CruiseMates Cruise Bargains

by Paul Motter

Oasis of the Seas:
Two More Details to be Revealed
Royal Caribbean will reveal the two more major details of the new Oasis of the Seas tomorrow in an online virtual show. Travel writers and agents received invitations by email to view a web site with highly interactive displays, live chat for asking questions, videos of new ship features and onboard activities and itinerary details.

The first detail, Central Park, was brought to light last year. The second reveal, The Boardwalk with all of its enhancements such as the AquaPool and Carousel, and for the expanded Royal Promenade, was given at a press conference in New York City last May. We also got our first views of renderings of the new dual-level staterooms.

What will be revealed tonight remains to be seen, but we still have not seen some important indoor public areas. Will Oasis have an ice rink like the Voyager-class? Will there will be a water park similar to the Freedom-class ships?

The "Virtual Doors" for the exclusive sneak peak at the next two innovations on Royal Caribbean's Oasis of the Seas, open tonight at 6:00 p.m. Eastern Time (3:00 Pacific) and CruiseMates will bring you updates as soon as we know them.

Pricing: early reports of Oasis prices start at $799 for the lowest category inside cabin. This is for mid-autumn cruises some nine months after the ship debuts on December 12, 2009. If you want to sail on the inaugural cruise prices are currently set to start at $1299 inside, oceanview at $1549 and balcony cabins start at $1699.

Oasis will have many new cabin categories never seen before. Voyager-class brought us the "PR" category of Promenade staterooms, which have windows looking inwards to the ships' inner sanctum, the Royal Promenade. On Oasis, there will be cabins looking into the Royal Promenade with (assuming the renderings are accurate) true balconies where one can walk out and view the "street scene" of parades and nightclubbing below.

There will be the usual balcony cabins facing out towards the sea, but the top of the ship is a virtual canyon with walls of stateroom decks with balconies facing both outwards to the sea and inwards towards the open-sky plazas "Central Park" and the "Boardwalk."

Bookings are already open to Diamond Members (10 cruises or more) of the Royal Caribbean "Crown and Anchor" past passenger program. Regular members (those with at least one previous Royal Caribbean cruise) can book starting on August 28. Bookings will open to the general public on September 3rd.

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