A year ago our whole cruising resume was one sailing on Vision of the Seas, one of the smallest and oldest ships Royal Caribbean has.
Then we walked onto Oasis of the Seas.
It felt like trading a corner diner for a small city.
There were more people in the first hallway than we’d see in an afternoon on Vision.
I’ll be honest, the first hour was a lot. We stood in the Royal Promenade looking at the deck map like we’d never been on a ship before.
By the end of the week we were walking it without thinking.
This is our full review of seven nights on Oasis out of Cape Liberty, including the things we loved, the one port we’d skip next time, and the freebie we ate every single day without shame.
The Trip In Short
We sailed a 7-night Bahamas itinerary round trip from Cape Liberty in Bayonne, New Jersey.
The view of New York City as we boarded Oasis of the Seas
The route ran two sea days to start, Nassau on day four, Perfect Day at CocoCay on day five, then two more sea days back to New Jersey.
We were in cabin 8624 on deck 8, an ocean facing balcony. It was our first balcony cabin ever, which turned out to be a bigger deal than we expected.
Going From The Smallest Ship To One Of The Biggest
Vision of the Seas holds somewhere around 2,000 guests.
Oasis holds well over 5,000.
You feel that difference the second you step aboard.
Oasis of the Seas Cruise Ship
The thing nobody quite prepares you for is the layout. Oasis class ships are built like neighborhoods, with Central Park and the Boardwalk sitting open to the sky in the middle of the ship.
The first day, we got turned around constantly. We’d aim for the Windjammer and end up at the AquaTheater.
Our room was ready a little before 1pm, which gave us somewhere to dump our bags and regroup early, and that helped.
Here’s the honest part though. By day three, the size stopped being overwhelming and started being the whole point.
There was always somewhere new to go. We never once felt like we’d “done” the ship.
What we learned: give yourself the first day to be lost. Don’t fight it. Walk the ship with no destination and the map sorts itself out in your head faster than you’d think.
Was The Balcony Worth It? Our First One, And Yes
We sailed Vision in an oceanview cabin, which is a window you can’t open.
On Oasis we finally booked a balcony, and I don’t think I can go back.
The moment that sold me wasn’t some dramatic sunset. It was breakfast.
We started ordering room service breakfast and eating it out on the balcony with the ocean going by and nobody around.
Our first balcony and ordering room service for breakfast was well worth it
On a ship with 5,000 people, that little square of private outdoor space became our favorite spot.
We used it way more than I expected. Coffee in the morning, a quiet few minutes before dinner, the sail away from CocoCay.
If you’ve been on the fence about whether the upgrade is worth the money, we dig into the full math in our breakdown of whether a balcony cabin earns its price tag. For us, on a sea day heavy itinerary like this one, it absolutely did.
From here on out, I’m a balcony person.
The Main Dining Room Surprised Us
The Main Dining Room on Oasis is enormous, spread across multiple decks, and it ran like a machine.
The service was the same thing we loved on Vision, just at a bigger scale. Every server we had was warm, fast, and genuinely accommodating.
The part that surprised us most: they happily let us order multiple appetizers, multiple entrées, and multiple desserts at no extra charge.
Main Dining room was amazing as usual!
Couldn’t decide between two mains? Get both. Want to try three desserts? Nobody blinks.
That’s included in your fare, and a lot of first-timers don’t realize it.
We still tipped extra on top of our auto gratuities for the crew who looked after us all week, which is something we always budget for and walk through in our guide to tipping on a cruise.
If you’re coming from a smaller ship and worried the food takes a hit at this scale, it didn’t.
Chops Grille At Lunch Is The Move
This is the tip I’d hand a first time Oasis cruiser before almost anything else.
We booked Chops Grille, the steakhouse, for lunch instead of dinner.
The lunch menu was basically the full dinner menu. Same steaks, same sides. Just served midday and priced lower than the dinner cover.
And the same generous rule applied. We added extra apps and an extra entree at no additional cost.
One of the best steaks I’ve ever had at Chops!
The steak I had was honestly one of the best I’ve ever eaten, on land or at sea.
For a fraction of the dinner price, it was the best value meal of the whole trip.
Tip: If your ship offers specialty restaurants at lunch, check that menu before you book dinner. You may get the same kitchen at a lower price, often on a sea day when you’ve got time to linger.
El Loco Fresh And The Taco Situation
I need to be upfront about something. We have a problem, and the problem is tacos.
El Loco Fresh is the free Mexican spot on Oasis, a casual walk up counter near the pool deck.
We went the first day. Then we went back. Then it became a daily thing.
Tacos were the highlight of our trip on Oasis of the Seas
Tacos, burritos, a salsa bar, all included in your fare, no specialty charge.
It became a running joke between us by mid cruise, that no matter what the fancy dinner plan was, we were getting tacos first.
People sleep on the free food on these ships. The included spots beyond the buffet are some of the best eating onboard, and we rounded up more of them in our piece on cruise freebies most people walk right past.
El Loco Fresh is at the top of our list now.
The Bars, The Shows, And The Zip Line
Oasis has a stunning number of bars, and more importantly, a real variety of them.
Our favorite was Vintages, the wine bar. It had a classier, calmer feel than the pool bars, a nice wine list, and an atmosphere we kept coming back to in the evenings.
If you’re trying to decide whether a drink package makes sense with this many bars in play, we ran through how we’d actually make that call in our take on whether the drink package pays off.
The entertainment is where the bigger ship really flexes.
The AquaTheater shows were genuinely amazing, divers and acrobats over an open-air pool at the back of the ship. Nothing like that exists on the smaller ships.
Aqua Theater shows were top notch, especially the 80s show!
The comedy shows were hilarious and we went more than once.
We saw Cats, the full musical, in the main theater, and it was a real production.
There were game shows that had the whole room laughing.
The casino was bigger and livelier than what we’d seen before, which we enjoyed even just walking through.
And then there’s the zip line.
You ride it across the open Boardwalk, several decks up, with the ship moving under you.
Do the zip line. I can’t say it plainly enough. It’s quick, it’s a little nerve wracking in the best way, and it’s one of those only on a cruise moments. We didn’t do the FlowRider or the rock wall this trip, but the zip line alone was worth lining up for.
Perfect Day At CocoCay Without Spending A Dime Extra
CocoCay was our first visit to Royal Caribbean’s private island, and it was a highlight of the whole week.
Here’s what we did not do: we didn’t buy the Thrill Waterpark, we didn’t book a cabana, we didn’t pay for the Beach Club.
We brought our own snorkel gear and headed straight to Chill Island when we got off.
The snorkeling right there was fantastic. So many fish, and at one point an actual manta ray glided past us. That alone made the day.
Perfect Day at cococay was an amazing day!
Then we went exploring. We walked away from the main crowds, all the way down to Cove Beach, and found a stretch where there was almost nobody.
On an island sharing a full ship’s worth of people, we had a quiet patch of beach mostly to ourselves.
The free side of CocoCay was completely worth it for us. You do not have to spend a fortune to have a great day there, something we keep coming back to in our look at the costs on a cruise that sneak up on you.
And yes. There were tacos on CocoCay too. They were top notch. We’re consistent if nothing else.
Nassau Was A Lot
I want to be fair here, because the trip was overwhelmingly positive and I don’t want to dump on Nassau.
But Nassau was a lot.
There were six cruise ships in port the day we were there, so the whole place was packed shoulder to shoulder.
Nassau and 6 cruise ships that day
The hustle right off the pier wore on us fast. Constant offers to try things, buy things, and the bracelet on your wrist routine where it’s “free” until suddenly it’s a donation for a “charity.”
We also heard there was a fight near the port around sail away. We didn’t see it ourselves, but enough reports went around that it was clearly a real scene that day.
Honestly, next time I’d consider just staying on the ship while it’s docked in Nassau. With most guests ashore, the ship is quiet and you’ve got the pools and venues nearly to yourself.
That said, I’m still glad we got off and experienced it once. You should see a place for yourself before you decide it’s not for you.
Getting On And Off At Cape Liberty
Embarkation at Cape Liberty was smooth in the ways that mattered, with one rough spot.
The drop off line to actually get into the terminal was backed up badly. People we talked to who’d sailed from there before said it’s not normally like that, so it may have just been our day.
But once we were inside, it flew. We sat down for maybe ten minutes before they started boarding.
Getting off at the end of the cruise was easy too.
We grabbed our bags and walked off without much waiting. The one move I’d recommend: we walked about ten minutes away from the terminal pickup zone to get picked up, which let us skip the worst of the curbside traffic jam.
If you’ve never done embarkation day before and want to know what the whole flow looks like from arrival to sail-away, we broke it down step by step in our embarkation day walkthrough.
What We’d Do Differently Next Time
We came off this cruise with a short list.
We’d book the balcony again without thinking twice. It changed how we spent our mornings and we’re not giving that up.
We’d hit Chops at lunch again. Best-value meal on the ship, and we’ll repeat that on every sailing that offers it.
At CocoCay, we’d go right back to the free beaches and the snorkeling. We didn’t feel like we missed anything by not paying for the extras.
And in Nassau, I’d probably stay aboard, or at most step off briefly. One visit was enough to know what’s there.
The one thing we wouldn’t change at all is the ship itself. Going from Vision to Oasis was a leap, and after a shaky first day, we loved every part of the bigger experience.
Final Thoughts
Oasis of the Seas took us from feeling lost in a floating city to feeling at home on it in about three days.
The balcony was worth every penny, the dining beat our expectations, the zip line and the shows delivered, and CocoCay was a great day without spending extra. Nassau was the one part we’d handle differently next time.
For our first big ship cruise, it set a high bar.
Have you sailed Oasis of the Seas, or are you weighing your first big ship cruise after a smaller one? What surprised you most when you stepped aboard?