TRAVEL TRADE GAZETTE

Well everyone I managed to get out and see Oasis of The Seas for her thanksgiving cruise, you can see my impression of Mark Durden Smith (Wish You Were Here Presenter) exploring all the Neighbourhoods with Natasha Grech my Female Oppo in The Face of Travel 2009.
www.ttglive.com/oasis/videos

The ship was amazing see below:

ROYAL CARIBBEANS OASIS OF THE SEAS .....
Day in the Life
Day 1
0640 As set off towards Fort Lauderdale from London my thoughts were all over the place, what will she be like? How big is 220,000 tonnes? How will a ship cope with 5400+ Passengers?
1520 After a 9hr flight we headed to Fort Lauderdale from Miami mere 30 min drive.
1610 We rounded the corner into Port Everglades I was in awe at the size of this Gigantic White Structure floating, my first thought was it looked very plain and nothing singing out to me.. I know why as you read further on you will realise the reason....
1615 As we made our way into the Terminal (Built Specifically for Oasis of The Seas) the boarding was split into 3 areas decks 1-7 & 8-16 & Suites, great thought as this makes for easier processing as we seemed to glide through security, we were directed through to the check in are where there were specific check-ins for each decks , if Check-In agents became available in other queues they would check in people from other decks so there was no queuing to get onboard.
1625 We climbed the gangway my heart was racing I was like a Big Kid in a sweet shop, as I strolled onboard I uttered (I thought I uttered someone heard me!) “OH MY GOD”, as soon as I walked onto Deck 5 the first thing I saw was the “Rising Tide Bar” just leaving deck 5 rising, my eyes were everywhere then, looking down towards “The Royal Promenade”, amazing as all I kept saying.
1700 I was in my balcony stateroom ready for what the next 3 days held in store for me
1945 we had a few drinks before dinner in Bolero’s a Latin Bar with live music followed by dinner in the Opus Dining Room
2200 We headed to the Exclusive show for guests onboard this special Thanksgiving cruise to see Abbacadabra a ABBA Tribute band which are one of the best tribute bands in the world as well as very comical and I got an Abbacadabra Dollar makes pushing my way to the front all the better especially as I had Anne Freda serenade me,
2345 We headed to Blazes Nightclub playing great music until the wee hours Pop/Disco, when the lights came on at 4am (This became a regular occurrence) I thought time for bed. Wow to Day 1
Highlight: Abbacadabra & Stepping Onboard Oasis of the Seas
Day 2
0730 I got up as I needed to be looking my best as I was being filmed as The Face of Travel Boys for TTG website, I knew this was going to be hard after 3 hrs Sleep
0830 Breakfast in Windjammers followed by a morning of inspecting Staterooms & Suites including the loft suite my favourite stateroom onboard
1245 We head onto Royal Promenade with a quick stop at The Cup Cake Cupboard for Cupcakes & Sorrento’s for Pizza yummy...
1315 Exploring Royal Promenade featuring High End Shops, Champagne Bar, Cafe Promenade, Rising Tide Bar, Globe & Atlas British Pub, Bolero’s & On Air Club (Karaoke Bar), as this is directly above Central Park on Deck 8 natural light during the Day floods in.
1945 Cocktails before Dinner in Dazzles Nightclub featuring scratch DJ’s hosted by Royal Caribbean’s UK Team, with Tapas and nibbles and being commended for being lively as people from RCI Miami had been to other Cocktail Parties that evening that were like Seminars, well us Brits know how to party especially the Travel Industry
2215 The Premier of Hairspray the Musical a Full 90 minute Broadway Show. Then onto guess where?
0015 Blazes night club where I was lucky enough to be introduced to some of the stars of the show including Tracey Turnblad & Edna now it took me 20 minutees into the show to realise this was played by a man!! I also got to meet some of the behind the scenes guys from Miami who make the costumes for the shows. Again 4am the lights popped on and we left for bed.
Highlights: Seeing Hairspray & Meeting the cast, Red Velvet Cupcake & UK Cocktail Party.

Day 3
0930 We had the morning to ourselves to explore whatever we felt like so I popped out for brekkie followed by exploring the the Boardwalk area where they were rehearsing the Aqua Show a great sight in the light. As well as the only Carousel at Sea.
1230 After being coaxed, well forced I took the plunge I did the rock climbing wall some 10 decks up the ship with varying levels of ease from easy to difficult guess which did I do?
1330 We headed to the rear of the ship on to Deck 15 where the Pool & Sports Deck is we zipped across deck 15 from port to starboard on the Zip wire with nothing but a drop of 9 decks below this made for a hair-raising experience not for the faint hearted & well done to Jo Razymoski for doing this with Jane Archer & the Zip Wire for supporting me literally. Bearing in mind the few drinks I had the nights before someone reminded me that I had agreed to do the flow riders (sure they conned me on this one), not one to back out of a dare I took the plunge so to speak, Not being very good at balance on 2 feet see the nights before I agreed to body board, thinking I would be on & off straightaway I got on, well how was I to know being of a big build this helped me control the board and I managed to stay on for a while including smiling & waving at the camera pro or what..
2045 Dinner in the Opus Restaurant in my Dinner Suit and Pink Bow Tie, which was really special as this evening was Thanksgiving feeling really privileged to be able to part of this something I had never experienced I had a Full Thanksgiving dinner including Pumpkin Pie oh my this was delicious.
2300 The first showing of the Oasis of Dreams Aqua Show in the Aqua Theatre, upon entry I was warned if you go to the front three rows you will get wet... (OK I Thought whatever) the show was amazing high divers, dancers, amazing visuals and this was just a 20 minute preview show as this launches on 01/12 for the first cruise I didn’t get that wet! The audience gave a standing ovation at the end. After the Oasis of Dreams we also were privileged enough to see Splish Splosh a Water show to the music of Diana Ross “Coming Out” with Music and Lights galore, the finale being all the fountains spraying 10-12 decks high either side of the Royal Caribbean Crown at the top of the Aqua Theatre... with hundred of gallons of water being pumped skywards what goes up must come down! This is where you do get wet and I mean soaked well I was advised but ignored this!
0030 Off to Dazzles for an 80’s Party an awesome sight with the 2 deck high windows looking out over the Boardwalk
0200 Back to my wateringhole yes you guessed it Blazes our haunt, I met some of the Aqua Show Divers with bodies to die for WOW, at 0430am they switched the lights on, the end of 3 wonderful days.
0500 In one of the Jacuzzi’s on deck 15 with friends made on the cruise I know they will read this I got into the Jacuzzi like everyone else not thinking .. Whoops I had no towel, also I forgot my key so was locked out of my cabin and had to go to guest services... well at least the staff laughed.
Highlights: Thanksgiving Dinner, Aqua Show & Early Morning Jacuzzi
Day 4
0730 Alarm goes off breakfast and then we wave goodbye to The Biggest, Most Innovative, Imaginative and Amazing ship I have ever been on ... Thank You Oasis of The Seas, All The Crew Onboard and everyone at RCI UK for making this a trip of a lifetime, guess what I will be selling on my teletext pages and websites..... 25 Dining Options more bars lounges and nightclubs and countless entertainment options & activities there's going to millions of Why Not moments aboard this ship

Watch Oasis Reveal Herself

Watch on www.ttglive.com and follows us as we explore the ship vote for what you would like to see next.....

Larger than life on the ocean horizon, the world's biggest cruise ship swaggered into Port Everglades as a crowd of onlookers at a Broward beach park cheered.
``Wow!'' cried one of the early risers, who came with binoculars and blankets to greet the 225,000-ton megaship Friday morning.
The Oasis of the Seas was accompanied by a flotilla of small boats and doused by water cannons as it headed into its new home port. Royal Caribbean executives and local leaders waited to greet the $1.4 billion ship, which has taken six years from conception to completion.
At John U. Lloyd State Park, Marsha Scharf, of Chesterfield, Mo., rubbernecked from the beach and thumbed through a text message on her cellphone.
``TJ says, `Can you tell which ship we are?' '' she said, laughingly to her fiancé, Tom Smyka, who stood next to her clicking pictures.
Scharf said her son, Timothy, had sent the text message from the Oasis, where he has been working since August as IT manager. ``It's his 33rd birthday,'' his mother said.
Dana Steinberg, a retired merchant marine from Hollywood, arrived early to take in the mammoth ship, which has seven neighborhoods, including a boardwalk reminiscent of Coney Island. ``I've never really been on a cruise, but I love ships.''
This ship has not one, but two rock-climbing walls, and two surf simulators, an ice-skating rink, and 24 restaurants. The theater will feature a 90-minute production of the Broadway hit Hairspray, which the cast has been practicing during the crossing from Finland.
The Oasis, carrying crew and construction workers, braved high seas and hurricane-force winds in the North Atlantic. That stretched the journey from a shipyard in Turku, Finland, to Fort Lauderdale to 14 days -- two days longer than planned. But Royal Caribbean officials say the giant ship performed fine in the rough seas.
FINAL DETAILS
Now that the ship is in Port Everglades, workers will attend to the final details. Perhaps the biggest job is the installation of 12,000 shrubs, plants and trees to give Central Park, the first of its kind park-at-sea, a leafy, green ambience.
The U.S. Coast Guard plans to begin inspecting the ship Saturday to check the safety and security systems and to review the crew's readiness. A team of eight Coast Guard inspectors also visited the Turku shipyard in October to check the technologically advanced ship, which was designed to meet international safety requirements that aren't yet in effect.
Miami-based Royal Caribbean International plans a private performance by pop singer Rihanna on Thursday, followed by a national television debut on ABC's Good Morning America from 7 to 9 a.m. Friday.
The ship, which has 16 passenger decks, will sail on several promotional cruises with travel agents, journalists and guests before making its first revenue cruise Dec. 1.
The naming ceremony is slated for Nov. 30 during a one-night fundraiser to benefit the Make-A-Wish Foundation, which provides treats to children with life-threatening illnesses. Tickets for the event begin at $750 per person.
The 5,400-passenger ship, which is 40 percent larger than the next largest cruise ship, was designed with seven neighborhoods so that passengers can orient themselves more easily and hang out in areas that appeal to their interests.
``We really buy into the concept of multigenerational travel,'' said Adam M. Goldstein, the cruise line's chief executive. ``We want to be able to please grandparents, parents and children on the same cruise at the same time. That's simply diversity of choice.''

The Boardwalk, for example, with a handcrafted carousel, is expected to appeal primarily to families with kids. The Entertainment Place, encompassing the giant Casino Royale, comedy and jazz clubs, and the Opal Theater, is a hub for adults at night. The ship has a youth zone with play and educational activities and a separate youth area aimed at teenagers, with a teen disco, computer games and dance floor.
Royal Caribbean is hoping to lure first-time cruisers with the new attractions while offering fresh options for repeat customers.
CENTRAL PARK
The most radical part of the ship's design is its width -- 154 feet across the beam. That enabled designers to carve open the center and create the open-air atrium for Central Park, which has guest cabins lining both sides.
According to Richard D. Fain, chairman and chief executive of the parent company, Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd., much has changed from the original plans for Central Park. ``It wasn't so much a park as a garden, a lawn, with hills going up and down,'' Fain said.
But then spatial design and virtual reality experiments suggested the grass wouldn't endure heavy foot traffic. ``We went through a period of about two months of despondency until we got something we thought was better,'' said Fain, who gets involved in the nitty-gritty details of ship design and accouterments. ``We knew the garden wasn't going to work. We didn't know what we were going to replace it with. So for a month and a half or two months we were very nervous.''
The Central Park is sort of a ``town square'' with entertainment and specialty restaurants, including 150 Central Park, featuring an up-and-coming chef, Keriann Von Raesfeld.
The middle of ship has a spoiler to deflect wind upward. ``Otherwise winds would be sucked down into Central Park and create an unfavorable condition,'' said the ship's hotel director, Raimund H. Gschaider, who led a Miami Herald reporter on a tour of Oasis in the STX Europe shipyard in Finland just before its departure for Fort Lauderdale.
During a sea trial with winds reaching 45 to 50 knots, Gschaider said, ``we were in Central Park and you had a breeze.''

Copyright Miami Herald written by Martha Brannigan

The Count Down Begins to Oasis

Well just 6 days until I am lucky enough to be one of the first to experience Royal Caribbean's Newest Arrival Oasis of The Seas, at 220,000 Tonnes she is the biggest cruise ship sailing the oceans and is an engineering feat. With 7 Neighbour Hoods, Aqua Theatre, Zip Wire, 2 Rock Climbing Walls and numerous Restaurants, Entertainment options it makes wonder if anyone will actually get off the ship.
At full capacity she will have 5402 Guests, will you meet the same person twice on your cruise?, I know I will be keeping my guide firmly in my hand as I only have 3 Nights to experience Oasis I don't want to get lost.
Oasis's first Revenue cruise will be 01/12/09 from Fort Lauderdale, although prior to this selected guests and dignitary's have been invited for Royal Caribbean International to showcase Oasis of The Seas to the Industry. I can tell you I am absolutely thrilled to be reporting from Fort Lauderdale & The Caribbean with Travel Trade Gazette (TTG) on this fantastic ship.. watch this space over the next week or so and see her in all her glory.

www.oasisoftheseas.com

Face of Travel 2009

Well I have been crowned the Travel Trade Gazettes Face of Travel 2009

I will be reporting on News & Events within the Cruise Industry & bringing you some of the best deals out in the Market Place...

As well as promting cruises, I own & run the UK's 1st & Only Gay Lesbian Bi & Transgender Cruise Agency World Pride Cruises part of The World Pride Travel Group.

We are the ONLY Travel & Cruise Agency in the UK to offer you CASH BACK through the Coperative Membership Scheme
Of Coure all travel is ABTA & ATOL Bonded for your financial protection and all from a name that has been trusted for 150 years The Cooperative.

Visit any of my websites for info....

www.futuretravelcruise.co.uk & www.holidayholiday.co.uk/martinowens www.worldpridecruises.co.uk & www.worldpridetravel.co.uk

Tel: 0161 223 7576