less than Disney so you need to look at the whole picture. For us, DH got the soda package as he's the only one that drinks pop. And we brought on 2 bottles of wine. Dh and I aren't huge drinkers so we didn't finish a bottle in one evening and the MDR stored it for us and brought it out the next night. Also note that for any extra drinks (soda, alcoholic) you can also buy by the glass so you don't have to purchase a package (but you need soda package to use the freesyle pop machines...any bar though will sell you soda).

Second...for planning...you can do pre-planning or you dont have to. It's up to you. The only thing that you do need to pre-book is the comedy show (not for kids) as it's in a small venue. For the others, you can just show up on stand by. Same options for dinner....you can do traditional dining where you have early or late seating and you get the same table, same waiter every night. Or you can go My Time. And with My Time, you can just show up, or make a reservation beforehand. We did My Time as I wanted to coordinate dinner with shows, but our kids were younger than yours so I didn't think we could do a late show every night. Again, you don't have to do this.

Third - sure you may see things advertised but I didn't feel at all that they were pushing things in our face. I don't remember being approached or anything...i wouldn't worry about that. We ate in MDR every night and it was fine. We also enjoyed the other included breakfast and lunch options. We really didn't spend much outside of base cost...just odd cocktail, character breakfast (small fee) and one excursion.

And yes, the ship is large, but its spread out and wiht different show options each night, so it doesn't feel crowded.

Oasis class is amazing...pools, flowrider, rockwall, zipline, skating, mini golf, sports court, parades, DreamWorks characters. And the shows are first class with good variety...Aqua show (regular and DreamWorks), broadway show (Cats on Oasis...we saw Mamma Mia), ice shows (regular and DreamWorks), cirque d soleil type show, variety show, etc. And tons of food options...included and extra specialty.

So yes...I think you are worrying too much. You don't have to pre-plan if you don't want, and you can be on the go, or just relax by the pool. Either way, you'll have a great time. I'm a big fan of Royal ships...especially the new ones. We even have Symphony booked for the future and can't wait!
 
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