Baby let's cruise...

A week from today Spouse & I will be leaving on vacation.  We're going with our friends Steven & Thad on a cruise with ports of call in Nassau Bahamas, St Thomas/US Virgin Islands, and St Maarten.

But this isn't just any Caribbean cruise... we're sailing on the world's largest cruise ship, Royal Caribbean's Oasis of the Seas.  (Allure of the Seas is its twin sister ship.) 

Oasis of the Seas has a maximum capacity of 6,296 passengers and 2,394 crew.  That's nearly 8,700 people! But it won't be crowded because we'll be on the world's largest cruise ship!!

But how big is the biggest?  Its nearly 1,200 feet long and 236 feet tall (above the waterline).  Still not sure how that compares with other cruise ships?  Well, in the photo below you can see Holland America's Maasdam ship in the foreground, and Oasis of the Seas behind it.

Yeah.... that should clear things up.

In addition to its gargantuan size, this ship also features a unique open center, providing balcony cabins facing the center of the ship, overlooking a replica of New York's Central Park.   

This ship's Central Park features the very first living park at sea, with over 12,000 live plants and trees.

Other amenities onboard include: 

2 wave simulators

A zipline over Central Park

An ice skating rink

A fitness center with over 150 machines

A working carousel

2 rock climbing walls

A miniature golf course

A childrens water park

An aquatheatre

...as well as the 'standard features' of most cruise ships such as a casino, multiple nightclubs, bars, shops, theatre shows, specialty restaurants, spa, multiple pools and hot tubs.

We're pretty excited!!  It will be fun to experience something so large and unique, to get away from the winter weather, to visit the 3 tropical islands, and to get out of our routine of work.

Obviously I'll have photos to share here once we return.